Chapter 18: Eternal Night Descends, Ghostbeasts Run Wild!
????“Still, try not to give them any more reasons to gossip behind your back.”
??The young man shook his head slowly, his tone gentle and asured. “The Rainy Season has co early. There’s a high chance we’ll be facing a Ghost Tide. From this point on, our only concern is surviving this storm. You and I—”
??He didn’t finish.
??A servant approached from the distance, bent close, and whispered,
??“Young Master, the three great families of Jiangbei City are gathering to discuss how to respond to the Rainy Season. The master requests your presence at the eting.”
??“I understand.”
??His expression remained unchanged, but as he stood, a faint, irrepressible smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.
??It was clear—they were grooming him as the heir.
??Sooner or later, he would be sitting in the Chen Clan Head’s seat.
??As for Chen Fan…
??At this mont, he was likely out in the Wasteland, waiting to die—completely irrelevant. Not worth another thought.
??As Eternal Night fell, Ghostbeasts road unchecked. Only those who huddled near the Ghostfire stood any chance of surviving until dawn.
??But—
??So places ford natural “Ghostfire Zones,” where safety was preserved each night without the need to burn Ghoststones. These areas, large and small, gradually beca havens for human habitation.
??Jiangbei City itself stood atop one such vast, natural Ghostfire Zone.
??That was the secret to its survival. Even when the city was nearly annihilated thirty-seven years ago, it recovered swiftly, all thanks to this unique geography.
??Without this, keeping the Ghostfire burning every night would have cost a fortune in Ghoststones. No power in the world could sustain a city of this size otherwise.
??No one knew how these Ghostfire Zones ford, or whether they might suddenly vanish one day.
??But so far—
??There had never been a single recorded instance of a natural Ghostfire Zone going dark.
??The Wasteland.
??Jiangbei Chen Clan’s Waystation No. 37.
??Chen Fan stood in the pouring rain, watching as seven n gathered just outside the camp’s safe zone—all of them brought here by Wang Kui from nearby waystations.
??Crippled Monkey moved down the line, patting each man down for sound transmission talismans and other communication tools, confiscating anything that might send word to the outside. Into each palm, he pressed a Ghoststone—one last check to ensure no impostors had slipped in.
??Just then—
??“Station Master Chen.”
??A middle-aged man in rough linen, gripping a long blade, looked at Chen Fan standing in the rain. His voice trembled ever so slightly. “Station Master Wang explained the situation. From here on, our lives are in your hands. If you really get us through the Rainy Season alive, my life is yours, Station Master Chen!”
??“Tell
to go east, and I won’t take a single step west!”
??He had been a station master under the Qiuhe Wang Clan. The mont he heard the Rainy Season was arriving early and that his clan wouldn’t send any rescue…
??Despair swallowed him whole.
??Being a station master was a life lived on a razor’s edge. He knew exactly what this ant. He’d been monts away from slitting his own throat when Wang Kui had called his na from outside the hut. Half in disbelief, he’d answered.
??Even if it was just a lie, it was the only straw he had left to grasp.
??Not until he arrived at this camp and saw the two Arrow Towers standing tall in the rain did hope finally flicker in his chest. Maybe—just maybe—they could survive. However slim that hope.
??“...”
??Chen Fan stepped up to the man with the blade. Faint, shallow wounds marked his neck, the blood already washed thin by the rain.
??Test cuts.
??Few could kill themselves with a single, clean stroke. Only those with nerves of steel could manage it. Most, when hesitation crept in, left behind these kinds of tentative slashes.
??“If Wang Kui had arrived a mont later, you wouldn’t be standing here now.”
??“Station Master Chen…”
??The man’s face twisted in bitter anguish, his voice quivering. “You know what it’s like. After night falls, stepping into the dark doesn’t kill you instantly. But the hopeless wait for death… not many can bear it.”
??“If I have to die, I’d rather fall by my own blade than rot waiting in the dark.”
??“Everyone!”
??Chen Fan turned to the others, letting the man’s words hang in the air. He swept his gaze across their faces, voice hoarse yet steady. “You all co from the three great powers. You’ve probably heard my na.”
??“I am Chen Fan.”
??“Successor of the Jiangbei Chen Clan. My mother was a Level 4 Builder. Because of clan infighting, I’ve been targeted from every side—forced out here to this abandoned waystation as a nobody.”
??“To be blunt, before she died, my mother left
her Builder’s legacy. I’ve been biding my ti, quietly building my strength away from the clan’s eyes.”
??“These two Level 2 Arrow Towers? My handiwork.”
??“From here on out—”
??“If you follow my orders, I’ll do everything in my power to see you through the Rainy Season. Survive with , and when it’s over, you’re free to go or stay—I won’t stop you.”
??The six n exchanged glances, then each pulled the packs from their chests and set them on the ground. Their voices were hoarse but resolute: “We’re at your command, Station Master!”
??“Good.”
??Chen Fan glanced at the Ghostskin Map, then turned to Wang Kui. “Ti’s short. We can’t reach any more distant stations. Two nearby waystations were destroyed last night.”
??“You and Xiao Qiu—take two n each. Head to those wrecked stations. Salvage whatever you can—there might still be Ghoststone reserves.”
??“Yes, sir.”
??After Wang Kui left, four n remained—big, burly types, not a single woman among them. All were from other waystations.
??Not a single traveler in the group. No one had stopped by to rest at the station in the past two days.
??This part of the Wasteland was truly remote—few ever passed through.
??“...”
??Chen Fan turned and looked back at the wooden cabin. In this world, being the Chen Clan’s illegitimate son—and the child of a Level 4 Builder he’d never t—turned out to be surprisingly useful. With those two credentials, earning a basic level of trust was much easier.
??Waystation business on the Wasteland was a monopoly. Almost every station belonged to one of the three great families. There were no stations run by lone wanderers. Only a handful on the Pingcheng side belonged to other powers.
??“Station Master.”
??Behind him, a pockmarked man stepped forward through the rain, eager and deferential. “Is there anything we can do to help?”
??He was the station master of Jiangbei Chen Clan’s Waystation No. 36—also abandoned by his clan when the Rainy Season arrived early.
??He’d glimpsed Chen Fan from afar once, back when he’d returned to the clan on holiday. Back then, Chen Fan had always walked with his head down, the very picture of weakness and self-loathing—worse off than even the lowliest servant. He’d pitied the poor bastard, a legitimate heir fallen so far.
??Now, he realized—
??It had all been an act. A careful disguise, waiting for the right mont to strike.
??He knew it—people from these great families always had more sches than anyone could count. None of them were ever as ek as they looked.
??But now…
??In this godforsaken Rainy Season, the only hope he had left was this long-suffering heir, a Young Master with a Builder’s legacy.
??He swore—
??No one in the world wanted Chen Fan to rise more than he did.
??“...”
??Chen Fan looked over at the pockmarked man, voice calm and low. “I know you. You’re Station Master Wang Mazi from Jiangbei Chen Clan’s Waystation No. 36.”
??“Take the other three. Dismantle this wooden cabin as quickly as possible—before night falls.”
??Wang Mazi’s eyes flashed with disbelief, but he quickly nodded and called the n to work—never once questioning why they were tearing down their only shelter from the storm.
??He swore—
??He and Chen Fan had never truly crossed paths, save for that one distant glimpse and a few rumors. Yet Chen Fan knew his na, his station, everything.
??It ant that, even while pretending to accept his fate, Chen Fan had been quietly investigating everyone—every last insignificant station master in the clan.
??That kind of cunning sent a chill down Wang Mazi’s spine.
??But at the sa ti, the faint spark of hope in his heart grew a little stronger.
??Maybe—
??Just maybe, if he followed Chen Fan, he’d live to see the end of the Rainy Season.
Reviews
All reviews (0)