Chapter 510: The Abyss

On Monday, Li Li Xuewu was awakened by the relentless crowing of a rooster stretching its neck.

"Bang Geng! Can't you feed it a little later!"

Li Li Xuewu shouted out the window; Bang Geng must have opened the chicken coop door early.

That arrogant fellow, relying on being under Manager Jia...

"I am a failure, barely noticing whether the sunshine is brilliant or not, because I have no time.

"My parents cannot support me, my education is not high, and I wander alone in the city seeking a future.

"I applied for many jobs but was never hired; perhaps no one likes someone who is bad at speaking, dislikes socializing, and has not shown sufficient ability.

To read the latest chapter content, please download it for ad-free reading; the website no longer updates the latest chapter content, which is now updated on the Xingwen Reading APP.

"I ate only two loaves of bread over three full days; hunger kept me awake at night, but fortunately, I had paid a month's rent in advance, so I could continue living in that dark basement without going outside to endure the abnormally cold winter wind.

"Finally, I found a job: keeping night watch at a hospital, guarding the morgue.

"The hospital nights were colder than I imagined; the corridor wall lamps were not lit, everything was dim, and I could only rely on the faint light seeping out from the rooms to see where I was stepping.

"The smell there was terrible; from time to time, the dead were stuffed into body bags and delivered, and we assisted in carrying them into the morgue.

"This was not a good job, but at least it allowed me to afford bread, and the idle time at night could be used for study; after all, few people are willing to come to the morgue unless a corpse needs to be delivered or transported for cremation, and of course, I did not yet have enough money to buy books, nor could I see any hope of saving up.

"I must thank my former colleague; if he had not suddenly resigned, I might not even have obtained such a job.

"I dreamed of rotating to day shifts; now I always sleep when the sun rises and wake when night falls, making my body somewhat weak, and my head occasionally throbs with pain.

"One day, the porters delivered a new corpse.

"I heard from others that this was my former colleague who had suddenly resigned.

"Curious about him, after everyone else had left, I pulled out the cabinet drawer and quietly opened the body bag.

"He was an old man, his face greenish-white and covered in wrinkles, looking very frightening under the extremely dim light.

"He did not have much hair, most of it white, and all his clothes had been stripped off, not even a scrap of fabric left on him.

The website content updates slowly; please download to read the latest chapter content.

"I saw a strange mark on his chest, greenish-black in color; I could not describe its exact appearance, as the lighting at the time was truly too dim.

"I reached out and touched that mark; there was nothing special about it.

"Looking at this former colleague, I wondered: if I continue like this, when I grow old, will I end up just like him...

"I told him that tomorrow I would accompany him to the crematorium and personally take his ashes to the nearest free cemetery, so that those responsible for such matters, finding it troublesome, would not just toss him into some river or wasteland.

"This would sacrifice a morning of my sleep, but fortunately, Sunday was coming soon, so I could make up for it.

"After saying those words, I fixed the body bag and shoved it back into the cabinet.

"The light in the room seemed to grow even dimmer...

"Since that day, every time I slept, I would dream of a vast fog.

"I sensed that something would happen soon, that sooner or later some things—whether they could be called human or not—would come for me, but no one was willing to believe me; they thought that in such an environment and with such a job, my mind had become somewhat abnormal and that I needed to see a doctor..."

A male patron sitting at the bar looked toward the storyteller who had suddenly stopped:

"And then?"

This male patron was in his thirties, wearing a brown tweed jacket and pale yellow trousers, his hair pressed very flat, with a crude dark bowler hat beside his hand.

He looked quite ordinary, like most people in the tavern: black hair, light blue eyes, neither handsome nor ugly, lacking distinct features.

Whereas the storyteller in his eyes was a young man of eighteen or nineteen, with an upright figure and slender limbs; he also had short black hair and light blue eyes, yet his features were deep and striking, enough to make one's eyes light up.

The young man gazed at the empty wine glass before him, sighed, and said:

"And then?

Download to read the latest chapter content.

"Then I resigned, returned to the countryside, and came here to spin yarns with you."

As he spoke, a smile appeared on his face, a smile tinged with mischief.

The male patron paused for a moment:

"Were those things you just told us made up?"

"Haha." A burst of laughter erupted around the bar.

As the laughter subsided slightly, a gaunt middle-aged man looked at the somewhat embarrassed patron and said:

"Outsider, you actually believed Lu Lu Mian's story; what he tells changes every day; yesterday he was an unlucky fellow whose fiancée broke off the engagement due to poverty, and today he has become a corpse guardian!"

"Exactly, talking about thirty years east of the Sailunzuohe and thirty years west of the Sailunzuohe, just spouting nonsense!" another regular of the tavern added.

They were all farmers from Kordu, this large village, wearing short jackets that were black, gray, or brown.

The black-haired young man called Lu Lu Mian propped himself up on the bar with both hands, slowly stood up, and said with a grin:

"As you know, this is not a story I made up; it was written by my sister, who loves writing stories most of all, and she is even a columnist for something called the 'Weekly Fiction Gazette'."

Having said this, he turned his body slightly, spread his hands toward the outsider, and smiled brightly:

"It seems she writes really well.

"Sorry for misleading you."

The man in the brown tweed jacket, ordinary in appearance, did not get angry; he stood up as well and replied with a smile:

"A very interesting story.

"What is your name?"

"Isn't it common sense to introduce yourself before asking others?" Lu Lu Mian laughed.

The guest from out of town nodded:

"My name is Ryan Cos.

"These two are my companions, Valentine and Leah."

The latter sentence referred to the man and woman sitting right beside him.

The man was in his late twenties, his yellow hair dusted with powder, his not-large eyes a shade deeper than lake blue; he wore a white vest, a fine blue wool coat, and black trousers, clearly having dressed with great care before leaving home.

His expression was rather cold, and he barely glanced at the farmers and herders around him.

The woman appeared younger than the two men, her long, light-gray hair tied into an intricate bun, with a white veil wrapped around it to serve as a hat.

Her eyes matched her hair in color, and the look she cast upon Lu Lu Mian carried an unmasked smile, as if she found what had just happened merely amusing.

Under the glow of the tavern's gas wall lamps, this woman named Zhao Zhao Yamin revealed a straight, delicate nose and lips with a beautiful curve; in a countryside place like Cordu Village, she could absolutely be called a beauty.

She wore a tight, pleatless white cashmere dress, paired with an off-white small jacket and a pair of Maxill long boots; two small silver bells were tied separately to her veil and her boots, so that when she had walked into the tavern earlier, they had jingled all the way, drawing considerable attention and causing many men to stare straight at her.

In their eyes, this was the kind of fashionable attire found only in big cities like the provincial capital of Bigor or the national capital of Trier.

Lu Lu Mian nodded to the three outsiders:

"My name is Lu Lu Mian Li; you can just call me Lu Lu Mian."

"Li?" Zhao Zhao Yamin blurted out.

"What's wrong? Is there something problematic about my surname?" Lu Lu Mian asked curiously.

Ryan Cost helped explain to Zhao Zhao Yamin:

"That surname inspires fear; just now, I nearly lost control of my voice."

Seeing the farmers and herders around them looking utterly confused, he explained further:

"Anyone who has dealt with sailors or sea merchants knows that there is a saying circulating across the Five Seas:

"'Rather encounter those pirate generals or even kings than run into a man named Frank Li.'

"That person's surname is also Li."

"Is he very terrifying?" Lu Lu Mian asked.

Ryan shook his head:

"I am not clear, but since such a legend exists, he certainly cannot be ordinary."

He cut off this topic and said to Lu Lu Mian:

"Thank you for your story; it deserves a drink. What would you like?"

"A 'Green Fairy'." Lu Lu Mian was not polite in the least and sat back down.

Ryan Cost frowned slightly and said:

"'Green Fairy'... Absinthe?

"I think I need to remind you that absinthe is harmful to the human body; this liquor can cause mental derangement and make you experience hallucinations."

"I didn't expect the fashionable trends of Trier had already spread here," Zhao Zhao Yamin added with a smile from the side.

Lu Lu Mian let out an "Oh":

"So people in Trier also like drinking 'Green Fairy'...

"For us, life is already hard enough; there is no need to worry about a little extra harm. This liquor allows our spirits to achieve greater relaxation."

"Very well." Ryan sat back in his seat, looked toward the bartender, and said, "One 'Green Fairy', and add for me one 'Spicy Heart'."

"Spicy Heart" was a famous fruit brandy.

"Why not get me a 'Green Fairy' as well? I was the one who told you the truth just now, and I can still recount this kid's situation exactly as it happened!" the gaunt middle-aged man who had first exposed Lu Lu Mian's daily storytelling shouted in dissatisfaction, "Outsiders, I can tell you still harbor doubts about the truth or falsehood of that story!"

"Pierre, to get a free drink, you are capable of doing anything!" Lu Lu Mian responded loudly.

Before Ryan could make a decision, Lu Lu Mian added:

"Why can't I tell it myself? That way, I could even drink another 'Green Fairy'."

"Because they wouldn't know whether to believe what you say," the middle-aged man named Pierre said with a smug smile, "Your sister's favorite story to tell children is 'The Boy Who Cried Wolf'; a person who always lies inevitably loses credibility."

"Very well." Lu Lu Mian shrugged his shoulders as he watched the bartender push a glass of pale green liquor in front of him.

Ryan looked at him and asked for confirmation:

"Is that acceptable?"

"No problem, as long as your wallet is sufficient to pay for these drinks," Lu Lu Mian said, completely unconcerned.

"Then bring another 'Green Fairy'." Ryan nodded.

Pierre's face immediately broke into a wide smile:

"Generous outsiders, this kid is the village's biggest prankster; you must stay far away from him.

"Five years ago, he was brought back to the village by his sister, Auror, and has never left since. Think about it: before that, he was only thirteen years old; how could he possibly have worked as a corpse guardian in a hospital? Hmm, the nearest hospital to us is in Dareix at the foot of the mountain, a journey that takes a whole afternoon."

"Brought back to the village?" Zhao Zhao Yamin asked sharply.

She tilted her head slightly, producing a jingling sound.

Pierre nodded:

To read the latest chapter content, please download; ad-free free reading of the latest chapter content is available. The latest chapter content is already on; the website no longer updates the latest chapter content.

"After that, he took his sister Auror's surname, 'Li', and even the name 'Lu Lu Mian' was given by Auror."

"I've forgotten what my original name was anyway," Lu Lu Mian said with a grin after taking a sip of absinthe.

It seemed he felt not the slightest inferiority or shame about his past being exposed in this manner.