Chapter 28 Fluorescent Curse

A faint light from outside filtered into the church through the crack in the door. Compared to the glints of light from the people, it seemed faint, like fireflies under an incandescent lamp. But the moment the iron gate opened, the people in the glints began to scream. Those in better condition rose and ran, while those weaker still struggled to crawl towards the gate. The scene was eerie and terrifying, like a group of zombies chasing the light.

Ji Huaisu had just entered the church and quickly closed the iron door. When the light disappeared, the zombies' movements suddenly stopped. They swayed left and right, then collapsed to the ground, returning to their previous, nearly dying state.

"Fluctus corpse." Ji Huaisu cursed in a low voice, "Damn it!"

Chu Hengkong silently memorized this unfamiliar word. He walked up to Granny Sangjia, but before she could speak, the old woman raised her hand to stop him.

"It's not done yet. Wait until the medicine is finished."

He saw that the old man was trying to make medicine to save people, so he waited quietly by the side and observed the condition of the fire corpses.

This strange disease resembles a cross between an otherworldly skin disease and ALS. The mental state of the glow corpses is closely related to the size of the light spot. Those with a small spot still have the energy to speak, but once it spreads to half their body, they are practically speechless, leaving only mumbling and groaning. Those whose entire bodies are engulfed by the light spot seem to have lost their ability to think. Their silence, their lifeless eyes, is chilling.

A chill crept up Chu Hengkong's spine. The more he looked at the spot of light, the more familiar it felt. He must have seen something similar recently...

That's very similar to the texture of Ji Huaisu's light shield!

Could it be the same power? Or just a similar power? Chu Hengkong didn't ask. Now wasn't the time to delve into it. Seeing the white-robed people were too busy, the two of them offered to help carry the medicinal soup. Granny Sangjia didn't react, concentrating solely on the task at hand.

She finely ground herbs, mushrooms, and animal organs, then dissolved them in tea to create a medicinal decoction. This monotonous task lasted nearly an hour before finally coming to an end. The herbs she had brought were exhausted. Some of the glow corpses showed signs of improvement after taking the medicine, but many remained the same. The white-robed men clasped their hands together and expressed their gratitude to Chu Hengkong and Ji Huaisu.

"Fashion darlings, please follow me." Granny Sangjia stood up with the help of her cane. "Tell me why you are here."

·

Granny Sangjia was a well-known figure in Huilong City. She was the third Great Wizard of the All-Spirit Society and the founder of this religious organization. Rumor had it that Granny Sangjia was a destitute in her youth, trading her body for meager income. One day, she was knocked unconscious by a treacherous visitor, stuffed into a sack, and dragged to the very edge of the Bize District. It was a truly hopeless situation, as the swamp borders the lowest reaches of the Huilong Water Curtain. Only undesirable relics fall to this bottom, carried by the current out of the city to unknown distances.

The treacherous guests threw the prostitute into the tide, betting on how many days it would take for anyone to notice her disappearance. However, some time later, the prostitute reappeared in the swamp, claiming to have received a revelation from the tide, revealing that all things in the world have spirits and can become gods. The swamp dwellers worshipped this miracle, and the belief in animism spread with the cult, becoming the Animist Society, a cancer that has taken root in the swamps today.

Chu Hengkong laughed off the story. After all, the legends of gang leaders who had "resurrected from the dead" were just fabricated stories to boost their reputations. But the animistic spirit was genuine, as everyone in the Society of Spirits believed in their own "gods," and each acted according to their own beliefs. You'd hardly find such an organization elsewhere: the top leader personally went to the front lines to help patients, while the second-in-command stood by and watched coldly.

"You're wasting your energy, Sanja," Adari said bluntly. "Your medicine can't save a dying person."

Grandma Sangjia's home, located in the "Harvest Settlement" south of Bize, was a small hut decorated with reeds, stones, and animal skins. She lit her overflowing pipe with a match and puffed out a gentle puff. The pale green smoke, like a poisonous insect, drifted across the dense wrinkles of her face and blended into her black feather-woven coat.

"It's fate," said the old woman. "I follow my fate, and they follow theirs."

Adari waved his hand, clearly dismissing the suggestion. He stood up and headed for the door. "I have things to attend to, so I'll leave you alone. Please come with me. I'm a civilized person, after all. I can't leave a dangerous person alone with an elderly person."

As he spoke, he stared at Ji Huaisu, who smacked her lips loudly, glanced at Chu Hengkong, and walked out the door. The girl didn't even retaliate, and Chu Hengkong couldn't help but wonder what great achievements she had made in the swamp.

After the two of them left, he went straight to the point: "When did the disease begin to spread?"

"It's not a disease, it's poison." Granny Sangjia shook her head. "Thirteen suns and moons ago, poison mixed into the light of the swamp... The poison will corrode people's fate, turning them into lifeless corpses controlled by the light..."

About two weeks ago, the light spread and eventually became the living dead. Chu Hengkong silently translated the key points and continued to ask, "Why didn't you ask for help from the City Lord's Mansion?"

"Lord Dragon God can't save himself, there's no way to save the situation." Granny Sangjia tapped her pipe. "There's too much light in the courtyard... If the poison spreads, there's nowhere to escape."

The key is illumination. The atrium is also a perpetually cloudy, shabby place, but it still receives far more sunlight than the swamps below. If the light poison spreads to the atrium, it could easily lead to a major plague... From this perspective, Granny Sangjia's decision was correct. But she didn't even inform the atrium, clearly lacking trust in the authorities... She might not have known about the Healing Temple's reconstruction, otherwise she wouldn't have been so decisive...

Chu Hengkong pondered for a moment, then put the matter aside. The light poison wasn't something he could handle alone, leaving Youyou and the others to deal with. The most important thing right now was saving Ji Qiufeng. He posed a third question: "Do you know about the gold in the swamp?"

The old woman smiled upon hearing this and said, "Son of Fashion, your heart is full of curiosity, but your desire is not here."

Chu Hengkong tried to describe it in detail: "That might be a medicinal herb..."

"Gold is the product of desire." The old man's response was erratic. "Your desire is not in the swamp, but in the past..."

Chu Hengkong pressed his eyebrows together. The nonsensical conversation was truly irritating. He noticed the tone of the voice was a bit like a relic appraisal document, and with a thought, he turned and asked, "So what about the gold that the pharmacist is after?"

"Medicine Master? Medicine Master..." Granny Sangjia closed her eyes and pondered. After a while, she took a long drag on her cigarette and said, "Ah... Is it the Pure Land Master?"

Chu Hengkong nodded immediately, and the old man squeezed out a nostalgic smile from his wrinkles: "The elegant man is like a Buddha in white... I know, he once said that gold will be born in the swamp-"

Deep in the thick smoke, gunshots rang out. The whistling sound drowned out the whispers, and the rusty bullet pierced through the wooden wall and hit the old man's forehead!

The bullet stopped at the old man's temple, hitting the back of his fist where veins were bulging. At that moment, Chu Hengkong, who had been sitting quietly, suddenly jumped up, knocked the bullet away with a single punch, and then rushed out through the thatched hut.

"Ji Huaisu!" he shouted. A brilliant golden light illuminated the broken wall, and a spherical light shield protected Granny Sangjia. Without a second thought, Chu Hengkong sprinted out the door, chasing the lurking gunman. A faint sense of crisis surged, as if every needle was pointed at his eyeballs.

He knew that he had found the right way, and the enemy would definitely not want him to know anything, so he would not hesitate to kill the old man to silence him!

The bullet only scraped blood on the back of his fist. He blocked the shot with his tense muscles and strong fist bones. It was no longer a water bullet. The rusty metal bullet was filled with an unknown crystal. Its impact was comparable to that of a modern large-caliber pistol. If he hadn't become a skilled hand, that shot would have been enough to temporarily paralyze his arm.

The "Harvest Settlement" was filled with low wooden houses, so Chu Hengkong leaped onto a rooftop to better track the enemy. With a single glance, he spotted the dark figure scurrying along the muddy path. The gunman, clad in mottled camouflage, possessed impressive stealth capabilities, but his speed was far inferior. Chu Hengkong flicked his fingers, first firing a water bullet into the man's back. The bullet landed accurately, but the gunman merely staggered without falling.

The gunman's camouflage uniform was also a relic, its superior defensive properties saving his life. He used the momentum to roll sideways, dodging the second water bomb that followed. Just as the intelligence had predicted, the target's modus operandi was to launch two concealed weapons at the same time, leaving him without a ranged response. Flames erupted from the gunman's boots, and he suddenly accelerated, distanced himself, raising his weapon.

A dark green flintlock rifle, the bullets need to be loaded in sequence, and the second bullet has been loaded. The crosshairs are aimed at the forehead, the trigger is pulled, and the bullet is fired. If Sang Jia can't be killed, change the plan and kill Chu Hengkong directly!

The gunman's timing was impeccable, leaving Chu Hengkong with no time to withdraw his attack. He didn't defend himself either. His outstretched right hand clenched into a fist, and the tentacle on his left arm abruptly retracted, its silver muscles condensing. He used the momentum of the retracted fist to lean sideways, the bullet grazed his hair, and then the tentacle, fully charged, erupted, transforming into a silver spear that ripped through the air!

The sudden explosion startled the residents, the piercing sound piercing the wooden houses and sweeping through the settlement, as if a pile of gunpowder had exploded simultaneously. No one could see the silver spear's discharge; all that was visible was the spreading white sonic boom. The blow completely destroyed the flintlock rifle, piercing the gunner's torso as well.

The gunman dropped to his knees, collapsing like a broken puppet. Chu Hengkong dropped from the roof and shook off his numb tentacles.

This time he showed no mercy. The man who had shot the old woman was not worth holding back. He kicked the fallen gunman, turning him over. He was surprised when he saw his enemy's face.

No body.

(End of this chapter)