Purgatory Artist
Chapter 549: Return

Chapter 549: Return

Aland paced back and forth around the campfire.

The rabbit crouched on Liu Ping’s shoulder, its gaze following his movements.

"Hey, could you stop for a second?" it said.

"What?" Aland replied.

"You keep walking around—it’s making me dizzy," the rabbit complained.

Aland warily scanned their surroundings and muttered, "It’s almost six o’clock, and he’s still asleep."

"What’s the big deal?" the rabbit said.

"At six, headquarters will send new professionists to join the vanguard team," Aland said.

"You’re the captain. What are you afraid of?" the rabbit shrugged.

"The casualty rate has been high lately. I don’t know how headquarters will react. I’m worried they might pull something I don’t know about," Aland said nervously.

The rabbit thought for a moment. "You’re worried about your position."

"Of course! Isn’t that obvious?" Arland snapped.

"Then why do you keep looking at him while you walk?" the rabbit asked curiously.

"It was him who provided rare treasures to help me regain my position as captain. Now, I need his support to face what’s coming next," Aland admitted.

The rabbit glanced at Liu Ping.

He was still deep in slumber.

Suddenly, Aland’s expression shifted. He looked up at the sky. "Six o’clock sharp. Headquarters’ orders are coming."

A streak of light shot down from the heavens.

At first, Arland watched silently, but after a few seconds, his face darkened.

The rabbit also looked up and saw the light hurtling straight toward their camp—ready to smash everything to pieces.

No wonder Aland was furious!

"These guys are pushing it too far. Fight back, man!" the rabbit shouted.

"Bastards!" Aland roared in anger, drawing his sword.

He gripped the hilt tightly, took a deep breath, and an overwhelming aura erupted from his body.

As a Sword Saint and the former captain of the vanguard team, his strength had always been formidable—even capable of summoning the shadows of nightmare creatures.

Only after donning the green dragon helmet had things started going wrong.

The light grew closer. Aland gritted his teeth, his hand tight around his sword, yet he didn’t draw it.

"Go at them, man!" the rabbit urged.

Aland’s mind raced with thoughts before he sighed. "Our mission performance has been poor. I don’t have enough merit left. If they want to humiliate us, we have no choice but to endure it."

He shook his head, walked over from the other side of the campfire, and positioned himself in front of Liu Ping.

"Tch. How boring," the rabbit muttered in disappointment.

The next second—

The streak of light crashed into the camp.

BOOM!

A deafening explosion erupted, sending plumes of dust and smoke into the air.

An invisible shockwave swept through the camp, leveling everything in its path.

Aland had already grabbed Liu Ping and retreated far from the impact.

"To be this arrogant... I’ll see who they really are," he growled, his face grim.

From within the smoke came a mocking laugh.

"Sword Saint Aland, you’ve always been all bark and no bite. Handing the vanguard team to you was clearly a mistake."

Several figures emerged from the dissipating dust.

"You’re... Why are there so many of you?" Aland said, his voice tense.

As the smoke cleared, five professionists stood where the camp had once been.

At their head was a dark-skinned man wearing narrow sunglasses, holding a wooden spear, with a bow and quiver slung across his back.

Arland’s pupils contracted sharply. "Shen the Viper! Weren’t you about to be promoted to general? Why are you joining the vanguard?"

"Ah... you’ve touched on a sore subject," Shen said, smirking. "They told me I was just short on merit. Since the vanguard team has been underperforming, I was assigned to lead a separate squad here—to earn my stripes before promotion."

Aland’s gaze flickered to the void, his expression dazed. "Vanguard Team 2... You’re the captain of the second team?"

"That’s right. Who told you to be so useless, losing one or two men every day?" Shen sneered.

"That’s my team’s business. Got a problem? It’s none of your concern!" Aland snapped.

"Of course not. By the way, that helmet really doesn’t suit you," Shen said.

"A dragon’s treasure. What would you know?" Aland scoffed.

Shen’s expression darkened.

Dragon?

This guy had found a dragon’s hoard?

His gaze flicked behind Aland, lingering on Liu Ping.

A native cultivator...

Aland was guarding him so fiercely—this guy must be important.

Which meant if there was any valuable intel, he’d likely know it.

Shen suddenly grinned. "Aland, is that cultivator behind you the new recruit you scouted? How rude of him to still be asleep in front of his superiors. Men—test his mettle."

"Yes, sir!"

The four behind Shen vanished.

"Bastards, back off!" Aland roared, unsheathing his sword.

Elsewhere.

Dilia’s corpse lay in a pool of blood.

Liu Ping stood beside her, his form rendered invisible by an illusion, silently watching the scene unfold.

A white-haired elder commanded:

"Bury her. Mark the spot. Once I find a buyer, we’ll retrieve her soul."

"Yes, steward."

Two servants grabbed shovels and began digging a fresh grave in the lawn.

The rain continued to fall.

Inside the manor, the banquet carried on.

With the host no longer paying attention, the guests politely shifted their conversations to other topics.

Liu Ping stood in the rain, quietly observing everything.

Andrea’s voice echoed in his mind:

"What happens next? Is there anything else we can do?"

Liu Ping watched as the two servants struggled to lift an invisible corpse, placing it into a coffin before burying it.

"What’s buried is deception. What’s unearthed later will be falsehood. And with your ’Non-existent Body,’ no one will remember this ever happened," Liu Ping said.

As soon as he spoke—

The servants finished covering the grave. After a few steps, their memories seemed to blur.

"Why are we carrying shovels?" one whispered.

"Not sure. Maybe the master had us do something and then erased our memories," the other replied.

"Then let’s not mention it," the first agreed.

They glanced toward the banquet hall.

Music played softly. Guests and host chatted merrily, laughter ringing out now and then.

No one remembered the woman who had died on the lawn.

She had once been the greatest close-combat mage.

She had nearly become a fruit for a great being to consume.

"You did it, Liu Ping. No one noticed our grand deception," Andrea said joyfully.

Liu Ping looked up at the void.

Lines of burning text appeared before him:

[Dalia has successfully escaped her doomed fate. You now walk the path meant for her.]

[You have deceived everyone—including your past and future selves.]

[You have freed yourself.]

[For the first time, a glimmer of hope shines upon humanity’s destiny.]

[Having slain a nightmare creature, you must now return to the River of Blood and deliver its corpse to the human spirits.]

[This is of utmost importance!]

[Repeat: This is of utmost importance!]

[They may uncover critical intelligence from this corpse.]

The text vanished.

Liu Ping felt a pull. He walked toward a secluded corner of the manor.

As he moved, he raised a torch. His body transformed into a skeletal figure drenched in blood.

The moment the ritual completed, a path appeared beneath his feet, flanked by churning crimson waves.

In the next instant—

He vanished from the manor, reappearing in the endless vortex of the River of Blood.

The blood surged violently, roaring as countless spirits turned their gazes toward him.

Liu Ping walked back to the river’s center, shedding his Nightmare’s Embrace. He raised the torch and announced:

"Everyone, I just conducted an experiment—"

"And I succeeded."

With a wave of his hand, he released the corpse—a human encased in a nightmare creature’s shell.

It floated in midair.

Billions of eyes fixed upon it, yet not a single voice spoke.

A human.

Inside the nightmare creature... was a human.

This was something no spirit could have anticipated.

"Is it... one of us?"

"A human..."

"Why is there a human inside a nightmare creature?"

"What’s really going on?"

Confusion and disbelief rippled through the spirits. The hatred and resentment in their eyes wavered slightly.

An ancient voice echoed from the depths of the river:

"You saved the last close-combat mage, giving us hope we’ve never known."

"And now, you’ve slain this abomination."

"We will pool all our strength to analyze it—to uncover the truth behind the nightmares."

The corpse floated up before sinking into the river, disappearing from sight.

Every spirit followed, descending into the depths alongside it.

The ancient voice sighed. "We’ve fought for countless years, never imagining the nightmare creatures could be human."

Liu Ping said, "Then this corpse—"

"We are extracting all possible intelligence. You must wait a while longer."

"Understood."

Liu Ping stood still, waiting.

Suddenly, new lines of burning text appeared:

[Your two reincarnation powers have merged into ’Divine Sensorium.’ However, the human spirits have bestowed upon you the unique ability ’Joy of Slaughter,’ which exists outside those powers.]

[’Joy of Slaughter’ remains active.]

[Ability Effect: Every time you slay an enemy, you absorb their soul energy to enhance your strength and cultivation.]

[From the moment you entered the Dark World until now—including the nightmare creature you killed—all accumulated soul energy has been tallied.]

[You possess enough to ascend to the next realm... and the one beyond.]

[Special Note:[

[If you are ready, prepare to face your heavenly tribulation.]

Liu Ping studied the messages, deep in thought.

"I should return for now. Call me back when you’re done," he said.

"Agreed," the ancient voice replied.

Liu Ping’s form gradually faded, vanishing completely from the River of Blood.

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