246: Chapter 44 Curiosity Killed the Cat 246: Chapter 44 Curiosity Killed the Cat Li Mumu hadn’t expected Wendy to actually spend a hundred dollars to buy the set of seals.
She didn’t even know what it was.
She opened her notebook and took a glance, only to see a description.
“Detected unknown curious object—nested composite Chicken Blood Stone seal.”
“A composite seal used by banks in Ming Country to prevent counterfeiting of silver notes, which fell into civilian hands due to the original owner’s sudden bankruptcy.
The seal is entwined with the resentment bursting forth when the Store Manager of the bank hanged himself, which after decades of wear and tear has almost dissipated.
It has no other use, but followers of the Credit God Nyarlathotep seem to be keen on collecting such items, and a substantial reward can be obtained from them.”
It was camp currency again…
This reminded Li Mumu of the Skull Relic she had created on board the Olympus.
The Guiding Bodhisattva didn’t seem to have any interest in worshipping or offering such items, they just needed to be displayed in public to assert their presence.
“What do you want this for?”
“Maybe it’s useful, maybe it can be traded for something.”
Wendy wasn’t too certain either and casually tossed the set of seals into a rift behind her.
“You spent money on it even though you don’t know what it’s for?”
“If you only spend money when there’s a need, would that still count as being rich?”
Well said, Li Mumu couldn’t find the words to argue for a moment.
Her senior sister and Wendy had both found things they liked, but she had walked around and ended up empty-handed.
Whether it was antique pots and jars, assorted curios, or various old books and paintings, Li Mumu had no interest.
She simply didn’t understand these things.
After leaving the Ghost Market, Zuo Yan was still brimming with excitement, “I’ll take you guys for a bath!”
A bath?
In the middle of the night…
Li Mumu asked with some trepidation, “Is it the legit kind or the shady kind?”
“At this hour, what legit place would still be open!”
Well spoken!
Senior sister, you really know how to have fun!
Li Mumu turned to look at the dark alley shrouded behind her, “Is this also considered entertainment?”
“Yes, it is.”
Zuo Yan chuckled, “Every now and then, there is such entertainment.”
Before she finished speaking, she saw more than a dozen masked men in black quietly appearing from the darkness, the one at the forefront with white in his hair, holding a Peach Wood Sword, pointing at the trio and shouting coldly, “Evil creatures!
Reveal your true forms!”
Ha?
Heh!
Zuo Yan put down the packed candelabra she was holding, shielded Li Mumu and another person behind her, and with hands on her hips snorted coldly, “Old coot!
Which path are you from?
Daring to interfere with my freedom to love?”
Upon hearing this, the old man slowly removed his mask, revealing a…
Westerner’s face.
???
Zuo Yan’s face was full of question marks.
The old man then stood the Peach Wood Sword in front of him and cried out loudly, “Supreme Elder Lord!
Grant my command with haste!”
A dazzling white light burst forth from the Peach Wood Sword instantly, turning night into day.
Without a second word, Zuo Yan grabbed one person with each hand, and turned to run, transforming into a cloud of black smoke.
“Why are we running?”
Having dashed out for two streets and finally stopping, Li Mumu couldn’t help but ask.
“It was terrifying!” Zuo Yan patted her chest, looking as if she had seen a ghost and was still shaken, “What on Earth was that?
I thought some powerful Taoist priest had come out…”
“It was a Westerner.”
“I know it was the Foreigners!” Zuo Yan said annoyedly, “A foreign old man holding a Peach Wood Sword, and shouting ‘Supreme Elder Lord’, then a holy light just cracked down, don’t you find that terrifying?”
It’s not that bad.
Li Mumu said softly, “Isn’t that just the style of our Lady?”
“Uh…”
Zuo Yan blinked, “Is our Lady like this abroad too?”
“What do you expect me to know, I’m just a newbie.
All I know is that the Guiding Bodhisattva has a Western divine name in the Federation, called Netherworld Angel Anhelica.”
Li Mumu was somewhat speechless.
“Besides, aren’t you a Night Patrol from the City God’s Office?
Those people skulking around don’t look decent at all, what are you afraid of them for?”
“…”
After a few seconds of suspicious silence, Zuo Yan lifted her head and with a serious tone said, “Actually, I’m worried about the two of you.
After all, I was the one who brought you out to play.
If a fight really breaks out and you get knocked around, it would be hard to explain to your families when we go back.”
That’s an excuse you just thought up, isn’t it?
Right?
Just as Li Mumu was about to start teasing her, she felt a sharp pain at the top of her head.
The divinely glowing Peach Wood Sword sliced through the night sky, descending from above.
The white-haired Western old man and his followers were in hot pursuit.
Seeing that the Peach Wood Sword had pinned the three girls, he pulled out the Bible from his bosom, tore out a page and held it between his right middle and index fingers, and shouted sternly, “Evil beings!
Show your true forms at once!”
The page from the Bible in his fingers spontaneously combusted, turning into a fire dragon that roared and swept toward the three women.
Zuo Yan stood still and took a deep breath, as three pairs of ink-black eyes opened on her face simultaneously.
Her body began to grow taller by degrees.
The Western old man let out a scream of terror.
Using the light provided by the holy radiance and the intense fire, he finally saw the true appearance of the woman in red.
Her frail body elongated, section by section, swelling underneath the red wedding dress as pairs of slender arms extended, enveloping the buildings on both sides of the street like arthropod limbs.
She was like a silkworm magnified hundreds of times…
And behind that horrifying giant silkworm stood two even more terrifying figures.
He couldn’t see clearly because as soon as he looked directly at the giant silkworm, his eyes began to melt, and tears of blood uncontrollably streamed from his eye sockets.
It’s just bugs!
He tried to console himself, they’re just bugs, there’s nothing to be scared of.
But the image of that insect had already been deeply etched into his mind, and he could not shake it off no matter how hard he tried.
It’s a silkworm.
It’s a silkworm not a bug, it’s a silkworm not a bug, it’s a silkworm not a bug, it’s a silkworm…
The writhing bugs with sharp mouthparts started to gnaw at his brainstem.
He tried to bite his tongue to bring back his senses, but as soon as he opened his mouth, his tongue sprayed out.
Blood-red silk slowly crept out from his eye sockets, nostrils, and ears.
“Supreme Heavenly Venerable…”
The Western old man knelt on the ground, struggling to raise the Bible and cried out hoarsely, “Save me…”
His ribs, like the joints of an insect, began to protrude one by one from inside his body.
The Peach Wood Sword instantly lost its shine and fell to the ground, the roaring fire dragon also burned out, leaving only blackened floating ashes in the air.
“You insisted on seeing my true form, so look, keep looking!”
Zuo Yan withdrew the illusion, picked up the Peach Wood Sword from the ground with a huff, and swung it around a few times before she remembered there were people behind her.
She quickly turned her head and asked, “You weren’t scared just now, were you?”
“No, not at all!”
Li Mumu applauded vigorously, “Sister, that was brilliant!
Do it again!”