Chapter 118: An Unexpected Solitude Servant

"Good job."

Old Master Liu gave a thumbs-up.

If he had been the one to stay behind, he would have struck much harder than Yan Jing, but he likely wouldn't have achieved such a clean result.

"So you're the Ward Chief of this place now?"

Chen Nian asked.

"Just a little more,"

Yan Jing replied.

As he spoke, streams of Weird Energy, black as ink, rose from beneath the ground. They passed through the floorboards and sank into his palm.

Finally, at his mental command, the Weird Energy condensed into the character for "one" in his palm.

At the same time, a massive, matching character formed from dirt and Weird Energy slowly seeped out of the ward's black soil. In an instant, Yan Jing felt a tight connection forge between himself and the territory.

The Weird Energy radiating from this black soil possessed a unique effect.

It could grant its owner a boost in a chosen field.

Anything from music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, to astronomy and geography.

And, naturally, combat.

However, there was only one chance to choose. Miss this opportunity, and there wouldn't be another; once selected, it could never be changed.

"Arrogance" bred inflated egos, and this Domain was now demonstrating that point once again.

Without hesitation, Yan Jing chose combat power.

Immediately, Weird Energy surged around him, spreading like ripples across water. It slowly solidified, transforming into a field of shadows—a dark pool that followed Yan Jing's every step.

The Weird Energy from the black soil merged with his own, bringing about a positive transformation.

Watching this unfold, Old Master Liu nodded.

"It seems the 'Historian' was telling the truth. This Domain is highly unusual; once you become a Ward Chief, you can borrow its power."

"However, if you lose the position, this borrowed power vanishes. Even the First Ward Chief is no exception."

"Unless you gain the recognition of this Domain."

"But according to him, this Domain has never recognized anyone, and no one knows how to earn its approval."

Hearing this, Chen Nian gave Old Master Liu a sharp look.

"Why do I get the feeling your attitude toward this 'Historian' is very strange? It's more than just simple anger."

"How could that be?! Impossible!"

The old man adjusted his sunglasses, acting as though he didn't care about a single person in the world. "Just watch, we're going to thrash him later!"

Seeing him act like this only deepened Chen Nian's doubts. However, he just raised an eyebrow and said nothing more.

"Alright, let's go, let's go. We're heading to the next place!"

Old Master Liu waved his hand, calling for Chen Nian and Tiger to move out.

They had already been in this Domain for thirty minutes. If they didn't keep moving, the rule of 'Arrogance' would trigger.

As for Yan Jing and Mantou, they had some other matters to attend to and would catch up later.

"Mantou, come here."

Once Old Master Liu and the others left, Yan Jing gently pulled Mantou to his side. He pushed up the stray hairs on her forehead beneath her helmet and softly pressed his palm against her skin.

Accompanied by a surge of Weird Energy, a burst of dark light bloomed. Soon, a faint mark of the character "one" appeared between Mantou's eyebrows before instantly fading away.

With that, the two of them had formally established a contract within this Domain.

Mantou widened her eyes in curiosity and touched her forehead, but she couldn't feel anything.

It was as if the mark had completely vanished.

Truthfully, she didn't feel any different. There was no sense of being bound like one might imagine; if she had to describe it, it just felt like she couldn't stray too far from Yan Jing.

She blinked and gave a goofy smile.

She liked this mark.

Never mind Mantou—even Yan Jing didn't feel much of a change.

He had originally thought the relationship between a Ward Chief and a Solitude Servant would be strictly master and subordinate, but from the looks of it, there was basically no binding effect.

The only effect was that the person chosen as a Solitude Servant couldn't leave a one-li radius around the Ward Chief.

Sensing this, he looked toward the corner of the room.

That was where the dead man's Solitude Servant had been standing earlier. Now, however, the dull-faced man was already gone.

Shortly after the old man's group left, the man had taken advantage of Yan Jing and Mantou forging their contract to quietly slip out the door.

He thought Yan Jing wouldn't notice, but he had clearly underestimated his vigilance. Yan Jing had caught his every move.

A few minutes later, Yan Jing caught up with him at the entrance to Solitude Lane.

The man was carrying a massive bundle on his back. Upon seeing Yan Jing, panic flashed across his dull face, and he turned to bolt.

Yan Jing took a few light steps forward and appeared directly in front of him. Before the man could react, Yan Jing reached out, grabbed his collar, and hoisted him into the air.

In his struggle, the heavy bundle on the man's back slipped off and hit the ground, spilling its contents with a clatter.

A dazzling array of jewelry was instantly exposed to the air. Rolls of Eerie Coins tumbled out, alongside several glowing Inner World items. The intertwined radiance created a sight that would tempt anyone.

"Sir."

The man's body trembled. Turning his head, his face returned to its previous dull expression as he said in a shaky voice, "You are a magnanimous man, sir, brave and unparalleled. Just treat me like a fart and let me go. I'll kowtow to you. I'll kneel for you."

After Yan Jing dropped him, the man genuinely bent down to kneel, only for Yan Jing to hoist him right back up again.

The fear and confusion in his eyes were obvious.

Clearly, this tactic had always worked flawlessly for him in the past.

To those arrogant fools, displays of submission and flattery likely yielded excellent results.

"I ask, you answer,"

Yan Jing said calmly.

"Alright, alright, alright. Sir, ask away."

The man nodded frantically.

"Where did these things come from?"

Yan Jing pointed at the scattered objects by their feet, but paused in surprise. Mantou was currently bent over, struggling to stuff all the dropped items back into the bundle.

Seeing Yan Jing looking at her, Mantou gave a silly smile and held the bundle out to him.

"One, two... Good... Good... I'll pack it up... for you... Take... take it home..."

Yan Jing smiled and patted Mantou's head without a word, then looked back at the man in his hand.

"They're... they're from the former Ward Chief's room," the man said, doing his best to hide the panic in his eyes.

"Is that so?"

Yan Jing smiled. "Would that guy allow things like this inside a house he designed?"

"Yes, it's true, really."

The man nodded, tears streaming down his face as he played the same trick as before.

"Sir, please! I know you Ward Chiefs are all high and mighty. Don't dirty your hands just to kill a bug like me."

Faced with the man's pleas, Yan Jing didn't answer, still fixated on the contents of the bundle.

"Are you sure you took these from that man's house?"

"Yes! Yes, yes, yes! I'm just a bug, how could I ever have things like this?"

The man nodded furiously.

"Then let's go take a look at your house."

Yan Jing smiled. "Let's see what your place looks like."

"Don't... don't go, sir! Please don't! My place is dirty and a mess. Don't soil your shoes! I'm begging you, sir, I'm begging you..."

The man immediately panicked, his dull expression completely vanishing. He clasped his hands together in prayer as snot and tears ran down his face.

But Yan Jing simply carried him all the way back to Thirty-Second Village. He arrived at the short wooden cabin next to the pyramid house and kicked the door open.

In an instant, it was as if a golden light had flashed before his eyes.

This was nowhere near the damp, cold wooden cabin one might have imagined.

Notes of Eerie Coins paved the entire floor. A crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling, and the calligraphy and paintings on the walls outnumbered even those in the main reception hall of the Sun-Swallowing Tower. Even the coffee table and sofa radiated a green glow—they were actually two Green-tier items.

Even the set of cups resting on the coffee table were White-tier items.

Not even the eighth floor of the Sun-Swallowing Tower was this extravagant.

"This is what you call dirty and a mess?"

Yan Jing laughed, looking at the silent man in his hand. Ever since they entered the door, the man had stopped crying, keeping his head lowered without a word.

Now, questioned directly by Yan Jing, he realized he could no longer keep up the act. He finally tore away his disguise and lifted his head. His previously dull eyes were now filled with malice, and he gave a vicious laugh.

"What are you pretending for? To you psychopaths, isn't a place like this dirty and a mess?"

"It doesn't have a single thing you people like, so isn't it just dirty and a mess?!"

Yan Jing nodded.

"Did you collect all of this?"

The reason he had grown suspicious of these Solitude Servants was because of Thirty-Third District, which had been reduced to ruins.

Logically speaking, given the personalities of those Ward Chiefs, how could they possibly tear down someone else's house and haul it away? Furthermore, judging by the messy footprints, it seemed more than one person had done it.

Compared to those highly arrogant Ward Chiefs, the Solitude Servants at their sides were much more suspicious.

"I wipe the asses of those giant babies. What's wrong with taking a few of their things?"

The man had completely dropped all pretenses. He sneered, "In their eyes, all this stuff is just garbage anyway. We're just taking what we need."

"What use do you have for so many Eerie Coins? It's not like you can spend them."

Yan Jing asked.

"Why the fuck do you care?!"

Seeming to have his sore spot poked, the man roared furiously before breaking into a laugh.

"If you're going to kill me, hurry up and do it! You psychopaths really think you're something special. Let me tell you, now that you're a Ward Chief, you're just another psychopath."

"Whoever becomes a Ward Chief is a fucking psychopath!!"

Yan Jing nodded and smiled.

"Actually, I'm not what you think. I really have no interest in laying hands on a bug like you. Tell you what—just tell me where you hid the previous Ward Chief's paintings, and we'll call it even."

At his words, a look of hesitation crossed the man's face.

In the end, he chose to believe it.

Because he had heard Yan Jing call him a bug.

In his mind, if this person called him a bug, his credibility was much higher. It meant Yan Jing truly didn't take him seriously.

"They're right up in the ceiling,"

he said.

Everything he couldn't take with him had been hidden in the ceiling's crawl space.

And since many of them were paintings, if anyone tried to forcefully tear down the house to search it, those fragile artworks would likely be destroyed.

Following the man's directions, Yan Jing quickly found the paintings.

"Is this all of them?"

"There were a few more, but they were snatched by the Second Ward Chief's Solitude Servant,"

the man replied.

Yan Jing nodded.

"Alright, you can go."

With that, he actually let go. The man was instantly overjoyed. Without a second thought, he bolted for the door, a shrewd gleam flashing in his eyes.

These psychopaths really were easier to fool than the last, he thought to himself. His legs pushed off with all their might, nearly reducing him to scrambling on all fours—a completely ugly display.

However, in the very next second, the sound of tearing paper echoed behind him.

He suddenly felt a sharp pain in his neck. Instantly realizing what had happened, he looked down in despair.

Watching blood erupt from his neck like a fountain, he collapsed unwillingly to the ground.

He reached a hand toward the door.

Then, he stopped breathing completely.

Off to the side, Mantou pulled out her prepared rag and began wiping the fresh blood off the floor.

"Mantou, there's no need to wipe it. We aren't staying here."

After Yan Jing spoke, he looked at the thousands of paintings before him, a bright glint shining in his eyes.

In his mind, the information provided by Shen Youran surfaced:

[The Thirty-Second Ward Chief, Jiang Zhaodi. Specialty is painting, Tier is First Tier. Not skilled in combat. She has stayed in Solitude Lane for three years, creating one painting every day to record the novel things she sees or the outsiders who pass by.]