Lu Jiuling came home carrying the bucket of water and headed straight for the kitchen, not even bothering to take off his shoes.
Bang!
Lu Jiuling set the bucket down, thrust a hand into it, and scooped out a blackfish. Then he walked to the sink and turned on the tap.
Splash!
Clear water rinsed over the fish’s body.
After about six or seven seconds, Lu Jiuling gripped the fish’s mouth with his left hand and pinned it in the sink. In his right hand, he held the Buddha-Gut Dagger. He gently stabbed it into the fish’s belly, then drew the blade along.
The edge was far too sharp. Even after it sliced through, the fish barely reacted—only when fresh blood seeped out and its belly curled open did the blackfish finally feel the pain and begin thrashing violently.
Lu Jiuling held the fish down, released the dagger with his right hand, pressed his four fingers together, and reached into the fish’s belly. He grabbed, pulled, and a large mass of organs came out.
So fat!
Lu Jiuling ignored the fish now. Instead, he carefully picked through the entrails, singled out the intestines, rinsed them meticulously for several minutes, then split them open.
The stench of fish, blood, and organs mingled together, filling the kitchen.
It should have been an unpleasant smell, yet Lu Jiuling found it delightful. He even couldn’t help taking a deep breath.
The morning sunlight was just right, bright and lovely as the smile of a young girl in springtime.
A pigeon landed on the windowsill. Hearing the faint shush of a sharp blade slicing through fish flesh, it peered into the kitchen.
This was Lu Jiuling’s first time killing fish in his life. At first, he was very clumsy, and even cut his hand on the scales. By the time he reached the seventh fish, however, practice had made him skilled.
Another fish intestine was peeled out whole and hung over the tap.
Whew!
Lu Jiuling whistled, turned, and walked toward the bucket, preparing to kill another one. But the moment he grabbed a fish, the slippery, sticky sensation of its body suddenly made him feel extremely uncomfortable.
Splash!
The blackfish slipped from his hand and fell back into the bucket, sending water splashing onto Lu Jiuling’s arm and face.
“What am I doing?”
Lu Jiuling’s head ached as if it were about to split. He also felt dizzy, like he was suffering heatstroke in the hottest days of summer.
He looked at the fish in the bucket, then turned his head…
Seven dead fish lay on the kitchen counter, their mouths gaping wide and their bellies torn open, as though they were suffering the torture of being left to rot in the wilderness.
In the sink was a great pile of organs. Because they had clogged the drain, a layer of bloody water had gathered there.
Several intestines hung from the tap. At first glance, they looked like the nine-beaded crown of an emperor.
“I did all this?”
Lu Jiuling was utterly bewildered. Holding his breath, he replayed everything that had happened in his mind, starting from when he woke up that morning and saw the feng shui fish in the fish tank on top of the refrigerator.
Then he understood.
So this was the taboo corruption that refined old gentleman had spoken of!
After transcendents used taboo objects, they might suffer taboo corruption. The symptoms could be mild or severe. If one used taboo objects too frequently, one would eventually go mad.
“The reason I suddenly became so obsessed with turning out intestines should be because of that dagger the headless Buddha pulled from its stomach, right?”
Lu Jiuling began cleaning up the kitchen.
Every taboo object caused a different kind of taboo corruption.
Lu Jiuling had now experienced it for himself.
When the taboo corruption erupted, although he retained his reason and could communicate with people normally, what filled his mind most was still turning out intestines. It was like playing a game he especially loved or reading an extremely satisfying book—so addictive that he would stay up all night just to keep going.
After tidying the kitchen, Lu Jiuling returned to the living room with a glass of water and sat down on the sofa, his brows slightly furrowed.
For now, he only wanted to turn out fish intestines. When the taboo corruption grew worse, would he start wanting to turn out human intestines?
According to the refined old gentleman’s explanation, after becoming a transcendent, the higher one’s position on the divine sequence, the stronger one’s ability to resist taboo corruption.
It seemed he still had to complete the ascension ritual as soon as possible and become a transcendent.
Lu Jiuling really did not want to kill fish and turn out intestines again.
Gulp! Gulp!
After drinking a few mouthfuls of water, Lu Jiuling took the bronze Buddha mask and the Buddha-Gut Sword. Following the steps the refined old man had explained, he took deep breaths and calmed his emotions. Then, in his mind, he called out to the divine servant and said that he wanted to go to the Divine Council.
The summoning process lasted for more than a minute. Golden light began to spill from Lu Jiuling’s body. His figure faded, and in the end, disappeared completely.
…
When Lu Jiuling’s vision returned, he saw that he had arrived at the Divine Council.
Behind him stood the magnificent, grand golden gates of Sagittarius Palace. Ahead of him was a heavenly stairway spanning the sea of clouds and leading straight to the council hall.
Lu Jiuling walked up.
There was no one in the council hall. Only twelve thrones hung suspended in the air.
Lu Jiuling sat down on the chair representing the identity of Sagittarius’s council speaker.
【Welcome, candidate speaker of Sagittarius Palace!】
【If you require anything, please give your orders!】
“I want to look up detailed information on these two taboo objects. How many Elysium Coins will it cost?”
If only the word “candidate” were removed, it would sound much smoother and far more impressive.
【A total of two Elysium Coins is required!】
【Do you wish to proceed with the inquiry?】
“Proceed.”
Fortunately, it was not expensive.
In truth, even if it had been expensive, Lu Jiuling would still have had to check. In the next Divine Game, he would most likely have to rely on these two taboo objects to increase his combat power, so he had to understand their anomalous properties as soon as possible.
Clatter!
A sound like coins colliding rang beside Lu Jiuling’s ear.
【Two Elysium Coins, payment confirmed!】
【Headless Buddha Mask: After wearing it, your physical constitution will improve slightly. After injecting divine power, you may perform the miracle “Spirit Mountain Lies Far, Wild Buddha Burns the Sutras.”】
【Please note: wearing the Headless Buddha Mask for more than half an hour will produce a mentality of wanting to meddle whenever you encounter “other people’s business.” At the same time, your appetite will increase, and you will crave meat at every meal!】
【The “meat” here refers to the proper kind of meat!】
Lu Jiuling was amused. Was there such a thing as improper meat?
The anomalous properties of this bronze Buddha mask were acceptable. At worst, it gave him a nosy impulse and made him want meat at every meal. The harm was not great.
So-called divine power was a kind of energy naturally born within a person’s body after they became a transcendent. It could be understood as mana in a role-playing game, used to perform miracles.
Miracles were also attached to taboo objects.
One of the ways transcendents obtained miracles was by extracting them from taboo objects.
【Buddha-Gut Sword: When holding it, you will possess the grandmaster-level slaughtering skill of a butcher carving up an ox. Those you stab or kill will not resent you; instead, they will develop a sense of release, believing, “It is my fortune to die by your hand.”】
【Attached miracle: “Honeyed Mouth, Sword in Belly.” You may swallow the Buddha-Gut Sword into your abdomen for storage without injuring your organs.】
【Please note: using this Buddha-Gut Sword will cause you, when seeing beautiful people and fish, to develop an impulse to take out their intestines and turn them over.】
【Buddha-Gut Sword—one cut, fish!】
【Are the hearts and intestines of beautiful people kinder?】
【You want to know!】
No!
I don’t want to know!
Lu Jiuling’s head hurt. The anomalous properties of this Buddha-Gut Sword were truly terrifying. If he used it too often, he would definitely turn into a perverted serial killer.
He had no intention of becoming a butcher, so the “butcher carving up an ox” effect might as well not exist. Then there was the miracle, “Honeyed Mouth, Sword in Belly.”
To say it was useless was not quite right. Perhaps it could be used as a surprise weapon, because most people would never expect someone to be able to hide a sword in their stomach. But to call it useful was also questionable. What could a short sword do?
If he encountered another monster like the headless Buddha, he would not be able to stab it to death with such a little dagger.
What a pity.
If the miracle attached to the Buddha-Gut Sword had been a powerful offensive one, it would have been perfect.
“Divine servant, what transcendent profession do you think would suit me best?”
Lu Jiuling picked up the Sagittarius Palace crown on the table and casually played with it.
【I do not understand you well enough to give an answer.】
【In addition, please note: most of the time, when you ask me for advice, you will need to pay Elysium Coins!】
“Can’t we just chat like friends?”
Lu Jiuling laughed. He had only asked casually and had not been thinking of taking advantage of the divine servant.
【Please do not make freeloading sound so righteous!】
【Also, I charge by the hour. If you want to chat with me, please pay ten Elysium Coins in advance!】
“I couldn’t tell. You’re pretty expensive!”
Lu Jiuling teased.
He had challenged the five-star difficulty “Headless Chan Monastery” and obtained an SSS+ rating, yet he had only earned fifty Elysium Coins.
For the divine servant to take one-fifth of that just to chat with him for an hour was far too ruthless!
【After you ascend to Sequence 0 and become a god, I can chat with you to your heart’s content!】
【For free!】
【Oh, I forgot!】
【You are only the candidate speaker of Sagittarius Palace. Please redouble your efforts and become the official speaker first!】
Lu Jiuling’s heart stirred when he heard this. “Can I purchase information on that speaker of Sagittarius Palace?”
【No!】
【You can only find a way to defeat him in the Divine Game!】
“Thank you for your suggestion!”
After figuring out the anomalous properties of the two taboo objects, Lu Jiuling got up and left.
By the time he returned home, it was already one in the afternoon.
Lu Jiuling had spent the entire morning killing fish and was starving. He went to the kitchen, casually made a packet of instant noodles, and after solving the problem of hunger, he looked at the fish.
He did not know how to cook fish. Throwing them away would be too wasteful.
Why not give them to that long-legged girl?
Wait.
If fish killed by a taboo object were eaten, would they cause illness?
Forget it!
Better to play it safe and just throw them away!
Lu Jiuling went downstairs to take out the trash, bringing the bucket along as well, preparing to return it to that long-legged girl.