Chapter 177#
The Hunt Ends#
Before Yu Feichen stood a large magical crossbow. It had been captured two days earlier, and he had already planned its possible uses.
Seven giant arrows, enchanted with magical spells, all pointed in the same direction but differed by slight margins.
Once released, they would strike seven crucial structural points of a nearby large bell tower, causing the entire tower to collapse in a specific direction, cutting off the advancing crowd.
Yu Feichen was adjusting the arrowheads’ alignment. The bowstring’s tension was immense; even a millimeter’s deviation would cause a miss, demanding extreme precision.
But after all, he had practiced.
Just as the last arrowhead was about to reach its intended position, the sound of a sharp weapon cutting through the air suddenly rang out beside Yu Feichen’s ear!
The sharp arrow stopped barely ten centimeters from his temple, glinting coldly in the twilight.
A black sleeve brushed past—An Fei had reached out and caught the arrow shaft.
Yu Feichen glanced to the west. The arrow had come from that direction.
Whoever it was knew exactly whom to aim for, recognized quality goods, and had clearly been observing for a long time.
An Fei released his grip, and the arrow fell to the ground.
He cast a cold look at Kralos.
It was a look of exploitation, which Kralos understood.⁴
“…Fine, fine.” From under his black raincoat, he pulled out one defensive item after another, muttering, “Isn’t it just life-saving items? I’ve got the most.”²
Windsor’s gaze toward Kralos abruptly shifted from looking at a lunatic to one of meeting a kindred spirit in a sea of strangers. She couldn’t help but pull out a few items as sponsorship.¹
As one defensive enchantment after another was activated, the area around them gradually became impenetrable. Bullets that came their way were deflected by strange forces toward other directions.
“Does your hand hurt? I have medicine.” Yu Feichen’s movements weren’t interrupted; he completed the final adjustment.²
An Fei said nothing.
Yu Feichen had no shortage of defensive items. That cold arrow couldn’t kill him.
But the feeling of blocking an attack with an item was utterly different from having An Fei intercept it.¹⁹
The crossbow fired, and the tails of seven long arrows ignited with magnificent magical flames, striking their targets with a thunderous roar.
The abandoned bell tower let out a hair-raising groan, and the colossal structure collapsed straight into the twilight. The crowd erupted with the unique screams of those fleeing for their lives.
The moment the towering bell tower fully hit the ground, the ground of Misty City shuddered violently, and dust billowed up, obscuring everyone’s vision.
All those behind were blocked by this new defensive line.
But this provocative act only enraged those already nearby. They surged even more frantically toward the circus, while the hunters in the sky unanimously turned their gazes to the high platform.
When the dust finally thinned by half and visibility barely returned, the sky was packed with weapons, all pointed at Yu Feichen.
Yu Feichen didn’t seem too worried, though. He looked ahead.
In the distance, amid the drifting smoke and dust, stood a figure on top of the ruins—a woman in light armor with long hair, a snow-white cloak billowing behind her.²
Her platinum greatsword planted on the ground, the Goddess of Strength slowly closed her eyes.⁴
An invisible force field expanded outward from her.
The dust suddenly began to fall faster. From afar, it looked like a giant curtain of dust was slowly descending.
The hunters abruptly looked down at the ground.
Their running speed had mysteriously slowed.
It wasn’t an illusion. An unseen force was pressing them downward. They could resist the downward trend, but their movements were unavoidably hampered, no longer as swift and agile as before.²
Those in the sky also felt this force; some even plummeted headfirst.
Just as the world seemed to be pressed into slow motion, a spray of blood suddenly erupted from the crowd.
A silver figure moved completely unaffected by gravity, weaving through the sea of people. Bullets and blades struck him without leaving a trace. The man held no weapon, but when an unarmed attack came at him, the attacker would see in horror that beneath that impossibly perfect, unreal skin, countless intricate mechanical structures were operating and shifting.²
He thought something had grabbed his shoulder—a hand.
But it was a hand that extended and transformed into sharp blades, severing his joint bone.
Kralos on the high platform: “Fighting them one by one like this is wasting time…”
Before he could finish his evaluation, arcs of electricity crackled through the air where the Lawkeeper stood. Amid the teeth-grinding sizzle, the faces of everyone in that area contorted grotesquely.¹
“…No need to waste that much electricity either.”⁴
Black raincoat figures also appeared among the crowd. Each had their own abilities and specialties, dutifully stirring up chaos.
One, two, three, four, five. No one was missing.¹
The Eternal Day had plenty of enforcers, but He had only deployed these five; the rest were sent to Eternal Night to collect fragments.³
Maybe He thought Misty City wasn’t worth more.²
On the other side, two patients had already cackled as they charged into the castle.
After watching everyone’s performance, Kralos turned.
“Xiao Yu, why aren’t you working?”
Yu Feichen completely ignored Kralos. He was half-leaning against the crossbow mount, his gaze slowly sweeping across the field.
An Fei watched his eyes.
They lingered on the goddess’s greatsword for three seconds.
They stopped on the robot for four seconds.
Each of the five black raincoats got one second.¹
Cards.
Then,.
An Fei narrowed his eyes with displeasure.
He sensed a certain dissatisfaction directed at him from this possession.
An Fei: “?”
Yu Feichen mentally ran through all the items he currently possessed.⁷
Low and mid-tier items were negligible.
The only convenient one was a demon wing, and even that wasn’t permanent.
His healing skill carried the twisted colors unique to Misty City, only somewhat useful in diagnosing An Fei.
“Don’t you think,” he said to An Fei, “I’m missing something?”
An Fei looked him over from head to toe, his voice firm: “You lack nothing.”⁸
Yu Feichen picked up his right hand—the one that had caught the arrow earlier.³
There was a faint red mark on his palm, nothing serious.
He lifted An Fei’s right hand, brought the fingers to his lips, and brushed them lightly.
“Then remember to pay me after we get back.”²
From the corner of his eye, An Fei saw Murphy’s gaze, as if he wanted to kill Yu Feichen.⁷
That look was entirely reasonable.³
Because not only had this person made an unreasonable request, but the hand-kiss also failed to follow ancient tradition, appearing perfunctory. Even his own subject—no, vassal—felt dissatisfied on his behalf.
Just as he was about to remark on maintaining the master’s authority, the possession’s body suddenly leaned backward, falling off the high platform.⁸
An Fei instinctively reached out, only to see a faint, elusive smile appear at the corner of Yu Feichen’s lips.³
Demon wings abruptly spread as his body leveled parallel to the ground, and he flew westward.¹
After accurately identifying the greatest threat and tossing that person into the densest part of the crowd to blow up, Yu Feichen felt that maybe he didn’t need any extra abilities after all.⁷
Group fights—he’d trained for those too.
Inside and outside the circus, the situation was stable.¹
No surprises, really, given that a killing machine was roaming through the crowd, evenly distributed.
“Miscalculation,” Kralos sighed from under his black raincoat.
“Was it because I arrived too late, or because I didn’t bring enough people? No, it’s because the Company sent too many…” he murmured. “So how can I force Xiao Yu to use his origin power? I really want to see what it is… What could it be?”
Those cryptic words scattered in the wind, and Murphy, nearest to him, frowned.⁴
The moment An Fei’s gaze shifted in that direction, a parasol snapped open. The crazy little girl in her gorgeous gown pouted, floating toward the castle: “So I’ll go then?”
Two minutes later.¹
“Ahhh——” A prey was discovered, and amidst the rising and falling ghostly screams from the castle, he added his own voice.
The hunter swung his blade to strike him down.¹
“Szzz—” A harsh electrical sound suddenly rang out.
With that sound, the hunter’s murderous gaze gradually softened into peace and gentleness. He lowered his blade, no longer attacking the prey.
“First rule of treatment: after receiving treatment, do not look directly at your attending physician,” the doctor’s voice sounded.
After being “treated,” the hunter instinctively turned toward the source of the voice. The moment he saw the doctor, his eyes erupted with even more brutal killing intent than before.
His hatred shifted targets. The hunter swung his blade at the doctor. Just as it was about to split the doctor’s head, his motion came to an abrupt halt—the blade was stopped by a hand. The hand’s owner wore a blue-and-white striped hospital gown.
The sharp machete cut into the palm, blood flowing down, making the patient even more excited.²
“Let me teach you how to remember the rules, hehe…”
Soon, distorted screams echoed, reverberating repeatedly through the castle’s winding corridors and stairways.
Three minutes later, the hunter, now barely human-shaped, stumbled and fled out of the castle.
But at the main entrance, a little girl in a purple princess gown, holding a parasol with twin ponytails, turned toward him—holding a small silver dagger, from which blood dripped steadily.
Several people lay sprawled on the ground.
And that gown-clad little girl stared at him, her smile growing wider. She licked her lips and walked over step by step, her silver leather shoes treading through the pools of blood on the floor.
“You look so calm… there’s still hope…”²
“Although, according to our Company’s rules, someone like you shouldn’t be killed…”
“But playing a little—the boss won’t find out…”
The screams that had already been ringing nonstop from the castle doubled in intensity after Rose joined.¹
Sounds.³
Overwhelming sounds.
The clash of fighting, shouts and yells.
The wind carried the smell of blood and dust.
Faint memories surfaced again before An Fei’s eyes.
During his time with Yu Feichen, he had gradually begun to recall moments spent with this person in past instances.
On the circus high platform, fragments of his priests and subjects also came to mind.
And now, the chaotic slaughter brought back many memories of war and conflict.
But he knew this was far from all. He still had no clear, coherent recollection.
Every time he tried to piece together the fragments of memory, he felt resistance from deep within his consciousness.
Yu Feichen was right—there must be something his subconscious was unwilling to face.
An Fei looked at his own fingers.
The sensation left by his possession seemed to still linger there, but in truth, it had already faded.
The scene of Yu Feichen falling backward from the high platform replayed before his eyes.
An Fei realized something.
He knew that he naturally held all authority over the world, without needing to chase it.
But subconsciously, he kept repeating to himself that Yu Feichen was a possession—as if he had never truly possessed him.
Mist rose, and night fully shrouded Misty City.²
The hands reached zero. Time froze in an instant.
Blood-red words appeared in the sky, and at the same time, a broadcast recited those words into everyone’s ears.
“The hunt has ended.”
“All killing is prohibited.”
“Result verification: Hunt failed.”
“Punishment for all personnel begins.”
After the lines hung in the sky for a long time, no new instructions appeared. The time freeze remained unbroken.
Until An Fei raised his head in the frozen time and looked calmly at the sky.
Blood letters slowly emerged.
“Pay the price for your choice.”