Chapter 45: Desperate Times Call for Desperate Measures
Have I been discovered?
Naturally, they wouldn’t let a pawn escape their control.
That’s right. Since I knew the organization saw me as a pawn, they definitely wouldn’t dare to use me carelessly. This was the situation on their side.
It was also to avoid too much interference from the organization that I never showed too much of being different.
Especially after the major events that had happened recently, the organization must have realized I was different from before.
But admitting it directly here would be foolish, so I scratched my head and pretended to be dumbfounded.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Who am I supposed to be? I’m Juncheng An. Who else would I be?”
Nana frowned, putting her hands down from her lap. She spoke in a sharp tone.
“Stop pretending. I have an abnormal item here that can see through your heart and directly discern whether you’re lying.”
Do you even need abnormal items to see through me? Someone like me, whose thoughts are basically written all over their face, could have their mind read by anyone.
As long as I don’t reveal any secrets that shouldn’t be told, they can read whatever they want. It’s not the first time, anyway.
With the mindset of someone who has nothing to lose, I threw my hands up and said shamelessly.
“Then just read my mind! Why are you even asking me? It’s an unnecessary step.”
“Just for that sentence, I can conclude you are not Juncheng An. The original Juncheng An wouldn’t dare to retort.”
“Yes, I did.”
But later, after spending more time with Nana in the Mirror Realm, I basically understood Nana’s personality. She’s not someone who would mind this kind of thing.
I definitely didn’t dare to before, but now I’m okay. When you spend too much time with someone, you get familiar with them. You even dare to joke with them first, and end up being teased back. What a pathetic adult.
“That’s what I mean, it’s always like this. Is it okay for the Master of Destiny to make the first move? We won’t interfere with your actions, but…”
“But it doesn’t matter who you are. It’s just that things you don’t want to see will happen if you don’t comply. You need to promise us that you won’t betray the Witch of Calamity, or else something you don’t want to see will happen.”
“Things I don’t want to see? Threatening me with my family? I guess I’ll just go with it. As expected, I’m still useful to the organization right now, and they want to keep me around.”
Is it only because they’ve revealed my dangerousness that they’re resorting to threats like this?
But it’s certain that the organization doesn’t want a mutually destructive fight with me. That wouldn’t benefit anyone.
Since that’s the case, I should agree for now.
“Don’t worry, I won’t betray my Witch of Calamity. Recently, other Masters of Destiny have been causing trouble everywhere, making me lose sleep. Won’t the organization offer some help?”
“We will try our best to assist you. After all, this is our territory, and outsiders shouldn’t run wild here.”
“That sounds more like it.”
I shrugged and said.
Nana was silent for a moment, then glanced at Lily behind me.
I looked back at Lily. She closed her eyes, clasped her hands in front of her chest, her body emitting a faint blue light. Her hair and clothes floated up.
Just as her skirt was about to be blown up to reveal her undergarments, the blue light dissipated, and the wind pressed her skirt back down.
SF Light Novel
Lily opened her eyes again.
“They’ve all left.”
“Yes. It’s okay now. You can sit down.”
The tense atmosphere vanished. Nana casually walked to the tea table in the reception area, poured a cup of tea, and turned to me, who had a strange expression.
“What’s wrong? Why are you just standing there? Come and sit down.”
“Your attitude changed so suddenly.”
In any case, I walked over and sat opposite Nana. Lily also came over and sat next to me.
“Wait, you go sit on the other side.”
“Ah, this feels like I’m bringing my girlfriend to meet her parents— what the heck!”
So she wasn’t pouring tea for me.
Nana glanced at Lily but didn’t say anything, continuing to drink the tea she had just poured. So it wasn’t for me.
“That was just a formality, a performance for those higher-ups. Otherwise, those stubborn old men would keep worrying. They might think you’ll run away out of fear of death.”
So it was just an act. I actually took it seriously. Nana’s cold face didn’t look like she was acting at all.
“Actually, when Lily told me you had amnesia, I had already become suspicious. I felt like something unpredictable must have happened to you.”
“Well, it’s complicated to explain.”
It would also take a long time to explain.
To be honest, I’m too lazy to bring up what happened before again and again.
But after coming into this world, I feel like there’s no one familiar to me anymore. I’m the only one surviving alone.
This thought always makes me a little sad.
Perhaps it’s because I’m afraid that this matter can’t be easily revealed, otherwise it will lead to serious consequences.
“How are you doing? Is Xuan’er okay?”
“Yes, she’s much better.”
She has been quite unstable lately and hasn’t been able to come for a visit.
Ever since I re-established my destined connection with her, Xuan’er’s mental state has been quite unstable, which worries me a lot.
Knowing that she has recovered now is a great relief.
“Only… what?”
“She has undergone significant changes.”
“Changes? In what way?”
“Firstly, her soul. In order to provide Jiang Xueqing with the power of Oniification, half of her soul was residing in Jiang Xueqing’s body. But after establishing a destined connection with you, that half of her soul returned to Xuan’er’s body.”
“Oh.”
It’s only natural that her soul has become complete. According to the Mother of Black Goats, the prerequisite for purifying defilement is a complete soul. That’s why she attacked Xueqing at that time.
It doesn’t seem like much. Did you go through this too?
“You could say that.”
Nana took a sip of tea to calm herself before continuing.
“Secondly, her ghoul instinct has disappeared. This means she no longer needs to eat corpses to maintain her life activities. This is unbelievable.”
To reach this stage, one must eat their loved one, meaning me. This is the so-called purification of defilement. To achieve this, the process of becoming the Witch of Famine was skipped.
But this world doesn’t need to go through these steps because she has directly awakened as the Witch of Famine.
This is a huge relief.
I’d rather die than face Aunt Shabu again.
I never want to see her again in this lifetime, and I hope she never visits Earth again.
“Aren’t these all good things? Xuan’er didn’t want to eat corpses in the first place, right?”
“That’s right, they are indeed good things, which is why it doesn’t feel right. According to the original plan, every awakening of a Witch of Calamity would come at a great price. However, now she hasn’t paid any price at all.”
“If you ask me, you people are just sick. Isn’t it good to have no losses?”
“It’s too smooth, which makes it feel like a trap. We must first consider the worst-case scenario in order to minimize losses more efficiently.”
That makes sense. I also have this way of thinking. After all, I don’t think good things will always happen to me, and when bad things happen, I’m never absent.
“But I think this should be related to you. But if you’re not going to say what happened, no one will know.”
“I can’t help it.”
“I know.”
Nana interrupted me.
“You don’t have to say it. As long as you know it in your heart, that’s enough. Talking too much can lead to mistakes, and I agree that you should continue to hide these things.”
It was Lily who spoke. She had gotten a little too carried away and was blushing profusely. After a few seconds of hesitation, she continued in a softer tone.
“If Juncheng—uh, Classmate An—isn’t going to say it…”
“If you’re interested, ask yourself. Don’t bring your personal emotional issues into this.”
Nana ignored her daughter’s almost-crying voice and continued to speak to me expressionlessly.
“Lastly, Xuan’er has acquired a new ability. Do you know what it is?”
“New ability? Ah, the Destined Ability, Empathy. I’m not too sure, but it seems to be the ability to control blood?”
I remember she could manipulate blood freely.
“It’s not that simple. She can manipulate blood because she chose to target blood at that time. In reality, she can choose more than just blood.”
“What do you mean? Can she choose other things too?”
“That’s right. No matter what she chooses to devour, it doesn’t become a manipulation, but simply ‘becomes hers.’ What she chooses to devour becomes a part of her, so it looks like manipulation, but the essence is different. We’ve tentatively named it ‘Desperate Appetite.’ Simply put, it’s the direct manifestation of the overbearing statement: ‘What’s yours is mine, and what’s mine is mine.'”
Is this the practical application of the Fat Tiger Theory?
“This is too unfair.”
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“Yes, that’s what the organization thought at first. But this ability actually has a flaw. To change what she has chosen, besides paying Destiny Power, there is another price to pay.”
“What price? It’s a price. Whatever she claims as hers, she has to pay the corresponding price. For example, if Xuan’er previously chose blood, she would have to pay her own blood.”
“So she hasn’t recovered yet.”
“Equivalent exchange?”
“Actually, it’s unequal. The blood Xuan’er paid is not a lethal dose, yet she obtained ‘absolute ownership of blood.’ Even with side effects, this ability is still classified as S-Class.”
Paying a price to gain control is indeed unfair, but this is what happens in famine.
“Xuan’er is much better now and has been discharged from the hospital. Do you want to go see her? I can give you half a day off.”
“I’ll go see Xuan’er right now!”
Since I could go see Xuan’er, of course I had to go see her immediately!
I excitedly stood up and rushed towards the door. Along the way, I suddenly remembered something and looked back.
“Lily! Tell Lianbing for me that she doesn’t have to wait for me. She can go back first.”
“Okay. Wait! Why do I have to deliver the message—”
“Please, I’m counting on you!”
*Gulp*
Something flew towards me in mid-air. I quickly caught it and realized it was a set of keys with a cute keychain.
Also, although Xuan’er has been discharged, her mental state is still unstable, and her body hasn’t fully recovered. The doctor said she needs more rest, so don’t agitate her.
“I got it! I’m leaving now!”
The urge to see Xuan’er outweighed everything else, so I headed straight to Nana’s house.
I wanted to buy some get-well gifts, but when the elevator door opened, I saw Xuan’er leaning against the wall, trying to walk out.
OP SF Light Novel
Eh?! Why is she here! Shouldn’t she be lying in bed at home!
“Xuan’er! Why are you out! You can’t move around yet!”
I took a step forward, hugged Xuan’er, and said angrily.
But Xuan’er, despite her weakness, showed no intention of retreating. She clutched my clothes and said with difficulty.
“I… I need to help Xueqing…”
“Xueqing? What’s wrong with her?”
“Without our soul, she has lost her Oniification power. But she’s still working to hunt down Oni people…”
“What!”
Xueqing is still doing that kind of work!
If she could Oniify, I wouldn’t need to worry too much. With the power boost, Xueqing was almost invincible.
But now that she can’t Oniify, how can she contend with those Oni people?
From that incident with Xueqing and Taibing, I could see that when the power gap becomes too large, no matter how skilled you are, you can’t completely defeat the enemy. The enemy only needs to hit you once, even if by luck.
If an Oni were to appear in front of her, she would definitely die.
I swallowed the rest of my words.
I can’t say something complaining about Xuan’er.
I can’t agitate Xuan’er.
Besides, it’s not that I won’t stop her, but that I can’t stop her.
Given Xueqing’s personality, it was natural for her to be so headstrong.
Speaking of which, I’ve never really understood Xueqing’s past.
Why is she so obsessed with hunting down Oni people?
Why does she continue to do such dangerous work?
I only realize now that I don’t understand Xueqing at all.
I kept saying I trusted Xueqing, but in reality, it was just for my own convenience.
I was only relying on her, but I never became her reliance.
I regret it deeply, but it’s only now. I won’t let this feeling of regret continue.
“Don’t worry, Xuan’er. Leave this to me. I’ll find her and persuade her.”
“Me too—”
“We have a promise. I guarantee I’ll bring you a safe and sound Xueqing, so you should go rest.”
“Please, I’m counting on you—”
Xuan’er and I sealed our promise with a pinky swear.
After putting Xuan’er back on her bed, I left the apartment alone.
It’s my turn to save you.
