Chapter 261
Articles of Association
Chapter 261 The Return Journey
The time available on the train was limited, so after sitting for a short while, Lu Jinzhao quickly began to extract the materials needed to create [Lu Jinzhao].
Tian Lei, who was standing to the side, looked at Lu Jinzhao's somewhat cruel treatment of her with some curiosity. She was also recovering her body. After hesitating for a moment, she asked softly, "Do you need... mine?"
She didn't want to owe Lu Jinzhao too much, as that would make it even harder for her to refuse his requests. So, she figured she could pay back as much as she could to lighten the burden.
Upon hearing this, Lu Jinzhao looked at her, knowing in her heart that this was Tian Lei's act of "drawing a line" slightly after leaving the platform.
She was too guarded. Even though the two worked closely together on the platform, once they left the platform, this overly "timid" friend would try to regain some autonomy from Lu Jinzhao.
A single document cannot fully settle the debt of gratitude Lu Jinzhao had given her at the station. Instead of waiting for an opportunity to repay the favor, or simply turning a blind eye, Tian Lei decided to give Lu Jinzhao whatever she had first and repay him slowly. In fact, she was maintaining the relationship between her and Lu Jinzhao.
She didn't consider herself Lu Jinzhao's best friend, the kind of best friend who didn't need such a clear distinction between "you" and "me." She intuitively felt that she didn't hold that position in Lu Jinzhao's heart, even though they had gone through the death on the platform together and were already friends who had been through life and death together.
Therefore, she needs to be more sensible.
At the same time, she also felt uneasy about Lu Jinzhao. It was strange, because Lu Jinzhao made her feel reliable and want to rely on him, but he also made her feel uneasy and want to escape.
Tian Lei doesn't have many friends and isn't sure if other people's friendships are like this, but she decides to follow her instincts and not rely too much on Lu Jinzhao. She must continue to rely solely on herself; this is her way of surviving.
Seeing her somewhat uneasy expression, Lu Jinzhao knew what she was thinking.
Whether it was before entering the platform or while on the platform, she would stop Tianlei from continuing to have the idea of "autonomy".
But now...
"Okay." Lu Jinzhao simply smiled and agreed without saying another word.
Since the platform has ended, she doesn't need Tianlei for the time being. The foundation she has laid so far is enough to make Tianlei choose to cooperate with her again if they happen to enter the same platform again in the future.
So for now, she doesn't need to maintain this relationship.
Having just finished her work at the platform, Lu Jinzhao didn't want to waste any more energy on other things, nor did she want to provide any more emotional value to others. She just wanted to clear her mind and emotions and get some rest.
When she stopped sending friendly and gentle signals and stopped initiating conversations with Tianlei, her return journey with Tianlei became exceptionally quiet.
After her body was fully repaired and the pain subsided, Lu Jinzhao carefully examined herself and found that although most of the shadow puppets were broken, her destiny strength had increased.
Making and using shadow puppets will gradually strengthen one's destiny, and this will also happen as the shadow puppets are constantly changed.
Thanks to the enhancement of her destiny, Tan Meng, whose surface had been cracked, has recovered somewhat, but it will take some time for her to fully recover.
The advantage of using materials made from demons is that demons cannot be killed. Even if they are made into tools, they cannot be completely destroyed. They will only be temporarily unable to be used due to depletion of their power, or they may be overused and resurrected as demons to devour their users.
[Transfer] It looks tattered and worn out; I reckon it'll fall apart after one more use.
Unfortunately, it will be difficult for the material provider to improve their fate again in a short period of time, unless they enter the platform as frequently as she does.
The cracks in her ghost bone that appeared when [Lu Jinzhao] broke have been slowly healing since she returned to the train to repair her body.
This is quite different from [Tan Meng]. [Tan Meng]'s good or bad has little to do with her physical condition; at most, it is influenced by her destiny. But the Ghost Bone is now like a bone that is truly growing into her body, constantly repairing the cracks as her body heals.
But because of the cracking and healing, it has become even more inseparable from the flesh and blood of the deer.
Now, it's not just that one knuckle; Lu Jinzhao feels that the aura of the other fingers, and even the entire palm, is being assimilated by the ghost bone.
She recalled the ghostly hand bones lying inside when she opened the box.
That wasn't just a single finger joint, but the entire palm. When the entire ghost infant's palm transformed into a single finger joint, Lu Jinzhao wondered if it was because the infant's palm was too small to be in this state. Now it seems that this finger joint will likely "grow" over time until it returns to the shape of a palm.
It's not necessarily a bad thing.
Because of the "growth" of the demon bone, the demon blood that had been used excessively and was somewhat restless in her body has now calmed down.
As for the wooden box that served no purpose at the platform, it quietly occupied a corner of Lu Jinzhao's body, remaining motionless, as if it would cease to exist as long as Lu Jinzhao didn't want to think about it.
Actually, they could have used the train's repair capabilities to dig it out, but after thinking about it, Lu Jinzhao didn't do that.
Finally, there was the family tree she had placed in her backpack, which was now being taken onto the train.
It must be a supernatural object, and its power must be considerable.
On the table where Lu Jinzhao sat was a "newspaper". She knew what it was. She had seen it before, after the funeral home station.
She picked up the newspaper and, sure enough, saw information about the family tree in it.
Genealogy
A totem that records the lineage and historical trajectory of a family.
Those who are recorded will receive the protection of their family.
When a name is crossed out of the family genealogy, the person expelled from the family dies.
As the clan leader, you possess absolute authority, and clan members cannot harm you. However, in return, the names of clan members will gradually fade away over time or for other reasons.
[With each name you write down, your lifespan will decrease.]
Please remember, this is a family tree that has recorded the deaths of many; those who possess it are destined not to live long.
When Lu Jinzhao turned to the first page of the family genealogy, the once densely packed names disappeared, leaving only one name: [Lu Jinzhao].
As the holder, she has already been registered.
"Are they saying I won't live long again?"
This last sentence is clearly a warning from the train.
This family tree is very impressive.
Correspondingly, the price she paid for using the family tree was her lifespan.
Even if she hasn't done anything yet, being written into the family tree means being cursed by it.
Yes, a curse.
Lu Jinzhao could feel that when she held this family tree in her hand, a feeling close to the arrival of misfortune enveloped her. It was not strong, and even somewhat "distant", but it was definitely there.
If she had to describe it, she felt it could probably be called: a death trap.
(End of this chapter)