Lu Mingfei, become the King of Elden!

Chapter 84 Crimson Corruption (Please read on!)
"You have to start from the dilapidated house in Stormhill."

Natsuki Subaru squatted on the ground, clutching a withered twig he'd somehow managed to pluck, and was earnestly sketching a route map in the dust.
"Then keep walking along the main road until you see a fork in the road."

"Wait! Stop! Stop!"

Lu Mingfei hurriedly gestured for a pause, interrupting Natsuki Subaru with a bewildered expression, like a lost lamb:

"I know Stormhill, but what's that 'shabby house'? Where is it?"

"what?!"

Natsuki Subaru abruptly raised his head, his signature deadpan eyes widening instantly, filled with disbelief:
"You didn't select that blessing?! It's called 'The Shabby House in Stormhill'! It's such a big house standing there, didn't you see it?!"

"without"

Lu Mingfei scratched the back of his head awkwardly, his eyes darting around.

"At that time, I only had four words in my mind—get home as fast as I can! I rode my horse at full speed all the way to Storm Hill! That godforsaken place, the storm was so strong you couldn't open your eyes, and the terrain was so vast and boundless."
"Forget about dilapidated houses, I didn't even see a complete roof!"

He said this with a self-righteous air, but his tone also carried a hint of grievance.

How long did you ride?

Subaru Natsuki's voice trembled slightly; he had a vague premonition of an outrageous answer.

"Two days and two nights!"

Lu Mingfei answered crisply and decisively, even with a hint of pride.

Natsuki Subaru remained silent for a full three seconds.

He slowly and solemnly raised his mud-covered thumb to Lu Mingfei.

"You are this!"

Subaru Natsuki was filled with awe.

He genuinely didn't know whether to praise Lu Mingfei's unwavering will to fight to the bitter end, or to criticize the guy's astonishing talent of being able to perfectly ignore even blessing points when he got stubborn.

This guy usually looks like a wilted old cucumber that's been baking in the sun for three days, as if a gust of wind could knock him over. But once he sets his sights on a goal, his energy surges, and he instantly transforms into a stalk of celery soaked in water, standing straight and tall, so excited he could leap all the way from Ningmgfu to the top of the Golden Tree! All the hardships and fatigue are thrown to the winds.

"all in all!"

Natsuki Subaru swung a branch, forcefully steer the conversation back on track, and sharply tapped the "distressed house" location on the map:
"Start from this 'Rutted House in Stormhill'! Follow the main road to the fork in the road! There's a river there, and a bridge called Saint's Bridge. Take down that pumpkin-headed soldier on the bridge and get across!"

The tree branch traced a straight line on the ground, representing a road, pointing south.

"After you cross the bridge, keep following the main road! You'll see it when you get there."

He paused, his voice lowered and grave:

"The land begins to turn black and rot, seeping out that... ominous, blood-red sludge. Further on, a wall of fire, forever burning with black smoke, will rise on the horizon."

Subaru Natsuki raised his head, his dead fish eyes staring directly at Lu Mingfei, and slammed the branch heavily into the area representing the destination: "If you see these, congratulations, you've plunged headlong into the lair of that hellhole, Gailid! It's full of corrupted and mutated, crazed, deformed monsters, each one brimming with aggression."

The Dragon Tomb lies deep within that cursed land!

"So," Lu Mingfei's voice trembled slightly, "that land...was completely ravaged by that 'Crimson Corruption'? Like...like it was bombed by a nuclear bomb, leaving nothing but barren land?"

Natsuki Subaru's playful expression faded, and he slowly nodded, a hint of seriousness flashing in his dead fish eyes, as if recalling that catastrophe:
"During the Second Shattered War, Valkyrie Malenia, the commander of the Knights of Corruption, led her army eastward, her forces heading straight for Galid. There, she clashed with General Ratan of Shattered Stars—the demigod who once bound the stars with his might—in a cataclysmic battle."

He paused, seemingly imagining that earth-shattering clash:
"In the end, after Malenia released the crimson corruption sealed within her in a desperate situation, a corruption capable of corrupting everything, the two demigods disappeared without a trace, and Gailid... became the grotesque figure you are now heading to. The sky is red, the earth is rotten, and there is no cure."

This heavy history seemed to freeze the air. But the next second, Natsuki Subaru suddenly slapped Lu Mingfei on the shoulder.

Snapped!
His face instantly switched back to that carefree, slightly encouraging, bright smile, and even his dead fish eyes brightened a bit:

"Why think so much! Let's go, young man!"
He shouted, pointing forcefully at the framed area on the simplified diagram:
"Danger? That place is dangerous, of course! But runes! Equipment! Dragon Hearts! Top-tier weapons! That godforsaken place, Galid, has them everywhere! As long as you're strong enough, they're all yours!"

"That's about it."

Shirou Emiya, who had been listening quietly the whole time, finally spoke, his voice gentle:

"In short, Mr. Lu, if you go to Galid, you must be extremely careful."

The faint, crimson stench of decay in the air and on the ground is something we, the faded ones, can still resist, though it leaves us feeling physically weak and mentally exhausted.

But those places, teeming with decay, are enough to corrode your body and soul in seconds, destroy your will, drive you utterly insane, and ultimately lead to death.

"so serious?"

A chill ran through Lu Mingfei's heart, spreading instantly down his spine and throughout his body.

He couldn't help but feel worried about his future adventurous career, but now was not the time to back down.

The situation in reality is dire, and he urgently needs stronger forces to break the deadlock and lead Chu Zihang out of the encirclement.

So, what exactly is Scarlet Corruption?
The two Japanese men looked at each other in bewilderment.
-
"Crimson decay, one of the oldest curses of the borderlands."

The old knight, still dressed in his coarse yellow and white linen clothes, sat cross-legged on the ground and slowly began to speak:

"The origin of the Crimson Corruption is said to be an ancient deity that existed even before the Golden Tree appeared. It can infect any living creature, and once it is entangled, it is difficult to break free. It erodes flesh and blood, corrupts the soul, and there is no cure."

“Of course,” the old knight glanced at Lu Mingfei, his tone flat, “a kid like you who can’t die, when you get infected, just slit your own neck. As long as you’re quick enough, you won’t feel any pain.”

Lu Mingfei subconsciously shrank his neck, forced a smile, and ultimately remained silent.

The old knight ignored him and continued speaking to himself:

"No one knows its true face, only that it lies dormant deep underground, a vast and boundless lake of corruption."

Legend has it... that it was born there, and... was eternally imprisoned in that filthy abyss.

(End of this chapter)