NOVEL NEXT Chapter Thirteen: The Eternal Pain of the Working Class
Shi Qingyan could think of nothing at all.
Her mind was consumed by a single thought.
Run.
Run as far away as possible.
She didn’t know what that mask was.
All she knew was that it filled her with a primal fear, something etched in her very bones, held in check by that mask.
Like a mouse facing a cat.
That mask was her natural enemy.
Despite her desperate attempts to escape, it felt like she was merely treading water in a sea of darkness.
The sound of chains behind her grew clearer.
Especially after a moment, it seemed the masked man had swung a scythe, spinning it through the air.
As he suddenly hurled it, Shi Qingyan stumbled and fell to the ground.
The chains had completely bound her ankles.
…Like the hooks from the depths of hell claiming her soul.
In that instant, the icy touch of the chains sent shivers down her spine, making every hair on her body stand on end.
“Don’t… don’t!”
She cried out in terror.
But no matter how pitiful her cries were, the hook continued to drag her deeper into the darkness.
She thrashed desperately on the ground, leaving scratch marks in the dirt.
Until her voice grew softer.
Until she was swallowed by the darkness.
Completely vanishing without a trace.
On the other side, Si Jingzhu was different.
She actually felt the same as Shi Qingyan.
The moment she saw the mask, instinctively, she felt fear.
But instead of running away, she chose to stand her ground.
Even though she trembled, her eyes shone brighter.
Radiating a kind of frenzied excitement.
“…Young Master Sang!”
“I know it’s you!” she shouted into the vast darkness.
“You think a few tricks will scare me?”
“Hah, just a little fish playing silly tricks to fool people.”
“I won’t be afraid of you.”
“In my eyes, you’ll always be that bullied little fish, little fish!”
Before she could finish her declaration.
The soul-reaping hook brutally tightened around her neck.
Almost instantly, Si Jingzhu found herself gasping for breath, struggling against the chains in a desperate bid for freedom.
But the chains coldly and mercilessly pulled her deeper into the darkness.
At last.
This boundless dark engulfed both women.
Like being silently swallowed by a giant beast.
Without a sound.
——
——
Zhang Xiaoying had her eyes closed for quite a long time.
Young Master Sang wouldn’t let her open them, so she wouldn’t.
But what puzzled her was that after she closed her eyes, she heard nothing.
The silence was eerily frightening.
Time passed without her noticing, until Young Master Sang’s weary voice finally broke the silence:
“Okay.”
“Open your eyes.”
Zhang Xiaoying slowly opened her eyes again, only to find herself in a daze.
The familiar foot of the mountain surrounded her.
But the two fierce women who had just been so intimidating.
Now lay on the ground, tied up and blindfolded, unable to move.
Seemingly having fainted.
“This…” Zhang Xiaoying was momentarily bewildered, looking helplessly at Young Master Sang.
Young Master Sang didn’t know how to explain either.
He thought for a moment, then said: “They were just about to come kill me.”
“But halfway through, they tripped over a stone and knocked themselves out.”
“So I just tied them up.”
Zhang Xiaoying: “?”
Clearly.
Her master wasn’t very good at lying.
But Zhang Xiaoying didn’t press further.
No matter what Young Master Sang said, she chose to believe.
So she silently nodded, her little head lowered as she asked, “Then, how should the maid handle them?”
“Just leave them here.”
Young Master Sang said: “You keep an eye on them. I’ll go up the mountain to call for help.”
Zhang Xiaoying quietly nodded.
After Young Master Sang took a few steps, he seemed to remember something and turned around to say:
“By the way.”
“Next time, don’t just self-detonate your primordial infant without a second thought.”
“I’m not very good at chores, and if you die, I’ll have a headache.” He looked at Zhang Xiaoying.
Zhang Xiaoying gradually became dazed.
Her beautiful eyes slowly misted over, and after a moment, she lowered her head.
“…Mm.” In the end, she just gave a shy little acknowledgment.
Only then did Young Master Sang feel at ease and head back up the mountain.
But after Young Master Sang left, Zhang Xiaoying stood alone.
Suddenly, she clutched her chest tightly.
…Her heartbeat raced as if it might explode.
That indescribable sense of happiness washed over her body like a high.
Her cheeks turned a strange shade of red, blooming with bliss.
“Young Master Sang…” she murmured to herself in a daze.
“Child, what name sounds nice?”
——
——
After turning to head up the mountain, Young Master Sang’s expression fell.
When he reached halfway up, he weakly asked in his heart:
“System, how many points do I have left?”
…Ten points per breath.
That’s practically burning money!
Thinking about how hard he worked to gather a measly two hundred points, just one go would probably burn it all!
Young Master Sang felt his heart bleed.
Soon, the system chimed in:
【Point balance: 507】
Young Master Sang: “…How much?”
507?
How do I have that many points?
“System, when did I last receive points?”
【Yan Rouwan’s strategy progress broke fifty percent. System rewarded six hundred points.】
“…Why the hell have you never told me there’s a point reward for strategizing Yan Rouwan?!”
【The host has not inquired about corresponding matters.】
Young Master Sang thought for a moment.
He forcefully suppressed his urge to curse at this damn system.
Forget it. Not worth getting mad.
Let this damn system wallow in its own mess.
I’ll play the silent game.
You don’t answer, I won’t ask.
Let’s see who gets anxious first.
But honestly, the fact that strategizing Yan Rouwan could earn points was genuinely a pleasant surprise.
He had treated the job of interrogating the fairy merely as work.
As long as he got a dead-end salary, he was satisfied.
But unexpectedly, now working turned out to overlap with earning system points.
Getting paid twice for one job.
That’s like the happiest thing in the world for a working person!
Just thinking about it made Young Master Sang feel his mood lift.
“System, why do the former fairy strategizing jobs have no points, but Yan Rouwan has them?”
【Yan Rouwan possesses the fortune of heaven and earth, meeting the requirements for rewards.】
Oh, I see.
Yan Rouwan was already the most renowned beauty of the sect in recent years.
With a special constitution, her progress in cultivation was rapid, and her understanding of various techniques surpassed that of ordinary people.
Plus, her stunning beauty would put her firmly in the role of a coveted protagonist anywhere.
“So I can earn points by strategizing people with fortune.”
Young Master Sang struck while the iron was hot: “Then who else meets the criteria?”
【The host’s knowledge is insufficient; the system currently has no data.】
“…You damn.”
There’s even a cursing filter?
But the system’s meaning was quite clear. Obviously, he hadn’t encountered others with the fortune of heaven and earth so far.
But Young Master Sang didn’t plan to go looking actively.
No way.
Anyone with such fortune would likely be someone like Yan Rouwan, a dazzling talent.
They might already be famous figures.
Like the Sect Leader of the Water Moon Sect, the Sword Palace Master, the Empress of the Holy Kingdom, or the Dragon Lord of the Myriad Thunder Abyss.
Oh.
And possibly add the Demon Cultivators Sect Leader, Hua Jianglian.
Each one of those individuals was an incredible figure at the Crossing Tribulation Stage or beyond, capable of flipping the world over with a mere gesture.
Who dares to go strategizing them for points?
I’ve only got one life to spare!
With a few hundred bucks a month, who’s gonna risk their life over that?
Besides.
His prison warden mask might not even work on them.
Speaking of which, that warden mask intrigued Young Master Sang greatly.
Although the system said its ability was random.
He never expected his random ability to be so interesting.
…Fear.
The mask could amplify the fear of everyone trapped within its domain to the utmost.
It suited his identity as a jailer perfectly.
And honestly, the design of that mask was totally worth a laugh.
“System, did the designer used to play support in games?”
The system was obviously clueless about what Young Master Sang was saying, remaining silent.
“I mean, this mask looks just like an old game I used to play.”
【The warden mask has no physical form; it completely manifests the host’s inner image.】
Oh.
So it seems I’m the one who loves playing support.
Now that he thought back, he seemed to have had a particular fondness for the champion Thresh in his previous life.
Because the design of that teeth-baring demon mask, scythe chains, and lantern was absolutely jaw-droppingly cool.
But now Young Master Sang’s memories of his past life were a bit fuzzy.
It felt like ages ago.
Maybe it was just too mundane.
Just an ordinary working person, a daily grind, year after year.
All the earned money went toward paying mortgages, car loans, and the rest was just enough to treat himself to a barbeque every once in a while.
Sometimes, on weekends, he’d play some games but couldn’t even reach out to his old classmates.
“…Sigh.”
“Thinking about it, even reincarnated, I still seem to be stuck in this working-class life.” Young Master Sang chuckled bitterly.
Even now, having stepped into cultivation, he was still living like before.
Inconspicuous, just trying to find a stable job to make ends meet.
Living from nine to five, day after day.
But at least in this life, compared to being alone at home in the past.
He had picked up a maid.
At least they could go shopping, take walks, and chat together.
No longer stuck in front of a computer looking at boring stuff and chatting with a group of online friends.
“Be content, be content.”
Young Master Sang encouraged himself.
That’s his life motto.
But honestly, he had more pressing matters to worry about.
…Wait, how was he going to explain this to Tang Yubbing?
One at the early God Formation stage, and one in the late Primordial Infant stage.
Should Tang Yubbing ask how he captured the two women.
He couldn’t possibly say they tripped over a stone, right?
Tang Yubbing wasn’t as gullible as his naive maid.
“Sigh.”
“It doesn’t matter what life I’m in. Dealing with the boss is the eternal pain of the working class.”