Chapter 150
“Is it true that your ability is to drain life force?” the man with the beard sneered, tearing off a piece of cancerous tissue and hurling it at Liang, taunting, “Come on, show me! Suck out my life force!”
【His weakness lies in the bronze pillar beneath the copper coffin…】
The bearded man extended a long, fleshy tendril from the back of his head and poked it into Chen Huai'an's ear, whispering:
【This old monster is just a corpse puppet; it’s not his true form. His real body isn’t even in the copper coffin; it’s all an illusion. His limbs and heart are locked inside the bronze pillar. I’ll distract him; you go destroy the pillar!】
Chen Huai'an didn’t have time to comment on this bizarre method of communication.
He simply nodded slightly, signaling to the bearded man that he understood.
In the brief moment of respite, he had regained a bit of spiritual energy and stealthily pulled out all his thunderfire talismans, ready to unleash them.
Without the advantage of draining life force, Liang was mercilessly beaten by the bearded man.
No matter how badly Liang’s body was battered, it could quickly regenerate.
“It’s useless; you can’t kill me. Killing the spirits only strengthens my power. Killing me will only enhance the master’s strength… Heh heh heh, either way, you will all die!”
Liang looked at the bearded man, his broken mask filled with mockery and disdain.
“Is that so?”
Seeing Chen Huai'an stand up, the bearded man knew the moment had come. Countless tentacles erupted from his body, sealing Liang, the bronze pillar, and the copper coffin in place.
Opportunity!
Chen Huai'an narrowed his eyes, raising his hand to fling the talisman forward.
Spiritual energy surged through his arm and into the thunderfire talisman.
Several beams of golden light shot into the air, locking onto Liang.
Boom—!
With a thunderous roar, golden thunderfire erupted from the talisman.
“Holy crap!” The bearded man quickly let go, watching helplessly as the thunderfire engulfed the bronze pillar, the copper coffin, and Liang all at once.
A bead of cold sweat trickled down his forehead.
If he had been even a moment later, he would have been caught in the thunderfire as well. While he might not have been completely burned to death, he had a strong feeling that being scorched by thunderfire was definitely not an experience worth having.
Within the thunderfire, ancient remnants were reduced to powder, and faint cries of lost souls could be heard.
Liang melted in the flames.
He felt no fear, nor did he scream.
The shattered mask completely crumbled, revealing a grinning skull beneath, a chilling smile etched across it.
“Please, Ancestor of Corpses…”
“Feast!”
…
…
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Chapter 160: The Black Coffin Soars (Sponsored by Fala Niu)
【41,000 yuan has been credited!】
Liang was dead, perhaps too thoroughly.
When Chen Huai'an saw the game notification that a fragment of demonic cultivation had dropped, the drained life force returned.
The two girls were the happiest, as women can never accept the idea of becoming old hags.
So when it came time to settle the task rewards, they were all too eager.
Of course, it didn’t hurt that Chen Huai'an was quite handsome.
He didn’t rely on his looks to get by, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t good-looking!
Just like a game, you might not need to pay to win, but you should always be prepared!
“You really went all out destroying the bronze pillar, didn’t you? Almost got me killed too,” the bearded man said, glancing at Chen Huai'an, who was sitting cross-legged in the passenger seat, catching his breath. “Kid, this mission is worth five million. When the bonus comes through, it’s all yours; I just want the credentials.”
Chen Huai'an’s eyes widened in surprise. “Are you serious?”
“Absolutely!”
“Father figure!”
The bearded man: “…”
“No need to be so formal. If it weren’t for your help, I doubt I could have destroyed his true form on my own.”
The bearded man spoke casually, smiling broadly.
But Chen Huai'an could still see the fatigue and weakness in his eyes.
Every ability comes with a price, just like his sword techniques cost spiritual energy.
The bearded man must have expended quite a bit during this battle.
Among the others, the four demon slayers in the back seat were completely exhausted, fast asleep. His body was gradually recovering with the spiritual energy, and while the bearded man appeared the most energetic, he was likely the most drained.
“What are you staring at?” The bearded man gripped the steering wheel, chuckling. “By the way, kid, I saved you, so you owe me a life. Remember to repay me later.”
Chen Huai'an’s sympathy and concern for the bearded man vanished in an instant, and he pouted. “What, you want me to follow you around?”
“Would you?”
“No way, I’m used to my freedom.”
“But aren’t you a containment object now?”
“If you’d just keep quiet, you’d actually look pretty cool.”
“Hahaha!” The bearded man burst into exaggerated laughter. “No worries, I know you’re not interested. Just kidding with you.”
Chen Huai'an didn’t respond.
He did owe the bearded man a life, and he made a mental note of it.
He would definitely repay it when the opportunity arose.
His greatest virtue was not owing anyone favors.
Including that time when the boat took away Li Qingran and Yue Qianchi; although the tavern had taken a hit, Li Qingran had returned the owner a bag of low-grade spirit stones, enough for him to buy a hundred taverns.
Everything has its consequences.
He looked at the bearded man, hesitated for a long moment, and finally asked, “Uncle, you seem really passionate about hunting demons. Every time you succeed, you look so excited. Why is that? Is it because you can obtain better fragments of the breathing techniques?”
The bearded man fell silent for a moment, then smiled, though there was a hint of bitterness in his expression. “Honestly, it doesn’t matter if I tell you. These things aren’t secrets in the Demon Slayer Bureau.”
“Seven years ago, during the winter solstice, at the old cotton mill in the south of the city.” Luo Haisheng’s mutated left hand gripped the steering wheel tightly. “My wife and daughter were hiding in the boiler room from the snow, and a skin-wearing demon turned them into a human-skin lantern.”
“Heh.” He chuckled softly, almost as if mocking himself, blood vessels bursting in his right eye, yet his voice remained eerily calm. “That beast wore my wife’s skin and called me Haisheng Ge… From that day on, this rotten flesh of mine has only feasted on demon bones!”
Chen Huai'an rubbed his nose.
He regretted asking that question.
“Kid, feeling guilty? No need to. Many people in the Demon Slayer Bureau carry their own stories, and few are pleasant. Maybe we joined the Bureau for our own reasons at first, but now it’s more about the demons and evil spirits.”
“…Demons and evil spirits kill without reason, just like an avalanche crushing a flock of sheep. But we humans must find a reason to rise from our knees; in the end, it’s all for ourselves.”
Chen Huai'an gazed out at the city bathed in twilight.
The neon lights of the night blurred into patches of color in the drizzle. As the car passed Spring West Road, a massive naked-eye 3D screen displayed a virtual idol’s cross-dimensional concert, fluorescent pink electronic snow falling on the shoulders of ecstatic boys and girls, shattering into data fragments upon touching the ground.
“You have a new food delivery order~” an AI voice chimed from a nearby shop.
A girl in dinosaur pajamas, sipping on a milk tea through a straw, glided past the armored vehicle on glowing roller skates, her braided hair brushing against the car window, mixing with the alarm of the onboard sensors into a strange harmony.
This was his city.
At some point, it had transformed from black and white into a vibrant tapestry of colors.
Suddenly, the vehicle jolted violently.
The pink-haired girl sleeping in the backseat slammed into the front seat, letting out a shriek.
“What was that?!”
The cool girl pointed at the sky outside, her voice trembling.
Chen Huai'an turned his head.
There, floating in the night sky, was a black coffin, radiating a chilling blood-red glow.
At the center of the black coffin was a protruding white face.
It looked both mournful and mocking, reminiscent of Liang’s masked visage.
Full of derision.
…
When the first black coffin pierced through the electronic screen in the square, the live-streaming dance influencer froze in place—this pitch-black coffin was the size of a shipping container, and the surface of the lid was not adorned with patterns, but rather thousands of eyeballs embedded in flesh.
“What the hell is this? Is it some kind of AI special effect?” Before the man holding a selfie stick could finish his sentence, a second black coffin crashed through the glass dome of Starbucks, splattering latte foam across the coffin’s surface, which transformed into a grotesque human face.
The entire city began to convulse…
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