As soon as the Human Emperor Banner came out, I became the Lord of the Old Ones

Chapter 37 Frozen Pork

Xu Yan looked at her with some surprise, and his anger dissipated a little.

“I never collaborate with my colleagues.”

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and said helplessly, "You are the first."

"So, you really have a solution?" A subtle hope flickered in Long Jianhuan's eyes.

"The key is you."

Xu Yan laid out the plan he had been brewing since his last investigation. "There's a mechanism deep in the jungle that can transform the 'illusion array' into a 'killing array.' I'm not sure if this mechanism can function properly, but even if it can be activated, someone will need to lure the monster over—whether it's Dr. Hyde or the old monster."

"I go."

Long Jianhuan said without hesitation, "You go and activate the mechanism, and I will lead the monster into the killing array!"

"How do you go?"

Xu Yan sneered, "Your seal card has fallen into the hands of Dr. Hyde."

"This is not a problem."

Long Jianhuan said, "Actually, the 'Scorching Sun Lion' doesn't really increase my combat power that much. It mainly serves as a daily spur."

Xu Yan raised his eyebrows: "What do you mean by 'daily encouragement'?"

"'The Lion of the Blazing Sun' was originally my father's guardian spirit and watched me grow up. After my father passed away, it didn't find a more suitable master, so it stayed with me forever. It's considered the Long family's guardian spirit.

Long Jianhuan explained somewhat embarrassedly, "It has a deep bond with me, but as the king of extraordinary creatures, it has unparalleled pride and is unwilling to accept a weakling as its new master, even me.

"So, I signed a special contract with it, stipulating that unless I could defeat it with my bare hands one day, it would establish a 100% spiritual connection with me, sharing my life and soul.

"This special contract began when I was eleven years old. Every day since then, I have challenged the 'Scorching Sun Lion'. Although I haven't been able to defeat it to this day, my body has grown stronger and stronger. Even without the support of my guardian spirit, I can display combat power comparable to that of a silver-level warrior.

"Many of my colleagues in Black Rock City and at the headquarters training camp say I'm a ferocious beast in human form. Many experts in the 'no-card flow' are no match for me. Please rest assured, I'm a very capable fighter!"

Long Jianhuan was afraid that Xu Yan would not believe it.

She swung her arms and posed to show Xu Yan her strong arms and big pectoral muscles.

"..."

Since the age of eleven, he has been fighting against the golden spirit with his flesh and blood?

Xu Yan finally understood what a damn mistake it was to choose Long Jianhuan as a breakthrough point when he just woke up.

"Well, it seems we can only try our best. Next-"

Xu Yan looked the female operator up and down. "To prevent you from being identified as an 'intruder' by the killing array along with the monsters, I will paint talismans all over your body."

Long Jianhuan blinked, speaking decisively and frankly.

She seemed to be tired of the restrictive dressing style and crumpled up her burgundy evening gown into a ball and threw it far away into the corner of the cave.

The female operator has a perfect figure like a marble statue.

The breathtaking curves and youthful luster dilute the dullness of the statue.

The few shallow scars on her body added a touch of wild beauty, proving that she indeed had the ability to impersonate the "Snake Queen".

There was no trace of emotion in Xu Yan's eyes.

He had seen many human bodies.

Men, women, old people, children, some are as beautiful as the moon, some are too beautiful to be a country, some are fat and bloated, some are deformed and ugly, they are all of different shapes when they are alive, but after death, aren’t they all just a pile of bones and skin?
Xu Yan's eyes were empty, like a sage, staring at a piece of frozen pork that had just been taken out of the cold storage.

The emotionless look instead caused a hint of surprise and curiosity to appear in the depths of Long Jianhuan's eyes.

Xu Yan didn't care about Long Jianhuan's reaction.

He silently practiced the "Impermanence Visualization Method", imagining the female operator as an ordinary corpse among the tens of thousands of corpses he had "taken care of". He even imagined her as having been buried deep in the ruins under heavy rain for seven days and seven nights, and had long since swelled into a purple giant.

In a trance, Xu Yan's eyes became clearer, colder, and more indifferent. His heart was like a mirror, spotless. He bit his tongue and squeezed out a few drops of his heart blood, which was swirling with faint golden patterns.

The light touch of fingertips caused a thin layer of goose bumps to appear on the honey-colored skin.

Xu Yan was slightly stunned.

I remembered that there was a living person in front of me.

Living people are trouble.

Whether it is goose bumps, weak breathing or subconscious muscle tremors, they will affect the fluency and accuracy of the talisman.

His expression made Long Jianhuan a little nervous.

I thought there was something dirty on me, otherwise why did he look so disgusted?

"Don't move, don't breathe, and don't twist and turn."

Xu Yan considered the similarities and differences between living people and corpses, and slightly adjusted the strength and rhythm of his brushstrokes. He used his fingers as a brush and blood as ink to draw a series of "soul-protecting talismans" on Long Jianhuan's body.

A blush gradually rose on Long Jianhuan's face.

The female operator is not as calm as she appears.

Xu Yan's concentration and skill transformed her embarrassment into curiosity.

"Gravedigger, you seem to be very familiar with everything here?"

Long Jianhuan hesitated for a moment, but still asked.

"nonsense."

Xu Yan's movements didn't pause for even a tenth of a second. "Do you think everyone is like you, completely unprepared and unplanned, relying entirely on chance and serendipity?"

Long Jianhuan's face turned red for a long time, but he didn't refute.

Xu Yan stopped talking and focused on painting from her eyebrows to her toes.

Only when the last drop of blood seeped into the slightly curled soles of Long Jianhuan's feet did he breathe a sigh of relief.

"There's one thing I must remind you of. I'm not sure these 9981 Soul Protection Talismans will be effective. After all, the laws of the Land of Echoes are too strange. Who knows if the killing array will be ineffective, or just too effective, and kill you and the monster in an instant."

Xu Yan stared at the female operator. "Perhaps we should hide and wait for the Ancient Gate to open again, then escape first and close it from the outside?"

"It's too late. The Old One clearly possesses the intelligence of a predator. Last time, it nearly broke through the Gate of the Old Ones. This time, it won't give us the slightest chance. Besides, there's Dr. Hyde and the Lord of the Deep. We can't risk the safety of the entire Dawn City."

This time, Long Jianhuan no longer avoided Xu Yan's gaze. "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing. Even if it means death, I will prevent the Old Ones from coming. After all, our Security Bureau is the last line of defense between the fragile present world and the profound Old Ones!"

"All right--"

Xu Yan's gaze passed over her rune-covered shoulders and into the depths of the valley. He smiled bitterly and said, "It seems we have no choice. The enemy is already here!"

Long Jianhuan was slightly startled and sensed a dangerous aura.

It was too quiet.

The sounds of fighting, screams, burning bushes, and the roar of towering trees being cut off and falling to the ground a moment ago were all swallowed up by the deathly silence.

The entire echoing land seemed to have returned to the state where it had been sealed for billions of years, with dust solidified in the air.

No, if you listen carefully, you can still hear some rustling sounds.

The vines were wriggling madly underground like earthworms after rain.

The corpse controlled by the "Corpse Driving Technique" crawled darkly and twistedly.

The wronged souls lingered around the blood-red flying sword, dancing gracefully, singing and laughing.

Various sounds, sometimes high, sometimes low, sometimes fast, sometimes slow, approached the cave.

(End of this chapter)