Chapter 174#
Great Hunt 25#
Everbright, Paradise.
Sather, the God of Life, sat upon the crown of a giant tree. The tree’s dense foliage surrounded him, emitting a pleasant rustling sound, while vines coiled submissively around him.
Tree spirits and trees were, by nature, the closest of friends.
In the twilight glow, Sather reached out and plucked a withered leaf from the treetop.
The leaf’s power structure manifested before Sather, deconstructing and changing according to his will before finally dispersing.
Sather released his hand, and the withered leaf drifted down with the wind.
A vibrant green sprout quietly emerged where the withered leaf had once been.
After the Flowers of Eternal Sleep bloom, they must wither; after leaves turn green, they must dry up. Life waxes and wanes within the flow of time.
As the deity presiding over life, Sather understood one thing better than any other divine official: there are no eternal things in this world.
The evening breeze grew cool. The Painter walked slowly from behind and draped a cloak over Sather.
Sather rested his chin on his hand and said, “If a person’s life is a will ruling over a cluster of power, then which one is the essence of life: the will or the power? I have thought about it for a long time, but I still do not understand.”
“Perhaps we are neither will nor power,” the Painter said softly. “Will and power are the two essences of the world, and our existence—from the perception of birth to death—is merely an illusion produced during the process of will ruling power.”
“For an illusion to seek the essence of life in return is like a fairy tale. That is why He once said that creation is very difficult.”
“Precepts was created by hand.”
“He was born spontaneously within a vast sea of calculations; it is difficult to define whether he was truly ‘created.’ Besides, don’t you often say that the aura of life on him is very thin?”
The Painter’s words made Sather purse his lips. He rubbed his flat, soft belly. “It’s so troublesome. I might as well just give birth to one myself.”
Theoretically, Sather actually could. The gender of their race was very ambiguous.
The giant tree emitted an expectant rustling sound.
Sather posed a question: “Then, can Precepts do it?”
The Painter: “…”
Who knows.
You should go explore that yourself.
Sather was thinking about something unknown; the tips of his ears twitched, turning a faint shade of pink, which the Painter reached out to flick.
Sather let out a soft huff.
Tree spirits were the darlings of the Creator; even a light huff was pleasant and melodious to the ear.
Sather was such a wonderful existence: he was simple by nature and could not provide any inspiration for the Painter, but he could provide the direct perception of beauty.
Therefore, the Painter was always extremely indulgent toward Sather.
Sather leaned against the Painter and whispered, “It’s been so many days. When is He coming back? There are all sorts of people in the City of Mist. Will He run into any danger?”
“Are you worried about that?”
“Aren’t you?”
The Painter pondered for a moment, his right hand brushing through the void. Soon, a floating screen appeared before them.
Precepts had also gone to the City of Mist, but before leaving, he had left several important operating modules behind. At this moment, the floating screen displayed the real-time occupation rate of Eternal Night by Paradise.
Right now, the occupation value had reached 64.3%.
“I’m not afraid of them running into danger…” the Painter said helplessly. “I’m afraid that by the time they get back, we will have already occupied all of Eternal Night.”
The Painter had anticipated that the Main God would one day ignore all danger and launch a war against Eternal Night, but he hadn’t expected that when this conquest began, the dangerous elements in Eternal Night would all be rounded up in one go by the City of Mist.
It was practically a gift.
Thinking back to those rivals worth being wary of over the long past eons…
They had either been methodically dismantled, crushed to death by Him while attacking the Gate of Eternal Night, or had mysteriously died on their own in the distant reaches of Eternal Night.
Later, a Klaros appeared. Before Murphy could even divine whether to kill or keep him, that man surrendered all his territory and came to Paradise to be the Gatekeeper.
Then, the Gatekeeper tirelessly sold out the coordinates and weaknesses of several Outer God territories.
Paradise had no choice but to send out several Wandering Gods to pay them a visit.
Further back, at the end of the era before last, the divine power had unexpectedly spiraled out of control, triggering a siege by more than half of Eternal Night. The God left Paradise alone.
After He returned, many more Outer Gods in Eternal Night disappeared.
To this, the Painter had nothing to say.
The City of Mist was indeed a mix of people, but the God’s enemies were perhaps never those who entered the City of Mist with Him from the start.
The Painter released a friendly smile. “I only hope they aren’t frightened, that’s all…”
“If they perform well, on the next Resurrection Day, if there are still slots available…”
City of Mist.
“Goodnight, Little Frog.”
“Goodnight, Axia.”
“Goodnight, Master of Eternal Night.”
“Goodnight, Nine of Spades.”
…
“Goodnight, Grateful Heart.”
“Goodnight, Five of Clubs.”
Almost at the same time the chatting speed on the blackboard slowed down, the “Goodnight” broadcast sounds in everyone’s ears suddenly became dense. Even during the Free Hunt phase, the announcements had never been this frequent.
The atmosphere over the City of Mist chilled for a second.
The next moment, however, it was broken by the irreverent chatting on the blackboard.
[Once Cruelly Abandoned by Teammates]: Winds are tight, bolt! Fifth Street isn’t safe. Someone’s killing indiscriminately, don’t come.
[Once Cruelly Abandoned Teammates]: New registration point for the tour group: The Theater.
An hour later, a new wave of dense “Goodnights” arrived.
[Once Cruelly Abandoned Teammates]: Oh dear, the Theater is also very dangerous. Why are there so many bad people? Let’s change locations again.
“…Heh.”
“…Heh.”
Those who wanted to join the siege of the circus, those who were on their way to the gathering point… stopped in their tracks simultaneously and couldn’t help but shudder.
Once was nothing, but twice was too suspicious.
—Someone was stopping them from making trouble for the circus.
Furthermore, as long as a gathering point was leaked on the blackboard, it would invite danger.
They all turned their steps, moving slowly away from the circus’s perimeter.
For a time, the blackboard fell into a dead silence. Only one person sent a message.
[Acri]: Eh? I just went to slack off for a bit, why did you all stop talking?
[Acri]: @Four of Diamonds, sounds like two more of your good friends said goodnight. Did your whole deck come? Come play cards together~~~
[Four of Diamonds]: Heehee, not telling you.
[Acri]: It’s suddenly so quiet. What is everyone playing? How about adding me in?
[Vincent]: You’d better scroll back through the messages.
Next, Acri also mysteriously vanished from the conversation.
Thirteenth Street, just one block away from the circus.
Frantic footsteps and hurried breathing echoed in the deep alleyway. A green-eyed youth vaulted over a wall and ran desperately toward the street exit.
He was going to the circus to seek refuge, but as soon as he entered the vicinity, he was spotted by hunters. Three people were chasing him down.
Just as he caught his breath, the footsteps behind him caught up.
The youth gritted his teeth, using his last bit of strength to charge forward.
However, at the end of the street, two figures were already dimly visible, lying in wait.
Expressions of despair, fear, and resentment appeared simultaneously in those deep green eyes.
If I had known… if I had known, I shouldn’t have believed the rumors about the City of Mist—
Before he could stop himself, the two figures in front had already lunged at him. The youth instinctively closed his eyes.
The sound of the wind suddenly shrieked.
After a continuous hum of a blade, the expected death did not arrive.
Instead, a series of “Goodnight” broadcasts rang in his ears.
After the broadcasts ended, a deep silence fell over the area.
The youth opened his eyes, only to find that it wasn’t an enemy standing before him, but a divine and beautiful back.
In the moonlight, she wore a snow-white light-armored cloak, her dazzling blonde hair flowing down. Circular feather ornaments extended from behind her ears to the top of her head, like a holy halo.
“Goddess… Goddess…” In his dazed state, only these words remained in the green-eyed youth’s mind.
He couldn’t help but let his legs go weak, falling to the ground, only to find that the ground was covered in deep, radial cracks.
And these terrifying cracks extended outward from the “Goddess” who had descended from the sky.
To be precise, the Goddess was leaning on a large white-gold sword. Where the tip of the sword touched the ground, the earth had been blasted open by invisible force.
As for the three people chasing him from behind and the two people waiting in ambush ahead, they lay motionless on the ground, their bodies twisted toward the sky as if struck by some terrifying power.
“You… you… you saved me…” the youth stammered incoherently.
He saw the blonde Goddess grip the hilt of her sword and turn toward him.
Before the youth could see the Goddess’s face clearly, he was hit head-on by an irresistible force and sent flying sideways.
“AAAAAAAAAAAAAA—”
Amidst his screams, he was launched like a cannonball, tracing a parabola and hitting the main gate of the circus dead center.
He was nearly concussed.
The gates opened. With his head buzzing, he heard several voices.
“How did this one get here? Suicide-style door knocking?”
“Did he use some kind of item?”
“Carry him over and let the doctor have a look.”
“Does our doctor even treat external injuries?”
“Who cares.”
It seemed… he was safe?
The youth peacefully closed his eyes.
Listening to the distant sound of the impact and the scream, in the shadows of Thirteenth Street, a figure in a black raincoat who had witnessed everything went stiff for a moment.
Although the Tower of Creation mostly consisted of theoretical gods, there were… exceptionally brutal ones among them.
For instance, a divine official presiding over strength—her control over power certainly wouldn’t be weak, right?
Did she just bring a fundamental force in here with her?
The black raincoat was about to turn and find some viable work to do when he felt the gravity around him go haywire, locked by a certain force.
“Aga, it’s me. One of us,” he said in a low voice.
The power was released.
Aga, the Goddess of Strength, looked at the black raincoat and frowned slightly. “Why are you dressed like this?”
The black raincoat adjusted his attire. “This is… cough… the Gatekeeper’s suggestion.”
Because they were far from Paradise, they were among the last batch of outsourced divine officials to enter the City of Mist.
On the eve of entry, the Gatekeeper had sent word that the officials of the Tower of Creation knew each other well and could easily recognize one another, but the outside officials weren’t as familiar with them and didn’t see each other often. To prevent accidental friendly-fire incidents, it was best to wear a unified uniform.
As for why the uniform was this thing, one would probably have to ask the Gatekeeper himself.
Aga: “Where is the Gatekeeper?”
“Haven’t seen him. Is the Boss at the circus?”
Aga nodded.
“I just remembered I have things to do, I’m off!” The black raincoat quickly merged into the darkness, working selflessly through the streets and alleys.
“Thud.”
“Thud.”
“AH!!!”
“My arm is broken—”
“My head hurts so much.”
“My ears are ringing.”
The circus members were methodically receiving the “air-dropped” prey. Besides those, some people claimed they were being chased by mysterious figures in black raincoats.
The brain doctor questioned them in detail about the behavior of those in black raincoats and then said with certainty that it wasn’t the same one who had chased him.
“The one chasing me was much more severely ill.”
After a succession of inquiries, Yu Feichen roughly understood what was going on with the black raincoats.
In short, they were allies from Paradise.
As time passed, the pressure on the circus gradually decreased. The number of enemies trended toward zero, and the blackboard fell into a hushed silence.
Except for madmen who had lost their minds, everyone sensed that an invisible hand was clearing obstacles for the circus.
Yet no one knew what this invisible hand looked like. This meant that everyone unfortunate enough to encounter it was dead.
How could a group of “prey” gather such powerful force in such a short time? Were they hacking?
Some people had faint suspicions in their hearts and hid in their shelters, unwilling to step outside again.
Others felt confused, but amidst the continuous “Goodnight, XXXX,” they all coincidentally chose to be cautious in word and deed.
“Winds are tight, bolt. A friendly reminder to everyone: just pick off stragglers on the outskirts.”
“Winds are tight, bolt.”
“Winds are tight, bolt.”
A night passed. During the day, standing at the highest point of the circus and looking around, there was no longer any sign of enemies. They only needed to receive the prey.
Though, some of the prey arrived in very bizarre ways and looked to be in somewhat poor condition.
All was calm. Yu Feichen sat in the spectator stands, naturally slacking off and organizing his power within the Gray Mist.
To this, Anfei raised no objections. He even allowed Yu Feichen to lean his body against him while his consciousness entered the Gray Mist.
“In half a day, the hunt will be over.” The doctor, having woken up from a nap, looked around and sighed. “I thought there would be a fierce battle. It seems my vision was too small.”
Xina sat there composedly cracking melon seeds. “The card Vincent drew was, of course, accurate. We will be safe until the very end.”
As they were talking, Murphy led Dusha, the girl they had saved the previous night, to a spot where she couldn’t see the doctor.
“She can help us hear what’s happening in the distance.”
Even during the day, visibility in the City of Mist wasn’t great, often blocked by fog, making it impossible to see distant sights.
However, some things that couldn’t be seen could be heard.
Dusha’s special ability was very useful. When she couldn’t see the doctor, she was very peaceful and calm, accurately reporting several locations where lone prey were being besieged. Yu Feichen went out and brought them back.
After killing some more time.
“The city is quite quiet now,” Dusha said, frowning slightly. “Except for the northwest… it’s been very chaotic.”
Looking at the map, she pointed out that the chaotic sound was near the Canal Bridge.
The Canal Bridge. The presence of this place had always been low. The only impression everyone had was that someone had mentioned a “crazy loli” was killing indiscriminately there.
Moreover, the person who gave this news seemed to be one of the brain doctor’s patients.
The patient let out a strange laugh. “Little loli, very cute…”
Dusha carefully identified the sounds and said, “It seems like a group of people is chasing one person, and they’ve been chasing for a long time. More and more people are joining… Should we go help? The person being chased must be prey.”
Everyone looked at Anfei.
“Since they’ve been fine for so long,” Anfei said indifferently, “let them keep chasing.”
And so, no one cared about the Canal Bridge.
The sun gradually moved west, and the distant horizon took on the brilliance of dusk.
“It’s even more chaotic at the Canal Bridge… wait… the one being chased seems to be bringing the people toward us.”
Hearing this, Murphy seemed a bit unsettled. He looked down and drew another card.
Yu Feichen looked over from the corner of his eye; it was another purple Princess card.
Murphy: “…”
The hand Murphy used to hold the card trembled slightly. He looked up toward the northwest.
Beneath the twilight sky, a small black shadow suddenly appeared in the mist. The shadow seemed to be using some kind of flight item, hopping and flying toward them.
As the shadow drew closer, Yu Feichen saw clearly what it was.
A little girl wearing a purple Rococo-style puffed dress, holding a lace parasol, and wearing a small silver-gray crown?
And behind this thing was a large, dark mass of besieging hunters. Now they didn’t need the “tool person” to listen; they could already hear the rumbling sound of footsteps.
—They didn’t dare look for trouble with the circus, so they could only search for prey on the outskirts. If a prey appeared at this time, it was bound to attract the attention of many hunters.
If the prey held out a little longer, the people chasing them would become more and more numerous.
“Heehee, crazy loli…” the patient started laughing.
The parasol was a flight item, but its flight distance was limited. After gliding for a while, it had to land to gain leverage before it could take flight again.
The purple “crazy loli” flew and stopped, flew and stopped, leading a swarming crowd of hunters closer and closer to them.
An extremely affected, delicate voice carried from the distance to the circus.
“Fa—mi—ly—!”
“Sa—ve—me—!”
“I’m—so—scared—!”