"You repaired Li Shang's corpse. Your rating was D-rank. You received 10 Energy Value."
Hearing that his repair had earned only a D-rank rating, Xiao Ran was immediately disappointed. At the same time, he couldn't help feeling puzzled.
He had Master-level Suturing Technique, so how had he only gotten a D-rank rating? What did it take to earn a higher rating?
Before he could figure it out, a second notification followed right after.
"Calamity Suppressing Token privilege, Spirit Seizing, successful. You obtained Li Shang's ability, 'Tiger Fist.'"
As the notification sounded, a stream of memories surfaced in Xiao Ran's mind. Unlike the reading experience from before, these memories seemed to have been embedded directly into his consciousness.
The whole process, from first learning to practice boxing, even the first time he'd used Tiger Fist to injure someone, appeared before his eyes in vivid detail, as if it had all happened in another lifetime.
These were all Li Shang's memories, but his personal emotions and thoughts had been erased. They'd been incorporated into Xiao Ran's memories as nothing more than recollections.
A moment later, when Xiao Ran opened his eyes again, a glint flashed in them. He raised his hand and punched the coffin.
"Bam!!"
The coffin lid in front of him let out a dull, explosive crack. The sound of splintering wood rang out, too. Looking closely, he saw that his punch had left a fist-shaped dent in the coffin.
Even Xiao Ran was startled. He'd only obtained the ability of Tiger Fist, but his body was still that of an ordinary mortal. Where had he gotten so much strength?
But after thinking it over, Xiao Ran understood. It had to be the boost from the curse marks.
Physique +5, Strength +5
Adding the knife wound he'd inflicted on himself earlier and the boost from Evil God Xing Xie, he'd received a total of 6 points of additional Strength.
Xiao Ran didn't know how powerful that boost was, but judging by the coffin lid he'd cracked with one punch, he was already far stronger than an ordinary person.
Just as Xiao Ran was pondering this, Brother Tao's voice suddenly came from outside the coffin.
"Big Brother, is that you?"
Xiao Ran froze at the sound, then realized the people outside had mistaken him for Li Shang.
Perfect. They want to take over the nest, so I'll play along and turn the tables on them!
Thinking this, Xiao Ran cleared his throat, then imitated Li Shang's usual arrogant manner and cursed, "What a stupid question. If it's not me, who is it? Hurry up and open this coffin! Are you trying to suffocate me, you bunch of useless idiots?!"
As he spoke, Xiao Ran kicked the coffin lid hard twice.
His fiery temper instantly delighted Brother Tao and the others outside. It was a feeling they'd dearly missed.
"It's Big Brother! Hurry, open the coffin!"
"Damn it, I told you not to nail it shut! Which idiot drove in the coffin nails? Go get a crowbar!"
The group outside scrambled around. A little while later, the coffin lid gave a sharp creak, then someone pushed it open.
Before anyone could peer inside, Xiao Ran had already stood up in the coffin. He swept his gaze over the group, then raised a hand and slapped Brother Tao across the face.
"Smack!!"
Brother Tao's face twisted to the side. Half of it flew right off. When he looked up, rotting flesh oozing yellow fluid showed beneath the torn skin.
The sight caught Xiao Ran off guard. He'd forgotten that most of these people had faces made of paper.
Seeing Xiao Ran freeze, Brother Tao was afraid he'd frightened Li Shang. He hurriedly covered his face and explained, "Don't be scared, Big Brother. We're alive, not ghosts!"
"Compared to you lot, ghosts are downright kind."
Xiao Ran cursed inwardly, then curled his lip in disdain. "You're not a ghost, you say? Even if you were, I'd beat you into a miserable ghost."
"Where's that bitch? And how did you all end up looking like this?"
Xiao Ran asked in Li Shang's manner, drawing on his memories.
At Xiao Ran's question, Brother Tao immediately explained, "That all happened a long time ago, Big Brother. Come out first. Old Woman is probably still waiting for you."
"Where's my mother?!"
As he spoke, he raised his head and gazed around in confusion, but he didn't see that old hag anywhere.
"Old Woman was tired. She didn't know when you'd wake up, so she went back to rest early. But don't worry, I've already sent someone to inform her."
As he spoke, Brother Tao exchanged a glance with the people beside him. They immediately crowded around Xiao Ran and led him toward the village.
As they walked into the village, Brother Tao told him, "After that bitch killed you, Old Woman quickly used a copper coin to seal the last breath in your body. To bring you back to life, she even slaughtered half the village and performed a ritual. But something went wrong in the end, and we got trapped here, too..."
Brother Tao recounted what had happened afterward in vivid detail.
He made it sound simple, but Xiao Ran was still shaken to the core. He'd known the old hag was no good, but he hadn't realized she was so ruthless.
At the same time, a lot of things fell into place for him.
No wonder the notification had said the villagers here could be trusted. Clearly, it hadn't meant people like Brother Tao and the others in front of him. It had meant the villagers they'd killed.
And his real Main Quest was to find a way to free those villagers.
That brought Li Ji's words to mind, along with the Golden Toad in that old hag's possession.
Xiao Ran was trying to work out how to kill the Golden Toad in the old hag's possession when he suddenly noticed that Brother Tao and the others had closed in around him.
Xiao Ran instantly grew wary, his whole body tensing.
"Attack!!"
In the blink of an eye, Brother Tao roared the order. The four people around them each pulled an axe from their waists and swung it at Xiao Ran.
At that very moment, Xiao Ran suddenly rammed backward. The two people behind him were caught off guard and couldn't even raise their axes before he knocked them off balance. Before they could steady themselves, Xiao Ran swept out with a "Tiger's Tail," kicking one of them flying.
The other man had just recovered when Xiao Ran's hands, shaped like claws, shot straight for his face. His expression changed, and he hastily raised his arms to block. But Xiao Ran turned his palm into a fist and brought it down with a rush of cold air, like an eighty-jin hammer swung full force into the man's arm. His crossed arms were knocked aside, and Xiao Ran's next punch smashed into his face, cracking his skull open.
But before Xiao Ran could catch his breath, he heard a rush of wind behind him. There was no time to dodge. He reacted almost instinctively, rolling sideways.
"Rip!"
A searing pain shot across his back. Xiao Ran reached around and felt a wound where he'd been struck. He was lucky to have dodged in time. Otherwise, that axe might have split his spine.
He looked up and saw Brother Tao glaring at him, axe in hand and face twisted with fury.
"You've gone mad! You dare attack me?!"
A flood of thoughts flashed through Xiao Ran's mind. Have I been exposed?
At Xiao Ran's question, Brother Tao's expression grew even more vicious. The cheek Xiao Ran had shattered with a slap now made him look even more like a demon crawling out of hell.
"Mad?"
Brother Tao and the others exchanged glances, their smiles growing more vicious. Their eyes were full of resentment. "We've been mad for ages! That damn old woman trapped us here because of you, making us watch ourselves rot and stink! We're not even human anymore, and we're trapped here. We were bound to go mad!"
"If you do this, aren't you afraid my mother—"
Before Xiao Ran could finish, Brother Tao cut him off. "Afraid? We're terrified of her, even in our dreams! She put a string of coins on each of us. All she has to do is lift a finger, and she can make us wish we were dead. But if we capture you alive, she'll have no choice but to give in."
Xiao Ran knew firsthand how powerful the coins in the old hag's possession were. Now he understood why Brother Tao and the others hadn't dared rebel.
"Quit wasting time! Grab him and force that old hag to hand over the Golden Toad! Then we'll all be free!"
As he spoke, the group charged at Xiao Ran with their axes.
Xiao Ran's mind snapped to attention. He quickly retreated to dodge an incoming axe, then suddenly charged forward and pressed in close to the man on his left. His strength erupted all at once. His body shot forward like a cannonball, and his punch struck the man in the chest, sending him flying. Having opened a gap, Xiao Ran sprinted straight through it and ran.
One man couldn't take on four. Though he'd gained Li Shang's Tiger Fist, it was really only a handful of moves. Brother Tao and the others had clearly gone berserk. If even one axe struck him, he'd be gravely wounded.
As for negotiating with Brother Tao and the others, or telling them who he really was? The thought flashed through Xiao Ran's mind and was immediately dismissed.
That would make him a complete fool.
Even if Brother Tao and the others believed him, he couldn't afford to put his life in their hands.
The alley was narrow, with tall brick walls on either side. The burning pain in Xiao Ran's back kept growing, and he could already smell the strong scent of blood.
Brother Tao and the others cursed and ran after him, their footsteps seeming right on his heels. Xiao Ran didn't dare let his guard down for even a moment.
"Whoosh!"
A sudden rush of air sounded. Xiao Ran whipped around and saw a burly figure charging out of a side alley, swinging a thick wooden club straight at him.
Xiao Ran stopped short, then leaped to dodge the attack.
The man clearly hadn't expected Xiao Ran to be so agile. His strike missed, and the club swung through empty air, leaving him briefly rigid. Xiao Ran wasn't about to waste the opportunity. He kicked the man in the knee.
The man's body was already nearly rotten, with only a layer of paper wrapped around it. It couldn't withstand Xiao Ran's kick. With a sharp crack, his knee suddenly bent into an L shape, and he screamed as he fell to the ground.
Xiao Ran didn't have time to finish him off. Two more men rushed around the corner, one carrying a cleaver and the other gripping a club. They came straight at him.
Damn it! Was Li Shang really that unpopular?
Xiao Ran cursed under his breath, turned, and ducked into another alley. While the others weren't watching, he vaulted over a wall and hid in a courtyard.
Before long, he heard a frantic clamor of footsteps rushing past outside the courtyard.
"Phew!!"
Hearing the footsteps gradually fade, Xiao Ran let out a long breath of relief. But when he raised his head, he saw a middle-aged man carrying a washbasin out of the house. When the two of them saw each other, they both froze.
The next instant, the man hurled the basin to the ground. "He's here!!"
Xiao Ran's expression changed instantly. He had no time to settle the score with the man. He scrambled up and ran out.
Seeing Xiao Ran rush through the door, the man glanced around, grabbed a hoe, and chased after him.
The commotion gradually grew louder. At first, only Brother Tao and his group were after him, but before long, there were more than a dozen people.
Some of them had never had the guts to join in. Others had been waiting to see how things would play out. Even Brother Tao didn't know whether they'd be willing to take his side. In fact, they'd originally been too afraid of word getting out to attack at the ancestral graves.
After all, if Old Woman found out, they couldn't even imagine what would happen to them.
But now more and more people were joining in, and the situation had gone beyond Brother Tao's expectations.
Some of them didn't even know why they'd joined in so suddenly, but every face was flushed with excitement. They felt the pent-up rage in their chests surging up at last, impossible to hold back.
The village wasn't big, with only a few alleys from end to end. Xiao Ran hadn't run far when he suddenly stopped. He stared at the dead end in front of him, his expression turning grim. When he looked back, he saw Brother Tao and the others coming after him with a crowd.
"Grab him! We'll take him to that old hag!"
This time, Brother Tao didn't bother talking to Xiao Ran. He raised his axe and charged forward with the others.
Seeing this, Xiao Ran's lips twitched. He pulled the fruit knife from his pocket.
The sight of the small fruit knife made Brother Tao grin even wider. He brandished his axe, ready to hack off the bastard's limbs before anything else.
But Xiao Ran wasn't pointing the knife at them. He flipped the blade around and drove it hard into his own abdomen.
The instant the cold blade pierced his flesh, pain shot through his whole body like a bolt of lightning.
Along with it came a cold notification.
Received [Power of the Evil God] boost, Strength +1 Received [Power of the Evil God] boost, Strength +1 Received [Power of the Evil God] boost, Strength +1 Received [Power of the Evil God] boost, Strength +1 Evil God Xing Xie sensed your sincerity. If you wish to obtain greater power, complete an even more spectacular sacrifice.
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