GRMFBS CH56

The Abnormal Affairs Management Bureau recently apprehended an unnamed anomaly in Beiling City. 

During the capture, they discovered the anomaly was collaborating with a Corpse Flower Konjac demon, a member of the Wan Yao Alliance. 

The Wan Yao Alliance was not involved in this capture; the Abnormal Affairs Management Bureau had discovered the issue in Beiling City first. Neither side had any interest or understanding in cooperating, and the Wan Yao Alliance was unwilling to contend with the Abnormal Affairs Management Bureau over this matter. 

However, despite their non-involvement, a traitor from within the alliance participated!

The Abnormal Affairs Management Bureau sent the remains of the Corpse Flower Konjac demon’s clone to the Wan Yao Alliance. This was a significant loss of face for them!

Gong Yun, a black-necked crane demon responsible for reporting to Zhan Yunkai, carefully kept his head bowed. The Demon King’s anger was palpable, his aura as heavy and oppressive as an impending storm.

“That Corpse Flower Konjac demon isn’t from our region,” the proboscis monkey demon, in charge of reporting the incident, cautiously explained. “He’s a foreign demon who moved here from the south, from the tropics.”

Zhan Yunkai sneered, “What? Is he a ‘temporary demon’ in our Wan Yao Alliance? You can just expel him after he commits a crime?”

The proboscis monkey demon broke out in a cold sweat, constantly rubbing his large nose, stammering, unsure of what to do.

“I won’t make it difficult for you,” Zhan Yunkai’s dual pupils dilated, his fierce aura fluctuating. 

“Go spread the word. Find out who recruited this Corpse Flower Konjac demon, who was responsible for guiding him, what he came into contact with within the alliance, and what information he stole from the alliance. Investigate everything thoroughly and report back to me. Tell the negligent demons to come and confess their sins to me. If they try to shrink back, I will personally pluck off their heads!”

The divine bird’s talons, like golden iron, carved deep marks into the rock. Its strong, magnificent wings spread, soaring across the sky like a golden cloud of flame.

The proboscis monkey demon let out a huge sigh of relief, collapsing onto the ground and vigorously rubbing his chest.

Gong Yun reassuringly lifted him from the ground: “Don’t be afraid, Your Majesty will not punish the innocent.”

This proboscis monkey demon was just an unlucky scapegoat, completely unrelated to the entire incident apart from knowing the Corpse Flower Konjac demon. However, Gong Yun felt he still had some other uses.

The proboscis monkey demon’s legs were still weak, and he hung onto Gong Yun’s arm, tearfully saying, “Your… Your Majesty is truly benevolent!” 

Though, his gaze was quite terrifying to a demon.

Gong Yun smiled at him, patted the dust off him, and gently said, “You don’t need to rush to deliver the message. First, write me a list. Who asked you to report to His Majesty, who taught you that ‘foreign demon’ excuse, who had a good relationship with that Corpse Flower Konjac demon, and who guided him… write all of this down clearly.”

“Don’t be afraid. His Majesty has the divine twin pupils and can discern truth from falsehood; he won’t wrong you.” 

He gently arranged a room for the proboscis monkey demon, complete with fruits and clear springs.

The proboscis monkey demon was dazed but readily agreed to the arrangements, feeling incredibly fortunate to have met the Resplendent Demon King. If not for His Majesty’s ability to discern right from wrong, he might have been tricked by other demons and ended up being skinned alive!

It wasn’t until he was alone in the room that the proboscis monkey demon suddenly realized. Oh dear! The list he promised to write would offend so many demons! No, no, he couldn’t write it! He couldn’t write everything; he had to pick and choose at least some… otherwise, if he offended all the other demons, how would he survive later?!

But then the proboscis monkey demon remembered that Gong Yun had just said that Chongming King had the divine twin pupils and could discern right from wrong. If he submitted an incomplete list, it would surely be noticed!

The proboscis monkey demon scratched his ears and cheeks in frustration, even forgetting to eat the spiritual fruits on the table. He clutched the pen, agonizing for a long time, then gritted his teeth. He had been tricked and coerced by other demons, who didn’t care about his life or death. It was Chongming King who discerned the truth and didn’t blame him.

He’d write it, then!

At worst, he’d follow Chongming King from now on!

The proboscis monkey demon grabbed the pen with one hand, a fruit with the other, chewed vigorously at the desk, and began writing the list.

In the side hall, Gong Yun smiled contentedly. His Majesty had been recuperating on Xihua Mountain these past few years and hadn’t been very involved in the alliance’s affairs. Some demons had forgotten how to show proper respect to His Majesty.

Gong Yun wasn’t particularly angry about the Corpse Flower Konjac demon’s betrayal of the Wan Yao Alliance. The Wan Yao Alliance had a free spirit, and it was normal for one or two traitors to emerge when others had malicious intentions. What angered him was that after the incident, those demons dared to deceive His Majesty!

His Majesty wouldn’t bother too much with minor characters, and would probably just punish the traitors and be done with it. However, Gong Yun had no intention of letting these audacious demons who dared to deceive His Majesty off easy. That’s why he wanted the proboscis monkey demon’s list.

That proboscis monkey demon was timid and muddled, easily tricked by others. If he were just told to write, he probably wouldn’t dare to write everything. So, he needed a little guidance.

In the side hall, a small bird demon, who had come to report, saw Gong Yun smile and boldly landed on his desk, chirping, “Lord Gong Yun, what happy thoughts are you having?”

Gong Yun rubbed the head of the little bird demon, who hadn’t yet learned to transform, and gently said, “Nothing much, just thinking about when His Majesty will capture that traitor.”

The little bird demon lowered its head, comfortably fanning the feathers on its neck: “It’ll definitely be very, very soon! Chongming King is the best!”

“All right, go now,” Gong Yun raised his hand, letting the little bird demon fly away.

Among the ten great Demon Kings of the Wan Yao Alliance, each had a different temperament: the Nine-Tailed Fox was unpredictable, Xumu was indifferent and reclusive, and the Dragon and Phoenix only protected their own kin… Chongming King investigated good and evil, right and wrong, and protected all beings under heaven. Yet, some demons were even worse than an untransformed little bird demon. If they weren’t taught a lesson, they’d think that all those under His Majesty were useless!

Gong Yun revealed a smile that exuded dark energy.

Let him see who they all were!

These past few days, besides attending classes, Zhan Yan had been immersed in searching for information about “Infinity.”

In the evening, he went to sleep after his usual routine of sorting through gossip.

In his dream, Zhan Yan felt incredibly hot, as if he were being roasted by fire. Then, he actually saw fire.

He saw a crystalline, deep world, like a black crystal with countless starlight condensed within it. A one-eyed giant dragon coiled around the black crystal, tying itself into a knot, head to tail.

Within the loop it formed, a single candlelight glowed. The candle’s red wax burned shorter and shorter, and crimson tears flowed downwards, thick as blood yet warm as jade, gradually covering the area within the one-eyed dragon’s self-made knot.

He was right next to that candlelight, feeling hot all over from the scorching heat.

Beneath the candle tears, the black crystal world appeared very cool. He wanted to touch it.

Just as he was about to touch it, bolts of lightning suddenly flashed within the crystal, startling him. He also saw many shadows inside, but they moved too fast for him to see clearly.

He only saw the starlight. They vibrated and swayed within the black crystal, then began to fall.

One after another, falling and extinguishing, becoming a vast meteor shower.

Zhan Yan suddenly felt cold. A biting chill seeped into his bones, making his whole body ache and tremble.

Don’t fall anymore… He tried to speak, but his lips were terribly dry, and his throat felt like it was burning with a flame.

“…Yanyan…”

“…Yanyan…”

He saw distant, falling stars, dark and dry, as if they had long since extinguished and died.

This star also fell, as if it were rushing towards him.

He saw burning flames through a dry crack.

Warm liquid touched his lips, seeping into his throat a little through the crack, leaving a faint sweetness in his mouth.

“…Yanyan… wake up…”

Who was calling him?

Zhan Yan groggily opened his eyes. Gu Jiancheng was leaning over him, his handsome brows slightly furrowed.

“You…” Zhan Yan found his voice incredibly hoarse; speaking a single word felt like sandpaper grinding in his throat.

“You have a fever,” Gu Jiancheng said. “Come, drink some water.”

He held a cup in his right hand and supported Zhan Yan’s back with his left, helping him up slightly.

Zhan Yan drank a little water from his hand. It was warm, sweet honey water.

Gu Jiancheng saw that he was more awake and went down to get medicine.

Zhan Yan watched him suddenly squat down, realizing that Gu Jiancheng was standing on a stool by his bed. University dorms typically have bunk beds with desks underneath, and there’s no ladder on the head side. Gu Jiancheng could only use a chair.

Zhan Yan felt a little like laughing.

In a moment, Gu Jiancheng had climbed back up onto the chair, holding medicine to feed him.

Zhan Yan took the medicine from his hand. Seeing the dimness of the room, he asked, “What time is it?”

“Just six o’clock,” Gu Jiancheng said.

Dawn breaks relatively early in early autumn, and the dimness was partly due to the curtains still being drawn.

A flash of light suddenly appeared through the curtain gap, followed by a rumble a few moments later. Only then did Zhan Yan notice the constant sound of rain in the air. It was a heavy downpour.

Both he and Gu Jiancheng kept their voices low, but despite the commotion, their other two roommates were still woken up.

“What’s wrong?” Bao Qingshan asked groggily.

“Zhan Yan has a fever. Can you help him ask for a leave from his morning classes?” Gu Jiancheng said.

Duan Hong also sat up, his eyes glazed over as he processed for a few seconds: “Huh?”

“Zhan Yan has a fever. I just took some medicine from your first-aid kit,” Gu Jiancheng said.

None of their other three dorm mates had the habit of keeping common medicines, only Duan Hong always had a variety of them.

Duan Hong gradually came to his senses: “Oh, oh, there’s also a thermometer and alcohol wipes in the side compartment of the first-aid kit.”

He and Bao Qingshan quickly washed their faces to wake up, then went to the bedside and felt Zhan Yan’s forehead: “You’re burning up quite a bit. Do you need to go to the hospital?”

Zhan Yan vaguely said, “Hmm… let’s see. If the medicine brings it down, then no.”

“You should take your temperature first. If it reaches 39°C, you’ll have to go to the hospital,” Duan Hong pulled out the thermometer.

“I’ll go to the cafeteria and get some porridge for you. Is there anything else you want to eat?” Bao Qingshan asked.

“Porridge is fine,” Zhan Yan didn’t have much appetite.

Gu Jiancheng was looking for a hot water bottle. He felt Zhan Yan’s gaze constantly following him. After getting a fever, Zhan Yan’s emotions seemed to be more outwardly expressed; he lay on his side in bed, his eyes fixed on Gu Jiancheng.

Duan Hong and Bao Qingshan quickly washed their faces, put on their clothes, and headed to the cafeteria. Only Zhan Yan and Gu Jiancheng remained in the dorm room.

Zhan Yan was still holding the thermometer. 38.6°C. No need to measure, Gu Jiancheng had already felt it.

He had suddenly woken up in the middle of his sleep. That abrupt jolt made him momentarily think he was back in Infinity, where even in dreams, danger could sting his nerves.

But after waking up, there was no longer that sense of life-and-death peril. Instead, another kind of unease tightly clutched his chest—he felt that the aura above his head was off.

Zhan Yan’s aura had changed. He had a fever, his face was flushed, his features were uncomfortably scrunched, and his lips were chapped. Gu Jiancheng saw Zhan Yan sick for the first time. He was weak, uncomfortable, which made Gu Jiancheng feel uncomfortable too.

“Do you want more water?” he asked softly.

Zhan Yan hummed, “I’ll sit up.”

He propped himself up with his sore arms, and when he touched the bed rail, the cold made him shiver. Gu Jiancheng brought his own quilt to Zhan Yan’s bed, cushioning his back and sides.

After drinking half a bowl of porridge, the other residents in the dorm building gradually left for class. The continuous patter of rain provided a quiet white noise.

Zhan Yan’s temperature neither rose nor fell, but he felt intensely cold, as if the bone-chilling cold from his dream had followed him into reality.

The hot water bottles only warmed a small area nearby; his other parts were still cold. He wrapped himself in the quilt, curled into a small ball, and couldn’t stop trembling.

Gu Jiancheng looked at him worriedly, then suddenly pushed off the bed and jumped onto Zhan Yan’s bunk. He landed so lightly and steadily that Zhan Yan didn’t even feel the bed sway; in a blink, someone was beside him.

Gu Jiancheng reached a hand into Zhan Yan’s quilt and squeezed his arm. Zhan Yan felt his hand warm and hot, and instinctively wanted to lean closer.

Gu Jiancheng had already lifted the quilt and climbed in, reaching out to embrace Zhan Yan. His arms and chest were warm, not scalding like the hot water bottle, but a perfectly comforting warmth. It was a larger area than the hot water bottle, and much softer.

The biting cold was melted away by this spring-like warmth. Zhan Yan snuggled closer into his embrace, closed his eyes, and mumbled, “You’re so warm, I’ll sleep for a bit.”

“Sleep,” Gu Jiancheng whispered softly, tucking the edge of the quilt further around Zhan Yan’s neck.

Zhan Yan fell into a deep sleep, wrapped in someone’s arms, yet feeling as if he were holding that star himself. That star that had seemingly extinguished, now burning from within once more.