The Record of Unusual Creatures

They would not make Vivian and Lily’s identities public just yet.

Hao Ren knew how it would be from the beginning. The news of the First and Fourteenth Sages would impact the demon hunter world negatively, especially during such time of uncertainty. When the demon hunters began to doubt their beliefs, telling them that their 6,000-year history was a joke would cause unimaginable consequences: it was not going to be mental shock therapy.

The shock was guaranteed but not therapy.

The identity of Vivian and Lily would remain confidential, but at the right time, it would be revealed gradually, one at a time.

After an intense debate with the support of Gregowen’s memories, evidence of ancient instruments and artifacts, and testimony of Lily, the elders had no choice but accepted Vivian as the Fourteenth Sage and Lily, the First Sage reincarnated. But not everyone was convinced; some had reservations, but that was not going to change anything.

For now, this truth was only known to the elders. They would reveal it to the more matured assistants and apprentices, including the masters under the Council of Elders. Meanwhile, they were going to set up a research team. The main task of this team was to explore the collections and ancient treasures in the Netherrealm Clock Tower. During the process, they would gradually reveal more truth and then prepare for public discourse to pave the way for fully disclosing the truth.

The process was complicated. There would be the guidance of public discourse, the creation of momentum, maintenance of stability, and assurance of a channel for criticism and suggestion. Hao Ren had to cover every aspect, but the wise elders would take care of that. Hao Ren believed that the demon hunters would overcome these difficulties. They had strong organizational ability and sense of obedience.

At a small shrine next to the Netherrealm Clock Tower, Hao Ren and several demon hunters were standing on high ground and watching the ethereal technicians calibrating the portals. Though there were still more than half a month before the demonic army could go back, the experts of the demonic army had already begun to prepare for their return. The military portals required a massive amount of energy and Lanina did not want to bother Hao Ren this time. The ethereal technicians were trying to connect the military gateways to the abundant energy nodes of Coldpath to harness the energy that the goddess of creation had left behind.

The experiment was fruitful. Earlier this morning, they had successfully fired up a portal with ancient energy of Coldpath. But it overloaded the gateway, which then exploded.

Lanina was not worried though; it was not a technical problem. The reason for the explosion was probably due to Y’lisabet was passing by the portal at that time. Though Lanina was not sure what the little princess had removed, she must have dismantled something.

“Fate has made a bad joke out of us,” Hasse said, standing beside Hao Ren. He looked at the noisy demons in the square with his only one eye. His voice was low. “The noble idea, the lifetime mission that the demon hunters had been pursuing for the past 6,000 years turned out to be just an illusion that the whisper of a fallen weapon created. Now one of the supreme leaders of the demon-hunter organization is a vampire, the other one is a werewolf,” he said.

After careful consideration, Hasse decided not to follow Hao Ren in calling Lily a husky demon.

“Would you accept these ‘supreme leaders’?” Hao Ren asked and looked at the old demon hunter with a wry smile.

Hasse faintly said, “What did you say?”

Hao Ren waved. “Nothing. They are not interested in staying and rebuilding this goddamn place anyway. Coldpath is too small a stage for us,” he said.

Hasse was silent. His eyes were glowing as if thinking of something.

“But you always have to remember,” Hao Ren continued, “from a moral and logical point of view that you have two supreme leaders. You could say that Lily had died once and abdicated her position. But Vivian… she is your Fourteenth Sage. The title itself may not mean anything, but I believe that it still influences you all significantly.”

They would ultimately make known the identity of Vivian and Lily publicly one day; that day would not be far. Hao Ren had thought about keeping this secret forever. After all, the demon hunters did not know the truth in the past 6,000 years, and they still lived well. But after yesterday’s secret meeting, he realized that the disclosure was inevitable: it would become a new turning point for the demon hunters.

They had been living in a lie for 6,000 years. This lie had ultimately turned into the second Woe of Madness. Now if they wanted to wake up and build their new future, they should take this opportunity to reveal the truth to the world. This would also become an opportunity for them to end their “hunting activity.”

They remained silent for a while before Hao Ren suddenly sighed. “The biggest problem is not in Coldpath, but on the outside,” he said.

Those beside him were not stupid. Of course, they understood what Hao Ren was saying. Elder Andaherr looked into the direction of the Netherrealm Clock Tower, passing the tower through the space crack above into the distant surface world. “The demon hunters have lost half of their men after the war, but this is not the worst. The worst thing is that our defense lines and citadels that we have built since the past 6,000 years have been scrapped. The strongholds around the world were now empty shells; the unusual creatures would not pass this opportunity up to capture these territories. Once the territories are lost, it is not so easy to take them back again. The balance has been broken, I’m afraid that a floodgate will be opened in all the sanctuaries,” Andaherr said.

“So I will go to Athens with Vivian. We need to see the otherworldling representatives,” Hao Ren said with his arms crossed. “In fact, before we came, there was already a small group of families trying to stir up a revolt, but their elders had out it down.”

Hasse stared at Hao Ren, suddenly smiling with a wacky face, which was rare. “When I first met you, I thought that you were in the otherworldling camp,” he said.

“I don’t belong to any camps. I’m truly neutral,” Hao Ren said, shrugging his shoulders. “I only serve the higher level of balance. By the way, did you just say that the War of Demon Hunting in the past 6,000 years was just a joke? I don’t think so,” he said.

Hao Ren paused for a moment before continuing. “No doubt that the killing itself is absurd, but it essentially has ended the chaos on the planet. Even if without the black sword in the dark side of you, the otherworldlings on Earth would still continue to fight among themselves, and sooner or later, you would join the killing because of the influence of the Sin of the Divine Blood. It is just a matter of time and of who would come out victorious. The whisper of the black sword made you the most powerful supernatural race on this planet, which in turn had stopped the killing that happened among the otherworldlings; a war had ended an endless melee. If those otherworldlings were to continue to fight among themselves, the death toll would not be any lesser than the number of people you had hunted. You had also indirectly given the true civilization on this planet—the human civilization—an opportunity to flourish. In fact, the otherworldlings in the Mythological Era were not the ‘standard’ civilization; the true inheritance of this planet is still in the hands of the humans. This is how I look at the War of Demon Hunting in the perspective of an observer: an absurd war that has brought more good than harm.”

“That’s a very grim judgment,” Gregowen said in a whisper. “Those being hunted would not be very happy with your point of view.”

“You’re right. That’s why I merely judged from the perspective of an observer and standard that is most favorable for the whole civilization,” Hao Ren replied, glancing at the few demon hunters around him. Now, from my personal point of view: you are all a bunch of idiots, and that’s the most euphemistic way of saying.”

Hasse thought for a moment and nodded slowly. “Really, the most euphemistic way of saying.”

Another half a day had passed. It was time for Hao Ren and his entourage to leave.

The reconstruction work would be on the shoulder of the demon hunters. The demonic army would be under the command of Lanina. Hao Ren and his team had to leave for Athens’ sanctuary to keep the overzealous families in check.

This time they brought a special ‘passenger.’

The skull of Ymir was fixed on a massive stone platform. Hao Ren had moved the platform out of the Netherrealm Clock Tower, and he was now directing the autonomous robots to move this large skull into the garage onboard the Petrachelys. This was the first time in thousands of years the giant’s head left the Netherrealm Clock Tower. He was very emotional. “I have been here for so long that I’ve developed a longing for this place.”

“Being a captive, you are the most gifted one,” Vivian said, cracking a joke with her old friend. Though her memory about Ymir was lost, they were rebuilding their friendship. “Do you have anything to say to them before you go?” Vivian asked.

Ymir looked at the demon hunters on the platform and lowered his eyes slightly. “Please stay alive. That’s all I have to say.”

Half an hour later, the Petrachelys left the temple platform. It opened a space crack above the Netherrealm Clock Tower and disappeared before the eyes of everyone.