Chapter 197: Miraculous Hands

Ji Liu widened his eyes in delight. “Holy shit! My ass is healed? Doctor, you’ve got miraculous hands!”

Ji Xue regretfully put away her dagger, then kicked her brother in the butt. “Fine, fine, we all know you’re healed. You healed way too fast! Now that you’re done, hurry up and put your pants back on! Remember to send a thank-you pennant[1] to North Mount District later. Thank Doctor Ji of the Proctology Department for his wisdom, courage, and heroic rescue of your ass!”

After Ji Liu put his protective suit back on, the hardened mercury foil in Ji Jue’s hand swept across the finger mark. Thin wisps of black vapor rose from the protective suit and fell into the mercury, merging with the contamination he had extracted from Ji Liu’s flesh earlier. Together, they formed a vivid five-fingered palm print. It writhed constantly, as though trying to break free of its restraints and escape.

Ji Jue thought for a moment, but didn’t throw the thing away. After wrapping it up in seals and cutting off its connection, the hardened mercury bead went silent and showed no further movement.

Just like that, he put it in his pocket. He had never seen anything like it before, after all. Maybe it would come in handy.

Inside the vehicle, after everyone personally witnessed Doctor Ji solve the problem with one stab and display his miraculous medical skills, the warmth in their eyes as they gazed at him became much more intense.

In an environment filled with aberration contamination, having a teammate who could purge contamination at any time, prevent future trouble, repair equipment, and supply consumables on top of that...

What was he? Ji Jue was basically a goddamn benevolent foster father!

Whatever the Third Division could do, he could do too. Whatever the Third Division couldn’t do, he could still damn well do. Even if an Ember-type’s combat power wasn’t particularly impressive, when had this team ever lacked combat power? What they lacked was exactly this kind of god-tier support! And more importantly, Ji Jue was even helping them for free.

If they had not been in the middle of a mission, Ji Liu might have grabbed Ji Jue’s hands right then and there and sworn eternal brotherhood with him. After all, no one was ever ready to lose half an ass cheek without warning.

After two scares in a row, the rest of the journey was rather uneventful. They simply drove, stopped, drove again, then stopped again.

They seemed to be advancing along a route they had planned in advance, slow and drawn-out. Sometimes, even when there was clearly a straight road ahead, Tong Shan would go to great lengths to make a huge detour. More often, they simply moved and stopped at irregular intervals without warning.

As Ji Jue observed in silence, he gradually realized that the core of the entire team wasn’t Tong Shan, but Xu Guan. Or rather, Xu Guan’s presence here was one of the mission objectives, and one that absolutely had to be completed.

As they traveled, he and Tong Shan seemed to work in perfect sync. No one else knew the details of their communication, but usually, whenever one of them reacted to something, the vehicle would suddenly speed up, change course, or stop in place while everyone held their breath and waited or hid. Most of the time, it was to give Xu Guan time to create Aether-type record books.

One record book after another fell from his hands, then carefully placed into a sturdy container prepared specifically for them. Based on Ji Jue’s observations, even the container seemed to be some kind of Aether-type Blessed Creation specially used to store information and prevent contamination.

“Are we mapping the area?” Ji Jue asked curiously.

“Was it that obvious?” Xu Guan smiled faintly, but his hands didn’t stop moving. A soft glow rose from the record book, and before long, it had recorded everything around them in meticulous detail.

“Advance exploration teams aren’t actually that thrilling most of the time. The danger can come at any moment, but for the vast majority of the mission, it’s honestly a little boring. At the same time, you can’t relax, and you’re not even allowed to let your mind wander. As for the actual work, aside from figuring out the hidden dangers and threats in each sector, it’s basically no different from surveying and mapmaking.

“The situation inside Spring City is very complicated. The corrupted environment gives rise to all kinds of threats, and even space itself sometimes falls into chaos. Every time we come here, certain places are a little different. They shift and change. Give it a couple of days, and they’ll change again.”

Ji Jue was puzzled. “Then what’s the point of collecting records?”

“Well, we still have Heaven’s Ear, the Tong family, don’t we?” Xu Guan glanced at Tong Shan, who was resting in rotation in the back seat. “The more records we have, the more accurate the calculations become, and the more things can be analyzed. Even these fixed routes we’re following were planned by the Tong family. Compared with that, someone of my level can only do this kind of grunt work.”

Tong Shan opened one eye and glanced over, smiling self-deprecatingly. “Stop being so bitter, Mr. Xu. Isn’t someone from the Tong family right here doing grunt work with you? Should I feed you a couple of juicy bits of gossip later too?”

Xu Guan’s eyes lit up. “What gossip? You only told half of what happened with Lei Yaoxing last time! I didn’t even get the full story. You kept stopping at the cliffhanger!”

“Don’t ask me about Lei Yaoxing.” Tong Shan looked toward Ji Jue, smoothly redirecting the trouble. “Isn’t one of the people involved sitting right here? Now this is where I have to tell the story of Good Samaritan Ji, who endured hardship to guide a lost soul back to the right path, and Chen Xingzhou, who saw the light and wept bitterly in the mourning hall...”

“Holy shit. You even know about that?” Ji Jue asked, shocked.

“Tong Hua and Ye Chun are good friends, you know,” Tong Shan gloated. “Lately, when I get home, I get daily updates on the saga of a certain try-hard workaholic. Even Fourth Uncle has been following it for ages.”

Tong Hua!!!

No, wait. He would let Tong Hua go for now. Beating her brother was impossible, so that grudge would have to be set aside for the moment.

But as for you, Ye Chun, you evil little brat, I’m going to—

The corner of Ji Jue’s eye twitched. His fists clenched several times. He would tell Professor Ye that he wanted to write a thesis!

Some workaholics, when driven to the extreme by anger, would start dragging others into the grind with them. In less than a few seconds, an outline for A Few Key Points and Summary on the Fundamental Nature of Fluid Alchemy in Reverse Application had already surfaced in his mind.

Just like that, inspiration struck! Looking at it that way, Ye Chun really was his academic muse!

Since there was nothing to do except sit in the car, Ji Jue simply pulled a notebook and pen from his bag and rapidly drafted a brief literature review. Lou Feng happened to glance over. The instant he saw what Ji Jue was writing, he snapped his gaze away as though he’d touched a live wire. He looked out the window, his face spasming wildly.

What the hell? What is this? Why is that bastard Ji Jue suddenly researching Fluid Alchemy right beside me? Is he planning to accuse me of spying on classified research and frame me for it?!

Thinking of the “glorious past” of Ye Xian that his teacher had once told him about, his whole body tensed.

What a dirty trick! Seriously! You people from Tidesound Workshop are all unethical schemers! Fine then! If you're going to play dirty, let's both play dirty! I’ve put up with you for long enough!

Fuming with anger, Lou Feng gritted his teeth, stomped his foot, and pulled out his own paper and pen from his bag. Then he began furiously writing A Brief Discussion on the Effects Produced by Combining Spirit Morph with Blessings.

For a while, the only sound inside the quietly moving vehicle was the constant scratching of pens across paper.

Even Ji Liu, who was riding on the roof, couldn’t help leaning over to peek inside. Watching the two craftsmen with their heads down, writing feverishly while their expressions shifted from deep frowns, to silent rage, to soundless laughter, Ji Liu exchanged utterly baffled looks with the others in the vehicle. How had this mission suddenly turned into an academic competition?

You Ember people are seriously a bunch of weirdos!

As they continued forward, Xu Guan and Tong Shan, who had been resting in the back seat, suddenly jolted without warning. Their faces darkened. “Stop the car!”

Immediately, the car came to a halt as the emergency brakes screeched. Everyone inside the vehicle was thrown forward, the cabin descending into chaos. Cries and screams came from right in front of the vehicle.

Thick blood spread out from beneath the wheels in waves, coiling around them layer upon layer until becoming a mire. No matter how the wheels spun, they couldn’t break free.

Then, a twisted face appeared in front of the vehicle from within the sticky pool of blood, illuminated by the glaring headlights. It wore a grotesque smile as it wailed and shrieked in agony, “Murder! Murder! Help, help me—!”

The writhing face seemed stitched together from two different sets of features, constantly shifting out of place. It was impossible to tell whether it was male or female. Its voice alternated between a shrill scream and a deep growl as it cried out, “They ran me over! Help! I’m dying!”

Along with the strange figure’s piercing cries, faint ripples spread across the once-empty street. In the blurry darkness all around them, pale faces emerged, each wearing a venomous smile as they gradually drew closer.

“What the hell?” Ji Xue, the one in the driver’s seat, muttered in shock. “Even ghosts are pulling scams these days?”

Tong Shan swept his senses over the surroundings, his expression gradually darkening. “The team from Ship City ran into these before. They’re swarms of residual spirit aggregates. They’re like tiger ghosts[2]. The longer this goes on, the more things they’ll attract. Everyone, stay alert.”

Bang!

Blood suddenly blossomed across the windshield. A mangled figure crawled from under the hood and began slapping the glass. Its twisted face, pieced together from two sets of features, grinned savagely as it pressed itself against the windshield.

“I-I-I saw you! You’re the ones who hit me! It was you! I’m hurt, hurt, hurt so badly. I’m going to die...” It screamed its accusation at the top of its lungs, yet its vicious grin never faded. “Pay up! Pay up! Pay up!”

As it screamed, its palms never stopped hammering against the car. Each blow seemed to strike the telekinetic barrier through empty air, causing cracks. Wherever the blood spread, the color of rust quickly surfaced, aging and corroding everything it touched. Even the engine died in an instant.

Bang!

Under Tong Shan’s gaze, the creature exploded, but from the blood and gore, a new figure somehow writhed its way out, clinging tightly to the vehicle as it continued screeching. The strange figures closing in around them also pressed forward, fighting the invisible repulsive force field.

“Tch.” Tong Shan’s expression grew darker. He took a deep breath as powerful pressure gathered around him. Just as he was about to go all out, he felt someone pat him on the shoulder from behind.

“Mr. Tong, let me try?” Ji Jue asked.

“Are you confident?”

“A little, but not much,” Ji Jue answered honestly. “But if it doesn’t work, you’ll save the day, right?”

Tong Shan fell silent. Had this happened in the past, he would have refused without a second thought. He would have never entrusted something that concerned everyone’s safety to Ji Jue. But after personally seeing Ji Jue handle so many cases of aberration, he hesitated, unable to decide.

It only took him a second to make up his mind, however. “Be careful.”

Ji Jue grinned. “Got it.”

He took a deep breath, then exhaled slowly. He no longer suppressed the impulses and malice that had been rising within his consciousness since earlier. As the bone blade at his waist vibrated excitedly, everyone witnessed his protective suit rapidly changing.

Under the erosion of spirit matter and its spontaneous transformation, the thick, black protective suit quickly shed its original color and turned into a thin, eerie white that sent chills down one’s spine. Large patches of scarlet spread across the pallor, writhing as they faintly formed traces that looked like wailing faces or bloody handprints.

A bloodstained ID badge appeared out of thin air, dangling from Ji Jue’s chest. It swayed faintly, moving on its own despite the absence of wind.

Click.

The car door opened, and he stepped into the pool of blood. His face pale, he looked down at the ghostly figure wailing on the hood of the car. “Are you hurt?”

The writhing creature turned motionless, as if confused. Slowly, it raised its head. Reflected in its trembling pupils, the charred corpse draped in white was dripping thick blood without cease. His mouth split into a grin.

“What truly excellent material you are...”

1. A jinqi is a red velvet pennant with gold lettering, commonly presented in China to doctors, police officers, teachers, and other public-service workers as a formal gesture of thanks. Beyond simple appreciation, it can also act as a public recognition of the recipient’s good work.

You can read more about it here. ☜

2. 伥鬼 (pronounced: chāng guǐ) is a type of evil spirit in traditional Chinese mythology and folklore. According to records in texts such as the Ming-dynasty scholar Zhang Zilie’s Zhengzitong and the Song-dynasty collection Taiping Guangji, a changgui is the ghost of a person who was killed by a tiger. After death, instead of being released, the victim becomes the tiger’s servant, luring innocent passersby so that the tiger can devour them. ☜