The Real Heiress Just Wants to Be a Lazy Fish - Chapter 50

Chapter 50: Falsehood

This doctor appeared relatively young and had only recently joined the Special Affairs Bureau in this small city, making her relatively easy to convince.

When she saw the second half of the identification number 001 representing Tao Yitong’s status, she immediately snapped to attention. The doctor had never encountered such a high-ranking figure before. When Tao Yitong stated that the matter involved the Bureau’s highest-level secrets, she dared not question it; after all, such things were far beyond the speculation of a minor doctor.

She dutifully signed the non-disclosure agreement. This was no ordinary piece of paper; once signed, it placed a binding constraint on one’s words and actions. In truth, even without signing, she wouldn’t have dared to speak a word. Involving secrets of that magnitude, a single slip of the tongue would likely mean eating “government meals” (prison food) for the rest of her life.

Only after confirming that the matter would not be known by a fourth person did Tao Yitong breathe a sigh of relief.

The doctor continued to treat the wound, moving even more cautiously this time. However, the pain of breaking a curse cannot be lessened. Although Tao Yitong endured it stoically to keep Jiang Zitan from worrying, the cold sweat on her forehead betrayed her true condition.

“Doctor, can’t you apply some anesthesia?” Jiang Zitan noticed the doctor hadn’t made any move to inject an anesthetic. Seeing the black, tainted blood continuously flowing from Tao Yitong’s wound, she didn’t need to be told how much it hurt.

“It’s useless. When removing a curse, the pain isn’t in the body but in the soul. Among existing drugs, there isn’t one that can work on Miss Tao.” After all, she possessed the soul of an S-class esper; her soul strength had nearly transcended human limits, making standard medications ineffective.

“Ah!” Xiao Zheng suddenly screamed and snapped her eyes open. Before Tao Yitong could support her, she propped herself up on the ground, gasping for air. Cold sweat and tears mixed on her face, which was pale with terror.

“What did you see?” Tao Yitong placed a Calming Soul Talisman on her forehead.

“I… I saw a passage. So many ghosts were coming out of it, and even scarier things were behind them! I was almost dragged in!” Xiao Zheng glanced at the broken red string on her hand, her fear resurfacing. “I… I was already caught. It was the Substitute Red String that swapped my life out.”

“Today isn’t the day the Ghost Gate opens; how could there be a passage like that…” Under the influence of the talisman, Xiao Zheng managed to regain her reason. Her consciousness had just been wandering at the boundary of Yin and Yang to sense if any power from the Underworld was leaking out, only to be sucked into that place the moment she looked away. She had nearly failed to return.

“It seems those wandering spirits outside are related to the passage Xiao Zheng mentioned.” Tao Yitong had a general idea of where these mysterious ghosts were coming from.

“This is cutting off their path to reincarnation! How wicked!” Souls in the Underworld can wait to be reborn, but if a soul is dissipated in the mortal world, even reincarnation is lost.

“It has done many wicked things; this is just one of them. Vice Captain Zhou, give us a direction; we’ll head straight for its location.”

“Wait! Captain Tao, look! The spirits are dispersing!”

Hearing the voice, Tao Yitong looked around. Indeed, the spirits that had been gathering toward them with clear intent were now wandering away aimlessly.

“I… I’m sorry. It might be because of me. Just now, my body was essentially ‘masterless,’ so it attracted all the ghosts escaping from the Underworld. I didn’t expect a soul tide of this scale…” Xiao Zheng realized that the vast shadows in the distance weren’t trees, but ghosts. She had never seen such a scene. Fortunately, the “big boss” beside her could suppress the ghosts, otherwise she wouldn’t have been able to reclaim her body upon her return.

“It’s okay, as long as you returned safely. Can you still determine the location of the passage you found?” Tao Yitong didn’t hold much hope; after all, escaping was hard enough.

“They made me use my substitute string. The broken string can point to the place where I just ‘lost my life,’ otherwise I really wouldn’t be able to find it.” Gritting her teeth, Xiao Zheng held up the red string tied with a copper coin. As she injected her power into the coin, the string moved without wind, pointing in a specific direction.

Vice Captain Zhou, responsible for soul tracking, pointed in the same direction. It was no surprise.

“Right! One more thing… when I was pulled into that passage, I seemed to hear some strange voices.” Xiao Zheng patted her head. Her consciousness had been chaotic when she was pulled in, and the voices weren’t clear. Her head was still spinning.

Surely it wasn’t a hallucination? Jiang Zitan remained silent, her emotions unreadable beneath her lowered eyelashes.

Not only would Xie Chu think so; if she hadn’t spent these days with her, she would have deduced the same. She slowly looked up at Tao Yitong, suddenly feeling that the current girl and her past self were so contradictory that it was impossible to understand. The question that had surfaced more than once rose in her heart again.

Why would someone so clear-headed and meticulous have done things so shallow and stupid in the past? If she claimed she was unaware, it was impossible. If she truly wanted to, she could have been far more secretive and subtle.

If she did it on purpose… Jiang Zitan’s gaze flickered. Then why?

She instinctively reached for the silver button in her pocket but eventually stopped. Something was about to be revealed, yet it lacked the most critical link to connect everything.

Tao Yitong, under her long gaze, finally felt a bit uncomfortable. She whispered to the system, What’s wrong with her? Is she stunned by the fact that I admitted to cutting ties with my family so shamelessly? She sighed. Life is hard. I feel like her impression of me has gotten even worse.

The system felt its host was overthinking. Host, maybe the protagonist thinks you were a ‘big smart’ before and are a ‘too smart’ now.

This is called smart? Your standards for smart people are too low, Tao Yitong complained.

“Fine. When you go to the studio, I will protect you from the shadows. But if I don’t make it back in time from my investigation, you must stay in the bookstore during the day,” Jiang Zitan finally spoke.

Tao Yitong understood. This meant being her bodyguard during the day and a “Master Detective” at night. But that wasn’t her intention. “You can investigate during the day too. I’m prepared this time and I’ll run. Besides, I haven’t used the bottle you gave me; I can stall for time until you arrive.”

“What did you hear?” Tao Yitong asked Xiao Zheng.

“Those voices sounded like they were arguing. They mentioned some ‘Star,’ and a ‘God’…”

Why would the starry sky look down upon the mortal world? Are you sure no God will descend? If you cannot guarantee it, then our cooperation ends. Exactly. The premise of our cooperation is that the God of Fate will not descend. The Underworld deity position we are seizing cannot compare to a True God in the heavens.

You think there is still a way out? King Qinguang will find you soon. Either way, it’s death. Only by cooperating with me can you fight for a path to survival no, a path to becoming a God.

“They seemed to have stolen something and mentioned a cooperation. My consciousness was too far away, and I was busy fleeing, so I didn’t hear clearly. If only I were stronger,” Xiao Zheng thought dejectedly.

“You did very well. The intelligence is extremely useful,” Tao Yitong praised. She could imagine how hard it was for the girl to remember these details in such a crisis. Xiao Zheng had been excellent, and this intel truly sounded an alarm.

Xiao Zheng, who thought she hadn’t done enough, was stunned to be praised. This legendary Captain Tao is really so gentle!

“Don’t daze out, let’s move,” Vice Captain Zhou reminded her as he walked past.

“Oh, oh! Vice Captain Zhou, is the provincial bureau still recruiting? What are the specific requirements?” Xiao Zheng asked in a low voice.

“The province recruits every three years. Your local bureau should have the assessment requirements. Good luck! You have good talent; you might have a chance.”

“Yes!” Unfortunately, by the time she would enter the provincial bureau, this “gentle leader” would have already retired to go on a honeymoon with her partner.

In the past, when she was alone, Tao Yitong often performed night missions and didn’t feel this way. But now, with a partner, the frustration of working overtime at night far exceeded the hunger of not being fed.

“Yes! You stay” The subordinate behind Tao Yitong hadn’t finished his sentence when a roar erupted, and the rising dust flew directly into his open mouth.

Boom! A grayish-black light merged perfectly with the night, so most people only heard the roar. A crack appeared in the center of the ancient battlefield; wandering spirits and monsters on both sides of the crack vanished instantly.

Those who knew Tao Yitong knew that her current mood was absolutely foul. If not necessary, it was best to keep quiet.

Due to being at the center of the ancient battlefield, the power of Taotie attracted the attention of certain entities.

What is this commotion? Humans have broken in? But this power doesn’t seem purely human. It doesn’t matter. Any number of humans are just pieces of flesh on our path to godhood. It’s the power of a ferocious beast. I have to think which one it is. A ferocious beast… when was the mortal world ever this lively?

I see it the blood aura on the Tianxiang Star is growing denser. The risk is too high; I cannot bear it. I’m withdrawing from the cooperation. True. Even if the Yama King catches us, it’s just being locked in the Underworld again. I’m leaving too. Me too…

Heh, you can withdraw, but you must leave your flesh and souls behind. This is the price of breaching the contract. A bunch of fools with ambition but no courage. Did you really think I would share the deity position?

“Don’t be afraid, I’m here. I won’t let those things hurt you!” Her sister’s voice in her ear was exceptionally firm.

Her restless heart settled down like a miracle. Jiang Zitan felt a surge of warmth. She gave a soft “mhm.” If there are past and present lives, I must have done many good things in my past life to have the chance to meet Tongtong in this one.

But then, Jiang Zitan heard Tao Yitong say something that made her blood nearly freeze the one thing she likely found hardest to accept: “Sister, there is one more very important thing I need to tell you.”

“But don’t be afraid. You can trust me. Whether it’s those monsters or people, I won’t let them hurt you.”

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