Chapter 212: Epilogue (2) |
The Witch’s burning gaze was forcibly cooled by something, and her vision began to fade.
Her thoughts became sluggish, and she tried calling out. However, her throat seemed to be strangled by something, and all she could choke out was a soft moan of pain.
Her flesh and bones felt as if they were being corroded by strong acid as pain resonated throughout her body.
Tyranny, cruelty, avarice, bloodlust—all kinds of negative emotions grew like fungi within her mind.
But these thoughts have always been with you—something whispered in her mind.
The sticky, black blood merged with the Witch’s body, and she saw darkness.
She found herself in a fragmented dream on the roof of an empty high-rise building.
A giant, black Serpent was coiled on the roof, squirming towards the centre. It raised its huge body and stared her down.
Its maw was huge, with neither teeth nor a tongue. Like a black hole, it began to swallow up the little light illuminating the city, and the Witch felt herself being pulled into its maw.
She let herself sink into the darkness.
She hovered in the darkness for an eternity. Only her heart continued to beat with life, and a biting coldness bulged from her heart.
In a daze, she could hear the cries of countless girls and see an ancient pool of blood carved from rock. The blood flowed into it along a dirty ditch, and the faces of young women, distorted into pain, struggled within the pool of blood.
The pool of blood began to take form, swelling upwards into the shape of a female body.
As the bloodied woman was formed, like a bubble, it burst, splashing blood everywhere.
A petite girl emerged from the bubble like a butterfly emerging from its cocoon. Her pale hair hung down like curtains, and the blood flowed down her face, leaving no scarlet traces on her pristine face.
She was pure, like the first snow in winter, but her aura was terrifying, like an endless blizzard.
The girl smiled at the Witch, opening her mouth.
A terrible noise, like the screams of countless girls, flooded her ears, stinging her eardrums like a blade was poking at them.
The girl continued to scream, but the Witch could only hear a single word.
Lilim1Lilim, or Lilin, are said to be the descendants of Lilith and Satan. They were described as demons or succubi. They are said to harm children and seduce men, draining them of their essence..
A name? It sounds familiar.
Seeing that the Witch was unable to understand her, the girl shook her head, sinking back into the pool of blood.
The Witch looked upon the lake silently, only to be pulled backwards.
She opened her eyes.
She patted her face, and it seemed like the pain and all of the negative emotions that eroded her blood and bones seemed not to exist at all.
“Oh my god.”
She began to take deep breaths, greedily letting the air fill her lungs. She felt as if she hadn’t breathed for an eternity.
Feeling the cool, humid air fill her lungs, she was stunned as she looked around hurriedly. Only then did she realise that, at some point, she had left the bottom of the pit and was lying by a clearing in the forest. The dark weeds she was lying on had a layer of dew on them.
Looking at the pit nearby, it seemed to have shut, leaving a ferocious scar on the ground.
“Is it over?”
Lu Yibei stared at the hideous scar on the ground and realised something.
Fuck! If the Serpent God is dead, doesn’t that mean that this world will die too? How the fuck am I going to get out?
She hurriedly scourged through Lu Xu’s memory.
She soon found out that she could leave when night fell the next day and breathed a sigh of relief. The fatigue finally caught up with her, and she collapsed back onto the clearing.
However, she felt something strange on her body. Something seems to be pressing on her chest, which makes it slightly uncomfortable. When she raised her head slightly to look at her chest, she saw two lumps.
“Jesus Christ! What the hell?”
She leapt up from the ground like a fish out of water. Standing straight, the lumps on her chest had a weight to them, causing her to lean forward.
Looking at her torn robe, she could visibly see the ridges that could only resemble the ridges of breasts.
And she knew very well that she was seeing her own body.
Damn, I’m big!
Jumeng’s words soon came back to her mind regarding the blood of corrupted gods.
Jumeng told me that the blood of corrupted gods should have a serious impact on high-level urban legends, causing them to fall into madness. However, weaker existences will be able to reap some benefits.
It means I’m not strong enough to be affected by the blood, which also means that I became stronger!
Unexpectedly, being weak had its benefits.
Now, if I run into that damn Rabbit again… It will be a battle between men.
“It’s a pity I lost consciousness inside the pit, though,” she sighed. “I don’t even know how I got out of it. The Serpent’s cores must be buried inside too.”
“But it’s okay!” she continued. “I don’t even want to try eating a dead god’s core; if I bring it to Jumeng, she’ll be suspicious; if I hide it, it may cause weird things to happen.”
And most importantly, I gained knowledge.
Although she wasn’t able to understand its knowledge yet, she has benefited a lot from it.
In summary, she knows that there are three ways to improve her shortcomings.
She had vaguely come into contact with the first two ways before, which were to devour other urban legends and gather faith.
Both had their own problems: devouring meant risking your own life; gathering faith was safe, but it entirely depended on the believer’s beliefs, which may end up corrupting whoever they were worshipping.
The Serpent was a good example.
The final, third way had no risks at all, but it had one big disadvantage: money.
The knowledge vaguely mentioned that various potions and mythical items were needed.
Damn it, being poor sucks!
The coat squirmed uncomfortably as Lu Yibei was deep in thought.
>:/ It seems that my Witch doesn’t want the cores.
That means I can only throw it away in secret, right?
✧(≖◡≖✿) But it shouldn’t matter if I absorb its power a little before throwing it away, right?
Meanwhile, in Gu Qianqian’s shack by the side of the mountain.
Seeing that the portal back home had not yet opened, the system checked each and every single one of the scrolls that she had taken from the ancestral hall.
“A disguise spell?” the system said. “You can’t use that. It’s too complicated.”
“Hmph! You’re looking down on me! I didn’t want it anyway!” She grumbled, tossing the bamboo scroll into her designated sell pile and grabbing a new roll of scrolls.
“What about this one?” she asked.
“It harnesses the power of bugs to create powerful venom. You hate insects, so sell them. Maybe you can get a Level C core for it.”
Her eyes lit up once again, taking the next scroll from the pile.
“What about this one?”
“This one is…”
More than two hours later, she had divided the scrolls into two categories: ones to be sold and ones to be studied.
The system secretly smiled to itself. Finally! Its host was listening to it.
Gu Qianqian had refused to learn spells before, but now, after a little convincing, she fell into its trap obediently.
So naïve, Gu Qianqian!
“System, there is another set of scrolls here. Do you know what’s on it? It’s sealed.”
The system was startled. Analysing it, it was exactly the same as the set of bamboo scrolls used to form a portal to enter this world.
“I’m afraid that thing is evil. Don’t even take it out; leave it here.”
“Why? You’re not telling me why!” She pouted, frustrated that she had to leave a bamboo scroll she had worked so hard for in this dreaded world.
“Gu Qianqian…”
“I’m not hearing it!”
“Gu-”
“Nope! You are a bully! All you do is bully me.”
“Gu Qianqian! That is a copy of the bamboo scrolls used to enter this miserable world! If we take it out, we might accidentally let the remaining urban legends in this world escape into our world! We can’t do that!”
“I won’t let them!” she retorted. “I can teach them to be human, to become people with ideals, ambitions, and love! Meaningful people to society! You’re not making any sense!”
The system sighed. Yes, her ideals were beautiful, but if they were that simple, urban legends would never choose to be one. In fact, the system would force Gu Qianqian to instil core socialist values into the World Ender.
“And didn’t you say that I’m the protagonist of this world?”
“I suppose.”
“There are many kinds of protagonists… there are protagonists like in [Give Me Personal Space!], [I Got a Suite in Fairy Land], and [It’s Hard to be a Lord of Another World].”
“…?”
“So, I have decided that, in my story, I will be a cultivator, strengthening myself endlessly!”
An idea rang into the system’s head. Strengthening endlessly…
It seems possible to strengthen her if it could somehow steer the villagers’ beliefs into believing in Gu Qianqian.
Plus, if the villagers could turn into psychics, they could aid her in combat.
The system decided to give it a try. After failing so many times, it was good to try new things—plus, if anything went wrong, Gu Qianqian would be the one to bear it.
It’s rare to see her so motivated.
Hope it works!
Huacheng, in a hotel.
A woman dressed in revealing clothes entered and stopped at the receptionist.
The employee glanced at the woman with a playful smile on her lips and said, “You’re here—that old man looks well-dressed and rich. He’s a good target.”
“Good,” the charming woman smiled. “I’ll head up right away. After I take my clothes off, I’ll send you a text, and you can ask them to knock on the door.”
“I know, I know, this isn’t the first time we’ve done it. By the way, he’s old and fragile, so let’s try not to cause too many problems.”
“Don’t worry about it,” the charming woman said again, smiling. “I’ve seen the photos. Somebody like him cares about reputation the most; he’ll pay after a little threat and get me a beer.”
“What?”
“I have to commit to the bit!”
In the suite on the top floor.
Ever since the nights became longer, it has never been easy to stay in a suite like this.
Customers were paranoid about urban legends, so they tended to avoid booking rooms on the top floor. However, a rather handsome old man specifically requested the suite.
Such weird behaviour caused the receptionist to pay more attention, and then she had some weird ideas to cause some trouble.
In the suite, Professor Ma sat cross-legged on the bed, staring intently at the bamboo scrolls spread out in front of him as he mumbled to himself.
“Lu Yibei… When the hell are you going to come out? My wife is going to kill me!”
More than twenty hours have passed in the real world. His phone calls were overwhelming him, but he didn’t dare to answer them.
Ever since Yibei was sucked into the portal, the bamboo scrolls would glow intermittently, then emit a dark, smelly liquid. Sometimes, it would vibrate violently, and a roar could be heard inside the scrolls.
This made him shudder in fear. How could he bring such a haunted item back home? In desperation, he could only find a remote hotel, lock its doors, close the curtains, and hide in despair.
Fatigue soon caught up to him, and just as he was about to fall asleep, a knock suddenly sounded.
Knock… knock…
Hearing the sound, he frowned as he called out, “Who is it?”
The person outside didn’t answer, but the knocking got more vigorous.
Knock, knock, knock!
The rapid knocks filled his heart with panic, and he eyed the bamboo scrolls on the bed.
Suddenly, the scrolls began to glow with a blinding light, and a pair of slender, white hands stretched out of them, grabbing onto the edges of the scrolls for support as if they were trying to crawl out.
Seeing the scene like Sadako and hearing the constant knocking, he swore he almost peed.
Outside the suite, the charming woman knocked endlessly, but nobody came.
“Damn it, is that old man that scared? If this continues, I have no choice but to ask for the master key downstairs,” she grumbled.
“And I, Wang Chunhua, will never let the golden egg fall out of my grasp.”
Just as she was planning to go back downstairs, the door suddenly swung open, and she was so happy that she rushed in without gauging the situation.
Then her chest hit something soft.
She took a staggering step back, and after she regained her footing, she was stunned.
A tall, white-haired girl was wearing an oversized men’s jacket, and her slender legs were exposed under the jacket.
The girl crossed her arms with a gloomy face and huffed, “Can I help you? I think you got the wrong room, girl.”
The charming woman cursed the receptionist. Didn’t she see somebody entering the room with the old man?
“N-no, this is the right room,” she answered. “It’s, uh, room service! Special services, if you know what I mean.”
“Oh, but I still think you got the wrong room. He already has me here.”
Chunhua gulped, feeling that her beauty was severely dwarfed by the girl in front of her. However, her ego didn’t allow her to back down.
“Well, maybe he needs more… help. The both of us can.”
“Oh, no need!” The girl interrupted. “I already squeezed him dry.”
The moment she heard this and looked at the girl’s pristine legs, she covered her face in shame and ran away.
Watching her leave, Lu Yibei shrugged and closed the door, but not before hearing a loud complaint coming from the corridor.
“That old man has a little minx in his room, yes! Whatever, who’s the next guest? I’m getting frustrated.”
When she returned to the room, Professor Ma had already fallen asleep due to excessive fatigue. The bamboo scrolls on the bed seemed to have completely decayed, turning into a ball of ash.
Seeing this, she swept the ash away, then sat down on the sofa as she hugged the jacket silently.
She waited and waited until a hint of the rising Sun appeared beyond the horizon, and she went to the rooftop of the hotel.
No matter how unbearable the night is, dawn will always come.
As the Sun rose little by little, she allowed the golden sunlight to pour on her. However, her eyes didn’t begin to burn like usual; her body didn’t begin to heat up like usual; her body didn’t begin to morph back to normal like usual.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
Huacheng, in a certain apartment unit.
Lu Yibei wasn’t home for an entire day, and Jumeng couldn’t help but feel worried. She was so anxious that she logged off her game and sat in the living room as she stared at the door.
The wig hid in the corner, observing Jumeng with mixed emotions.
Should I tell her that our Witch may not come back? It wondered. But she asked me to wait for her a little longer! What do I do? If she goes crazy, we will be the ones who suffer!
Just as the wig began to panic, the lock on the door began to shake, and a familiar voice came from outside the door.
“Hey, you got up early enough,” Lu Yibei teased. “Did you stay up all night playing games? I got you breakfast. Want to eat together?”
Jumeng glanced at the boy before her and pouted, “Of course! But don’t think for a second that I’ll forgive you for leaving me here all night!”
“Oh, I just went downtown with my classmates for one night. I just forgot to tell you. Were you worried about me?”
“If you die, nobody is going to help me collect cores! Of course, I was!”
The wig smiled and looked away. True enough, their Witch was powerful and came back safe and sound.
A supposed big problem was solved in just a single day. The wig admired their Witch endlessly.
At the dining table, Lu Yibei eyed Jumeng as he kept stuffing fried dough sticks into his mouth as if he wanted to vent his anger using his food.
“Wait a minute; I’m sweating. I need to shower,” he said.
Entering the bathroom, he immediately locked the door and sighed. He turned on the shower head and took out a palm-sized crystal bottle from his pocket as he stood in front of the mirror.
Thick liquid, like black blood, was inside the bottle.
This was what leaked out of his body as he transformed back into his original form.
What on earth is this? It stopped me from feeling hot.
Is this the Serpent’s corrupted blood?
He thought for a moment and sighed again. He stepped on the toilet as support and opened a ceiling panel, hiding the crystal bottle inside the ceiling.
“Let’s hide it there now that the matter is finally over,” he muttered to himself as he stretched. “No matter what, tomorrow is always a new day.”
[END VOLUME 2]
T/N: This brings us to the end of Volume 2. I’d like to thank you all for sticking with me to this point with all the comments you’ve shared while reading this novel (even though I’m not answering as much these days due to IRL responsibilities, I do read the messages you leave and I really appreciate them), I’m afraid I have some bad news. This will be the end of the daily releases for this novel for now, as IRL responsibilities are catching up to me… So at least for now, the release rate will drop from daily releases to hopefully 3 chapters per week. I thank you for your understanding and hope you will continue to stick with me on this novel 🙂
- 1Lilim, or Lilin, are said to be the descendants of Lilith and Satan. They were described as demons or succubi. They are said to harm children and seduce men, draining them of their essence.
