Demoness

[Snake Maiden]

[Resentment level: ★★]

The moment Chen Feng received She Qingqing's information from the system, he knew the danger had passed.

Even so, he did not dare open his eyes. He felt his way through the dark and, relying on memory, stumbled out of the restroom.

In the myths, the hero Perseus had used Medusa's severed head to kill the sea monster Cetus. Even a dead snake demon was not to be taken lightly.

The result was that Chen Feng tripped over She Qingqing's body and fell flat on his face like a Dog.

"Ow."

Chen Feng grimaced. He had barely left the restroom when he heard the rustle of insects moving.

He looked up and saw Zhu Xianxian's Ying at the stairwell.

They stared at each other and asked at the same time, "You're still alive?"

Zhu Xianxian paused, then smiled. "You didn't think one tear gas grenade could kill me, did you?"

Chen Feng had a feeling she was bluffing. A tear gas grenade was not a lethal weapon like a hand grenade, but an explosion at close range could still cause a severe reaction, even death. That went double for spiders, which were tiny insects.

That grenade had destroyed at least half of Zhu Xianxian's body.

"So there's no way you came out of it unharmed."

"Hahaha."

As though she had heard a joke, Zhu Xianxian lifted the human skin over her abdomen, revealing a dense mass of spider eggs. They kept bursting open, hatching countless tiny spiders.

Chen Feng was stunned. "What?"

Pointing to the scraps of police uniform in her belly, Zhu Xianxian laughed. "As long as there's flesh and blood, I can have as many of these children as I want. What I don't understand is how that snake girl missed. How are you still alive?"

Before Chen Feng could answer, she went on, "It's cold. Ah, the Water Ghost is here. That explains it."

Countless tiny spiders swarmed forward and quickly gathered into a human shape.

The invisible Water Ghost had tried to sneak up on Zhu Xianxian, but the spiders around her had caught it.

Now that it had been discovered, the Water Ghost lunged straight at her.

"Too slow. Did that snake girl petrify you?"

Just as the Water Ghost was about to grab her, Zhu Xianxian suddenly scattered into a swarm of spiders. They spun silk and trapped it.

The threads could pin an adult firmly in place, but they were not quite enough for the Water Ghost.

With a single exertion, it broke through the web. By then, however, Zhu Xianxian had become countless tiny spiders crawling all over its body. No matter how strong it was, it had no way to deal with them.

Chen Feng grew more anxious as he watched. The Water Ghost is strong, but it has no way to attack them all at once. No matter how many spiders it kills, more will hatch. If this drags on, it's bound to lose.

His mind raced. If the Water Ghost dies, I'm done for too. I have to think of something, fast.

If only I had insecticide.

Or fire. Even some smoke would do... Wait, smoke?

That's it!

The tear gas grenade!

Chen Feng turned and ran toward the statue. The petrification had only affected its body; its clothes and equipment were intact. But after searching for ages, he found only one tear gas grenade.

That's not enough!

Chen Feng was frantic. One grenade could at most free the Water Ghost. It would take far more to defeat Zhu Xianxian.

Across the room, the Water Ghost was stumbling backward, almost too weak to resist.

Zhu Xianxian's voice came from somewhere. "Giving up already? Looks like that snake girl's petrification did something after all."

Petrification?

Chen Feng suddenly remembered that She Qingqing's corpse was still lying in the restroom.

I'll have to take a chance!

Gritting his teeth, Chen Feng ran toward the restroom, keeping his eyes fixed on the ceiling. Once through the door, he crouched and felt around.

Something cold, long, and scaly... That was her snake body.

He followed it upward and felt two large, soft mounds... Sorry! Sorry!

After that silent apology, Chen Feng felt hair and a round head on the floor. He turned the head to face forward by touch, then rushed out of the restroom. The Water Ghost had been pinned to the floor by the swarm, unable to move.

"Once I eat you, I'll become even stronger."

Zhu Xianxian was still gloating.

Chen Feng shouted, "Everyone, look at me! Look at me! Look at me!"

The sudden shout drew the spiders' attention. The trouble with spiders was that they had eight eyes. They got a perfect look at what Chen Feng was holding.

Then came a scream. "No!"

The swarm rapidly turned white.

There was a method for dealing with red imported fire ants: pour molten aluminum heated to a thousand degrees into their nest. Once it cooled, dig out the nest and wash it with a high-pressure hose, and the result would be a silvery-white sculpture.

The spider swarm had become just such a sculpture, except this one was made of stone.

Chen Feng also received Zhu Xianxian's information:

[Human-Skin Spider]

[Resentment level: ★★]

After dealing with the two at the front desk, Chen Feng and the Water Ghost rested for a while.

Things had gone downhill fast.

Chen Feng was close to losing it. Just moments ago, he had led a large group in, confident they could take down the Landlady in one sweep. Now, without even seeing her, he was the only one left, along with a half-crippled Water Ghost.

He could check the Water Ghost's condition through the system in real time.

"Poisoned, burned, petrified."

"Those spiders were venomous too?"

"When did the Water Ghost get burned...? Oh. I did that. Sorry."

Muttering to himself, Chen Feng searched the fallen internet café attendant, found another key, and handed it to the Water Ghost. Then he headed up to the third floor, one step at a time.

As he came off the stairs, the familiar stench of rot hit him.

That's the smell!

The empty, unfinished space had become the familiar Skin Forest. Chen Feng knew his guess had been right: the key was what let them reach the real third floor.

"My darling husband, you're home?"

The Landlady's voice rang out, sweet and seductive.

Chen Feng scoffed. "Come out and see who your husband is."

"Who are you?"

The voice sounded familiar to the Landlady. She came out to look and met She Qingqing's eyes.

Chen Feng had nothing to say to a vile woman like the Landlady. He had carried She Qingqing's head in his hands all the way upstairs, intending to catch her off guard the moment they met.

"Ah!"

Got her!

At the sound of the Landlady's scream, Chen Feng hurriedly lowered the head. But although a layer of stone covered her face, the rest of her body had not turned to stone.

Like the Water Ghost, she had some resistance to petrification.

I knew it wouldn't be that easy.

"Now!" Chen Feng shouted.

A pair of hands closed around the Landlady's neck. The Water Ghost had come upstairs with Chen Feng and crept close under cover of invisibility.

"Handsome, if you're going to ambush me, you really shouldn't shout first."

The Landlady had heard him and braced herself, but the petrification had left her movements stiff. She failed to dodge the Water Ghost's attack. With a crack, her head snapped off and rolled across the floor.

Was it over?

Chen Feng frowned. His instincts told him it could not be that simple.

Just then, the severed head opened its eyes. Its lips curled into an eerie, alluring smile. "Husband, don't be so impatient."