Niu Niu grabbed Fang Yue's hand excitedly.
"Brother Ye, from now on, wherever you go, I'll follow! You're my professional power-leveling carry—uh, no, you're my golden thigh!"
Fang Yue's face darkened.
Damn, how had he never realized this guy had that kind of... preference?
Fang Yue hurriedly pulled his hand away and stepped back.
"Men and women should keep their distance!"
"No, Brother Ye, I just want to stick with you! I don't mean anything else!"
Niu Niu hurried to explain, afraid Fang Yue would misunderstand and distance himself.
Stick with me?
I can barely manage on my own.
Fang Yue's mouth twitched, but he said nothing.
Suddenly, Niu Niu let out an "Ah!" as if he'd just remembered something, then quickly asked, "By the way, Brother Ye, what does the evil curse status do? How do I get rid of it? And how do I put my right hand and heart back?"
Without Analysis Pupil, the statuses on the status bar really were just names. There was no explanation at all.
So Niu Niu had no idea what the curse did. Unless Fang Yue explained it, he'd have to find a powerful person like one of the captains and ask.
Fang Yue gave him a brief explanation and showed him his right hand.
"It's really that simple? It'll heal when the time's up?"
Niu Niu couldn't believe it. That was way too easy. He'd been scared half to death for nothing.
But why couldn't he see the countdown Brother Ye had mentioned?
Without Analysis Pupil, Niu Niu knew nothing about that information, and Fang Yue couldn't help him. Niu Niu could only guess that, like Fang Yue, he'd recover after twenty-four shichen—in other words, two days.
He pressed his severed hand against his arm, and a -1 damage notification immediately appeared above his head.
At the same time, instead of an itch, he felt a sharp pain from the wound on his arm.
Looking down by the light of the Soul Fire, Niu Niu's face turned ashen.
The flesh around his severed arm was rotting and suppurating, with disgusting pus oozing out.
This was nothing like what Fang Yue had described.
Was it really going to heal on its own when the time was up?
Seeing Niu Niu's pale face, Fang Yue hurried to reassure him. "Maybe the wound's just too big. Try your heart?"
Niu Niu lowered his severed hand and tried to stuff his heart into his chest.
But the heart didn't fit the palm-sized hole in his chest. It was as if... the hollow in his torso had somehow grown larger, or some corrosive force had eaten away at the surrounding flesh.
"B-Brother Ye!"
Niu Niu looked at Fang Yue in panic. Fang Yue spread his hands.
"I don't know either."
"But your right hand..."
"Niu Niu, you can't lump everyone's constitution together. You saw it yourself: I once beat an evil spirit to death in a fit of extreme rage. Can you do that?"
Damn! Could he really get angry enough to do that?
Niu Niu shook his head. "I can't!"
"So if you want to stay alive, you'll have to get Doctor Hong or one of the captains to take a look."
One of the captains...
The closest one should be... Captain Chen's residence!
Thinking of the Chen residence, Niu Niu suddenly remembered something important.
"Oh, right, Brother Ye. I was so excited just now that I forgot to ask—why did you come back? Earlier, you were way ahead of me, and you were carrying that guy who'd been scared stiff. Where is he?"
"Dead."
Fang Yue kept it brief.
Earlier, Fang Yue really had run off with the man, and he'd run fast. He had no intention of coming back to help Niu Niu fight the evil spirit.
After they'd gone a good distance, Fang Yue had put down the terrified teammate and told him to keep running on his own.
The guy was a little fat, and carrying him the whole way would've wasted too much energy.
They continued running, one behind the other. Finally, when they reached the Chen residence, Fang Yue saw...
A head hanging above the front gate of the Chen residence.
A body lay on the ground, torn into four or five pieces.
The head belonged to Chen Mu.
The body belonged to Shi Wuliao.
Fang Yue's pupils contracted. A chill crawled up his spine, and his whole body trembled.
Chen Mu, the foremost of Ancient Moon Village's three captains! The man who had taught him the blade techniques and inner cultivation method, dead just like that! He'd died silently, right outside his own home!
Fuck!
Fang Yue's first instinct was to turn and run.
But before he could move, the little fatty beside him suddenly let out a shrill scream, loud enough for everyone in the Chen residence to hear.
"It's—it's Shi Wuliao! He's dead!"
The moment Fang Yue heard him shout, he knew they were in deep trouble. His soul nearly left his body.
Without a second thought, he retreated at full speed.
Barely moments after Fang Yue bolted, the little fatty's body was suddenly sliced into four or five pieces. He didn't even have time to scream before he died on the spot, and a terrifyingly large red number appeared above his head.
-1161!
Holy crap!
One-shot kill at full health!
Ten times the damage he needed!
Fang Yue was stunned. He didn't dare linger for even half a second.
He ran for his life without looking back, using every ounce of strength he had.
Perhaps he'd retreated quickly enough, or perhaps the evil spirit didn't want to leave the Chen residence. Either way, Fang Yue managed to escape unscathed.
Remembering the scene, his legs were still shaking.
Damn it, I don't even have 1,000 HP! I've only got 200! That attack was so fast I couldn't even see it. If it hit me, I'd be killed in an instant too!
Fang Yue clutched his thudding heart and got his bearings. He realized that he'd run almost all the way back to where he and Niu Niu had parted. Up ahead, he could see firelight and hear the sounds of fighting.
"No way. Is Niu Niu still alive?"
Fang Yue couldn't believe it. Then he thought it over.
If Niu Niu was still alive, didn't that mean the evil spirit he was fighting was pathetic?
Time to swoop in and steal the kill!
Fang Yue crept forward through the dark, thinking,
If Niu Niu was dead when he reached the fight, he'd pick up where he'd left off and kill the evil spirit.
If Niu Niu was still alive, he'd protect him.
"Protecting the boss is my duty! Killing the evil spirit is the best way to protect him!"
When Fang Yue finally crept back, he saw Niu Niu and the evil spirit locked in a "struggle."
Fang Yue's face lit up with delight.
Niu Niu had only 3.7 strength, yet he was holding his own against this evil spirit. If I joined in, victory would be practically guaranteed!
I'm coming to protect the boss!
He quietly picked up a torch and seized his chance to launch a sneak attack.
But once he joined the fight, he was overcome with regret. He knew he'd misjudged the situation: this evil spirit was no pushover.
Niu Niu hadn't been fighting the evil spirit for long. He'd simply run fast enough to keep it occupied for a long time. They'd only started fighting shortly before Fang Yue returned.
Everyone knew what happened next.
Of course, Fang Yue wasn't about to tell Niu Niu about his scheming. He just shared the important details.
I, Fang Yue, never lead people into a trap!
A pro gamer's reputation is guaranteed!
After hearing Fang Yue's abridged account, Niu Niu was stunned.
"Holy crap! There was an evil spirit at the Chen residence? Captain Chen is dead? Shi Wuliao is dead too? And you're the only one who made it back?"
There was so much to take in that Niu Niu struggled to process it all.
It took him a while to understand what all this meant. He looked at Fang Yue with a strange expression.
"Brother Ye... do you think the evil spirits have already overrun Ancient Moon Village?"
Another update later today. Please add to your collection and vote!
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