Chapter 12: My Name is Ryanus

Mongge felt as though an invisible iron fist had slammed brutally into his chest; all twenty-seven of his ribs emitted a crisp cracking sound simultaneously.

"Psionic power?!" Mongge froze for a moment.

But he quickly regained his senses, enduring the pain as he swung the dagger in his hand, which was stained with rotting blood.

A stream of bubbling, bloody fluid sprayed from the dagger, shooting toward the man with the stern expression.

However, the man's figure suddenly vanished from the spot; the bloody fluid missed its target, splashing against a nearby pipe instead.

The metal pipe was instantly corroded with numerous small pits, emitting wisps of white smoke.

The man's figure suddenly appeared behind Mongge.

Mongge bit his tongue until it burst, instantly filling his mouth with blood.

He spun around fiercely and spat a mouthful of blood at the man.

The mechanical hand atop the man's head transformed into a palm.

In an instant, it seemed as though an invisible wall had erected itself before the man, blocking that corrosive spray of blood.

"Where in the Underhive did such a powerful psionic user like you emerge from?" Mongge asked in a deep, calm voice.

Yet the man remained silent; instead, the hat atop his head pointed at Mongge once more.

Mongge hurriedly rolled away, only to see a half-meter-wide fissure crack open in the ground beside him.

It was as if an invisible heavy hammer had smashed it into existence.

Blood filled Mongge's eyes as he realized the opponent's strength was formidable.

He spat out a bit of the blood in his mouth to moisten his lips.

"Defile my blood, let flies dance."

"An itching hard to bear, feed the maggots with blood."

Mongge murmured several short phrases under his breath; a layer of fine foam rose from the blood flowing on the ground, as if countless tiny maggots were churning within it.

"Wait, Mongge, stop!"

Maliket's rebuke rang out as he positioned himself between the stern-faced man and Mongge.

"We bear no malice!" Maliket said to the man before him.

Zhou Yun looked at the tall hooded man before him, then glanced at Mongge, who was gripping the blood-stained dagger tightly.

No way, buddy, you call this "no malice"?

I'm minding my own business and haven't done a thing, yet this guy with the dagger charges at me like he's responding to an emergency.

What? Does my handsome face look that terrifying?

Do you have an issue with my majestic lion's face, so full of righteousness?

Besides, what decent person has corrosive blood?

Zhou Yun glanced at the bubbling blood on the ground; if that stuff landed on a person, it would at least strip off a layer of skin.

These two are definitely cultists.

"My name is Maliket; this is my younger brother, Mongge. We are... scavengers, yes, scavengers."

Seeming to notice the thick distrust in Zhou Yun's eyes, the tall hooded man calling himself Maliket hurriedly explained:

"We came here to look for anything valuable. Mongge must have mistaken you for a gang member patrolling the area, which is why he attacked you suddenly."

"I apologize on his behalf."

"Brother." Mongge lifted his head, appearing somewhat dissatisfied.

But Maliket shook his head fiercely at him.

So they mistook me for a gang member. Zhou Yun scrutinized the two with lingering suspicion.

He recalled the card drawn by the winged figure within the Bai Guang earlier: the Emperor Tarot.

But since avoiding trouble is better than inviting it, Zhou Yun waved his hand, indicating the matter could be let go.

Although that thing on his head had granted him powerful supernatural abilities, the toll it took on his stamina was equally immense.

If a real fight broke out, who knew whether these two hooded men would pull out some Nurgle spells?

"Mr., you appear to be a psionic user?" Maliket called out to Zhou Yun, who had turned to leave.

Zhou Yun glanced at Maliket but did not answer his question.

He had absolutely no desire to waste time on them; not only was it dangerous,

but Old District 8 was once a major sector of the Upper Hive, vast in area and with an internal structure as complex as a maze.

Moreover, numerous gang members were patrolling the surroundings, so finding the PDF's base within it would not be easy.

He did not want to delay.

"No, I bear no malice."

Maliket chuckled softly and spoke in a gentle tone:

"I merely wished to say that we might all be rather unwelcome individuals here."

"Why can't we engage in some cooperation?"

He patted Mongge on the back and said, "You saw it yourself; my brother's blood is corrosive... I possess similar abilities. We relied on this to corrode a hole through the ground and dig our way down here."

"And you? How did you manage it? Your psionic power seems to allow you to teleport instantly..."

Maliket paused, then pointed at the ground and said:

"We discovered a PDF outpost down below, but it is covered by massive amounts of rubble; no one can get in."

"But with your instant teleportation ability, perhaps... you could take us inside?"

"..." Zhou Yun stopped in his tracks and looked at Maliket: "You said a PDF outpost?"

"Of course, we can cooperate—"

Before Maliket could finish, Zhou Yun shook his head, turned around again, and departed.

"Wait."

Margit tried once more to call out to Zhou Yun:

"More than lies, tricks, and deceit, I trust tradition, inevitability, and love like family."

"I spoke no lies just now; I can take you to see the location of that PDF outpost."

Zhou Yun frowned slightly.

Indeed, these two were clearly cultists,

but cultists differ; cultists who worship the Lord of Change often favor lies and deceit,

but cultists who worship the Kind Father can sometimes be sincere, simple, and show trust like family,

though the Kind Father's followers remain dangerous, at least their probability of lying is far lower than that of certain followers of the Lord of Change.

With the teleportation and arbitrary ring granted by the Superpower Hat on his head, even if danger arose, his chances of escaping were still great,

and also

Zhou Yun remembered the omen of that Emperor Tarot card: a cooperation requiring patience and communication.

The Emperor Tarot card is said to be linked to the will of Hua Di Huang himself.

"Emperor, this is you making me cooperate with a heretic; don't blame me."

Zhou Yun muttered softly.

"I can help you enter the PDF outpost."

He glanced back at the two behind him and said with some wariness:

"Take me there."

"I am glad we can trust each other," Margit said in a gentle voice. "Please believe me; everything we do benefits everyone."

"I am not interested in what you wish to do; I guess you are also not interested in the weapons in the PDF warehouse."

Zhou Yun shook his head and said to Margit:

"You take what you want; I take the weapons. That's all."

"Of course."

Margit smiled gently, his temper so good it was chilling:

"As a symbol of our mutual trust, may I know your name?"

"Name?" Zhou Yun frowned.

"Yes, name," Margit smiled. "As partners, we should at least know each other's names, right?"

Zhou Yun nodded and said, "Very well."

"You may call me... Ryan Ruth."

(End of this chapter)