You Lied to Me!

"Vomit..."

Wei Ke huddled in the corner, retching incessantly.

Rui La stood behind him, acting like a little adult, tiptoeing to pat his back. But after waiting for a long time without Wei Ke vomiting, she said somewhat displeasedly, "Are you alright? Are you going to throw up or not?"

"Alright, Rui La," Ryan said calmly, sitting where he was. "Stop stirring things up and let him recover on his own."

Rui La then stepped back.

After taking several deep breaths, Wei Ke finally managed to stand up straight, then returned to his previous position, saying "sorry" as he picked up the teacup.

However, his hands were still trembling uncontrollably, causing the water in the cup to spill continuously.

Ryan glanced down at it. "The truth is indeed hard to accept, but what I just said is not the truth, it's just a guess... It seems that you and that puppy really have a good relationship, and your mental resilience is really too poor."

"A De is a wolf..." Wei Ke said weakly.

He remained silent for a while.

"I really can't believe it's true," Wei Ke said in a low voice. "I can't imagine that I would eat A De ... really, I can't imagine it. Do you have any other evidence?"

Ryan shook his head. "It is precisely because there is no more conclusive evidence that I say this is just conjecture. After the death of the Senro God, the Wildfire Cultist has in fact completely replaced the Hunter and become the most powerful force in this land, but to this day, we do not know where their power comes from, just as we do not know where the Corpse Ghoul that spread out from the boundless night came from after the death of the Senro God."

"... Corpse Ghoul?" Wei Ke wasn't sure if he genuinely wanted to know about Corpse Ghoul or just wanted to temporarily escape A De's topic, but he asked rather eagerly, "Then can you tell me what Corpse Ghoul are? I mean... what was this land like when the Senro God was still alive?"

"Back then, this land had a name, just like the other churches; it was called Senluo," Ryan said. "But now, only the Hunter still use the name Senluo."

As he spoke, Ryan paused, then frowned slightly, as if recalling something.

"I didn't personally experience the events of the past, since the Senro God had already died when I was born. So I only heard about it from the previous generation of Hunter. They were the last batch of Hunter when the Senro God was still alive."

"According to them, the Senro God did not die suddenly, but rather through a long process that lasted for hundreds of years."

"When Senluo was first established, the Senro God was very powerful, no weaker than the other seven gods. In fact, His attention to this land was even greater than that of the other gods. He was the one who founded the Senro Church and trained the Senluo Hunter. Do you remember what I told you before? The Hunter's Inheritance comes directly from the Senro God. In fact, the earliest generation of Hunter had all faced the Senro God directly."

Have you ever faced... the Senro God?

Although Wei Ke had seen the statue of the Senro God in those dilapidated churches, he still couldn't imagine what the true form of the Senro God looked like.

"Yes, back then, the Senro Hunter were arguably the most powerful group of God's Servant in the world. They were no less powerful than the orthodox churches like Rhine and Holy Sound," Ryan said. "But unlike them, Senluo Hunter found it difficult to leave Senluo."

"Why is that?"

"Because the Hunter have to deal with a very troublesome guy."

"A troublesome guy?"

"Yes, you can understand it as... the precursor to Corpse Ghoul."

Wei Ke paused for a moment. "But you just said that the Corpse Ghoul of the night only appeared after the death of the Senro God."

"That's why I said it was the precursor to the Corpse Ghoul, we called them Corpse Puppet," Ryan said. "Back then, they only appeared at night, but they weren't nearly as endless as they became later. They only mutated from rotting corpses, more like dead people suddenly coming back to life and becoming monsters, so the Hunter hadn't yet given them the name 'ghost'. But they were already quite troublesome back then, because they could evolve from all sorts of corpses, not just humans, but also livestock, and even some small animals."

"That sounds pretty tricky..."

"That's right. Moreover, the strength of the Corpse Puppet is related to the length of time the corpse has been mutated. The longer the mutation and decay takes, the more troublesome it is to deal with," Ryan said. "That's when the role of the hunting dogs comes into play. The hunting dogs can often find the corpse before it is mutated, allowing the Hunter to deal with it in advance. This greatly reduces the risk. It was from that time that the hunting dogs became a standard tool for Hunter."

Upon hearing this, Wei Ke involuntarily pursed his lips.

He thought of A De again.

The Hunter and his hounds working together to hunt was something he had always dreamed of, but unfortunately...

Wei Ke unconsciously clenched his fist.

Ryan naturally noticed this detail, but he didn't say anything and subtly changed the subject.

"Have you ever wondered why only this land has Corpse Ghoul or Corpse Puppet?"

Upon hearing this question, Wei Ke's attention was indeed diverted, and he paused slightly before asking, "Oh, why is that?"

"You're really slow to ask now," Rui La couldn't help but complain. Then she asked Ryan, "I'd like to know more: if these strange things only exist in this land, why don't we move to another place to live? This world is so big. Even if the land outside belongs to another church, there's no need to be afraid since there are Hunter around, right?"

"Why there are only Corpse Puppet on this land, and why we don't leave, are essentially the same question," Ryan said slowly. "The answer is simple: because those things come from... the Senro God."

Wei Ke and Rui La were both stunned.

"Surprised?" Ryan said calmly. "Actually, the answer isn't hard to come up with. The only thing that can make a god personally fight against is the god himself."

"...Now that you mention it, it does make some sense." Rui La scratched her head. "But what exactly is that thing? Is it the Senro God using both hands simultaneously?"

"No." Ryan shook his head. "That is... death."

"...ah?"

Both Wei Ke and Rui La looked bewildered.

"What death?"

"The death of the Senro God," Ryan said. "The death of a god is not instantaneous; it is a long process, much like..."

He reached out and grabbed a burning piece of firewood from the brazier in front of him.

The flames licked the dry wood, which slowly turned to ash.

"The Senro God at that time was like this piece of dry tinder," Ryan said. "He was dying, and death was consuming his body like flames, but he was unwilling to accept his fate, so he wanted to fight against death."

Wei Ke opened his mouth. "Can death be fought against?"

"For mortals, it won't work. But for gods... who knows?" Ryan said in a deep voice. "Anyway Hunter, that's what the Senro God did. Those Corpse Puppet are the embodiment of death, and they devour the Senro God's life force. So the Senro God created Hunter to fight against his own death."

Rui La's lips moved slightly. "And... what happens next?"

"He was still defeated by death."

Rui La: "..."

Seeing Rui La's expression, Ryan couldn't help but smile, though it was a very unpleasant smile.

"Perhaps you are wondering why I used such disrespectful language towards the Senro God, when Hunter are His last followers on this land," Ryan said. "But that's not my problem, it's just... all Hunter are like that. Because the Senro God never thought of hiding the fact that He is going to die. He is different from other gods. He regards death as an enemy and is eager to defeat it."

After listening to Ryan's description, Wei Ke, who originally had no impression of the Senro God, suddenly had the image of the Senro God pop into his mind.

It's not the rigid statues in those dilapidated temples.

But a living, breathing... Hunter?

His form is comparable to the mountains, and his power is as great as thunder.

Wei Ke strained his eyes to look up, but could only see His shoulders hidden in the clouds.

Then, with a "boom," he saw the Senro God mobilize his supreme power, unleashing a soaring battle intent in the direction directly in front of him with a world-shaking roar.

Even he was infected by that fighting spirit.

But... who can ignite the fighting spirit of the Senro God?

Wei Ke instinctively turned his head to look.

Then he saw a tiny, frail figure standing tall in the sky.

Who is that...?

Wei Ke didn't know.

But the other party cast a glance my way.

In an instant.

The world of fantasy collapsed, and he suddenly opened his eyes to see Ryan still clutching the burning firewood. Everything that had happened before seemed to be just an illusion.

"What's wrong?" Rui La noticed Wei Ke's unusual behavior. "Why are you suddenly sweating so much? Are you thinking about your little dog again?"

Wei Ke replied listlessly, "A De is a wolf."

"Oh, oh, oh." Rui La waved her hand dismissively. "Whether it's a wolf or a dog is up to you, isn't it?"

Wei Ke didn't know how to explain anymore; he felt exhausted.

"That's all I know," Ryan said calmly. "What happened before that is only known to the Hunter of that generation. As for the Hunter now, they are just the last embers after the fire has burned out."

As he spoke, he poked the nearly extinguished brazier with a piece of firewood, and only a few sparks came out from the thoroughly burned firewood.

The three of them remained silent for a long time afterward.

For Wei Ke, the information he received from Ryan was far too much, which also indirectly confirmed the authenticity of Ryan's identity Hunter.

At least Wei Ke couldn't get this information from that Old Hunter.

But then again, all the information Ryan gave him was useless except to let Wei Ke know that he had been deceived.

He still doesn't know what happened to him, or what's in the lost Sacrificial Ground.

All they knew was that it was all a conspiracy by the Wildfire Cultist.

Even so, he still had to go there.

Having figured this out, Wei Ke said goodbye to Ryan didn't say anything but simply nodded in response.

But as Wei Ke and Rui La reached the door, Ryan suddenly spoke up.

"Wei Ke, why do you want to become Hunter?"

Wei Ke instinctively turned his head and saw Ryan still sitting on that small stool, quietly watching him.

"... Why become Hunter?"

"Yes," Ryan said. "The Senro God is dead, and the age of Hunter is over. Whether you like it or not, this land will henceforth belong to Wildfire. If you want to join them now, I don't think they will refuse... The future belongs to them, haven't you thought about that?"

"I..."

Wei Ke opened his mouth, instinctively wanting to explain, but the words caught in his throat.

Yeah, why did he want to become Hunter?

Why can't I remember it all of a sudden?

"It seems you haven't found the answer yet." Ryan lowered his head again, as if he wanted to fall asleep. "Leave here, and it would be best to pretend you never met me."

Before Wei Ke could respond, Rui La grabbed his hand and left.

Ryan watched the two figures disappear into the distance, sighed softly, and then prepared to go back to his room to rest.

However, as he stood up, he suddenly realized something, and his weathered eyes instantly sharpened.

Something's not right about this night.

"I didn't know you had so many stories to tell." On the way back, Rui La rested her hands on the back of her head, walking lazily. "You're definitely more interesting than that Father from Rhine. Speaking of which, who exactly is he... um?"

Rui La took several steps forward, but found that Wei Ke hadn't followed. She turned around in confusion and saw Wei Ke standing there, clutching his head tightly, his whole body trembling.

"Hey..." Rui La sensed something was wrong, "What's wrong with you?"

She wanted to approach Wei Ke, but after taking two steps forward, she saw something and instinctively retreated, her eyes filled with terror.

Because half of Wei Ke's face had turned into a wolf.

"You..."

Suddenly, a flurry of footsteps echoed through the alley.

Rui La instinctively turned her head and was immediately pulled into the arms of a dark figure rushing towards her.

This is... Ryan!

Before she could even react to what was happening, a terrifying wolf howl rang out behind her.

"Swish!"

Rui La was tackled to the ground by Ryan.

At the same time, warm blood splattered onto Rui La's face.

Rui La looked up abruptly and saw that half of Ryan's body had been torn apart.

Behind Ryan was a tall, half-human, half-wolf creature that looked exactly like Wei Ke.

And there's more than one.

Soon, the second and third emerged from the darkness.

Some of them stood directly next to Wei Ke, like monsters emerging from the abyss.

Rui La instantly understood what was happening, and she stared intently at Wei Ke.

"You... you lied to me!"