Chapter 37-The Manga Pariah's Guide to Self-Salvation

 Among the forty-three ordinary people brought back by the Cloud-Soaring Squad, three of them had become hosts for parasitic bugs. While these bugs were not difficult for ability users to eliminate, the young people present still looked grim after they were dealt with.

Yu Tianming asked Ryan to help him examine the three bodies. With a disgusted look on his face, Ryan endured the nausea and moved the human and bug corpses, which had died in various gruesome ways.

"The bugs parasitic in these three bodies are all different. There are small black bugs that fill the skin, and there are also half-human-sized large bugs. I suspect the latter were parasitic in humans in the form of eggs; otherwise, they wouldn't have maintained a normal appearance."

After Yu Tianming proposed this possibility, everyone's expression changed, and the atmosphere became silent and tense.

Percy looked back at the entrance of the shelter not far away, his brows tightly furrowed.

If there were parasitic eggs, he couldn't bring these people into the shelter. If a sudden outbreak occurred like the one just now, given the population density of the shelter, the situation would become irreversible.

Then, an even worse thought surfaced in his mind: Were the people inside the shelter all truly normal?

No matter how he thought about it, this matter seemed to have reached a dead end. An outbreak inside the shelter was already unavoidable...

"The Divine Academy has also arrived."

Ye Zheng's voice broke the silence. "Bai Muqing's ability might be able to identify the parasitic hosts."

"What a bother."

A crisp, cold female voice suddenly sounded. Immediately afterward, screams erupted from the crowd. Several people fell to the ground, twitching, and soon became motionless, as if they were dead.

Percy's gaze turned cold as he stared at the Divine Academy team that had suddenly appeared. "Did you kill them?"

The five members of the Divine Academy had different temperaments, and the white-haired, white-eyed girl was the most conspicuous among them. She was also dressed in pure white, but unlike the gentle and pure Ye Zheng, she was overly pale, with no trace of color from head to toe, making her look like the most biting wind and snow of winter, annihilating all signs of life.

Caleb hurried to check on the people's condition and breathed a sigh of relief. "They just seem to be unconscious."

Yin Kong, who loved to watch the fun, then leisurely explained for Bai Muqing, "Within her Divine Domain, it's our Muqing's territory. She can 'see' even the dirty little secrets in your souls clearly. A little parasite is a piece of cake."

"Make them unconscious, and Ye Zheng can take them out. They are parasitic in the chest cavity."

Bai Muqing finally spoke, her white eyes turning to a certain direction, her unfocused gaze seemingly not taking anything in.

A soft sigh wafted through the air. Ye Zheng walked out from an inconspicuous corner and checked the condition of the several people who were parasitic.

Yu Tianming's glasses glinted, obscuring his scrutinizing eyes. "I thought the Saintess's ability was only for healing. I didn't expect she could also remove things from inside the human body?"

Bai Muqing's lips were slightly pursed as she unhappily stared at the man with glasses.

Ye Zheng didn't even look up. She took out a small knife from who knows where and made a small incision on the chest of the parasitic hosts. A tiny stream of water, like a nimble snake, flowed into the wounds.

"Cutting someone open is very common for a doctor. If your stomach ever feels uncomfortable, I can guarantee that with just this one-and-out, your stomach will be fine."

The blood-stained white eggs were dropped on the ground. The wounds on the hosts' chests were quickly healed by the water flow, restoring them to their original state. But for some reason, Yu Tianming felt a phantom pain in his chest as he watched.

He recalled a certain show-off junior at the Royal Academy. His ability was a vine that could attack, heal, and even poison. Today, Ye Zheng's ability seemed quite similar to his. They were indeed siblings.

It was a pity that the water flow's attack power couldn't even directly penetrate human skin. No wonder Ye Di was S-rank while Ye Zheng was only A-rank.

Ye Zheng removed all the bug eggs, holding one in her palm. She could still feel its vitality.

Percy walked over and squatted beside her. "Give them to me. I'll destroy these things completely."

"Hmm, let me keep two. I want to observe them."

How did these bug eggs enter the human body? What were the conditions for their incubation? By mastering this information, humanity would not be so passive against these bugs.

Percy watched the girl's serious profile and worriedly said, "What if these bug eggs suddenly hatch? It would be very dangerous for you."

"It's fine, I can handle it. Don't worry about me."

Percy had no choice but to nod. "Then how about this? I'll stay and watch them with you..."

"Ye Zheng."

A rich, low voice interrupted their conversation. Ye Zheng looked up to see Sykes looking at them with a sullen face.

"Don't delay my competition."

Hearing this, Percy's expression changed slightly, as if he had just realized something. Ye Zheng was not a member of the Cloud-Soaring Squad; he had only met her a few times. Perhaps his overly familiar tone had made her feel awkward.

He watched the Saintess give him a polite smile and walk towards the arrogant and violent crown prince, his heart filled with a chaotic feeling, as if some fact had been inverted.

Sykes's expression improved a little when he saw Ye Zheng obediently walk over. They had been delayed here long enough. He didn't want to endure this dreadful weather anymore and just wanted to get it over with and go back.

"Your Highness, please allow me to stay behind."

Ye Zheng stood still in front of him.

"...What are you talking about?"

"There must be people in the shelter with bugs lurking inside them. I need to stay and resolve this potential trouble."

Even if the Demonic Domain was eliminated, the harm it caused to the human body would not be reversed. If these ordinary people returned to reality with the bug eggs, the bugs would multiply and parasitize the population in the lower district...

"Ha, with so many people in the shelter, do you plan to handle them one by one like you just did?"

"Does Your Highness intend to let this potential disaster go unchecked?"

Ye Zheng calmly retorted.

Sykes fell silent, his golden eyes staring at Ye Zheng. Finally, he gave in. "Suit yourself."

The atmosphere gradually relaxed, but Yu Tianming pushed up his glasses and stood out, calling out, "Wait, do you know? The use of abilities in the shelter is greatly reduced!"

Yu Tianming looked at Ye Zheng disapprovingly.

The shelter was built with minerals that could block the power of the Demonic Domain, which was why it could maintain its original state within the Demonic Domain's different dimension.

And because ability users' powers originated from the same source as the Demonic Domain, their strength would be suppressed in the shelter.

"In the shelter, your ability will be greatly reduced, but if you take all the people out for treatment, you can't guarantee their safety. What's more, those bug eggs are not something you can control."

Yu Tianming pushed up his glasses and suggested, "How about we break the Demonic Domain as soon as possible, and then hand over the residents here to the Sei Curia to deal with? The Curia has so many healing ability users; they will definitely handle it safely and cleanly."

Percy listened from the side, and his expression softened. Yu Tianming made sense. An issue involving large-scale parasitism was no longer something they could handle.

The black-haired, blue-eyed boy clenched his fist. Perhaps finding and eliminating the Demonic Domain's core as quickly as possible and letting the Sei Curia and the Royal Family send people to handle things was what he should be doing now.

[Ah! This part of the plot has arrived.]

The System quickly flipped through the original plot. This part of the story did not appear in the manga spoilers it had for Ye Zheng, so it had almost forgotten about it.

According to the original plot, as a member of the Cloud-Soaring Squad, Ye Zheng insisted on staying to take care of the ordinary people after hearing Yu Tianming's suggestion. However, as a healing ability user, Ye Zheng was no match for the infected bug-people. For her safety, Lucy and Bai Muqing stayed behind with her.

Bai Muqing's staying behind was equivalent to banning a powerful fighter, making the protagonist team and the Divine Academy very passive when fighting the boss. This made many readers dissatisfied. Moreover, Ye Zheng's staying in the shelter did not prevent the large-scale bug disaster from breaking out, making her actions seem very counterproductive.

[I hate self-righteous characters who drag others down!] (This is a web novel slang term for a character who is perceived as overly saintly and causes problems for others)

[I'm so done. Staying in the shelter is useless. Her strength is already weak, and with the suppression, she's completely useless.]

[Aah, I was looking forward to Bai Muqing showing her true strength, but as soon as she gets involved with Ye Zheng, her IQ drops!]

[This is so frustrating. Can she just stay away from my favorite character...]

The System quickly prompted Ye Zheng in her mind.

[Hurry and use your action points to change this plot! Go fight the boss with Sykes and the others. If you insist on staying, you'll be heavily criticized!]

The System assumed that the plotline had temporarily taken over Ye Zheng, and she might not have realized it herself.

In its opinion, the creator did not intend to show Ye Zheng's kindness in this scene. They simply wanted to ban Bai Muqing.

Her ability was very effective against the boss. If she were present, it would be difficult for Percy and Yin Kong, two 'hot' characters, to have their highlight moments. At the same time, to increase dramatic tension, a bug disaster breaking out in the shelter was inevitable, so the creator made Ye Zheng's persistence utterly useless.

One could say that in this plotline, Ye Zheng was just an ultimate tool character!

Ye Zheng was deaf to the warning. When she heard Yu Tianming mention the Sei Curia, the curve of her lips turned slightly cold as she murmured softly, "Wait for the Sei Curia to come and save you... Ha."

Her eyes were extremely deep and black as she stared at the people in front of her.

"I must stay."

Percy couldn't help but take a step forward. "It's too dangerous for you to stay. Once an outbreak occurs in the shelter—"

He suddenly stopped talking. A wobbly body stood behind Ye Zheng at some point. Its mouth was a bloody, gaping wound, from which a bug's proboscis extended.

"Look out!"

[Look out!]

The System also screamed a warning.

Even though it knew Ye Zheng would be rescued by Percy, and that after being saved, she would still insist on staying alone in the original plot, which would lead to heavy reader criticism...

Ye Zheng glanced to her back left, her dark eyes indifferent.

This distance was enough for a try.

Percy's sharp sword was already in the air, but a black trajectory was even faster than his sword.

Bang!

Just as the proboscis was about to cover the girl's serene face, Ye Zheng took a step back, raised the gun she had ready, and pulled the trigger at the bug-person's neck. Blood immediately splattered out, and the bug-person fell backward with its neck half-severed.

"Nice power." Qin Lu's new product was something else. Her head massages weren't for nothing.

Ye Zheng slowly turned around, her pale cheeks speckled with blood. She seemed completely unaware, maintaining her usual elegant posture and giving a gentle smile.

"I said, don't worry about me."

"I have to stay."

Percy was stunned and retracted his sword-transformed hand back to its original form. The members of the Royal Academy team not far away also showed varying degrees of shock.

"I'll stay too."

In the momentary silence, another cold female voice, which had been quiet for a long time, echoed.

Ye Zheng raised her beautiful brows, her eyes smiling as she welcomed her new companion. Her pure white form was stained with mottled crimson blood, like a blood-stained statue of the Virgin Mary.

"Please rest assured and leave it to us. Everyone will be saved."

Author's note:

The next manga chapter will be updated, and the Ye Zheng fan base is about to grow...

← Previous Chapter Next Chapter →