Chapter 111

  Fading Traces (III)

  How do you recruit a former Demonic Cultivator that holds half the town 'hostage'?

  Slowly, I imagine.

  It's not like I can just walk up to her and go, 'Hey, wanna join the Crusade of Monsters? Here, meet a Reincarnator!'

  We hadn't even seen her since the day she escorted us. A different girl delivered us breakfast every morning, and I'd check them all with my Creator's Eyes--but all of them were just ordinary mortals with nothing unique or quirky about them.

  Besides, she was still a secondary target, as it were; every day, all five of us went out and dispersed, trying to learn as much about the town, but also the region itself, as possible.

  The kids continued to go to the main street, though I did have them start restocking a bit. Rather than using the Spirit Stones, I told them to use silver--the local currency--and mostly buy things that can easily be resold: textiles, gems, jewelry, and things that wouldn't 'rot'.

  While they did that, I perused the area around the central square--it was quite 'posh', as it were, and there were a lot of streets that I clearly could not go into, as, if I did, there'd be guards asking why real fast. For those, I just spied from afar, catching a few cultivators with my Creator's Eyes. They were mostly ordinary, however, with none being stronger than the fourth or fifth stage of Qi Condensation.

  Long Tao... well, I have no idea what Long Tao was doing, to be honest. He'd be gone all day long just like the rest of us, but after the first day, he never 'reported' where he was going, and I never asked. I figured if it was important, he'd let me know. And since he wasn't letting me know, it can't have been that important.

  It was on the fifth day of our stay that our routine was broken--it was the woman who brought the breakfast rather than a random mortal girl.

  "Oh Madame Lu, please, come in!" I invited her in with the biggest smile I could muster, and she obliged, smiling back. She carried a large tray of your standard-fare breakfast of the town, as it were: some bread and unsweetened jam (RIGHT?!), rice porridge, and a piece of fruit for each one of us.

  "Please, set it down here," I said. "Would you like to join us?"

  "Oh, no, no," she chuckled. "I simply came by to see if there was anything not to your liking, Mister Lu."

  "On the contrary," I said. "It's well above what I expected. Your hospitality really is the town's greatest secret."

  "Ho ho ho, if only," she said rather vaguely. "None of my girls disturbed you?"

  "Not at all."

  "Or captivated you?"

  "... you jest, Madame Lu." I put on a bitter smile. "I am a father of four, and I still love my passed wife dearly."

  This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

  "Ho ho, men of your ilk are rather rare these days, Mister Lu; married, divorced, or widowed, it feels, their eyes always seem to wander places they shouldn't." Yeah, whatever. You think I have the mental power to think about sex and women? I barely have enough brainpower to contain the already existing thoughts. Any more and I might just snap.

  Regardless, the kids started coming out, and before she left, I decided to finally use the Creator's Eyes on her.

  [--Creator's Eyes used]

  [...]

  [Target is Anomalous]

  [Analyzing...]

  [...]

  [Host can spend 100 CP to partially view the target; 10,000 CP for full disclosure]

  Hm.

  Hmm.

  Okay, so she's not just a former Demonic Cultivator. I'm really rapidly running out of the Creation Points at this rate, but...

  [The host spent 100CP to partially view the target's information]

  [Target: Madame Lu (Su Jia)]

  [Age: 89(939)]

  [Cultivation: Crippled]

  [Talent: Crippled (Former: ???)]

  [...]

  [Traits (Common, Rare, Epic, Legendary, Mythical, ???)]

  [Death's Daughter (???) -- creature of unnatural birth. Fate unknown]

  [Holy Prison (Mythical) -- cultivation crippled by the most holy relic of one of the six Buddhist Temples]

  [???]

  [Paranoid (Legendary) -- completely untrusting. Suspects everyone. Believes that, despite being a mortal, her former enemies are still hunting her down]

  [Melancholy (???) -- she understands that she hasn't got much longer to live. Her final wish is to meet and greet the current Inheritor of the Demon God]

  [Other traits are locked]

  [...]

  [Assessing suitability...]

  [...]

  [No special roots, bloodlines, or physiques discovered]

  [...]

  [Recommended: it is too late; there is not an Art under the Heavens that can prolong her life]

  [...]

  [Final Assessment: former powerhouse that once roamed and reigned the Seven Heavens. Long past her prime, hanging onto the last breath of life]

  Hey.

  Would you look at that? A deeply paranoid hermit that would never trust anyone... seeking to meet someone that's right here beside us?

  Huh.

  Funny how these things play out. Well, I guess "funny" is just one of the words I could use. There's also cosmically coincidental, system-arranged, so serendipitous I may start believing that's actually a thing--yeah.

  "Thank you for your kind words," I replied. "It's been difficult indeed, especially with the girls."

  "Ho ho, yes. Girls can indeed be difficult," she chuckled. "But alas, trust me, Mister Lu, there is nothing quite like the love of a daughter."

  "I hope to earn it every day. Are you sure you don't want to join us? There's more than enough."

  "Thank you, but I am needed elsewhere. Please, let me know if you need anything."

  "Of course."

  She bowed and left, and I turned to meet the curious gazes of the kids.

  "Why aren't you eating?" I asked.

  "You were a bit obvious, Master," Dai Xiu said.

  "Hm. When you're trying to recruit someone to our side, you need to be subtle." Xi Zhao added.

  "Yes. That was pretty stupid, Old Master," Light also joined in, mostly just to be part of it, it seems.

  "Haah. Forget daughter's love; will you guys ever even pretend to hold back?" I shrugged and sat down. "Besides, I discovered something peculiar."

  "What?"

  "I'm not saying."

  "..." Hoh. Look at them pouting. I know I'm being petty by holding it against the freakin' children, but, hell, they can take it.

  "I'm really not saying," I added fuel to the fire, causing something that hasn't happened yet, I don't think--Long Tao chortled. It wasn't a laugh or a snicker or a chuckle--it was that sound that comedians would make in sitcoms when they just couldn't hold it any longer. The kind of laugh that breaks out through your nose after being lodged in your throat for a while.

  "Whoa! Senior Brother can actually laugh?!" Xi Zhao said.

  "Maybe it's not a laugh? Maybe he was just choking and finally swallowed the food?" Dai Xiu added oil to the fire.

  "No, it was a stupid laugh, old Senior Brother," Light seems to have been taken rather much by calling everyone 'Old'. Though, I suppose, compared to her we all are old.

  "Interesting," Long Tao chuckled. Well, chuckled isn't exactly the right word--it was that evil chuckle that he'd do before ruining someone's life. "A few days without training, and you're already talking back? Interesting indeed. It seems, the next time, I'll have to carve in our hierarchy just a bit deeper."

  "..." I mean, he's already snapping their bones and making them bleed every which way. He's not actually going to kill them... right?

  He wouldn't.

  ... right?