Rules-related weird stories: 4016

Chapter 473 Ash Apostle... Turtle Man?

Clearly, Lin Yi's willpower alone was no match for this level of ash flame, let alone resistance!

To put it bluntly, this level of firelight was enough to ignite all the 'fuel' Lin Yi had prepared for A'Gui.

Since that was the case, Lin Yi didn't hesitate any longer. I already know your depth, so it's time for you to see my length!

"Hmph!!"

Lin Yi controlled A'Gui to drag Zhang Lingzhen towards himself, while Zhang Lingzhen's palm fiercely clawed into A'Gui's face.

The two sides wrestled continuously, like two Terminators grappling with each other.

A'Gui's ribs pierced directly out of his chest cavity, biting into part of Zhang Lingzhen's body like a giant mouth, but Zhang Lingzhen showed no intention of breaking free. Instead, she wrapped around A'Gui's body like a molten lava snake.

In ancient times, snakes and turtles combined to form the Xuanwu. Now, the state of A'Gui and Zhang Lingzhen was like a humanoid Xuanwu...

Using Wei Liang's naming method, perhaps it should be simplified to two words—'Turtle Man'.

Zhang Lingzhen tightened her grip, and her lava-like body began to melt A'Gui's body bit by bit—or rather, corrode it.

As the flesh and blood melted away, A'Gui's skeleton gradually became exposed...

It was a pure white, sculpture-like skeleton. The spine of the skeleton was twisted spirally, and coral-like bone spurs grew out of each vertebra. The arm and leg bones were not single bones, but rather like branches with the forks cut off, and there seemed to be eye-like patterns on the cross-sections.

"Too perfect... too perfect!" Zhang Lingzhen morbidly admired the skeleton that was constantly peeling away from the flesh and blood, her voice trembling. It was as if she was admiring a near-perfect heirloom artwork, or as if this skeleton had already become hers. "Compared to it, this vehicle can simply be described as 'crude and unbearable'!"

"A broken body... might as well discard it!"

As she spoke, the surrounding air twisted, and faint faces of Zhang Lingzhen appeared, roaring as if issuing an extremely dissatisfied and resentful cry.

She only admired it, but did not notice that as A'Gui's flesh and blood melted away, the ash that had been extremely compressed by Lin Yi in the muscle fibers began to diffuse around, constantly merging with the surrounding extraordinary power...

"Your fickle ways... are truly scummy..." Lin Yi slowly opened his mouth, mocking mercilessly. As he spoke, A'Gui's bones had completely locked Zhang Lingzhen in place.

Of course, this was actually a kind of alternative two-way rush. Lin Yi controlled A'Gui to clamp Zhang Lingzhen, and Zhang Lingzhen wrapped around A'Gui in return, like two steel chains with steel nails entangled together, completely indistinguishable as to who was more proactive.

Lin Yi captured Zhang Lingzhen's, or rather the Burial Body's, intention. The Burial Body's will simply wanted to directly fuse from the skeletal aspect, and then graft its will over, directly completing the 'seizure'.

But what he thought was much simpler... he just wanted to set off fireworks.

At this moment, not only did he no longer suppress any flames from Zhang Lingzhen, but he also began to frantically accept them. Finally, all the ashes, and even all the surrounding extraordinary power, were ignited!

"Boom—!!!"

"Ash" went berserk, and the terrifying light and flames turned the entire lecture hall into a twisted purgatory. The scorching torrent surged and flowed, twisting the nearby tables, chairs, and ground bit by bit. The entire space was melting like a plastic board, with hollows appearing centered on A'Gui and Zhang Lingzhen.

As the flames twisted, waves of ripples seemed to transform into a Dharma-like phantom. The naked eye could not see what it was, only feeling that it was a fire lotus woven from pure flames, or perhaps some kind of evil creature...

It was as if some unknown and indescribable existence had penetrated the layer at this moment, casting its gaze over.

The raging flames rose, and the terrifying light and heat made the entire classroom like a reactor. Since the classroom door was not closed, that gap became the only two vents for this terrifying power.

The first vent was naturally the broken window behind the bookshelf.

However, because there was a layer there that seemed to be able to distort even gravity, the burning ashes were extremely compressed when approaching, unable to easily reach that vent.

Therefore, the classroom door became the largest vent.

The flames were initially turbid orange-red, until the bone marrow of the two skeletons began to resonate. A'Gui's skeleton remained hard, while Zhang Lingzhen's spine collapsed like molten bronze, and coral-like bone spurs began to grow out of the ribs, making a low hum similar to an organ under the licking of the fire...

"You dare to ignite the shell I have set my sights on!" Zhang Lingzhen's face had been burned away, and her vocal cords had long ceased to exist. Only the upper and lower jaws were still moving "click-clack", and the sound was transmitted into Lin Yi's perception through the "Burial Body's" will.

"You set your sights on?" Lin Yi sneered, "Just a blatant snatch!"

"Aren't you?" The "Burial Body" will questioned.

"The details are different. Although I am also robbing openly, I don't think it should have been mine."

"Double standard!"

"Everyone has double standards. If you don't even have this awareness, you still want to snatch my 'puppet'?"

"Are you even worthy of being called a person?!"

"Damn, it's fine if we fight to the death, but why are you escalating to personal insults?!" Lin Yi was furious, but what he said was one thing, and what his hands did was another.

The "Burial Body" will was speechless for a while: "..."

Soon, Zhang Lingzhen's spine carbonized and cracked, but all the broken bones did not dissipate. Instead, they floated in the ashes like an asteroid belt, surrounding A'Gui's skeleton.

Each bone fragment seemed to refract glass-like luster, faintly outlining some kind of forbidden secret pattern.

The ashes went berserk, and the terrifying aura continued to spread. The entire classroom was now like an erupting volcano, and the surging air waves, wrapped in smoke and dust, raged out of the door, almost igniting Group C, Class 18 into the brightest bonfire in the dark forest!

… …

May 10, X023, 13:53, Teaching Building Area, near Building A.

In the fog-filled layered world, a broken bridge seemed to exist in the void, extending from the greenbelt area all the way to the teaching building.

The bridge bore some resemblance to the stone bridge at the Art Building, both supported by massive stone pillars.

However, unlike the stone bridge connecting the watchtower and the Art Building castle, where the stone pillars plunged directly into the black sea, the lower parts of the pillars here were hidden in the thick fog.

It was unclear whether it was due to the fog or the pillars themselves, but the lower the pillars went, the more illusory they became, like a mirage in the air.

Figures flickered on the stone bridge, all of them were Cultists (Weird Art Students). Led by the bizarre art teacher, they were heading towards the teaching building. Some of them even held objects similar to the utensils held by the Cultists in the desolate land, seemingly preparing to harvest a wave of ash crystals from the teaching building.

They were numerous, and it seemed that after most of the Cultist Weird Art Teachers were "sacrificed" to collect "Ashes", the remaining ones had been reallocated from the greenbelt area.

Most of these Cultists were relatively new, and although their eyes held the fanatical fire of Cultists, there was also a lot of clear and foolish light, curiously looking around the road.

Like freshmen just entering university.

The most ⊥ new ⊥ small ⊥ said ⊥ is ⊥ at ⊥ six ⊥ 9 ⊥ ⊥ book ⊥ ⊥ bar ⊥ ⊥ first ⊥ hair!

“Stop looking around! Be careful what you see!” The bizarre art teacher couldn't stand the pace and couldn't help but urge them grimly.

“You really are the worst batch of students I’ve ever had!”

She felt increasingly dissatisfied with these Cultists.

What was with them, still acting like curious babies?

If the previous batch hadn't suddenly encountered "Ash" dust, and many veterans hadn't been used to fill their lives, how could it have been her turn to transfer this group of shrimp soldiers and crab generals?

The resources for freshmen these days are really getting worse and worse!

It would be fine if they were just bad, but it seems like even bad students are disappearing!

The bizarre art teacher didn't know if the situation outside was really that bad, but she knew that if it continued like this, it would greatly affect their "Glorious Evolution" process.

The construction of that matrix had reached its final stage, and now what was most needed were all kinds of extraordinary material resources, and among those resources, nothing was more important than "Ash".

Even the higher-ups of the Cultists couldn't bear the Ash.

After all, this thing could ignite with a single slip, and how could the shrewd higher-ups of the Cultists, a bunch of people seeking stability and trying to "Gloriously Evolve", gamble their lives on probability?

"A batch of people was just lost. In order to stop the loss, we must collect as much Ash as possible now…" The bizarre art teacher glanced at the surrounding Cultists, "If it really doesn't work, sacrifice this batch as well, leaving only 10% to harvest resources…"

She secretly made a decision and gave Ren Jianxiong a look.

Ren Jianxiong immediately understood and quickly urged them like herding ducks: “Stop dawdling! Still looking?! If the 'Divine Bridge' disappears, you’ll be waiting to be devoured by the Nightwalkers!”

After he said that, he sighed and looked worriedly towards the teaching building.

Zhang Lingzhen, as the only Cultist who could be called a "seedling" recently, had disappeared under his nose, making him feel very uneasy.

“This little ancestor…”

Such a qualified newcomer was someone he had specially applied for the qualification to lead. He originally thought it would be his achievement, but it turned out that he had invited an ancestor.

He gritted his teeth, waddling his penguin-like plump body, and nimbly "DuangDuangDuang" caught up with the bizarre art teacher.

Just then, a terrifying aura suddenly erupted from the depths of the teaching building, and a terrifying wave of energy surged out like ripples!

Looking from afar, it seemed as if a small sun was erupting in the darkness shrouded in mist and dark clouds. The space was distorted for a moment, and a terrifying wave of energy surged like a tsunami!

“Boom—”

The mist surged, and a ripple visible to the naked eye appeared in the space.

The ripples continued to fluctuate, and soon the outermost one surged towards the stone bridge!

The bizarre art teacher, who was walking, suddenly stopped. When the ripple swept over her body, she felt as if she had crashed into a blooming sea of flowers, and her whole person was instantly immersed in the rich aura!

The ripple contained an aura that made her body tremble and her soul excited with pleasure just from capturing it!

Ultra-high concentration of extraordinary matter!!!

“Is it Ash?! Could it be the kind of Ash that can be absorbed?!”

Her eyes instantly burst out with a dazzling golden light, followed by intense desire and longing.

“Too delicious! Too delicious!!”

She even couldn't help but want to caress her face with her hands, but in front of the other Cultists, she couldn't reveal such a rippling scene.

The necessary restraint was necessary, even though it had no value to the Cultists.

She was already like this, and the other Cultists were naturally even more unable to resist the temptation brought by this aura. They all looked at that side in a daze, standing in place like countless swaying seaweed.

Ren Jianxiong had a slightly stronger determination and his own will. He suppressed the strongest gluttonous desire in his heart and looked at the bizarre art teacher with surprise and joy. His voice trembled slightly: “Teacher, is that… ?!”

“It’s definitely Ash… and it’s the kind of Ash that the Venerables have been pursuing, which is released after extreme compression!”

“We can’t do that kind of craftsmanship at all!”

“We must report this to the Venerables immediately!”

Ren Jianxiong couldn't help but shuddered when he heard this: “Teacher, I’ll go now!”

“Okay, no!” The bizarre art teacher nodded, but immediately changed her mind. Her eyes flickered, and a hint of struggle flashed in her eyes, “No… no… no… You wait a bit, yes, wait a bit…”

Her tone was slow, as if she was caught in some kind of consideration.

Finally, she narrowed her eyes and looked at Ren Jianxiong: “Wait a bit… We’ll go first. You wait until the time is almost up, and then report this situation to the Venerables.”

Ren Jianxiong's heart trembled, as if he understood something.