Chapter 47: Fusion of the Doppelgangers

Watching Yu Jing collapse in front of me, an indescribable sorrow filled my heart. Though I had known Yu Jing for less than half a year, in every moment of life and death, neither of us ever abandoned the other. That is brotherhood! In the twenty-first century, I had no friends; only after coming to this strange world did I meet these companions. We spent little time together, yet our hearts were bound as one, and none wished harm upon the others.

“Brother Li, how are you?” Qin Tian gazed at my corpse lying on the ground and asked. My body still lay there, severed from shoulder to waist, the sight unbearable. I wasn't sure if my soul had left my body; my translucent form stared blankly at the other me lying on the ground.

Qin Tian seemed able to see me. “Brother Li?”

“Yes... what is happening?” I raised my hand to touch my forehead, but my hand passed right through. Only now did I realize I couldn’t even feel my own body.

“Brother Qin, quickly, check on Yu Jing for me.” Unable to make sense of it, I decided not to dwell on the matter. What mattered now was getting my wounded brother out of here. I had no idea why the corpse king had fled so suddenly; lest it should return, it was best to leave this place quickly. Perhaps Murong Xue could give me a clear explanation. Hearing my words, Qin Tian suddenly understood, hurried to Yu Jing’s side, and after a rough examination said, “He’s gravely wounded, lost too much blood. If we don’t stop the bleeding soon, his life may be at risk.”

Qin Tian ordered the members of the Azure Dragon Gang to carefully carry Yu Jing on their backs, and, hoisting the unconscious Shi Feng, glanced at my corpse on the ground. “Brother Li, what is going on?”

I could only smile bitterly. I wished I knew why my heart was gone and yet I hadn’t died, why my body was lifeless but my consciousness lingered.

Now was not the time for such thoughts; there was no understanding it, so I resolved to carry my corpse to the Misty Forest as well. Even if I truly died, I couldn’t let my body rot in the wild. The Azure Dragon Gang lost more than two hundred men in the battle with the corpses, over a hundred injured; if not for the corpse king’s arrival, we wouldn’t have lost nearly half our brothers. Now, five or six hundred remained, including the injured. Supporting each other, they followed my lead toward the Misty Forest.

I wanted to take out ammunition from my space ring for them, in case we encountered enemies again, but my translucent body could do nothing except see and hear. Fortunately, the journey was uneventful. When we reached the Misty Forest, it was midday, the sun blazing overhead.

“Hold on a bit longer, we’re almost there,” I turned to the group and said.

Suddenly, a commotion arose among them. “Old Chen, why are you biting me?”

“Spread out!” Qin Tian shouted, tense.

It turned out Old Chen, who had been carrying Shi Feng, suddenly went mad, biting the person in front. Looking at Shi Feng on Old Chen’s back, his eyes were blood-red, desperately sucking blood from Old Chen’s carotid artery. Old Chen’s gaze was dim, his face pale. The young man bitten by Old Chen, younger than me, quickly distanced himself, warily watching both Old Chen and Shi Feng, who was feasting on blood.

Qin Tian aimed at the young man’s head and pulled the trigger. With a loud bang, the young man fell into a pool of blood before he even understood what had happened.

“Quick, hold them down,” Qin Tian said, putting away his pistol.

After some struggle, Shi Feng was tightly restrained on the ground. As for Old Chen, Qin Tian wanted to end him with a shot. “I don’t want any more brothers to be harmed. Better to give them peace than let them suffer,” he said. Qin Tian, once indecisive, seemed to have gained resolve after the recent battle. Yet I stopped him from killing Old Chen, hoping to bring him to Murong Xue to see if he could be healed.

If it was corpse poison infection, there must be a cure; if not, we could deal with him later.

Shi Feng was tightly bound with leather straps, Old Chen, though lacking attacking ability, was also strapped for safety. Ready once more, we pressed on. Seeing the Misty Forest not far ahead, everyone quickened their pace. At last, we entered the woods, each finding a shady spot to catch their breath.

I alone felt neither tired nor hot. Glancing at my current appearance—a translucent body— I found it matched well with the Ice Sword. Unfortunately, the Ice Sword had been corroded by corpse energy, turned black, and was now held by Qin Tian.

While the others rested, I examined my severed corpse. Now, I could only call it a corpse; anyone who saw it would think so. The wound was clean, strangely without any blood flowing. I tried to touch it, then recoiled in surprise—I could feel my own body. This discovery made my heart inexplicably flutter. Perhaps I wasn’t truly dead.

I tried lying down, and as soon as I touched the corpse, I felt a force pulling me to merge with it. Slowly, I opened my eyes, raised my hand, and watched sunlight filter through my fingers, taking a deep breath. I reached for my forehead, and this time, I truly touched it.

“Brother Li?” Qin Tian looked at me in astonishment.

At that moment, my body severed by the corpse king’s infrared cutter began to rapidly fuse, and in moments, it was whole again. I stood and flexed my stiff joints. “Wonderful, I’m not dead!” Unable to contain my excitement, I grabbed Qin Tian’s shoulders and shook him vigorously. “Brother Qin, do you see? I’m alive, I’m alive! Hahaha!”

“I see, Brother Li. Calm down, calm down,” Qin Tian stepped back and said.

I withdrew my smile and gazed at Qin Tian, making him a bit uneasy. “Brother Li, I’m not interested in men,” he said jokingly. I’d never expected Qin Tian, usually so serious and rarely smiling, to crack such a joke. Of course, it wasn’t his appearance that made me stare; it was the invisible energy in my body, surging as though wanting to burst forth.

I sensed the energy’s source—it was at my heart. I tried to channel it, and to my surprise, it obeyed easily. Releasing the invisible energy, a translucent body stood before me.

It was none other than myself—the translucent me from earlier, and this form even conveyed sensations. Hearing, sight, touch—I could sense them all.

I tried to control the translucent body but found I couldn’t; it had its own consciousness, yet everything it saw and heard transmitted directly into my mind. The feeling was strange. I attempted to draw it back into my body, and it returned smoothly as I willed.

“Avatar?” Qin Tian said. It was the second time I’d heard him say that word. Could this translucent me truly be another avatar? This was wild—if I hadn’t seen it myself, I’d never believe it possible.

Seeing the others had nearly finished resting, I called everyone to continue on. At last, we arrived. Looking at the familiar courtyard before me, I felt an extraordinary warmth. “I’m back.” I pushed open the gate and entered.

No one was in the yard or the house. Where could they have gone?

The tea on the table was still warm; they must have just left. I decided to wait for their return in the courtyard. Murong Xue’s courtyard was not large. I placed Yu Jing on a bed in the guest room, then joined the others outside. Qin Tian looked mischievously at a statue in the courtyard. “Brother Li, what’s your relationship with the owner of this place? Why did she have a statue of you made?”

“Well, that’s a long story,” I said, just as I sat in the pavilion, about to explain, when hurried footsteps sounded outside. I looked up, and the door was flung open by a tremendous force.