Chen Zhou ordered the majority of the skeleton ghost servants to go support Jian Huaishuang.
He himself quickly walked over to the little gecko, and his death qi surged out, instantly extinguishing the lingering flames on the little gecko's body.
The little gecko lay in the skeleton's arms, charred black, his skin cracked, with white bones visible in some places.
The demon's original appearance was unrecognizable; only a thread of life remained.
Chen Zhou frowned. “Why didn’t you dodge?”
The little gecko struggled to open his eyes, glancing at Chen Zhou. His burnt, congealed mouth moved, trying to say something, but only a series of wheezing sounds escaped his throat.
Chen Zhou roughly pried open his mouth, tearing away large patches of carbonized flesh, then shoved a third-stage Flesh-Reconstitution Pill into his mouth.
The pill melted instantly, and a warm energy rushed through his body. The little gecko shuddered, his charred wounds slowly began to heal, and his breathing stabilized slightly.
He caught his breath, his mouth healing somewhat. Looking at Chen Zhou, he whispered, “Adult… I… I couldn’t dodge…”
Chen Zhou looked at him, remaining silent.
The little gecko felt uneasy under his gaze, his eyes darting away, not daring to meet his stare.
Chen Zhou spoke plainly, “Tell me the truth.”
The little gecko stiffened.
He was silent for a few breaths, then whispered, “I… I was afraid if I dodged, the flames would burn the adult.”
Chen Zhou raised an eyebrow. “Just because of that?”
The little gecko nodded, then quickly shook his head. “N-Not entirely.”
“I was just thinking, the adult is so good to us little demons… giving us such precious food… and even said… we don’t need to be sacrifices…”
“I don’t have much ability, and I can’t help much.”
“But I often heard Dingding talk about Duke Martial’s stories.”
“Dingding said Duke Martial was like that too, even though he was one of the most powerful people in Tianchi Province, he was exceptionally kind to his subordinates.”
“That’s why so many people were willing to shield him from blades and die for him, so…”
He stammered, trying to explain, but the more anxious he got, the less clear he became. Finally, he mumbled, lowering his head, swallowing his last words.
Chen Zhou looked at him in this state, then suddenly reached out and patted him on the head.
“Die? What die? Just a mere fatal wound.”
“It’s just some food, not some rare item. What I bestow upon you, you simply accept.”
“Just a tiny flame, it can’t harm me. It’s not your place, little demon, to exchange your life for it.”
The little gecko opened his mouth, still wanting to say something, but Chen Zhou immediately shoved a few more pills into it.
“Heal up properly.”
With that, Chen Zhou turned around and looked at the battlefield.
After the skeleton ghost servants joined, the pressure on Jian Huaishuang’s side greatly diminished.
Countless bones surged from all directions towards the red giant tail. Bone blades and bone swords rained down like a torrent, each strike leaving a shallow, grayish-white mark on its body.
The paper people were even more boisterous, regenerating in batches from the ashes, some clinging to its legs, some pulling at its tail tip, some even biting it with their mouths.
“Brothers, push harder! This thing is almost done for!”
The giant tail struggled frantically, flinging flames wildly, but it was already beyond saving.
Its body was covered in too many deep wounds, and the grayish-white toxins were corroding every inch of its flesh.
The flames grew weaker and dimmer.
Chen Zhou sensed that the accumulated toxins had reached a terrifying amount.
He focused his mind.
Venom Burst.
Boom—
The red giant tail shuddered violently. The accumulated toxins instantly detonated, exploding it from the inside out, shattering it to pieces.
Its translucent body burst into countless fragments that scattered, then quickly dissipated, sinking into the crack.
Both giant tails had vanished.
The faint blue light in the crack gradually dimmed, and the trembling of the ground slowly ceased.
Only some scattered, tiny phosphorescent lights drifted in the air, slowly fading away.
After the phosphorescence disappeared, Chen Zhou noticed two new objects on the wooden platform.
Two stone carvings.
They were palm-sized, entirely grayish-white, and rough-surfaced, looking just like two ordinary stones.
The paper people, sharp-eyed, immediately discovered them and chattered as they crowded around.
“Huh? What’s this?”
“Pick it up and see!”
Several paper people reached out to take them. The moment the stone carvings touched their hands, they transformed.
The grayish-white stone surfaces began to twist and fold, as if pulled by some force, rapidly turning into two thin pieces of folded paper.
The folded paper was very light and thin, with sharp edges, floating lightly in the paper people’s hands.
“Oh my god, it turned into paper!”
“You broke it! I’m telling you, you’re in big trouble, the adult definitely won’t let you off!”
“Boss, here!”
The paper person holding the folded paper was terrified and quickly handed the items to Jian Huaishuang.
Jian Huaishuang took them and squeezed them.
Very light, very thin, indeed the texture of paper.
He sensed them; there was no aura, no spiritual power fluctuations, no death qi reaction—just ordinary folded paper.
Jian Huaishuang frowned, walked to Chen Zhou’s side, and handed him the folded paper.
“Adult, there’s something strange about this.”
Chen Zhou took them. They were very light in his hand, indeed feeling like paper.
But the next second, as the folded paper was tainted by Chen Zhou’s death qi, it began to transform again.
The folded paper started to shrink, harden, and thicken. In an instant, the two pieces of folded paper turned into two smooth bone carvings.
He looked down. Both bone carvings were elongated, but their forms were different.
One resembled a jiao, with two horns on its head, one long and one short, the longer one broken in half. Its body coiled, with fine, lifelike scales.
The other resembled a snake, slender all over, without horns or scales, its surface smooth, with only a few faint patterns.
Chen Zhou sensed them.
Indeed, there was no aura, just like two ordinary crafts.
But the more ordinary they seemed, the more it indicated they were not simple.
Chen Zhou examined them repeatedly, then suddenly remembered something.
He looked up at the seven stone pillars surrounding the wooden platform.
The stone pillars were carved with different patterns: jiao, racoon dog, fox, tiger, leopard, rabbit, and dragon.
Chen Zhou held the jiao-like bone carving and walked to the stone pillar carved with the jiao pattern, comparing them carefully.
They were very similar.
Both were jiao, with two horns on their heads, coiled bodies, and fine scales.
But there were some differences in detail.
The jiao on the stone pillar had complete horns and an imposing aura, in a posture of soaring through clouds.
The jiao on the bone carving had one long and one short horn, the longer one broken in half, and its coiled posture was slightly different, looking… like it was struggling.
Chen Zhou then looked at the other snake-like bone carving.
He searched all seven stone pillars but found no corresponding pattern.
Chen Zhou toyed with the two bone carvings, and soon, the system gave a prompt.
【You have obtained two: ??? (unactivated)】
What exactly are these things, and how are they activated?
Chen Zhou thoughtfully examined the seven stone pillars.
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