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墨書 Inktalez
Sadin asked Toad, "After the Burrowing Beasts attack, is there time to fight back?"
"Too fast," Toad replied. "It's like pouring wine; by the time the first drop reaches the glass, the second hasn't even arrived, and they are already in front of you. Then a pair of pincers break through your defenses, piercing your body with the Force of the Eternal Sphere. Without that, the Burrowing Beasts are quite weak; a hundred of them wouldn't be able to take me down alone. But with this move, they have been successful repeatedly, and we can't think of a way to counter it. For safety's sake, we can only stay in the river for a long time."
Sadin asked, "For example, if my Force shield extends three meters, their pincers can't be three meters long, right?"
"No, they will appear right next to you, within your Force. Unless your Force has overwhelming lethality and maintains that lethality. They are predators; they are hunters." Toad said, "I've told you everything I know; I can't help you catch them."
Cui Ming asked, "Assuming we know where the entrance is, can we catch them?"
Toad thought for a moment. "Yes, but it requires sacrificing bait. When the Burrowing Beasts inject their venom, destroy the ground where the entrance is located; then they won't be able to return to their ambush point through that entrance. At that point, the Burrowing Beasts will be like fragile chickens; you can do whatever you want with them."
Having understood the basics, Cui Ming poured wine for Toad. "I didn't know you knew the Lich elder; let's clear up any misunderstandings over this drink."
"When gods fight, mortals suffer," Toad said as he drank. Though he spoke lightly, his gaze held no warmth. "What do you want to ask?"
Cui Ming inquired, "How is the Lich doing?"
Toad smiled and pondered for a while before asking, "Old Sa, is he your friend?"
Sadin nodded. "Yes."
"Then I'll give you a warning for Old Sa's sake: be careful of the Lich." Before Cui Ming could ask further, Toad continued, "The Lich's power is inherited; life is inherited; contracts are inherited as well. A few years ago, he had a son who was a strategist and a daughter in her early teens. Logically speaking, he would have looked for you for several years; if that didn't work out, he would pass his power to his daughter because she couldn't wait any longer. Wraith, Warden, and I went looking for you."
"Then you went missing; we found you and were defeated," Toad said. "What do you think the Lich would choose in this situation? The first choice: his daughter as heir but with half her strength. The second choice: his daughter not becoming an heir while he continues searching for you."
Cui Ming forced a smile. "It sounds like the second choice." He continued searching for himself.
"Wrong; it's the first choice. But even in his dying moments, he and his daughter would still be looking for you."
"What's going on?" Cui Ming questioned. "I have no grudges against him."
Toad replied, "It's because his daughter is very filial. Her goal in becoming the heir is to help her younger brother become the next heir, so she will seek you out. She has plenty of time; her brother is not even five years old."
Cui Ming asked, "Isn't it supposed to be a father-son or father-daughter inheritance?"
"Who ever said that it must be a father-son or father-daughter inheritance?"
Cui Ming was at a loss for words.
"One last piece of news: six months ago, Warden contacted me again to hunt you down, but I lost interest. What I want to tell you is that Warden has repaired the Soul Guiding Lamp that was damaged by Wandering. He also possesses two treasures left by the Grim Reaper: the Death Hat and the Soul Stealing Scroll. If I'm not mistaken, Warden left Shadow Island six months ago and is currently somewhere killing people, using the Soul Stealing Scroll to collect souls and enhance himself." Toad added, "Although you've made significant progress, I don't think you stand a chance against Warden." Toad initially planned to join Warden in hunting down Cui Ming, but upon hearing that Warden had acquired both treasures from the Lich, he lost all interest. If you're eating meat, leave no soup behind; go catch him yourself. For this reason, Toad was more than willing to betray Warden. He was never a good person anyway; since Cui Ming wouldn't get a share of this juicy piece of meat, he would ensure that Warden wouldn't get any either. So whether Cui Ming was friends with Sadin or not didn't matter; it was better this way, and he could throw Sadin a favor in the process.
Cui Ming was a smart person. Although he didn't know Toad's true intentions, he could guess some of it. He suddenly understood Sadin; regardless of whether Toad was a good person or not, as long as he didn't act against him, it didn't matter if he was good or bad. Would good people never act against others? Not necessarily; some good people might entangle with you under the guise of law and their self-proclaimed justice, with the aim of taking you down for the greater good. The standard for whether someone is good should be based on whether they are harmful to you.
For example, thieves are considered bad people because you or your friends might fall victim to their theft. However, some thieves specifically target Nobles; in ancient times, they were seen as chivalrous bandits by the public. Even if they didn't give much money to the people, they could make Nobles headache and unhappy, which pleased the public. Consequently, they fabricated tales of chivalrous bandits robbing the rich to help the poor.
Why are thieves treated differently? Conversely, why do chivalrous bandits die quickly? The reason is simple: they touched the cheese of the Nobles. The resources possessed by Nobles are not something ordinary people can compare with. Think about it: stealing from a bank versus having your money stolen by a bank…
Cui Ming was not an upright person; regardless of how one looked at it, his thoughts were like this.
At the table, the three engaged in conversation without any pretense of deepening their relationships; they discussed matters instead. If there was something curious to ask about and no taboos existed, they could speak freely. It was somewhat akin to truth-telling at a drinking table—a kind of unspoken rule among the three. This way of chatting felt comfortable, but one couldn't let their guard down; one never knew if what others said was true or false—it still required personal analysis.
Sadin had an upright heart but exhibited somewhat eccentric behavior and thoughts. Toad resembled a petty person—sly and venomous in nature. Cui Ming certainly did not belong to the category of good people either, but he had his limits. The fact that these three could sit together under the moonlight chatting harmoniously was already a strange occurrence.
That night, Cui Ming stayed at the messenger dormitory halfway up the mountain. The messengers got along well; they didn’t need to compete for favor as long as each completed their tasks. Competing for favor and gossiping brought no benefits; quietly doing one's own work had its advantages too. Undeniably, Sadin had an eye for selecting people; most messengers were clever and capable young women. In a few days, one messenger would be leaving, and several young women were discussing what gift to send her off with.
One messenger offered her bed to Cui Ming, who expressed his gratitude and slept comfortably until dawn. In the morning, all the messengers were up; their workload for today was light—just organizing accounts in preparation for sailing out in a few days to resupply materials. Additionally, there were patrol duties to attend to.
After Cui Ming had breakfast with them, Sadin's dedicated messenger delivered a message, and Cui Ming accompanied her to Northern. By the time they arrived, it was around ten in the morning, and Sadin was mediating a dispute. A cultivator's partner had become involved with someone else, and the cultivator demanded that their partner return the Magic Stone. However, the partner had already transformed the Magic Stone into a staff, and their new partner was willing to offer a larger Magic Stone in exchange, but the original partner refused.
Such trivial matters were usually beneath Sadin's concern; disputes were disputes, and whoever struck first would be at a disadvantage. However, due to the matter involving the Murderer today, she made an exception to arbitrate. This was the territory of the Fallen Alliance, and all three parties involved were members. Cui Ming spotted the War God, a young woman who had performed exceptionally well in the Competition Match. She was also a member of the Fallen Alliance, sitting nearby and playing with a cross dart that spun like a wheel while watching the dispute with indifference. Having spent so long in Silent City, her heart had grown cold.
Cui Ming observed the Fate Card; the traps in that house still held their Force, unchanged from yesterday. However, if traps had already been set, why not act last night? Why wait fifteen days? If Cui Ming were behind it, her reasoning might be that fifteen days would attract investigators' attention—causing trouble in Northern before moving southward. Yet, in this vast world filled with wonders, perhaps it was merely due to obsessive-compulsive tendencies or an enjoyment of the fear that gripped everyone before death arrived.
The Fallen Alliance was aware of this situation, which is why they gathered together today for support. At that moment, the cultivator discovered that their partner was closer to someone else and confronted them, leading to an argument. Coincidentally, Sadin was present to adjudicate who was right and who was wrong.
Adjudication? In Silent City, where only a few basic rules existed, what standards could be used for judgment? Personal preference? Cui Ming watched Sadin with interest; it was clear Sadin realized she shouldn’t be involved in this matter. If someone acted out physically, there would be standards; but if no one did, then there were none.
After listening for some time and asking numerous questions, Sadin finally turned to Cui Ming with a headache. Cui Ming whispered a few words into Sadin's ear. Sadin replied, “Since your partner is involved with someone else, I can't help you here. You voluntarily gave your partner the Magic Stone and transformed it into a staff. Now if your partner’s new partner offers you an even larger Magic Stone in return, will you then have to compensate your partner’s new partner with an even larger Magic Stone when your partner leaves?”
Sadin took a deck of Poker cards from Cui Ming and placed them on the stone table. “Let’s make it simple: if you win, you take back the Magic Stone. If she wins, then it's settled. Do all three of you agree?”
The female cultivator protested, “I don’t agree! I’ve been sleeping with him for so many years; does that not count for more than a Force Stone?”
“Did you make it out of gold?” her partner rudely retorted. They had agreed this was a symbol of their love; how could she take their love symbol and get involved with another man?
“Since there are no objections from anyone else, let’s settle it this way: draw cards now,” Sadin declared. “Even if there are objections, this is how we’ll decide.”
What more could be said? The man and woman stepped forward to draw cards; ultimately, the woman drew higher than the man. Thus, this matter was resolved just like that. Even complex issues could be settled in a straightforward manner. (To be continued.)
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