Chapter 260: I'm the Only Hope of this Industry

Han Fei took the first steps, but he realized Xu Qin did not follow. When he turned back to look, he saw Xu Qin tip to the side. Xu Qin was in an extremely weak state. She couldn’t even move, that was the aftereffect after unlocking the gate within herself. He reached out to hold Xu Qin. To Han Fei’s surprise, even without using Soul-depth Touch, he was able to come into contact with Xu Qin. It appeared like Xu Qin had fully trusted him. “Let me carry you.”

The completely defenceless Xu Qin had something charming about her. Han Fei carried her and allowed her cold arms to wrap around his shoulders. Despite her appearance, Xu Qin was very light, the only weight appeared to have come from her clothes. Han Fei couldn’t help but admire the hands that crossed before his chest. They were fair and flawless. Seeing Xu Qin this weak felt incredibly surreal. Out of the intention to know Xu Qin better, Han Fei used Soul-depth Touch. But the moment the ability was activated, an unimaginable pressure came from behind him!

His knees buckled. If not for the blood water, his kneecaps would have been crushed. His back bent and his bones felt like they were about to break. It felt like he was not carrying a person but a sea made from curses!

After deactivating Soul-depth Touch, the pale-faced Han Fei tried to stand up from the ground.

“Do you need help…” Weep toddled over but before he could get any closer, the boy was dragged away by Drake. Taking in his neighbours who watched from afar with interest, Han Fei shook his head and righted Xu Qin on his back. After knowing Xu Qin’s innermost secret, and felt personally the weight she was literally bearing, Han Fei had a deeper understanding of his sisterly neighbour. Wading through the blood, Han Fei stopped before Spider, “Thank you for saving her.”

Spider slowly turned around to face Han Fei. He looked much older. “I haven’t heard that in a long time already. But I should be the one thanking you, if not for you and your friends, I would be brought under Butterfly’s control already.”

“Please don’t say that, I have a feeling you could have saved yourself through other methods, you merely didn’t have the chance to use them.” Han Fei took in the two broken hearts in Spider’s hands and he was quite embarrassed. “How are you going to control Cattle Alley without the hearts? How about you come with me?”

Spider gave Han Fei a once-over. His tired face brightened with a smile. “Did you recruit them using this method as well?” Han Fei was about to explain when a large wound appeared on Spider’s chest and the man grimaced in pain.

“Are you alright? Is there anything I can help with?”

“I’m fine.”

“But your chest is literally breaking open…”

“I’m fine.” Spider mixed the pieces of the two hearts together and mushed them into his chest. “Sin and Kindness are interconnected, there shouldn't be such a clear delineation. I was being too extreme in the past.” Spider walked over the ruin of the House of the Butcher. Even though he literally had 8 other selves, Han Fei realized Spider was probably the loneliest person in the world. “Found it.” Spider unearthed something that looked like a pocket talisman from the ruin. Han Fei saw that in the writer’s room before, it was hanging beside the hidden compartment, “This thing has been protecting me for a long time. As a token of appreciation, I shall give it to you. Remember, only open it when you are in absolute danger and there is no other choice.”

Seeing how serious the Spider was, Han Fei did not reject it. When he touched the talisman, the robotic voice said, “Notification for Player 0000! You’ve discovered Grade F consumable—Spider’s Talisman. What is inside this talisman? Open it to find out.” This was the second Grade F object Han Fei obtained, so it was very precious.

“I can’t leave Cattle Alley for the foreseeable future. The Butterfly will come for you so you need to be very careful.” Spider reminded Han Fei. The smile never left his face, this was not the Spider Han Fei had imagined.

“Actually I’ve already been cursed by the Ziggurat, the curse will trigger within 7 days to 1 month. So even if they don’t come to me, I’ll have to go to them.” Han Fei and Butterfly, only one could survive.

“With your current ability, I’m afraid you won’t be able to defeat it.” Spider said sadly.

“Can you tell me what exactly is the Butterfly? I’ve encountered it several times already but until now, I still have no idea what it is. Is it a ghost? A person?” Han Fei asked the question which had been bothering him.

“Butterfly is a consciousness that can travel freely between dream and reality but one thing’s for sure, the Butterfly started as a person! It would possess different people to conduct its plan, but at the same time, it would leave behind its traces on these people.” Spider scanned the broken world and explained, “Darkness, hatred, arrogance, madness, the thing is driven by the simple desire to destroy but it expounds the spirit of salvation. It has no friends but it has many disciples who worship it. All those disciples have its brand on them, some of them are quite dangerous.”

“Then do you know what Butterfly's weakness is?”

“Butterfly will do everything within its power to create something for you to believe, once you buy into its story, it’ll be over for you. So when dealing with the Butterfly, you must be rational at all times. Do not be tricked by it, not even once.” Spider was silent for a long time before adding, “The Butterfly has no weakness but I know a way that can temporarily trap it.”

“Trap it?”

“When the Butterfly’s main consciousness occupies someone’s mind, its subconsciousness would stop working. The disciples charmed by it would gain a temporary clarity. That is the result I concluded from experimentations on my different personas.” Spider shook his head. “But the Butterfly is too cunning to let its weakness be exposed. You might not even meet its main consciousness before you die in a freak accident.” Han Fei tried his best to digest the info given to him by Spider. Of Butterfly’s nemesis, only Han Fei and Huang Yin remained. “If you intend to go after the Butterfly, I can give you another clue.” Spider called over the Dreamer. He borrowed the boy’s pen and paper to draw out a metrosexual-looking man. “When the Reader first appeared to me, it looked like this. So there is a high chance this is the Butterfly.”

Han Fei imprinted the man’s image in his mind. He planned to share this info with the police the moment he logged out. Compared to the cryptic world, Han Fei was more confident he could take down the Butterfly in real life. The two chatted like long lost friends until the blood water receded and Cattle Alley returned to normal.

“Notification for Player 0000! You’ve completed Grade F Hidden Mission—Fate of the Spider! At the crossroad of destiny, you’ve chosen to help Spider to regain the control of Cattle Alley! Friendliness level with Spider increases by 20! Obtained 2 free skill points!

“Completion rate over 90 percent, congratulations for obtaining Grade F unique title—The last Midnight Butcher.

“The Last Midnight Butcher: You are the last Midnight Butcher to exit the House of the Butcher. This title allows you to enter and leave Cattle Alley freely and grants you part ownership of the meat packing factory. Gain additional 5 percent curse resistance to blood and cold steel type objects.

“Notification for Player 0000! Your personal resume has been updated! On your first day of work, you collapsed the entire industry, turning your profession into a unique title!

“Warning! With the murder of each butcher in the future, the business killer title will gain part of the EXP! When the title levels up, you’ll unlock new abilities!

“Having a perfect profession is an important step to possess a perfect life, clearly you are on the right track.”