Chapter 71 - 68: Yang Xiao’s Game

Chapter 71: Chapter 68: Yang Xiao’s Game

...

Li Xiao’an frowned.

"I’ve paid the rent and the security deposit! You can’t kick me out!"

The landlord laughed as if he’d just heard a hilarious joke.

"Did we sign a contract? Are there any bank transfer records?

Scram now, or I’ll beat you and throw you out."

Most importantly, these two girls had no one to rely on.

One was a cripple, and the other was about to die.

Who would stand up for them?

Li Xiao’an couldn’t be allowed to die here.

It would be nothing but trouble.

’If worst came to worst, I could just refund double the security deposit, right?’

Of course, the landlord had no intention of refunding the deposit. He just wanted to bully them.

Li Xiao’an suppressed her anger.

"Fine. Give us a few days, and we’ll move."

The landlord shook his head.

"No. You move out tonight. What if you drop dead tomorrow?"

Li Xiaole’s eyes went wide, burning with a fire that seemed ready to erupt.

The landlord saw the look in Li Xiaole’s eyes and cursed.

"You damn cripple, keep staring and I’ll gouge your eyes out!

When I wake up tomorrow afternoon, I’m coming to change the locks."

The landlord walked out of the one-story house, grumbling and cursing.

Li Xiaole, with a strength that came from nowhere, grabbed her sister tightly. Her mouth hung open, and she could only manage "Ah! Ah!" unable to form a complete sentence.

She just wanted to know if her sister was truly seriously ill.

Li Xiao’an sighed.

"He’s right. But... there’s someone who can cure us. I’m just torn about whether we should go to him."

Li Xiaole’s grip tightened, and she shook her sister’s arm.

Her meaning was obvious.

Go!

Get treated!

Li Xiao’an pressed her lips together tightly.

A few days ago, they had a terrifying encounter with some East Sakura People and were later rescued by that ’big brother’.

That same night, she saw a terrifying tornado appear in the old district.

The news said it was a once-in-a-century natural phenomenon.

Li Xiao’an knew. This had to be a supernatural phenomenon caused by a battle between mysterious Extraordinary Beings.

That ’big brother’ was an Extraordinary Being who possessed Supernatural Power!

Later, he had come looking for her.

He called himself: the Happy Ghost.

If they went to him and completed the Happy Ghost’s game, they could trade their freedom for their health.

The Happy Ghost had revealed a small part of the game’s content.

The content was: murder!

The victims weren’t chosen at random. They were unlucky souls the Happy Ghost had already sentenced to death.

The person the Happy Ghost wanted the Li sisters to kill... was the landlord!

Li Xiao’an had been struggling with this.

After all, for a girl like her, it was a terrifying thing to do.

She didn’t know if meeting the Happy Ghost was a good thing or a bad thing. She was afraid of dragging herself and her sister into an even darker abyss.

The Happy Ghost had said something that deeply moved Li Xiao’an.

"This world is a real piece of work.

Playing pitiful in front of it won’t get you any rewards.

Only when you pull a Slaughter Knife on it will it fear you and give you everything you want."

Li Xiao’an stared at the landlord’s retreating back, resentment filling her eyes.

She slowly looked down at her sister.

"If we go through with this treatment, we’ll lose a lot. Are you really willing to do that?"

Li Xiaole gave a sad, bitter smile.

Besides her sister, what else did she have that was precious?

And now, fate was about to take her sister away too!

Li Xiao’an understood.

Just then, something unexpected happened.

A shadow slithered in from somewhere and crept up the wall.

A bizarre clown’s smiling face was branded onto the wall, and two large words gradually appeared.

"Game Start!"

Li Xiaole’s eyes widened. She stared at the wall in disbelief, then whipped her head around to share her shock with her sister.

What shocked Li Xiaole even more was that her sister showed no surprise at all.

Li Xiao’an lifted Li Xiaole onto her back and said,

"Let’s go. We’re getting our treatment."

...

「Night. South Suburb, South Sea.」

The bright moon hung high above the far-off horizon of the sea.

The waves washed against the beach, weaving a tranquil melody.

Following the beach upward led to a luxurious manor that covered a full two hundred acres.

The entire estate was planted with rare black roses.

It was luxurious and classical, located far from the bustling city and its clamor.

This was Black Rose Manor, the private estate of Xia Li, the head of the World Dream Group.

At this moment, a few people were trickling into the manor.

They were men and women of different ages and varied styles of dress—a group of people who seemed to have absolutely nothing in common.

They had only one thing in common: every single one of them looked sickly, as if they could die at any moment.

The gates of Black Rose Manor were wide open.

As if guided by the mysterious game, they all walked in the same direction.

The manor had vast fields of special-breed black roses and many high-end, luxurious villas, but not a single attendant or security guard was in sight.

They didn’t notice the hidden figures lurking in the corners just inside and outside the manor gates.

These figures were dressed in high-end, custom-made formal wear, hiding in the darkness like wild beasts.

Their scarlet eyes scrutinized every newcomer.

If even one of them seemed out of place, this group of vampire nobles would emerge from the corners and spirit away the interloper without a trace.

...

「South Sea, Antique Shop Zero.」

Jiang Chaosheng came out from behind the counter and glanced at the night outside.

Tonight was the final step in assembling the Cleaner Fish System.

He would use the Netherworld Water, designated 3-02, to turn those people at Black Rose Manor into Corpse Ghosts tonight, officially making them members of the Cleaner Fish.

Jiang Chaosheng walked to the back room, went to shelf number three, and picked up a bowl.

The bowl was covered in cracks, and through them, one could vaguely make out a pattern of spider lilies.

The first time Jiang Chaosheng saw the spider lilies on the bowl, he felt the pattern was fitting.

In East Sakura, the spider lily means farewell, death, and curses.

This was simply because the flower had the effect of preventing wild animals from digging up graves, so the East Sakura People liked to plant them in graveyards.

Gradually, because of the romanticized "life and death" culture popular in East Sakura at the time, the spider lily’s vibrant beauty became a symbol of evil in the darkness.

However, what many didn’t know was that in the ancient Xia Kingdom, the spider lily symbolized rebirth and awakening; in Buddhist legends, it was the flower that sees neither life nor death.

The first spider lily did indeed grow on the shores of the Yellow Springs.

Fall into the Yellow Springs, and you will see reincarnation; emerge from the Yellow Springs, and you will transcend life and death.

A Corpse Ghost was indeed an Extraordinary Life form existing on the boundary between life and death.

Jiang Chaosheng looked out into the night.

The wind was strong, but there wasn’t a hint of rain.

It was time to wake the Elder Dragon to make it rain.

Just as Jiang Chaosheng was about to place his hand on the Dragon Pearl, he heard the PITTER-PATTER of rain outside.

He froze for a moment, then looked at the main door in astonishment.

Standing there was a peerlessly beautiful woman in a white dress.

Daji!

’Why has she appeared on her own again?

Just like a female ghost!’

Daji stood with her back to Jiang Chaosheng, holding out her hand as the rain obediently fell into her palm.

She turned her head, her eyes as clear as autumn waters, and smiled brightly.

"My lord husband, you wanted it to rain, did you not?"

Jiang Chaosheng withdrew the hand that was reaching for the Dragon Pearl.

It wasn’t strange at all that Daji could summon rain.

Hadn’t the Evil Crow said it?

The Nine-tailed Fox was proficient in countless Miaofa, a walking encyclopedia of Magic.

Since it was already raining, there was no need for the Old Dragon King.

Daji was the Human Emperor’s Favorite Concubine, the number one Demon Consort of all time, a fox proficient in countless Miaofa.

No matter how glorious her past, she was now just one of the Taboo Items.

This was Jiang Chaosheng’s attitude toward all Taboo Items.

He maintained a degree of respect and tolerance for the sentient Taboo Items.

Respect for time, and tolerance for conscious life.

But that was all contingent on the Taboo Items not causing trouble or interfering with his will.

Jiang Chaosheng strolled to the doorway and stepped out of Antique Shop Zero.

Daji materialized a simple, elegant white umbrella in her hand and held it over Jiang Chaosheng.

Jiang Chaosheng looked out at the street.

The distant streetlights were filtered by the curtain of rain into fuzzy halos, bathing the world in a soft, amber glow.

An occasional gust of wind shook loose the silvery light collected on the trees, and the fresh scent of damp earth, awakened by the rain, floated in the air.

Daji’s rain was very different from the Old Dragon King’s.

Her rain was filled with a gentle delicacy, while the Old Dragon King’s rain contained majestic power and a killing intent.

Jiang Chaosheng could sense that Daji was not as skilled at summoning rain as the Old Dragon King.

This fox, proficient in all the world’s Miaofa, was likely just that—proficient. A jack-of-all-trades.

The Old Dragon King, on the other hand, had spent his entire life studying the way of clouds and water.

Jiang Chaosheng and Daji had already left Antique Shop Zero, not noticing a pair of jealous eyes watching them from behind.

Jin Meiting stood in the doorway, staring daggers at Daji’s back.

Her lower abdomen was burning hot, and the Succubus’s Evil Mark began to emit a deep glow.

"I’ll be more useful than you. I will definitely be more useful than you!"

Jin Meiting clenched her fists, her bright red nails piercing her pale palms and drawing blood.

She either didn’t notice or didn’t care.