Chapter 1376
Awesome Human, Jing Tianjinglong
As mentioned before, thanks to Obik's existence, Trevor knew long ago that this world was far more complex than it seemed, and that ghosts and monsters were not just illustrations in storybooks, but real things that roamed the shadows.
They would perch on the backs of travelers and whisper secrets, open their eyes deep within dry wells, and drag their wet, cold feet across the streets on moonless nights, making a teeth-grinding squeak.
Cui Ming thought this knowledge was enough to keep him on his guard, until one day when he was chatting with Obik, the other man suddenly uttered a name that hit Cui Ming like a piece of ice.
Ida Iryu.
His full name is Nishikida Kojuro Keiryu.
The moment Obik uttered the name, he froze on the spot. His usually grinning ghost face twisted into an expression of near terror for the first time, and even the temperature around him seemed to drop a few degrees.
He is a very terrifying person.
Why do you say that?
Because this person was so powerful, so powerful that the monsters would rather encounter the Giant of Light than see his back on that rainy mountain path; it was a fear that seeped into their very bones.
He killed many monsters from the Warring States period of this world, not by using talismans to suppress them, nor by asking gods to exorcise them, but by facing them head-on and cutting them in half with a knife, a simple and brutal method that made people's scalps tingle.
Cui Ming later went to check those ancient books that were almost gnawed apart by time. Every page of the records exuded a strong smell of blood, and between the lines was the illusion of a blade cutting through bone.
The evil spirit that had been lurking in the deep mountains for many years was slashed in the throat by him with a single stroke, and blood gushed out high, staining half of the cliff red.
The evil creature that lured passersby on the riverbed was pulled out of the river by his bare hands and torn to shreds like a piece of cloth, before it could even scream.
There was even a city besieged by a colossal creature, and the army was helpless. He went into the thick fog alone, and the next morning, the monster's head was hanging on the city gate, dripping blood and staring.
According to Obik, Jing Tianjinglong is just like Ultraman, an existence outside the norm, an unreasonable monster!
When Obik said this, his voice trembled so badly that even the shadow in his hand was shaking, as if those memories from hundreds of years ago had suddenly come to life and were choking him.
However, Ultraman fights in a gigantic form, standing in the center of the city and battling monsters. Every time he lands, the earth shakes and buildings collapse like building blocks.
This guy was an average-sized man, carrying a knife full of nicks and chips. He ran through the mud on his two legs, splashing up a cloud of dirty water, and chopped down those demons and monsters without even blinking!
So, to Cui Ming's surprise, this Jing Tian Jing Long was a real person.
It is not an epic poem written by a bard, not a bedtime story used by a mother to scare her child, and certainly not a legend embellished by later generations.
Instead, he was a living, breathing person who had left his mark on that era rife with demons; his breath, his sweat, the rust on his knife—all of it was real.
His life story is clearly recorded on those yellowed scrolls and tattered family trees. Even the location, weather, and date of his slaying of monsters are vividly depicted, with the ink dried like congealed blood.
This gave Cui Ming a strange sense of absurdity, as if someone had told him that the legendary dragon-slaying hero actually lived next door and had even borrowed his soy sauce yesterday.
What Cui Ming was more concerned about was Sukuna Oni.
The demon Sukuna once wreaked havoc in the Sukuna Mountain area.
That thing wasn't just ordinary ferocity; it carried a kind of resentment that seemed to have crawled out of hell. Wherever it passed, vegetation withered, streams stagnated, and even birds and beasts fled in terror.
It has a terrifying demon face with protruding fangs, and its eyes shine like two blood-red lanterns in the night, hunting down passing travelers and mountain people.
It is said that it never spits out bones when it eats people, and even chews up their souls, leaving the victims with no chance of reincarnation.
He was eventually defeated by the swordsman Ida Kojuro Iryu.
There were no eyewitnesses to that battle, leaving only fragmented legends.
Some say that the torrential rain on Mount Suna lasted for three days and three nights, with thunder mixed with ghostly wails and the sound of knives.
Jinglong sealed Sukuna Oni's heart with his knife, thus sealing its soul. He then dismembered its body and sealed it in Mount Sukuna.
That slash was terrifyingly precise, piercing directly through the demon's most fatal weakness, and then using some ancient spell to nail its still-beating heart to the stone box.
Of course, Sukuna-ki is not the most important one.
Most importantly, Ida Iryu sealed him away while he was starving.
Cui Ming stared at the small print on the document and checked it three times to make sure he hadn't misread it.
It clearly states that Jinglong had not eaten for several days and was exhausted to the limit. Even his hand holding the knife was trembling, yet he managed to suppress that level of evil creature with just one breath.
outrageous.
Cui Ming closed the scroll, rubbed his temples, and felt his understanding had been shaken. He had seen many powerful beings, but one whose limbs were weak from hunger yet could still crush something like Sukuna Oni to the ground was completely beyond the realm of common sense.
As Cui Ming was watching, a girl curiously followed him over to watch as well.
She walked very lightly, as if afraid of disturbing something, and peeked her head out from beside Cui Ming's shoulder, her gaze falling on the yellowed pages.
"what is this?"
"An outrageous person."
Cui Ming answered without looking up, pointing to Jing Long's name on the scroll.
"I don't think anything is more outrageous than what you've said."
The girl tilted her head, her tone slightly mischievous.
"Thank you for the compliment."
Cui Ming remained expressionless, as if he truly took the words as a compliment.
"Forehead"
The girl was taken aback by his reaction, opened her mouth, and didn't know what to say for a moment.
Her name is Angie, the princess of the world of waltzes.
However, that glamorous title has long since become a joke, even an irony.
She was an unlucky girl; her fate was manipulated and played with from the very beginning.
She was originally the target of Emblio's conspiracy. That bastard coveted her bloodline and power, intending to use her as some kind of key or sacrifice to realize his twisted ambitions.
However, Emblio was taken away by Trevor and is currently being interrogated in a dark room.
Cui Ming personally cut off the guy's escape route, dragged him out of the shadows like a dead chicken, and threw him into the dark interrogation room, where someone was assigned to "take care" of his mental state every day.
However, Angie was still betrayed by her own brother.
That fool sitting on the throne, in order to save face and cover up the royal family's shameful scandals, pushed her out, which led to her ending up here.
An absurd order and a meticulously planned exile plunged her from the prison of the palace into a vortex of another world.
But it's a good thing nonetheless.
At least here, she no longer has to face those hypocritical aristocratic etiquettes and backstabbing relatives.
Because of the appearance of a monster, her brother and sister were eaten by the monster.
When the monster emerged from the ground, the entire royal city trembled. Her brother and sister were scheming against each other for power and profit, and they didn't even have a chance to escape before being swallowed by that gaping maw, without even leaving a complete scream.
After Cui Ming killed the monster, he successfully rescued the king and queen, who were considered normal people.
They managed to get far enough away that the two of them, having been imprisoned by the brain-dead prince, escaped a calamity. Cui Ming immediately pulled the two terrified old men out of the rubble.
Angie, on the other hand, joined EDF's Seed Program.
After all, in Angie's opinion, monsters are more troublesome than dragons and such things now.
Dragons at least retain reason, can negotiate, and can establish a fragile balance. Moreover, they are protecting their own territory and searching for their dragon god, so there are traces to follow.
Monsters are different. Those things destroy for the sake of destruction. Their minds are filled with nothing but destruction. They bring death wherever they go.
Moreover, humans and dragons have now reconciled.
Because of the monster.
When even more terrifying and unreasonable enemies descend from the earth and the stars, the two races that once fought to the death are forced to put aside their prejudices and turn their guns against those common threats.
The dragon elders and human representatives sat at the same table and signed a ceasefire agreement. Although there was still wariness in their eyes, at least they would no longer tear each other apart.
Angie stood in the EDF base, watching the fighter jets take off and land outside the window, thinking that although this world had gone mad, it had gone mad in a decisive way. (End of Chapter)