The True Authority of the Curse

Perhaps the system is also aggrieved. Why is it that Yu Xing encounters two beings who transcend the rules in just two instances?

This person might be poisonous.

Yu Xing finished cursing, he frowned and moved his feet. He couldn't do anything to the system except to call it a piece of trash.

Black mist rose, and the branches of the Ghost Tree seemed to tremble, then surged towards him even more rapidly.

The wall was practically useless; individual tree branches intertwined to form a vast, inescapable net, attempting to completely surround Yu Xing.

Fine black lines spread out from the branches, barely noticeable in the dim light, but Yu Xing was close enough to see them with the naked eye.

A hint of doubt appeared in Yu Xing's eyes.

The Ghost Tree reacted rather strongly to his curse power, and he could clearly sense that just now the Ghost Tree had been yearning for nourishment from him, but now it was a kind of tentative joy.

It's like... seeing someone of your own kind?

It's outrageous that Yu Xing was able to sense such clear information from a tree that can't speak.

The black veins on the tree branches seemed to have a similar aura to his black mist.

The heads fell silent again. He glanced at them briefly and saw that they were staring at him with terrified expressions, mouths agape, as if they had seen a ghost.

Yu Xing: "...?"

[Leaving this place through the passageway now will give you a 50% chance of survival.]

Just as he was pondering this, a sudden system notification rang in his mind.

[The rules of the prison have been broken by the rule-level ghost "Ghost Tree". This is a system oversight and will be compensated immediately. Please stay away from Ghost Tree immediately.]

Um?

His attention was drawn to the two consecutive "immediately" prompts in the second message. It seemed... the system was even more anxious than he was.

Also, why is there garbled text after the rule-level prefix of Ghost Tree? It's just like the nameless "Sacrifice" on his Persona Mask that has never been named.

System, if you say that, then I won't feel any pain anymore.

The instant the problem was discovered, the excitement of uncovering a secret overshadowed the coldness and pain brought by the power of the curse.

Look, the system is trying to get rid of him again. The punishment for the plot-driven death was set by the system itself, but now it's "kindly" offering him a way out, as if it's afraid he'll stay here.

Yu Xing thought that his previous idea that "the system couldn't do anything to him, so it designed the illusory room to summon the Ghost Tree to deal with him" could be overturned. Judging from the system's reaction, the Ghost Tree was obviously not summoned by it on purpose.

The system is currently patching the vulnerability.

Because of the black patterns that seemed to be related to the black mist, when the tree branch approached, Yu Xing only tensed his muscles, gripped his Tang sword, and was ready to jump away at any moment, but did not move immediately.

The patterned branches approached him within two decimeters, touching the dissipating black mist, Yu Xing once again felt an emotion called joy.

Ghost Tree surprisingly refrained from harming him for the time being.

This also reveals the true purpose behind the two prompts the system just made.

Surrounded by black mist, Yu Xing felt the chilling aura that had tormented him for years gradually lessen. Although the power of the curse still lingered within him, he no longer felt so uncomfortable.

A wave of ease and power he had never felt before filled his body and soul. In that instant, Yu Xing felt that the power of the curse was no longer a constraint, but a power he could control, enough to destroy everything he did not want to see.

Even their thinking speed has increased.

The Ghost Tree has this function?

The feeling that the power is still there, but without any side effects, is wonderful.

Yu Xing's pupils darkened for a moment, almost overwhelmed by this feeling.

He looked up and noticed that the branches of the Ghost Tree had formed a cocoon shape, about to wrap him up.

The reduction in the pain caused by the curse's power is also thanks to this "cocoon".

For a moment hesitant, before the cocoon completely closed, Yu Xing flashed away, breaking free from the cocoon's embrace. Pain returned, and he trembled uncontrollably, this time not only because of the coldness within his body, but also because of an indescribable excitement.

Just now, he figured it out.

Yu Xing chuckled softly, the low sound coming from her throat as if she were mocking someone.

"Ha, you didn't believe me when I told you you were useless." He said softly, "You've been exposed, System."

He had actually realized long ago that the Absurd Deduction system was not a cold, impersonal concept; it seemed to have emotions and a way of thinking similar to that of an independent individual.

The system had exposed itself to him several times, which made him think that the system was targeting him, but in fact, the system was still tolerant of him.

It just feels a bit out of place.

When Yu Xing thought about this matter in reality, she had already discovered where the sense of incongruity came from.

The system indulged him on the one hand, but on the other hand, it intentionally restricted him in every way. For example, it made Yi Qing, the powerful Sheqing Ghost, follow him, and it also subtly stopped him when he bought rule-level offerings.

It's as if the system "knows" him and is consciously preventing him from accessing certain things, but without any ill intent.

Yu Xing's thoughts were not very specific before, but just now, in the dark and cold tomb, under the strange attitude of the unknown and terrifying "Ghost Tree", and after the side effects of the curse were inexplicably neutralized, his mind suddenly became clear, and his thoughts poured out like a floodgate being opened.

There are many possibilities regarding the system's attitude towards him, but only one is most consistent with the facts.

That was the black substance that the Lingren injected into his body in the laboratory, containing the power of death and immortality—in other words, the curse power surging within him now.

Everything brought about by the power of the curse clearly belongs to the realm of rules. The resurrection it causes cannot even be interfered with by the system. If this relationship is described in terms of authority, Yu Xing even feels that the authority of the power of the curse is no less than that of the system.

If the system is still the "fair and just" system it once was, but it harbors extreme fear of the cursed power within him, it restricts everything he might come into contact with in order to weaken the cursed power's influence on him...

Thinking of this, Yu Xing's eyes flashed; he realized that things were connected.

The system cannot interfere with his resurrection ability, but the rule-level sacrifices that the deducer can obtain are all under the system's control, including his sacrifice [the cage].

His Persona Mask is also a product of the system.

This means that... although the sacrifice's ability is the result of the fusion of the sacrifice itself and the Persona Mask, if the system wants to interfere, it probably doesn't take much effort to do so.

So... was the cage's sealing ability, which sealed away the curse power after use, truly a result of natural fusion?

Was it really not that the system, unable to prevent him from accessing rule-level offerings, changed its approach, subtly suppressing the power of the curse?

Going back to what I thought before, the power of curses has a level of authority no lower than that of the system. Therefore, after the system barely managed to seal the power of curses under some pretext, it was not stable. Once it encountered a powerful human or ghost that was associated with the power of curses, the power of curses could break through the system's restrictions and make a comeback on him.

That makes sense.

Therefore, he finally had a direct impression of the power that the Lingren had put into his body... This was at least the most primal rule, which could contend with system privileges.

Then a new question arises: why did the Lingren entrust such immense power to him? What is so special about him? How much of this power does the Lingren himself possess?

As well as...

The reason he was tormented by the power of the curse was not necessarily a fixed "side effect," but rather that his body could not withstand such terrifying power, which caused adverse reactions.

The black patterns on the Ghost Tree helped him resist the pressure exerted on him by the power of the curse. For the first time, Yu Xing experienced complete power. That feeling was captivating, but it could also easily lead to addiction and loss of control.

His willpower far exceeds what ordinary people imagine; he will not forget himself because of his craving for power.

But now he is no longer completely clueless about investigating the unknown offering inside his body; at least he has a direction.

"This plot-driven kill is so satisfying..." Yu Xing chuckled softly. "If I had known that giving the mission to Carlos would have such benefits, I would have loved to have it happen more often."

System:"..."

If the system truly possessed emotions, it would probably be angry by now.

"Hey, System, why do I have to stay away from the Ghost Tree for you to help me suppress the curse? Is there some kind of conspiracy?" Yu Xing asked knowingly, determined to infuriate the system. "If I can't stay away, how will you compensate me?"

As they spoke, the branches of the Ghost Tree failed to envelop him and followed again.

Perhaps the system also felt that Yu Xing was too perceptive, and that it was no longer possible to completely conceal the truth, so it spoke up again.

[If you don't suppress it, your chances of being killed will be 100%.]

Yu Xing raised an eyebrow, his face turning pale again due to the corrosive power of the curse. Although he didn't want to pay attention to the system on the surface, he still took a step back.

The system is right about one thing: although Ghost Tree should have some connection with him, their stances are not necessarily the same.

The Ghost Tree regarded him as one of its own kind and was delighted by it. However, when the Ghost Tree touched him with its cocoon, it was hard to say whether it would release him, its "kindred spirit," or absorb him as new nourishment.

No one can understand the thoughts of a tree.

"Forget it, the timing isn't good." Yu Xing compromised. He had already obtained a lot of information, and his current condition was poor; there was no need to continue fighting to the death.

This tree is beyond his current capabilities. If it were the kind of curse power without side effects he had just encountered, he might have been able to give it a shot.

He glanced at the branch that had circled around him, then slashed down with his Tang sword, leaving a trail of thick black.

The branches receded slightly, Yu Xing took the opportunity to approach the entrance facing the wall of heads. He lowered his body, turned around, and squeezed inside.

The passageway was narrow and cramped, the opposite of when it came. It widened as it went on, Yu Xing basically had to run through it in the end because he could sense the aura of the Ghost Tree chasing after him.

The room seemed real yet illusory; it shouldn't exist, but the branches and leaves that chased after it were real material. As the branches chased, their sharp tips left deep scratches on the stone wall.

They were chasing after the black mist emanating from Yu Xing's body. This time, the black mist was raging wildly, and Yu Xing couldn't even guide it back into her body.

"Hurry up, system." Yu Xing was experiencing real-time communication with the system for the first time. His steps were unsteady, his face was pale, and his hands were trembling uncontrollably.

[Fix the vulnerability immediately]

The system kept its word. As Yu Xing ran around a corner, he felt the power of the curse being suppressed by another hollow and invisible force, gradually disappearing.

He exhaled easily, and his pace quickened considerably.

After turning another corner, Yu Xing saw the room where he and Carlos had rested. Just then, the power of the curse completely disappeared, and the pain finally left Yu Xing.

Almost simultaneously, his perception of the Ghost Tree also disappeared. Or rather, once the power of the curse within him was suppressed, the Ghost Tree lost its target; after all, trees don't have eyes.

"San!" Carlos heard footsteps and popped his head out of the room, followed closely by Unica's face.

It seems that Unica was found by Carlos's paper doll during the time Yu Xing was away.

Yu Xing responded and looked back. There was nothing behind him; there was no trace of the Ghost Tree branch, and even the scratches had disappeared.

"..."

It's really hard to define reality and illusion in a tomb.

"Where did you go?" Unica raised an eyebrow, her beautiful eyebrows revealing a kind of heroic spirit that belonged to a woman, but her heroic spirit was different from that of Shi Jiu; she was more charming.

Yu Xing slightly shifted her gaze and made a brief eye contact with Carlos.

Carlos felt that after Yu Xing left, the aggression in her eyes was stronger, and her hair and clothes were more disheveled, as if she had been in a battle.

Presumably, the plot-driven death has been safely overcome.

As expected of San.

Unica definitely wouldn't understand the plot-driven death, and besides, Unica hadn't been removed from the suspect list, so it was impossible for him to tell her these things. Yu Xing knew that Carlos would definitely keep quiet, so he just smiled and said, "Carlos was tired just now, I wanted to go ahead and scout things out."

"Are you really that brave? The tomb is too dangerous. It's better not to go alone." Unica's brow furrowed with barely perceptible worry. "Ash told me the same thing, and then he never came back."

"Didn't he come back?" Yu Xing asked in surprise. "He's a professional mercenary, he shouldn't get lost. Besides, there's also Shi Jiu Carlos. What did Shi Jiu say?"

Carlos pointed to the camera he was wearing. "She said Ash's camera went missing while she was hiding from the gatekeeper, so she can't see him."

"... Is that so?" Yu Xing silently recalled for a moment.

Would Ash really be such a careless person? He lost the camera and didn't even ask Shi Jiu for help on the microphone.

Was he dead, or did he lose the microphone along with him, or perhaps... he simply didn't want to be under surveillance anymore?

Yu Xing suppressed his doubts. "Let's leave it at that for now. Carlos will find him. Let's leave here first."

If we stay too long, we might attract something like the Hair Demon.

Unica nodded. This historian had excellent mental fortitude; not only did she persevere alone until Carlos found her after Ash disappeared, but she also remained remarkably calm and without complaint.