GRMFBS CH117

The five little ghosts, colored red, yellow, white, black, and green, were diligently kneading and coloring the fondant, being bossed around by Zhan Jinli.

Zhan Jinli was rapidly shaping the fondant, his hands moving so fast they became a blur, exuding the air of a master chef.

The five little ghosts, even working together as assistants, could barely keep up with his speed.

After finishing one fondant cake, Zhan Jinli gave them a break. He was fast, but he couldn’t be too fast. His family knew he was the only one at the cake shop. If he worked too quickly, the speed wouldn’t add up.

The five little ghosts wiped away non-existent sweat, looking at each other with a sense of sorrow in their eyes.

—Sob, sob, sob, the Ghost King has been back for so long, why hasn’t he risen to power yet?
—You can’t say he hasn’t risen. If you look at it from another angle, our lord is now on the path to becoming the Cake King.
—That’s right! Have you guys seen those cooking anime? The kind where they make glowing dishes? Then our lord is now taking the first step to rise to fame!
—But we’ve never seen anyone make glowing food here.
—Have faith in our lord! Since our lord has decided to walk the path of a master chef, he will eventually create glowing cuisine!

Zhan Jinli let this group of silly little ghosts communicate with their eyes. He had once tried to correct their strange thought processes, but his words were always misinterpreted in bizarre ways. When he said he wanted to rest well and lie flat like a salted fish, this group of little ghosts was convinced he was biding his time and hiding his strength. When he thought that Wanyan, that crazy cat, was annoying and he should hide well so as not to be discovered, they believed he was enduring hardship and waiting for the right opportunity.

To summarize, everything revolved around the central idea that “Lord Linyuan will definitely reach the absolute peak,” with various paths and possibilities branching out from there.

Zhan Jinli gave up after a few tries. Anyway, these little ghosts were very obedient. As long as they were useful, he’d let them think whatever they wanted.

Besides making cakes, Zhan Jinli was also pondering recent events.

Previously on the forum, Approaching Science had reminded him that some troublemakers had used his divine ability. He had followed the clues and discovered that someone had used the ghost scales he had lost when he was injured back then to create an abnormal “Cursed Scale.” Following this clue further, he had traced it to an old city district, where the trail went cold.

In an abandoned old house in the old city district, there were traces of a great battle. From the lingering aura, one side possessed multiple abnormal auras, which were all interconnected and similar. This reminded Zhan Jinli of the Black Nests he had once seen in the Infinite World. The aura of the other side, however, reminded him of a person—the person who had broken out of the Infinite twenty-six years ago, the top 1 player, Shen Ying.

Zhan Jinli had only seen Shen Ying once, but he had heard many rumors about him from others afterward.

The players who came out of the Infinite had very complicated feelings towards Shen Ying. They yearned for him, yet they feared him.

And in the distant glimpse Zhan Jinli had, he hadn’t seen Shen Ying’s appearance clearly, only a shadow that seemed to swallow even light itself, rushing out of the Infinite.

Zhan Jinli had originally thought that shadow would leave—his aura was too deathly still, a cold indifference that had never existed even in the underworld. Even the Minghe Ghost King, born from the River Minghe itself, did not possess that kind of chilling, deathly stillness.

The Minghe had seen its fill of life and death. She sent souls to the reincarnation platform. After death comes life. But that shadow only had a deathly stillness of nothingness.

Nothingness meant that he would care about nothing. Since he wanted to leave, he would surely leave after breaking free from his shackles.

But Zhan Jinli had then seen that shadow turn back.

He had pointed them to the core of the Infinite and had crashed into it without hesitation. For a moment, Zhan Jinli thought he was like a meteor, its tail a deep, abyssal crack.

Through the dark, withered crust of the earth, Zhan Jinli had glimpsed the insane flames burning below.

Zhan Jinli was very grateful for Shen Ying’s help, but he also felt that it was indeed necessary for him to be wanted.

Whether it was that deathly stillness that cared for nothing, or the madness hidden beneath the surface, both meant that Shen Ying was a person on the verge of losing control. And this person possessed terrifying power.

But it had been twenty-six years, and there had been no news of Shen Ying, only occasional traces suspected to be left by him at the scene where an abnormality was eliminated.

This time, he had confronted the Black Nest. Looking at the traces left at the scene, it should be Shen Ying who had won.

But this was also the first time a trace of a Black Nest had appeared in their world.

The appearance of the Black Nest meant that the Infinite had not truly perished, and had even accumulated enough power. With the Black Nest, there was a breeding ground for the birth of abnormalities.

It wanted to revive, and the largest existing fragment of the Infinite in the Abnormal Affairs Management Bureau was its biggest target.

Tianshi’s move on New Year’s Eve was likely for this purpose—to remove the firewood from under the cauldron and extinguish its momentum.

Every time he thought of the shock he felt when he discovered the traces of the Black Nest, Zhan Jinli couldn’t help but feel lucky for Tianshi’s decisiveness.

And lucky that Shen Ying had discovered and dealt with this Black Nest in advance. In terms of understanding the Infinite, they were ultimately no match for these top players who had made their way out of the Infinite.

Perhaps Shen Ying had found a way to resolve his loss of control.

Zhan Jinli decided to find Shen Ying and talk, preferably to cooperate, and also to get rid of that wanted order that had been hanging for over twenty years.

But finding Shen Ying was a troublesome matter. This guy had absolutely no desire to communicate. After the great battle twenty-six years ago, the Abnormal Affairs Management Bureau had tried to communicate with Shen Ying through various methods, but Shen Ying had never given any response. A few years later, the wanted order was issued.

But Zhan Jinli did not want this dangerous person to have any connection with his family. So he had to be more careful in distinguishing between the identities of Linyuan and Zhan Jinli. He absolutely could not let anyone find his family through Linyuan!

Therefore, Zhan Jinli decided not to go out as the Linyuan Ghost King for the time being. He would just remotely collect information about Shen Ying and finish the cake orders at home first, while also hiding from the once-again-excited Wanyan.

On the Superpower Forum, the post {Does anyone know what’s been happening with Mount Chaofu recently?} was bumped up again.

When Zhan Jinli got home, Zhan Yan was browsing the post.

555L:
Didn’t the Wanyan Ghost King go out to find the Linyuan Ghost King? Why is Mount Chaofu acting up again and again?!

556L:
[Sunflower seeds and a stool.]
What’s wrong with Mount Chaofu?

558L:
It might not be the Wanyan Ghost King, right? Didn’t the Wanyan Ghost King leave Mount Chaofu before?

560L:
I have connections on Mount Chaofu. A little birdie told me that this time it’s not the Wanyan Ghost King causing trouble on Mount Chaofu, but the Tie Lao Ghost King going on strike because he can’t stand working 007 without a break…

Hmm? Is that true? I haven’t heard this piece of gossip!

Zhan Yan opened his gossip system to search.

The Tie Lao Ghost King had broken through during the great battle twenty-six years ago and was lucky enough not to be seriously injured. At that time, the underworld was in chaos. Diting was dead, leaving only a small fragment of his soul that was barely saved. The Linyuan Ghost King had almost dissipated his soul and had to recuperate at the bottom of a cold pond. The Minghe Ghost King had to support the sending of souls to reincarnation and had no spare energy for anything else.

The Tie Lao Ghost King was appointed in a time of crisis, took over the burden of Mount Chaofu, and worked diligently for twenty-six years. In these twenty-six years, the Tie Lao Ghost King could be said to have been hardworking and uncomplaining. He had experienced the tragic situation back then and had great respect for the sacrifices of his predecessors. He believed that since the predecessors had risked their lives, he, as a junior, should naturally share these miscellaneous tasks for them, so that they would have time to recuperate from their injuries.

Under the efforts of the Tie Lao Ghost King, the reincarnation cycle in the underworld quickly stabilized and had not run into any more trouble. Although Mount Chaofu was very “salted fish” to the outside world, that was because the 996-worker Tie Lao Ghost King was simply out of energy.

Although his work was very busy, the Tie Lao Ghost King always had a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction looking at the fruits of his labor.

Look, under his efforts, how stable the underworld was! Wasn’t this worth being happy about? Wasn’t this a great cause? Although he hadn’t had time to contribute much in the great battle twenty-six years ago, he also had his own way and ability to protect the world!

Besides, this work was not forever. Once the other ghost kings had recovered, they could take over some of the tasks.

With such beautiful expectations, the Tie Lao Ghost King began his life as a corporate slave.

Not long after, the Minghe Ghost King was the first to recover. But her condition was not stable, and she still needed to hibernate and recuperate from time to time. And… after trying, the Tie Lao Ghost King found that this ghost king was really not good at general affairs.

It didn’t matter, it was understandable. The Minghe Ghost King was born from the River Minghe and had little contact with the outside world. Her views on things were also completely different.

In that case, he wouldn’t count on the Minghe Ghost King to take over these tasks. As long as she could continue to keep the reincarnation cycle stable, that was enough.

The Tie Lao Ghost King placed his hopes on the Linyuan Ghost King and the Wanyan Ghost King.

The Wanyan Ghost King woke up.

The Wanyan Ghost King’s mind seemed to have a problem. He had turned into a cat, and his thought process had also changed. He completely lacked the wisdom and understanding of Diting’s previous life, leaving only a jumping thought process that was difficult to understand.

Such a Wanyan Ghost King naturally could not help the Tie Lao Ghost King share his work.

It didn’t matter, the Tie Lao Ghost King could understand. Diting’s soul had been snatched back by the Linyuan Ghost King back then. It was completely normal that he hadn’t fully recovered.

So the Tie Lao Ghost King continued his diligent work and lovingly set aside time to look after the Wanyan Ghost King, who remembered nothing.

But the Wanyan Ghost King was not interested in him. After getting some basic information from him, he ran off to play with the Linyuan Ghost King.

The Tie Lao Ghost King thought there was no problem. He had heard that the Linyuan Ghost King had almost dissipated his soul to save the Wanyan Ghost King’s soul. They must be very good friends.

So the Tie Lao Ghost King confidently left the Wanyan Ghost King on Mount Chaofu and continued to go out to work.

The Linyuan Ghost King had not yet recovered and temporarily could not leave the cold pond much. But he had heard that he had always been a reliable ghost king, who had once been a river god in the human world and must be able to handle various tasks.

With expectations for the Linyuan Ghost King, the Tie Lao Ghost King worked outside for five years. After that, he finally had some free time and prepared to return to Mount Chaofu to check on the recovery of the several ghost kings.

And then he discovered that the Linyuan Ghost King had disappeared, apparently having run away on his own because he couldn’t stand the Wanyan Ghost King’s harassment during his recuperation. And the Wanyan Ghost King, unable to find the Linyuan Ghost King, was throwing a tantrum. Due to his damaged sanity, he had become very persistent and was randomly rummaging through Mount Chaofu trying to find the Linyuan Ghost King. The Minghe Ghost King, unable to bear the disturbance, was beating up the cat. The entire Mount Chaofu was in a mess because of the fight between the two great ghost kings.

The Tie Lao Ghost King: It’s okay, it’s understa—

Understandable my ass!

Why did it turn out like this?!