Time: Midnight.
Location: Outside the Chen Yue pathway.
Situation: A bunch of people shooed away another bunch of people, then surrounded a half-dead person in panic.
Now that half-dead man is called Fan Tong, a New Resident who just arrived at this world. Logically speaking, he should’ve been safely transported to either the Eastern or Western City. Due to a tragic encounter with the flames of war, however, he confronted a fireball thrown by the Western soldiers. Until after the East ridded the West, Fan Tong was left lying in the same spot, sulking at his odd situation.
“Lord Luo Shi! Half his soul’s already separated from the body!”
“Lord Luo Shi! What should we do now? Should we heal him? Or should we just relieve him in one slash?”
Cl.u.s.tered by the questioning crowd was a beautiful youth, whose age still appeared to be quite young. He usually remained solemn in front of others, but at this moment, his body also expressed a rare case of distress.
Despite being the crowd’s leader, he also couldn’t settle on a decision.
While Luo Shi was troubled by this mental dilemma, Fan Tong was suffering from a physical dilemma. Ever since he was ridiculously warped to this world, he remained absolutely confused. First, he thought this was a dream but was then told he had died. Now it seemed he must die again?
He didn’t want to die, but no matter it be healing or death, either would still be superior to pausing in this so-tormenting-I-can-die-yet-cannot-die, b.l.o.o.d.y blur of a situation.
”If he died here, which Pond would his soul go to…” Luo Shi asked with a stiffened face. There really were no other New Residents who had just arrived and died unmanaged. Whether he would still float from the Pond was still uncertain, but if he flew to the Western City, didn’t that mean offering the rival a free gift? They were here to s.n.a.t.c.h the resource, not to clown around.
Although Fan Tong understood their language, he still couldn’t comprehend what they were saying, as he wasn’t prepped with the proper knowledge.
“Kill me…”
After laboriously squeezing the phrase out, Fan Tong accepted his fate and discovered that his mouth had betrayed him again.
He originally wanted to tell them not to kill him, but it became the opposite meaning. If he really died because of this, he’d definitely go dig out that woman who cursed him and take his revenge…
However, after some thoughtful consideration, running thousands of miles to find someone even after death sounds quite troublesome. Looks like it’d be better to contemplate on this matter some more.
“You…”
Luo Shi hesitated for a moment and started again with an unsure expression,
“You’re hurting that much?”
Nonsense! You can dare ask this question just because you’ve been pampered and spoiled your whole life and never got hit by a fireball!
Fan Tong roared inside; although setting a fireball experience as the criteria for being a spoiled person would cause too many people to fit the bill, he has no energy now to measure the logic of this thinking.
“It doesn’t hurt at all!”
That definitely wasn’t a show of endurance. It’s the curse acting up again.
Must you make conversation now? It’s wrong to talk, and it’s wrong to stay silent. Fan Tong sensed a waft of hopelessness and misery surmounting him.
Luo Shi’s gaze turned leery, probably because there was no way that wouldn’t hurt. Saying to kill him one second and saying it doesn’t hurt the next, this contradiction was not conceivable to him.
Fan Tong really wanted to ask these people. If they’re not killing or saving him, then aren’t there any painkillers they can give him? While he pondered on how to express his intentions correctly, Fan Tong noticed that everyone’s att.i.tude suddenly became very respectful; they even parted a pathway. It seems another person came.
“Lord Ling Shi.”
That person headed towards Luo Shi. Lit by the exit’s light, the person’s appearance clearly surfaced as well, causing Fan Tong’s eyes to fixate in that direction.
A G.o.d… A G.o.ddess? So this place really is heaven?
“Ling Shi, how should we deal with this…?”
Luo Shi compressed his lips and reluctantly asked for help. He was also the one who beckoned Ling Shi to come using the Communication Seal earlier. He felt a bit depressed about his inability to handle the situation and his need to rely on someone else.
Meanwhile, Ling Shi didn’t even use a moment’s hesitation before announcing his verdict.
“Toss him in the pathway and finish him. He can revive there.”
Fan Tong suddenly plunged into h.e.l.l from heaven.
Not a G.o.ddess, but a witch?
“So the pathway has revival functions as well.”
Luo Shi sighed a breath of relief while clamping a seal on one hand and showing a “so it was this simple” expression.
Wait, wait a minute… Fan Tong’s eyes grew round like saucers and wanted to tell them to stop, but there was a ninety percent chance he’d end up saying “Faster!” or “Come get me!” or something. Although there was still that ten percent chance, would these people even pay attention to what he’s saying?
“Since you said even these injuries aren’t painful, then what’s coming next should be nothing.”
Luo Shi probably saw his horrified face and wanted to explain a bit to alleviate him.
But “not hurting” has been a misunderstanding since the start.
The lackeys on the side lifted Fan Tong’s body and tossed him into the pa.s.sage before he could protest. Fan Tong sensed that these people were already treating him as a corpse. Before he died “this time”, Fan Tong saw Luo Shi holding, then tossing a piece of paper in the air before a fire-lit scroll danced towards his face in beautiful movements.
“Driven Fire!”
Considering the visual effect and heat burn, this wasn’t too different from the giant fireball. Days later, however, Fan Tong would discover that Driven Fire is merely the most basic attack in the book…
Although this may sound odd, but to commemorate his first death in this world, Fan Tong still hoped that he was killed by a dazzling, high-level finishing move. Anyone destined to die desires at least this much!
Yet, to be finished off by such a weak attack… that’s just implying he’ll always remain an extra in the story, impossible to ever turn a new page…
◎Fan Tong’s Afterword
Based on my experience earned from years of fortune-telling management, I can confidently say that this is a horrible start. Ah, this isn’t grand enough! Won’t you give me a bowl to drum-roll on? Alright, I know I’m asking for too much, since you guys don’t even have painkillers.
Even if I want to demand a bowl, I’d just end up asking for a wooden fish, right? Story of my life.
You say my life ended already? That’s correct. Based on what I just saw and experienced, I have apparently died two times already, all on the same day. I’m not sure how I died in the original world, but I was clearly roasted to death this time.
Why did that beautiful boy choose to use fire? As deduced by my brilliant intelligence and wisdom, he must have been trying to lessen my pain. If a huge fireball doesn’t hurt, then a flame attack should be nothing. Is he really this considerate? Is human nature really this beautiful? Why do I suddenly feel super naive the more I think about this? There could be thousands to millions of reasons, but more than likely the real reason isn’t what I just said. Anyways, the past is past. I guess I’ll just optimistically face my future. Maybe I can still start a fortune-telling business in this world.
This world’s truly fascinating. Or should I say, confusing. My body grew back anew, similar to skin-shedding. As for what happened to my old body… it’s fine to leave that unmentioned. Okay, okay. I didn’t have the guts to look at it. I really don’t have a fetish for close inspection of my own corpse. Really!
Also, how kind of this pathway. Not only did it make me a new body, it didn’t forget to give me some clothes. Clothed in this world’s fashion, I can still have face to walk outside. Bravo, bravo.
While I climbed out of the pa.s.sage’s exit, the person as beautiful as a G.o.ddess yet as cold-blooded as a witch walked up to me. She raised her right hand, her robes floating gently in the wind, and appeared exactly like a deity. With those elegant fingers, she waved a motion. I saw a watermark-like object diffusing, and… it appears I fainted, losing many, many fragments of my memory.