Li Ang froze. The first one was easy to understand, but how would he explain the second one?
“Language, just like Fulu, mantra, and rituals, is born from extraordinary attributes,” Zou Zhengze explained. “As long as you learn that the Six Paths of Reincarnation are replaced by soul grinders, there will be deep changes in the metaphysics of your soul essence in a certain way.
“Spreading the truth about the afterlife world allowing people to become lonely spirits after death is just like memetic contamination.”
Funeral arrangements!
Li Ang suddenly remembered the name of his first quest. Since then, he had suffered memetic contamination after being told the truth about the afterlife world by possessive ghosts…
Upon seeing the subtle changes in Li Ang’s expression, Zou Zhengze smiled. “500 years ago, the Six Paths of Reincarnation and the entire netherworld disappeared. Then, the Abnormality Institute collected data for experimental research like crazy and finally found this rule.
“This rule is not a gift of fate, but Pandora’s box. Once news of the afterlife world spread, it spread widely. All living people in the world will become lonely spirits after death and will not go through reincarnation.
“By then, spirits will be everywhere in the world. There will be no reincarnation cycle, and the newborns will become living corpses without souls!
“This is the calamity of the extinction of life and death!
“The cultivators of the Abnormality Institute reached a compromise after intense discussions to wipe out most of the existing spirits and seal the news about the afterlife world so that people would still believe that they could be reincarnated after death, which would prevent them from becoming lonely spirits.
“The members of the Abnormality Institute became night watchers. They vowed to safeguard the secrets of death and swore not to marry, have a fief, have children, wear a crown, and not fight for glory. Instead, they would be devoted to their duties and would live and die in this world. From that day onward, they would be keeping watch until they died!
“Therefore, the Abnormality Institute did not spare a fight with the city of Fengdu and destroyed most of the evil spirits in the world at a desperate cost, which eventually led to the overall decline of the institute. Fortunately, the Killing Field gradually stopped, the number of spirits slowly decreased, the secret of death was successfully safeguarded by the Abnormality Institute, and the disaster of world extinction was prevented.”
The tragic history of the Chinese Abnormality Institute was indeed heart-rending, but Zou Zhengze’s expression gradually twisted. “I loved Fangni more than myself or anything else in this world.
“After discovering these secrets after death, I could not accept that her soul would scatter and she would be reduced to fuel oil for reincarnation.
“At first, I planned to tell her about the secrets of the afterlife world and let her suffer from memetic contamination so that she would become a spirit after death.
“However, this was not enough. A lonely spirit might exist for over 100 years, but it would eventually still dissipate.”
“So you killed her?” Li Ang asked.
“That’s right.” Zou Zhengze nodded, tore his clothes, and revealed his shriveled chest.
A man and a woman’s faces poked out of his chest, which was full of ribs, and stretched his skin with a fierce, painful expression.
Zeng Weiming and Wang Fangni.
[Skill Name: Heavenly Demonic Power/Yin-Yang Diabolism (1)]
[Category: Psionic]
[Effect: Absorbs the other party’s essence, blood, and soul. The user’s youth will be restored and their power will increase.]
[Consumption: None]
[Learning Requirement: Strength more than or equal to 10, Intelligence more than or equal to 8, Constitution more than or equal to 10]
[Remarks: Heavenly Demonic Power is not a power created to deal with humans. If ungifted players cultivate it, their faces will change greatly, they will lose their mind, they will suffer from Qi Deviation, and they will die of insanity or even explode. Once this cultivation is successful, one can become invincible.]
The Heavenly Demonic Power was an exceptional martial art in Hong Kong manhua The Legends of Emperors. It had been created by the Heavenly Demon and divided into the internal Yin-Yang Diabolism and the external Heavenly Demonic Power.
Although the Yin-Yang Diabolism did not have a high destruction power like the Heavenly Demonic Power, it could let the user turn from a human into an extraordinary person. The user would get stronger by absorbing others.
“Lonely spirits cannot live in the world, but I am the player chosen by the system. As long as I devoured her soul, she could stay with me safely and survive this Killing Field until the Six Paths of Reincarnation were open.
“Then, I would let Fangni reincarnate and preserve myself without suffering by having my soul scattered.”
Zou Zhengze said hoarsely, “Unfortunately, when I opened their door, I found out that her husband Zeng Weiming was the person who had snatched my mask during the fire. He had changed his name. Since it had been a long time, I didn’t recognize him at first.
“The hatred I felt for him for snatching my wife and ruining my life made me go insane, so I was a little rough when I killed them.
“I thought for a very long time in front of the refrigerator and finally chose to forgive them. I still choose to devour their souls and bless them to maintain the essence of their souls.”
Li Ang couldn’t help but say, “You’re saying it’s a blessing even after killing them? Earlier, I still believed that you were purely mad. Now, I have my doubts.”
“I knew you wouldn’t be able to understand. However, I don’t need anyone to understand me.”
Zou Zhengze said with a sigh, “Have you seen these slums? This place is full of poverty, numbness, struggle, and despair. What’s worse, even if these people die, they can’t escape the tragic end of having their souls scattered or hope for a happy afterlife.”
Li Ang thought of the alley filled with Yin Qi and suddenly felt uneasy. “What are you going to do?”
“Focus on the afterlife. I want to give them a serene and happy afterlife.”
Zou Zhengze’s face was filled with a happy smile, and his arms spread as though he was embracing the whole world. “I love them. I saw their painful struggle and their desperate future. Therefore, I want to let them become one with me and maintain their soul essence. When the Six Paths of Reincarnation are opened, I will let them welcome their afterlife blessings. They will seek an afterlife!”
Zou Zhengze’s arms shook violently. The Yin Qi that had spread all over the entire shantytown howled and poured into the narrow, cramped small room.
The curtains rolled violently and the household furniture hit the walls before breaking apart.
The dust pervaded the place and the Yin Qi flowed everywhere. The whole village was like a collapsing ice cave.
The lights were turned on in the dilapidated buildings. Many people stuck their heads out of the windows but only saw a black whirlpool above the building, where Zou Zhengze was.
“The wind is coming!”
Zou Zhengze shouted madly as his arms shook. The black cloud formed by the condensed pure Yin Qi quickly whirled. The residents, who had stuck their heads out, only felt like their minds were in a trance. Their souls seemed to be coming out of their bodies, getting swept into the black cloud.
“Good households will be blessed, and evil households will face the calamity.”
Zou Zhengze kicked with his feet, hit the ceiling dome, stood under the black cloud whirlpool, and laughed like mad. “Struggle, poverty, numbness, and pain. I can’t seek blessings in the afterlife and I can’t cultivate the blessing of many generations. The Gods abandoned the people in this world, but I love them.”
“Love, my foot!”
Li Ang shouted and tossed a battle ax with one hand while his other hand took out a single-use spare cell phone (his own personal information was not in the cell phone card, and he would immediately put it in his backpack to prevent signal tracking after using it) and dialed the phone number of the Special Affairs Bureau.
I have to call the police. I’m a professional after all.