Chapter 78: The Abomination Born of Bugs

The employees all regarded the alchemical creatures as divine beasts, which was, of course, a beautiful misunderstanding. Yet this misperception was not without guidance from Wu You himself—he had no intention of clarifying the truth. Maintaining a certain aura of mystery was a necessary strategy; if everything were laid bare and transparent, people would lose their sense of awe.

This was true even of the company’s goals and mission. Wu You had never openly declared them within the company; all that mattered was that everyone worked diligently. Perhaps, from time to time, some employees would wonder, given the immense power at the company’s disposal: Should they strive to maintain world peace, to rule the world, or even to destroy it?

Wu You wanted to say: Who made such rules? Must power always be used to save or annihilate the world? It was as if he were some clockwork automaton, programmed to take on the world. He was not bound by any such script. After a period of busyness, could he not simply enjoy a comfortable life as a wealthy man?

This, truly, was Wu You’s most honest thought: he did not wish to be a savior, nor a dark lord. If he saw something he disliked, he might intervene; if he felt displeased, he could vent a little. Freedom, ease, and a carefree existence—this was all he sought. Along the way, he might bring to life those beautiful, splendid creatures of his imagination. Perhaps, on some whim, he would one day usher the world into a mythic age.

Yet, even when one wielded power, things did not always go as one wished. He did not truly command his own fate, at least not entirely—the system lay partially beyond his grasp. The information regarding the Abomination, for instance, remained a mystery to him; all he knew was its name. This had become a small source of anxiety for Wu You. Thus far, aside from the lives he himself had created, this was the only supernatural power he had encountered.

Once his excited employees had returned to their normal work and lives, Wu You, though knowing it had only been a short time and unlikely much had changed, nevertheless decided to enter the Eastern Domain to see for himself. Today was Tuesday—if he spent three days inside, he should still make it back before Saturday. At that time, he could bring another group of employees, as well as Hu Lei and the others. And, as it happened, Dr. Lu had called earlier—apparently, General Li himself would be coming in person next week to express his thanks.

After dinner, having explained himself to his family, Wu You set out, traveling light. He went directly to a small stone cave in the mountains where he had hidden his firearms. Due to the time flow differences in the Mountain of Myriad Beasts, it was unwise to store weapons there, lest they turn to scrap iron. This time, since he was not going to confront the blood jiao, he left the "Javelin" behind, but still took the Barrett and assault rifle, both set to safety.

On his second entry into the Eastern Domain, a teleportation option appeared at the border, sparing him a trek from Tianyun Mountain. The moment he reappeared at his private residence in Leping City, Wu You immediately sensed something was wrong. Outside, a cacophony of chaotic noises filled the air.

Though it was indeed daytime, this area was considered an affluent district and should not have been so noisy. The E’er Beast sensed Wu You’s arrival the instant he appeared. Wu You received its mental signal and saw that its beacon was already on its way.

After about a quarter of an hour, there was a knock at the front gate. Wu You went to open the courtyard door.

Wang Fugui stood outside, flanked by two middle-aged men who looked like martial artists. "Greetings, my lord!" The E’er Beast bowed, and the two men behind him hastily followed suit. Wu You nodded at them, but his gaze lingered on the street outside the gate.

There, atop the walls and along the street, sat or lay a number of people. Some, in better circumstances, had thrown up makeshift shelters. Wu You couldn’t help but be surprised—these were not, for the most part, ragged beggars; some were even decently dressed. When they saw the previously closed gate swing open, a few looked inside and made as if to rise, but on seeing the two men behind Wang Fugui, they hesitated and remained still.

"My lord is wondering about the refugees outside?"

"Yes. Come in, let’s talk."

Ten minutes later, in the inner hall of the residence.

"You’re saying that after I left, the water level of the Tiansha River rose, flooding Jiangzhou, and someone even spotted the blood jiao in the water?" Wu You asked, somewhat surprised.

"Indeed, my lord," Wang Fugui replied. "According to news gathered recently at the restaurants, several villages outside Jiulu City in Jiangzhou have disappeared, and even Jiulu City itself is no longer entirely safe."

"Most of the refugees outside are those who fled from riverside towns near the Tiansha River, close to Bingzhou’s border. Leping City isn’t the only one to take them in—neighboring towns have also received many," Wang Fugui continued.

Wu You frowned in thought. He cared nothing for the fate of the refugees. Instead, he weighed whether or not to follow the course of the Tiansha River, heading eastward to the lower-lying lands of Jiangzhou to see for himself. But as Wang Fugui had said, Jiulu City was more than a thousand li from Leping; if he traveled there on foot, with no high-speed railways, time would be tight.

In the end, he decided to entrust the task to the White Eagle, currently the swiftest means of travel at his disposal.

Using a mix of gliding on air currents and active flight, the White Eagle spent fifteen hours to reach the destination. Meanwhile, Wu You sat atop the Drunken Immortal Restaurant, sipping tea and chatting with the E’er Beast. He could not be certain whether the cursor’s position was precisely Jiulu City, but the White Eagle’s consciousness had already signaled its arrival. Wu You switched directly to the eagle’s observation mode.

The White Eagle was descending from an altitude of a thousand meters. Below, a vast white-capped river came into view, and beside it stood a city no smaller than Leping. Apart from the city itself, which was situated on higher ground, the surrounding villages and towns were all submerged in the great flood.

“Get closer—go to where the waves are breaking, and use thermal vision,” Wu You commanded.

Though the White Eagle’s normal and thermal vision always operated together, there was a priority to the two, especially apparent in observation mode. Instantly, the visual field shifted—from a world of brilliant colors to a patchwork of reds, greens, yellows, blues, and whites. Aside from the city, where many red humanoid heat signatures clustered, the riverside villages were nearly deserted.

A sweep of the area revealed nothing out of the ordinary, save for the flood itself.

“Hmm!”

In a distant village, a small blue boat drifted among the submerged houses, carrying five red human figures. Wu You ordered a switch back to normal vision. Now, from an altitude of only a hundred meters, the eagle’s eye saw everything clearly below.

“Father, everyone in the village has fled—why did we come back? Is money worth more than life?” one man on the boat asked the elderly man beside him.

“If we have no money, we can’t buy food elsewhere—would you have us starve? The village is empty now, so we can search other people’s homes for anything of value,” the old man replied.

“Brother, father’s right. Our whole family needs to eat, and with no one left in these villages, what would a jiao come here for?” The boat’s occupants discussed as they eyed their targets.

Suddenly, far out on the Tiansha River, a great plume of water erupted. A massive, crimson, serpent-like creature surged from the river and onto the flooded land. With a sweep of its tail, it sent a wave crashing back into the village, racing toward the panicked, paddling boat.

Wu You’s heart pounded. This "blood jiao" was even larger than Ao Guang, and its way of stirring the waters was eerily similar.

The system prompt appeared: "Abomination detected. Danger level: Silver, initial stage. Exceeds safety threshold. World synchronization rate too low. Observation or withdrawal advised."

What was this? Synchronization rate?

Even as he pondered, after devouring several people, the blood jiao suddenly lifted its head and stared up into the sky.

“Hm!?” Wu You felt a sense of dread.

The tumorous growth atop the jiao’s head flared brightly as it opened its maw with a piercing hiss. Sharing senses with the White Eagle, Wu You was struck by a searing pain in his head and was forcibly ejected from observation mode.

Rubbing his temples, he noted that though the pain originated with the eagle, the lingering ache was profound.

With a crack, the teacup in his hand shattered, crushed unconsciously.

Within the system, the signal belonging to the White Eagle had already vanished.