Chapter 7 - Chapter 7 You... Are Not Human

The next morning. Yu Sheng's gaze flickered over the spotless living room and the medicine put back in its place, lingering for no more than a moment. He stuck to his usual daily routine without a hitch. Cook, eat. He chewed each mouthful slowly and thoroughly, his expression solemn, as if he were performing a sacred ritual. There would be no school for the next few days. By unwritten rule, those who had just awakened needed to absorb monster crystals to strengthen their overall physical fitness—including their incubating eggs. And this could all be done at home. Of course, those who could afford it could attend special training classes that claimed to help new Awakened absorb crystal energy. Most of them, though, were just a scam. After washing the bowls and chopsticks, Yu Sheng put on his coat, pushed the door open, and stepped outside. Such remote cities were mostly home to the elderly. Young people, all filled with lofty ideals and ambitions, left alone with nothing but a backpack, journeyed far away—and most ended up dying in foreign lands. The city was not large. Yu Sheng walked about two blocks, then turned into an alley. Inside was a small general store. The shopkeeper was a middle-aged man. With no customers in sight, he sat in a chair bored out of his mind, yawning every now and then. When he saw Yu Sheng walk in, he just shot him a casual glance. "The stuff's on the table." Yu Sheng made no reply, walking straight to a shabby little table and picking up a cloth bag on top of it. "Hey, I've repaid my debt to you, kid." The middle-aged man turned off the TV with a flick of his wrist. When he looked at Yu Sheng again, his expression had turned stern, and he tilted his head to reveal his left cheek. A hideous knife scar ran across it—from his forehead all the way down to his chin. It coiled on his face like a centipede, sending a chill down one's spine. "Yeah." Yu Sheng replied softly, meeting his gaze. "See you later." With that, he lifted the grease-stained bag and left. Watching Yu Sheng's retreating back, the middle-aged man grinned. It was a smile, yet there was no emotion at all in his eyes. "Won't be seeing you for a while, though." He stood up, straightened his clothes, and walked out of the general store, gradually fading into the distance. In the back room of the store, a fat, bald man lay unconscious on the floor. ... "Over in Xinhai City! A few monsters suddenly showed up in the urban area, and there are heavy casualties!" Outside a shop on the street, the owner had been lazing in the sun, scrolling through his phone. A news alert popped up, and he jumped to his feet, exclaiming in shock. A crowd quickly gathered around him, chattering away in discussion. "Xinhai City's a remote place, but it still has a Monster Extermination Pavilion, right?" "How could something like this happen?" one person asked. The shopkeeper shook his head, still scrolling through the news. "The report says there was unrest outside the city that day—signs of monster activity. Most of the Monster Extermination Pavilion's members weren't in the city at the time." "Sigh..." "Things are getting more and more unstable. Do you think something bad will happen here too?" "Let's hope not." "More and more monsters are sneaking in lately. Is the Demon Suppression Pass holding on by a thread?" The crowd gossiped back and forth, every word dripping with pessimism. Ever since the Reawakening of Spiritual Energy a hundred years ago, the monster clans had risen with it, and humanity's survival had grown increasingly precarious. Thankfully, the first generation of Awakened had stepped forward back then, forging four great passes with their blood and flesh. Demon Suppression Pass, Dawn Pass, Skyspire Pass, Ghost Gate Pass. These four passes stood like insurmountable natural barriers, blocking the monster clans from the human realms. And at regular intervals along the way, powerful human warriors stood guard, vowing not to let a single monster slip through to harm humanity. And the Mo Pavilion was humanity's highest ruling organization. ... Back home, Yu Sheng opened the cloth bag. Inside were three translucent crystals, and within each, faint red threads swirled— the energy contained in the crystals. This was the essence the monster clans condensed after devouring human life force and blood qi. Yu Sheng locked the door from the inside, drew the curtains tight, and carefully strung a thin thread across the doorway. At the other end of the thread was a small handheld crossbow. If anyone opened the door and stepped in, the crossbow would fire the second the thread was triggered. He set similar traps by the windows as well. When everything was done, Yu Sheng sat down in a blind spot of the room—ensuring no one who entered would spot him right away. Only then did he close his eyes slowly, his fingers wrapped around the crystals. Inside the crystals, the red threads seemed to come alive at that moment, swirling and writhing before streaming into Yu Sheng's palm. The phantom of his egg appeared above his head once more, its nine golden patterns making it look all the more mysterious and ethereal. Slowly, almost imperceptibly, the nine patterns began to spread, as if they were going to cover the entire egg. ... Deep in a mountain range not far from Demon Suppression Pass. An old man in a loose white robe sat cross-legged on the mountain peak. Suddenly, his eyes flew open, a sharp glint flashing in their depths. "This path is blocked." he said softly, his gaze falling to the foot of the mountain. Several figures in red robes skidded to a halt. The leader was a handsome young man. He looked up at the old man on the peak, a bright, innocent smile on his face. "Senior, we only ask to borrow the path for a moment." "We're all human. We should help each other out, shouldn't we?" The old man shook his head slowly, repeating the same words. "This path is blocked." "And what if I insist on passing through today?" The smile on the young man's face faded little by little, and he stared at the old man with a playful glint in his eyes. "You die." His voice was still calm, as if he were stating a simple fact. As the words left his mouth, a phantom of a scepter materialized behind him, inlaid with seven oddly shaped crystals that blazed with brilliant light. In the mountain forest, flowers and grass swayed gently without a single breath of wind, as if they had come alive in that moment. "I was only joking, senior." "Our Cult has always toiled tirelessly for humanity—we have no ill intentions." "We're all human. Why would we quarrel with you, senior?" "We'll take our leave now." He bowed deeply to the old man with the utmost deference, then led his men backward, retreating slowly into the distance. "Who said you could leave?" The old man spoke again. The phantom scepter solidified into reality, slamming into the dirt beside him. The seven crystals blazed even more brightly, their light piercing the air. "Senior... do you have any further instructions?" The young man kept his head bowed, a vicious glint flashing in his eyes, but his tone was as deferential as ever. "I only want to tell you this—go back and tell your God Sovereign to change your name." "Calling it a Heretic Cult would suit you much better." "You people... are not human." "If it weren't for the fact that I must guard this place and cannot leave my post to fight, you would all be dead already." The old man stared at the young man calmly, his words cold and unyielding.