The little girl pushed herself up from the dirt, her lower body still buried. Her arms, splayed outwards, propped her up like a centipede.
"Gulp!"
Another section of her body emerged from the soil.
Duan Chen and the others forgot to attack, staring dumbfounded at the scene unfolding before them.
With five segments fully exposed, the girl, supported by her ten arms, slowly lifted her head.
Previously, her face had been obscured by her hair, preventing a clear view. Now, Duan Chen saw it: a sweet, adorable little girl's face, but utterly devoid of eyes, leaving only hollow sockets.
"Duan Chen... what is this?"
"Hai Ren."
Qi Qing nodded in agreement, "Agreed, it's quite ghastly."
"Not that kind of ghastly!" Duan Chen couldn't help but retort.
"Stop talking, Captain, turn around!"
Qin Nanyuan's voice trembled.
Duan Chen spun around, nearly colliding with the Hai Ren. The girl, who had just "risen from the earth," was now right in front of him!
Duan Chen's breath hitched.
Yet, the Hai Ren showed no signs of aggression. Her segmented body slowly coiled around Duan Chen, her gaze fixed on him with curiosity.
Duan Chen dared not move.
"Captain..."
"Don't shoot!"
Ancient texts recorded that a rampaging Hai Ren was extremely dangerous. They harbored an unknown number of 'Hai Worms' within them. At best, these worms could turn a person into an aberration; at worst, they could directly control the worms to devour a person's body entirely.
In short, such aberrations could only be dealt with from a distance. This close proximity was strictly forbidden.
The Hai Ren coiled tighter, her entire body pressing against Duan Chen.
"Little Duan, I have a feeling..."
She likes you?
Qi Qing dared not voice the thought.
Mi Le gave a thumbs-up, "I know what you want to say?"
Duan Chen felt another urge to retort.
Know what! She's about to crush me to death!
"No way, is my brother Duan Chen really that charming?" Sheng Chen, no longer afraid, leaned in curiously.
Unexpectedly, as he approached, the Hai Ren slithered past Duan Chen and turned a warning gaze on him.
"Get back!"
Qi Qing yanked his disciple back, scratching his head. "Sorry, sorry, please continue, your esteemed self!"
As if understanding, the Hai Ren withdrew her head contentedly, shortening the distance between herself and Duan Chen.
Their lips were almost touching...
Everyone watched with wide eyes, but the Hai Ren's intention wasn't a kiss. A beetle crawled out of her eye socket and, at her command, moved towards Duan Chen's forehead.
At that moment, Duan Chen felt Chu Yue's emotions surge, seemingly excited.
[Duan Chen! So you like this kind of thing!]
[No, Miss! What should I do now?]
Duan Chen explained with a wry smile.
[Cough, cough, just kidding. This indicates fate between you two, seize the opportunity.]
[What kind of fate is this?]
Duan Chen was dumbfounded.
[See that beetle?]
[Not only do I see it, I can feel it!]
[Eat that worm.]
[…Huh?]
As soon as Chu Yue finished speaking, the beetle crawled to Duan Chen's lips. The Hai Ren also seemed to urge him on.
Duan Chen hesitated slightly.
[If I eat it, will you look down on me later?]
[Hurry up, stop the nonsense! It's not a real worm!]
[I understand.]
Duan Chen closed his eyes and, to the astonished gazes of Jun Ci and the others, opened his mouth and, with a contorted expression, ate the beetle...
"Holy crap!"
"Is Duan Chen crazy?!" Mi Le yelled.
"As expected of the Captain!"
Jun Ci gave a thumbs-up, his heart filled with admiration.
"Holy crap..."
Qin Nanyuan and Mi Xue'er held onto each other, their stomachs churning, on the verge of vomiting...
No one had expected Duan Chen to actually eat the worm!
Duan Chen didn't feel any strange taste. As Chu Yue had said, after he swallowed it, the beetle simply vanished. No matter how he moved his tongue, he couldn't find it.
The Hai Ren finally nodded in satisfaction, and the body coiled around Duan Chen loosened slightly.
"Captain?"
"Are you alright? Did eating the worm make you stupid?"
"Captain, how many fingers am I holding up?"
Duan Chen finally had the space to retort, "Three! I'm stupid, alright?"
Qin Nanyuan looked at her fingers.
She had only held up two!
Gradually, Duan Chen felt a warm current in his abdomen.
A connection seemed to have formed between him and the Hai Ren. He could now command her to fight for him.
Duan Chen breathed a sigh of relief.
This was indeed his fate. It seemed he had unintentionally taken in another aberration.
The Hai Ren shifted its posture, coiling around to Duan Chen's back. Her upper body rested on his head, while her remaining four segments dangled behind her, looking quite comfortable.
"Duan Chen, you're not going to..."
"Are you guys leaving or not?"
"Yes, yes, yes, hehehe."
Qi Qing chuckled sheepishly, no longer daring to be flippant.
"Captain, you've taken her in?"
"Something like that."
"Just by eating a worm?"
"...Yes."
Duan Chen felt uneasy. Mi Xue'er, who had been eagerly leaning towards him earlier, was now looking at him with utter disdain, as if he were something filthy.
Qin Nanyuan also seemed to be keeping her distance.
Duan Chen didn't know whether to be happy or sad.
In his mind, Jin An and Melbourne protested.
"Duan Chen, can't you have any aesthetic sense!"
"This thing is going to be with us! Do you know that!"
"Duan Chen, I agree that you should improve your taste."
"At the very least, the aberrations you take in should be purely humanoid or animal. I can accept those two."
Duan Chen rolled his eyes helplessly.
[Can you two keep it down!]
The Hai Ren, still acting like a big simpleton, played with Duan Chen's hair with her small hands. Another hand reached forward and clasped his.
Her palm was warm.
Duan Chen felt like he was holding his little sister's hand.
This thought was heard by Jin An and Melbourne.
"Are you out of your mind?!"
"At least Duan Chen has some compassion... a good brother?"
Duan Chen snorted, ignoring them, and continued to hold the Hai Ren's hand.
She seemed to be the boss of this area of Ping Han Ridge. With her protection, Duan Chen and his group encountered no aberrations for a long time, except for an impudent human-faced spider that tried to scare Duan Chen but was promptly eaten by the Hai Ren.
Duan Chen turned his head, watching the mangled creature being chewed in the Hai Ren's mouth, his face twitching.
When they got back, he would give the child something normal to eat. She looked so hungry.