Chapter 37: You Have No Choice

Wu Chang’s original intention was merely to catch Liu Wu in a compromising position, using it as leverage to pry some information out of him. He never expected that this simple move would net such a massive catch.

When Liu Wu first entered, he had looked clean and appeared to be an ordinary villager. Yet, upon emerging in his new gear, he carried seventeen or eighteen faint red strands of resentment clinging to his back. The owners of these resentments were all Players. Their final memories before death were identical: being dragged into the Ghost Cry Woods by Liu Wei and Liu Wu, where they were tortured to death through various cruel methods. Given such experiences, their resentment should have been tightly bound to their killers, yet while in the village, Wu Chang had never detected a single trace of it on them. The reason they were able to escape the notice of this resentment must have been connected to the gear Liu Wu was wearing.

Even more unexpected was the realization that the red, fleshy ball of resentment he had encountered while retrieving Liu Ning’s soul was not the main evil spirit of the Year-End Festival, but something from the Ghost Cry Woods. No wonder the symptoms of the villagers he treated the next day had been so different from Liu Ning’s. There were two "evil spirits," and one of them was merely a copycat. That explained everything.

Wu Chang’s eyes grew exceptionally keen. "Liu Wu, oh Liu Wu, you have brought me quite the surprise."

"How are you here!" Liu Wu was horrified to see Wu Chang suddenly appear before him, when he should have been on his way to Chen Family Village.

Wu Chang pointed his muzzle at Liu Wu’s forehead and kindly reminded him, "Brother Liu Wu, hidden weapons have no eyes. Do not act rashly, lest you throw your life away for nothing."

The Silver Dawn took too long to condense silver bullets and was a waste against non-spiritual entities and monsters. To achieve "firing freedom," he had purchased one hundred armor-piercing rounds before entering the dungeon. Each bullet cost 10 Decayed Silver Coins; buying one hundred at once earned a fifteen percent discount, making each round equivalent to 8,500 yuan in reality. It was expensive, but it had the advantage of being able to be brought into the dungeon regardless of the world's laws. The power of the bullets was only slightly stronger than real-world pistol armor-piercing rounds, but that was more than enough to pierce through Liu Wu in a C-rank dungeon.

Liu Wu did not know what kind of hidden weapon the short rod in Wu Chang’s hand was, but the threat of death emanating from it was so clear that he dared not make a move. Abandon the blade and one is a commoner; hold the blade and one is a thief. With the cunning typical of a bandit, Liu Wu immediately changed his expression and asked righteously, "Hero Wu, our entire village has treated you as an honored guest and entertained you without the slightest neglect. Why do you ambush me?"

Wu Chang pressed the muzzle against Liu Wu’s forehead and began frisking him, asking, "Is 'entertaining' dragging me off to save someone before I’ve even finished dinner, keeping me busy until late at night? And then waking me up at dawn the next day, treating me like a free physician with a line of patients? And after all that, without even letting me rest or providing lunch, you chase me out to run errands?"

"Uh..." The momentum Liu Wu had painstakingly built collapsed, and sweat began to bead on his forehead. *Wait, aren't we just supposed to be exchanging pleasantries? Why are you taking this so seriously? What happened to your heroic stature?*

"At the very least, our intentions were sincere," Liu Wu insisted stubbornly.

Wu Chang asked with a mocking smile, "Does 'sincere' mean that right after I saved the village chief's granddaughter, you and Liu Wei started plotting how to deal with me?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Wu’s entire body shuddered, his eyes filled with sudden ferocity, and he immediately tried to rise and fight to the death. Wu Chang pulled the trigger, the bullet grazing Liu Wu’s cheekbone, leaving him with an ear that looked remarkably like a certain president’s.

Liu Wu’s eyes cleared instantly, and he collapsed back to the ground. "How did you know?"

Ignoring him, Wu Chang followed the Village Guardian's instructions, stripping Liu Wu of all the weapons he had hidden on his person. Still feeling it wasn't enough, he bound Liu Wu tightly with a thick rope. He looked at Liu Wu, now trussed up like a zongzi, and muttered, "How troublesome. Should I just kill you and perform soul-searching?"

Seeing the panic on Liu Wu’s face, he laughed. "Don't worry, I’m just joking to lighten the mood."

Liu Wu laughed along with him.

Wu Chang: "I’ll start taking it seriously when you stop cooperating."

Liu Wu’s smile froze instantly.

Seeing Liu Wu’s growing discomfort, Wu Chang knew his goal had been achieved. Bandits lived with their heads on the line; those who made a name for themselves were usually ruthless men who feared no death. Threats of life and death were painless to them; to truly get answers, one had to attack the heart. Only when they were truly afraid would they cooperate and tell the truth.

Wu Chang nodded toward the space behind Liu Wu, then turned back with an expressionless face. "I ask, you answer. Don't think about lying to me; there are those who can help me distinguish truth from falsehood."

Liu Wu turned to look at the empty forest, his spine chilling.

"Don't look, you can't see them. A whole forest of vengeful spirits is standing behind you, waiting to help me testify."

"First question: Why do you attack so many passing Players... passing martial artists, and bring them into this forest to torture them?"

"Let me count. There are eighteen vengeful spirits raising their hands, saying you were the one who killed them."

At these words, Liu Wu’s pupils contracted sharply, as if he had seen a ghost in broad daylight. After a moment of shock, he seemed to realize something and feigned composure. "What else could it be? Naturally, to torture them for cultivation techniques and obtain a stroke of fortune. But that little madman’s count is low; I’ve killed more than eighteen—I’ve killed thirty-two!"

Wu Chang scoffed at Liu Wu’s attempt to test him and continued, "The eighteen of them say you took something from their bodies, and they are crying out for you to return it. What did you take?"

"Impossible! Can you really see the spirits?!" Liu Wu was truly panicked now. The previous question might have been a leak from the little fool who guarded the mountain, who might have shared secrets he had seen over the years. But this second question was something the little fool could never know—it was their greatest secret!

Wu Chang replied as if it were obvious, "Even if Liu Wei didn't tell you, you must have heard the rumors in the village. It was I who dragged Liu Ning’s soul back from the underworld the night before last."

A fierce look appeared in Liu Wu’s eyes as he shouted, "Kill him!"

At this command, the wailing in the Ghost Cry Woods intensified, and the pale red resentment on Liu Wu’s mask began to stir. Wu Chang took out the Soul-Cleansing Command Flag and tapped it against Liu Wu’s mask, suppressing the resentment. He sneered, "You thought you could command these spirits right in front of me?"

Liu Wu knew that if this continued, things would spiral out of control. He closed his eyes and stiffened his neck. "I don't know anything. Kill me or slice me up as you please; if I so much as utter a sound of pain, then—"

Wu Chang reached out, pinched Liu Wu’s lips together, and yanked upward, forcibly cutting off his speech and preventing him from finishing his dramatic declaration.

"Don't be in such a hurry to die. I am just a traveler. I have no deep grudge against you, nor do I care what you have done. I am merely curious about your actions and want to compare them with my own cultivation methods, which is why I’m asking."

"If you understand, blink your eyes, and we shall continue our chat."

Seeing Liu Wu blink, Wu Chang released his fingers, letting Liu Wu’s pinched lips snap back.

Liu Wu looked at the bullet wounds all over his body and said with a sneer, "You ambush me and cripple my hands and feet, yet you claim to have no malice. I’m truly curious what, in the eyes of you young heroes from prominent sects, qualifies as malice."

Wu Chang shrugged and said nonchalantly, "If I recall correctly, Liu Wei’s wife and child are still in Huai Valley Village, and his son, Xiao Sanzi, was born just half a month ago, right?"

Liu Wu scoffed with disdain. "Threatening family? Is that all you've got?"

"No, I’m just reminding you to consider their position."

"For example, if I tell the villagers that the evil spirit that attacked Liu Ning that night was actually a 'Chang Ghost' raised by you brothers, and that Liu Wei harmed Liu Ning to usurp the position of village chief, how would Liu Wei’s family fare then?"

Liu Wu retorted, "That day was my own decision; it had nothing to do with my big brother."

"You care so much for Liu Wei; you truly are brothers with deep bonds."

The young village guardian had said that Liu Wei and Liu Wu were very close. Last year, when hunters went into the mountains and encountered a monster, it was Liu Wu who had used himself as a shield, sacrificing his safety to block the attack and save Liu Wei’s life. The limp in Liu Wu’s leg was the permanent result of a poorly set broken limb.

Wu Chang continued, "In that case, I will simply say that you were innocent and were controlled by Liu Wei. Not only was the evil spirit a disaster brought on by Liu Wei, but both failures of the Year-End Festival were also his doing."

Liu Wu raged, "Big Brother is loyal to the village! Do you think Uncle Shan would believe such nonsense?"

"Why wouldn't he?"

Wu Chang stood up, brushed the dirt off his clothes, and said slowly, "I am a prominent hero who happened to pass by, possessing a righteous heart and willing to risk my own life. You two brothers are the villains hiding in the shadows, feeding monsters."

"I only need to bring the villagers here, and I have my own ways to prove you are harboring monsters. When that happens, will they believe me, or Liu Wei?"

Liu Wu’s eyes were bloodshot with rage. "You!"

Wu Chang: "Let’s make a deal. As long as you tell me everything honestly, I will act as if I know nothing. I will not only let you go, but I will also not tell the villagers about the Ghost Cry Woods, and I will leave immediately after the Year-End Festival ends."

"How about it?"

Liu Wu remained silent for a moment before asking, "How can I trust you?"

Wu Chang had already considered Liu Wu’s predicament. He gave an understanding smile and replied, "You have no other choice."