Volume 3, Chapter 103 – Entering the Ruins (Two-in-One)

Driving into the walled-off campus under cover of night, Bai Xiang looked out through the truck window and saw a ring of tube-shaped apartment blocks wrapping the sky, many classrooms still lit.

The ones who had stopped her outside, at least, had been adults. But inside, what she saw was a row of black-skinned children standing along the wall, blue headscarves wrapped around their heads, clothes barely covering their bodies, bare feet on the ground.

Each of them held a submachine gun. Their faces were blank and numb, yet they felt far more threatening to her than the grown men outside.

It was because they were too young, so young they did not know what fear was.

Once more for the record: Gas Middle School was a standard pariah school.

Its name had nothing to do with its investors or its principal and teachers. It was simply because this was the turf of the Gas Gang. Their boss, also called Gas, controlled three surrounding blocks, and putting his name on the school meant it was under the gang’s protection.

Here, the children could learn basic addition and subtraction, and a bit of international language used in trade, limited to a few nouns and phrases.

They could also learn some basic science and engineering for refining chemical substances, and how to distinguish demons and Demon Pools, and which parts of their bodies were worth the most money, plus some rudimentary knowledge about handling and using firearms and other hot weapons.

That was the entire curriculum at Gas Middle School.

Pariahs had no right to attend good schools. If pariah children could overturn their fate through knowledge and leave this area behind, stop being pariahs, then where would the local gangs find recruits?

This place was less a school and more a special arms factory that existed with the tacit consent of many parties, hatching reserve forces for gangs and warlords.

Locals could choose not to send their children here to “study.” That was indeed one of the few bits of freedom they still possessed.

But if they did not send their children here, then those children could only enter another kind of factory, one that existed solely to grow organs and biological tissue.

Then they would no longer be people, so in truth, they had no choice.

Having absorbed fragments of local memories, Bai Xiang knew this was not something you could blame on the gangs alone.

Many neighborhoods on Baco City’s edge had this sort of hatchery school. This was not a pattern that gangs alone could establish. The Luohou royal family’s inaction, even encouragement, had a lot to do with it.

It was not only gangs who did not want pariahs climbing upward. The royals and nobles did not want that either.

On one hand, these flesh-and-blood factory models produced enormous profit streams. On the other hand…

Why had Black Heaven Dharma spread across all of Luohou without the slightest restriction?

Because its teachings on reincarnation and enduring suffering helped those on top maintain their rule to an extreme degree.

That was why, no matter how obedient Aurora acted toward Bai Xiang, almost to the point of doing whatever she asked, one step short of openly offering herself as servant or slave, Bai Xiang still did not feel much goodwill toward her.

Yes, Star Tower Group now, and possibly other multinationals, had been infiltrated and polluted by divine-vein demons. On the surface, these people were victims too.

But who was to blame for this state of affairs?

Without their profit-driven push and tacit consent, would the countries of this “gray zone” have been poisoned and invaded so quickly?

Gangs, the Luohou royal family, and corporate giants.

That Luohou had become what it was, that it could be polluted and ravaged by things like Heitian Shinu and the Blackrock Demon Kingdom, none of them had the right to wash their hands of it.

She could not cozy up to whichever one “looked less disgusting” just because another was “worse” or “viler.”

It was not like that, and it should not be like that.

They all deserved to die.

It was simply not time yet.

“Who are you?”

When Bai Xiang brought the truck to a halt, a boy with a red headscarf and a submachine gun hurried over, looking up at the cab. “Brother Rui let you through. Are you here to apply as a teacher?”

“Teacher” had three layers of meaning here. It was recognized by society, the gangs, and the demons, and was the best possible cover for the stronghold.

“Yes.” Bai Xiang opened the door, lifted her monk’s staff, and climbed down. “When do you start the assessment?”

“A woman?”

The red-scarfed boy froze for a moment and actually took two steps back like he had been startled.

He was not afraid of women. He had simply thought of the woman’s corpse he had seen once in the dungeon. The revulsion was purely physical.

“Have you really thought this through…” He watched her warily, mainly studying the bronze mask on her face. “If you fail the assessment, you will not be leaving this place either.”

So you are worried about me now?

Rеаԁ оո ΚαtRеαdіոɡСаfе

Bai Xiang gave him an extra look and saw his gaze flinch away. Behind him, another boy narrowed his eyes and gave him a hawk-like look that did not fit his age at all.

Planning to report him.

She had watched people’s faces long enough to see instantly what the hawk-eyed boy was thinking.

She gave the staff a little shake and quietly gathered Qi-Origin at its tip. Aimed at the hawk-eyed boy from a distance, she fired it off like an air cannon and blasted him from where he stood.

“Ludan, Ludan!”

The other boys rushed over at once. They found Ludan unconscious, several ribs broken in his chest. He would need at least a few months of bed rest.

Immediately, the way everyone looked at Bai Xiang changed.

That sort of move was not something a street charlatan could pull off.

“You really are skilled.” The red-scarfed boy’s eyes lit up.

“Come on.”

“I will take you to see Mister Hendi.”

The red-scarfed boy was very talkative. On the way, he rambled on about the perks.

“You picked the right place, coming to Gas. We give teachers the best treatment in the neighborhood.”

“Mingde pays ten big coins a week. We pay thirty.”

“And we give one day off every month. You even get your own room.”

It was probably because Bai Xiang had shown what she could do, and the red-scarfed boy saw her appointment as a sure thing, so he let his tongue run and told her everything.

“Oh, right.” As if thinking of something important, he turned and asked, “Have you killed anyone?”

His tone was perfectly natural, as if an ordinary thirteen- or fourteen-year-old had turned around and asked a teacher, “Have you ever had a drink of water?”

Bai Xiang did not answer, only gave him a sidelong look with her golden eyes.

The red-scarfed boy immediately felt an inexplicable pressure. He swallowed. “I suppose you have. That means you can get better terms. They might even send you straight out on assignments. They are really short-handed lately.”

“In what way are they short-handed?” Bai Xiang finally asked.

She already knew the answer. This was one of the demon clan’s strongholds hidden in the lower city. Gas Middle School was actually controlled by agents sent from the Blackrock Demon Kingdom.

Every so often, they organized “charity events.” That meant taking children and teachers along to visit their “hometowns,” usually villages even further out on the fringe, to investigate and offer sympathy, handing out food and supplies.

In the eyes of Starwater and other forces, the Luohou royal family, or other gangs, that looked completely normal.

They were just building goodwill with the villages so they would keep sending their children to the school.

This was the most usual tactic. Bringing so many people along also made sense. It kept them ready in case rivals tried anything. If another gang showed up, they had the numbers to start a fight on the spot.

Under Great Yu’s rule this was unimaginable, but for gray-zone countries it was everyday life.

In reality, Bai Xiang knew that the “investigations” and “aid deliveries” were just a front.

Gas Middle School’s true purpose was to use that as cover to feel out the Illusory Realm entrance to the Blackrock Demon Kingdom and send the black crystal resources and human stock they had collected back there.

That was why she had infiltrated in disguise. The Blackrock Demon Kingdom had a particular interest in ancient wu. In the memories she had seen, they went out of their way to recruit and treat them well.

As long as they were not complete frauds and had some kind of ancestral craft, useful or not in modern times, the Blackrock Demon Kingdom would open its doors to them and welcome them in.

“Short-handed everywhere,” the red-scarfed boy sighed. “Especially with all the people killed at Luofu Temple. We had a lot of teachers over there at the time. Now we do not even have enough teachers.”

He kept his head down and walked, unaware that Bai Xiang’s lips had curved slightly.

The tube buildings were not tall, only five stories. Before long, the two of them reached the office and the red-scarfed boy raised a hand to knock.

“Do not give me that nonsense.”

A shout came from inside.

“The teams are ready and you tell me we have no one?”

“They all died? You want me to lead the group myself?”

Rеаԁ οո ΚatRеаⅾiոɡСаfе

Knock, knock, knock.

The red-scarfed boy knocked nervously.

“Who is it?” The voice inside sounded even more irritable.

“Mister Hendi,” the boy reported anxiously. “A powerful wu has come to apply.”

“Oh?” The tone rose.

After a moment, there was movement inside again. “Bring him in.”

Only then did the boy push the door open.

It was a cramped, rundown office.

Cobwebs hung in the corners. The cheap curtains were filthy. Under the yellow light, a black-skinned man in glasses with gray whiskers on his upper lip half raised his head and met Bai Xiang’s eyes.

In that instant, the man’s mind went blank. For no reason at all, he felt a flicker of goodwill toward the visitor, and a warm smile spread naturally across his face.

“A wu, is that right?”

“Baran, go out. I will have a good talk with our lady wu here.”

“Yes, sir.”

The door closed behind him, and Hendi and Bai Xiang were alone.

“Please sit, Miss Wu, sit.”

Hendi looked excited. He rubbed his hands together and waved her to the seat beside him, staring intently. “I know you would not have gotten past Rui and Baran without showing something, but I have not seen it with my own eyes. I do not know if I might have the honor…”

His words cut off as he watched Bai Xiang tap the floor lightly with her staff and run her fingers over the uneven wall. Moss quickly spread across it, sprouting little white flowers.

That was the work of the Blood Jade.

She had taken the treasure out of Ena’s body and had asked for it back before leaving.

“Oh.” Hendi clutched his head in exaggerated delight. “That is real skill.”

“Wonderful. Now I am certain you are exactly the person we have been looking for.”

It sounded like he had confirmed her hiring, but Bai Xiang knew there was still another step.

Sure enough, after a flood of praise, telling her she had “passed the assessment completely,” Hendi’s tone shifted. “Oh, right. May I ask what you think of the Dharma?”

He asked very directly. He had noticed that the bronze accessories Bai Xiang wore, including her mask, were all set with black crystals.

It was black crystal ore. There were no natural channels for getting it outside. It could only grow inside human bodies as black crystal disease and be harvested in a brutal fashion.

The Blackrock Demon Kingdom had people paying high prices for it on the black market. They had also partnered with Black Heaven Buddhism to drive up prices for black crystal Buddha figurines, and all accessories set with black crystal were valuable, most of them connected to Mo Buddha’s line.

“I am a follower of Mo Buddha,” Bai Xiang lied without blinking. “I came from East River Circuit to put Black Heaven Dharma into practice.”

“Just to see more suffering with your own eyes?” Hendi was even more delighted. “Excellent. In that case, I think you will be very happy to see this.”

As he spoke, he whipped open a drawer and produced a slightly different black crystal Buddha figurine, holding it up so its face pointed straight at her.

Here it was.

A warning rose in Bai Xiang’s heart.

From the information she had so far, the demon stronghold here was desperately short-handed, and the transport operation they had prepared lacked enough escorts.

It looked like coincidence, like falling asleep and having someone hand you a pillow, that she happened to stumble into such an opening. In fact, it was inevitable.

Because the Blackrock Demon Kingdom was working with the local Buddhists, this stronghold had sent a large number of people to Luofu Temple to help Xuan Yi suppress Bai Xiang.

They had died there, and she had captured and absorbed their remnant souls, which was how she had found this place.

One drink, one peck, all preordained. Every scattering seed had its cause.

Why was she so sure she could infiltrate?

Because she had seen through the karmic logic behind it.

Reаԁ oո ΚαtRеαdinɡСаfe

Even so, that did not mean they would simply let her join.

Normally, a teacher had to go through a month-long observation period. Only after proving safe would they be taken on an operation under an elder’s lead.

The only ones who joined and departed on the same day were “cargo,” either human ore in the late stages of black crystal disease or “human stock” they had captured.

But right now, they were urgently short-handed, so they had to use special means.

Contamination, hypnosis.

Using such tricks to control the target and guarantee a flawless operation.

She focused her mind at once. The next instant, the Buddha figurine in Hendi’s hands flared with a tide of black light and became a star-filled universe, replaying the strange vision Bai Xiang had seen while chanting.

Twisted, indescribable beings of liquid form sat in the starry sky, using organs from who knew where to chant the Black Heaven Delivering-from-Suffering and Saving-the-World Scripture under their breath, while they all prostrated themselves toward a vast shape hidden deep in space, half its form lost in the dark. Each line and verse was like a devil’s whisper in her ears, as if trying to rewrite her mind by force.

Naturally, it had no effect.

Bai Xiang had already faced a true avatar of Heitian Shinu. That thing had been unable to do anything to her. This little Buddha figurine’s bewitching power was hundreds or thousands of times weaker. It would have been strange if it had worked.

What she was nervous about was not being hypnotized. She was nervous because this was her first real attempt to draw out the phantom god’s power.

How exactly was she supposed to do it?

She did not know. She could only try along the lines of what she imagined, weaving a false scene in her thoughts and pouring it straight into Hendi through eye contact.

As time went on, Hendi’s gaze grew dull and unfocused, until he suddenly shivered, came to, and fell back into his chair, dizzy.

“What… what happened to me?”

He pressed his forehead, sweating, feeling like his brain was mush.

He tried to recall what had just happened. It seemed that… he had used the hypnotic Buddha figurine on this woman.

He jerked his head up and stared at Bai Xiang. “Now then, Miss Wu, tell me, what does Mo Buddha mean to you?”

“Everything,” Bai Xiang lied again. “I can pay any price for Mo Buddha.”

Then it should have worked.

Hendi let out a breath.

There were plenty of checks he had not gone through yet, like ordering her to do something “out of line” to prove it further. For some reason, though, he simply trusted this outcome. He felt there would be no problems.

“We are on the same side now.”

He pulled out an employee tag stamped with the number 14 and tossed it on the desk, slumping back in his chair and jerking his thumb toward the rear window.

“There are three trucks out back on the playground.”

“You drove a truck here too, did you not? That is very convenient.”

“Take this tag and show it to them, then drive your truck over and help them load. Stay with the convoy when they leave.”

“Do not meddle in anything. Do not ask anything.”

“Once you get there… you will thank me.”

Bai Xiang said nothing, picked up the employee tag, and turned to go.

Hendi frowned at her back, muttering, “White hair? Why does that look familiar?”

Where had he seen it?

He could not remember for the moment.

Meanwhile, Bai Xiang went downstairs and found a cluster of “boy soldiers” blocking her way, guns pointed, watching her like tigers.

She held up the employee tag, and only then did the children move aside and let her pass through the tube buildings to the playground behind.

Her truck had already been moved there.

Three other armed trucks were parked on the playground, people all around them carrying cargo. Many burlap sacks and big wooden crates were being pushed and heaved onto the trucks.

Bai Xiang narrowed her eyes. She could see things writhing and struggling inside some of the sacks.

Rеаd оn KαtReаԁіոgСаfе

Human ore needed living bodies to grow. They probably would not let them die.

So she ignored it, quietly climbed into her own cab in full view of the others, and sat in the driver’s seat without moving.

People below grumbled at this obvious attempt to shirk work.

“Who is that?”

“A woman?”

“The new Number Fourteen. From the look of her, she is a wu.”

“Do wizards even exist anymore? The last fraud talked so big, and then turned out to be using menthol powder to drive off bugs.”

“How should I know? I am not the one bringing these frauds in.”

Everyone working here knew the truth. It was hard to say how many were pureblood human. They were very unhappy with the special treatment Bai Xiang was getting and quietly looked for an excuse to stir trouble.

Someone tried walking up to the cab to chat her up. Bai Xiang ignored him.

They must have thought she was afraid. A while later, someone tried the other side, attempting to slip into the cab and ride with her.

Bang.

A strangled scream.

With that dull sound and scream, the man flew backward from the side of the truck and hit the ground, where his shirt tore open and a bristling boar demon body forced its way out. Judging by the level of demonization, he had at least survived three rounds of Body Tribulation.

Others craned their necks for a look and saw a hole blown in the boar demon’s chest. Blood and organs spilled out, and black crystal granules could just be seen glinting under the skin.

“You bastard, carrying black crystal disease and never saying a word.”

“Check everyone. See who else he might have infected.”

The boar demon had been one of the stronger fighters among them. They had never dared resist him before. Now that he was dead, they kicked him while he was down and cursed his corpse out thoroughly.

After that little episode, no one tried bothering Bai Xiang again. She finally had a bit of peace and used it to review how she had controlled the phantom god just now.

Her method was still very crude, just focusing her will and forcing the imagined result onto the target.

Even so, it was already very effective. At least someone like Hendi could not withstand it.

This time, there had been no boost from her looks.

Was it really a birthright?

Was that what it meant to be Xuan, to be the imperial daughter of the Xuan clan, a demon whose innate gift was the phantom god?

She shook her head.

Bai Xiang refused to accept that for now.

Her soul was too strong. She felt that even without such a talent, she could have achieved something similar by sheer soul pressure.

She closed her eyes and studied the Taishang Perception for a while, until she received word that they were about to move out.

There was nothing to say. She stepped on the gas and followed the truck in front. The four-truck convoy rolled out of the campus into the night and jolted their way into the wilds.

There was no lighting here. The road was rugged and uneven. Some stretches did not have roads at all, and were both hard to traverse and easy places for demon beasts to attack.

But this was, in essence, a demon convoy.

Whatever they were using, Bai Xiang did not know. She only heard the occasional roar of beasts from the forest on both sides, but they never actually attacked.

She never had a chance to make a move. She simply followed the convoy through two villages and drove straight toward the third, Jingwu Village.

That was where the entrance to the Illusory Realm lay.

No one but the insiders could have imagined that all of Jingwu Village was fake.

It was all an illusion woven by a Demon Pool.