VAP - Chapter 141
Chapter 141: The Intersection of Illusion and Reality (6)
How to raise a Gluttony?
Yue Du: Thanks for the invite. I’m at the stronghold, just got back from a hunt. Don’t ask. If you do, the answer is that I’m feeling the heavy burden of life.
Ji You could really eat.
When others described a good appetite, they’d say their stomach was a bottomless pit. But not Ji You. Her stomach was the bottomless pit itself. A mountain of food could be shoveled in without so much as an echo.
A few days prior, Yue Du had moved out of the Northern Stronghold, taking Ji You to a nearby medium-sized stronghold to stay temporarily.
With lodging taken care of, filling their stomachs became the primary objective.
Yue Du had considered exchanging points for meals in the System Store. After all, at one point for a whole table of food, it wasn’t expensive.
But things didn’t go as planned. When she calculated based on Ji You’s appetite, she realized it was highly likely her income wouldn’t cover the expenses…
This small world was relatively dangerous, and the host was still young. The points had to be saved for emergencies, so she naturally couldn’t spend the bulk of them on food.
But the little host’s appetite was also a problem.
Yue Du didn’t mention any of this to Ji You. She was a parent now, and what parent would complain to their child about how hard it was to support a family?
However, Ji You figured it out on her own. She said sensibly, “I’ll eat a little less.”
Yue Du couldn’t help but laugh. “Don’t worry about that. I can afford to feed several hundred people, so how could I bear to let you go hungry—you can’t possibly eat more than several hundred people, can you?”
The last part of her sentence was just a joke, but Ji You blinked and obediently lowered her head in silence.
Yue Du: “…” No way.
Ji You, a woman who could eat a System into poverty.
—Of course, right now she was still a girl.
After a brief silence.
Ji You raised her head again and said seriously, “Then I’ll go hunting with you.”
Yue Du was taken aback.
Hunting was indeed the most effective method. As long as they had enough Scarlet Beast parts, what supplies couldn’t they trade for? Unfortunately, Yue Du’s abilities were restricted. Dealing with a few or even a few dozen Scarlet Beasts was manageable, but achieving a large-scale hunt was a bit of a stretch.
Speaking of which, Yue Du had previously considered catching Scarlet Beasts to eat, but considering that half of Ji You’s blood likely came from this species, she had decisively given up the idea.
Seeing Yue Du’s silence, Ji You shook her arm and softened her tone. “Let me go. I want to help, too.”
The host had always been very good at wheedling. Especially as a young human, it was practically an innate talent.
Yue Du had no resistance. A complete defeat.
Thus, hunting became a two-person affair from then on, basically making them a hunter squad.
Unlike the small world where Qi Jiu had been, in these scattered human strongholds focused solely on survival, becoming a hunter didn’t require strict screening or detailed registration. Just signing up was enough.
To get higher-level benefits, one had to first raise their hunter star-rank by accumulating Scarlet Beast eyeballs to exchange for upgrade opportunities.
Over the past year, Yue Du had moved between many strongholds with her mind focused on gathering information, so she had never tried to raise her star-rank. But now, with the little host by her side, the previous level of treatment was clearly not good enough.
Yue Du had saved a lot of Scarlet Beast eyeballs.
The Scarlet Beast species was truly strange. It was one thing for their appearances to be bizarre and varied, but even their eyeball structures were different. There were vertical pupils, horizontal pupils, and even insect-like compound eyes. Only the scarlet part was identical, which humans called the Scarlet Eye.
Ji You picked one up and squeezed it, her expression turning a little disgusted before she casually tossed it back into the pile of eyeballs.
“So ugly,” she commented.
Yue Du said, “Wash your hands after touching the eyes.”
Ji You: “Oh.”
Yue Du counted her accumulated spoils. There were about nine hundred of them piled in a bag. At first glance, it looked like a full bag of polished rubies.
When these eyeballs were presented to the registration staff, the person was first baffled, then shocked.
“Excuse me, are all of these for raising your star-rank?!”
“Yes. I haven’t tried before, so I plan to do it all at once this time. Sorry for the trouble,” Yue Du smiled.
Counting the eyeballs was a major task. Besides the quantity, they also needed to judge the Scarlet Beast’s class based on the vibrancy of the eye’s color to calculate the appropriate star-rank increase.
The registrar initially looked shocked and bewildered, but upon hearing Yue Du say she was a Reality ability user, their expression subtly relaxed.
A Reality ability user, ah, no wonder. To be able to save up so many eyeballs for a one-time rank-up, she must be a patient and powerful hunter!
The humans of this world had a deep-rooted, almost blind, admiration and trust for Reality ability users.
The registrar before her was still relatively rational.
Yue Du wanted to split the eyeballs between herself and Ji You for their upgrades.
The registrar glanced at Ji You and carefully reminded her, “This little friend, Yue Jiu, she’s not yet fifteen, is she? The Hunter Act stipulates that a minor under fifteen raised by a star-ranked hunter is entitled to benefits one star-rank lower than their guardian. If you use all the Scarlet Eyes for your own rank, it should be more cost-effective.”
—Yue Jiu was the alias Ji You used for registration.
Yue Du turned to look at Ji You.
The little host looked up and said earnestly, “Sister earned these in the first place, so of course they should all be used for her. When I can hunt in the future, I’ll save up my own.”
A pretty child always evokes goodwill. A child who was both pretty and well-behaved was even better at winning people over.
The registrar’s eyes lit up. She bent down and said in a tone used for coaxing children, “Then little Yue Jiu, you have to work hard. When you grow up, you’ll be able to help your sister.”
After speaking, she covered her mouth and laughed softly to Yue Du. “Your little sister is so sensible.”
Yue Du: “…”
She was indeed sensible, but you probably don’t know that the “future” she mentioned is actually tomorrow—she doesn’t even have to wait until she grows up.
The next day, Yue Du led Ji You out of the stronghold.
Outside this stronghold was also a forest of mushrooms, very similar to the one Yue Du first saw in this small world. The mushrooms all had tall stalks and thick caps, growing splendidly, quite suitable as a setting for a dark fairy tale.
Scarlet Beasts didn’t seem to like getting close to the mushrooms, but it was merely a dislike. When they needed to forage, they never avoided them.
Therefore, many strongholds built near mushroom forests still couldn’t escape the fate of destruction, but their situation was, after all, slightly better than other strongholds.
Ji You walked while looking left and right. Her skin was fair and delicate, her features exquisite and beautiful, and she wore a snow-white dress. Her attire was a stark contrast to the surroundings, as if she were a little cutie who had wandered into a dark fairy tale forest, looking utterly pitiable and lovable.
Yue Du handed her the lightsaber.
Ji You took it, fiddled with it for a moment, then handed it back, saying, “I don’t need this.”
Yue Du didn’t insist. She unsheathed the light blade halfway, held Ji You’s hand with her left, and walked in front of her, activating the Silent Watcher to maintain constant vigilance.
Ever since coming to this small world, the Watcher was frequently turned on and off, off and on.
It couldn’t be helped. Maintaining the Watcher for long periods was a great burden on Yue Du’s senses, but if she didn’t turn it on frequently, she couldn’t confirm if what she was seeing was real.
In a sense, these Scarlet Beasts were harder to deal with than the strange magical beasts, demonic beasts, Zerg, or mutated creatures of the past. The people of this small world were lucky to have evolved the Reality ability to counter illusions; otherwise, they would have never lasted this long.
By that logic, the host who possessed the same ability as the Scarlet Beasts…
Never mind, there was no comparison. Anyway, regardless of the ability’s form, the default assumption was that the host was the strongest.
Just as she was thinking this, Ji You suddenly stopped.
“Scarlet Beasts are just ahead, about a dozen of them, gathered together foraging. They all look very weak.”
The last half of the sentence was spoken in a low voice, and Yue Du felt the tone sounded like disappointment.
Scarlet Beasts couldn’t be considered a social species, but most of them—the ones with low abilities and low intelligence at the bottom of the pyramid, who lacked the power to weave complete illusions and couldn’t ride on the coattails of the powerful members of their kind—would gather to hunt like a pack of wolves.
After leaving the mushroom forest, a dozen or so Scarlet Beasts of various forms appeared before them.
They were gathered in a circle, heads together, tearing at a corpse that was no longer human-shaped. Suddenly, one of them raised its head and waved its foreclaws in their direction, the tips of its claws still bloody.
The scene was grotesque and terrifying, but it didn’t appear that way to those unable to resist illusions.
If Yue Du were to turn off the Watcher at this moment, she would see a hunter squad in uniforms, anxiously trying to save an injured and unconscious teammate. Upon hearing someone approach, they would even wave for help.
This was the most common method used by packs of Scarlet Beasts to lure prey. It didn’t seem very sophisticated, but it was actually very easy for people to fall for it.
The hunters who walked outside the strongholds were of course not naive simpletons who would help anyone they saw. Logically, even if a team didn’t have a Reality ability user, they shouldn’t be deceived by such a straightforward and crude trick—
But the Scarlet Beasts had another trick up their sleeve.
Yue Du suddenly yanked with her left hand, pulling Ji You in front of her, while simultaneously stabbing backward without looking.
The tip of the light blade struck something solid, sinking deep into flesh. Accompanied by a sharp roar, a Scarlet Beast resembling a canine appeared behind them, a pillar of blood spurting from its throat, before it collapsed to the ground, twitching nonstop.
Given the tenacious life force of Scarlet Beasts, it would probably struggle for a while longer before dying completely.
This was the Scarlet Beast pack’s backup plan.
The most powerful one in the group would hide its presence like a chameleon.
If the newcomers were lured over by the illusion of their own kind, they would be torn apart by the dozen or so Scarlet Beasts swarming them.
But if the newcomers were vigilant and didn’t fall for it, the hidden Scarlet Beast lying in wait would pounce while the prey’s attention was drawn by its companions.
And now, the Scarlet Beast responsible for the ambush had been counter-killed. The positions of prey and hunter were instantly reversed. The other Scarlet Beasts turned to flee. Yue Du wanted to give chase but was stopped by Ji You.
“Let me do it,” she said, then closed her eyes.
Just as Yue Du was about to say “Okay,” she suddenly froze.
In her senses, a silent, formless ring of something exuding a dangerous aura was spreading out from Ji You. It seemed to carry a chill, and as it passed over her body, it gave one the stiff, cold feeling of being targeted by a cold-blooded creature.
The Scarlet Beasts that hadn’t managed to flee far all stopped in unison, as if frozen in place, unable to move. This state lasted for about three or four seconds before they collapsed with a thud, becoming silent.
At this moment, the Scarlet Beast behind Yue Du that had launched the initial sneak attack was still twitching.
Yue Du: “…Did you just weave an illusion?”
Ji You didn’t answer right away. When Yue Du turned back, she happened to see her licking her lips.
In the past, when the host licked her lips, it always carried a certain suggestive meaning, making one’s face flush and heart race, feeling restless inside.
But Ji You was different. She was still a child. The look on her face was clearly that of a child who had just eaten a tasty snack and was savoring the aftertaste.
That dangerous thing slowly retracted. When it passed over Yue Du, its speed was extremely slow, as if reluctant to leave, but in the end, it was gathered back by Ji You.
And—she didn’t know if it was her imagination, but Yue Du felt that this thing had become a little warmer.
Ji You said in a low voice, “This is my ability.”
Yue Du walked forward quickly, gave them a simple check, and unsurprisingly concluded: these Scarlet Beasts were dead.
No external injuries, all parts of their bodies were intact, their scarlet eyes wide open, but they had lost all signs of life.
Ji You lowered her head slightly, seeming a little uneasy. Although the astonishment in Yue Du’s heart hadn’t faded, seeing this, her gaze softened unconsciously. She comforted her gently, “Ah Jiu did very well. Thanks to you, we saved a lot of trouble.”
Upon being praised, Ji You immediately perked up and raised her hand energetically. “Then I’ll dig out the eyes.”
Yue Du: “I should do that. You rest for a bit.”
If it were any other hunter squad, they would be efficiently collecting their spoils and heading back to the stronghold as soon as possible.
After all, hunting a dozen or so Scarlet Beasts was already a pretty good result.
But Yue Du didn’t plan to go back yet.
The materials from a dozen Scarlet Beasts were simply not enough. If she sold them, she might not even be able to buy enough food for Ji You!
So the two of them changed direction and continued to search for prey along the outer edge of the mushroom forest.
This day was destined to be a fruitful one.
Before dusk arrived, they jointly annihilated another group of Scarlet Beasts.
This group of Scarlet Beasts was larger than the first one they encountered. Ji You couldn’t deal with them all at once, so Yue Du had to take care of the few that slipped through the net.
Yue Du once again felt the strange sensation as Ji You retracted her ability. That thing was now slightly hot to the touch. If it could take a visible form, it would surely have a warm and bright color.
Ji You let out a small burp.
Yue Du had been with Ji You for several days now, but this was the first time she’d heard her burp. Considering how little she had eaten today, could this be a hunger burp?
Yue Du said, “Are you hungry? Let’s go back to the stronghold now. We can make it back before nightfall, and we’ll have a late-night snack when we get home.”
Ji You: “Mm.”
She thought for a moment and made a request: “I want to eat something exchanged from the System Store today.”
Yue Du: “No problem.”
When they returned to the stronghold, the sky was already getting dark. The gatekeepers outside were preparing to close the entrance.
At night, no one could enter or leave the stronghold. Therefore, aside from those hunter squads with enough strength and daring, most hunters would rush back before the gates closed.
The two returned to the residence provided for star-ranked hunters in the stronghold, washed up briefly, and sat down at the dining table.
Unexpectedly, although Ji You still watched Yue Du as she ate, she only finished one table of food exchanged from the System Store before announcing she was full.
Yue Du was a bit skeptical. “Are you sure you’re done? You don’t have to suppress your appetite. We still have a basket of meat pies we bought this morning, and the whole fish is ready to eat too.”
Ji You said, “I’m not hungry today.”
Yue Du dubiously patted her host’s belly—of course, she couldn’t tell anything from it. Whether she ate one table or ten, that little stomach was just as flat and soft.
“Alright, then that’s it for dinner today.”
Ji You changed her mind again, saying in a small voice, “I’m not hungry, but I still have a craving. I want to eat a few more pieces of fruit.”
Yue Du didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Other people had one piece of fruit after a meal; Ji You’s after-meal fruit was a whole basket.
Resting her chin on her hand, Yue Du watched Ji You nibble on the fruit like a little animal and gradually fell into her own thoughts.
If she still hadn’t noticed something was off by now, she might as well give up. Obviously, the sharp decrease in Ji You’s appetite today was closely related to her hunting.
Her illusion ability was very special, capable of killing an opponent in just a few seconds. This was something no Scarlet Beast Yue Du knew of could do. They only used illusions to trap prey before moving in to kill and eat them.
In comparison, Ji You’s power was far superior. She could kill invisibly from several paces away without getting close.
That power, which went from icy cold to warm and slightly hot—what kind of change had it undergone? Was Ji You absorbing energy through this method, which was why she no longer needed to consume large amounts of food?
Yue Du didn’t plan to ask the ability’s owner herself.
Since Ji You wasn’t saying anything, it meant she didn’t want her to know. It was better to just wait and see.
Just as Yue Du was thinking, a piece of fruit suddenly appeared before her. Its structure was somewhat like an orange, but the flesh inside was dark red.
The one in front of her had been meticulously peeled. A small, delicate hand was holding it. Yue Du looked up and saw Ji You’s pretty face.
Ji You leaned forward, pushing it further across the table, and said earnestly, “You eat too.”
All thoughts of energy absorption and death by illusion were pushed to the back of Yue Du’s mind. At this moment, only a few phrases were playing on a loop in her head—
So cute, so good!
How can my host be this adorable!!
This is the pinnacle of a critical hit from cuteness!!!
Yue Du took the fruit and ruffled Ji You’s hair with her other hand. It felt as good as ever, so she couldn’t resist ruffling it a few more times.
Ji You let her mess with her hair, her smile as sweet as honey. Even her dark eyes seemed like the perfect place to store brown sugar syrup, unbelievably sweet.
So well-behaved, so sensible.
Yue Du herself had helped her mother raise a child—that is, Yue Hao. Comparing the two child-rearing experiences, Yue Du could only say with all sincerity: Hao Hao really lost badly.
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