Chapter 86: A Grand Introduction to Zhang’s Beloved Family Members

Zhang Changlin’s entire body was ablaze, his brows slightly furrowed as he stared, alert and wary, at the mass of flesh that was the Plague Rat. He knew that the consciousness inside this body was not the original will of the Plague Rat; the true Plague Rat had been killed by Sun Yaohai. Yet, the will now inhabiting the flesh was even more violent. But why did such a brutal will not move? What was it afraid of?

Zhang Changlin turned his head toward the Plague Rat’s hulking form, which was watching Du Fang with extreme vigilance… Du Fang? Zhang Changlin took a deep breath. Earlier, he’d been itching to probe Du Fang, but the Plague Rat’s monstrous body had interrupted him. Now, he no longer wished to investigate. After all, this was Du Fang’s secret, and as captain, it seemed wrong to pry into his teammate’s private affairs. So he gave up, letting things take their course. No matter how powerful Du Fang became… he would always be Zhang Changlin’s teammate!

However, just as Zhang Changlin abandoned his search, the mass of Plague Rat flesh nearby opened its maw and let out a raspy howl… Then, a wave of dreamlike energy swept out like a storm; a pool of black halos expanded outward from the Plague Rat, enveloping everything in an instant!

Zhang Changlin’s pupils contracted! The dream energy surged wildly, his flaming broken blade gripped tightly, stabbing downward in an attempt to resist the devouring black glow.

“This… a domain of dreams!” he thought. “It’s trying to drag us into its dream domain to fight!”

A sudden sense of crisis arose in Zhang Changlin’s heart. He knew just how terrifying the will inside the Plague Rat’s body was; even the mere aura it leaked made him feel heavy. To face that will directly within a dream—how much more terrifying would it be?!

Yet, Zhang Changlin ultimately failed to resist… The black halo spread in a flash, and the scene before his eyes changed entirely.

He saw the rain still falling, and from the Plague Rat’s mountainous body, a mass of shadow began writhing outward, swelling like an inflated balloon—larger and larger: five meters, ten, twenty, thirty! At last, it became an immense, towering giant, like a small mountain. Within the shadow, countless eyes opened, densely packed, gazing down upon this world from some distant void.

The Will of the Fallen God!

This was the true Will of the Fallen God. Zhang Changlin felt a coldness creeping into his body. This was serious!

He instinctively turned toward the distant commotion and was stunned. He saw, surprisingly, a lively, noisy scene: Du Fang coaxing a little girl squatting on the ground…

“A little girl? Du Fang’s daughter?” Zhang Changlin’s expression twisted oddly.

At this moment, many thoughts flooded his mind. He recalled every time he’d smoked in front of Du Fang, Du Fang would always remind him there were children around… Damn… Du Fang actually had a child? A real daughter?

Luo Luo squatted on the ground, picking up a headless Barbie doll. On the doll’s body, a black, eerie will trembled, shivering, not daring to move…

Zhang Changlin looked at Luo Luo. Sensing his gaze, she turned her face slightly toward him. Her bleeding eyes, her shattered, pieced-together face, and her gaping mouth from which a barbed tongue slowly drooped… An indescribable terror swept up from the depths of Zhang Changlin’s heart! He felt his dark face growing even darker.

“Hello, Uncle!” Luo Luo greeted him politely, giggling. She was quite familiar with Zhang Changlin, always following Du Fang around.

Zhang Changlin felt his face was not only dark but stiff. “Ah, so you’re Little Du’s daughter… really… cute, haha.” he forced a smile.

Du Fang glanced at Zhang Changlin, slightly surprised. Captain Zhang could see Luo Luo?

Zhang Changlin’s gaze shifted to Du Fang—and his eyes went wide. He saw a blood-soaked, dripping hand perched on Du Fang’s shoulder…

“This, this, this…” Zhang Changlin dropped to the ground. Damn, that hand… his nightmare! He’d been beaten black and blue by it, never to forget!

Du Fang’s wife’s hand was nothing like Luo Luo’s enthusiastic greeting; after all, Zhang Changlin had swallowed the Mud of Calamity, which carried a scent the wife’s hand detested.

Du Fang smiled, “No need to be afraid, Captain. They’re all my family, very loving. Let me introduce them.”

“This is Luo Luo, my daughter—a little angel, fair and tender, very cute.”

Zhang Changlin looked at the torn, bloody, barbed-tongued Luo Luo, forced a smile and nodded. He suspected Du Fang might have misunderstood the meaning of “fair and tender.”

“This is Kiki, the little pig plushie—very cute, sometimes gives me massages,” Du Fang introduced the plush pig wedged under Luo Luo’s armpit.

Kiki glanced at Zhang Changlin, rolled its eyes in disdain. Mere mortal, unworthy of knowing a deity… this pig?

“This is my wife. Though I’ve only found her hand so far, I’ll find the rest one day,” Du Fang said.

The wife’s hand had no intention of acknowledging Zhang Changlin, flipping him the middle finger.

Zhang Changlin: “……”

What a… loving family.

Suddenly, Zhang Changlin wondered if any of this was real. Was he trapped in some whimsical dream conjured by the Fallen God’s will?

“Roar!”

The mountain-like Will of the Fallen God bellowed, snapping Zhang Changlin from his confusion. Horror, fear, despair, trembling… All manner of negative emotions radiated from the immense will. The colossal will shuddered, countless eyes fixed on Luo Luo, Du Fang, and the pink pig plushie…

Zhang Changlin was baffled. You are the Will of the Fallen God! The very embodiment of terror! Why are you more frightened than Zhang Changlin himself? What are you afraid of? You’re a Fallen God—even if not the true self, still a Fallen God… What scares you?

He turned and suddenly understood what the Fallen God’s will feared…

He saw Luo Luo, drool dripping from her gaping mouth; the pink pig plushie under her armpit was also staring at the Fallen God’s will, salivating; the bloody hand on Du Fang’s shoulder kneaded eagerly, unable to drool but clearly expectant…

Like anticipating freshly baked milk bread.

Luo Luo grabbed the headless Barbie doll, her eyes locked on the Fallen God’s will, while her other hand mercilessly yanked out the eerie will hidden inside the doll. Like pulling snail meat from its shell, she stuffed it into her mouth, sharp teeth closing in…

“Aaaaah…” The forbidden will within the doll screamed in Luo Luo’s mouth…

“Giggle, giggle, giggle…” Luo Luo’s cheerful laughter echoed—the same laughter the doll’s eerie will once had, but now, it could no longer laugh.

Zhang Changlin understood… The Fallen God’s will was terrified—terrified of being recognized as food!

Watching the utterly defenseless will, seized and torn apart like soft milk bread, ripped, divided, and devoured bit by bit, Zhang Changlin’s pupils contracted, his legs clamped tightly. Was this Du Fang’s secret? Would Zhang Changlin be silenced? Would he… be eaten, too?

At that thought, the mighty Lionfire state burning on his body dwindled to a tiny flame, clinging to his skin, nearly unable to flare up.

…

The blood-red curtain began to dissipate, no longer shielding the rain. Raindrops fell from above, striking the rooftops, faces, and ground, shattering into fragments.

Azure Dragon raised his head, the fierce dragon mask revealing eyes full of shock and… simmering anger.

He realized his connection to the sequence forbidden item had been severed. The sensation was deeply unsettling. As the primary user of the item, he suffered some backlash.

“My sequence forbidden item…”

“Was it Du Fang?”

“Did he unleash the Fallen God’s power?”

Azure Dragon’s eyes brimmed with murderous intent. He whispered, speculating. His guess was plausible; he believed Du Fang’s own strength couldn’t possibly sever his connection to the forbidden item. The only explanation was that Du Fang had activated that terrifying Fallen God power within him.

There could be no other reason!

Azure Dragon began to sprint through the rain, his eyes full of fury, full of killing intent. Losing a single doll would drastically weaken the forbidden item’s power and effect, possibly even dropping it out of the sequence grade—a huge loss for him. To compensate for this loss…

“Only blood will suffice!”

Azure Dragon growled low, like an enraged dragon roaring. His figure, as he ran, moved along the hospital’s exterior walls as if walking on flat ground, heading for the rooftop.

The Ox-Head and Horse-Face of the Yellow Springs Organization exchanged glances, without much discussion, and dashed forward, following Azure Dragon, racing up the walls, crashing face-first through the falling rain, charging toward the hospital’s top floor!

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