Chapter 157: Family, and the Queen

Qin Ran’s tone when he spoke these words was very strange, carrying a hint of madness mixed with fear he couldn’t hide.

Hearing him, Mother and Little Sister looked up curiously.

They saw that on the mountain encircled by the small town, something at the location of the villa seemed to have opened its eyes.

Immediately afterward, an indescribable, dense sound came drifting distantly from that direction. It was like a swarm pressed together, buzzing and trembling their wings. Or like countless fragments of glass gathered together and desperately grinding and rubbing.

The thin mist enveloping the fifty-kilometer radius suddenly shattered like glass.

At that moment, all the residents of Happy Town who were still alive and uncontaminated simultaneously raised their heads.

They faced the direction of the villa on the mountain peak, expressions of reverence and joy on their faces.

…

Rustle… rustle…

That was the sound of people running as if mechanically.

Behind the town, on the slopes overgrown with pine and cypress trees, beneath the thick layers of accumulated pine needles, humanoid figures sat up one by one. They then numbly picked up the weapons beside them—mostly rusted firearms—and gathered into groups.

Row after row, they charged down the slopes, rushing towards the edges of Small Town.

These people wore different kinds of clothes. Though severely rotten, it was still discernible. Some wore uniform military fatigues, others wore white lab coats. Without exception, they all looked like they had already died, yet now they had come back to life.

Inside the pitch-black rooms of the Small Town, red lights suddenly shone, two lamps glowing in each room.

Immediately after, all the tightly shut doors swung open simultaneously. One after another, figures stepped out. They seemed human at first glance, but when they walked under the light of the Crimson Moon, it became clear their minds had been twisted.

They walked out one by one under the Crimson Moon… and then opened their mouths wide.

A sharp, black stinger grew out from within their mouths, glinting coldly under the Crimson Moon.

…

The entire Small Town was awakening at that moment.

Countless gazes, from all directions in the town, converged on the spot where Lu Xin stood.

Huummm…

A dense, complex sound gradually filled the air, causing headaches to form.

The twisting of the air became more pronounced, refracting even the light of the Crimson Moon, creating the illusion of countless Crimson Moons floating in the air.

“Something fun…”

Little Sister’s body straightened slightly as she spoke, her eyes gleaming as she looked toward the area behind the town.

Her murmured words were somewhat indistinct.

Mother was also looking in that direction, an expression hard to define as either a smile or surprise on her face: “So this is how it is…”

As their voices sounded, the distortion in the air intensified dramatically.

That dense, complex noise also multiplied.

Their gazes, filled with intense curiosity, fixed upon the location of the villa behind Small Town.

…

At the location of the villa on the mountain guarded by the town, a figure was slowly emerging.

She appeared to be a young girl, wearing an ordinary T-shirt and long black hair.

Viewed from the edge of Small Town, the distance was considerable, yet it seemed that no matter how far away, one could clearly see her appearance. She had a very beautiful face, only her eyes were large, deeply black, and unfathomable, giving her a somewhat vacant expression.

The girl hovered above the villa and began slowly moving forward.

Only when she had risen over ten meters into the air and moved her body out beyond the confines of the villa could her full form be seen.

Her upper body was that of a young woman, but her lower body had no legs.

Behind her torso, she dragged an enormous ovipositor, or perhaps a huge abdomen—like that of an ant or a bee.

The abdomen was nearly seven or eight meters tall and over ten meters long, its entire surface a sickly, over-soaked white.

It was covered in deep wrinkles and studded with black dots.

Under the Crimson Moon, she revealed her entire shape. Her jet-black eyes slowly turned to look in Lu Xin’s direction.

“She is one of the most powerful Dominator-category Aberrations discovered to date.”

Seeing the bizarre, colossal figure gradually manifesting in the direction of the villa, Qin Ran’s face also revealed a fanatical reverence he himself seemed unable to suppress: “And I, in my current form, am one of her subjects. So…”

He lifted his head to stare directly at Lu Xin: “…Are you truly certain you wish to kill me right in front of her?”

…

Lu Xin remained silent. Behind him, the Black Shadow seemed to grow slightly quieter as well.

Only blood-red eyes, their color deeper, brimming with savagery.

Observing his reaction, Qin Ran’s face revealed a resolute expression.

He lifted that silver case and began slowly retreating.

He was retreating in the direction of the Queen.

Fortunately, he had always been cautious, choosing this place for temporary refuge. Should any powerful force pursue him, he could leverage the Queen’s power to sever it. But now, having spurred the Queen to awaken to such an extent, he knew he absolutely couldn’t escape unscathed. Still, he had long laid plans; he could still secure a sliver of hope for himself. It was better than falling into that monster’s hands…

Buzz…

The thought hadn’t yet faded from his mind when suddenly, Qin Ran felt his eardrums vibrate fiercely; his mind went utterly blank.

……

Seconds later, he realized it was because Lu Xin had suddenly let out a roar.

To be precise, the roar had actually come from the Black Shadow behind Lu Xin.

Following the roar, the Black Shadow was expanding, distorting, surging upwards like a mushroom cloud.

Even the thin mist shrouding the small town began to fracture, piece by piece. It was the result of the power contained within the Black Shadow, radiating outwards with the roar, disturbing the stable energy field maintained above the small town.

At this moment, Qin Ran trembled violently; his heart nearly stopped.

He knew this was the Black Shadow behind Lu Xin proclaiming—in this manner—its ownership over him, this prey.

“Is this monster provoking the Queen?”

He felt like he was plummeting into a nightmare, utterly helpless to guess what would happen next…

……

Whoosh whoosh whoosh…

The roar of the Black Shadow immediately triggered countless chain reactions.

The true residents of Happy Town simultaneously surged forward, ready to charge into the Flower Field.

Meanwhile, the army of soldiers with half-rotted bodies simultaneously raised their weapons.

Up in the villa on the mountain, the Queen’s pitch-black, emotionless eyes shifted as she slowly took one pace forward.

In the air, the sickening Psychic Radiation intensified instantly.

……

At this very moment, the crimson glow in Lu Xin’s eyes slightly receded; he had regained awareness.

In truth, he had become lucid earlier, the moment Qin Ran uttered the words “Code Name: Tyrant.” Only, his will had been suppressed. Only now, when Father’s attention was drawn towards the “Queen” of the small town, had he returned to his own body.

He took two light gasps, then lifted his head to look towards the direction of the villa on the mountaintop, his gaze filled with shock.

The appearance of that “Queen” made him feel his scalp tingle.

Observing the people emerging from their rooms, sharp tail-like stingers protruding from their mouths, and those crawling from the decaying earth, mechanically gripping rusted rifles as they aimed at him row upon row, Lu Xin finally matched these scenes to the information Qinggang City had previously transmitted to him…

No wonder this place allowed entry but no return—those who entered had all become part of the small town.

Only, they joined the small town through death.

And when he himself entered the town, he had sensed that opening the rooms would lead to something terrible.

The reason was simple: these rooms harbored the small town’s true residents.

The secret of Happy Town was actually quite simple.

A Queen had been born here!

……

Ants have their queen ants, bees have their queen bees, and Happy Town has its Queen.

Lu Xin couldn’t be certain just how much Psychic Magnitude was required to achieve influence of this level.

But he understood the logic: the Queen affected the entire small town, altering its living environment.

All the town’s residents became her subjects.

From then on, every central aspect of their lives revolved around this Queen; she represented the sole Will.

The residents of Happy Town consistently wore blissful, joyful smiles.

These smiles were genuine, because as long as they could serve the Queen, they felt happiness.

It also explained why Happy Town residents brought out so few goods to trade—perhaps for them, procuring just enough for the Queen left them wanting nothing else.

……

Now, one of the most formidable entities, the Queen of Happy Town, had locked her gaze upon him.

What should he do?

……

He lifted his head slightly; his vision cleared, yet his thoughts felt somewhat muddled.

He sensed unprecedented pressure emanating from the Queen. The distortion in the surrounding air, the murmurs assaulting his mind, the Mental Power that—like electric currents—stimulated his senses and forced fleeting, phantomlike images upon him… every aspect screamed of the Queen’s terror. So even he, now, felt a thrill of fear; a feeling that he couldn’t discern the outcome.

He felt uncertain what to do, so instinctively, he looked towards his family.

Then he saw Mother slide her hand into the small pouch hanging at her waist.

Little Sister arched her back, baring sharp teeth at the Queen atop the mountain.

Simultaneously, he heard Father emit dry, hollow chuckles from behind him…

……

Lu Xin reacted. He had to stand with his family…

Whether he was willing or not, at critical moments, he had to align his stance with theirs.

So he made his choice.

Straightening his posture slightly, he raised his head and fixed his gaze directly upon the Queen, radiating vast torrents of Psychic Radiation.

……

Buzz…

The distortion in the air seemed to climax at this very instant.

Lu Xin’s declaration into the fold didn’t shift the fundamental balance of power between the opposing forces. Yet it unmistakably signaled a shift in stance.

The entire small town stilled for a fleeting moment.

The Queen, who had been slowly advancing forward, suddenly halted.

In her ink-black, seemingly hollow eyes, there was perhaps a flicker of… surprise.