Chapter 28: Mission Completed

The sky was no longer a murky green, but a dusky black.

In the distance, the neon lights gradually faded away in the storm, stripped of all color.

Rain still fell from the sky, washing away the remnants of blood, then dripping down broken walls and shattered ruins, pooling into little puddles.

Reflected in them was the image of the Hanging Man.

It still hovered high above, but this time, its presence had diminished considerably.

“Heehee, how does that saying go? When it’s weak, I’m strong, it’s going to die now.”

‘It’s enemy strong, I’m weak… Seriously, why did I go along with you on this impulse…”

“You’re just brainless.”

“Then I’d rather be Unhappy.”

I set him down against a patch of wall that was still somewhat intact. My wide mouth split open, and I handed him a Black Pearl.

“What’s this…?”

“No idea. Big Mouth said it should save your life, in case you get hit by a rock while I’m fighting.”

“I’m not that fragile… cough, cough…”

I stuffed the Black Pearl into his hand and turned to look at the slowly stirring Hanging Man.

That hunger gnawed at me, making my mouth water.

If I ate it, wouldn’t I be full for days?

Heh heh.

I strode toward the heart of the storm. With each step, the gluttonous markings on my body grew, spreading to cover me completely.

The horns behind my head grew even more ferocious, the spinning crimson pupils whirled faster, and that strange warmth started to bubble up inside me.

It surged up from the base of my spine, coursing through every limb and bone, pooling at my fingertips.

Shing—

Five blood-red, razor-sharp blades sprang from my fingertips, coating both hands, smooth as jade, radiating searing heat.

Meanwhile, another force wound around my legs, forming jet-black threads that coiled around my feet and shins.

“How can you still transform?” Lu Xiu sounded surprised.

“No idea.”

Maybe it’s because I ate something I shouldn’t have.

But no matter what, nothing would stop me from devouring it.

Click.

The Hanging Man’s head twisted toward me. Its heart pumped more blood, spawning even more thorns.

It lashed out again!

Whoosh—

“Wow—so fast! Hahaha!!”

I leapt lightly—far lighter than I intended—and soared skyward, my body nimble as a swallow, as if I was flying.

Smack—

The huge force sent me flying, crashing into the ruins.

My head was spinning…

Treated like a target.

I staggered up, the black threads on my skin slowly fading away.

So that’s what was giving me defense.

Heh heh, now I don’t need to be afraid of getting hit!

I gathered my strength, then sprang high, rocketing toward the sky.

“Hahahaha—!”

So fast!

The thorny whip lashed out again, but this time I didn’t dodge. Instead, I reached out and grabbed it.

Crackle—crackle—

A layer of black armor enveloped my palms, letting me grip the whip tight, then I swung with all my might!

The distance closed in an instant.

Rip—

The bladed claws at my fingertips flared, slicing open the shriveled form in an instant. I landed, rolling to absorb the force.

I looked up, only to see that the wounds healed immediately.

“I told you that won’t work. You have to know the Demon’s True Name to kill it.”

Lu Xiu chimed in.

“Then what’s its True Name?”

“If I knew, I’d have dealt with it already.”

“Useless.”

Forget it. Better to count on myself than Lu Xiu.

I adjusted my stance and leapt up again. Three whips came from different directions.

Bang bang—

Two bullets struck one whip. I caught the other two, swinging back and forth like I was on a swing.

At the peak of a swing, I closed the gap again.

Rip—rip—

A flurry of blood-shadowed blades. The Hanging Man was dismembered into dozens of pieces. Before I could do more, a whip lashed down, sending me flying again.

“Ugh… ow, ow, ow…”

Nearly killed me.

“Tch… this is hard.”

Can’t kill it, might as well eat it.

“Huh?”

Right, why am I trying to kill it?

Wasn’t my original plan to eat it?

Guess my head really did get knocked silly.

“Don’t space out…”

Just as Lu Xiu’s voice came, several thorns rained down, shattering the ruins once more.

A figure burst from the settling dust. I stumbled, then steadied myself.

Up above, a whip lashed down.

I dodged instantly. The whip struck the ground, and before it could be pulled free, I grabbed it, and—right in front of Lu Xiu’s astonished face—opened my mouth wide and bit down!

Crunch.

A shattering sound echoed.

The whip snapped.

I chewed a bit and frowned.

“You’re eating it?!”

“What else would I do?”

Lu Xiu was speechless.

I kept biting and devouring thorns. The more it made, the more I ate.

Gradually, I started to feel something was wrong.

“Stop, stop, pause! Something’s wrong with me!”

I quickly shouted at the Hanging Man in the sky.

The whip it was about to slam down suddenly froze, hanging awkwardly in midair.

My belly was swelling up.

And that warmth, which had been fading inside me, now rushed back, the most obvious change being the beast patterns on my skin slowly transforming into Blood Thorn.

“Hah… so that’s it! I get it now—!”

Boom—!!

A thorn smashed down.

“Hey—I wasn’t finished talking… Sneaky!”

The dust cleared, the thorns twitched, but couldn’t move. What bound them was an even bigger thorn, protruding from the huge mouth in my abdomen.

Crack crack.

The thorn tightened, yanking the Hanging Man toward me.

Two steps…

The shadowy figure, once at the storm’s heart, drifted away, now inevitably falling downward.

I finally understood my ability.

Eat it, gain it!

As long as I eat a part of someone, I can temporarily gain their ability…

I watched as the figure came closer and closer. From the depths of my mouth, several Blood Thorn whips shot out, binding up the entire Hanging Man.

To me,

You’re nothing but dessert after a meal.

Shlick—

One after another, the thorns pierced its body. Black blood ran down the vines into my mouth, making me squint in satisfaction.

Eat, eat, eat, eat—

I reached out, grabbed a thorn, and tugged hard.

Thump-thump—thump-thump.

Close enough now that I could hear its heart beating.

So, you’re afraid too, aren’t you?

Hee.

Hee—

—

But it’s too late… because I’m hungry.

A long tongue darted from the massive black mouth, curling around my prey, sealing any hope of escape.

Darkness, in the depths of my mouth, was a darkness that could devour all.

Crunch—squelch—

The sound of bones and flesh being chewed echoed.

It reverberated across the rooftop, beneath the gradually calming storm.

Marking a bizarre end to this whole affair.

The rain stopped.

Dawn, accompanied by the sun, blazed up over the distant horizon.

Above the battered city,

A new day began.

Big Mouth spat out that black heart.

I tossed it at Lu Xiu’s feet.

“Ugh—what are you doing!” He jumped, kicking it away.

“I can’t eat this.”

I frowned.

“Of course not. That’s the Demon Core. Without knowing its True Name, you can’t kill it. If you just wait, it might come back to life one day.”

“Fan-Xis-Al-…something.” I blurted out.

“What?”

“I said, it’s called Fan-Xis-Al-bla-bla-bla.”

“How do you know?”

This time, he really did look surprised.

“I saw it in its memories while I was eating it.”

“You can do that too?”

“Hmph!”

I lifted my chin, nodding proudly.

“Do you still remember the full True Name?”

“I remember… it’s really, really long… and the pronunciation is super weird.”

“What if you accidentally blurt it out, and it drops dead right away…”

Lu Xiu took out a sheet of paper, then rummaged for a half-used pencil.

“But where should I write it?”

The ground was all wet.

He sighed and held out his hand. “Will this do?”

“Hehe.”

I laid the paper on his palm, writing each word with care.

“By the way, can you read?”

“Um… I’m starting to remember a bit…”

“That’s good, I thought I’d have to teach you.”

“Get lost.”

“Fan-Xis-Al-Kota.”

Lu Xiu recited the words in an utterly bizarre accent.

It was a pronunciation that almost defied human anatomy.

He only managed after several attempts.

As he finished, an invisible thread shot from his wrist, connecting to the black heart on the ground.

In that instant, I seemed to see a face twisted in agony surface on the heart.

“Amazing…” He was still in disbelief.

“Hmph. I want three giant cups of Bitter Rock Fire Village!”

“One at most. Three is too much.”

“But you said unlimited!”

“Huh? Did I?”

“Of course you did!”

I was a little mad.

“Pfft—hahaha… just teasing you. Didn’t think you’d fall for it so easily.” “Eh?”

He got up, drew his blunt sword from his pocket, and hobbled over to the heart.

Both hands on the hilt, he leveled it at the heart and raised it slightly.

“Fine. Since you worked so hard, unlimited milk tea for today.”

He glanced at me and smiled softly, the sunlight lighting up his profile with gentle warmth.

Then.

Crunch—

The blade fell.

The mission… was complete.