Chapter Twenty-Four: "Feigning Self-Harm?"

Far off to the side, Yu Ge had neither the chance nor the time to observe Lin Maozhi’s movements. He didn’t even notice when the other vanished from his line of sight.

All his attention was fixed on the crimson skeleton across from him. After those two left, the red skeleton underwent a strange transformation.

The retaliation he expected never came; the raging fury he feared was nowhere to be found. Of course, with a skull, there was no way to discern any expression.

In any case, the red skeleton seemed entirely oblivious, standing quietly before Yu Ge, the ghostly flames flickering in its eyes as it regarded him.

It was indeed regarding him. How he deduced this from the hollow sockets that lacked even eyeballs, who could say—but the black flames drifting in those skeletal eyes gave him the distinct impression of being scrutinized.

Though being scrutinized by a skeleton was an odd sensation.

Yu Ge’s expression was grave as he weighed whether to flee, when suddenly the red skeleton lifted its left hand.

The movement was neither rushed nor slow, leaving Yu Ge uncertain of its intent. He leaned back, gripping his long blade with a serious mien.

But in the next moment, his face took on a peculiar look.

The red skeleton raised its left hand, positioned the exposed joint above the connection of its right arm to the shoulder, and abruptly brought it down.

With a sharp crack, the entire right arm fell to the ground.

Yu Ge was dumbstruck, feeling as if his mind had stalled for a moment.

So you chased me all this way, killed so many people, just to chop off your own right arm in front of me? Is this a self-mutilation performance?

What sort of bizarre hobby is this?

Yu Ge’s mouth twitched as he recalled that the skeleton had no brain—but then again, who’s to say a skeleton can’t have a brain?

This scene struck him as utterly absurd.

Yet the red skeleton paid no heed to Yu Ge’s gaze, but bent down, picked up the fallen right arm from the grass, and offered it to Yu Ge.

Plop!

A chunk of flesh fell from the bone.

Yu Ge frowned, staring at the clump on the ground in bewilderment.

This thing—it looked just like a lump of mud.

He leaned in closer, scrutinized it for a few seconds, then his face filled with disbelief.

It was mud!

Stunned, he raised his head to examine the crimson figure’s body, this time with even greater care—and was truly shocked.

Where was the flesh and blood on this skeleton? Its entire body was stuffed with reddish-brown mud!

Yu Ge’s eyes widened to an unprecedented roundness.

He’d thought the red skeleton’s body had looked somewhat like mud before, but now he realized it wasn’t just a resemblance—it was literally filled with reddish-brown mud.

So what was this?

Yu Ge opened his mouth, unable to utter a word.

He simply couldn’t comprehend why the red skeleton’s insides were packed with red mud. Did this earth serve some special function, or was it just ordinary mud? No matter how he looked, it was nothing but smeared mud.

Not to mention the earlier unexpected act of self-mutilation—was this something a person would do?

But what truly shocked him was what happened next.

The red skeleton, holding the mud-streaked right arm, moved in such a way that the cracked, dried layer of reddish mud flaked off with a rustling sound.

Yu Ge watched in amazement as the skeleton pointed the right arm at his own, which had grown and swelled into a true Qilin arm, then gestured at its own empty right shoulder.

A huge question mark seemed to appear on Yu Ge’s forehead.

The crimson skeleton apparently had no intention of attacking him, instead focusing intently on his right arm.

Judging by its gestures, it seemed to want to exchange arms.

Exchange arms?

He was baffled.

But he realized that was exactly what the red skeleton meant. Once he understood, his face darkened.

So it was his arm that attracted the skeleton? He stiffly glanced at his enlarged Qilin arm, utterly confused.

What was this—was it the scent of a lone wolf?

And since when could arms be traded so easily?

He felt the red skeleton’s mind must be addled.

Yu Ge lowered his head, pointed at his own oversized arm, then at the skeleton’s empty right shoulder, inquiring silently.

These gestures received a response from the red skeleton.

The crimson skeleton nodded, the black flames in its vacant eyes drifting in the wind, as if affirming his question.

So that was it.

Yu Ge couldn’t make sense of the skeleton’s logic, nor understand how it could even conceive of such a trade.

He was puzzled by why it hadn’t simply killed him, given how it dealt with others.

Yu Ge nodded, making no move to refuse, and swung the steel blade in his hand toward his arm, feigning a cut.

In truth, he used this moment to turn and flee.

When faced with something whose mind was clearly unsound, what else could he do but run?

He dashed into the endless wilderness beyond the forest, hoping the scorching sun might put some pressure on the skeleton.

More importantly, he guessed the red skeleton, for some reason, wouldn’t kill him outright. It was a gamble, but one he had to take.

Sure enough, after sprinting dozens of meters from the forest, Yu Ge glanced back to see the red skeleton still standing in the wild grass at the edge, holding its right arm and making no move.

After a long pause, it finally raised its head and gazed at Yu Ge’s retreating figure, looking rather foolish.

But for Yu Ge, a foolish opponent was preferable—if the skeleton were clever, he’d hardly escape its wrath.

Yu Ge ran with everything he had, pushing himself to his limits, achieving speeds of over a hundred kilometers an hour.

In just a few seconds, he squeezed out every ounce of his potential, not daring to relax until he was truly out of danger.

He vaulted over a hill, and the distant silhouette of the town began to emerge on the horizon.

Looking back, he saw that the red figure, once shrinking in his view, had vanished entirely, as if it had never existed.

Yu Ge’s heart tightened—the crimson skeleton was far too elusive.

He also spotted Lin Maozhi and Master Li of the Hundred Medicines Hall, both racing toward Yunji Town, looking thoroughly bedraggled.

Their clothes were torn and tattered, a far cry from the confident figures they’d been before. But at least they’d survived.

When Yu Ge caught sight of them, they too saw him reappear in their field of vision, both filled with gratitude at surviving the ordeal.

He scanned the scene behind him, finding no trace of Sun Gangfeng—no doubt he’d met a grim fate. Yu Ge sighed, feeling a pang of regret.

A familiar companion, alive one moment, a cold corpse the next.

This made Yu Ge all the more aware of the cruel reality of this world, especially for ordinary people.