Chapter 425: Not a Single One Left Alive!

“You can touch anyone, but not her.”

Shu E stared intently at Berses, the distant brilliant light casting sharp shadows across his angular face, a beast-like ferocity flickering in his eyes.

Watching this scene, Ms. Rabbit was a little dazed, a warmth quietly rising in her heart, one she was eager to suppress.

Just as Ms. Rabbit was lost in thought, Shu E suddenly turned his head, his gaze unintentionally meeting hers.

“This guy is different from Gou Wen. The test subjects under Mr. Gou Wen at least have quite a few surviving cases, but the ones handled by this guy-so far, only one has survived.”

“If you fall into his hands, there’s almost no chance you’ll make it out alive.”

“…”

Ms. Rabbit parted her lips, looking at Shu E’s profile, her eyes trembling slightly.

She felt something quietly surfacing in her heart, rising higher and higher, and if she wasn’t careful, she might say something she shouldn’t.

“Do you really want me to live that much?” she asked.

“Yeah, that’s right.” Shu E nodded, expressionless. “Before the final experiment is completed, you can’t die. Otherwise, I won’t be able to answer to the Council of Elders.”

Ms. Rabbit’s mouth twitched, falling silent.

Damn! Why the hell can’t I ever learn my lesson?

Seeing this, Berses curled his lips, laughing sullenly. “Heh, a soulless fool and a test subject without freedom…”

These two really are a perfect match!

If they were sent to the Black Sun Brotherhood, it would definitely speed up their research progress.

He thought to himself, sneaking a glance at Ms. Rabbit, then lost interest and turned away.

Ms. Rabbit was indeed a rare test subject, but compared to what he was currently researching, she was just dispensable.

–

Entering the Taoyuan scenic area from the main gate, climbing a fifty-meter-long staircase, you would see a fan-shaped viewing platform about a hundred meters in diameter.

This was the largest viewing platform in the scenic area, built against the mountain, with open views on three sides. Standing atop it, you could gaze out over the winter landscape of Taoyuan Gorge stretching for more than a hundred kilometers.

At one corner of the viewing platform sat a small security hut, its lights on inside. The middle-aged man on duty, as usual, warmed himself with Taoyuan’s specialty peach blossom wine and some crispy peanuts.

“Bang-!”

Suddenly, a thunderous sound came from deep within the gorge.

Inside the security hut, the slightly tipsy middle-aged man stared at the ripples spreading in his wine cup, stunned for a moment, then rubbed his eyes.

“Bang-!”

Another muffled boom followed, as if someone was blasting rocks deep in the gorge.

The security hut shook violently with the trembling earth.

Dust mixed with wood shavings drifted down from the roof.

Watching the peach blossom wine spill out of the cup and across the table, the middle-aged man frowned, got up, put on his coat and hat, grabbed the flashlight from the table, and left the hut.

“Creak-!”

The soft sound of the door hinge turning was like a whimper, and as the door opened, the biting cold wind swept in, carrying fine snowflakes.

The middle-aged man stood in front of the hut, shining his flashlight out into the night.

In the deep winter midnight, all was silent; the empty viewing platform was bleak and desolate.

“Strange… Did I hear wrong?” The middle-aged man muttered as he looked toward Taoyuan Gorge. “No, no, I can’t drink any more of this wine.”

As he spoke, another loud boom echoed, and rocks thrown high into the air collided, producing a piercing roar.

“Bang-!”

In an instant, a wave of air surged from deep in the gorge, whipping up a storm and swirling snowflakes, making it hard to stand upright.

With the roar and the storm, the distant mountaintop-its outline barely visible under the night sky-suddenly burst forth with a flash of golden light.

Something was growing out of that mountain, like a giant tree, its twisted trunk adorned with frenzied light, dazzling golden rays blooming like thousands of flowers on the trunk.

Immediately after, a point of intense light flared up in the shattered mountainside.

That point of light rapidly expanded and rose, instantly tearing through the night, spewing light and heat, as if a miniature sun was rising.

The middle-aged man sobered up, collapsing to the ground, staring dumbfounded at the magnificent, destructive scene deep in the gorge. It took him a long moment to come to his senses, then he pulled out his walkie-talkie from his coat, trembling as he shouted.

“Hello, hello, is this the monitoring center? This is Taoyuan Scenic Area Viewing Platform One, I-I saw…”

Dense footsteps came from the forest beside the viewing platform, cutting his words short.

He looked toward the source of the footsteps, and saw twisted, eerie black shadows moving through the woods, accompanied by chilling cries. Something was crossing the forest, rapidly approaching.

“Who-who’s there? Get the hell out here!” the middle-aged man shouted, and then saw a child walk out from the woods.

It was a child less than a meter tall, dressed in bright red clothes so vivid they seemed to drip blood, back turned toward the security hut, slowly approaching.

There was not a sound of footsteps, nor any footprints left in the snow, as if the child was floating.

The middle-aged man steeled himself, raised his flashlight, and shone it on the child.

But the moment the light touched the child, the figure vanished as if evaporated from the world, and the surroundings fell into dead silence in an instant.

Just as he couldn’t help but blink, a piercing shriek that made his head spin and nearly drove him mad erupted. A rotten, swollen face with hollowed-out features suddenly appeared before him.

Face pressed to face, nose to nose, the mouth full of sharp teeth slowly opened at a bizarre angle, and a thick stench of decay and blood surged toward him.

“Poof-!”

The middle-aged man saw the scene before his eyes spin wildly, then his head slammed hard onto the ground, and his consciousness gradually faded.

In a daze, he saw a child gnawing on his body, and behind the distant mountains and forests, shadows like beasts fleeing a natural disaster came charging wildly…

–

Three kilometers from the Fusang divine tree, a mountain peak soared into the clouds, its cliffs steep as if carved by a blade, like a sharp sword.

At the summit, a tall woman in a pure black Qipao stood proudly with her arms crossed, facing the raging, scorching air currents. Her eyes, usually as gentle as a spring breeze, were now as calm as ancient jade.

Relying on the power intimately connected to the Fusang divine tree, Gou Meng could sense more clearly than anyone the mutation happening on the tree.

“Fuyang” was being reborn from death.

She gazed solemnly at the distant, flesh-and-blood giant tree piercing the sky. Her skirt and dark green hair whipped in the gale like battle flags.

When the storm subsided, she slowly turned around and looked at Grandpa Turtle and Shang Nanxing, who was tending his wounds, and said calmly, “Grandpa Turtle, has everyone reached their assigned positions as I instructed?”

“Yes, uh…” Grandpa Turtle struggled to his feet, gritting his teeth. “Patron, everything’s ready. Not a single Fire Crow will get out, and none of those riffraff who broke in from outside will get through.”

At these words, Gou Meng nodded slightly. In this plan, what she feared most was not accidents or sudden changes, nor the failure of her power and her own demise.

What she feared most was that the turmoil in Taoyuan would affect the innocent lives within the eight hundred li under her command.

After all, whether it was Fuyang’s familiars or the psychics and hauntings drawn by the news, they were all terrifying beings that ordinary creatures without psychic energy could not withstand.

Suddenly, another scorching psychic energy fluctuation swept over. On Gou Meng’s fair face, mottled burn marks appeared as if scorched.

Pain struck; she clenched her silver teeth, took a deep breath, and slowly closed her eyes.

In the darkness, countless numb, lifeless chants sounded in her ears.

“Above Tang Valley stands Fusang, a tree ten thousand zhang tall. The sun arrives in a day, departs in a day…Above Tang Valley stands Fusang…”

It was like the murmurs of the dead.

It was a description of the Golden Crow rising from the Fusang divine tree, the mournful prayers, desperate cries, and unwilling whispers of countless Fuyang familiars, overlapping and pulling at Gou Meng’s consciousness, dragging her inch by inch toward the abyss.

This was what she had endured and suppressed for thousands of years-the psychic energy bearing the traits of a corrupted deity.

Although the people of Taoyuan were not as extreme or twisted as the devotees of the Great Serpent God, they sometimes harbored faint grievances, excessive worship, or baseless fantasies toward their deity…

These faint emotions, accumulated over millennia, had already reached a terrifying level.

From the moment of its birth, Fuyang, who had never truly cherished the people of Taoyuan, abandoned its power and left after sensing this negative force born of belief.

But as Fuyang’s companion deity, Gou Meng could not be so carefree, watching helplessly as the people of Taoyuan fell once more into the abyss of lost belief.

She opened her eyes from the chaos and, upon seeing them, grew fond of them.

So, through the long years, Gou Meng bore alone the twisted and corrupted power that should have been shared by two deities.

Today, that corrupted force, under some unknown trigger, had seized Fuyang’s power, gained life, and was about to awaken.

…

Under Gou Meng’s guidance, the Ley Line Energy, which ordinary psychic senses could not easily detect, rose from the vast earth like countless golden threads, streaked across the sky, wove a brilliant tapestry in the heavens, and merged into her delicate body.

It was as if behind her, a golden banner that covered the sky had unfurled.

As more Ley Line Energy poured into her, her psychic energy fluctuation soared, temporarily suppressing her injuries and the surging corruption within. The burn marks on her skin faded instantly.

Then…

She slowly opened her eyes, looking ahead, as if gazing into the depths of Taoyuan, or perhaps even farther.

“Grandpa Turtle, look, the sun has risen! Really picked a bad time,” she said lightly.

“Yes, Patron,” Grandpa Turtle replied softly.

“In that case, let it fall…”

At least before the city barrier was activated, it had to stay put. Gou Meng added silently.

As she thought, her gaze grew colder, and she said calmly, “Grandpa Turtle, pass the word: in one minute, everyone will charge in with me. If you see anyone who isn’t a Taoyuan resident along the way…”

She paused mid-sentence, picked up her pipe and took a light puff. As she slowly exhaled a smoke ring, her eyes, through the hazy smoke, looked ahead and she said quietly, “Leave no survivors!”