Chapter 427: Battlefront
However, such thoughts came and went quickly. Having witnessed life and death countless times, it was impossible for them to wallow in sentimental self-pity over such a small matter for long. Ultimately, it was just a momentary surge of emotion and sympathy for their own kind.
After choosing the path of adventure, everyone had more or less come to terms with the inherent risks. Those afraid of death had either already perished or had long since chosen to withdraw.
"Cough, cough." After being thrown into the car by Akiko, Kiyotaka, who had been feigning death, finally couldn't hold back and coughed softly.
"You... Wuwuwuwu..." Akiko, sitting in the driver's seat, was about to say something when a large hand clamped over her mouth, turning her words into meaningless muffled sounds.
"Don't speak, it's me." A familiar voice sounded in her ear, but the speaker's mouth seemed to be stuffed with something, making the words slightly indistinct.
"Drive away from here, now!" Kiyotaka said from the back seat.
Upon hearing her lover's voice, Akiko's taut nerves relaxed considerably, but a sense of unease still lingered in her heart.
Being in a foreign land and encountering such a drastic upheaval, it was already incredibly difficult for her to maintain enough composure and stoically drag the "corpse" from the crowd.
Akiko drove, occasionally turning her head slightly to glance into the back seat from the corner of her eye, confirming that everything she had just experienced wasn't an illusion.
"Stop here. No one will notice us anymore." After the jeep had driven for about half an hour, and the outline of the Secret Realm was completely out of sight, Kiyotaka sat up in the back seat.
He paid no mind to his own condition and immediately began to recount his recent experiences in detail.
"...Not long after I went in, I encountered a monster so vast its edges couldn't be seen. I only had time to hide the two most precious Other Shore Orchids in my mouth before it knocked me out."
As Kiyotaka spoke, he toyed with the two small, pale purple flowers with golden edges and faint spirit energy signatures in his hand.
Other Shore Orchids were extremely valuable. Every appearance on the Black Market would trigger a storm of bloody contention. No matter how severe the injury, as long as one hadn't completely died, consuming an Other Shore Orchid could lead to recovery.
One orchid was almost equivalent to an extra life. If it weren't for the fact that it was only effective upon the first consumption, its price would likely be even more terrifying.
"As long as you're okay." Akiko stopped the car and embraced him tightly, tears once again streaming down her face. She didn't actually care what the man in front of her had obtained in the forest; as long as he returned safely, that was enough.
"Pardon the interruption, but there are some things that must be clarified right now." Just as the two were in the throes of their embrace, a voice inopportunely emerged from the Other Shore Orchid.
The sudden appearance of the voice startled them both.
Unless it was a pre-arranged act, no one could remain calm when a third-party voice suddenly appeared while they were pouring out their hearts to each other and reveling in their intimacy with their significant other.
"Who are you?" they asked in unison.
"I am a wisp of Xuanwu's will, one of the Four Holy Beasts," the voice from within the flower stated directly, its tone seeming a little anxious.
"The legends say that each of the Big Four Mystical Realms corresponds to a guardian divine beast. Is it true, then?" As a seasoned adventurer who had participated in many Secret Realm expeditions, Kiyotaka knew a good deal about these ambiguous rumors.
"There are no longer Big Four Mystical Realms..." The voice sighed faintly.
"What do you mean?!" For over a decade, Kiyotaka had grown accustomed to the existence of the Secret Realms as colossal entities. To him, Xuanwu's words were as absurd as telling an old stockbroker that the stock market no longer existed.
"There are no longer Big Four Mystical Realms. From now on, there is only the Land of White."
"It's spread here?" Kiyotaka furrowed his brow.
Without exception, everyone outside the Land of White received propaganda that was entirely negative about it.
From plundering all civilian property to complete disregard for human rights and openly promoting slavery, the propaganda machine frantically instilled these views into everyone, aiming to incite their shared hatred against a common enemy.
But Bai Mo, completely indifferent to external opinions, couldn't be bothered to engage in any time-wasting rebuttals. He didn't have the leisure to compete in eloquence with professional politicians.
He believed that power was the answer to everything. He didn't need anyone to understand his thoughts; obedience was enough. Muscle cells were not qualified to question why the brain ordered them to contract.
Gradually, almost everyone, from top to bottom, outside the Land of White became extremely repulsed by its existence, viewing it as no different from a contagious virus.
Among those who believed these views, few could personally investigate it, because unlike the normal import and export of goods, the approval process for foreigners to enter the Land of White was extremely difficult.
Of course, the Land of White had always allowed anyone to join, but once they agreed, they would generally no longer have the opportunity to leave the country's borders, except to carry out system missions.
"My main body was controlled by the Land of White half a day ago. Only this wisp of residual soul escaped. I hope you can accept this mission: transfer this wisp of my will to the United Front Against Bai Headquarters located in the United States..."
"...These two Other Shore Orchids serve as a down payment. Hand this jade to them, and upon successful completion of the mission, the Headquarters will give you a satisfactory reward..." The voice shifted to a piece of jade that had appeared out of nowhere.
"That madman's ambition must be curbed! Humans and mutated creatures need to unite and jointly resist this threat!"
"Um... can we decline this mission? We'll return the flowers too." Akiko, already mentally and physically exhausted, had no desire to wade into these troubled waters.
The only thing she wanted to do now was to get married to her lover, go on a honeymoon, and enjoy her own life.
As for the fate of the world, Akiko felt that there were plenty of important figures concerned about it; a mere frail woman like herself worrying about it was pointless.
And the Other Shore Orchids... she and Kiyotaka had already decided to no longer work in this line of business, making the chance of injury or death minuscule. The practical value of holding onto such a flower was low.
They could certainly sell it for a good price, but without sufficient backing, safely converting such precious material into cash on the Black Market would be extremely difficult.
"It's too late... My controlled main body has already sensed something was wrong. Given the Land of White's savagery, they will certainly make everyone and everything that came into contact with me completely vanish."
"You!" Hearing this, Kiyotaka immediately had an urge to hit someone. He felt that he had definitely been set up. Unfortunately, there was only a piece of jade in front of him, so getting angry was useless.
PS: I feel like if I don't update, you'll think I T.J.'d... ORZ, but I've really been too busy lately.
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