NOVEL NEXT Chapter 64: A Tight Slap to the Face
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Vigilante A and Gui Er immediately turned towards the source of the voice.
They watched intently as the silhouette of a young man materialized from within the fog of the valley. Slowly, he walked towards them.
“Welcome Buddha,” said Gui Er. He already knew that Buddha would be appearing soon, but there was no way he could mention it in any way in the situation they were currently in now. Gui Er maintained his kowtow position on the ground but turned to face Buddha immediately.
After the young man walked over, he immediately spoke to Gui Er, “I already know everything. The decision to cooperate with the Giant Rat Demons you both made is nothing, as I understand you did it to ensure our Association’s survival. However, you both should not have cooperated with the Bai family’s Elder Ancestor personally to plot against Brother Dragon here. Gui Qi’s personal desires were too strong; he dared to bluff even me. Now that he’s committed such a heinous deed, his death was well-deserved, so I will not vouch for him.”
“Have mercy, Buddha. I am to blame, as I was greedy. I had agreed to help the Bai family’s Elder Ancestor entrap Vigilante A after he offered the Association of Spirit Kings a portion of the underground world to build our underground spirit residence.” Gui Qi was already dead, so Gui Er of course wouldn’t pin the blame on him. The more willing he was to bear the brunt of things, the happier Buddha would be.
After hearing Gui Er’s words, the young man nodded his head lightly, as if satisfied with the answer.
He then turned to face Vigilante A, to which he greeted with a Hold Fist salute. This was followed by the appearance of a small, jade green book from his hands, which flew towards Vigilante A leisurely.
“I can only blame myself for always training in isolation, which caused me to neglect keeping an eye on them. I sincerely apologize to you, Brother Dragon, and I offer this “True Bodhi Tactics” as compensation. It isn’t anything valuable, but if you cultivate it to its peak, it is truly invincible.”
With a wave of the hand, the book fell into Vigilante A’s grasp.
Gui Er felt envy flood his being. The “True Bodhi Tactics” was an extremely famous book. If you were to hone it to its peak, you could wake the dead and make flesh grow from bones. However, an elder in the Association of Spirit Kings had always said that Buddha felt that none in the Association were strong enough to handle its wonder, so forcing oneself to learn it would bring about terrible consequences.
The fact that Buddha had given to Vigilante A as compensation so easily meant that the rumors floating around were indeed true; Buddha really was trying to recruit Vigilante A into the Association of Spirit Kings. Now that Buddha had confirmed that Vigilante A was indeed a dragon, nothing would be better for leveling the field to his advantage then being in custody of a True Dragon.
Sadly, from the way Gui Er saw it, this was another situation where what’s done couldn’t be undone. Vigilante A just wasn’t the type of person to join an organization.
…
The System Space.
Fang Ning read the System Notification that had just appeared.
[The System has obtained rare Trueness Cultivation Tome “True Bodhi Tactics”. Due to the conflicting nature of the book and the current Martial Arts System, the System has chosen not to learn it.]
Seeing this, Fang Ning felt uneasiness settle in his heart. He knew he now had another recreational book to read when he’s cultivating in isolation in the electricity-less System Cyber Café…
The System however, didn’t mention the tome at all and instead said, “Look at this new Boss’ indicator on the map. It’s slightly bigger than the Elder Ancestor’s indicator, but it’s entirely white in color. The whiteness of it is even brighter than Qiao Zishan’s too. Besides that, not only did he appear just to apologize, he even gifted us with a rare tome, how generous. When that Snake Demon gave us a tome, it was because she had a request. Why are his underlings such suspicious people though?”
Fang Ning wiped his sweat; it seemed that the System wasn’t interested in the “True Bodhi Tactics” as of now. However, with its memory, it would never forget it.
He immediately explained, “You see, just because he’s the biggest in the Association doesn’t make him the hardest to deal with. I’m afraid that he’s just a person who only knows cultivation. I’m sure he’s been glorified so much he doesn’t care about the lower ranks at all. Since that’s the case, let’s not anger him and instead return to honestly farming monsters and gaining levels.”
“If only he were a bad guy, then the preparations for farming a Boss we made these past few days wouldn’t be going to waste. It’s obvious the Bai family’s Elder Ancestor isn’t here either.”
“You have such a brilliant (stupid) mind, Sir System… Farming him would take more than three months; in that amount of time, wouldn’t the Bai family’s Elder Ancestor find out too? Then we would be farmed by two Bosses instead. When that happens, all we can do is run.”
…
Vigilante A spoke first, “If so, then I’ll give Buddha some face. You’ll deal with Gui Er here yourself. However, he still has to solve the Giant Rats crisis that is plaguing Qi City. Since he’s doing me such a huge favor, I won’t blame him for any of his misdeeds.”
Gui Er immediately kowtowed, “Thank you great hero, Gui Er will do his best at the task. I’ll complete it immediately and there is no need for payment anymore.”
The young man then said, “All right, since Brother Dragon is willing to let you go, you should turn over a new leaf. Do all things in the public’s interest from now on. You may rise.”
Gui Er understood what the young man was implying. As long as he did everything in favor of the Association of Spirit Kings, any issues that occurred in the process would be vouched for completely. If he went off that path, he would end up just like Gui Qi.
Gui Er immediately stood up, his head nodding continuously in obedience.
Vigilante A spoke up just then, “I still have matters to attend to; we can make friends another time, Buddha. I will take my leave now.”
The young man nodded his head and smiled, signaling for Vigilante A to do as he pleases.
At the same time, Zhu Sanmei’s face suddenly started giving off black smoke. Her spiritual body started wavering as well. It seemed that what Gui Qi said before he died was true; her soul really was going to collapse entirely.
Vigilante A stilled in his movements before he turned to look at her.
Fang Ning asked in befuddlement, “Why did you stop?”
The System then answered, “My rules are limited, so I cannot go against my chivalrous virtue. This female ghost has done no wrong and has already been punished once. It would seem that she’s about to die because Gui Qi’s dead, so I cannot just sit and watch.”
Fang Ning was confused, “How troublesome. I finally know why heroes don’t live long. Take the Great Hero Guo Jing 1 for example, he could have lived a good life on Peach Blossom Island 2 but instead, he died in battle at Xiangyang City 3 . Will we meet the same end? I could think of endless possibilities where being chivalrous would lead us to our death.”
“That’s your business. Survival comes first, and chivalry comes second, so it’s up to you in the end.”
“Will this “True Bodhi Tactics” be of any help?”
“Probably, but I can’t learn it. It isn’t quite compatible with my current Martial Arts System. You can learn it, however, since it seems like it has to do with mental powers more.”
“I knew you would push it onto me, but it’s not like I can learn it at a snap of my fingers. She would probably be dead before I master it. Forget it, we’ll do it another way.”
“???”
“Stand still, and keep quiet.”
“And that’ll do? You have an even more brilliant mind, Host.”
Vigilante A remained in his place, his expression unchanging as he watched Zhu Sanmei’s soul collapse. He seemed unconcerned, yet he showed no signs of leaving.
Gui Er was confused at first, but soon came to understand that Vigilante A wanted him to make a move. He cast a spell before black wisps emerged from his body in waves to envelop Zhu Sanmei’s entire being.
Her body stopped wavering for a second before she started collapsing even faster. She grit her teeth, and not a single sound came out from her. She seemed to be looking for a sliver of freedom while she stared at her demise in the face.
In the next moment, her entire body exploded into pieces as her soul collapsed completely. The black gas diffused everywhere before it gradually disappeared.
Vigilante A was still unconcerned, and Gui Er was uneasy as he watched Vigilante A. He wasn’t going to pin the whole thing on him right? Sure, he committed a grave crime previously, but didn’t they put that past them?
The young man, on the other hand, only smiled. He extended his hand in a Flower-Picking Motion before white tendrils of gas emerged from within his fingers. The tendrils then extended into the air.
Gui Er was astounded at what happened after.
The white tendrils of air wrapped themselves around the pieces of Zhu Sanmei’s soul and pulled them together. The tendrils then started weaving the soul pieces as if it were weaving a piece of cloth.
This time, her body was no longer made of the black air that all spirits and ghosts were made of. Instead, she glowed a dim white, her body composed of the Yang aura. She was now dressed in flaming red armor, a spear as red as the setting sun in the grasp. It was hard to tear one’s gaze away from her as she looked just like a real human, full of life and heroic spirit.
“Although you are a spiritual being, your heart still possesses a sense of benevolence. From now on, you’ll be the Law-Enforcement Spirit of the Association of Spirit Kings. You will conduct inspections on my behalf, and you’ll be able to sense all evil-doers,” explained the young man calmly.
“Zhu Sanmei is forever in your debt, Buddha. Buddha has been merciful on me. Sanmei will conduct inspections day and night, I will not allow even a single soul taint Buddha’s merciful name,” Zhu Sanmei was beyond elated and immediately kneeled in kowtow.
“Haha, please rise. How intelligent, you certainly deserve to be part of the Association of Spirit Kings. It was a waste for you to work under Gui Qi. From now onwards, I will personally teach you cultivation and I will bestow a new name for you. Your name will now be Hongying. You’re like red blossoms 4 , and you have a heart as strong as a spear. All evil-doers will tremble at the sight of you,” continued the young man with a small smile on his face.
“Zhu Hongying is grateful for the new name bestowed by Buddha.” Zhu Hongying felt a renewed vigor. She was no longer the wronged and compromising self anymore. She once again felt like how she did when she was the eldest sister of her sworn siblings.
The System Space.
Fang Ning spoke first, “Now would you look at that, how good. Another person to help maintain balance and justice. We can continue playing with more security now.”
“That’s not good at all.”
Fang Ning was confused, “Why?”
“There’s now one more person trying to take my Red Named Monsters…”
“Wow, that’s simple. Just give her your QQ and Wechat, you know the drill.”
“I know.”
Vigilante A extended his hand, a name card in his grasp. “Haha, how benevolent of you, Buddha. Congratulations on your rebirth, young lady. Next time you meet any evil-doers that you can’t handle, you can come look for me. This is my QQ and Wechat, so remember to add me later.”
Zhu Hongying took the name card from Vigilante A, her expression one of confusion. What did Vigilante A mean? She looked towards the young man, who only smiled and nodded at her in return.
“Thank you, great hero,” said Zhu Hongying before keeping the name card away.
A moment later, the young man nodded and left without another word, Gui Er and Zhu Hongying following suit.
Fang Ning breathed a sigh of relief, “Look at how an upright the Super Boss acts. It really is different. Without a change of expression and emotion, he slapped us right in the face.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Right after we killed Gui Qi, we taunted them by asking whether or not he could reassemble a soul and revive a body. He not only reassembled Zhu Hongying’s soul, he even made her a guardian of his Association, making her much stronger than the average person. Isn’t that a slap to the face? No matter how strong you are, can you revive the dead?”
“I can’t. So what if he slapped us? I don’t lose anything in the process.”
Fang Ning was speechless for a second, “I’m sorry, I forgot you don’t have a face. I felt that the slap hurt quite a bit, though.”
“You don’t exactly have a face either, so why are you so afraid of being slapped? If that scares you so much, then you should quickly learn the “True Bodhi Tactics”. I think that Buddha Spirit King must’ve used a skill from the tome. Although it seemed like it was nothing, I think that it must’ve used quite a bit of power. He left in such a hurry too. You humans are the best at showing off after all.”
“…What difference is a human that doesn’t show off from salted fish? I’ll learn it, but you should resume my electricity and Internet first. If this keeps up, I’ll lose my mind.”
“Don’t you start that act on me. I’ve taken over your body, so I know all the physiological fluctuations that happen in your body. You really had broken down before, but you’re as healthy as a horse now.”
“Let’s temporarily not think about anything regarding Bosses. You should focus on farming monsters and leveling up too.”
“I’m going now, but you can only hone that “True Bodhi Tactics” by yourself first. We should also spend enough experience points to upgrade “Dragonization Ability” to Middle-level. I can’t exactly find a modern version of that tome with Simplified Chinese and illustrations for you, now can I?”
“Then give me my electricity and Internet back. How can I learn without the Internet?”