Chapter 41: Miss Shiya Has Become a Groundhog

Description

Fluite didn’t dare to underestimate his opponent.

He raised his arms, condensing red aura to block in front of him.

But the moment he caught Chief Edwin’s attack, he froze almost imperceptibly for a second.

So light—

Almost soft and weak.

Then Fluite felt a piercing, bone-deep pain in his abdomen.

At some point, the old chief’s other hand had already condensed a yellow-brown aura into a military-issue short spike and driven it straight through Fluite’s belly.

The old man yanked his arm out violently, pulling out most of Fluite’s intestines along with it.

Blood sprayed, splattering the entire suit of yellow-brown armor and making the old man’s face especially ferocious.

“Boy, I taught you everything you know. What are you trying to put on for me here?”

Fluite’s face turned pale, his pupils slowly losing focus.

But just as Chief Edwin relaxed his guard and pushed him away,

Fluite suddenly stared with those hollow white eye sockets, raised his muscular arm, grabbed the chief’s shoulder, and—

Countless vine tentacles erupted from his wounded abdomen, coiling into a fist that shot forward with a bang.

Boom.

The old chief’s figure flew backward, smashing into a large rock covered in violets.

Rubble tumbled down, burying him completely.

As purple petals fell, trickles of blood slowly seeped out from the stone pile.

Fluite spread his arms, raised his face, and savored the power filling his lungs.

Then, without hesitation, he threw the still-unconscious Ilya onto the ground into that violet flower sea.

Soon, several thick roots flew from the depths of the flower sea, dragging Ilya deeper into the core symbolizing the Flower God.

Fluite’s hollow eye sockets silently watched all of this, a hint of smugness flickering in his gaze.

“Old bastard, all my skills were granted by the gods. If I’d trained the way you brought back from the army, I’d never have been able to condense that red aura or master any real power in my whole life.”

As his words fell, the smugness on his face froze—

Because on another mountain path, that fool named Hai En was actually holding a machete and heading deeper into the Flower God’s core.

Without hesitation, Fluite immediately crouched, ready to leap a super-long distance and crush those ants daring to offend the god.

But unfortunately, someone was determined to stop him.

The rubble burst apart, shooting into the sky.

The old chief, his armor tattered and body drenched in blood, charged at him with ghostly speed.

The burly man had no choice but to turn and hastily parry.

Thus the two fought dozens of rounds, exchanging wounds for wounds, the surging aura tearing the air apart, fist energy flying in all directions.

The old chief noticed the growing panic on Fluite’s face.

He desperately kept entangling, even as the vine tentacles exploding from the man’s body shattered the armor on the old chief piece by piece.

Only when the entire mountain shook violently did the two finally pause their fight and pull back some distance.

Fluite seemed to sense something.

His pale eye sockets widened, and he roared at Chief Edwin.

“You didn’t sacrifice that girl named Shiya to the god—then what did you throw in just now, to make the Flower God so furious?”

The old chief raised an eyebrow.

For once, his usually somber face twisted into a sarcastic smirk.

“Since no one wants to raise a bride for the Flower God, I just offered those drowned infant girls to that arrogant god instead.”

“Edwin, you’ve gone mad! Angering the god—you’re making the whole Flower God Village die with you!”

If everyone couldn’t break free from the blind faith in that murderous god, they would only become his enemies in the future.

Chief Edwin didn’t answer Fluite.

He twisted his slightly stiff neck, lowered his body, and prepared to charge at Fluite again.

Just then, Bulu appeared behind the old man and grabbed him.

“Chief Edwin, my foolish son ran to that flower field again. Please save him!”

This sudden turn of events made the old chief’s face change drastically.

Frustrated, he flung Bulu aside.

“Get lost! I don’t have time for you now.”

But it was too late.

Fluite’s oppressive figure was already in front of him, a lethal strike descending.

This time, the old chief didn’t dodge or avoid.

He braced himself with his aura and forcibly blocked the attack.

More blood spilled from the old man’s mouth, and his body went limp.

Fluite was a little surprised, but he immediately lashed out vine tentacles to wrap around Chief Edwin’s neck.

The outcome was decided.

Yet, even as he was lifted into the air with fading breath, the old chief still looked down at Fluite from a superior position.

“Cough, cough… Do you know the difference between a human and a monster?”

Obviously taunted, Fluite didn’t get angry.

He tilted his head, his tone growing indifferent.

“Is that your last word?”

Chief Edwin lightly tugged at the vine tentacles, a faint smile on his face, but he didn’t answer.

And then—

A powerful aura suddenly erupted from the dirt ground.

A vicious yellow-brown trident spear shot up from below, piercing straight through Fluite’s body.

A girl with snow-white hair slowly crawled out of the loose soil.

Straining but determined, she gripped the trident tightly and pushed the wounded Fluite backward.

Before all this happened, down in the dungeon, Shiya had asked Chief Edwin this:

“Why did you place me with Yige’er and Ilya’s family?”

Ever since the original owner took her own life and the current Shiya transmigrated here, all the original game plot she knew had gone haywire.

According to the normal story, the original owner would have agreed to perform in Elena’s play, and the Princess wouldn’t have let her stay overnight to persuade her.

Naturally, it would never have led to Shiya’s first meeting with Chief Edwin and her forced arrival on the Flower God Village island.

The old chief was silent for a long moment.

He lowered his head, and a thoughtful expression actually appeared on his face.

“I don’t know.”

The girl felt the old man was brushing her off.

Shiya couldn’t help but stare directly at Chief Edwin with those moist, lively pale-golden eyes, puffing out her cheeks.

The old man immediately gave in.

He waved his hand, a smile curling at the corners of his mouth, even the wrinkles on his face relaxing.

“But I think I understand now. It’s because you really look like my daughter.”

“Maybe from the first time I saw you, my subconscious wanted Yige’er to meet you, to help him move on from the pain of losing his fiancée.”

The girl countered, “But if I’m chosen as the Flower God’s bride and sacrificed…”

The old chief interrupted her with a tired sigh.

“Maybe I’ve been hoping all along that Yige’er would take you and Ilya and run away, leave this place that’s been greedily plundered by the god.”

As it turned out, even without Shiya, Yige’er wouldn’t have let Chief Edwin down.

But it seemed everything was ending in another tragedy.

The dungeon door opened.

Chief Edwin stepped aside, looking at Shiya with pity in his eyes, and a hint of transferred affection.

“Please continue the unfinished escape, Miss Shiya. Let this old man make up for past mistakes in this way.”

Shiya slowly exhaled a mouthful of stale air.

Smelling the rot and dampness of the dungeon, she shook her head slowly.

“Chief Edwin, last time when we fled for our lives and turned our backs to the enemy, Ilya and I suffered enough. This time, I won’t choose to run away again.”

“Besides, Mr. Yige’er said that compared to Miss Selanti, I’m actually more like him.”

“Are you really going to do this?” The old chief raised a shovel, looking at the girl in the pit.

But he knew there was no other way.

Once the Flower God’s bride sacrifice begins, the entire mountain is covered with the god’s violet flower sea.

Shiya simply couldn’t hide behind cover.

“Please hurry, Chief Edwin. I don’t trust you alone to save little Ilya.”

“What’s that saying? ‘Youth beats age’?”

Hearing the girl’s rare playful jab, Chief Edwin sighed again and pretentiously rubbed his lower back.

“You young people, none of you ever puts me at ease.”

“But it’s fine. An old man like me will pave the way for you.”

Handful after handful of dirt fell onto her white hair, along with a yellow-brown aura transmitted from the old chief.

“Miss Shiya, I must remind you again:

The aura I’m sending you will allow you to breathe even while buried alive.”

“But be careful—if you use this aura too much, the ambush you’ve been preparing will lose a lot of its power.”

“Of course, there’s also a chance I’ll finish the fight quickly, and you won’t need to act.”

The dirt had already reached her neck, but Shiya still lifted her chin, actually worrying about Chief Edwin.

“What if you accidentally step into a trap? Then I’d end up hurting an ally.”

“Then I’d take you to the underworld for Yige’er and Selanti’s wedding. Little Ilya should come too. And if you can’t find a good husband down there, you can just make do with her.”

“Please don’t crack hell jokes in such a serious situation.”

Until the pit was completely filled, Shiya, lying below, could clearly feel some dirt particles entering her lungs.

But to ensure the meticulously planned ambush wouldn’t lose too much power, she had to conserve the old chief’s yellow-brown aura and endure the repeated oxygen deprivation in her brain.

Until heavy footsteps came from the dirt ground above her head.