The Creatures that We Are

Once out of the room, Gao Yang was just about to open his mouth when Six Rime spoke up first. “Who called you?”

“Green Tea, the fifth team leader of the Hundred Rivers Union,” Gao Yang said honestly. “He’s coming to visit me.”

“What for?”

“For a drink.”

Six Rime fell into a bemused silence.

Gao Yang, Fresh Snow, and Six Rime went downstairs together and told everyone about the visit. Can immediately called Nine Frost and Lithe Snake back into the house, and they waited a little more than twenty minutes on high alert.

The doorbell rang.

“It’s not locked,” Gao Yang said.

As soon as Green Tea opened the door and came in, a stool flew toward his face, interrupting what he was about to say. Facing the sudden threat, he made an instinctual punch and broke the stool into pieces, which was obviously done with One-inch Punch.

He gave Gao Yang and the others in the room a wry smile. “Is this how you welcome guests, Elder Seven Shadow?”

“It’s to confirm who you are. Nothing personal.” Gao Yang explained. “Someone’s after me.”

“Ha, no wonder you’ve got so many bodyguards.” Green Tea glanced at the others before walking in through the entryway. He was dressed in a tank top and a pair of running shorts, wearing running shoes with a towel around his neck. It seemed that he had run here.

Indeed, he wiped the sweat on his face with the towel and said, “I needed a half-hour aerobic session, so I decided to run here.”

“You didn’t come for a drink with me, did you?” Gao Yang asked bluntly.

“That’s right.” Green Tea spread his hands. “I didn’t even bring alcohol.”

He let out a dry laugh and gently closed the door. “There’s something I have to tell you.”

“Sure, but they’ll be listening too.” Gao Yang glanced at Six Rime, who was standing by his side.

“So be it then.” Green Tea sighed in resignation. “I can’t afford to be cautious.”

Fresh Snow suddenly grabbed Gao Yang’s elbow. Gao Yang turned to see her body going stiff and her pupils dilating, her gaze fixed on Green Tea in alert.

“What’s wrong?” Gao Yang asked.

Fresh Snow shook her head and wordlessly kept her grip on Gao Yang.

“Elder Seven Shadow,” Green Tea said solemnly. “I’m going to tell you something important, but you must give me a promise first.”

“Go on.”

“I need protection.”

Gao Yang paused in surprise. He had guessed what this must be about.

Softly, he asked, “Did you find out who Dust is?”

Dust was the spy the Godbearer Cult had planted in the Hundred Rivers Union ten years ago, said to be a woman.

“It’s easy to talk to a smart guy like you.” Green Tea looked around to make sure the place was safe before taking a step forward. “I’ll start with the conclusion. Dust is…”

When he finished, though, he realized that Gao Yang and the others didn’t show any reaction.

He stared. “Why didn’t you react at all?”

“So who’s Dust?” Lithe Snake asked impatiently.

“Didn’t I tell you? Dust is…” Green Tea repeated.

This time, Gao Yang became certain it wasn’t that Green Tea had cut himself short, but that the name had been encoded, in a manner of speaking. While Green Tea thought he had spoken normally, the word never left his mouth.

Nine Frost’s face darkened. “Who is Dust?”

“I told you. It’s…” Green Tea opened and closed his mouth two more times, but he couldn’t make a sound. Stunned and confused, he sputtered, “How did this happen? I did, I did…”

Gao Yang came to a quick realization. It’s a curse! One triggered by words!

He shouted, “Hong Xiaoxiao, give him your hairpin!”

Caught off guard, Hong Xiaoxiao panickedly took off her hairpin and threw it to Green Tea, but it was already too late.

Green Tea blanched, collapsing to the floor while holding onto his neck, face twisted with pain. Gao Yang was going to pick up the hairpin and put it on Green Tea, but his rational mind told him that it was too late to make a save now. Green Tea had already triggered the curse. Moreover, Fresh Snow was holding tightly onto him to stop him from approaching.

“Aghh—”

Two seconds later, Green Tea’s head jerked up, the force of it threatening to break his neck. Colorful dust-like particles gushed out of his eyes, nostrils, ears, and mouth, crystal-clear.

The energy particles swirled above Green Tea’s head, forming a nebula in seconds. Drained, Green Tea toppled to the floor, turning into a lifeless body.

“Wall of Lamentation!”

Fresh Snow rushed past everyone and widened her arms. A translucent dark green wall of spirits emerged from under her feet, looking like it had been built with countless immaterial bricks. At the center of the wall was an androgynous face. Its eyes were brimming with quickly flickering black and white spots.

It opened its empty mouth. It looked like a vortex that would suck one into the darkest abyss.

Bam! The nebula swirling above Green Tea’s head exploded into countless dust particles, which didn’t do any physical damage, but would spread through the house like poisonous gas and contaminate and corrupt everyone’s soul.

Thankfully, it was blocked by the Wall of Lamentation as soon as it scattered.

The vortex-like mouth on the wall left no dust particles behind. In three seconds, the exploding nebula disappeared, wholly sucked in by the black hole of a mouth.

“Seal,” Fresh Snow uttered.

Instantly, the dark green wall scattered into countless spiritual particles like fireflies flying around the house. The use of her ability left her awash in her energy, and her glossy blond hair turned back into its original bright silver; the contact lenses fell off, revealing a pair of gem-like crimson eyes.

Her chest heaved slightly, her small face pale to the point of looking translucent.

A few seconds later, she turned around and smiled. “It’s okay now, Gao Yang.”

Gao Yang was stunned, and so were the others.

On one hand, they were shocked by Green Tea’s strange sudden death; on the other hand, they were shocked by Fresh Snow’s formidable power.

In fact, everyone save for Gao Yang would’ve been contaminated by the dust nebula if Fresh Snow hadn’t intervened; Gao Yang could teleport out of the house, but the others wouldn’t have made it out in time.

Lithe Snake picked up the Black Gold hairpin on the floor and grasped it. Getting close to Green Tea’s body, he reached out to check the man’s breathing and pulse. A few seconds later, he glanced back at Gao Yang. “He’s gone, Captain.”

“Please save him, Fresh Snow.” Gao Yang knew that Fresh Snow could resurrect someone once within twenty-four hours as long as their heart and brain weren’t seriously damaged.

“I can’t,” said Fresh Snow.

Gao Yang asked in surprise, “Why?”

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