Chapter 58-The Manga Pariah's Guide to Self-Salvation

Ye Zheng looked at the scrap of cloth on the ground, remembering that Bai Muqing seemed to have a brother in the Royal Knight Order.

"I'm looking for someone. My brother went missing with Sykes."

Bai Muqing stated succinctly. Ye Zheng noticed that her face was even paler than usual, and she was shrouded in an indescribable melancholy.

She didn't ask any more questions. She took a bottle of spray from her backpack and sprayed it on Bai Muqing's exposed neck and arms. Bai Muqing's body stiffened at once.

"What are you doing?"

"You're already getting red spots on your arms. Don't underestimate the insects here."

With that, Ye Zheng took out a pair of black sleeve covers and a hat and put them on the stunned Bai Muqing. The originally pure white and neat attire became somewhat messy from head to toe. The imposing nun was instantly transformed into a helpless, ordinary youth.

"...Why are you carrying so much miscellaneous stuff?"

"I'm starting to think I didn't bring enough."

Ye Zheng didn't answer Bai Muqing's question directly. She felt Bai Muqing's power surging in the area and asked, "Have you found any trace of your brother?"

Bai Muqing had expanded her ability, [Divine Domain], and every rustle of grass and breath of wind was under her control. Yet, she shook her head and retracted her ability.

"There's someone to the southwest. I don't know them, but they're dying."

Ye Zheng looked in the direction Bai Muqing indicated. The trees there were even deeper and darker, showing no signs of movement.

"I'll go check it out then. I hope your brother is safe."

Ye Zheng set off towards the quiet forest, but another set of footsteps suddenly followed hers.

She turned her head to look at Bai Muqing's profile, which was slightly shorter than hers. She could only see her white eyelashes trembling slightly.

"Aren't you going to look for your brother?"

Bai Muqing's expression was still a bit downcast, but there was no sense of confusion.

"I know why you're here."

Ye Zheng raised an eyebrow slightly. Her reasons for entering this Demonic Domain were quite complex; even she herself found them difficult to summarize.

"As a Saintess, and as a Knight, you both came here out of a duty to save people."

Bai Muqing had learned from her parents that Bai Mulin wasn't originally supposed to accompany Sykes. With his family background, not even Yu Tianming would dare to push him into such a dangerous mission. It was Bai Mulin who had volunteered.

And Ye Zheng was even more of a given. With her style, she should have a strong dislike for Sykes's team, yet she was forced to join due to pressure from the Royal Family and the Sei Curia.

To help the team from the lower district win and bring welfare to the common people, she took a huge risk to assist the Cloud-Soaring Squad under the identity of "Zhao Mei," worthy of her title as the Saintess, the God's Agent.

Beneath the seemingly empty face of the white-haired, white-eyed girl, a heart was surging with vibrant emotions.

She wanted to rescue her brother, but she wanted to do more than just that. She was not only Bai Mulin's sister and the daughter of the Bai family, but also Bai Muqing, the most powerful female ability user of the younger generation, possessing a rare talent.

"Ye Zheng, I will act with you until I have my own duty."

Bai Muqing threw out this sentence and walked ahead sullenly. Ye Zheng was forced to quicken her pace to follow behind her. Who was accompanying whom now?

Ye Zheng, intrigued, communicated with the System in her mind.

"Bai Muqing seems to have changed a little. I don't know the specifics, but it should be something to be happy about for her."

[Bai Muqing's goal in the original plot was to defeat you. She felt you were unqualified as a Saintess—a point many readers supported her on. But now, it seems everything has changed.]

"So did she defeat me?"

[She was defeated by Percy, who was protecting you. Then her interest shifted from you to Percy.]

The System felt this part of the original plot was somewhat absurd. It had watched Ye Zheng and Bai Muqing interact for quite some time, and their relationship wasn't as simple as portrayed in the original plot.

It thought Ye Zheng might get angry hearing about this plot point, but a glance revealed that the youth's face under the black hat was as calm as ever, with a hint of a smile in her green eyes.

"Muqing does have that little flaw. She looks proud and aloof, but she actually never knew what she wanted, so she's always been running after others."

"But she'll find her way eventually."

Bai Muqing, walking ahead, suddenly stopped. Ye Zheng ducked under a slanted tree branch and looked forward.

The faint sound of flowing water could be heard. The tangled, gnarled trees partially concealed a rushing river not far away. Ye Zheng squinted slightly; the indistinct river didn't seem very clear.

She continued forward, and the river, tinged with mottled red, became clearer. She pushed aside the tangled branches, and the scenery that suddenly opened up before her didn't bring joy, but rather made one's blood run cold.

The opposite bank of the river was also lined with trees, but they were shorter and more slender. Their trunks and branches had a tender reddish hue, reminiscent of half-steamed meat, and their roots were intertwined, half-exposed above the water.

A line of neat human figures stood on the surface of the rushing river, standing on the tender-red tree roots.

The two youths stood side by side on the riverbank, silently observing the scene on the other side.

A row of people was hanging from the tree trunks, their stiff, pale faces unnaturally calm. Some wore grand knight uniforms, some were in tattered clothes, and some were barely clothed. At this moment, they were all as calm as travelers orderly waiting for a ferry, with no distinction of class. Their dark, hollow eyes stared straight at the opposite bank.

"One is still alive."

Hearing this, Ye Zheng's gaze carefully swept over each serene face. She suddenly noticed that the girl on the far right had a tender-red branch tied around her neck, and her hand twitched faintly a few times.

Bai Muqing spoke slowly, then stared at the rushing river and added, "We need to find a way across. Going around would take too long."

She could feel that the soul's presence on the other side was already extremely weak. Any further delay, and the girl would be beyond saving.

Bai Muqing closed her eyes. She could only use her ability one more time. Perhaps she could control something in the water to carry them across.

"Muqing, let's go."

Just as the white-haired, white-eyed girl was gathering her power, the corner of her clothes was suddenly tugged by the person beside her. She opened her eyes, and her usually vacant white pupils widened abruptly. She couldn't see, but she could sense that a strange change had occurred in the river before her.

Ye Zheng didn't quite understand how Bai Muqing perceived the world through her ability. She could only try to be considerate, helping Bai Muqing walk onto the water bridge built in mid-air.

The fierce current, carrying fallen wood and sand, had formed a small bridge between the two banks.

Although this Demonic Domain was perilous, for Ye Zheng, it was a good place to fully utilize her abilities.

Bai Muqing walked across the bridge with complex feelings and couldn't help but ask, "Your ability..."

She suddenly stopped, realizing that Ye Zheng probably wanted to hide it. Otherwise, how could no one know that the Saintess was not only skilled in healing but also had masterful control over water?

Bai Muqing had only seen people who wanted to pull strings to inflate their reported strength to gain more resources. She had never heard of someone hiding their own formidable power. This was simply inconceivable in the talent-obsessed Empire.

"You are very strong."

After a moment of silence, Bai Muqing uttered the words she had long wanted to say, turning her head away to hide her flustered expression.

Perhaps even the strength she took pride in couldn't compare to the girl beside her.

Ye Zheng was a little surprised. She had just built a trivial little bridge and had earned Bai Muqing's approval. She only hoped that Bai Muqing could conserve her strength. This Demonic Domain was truly strange, and having a powerful teammate was a reassuring thing.

She didn't mind revealing her ability to Bai Muqing either. Someone as proud as Bai Muqing wouldn't voluntarily expose her secrets. Besides, she would have to reveal her true strength sooner or later. She was just holding back for a while due to her own current limitations.

Ye Zheng shook her head, saying with some regret, "If I were truly considered strong, this entire river would be drained to make way for us."

Bai Muqing, who had just been doubting herself, shed her dejection and revealed a strange expression upon hearing this, turning to look at the regretful Ye Zheng.

This river ran through the entire vast Demonic Domain. If Ye Zheng could one day drain it dry, "strong" would be far from enough to describe her. Even Sykes would have to be wary of her...

Just how high were Ye Zheng's standards for herself? It seemed another chasm had been added to the gap between them.

Bai Muqing silently added a new requirement for herself—never be satisfied with her current strength.

The black-haired, green-eyed youth was unaware of the complex psychological activities of the girl beside her. After she jumped off the water bridge, she immediately held her breath. The stench of decay that hit her was nauseating.

Facing these hanged corpses up close, Ye Zheng became even more vigilant. Her gaze wasn't fixed on their strangely calm faces—some even wore smiles—but was locked onto the knotted, tender-red branches. The branches from which the corpses hung were pulsating, as if they were breathing.

Ye Zheng led Bai Muqing forward at a steady pace until they reached the still-breathing girl.

Bai Muqing's expression turned grim. She took out a knife, intending to cut the branch wrapped around the girl's neck.

Suddenly, her knife-wielding wrist was grabbed. Bai Muqing looked uncomprehendingly at the focused Ye Zheng.

Ye Zheng stared intently at the gently pulsating, tender-red branch. It looked a bit like a blood vessel. She followed the slender branch with her eyes and discovered that behind the row of corpses and trees, countless tender-red branches extended deeper into the forest.

More accurately, they seemed to be crawling out from the depths, intertwining and pulsating like the complex blood vessels in a human body.

Even without using her ability to probe, Ye Zheng was certain that a terrifying behemoth was lurking in the deepest part. For now, it was best not to disturb it.

Ye Zheng took the knife from Bai Muqing's hand and only made a light cut on the branch around the girl's neck.

A pulp of the same tender-red color as the surface slowly oozed out. It looked rather disgusting. Ye Zheng frowned, pressed her finger on it, and a tiny stream of water silently slipped inside.

After a moment, the branch seemed to lose its strength and slackened slightly. The hanging girl's body slid down, and Bai Muqing immediately caught her.

Ye Zheng stared thoughtfully at the small wound on the branch. She had used the water stream to block the flow of pulp inside the branch, and the branch went limp, like a person who had lost their normal blood supply.

"Quick... run..."

The girl, on the verge of losing consciousness, grabbed Bai Muqing's hand. Her body was even paler than Bai Muqing's, completely devoid of color.

"Even... even the Crown Prince... couldn't escape... couldn't escape..."

The girl's pupils gradually dilated, and she completely lost consciousness.

The two youths looked at each other, seeing an unprecedented gravity in each other's eyes.

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