Chapter Seventy-Three: A Different Mortal Transformation

Moke did not devour the two human traffickers on the spot—not because it didn’t want to, but because Wu You thought that tearing into them with blood splattering everywhere would certainly be mistaken for a murder scene.

There’s always a scene in Journey to the West where a monster sweeps Tang Monk away in a gust of wind.

The method Moke used now was somewhat different, but similar enough. Its two front claws hooked onto the traffickers’ clothes, while a wind below seemed to “support” them.

Faster than when it came, Moke quickly descended beneath the mountain tree.

Gao Rufeng and his accomplice were now fully awake, huddling together in terror.

They had no idea where they were. Even though it was night and the stars were scarce, strangely, they could see their surroundings quite clearly. Aside from the lush, diverse vegetation all around, the most astonishing sight was, of course, the mountain tree behind them.

By now, they understood that this was not scenery anyone could find near Qiantang, nor was it a normal earthly beauty. Yet, their hearts were too gripped by fear to appreciate the wonders around them.

The accomplice dropped to his knees before the beast.

“Great monster, I’ve done so many evil deeds, my sins are grave. I was wrong, please give me a chance to mend my ways…”

Gao Rufeng wanted to beg for mercy too, but his heart and lips trembled so violently that he admired his accomplice for managing such a clear plea under these circumstances.

The accomplice knocked his head on the stones “thump, thump, thump” several times in quick succession.

He had just lifted his head, not yet able to see Moke’s reaction, when darkness fell before his eyes and he lost consciousness.

“Aaaaah~~~aaaah~~~” Gao Rufeng screamed.

Moke’s jaws worked, producing a crisp crunching sound.

The accomplice’s neck sprayed blood like a burst-open fire hydrant.

Not a single drop of the red rain fell to the ground; every drop swirled in the air and flew straight into the monster’s mouth.

Once no more blood gushed forth, Moke smacked its lips, then gulped down the rest of the corpse in a few bites, swallowing clothes, papers, and all the loose items without spitting any out.

Wu You watched the entire process. Strangely, he felt no discomfort; instead, his mind wandered, wondering if Moke could digest the filth inside the man’s stomach as well.

Gao Rufeng received no special treatment and quickly followed his accomplice in the midst of his screams.

Wu You had considered questioning them for clues to give to the police, but then thought better of it. With Gao Rufeng’s abandoned phone and the van, there should be enough for the authorities to work with.

...

After swallowing the last bite, Moke seemed somewhat unsatisfied, but did not move again.

The dense black smoke that had surrounded the beast started seeping into its body through its eyes, ears, mouth, nose, and even its fur.

Not only the black smoke, but also many drifting specks of unknown energy.

Prompt: Critical Beast, Moke the Qiongqi, about to transcend the mundane, absorption of natural energy for refinement beginning.

Is it finally about to evolve? Wu You wondered.

Unlike the green dragon and the mountain tree, Qiongqi’s body did not grow larger.

But it became more solid; its color, though still jet black, grew deeper and more profound.

In observation mode, Wu You, like Moke, could “hear” the faint sounds carried by the black smoke—laughter and crying.

This relatively peaceful process of transcendence gave Wu You a peculiar experience.

Emotion and desire—a mysterious domain.

And Moke could sense, absorb, and even influence these.

...

It began quietly, ended quietly; Moke shook itself, adapting to its new self.

System prompt: Qiongqi Moke has successfully transcended the mundane.

Alchemical Creature: Qiongqi, Name: Moke

Innate abilities: Stirring desires, Phantom allure, Demonic power, Wind’s command

Skills: Needle flick, Consuming good and evil, Beast techniques, Soaring flight

Basic evaluation: Silver grade (trainable, lacks transcendence energy materials)

Additional evaluation: This is a beast of evil surpassing the mortal world.

...

Two days later.

“The city has joined forces with police from Xiangnan, Benchuan and other regions to launch a coordinated operation, dismantling a major human trafficking ring.”

“Members of the ring were spread across nine provinces, engaged in trafficking women and children for years. A total of twenty-seven primary suspects have been apprehended, with two still at large.”

“The case has led to the rescue of forty-three abducted children and nineteen trafficked women, and multiple trafficking sites have been uncovered.”

“This operation delivered a powerful blow against criminals involved in trafficking nationwide.”

...

“News report compiled by the Comprehensive News Program.”

Qiantang City news played on the television; Wu You watched this segment with his father as he passed by.

“These scoundrels deserve it! Best if every one of them is locked up for life,”

Wu Jianguo said with satisfaction.

But deep down, he knew those people wouldn’t stay in prison long; even the ringleaders would get no more than five years.

...

Just then, Wu You’s phone rang. The caller ID showed Zhu Xiaoyuan, the Bug Builder administrator.

It seemed the first round of selection was over.

He stepped into the corridor to answer.

“Hello, Beasts… Mr. Wu?”

“Hello, Mr. Zhu, this is Wu You. Has the selection been decided?”

“Yes, Mr. Wu. We’ve chosen five proposals and sent them to your inbox. You can now select the best one.”

“Alright, I’ll take a look. Thank you.”

Wu You hung up and opened his phone app, finding five massive emails in his Penguin inbox.

He went upstairs and turned on his computer.

He began downloading the attachments.

Even with fiber optic, the nearly five-gigabyte compressed files took almost an hour.

Once finished, Wu You closed his mobile game and extracted them one by one.

He glanced through them.

With his limited architectural knowledge, he mostly looked at the renderings.

All five were beautiful, and picking one was difficult.

Should he just pick at random?

As he pondered, he noticed the designer’s signature on one proposal.

“Nickname: StoneStoneStone? Hu Lei?”

He remembered—this was the first person to submit a proposal.

So fast, yet such high quality?

This young man was impressive, so he decided.

He dialed Zhu Xiaoyuan’s number; it was answered after two rings.

“Hello, Mr. Zhu, I’ve made my choice—the Metal-Wood Style proposal. Yes, I’m sure. I’ll post the result soon.”

“But Mr. Wu, it’s barely been an hour. So quick?”

“That’s right. That’s it.”

Wu You hung up.

On the other end, Zhu Xiaoyuan felt a headache coming on…