: The Nun's Cut

Qiao Ye didn't explain.

He walked to Petrov's body and squatted down.

Reach out your hand, and a green light appears in the void, outlining a symbol.

[The Art of Communicating with the Deceased]

launch!

The green symbol entered Petrov's body.

Petrov blinked, then opened his eyes.

He sat up.

Sienna's fur stood on end.

"Meow—!!!"

She jumped back a step, her two front paws dangling in mid-air, her tail standing straight up.

alive?

wrong.

The corpse is moving!

Qiao Ye turned around and glanced at Sienna, not understanding why she was making such a fuss.

Does getting smaller mean getting more timid?

Petrov turned his head and looked at Qiao Ye.

"Qiao Ye?" he asked.

His voice was hoarse, like sandpaper scraping against a wooden board.

Still that heavily accented Chinese

"It's me." Qiao Ye's tone was somewhat heavy. "I wanted to ask you, do you have any last wishes?"

Petrov was silent for two seconds.

"My mother is still in St. Petersburg. Tell her that her son has not disgraced her."

"Is that all?"

Qiao Ye saw that Petrov seemed to have accepted his death with great composure.

There are absolutely no regrets.

Petrov smiled.

The so-called "talking to the dead" technique simply gives the corpse a living state and activates the corpse's own memories from its previous life.

There was no personality of the deceased during their lifetime.

However, since Petrov had just died, the humanity within his body was still extremely strong.

"Good boy."

Petrov reached out and patted Qiao Ye on the shoulder.

"When we joined the coalition, we had already disregarded life and death; death was not something unacceptable to us."

"On the contrary, I should apologize to you."

"I'm sorry, I can't help you rescue your father."

Qiao Ye remained silent for a long time.

He had a lot to say, but in the end, he didn't say it.

Qiao Ye simply raised his head and asked:

What is your mother's address?

"At the intersection of Nevsky Prospekt and Litney Street, her name is Anna Petrovna."

Qiao Ye nodded vigorously.

"I will definitely convey the message!" he said. "I have no more problems, Uncle Petrov, you can rest in peace!"

Petrov looked at him.

But it didn't fall.

"Uh..." Qiao Ye blinked. "Uncle Petrov, I said, you can rest in peace now."

Rest in peace!

Why are you still not at peace?

"I cannot rest in peace."

Petrov said, "You didn't ask all five questions."

what?

[Communication with the Dead] There's such a feature?

"Do I have to ask all five questions?"

"Yes."

Petrov nodded.

"If I don't finish asking, can you just keep existing like this forever?"

"That's right."

After Petrov finished speaking, he collapsed on the spot and never moved again.

The "Talking to the Dead" technique has ended.

Sienna squatted in place, her golden eyes wide open.

Only then did she dare to tiptoe over.

Look at Petrov's body, then look at Qiaoye.

"You... let him speak just now?"

"Um."

"How did you manage to meow like that?"

"Because I used the [Dead Man's Talk Technique]."

Sienna was silent for two seconds.

"...Witchers have this kind of skill?"

"certainly."

Qiao Ye wasn't in the mood to come up with a better reason right now, so he could only use "that's how we demon hunters are" as an excuse.

He was thinking about a problem.

Should we use the "Talk to the Dead" technique, and then leave these teammates alive forever without asking all the questions?

but--

After much deliberation, Qiao Ye made a decision.

"Maybe we shouldn't."

He sighed.

Ultimately, the art of communicating with the dead is magic applied to corpses, not to actually resurrect people.

If I actually did that, how would I be any different from those people in zombie movies who turn their loved ones into zombies because they can't bear to part with them?

If Master Song Ci knew, he would probably scold himself.

Qiao Ye walked towards Morini and continued using the [Conversation with the Dead] technique to inquire about his last wishes.

My son is seven years old this year.

Morini said, "Tell him that his father loves him, and also that I have money saved under the bedside table so that his mother won't remarry too soon."

"I will."

Qiao Ye nodded, and then asked four unimportant questions.

Morini rests in peace.

Next up is Wade.

"I have a blueprint in my toolbox that I designed myself, but it's not finished yet."

Wade said, "This is the birthday present I'm planning to give to my daughter, but I can never seem to design one that I'm completely satisfied with."

He paused.

"Please get it ready for me and deliver it to her for me."

"I will."

Afterwards, Qiao Ye asked a few questions and sent Wade off in peace.

In the end, only Aramaki Ichiro remained.

"I don't have any relatives."

He said, "If I had to say what my last wish is, it would be to keep my knife."

Knife?

Qiao Ye turned around, and there was Aramaki Ichiro's sword stuck next to him.

Not long ago, Qiao Ye used this knife to kill the Faceless Nun.

"Is there anything special about your knife?"

"This sword was personally crafted for me by the most skilled swordsmith of our time."

Ichiro Aramaki said, "I promised her that I would use the weapons she forged to slay countless demons, and then tell her the good news in person."

"It's just a pity that it's no longer possible."

He sighed, filled with endless melancholy and regret.

Qiao Ye thought for a moment, then said—

"I'll help you!"

"Huh?" Aramaki Ichiro asked, puzzled.

"I have already used this knife of yours to kill the faceless nun who just killed you."

Qiao Ye said, "Next, I will use this sword to slay even more demons and fulfill your last wish!"

This is a promise.

Aramaki Ichiro looked at Qiao Ye.

"If that's the case, that's fine too."

He said, "After you've slain enough demons, remember to go to Kyoto and tell that craftswoman that her sword is very good."

Qiao Ye nodded: "What was that craftsman's name?"

"Liulifang"

"Liu Lifang, right? I'll remember that."

Qiao Ye was surprised to find that the craftsman was actually Chinese.

But the name is easy to remember.

As usual, Qiao Ye allowed Aramaki Ichiro to rest in peace.

Finally, the last wishes of the four teammates have been learned.

Qiao Ye stood up and drew Aramaki Ichiro's sword.

This knife doesn't have a name yet.

Ichiro Aramaki originally intended to use it to slay a powerful enough demon, and then name it after that demon.

Just like the [Dojigiri] that killed Shuten-dōji, the [Onikiri] that severed Ibaraki-dōji's arm, and the [Kumōgiri] that killed Tsuchigumo in Japanese history.

"I used this knife to slay the demonic faceless nun."

Qiao Ye looked at the knife. "From now on, your name will be 'Nun's Cutter'!"

He carried the nun behind his back.

In Japan, swords are typically worn at the waist, but Qiao Ye, being a "demon hunter," is accustomed to carrying his weapon on his back.

Next, we laid our four teammates to rest in peace.

And at that very moment—

"BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!"

The roar of an engine reached his ears, and Qiao Ye suddenly turned his head to look. He saw an SUV approaching from a distance.

The off-road vehicle had tremendous power, kicking up clouds of dust.

Qiao Ye's pupils contracted.

What's going on?

Is there anyone still alive in this hellish America?