Chapter 223
Once again, she repeated the previous process, and at this point, Yu Xunge finally inscribed her name on the contract displayed in the game. Only after the contract was officially established did she deactivate her disguise skill, revealing her true appearance.
Liang Pozhou silently recited the name "Yu Xunge," committing it to memory. He said, "They all understand the seriousness of this matter, and it's their biggest concern. So you don’t need to worry about them throwing a tantrum. They won’t know your identity before I die."
Yu Xunge's first command was, "Do not cooperate with Yu Xunhuan. No matter what promises he makes or benefits he offers, do not engage with him. Furthermore, I want your Liang family to suppress him and make his life as miserable as possible.
"Investigate the current situation of Yu Qingshan and Yi Qiuguo.
"Look into the state of Lan City. I want him to wish he were dead.
"Gather information on the Han family in B City, and preemptively strike at their plans in S City.
"Collect items that have 'Shishen' (食神, literally 'God of Food') in their names.
"Investigate a player who is buying skills with blank skill crystals.
"Look into someone named Yi Chang."
Liang Pozhou: ...
Is it really this busy right after starting the job? Was that cool, aloof expression of yours—where you looked like everyone but you was a burden—all just an act?
**Chapter 259: Two World Tombstones**
"Alright, I’ll take care of these tasks," Liang Pozhou replied, then began to fulfill the contract. "I’ll send you Miyas's inheritance in a week. His lair is located deep in the forest southeast of Tuntun Forest, where there’s a toxic swamp that no one dares to enter. His lair is 300 meters below the swamp, without specific coordinates, just a description of the surrounding scenery. I’ll have to check back and send it to you tomorrow night.
"His weakness is that he fears seawater. We took care of him at first and even prepared seawater for him. For over a decade, we didn’t notice anything unusual; he’s incredibly good at hiding it. It seems he views this weakness as a shame.
"He hides it well, but Yun Sheng has an exceptionally keen eye. Plus, he loves listening to Yun Sheng tell stories about the Blue Star. Over time, Yun Sheng discovered this deeply buried secret. Whenever he stays in seawater for too long, he becomes extremely weak."
Having obtained everything she wanted, Yu Xunge planned to leave. However, after taking a few steps, her curiosity got the better of her. She asked a question she had been holding back for a long time: "Actually, it wouldn’t matter if you became a sea demon, would it? You could easily give up a little and trade with me to help you escape to Zelan."
Liang Pozhou's eyes flashed with surprise. He opened his mouth, momentarily at a loss for how to explain, as if a child had asked him, "Why does one plus one equal two?" He pondered, expecting Yu Xunge to grow impatient and leave, but instead, she patiently stood there, waiting for his answer, forcing him to seriously consider the question.
After a long while, he finally found the words: "But if that were the case, we would have no home.
"As long as we remain human, even if we’ve done terrible things, as long as we don’t betray the Blue Star, our kind will still accept us, believe in us, and give us opportunities. There will always be a place for us here. But if we become sea demons, we can never return."
Even through his sunglasses and mask, Liang Pozhou could sense Yu Xunge's astonishment. No, "astonishment" didn’t quite capture it; perhaps "dumbfounded" was more fitting.
He chuckled, "Although I still don’t know what foolish things my descendants have done to make you so surprised by my words, I can vaguely guess. I can only say that the more one chases fame and power, the more they care about their homeland. Because if they leave their hometown and become 'outsiders' in another place, everything they once took pride in will be lost, and they will become nothing."
Though he was now a sea demon, anyone could see he was different from a true sea demon. His fish tail was dull and lifeless, and his voice hadn’t become melodious or pleasant due to his transformation. On land, he seemed somewhat out of place; both breathing and walking were extremely difficult for him.
Both land and sea rejected him; he felt like a defective product.
To Yu Xunge, the contract seemed exceedingly harsh, but to Liang Pozhou, it was the Liang family's lifeline and investment.
By following Yu Xunge, they could have her as their only "master," but in Zelan, anyone could be their master.
It was a gamble—he was betting on Yu Xunge's future, wagering that the Liang family could use time and effort to erase her inexplicable hatred for them.
If the Blue Star lost, they would all die together, and the contract would turn to dust along with the Blue Star.
If the Blue Star won, Yu Xunge would feast, and the Liang family would get to sip a bit of the broth.
Most importantly, he didn’t want his descendants to live lives filled with regrets.
...
Yu Xunge returned to her routine of leveling up, researching alchemy, and taking orders to make money. Her leisure time was spent practicing with Tu Lan for about two hours and practicing cooking for about an hour. She was using a lot of work to distract herself from her inner anxiety. She admitted that the countdown for the giant whale was still affecting her.
The Cat Cat Inn was also returned to the backyard.
However, she didn’t rush to create the sellable skill crystal for [Moment of Reversal]. The Mind Catcher was too peculiar; her vigilance hadn’t lessened after discovering Miyas's true backup plan; in fact, it had reached its peak. She hadn’t even taken it out of her backpack to touch it again.
Before the dust settled, the [Moment of Reversal] skill could be needed at any moment. Although the skill crystal could be used by crushing it, it was still less convenient than a skill that could be activated with just a thought.
She waited at home for five days, during which she also exchanged the food box for the giant whale's remains, and received seven items sent by Liang Pozhou.
Four of them were purple gear, all requiring a level greater than 110 to wear. It goes without saying that they would be sold in Zelan. By the time she reached level 110, it would be ages away, and converting them into gold coins would yield resources she could use right away, bringing in greater profits.
The other three items included 80g of Moon Sand, and... two World Tombstones!
At that moment, her honor points increased by another 20,000 points.
[World Tombstone·Middle]: When entering the world battlefield, you can enter the main battlefield one minute early.
[World Tombstone·Middle]: When entering the world battlefield, you can enter the main battlefield one minute early.
The inscriptions on the World Tombstones were shaped like the arc of a red fish tail, written in sea demon script, which translated to "Middle" in Blue Star text.
Yu Xunge toyed with them for a moment before storing the two new World Tombstones. Although she didn’t know what the world battlefield would be like, judging from the effects of the other two types of World Tombstones, this carrying effect was likely positive.
Being able to enter the battlefield early to scout the situation and prepare was exactly what she needed at that moment.
As for the 80g of Moon Sand, although she didn’t know how Miyas had obtained it, she didn’t plan to keep it... Next time she went to Zelan, she could try to exchange it with Lucia for the crafting method of [Gold Medal Killer].
Now, every trip to Zelan required a bottle of [Gold Medal Killer]. If things weren’t urgent, she would save them all for now and do them all at once later.
Aside from that, she continued to investigate Miyas's matters. Although she had already confirmed that the [Mind Catcher] had pitfalls, Yu Xunge hadn’t given up on studying the giant whale's remains.
Seven relics didn’t bring disappointment, but they weren’t particularly helpful either.
She had also checked Miyas's lair; that area was currently in the rainy season, shrouded in toxic mist, and even Feng Lian wouldn’t dare to enter.
The day after receiving the two new World Tombstones, recalling the countdown she had seen in the auction house, she couldn’t help but start studying the giant whale. She slightly enlarged the whale, placing its tail into the food box that was about to expire, while the rest of it remained exposed. She wanted to cut open the giant whale to take a look inside.
In just a few minutes, the food box would disappear.
Yu Xunge and Tu Lan stood in the apartment dungeon, watching the giant whale trapped in a lightning cage not far away, along with the food box.
Both were ready to flee at any moment, with Tu Lan's claws already gripping the edge of the dungeon's light screen.
A gust of wind blew, and the food box, along with a section of the whale's tail, turned to smoke and vanished into the air.
Yu Xunge waited a little longer, and upon seeing that nothing was wrong, she took out [Big World, Small Me] and canceled the giant whale's shrinking effect. She flew around the giant whale, taking a wide arc to see the scene inside.
The giant whale's insides were devoid of organs, blood, and bones, leaving only a layer of skin. Its interior was filled with what seemed to be living water, flowing slowly within. Yet, even when the tail was cut open, the water didn’t spill out, as if it were jelly that had been sliced.
In the center of the water floated a skeleton with a human body and a fish tail. The fish tail was extremely long, measuring at least two meters, trailing down to the ground. The skeleton's right hand was missing, surrounded by numerous materials, both familiar and unfamiliar to her—herbs, gems, machinery, and so on...
She couldn’t probe the specific information of the skeleton; she could only see a line of description: [Sea Demon Bone]. The bone was as white as jade, without any patterns, but its texture and luster were strikingly similar to that of the [Mind Catcher].
**Chapter 219: No Retreat**
Floating in the water were palm-sized magic patterns, at least eighty of them. The interior of the giant whale was also inscribed with various magic patterns and runes that she couldn’t understand.
The alarm bells in Yu Xunge's mind were ringing, but she was unwilling to give up. After all, one couldn’t just stand still and wait for opportunities to fall into their lap.
Table of Contents
