Chapter 1161: Afraid of Death

Li City University, Nanji District.

The Degenerate Street was at its most boisterous. Bright lights shone on the packed street stands and dense crowds. Amid the smoke and heat, the college students were just getting started with their night.

Above the street, an unnatural wind glided across the sky. Team Liao Liao had just passed while invisible.

“Time,” Liao Liao said.

“Quarter to twelve,” Hong Xiaoxiao responded a little nervously. “It’s almost midnight.”

“Haha, this Empress is already feeling it. The bell of fate is about to ring...”

“Look!” Old Seven cried out. “The moon seems bigger than before!”

Liao Liao looked up. “Really? I don’t think so.”

“It’s bigger!” Old Seven sounded certain.

“It’s just your mind telling you that...”

“Ah!” Hong Xiaoxiao exclaimed.

That prompted Liao Liao to order, “Prepare for a fight!”

“Oh, no, no,” Hong Xiaoxiao hurriedly explained. “Don’t worry. I haven’t spotted the enemies.”

Liao Liao sighed in relief. “Sister Hong, will you please stop acting like a scaredy cat?”

“Sorry,” Hong Xiaoxiao said. “Um, can we swing by the rooftop of that hotel?”

“Only this time!” Nainai said condescendingly, but she was already adjusting the wind to bring her teammates down to the hotel. Soon, the four became visible on the rooftop.

Hong Xiaoxiao held onto the railing and looked ahead at a community of apartment buildings. Most of the lights were off. Only a few windows remained lit.

“Which is your home?” Liao Liao asked, already figuring out Hong Xiaoxiao’s intention.

Hong Xiaoxiao smiled with a hint of embarrassment. “Top floor of the second building from the left, the third unit.”

Everyone spotted the bright window.

“That is my little brother’s room,” Hong Xiaoxiao said.

Liao Liao chuckled. “Up so late? Must be playing video games.”

“Not necessarily,” Old Seven snickered. “It can be something naughty.”

“It’s not!” Hong Xiaoxiao raised her voice. “My brother must be studying!”

Old Seven laughed. “I’m just joking. Don’t be mad, Sister Hong.”

“Alright. I get it.” Hong Xiaoxiao looked back at the window. Pride and melancholy colored her voice as she said, “Our parents moved to the city so that we could attend a good school. A place in that community isn’t too expensive, but it is quite a burden to our family. We live on the top floor because it’s cheaper.”

“It’s not a problem in winter, but in summer, without proper insulation keeping out the heat, our home feels like a large steamer. Back then, we didn’t have enough money to install AC in every room, so we only installed one in the living room. That was where we would all sleep at night. It’s really quite inconvenient. Once, I woke up late at night to go to the restroom and accidentally stepped on my brother’s hand. He woke the rest of the family with his scream. Everyone thought there was a thief...”

Hong Xiaoxiao’s lips curled into a smile as she reminisced about her mundane past.

“He’s a good kid, always getting the top three grades in his class. He used to say that he would quickly grow up and make money so that he could lessen the financial burden on our family. And he wished that I would stop being a salesperson because I wasn’t predisposed to it. He wanted me to find a job I actually liked...”

Hong Xiaoxiao stopped. She didn’t want to cry now. So she turned around and smiled awkwardly, “Let’s go.”

“Nah, let’s wait here.” Liao Liao cracked a rare gentle smile. “It’s tiring to keep flying in the sky.”

“Hmph, this Empress isn’t tired!” Nainai stood on the railing with her hands on her hips. “Flying is like breathing to me.”

She wasn’t lying. Gravity and Gale combined made flying an easy task requiring little energy to her. She could fly all day with ease.

Liao Liao checked her watch. It was approaching midnight.

She flashed an apologetic smile at all of them. “You’re unlucky to be on my team. I’m the weakest among all the team leaders. If—and I do mean if—things don’t end well, I hope you won’t blame me.”

“We won’t!” Old Seven pounded his chest. “When I chose to stay, I already made up my mind to risk my life! I heard you asked Brother Yang to have me on your team. That means you must have come up with a plan. I’ve seen your intelligence at work. I trust you!”

“I trust you too,” Hong Xiaoxiao said encouragingly. “Just tell me what to do, and I’ll give it my best.”

“Hmph, no need to worry!” Nainai splayed her hands at the night sky. “With this Empress on the team, you mortals will victoriously return in triumph!”

Liao Liao would like to remind Nainai that ‘victoriously’ was redundant, but she swallowed the remark. Looking up at the sky, she sighed softly.

“When I was little, something happened that made many people hate me. They wished for my death. I was frustrated. I swore to live a long life, much longer than those people, and I thought that resentment was what had been driven me.”

“But those people aren’t important. I simply need a subject of hate. Without them, I would have to accept that I didn’t know what I was living for.”

“I only realized recently.” She turned to look at her teammates. “I don’t have to find something to live for. I just want to live. I’m just afraid of dying, I’m scared witless. I’ll be honest with you: my legs shake when I think about the incoming fight with the death monsters, and it’s not unique to this time. My legs always went weak when we fought. I don’t know how I’ve endured it to this day.”

“I’m afraid of dying, too.” Hong Xiaoxiao smiled. “Terrified.”

Old Seven chuckled. “It’s only natural. Nothing to be ashamed of! While I’m prepared for the worst, I would rather survive than die.”

“Hmph!” Nainai agreed with them, but she had to admit it without damaging her image. “Among all things ruled by this Empress, death is what I dislike most.”

Liao Liao extended a hand to them. “Let’s go for a cheer. We’ll fight hard to survive together.”

The other three exchanged a smile and placed their hands on hers.

...

Harbor, Dongyu District.

On the quiet shoal, Nine Frost’s team was on standby. Nine Frost and Chen Ying stood on the riverbank, looking at the radiant city across the river. Adept Horse and Harvest Song perched on the levee nearby, quietly going over the tactics they had formulated.

Chen Ying glanced at her watch. “It’s ten minutes until midnight.”

Nine Frost looked at her. “Scared?”

“Yeah.” Chen Ying nodded. “I’m scared, but not of death, but of losing. I’m scared that we’ll fail at revenge.”

Nine Frost didn’t respond.

After a moment of hesitation, Chen Ying voiced the question she had been wanting to ask, “Nine Frost, can the four of us really defeat Greed?”