Gates of the Myriad Realms Chapter 574
byA person.
Walking in a long, deserted tunnel.
—His whole body was covered with brains.
The brains squirmed continuously, and skinless, bloody muscles tightly bound them, preventing them from falling off.
Multiple Brain River!
It finally found the passage Châtelet had left behind.
In an instant.
Its voice echoed in the stillness:
“We—”
“Have read some fragments of your memory.”
“There’s a ballad among them, which we can dedicate to you.”
A whistling sound began.
All these brains vibrated together, producing a whistling sound that drifted through the tunnel.
The humanoid monster whistled and skipped forward.
After whistling, it loudly sang a ballad:
“Search, search, search for a friend, found a good friend, bow, shake hands, you are my good friend!”
After singing a section, it found it extremely amusing and burst into laughter.
But soon—
Its laughter ceased abruptly.
Ahead.
At the end of the tunnel.
Two dazzling sword gleams formed a cross, and a person was nailed to it.
Augustus.
He closed his eyes and, along with the cross, floated in mid-air.
Multiple Brain River watched this scene from afar, pondered for a moment, then suddenly clapped its hands.
“A work of art.”
“To be able to create such a masterpiece and trap an enemy far stronger than oneself, what a brilliant mind.”
“I desire you even more now.”
Multiple Brain River tiptoed, quietly approaching Augustus.
It cautiously circled Augustus and the cross-shaped sword light behind him.
“Is this a gift for me?”
“A gift—is it to thank me because I allowed you to join; or is it to reject me because you have a reason to leave?”
Multiple Brain River’s body “opened up.”
Its whole body’s muscles spread open, like an “octopus” mixed with flesh and brains, attempting to envelop Augustus entirely.
But this process only lasted for a few seconds.
It then retracted its muscles.
“No…”
“How can such a work of art be swallowed whole?”
“I should savor it carefully.”
It extended a finger and gently pressed it against Augustus’s chest.
In an instant.
Multiple Brain River was gone.
…
Augustus had the day off today.
Uncle Cheng even uncharacteristically gave him three copper coins.
This was unprecedented.
After all, in the past, no matter how hard he worked from morning till night, Uncle Cheng only provided food.
Only at the end of the month would he give one or two copper coins.
In the past.
Augustus would have been very grateful.
But now.
He only wanted to kill the other person.
“One copper coin is enough for a meal at a restaurant, fish head soaked rice until you’re full—go, little fish catcher, go have a good meal, and come back for me on time tomorrow.”
Uncle Cheng said, waving his hand to dismiss him from the boat.
Two hours later.
Augustus was already sitting in “Zhang’s Noodle Shop” in the county town, devouring a bowl of noodles.
He took a sip of crab roe noodle soup, then bit into an oyster pancake, then picked up a chopstick full of noodles, slurped it quickly, and ate it.
The ancients said that on the morning of a condemned prisoner’s execution, they would definitely be given a good meal.
—Today was the best meal Augustus had ever eaten in his life.
So, next.
If he had to kill and fight for his life—
He would have no regrets.
Augustus ate heartily, when suddenly a mumbling voice reached his ear:
“One knife technique… no, more than one, there should be at least two, even three.”
“Fused.”
“Raised to a higher level.”
“This soul is sealed within a mortal body, unable to be its own master, only swayed by the mortal body’s eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind, gradually led towards a predetermined destiny.”
“Thus, life is cut away, slice by slice, yet the soul remains ignorant.”
“A work of art, indeed a work of art.”
Augustus turned his head to look.
He saw that at some unknown point, a blind old man had taken a seat beside him.
The old man gazed at him with great interest.
A blind man.
Why are you looking at me?
Augustus’s mouth moved, about to speak, but a thought arose in his mind:
“The county town is not like the countryside; there are all sorts of people. Why should I stir up trouble?”
With that thought settled.
He lowered his head and continued to eat his noodles.
Just then.
The shop assistant tried to shoo the blind old man out.
But the old blind man looked at Augustus and said, “Young man, give me a copper coin, and I can also have a bowl of noodles, won’t you?”
“My money, why should I give it to you?” Augustus asked coldly.
“Oh, just help an old man. I’ll tell your fortune, guarantee you’ll turn bad luck into good, and everything will go smoothly.”
The old blind man said.
Augustus remained silent, bowing his head to continue eating his noodles.
The old blind man then went to beg others.
No one paid him any attention.
The noodle shop assistant shouted:
“You old man, you’re clearly a swindler, what are you doing lingering in the shop? Hurry up and leave!”
“Young man, do you want a fortune reading? A bowl of noodles will do as payment.” The old blind man said.
“Scram!”
The old blind man was kicked out.
He lay on the ground for a while, then suddenly sat up, sighing:
“The knife technique is good, it’s just a bit rude.”
Augustus heard these words, and for some reason, certain thoughts stirred in his mind, but they quickly vanished.
Then, a man in a white robe walked out and helped the old blind man up, leading him back to a seat in the noodle shop.
“Elder, please enlighten me.”
The white-robed man said.
—The man in white was a scholar.
Since he had helped the old blind man back to his seat, the assistant dared not say anything more.
Even the others lowered their heads and silently ate their meals.
“For a divination, a bowl of noodles, or a copper coin.”
The old blind man grumbled.
“Easy enough.” The white-robed man placed a copper coin in front of the old blind man.
The old blind man picked up the copper coin, examined it closely, and sighed:
“This elusive thing, yet it controls the topsy-turvy dreamscape, truly remarkable.”
Augustus’s expression was somewhat bewildered.
Money is the most powerful thing in the world, determining everyone’s fate.
Why is it an elusive thing again?
“Elder, please tell my fortune,” the white-robed man began.
“What do you wish to know?” the old blind man asked.
“Please divine what I wish to know,” the white-robed man bowed.
“Oh? That simple?” The old blind man was somewhat surprised.
“Please do,” the white-robed man said respectfully.
Augustus’ chopsticks paused, and his eyes showed admiration.
—Scholars are truly remarkable.
He seemed respectful, and his actions left no room for complaint, yet his actual purpose was to expose the other party’s deceit in person.
No wonder everyone feared scholars.
It was a pity his family had no money.
Otherwise, he could also study.
He was lost in thought when he heard the old blind man speak:
“You want to know if the widow next door, whose husband died, will crawl through the dog hole tonight to be with you, since you bought her a golden hairpin last time, which cost quite a bit of silver.”
The white-robed man’s face changed.
“Of course, I was joking,” the old blind man changed his tone, smiling, and said, “Congratulations, you have achieved success in the imperial examination this year.”
“The results will be posted in half an hour; you are ranked fourth in the first class.”
“Your name is Zhang Xuedi!”
“—This name seems a bit haphazard, but it doesn’t hinder the overall narrative of the world.”
After saying this, the old blind man flicked the copper coin with his finger.
The copper coin landed on Augustus’s table.
“It’s yours, kid.”
The old blind man said.
Everyone looked at Augustus.
The old blind man, however, observed the crowd, noting their jealous, confused, or fierce expressions, and exclaimed, “Excellent, each person is unaware, dedicating their lives to act out a play.”
“—I even want to learn this knife technique.”
Augustus stopped eating his noodles, stood up, placed the copper coin back in front of the old blind man, and quickly walked out of the noodle shop.
He walked faster and faster, turning three or five times through the alleys until he reached another street.
Seeing the people around him hurrying by, none paying him any mind.
He finally breathed a sigh of relief.
That old blind man had been constantly observing him.
He was crazy.
—Perhaps the old blind man and the man in white were in cahoots, performing an act to lure people in.
He had heard of such things before.
Some people believed it and were swindled out of large sums of money.
He absolutely could not fall for it!
Augustus composed himself and pushed the matter to the back of his mind.
Following his memory, he asked a few more people along the way, and finally arrived outside the county yamen.
He saw that proclamations were indeed posted outside.
Augustus read them one by one, then suddenly shuddered.
On one proclamation, he saw a portrait.
Looking at the figure’s portrait and characteristics—
It was indeed the sunken corpse!
He hastily looked at the small print below the portrait.
Although he wasn’t very literate, the text on this proclamation was easy to understand.
“One hundred taels of silver offered for information on this person’s whereabouts.”
One hundred taels!
Silver!
Augustus swayed for a few moments, barely managing to keep his footing.
He hadn’t eaten pork, but he had at least seen pigs running around.
He knew, of course, that one tael of silver could be exchanged for a thousand copper coins.
Silver ingots were official silver, of the highest purity.
When exchanged for copper coins, one tael of silver could be exchanged for fourteen to fifteen hundred copper coins.
But!
This proclamation was offering a reward of one hundred taels of silver.
One hundred taels of silver!!!
How many copper coins could that be exchanged for?
No.
He couldn’t calculate it at all.
But just imagining it, one could tell it was a mountain of copper coins.
A mountain of money…
Augustus stood frozen, unconsciously reaching into his pocket.
The two copper coins in his pocket had been fingered countless times, soaked with sweat, slippery, just like the beads of sweat on his face now.
The next instant.
Augustus clenched the two copper coins fiercely, his fingers turning white.
For this money, Uncle Cheng killed him.
Yes.
He was just a fish catcher.
A worthless life.
Dying at sea would only elicit others saying, “It was his fate.”
No one would care about the truth.
Apart from his bedridden father at home, no one would grieve for him.
A fire suddenly surged from deep within his body.
This fire was uncontrollable, instantly filling his mind and transforming into a single thought:
“Kill them.”
Kill.
Kill Uncle Cheng and his henchmen.
—For hundreds of miles around, people of all ages who made their living at sea.
Only Uncle Cheng’s boat dared to go to Xihu Reef.
Only Uncle Cheng’s men regularly salvaged corpses at sea.
Only—
They and he could retrieve that corpse.
Kill them.
Not only would it avenge him, but he could also pocket all the money!
They all had to die!!!
A voice suddenly echoed in his ear:
“This body of yours is truly well-arranged—the liver and kidney meridians flow through twenty-six acupoints, raising the fire of anger above, and stirring the wind of ignorance below. Once the intent to kill arises, even deities cannot dissuade it—a work of art, truly a work of art!”
Augustus was startled.
He turned his head to look, only to see the old blind man he had encountered in the noodle shop.
“You’re following me!”
Augustus reached for the dagger hidden behind his back.
The old blind man quickly jumped back and said, “Hold on—look at where we are.”
He pointed around.
Augustus immediately calmed down.
That’s right.
This was the yamen.
What would it mean for him to kill a fortune-teller here?
Seeking death?
“Elder—”
Augustus reached into his pocket, wanting to pull out a copper coin to dismiss him, but he fumbled repeatedly, still reluctant to take out the copper coin.
“Can you please stop following me? I’m begging you.”
He said.
“Sure,” the old blind man said with a smile, “as long as you think of me when you die, I won’t follow you now.”
“Die?” Augustus repeated.
“Indeed, I’m looking for someone, but that person is very well hidden. I’ll only have a chance to find him when you die,” the old blind man said.
“What do you mean?” Augustus asked, eyes wide.
“Cats eat mice, and I eat cats—”
“No, that’s not quite right. I want to know the whereabouts of that cat.” The old blind man said solemnly.
Augustus was stunned for a moment.
Eat cats?
Crazy.
No one in the world eats cats.
Although everyone was poor, no one ate cats.
Yes.
This guy must be a lunatic.
The best way to deal with a lunatic is to humor him, then get as far away from him as possible.
“All right, I promise you.”
Augustus said.
“It’s a deal?” The old blind man asked.
“It’s a deal.” Augustus said.
The old blind man immediately became elated, gesticulating wildly and saying:
“Good! Very good!”
“Since you’re so sensible, I’ll give you some pointers.”
“Speak,” Augustus stepped back, avoiding his spitting.
“The person you want to deal with has also come to the county town. He’s playing dice at the Silver Hook Gambling House. If you want to get things done, go there; you won’t go wrong.”
Augustus was stunned again.
How did he know—
“Don’t ask—you humans have a saying, ‘await good news,’ so I shall temporarily retreat, appreciating the knife technique while awaiting your news.”
“Remember to think of me when you die.”
With that, he whistled and headed to the other side of the street.
Soon, he was out of sight.
Augustus withdrew his gaze, deep in thought.
Was this old man merely putting on an act, or did he genuinely possess some discerning ability?
…unclear.
But he truly needed to find a place to rest and think about his next steps.
Having hurried to the county town today, and then needing to rush back, he would be very tired.
He had to rest well to have the strength to kill!
Augustus retracted his gaze, chose the opposite direction, and slowly walked along the street.
Where to rest?
Under the cool shade of the bridge.
Perhaps he’d just squat under the bridge for a while.
He was pondering when he suddenly heard a burst of firecrackers from the street behind him.
People swarmed towards the entrance of the county yamen.
What’s wrong?
Augustus turned back in bewilderment.
“The results are posted!”
“Look, look!”
“—Who are the new successful candidates?”
Posting results…
That had nothing to do with him.
No money for books.
Augustus turned to leave, but was swept along by the crowd, unable to break free for a while.
He saw a sea of people in front of the yamen.
Someone shouted loudly:
“First place, Wu Jingyan; second place…”
The crowd was listening.
Augustus, however, was quite troubled, as he could barely move at this point.
Suddenly.
That voice thundered in his ear like a spring storm:
“Fourth place, Zhang Xuedi.”
Augustus’ heart seemed to flash with something, and a shiver ran through him.
No!
That old blind man—
How could he have predicted that the man in white would be fourth in the imperial examinations before the results were even posted?
This was no laughing matter.
Those who cheated in the jianghu, while they could fool others, would never dare to mess with scholars.
Especially the imperial examinations!
So, he was not in cahoots with that white-robed man.
He was truly a fortune teller.
The old blind man’s words echoed in his ears again:
“The person you want to deal with has also come to the county town. He’s playing dice at the Silver Hook Gambling House. If you want to get things done, go there; you won’t go wrong.”
Silver Hook Gambling House.
Augustus silently repeated the name.
The gambling house was bustling, crowded.
If he caught Uncle Cheng gambling there and stabbed him in the back, he’d probably die before he could react.
After all, in a direct confrontation, he definitely wasn’t a match for Uncle Cheng and his subordinates.
This was his chance!
Silver Hook Gambling House…
He seemed to recall seeing that sign just one street away.
Anyway.
Go take a look!
Augustus struggled to squeeze out of the crowd.
Fifteen minutes later.
The Silver Hook Gambling House.
It was boisterous, packed with people.
“Place your bets, place your bets!”
“No more bets, hurry up!”
“Uncover it—it’s about to be uncovered—”
Amidst the clamor, Augustus, relying on his small stature and agile movements, squeezed through the crowd.
Playing dice…
He finally managed to push through the Pai Gow tables and immediately saw the person sitting at another table, shaking the dice.
It wasn’t Uncle Cheng!
So the old blind man was a liar.
Augustus had just breathed a sigh of relief when he heard a familiar voice:
“I’m betting big this time!”
Uncle Cheng!
Augustus was stunned.
Should he kill him?
For some reason, the image of Uncle Cheng stabbing him with a harpoon immediately flashed in his mind.
A burning fire, as if inextinguishable, swelled within his body.
…Bastard.
You traded my life for a mountain of money.
Uncle Cheng, why don’t you go to hell?
And you have the audacity to gamble here, I’ll let you gamble, I’ll let you gamble, I’ll let you die!
Augustus silently lowered his head, squeezed through the gaps in the crowd, pulled out his dagger, and at the moment the dealer uncovered the dice cup—
The dagger plunged into the broad back.
“Ah!”
Uncle Cheng cried out.
All the surrounding gamblers cried out.
“We won! Haha!”
“Damn it, it’s small again!”
“My money!”
A cacophony of sound erupted from the crowd.
Augustus stared blankly at the broad back, feeling as if he could still stab a few more times.
Only one more stab could quell the fire in his heart.
One stab.
One stab.
www.ttkʌn.c〇
One stab.
The man fell down.
He turned and pushed his way out of the crowd.
“You killed Uncle Cheng!”
Someone shouted.
Augustus looked up, only to see Uncle Cheng’s thug beside him.
Damn it!
This guy was very strong.
Augustus frantically tried to dodge, but the opponent grabbed him, then twisted his neck.
Excruciating pain struck.
He couldn’t breathe.
Screams, wails, and the crash of overturned chairs merged into a single sound.
Everything came to an abrupt halt, falling silent.
Darkness.
Darkness.
Darkness.
—Am I dead?
No.
There was something else I forgot.
What is it?
Someone wanted me to think of him.
Who is it?
It’s—
“Hahahahaha!”
Thousands of eerie voices rang in his ears, shouting excitedly:
“I found you, my good friend!”
Immediately after.
A man’s sigh sounded:
“Why bother? I thought we could part ways gracefully.”
The countless voices suddenly showed some surprise:
“You—”
“What is this?”
The man from before lazily said:
“I finally absorbed a bit more power, just enough for this next strike.”
“In fact, I didn’t want to make this strike.”
“Friend.”
Darkness.
Sound vanished.
Everything vanished.
Augustus suddenly opened his eyes.
He found himself sitting in the county noodle shop, holding a half-eaten oyster cake in his left hand, and a steaming bowl of crab roe noodles in front of him.
The aroma was intoxicating.
Looking again.
The noodle shop was full of people.
A blind old man sat beside him, gazing at him dazedly.
Reborn!
I knew I could be reborn!
This is my trump card!
Augustus’s heart settled, and a confident smile appeared on his face.
If he could be reborn indefinitely—
Who would still fear Uncle Cheng?
That said, he should have just slit his throat and left earlier.
There was no need to stab so many times.
Also—
Just now.
Something seemed to have happened after he died.
But it was already very blurry.
Augustus shook his head.
—No need to care about that, after all, that’s a matter of the underworld.
The important thing is—
I came back to life.
More importantly—
He looked at the old blind man, gave a light cough, and said respectfully:
“Elder, how about I treat you to a bowl of noodles?”
The old blind man slowly turned his head, looked at him, and after a moment, uttered a sentence:
“You’re almost out of life, and you still have the mood to eat noodles?”
“Waiter—another bowl of crab roe noodles! And please, Elder, enlighten me, I am very sincere.”
Augustus called out, speaking respectfully again.
The old blind man’s mouth twitched.
“Enlighten…”
“Enlighten your mother, I got caught up in it this time too.”
“Who the hell came up with this knife technique?”
“This is absolutely insane.”
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