Who told you I am an NPC

Chapter : 20

A large patch of trees had been swept down and broken by the Ghost-faced Earthworm.

The ground around the entire pond was pitted and uneven, and a huge crater was left where it had burrowed out.

The land had been frantically plowed, and more lush shrubs should be able to grow here next year.

After the demonic beast was killed, its corpse remained for a while.

Similar to when monsters die in other games, it shattered like glass with a crash, turning into points of light and disappearing without a trace.

Yan Yunqing supported himself on his knees, panting heavily. Although it looked like he was using magic the whole time, he was actually being chased all over the place by this giant earthworm.

He had to attack while running, which consumed too much of his stamina.

To be able to stand here with his dick out now was thanks to his strong willpower... and the stamina pills in his backpack.

Otherwise, he would have been on his knees halfway through the fight.

Yan Yunqing looked up at the sky at a sorrowful forty-five-degree angle:

"This is probably the fate that a protagonist must bear, sigh."

Lilian slowly typed out a question mark.

Lilian felt that Yan Yunqing might be having another episode.

She flew a little lower and observed the spot where the Ghost-faced Earthworm had disappeared, looking thoughtful:

"A demonic beast actually appeared here... Strange, I don't remember any gods falling around here.

Could it be an unrecorded, nameless minor god?"

"You can even know which gods died in which places?"

Yan Yunqing gave a look of disbelief.

These past few days, Yan Yunqing had already confirmed that this world was nearly two thousand years after the timeline of "Demon King".

That meant Yan Yunqing himself was a witness to the War of the Gods back then.

...Perhaps calling him a participant and a terminator would be more appropriate?

As mentioned before, the background story of "Demon King" was about a youth who lost his home due to the War of the Gods and was determined to rebuild it.

In the process, the youth gradually subdued other races, unified various domains, ended the war, became the Demon King, and led his subjects to a better tomorrow.

As the 'Demon King' himself, Yan Yunqing naturally fought his way in and out.

During the final decisive battle, several of the major high gods were directly or indirectly eliminated by him, leaving only the Goddess of Life who remained aloof from worldly affairs.

Rather than calling "Demon King" a construction game, it was actually more like a political strategy game in the early stages.

To establish the Demon King's empire, Yan Yunqing had also wasted a lot of brain cells, even looking through many history books and referencing the unification experiences of emperors throughout history to barely complete the establishment of the empire.

In the process, he killed many gods.

Some persecuted living beings, others were unwilling to submit, and all were dealt with equally by Yan Yunqing, to the point that he couldn't even remember the exact number.

Here's a joke: the title of Demon King actually came about because he was so swift and decisive when eliminating those gods that his reputation was gradually demonized in the mouths of those gods' believers.

The title 'Demon King' then spread around so charmingly.

How could Lilian, a newborn elf cub two thousand years later, be so knowledgeable about the War of the Gods from two thousand years ago?

Lilian was silent on this question for a few seconds before answering:

"The elf race has inherited memories.

The inherited memory I awakened is related to the War of the Gods, so naturally, I know a lot about these things."

She brushed it off lightly, leaving Yan Yunqing half-believing and half-doubting.

These other races indeed had this setting of inherited memories, but not every member of the other races could awaken them.

The condition was rather metaphysical.

Yan Yunqing more often simplified this condition to: an awakened member of another race is an important game NPC related to certain subsequent quests, while an unawakened one is a common NPC that doesn't need much attention.

Yan Yunqing was about to rest for a while when he heard the sound of chaotic footsteps from not far away.

He turned his head to look and saw a small team of NPCs walking towards him from a distance, cautiously holding their weapons.

Yan Yunqing was very familiar with a few of the faces; they were among the guards who patrolled the village.

The group of NPCs saw the mess on the ground: the land, which had been plowed several times by the large earthworm, was full of pits; thick tree trunks, broken in half, were scattered everywhere; and the shrubs were chaotically buried in the dust. It was a scene of ruins, completely unrecognizable from its former appearance.

One of the patrol members looked at Yan Yunqing, who was standing in the middle of these ruins, in shock, then looked at the surrounding dilapidated and messy scene, "We heard a loud noise from this direction just now, so we came to check it out. What happened here?"

Yan Yunqing rubbed his nose, knowing that this was probably a plot point coming up.

It seemed this Ghost-faced Earthworm didn't suddenly pop up to surprise him because he had jinxed it, but was rather a pre-quest plot for some mission.

"A demonic beast just appeared here."

Yan Yunqing said, "A level twelve Ghost-faced Earthworm, but I've already killed it.

It's safe for now."

"What, a demonic beast?!"

One of the young men with curly hair and freckles was startled upon hearing this.

"Are you sure? It was a demonic beast?"

"I'm sure." Yan Yunqing showed the skin on his arm that was left scarred by the Ghost-faced Earthworm's blood.

"That thing's blood is also corrosive, but I managed to pull away in time and switched to magic attacks, so I wasn't too seriously injured?"

The few NPCs in the patrol team looked at each other, all reading horror on each other's faces.

"You... no, you are actually a noble mage?"

The older Lane saw the simple magic wand in Yan Yunqing's hand, and a bit of reverence inevitably appeared on his face.

Yan Yunqing had only ever shown his skills as a mage in front of Yuli.

His audience was Yuli, who didn't quite understand all these complexities and only knew that Brother A-Yan was a very powerful person, and nothing else.

The other people in the village only knew that Yan Yunqing was a very kind-hearted foreign traveler who often helped everyone with miscellaneous tasks while living in the village.

They had no idea that Yan Yunqing could use magic.

"Since you are a noble mage, then it is indeed possible for you to deal with a terrifying demonic beast."

Lane managed to maintain his composure in front of others.

"I will report this matter to the village chief as soon as possible."

Yan Yunqing nodded and recounted everything that happened after the demonic beast appeared and how he dealt with it.

"This... this... should we report this to the higher-ups?"

The youngest in the guard team, Kate, his voice trembling after listening.

"Perhaps we should ask for help from the important figures in the army?

What if another terrifying demonic beast appears here and the incident from six years ago happens again?"

"But we have no evidence... those important figures won't necessarily pay attention to us! Besides, hasn't the demonic beast been dealt with already?

There won't be any more terrifying demonic beasts appearing!"

"You can't guarantee that no more demonic beasts will appear, can you?

What if other demonic beasts really do appear?

Do you want the tragedy from six years ago to happen all over again?"

Just by hearing Yan Yunqing say that a demonic beast had appeared, without even seeing it with their own eyes, this group of NPCs had already started arguing about the matter of the demonic beast.

The scene was out of control for a moment, as if the bloody night from six years ago was replaying before everyone's eyes.

Yan Yunqing quietly watched this cutscene play out.

After everyone finished arguing and quieted down again, he then suggested:

"Why don't we go back to the village first? And ask for the village chief's opinion?"

　　...

Yan Yunqing, holding a cup of hot water with Lilian on his head, sat in a corner of the village chief's courtyard, watching the patrol team report the matter of the demonic beast appearing in the Sunset Forest to the village chief.

The elderly village chief was leaning on a cane.

Upon hearing the news, he nearly stumbled and fell.

"What did you say?

A demonic beast appeared again? Tell me the details."

"Yes." Lane gave a bitter smile.

"But it wasn't us who encountered it, but this... Mr. Yan Yunqing."

Lane pointed at Yan Yunqing, who was sitting in the corner ready to continue watching the cutscene, and everyone turned to look at him in unison.

Yan Yunqing tilted his head: Huh?

Oh, it was his turn again.

Yan Yunqing neatly recounted what had happened, trying his best not to exaggerate, “…and that’s what happened.

That Ghost-faced Earthworm was truly disgusting, just one look and I won’t be able to eat dinner tonight! Blech.”

After listening to a bunch of embellished descriptions, the old village chief furrowed his brow and paced back and forth in the room, leaning on his cane.

“A demonic beast actually appeared in Sunset Forest again, how could this be, six years ago was clearly just an accident…” the old village chief muttered to himself, his graying eyebrows nearly twisting into a single line.

“Could it be…”

Yan Yunqing pricked up his ears, wanting to listen carefully to what came after "Could it be."

He had a feeling this was a large-scale quest.

He had just reached level ten, and the ordinary daily quests in the village couldn't give him much experience.

He was already planning to leave this place after a while to find outdoor leveling zones with more experience to grind monsters and level up.

But now, an event that looked very much like a prerequisite plot for a large-scale quest had popped up, making it hard for Yan Yunqing not to overthink.

Perhaps this was his next main quest?

Regardless, the rewards for a large-scale quest were definitely substantial.

Since he could accept the quest, Yan Yunqing wouldn't need to specifically look for a leveling zone to grind monsters and level up.

The old village chief closed his eyes and pondered for a good while.

The entire courtyard was quiet.

The sun had set below the horizon, leaving only a lingering afterglow in the sky, burning half of it red.

The old village chief pondered for a long time without revealing any key information.

After a long period of contemplation, he seemed to have made a decision and let out a long sigh.

Opening his eyes, the old village chief looked at the anxious members of the patrol team.

“Lane, it’s getting late. Take these children back first.

I’ll have to trouble you to make a trip tomorrow to the capital city and report this matter in our village to the royal army.”

Seeing that the old village chief had finally made a decision, Lane had no objection to the task assigned to him and nodded.

“I understand. I’ll make the trip tomorrow.”

The other members of the patrol team all breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.

Although their faces still inevitably showed panic, these words seemed to be a shot in the arm for them, and everyone’s spirits lifted again.

It was as if by making this decision, their village would be safe from further trouble.

Watching all the patrol members gradually leave, Yan Yunqing also wanted to go.

After he submitted the old village chief's hunting quest, he still had a lot of Lulu Pig meat left in his backpack.

He needed to hurry back and give the pork to Yuli so she could make them a delicious barbecue.

“Mr. Yan, please wait a moment.” The old village chief called out to stop Yan Yunqing.

Yan Yunqing paused his steps and immediately turned back to walk in front of the old village chief.

“Village Chief, is there something you need me to do?”

This kind of act, calling a player over privately, nine times out of ten meant he was about to give the player a quest.

The old village chief’s face showed some hesitation, as if he was still struggling with something.

Seeing the expectation written all over Yan Yunqing’s face, he could only sigh in the end.

“Regarding what happened in the village six years ago, how much do you know?”

Huh, was this a test of his story-gathering ability?

Yan Yunqing thought for a moment, then simply shook his head.

“I don’t know much, only that six years ago a demonic beast over level thirty attacked the village.

Many guards in the village sacrificed their lives to hold back the demonic beast until reinforcements arrived.”

He pursed his lips and added, “Also, in the blacksmith shop where I live, Old Jason’s son, and Yuli’s parents, all died in that battle.”

Hearing what Yan Yunqing said, the old village chief murmured, “It was more than that. Aini, Jeffrey, Toby, Dean, Lacey…”

Quite a few names were recited one by one by the old village chief.

His tone didn't fluctuate much, yet it was tinged with a bit of nostalgia and grief.

“Those were all good, kind children from the village.

They all died… all died in that battle six years ago.”

The old village chief shook his head weakly, his cane striking the stone slab on the ground forcefully.

“I watched them charge forward one by one, just to hold that demonic beast back for a few short seconds.”

“To this day, I can’t forget the scenes that happened that night.”

The tragic scene of that night seemed to reappear before the old village chief’s eyes.

“They held their weapons and stood before the demonic beast, but with a light swipe of its claw, a large hole was torn in their stomachs.

Those intestines, organs, all fell to the ground.”

“To me, they were also extremely young children.

Some of them had mischievously stolen my family’s eggs the day before, yet the next day, they stood firmly at the very front to protect the families behind them.”

—“Their skulls were crushed”

—“Their hearts fell to the ground”

—“Their blood soaked the entire land”

In a daze, the scene of that night seemed to truly appear before Yan Yunqing’s eyes, slowly unfolding before him through the old village chief’s narration.

“Before they died, they were all thinking, if they could just hold on a little longer, the royal rescue would arrive.”

“I thought so too at the time. After all, our village is so close to Bartovita.”

The old village chief shook his head bitterly.

“However, the rescue army only arrived after a full day and night.”

“So many children died on the eve of dawn.”

This was a story where the teller shed tears and the listener felt sorrow.

It wasn’t a long story, but it still made Yan Yunqing’s heart tighten, as if it was being squeezed hard by a hand, making it difficult to breathe.

The rich expressions on Lilian’s face also vanished, and she fell silent along with Yan Yunqing.

Time seemed to return to that night six years ago.

Countless wails and cries filled the village, and the air was thick with the smell of blood.

Countless figures, tall and short, fat and thin, bravely and fearlessly stepped over the bodies of their predecessors, calmly welcoming death, and then using their own bodies to shield those behind them…

Perhaps they too had feared death, but for the sake of their families behind them, not a single one chose to retreat.

Human nature is just that wondrous.

While the nobles in the debaucherous capital city exchanged toasts, a small village less than a thousand li away was struggling in a choice between life and death.

By the end, the old village chief’s voice had become somewhat hoarse.

“Sorry… I accidentally said so much.”

“It’s alright.” Yan Yunqing spoke softly. “I am very willing to listen… to such a past.”

“Sigh—” The old village chief shook his head and said to Yan Yunqing, “I didn’t ask you to stay for any other reason.

It was like this six years ago, and today, six years later, those nobles in the capital city may not necessarily care about the lives of commoners.”

“You—You are a mage, right?”

The old village chief looked at Yan Yunqing, then shifted his gaze to Lilian. “And this is the elf lady.”

“I have an presumptuous request. If Lane fails to bring back army reinforcements, could I ask you and your companion for help?”

“I think, you must be a Descender.”