[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-survival-guide-in-a-mysterious-world":3,"chapter-survival-guide-in-a-mysterious-world-survival-guide-in-a-mysterious-world-chapter-348":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Survival Guide in a Mysterious World",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2299317,4497,"Chapter 348: The God Who Wields Serpents","survival-guide-in-a-mysterious-world-chapter-348",348,"\u003Cp>“From the tone of the two of you, you’re here to accuse an old man like me?” Ji Boying showed no sign of panic, slowly sipping his tea, the sound of it drawn into his mouth echoing like slurping noodles.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xia Yubing furrowed his brow, sneaking a glance at the tea set before him—the leaves in the bowl were tender, emerald green, slender and delicate as a maiden’s freshly drawn eyebrows.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This old bastard really likes his young tea,” Xia Yubing thought to himself, forming a poor first impression of the old man.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ji Boying had just used a tea-tasting technique called “sipping method,” drawing air in to mist the tea beneath his tongue, rapidly cooling it while increasing its contact area with taste buds, allowing better appreciation of aroma, flavor, and texture layers—a method commonly used by professionals to grade tea leaves, also favored by connoisseurs with high standards for the drinking experience.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the sipping method had its drawbacks—first and foremost, the loud, gurgling noise made while holding tea in the mouth was highly uncouth, like an old Beijing man slurping stir-fried offal, earning it another nickname: “pig rooting.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Xia Yubing learned etiquette at home, his aunt had warned him: the sipping method should only be used when drinking tea alone; never when entertaining guests, for while you might enjoy it, others would find it offensive, and those unfamiliar with tea might think you were deliberately disgusting them—easily earning you a seat with children who smack their lips while eating.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unlike the refined ladies raised with books and manners, Ji Boying had no such reservations—he drank purely for his own pleasure, utterly indifferent to the strange glances around him, as if he might as well say, “My brother already did all my life’s work when he rode the God of Wealth—why bother with effort now?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This man’s personality is utterly self-centered, with none of the groveling humility seen in Liu Hongwen or Shen Qing,” Xia Yubing’s eyes flickered with curiosity: “To act so brazenly while living under another’s roof requires considerable leverage.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What had Ji Boying left his younger brother?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It’s not about accusing you,” Bei Dang shook his head. “If casualties had occurred during the hunt for Lan Shiwen, no matter how many died, I wouldn’t say a word—dying in battle is the noble’s honor; we all accept the duty to sacrifice for our families.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this situation is different—our losses have already begun before the hunt even started, and they’re inexplicable. Warriors may die by open spear, but not by hidden arrows. We demand an explanation.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was another half-sentence Bei Dang didn’t voice—after entering the opera house, his memory had been mysteriously erased by some unknown force. That was what truly unsettled him, but he could never tell these outsiders from Jiuzhou.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I agree with your point,” Ji Boying set down his teacup and exhaled slowly. “But there’s a misconception I must correct you on, sir—this hunt began long ago. From the moment you agreed to join me against Lan Shiwen, today’s outcome was already sealed.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone present was no fool—they immediately understood his meaning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You mean Lan Shiwen foresaw our actions?” Bei Dang frowned, incredulous. “You mean he’s deep within Jiuzhou’s interior, yet can foresee what we’re doing on the Apennine Peninsula?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Does he possess such power—to erase threats still in their infancy, across the vast distance spanning Eurasia?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ji Boying calmly poured himself another cup of tea: “...Why not?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The hunter who covets tiger bones must be ready to have his spine snapped by the tiger; the fisherman who hunts sharks must accept drowning in their bellies. There’s no such thing as a free lunch. The moment you knew Lan Shiwen could foresee the future and still resolved to kill him, today’s events were inevitable.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bei Dang clicked his tongue, leaning back against the sofa. Mei Lin remained seated, head bowed, silent. Shen Qing’s face was grim.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Hongwen’s shoulders trembled involuntarily. If anyone here feared Lan Shiwen most, it was unquestionably him. The Liu family of Yunzhou, within five degrees of kinship, numbered 3,527 souls—3,526 had been slaughtered: elderly grandparents, infants still nursing, his vigorous father, his teenage niece…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Hongwen had watched his own kin die one by one beneath Lan Shiwen’s claws. This man was devoid of compassion, utterly evil. His once-prosperous family had been wiped out in a single night, leaving an indelible shadow in his heart. All because, back in Yun Capital, his father had simply asked the “Plague God” to stay a little longer in his grandfather’s hospital room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Hongwen didn’t understand—wasn’t it natural to hope your loved ones lived? And the Liu family was never unreasonable; his father never sought to permanently monopolize the Plague God—he only wished the Plague God would remain a little longer in his grandfather’s room. Once the medical team arrived in Yun Capital, Lan Shiwen could take the Plague God away—Liu would never object.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet even this humble request earned him Lan Shiwen’s bloody massacre.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fuck, how evil is Lan Shiwen?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mr. Astal Di ,” Shen Qing hesitated, testing the waters: “If what Master Ji says is true—if what happened in Vivi’an Port was indeed Lan Shiwen’s doing, then…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before he could finish, a thunderous crash erupted at the door, startling everyone in the room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Hongwen, already seething with resentment, reacted like a startled cat—his face flushed red, he roared: “Fuck! Didn’t I say no one is to enter under any circumstances?! Are you all deaf, or do I need to teach you obedience with a gun?! I—”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But his voice gradually faded, his flushed face paled, the fury on his face replaced by a fearful, sycophantic grin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lan Shiwen entered, left hand holding a broken blade, right hand gripping a pistol, kicking the door open with a single foot.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mr. Lan, I—”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bang—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Shen Qing opened his mouth to speak, a bullet was fired straight into his mouth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Simultaneously, a pale, dead human skull emerged silently from the shadows in the corner, its neck trailing a long, winding spine like a snake that slithered onto Shen Qing’s fat corpse and bit down, yellowish-white fat smeared across its jaws—the scent of blood thickened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bang—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Another bullet struck Liu Hongwen squarely in the forehead. He collapsed without a cry. Dozens of pale, bloody human bones, shaped like serpents, slithered from the shadows, crawling across the entire floor—everywhere visible was a blinding white.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lan Shiwen held the broken blade horizontally before him, bowed politely to the few remaining people in the room. The butterfly on his shoulder spread its wings, glowing with an icy blue beauty under the light.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I am Lan Shiwen. It is an honor to meet you all.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1125,"2026-06-20T06:29:22.815Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","51bbc3fb6829b4b885680030651c9a3708c52d00a8540da77440365de5c7054a","survival-guide-in-a-mysterious-world-chapter-349","survival-guide-in-a-mysterious-world-chapter-347",353,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fsurvival-guide-in-a-mysterious-world-cover.jpg"]