“Caw! Caw!”
Upon hearing the mournful cawing from above, Leon instinctively looked up. But instead of the familiar blue skies and white clouds, all he saw was an endless expanse of lifeless gray void.
A pale, warmthless sun hung in the heavens like the pupil of a dying old man, surrounded by pitch-black clouds, silently gazing down at the turbid river below that surged with chaotic currents.
Above this murky and noisy river, a road made of countless ancient bones, faintly glowing with a soft yellow hue amidst their whiteness, carried wailing spirits deep into the somber tranquility of the Deathscape.
“This is the Deathscape, where all souls come after death.”
Glancing at Leon, who had emerged from the crocodile’s mouth carrying Emma on his back, clearly awestruck by the sight of the Deathscape, the Red-haired Bureau Director observed the trio’s condition before advising:
“After emerging from the croc’s mouth, your physical bodies will have entered the Deathscape. Some crows might fly over, but don’t attack them. Just stay still.”
“Ah, okay!”
Nodding slightly, Leon suddenly remembered Emma Senior lying unconscious on his back and quickly sought help:
“Director, Emma Senior is severely injured…”
“Don’t worry; she’ll be fine.”
After checking Emma’s emerald-tinged soul, the Red-haired Bureau Director sighed in relief:
“Though Goddess of Wealth hit her hard, Emma’s soul is resilient. She just needs some rest. The parts of her body that turned jade-like are more troublesome… And you? How do you feel?”
“I’m fine.”
After hearing the director’s words, Leon shook his head slightly, then absentmindedly touched two small bald patches on his head.
Though he had healed many wounds using the [Infected Blood Band], the two patches of hair lost when horns grew and were squeezed off couldn’t be restored, making these perhaps the only injuries he sustained during the mission.
…
“Director, I’m fine, but he has serious problems!”
Just as Leon was touching his hair, a head popped up from the depths of the crocodile’s mouth. The lazy youth lying on the tongue of the Crocodile God complained bitterly: “Half my bones are gone, now only my neck and butt can move. Can you…”
“Is this called injury?”
With a glance at Tom, the Red-haired Bureau Director waved it off casually: “Didn’t you already set up a resurrection ritual beforehand? Revive once, and it’ll be fine.”
“It would work… but it hurts…”
“Tsk, cutting your own neck is no big deal. Stop being such a sissy, big guy!”
After dismissing the lazy youth with three sentences, the Red-haired Bureau Director retrieved the strand of hair tied around the Crocodile God’s neck, then walked behind Leon, gently lowering Emma from his back, picked her up horizontally, and urged:
“Come on, don’t stay inside the croc’s mouth. Let’s go outside!”
“Oh…”
Following the Red-haired Bureau Director’s instructions, after stepping out of the Crocodile God’s mouth that brought him to the Deathscape, Leon didn’t get a chance to ask why he was brought here before another cacophony of shrill caws erupted.
Unlike the sparse cries earlier, this time the caws were dense and chaotic. Focusing his gaze, Leon noticed about six or seven hundred red-eyed crows flying from afar. Unlike previous crows that flew straight into the depths of the Deathscape, these circled above the trio.
“These birds are called Death-Announcing Crows, pets raised by one of the Sovereigns of the Deathscape. Whenever a new soul appears, they rise from their perches, open their eyes, and fly directly into the deepest part of the Deathscape, announcing the birth of the deceased.”
“But if a living person enters the Deathscape with their body intact, their Death-Announcing Crow won’t fly into the depths. Instead, it will find and hover above the person it’s watching, or even land on their shoulder.”
“That doesn’t seem right, does it?”
Looking up at the circling red-eyed crows, Leon asked curiously: “There are only three of us here—four including Tom Senior who hasn’t come out yet—but there are nearly seven hundred crows up there?”
“To be precise, there are six hundred and sixty-six.”
Checking that Emma in her arms was still unconscious and wouldn’t hear his words, the Red-haired Bureau Director explained softly:
“You’ve probably heard about Emma’s origins. Her clan once attempted a coup to overthrow the current Royal Family. Due to a betrayal, everyone except Emma was executed. The execution site was set outside Baohua Manor, staining the redwood tree crimson.
Her indestructibility was born during that execution.
All six hundred members of her clan were killed, leaving her with six hundred lives to replenish herself. To kill her permanently, she must be slain six hundred and sixty-six times within a day.
When she inherited the lives of her clan, she also inherited their Death-Announcing Crows. These crows above us are actually here for her.”
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“…”
Ah, so that’s how it is…
After hearing Emma Senior’s past, Leon couldn’t help but fall into a brief silence. Although he had suspected something similar about Emma Senior’s indestructibility, the brutal truth still left him deeply shocked.
While Leon remained silent, the Red-haired Bureau Director carefully examined him from top to bottom repeatedly, making Leon increasingly uncomfortable until he finally asked:
“Why are you staring at me? Is there something on me?”
“Not really. The reason I’m looking at you is precisely because there’s nothing on you.”
The Red-haired Bureau Director gave Leon a significant look before asking:
“Leon, where is your Death-Announcing Crow?”
“???”
Thrown off by the question, Leon replied confusedly:
“Aren’t there tons of them flying above us? Isn’t one of them mine?”
“I’ve already said this. All the Death-Announcing Crows above us are here for Emma. Neither yours nor mine are among them.”
Staring directly into Leon’s eyes, the Red-haired Bureau Director slowed down his speech, dead serious: “When my Leon Value reached 60 points and aligned with the True God, my Death-Announcing Crow lost its ability to sense my death and flew straight into the depths of the Deathscape with its eyes closed.
But your Leon Value is only around 6 points, which means you haven’t escaped the Death-Announcing Crow’s death perception. So, your Death-Announcing Crow should still be perched at the entrance of the Deathscape.”
“…”
“Leon, can you tell me why, even though your body has entered the Deathscape, your Death-Announcing Crow hasn’t come to find you?”
(End of Chapter)
