CH 44

【 The girl screamed as she fled. She heard the sounds of wind and rain whistling from behind her. As she turned her head, she saw the extermination of an era begin on the sea’s surface.

Looking at the huge tentacle, the girl was so terrified that she slipped, fell to the ground, and wept.

She wanted to go home, she didn’t want to die!

Cultists gathered around and watched the horrified girl while holding up a torch.

"My lord, your most loyal believer offers to you—!"

As the torch was about to fall on the girl, the thunderbolt fell, turning the believer into charcoal.

Under the sea, the sleeping god opened his eyes, one dark sapphire and the other a light cyan.

I! Won't let you hurt Catherine! 】

——From《Cthulhu’s Wrath》

Zhou Yu stroked the mark on the back of his hand and recalled a scene from the plot.

It was a huge tentacle that protruded from the depths of the ocean floor, with an extremely mysterious and terrifying aura.

That tentacle was similar to the tentacles he saw in his dream that day.

Zhou Yu recalled the scene of that day again. His ears flushed crimson while he pondered with a perplexed gaze.

So, was the villain in this movie the evil god?

According to previous speculations, both the evil god and Franken had a possibility of being Feng Xing, so how should he distinguish them?

One is too annoying and uncouth to speak to, and the other was like an ignorant child.

Zhou Yu felt a headache again. He looked at the mess in the living room and could not help revealing some irritation.

If he’d agreed to the contract, he would’ve been back sooner.

Looking at the living room, things must have happened a long time ago.

He couldn't find any clues about the people who had taken Franken at all, or where Franken himself was at.

He didn’t even know if Franken was alive or dead.

However, there is a high probability that he wasn’t dead. Zhou Yu didn’t believe that a movie that killed off the protagonist before the plot even began existed.

But even so, he still wasn’t clear about the specific plot, and was completely clueless about the current situation in front of him.

Zhou Yu sat on a sofa that could still be considered fairly-intact with half-drooping eyelids, looking despondent.

However, there were ways. Those Outsiders must know about the plot. According to their performance in the previous world, they would definitely not miss out on this plot. 

Zhou Yu reached out and lit a light ball at his fingertips. In this dark living room, only this light source illuminated half of the living room.

He had plans.

***

The night was dark and two men in black robes were driving a carriage. Following the carriage were more than a dozen other black-robed people who were quickly moving towards the border of the Torian Empire.

A hooded cultist drove the carriage and asked the leader sitting next to him a question, doubt on his face.

"Boss, why didn’t  we tie this sacrifice and leave directly? This is too slow, subordinate is afraid that our Lord will blame us!" His eyes were full of zeal for the god. 

The leader silently took out a faintly glowing statue, reverently responding, "This is the will of my Lord. I heard the voice of my Lord, this sacrifice is highly valued by His Greatness. We must keep the sacrifice safe and bring it back to the Lord without any damage!"

The cultist beside him immediately mumbled devoutly, his expression becoming even more fanatical: "Yes! Lord, this is the will of my Lord!"

The cultists on each of the carriage’s sides also sped up their pace when they heard this, the faith in their eyes becoming even hotter.

That's right, this was the beloved sacrifice of their god, how could they be negligent, to have it tied and walk like the other sacrifices? No, it needed to be transported via carriage!

These enthusiastic and devout believers didn’t even doubt the aesthetics of their god, that he’d actually like such a monster-like offering.

In their eyes, this was normal.

It's just these unworthy eyes of theirs didn’t know how to appreciate the charm of this monster. In the aesthetic of the gods, this sacrifice is definitely beautiful! Otherwise, how could He give orders several times and pay great attention to it!

Of course, when Cthulhu - who thought his beloved human had come and was filled with expectation - saw such an ugly monster as the one in the carriage, his heart greatly collapsed. However, that’s a story for later.

The cultists were quick, they switched to an airship midway, and finally saw the coast in the early morning of the third day.

They finally completed the task given by their Lord!

***

In the early morning, a small town in the Torian Empire was still immersed in the quietness of the night. In a small inn in the civilian area, there were sounds already spreading.

[Issued tasks:

Basic task: Live smoothly to the end of the plot.

If mission failure occurs, erasure will begin.

Additional Mission 1: Survive two days on Laleille Island.

Mission success rewards 5000 points. No penalty for mission failure. 】

The announcement of the system was broadcasted and the reincarnators scattered in different cities halted their actions in unison and surprise.

Had the plot started already?

Brown-haired, Asian-looking Antonio wiped the silver pistol in his hand with a cloth indifferently.

"It's also good for it to start earlier. Andrew, your death is near! I'm not scared. I haven't even died once, but you, ha ha, this time, you won't have such good luck as before!” Antonio profoundly looked at the gun in his hand, whispering with a savage expression, wishing he could kill that damned Captain Andrew now. 

He’d been waiting for this opportunity for a long time.

He’d be sure to leave him in this world forever!

Antonio put his gun away, walked out of the room, and started calling to his other companions.

All four of them were gathered in the first-class wing, looking serious.

"Sir, the plot has started ahead of time. Shall we set off immediately?" A middle-aged reincarnator sitting next to Antonio asked his opinion respectfully.

Antonio waved his hand, the corner of his mouth raising: "No hurry, let's go to the nearby adventurer's guild. I posted a request some time ago, and the guild receptionist just notified me that someone has taken it. After the mission, we will see what these indigenous adventurers can do, if they’re useless, we can just use them as cannon fodder!"

In the next room, a man shrouded in a black cloak leaned against the wall while eavesdropping. His well-shaped lips slightly lifted and disappeared into the air the next second.

Okay, I’ll wait for you to treat me as cannon fodder.

In the room, there was still a slight distortion in the air. If a high-level caster were to come here, they would be astonished to find that this was the space magic in the list of the ten most impossible spells to cast. 

Antonio packed his gear and looked at the reincarnators standing beside him with a gentle smile: "Alright, let's go! Remember, don't expose any information about the Lord God to the natives."

"The situation this time isn’t too encouraging. I don't want any of us to have an accident. Speaking of which, Song Hang, do you know what's going on? I know that the world you entered last time was《Her Strangeness》and Zheng Qian’s team was completely wiped out, except for you and a middle-aged uncle, right?” Antonio looked at Song Hang, who had been pitifully shrinking his neck, his eyes timid and overcautious.

There was a hint of fear on Song Hang's face as he stuttered, "Yes, yes, sir, I’m also not too clear on the specific situation at that time because, uh, because we didn't participate in the plot from beginning to end …... just at the end, when we came back, we looked at the plot and found that world’s story had advanced ahead of time, Feng Xing died earlier. After that, everything was messed up. I, I could only hear the death notices, everyone... died...."

Even though it's been a while, Song Hang couldn't help trembling every time he thought of that time.

Those seemingly powerful reincarnators died so easily. There were even back to back announcements of their deaths. From that, you could imagine just how terrible the scene of the massacre was.

Therefore, he became what he was now.

He didn't want to experience the feeling of living in the fear of being killed all the time. That feeling of an omnipresent monster hiding in the darkness that you’re standing in. The thought of this would make anyone terrified.

Antonio chuckled, concealed the disdain in his eyes, and comforted gently: "Don't be afraid, this time it won't be like that. We’re fully prepared. As long as you complete this task, you will be our partner. Believe in yourself, you actually have great potential!"

Song Hang didn't notice Antonio's disdain. He looked up, his eyes full of emotion.

He felt that Sir Antonio was a person who was really suitable to be the captain. He was very grateful for his recognition. He immediately became determined to help the man get the captain’s position.

The two reincarnators next to Antonio revealed a condescending expression at Song Hang's weak performance.

In the interstellar world where an adventurous spirit and being proactive was advocated and encouraged, the practice of staying away from the plot because of fear would only get people’s derision.

"Okay, Song Hang’s explanation makes sense. I believe everyone knows that this situation is not a special case. It may be because of the butterfly effect from our actions or something else, but the result is already like this, we cannot escape. Now, I’m ready to go to Laleille to complete the side mission. Is there anyone who doesn’t want to go? You can just quit, I won't mind. "

The room was quiet for a moment, and Antonio smiled with satisfaction, and said, "Then, it's decided. Let's go and take a look at the Adventurers’ Guild now. The airship was booked a few days ago, we can leave in a while."

Everyone nodded and began to pack up their equipment.

When they had cleared everything, the sky outside was already bright. They left the room and went straight to the Adventurer’s Guild.

Adventurer's Guild

A man in a hooded cape sat on a chair in the noble’s parlour, his long, fair fingers spread slightly as he retracted the Sound Transmission spell.

That guy named Song Hang, that world he was previously in was actually Feng Xing’s world?

Had he ever seen him?

Zhou Yu depended on his outstanding memory and searched in his mind, and found him in a small corner.

Due to his formidable memory, everything that happened to him would be indiscriminately recorded in his consciousness. Therefore, in order to prevent his brain from exploding, Zhou Yu imitated a method he’d seen in a movie before. Method being, to build a memory palace in his own mind and put the numerous and disorderly memories into different categories, so it wasn't particularly difficult to find the memory of this person.

Ah, now he remembered, it was the person who passed him at the street corner in his last life.

Zhou Yu withdrew his train of thought and felt that this person was not of any importance. Even by virtue of that pass, he certainly could not recognize him - who had changed beyond recognition - at a glance.

Zhou Yu's eyes dulled for a moment. He couldn't even recognize himself, let alone an Outsider!

No longer paying attention to that unremarkable Outsider, Zhou Yu laid down on a chair with his eyes closed, waiting for the arrival of those Outsiders.

After Franken's disappearance, he began to closely monitor the Outsiders. While studying magic, he searched for various clues left by them, and finally found that they had left a task at the Adventurers' Guild - escorting the employer from the mainland to a mysterious island on the southern shore.

The moment Zhou Yu saw this task, he recalled a picture from the Plot Perception visions, an island hidden in mist.

It seemed that was where the story began.

Zhou Yu brushed the back of his left hand inadvertently, melancholy scratching at his heart.

By the time he got to that island, everything should be revealed.

Whether Feng Xing followed or left him, everything would have a result.

"Dear respected Lord Caster, the people who issued the task are here." The woman's sweet voice sounded, Zhou Yu opened his eyes and heard footsteps coming from behind him.

Those Outsiders have come.

Antonio walked in front, watching the female receptionist respectfully bow to a man with his face covered, his expression somewhat skeptical.

He’d just learned that the person who took on his task was actually a Caster.

How could that be!

Because he didn’t convert too many points to gold coins with the Lord God, the reward for the quest issued wasn’t high. Those indigenous casters who pretended to be high and mighty would actually take this quest on their own accord? He thought it would be a small mercenary regiment who would accept it!

"Hello."

The hood slipped down, and the blonde young man with pale, snow-like smooth and translucent skin, charming emerald-green eyes, an extremely friendly smile, and tall figure who was hidden under the cape was extremely enchanting.

Even Antonio, who’d seen countless beauties in the interstellar world, couldn't help but be stunned. He was speechless at this young man’s beauty, his eyes were full of astonishment.

However, after all, his reason had the upper hand, so with a smile on his face, he flattered, "Dear revered Lord Caster, hello, I really didn’t expect that such an honorable person would take on this small task."

"Ah, I just happened to need to go to the southern shore to find some rare magical materials. You don't have to doubt my intentions." The youth's eyes were still mild. He had seen through the misgivings in their hearts without the slightest anger, this good temperament was very rare in the always haughty and arrogant caster community.

Standing at the back, Song Hang looked at the young man obsessively, thinking that there was a lot of fate between them. They’d only met once a few days ago, and they were reunited again today.

But looking at the youth’s prideful bearing, Song Hang lowered his head a little in shame. 

He was still too weak, even for a small world’s native, he didn’t have the courage to pursue him.

Zhou Yu effortlessly showed these Outsiders his unordinary spell practice, successfully gaining the incredulous and ecstatic gazes of these Outsiders, and muddled through the matter of him not having his credentials and proof of identity. 

In the past few days, he’d absorbed all the books in the old man's library, relying on his strong understanding and magical talents, as well as the abundance of magic in his body. His magical cultivation has grown at a rate sufficient to awe the world.

He didn’t go to the Caster's Association to test his level, and was unable to have a clear understanding of his own power, but he thought that he should at least be able to protect himself. Although he wasn’t at the level to destroy a city with a wave of his hand, it should be enough to venture to a small island.

If such a thought was made known to those senior casters - who could only let out a few feeble spells - they would probably want to hang themselves. For this low-magic world, to say that such power was more than enough to break into an island was simply understating it. There would be no problem walking across the continent sideways. (Blu: Walking across somewhere sideways means to cause trouble here and there.)

Another scene flashed again in front of him, Zhou Yu had a clearer understanding of the plot.

Humans lying disorderly on the beach, a crazy man in a black robe and an ignorant blond girl.

On the sacrificial altar, a giant monster lay quietly on it as torches lit one after another, the atmosphere eerie and frightening.

The sky was overcast with huge tentacles extending out of the ocean, setting off a tsunami that covered half of the continent, plunging the people into an abyss of misery.

This really was a big production movie, ah. 

Zhou Yu smiled at these Outsiders, but thought of completely irrelevant things in his heart.

He kind of wanted to see the original movie now.