Chapter 32

Chapter 32

New Mission

After the crimson shadow emerged from Chen Sheng's chest, not only were the two ghosts and the man stunned, but Chen Sheng himself was taken aback.

Previously, only certain ghosts and specific people could see Rong Ye. Chen Sheng hadn't expected that after leveling up, even he could see Rong Ye clearly.

With Rong Ye present, Chen Sheng felt much less pressure.

He shouted at the crimson shadow, "Bro, you handle the two-headed ghost and that female ghost. Don't kill them, capture them alive!"

Rong Ye didn't respond, and it was unclear if he had heard.

Chen Sheng felt that with Rong Ye, they were two against three.

Facing three opponents, there was no reason they couldn't win!

Compared to the two-headed ghost, Rong Ye's presence was formidable, emanating a strong scent of blood. Even standing on the rooftop, the smell lingered for a long time.

Chen Sheng ceased his deductions, ending the 'Detective Time,' and everyone resumed normal activity.

Casting a glance at the fiercely determined Rong Ye, the cannibal didn't utter a single threat and turned to flee.

Chen Sheng, following closely behind, swung 'The Warm World' fiercely at the man's head.

With a thud, the cannibal collapsed to the ground, clutching his head and glaring resentfully at Chen Sheng.

Chen Sheng approached swiftly, his tone laced with concern, "How is it, does it hurt? Sorry, I was afraid you'd run away, I might have hit a bit too hard."

As he spoke, he reached to touch the man's head, his hand coming away bloody.

"I'm really sorry, I've split your head open. But don't worry, I have a first aid kit in my bag, I can dress your wound right now."

His appearance was gentle and refined, with soft and delicate features. Even his voice sounded tender.

The cannibal couldn't comprehend how someone with such a gentle demeanor could commit such brutal acts and utter such hypocritical words.

The blow from Chen Sheng was so forceful that the cannibal's vision started to black out.

Glancing to the side, he saw the male ghost that had emerged from Chen Sheng's chest fighting with the other two ghosts.

Even if that male ghost was strong, fighting two at once would take time.

The cannibal's eyes flickered with an idea.

"You're willing to dress my wound even after I chased you with the ghosts; you're truly a good person."

To show sincerity, he dropped the ram's horn hammer and smiled obsequiously at Chen Sheng, "I haven't eaten for days and feel extremely weak. Please, hurry and treat my wound, I'm not sure I can hold on."

Chen Sheng set down the book, pulled out a first aid kit from his bag, and began to treat the cannibal's wounds, all the while inquiring about how he ended up in this state.

"The cannibalistic man stealthily drew out his dagger, preparing to stab Chen Shen to death."

"To divert Chen Shen's attention, he panted softly, 'I can't remember the specifics anymore. Since a certain day, I suddenly can't eat normal food and must consume raw flesh.'"

"Chen Shen nodded with a smile, casually picking up his ram horn hammer, 'Tell me in detail, I want to know the specifics. If you dare to trick or lie to me, I'll smash your head.'"

"The cannibalistic man stiffened at the action

"Do his mouth and face operate on the same channel? Why is his expression so gentle, yet his words so malevolent?"

"Food that once tasted delicious now makes me nauseous when I eat it. At first, I tried to force it down, but I would vomit everything. Even if I managed to swallow, I'd lose control and vomit or have diarrhea."

"A night breeze swept across the cannibal's cheeks, bringing out a hint of sadness in his eyes, 'Initially, I just couldn't eat anything, but later even water disgusted me. I starved for over a week, staggering as I walked, feeling like I was close to death.'"

"'Then one day, my pet cat gave birth. Lying in bed, I must have been too hungry and lost consciousness. When the shrill cries of the cats woke me, my hands were covered in blood and flesh, and the kittens were gone, leaving only the terrified mother cat.'"

Shen Sheng frowned uncomfortably, "Did you eat those kittens?"

The cannibal man gave a bitter smile, "And the mother cat too."

"Realizing I had eaten the kittens, I panicked and tried to vomit them out. But the residual blood in my mouth tasted sweet like juice. Licking the remaining flesh on my hands felt like savoring the most delicious thing in the world."

"I was so hungry, I grabbed the mother cat and bashed its head in with this ram horn hammer – one, two, three strikes. I killed it alive, stuffing its flesh and fur into my mouth..."

The cannibal's voice grew increasingly excited, his body slightly trembling.

"It tasted really good, the best I've ever had in my life. I began searching for kittens and puppies, initially buying them from pet stores and dog meat restaurants. When I ran out of money and couldn't work, I started catching stray cats and dogs, even adopting them."

"At first, I would kill them before eating, but then I unintentionally discovered that the freshest meat is the tastiest. So I would cut off their limbs to prevent them from resisting or escaping, then slowly eat them piece by piece."

The dressing action of Cen Sheng paused, "Enough! No need to describe such details. Tell me why you started eating people, was there someone who inspired you?"

The man's tone was uncomfortable for him to hear.

The cannibal man stared at Cen Sheng's pale neck, swallowing his saliva repeatedly.

"I adopted stray cats too often and got noticed by some cat lovers. They thought I was abusing cats and posted my information online, nobody wanted to give me cats anymore. They cut off my food supply, so I had to start eating live chickens and ducks. Initially, two live chickens a day were enough to fill me up. But later, I needed at least five a day."

Cen Sheng's mind worked fast, "You could only eat live chickens? Based on current market prices… you’d spend seven or eight thousand a month on food?"

The cannibal man sighed heavily, "More than that, it started with five a day, but I needed more later. I don’t know why I could eat so much raw, but my stomach never felt full, and I kept getting thinner. Spending over ten thousand a month just allowed me to barely survive. I became skin and bones and couldn’t find a new job."

"I hadn’t contacted my girlfriend for a long time, she got worried and came to see me from another city. I couldn’t resist biting off one of her ears while she slept next to me."

"Hearing her scream, chewing her ear, I felt an unprecedented satisfaction. To prevent her from calling the police, I imprisoned her in my house. Every day, I cut a piece of flesh from her, amazingly, a palm-sized piece of human flesh was enough to fill me. I cut off her…"

"Focus! Stop describing how you eat, I don’t like hearing it!"

Cen Sheng’s expression grew cold.

He had seen many criminals, heard rapists vividly describe their acts, and child abusers recount their beatings of innocent kids.

For these people, recounting their brutal acts provided a twisted sense of satisfaction.

The cannibal was the same, getting carried away in his own story.

Cen Sheng contemplated whether to punch him a few more times to clear his head.

The cannibal man fell into thought, "The point… the point is, from then on, I realized human flesh was more satisfying than any other creature’s. Like your flesh!"

His eyes suddenly sharpened, and the cannibal man, without warning, lunged with a dagger aimed right at Cen Sheng’s chest.

"Go to hell!!!"

Imagining how he would soon kill the long-haired man and eat his heart raw, the cannibal revealed a ferocious smile.

But the anticipated scenario didn’t unfold; his wrist was suddenly gripped tightly by Shen Sheng. Before he could react, his head slammed hard onto the ground, his vision darkening, nearly losing consciousness.

After a judo throw that floored the cannibal, Shen Sheng grabbed his collar and violently slapped his face, "Wake up! Don’t sleep! Stay alert, I haven’t finished questioning you."

"You've angered me. From now on, you'll answer my questions. Answer poorly, and I'll chop off your fingers one by one."

Holding the sheep-horn hammer, Sen Shen demanded, "Is your imprisoned girlfriend still alive? Where is she? Is she in danger?"

The cannibal's eyes darted around, searching for an escape. Suddenly, he screamed in pain as his little finger was severed.

Clutching his bleeding finger, he wailed in agony.

Sen Shen pressed the hammer against the man's teeth and coldly commanded, "Talk!"

"She's at my place, alive! But her wounds are infected, some even have maggots. Believe me, I love her, I never intended to kill her!"

"I remember now, I'm a local. My cannibalism was never discovered. Today is the first time I've eaten human flesh, I'm not a serial killer!"

After stuttering out his address and looking at the icy expression on Sen Shen's face, the cannibal longed for his previously gentle tone.

"So, you weren't supposed to stay in this inn tonight. How did you get here?"

"I don't remember clearly, ah! I think I opened my bedroom door to find my girlfriend, but instead of my room, it led to the inn's corridor! It was either a sudden appearance of a door or my own bedroom door that I use daily."

"Another door..." Sen Shen raised the jade bracelet, "What do you recall about this bracelet?"

"I can't remember, it's as if someone scooped out a part of my memory."

Disbelieving, Sen Shen dragged the cannibal to the edge of the rooftop.

With his upper body dangling over the railing, the cannibal man's emaciated body trembled violently. They were on the 15th floor; a fall from here would undoubtedly be fatal.

"Wait! Before my body started changing, I met a man. He was standing outside a dessert shop, offering me a taste of egg tarts. I tried a small bite. Not long after, I couldn’t eat normal food anymore!"

The cannibal man paused, stunned, "No, that’s not right. That man, he seemed to be wearing this bracelet. How did I not remember that before?"

Glancing at the book in his hand, 'The Warm World', Cen Sheng began to form a suspicion.

He had just used this book to hit the man a few times, and the redness in the cannibal's eyes had diminished, his gaze becoming clearer.

The book was more useful than he had imagined.

————

To verify if the book was indeed responsible for the cannibal regaining his senses, Cen Sheng decided to experiment with the two-headed ghost.

He tied up the cannibal man and casually threw him to the ground. Looking around the rooftop, he didn't see the two-headed ghost.

"Rong Ye, where’s the other ghost?"

Rong Ye was busy attacking the remaining female ghost and didn't respond.

It was the female ghost who answered Cen Sheng, "He ate it, he’s a lunatic! I'm not fighting you guys anymore, just let me go!"

After shouting, she turned and drifted towards Cen Sheng, attempting to grab him as a hostage.

Cen Sheng was about to throw the enchanted stone, but suddenly saw Rong Ye in mid-air, taking off his blood-stained shirt.

Blood-red lines covered his body, shooting out like threads.

Some of the lines caught up with the female ghost, wrapping around her tightly like spider silk.

Another part wove into a black and red spider web in mid-air.

The next second, Rong Ye twisted his body into a bizarre pose. His limbs landed on the spider web, resembling a giant blood-red spider, rapidly crawling towards the female ghost.

This slick combination of moves left Cen Sheng utterly perplexed.

Such flashy, bizarre, and chaotic abilities truly suited Rong Ye's flamboyant personality.

It was apparent that he had drawn considerable inspiration from Bai Qiao, the long-necked ghost, while also developing his unique skills based on his situation.

But this was just too grotesque to watch.

Such a handsome ghost, why would he choose to creep ominously on a spider web?

His attractive mixed-race features and long, straight legs weren't meant to be wasted like this.

The female ghost struggled to fly out of the web, sacrificing half her body in a desperate bid to survive.

Just as she was about to escape, Rong Ye’s body disintegrated into pieces.

The chunks of flesh fell onto the web, crawling rapidly across the blood-woven net. The female ghost was quickly engulfed and silenced by the encroaching flesh.

Cen Sheng stared at this scene in shock, his mind buzzing, taking a few seconds to regain his composure.

He called out to Rong Ye, but the ghostly man ignored him. Cen Sheng ran over and clambered onto the spider web.

The web, bearing the weight of a grown man, began to tremble. Rong Ye’s head rolled out from the pile of flesh, expressionless, looking at Cen Sheng as if he were prey.

Cen Sheng crawled across the web, “Rong Ye, leave that female ghost alive, I have questions for her.”

The assistant reminded Cen Sheng that Rong Ye's hasty upgrade had caused complications. Now he was disoriented, unlikely to regain his sanity soon.

Cen Sheng was in a bad mood and ignored the assistant's warning.

As Cen Sheng drew closer, a murderous intent flared in Rong Ye's eyes.

The flesh covering the female ghost gathered back together. Rong Ye picked up his head and placed it back onto his neck.

Ignoring the barely alive female ghost, Rong Ye stepped on the web, slowly advancing towards Cen Sheng. He reached out with his blood-soaked hand, seemingly intending to strangle him.

"You still want to fight me?"

Cen Sheng staggered to his feet and smacked Rong Ye's head with 'The Warm World'.

"You jerk, I haven't even settled the score with you, and what kind of ability did you come up with! It's one thing to imitate Bai Qiao and turn yourself into a spider, but why did you have to unravel yourself into this spider web? Your wounds are constantly bleeding, can't you see that!"

"You've become a ghost, so no matter how much you torment your body, it won't hurt. I can understand your fondness for flashy skills, but why tear yourself apart, why turn into a heap of flesh..."

Tears blurred his vision, and Cen Sheng's voice trembled uncontrollably.

Rong Ye's hand was around his neck, but he seemed oblivious to it.

Step by step, Cen Sheng moved closer and hugged Rong Ye's scarred body, "I knew the landlord dismembered you, but I never imagined he cut you so many times. Bro, please don't use this ability again. Just turn into a spider, just use the web to entangle, okay?"

"Don't turn yourself into pieces, please, it hurts me to see. I can't breathe, it's really hard. You've bled so much again, and I don't know how to help you. Rong Ye, I want to avenge you, I so want to get revenge for you..."

The hand gripping Cen Sheng's neck had unknowingly loosened.

The thick scent of blood gradually dissipated, and Cen Sheng leaned on Rong Ye's shoulder, hearing the man's deep, hoarse voice.

"Sorry, Cen Sheng, I didn't plan to use it in front of you, just wasn't thinking clearly just now. Don't be sad, I felt no pain, as I was dismembered after death."

"There's nothing to pity, the spider web is fun, we can even try bondage and various special positions. Ordinary ghosts don't get to play with such variety."

The blood in his eyes faded, turning back to a deep blue. Rong Ye cupped Cen Sheng's face, planting a long, fervent kiss.

Cen Sheng wrapped his arms around Rong Ye's neck and slowly closed his eyes.

"In the five years we've been inseparable, I've come to know you so well. I can tell you're lying, Rong Ye."

"It wasn't post-mortem dismemberment. You were tortured to death bit by bit by the landlord."

"The suffering you've endured, Rong Ye, I'll make the landlord pay back double."

[Ding——]

[Detecting Partner · Rong Ye, new skill acquired — Blood Web, Entanglement, Strangulation]

[Detecting Partner · Rong Ye, a skill has been forgotten — Fragmented Corpse]

————

After calling Officer Wang and enduring a scolding, I gave him the home address of the cannibal man, urging him to quickly rescue the woman held captive.

I reassured He Junye and Xiao Jiejie, telling them to rest well in their room, sleep early and not worry about me.

Having taken care of everyone around me, I began interrogating the female ghost with Rong Ye.

With the Double-headed Ghost completely devoured by the ghostly man and the cannibal man knowing little, I pinned all my hopes on this female ghost.

Traumatized by Rong Ye's tactics, she trembled at his approach, answering everything we asked, pleading for her life.

"I don't know why I was drawn to the jade bracelet, but I remember how I died! My name is Pei Yue, a high school student in class three, grade one, at the city's third middle school."

Like a ghost, Rong Ye perched on my back.

He scrutinized the female ghost, finding it hard to believe she was a high school student given her mature appearance.

"The Third Middle School? Is there a school doctor there named Yun, around thirty, wearing black-rimmed glasses, and quite good-looking?" asked Shen Sheng curiously.

"You know Doctor Yun? He's very popular at school," the female ghost replied.

"What a coincidence, my landlord is also him. Did he kill you?"

"No, he saved me. Doctor Yun is a really good person," the female ghost clarified.

Shen Sheng, with his handsome appearance and gentle gaze, made the female ghost feel somewhat shy under his scrutiny.

"As you can see, I was very unattractive. Though only fifteen, I looked like a middle-aged woman. I was uglier before I died, with a lot of acne and buck teeth. Plus, I developed earlier than other girls, and the boys in junior high used to call me 'Bucktoothed Cow.'"

"Although people stopped calling me that in high school, I still felt very insecure and disgusting. Whenever someone laughed near me, I suspected they were mocking my teeth. If they talked around me, I thought they were discussing my chest."

"I never experienced bullying at school, nobody ever hit or insulted me, and the girls in my class would even accompany me to meals and the restroom, but I still felt very oppressed."

Since his upgrade, Rong Ye could stay visible for longer periods. Shen Sheng held his hand, listening intently to Pei Yue's story.

He interrupted the cannibal man repeatedly and even resorted to violence to force cooperation. Yet with Pei Yue, he showed great patience.

Even though her story was off-topic, Shen Sheng listened earnestly.

The female ghost was venting her pain, while the cannibal man was boasting of his crimes; they were different.

Pei Yue couldn't distinguish between friendship and love.

She first developed a crush on her kind female deskmate, then fell in love with a male student who spent time with her.

Pei Yue, overly starved for affection, would fall for anyone who treated her kindly. She even developed a crush on Dr. Yun, who had only treated her wound once.

Many of her classmates were dating, and Pei Yue longed for a relationship too. She didn't mind if it was with a boy or a girl, as long as someone loved her, she would be happy.

She met a male delinquent through a referral outside of school.

The delinquent wasn't attractive, and her friends disliked him, but Pei Yue thought he was handsome.

Due to psychological reasons, Pei Yue was easily blinded by love. On the very first day of their relationship, she was taken to bed by the delinquent.

Shen Qing frowned as he listened, "How old were you before you died, and how old was that bad boy?"

"I was fifteen, and he wasn't a boy, he was twenty-nine."

"Hmm, what's his name?"

The ghost girl avoided Shen Qing's gaze, not answering, "He treated me well, bought me many gifts, and even took me to fancy dinners. My family was poor; it was my first time eating a hotpot that cost over three hundred yuan. Apart from his crude language, he had no flaws."

"He always said that he was the only one in the world who didn't mind my ugliness. He wanted to marry me, have me clear my acne, straighten my teeth, and learn to dress up and wear makeup. He said our wedding photos would only look good then, and our marriage would be happy. But becoming beautiful costs a lot, and neither of us had the money."

Shen Qing frowned as he listened.

This illegal romance didn't bring Pei Yue the happiness she craved; instead, her life worsened.

————

After sleeping with the delinquent a few times in a daze, Pei Yue started thinking about their future, mistakenly believing that beautifying herself would make their love last.

To earn money, Pei Yue took up a part-time job as an assistant to a luck transfer master, a profession she heard of for the first time.

The delinquent also wanted the job, and they went together to the interview location on the weekend.

Initially, Pei Yue was a bit scared, but the interview location was not remote at all, with a large shopping mall just downstairs.

Gradually, Pei Yue let down her guard and was separated from the delinquent by the staff, proceeding to attend the interview alone.

The interviewer was a very friendly lady who explained that their job was to bring good luck to people, helping the poor become wealthy and the sick to stay away from illness.

The assistant's job was to help the luck transfer master with miscellaneous and tedious tasks, the specifics of which she would learn in training.

Being young and inexperienced, and because the interviewer seemed kind, Pei Yue quickly signed the contract.

When summer vacation started, Pei Yue found an excuse to go for a week-long training, joining several delinquents on a bus arranged by the company.

Though she lacked money, Pei Yue wasn't naive. She remained vigilant, wary of scams.

The bus was crowded with people of various ages and constantly traveled on main roads, never heading towards remote areas.

Everything seemed so normal, and as she watched the bustling streets outside, Pei Yue's nervousness eased.

Just as she was about to lean back and listen to music, her vision blurred.

Suddenly, the bustling crowd vanished, and thick fog enveloped everything outside the window.

In the blink of an eye, it seemed like she had been transported to another world.

"I was scared, but thankfully there were over thirty people with us. One uncle questioned the driver about our location and why we were brought to such a place. When he went to check, he found the driver was a dummy, like those plastic mannequins in stores."

Fear was evident in Pei Yue's voice, "The dummy couldn't move, and we couldn't control the bus. It just kept moving forward, weaving through the fog. After a long time, it started to rain outside."

"The rain hitting the windows made no sound of droplets. Instead, it sounded like someone continuously tapping on the window, repeatedly saying, 'I found you! I found you!!!'"

Listening to her, Shen Qing felt a bad premonition rising within him.

As expected, the next second, he heard the voice of his assistant in his mind.

"Congratulations, Mr. Shen, for successfully unlocking the special story 'The World in Chaos'."

"Arms growing out of walls, pale monsters emerging from mold spots. Rainy days are becoming more frequent, as if something is arriving in this world with the rain."

"Congratulations, Mr. Shen, for unlocking the main mission 1 - 'Prevent World Fusion'."

"Affected by unknown factors, the worlds of 'Yinhe Ghost Stories' and 'Otherworldly Descent 1: White Tide' are slowly merging. As a kind and righteous saint, you cannot bear to see humanity suffer. You decide to prevent the fusion of the two worlds and stop monsters from invading."

"Mission Reward: A Strange Box."

"Congratulations, Mr. Shen, for unlocking the side mission - 'The Landlord’s Room'."

"Congratulations..."

Pei Yue's story seemed to have triggered something. Faced with a series of mission prompts, Shen Qing was stunned.

For a moment, he doubted if he was actually bound to a simulator for workers.

Author's note:

"Hello, everyone! Thank you for voting and supporting me from 2023-09-05 21:39:06 to 2023-09-06 21:30:57."

"Special thanks to the following angels for their nutrient fluids: Sighing for Life 32 bottles; Not Cute Lemon 20 bottles; Super Loves Spicy, Time Vanishes 10 bottles; Ephemera, Meow Meow 5 bottles; Fluffy Banyan, When I'm Here, Oh No, Why No Update, Ghostly 1 bottle each."

"Thank you all very much for your support, and I will continue to work hard!"