"Honestly, I thought you wouldn't deal with these sea monsters," Du Qingyi mumbled through her lollipop as they walked.
"It's not something we can avoid," Duan Chen replied, his expression calm. "If their conflict with the villagers escalates, it'll be too late to handle it then."
"Seriously? This is my first time seeing a spirit hunter take sea monsters as subordinates," Tu Fei Yuan, who had hopped onto Ding Ding's head, said comfortably, ignoring her disgusted look.
Duan Chen ignored him and scanned his surroundings. He noticed the villagers' gazes towards the three women had softened considerably. When they encountered the same old woman from yesterday, she handed candy to each of the girls. Even though it was just one piece, it was better than nothing.
Tears streamed down Ding Ding's face as she ate. The days of relying on others were finally over.
"Pathetic," Tian Qi said with disdain.
Jia Yun Lian walked at the end of the procession, her gaze complex as she stared at Duan Chen. It was then she realized how much he had changed in the time he had been away. The old Duan Chen would never have considered taking sea monsters as subordinates; he had always hated evil and injustice, and his first thought upon encountering anything strange or heretical was to eliminate it. What had changed him? Was it the deceased Old Zhang and Gao Tian Kai? Or something else? Jia Yun Lian was baffled.
She was observing Duan Chen, and he was observing her. He was intensely curious about Jia Yun Lian's relationship with Apostle 05.
Zhao Yuan arranged breakfast at a diner. This time, there were three seats for the sea monsters at the long table, at the very end.
"Come, little girl, sit here," Zhao Yuan beckoned, gesturing for Xi Er to sit beside him. His eyes were gentle, like a father looking at his grown daughter. "You weren't frightened last night, were you?"
*We were the ones frightened; she slept soundly,* the three sea monsters thought, their mouths twitching in dissatisfaction at the village chief's clear favoritism.
"No," Xi Er truthfully shook her head.
"Good, good." He clapped his hands twice, and breakfast was served – soy milk, fried dough sticks, and similar items, just like outside.
"What about those two young men?"
Duan Chen was startled that Zhao Yuan had guessed that Jun Ci and Yuan Yuan were men. "Oh… they're still sleeping."
"Wake them up later. If they eat my food, they have to work for me," Zhao Yuan chuckled, a cigarette dangling from his lips as he took a puff.
"No problem, they can do any work."
"Help me clear out some rats."
*Rats?* Duan Chen keenly understood the double meaning. Indeed, Zhao Yuan glanced at the three women at the end of the table, who were wolfing down their food, and nodded towards them.
"You three too. They're your kind. All of you, get to work, and don't think about eating my food for free!" he said gruffly, though his tone was noticeably softer.
"Okay."
"Sea monsters?" Du Qing Yi exclaimed in surprise.
"Yes, is that what they're called now? In my day, we called them sea spirits or sea beasts." Zhao Lang emerged from behind Zhao Yuan, a fried dough stick in one hand and a bowl of soy milk in the other. He sat behind Xi Er and said to Duan Chen with a smile, "How did you rest last night, Fool?"
*Fool?* Du Qing Yi looked quite puzzled. Tu Fei Yuan directly guffawed, "Duan Chen, he's calling you stupid."
Duan Chen's expression remained unchanged as he returned a smile. "It was quite good, thank you for helping us find a place to stay."
"Haha, you're too kind. You paid us too," Zhao Lang replied.
Fool. That was Zhao Lang's nickname for him. Clearly, the cards Wu Suo Wei had given him weren't free. The Tarot cards, the owners of each card, Moon Ridge Village, the story Zhao Yuan told last night – there had to be an intricate connection between them all.
Halfway through breakfast, Jun Ci and the others finally arrived.
"Work after eating, hurry up, we're just waiting for you two," Duan Chen urged with a smile.
"Clearing out sea monsters?" Jun Ci asked, a baozi in his mouth, his gaze towards the three sea monsters now filled with killing intent.
"It's not us!"
"Ah…" Duan Chen couldn't help but chuckle. "Indeed, it's not them. This time, the three of them will help the village chief clear out the sea monsters."
"Can they… be trusted?" Yuan Yuan asked, his mouth greasy with food.
"Get lost!" Ding Ding immediately punched his head into his bowl of congee.
"True Sight!"
"Eye of God!"
His pupils flared simultaneously! The last time his twin pupils had activated was in the secret realm. Duan Chen's throat felt a sting as he forcefully swallowed a mouthful of blood, enduring the searing pain in his internal organs, observing the entire village from a god's-eye perspective.
"Is he alright?" Tian Qi's mouth twitched. What if he died right after signing a contract?
"You're the one who's going to be alright, you jinx." Tian Qi fell silent. She could feel a powerful spiritual energy emanating from Duan Chen's eyes, as if under their gaze, all evil things would be exposed.
"Interesting," Du Qing Yi's eyes glinted with a strange light.
"Five at the village entrance, along the road leading down, which is the front half of the village, there are ten. In the middle section of the village, there are twenty. Yuan Yuan, Jun Ci, the two of you will handle the five at the village entrance. Sun Xiaoxiao, the three of you will handle the front half of the village. Everyone else, follow me to the middle section." As he spoke, Duan Chen used his ancient scripture ability to share the map into everyone's minds.
"Yes!"
"Jun Ci, Yuan Yuan, you two don't have many sea monsters to deal with, so after you finish, you can help other teams."
"Alright!" Five sea monsters were not many for two spirit energy users; it would probably only take about ten minutes. Duan Chen retracted his Eye of God, a trickle of blood flowing from the corner of his eye.
"Begin the extermination!"
…
Village Entrance.
Yuan Yuan's ability was weakness targeting, and his five shots were just enough for the five sea monsters at the entrance. Jun Ci's dual pistols of light and dark could also coordinate with him for surprise attacks, which Duan Chen had considered.
"Bang!"
After dispatching the last sea monster disguised as a villager, Jun Ci breathed a sigh of relief and, along with Yuan Yuan, headed to the front half of the village, where the three sea monsters were stationed. To their surprise, they arrived to a rather… eye-opening scene.
"I'm telling you! Duan Chen is an absolute devil! We barely escaped!" Tian Qi was misleading the sea monsters, while Ding Ding was striking seductive poses, her charms dazzling several male sea monsters. The two women were working in tandem, coaxing all ten sea monsters together, while Sun Xiaoxiao was likely lying in wait to reap the rewards.
"If only we had used our beauty too!" the two men lamented. They were currently in female bodies and, regardless of their figures, their faces were no less attractive than Ding Ding and the other. A little seduction was certainly possible.
Sun Xiaoxiao appeared from nowhere, a trident in her hand. With a fierce throw, it pierced through the heads of two sea monsters. She licked her ruby-red tongue and chuckled, "You want to be real women? You're still a long way off."