Chapter Three: The Green Coin

Moisture did not fill the entire room; it drifted out from beneath the bed only to dissipate a short distance away. Suddenly, a sleek, gray-green webbed paw emerged from the mist, pressing gently onto the floor. Another followed, dragging a dense cloud of vapor as they crawled out from under the bed.

A monstrous creature, its outline barely visible within the swirling mist, appeared silently at the bedside. Qian Youshui lay on the bed with his eyes tightly shut, as if he were experiencing all this within a dream. The monster climbed onto the bed, pressing its four webbed paws near Qian Youshui’s shoulders and hips. Directly above his face, a frog-like mouth covered in fine scales extended from the haze, followed by nostrils that occasionally emitted black vapor, and eyes with protruding sockets—entirely black irises, but sheathed on either side by thin white membranes. The creature's gaze upon Qian Youshui was not bloodthirsty or ferocious as one might expect from a predator, but instead, it radiated a deeply human bitterness.

Outside the second-floor window, the claws of the Reed Blossom rooster curled two toes, the remaining one etching silently on a wooden board. In the blink of an eye, the image of a beast’s mouth in the mist appeared vividly. Below the drawing, several words were inscribed: “Large as a bed, webbed hands, scaled frog mouth, able to conjure mist, induces madness in humans (cause unknown).”

This was the prototype of the “monster sketch.” Once the matter was resolved, this board would be refined and mass-printed by the Boundary Marker Organization, distributed to every field agent. Should anyone encounter such a creature again, they would be prepared—this was why the Boundary Marker took the incident so seriously.

Reed Blossom was a mysterious demon beast, claiming to be an ancient fiend by the name of Evil Eater—a family legacy, though even Li Fusi, who inherited its grace, did not fully know its power. He only knew that Evil Eater fed on evil spirits.

The monster was oblivious to Reed Blossom outside. Its frog mouth puckered; unlike its gray-green skin, the lips were translucent, milky white, and formed a circle as they slowly approached Qian Youshui’s lips.

It seemed the “woman’s lips” Qian Youshui had spoken of referred to these. Next, the monster would likely drain Qian Youshui’s blood. The Boundary Marker Organization knew the hospital’s diagnosis—judging that the monster had used some innate ability to replace his blood. Afterward, as long as he replenished it, he should be fine. But tonight, they could not let the monster succeed again; otherwise, it might be the final straw that broke Qian Youshui.

Just then, the curtains split apart, and a flash of cold light shot forth.

A metallic clang echoed as the tip of a Tang blade struck the monster’s forehead, sounding like stone against metal.

“So tough!” Hidden behind the curtain, Li Fusi launched his attack, surprised as he glanced at his Tang blade, Autumn Water. He grabbed Qian Youshui’s shoulder and pulled him away, leaping back to put distance between them and the monster.

“Could it be a dragon bone in the forehead? If this is a dragon breed, things could get messy.” Li Fusi seemed to mutter to himself, but he was really speaking to Reed Blossom.

Suddenly assaulted and robbed of its prey, the monster’s expression twisted into rage. It threw back its head, launching a whip-like tongue toward Li Fusi’s neck.

Li Fusi leaned back, the Tang blade held upright, and the tongue wrapped around the blade.

He examined the tongue: “Like a frog’s tongue, coated in mucus, with many green, needle-like barbs, hard enough to withstand Autumn Water’s edge. The green must be venom.”

Li Fusi was a half-demon, his strength rivaling the monster’s. One hand pressed down the blade against the tongue, grappling with the creature; with the other, he tossed Qian Youshui out of the villa as if throwing a sack.

Even if he broke a leg from the fall, it was better than being torn apart by the monster.

Reed Blossom avoided the flying Qian Youshui, then leisurely returned to the window, adding to the board: “Long tongue, barbed, venomous.”

Reed Blossom clucked, commanding, “Xiao Xie!”

Before the words faded, a black streak three meters long flashed across the ground. As it neared the monster, a snake’s maw, nearly vertical, bared its fangs and struck at the monster’s outstretched tongue.

But the monster swiftly retracted its barbs; the sticky tongue slipped off the blade and snapped back into its mouth.

The evil snake, Xiao Xie, missed its mark, pausing in midair before vanishing as a black streak.

In that fleeting moment, its form was clear—a black serpent as thick as an arm, Reed Blossom’s pet or slave.

Realizing it was outnumbered, the monster turned to flee. The black vapor wasn’t merely a concealment ability; it seemed more a means of sustaining its activity and life outside water. When it moved quickly, it couldn’t keep the mist enveloping its body.

At that moment, a gray-green creature with a frog face, crocodile eyes, flattened body, and webbed paws leaped from the mist, disappearing at the stairwell in a blink.

Outside, Reed Blossom inscribed: “Fish body, frog face—a water-dwelling monster, suspected dragon breed.”

He paused, inspiration striking, and continued, “Fan-shaped, many offspring, provisionally named Fan Fish Monster.”

Li Fusi suddenly realized—the Fan Fish Monster was the enlarged version of the little fan-shaped fish in the aquarium downstairs!

Understanding dawned, Li Fusi habitually spun Autumn Water and pursued.

The stairwell was empty, save for a slick trail of mucus along the wall.

“Damn!” Li Fusi cried, springing off the banister, flipping through the window, and thrusting Autumn Water as he fell.

With a squelch, the Tang blade sliced two inches into the ground, pinning the Fan Fish Monster’s tongue just in front of Qian Youshui’s neck.

It still sought to kill Qian Youshui.

With a roar, the monster spewed a rolling, fetid vapor, engulfing Li Fusi and Qian Youshui, and forcibly withdrew its tongue—at the cost of having its tip split in two by Autumn Water.

The vapor was not lethal, only nauseating, but Li Fusi dared not relax, given the monster’s murderous fixation. He turned to shield Qian Youshui.

From its escape, it was clear the Fan Fish Monster was ruthless, but not powerful. Neither its black vapor nor venomous tongue posed a threat to Li Fusi. And recalling the beginning, the monster had no power to drag people into dreams—it must have paralyzed Qian Youshui with its tongue’s poison, then drained his blood.

Li Fusi settled Qian Youshui beneath a pine tree by the roadside, watching the monster hiding in a dark corner across the street, muttering, “Is it trying to escape, or risking it all for murder?”

Qian Youshui’s home was in a luxury villa district, each with gardens and yards, and paths separating them. It was deep night; only the streetlights broke the darkness and silence, so the modest commotion did not disturb the neighbors.

Reed Blossom flew from the upstairs window to a streetlamp, speaking, “This Fan Fish Monster is only at the infantile level. No need to delay—capture it alive if possible, otherwise kill it quickly.”

Normally, a monster would try to escape after failing to kill its prey, but the Fan Fish Monster’s obsession with killing Qian Youshui made Li Fusi hesitate.

After a moment, the monster crept from the shadows, stopping ten meters away. The white membrane covering its black eyes flicked open and shut, its gaze questioning and warning.

Li Fusi remained silent, neither attacking nor yielding.

Reed Blossom clucked, growling, “Li Fusi, don’t entertain any foolish thoughts. It’s a monster—don’t forget the rules of the Boundary Marker!”

Li Fusi said nothing, responding only with his gaze.

The monster’s choices deepened Li Fusi’s doubts. Its white eye membrane instantly retracted, its sockets black as ink, and it inhaled sharply. Its fish belly swelled to triple its size.

With a violent exhale, the monster’s belly contracted, spewing billowing vapor like waves. Amid the stench, green, toxic mist surged toward Li Fusi and Qian Youshui.

That was the venom used to paralyze Qian Youshui. The monster must have little venom, using it only now in desperation.

Li Fusi raised Autumn Water before his face, waiting for the black vapor to reach him, then exhaled toward the blade.

“Extreme Cold: Tide Surge.”

Autumn Water instantly frosted over, chill rising from the tip. A fan-shaped surge of cold vapor rushed forward, colliding with the mist.

The vapor froze into crystals, dropping to the ground.

The Boundary Marker once categorized half-demons’ innate abilities into a “talent tree,” yet new powers still emerged, defying classification.

Currently, the common talent tree for half-demons had four major branches: bodily, attribute, elemental, and the rarest and strongest—rule-based talents.

Elemental talents were divided into six types: earth, fire, water, wind, void, and perception.

Cold was Li Fusi’s talent, a derivative of the wind element.

At the center of the ice, the Fan Fish Monster was frozen mid-pounce, trapped by its own mucus turned to ice—a sculpture of itself.

Seizing the moment, the evil snake Xiao Xie darted out, coiling tightly around the monster, constricting, its mouth gaping wide to swallow its prey whole.

But while the snake’s grip shattered the ice, the monster’s skin instantly secreted fresh mucus, pushing its limits—its body reddened, blood oozing from pores.

Sliding from the snake’s coils, the monster escaped again.

“Useless thing!” Reed Blossom cursed the black snake’s performance.

Yet the monster did not flee. Instead, it staggered forward, aiming once more for Li Fusi—or rather, for Qian Youshui behind him.

Li Fusi’s gaze was cold as he watched the monster, its flesh and bone frostbitten. He vanished, reappearing behind it, lowering Autumn Water and letting its chill dissipate.

The next moment, the monster collapsed—Autumn Water had sliced through its side, cutting the entire fish belly.

The monster’s skin was tough and its mucus slippery, making the blade useless, like a fist striking cotton. But Autumn Water was a family heirloom demon weapon, forged with ancient alchemy, its unique trait being the ability to withstand extreme cold—perfect for Li Fusi’s talent.

Thus, the monster’s fresh mucus and skin froze as the blade passed, making it as easy as cutting into the ground.

Xiao Xie, the evil snake, slid silently over, eager to swallow tonight’s prey, but Reed Blossom swooped down, pinning it by its seven-inch spot and pressing hard.

“Useless thing—you should be called Hungry Snake Xiao Xie, all you know is eating.”

The Fan Fish Monster was not yet dead, but the chill had invaded its organs, leaving it incapable even of a dying struggle.

“My leg hurts… is the nightmare over?” Qian Youshui struggled to rise, awakening at last, though the fish venom still clouded his mind.

He stumbled, glancing about. “Who are you?” “Is that a chicken or a snake?” “And… Fan Fish?”

Suddenly, Qian Youshui wailed, “My precious fish… my treasure trove!”

Confused, he mistook the monster for the little Fan Fish in his aquarium, mourning his “treasure trove” as he rushed toward it, tears streaming.

The monster’s eyes were again covered by the white membrane, glaring bitterly at Qian Youshui before shifting its gaze to the living room, filled with reluctant longing, its frog mouth opening slightly.

A dense sound of flesh tearing echoed as streams of blood flew into the monster’s mouth, only to spill from its belly wound, forming a winding river along the road.

Qian Youshui fell to his knees, his flabby body riddled with blood holes. The blood coming from him was less than half that of a normal person—likely drained in batches by the monster before tonight.

Li Fusi was stunned, never expecting the monster to use such a power in its final moments.

Monsters possessed innate abilities, but their origins were unknown, impossible for the Boundary Marker to classify—another reason for the importance of monster sketches.

Qian Youshui lost all his blood in an instant, his internal organs ruined beyond repair, with no hope for salvation. The monster, too, lay lifeless.

Li Fusi stood in silence, then darted into the living room, Reed Blossom clutching Xiao Xie, following him inside.

The floor was flooded; the aquarium lay shattered, and the thousand little Fan Fish scattered about were all dead, their scales burst, bodies riddled with holes.

Reed Blossom tossed aside Xiao Xie and scratched out a line on the board, replacing it: “Suspected Qingfu, innate ability: mother and offspring share blood.”

Li Fusi glanced at the board, grasping Reed Blossom’s meaning. The rest would be verified and explained by the Boundary Marker. He pulled out his phone, dialed a number, and immediately hung up.

Within ten minutes, two men and a woman in black arrived, joining Li Fusi, now wearing a windbreaker and hat, along with a van.

The leader, a middle-aged man, flashed a red badge—bearing only the Boundary Marker’s symbol—then put it away and said succinctly, “Codename Wildcat, here to clean up.”

Li Fusi nodded silently, handing him Reed Blossom’s carved board.

The man’s expression grew serious as he read, saying, “Monster sketch!” Then, businesslike, he dismissed Li Fusi: “Thank you. Leave the rest to us.”

Li Fusi nodded, vaulted onto the villa’s roof, and vanished after a few flickers.

Half an hour later, Li Fusi, dressed comfortably in sportswear and drenched in sweat, pushed open the door to the Tilted Gate bar.

“Thud thud thud…”

“Brother, you’re back from your run!” A girl, her face delicate as a doll, darted to his side like the wind.

Running was, of course, a lie he told Xuanzi—a usual excuse when returning from missions. He ruffled her hair, smiling, “Guess what I brought you?”

Xuanzi’s eyes lit up, “Is it a gift?”

Li Fusi produced his hand from behind his back. “Ta-da!”

Inside a clear plastic bag, half-filled with water, two little fan-shaped fish swam slowly.