My Core is the Boss

An Qiao and the others got to work, burying Chen Fan and Luo Bufan.

Qi Yuan looked at the bodies scattered across Haishi Village, his eyes carrying something that could have been grief. "So many dead people. What a spread that could have been. What a waste, I can't eat any of it."

The mission completion notification had already come through. Their departure from the Mission World was imminent.

He then gazed upon the ruins of the village, his expression settling into calmness. "If I'm ever back this way, I'll eat then."

An Qiao walked over to him with a look of respect. "Brother Qi, once we're back, I'll pass along the captain's belongings to you."

Upon completing their first mission, a newcomer would return to the home base of whichever veteran had brought them in.

Qi Yuan asked, "Right, what's the name of the place you go back to?"

Though her eyes were still a little unfocused, she answered readily enough, "The Death Qi World. But we prefer to call it the Underworld. It's where the deceased go. They usually harbor lingering attachments or regrets from when they were alive."

He replied without missing a beat, "Underworld, it is. I'm a patriot, I support the domestic brand [1]."

An Qiao and the others were at a loss for words.

She then explained, "Once the mission's complete, we can't linger more than an hour. Just think of the word 'return', and you'll be sent back to the base."

Qi Yuan glanced over at Xiaomei in the distance and gave a small wave. "Got it."

With that innate affinity for marriage of hers, who knew how many more weddings she'd have stumbled into by the next time they met.

Thus, he said inwardly, “Return.”

In an instant, he felt space-time invert. For less than a minute, a vast chorus of wailing and murmuring resounded in his ears.

When his vision cleared, he found himself in a small stone chamber, roughly thirty square meters in area.Against the southern wall stood a stone table, upon which sat a stone lamp containing a single candle that cast a dim, amber glow. It was also the only light in the room.

He looked around with genuine interest. "Hmm... Free housing?"

The whole room seemed to have been carved out of a single massive boulder. Even the table blended seamlessly with the floor. He pushed open the stone door and found himself standing on the face of a sheer cliff. The entire chamber had been hollowed directly out of the rock face.

"If the apocalypse came and the dead started walking, I could stock up on supplies and hole up in here. No zombie's finding this."

If he'd been younger, Qi Yuan would have absolutely loved this. It was exactly the kind of secret base a child would dream about. Yet as an adult, he merely felt a small, involuntary flutter of excitement.

Looking around, he saw that the cliff face was dotted with many similar stone chambers. Below stretched a valley that was rich with the scent of flowers. One deep whiff left the head pleasantly spinning.

He followed a stairway cut into the rock and descended to the valley floor.

From not far away, An Qiao waved at him. "Brother Qi, over here!"

Just like in the Mission World, she was clad in the black demon slayer uniform. The woman was prim and proper, with not a single hair out of place. The base itself, though, was home to a more varied crowd.

A little old man sidled up to Qi Yuan, urgently sniffing around him. "Are you a new recruit? What's your mission reward? Is it a Physique-Tempering Blood Pill? If so, how about making a deal with me? See that bamboo tower over there? There are gorgeous women and handsome men there.

"If you hand over the Physique-Tempering Blood Pill, any three of those beauties or hunks are yours to enjoy however you like. Most people don't even get this offer. I'm only making it because I can see you have talent and I want to make friends."

Qi Yuan glanced over. Seated in the bamboo tower some distance away were three men and three women. The men were handsome and the women were striking, their clothing spanning eras.

The women wore Qin dynasty hanfu, Republican-era cheongsam, and modern miniskirt with stockings respectively. The men were similarly dressed to represent different periods. It was a little window into every age.

An Qiao strode over and shot Lin Yeshan a sharp look. "Lin Yeshan, stop trying to swindle people. Brother Qi is not the kind of newcomer you think he is! That's Lin Yeshan. All he ever does is trick newcomers!

"Physique-Tempering Blood Pills are precious. They boost your strength with almost no side effects. Why would anyone trade one away for a trip to the pleasure den?"

Lin Yeshan smiled awkwardly, though something strange flickered in his eyes. An Qiao was a capable martial artist herself, so why was she calling this newcomer "Brother Qi"?

"Heh, sounds like this new kid performed well on your mission." Still, he pivoted smoothly. "I know all the girls in that place. If you ever want to make an arrangement, just say the word."

An Qiao shot him another withering look. "Brother Qi, come on, I'll take you to the captain's place."

She set off with Qi Yuan in tow.

Lin Yeshan paused, then called after them, "Where is Chen Fan?"

The Chen Fan he knew had always been a private man. His room was practically a closed door to outsiders. An Qiao taking the newcomer there meant something.

"The captain is gone," An Qiao said quietly.

Perhaps that would be their eventual fate as well.

Lin Yeshan went still. He looked at Qi Yuan again, his expression complicated.

***

An Qiao led Qi Yuan across the valley, toward another section of cliff face on the far side.

Qi Yuan said casually, "The people here seem quite pleasant. If I'm not mistaken, that man back there was at the mid-stage Jade Blood realm, but he didn’t protest when you spoke to him like that."

"He's an old martial artist. He may be at the Jade Blood realm in the base, but inside the Mission World, he's reduced to mid-stage Qi Blood realm. So..." An Qiao left the rest unspoken.

Qi Yuan understood without having to hear it. If they were deployed together in future missions, Lin Yeshan would undoubtedly be the weaker one. That was just how vast the disparity was.

Furthermore, advancing through Jade Blood was exponentially harder than advancing through Qi Blood. Old martial artists like Lin Yeshan carried lower standing at the base as a result.

Before long, An Qiao brought Qi Yuan to the door of Chen Fan's chamber.

Her gaze reddened slightly. "The stone rooms are the safest spaces here. No one can enter without the owner's permission. Before the captain left, he transferred his access rights to me. Three days from now, with the captain gone, this room will become unclaimed."

She then stepped inside, her gaze landing on a stone box. "The captain's belongings. He asked me to give them to you."

An Qiao opened the box and revealed a bundle wrapped in cloth. Since it was the reward from his side quest, there was no reason to refuse it.

Thus, he unwrapped the bundle. "Blood-Calming Pill? Iron Bell Guard? Thousand-Edge Whirlwind Blade?"

Though the techniques were not high in rank, Qi Yuan found them genuinely interesting. Moreover, they were new martial arts, and would add a significant boost to his combat power.

Just then, a stone token caught his eye. "What's this?"

The character for heaven was carved into its face. Even with his eyes, he could only glean the token's material composition and the method by which it had been forged.

"That is an admission token for the Genius Alliance. Since there are many bases here, there are naturally many factions as well. As a major talent, the Genius Alliance recruits talented individuals exclusively.

“Do you see how exceptionally gifted Captain was now? He wouldn't have been headhunted otherwise. But he always had something weighing on him, so he never went to their headquarters on the Eastern Coast."

"Oh, this looks promising. I'll keep it," said Qi Yuan.

With the belongings collected, he said goodbye to An Qiao and left Chen Fan's room. An Qiao stayed behind, it seemed she intended to gather and preserve everything that remained in there. It was, after all, the only thing Chen Fan had left in this world.

***

Back in his own stone chamber, Qi Yuan took out the Physique-Tempering Blood Pill "This is equivalent to a few dozen drops of demon essence blood. Hardly worth anything."

For anyone else, this reward would have been exceptional. After all, most people didn’t have a Devouring Physique, hence they couldn't absorb demon essence blood the way Qi Yuan could. Even Physique-Tempering Blood Pills came with usage limits for ordinary people.

He narrated for himself again, as was his habit, "Well, this is still meat. System, add it to my stats!"

After slaying the Sea God, Qi Yuan's total demon essence blood had climbed back to three hundred drops. He intended to use them entirely to perfect the three martial techniques he had obtained from Chen Fan.

"You have consumed fifty drops of demon essence blood and begin practicing Iron Bell Guard. The essence of Iron Bell Guard lies in convergence, toughness, and deflection. Consuming a portion of demon essence blood. Iron Bell Guard, beginner. Consuming a portion of demon essence blood. Iron Bell Guard, intermediate."

1. An Qiao called the place 黄泉 which is the Chinese/Taoist name for the underworld. So Qi Yuan is saying he prefers the Chinese cultural term over whatever foreign equivalent might exist ☜