Chapter 87: Yin Contract

Chapter 87: Chapter 87: Yin Contract

"Who in the world are you? How dare you play these games with me?"

"Spying on my Treasure... You deserve to die."

Yu Hongwu shot out his left hand to grab the Paperman. Judging by the force, he clearly intended to repay its help with hostility.

But strangely, his fingertips froze just a hair’s breadth from the Paperman.

The wind stirred by his fingertips sent the Paperman swaying back and forth, as if mocking Yu Hongwu’s incompetence.

"You idiot. You haven’t even entered the Awakening Tier to become a Transcendent, yet you dare to act so tough in front of me."

"If your body weren’t so strange—something my master needs to study—I would have eaten you in one bite."

"It’s hilarious, really. This is clearly a Yin Contract, yet you treated it like some peerless secret manual."

"This is killing me!"

The Paperman rolled around dramatically on the Original Martial Canon, its once-white body now covered in all sorts of blood-red patterns.

’It’s blood. The Paperman used my own heart’s blood to Imprison me.’

Although he didn’t know what this strange Paperman was, the battle-hardened Yu Hongwu had already guessed its methods.

However, this was useless in his current predicament. At his peak, he could have unleashed his Martial Dao will to forcibly break the restraints.

But now, exhausted in body and mind, he was running on fumes and couldn’t struggle in the slightest.

Of course, this was also because Yu Hongwu could tell it had no intention of killing him.

Otherwise, even if it cost him his life, he would have made sure to splatter it with his blood.

Most importantly, this Paperman actually knew what the Original Martial Canon was, and it also knew the reason he couldn’t break through.

This couldn’t help but give Yu Hongwu other ideas.

...

"Not bad. You’re a smart one, old man."

"I’m just curious how you managed to resonate with a Yin Contract. My master is a benevolent person; he might not necessarily kill you."

Sensing that Yu Hongwu had given up struggling, the Paperman became even happier.

Its original mission target had actually run off to the Chaotic City, which had been quite frustrating for the Paperman.

It didn’t dare go to that place.

Fortunately, according to the information it had obtained, the Red Heart 7 had infiltrated the [Order Keeper]s.

This meant the target definitely hadn’t committed its master’s greatest taboo: merging with other Cards.

All the number 7 players were lambs being raised by its master. The moment they went down the wrong path, the Paperman was responsible for correcting them.

The first Red Heart 7 of this round of the game, [Jomoya Chris], was killed by it.

The successor after him was quite obedient, but unfortunately, he also died.

This new successor seemed to be an obedient one as well.

After confirming that the Red Heart 7 hadn’t done anything to get himself killed, it was supposed to go check on the next target.

But it never expected to find such a pleasant surprise while passing through these barren mountains.

It was incredible. A Yin Contract had actually appeared in a backwater like the Lanyu Kingdom.

This was the first time it had seen such a thing since it and its master came here.

Moreover, according to its senses, the being connected to the Yin Contract was terrifyingly powerful.

This had to be an opportunity for its master.

...

"Why can’t I break through?"

"And why would I be eaten?"

"If you tell me everything about the Yin Contract, I will cooperate with you to the best of my ability."

Although Yu Hongwu didn’t know what trait of his they valued, this was his bargaining chip.

He had faced many risks in his life; this current encounter wasn’t enough to make him despair.

"It’s a pleasure dealing with smart people."

"I can give you the answers to your first two questions. As for the Yin Contract, you’ll only find out about that after you’ve met my master."

The Paperman lowered its head and paced back and forth on the Original Martial Canon.

If one looked closely, they would see it was trembling slightly.

Clearly, it could perceive far more than Yu Hongwu.

"I really don’t know what you were thinking, coming to this Demon Island."

"Given your strength, you can’t be completely ignorant of the Inner World."

"In the Inner World circles of the dozens of surrounding countries, this Demon Island is infamous."

"Everyone comes here for their own reasons. But of all the people who come to Demon Island, none are Awakened."

"Because the moment such a being sets foot on Demon Island, they trigger the game’s defense mechanism and are instantly eaten."

The Paperman spoke with casual authority, and Yu Hongwu instantly realized it was definitely not a native of the Lanyu Kingdom.

But he didn’t say anything, patiently listening.

"If ordinary people enter this place and stay too long, they’ll develop cognitive dissonance and even be Assimilated by the Lanyu Kingdom."

"Apprentices have it worse. Compared to ordinary people, their Spirituality is too strong. Even though they don’t trigger the game’s defense mechanism, the game will still constantly fleece them."

"The reason you can’t break through is because your Spirituality is constantly overflowing, like a kettle of boiling water."

"Even if you have a Secret Technique to seal yourself and become what you call a Grandmaster, all that awaits you is an even more miserable despair."

"The instant you break through, you’ll trigger the game’s defense mechanism. I don’t need to spell out the ending for you."

"On Demon Island, if you want to successfully break through, your only option is to become a player."

"Only with a player’s status can you avoid triggering the game’s defense mechanism."

The Paperman’s words sent a cold sweat running down Yu Hongwu’s back.

It had no reason to deceive him. In that case, his failure to break through was actually a stroke of incredible luck.

If Chen Qi were here, he would probably be just as shocked.

Luckily, he was a player. Otherwise, he would have been a dead man the moment his Awakening succeeded.

’I have to become a player?’

’I really underestimated the [King’s Game].’

Of course, Yu Hongwu had long known the legends of Demon Island; he had come here precisely to seek refuge.

But only now did Yu Hongwu understand why people from the Inner World were unwilling to set foot on Demon Island.

He had truly been ignorant and fearless.

"Alright, stop daydreaming!"

"Your life belongs to my master now. Be good and come with me."

"If you behave well, I might even give you a chance to become a player."

The Paperman unceremoniously snatched up the Original Martial Canon and, in the next instant, appeared on Yu Hongwu’s shoulder.

Yu Hongwu instinctively wanted to react, but he ultimately held back.

’Patience. Right now, I have to be patient.’

The Paperman was extremely satisfied with Yu Hongwu’s performance and immediately directed him to leave Talin City.

It had other tasks to attend to!

From beginning to end, Yu Hongwu made no sudden moves, nor did he leave any message for help.

This was the truth behind his mysterious disappearance.

The days that followed were perhaps the greatest humiliation of Yu Hongwu’s life.

He was actually being used as a mount by a Paperman. Fortunately, he was thick-skinned enough to bear it.

On several occasions, he had perfect opportunities to escape or launch a sneak attack.

But out of caution, Yu Hongwu chose to continue enduring.

What happened next completely proved his choice was the right one.

After some effort, the Paperman finally found the Plum Blossom 7.

However, this player had degenerated into a Traitor and merged with other Cards.

The Paperman flew into a rage and directly crushed the player’s heart.

Yu Hongwu watched helplessly as two Cards flew away right before his eyes, yet he didn’t dare make a move.

The Paperman’s speed was incredible; it seemed completely unaffected by air resistance.

Perhaps because it was a chatterbox, when the Paperman killed the player, it actually told him the reason for his death.

Upon learning that he was merely prey being raised by someone else, the player’s final despair and bitterness were so thick they practically overflowed from his body.

This made Yu Hongwu realize in an instant that the Paperman wasn’t just killing its victims, but crushing their spirits as well.

The despair and bitterness of the players seemed to be its food.

Perhaps things had gone too smoothly before, because no matter how it searched, the Paperman couldn’t find the Spade 7.

The man named Qi Tianming had vanished.

After several fruitless searches, the increasingly irritable Paperman finally lost control and began killing wantonly in a mountain village for sport.

As fate would have it, it happened to run into two players from the Order Keeper faction.

Without a word, the two sides launched into a fierce battle.

It was then that Yu Hongwu witnessed the Paperman’s true terror. This wasn’t a Paperman at all; it was clearly a terrifying Evil Spirit.

The true form it revealed was a hundred-meter-long Human-headed Centipede.

The two players from the Order Keeper faction fell.