Chapter 15: The Charred Corpse

Yin Luo got along quite well with the frog-baby. The main reason was that he was rich—or rather, he had many playthings made of metal.

Gold items were the rarest and mostly small in size. Many were merely gold-plated or of low purity.

After all, gold was too soft and too expensive to be commonly made into crafts. Silver items, however, were abundant.

Frog’s favorite flavor was precious metals, especially gold. But just as one might get tired of the finest delicacies and find a simple meal palatable once in a while, it didn’t mind mixing in other flavors now and then.

After all, a guest should suit the host’s convenience. The frog-baby bit the head off a copper statuette with a crunch and happily croaked several more times.

The most troublesome metallic dolls in the room were almost all devoured by it. It even returned several gemstones as a byproduct.

Though nearly all of them were black or gray and not as vibrantly colored as the gem Lin Yujing had carved, Yin Luo was still very satisfied. He casually pocketed them.

He then patted the frog-baby and rubbed Little Bear’s cheek, giving his two small slaves some spiritual encouragement.

Thus, the slave owner Pearl returned to practicing his new ability.

As body parts were unearthed one after another, his control over this peculiar frost power became stronger and more refined, almost as if it were an extension of his own limbs.

The cold aura in his body intensified, freezing Yin Luo’s fingertips red and nearly frosting his eyelashes. The greatest source of heat on his body was actually that beautiful red gem gifted by Lin Yujing.

Yet, it still felt like he was on the verge of a breakthrough, just missing that final push, unable to pierce through that last barrier.

…

Outside, the sky had turned completely dark. Before the knocking time from last night arrived, Yin Luo opened his door and poked his head out.

The once opulent and resplendent corridor now looked as if it had been through a devastating catastrophe. It was a scene of ruin—charred black, in complete disarray, lingering toxic fumes coiling in the air.

The lights had all stopped working. The only illumination came from the embers still glowing within some kind of ash, dyeing the surroundings a crimson red and making it feel even more eerie.

“This…”

Yin Luo wasn’t quite sure what was happening. Just one door apart, and it was like a post-fire disaster zone out here. He turned his head back to look into his own room—still bright and warm.

Could this be the change the players were talking about?

So, the monster from last night had been burned to death by the fire, and that was why it looked the way it did?

But then, why wasn’t his own corpse charred black, but instead shattered into so many pieces?

Shattered was the only way Yin Luo could describe that pile of body parts he couldn’t even begin to put back together. It wasn’t something an ordinary person could do.

“Croak.”

The gold frog, seeing that its new meal ticket seemed about to leave, abandoned the silver-plated robot it had been chewing on without much interest and immediately stuck close to him.

Aim… ready… leap!

“Croak—”

“No jumping on my head.” Yin Luo saw through its intention at a glance. Mid-trajectory, he intercepted it with his hand and grabbed it.

His physical fitness and reaction speed had now both improved by leaps and bounds. He was no longer the same person who had needed a rope’s assistance to jump over a building.

If he had to do it again now, he wouldn’t need Lin Yujing to catch him; he could jump straight down on his own.

Hmph.

“Croak, croak.” Frog was aggrieved.

Frog had no choice but to settle for the next best thing and perched on his shoulder instead.

Little Bear, who had been a beat slower, also scrambled onto the black-haired youth. Seemingly by accident, it bumped into the frog-baby, nearly knocking it off, before settling obediently in Yin Luo’s arms.

Annoying creature.

Little Bear secretly glared at the frog.

Yin Luo stepped out. His fluffy slippers crunched softly against the floor, stained with a layer of black ash.

The soft pattering of his footsteps echoed down the corridor, carrying far into the distance.

It was time to go find that group of players.

He didn’t even need his eyes, nor did he need light. Since his body had begun undergoing the Aberration, he felt perfectly adapted to this environment. Darkness was his territory, and shadows were as easy to traverse as level ground.

Occasional rustling sounds reached his ears, as if things were lurking in the darkness, poised to strike.

The black-haired youth walked on, as if he hadn’t heard a thing.

The moment he turned the corner, a wave of heat slammed into him as flames erupted, blocking his vision. In the next instant, a black silhouette lunged out, using the cover of the fire. It gripped a giant cleaver and swung it down with unstoppable force, aiming straight for Yin Luo’s face.

This blade strike seemed to carry the power of a thunderbolt. It arrived even faster than the sound of it tearing through the air, filling his entire field of vision with its gleaming arc. The raging flames also surrounded him, a pincer attack that left almost no room for dodge.

The black-haired youth’s eyes flashed sharply. Instead of retreating, he advanced. With every step he took, frost spread beneath his feet.

The fire burned out of thin air, mysterious in its origin, but the chilling frost, coursing with gray mist, was no less formidable. The high temperature couldn’t melt it; it needed neither low temperatures nor moisture. The moment it touched an object, it had only one purpose: freeze, freeze!

Crackle, crackle.

The frost forcibly carved a path through the sea of fire, like Moses parting the Red Sea, or a single axe splitting a mountain. It climbed up the black silhouette’s lower limbs, forcefully slowing its charge.

Yin Luo seized the opportunity to sidestep, temporarily avoiding the brunt of the attack. Raising his hand, ice condensed in his palm. A blade of murky, gray-black ice shot forth like a beam of light, surging forward with rolling chill, aimed straight at the attacker’s face.

At this moment, he finally got a clear look at the true face of the black figure.

It was actually a charred corpse.

The body, scorched dry and pitch-black by flames, looked only slightly taller than Yin Luo’s current form. The skin and flesh had fused together, making its features indistinguishable. The only visible marks were three black, gaping holes: presumably its eye sockets and mouth.

When it moved, the parched outer flesh cracked open, oozing a yellow pus and some kind of grease, revealing glimpses of pink-white flesh underneath—parts not yet carbonized but appearing thoroughly cooked.

The sight was so nauseating it could make one vomit on the spot.

Yin Luo frowned. He didn’t retreat but attacked even more ruthlessly.

The charred corpse seemed deeply wary of the gray frost in Yin Luo’s hand. Its head twisted at a grotesque angle to dodge, and it retreated, pulling its bizarre-looking giant cleaver with it and creating some distance.

Yin Luo didn’t press his attack either, and a stalemate ensued. His control over the frost didn’t cover as vast an area as that sea of fire, forcing him to constantly maintain a layer of ice underfoot just to ward off the scorching heat.

The ice blade he’d hastily condensed was also at a disadvantage against the cleaver, which was over one and a half meters long and nearly a meter wide. He had to find another opening.

Just then, the sea of fire flickered behind him, and another black figure burst out. With a silent roar through its three cavity-like holes, it lunged at Yin Luo.

“Croak, croak, croak!!” The gold frog was terrified out of its wits. All its bluster about eating metal was gone; it scrambled, panicking, into the hood of Yin Luo’s clothes.

Without even turning his head, the black-haired youth swung the ice blade backward in a reverse grip. A flick of his wrist, a swift rotation—and the razor-sharp fingernails that had been merely ten centimeters from piercing his skull fell heavily to the ground, severed along with the arm.

The ambushing charred corpse was cut in two at the waist. Viscous black fluid oozed from the cross-section.

This charred corpse was visibly much weaker than the one wielding the massive cleaver and couldn’t withstand even one strike from Yin Luo.

The black-haired youth’s gaze flicked to a bracelet on the corpse’s hand, its original color impossible to discern. He didn’t look pleased.

He had seen a bracelet of a similar shape on the wrist of the servant who had called them to breakfast today.

Before he could think further, the flames surged again. Tongues of fire swallowed the severed corpse, still writhing on the ground in two pieces, and slowly melted it down. It turned into a sticky pitch, like freshly unearthed crude oil.

The melted monster writhed and shrieked within the flames, then congealed back together, standing up once more.

Only this time, its movements were much slower.

Yin Luo gripped his ice blade tighter. This was tricky.

This fire was both the force that had claimed their lives in the past and the source of their power after death.

It was as if they were trapped by these flames in both life and death, never to be freed.

Moreover, the sea of fire flickered constantly. One after another, more charred corpses emerged, moving to surround the black-haired youth in a tightening circle.

Yin Luo was smarter this time. He focused his attacks on the charred corpses in only one direction, cutting them down. At the same time, he kicked their severed halves as far away as possible. That way, even if they could regenerate, it would take them much longer.

During a lull in the fighting, he glanced back and saw that the most distinctive charred corpse had retreated several steps. It lurked at the edge of the sea of fire, half-visible, merely directing the lesser charred corpses to attack him in wave after wave.

This thing actually possessed intelligence.

Yin Luo pressed his lips into a thin line. He wasn’t going to keep this battle of attrition. The sea of fire was these creatures’ home turf. Until he found a way to counter it, the longer they fought, the more disadvantaged he would become.

The quest to find his corpse parts was still missing that final, crucial step. His power had not yet fully recovered.

Wait a moment… recovered?

The black-haired youth, while retreating, seized on the word that had suddenly flashed through his mind like a shooting star.

It felt just like when the name “Aunt Jing” had surfaced—a sudden push from his subconscious.

Boom—

Another blade came slashing down. Yin Luo was forced to shelve his thoughts, instantly condensing frost beneath his feet to lessen friction. Abandoning all pretense of dignity, he tucked into a desperate roll to evade.

But the monster was also cunning. The main target of this strike wasn’t actually Yin Luo; it was the wall itself.

Like a chain reaction, the wall shuddered and collapsed, bringing a cascade of what looked like furniture wreckage crashing down onto the black-haired youth.

The space here was too narrow. Yin Luo was caught off guard, with nowhere left to dodge.

In the critical moment, he could only barely condense a layer of ice to protect his vital spots before being pinned directly by the massive debris. He went tumbling down the stairs.

The white rabbit plushie tumbled out of his arms. It looked at the battered black-haired youth, its ears drooping with grief.

It turned its head back, fixing its gaze on the charred corpse with the giant cleaver. Its glass-button eyes were now brimming with a murderous intent that could swallow the heavens.

Die, die, die, die, die!

How dare they make Pearl hurt? How dare they?!

What rules?! What game?! Nothing was worth even the slightest scratch on Pearl! Die, die, die, die!

“Cough, cough.” The black-haired youth picked himself up, covered head to toe in soot. He looked nothing like the precious little young master from before.

“I’m alright.” Yin Luo stopped the white rabbit plushie, which was shaking its tiny fists in fury and about to charge up the stairs.

The black-haired youth was actually just as angry. He looked down at his now filthy clothes. Unbeknownst to him, his eyes were slowly turning a bloody crimson. The cold aura around him intensified, so much so that frost began to crystallize on the tips of his hair, nearly dyeing the black strands white.

Just as he was ready to pay any price, even serious injury, to kill that cleaver-wielding charred corpse, a large hand suddenly seized him by the collar from behind and hauled him up into the air.

“What are you standing there for?! Run!”

Sensing no malicious intent, Yin Luo’s reaction was a half-beat too slow. As a result, the newcomer smoothly tucked him directly under an arm and was about to take off at full speed.

Yin Luo was a little dazed. Watching the ground fly by beneath him, he began to struggle frantically.

The kid had surprising strength and nearly broke free.

Zhang Bing thought the child was frightened. Half-instinct was to ignore the bratty kid, but then the memory of how unnaturally light he was—far lighter than an adult—flashed through his mind. Grudgingly, he forced out a few curt words. “Don’t be afraid. They can’t catch us.”

“Little Bear! Little Bear is still back there!” The black-haired youth kept struggling.

Zhang Bing glanced back hastily and finally spotted the white rabbit plushie, seemingly fallen at the top of the stairs.

What a blasted, spoiled brat.

Gritting his teeth, he suddenly swerved back, landing a powerful kick that sent a lunging charred corpse flying. He swiftly scooped up the plushie and shoved it into the child’s arms. Fortunately, whether due to some restriction or fear, only a few of the charred corpses gave chase, granting him a window for a clean escape.

“Here! Your doll!” Zhang Bing was both furious and amused.

Sure enough, the kid immediately stopped moving and hugged the plushie tight, completely satisfied.