Chapter 51-The Manga Pariah's Guide to Self-Salvation

Ye Zheng had secretly come to the lower district for two purposes: one was to handle Zoya's matter, and the other was to see just what kind of existence that Demonic Domain, so extremely similar to the Blood Flower, was.

She waited for some time before leading Wen De toward the place that reeked of blood.

The Royal Family had sent many experts in to the rescue, and a large group of people was still stationed near the Demonic Domain. High-ranking healers from the Sei Curia were also on standby outside, yet several days had passed, and even the S-rank ability users sent in had lost contact.

Currently, the Royal Family was preparing to initiate another plan—to construct a passage connecting the Blood-colored Demonic Domain to the outside.

Demonic Domains had always been a one-way trip in; the only way to leave was to destroy its core. However, five hundred years ago, people discovered a type of ore inside Demonic Domains, which they named Heterogeneous Stone. This stone could travel between a Demonic Domain and the outside world, and the Shelters were built using precisely this material.

The Heterogeneous Stone ushered in an era where people used creations from Demonic Domains to improve their lives.

Demonic Domains hid many treasures from other dimensions. Whether they were Exotic Beasts, Exotic Plants, or unique minerals, they were all astonishing discoveries for the people of the Empire. Unfortunately, once a Demonic Domain disappeared, everything inside it vanished as well.

This was the case until people began using Heterogeneous Stone to build passages connecting the two spaces. Without having to destroy the Demonic Domain, they could travel freely between the inside and outside, bringing the precious things from within the domains into people's lives.

For example, the "phone" Ye Zheng was currently holding relied on a product from a Demonic Domain called Acoustic Stone for its information transmission function. Therefore, while people hated Demonic Domains, they also held some complex feelings, especially those in the upper district who didn't have to face the threat of Demonic Domains and only enjoyed their benefits.

At this thought, Ye Zheng's expression cooled slightly.

She too once felt that Demonic Domains weren't entirely harmful. But ever since the System granted her "phone" a small portion of the functions of a phone from another world, Ye Zheng had glimpsed a corner of a higher-dimensional world. There seemed to be no Demonic Domains there, nor any gifts from other dimensions, yet their phones were far more advanced.

Ye Zheng walked at a leisurely pace, taking a roundabout route. She couldn't be discovered by the people near the Blood-colored Demonic Domain and had to find a location that was remote enough for careful observation.

Passing by the Shelter she had stayed in during the last Demonic Domain, Ye Zheng slowed her steps. She saw a group of people in the uniforms of the Royal Knight Order gathered outside the Shelter.

There was no Demonic Domain here now; they shouldn't be here.

Ye Zheng stood under the cover of the eaves, her heart gradually tensing. Could it be that someone had discovered something fishy about what she did inside last time?

The girl moved with light steps, inconspicuously drawing closer, wanting to hear what they were saying.

The group's voices were loud, seemingly with no intention of concealing anything.

"Do we really have to dismantle it? It looks like a lot of trouble. The moment we start, this whole area could collapse."

"What does it matter to us if this place collapses? We only need to answer to our superiors."

"Count your blessings, old brother. Not having to enter that god-forsaken Demonic Domain is already the greatest luck."

Ye Zheng's lips pressed into a thin line, a trace of disbelief flashing in her dark eyes.

Had the Royal Family gone mad with poverty? They actually wanted to dismantle the Heterogeneous Stone in the Shelter to build a passage to save people?

Given the Shelter's structure and the forceful, violent methods of the Royal Family's ability users, no matter how much they dismantled, this Shelter was destined to become ruins. Moreover, the Royal Family would certainly not be in the mood to rebuild it.

She had long heard that Heterogeneous Stone had become extremely scarce in recent years. Only Demonic Domains deemed highly valuable would be preserved with passages built from the stone.

As for how this "highly valuable" status was determined, it was something Ye Zheng had always wondered about. This year, a large amount of Heterogeneous Stone had been used to build a passage into a Demonic Domain because the Crown Prince was very satisfied with the ferocious monsters inside and wanted to keep these "little cuties."

"Ha."

Ye Zheng was silent for a moment before letting out a soft, sarcastic laugh and turning to leave.

She walked silently, then suddenly whispered to the loyal knight behind her, "Wen De, it seems I need to find a way to cultivate more of my own people."

A person with powerful abilities could stand before the Shelter and stop anyone from dismantling it. But a person with power could sit high in the stands, swirling a wine glass, and make countless people willingly clear obstacles for her.

Although the Holy Sei Empire revered strength and ability, and many people could achieve class mobility through high-rank abilities, true power was still in the hands of those old noble families.

Ye Zheng thought that before she had the strength to overturn the entire world, perhaps power was a more convenient tool.

Right now, the only person she could truly entrust her trust to was Wen De. Compared to people like Sykes and Wen Jian, her position was far too passive.

Beside the girl, the young woman's stoic face showed a rare, soft smile, her eyes filled with encouragement as she looked at the little Saintess who was half a head shorter than her.

Ye Zheng met Wen De's tolerant and encouraging gaze and suddenly recalled that Wen De was a female Knight she had exceptionally recruited when she had just become the Saintess at fourteen, under the pretext of wanting a girl to take care of her personally.

The Sei Curia did not overly criticize the little Saintess's request. In their eyes, this was even a good way for a Saintess to maintain her purity.

Male knights were often inconvenient and could easily attract rumors. There had been scandals of a Saintess and a knight having a private affair in the past. With a female knight, there would be fewer such concerns. Although the Empire only recruited male knights, occasionally giving a woman a minor title was not a big issue in the face of the Saintess's request.

Now, the 17-year-old Saintess was no longer satisfied with that small request from the past.

Ye Zheng thought that she had already accumulated a certain amount of prestige for herself, gotten closer to the Empire's next generation's center of power by participating in the ability tournament, and secretly possessed what could barely be considered formidable strength. She had enough capital to start expanding her own forces.

Her "ambition" was also laid bare before the Pope. Since Wen Jian had promised to let her get closer to the Sei Curia's center of power after the tournament, then openly making some arrangements to build her influence now would also fit the "Ye Zheng" persona in Wen Jian's eyes.

"Let's form a female knight order first."

After these words left her mouth, the girl's cold and solemn expression softened slightly. Her eyes flickered, as if she had finally voiced a wish she had longed for.

"An excellent suggestion, my lady. It may be presumptuous of me to say, but I have actually been paying attention to this matter."

"There are quite a few girls who wish to serve you. They have all been waiting for this day."

The tall knight bowed, giving off a sense of boundless, reassuring security.

Wen De was occasionally a bit presumptuous, Ye Zheng thought, but she didn't dislike that about her.

*

After about half an hour, Ye Zheng circled around to a secluded corner. The nearby residents had all been evacuated, and the rescue personnel sent from the upper district were not in this area.

Not far away, a blood-red screen of light enveloped the land, dyeing even the gloomy, rainy sky with an ominous red glow.

The girl's dark eyes stared unblinkingly at the familiar-looking place. Ten years had passed, and she still felt that describing it as a big red cover was the most vivid analogy. It was also a bit like a large, red-hot wok turned upside down, searing the flesh and blood ingredients within.

The Empire's officials emphasized the rescue operations, but to this day, while people knew that ten students from the upper district were trapped inside, few knew exactly how many civilians were also trapped with them.

Based on the area of this Demonic Domain and an estimate of its population density, Ye Zheng figured the number was between 1,000 and 2,000.

She looked down at her right hand. The Dragon Bone fragment embedded in her palm was originally just a temporary measure for concealment, but now she had no plans to take it out for the time being.

Compared to the palm-sized Dragon Bone replica she had obtained last time, the power of this fragment was just right. It wouldn't cause her power to go out of control, yet it could amplify her strength to a level not easily detectable by others.

In the past, she wouldn't have been able to use her water flow to sense such a large area for so long, though she was feeling fatigued now.

It was also somewhat strange. Legends claimed that the Dragon Bone could intimidate Demonic Domains, causing them to keep their distance and protecting humanity's safety. But so far, Ye Zheng had only discovered its use for amplifying power.

Considering the experiments the Pope conducted on Zoya, perhaps it also had the effect of stimulating one's ability potential.

In any case, it had nothing to do with intimidation.

"My lady, someone is coming out?"

The usually steady Wen De's voice rose, tinged with incredulous hesitation.

Ye Zheng looked up. Near the blood-colored light screen, a... girl in a Mingcheng Academy uniform appeared?

The Mingcheng Academy team was one of the teams that had gone missing in the Demonic Domain.

The girl in the blue uniform had waist-length, brilliant golden hair, which reminded her of Sykes, who also had golden hair. The difference was that Sykes's hair was dazzlingly golden, every strand shining with a well-maintained gloss, whereas this suddenly appeared girl's hair was a bit unruly, looking fluffy and messy.

Her well-tailored blue uniform was also wrinkled. Upon closer inspection, the girl was wearing a pair of slippers on her feet?

She was shuffling along in her slippers, carrying a cumbersome black bag, her steps pattering along, her swaying figure even showing a hint of cheerfulness.

Perhaps because of being trapped in the Demonic Domain, she looked haggard and disheveled. The girl's posture didn't resemble that of a noble student from an upper district academy, but what surprised Ye Zheng even more at this moment was—how was she able to get out?

"Wen De, are you sure you saw her come out of the Demonic Domain?"

"Yes. Although I can't believe it either, my eyes confirmed it. She jumped right out of the red light screen."

Ye Zheng's gaze locked onto the girl. Suddenly, the girl in the blue uniform not far away turned her head slowly, revealing a pair of piercing red eyes, a deeper and more solemn red than the bloody Demonic Domain behind her.

In that instant, an almost instinctual chill ran down Ye Zheng's spine.

"Wen De, keep an eye out for me."

Wen De took a step forward, silently releasing her Bone Spurs.

The girl hid herself half a step back, took out her phone, and asked the System in her mind.

"Has the manga spoiler for the next chapter been updated?"

The System did not answer.

Ye Zheng knew the System would occasionally take a "vacation," especially when not on the manga's main storyline. She opened the manga app on her phone to check for herself.

The new chapter stopped at the scene where Sykes showed off his new clothes. Ye Zheng scrolled down, and the originally blank page finally showed a new plot development.

On the screen, the white-clad Saintess who had snuck into the lower district nearly fell in the rain. A black-haired, blue-eyed youth suddenly appeared and steadied her. They looked at each other in surprise, their eyes shimmering.

Ye Zheng's mouth twitched imperceptibly. No wonder her [Stream] hadn't detected the guy who suddenly popped up back then. It was indeed the irresistible force of the original plot, something that could only be changed with action points.

Flipping past this meaningless plot point, Ye Zheng continued to scroll down. There were many more blank pages, but the girl's finger remained on the screen, continuing to scroll down, unsatisfied.

Finally, her finger paused. A colored image appeared on the screen again.

Ye Zheng looked at the screen, at the golden-haired, red-eyed girl, who was resting her head intimately on the side of a black-haired, black-eyed girl's neck.

[Do you remember me?]

In the close-up shot, the golden-haired, red-eyed girl had a joyful smile on her lips, her crimson eyes overflowing with an excited desire for slaughter.

[I haven't forgotten you, not for a moment in ten years...]

"Move!"

Wen De's voice, strained with tension, startled the frowning girl. Ye Zheng instinctively leaped backward, and a flash of a white blade instantly landed where she had just been standing.

Impossible! She had been maintaining her ability to observe her surroundings... Wait, when did her ability disappear?

Ye Zheng clenched her fists. Her palms were completely dry, without a trace of the familiar moist sensation.

"Huh? You're pretty agile."

The golden-haired girl, who had appeared out of nowhere, was holding a kitchen knife, her fluffy, messy hair on her head as she looked at Ye Zheng with curiosity.

Wen De immediately stood in front of Ye Zheng. Ye Zheng looked down and found that Wen De's Bone Spurs had also vanished.

It must be this girl's ability.

Ability nullification? A truly tricky ability for an ability user.

Ye Zheng looked up at the crazy-looking golden-haired girl. That wild, prone-to-biting temperament was a bit like Sykes's, but Sykes, probably constrained by his Crown Prince status and the people around him, could at least maintain the appearance of a normal person. But this girl before her...

Anyone could tell she was an extremely dangerous individual.

Observing her at close range, Ye Zheng was almost certain that she couldn't possibly be from either of the two missing teams. A civilian trapped inside? No, she was almost like the personification of that Blood-colored Demonic Domain.

After slashing at Ye Zheng once, the golden-haired girl didn't attack again. At this moment, she was squatting on the ground, organizing her black bag.

"Ah, my things all fell out!"

"So dirty, so disgusting..."

The golden-haired girl squatted on the ground, her long golden hair trailing on the floor without a care, as she earnestly packed the things that had fallen out of the black bag.

A round object rolled out and came to a stop by Ye Zheng's foot. Ye Zheng gently lifted her foot to block it, preventing it from rolling further.

Ye Zheng, maintaining a defensive posture, was stunned for a moment, then quickly spoke in a gentle tone to remind her.

"You also dropped a head, please take it back."

A... head of Olin? Ye Zheng studied the head's terrified, twisted face and barely recognized him.

"Can't you see I'm busy? Won't you hand it to me yourself?"

Ye Zheng pushed aside Wen De's restraining hand, casually touched the gun hidden in her windbreaker at her waist, picked up the head from the ground, and walked over to the golden-haired girl.

The golden-haired girl immediately beamed with joy, took the head, and tossed it into the black bag along with various other severed limbs.

"You're so special. You're the second person who's made me feel is special. I'll give you a comfortable death."

The kitchen knife in the girl's left hand swung over again. Ye Zheng, fully expecting it, dodged to the side. At the same time, the hand that had been resting on her waist immediately gripped the gun and instantly pressed it against the back of the golden-haired girl's head!

Ye Zheng pulled the trigger without any hesitation. When facing a lunatic like this, a moment's hesitation could give them a chance to turn the tables and kill you!

A bang exploded! The expected blood and gore did not splatter on Ye Zheng's face. This time, she saw it clearly with her own eyes. After the bullet hit the back of the girl's head and exploded, it actually dissipated?

"Hahaha!"

The golden-haired girl suddenly turned around, pressed her forehead against the gun's muzzle, her red eyes shining with a mad light, and looked up straight at the black-haired girl who was a head taller than her.

"You thought my ability only nullifies your powers?"

Ye Zheng calmly met her gaze, her fair face slightly damp from the fine rain, but her expression showed not a shred of fear or vulnerability.

"Your ability can not only nullify the power of the Demonic Domain, but also nullify harm directed at you. A truly remarkable ability."

Ye Zheng stated her discovery.

The golden-haired girl, dissatisfied, lightly tapped Ye Zheng's unmoving gun muzzle with her forehead.

"You should be screaming! In disbelief! It's only fun if you're like the others!"

"Do you think I'll let you go just because you look like this? I just want to torture you until you become like those people..."

Wen De, at the side, was about to rush forward, but Ye Zheng gave her a reassuring look, then her gaze continued to meet those crazed, excited red eyes.

"You like seeing interesting reactions from others? I have a more interesting game to play."

Ye Zheng put away her gun and picked up the black bag the golden-haired girl had just packed.

"You've created such a major, nation-shaking event, yet it's a pity that people outside can't glimpse your results for the time being, isn't it?"

"I think you came out precisely to show off your 'results'."

The golden-haired girl tilted her head up to stare at the calm girl and suddenly burst into laughter.

"Hahaha, you're not a normal person either!"

"Wouldn't it be more interesting to put your and your attendant's heads in here too?"

Ye Zheng shook her head, "Where could you put this bag? At the doorstep of the lower district's lord?"

The golden-haired girl stopped laughing, looking like a child whose secret had been exposed, and glanced resentfully at the adult.

"I have a more interesting place—"

"The royal palace, how about it?"

The gentle-tempered, black-haired girl suggested it casually, as if discussing a spring outing location with a friend.

The golden-haired girl's eyes widened, her expression exaggeratedly stunned for a moment as she looked the person before her up and down.

"Who the hell are you! You're crazier than me?"

"I am Ye Zheng, Saintess Ye Zheng of the Sei Curia."

Ye Zheng's dark eyes stared unblinkingly at the golden-haired girl's face, noticing that when she announced her name and identity, the lunatic showed no particular emotion, but rather a moment of confusion, as if pondering something.

"Ye Zhen(叶珍)? Ye Zhen(叶真)? What Sei Curia Saintess... Huh, I think I've heard of that?"

"Can you really get these things into the royal palace? For real?"

"If Saintess Ye Zheng lies, she will lose all her honor from this day forward."

"Honor? Only people like you care about that."

The golden-haired girl clicked her tongue in disdain, her red eyes once again glinting dangerously.

"How about this, then? If I fail, you kill me," Ye Zheng proposed again.

"Where would I kill you? What's your address?"

"No need for such trouble. I come to the lower district often. The Saintess has a lot of activities in the lower district."

Hearing the thoughtful reply from the self-proclaimed Saintess, the unruly-haired golden girl nodded and yawned, like a lion that was just a little sleepy. "Alright, you take the bag. I'm going back to rest."

"Those guys were screaming all night yesterday, I didn't get a good sleep."

As she watched the golden-haired girl turn and leave, muttering, Ye Zheng asked one last question.

"Would you mind telling me your name?"

"Sierra."

Just like that, the golden-haired girl swayed and walked away.

Ye Zheng held the bag that reeked of blood and rot, watching Sierra's figure walk toward the Blood-colored Demonic Domain, her brow furrowed for a long time.

In the manga spoiler she had just seen, Sierra got close to "Ye Zheng" and asked if she remembered her... clearly looking like she held a long-standing, deep-seated grudge against her.

But Ye Zheng had confirmed that face; she had no impression of her.

This led her to think that it might be an enemy she had inadvertently made while acting as Saintess Ye Zheng. After all, hatred between people was always strange; a thoughtless action could provoke a bone-deep grudge.

What puzzled her even more was that when she announced her name and identity, Sierra had no reaction, and it didn't seem like she was deliberately concealing it.

How strange. Sierra had no reaction to Saintess Ye Zheng, yet in the manga, she looked full of hatred and murderous intent.

And when would that scene in the plot take place?

Suddenly, a word Sierra mentioned in the manga flashed through Ye Zheng's mind: "ten years."

Ten years ago, Ye Zheng could only think of that one incident. It seemed this Blood-colored Demonic Domain was Sierra's handiwork. She was indeed also a victim of the Blood Flower' Incident, and this event was most likely her revenge.

Even so, Ye Zheng couldn't figure out for the moment what exactly Sierra hated her for.

Ye Zheng lowered her head, holding the black bag in one hand and her phone in the other. Perhaps the rest of the manga spoiler would provide an answer.

Author's Note:

The real nemesis between women (not really) makes her appearance.

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