Dual wielding volcanoes, killing through the west

“‘No way out.’” Igor’s expression was very serious. This detail helped him fill in the gaps in the deceased’s personality that were not in the notes, and also made him truly appreciate the weight of this collection of essays.

"He was lost, that makes sense. For him, reality was like a vague hell. Living here was a constant torment, and he was looking for a way out. In the end, he escaped his miserable life through the emergency exit of death."

He suddenly thought of something, opened the book, turned to a specific page, and said, "When people encounter problems that are beyond human control, their first reaction is to turn to the gods for help, and this guy is no exception. It's just that the god he chose is different from most people."

----

On this page, the words "THE RED ONE" were written in capital letters.

Zhang Renfeng's expression hardened, and that bad premonition resurfaced in his mind. However, at this moment, he had too little information to understand what this premonition meant.

"After a certain day, the content of the essay collection underwent a significant change. I speculate that he probably dismantled some entirely new belief system... Anyway, there are so many gods in the world, who knows?" Igor pointed to the capital "the red one" and said in a deep voice, "【Red God】."

“After that day, the frequency of this word increased significantly. He mentioned it more than once, saying that he wanted to dedicate himself to the Red God. And the last words he left behind seemed to be that he finally made up his mind, cut off his confusion, and dedicated himself to the Red God. The end, the end, everything came to a close.”

“We just need to keep an eye on the ‘Red God’. No matter how niche it is, it will definitely have a faith, an organization… Look at this page.”

Igor expertly turned the pages again; it was truly remarkable that he could accurately find the content he was looking for amidst a sea of ​​abstract, almost unrecognizable handwriting.

"I found traces of the Red God beneath the clock tower."

“A bell tower.” Igor pursed his lips in the direction of White Torch Town. “There’s a bell tower in town too, right next to the church.”

According to normal understanding, Theonado must have come into contact with the Red God faith near the bell tower, and then never looked back on that path.

but……

"The clock tower?" Zhang Renfeng frowned and muttered to himself, "Why the clock tower of all? I remember... it seems to be..."

Before reading this book, he had been told about this crucial location in a very subtle way, somewhere, by someone. But he had only listened casually, not taking it seriously, letting it slip through his mind like flowing water.

Bang, bang, bang.

Bang, bang, bang...

Bang, bang, bang!

The sound of the train traveling on the tracks gradually grew louder, pulling him into a certain memory.

----

“Our gang, strictly speaking, doesn’t exist at all.”

“Sometimes, when we go out, we tie blue cloth to the horse’s legs; sometimes, we howl like wolves when we rob; sometimes, we wear this red mask like this. We have no organization of our own, nor do we have a meeting place.”

"The stolen money would be regularly placed somewhere in White Torch Town... The only place I know of is under the Bell Tower. It would be buried in the ground under the cover of night, and then dug up the next day. The money we were given was distributed in the same way. When we weren't working, we had no other dealings with each other."

----

That's exactly what the person wearing the red mask and pretending to be him said.

Is it also a coincidence that the clock tower that inspired Theonado's faith is also the stronghold of this nameless gang?

Zhang Renfeng didn't know, but he shuddered.

Under the cold night sky, he suddenly realized that he was still on that train and had not gotten off.

……

Bang, bang, bang!

Chapter 137: Healing Through Talk - This is Called Talk Therapy (Part 37)

"Feel sorry."

As Zhang Renfeng passed the tent, a girl's soft apology drifted out, causing him to instinctively stop. "My brother, you must have caused me a lot of trouble, right?"

“That’s just how the Dietersdorf surname is. Everyone says we are ‘short-lived muses.’ My mother also told me that our family history is not long. Although there was a brief period of glory, after the glory, there was no decent heir. Before my father, no one even lived past 40.”

“Theonado can’t distinguish between reality and hallucinations, and I’m pretty much the same… except my symptoms aren’t as obvious…”

The girl's voice was muffled, carrying a strong sense of disgust, "Since it's a cursed bloodline, there's nothing wrong with severing it completely."

"Haha." Zhang Renfeng couldn't help but laugh out loud as he listened.

"Why are you laughing?" Evelyn asked, her tone puzzled. But then, as if realizing something, her voice turned guilty. "I'm sorry, you're the one who saved me, and yet I..."

"No, no, that's not the reason. I just suddenly remembered that something similar has happened before."

Zhang Renfeng didn't encourage her either; given her current mental state, inspirational quotes were probably useless.

He simply dusted himself off, sat down, and started chatting about everything under the sun.

“When I was very young… I think I was five or six, I can’t remember exactly, my dad was having a big birthday celebration. He invited a famous opera troupe from our hometown to perform for several days. One of the plays was a Kunqu opera called ‘Thinking of the Worldly Life,’ which was incredibly elegant.”

Evelyn lifted the tent flap, peeking out her little head, her bright eyes full of curiosity. She loved hearing about these strange and wonderful things from across the ocean, which made her realize from time to time how vast the world was.

Faced with this vastness, the anxieties and pain in her heart could be somewhat alleviated.

"There was a aria sung by a young nun, which was performed by a female role actor. These female roles were all played by men. The female role actor that day was really good. His singing was melodious, graceful, and moving. He was incredibly beautiful. My father was very happy and rewarded him with many things. But not long after, I heard that he committed suicide with a pair of scissors."

"To dare to slit one's throat with scissors is not something an ordinary person would do... Everyone is puzzled. Judging from his future acting career, becoming famous and successful would not be a problem. He finally gained some fame and suffered so much, why would he have to commit suicide?"

“I don’t understand either. One day while practicing, I couldn’t help but tell my master about it.”

“Master said it was because he couldn’t tell the difference.”

"Without madness, there is no life. Conversely, if he achieved life at such a young age, he was destined to fall into madness."

"He immersed himself in the world of the opera, unable to distinguish between male and female. To him, everything that happened on stage was real, while the real world outside the stage gradually became a vague dream. But this world is not a dream... He felt conflicted and confused..."

"A person can endure pain, but it is hard to endure confusion. In order to get rid of confusion, he chose death to escape this painful illusion."

"So, maybe you and your brother aren't as special as you think."

……

As Evelyn listened, she became engrossed, suddenly finding the world incredibly wondrous. What had happened to her across the ocean had already occurred to others on the other side.

Human history unfolds before our eyes, so many people, so many events, repeating themselves again and again.

“Evelyn.” Zhang Renfeng suddenly lowered his head and stared at her intently.

"Ok?"

His tone was calm, but his words were like a needle, piercing deep into the girl's heart: "Can you tell the difference?"

……

This time, Evelyn remained silent for a long time.

"I don't know." That was the only answer she could give. "I just feel more relaxed when I'm being watched on stage."

“When I was very young, my father said this: Since you were born into this family, it is meaningless if you cannot become the jewel on the stage. Like a failed painting that has been stained with water, the final outcome is that it will be thrown into the storage room, where it will spend its failed life being eaten by dust and mites. After that, it will quietly rot in a place where no one cares.”

----

Before Theonado and Evelyn, they had other children, but it seems God truly favored the artists born into this family. They all died at a very young age, leaving only the brother and sister to grow up safely.

In Evelyn's memory, "home" was a metonym, referring to a cold, large house. From as far back as she could remember, it was a place depicted in cool colors in paintings.

I don't have many memories of my father. In my mind, he was a tall, sensitive man with a thick beard and eyebrows. He was an artist, or at least that's what everyone said. Although Evelyn didn't think there was anything artistic about those abstract dots and planes, since everyone said so, she decided to accept it.

As for her memories of her mother, though numerous, they were always associated with "pain." This was because her mother was not only her mother, but also her etiquette teacher and dance teacher.

"Her manners, Evelyn, mind your manners." — This was the sentence her mother said to her most often during her childhood.

That's how it is with old-fashioned aristocrats. Eating, standing, and walking all have specific etiquette requirements, which must be practiced until she is satisfied. Then comes singing and dancing skills. If they don't reach a level that she approves of, the training will continue indefinitely, without rest or sleep, and she will not accept any of her daughter's cries or pleas for mercy.

According to her mother, she was even stricter with herself and with everyone in the troupe because she was a girl from the Dietersdorf family.

Almost from the moment of her birth, Evelyn was the focus of countless eyes and expectations. Even when she was alone, she could not relax for a moment.

Strict education, coupled with Evelyn's talent, allowed her to grow rapidly.

At the age of twelve, she made her stage debut, stunning the entire audience. Everyone exclaimed that the next jewel of the Dietersdorf family had been born. She was so radiant and flawless; standing, sitting, and walking were all filled with elegance. She was simply the perfect template for a noble lady.

Evelyn wasn't happy. She felt that the way those people looked at her wasn't like they were looking at a person, but rather like they were looking at a piece of jewelry that had been left unused.

Everything changed after that fire.

The truth was revealed in the ashes, and people suddenly discovered that, apart from the superficial extravagance, the Dietersdorf family was actually an empty shell—no money, no power, nothing at all. The only decent-looking mansion had been completely burned down.

Evelyn continued to perform on stage, touring between states and towns—a skill she had learned since childhood, and she couldn't think of any other way to make a living.

But... unfortunately, she inherited all of her mother's external advantages: the same singing voice, the same figure, and the same beauty.

As she grew older, the gazes directed at her began to change.

It was so hot it felt like it was going to strip her naked.

Chapter 138: I Just Did What a Normal Person Would Do (Part 38)

After listening to the girl's extremely unfortunate account, Zhang Renfeng sighed inwardly, finally understanding where her personality—which seemed indifferent to almost being killed—came from.

She wore that corset the whole time; only death could take it off.

He can actually understand, especially.

When he turned one month old, they held a celebration and drew lots. He drew the Four Treasures of the Study (writing brush, ink stick, inkstone, and paper). His father was overjoyed, saying that the Zhang family ancestors had blessed them and that a scholar was finally going to emerge.

From the time he became conscious, several tutors were hired to come to our home to give lessons and practice calligraphy. However, he had absolutely no interest in these things. Instead, he preferred to wield knives and sticks, punching and kicking, perhaps as a form of rebellion against his family. He was often beaten for this, but that's how it is with schoolwork; without the will to learn or the necessity to learn, one can never learn well.

His father was also puzzled. He had already obtained the Four Treasures of the Study, so why was it different from what he had expected?

In the end, it was his mother who made the decision and spoke frankly, saying, "I don't think our son is cut out for studying."

"They say the poor study literature, the rich study martial arts. Children from poor families study so hard because it's the only path they can take. Why should we join in that? Besides, learning martial arts isn't a bad thing. Our family has the means. At the very least, it can improve our health. And who knows, if we learn it well, we might have the chance to bring honor to our ancestors in the future?"

His father thought about it for several days and made a final decision—if he wanted to learn martial arts, he would learn the best, and the top masters in the country would be invited to teach him. The only condition was that once he mastered martial arts, it should be used only as a means of self-defense and protection, and should not be used to bully the weak or oppress the powerful.

Zhang Renfeng couldn't help but fantasize. If his parents hadn't changed his career path halfway through, and had just let him struggle with writing for over a decade, he would probably have become a useless person.

Moreover, Evelyn's situation was different. For her, everything in life, even standing and walking, was subject to scrutiny. Such strict requirements for demeanor could only be found among the palace maids in the Emperor's palace across the ocean.

During her childhood, her parents did not provide her with everything a child needs. Growing up in such an environment, Evelyn only had the shell of a noble lady when facing the complex and turbulent real world.

Elegant and glamorous, yet they don't know how to protect themselves.

When this aristocratic lady's reserve is embodied in a young girl who has no ability to protect herself, it becomes especially problematic.

----

“You need to find someone you can confide in, preferably someone with a strong personality, male or female, the key is that they have to be strong enough, not the kind of person like your brother, who is preoccupied with his own problems and lives a life of debauchery, framing others.” Zhang Renfeng sighed and spoke his true thoughts, “They have to be the kind of person who will slap you when you’re overthinking things and bring you back to your senses.”

"..." Evelyn paused, touched her cheek, and asked incredulously, "Are you going to hit me?"

Judging from her tone, she didn't seem particularly opposed to it, just curious. From childhood to adulthood, she had never been slapped in the face. Only her mother would use a thin rattan stick to whip her calves through her pants when she was greatly disappointed.

As for the father, he would express his dissatisfaction with a cold gaze and his usual silence.

In their words, their own face is also one of the face of the Dietersdorf family name, and must always be kept as clean as a pearl.

"Not the kind of beating that's meant to kill you, I mean... the kind that's somewhat punitive but won't break you."

After hearing his explanation, Evelyn bit her supple lips and said softly, "It sounds like, so far, you are the most suitable candidate."

"Oh, little girl, you've taken a fancy to me?" Zhang Renfeng was quite nonchalant, just smiled and didn't take Evelyn's words to heart. "That won't do, I'm a full twelve years older than you."

"One round?"

“It’s 12 years old. In our country, 12 years is considered a cycle. You’re 17 this year, right? I was born in the year of Gengxu, so I’m 29, a full twelve years older than you.” Zhang Renfeng smiled and waved his hand, saying, “Besides, I’m already married. She’s the one for me in this life, no matter what.”

"...Then why did you save me?" Evelyn pulled her head back under the covers, her voice muffled. "At that time, it would have been normal to abandon me, wouldn't it? The murderer in the fourteen cases was probably in the house. Anyone else would have turned around and run away long ago."

"I just did what a normal person would do." Zhang Renfeng smiled, seemingly genuinely unconcerned. "Isn't the purpose of practicing martial arts to strengthen the body so that when you have the chance to fight, you won't have any regrets?"

“But in the past ten years or so, no one has ever said such things to me or done such things. Even my own brother, after returning home, hardly talks to me, only focusing on his painting and writing. He probably hasn’t said as much to me this year as I have to to you in one night!”

Evelyn's tone was somewhat resentful, "You mean, before this, I haven't met a single normal person?"

Zhang Renfeng really wanted to say "yes". No matter how you look at it, this family does seem to have some mental illness. The child's education and environment from childhood to adulthood are just too damn outrageous!

But we also have an old saying, "Respect the dead." No matter what they were like in life, they're gone now, especially in front of their daughter. Let's leave them with some goodwill.

"Don't overthink it, focus on getting better first." Zhang Renfeng glanced at his pocket watch; it was 9:30 PM, so he decided to end the conversation quickly. "Let's go to sleep."

……

“I can’t sleep,” Evelyn mumbled. “My back hurts so much, I can’t sleep at all.”

Thinking about it, it makes sense. Putting aside the psychological factors, Evelyn suffered a lot physically tonight. According to Xiaomei, the wounds weren't too deep; with some ointment and bandages, they should heal in a few days with rest—which is a stroke of luck amidst misfortune.

"There's nothing I can do about that. Just let it heal slowly. She's been saying she's not feeling well these past few days, but she'll feel better if she stays home. Fortunately, she hasn't suffered any serious injuries. With a few more days of rest, her skin and flesh will heal."