Chapter 360 - 344: Is It a Trap?
OneSwordSettlesAll stroked his chin, lost in thought.
’Could it be... that just killing the City Lord isn’t enough to take over the city? Am I missing some prerequisite?’
OneSwordSettlesAll looked up at the sky. "Don’t tell me... this is some new event, isn’t it?!"
...
Outside the north gate of Anhe City, a thick fog devoured the starlight. A few figures emerged from the swirling mist.
"Tsk, what are the Foundation Establishment Stage martial uncles thinking? Why send us to spearhead a cushy job like harvesting a mortal city?"
The leading Qi Refining disciple curled his lip and grumbled, "They aren’t afraid the Celestial Furnace Sect broke the contract and left some tricks behind, are they? Making us go in first to check for traps?"
"Probably not!" His companion beside him licked his lips. "The Celestial Furnace Sect cleared out long ago. The martial uncles probably just want to maintain their status and not get their hands dirty with worldly affairs. But that’s fine by me. Most of us are new recruits anyway, so we deserve to hit the jackpot first!"
Meanwhile, deep in the fog behind them, a dozen figures floated in mid-air on bone-white Magical Artifacts. These were the Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivators responsible for providing support.
’For a cushy job like harvesting an entire city, why didn’t the elder bring his own trusted disciples? Why call us over, disciples from the outer sect and side branches?’
’Has the elder had a change of heart? Is he planning to promote us? And what the hell is that structure? Did the Celestial Furnace Sect build it?’
But some among them felt a sense of unease.
’In the Demonic Path, there’s no such thing as a free gift. I have a feeling... the prey in this game isn’t just Anhe City...’
At the heart of the mist, a ghostly sedan chair carried by four paper effigies was hovering.
The Core Formation Stage Evil Cultivator was reclining inside, holding a cup made from a skullcap filled with chilled tea. He gently blew away the froth and took a sip.
He peered through the gap in the sedan’s curtain, watching the disciples ahead, a cryptic smile playing on his lips.
...
「At the North Gate.」
As the Qi Refining squad approached the city gate, the fog thinned slightly.
Just as he reached the gate, the leading Qi Refining disciple stopped in his tracks.
His gaze passed over the low city walls and fell upon a structure inside the city that soared into the clouds, encircled by winding, sky-piercing racetracks.
The Qi Refining disciple sucked in a sharp breath and kicked the junior brother next to him.
"Say, did those hypocrites from the Celestial Furnace Sect have the refined taste to build such a... wonder in the mortal realm? After all that effort, they just ended up handing it over to us, didn’t they?"
"What was the Celestial Furnace Sect doing with all this?"
While commenting on the wondrous sight, the group swaggered toward the city gate to barge in.
At that moment, however, a voice blocked their path: "City entry registration, five copper coins per person. Please do not cut in line."
It was the player in charge of guarding the gate tonight, Gatekeeper_Gramps.
However, this fellow found gate duty too boring. There wasn’t much to do, just registering people and collecting money. He figured doing it manually might even lead to mistakes. It was better to set his status, tab out to watch a TV show, and leave his character in a foolproof "AFK-hosting" state.
"Hm?"
The Qi Refining disciple frowned. He looked down at the mortal before him, a little surprised, and then lifted his foot and kicked the registration desk!
"CRASH—!"
The solid wood desk instantly shattered, sending splinters flying everywhere.
A kick like that would have made a normal person piss their pants in fear, but Gatekeeper_Gramps, being in AFK-hosting mode, didn’t retreat a single step. He didn’t even blink.
He continued to stare blankly at the disciple, reciting his pre-set lines: "Please do not deliberately cause trouble. The city patrol will be here shortly. City entry registration, five copper coins per person. Vandalism of public property must be compensated in full."
"..."
The air fell silent for two seconds.
The Qi Refining disciple was stunned. Immediately, a wave of shame and anger at being trifled with by an ant washed over him, making him laugh in fury.
"Good, brat. You’ve got some guts! How about this?"
He thrust out his hand, and with a WHOOSH, an eerie ghost fire ignited in his palm. Within the flames, a distorted skull could be faintly seen screaming silently.
He shoved the ghost fire right in Gatekeeper_Gramps’s face, close enough to scorch his eyebrows.
"Now, do you still want the money?"
He eagerly awaited the sight of the man screaming in terror, begging on his knees, or even soiling himself—it was his favorite show.
However, Gatekeeper_Gramps remained expressionless, his eyes vacant. He completely ignored the ghost fire. "City entry registration, five copper coins per person. Please do not obstruct official business."
At the same time, he spammed the incident to the City Patrol channel:
[Anhe City Region · City Patrol Channel]
[Gatekeeper_Gramps (AFK-hosting): Warning! Someone is deliberately causing trouble at the North Gate! Calling all nearby law enforcement patrols! Calling all nearby law enforcement patrols!]
The Ghost Spirit Sect members: "???"
Was this mortal scared stiff? Or was he truly brave? Were mortals this bold now, facing a Cultivator? To remain unfazed before a powerful enemy... could it be a trap? Could he be a disguised Cultivator from the Celestial Furnace Sect?
The junior brothers behind him exchanged a look and, with a tacit understanding, took several steps back, positioning the lead Qi Refining disciple in front of them as they prepared to flee at a moment’s notice.
After all, better him than me.
"You’re courting death!!"
The lead Qi Refining disciple felt deeply insulted by the man’s indifference. ’How could my dignity as an Evil Cultivator be trampled on by some moron of a gatekeeper?!’
"Since you want to die, I’ll oblige you!!"
His five fingers formed a claw, his nails instantly growing several inches long, and he swiped down at Gatekeeper_Gramps’s skull!
"SQUELCH—!" The sharp claws pierced his brain, sending red and white matter flying.
At that very instant—the player Gatekeeper_Gramps, who had been engrossed in watching *Ava’s Temptation* in another window, suddenly heard a game warning and finally tabbed back in.
He had just been feeling pleased about how easy the job was, getting paid just for being AFK. But the moment he opened his eyes, his vision was a sea of red.
A claw was sticking out of his own skull.
Gatekeeper_Gramps: ???
"What the... fuck?!"
[System Warning: You have suffered a fatal attack! AFK-hosting has been forcibly terminated!]
’What the hell is going on?! I fucking tabbed out to watch half an episode of a show while collecting an entry fee, and now I’m dead?!’
Gatekeeper_Gramps only had time to let out a cry of alarm.
The next second...
"SSSSSS—"
In the blink of an eye, his body rapidly shriveled, turning into a dessicated corpse!
"Hahaha! Not a bad taste! For a mortal, his vitality was quite abundant!"
The Qi Refining disciple withdrew his claw and licked the blood from it with a look of pure enjoyment. But when he caught sight of the empty space behind him and his junior brothers in the distance, the corner of his mouth twitched.
???
’Wait, why did you guys run so far away?’
Meanwhile, the junior brothers who had retreated far away wore awkward expressions.
’That’s it? He just... died? No explosion? No trap? He wasn’t some powerful hidden expert waiting to ambush them?’
"Ahem... Senior Brother is so mighty! Your divine arts are unparalleled!"
"Um... we were just... standing guard for you, Senior Brother! No need to thank us!"
"Then we won’t be polite!"
The scent of blood had already aroused the demonic nature of the other junior brothers. What did they care for decorum? They swarmed forward, instantly tearing the desiccated corpse to pieces and dividing it among themselves.
At the same time, the blood from before, combined with the thought of the prey within the city, made their bodies thrum with even greater agitation and excitement.
"KYEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEH! We can finally enter the city now, right?"