Chapter 40: You old geezer! Your substitute is the most useless of them all!

"Hu ha! Hu ha!"

"Dong long long~ Dong long long~"

In the square, before the wooden plaque.

Two muscular men, bare-chested, each held a torch. Accompanied by their wild dancing and occasional fire-breathing stunts, the red glow of the setting sun echoed the sparks, staining the entire square floor and the villagers' faces in a crimson hue.

A fervent atmosphere was stirred up.

The sound of gongs and drums nearby was deafening.

It was as if they wanted the whole world to know of this ritual's existence.

The Great Sacrifice of Yinyuan Village was magnificent.

After the feast, the opera troupe hired by the villagers was also clanging away nearby.

The massive square, which could originally accommodate thousands, was bustling with excitement, resembling a grand carnival.

It was evident that Yinyuan Village was indeed as well-off as the dungeon description suggested.

One could even say it was quite prosperous.

Wu Wang and the old village chief sat side by side on the highest viewing stand.

He occasionally peeled melon seeds from the table to savor them, clapping and cheering loudly whenever the performance reached a climax.

"Who exactly are you? Where did you send Zhang Sanfeng?" The old village chief's voice was not loud; the surrounding commotion completely drowned it out.

Wu Wang, who logically should not have been able to hear him at all, turned his head and squeezed out a brilliant smile. "Who do you think I should be? And why do you need Zhang Sanfeng?"

Previously, after Wu Wang had retaliated against the old village chief with bone spikes, the latter had found it difficult to lash out under the watchful eyes of the crowd.

But he couldn't just let Wu Wang slip away.

After all, the Skeleton Ghost knew very well that he could change his appearance and physique; once he blended into the crowd, he could vanish without a trace in the blink of an eye—especially since the entire village was here today, making things incredibly chaotic.

Thus, he had arranged a seat for himself on the viewing stand.

He seemed to have a desire to communicate.

The villagers near the two of them had also been driven away to join the Great Sacrifice banquet, specifically to prevent others from overhearing their conversation.

"It wouldn't hurt to tell you," the old village chief said, taking a light sip from the wine cup on the table. "Zhang Sanfeng is the bastard child born before the sacrifice of a certain Yinyuan Saintess. His life can repay the village's debts."

"Debts? Usury is illegal these days, you know," Wu Wang mocked.

He knew, of course, that the "debts" the man spoke of were not material things like money.

They were something far more profound and mysterious.

The old village chief explained in detail, "All things are relative. The Great Deity of Yinyuan grants the village prosperity, and in return, we must provide a satisfactory offering. He has always favored women of extreme Yin; every year, one must be presented."

"But an accident occurred last year. The Yinyuan Saintess committed suicide on the eve of the Great Sacrifice."

"We owe Him a Saintess. If we fail to make an offering this year, the destiny of Yinyuan Village will reach its end."

"Although Zhang Sanfeng is not a woman, he carries the blood of the Yinyuan Saintess. He can appease the wrath of the Great Deity of Yinyuan."

Hearing this, Wu Wang couldn't help but let out a snort of laughter.

Munching on melon seeds, he asked indistinctly, "Then what exactly are you?"

In truth, his intention after retaliating against the old village chief was to provoke the man into a rage so that he would reveal his true form.

He wanted to strip away the villagers' trust in him.

He hadn't expected this Skeleton Ghost to be so patient, showing no intention of exposing himself even after such humiliation.

He even planned to have a heart-to-heart talk with him.

What was he plotting?

"Me? I am also a villager of Yinyuan Village," the old village chief said slowly, spreading his mouth into a grin. "Or rather, I built this village. I am the first village chief."

"?"

Wu Wang was stunned.

When he was pretending to be a villager during the day, he had also inquired about the village's history.

Most villagers had genealogical records in their homes, so history had not been lost.

This place was established approximately two hundred years ago.

It had been called Yinyuan Village since then, though it was quite dilapidated and desolate back then.

It was a place where a group of refugees, having nowhere else to go and fleeing disasters, gathered to find a home.

Worshipping the Great Deity of Yinyuan back then was just like anywhere else—burning paper money and offering incense.

There was no such thing as a Yinyuan Saintess.

But starting from the second village chief, worshipping the Great Deity required human sacrifice.

It was also from that time onward that the village grew better day by day.

Until it developed into what it is today.

Not only were they well-fed and well-clothed, but they could even send intelligent children out to study.

The first village chief...

This Skeleton Ghost had existed for two hundred years?

"Didn't you want to eat me during the day? Why the sudden change of heart, wanting to become bosom buddies? Don't forget I just stabbed you," Wu Wang said sarcastically.

The man's change in attitude between day and night was too drastic.

It was so extreme that anyone without a brain could sense something was wrong.

"After all, I didn't know at first that you had a way to absorb this..."

With that, the old village chief's hand trembled as he pointed toward the large wooden plaque covered in black cloth.

Inside was the eye-mark of the Abyss God.

He turned to look at Wu Wang, his deeply sunken, hollow eyes erupting with intense desire.

Trembling, he said, "How about a deal? You teach me how to absorb the aura of that Being, and I can give you everything you desire!"

"?"

Wu Wang was filled with question marks.

What kind of ghost was this Abyss God?

Dungeons contaminated by Him would become distorted and eerie, yet there were even stranger fellows attempting to absorb His aura.

Principal Wang from *Escaping the School* was like this.

And now, this old village chief was the same.

What benefit was there in absorbing this aura? Why the hell couldn't he feel it?

Aside from changing his missions and trying to turn his brain into mush, what else could He do?

Sometimes, Wu Wang really wanted to take a red pen and draw a mouth beneath the red vertical pupil on his wrist, just so the Abyss God could answer his questions properly.

"First, tell me, what do you plan to do after you obtain the... aura of the Abyss God?" Wu Wang stuffed some candies and melon seeds into his pockets—eating and taking, leaving nothing behind!

The old village chief's expression turned solemn.

He spoke word by word, "I will replace the Great Deity of Yinyuan and become the village's new guardian deity."

*Pfft—*

Wu Wang couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Sometimes he truly couldn't understand these people.

Or rather, he couldn't understand their absurdity.

Principal Wang claimed to be righteous.

Under the guise of doing what was best for the students, he attempted to strip them of their humanity.

The old village chief called the Great Deity of Yinyuan a guardian deity.

But the price was life after life.

And he even wanted to become such a man-eating guardian deity himself.

Dammit, what the hell was he actually guarding?

What a bunch of hypocrites.

"In my first year as village chief, I met the Great Deity of Yinyuan," the old village chief's eyes turned melancholic.

"He made a deal with me, granting me the ability to be immortal, but the price was becoming non-human. Every thirty years, I must change my 'clothes.' From then on, I must wear clothes to meet the villagers; only inside the ancestral hall can I take them off to catch my breath."

"Such a life is too hard to endure."

"Fortunately, thirty years ago, while listening to music on the radio at home, I heard the call from that Being."

At this point, the old village chief patted the wooden plaque.

A flash of ambition appeared in his eyes. "That Being's existence is far stronger than the Great Deity of Yinyuan. Even a mere wisp of His aura left here could give me hope of escaping!"

"Whatever you want, just say it! As long as you lend me a hand, I can satisfy you!"

Looking at the man's slightly crazed appearance, Wu Wang wiped his hands, which were covered in dust from the melon seeds, on his clothes.

He finally understood what those human skins displayed in the ancestral hall were.

Those were the newly selected village chiefs of every generation!

The village chief of Yinyuan Village changed every thirty years.

The chosen person would enter the ancestral hall to worship the ancestors.

Then, the Skeleton Ghost would skin them alive, wear their skin, and assume their identity.

This old bastard had been replacing others all along!

No wonder after he finished pretending to be the village chief's grandson, the boy was nearly beaten to death.

The old village chief hadn't felt a shred of grief.

Turns out, the boy wasn't even his grandson.

Then, Wu Wang said sarcastically, "Buddy—no, old man, I need to correct two things."

"First, those things are called human skins. They are skins peeled off living people. No matter if you call them 'clothes' or whatever else, no matter how nicely you phrase it, they are still blood-soaked buns made from human lives."

"Second, you aren't immortal. You've just become a ghost. And ghosts can die too."

"You haven't witnessed true immortality yet."

"Old man, your 'substitute' is the most useless thing ever!"

At this point, Wu Wang's smile grew even more brilliant.

No one understood the Abyss God better than him!

And no one understood immortality better than him!