Chapter 7 - My Subordinates, Bind Her up for Me

No, I got led off track somehow.

996 transformed into a chinchilla and perched on her head, revealing sharp little claws while growling menacingly: "But if you don't do the mission, I will devour you!"

"Then go ahead and kill me." With teary eyes, Wen Ruan softly replied, "If I'm destined to die, why not choose a comfortable way to die?"

996 was furious and helplessly rubbed her head with a squeaky sound: "Can't you use time travel when he's about to snap your neck???!!!"

Was the special power I gave you just for show? Damn it!

Wen Ruan weakly pointed her fingers against each other, looking pitiful, "But, I don't have enough points right now."

"I'll lend them to you! I'll lend you whatever you need! Just take it! I'll make sure you have enough!"

"Deal."

Wen Ruan immediately brightened up, smiling with a slight curl of her lips. She took out a silk handkerchief and leisurely wiped the fine sweat on her forehead, emphasizing as if she was worried:

"We agreed, you mustn't back out."

996: Why do I feel like I'm being tricked?

The little chinchilla scratched its head in confusion, curling up its chubby body into a ball of fur, lost in thought.

Wait, what was I originally supposed to say?

"You’re really heavy."

Wen Ruan pulled it down and pressed it against her chest, taking a deep breath and playfully rubbing its head back and forth. She surveyed her surroundings.

"Speaking of which, where are we?"

She had been so focused on running that she didn't pay attention to the route. In just a moment, she had gone from a bustling market to the desolate wilderness.

She was now standing at the entrance of a maple forest, with no village or store in sight. Even the birds in the forest were silent.

When silence reached its peak, a gust of wind blew from a distant hill.

The collision of fiery red maple leaves produced a rustling sound, accompanied by the last remnants of the setting sun's light, and a thin mist slowly seeped out from deep within the forest.

There was only one thought in Wen Ruan's mind.

This is truly a perfect place to kill someone and dispose of their body.

Two more drops of cold sweat rolled down her forehead, and she suddenly remembered the description in the book: "Floating Clouds and Past Memories" was located near the Lanzhou Ghost Maple Forest.

And in that forest, there seemed to be a powerful demon, later eliminated by the passing male and female leads.

But now, the male and female leads hadn't embarked on their journey to change their fates yet.

In other words, that powerful demon was still peacefully living inside.

Wen Ruan subtly shifted her steps, quietly and silently attempting to turn around.

"Young girl."

Unexpectedly, an elderly voice could be heard from a place not far away, accompanied by a few faint coughs. "Young girl, come over here."

Wen Ruan's body froze, her raised foot suspended in mid-air, and for a moment she was unsure where to place it.

She followed the voice and saw a person sitting on a boulder in the forest, an elderly woman in her twilight years.

With the sky completely dark and vague shadows under the tree canopy, she sat there alone, her temples gray, thin as a bag of bones.

Seeing Wen Ruan looking over, her waxen face brightened, and she trembled as she waved her hand, "Come over quickly."

Hmm, coupled with her shrill and thin voice, it can’t get any creepier.

Wen Ruan didn't hesitate for long, she turned around and ran.

Moments ago, there wasn't even a ghostly figure in this forest. How could a person suddenly appear in the blink of an eye?

This was a common trick used by monsters that eat humans on TV. She wouldn't fall for it.

"Young girl, don't run away—"

The old woman persistently called out to her, her voice getting closer and more eerie with each word.

Wen Ruan's whole body was covered in goosebumps, and she felt waves of chilling sensations. She pulled out her sword and was about to fly away.

But her spiritual power seemed frozen, and she was unable to move.

She cursed under her breath, retracting her sword into the storage bag and continued running.

At some point, the previously thin mist had grown thicker. Coupled with the dimming sky, she could barely see the path anymore.

The trees seemed to morph and change, no matter how she ran, she couldn't escape.

In the distance, a faint and melancholic flute melody sounded, providing a profound background music for this wild escape.

She clenched her fists tightly. "Who's the clever one who came to this desolate wilderness to play the flute for no reason?"

"Don't be afraid, I'll help you!" 996 transformed into a beam of light and "whooshed" into her mind, confidently saying:

"Turn left, and you'll shake her off immediately."

Wen Ruan was moved to tears and followed the instructions, but then she stepped into thin air.

In the moment of rapid descent, she couldn't help but let out a soulful scream:

"Useless system!"

Within the white mist, the old woman frowned as she looked at the deep bottomless hole on the ground and sighed.

"I told you not to run, but you didn't listen. Now that you've fallen into his hands, I can't save you anymore."

"Thud—"

A sound of a heavy object landing came from the lightless cave, echoing through the space.

Wen Ruan lay on the ground like a pancake, her lifeless eyes once again losing their desire for life.

"How about that? I told you, you could shake her off right away." 996 proudly wiggled its ears, circling around in her mind.

"Get up quickly, don't play dead."

After a long while, a trembling middle finger stood up from the ground, and Wenruan spat out a mouthful of coagulated blood, speaking with a sense of sorrow:

"What did I do wrong to be bound by a system that hasn't even graduated from kindergarten?"

"Are you out of your mind? We system creators don't need to go to school." 996 urged again: "Get up, get up. This place is eerie, not a good spot."

"Do you think I don't want to get up?!" Wen Ruan pounded her chest and spat out more blood. "I've at least broken three ribs, so get lost!"

The hole from earlier was at least several dozen meters deep. To only break a few ribs after falling like that was already a medical miracle in the cultivation world.

…

996 went silent immediately.

Wen Ruan also knew that she couldn’t stay here for long. She had to quickly leave and tend to her injuries.

She forced herself to get up and tried to activate her spiritual power.

Fortunately, it was slowly recovering.

In a little while, she would be able to use her sword to fly away.

The surroundings were pitch black. Wen Ruan reached out her hand, trying to find the fluorescent stone for illumination in her storage bag.

"Hiss—"

There were faint rustling sounds from behind.

What was that sound?

She froze and strained her ears, trying to discern what it was.

"Hiss—"

The sound grew louder, accompanied by the cold and slippery sensation around her ankles, reminding her of a certain unpleasant creature.

Wen Ruan took out the fluorescent stone, and the pitch-black cave instantly lit up as bright as day. Then she peacefully closed her eyes.

The ground was filled with colorful snakes. At first glance, there were at least hundreds of them.

They all stood up, their cold vertical pupils fixed on her, giving her a sudden illusion that she was a little frog at the moment.

A little frog about to be eaten by snakes.

I'm done for.

Just as she was resigning herself to her fate, the snake coiled around her ankle opened its mouth and said, "Woman, where did you come from?"

Wow, it started with such a philosophical question.

Wen Ruan coughed and cleared her throat forcefully. Under extreme nervousness, her brain predictably started malfunctioning.

"To be honest, I come from the Great Eas—"

"Perfect timing!" The snake didn't give her a chance to finish her sentence. With a swift movement, it transformed into a young man with a bamboo-like appearance. He waved his hand and said:

"My subordinates, bind her and offer her as a tribute to the Great King!"