WEF - Chapter 19
Chapter 19: Should We Reveal [Immortality]?...
Ning Dali felt that if she did not do something soon, she would fall behind the plot.
With no recap of earlier events or introductions to the characters, she could not understand a single word of what they were saying.
If she asked outright now, it would seem too abrupt.
Fortunately, there were many ways to solve the problem.
As though no one were around, Ning Dali took out her smart device, opened the Fertile Base Mercenary Hall, tapped Scan, and pointed it at the woman's face.
A tenth of a second later, a wanted notice appeared on the smart device.
Across the top were three clear photographs showing the left side, front, and right side of the woman's face.
Ning Dali held the smart device beside the woman's face for comparison. The real woman's facial features had not changed much, but her overall presence was completely different.
The woman in the photographs had the air of a small-town exam grinder who had just gained admission to the Federation's number one university.
The real woman had the air of a down-at-heel middle-aged worker who had spent ten years at a major corporation before being fired, then became obsessed with stock trading and lost both savings and severance, only to look up and find forty years of mortgage payments still ahead.
One had light in the eyes; the other gleamed with tears.
What on earth had happened to her?
Ning Dali swiped down past the photographs and read on.
"Jiu Ming, member of the Extremist Eaters, Three-Character Ability User, ability effect unknown... Joined the Extremist Eaters after killing Yuan, a Single-Character Ability User... Bounty: 0 yuan... Special warning: If you encounter this person, do not think you can get lucky. Leave immediately and avoid misfortune!!"
A Three-Character Ability User had killed Yuan, a Single-Character Ability User. That wasn't possible, was it?
Ning Dali's expression grew grave as she scrolled the short notice up and down repeatedly, making sure she had not misread it.
The notice had been posted for six months and had a very high view count, so an error was almost impossible.
That left two possibilities.
Either Jiu Ming's Three-Character Ability was exceptionally powerful, or Yuan's Single-Character Ability had an extremely unusual effect.
The image of Jiu Ming kowtowing before the grave flashed through Ning Dali's mind.
Why had she killed Yuan, then kowtowed before Yuan's grave and wanted to resurrect her?
Ning Dali looked at the final warning on the notice.
Avoid misfortune.
The whole chain of logic snapped into place in her mind.
Because she had killed Yuan, misfortune had attached itself to her and could even spread to passersby. Her only way to break free was to resurrect the dead Yuan and make amends for what she had done.
The Single-Character Ability [Fate] probably had an effect connected to luck.
A chill ran through Ning Dali. If that were so, their inexplicable arrival here might also have been [Fate]'s doing.
They had come to resurrect Yuan.
Setting aside for now the question of where the Resurrection Ability was, Yuan's grave was already gone.
No wonder Zhuang Yuezhen had said they were done.
Had they not arrived so late, Ning Dali would have been ready to close her eyes and say the same.
The SUV fell into a deathly silence. All four sat in their seats, each looking more solemn than the last.
"Knock, knock."
Jiu Ming, sprawled across the front windshield, pounded on the glass. "Where is the Resurrection Ability? Come out at once! Stop hiding. Hiding won't help!"
"You are already bound to [Fate] by fate. Resurrecting her is your mission, an inescapable fate. If you do not want to die a horrible death for no reason, you know what you must do!"
Zhuang Yuezhen slowly pursed her lips, seeming about to speak.
"Where are we supposed to get a Resurrection Ability?" Wang You suddenly cut in, her voice rising sharply with agitation. "Are you crazy? We just happened to find a car on the road, and now you say we can resurrect someone. What exactly did you see that made you think we have a Resurrection Ability?"
"We eat rotten vegetable leaves and moldy bread every day. How could we possibly have such a powerful ability? Bad luck has clearly driven you crazy!"
Wang You pulled a small piece of bread from her pocket, half the size of her palm and furred with long strands of mold, and hurled it at Jiu Ming.
The light bread struck the reinforced glass, which split with a sharp crack. The bread shot through the gap and struck Jiu Ming squarely between the brows.
The blow sent Jiu Ming pitching backward. She tumbled off the hood.
Wang You stared at her own palm and swallowed hard.
"T-this is what misfortune can do once it gets its hooks into someone." Iron Face stared in utter shock, cold sweat beading on her forehead. "Do any of us actually have a Resurrection Ability?"
As she spoke, Iron Face looked at Ning Dali with helpless hope.
Ning Dali did not look at Iron Face, much less Zhuang Yuezhen.
She opened the car door, got out, and walked to the front of the vehicle to take a look.
Jiu Ming lay there, blood smeared over her face and head, struggling to rise from the ground. Ning Dali did nothing. Even so, she slipped and broke her arm.
The consequences of offending Yuan were so horrifying that the last trace of expression vanished from Ning Dali's face.
"Stop dragging this out." Holding the arm she had broken in the fall, Jiu Ming let out a piercing scream. "Didn't Yuan send you here? You came, so why won't you resurrect her?"
"Resurrect her. Resurrect her. Resurrect her..."
Her eyes were bloodshot, the veins in her forehead bulged, and she began repeating "Resurrect her" in a hoarse, frenzied voice.
She kept repeating the words, yet did not dare make even the slightest aggressive move against Ning Dali standing before her. She was afraid of accidentally killing the person who possessed the Resurrection Ability and losing all hope of release once more.
Ning Dali watched her coldly and gave no response.
She was wondering why Zhuang Yuezhen was not using the Resurrection Ability. Did its use have conditions, or did she have some other concern?
"Shut up!"
Wang You furiously pulled a wrench from inside her clothes and shoved the car door open, looking as though she meant to give Jiu Ming a good hard hit.
The next second, her foot slipped and she crashed to the ground.
"This..." Iron Face's brow twitched violently. "Is it our turn now?"
"Of course." Jiu Ming answered at once, swallowing. Her voice was half crazed and half coaxing. "Stop struggling. You have only one choice."
"What do you mean, our turn? I just slipped." Wang You climbed to her feet through gritted teeth, moving her arm and then lifting her foot. "My arm isn't broken, and neither is my foot. It was just a small accident."
She went to pick up the wrench.
"This is no accident. It is only the beginning of the misfortune." A bitter smile appeared at the corners of Zhuang Yuezhen's mouth as she drew a deep breath.
"It is indeed the beginning." Ning Dali cut her off before she could continue. "We accidentally crashed into Yuan's grave. Whether we meant to or not, we owe her a sincere apology."
Her thoughts raced, and so did her words. "We do not have a Resurrection Ability, but we have another way to solve this."
Jiu Ming, who had been laughing wildly, went still. She fell silent so she could hear Ning Dali's solution, then met her gaze across the distance.
Her heart sank, and a bad premonition took hold of her.
She had only just begun to back away when Ning Dali closed the distance and seized her by the shoulder.
"You killed Yuan. The hatred between you and her can never be resolved. Even if you resurrect her, it will not erase your crime."
"But we might not have to."
With one hand pinning Jiu Ming's shoulder, the other slipped silently around her neck.
Ning Dali slowly tightened her grip. Her Shield, visible only to herself, began to dim, making it clear that Jiu Ming's invisible power was attacking her.
"We can kill you to make amends to Yuan," Ning Dali said, each word clear and deliberate.
She was speaking for the living present, and for the dead as well.
Jiu Ming's eyes widened in disbelief. She struggled wildly, but it was already too late.
With a crack, Ning Dali twisted and broke her neck.
"Ah?" Iron Face gasped in shock. "You just killed her?"
"Yes." Ning Dali released Jiu Ming and let her body slump to the ground.
"You three, don't idle. Get moving. Fix Yuan's grave and gather up the bones. Whether it works or not, first show some proper remorse."
Wang You's lips went white as she thought, This could work too?
But the next moment, she thought, Why not?
Ways to make amends to Yuan were not limited to resurrection.
The four exchanged glances. After a moment, Wang You moved first. With one sweep of her hand, she stowed the SUV.
With the SUV gone, the grave mound became conspicuous, an unrecognizable heap mingled with white bones.
"Sins, sins." Iron Face muttered as she gathered up the bones, taking a tumble every now and then.
Wang You and Zhuang Yuezhen met with the same trouble.
The white jade ground was clearly bare, yet it seemed coated with cooking oil, making it impossible to keep their footing.
Ning Dali did not join them in gathering bones. She left the remaining chances to make amends to her three teammates.
Working together, the three soon restored the grave to cleanliness. Even the candles knocked over by the SUV were propped up again and lit one by one.
"Is this enough?" Iron Face scratched the back of her head.
They had no work left, and even the piece of bread furred with mold had been laid out as an offering.
"I'll try." Wang You said nervously.
She cautiously extended one foot ahead of her.
One step. Two steps. Crash.
Wang You fell without warning, shattering the last of her hope.
It still did not work.
The thought surfaced in Zhuang Yuezhen's mind, thick with despair.
Should I reveal [Immortality]?
Zhuang Yuezhen's fingertips moved almost imperceptibly. Five names flashed through her mind, every one belonging to someone who had possessed a Resurrection Ability.
Yet every one of them had died shortly after revealing their abilities.
The wielder of [Revival] was killed by [Plague] because she had resurrected someone whom [Plague] had killed.
The wielder of [Wraith] sought refuge with a certain Base Lord, only for one of the lord's enemies to strike first and kill her.
The wielder of [Holy Light] did nothing at all. Someone merely feared that she would resurrect a person who should not have been resurrected, so they killed her ahead of time.
As for the wielder of [Life Swap], she was too fragile and easy to kill, so a certain Base Lord confined her in the name of protection...
Resurrection Abilities were both a blessing and a curse.
They possessed almost no offensive or defensive power and could survive only by depending on the strong. Those same people feared and fought over them, rooting them out early.
But if she did not reveal [Immortality]... Zhuang Yuezhen looked at Wang You, whose face was black and blue from the falls and who was pretending not to have a fracture, and clenched her fist.
"I..."
Zhuang Yuezhen had only just gathered the courage to say one word when Ning Dali pressed a hand to her shoulder.
"If you are afraid, you can put all the blame on me."
Ning Dali's voice was so quiet that only the two of them could hear it, and so soft that the anticipation in her tone was impossible to make out.
Zhuang Yuezhen's eyes snapped wide.
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