The Record of Unusual Creatures - Chapter 661

Chapter 661: Lil Pea’s Hard Questions Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

 

Because of that freaking summoning ritual, it was already two o’clock in the morning when Vivian finally finished analysing the blood sample. Unable to fight her biological clock, Lily was sleeping like a log on the sofa, sucking her mouth occasionally as if she was dreaming something delicious. In fact, it was an achievement for Lily to stay up so late. Hao Ren could still remember the husky’s heroic skill back then where she was running while asleep during a business trip abroad. She was following them around to different time zones and yet making no fuss about it. Certainly, Lily had come a long way.

“Let her sleep here tonight,” Hao Ren looked at Lily, curling up into a meatball on the sofa. “She is in deep sleep. She is prone to bite if you disturb her now.”

Nangong Sanba yawned and said, “I got to hit the sack too. If there’s anything else, we shall talk about it tomorrow.”

Nangong Wuyue and Ayesha nodded. “We’re tired too…”

Hao Ren looked at the two marine creatures bizarrely. During the battle earlier, the two of them had curled up in a ball and hid in a corner. During in Mars, they had even blended in becoming the background. Now they still have the nerve to complain.

After Y’zaks had also brought his daughter back into the room, Hao Ren mumbled as he scratched his jaw. “In fact, I have a question of concern.”

Vivian did not sleep much at night. At this time, she was still here with Hao Ren. “What question?”

“The evil spirit had kept repeating some puzzling words before she was killed; she said ‘come back, come back’ and nothing else.” Hao Ren became even more curious. “I didn’t know if the evil spirit had a mind of its own, or was just a magical summoned object.”

“Come back?” Vivian’s brows knit together as she also felt the same. “What does it mean?”

Hao Ren shrugged. “Judging from the dialogue, it sounds like ghost call. I’m not kidding, the evil spirit looks exactly like you. Just that she was as if on drug in term of aura. You really don’t remember that you had another doppelganger other than Hessiana? Maybe aside from transcended bats, can your blood transcend too?”

Goosebumps instantly popped up on Vivian’s skin. “Stop that. One Hessiana is already annoying enough; two would be the end of my world.”

“Well, I’ll stop here. Wait until you find Hessiana to confirm the origin of the magic book.” Hao Ren exhaled, got to his feet, and did a stretch and yawned. “I’m going to sleep now, you should too.”

Hao Ren was lying in bed after returning to his room. He suddenly heard water splashing on the side table. Lil Pea quietly poked out of the pot and said. “Dad-dee, you’re back!”

Hao Ren was surprised that this little one was still awake at this time. “Haven’t slept? Did I wake you?”

Lil Pea was in growth stage, she basically spent most time eating and sleeping. She would usually got sleepy after dinner. So before everyone went out performing the freaking ‘summoning ritual’, the little fellow had already fallen asleep, but now she was awake. The little fellow gently paddled in the water, and her voice sounded unusually serious. “I was dreaming! Dad-dee, do you think I’m just like you people when I grow up?”

Hao Ren was startled for a moment. “What same?”

“It’s just like you all,” said Lil Pea, gesturing with her little arms and fingers in the air trying to express herself clearly. “Becoming as big as Dad-dee, fish sister, and also doggie sister to be able to run around!”

Only now that Hao Ren understood what the little one was thinking. His first reaction was surprised: He had not expected that Lil Pea’s mental development was so fast, she was only less than a year old and already realised her differences with others. He had to be extra careful as to how he says things and explains to a fish something that was a bit above her understanding. “Well… You will surely grow up, and may grow as big as Dad-dee, but by then you will still be a little different from others…”

“Different?” Lil Pea’s eyes glittered in the dark, “Why?”

Hao Ren thought for a moment and said, “Look, your doggie sister has a hairy big tail, Battie sister can fly, fish sister can turn into a snake, big uncle can catch fire… aren’t all of them different? Our family composition is unique, we’re all different, so you’re going to be very special…well, I mean unique. That’s what it is.”

“Is unique good?” Lil Pea asked curiously.

Hao Ren nodded energetically. “It is good! Personality is the in thing now! You’re going to stick out if you have a unique personality. Just look at how awesome your big uncle is—that’s simply because he stands like a scenic tower…”

“Then am I different from Dad-dee?” asked Lil Pea, in hot pursuit. “Shouldn’t Dad-dee and I the same?”

Cold sweat immediately ran down Hao Ren’s forehead. He felt that he had not been under such great mental pressure fighting with the monster on Mars. Was the little one suddenly enlightened or something that she suddenly came up with so many sharp questions? “Err … you have to learn to understand this question. In theory, any father and daughter will certainly not look the same after growing up, but I guess you certainly not ask this…”

Lil Pea stared at Hao Ren with her bright little eyes, her face looked the most innocent, and she was full of curiosity and anticipation. Hao Ren could not help but surrender himself. He spread out his hand and said, “Yes, when you grow up, you will not be the same as Dad-dee. Dad-dee don’t know if you would grow a pair of legs next time but Dad-dee do know that Dad-dee won’t grow a tail in my entire lifetime—but this is not important. The important thing is, I’m your Dad-dee and the Goddess has our record. So in case even if the universe is destroyed, I’m still your Dad-dee.”

Lil Peas blinked. Many things were still beyond her understanding. However, she seemed that she got the answer she wanted. So the little one shook her body in satisfaction before slamming back into the water to sleep, leaving Hao Ren alone who quietly breathed a sigh of relief. The sharp questions of the little one had finally ended.

He suddenly realised another thing: Lil Pea’s accelerated developmental talent of her race… seemed to be showing its power.

He must begin to consider the issue of growing mental maturity of the mermaid.

Hao Ren still got up on time the next day despite he slept pretty late last night. As his mental strength increased, he was able to recover his energy more quickly than before; sleep was gradually becoming a controllable and customisable thing. The first thing he saw in the morning was Lil Pea working out on the edge of a small table. The little one was stretching her arms and playing with her tail in excitement. When she saw Hao Ren had waked up, she immediately jumped on the bed, clapping her tail to greet Hao Ren. “Good morning, Dad-dee!”

Hao Ren was little startled before he found that Lil Pea looking like a happy bunny did not seem to have any confusion from those questions last night. He could not help but sigh of relief and gently knocked on the little one’s head. “Good morning—and when are you going to remember not to come onto my bed? You do know you’re wet, don’t you?”

Lil Pea clapped her tail happily. “Got it!”

Hao Ren looked at the watermarks on the mat; luckily, it was summer, he would not have to dry the mat and quilt outside—if neighbours spotted him doing that, he would have a hard time to explain the question of a big man’s quilt with a water stain all day long!

Probably it was much easier to explain why his pant was wet every day…

As soon as Hao Ren stepped out of his room, he saw Vivian was making a phone call in the living room; she seemed to be a bit emotionally agitated. “…This is no small trouble. You must quickly find out exactly who wrote the book and passed it down… Okay, I got what you mean, I’m not complaining about anything else… It would be the best help if you could help me investigate it… Absolutely not, you stay home! Don’t bet on this… I’m fine. You take good care of yourself. Mr. Landlord? He is fine. I had followed him on a business trip a few days ago…. You could have used your energy to help me investigate the magic book!”

“You spoke with Hessiana?” asked Hao Ren after Vivian hung up.

Vivian looked at her mobile phone, heartache. “…International roaming… This life is too extravagant…”

“I’ll take care of your phone bill,” Hao Ren rolled his eyes. “How about the magic book?”

“She said she will investigate, but she also didn’t know who wrote the magic book. It was a tribute to her from a member of the family of her man. It was an antique bought from a black-market auction. There was no way to find out its origin.” Vivian sighed, and then suddenly said, “I have something else for you to see.”

Chapter 662: The Speculation About Red-Haired Vivian Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

 

Amid Hao Ren’s bewilderment, Vivian took him to the open space at the back of the house. The ashes from the summoning ritual the day before had been cleaned up. There were only a few traces of char on the spot, and next to the spot was a tarpaulin shed, under which his old motorcycle was parked: it was the result of three days’ worth of elbow grease from Y’zaks and his daughter. Hao Ren stared at it for a long while before he finally recognized the parts in the motorcycle…

He looked at the burning demonic engine, wondering if he could take the two-wheeler onto the street; the traffic police would definitely raise their eyebrows…

“What do you want me to see?” Hao Ren took his eyes off his old junk and looked at Vivian curiously.

Vivian did not say a word but raised her hand, pointing at a rock on the side; silently, the rock immediately weathered into sand before Hao Ren’s eyes. Even the grass next to it withered and died in an instant.

Vivian knitted her brows. “Looks like it’s not easy to control. I intended to only demonstrate it with the rock.”

Hao Ren was wide-eyed. He turned and looked at his side; he could still see the aftermath of the chaos left behind last night: large patches of vegetation had withered and sandstone had weathered—the same thing Vivian just demonstrated. It was of that evil spirit’s power!

“What happened to you?!” Hao Ren looked at Vivian, shocked. “Isn’t this the ability of that ghost last night?”

“I don’t know what’s going on,” said Vivian. “I seem to have suddenly acquired this ability. It was probably after returning from Mars yesterday that my head felt heavy, but I thought I was just tired… Now, it looks like that was the moment the change occurred.”

Hao Ren did not know what to say, but things were already very clear: Vivian had acquired the ability of the evil spirit after she killed it last night!

Both of them felt something was amiss. They had to figure it out. Vivian demonstrated her newfound ability repeatedly; she could destroy things with her fingers without having to touch them just like the evil spirit did the previous night. She could also release a visible red light to increase the power of her attack. Obviously, the first type of attack was more dangerous. Hao Ren frowned as he looked at Vivian. “How do you feel with this ability?”

“Nothing. It’s just like instinct,” said Vivian. “I was just shocked when I first used it—I just wanted to tell you that I broke Rollie’s bowl…”

Clutching his forehead, Hao Ren said, “I’ll deal with the dumb cat. It seems that you don’t know how you got this ability… Could it be that you absorbed the enemy’s power after killing it? Or, did something stick on you?”

Vivian was a little nervous hearing that. “The last time I checked, my physique was fine. But I think it would be better to get a full body check in the medical pod.”

“Well, you can’t be too careful.” Hao Ren nodded. Nonetheless, he still could not help but recall the fight the night before. Images from his memory flashed across his mind. The memory of the Crimson Moon and its ubiquitous “crimson moonlight” caught his attention. “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“About the ‘Crimson Moon’,” Hao Ren stared into Vivian’s eyes. “The biggest threat we faced when we were fighting the evil spirit yesterday came from the Crimson Moon. I know Countess of the Crimson Moon is the appellation you go by, so I’d like to know more about your ability. But of course, you don’t have to tell me if it’s a secret.”

“It’s nothing I can’t tell,” Vivian replied, waving her hand casually. “It’s not even a secret. I’ve never kept it as a secret. Only because people who saw the Crimson Moon all died that it became a mystery…”

On hearing that, a chill ran up Hao Ren’s spine. “As if you’re not mysterious enough?!”

Vivian smiled. “The Crimson Moon is my natural ability. I don’t know why other Blood Clan members can’t do this; maybe they’re not pure enough? Whatever it is, I can make use of the power of the moonlight, and I’m also able to use it to create moonlight on a moonless night. I feel that the evil spirit’s moonlight powers are a lot similar to mine like you said. I can also make use of the moonlight to perform shadow shifts, become stealthy, or transfer my power to the moon and shine on the entire battlefield. Other than that, my moonlight is not corrosive, and it doesn’t possess life-withering effects. Yeah, it’s more like a medium by which I can do something or enhance my own abilities. However, the Crimson Moon itself contains no special power.”

Vivian was proud when she spoke of her famed skill. She had no hesitation expressing this sense of pride and prestige as the oldest vampire. Hao Ren believed that the real Crimson Moon had to be much more powerful than Vivian’s description—Vivian did not usually like to boast about herself. Her description of the Crimson Moon had probably been more conservative. In any case, according to her description, only parts of her Crimson Moon characteristics were consistent with the evil spirit from last night.

“Do you still think that the evil spirit is a part of me?” Vivian noticed Hao Ren had fallen into deep thought, so she could not help but ask.

“Somewhat.” Hao Ren nodded. “There are many similarities in both moonlight abilities, but some parts of her ability are what you’re lacking, and after you killed her, you’ve somehow ‘absorbed’ these new skills… Could it be that last night’s evil spirit was actually a part of your lost ability? Someone stole and sealed your ability when you were asleep or at your weakest moment, hence she was similar to you. But her ability was different, and it was you who completely crushed as well as absorbed her… Well, this theory sounds convincing, doesn’t it?”

Vivian pursed her lips. “You don’t feel embarrassed at all for all that boasting. However, what you said does make sense. These phenomena look exactly like your speculation. I’m feeling helpless: I’m the most ignorant one even after so much has happened. I don’t even know the whys and whats of that magic book… and ironically, its author has apparently seen me in person before.”

Vivian looked lonely whenever she talked about her lost memories. The feeling of being unable to control herself made the ancient vampire very frustrated. She looked down at her hands. “How much have I lost?”

Noticing the frustration on Vivian’s face, Hao Ren quickly steered away from the conversation. “Ahem, let’s not delve into the past. Regarding your moon abilities, did you say that you could summon moonlight on a moonless night? Is it really out of thin air?”

“Yeah.” Vivian nodded. “That’s really what ‘summoning the Crimson Moon’ is about. If I could only perform the summoning during certain a time and place, I would have died many times. However, summoning the Crimson Moon is very exhausting and it’s not easy to control. I rarely use this trick.”

Hao Ren believed so. After all, he had only seen Vivian do it once when they first met Y’zaks. After that, Vivian had never summoned her moon, presumably due to the fact it was too exhausting. However, he also dared to say that, when Vivian was in her full power cycle, she had definitely made the Crimson Moon shine more than once.

Unfortunately, the vampire countess had forgotten all of it.

“If you were cast on Mars, could you summon the Crimson Moon?” asked Hao Ren, wanting to confirm his suspicion.

Vivian nodded affirmatively. “Of course, I could. My Crimson Moon isn’t actually a real moon. It’s magic. Although I’ve never gone up there to check it out myself, I guess it should be something like a projection.”

“Last night, the ‘red-haired you’ could only use the moon on Earth to create her moonlight,” said Hao Ren. “She could do nothing after she was cast on Mars. This shows that at least in terms of her Crimson Moon ability, she was still not perfect.”

Red-haired Vivian’s Crimson Moon had some powerful special abilities, but it had to “borrow real moonlight to be effective”. This ability was obviously like a defective product. Finding out this clue, Hao Ren could only be more convinced that the evil spirit he met last night was actually part of Vivian’s ability.

Vivian massaged her forehead; things were making her anxious. “Do you think I have more abilities sealed in other places?”

With a heavy heart, Hao Ren exhaled. “I’m not ruling out that possibility.”

Chapter 663: Breaking News

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

 

“I think you should name your skill,” Hao Ren said, looking at Vivian after speculating about the red-haired version of her.

“A name?” The vampire maiden looked down at her hand. She felt that what Hao Ren said did make sense. “Hmm… I think I should. After all, the skill does look really cool. How about Finger of Withering?”

Finger of Withering; inflicting 99,999 points of real damage to its target and bringing death as well as destruction right up to the 18th generation of ancestors and even their tombs. Hao Ren felt that the name was totally apt and cool as hell. He looked at Vivian in surprise. “I never thought that you could come up with such a cool name for your skill, considering you’re such a low-key person.”

“You think everyone’s as awful as you?” Vivian scoffed, rolling her eyes. “And to be honest, I can’t see what’s so cool about the name. Don’t even get me started with Big Guy’s Finger of Death. I’ve asked; when he first started using the name. It was only to indicate that it killed whoever it touched. He had never thought about its coolness…”

Therefore, Hao Ren began to understand how the minds of the strong worked.

When the two returned to the living room, Hao Ren still could not help but ask, “By the way, have you experienced any psychological side effects such as irritability or aggression after you ‘absorbed’ the evil spirit? I remember novels and movies all depicting this. Just in case.”

“I feel nothing.” Vivian looked down at her body. “Maybe these amulets did their job?”

Meanwhile, Lily had just returned from strolling outside and was watching the TV on the couch. She raised her head and asked when she saw Hao Ren as well as Vivian coming in from the back door. “Where have you two been?”

Hao Ren told her about the development of the “new feature” in Vivian. That became breaking news.

“You slurped that thing up?” Lily looked at Vivian like she was a monster. “How could you eat so indiscriminately?”

Vivien glared at the husky. “You still have the nerve to talk about my diet?”

Experienced and well-informed, Y’zaks took things seriously. “It sounds like an absorption of power fragments… Mr. Landlord’s speculation makes sense. Something similar happened in my world. The power of the strong sometimes materializes and separates. If someone stole and sealed it, then recovered it later, the same symptom Vivian’s experiencing now would happen. However, I haven’t heard of fragmented power separated from the body having the ability to evolve into a humanoid.”

Hao Ren turned around and looked at Battie. “When it comes to Vivian, anything is possible. Even her bat doppelgangers have almost evolved into perfection. What’s more, this book was brought by her little bats.”

Lily listened to their conversation for a long while, eyes blinking. Suddenly, she clapped her hands. “If there are clues in the book, let’s just try all the other rituals in it. Maybe we can summon more—”

Before Lily could finish presenting her freaking ideas, Vivian her face with a bat. “You still have the nerve to say that! Don’t get me started with what you did last night; the summoning ritual? If it weren’t for you, things wouldn’t have gotten so out of hand. You know, this time—”

Without waiting for Vivian to finish, Lily covered her eyes and yelled back. “Why are you picking on me again? Was Mr. Landlord not the first one who wanted to perform the summoning ritual yesterday? And haven’t you already given me an earful last night?”

“Do you think you’ll ever learn even after I’ve scolded you so many times? Do you think that I’ve never studied how to deal with a husky in the past year? You have the nerve to blame it all on Mr. Landlord… Oh, Mr. Landlord, you too, please sit down, I have to tell you off too! Please don’t touch anything of unknown origin in the future. I’ve told you many times; such paranormal beings are very nasty to deal with. Don’t ever look down on the antiquated wizards on Earth. Sometimes, these things…”

Hao Ren had thought that with Lily being the lightning rod, he could safely stay clear of the line of fire. Little did he expect Vivian to suddenly switch her target and train her gun on him. Hao Ren and the husky sat side by side on the sofa and soon fell into a state of madness. While Vivian lectured the two freaking rascals, Nangong Wuyue happened to pass by not far away. The siren maiden nervously glanced over the living room before she patted herself on the chest. “Luckily, I don’t play around with such ancient things.”

“That snake over there, you come here too! You were too timid last night. You should’ve at least…”

Sensing the atmosphere, Y’zaks lifted his legs, ran off to the corner of the living room and pulled out a motorcycle repair manual. He then called on his daughter to study together. Y’lisabet said in a lowered voice, “Papa, we didn’t provoke her yesterday, right?”

“Shh! Don’t make a sound, eyes on the book.”

It was noon when Vivian finished lecturing the hapless ones. Had Vivian not remembered it was lunchtime, she would have chanted until evening. After lunch, Hao Ren summoned the MDT. He was ready to report what happened on the previous night to Raven 12345. He felt that there was more to the matter than met the eye. It was best to let the neurotic woman know, be it big or small. However, just before he managed to dial heaven’s hotline, a message unexpectedly popped up.

“Mr. Landlord! We’ve found the lair of the Cult of Origination. Please come and help – Becky.”

Hao Ren was startled for a moment before he realized the matter at hand: he had been so busy lately, and there had been no news from Holletta for over half a month, he had almost forgotten about the brain monster!

While she helped Vivian to clean up after lunch, Ayesha felt as if something was going on, so she curiously asked, “What’s wrong?”

“Oh, we’ve found the lair of the Cult of Origination. The other brain monster may be hiding there,” said Hao Ren, rubbing his hands as he got to his feet. He could not let things go wrong this time. Ayesha and Nangong Wudi seemed to be unable to make heads or tails out of it. Only then did Hao Ren realize that the two of them had not been to Holletta yet. “It’s another planet in the Plane of Dreams. I have to go over.”

After telling the others about the news, they all got up immediately; everyone was in high spirits and ready to fight. Even Rollie raised her claws and waved them frantically as she meowed. Of course, she had no clue what was going on, but she thought if she could get people’s attention, she would get to eat some dried fish. Y’zaks still remembered how the brain monster escaped the last time. He reminded them, “This time, we can’t let it slip away after we capture it.”

“Well, we’ll have to capture it first.” Hao Ren smiled. He decided to hold back his report to Raven 12345 until he got the brain monster; just to save some hassle. He sent a reply to Becky, “I got your message. Let Ophra monitor it. Don’t try to come into contact with it to avoid being mind-controlled.”

Then, he assembled his “battalion” and headed over to Holletta.

Holletta Kingdom, in Becky’s big house.

Like before, they all emerged from the basement of Becky’s house. As soon as Hao Ren arrived, he found that the basement was different. The entire wine cellar had been removed; the piles of casks and bottles, as well as exquisite high-end wine, were nowhere to be seen. The portal was placed in the center of the wine cellar and the basement looked very spacious after all the stuff was removed.

Lily sniffled. “The scent of wine’s still here, but where’s the wine?”

Becky’s voice came from the cellar door. “Of course I moved them all away; I don’t want them to meet the same fate again like the last time. I still feel the pain, you know. Two months’ worth of wine—all down the drain.”

Hao Ren let out a smile when he heard that familiar and spirited voice. He cheerfully looked up and saw Becky standing right there in a special knight costume, with an escort. She was all smiles, looking down at them. It had been a long time. Hao Ren went up enthusiastically to say hello. “Hey, look at you look… Cool, eh? Why aren’t you wearing a noble’s dress?”

“Don’t even mention it,” said Becky, waving her hand. Like a mercenary, she was still as carefree as ever. “You need two hours to put that thing on, and another two hours to take it off; it feels like I’m being tied up with a rope when I walk, and the worse thing is, you’ll soak in your own sweat in no time. I wonder if those aristocratic dresses were designed to make people reminisce on past hardships and remind them of their happiness today. Anyway, after wearing those dresses a few times in banquets, I’ll never wear them again.”

When Ayesha and Nangong Wudi came up from behind, Becky looked at the new faces in surprise. “I’ve never seen them before. New friends?”

“They’re the parents of the Nangong siblings,” said Vivian with a smile. “Just found them not long ago.”

As if she had found her own family, Becky stepped forward shaking the hands of the Nangong siblings. “Oh! Congratulations…”

Hao Ren hemmed and pointed at Lil Pea, who was swinging her head in his collar. “Let’s get out of here first before we catch up with one another. It smells of wine here, Lil Pea’s getting woozy.”

---

Chapter 664: The Reunion with Becky

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

 

As a foot-long baby fish, the maximum liquor Lil Pea could withstand was between one to two drops. The basement in Becky’s house once stacked at least 10 tons of spirits, and even though the vats had been removed, there was a still a strong smell of wine. Lil Pea became woozy in no time. When she finally left the basement, she was still groggy for a long while. She conjured a pair of sacred flames and giggled, offering the flames to anyone she saw. In the end, Nangong Wuyue found herself out of options. She summoned an aqua sphere and put the little one inside of it.

Seeing Lil Pea making flames with her hands, Becky found it incredible. “Mr. Landlord, looks like your daughter’s learned many things, eh? Sanba taught her?”

Hao Ren forced a smile and looked around Becky’s living room. The last time he was there was more than a month ago. However, due to their busy schedule and a series of major incidents, it seemed as though time crawled. He felt at home when he finally saw the familiar Hollettan style surroundings and the mercenary girl. There were some changes in Becky’s house; the most eye-catching one was the addition of a 42-inch LCD TV in the center of her living room, and a laptop on the writing desk next to the TV. When these two things sat among a pile of exotic furniture, the contrast was nothing short of artistic…

Meanwhile, Becky had already informed Ophra about the arrival of “reinforcements” through a dedicated magic communication device. She then turned to greet them, “Everyone, please take a seat while we wait for Marshal Ophra to arrive. It’s a big deal this time. Let’s lay out our plans before we do anything.”

Everyone was seated and the maid brought refreshments to everyone. The maroon-haired maid had probably come to work at Becky’s home recently. She was an unfamiliar face and seemed to be very curious about the strange guests who emerged out of the basement. From time to time, she quietly observed these people from the corner of her eyes as they chatted jovially with the “Legendary Mercenary”. Hao Ren gave the maid a friendly smile. He then pointed to the TV and computer in the living room. “You have a very rich life here. Have you gotten used to using them?”

“Yeah, now my life depends on them.” Becky smiled. “Thank you for sending these things over. The life of a noble here’s totally horrible… There are feasts and cocktail parties all the time, sometimes the King would summon me to discuss some really serious business that I can’t understand. It’s not as fun as going to the ruins and risking our lives in the past.”

“Who was the one bursting with excitement about being a noble back then?” Lily teased. “And, boasting for hours in banquets all the time, without needing to drink a single drop of water.”

Becky twisted the corner of her lips. “The excitement has worn off. Now I’d rather watch cartoons than go to those parties.”

Y’zaks was studying Becky’s TV and computer curiously. He noticed that they were placed on modified traditional Hollettan furniture, but to accommodate cabling and parts, they were carefully modified so that cables could be routed from the underside of the furniture to a sparkling alchemy device nearby. Y’zaks was full of curiosity. “You didn’t use the generator that we gave you? Why did you change the equipment?”

“The generator was too noisy and it experienced a little problem. The dark elven technicians haven’t been able to fix it even after fiddling with it for days. So, I got myself something more innovative,” said Becky proudly. “This thing’s linked to a magic circle behind the house. I asked the vice president of the Mage Association to make it, modify the magic formula of the lightning trap, and improve the energy cycle as well as the supply mechanism. That way, it could produce a stable current output. Then, using druse to produce the voltage regulator and transformer, coupled with an alchemical AC-DC converter… the power supply problem was solved.”

Hao Ren was dumbfounded. He did not understand how that magic worked, but he could somehow see that Becky had seemingly done an incredible thing!

Just as he expected, Becky continued, “We also have many awesome alchemy technologies here. They’re applied in things like long-distance communication, public lighting, ventilation ducts and the drainage pumps used in mines. However, their applications aren’t that common. Nevertheless, some scholars call this energy conversion system that the vice president and I made a… Control on Energy Standards. The King’s going to allocate funds to study this thing… Why are you people staring at me?”

Lily sized up Becky, saying, “Finally someone’s done what traverser should do. So apparently you’re the protagonist?”

Becky was confused.

Meanwhile, Hao Ren lamented quietly. He had been going around worlds with his bunch of weirdoes, traveling to countless alien planets. By that standard of traversing, they were already at the apex of the definition, yet they had not done a single thing a traverser would have supposedly done—build alien infrastructure, conquer the world, hold alien exercises, even spread paper-and glass-making as well as metallurgy. Hao Ren had always thought that his was the true style of a traverser; little did he expect to see the real template of a traverser to actually be Becky herself. He could not help but recall the moment Becky arrived at his home; she said she would like to start an inter-world trade and build up her influence…

“You’re on the wrong boat.” Hao Ren sighed as he patted Becky on the shoulder, lamenting, “You’d at least be a protagonist in any other team, and live to the end of the script.”

Becky still could not make head or tail of it.

Bored, Nangong Wuyue went to fiddle with Becky’s laptop. She was curious to know what website a person in the Otherworld would surf. After scrolling a few pages, she shouted, “What are you doing browsing Taobao in this world?”

Becky plastered a smile on her face. “Just for fun… Can you bring over some food factories the next time you come?”

“Let’s not talk about that now. Shall we focus on the matter of the Cult of Origination?” Hao Ren smiled and motioned Becky to be more serious. “Haven’t you heard anything on your side? Any progress?”

Speaking of the Cult of Origination, Becky turned serious. She sat up straight and winked at the servants in the living room. The servants immediately closed the door and left. Only then did Becky say, “Let me start from the beginning. After you left, the whole continent started a campaign to hunt the Cult of Origination and other similar cults. Holletta was not the only one at it. The Northern Empire and the surrounding tribal countries were doing the same.”

“That’s quite a scale.” Vivian was a bit surprised. “Wasn’t it supposed to be confined to Holletta?”

“That’s because two major events attracted the attention of all the people in the world. The first event was the two ‘miracles’ you did, i.e. lifting the Volcano of Dusk and the Giant Tree of Life into the sky. The Disciples of Glory took that opportunity to spread the news, saying that the power of the goddess had returned to the world and began to punish the heretics; they took this opportunity to launch a crusade against the Cult of Origination. The second event was the Royal City assassination incident. The post-narrative of this incident was that the goddess had intervened directly with her divine power to protect the Pope, thwarting the spell of the cult instantly. However, this incident still shocked the countries in this world. As you know, the Disciples of Glory is the only recognized Orthodox Church in this world. The Pope is deemed the pope of the whole world. His attempted assassination shocked the believers all over. Whether they like it or not, all countries in this world started to hunt the Cult of Origination,” said Becky, revealing a smile. “The incident has transpired in a way that’s a little beyond our expectation, but overall, it’s in the right direction. The Cult of Origination has developed their influence outside the Kingdom of Holletta. They remain mainly active in Holletta because most of the relics of the goddess are in the kingdom, but they’ve also established a number of strongholds outside…”

Speaking of this, Becky took out a large map from under the table and laid the map open. There were many small dots on the map. Becky pointed at the marks. “The Northern Empire has discovered that a spinoff of the Cult of Origination, the Holy Church of Origins, has spread to the Darzin Province. There are secret altars and activities of the Holy Church of Origin in the werewolf tribal nation, the dark elven enclaves, and Eventide, the city of the Blood Clan. To tell you the truth, even the Pope was shocked. Marshal Ophra has also lamented that the Cult of Origination is becoming scarier than ever, that they’re like a thousand-year-old thorn (a plant native to Holletta); the part above the ground may not be very obvious, but underground is an endless web of roots. But fortunately, people all over the world are joining efforts; they’re almost done digging up the roots.”

Lily looked at the map and said, “Becky, after not seeing you in such a long time, you suddenly look like an expert with the map.”

Becky scratched her hair and smirked. “With this prop in hand, it’s easier to get close to her when she’s here.”

Hao Ren had expected this. He could not help but sigh. “You’re really persistent, eh? I think you two should just become lezzies.”

Becky blushed. “Marshal Ophra is an ancient species and she’s highly drug-resistant. It’s not easy to drug her…”

Everyone was shocked beyond words.

---

Chapter 665: The Lair of the Cult of Origination

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

 

It seemed that Becky still had a long way to go before she could become a qualified noble. Of course, considering her headstrong mercenary habits, she would probably have to spend a lifetime before she could achieve that. As the lesbo topic subsided, they were afraid that the freaky maiden would come up with some other eye-popping thing, so they quickly focused on the cult issue.

In fact, to be honest, Hao Ren was not interested in the Cult of Origination’s sphere of influence and the religious situation in that world. He just wanted to capture the brain monster. Ophra had yet to come as Becky continued to flap her lips. In the end, he just listened.

“Where’s the lair of the Cult of Origination?” Hao Ren asked curiously.

Becky pointed at the map. “You wouldn’t have guessed it… It’s in the mountains, farther west of the Beinz Diocese across the Virulent Flatlands. It’s the sacred mountain of the werewolf tribe.”

Lily was surprised. “…Next to the Blood Lake?!”

“Yes, next to the Blood Lake, but deeper into the mountains. It’s inside the werewolf tribe’s territory and hidden in the mountains. The mountains there act as natural barriers and camouflage. Sacred Mountain is important to the werewolf tribal countries; they forbid outsiders from coming near to it. Therefore, we never thought those cults would be hiding in the mountains. They actually dug underground tunnels and built a mountain fortress under the nose of the werewolves as well as the Church.”

Y’zaks pointed with his finger at the Beinz Blood Lake (now renamed Beinz Crystal Mine) on the map. “So, Mr. Landlord almost blew the cult’s lair with his cannon that day?”

“But he missed,” said Becky, spreading out her hand. “Reality is always more dramatic than stories. Those cultists understand that the most dangerous place is the safest place. They have eyes in the Church; some of them are even disguised as high-ranking ascetics of the Disciples of Glory. Therefore, they know the setup of the diocese inside out. This allows them to safely hide under the nose of the Church.”

It may sound ridiculous that the cult’s headquarters was hidden right next to the Beinz Diocese. However, when you think about it, you would find it very clever: the Beinz Diocese was the most special place in the world. It was sparsely populated and the Virulent Flatlands as well as the Gnarled Grove were not easy to get across. Although it was a major diocese, it was difficult to monitor because of all kinds of natural dangers. The area also adjoined the werewolf tribal state, limiting the activity of the Disciples of Glory there. The Cult of Origination only needed to work this natural environment to their advantage and hide themselves in places where the Church would not normally pay attention. This meant that they had essentially evaded the possibility of being detected.

Apart from that, considering that the Cult of Origination and the goddess had an inexplicable relationship, Hao Ren suspected that those cult members were not hiding next to the Blood Lake just for concealment—the sanctity of the Blood Lake itself was also one of the reasons.

Even though the Disciples of Glory did not want to admit it, Hao Ren and the others knew well that the Disciples of Glory as well as the Cult of Origination were actually worshiping the same god; the sacred place and foundation of the former were also the pillar of the latter’s belief.

Lily’s thinking was not so sophisticated. When she learned that the cult was hiding next to the Blood Lake, she was amazed. “What a pity, had Mr. Landlord used a bigger gun back then, I think it would’ve saved us all the trouble. Were the cult members traumatized?”

Hao Ren gave Lily a sideways glance. “Stop larking about. Had the shot not been accurate, your werewolf friends would’ve been extinct too.”

Lily gave it a little thought before she stuck her tongue out and kept quiet after that.

They suddenly heard the sound of a carriage outside. A servant then came in and said, “Madam, Her Excellency has arrived.”

Becky happily got to her feet. “Marshal Ophra is here! Let’s go out to meet her…”

They came out into the courtyard and saw groups of armored knights as well as monks dressed in gray robes, waiting in line before the promenade. The one in front was none other than Ophra and Big Beardy, the ascetic whom Hao Ren had not seen for a long time. Ophra now looked even more valiant; it seemed that the battle with the cults had made the marshal look more energetic. Meanwhile, Big Beardy looked a little changed; his robe seemed to be more tattered, and his beard had grown messier.

Seeing his old acquaintances, Hao Ren ran up to them. He then introduced the Nangong couple who were there for the first time. Big Beardy nodded, all smiles. “Congratulations on the reunion. I’m happy for you.”

“How are you doing here?” Hao Ren’s eye ran across Big Beardy from head to toe, examining him. “Did you manage to get use to life in your hometown?”

“Every place is the same as the glory of the goddess is omnipresent.” Big Beardy was still as poker-faced as ever. “As long as we live in the grace of the goddess, it doesn’t matter where I go.”

After exchanging their usual sh*t, Hao Ren nodded solemnly at Ophra. “Becky has briefed me on the situation. How’s the status in the front line now?”

Ophra turned and pointed at the large carriage behind her. “Let’s go to the Mage Tower. I’ll tell you the details on the way.”

After everyone climbed on board the carriage and no other people were around them, Ophra began to explain the situation on the battlefront. “The Church Knights and Royal Knights have surrounded the Western Mountains. His Majesty the King has also secured the cooperation of the werewolf tribe through diplomatic channels. The tribal states have sealed off all the mountain roads, so the cultists won’t be able to get out. In the past two days, several battles broke out in the Western Mountains, but the Knights had the upper hand by surrounding the mountain range earlier. The cultists inside the mountains have not managed to gather their forces or been able to seek outside help. I don’t think they are a problem now.”

Ophra spoke with a confident tone of voice, her face full of valiance befitting an all-conquering general. Hao Ren asked cautiously, “You didn’t go too far into the place, did you?”

“Don’t worry, I remember your warnings,” said Ophra, nodding with a smile. “Some of the soldiers did have frequent hallucinations or nightmares after entering the mountains. We’ve drawn a rough mind-control distribution map based on the locations where the soldiers experienced the hallucinations. This will prevent anyone from entering the monster’s mind-control range.”

Big Beardy chimed in. “The Pope has shielded the entire mountain range with occult surveillance, but there’s an area in the hinterland of the mountain range that even the magic fails to penetrate. We suspect that the monster is hiding in a place no divine magic can reach.”

Vivian was listening quietly while scratching her chin. She suddenly asked, “Why didn’t the brain monster flee? Its mind-control field could cover a large area if it moves; wouldn’t it be a great problem for you?”

Hearing this, Ophra’s face turned serious. Obviously, Vivian was not the only one who had thought of this. “That is indeed strange. We thought of it before; if the monster senses things are not looking up for it and decides to flee, or banks on its mind-control power to launch a pre-emptive attack, what should we do? However, it has been two days since we encircled the mountains. The monster has yet to move and the energy distribution in the entire mountain has not changed… I don’t know what it’s thinking.”

Y’zaks asked in a deep voice, “Are you sure that’s the lair of the cult? Are you sure that brain monster is in the mountains?”

“I’m sure of it, otherwise I wouldn’t have asked you to come over.” Ophra nodded forcefully. “The Pope’s divine magic is never wrong. He has confirmed that there is an impenetrable energy field deep in the mountain. If it is not the power of the monster, there is no other explanation.”

“Could something have trapped it… or happened to the brain monster, causing it to lose mobility temporarily?” Vivian frowned as she looked at Hao Ren. “What do you think?”

“We’ ll know when we get there,” Hao Ren mouthed. “I have a bad feeling… The brain monster isn’t a fool; when it’s still holding the fort despite the situation, there must be something very wrong.”

Everyone sank into deep thought. After a while, the group arrived at the Mage Tower on the north side of the Royal City. The strange, suspended tower still stood high in the air despite its broken middle part. It even looked brighter than before. Light was flashing in the spatial rift above the tower as the tower emitted a soft buzz. A large number of ad-hoc magical devices surrounded the Mage Tower. These quadrangular prisms stood several meters tall, forming a circle with magic apprentices keeping them in operation. The prisms were providing additional energy to the Mage Tower: high-ranking monks and knights had been coming continuously from the Royal City to the Beinz Diocese for the past two days. The large portal of the Mage Tower was running at full capacity, and it required extra energy supply to withstand the load.

They did not stay in the Royal City. Instead, after briefly meeting the vice president of the Mage Association, they headed to the Beinz Diocese through the portal.