Chapter 32 From Now On

Chapter 32 From Now On

If one word could describe Chen Shijin's current mood, it would be terrible. Absolutely terrible! So terrible he felt like bursting all the bells of blue-eyed black cats in the world.

He never imagined that, even after the pervert's bell shattered into energy and air, and its fluffy face contorted in pain, it could still stretch its neck to bite him one last time before dying.

That bite must have used up all of his energy and strength, clamping down hard on his lower lip.

Damn it!

My precious lower lip!!

Chen Shijin cursed continuously, each curse accompanied by a hiss of pain, his phoenix eyes filled with dark and fierce anger.

"Heal. Hiss!" N-66

Good, don't let him catch me a third time. Otherwise, I'll cut off that pervert's source of trouble, ensuring it can no longer like explosive male dancers ever again!

At this moment, Chen Shijin's mood was in the negatives. As he sought a quiet place to calm down, another annoying individual appeared.

Since they were all devoured by the devourers of the Gourmet Capital at this gathering point, everyone reappeared at the same spot upon coming out.

At first glance, it seemed as though nothing had changed, except that some exiles at this gathering point had silently vanished.

Yet, even so, those who survived couldn't help but cry tears of joy, embracing and cheering upon their return to the land of exile.

"Oh my God! We survived! We actually survived the world of a high-level devourer!"

"When I was tied up in the ingredient supermarket, I really thought I was a goner. I can't believe I survived, sob! From now on, I will worship the God of Taste every day, sob sob! I'm truly, heartbreakingly grateful."

"That's right, from now on, the number one boss in my heart is Brother Chen Shijin! Though he may not be the most powerful exile, he's definitely the one who can eliminate devourers the best!"

"Who would have thought, Chen Shijin also came to this gathering place," Bai Ling looked around the square, "It's just a pity he doesn't want to appear before everyone."

"If there were such a person to lead people's mutual aid..."

Lu Jun rolled his eyes and interjected: "If my cousin really chose to be a leader, he'd naturally want to be the biggest one. How could he join a mutual aid group and listen to others."

Bai Ling: "..."

"He would aim to be a city lord! A king! The only god!!" Green Tea said with a face full of longing: "I would gladly be a devoted lackey under his glorious reign."

"Don't come here trying to sponge off our mutual aid group."

Bai Ling: "…………"

Sometimes, she really could understand why Chen Shijin always showed that complex expression of disdain, annoyance, and speechlessness towards Green Tea.

Then, amid the joyful exchanges of over a thousand survivors at the gathering place, a vastly different, gratingly loud voice rang out.

"Chen Shijin—"

"Chen! Shijin!"

"Chen Shijin, come out! Don't hide in the shadows, silent! I know you're here!"

The exiles at the gathering place collectively stiffened.

Chen Shijin, who was hidden among them, also stiffened.

Now, not only did his lip hurt, but his stomach began to ache as well.

Why is it this lunatic again, aah!

What does he want to do, can't he just shut up!

But a lunatic will never shut up; in fact, he's especially good at babbling on.

"Chen Shijin, stop hiding, come out and let's go build a city!"

"I have a special source of information, only with you can we build the strongest, most fortified city in the shortest time!"

"I also possess special tracking skills! Hehehe, all the exiles in the land of exile know! When Feng Tianhuo wants to chase someone, be it a devourer or an exile, no matter if they are at the ends of the earth or right in front of me, I can chase, and, catch, them!!"

Carrying a mad laughter, Feng Tianhuo suddenly arrived at the center of the gathering place, near the sensing screen, as he pronounced the last word.

His eyes, sharp as a hawk's, began to sweep around: "Chen Shijin! I'm sure you're here! Have you disguised yourself again? Useless! I can try one by one, I'll always find you! Or are you invisible?! Haha! Such a strong ability but also useless!"

"If I can't find you today, I'll keep looking for you tomorrow, and if not tomorrow, the day after that I'll be near you! Chen Shijin! Accept it! No one can escape my pursuit!!"

"I am the man you can never shake off—ha, thinking of a sneak attack?"

Suddenly, Feng Tianhuo felt a gust of wind coming towards him. His eyes brightened, confidently extending his hand to block in front, not giving Chen Shijin a chance to attack him.

However, the next second, his expression drastically changed, and his body bent like a shrimp, "You you you, that's not martial integrity!"

Chen Shijin sneered as he withdrew his kick.

Then appeared in front of Feng Tianhuo, smiling: "Indeed, you are the man I can never shake off. But trust me, I will also become the man you can never avoid."

"An extreme one-for-one exchange, at most you'll annoy me to the point of losing sleep, but you'll definitely lose the most important 'leg'."

Being followed by a pervert across two worlds was bad enough; he absolutely would not accept another person following him in the land of exile!

Any normal person faced with such a threat would surely change color, seriously ponder, and harbor thoughts of retreat.

But Feng Tianhuo, the madman, laughed instead of getting angry upon Chen Shijin's appearance.

"Hahaha! Chen Shijin! I knew you were here!"

"I told you my intuition is never wrong!"

Chen Shijin: ...

What intuition, a madman's intuition?

Just as Chen Shijin frowned, deciding not to waste any more time on this madman, Feng Tianhuo's face suddenly displayed a sinister smile. Before Chen Shijin could retreat upon realizing something was amiss, he was grabbed by Feng Tianhuo, and then—

An irresistible force swept over his entire body, and before he could react, both he and Feng Tianhuo had vanished from the post-catastrophe gathering place.

"Cousin~~"

Lu Jun arrived a step too late, only able to affectionately call out towards the yellow-brown vortex.

*

At this moment, Chen Shijin felt something odd.

He felt as though he should be in the midst of soil, the distinct earthy scent was very apparent. But if it was soil, being pulled by this madman felt like flying through it.

Isn't this madman a level-four fire attribute hunter?

Why can he also manipulate the earth?

No, perhaps this is some kind of artifact that can be created with energy in the land of exile. Similar to his high-quality imitation Flying Nimbus.

After initial alertness and irritation, Chen Shijin's expression had completely returned to calm.

He would probably soon find out why this madman was so insistent on finding him to build a city, and where the madman intended to take him.

Chen Shijin slightly lowered his eyes, wondering if this madman intended to show him the three major cities of the exiles.

After another tug of power, Chen Shijin found his surroundings suddenly clear.

The colorful lights and tall, modern buildings instantly gave him a sense of returning to his hometown. This place didn't resemble the land of exile; it felt more like a luxurious city that never sleeps.

Its brightness and openness were incomparable to that simple, destitute Level 3 gathering village.

Feng Tianhuo's voice, deep and meaningful, sounded in his ear: "Hey, take a look."

"This is White Moon City."

"One of the three major gathering places for exiles, known as 'Home of the Exiles', 'The Exiles' Return'."

At this moment, the madman seemed to have lost that headache-inducing madness. His voice was low and thick, laden with heavy sarcasm.

Chen Shijin cautiously observed his surroundings, scrutinizing the mental state of every exile he could see. Squinting, he said, "Sounds like a nice place, but you seem not to be convinced?"

The exiles here seemed more relaxed compared to those at the gathering place.

They didn't have the high-strung look of being constantly under threat of attack on their faces. The clothes they wore, the food in their hands, even the transportation that sped up their pace were all much more advanced than those at the gathering place.

It was like a stark contrast between order and barbarism.

However, these sheltered, orderly exiles seemed to lack something compared to those wandering outside.

What were they missing?

"A nice place? Hahahaha, hehehe, a nice place!" Feng Tianhuo's voice became manic again, but he restrained himself from being too loud in this place.

"That's because you haven't seen the darkness and trash lurking behind this moonlight!"

"Come, let me show you."

As Feng Tianhuo finished speaking, Jin Chen felt himself sinking into the earth again. After another moment of distortion, he and Feng Tianhuo arrived in a vast, enclosed space.

"Shush, look at these people."

"Listen to their foolish wails."

Jin Chen looked up to see around four to five hundred exiles in this enclosed space, most of them with energy levels of one or two, with only a few reaching level three.

Without exception, these people were all crying in pain, cursing angrily, or frantically using their powers to seek any means of escape.

"Let me out! Let me out! Why was I chosen? Why me?! I've already paid enough energy points!"

"Let me out! You've deceived me! Isn’t Baiyue City supposed to be a sanctuary for exiles? A haven where humans support each other and are safe from the Devourers? Why is such a thing still happening? Why are we still being devoured?"

"You’ve lied to us! This place is no home for exiles! There’s no return from here—"

Jin Chen frowned deeply, but Feng Tianhuo immediately covered his mouth and pulled him away from the place, even taking him out of the city that seemed to be illuminated by moonlight.

His voice was even more manic than before: "Little Jinzi, don't speak now. You can't save it."

"Look up."

"Above this grand and magnificent city, there's always a gaping mouth."

"This isn't a haven for humans, but a pigsty for the Devourers."

Chen Shijin took a sharp breath. Looking at the endless darkness above the magnificent city, he ultimately said nothing.

He already knew what the exiles here lacked compared to those outside the city.

They lacked the eyes that still sparkled with the desire to overcome fear and the unknown.

After a long while, Chen Shijin slowly spoke up: "Are all three major city gathering places like this?"

Feng Tianhuo chuckled, "Jinri City doesn't need to be devoured. But all exiles within that city must hand over 90% of their naturally generated life energy every day to the Human King."

"Then, the Human King protects the entire Jinri City with his power alone, preventing it from being devoured. The exiles of Jinri City, even though they live each day like dying patients, are still grateful and tearfully thankful for these moments of peace. But guess whose belly all that massive energy ends up in?"

His voice suddenly turned icy:

"The Human King, is just a king-level after all."

"In the land of exile, there exist gods of devouring."

"If you were a god of devouring, and a huge, fragrant cake was placed before you, would you not eat it? Even if there was a big roasted chicken guarding it?"

Chen Shijin's mouth twitched, finding the madman's words quite venomous.

How could the Human King be compared to a big roasted chicken?

But he had basically grasped the situation with these two main cities: on the surface, they were human gathering places, but in reality, they were nothing more than a trade-off for superficial peace, agreed upon either openly or secretly between king-level humans and king-level or even god-level devourers.

Ah, he wasn't even surprised.

Humans are always like that, aren't they? The fiercest and most brutal struggles always come from within.

"What about the third main city gathering place?" Chen Shijin asked.

Feng Tianhuo's expression slightly improved at this question, but his face still bore a hint of scorn: "It's better not to mention Meteor City."

"They don't have any shady deals, but they're just a bunch of cowards who never dare to stand out!"

"The city lord is a turtle, relying on an inherited shell to build a city that can only accommodate fifty thousand people and can be moved. Their entire city is always on the run, and because they are good at hiding and have few people, they have never been devoured by king-level or god-level beings."

"However, that city can only accommodate fifty thousand people, and it's already at capacity. Unless someone inside dies, don't think about getting in."

"Of course, Meteor City doesn't expel the exiles following them outside the city, but they absolutely won't lift a finger to help if they encounter a commander-level devourer."

"You know, devourers aren't idiots or brain-dead. Mostly, they bully the weak and fear the strong."

At this point, Chen Shijin's feelings were indescribable.

He had a belly full of anger with nowhere to direct it.

All he could muster was: "This damn land of exile."

Which brought forth a hearty laugh from Feng Tianhuo: "Hahaha! Exactly, Little Jin! This is a damn land of exile! A motherfucking place that doesn't treat people like people!"

"That's why you need to build a city!"

Feng Tianhuo's eyes blazed like twin flames: "A true city for humanity!"

"When that city rises from the ground..."

Chen Shijin looked at Feng Tianhuo and suddenly laughed, his smile even more manic than the madman's across from him.

He said: "When that city rises from the ground, I will be a god!"

"Hahahaha! Exactly! Hahahaha! You will be a god! You will be a god!!"

Feng Tianhuo laughed uncontrollably: "That's the day I've been waiting for!"

By then, he intended to burn this dark, barren land to the ground!

As the two madmen laughed at each other, a pair of deep blue eyes silently observed them from within the dense darkness.

Initially bored and eavesdropping, those eyes turned scornful at the mention of the three major cities, and surprisingly showed a moment of conflict when hearing someone wanted to become a god.

Ah.

Humans wanting to become gods.

It seemed somewhat ridiculous, yet somehow, intriguing.

Let's watch a bit longer.

*

"So why don't you try to become a god and build a city yourself instead of finding me?"

After his bout of madness, Chen Shijin returned to his calm demeanor.

"Your level is already that of a level-four hunter, right?"

Feng Tianhuo, looking at his companion who no longer joined in his madness, scoffed, "Do you think I don't want to? Of course, it's because I can't."

"Remember that turtle I told you about? That guy has an inherited shell that's not only good for defense and escaping but also excels in divination."

"I chased him for three years, burning his tail until he couldn't sleep at night before he was willing to use half his energy to divine who could build the city."

"Then that damn turtle coughed up blood and told me, whoever tops the most-wanted list can establish the true city of humanity."

"So, I went to find Yue Feng."

Chen Shijin's mouth twitched, thinking this guy really recklessly charges at everyone without a second thought. "But you must have not succeeded."

Feng Tianhuo bared his teeth in frustration: "Hah, far from succeeding. I went from being a ruler to a hunter. That guy is vengeful, utterly inhumane, lacking any empathy, and just finds joy in his own madness!"

"I may be mad, but I know I'm a good kind of mad."

"But that guy, he truly treats everyone and devourers equally as his playthings."

Chen Shijin took a breath: "You got demoted by him?!"

Feng Tianhuo thought for a moment: "Not exactly by him. It was when I was chasing him that I encountered a ruler-level devourer. I thought any sane person would join in to kill it. So, I invited him to charge with me against that devourer. Yeah, just like I called you before."

Chen Shijin: ...

"But that joker! He just stood by, watching me and the devourer both get injured! And then! Right in front of me, he ate the core of the severely injured devourer I had burned! Ha! Ate it!!"

Feng Tianhuo said, getting so angry he started slapping his thigh: "Damn it, I put in so much effort, got seriously injured and demoted, only for that devourer to be taken down, and he just stood by, enjoying the show and scavenging! Tell me! Isn't that guy inhumane!"

"Compared to you, he's nothing! Serves you right for replacing him as number one, hahaha!"

Chen Shijin: "Heh."

He suddenly thought that Yue Feng sounded quite impressive.

After all, faced with such a noisy and annoying madman, who wouldn't want to give him a piece of their mind?

A trace of scorn and triumph flickered through the deep blue eyes that never left the darkness:

Madman, cross.

Gold, thumbs up.

Finally, Chen Shijin asked the most crucial question: "So, how do we go about building a city?"

"There might be exiles who replace me as the number one on the most-wanted list, but until that person appears, I am willing to give it a try." He should indeed make an effort to try.

Listening to the young man's question, Feng Tianhuo's scarred face broke into a sincere smile.

"Ah, let's start by hunting devourers with special cores then."