Guo Shuai felt as if molten lava had been poured into his left eye socket.
The burning sensation shot straight through his optic nerve and into his brain, nearly knocking him unconscious from the pain on the spot.
"Ugh... Ah..."
He clutched the edge of the table so hard his fingernails nearly snapped.
Yet just as he was about to break, the agony quickly receded.
A tingling itch followed in its wake.
But Guo Shuai was horrified to discover that he was losing all feeling in his body!
The [Eye of Calamity] wasn't just fusing with his nerves—it was devouring his soul in reverse!
It was trying to possess him!
Danger Sense blared wildly, its warning indicator glowing so red it was almost black!
"You think you can control me?!"
Guo Shuai slammed his fist into his Magic Core, using the pain to forcibly reclaim a sliver of control over his body.
"I'm not afraid to die, so what the hell should I be afraid of you for?!"
"I will never let you do whatever you want!!"
Guo Shuai was utterly ruthless.
If his willpower wasn't enough, then he'd use even more extreme pain to jolt himself awake!
He staggered over to a Torture Device hanging on the nearby wall and viciously clamped it around his own neck!
That still wasn't enough!
He grabbed a thick hemp rope that who knew how many people had hanged themselves with, tied it into a noose, and hung it from the rusty Iron Hook above his head.
Then he stuck his neck through the loop.
He kicked the stool away.
Clang!
A powerful sensation of suffocation hit him at once!
The barbs around his neck pierced his flesh, and the pain of choking left his brain severely starved of oxygen.
But precisely because this extreme, near-death shock was so intense, it forcibly suppressed the tingling sensation of being possessed!
"Cough... Cough, cough..."
Half a minute later.
The strange itching vanished completely, and a cool sensation came from his left eye.
His vision had returned!
It was even clearer than before!
He'd done it!
He'd mastered this A-Class Weird Artifact!
But...
Guo Shuai couldn't bring himself to smile.
Because he was still dangling in midair, his face flushed a deep purple, his legs kicking wildly, and his eyes rolling back into his head.
"Am... Am I really going to die like this?"
"I wasn't killed by a monster... I wasn't possessed... and I end up hanging myself?"
"Is this what they mean by... dying halfway through?"
Guo Shuai's heart filled with absurd despair.
His vision was growing blurry. Just as he thought he was about to go and see Old Yang,
a dark figure leaped down through the cellar entrance.
Without even looking, the man casually grabbed the Boning Knife on the table and flicked his wrist.
Whoosh!
A flash of cold light.
Plop.
The hemp rope was cut in an instant.
Guo Shuai hit the ground hard and clutched his neck.
"Cough, cough, cough!!"
Once he'd finally caught his breath, he lifted his head and found himself staring into a pair of pitch-black eyes.
Jiangnan.
Just then, Guo Shuai's newly fused left eye—the [Eye of Calamity]—instinctively activated on its own!
A stream of dark-gold data instantly covered Jiangnan's figure.
[Analyzing target...]
[Target: Human Male]
[Health: 100%]
[Supernatural Ability: None]
[Paper Combat Power: E-]
[Weakness: Given your current configuration, your target's entire body is a weakness.]
[Comprehensive Evaluation: Nothing more than an ordinary human who's a little stronger than a total weakling.]
[System Recommendation: Estimated odds of victory are seven to three. Would you like to immediately devise an Auto Combat plan to kill him?]
Seeing that string of information, Guo Shuai, still on his knees, went completely dumb.
His eyes nearly popped out of his head.
"Huh? No Supernatural Ability?"
"E- combat power?"
"An ordinary human?"
Guo Shuai screamed frantically in his mind, What the hell, is this busted eyeball of yours a Pirated Copy?!
Who was this man in front of him?
He was the ruthless person who'd burned the BOSS to ashes with a single finger just moments ago!
He'd even lit up an entire monster-filled Wheat Field like a cigarette!
And you were calling him an ordinary person?
Then I'm your freaking Dad!
And what the hell was with those seven-to-three odds?!
"Does that mean he kills me seven times in three seconds?!"
Guo Shuai broke into a cold sweat, terrified that the damn eyeball might actually activate "Auto Combat" for him.
Wouldn't that mean he'd die on the spot?
"Turn it off! Hurry up and turn it off!"
He forcibly shut down the [Eye of Calamity] with his mind and silently swore to himself.
Once he got the chance, he'd find out if he could get it repaired. That margin of error was ridiculous.
Then he looked at Jiangnan, who stood above him, and immediately lowered his head, not daring to meet his eyes.
"Th... Thank you for saving my life."
Jiangnan paid no attention to the thoughts running through his mind. He simply stared quietly at the man with his head bowed.
It was obvious that Guo Shuai already feared him deeply from the bottom of his heart.
Good.
That was exactly the effect Jiangnan wanted.
Jiangnan took a Memo Pad from his pocket, quickly scribbled a line, tore it off, and tossed it in front of Guo Shuai.
Then he picked up Fite's diary from the table, turned around, and climbed the ladder.
Guo Shuai tremblingly picked up the note from the ground.
[From today on, you'll live with Wang Meng and follow his orders in everything.]
At the sight of those words, a brilliant light of excitement burst into Guo Shuai's eyes!
This wasn't just an order.
It meant... acceptance!
He'd successfully joined the Big Boss's team!
"Thank you, boss! Guo Shuai will obey your orders!"
Guo Shuai gave Jiangnan's departing back a Fist and Palm Salute. The pose was a little over-the-top, but his gaze was utterly devout.
Back on the surface.
Wang Meng was waiting beside the vehicle. When he saw Jiangnan climb up, with Guo Shuai following behind him, looking battered but bright-eyed, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Big Boss, this kid's all right, yeah?" Wang Meng asked with a smile.
Jiangnan nodded and headed straight for the door.
"Big Boss, where are we going now?"
Jiangnan stopped and turned back, handing Wang Meng a slip of paper:
[We're not going anywhere.]
[Put a coat of this skin on the vehicle.]
[I need to study something. Don't bother me unless it's important.]
With that, he tossed the Magic Skin to Wang Meng and got into the vehicle with the diary.
The three women, including Chen Tong, hurried after him.
The doors closed.
Only Wang Meng and Guo Shuai, the two men, remained outside.
Wang Meng looked at the icy human skin in his hands. It was a little creepy,
but as a B-Class Mechanic, all he could sense at that moment was the aura of a top-grade material.
"Now that's good stuff..."
Wang Meng exclaimed in admiration, then looked at Guo Shuai.
"Guo Shuai, since the boss said so, we're brothers now, joined at the hip."
"Anything I can help you with?"
Guo Shuai immediately stepped closer and greeted him with a very knowing, "Brother Wang."
Hearing "Brother Wang" made Wang Meng feel fantastic.
Before, he'd just been the chubby social butterfly in his class. Now he'd actually become a little leader.
But he didn't let it go to his head. Instead, he patted Guo Shuai on the shoulder and said earnestly:
"No need. You were way too hard on yourself just now. I heard everything."
"You're still injured, so keep watch for me nearby. Make sure no clueless monsters come over."
"Got it, Brother Wang! Leave it to me!"
Guo Shuai was deeply moved. He immediately ran to a nearby rise, activated Danger Sense, and kept a wary eye on the surroundings.
Meanwhile, Wang Meng took a deep breath and began activating his Supernatural Ability.
"Mechanic, activate!"
As his power surged within him, a large, silvery-white wrench with a distinctly futuristic look appeared out of thin air in his hand.
It looked like a wrench, but was actually the Mechanic's Companion Artifact: the Universal Repairer.
It had only one ability: modification!
As long as he had materials, anything could be repaired, anything could be modified!
Wang Meng spread the enormous S-Class Magic Skin across the vehicle's hood.
The wrench in his hand lightly tapped the bodywork.
Ding! Ding! Ding!
A wondrous sight unfolded.
Under the glow of white light, the impossibly tough human skin melted like liquid.
Then it quickly seeped into the black Alloy Armor.
Dark-gold patterns began to appear across the vehicle's formerly matte-black body!
A Scarecrow's sinister grinning face even emerged faintly at the front of the vehicle, radiating an aura of fear.
The whole process went off without a hitch and took less than five minutes.
[Modification complete!]
[Acquired trait: Fear Aura (S-Class)]
"All done!"
Wang Meng wiped away his sweat and clapped his hands in satisfaction.
Guo Shuai was dumbstruck.
"That was fast! Brother Wang, what kind of Supernatural Ability is that?"
"Heh, B-Class Mechanic. It's no big deal." Wang Meng waved a hand modestly.
"No wonder the boss trusts you so much. That ability is incredibly useful!"
Guo Shuai praised him sincerely.
"Your ability's not bad either. And now you've got that A-Class Weird Artifact."
Wang Meng pointed at Guo Shuai's left eye.
At that, Guo Shuai's expression turned a little strange. He laughed awkwardly.
"Um... Brother Wang, I think this eyeball of mine might be a defective product, or maybe it's broken."
"Huh? Broken? What makes you say that?" Wang Meng asked curiously.
"How about... I try it on you?" Guo Shuai asked tentatively.
"Sure, go ahead." Wang Meng stood there openly.
Guo Shuai took a deep breath and activated the Eye of Calamity again.
Dark golden data streams appeared once more.
[Target: Human Male] [Health: 100%] [Paper Combat Power: F+] [Supernatural Ability: B-Class Mechanic] [Weakness: Old Leg Injury; limited mobility.] [Comprehensive Evaluation: A weakling with a powerful support ability.] [System Suggestion: Estimated odds are nine to one. Beat his damn head in.]
"Uh..."
Guo Shuai froze when he saw the data this time.
The evaluation stung a little, but this time it was obviously much more reasonable!
It had even spotted the old injury in his leg!
"Brother Wang... is your leg injured?"
Guo Shuai asked.
Wang Meng slapped his thigh. "Amazing! That's right!"
"When I was little, I was fixing cars with my dad and got hit by a jack. It healed, but I've never been able to run fast since."
"Your eye really is amazing!"
"Phew..."
Guo Shuai let out a sigh of relief. "Looks like it's not broken."
But if it wasn't broken...
Then why had it shown "No Supernatural Ability" and "Ordinary Person" when it scanned the Boss earlier?
The more Guo Shuai thought about it, the more horrifying it seemed. He slapped his forehead.
"I've got it!!"
"It's not the eye that's broken! The Boss is just too strong!"
"He's so powerful that even an A-Class Weird Artifact can't see his true strength! It can only see the most superficial layer of his disguise!"
"That's it! It has to be!"
Guo Shuai's eyes brimmed with admiration. "The Boss even took down the Eyeball Master in a second. How could it possibly see through him?"
He told Wang Meng his theory.
Wang Meng listened, stunned, then nodded in deep agreement.
"As expected of a Big Boss! His depths are unfathomable!"
So the two grown men sat in the barren land beside the car and wildly imagined Jiangnan's strength.
The more they talked, the more excited they became, and the more certain they were that they'd chosen the right person. They even developed the sort of revolutionary friendship that made them wish they'd met sooner.
Meanwhile, inside the car.
Unlike the two self-deluded, fanatical admirers outside, Jiangnan was now lying on a spacious Simmons Bed with one leg crossed over the other.
One arm was around Chen Tong's slender waist, his hand playing with her astonishing softness, while his other hand held the diary.
After carefully confirming the information he wanted—Daily Settlement, Shelter, Trial, and so on—Jiangnan tossed it straight into the Trash Can.
The diary was no longer of any use to him.
But...
His temper was a little short right now!
That Scarecrow had cost him a full sixteen characters!
Sixteen days!
Three hundred and eighty-four hours!
"Damn thing..."
Jiangnan was feeling a little heated and needed to let off some steam.
He pulled Chen Tong into his arms, rolled over, and pressed her beneath him.
"Ah!"
Chen Tong cried out. Looking at Jiangnan's face, which held a hint of anger but was still so handsome it made her knees weak, she instantly understood.
Her cheeks flushed like a ripe apple, her gaze grew hazy, and she obediently wrapped her arms around Jiangnan's neck.
"Y-You can..."
"Jiangnan..."
At the other end of the car.
Liu Yuqing and Yu Shishi had noticed what was going on over there long ago.
The two of them retreated in perfect sync to the farthest corner of the sofa, pulled a blanket over their heads, and pretended to be two ostriches.
Before long,
the car began to rock rhythmically, accompanied by low murmurs that made their faces burn.
But the soundproofing was excellent, so no one outside could hear a thing.
Outside the car,
Wang Meng and Guo Shuai were still chatting away, dreaming of conquering the Barbaric Realm in the future.
They had no idea their Boss was engaged in another kind of "intense battle."
It wasn't until the eastern sky turned pale and the sun rose
that this long and absurd night finally came to an abrupt end.
Before you continue