Genshin Impact: I Am a Slime

The moon was high in the sky, its light as pale as frost.

The Thousand Rock soldiers guarding Heuria's quarters had heavy eyelids, as if they were weighed down by invisible lead.

Hongyu leaned on the white-tasseled spear, the heavy shaft pressing deeply against his forehead, almost creating a dent in his skin.

As a seasoned veteran who had been around for many years, Hongyu was well aware of the routine of Instructor Fengyan's night patrols. The General Affairs Department was not a key area of ​​inspection, so he rested with his eyes half-closed.

As time passed, Hongyu's consciousness gradually blurred, sinking into a quagmire of half-dream and half-awake state. Even his shoulder armor became slightly crooked, and his leggings loosened a bit.

After an unknown amount of time, a bone-chilling cold, like an ice pick, suddenly pierced his marrow, jolting Hongyu awake.

His bloodshot pupils suddenly contracted, and he abruptly opened his eyes.

All I could hear was a suffocating silence.

The darkness surrounding the General Affairs Office swallowed all sounds; there was no weary buzzing of mosquitoes, no soft rustling of a breeze through the roof tiles. All that remained in Hongyu's ears was the pounding of his own heart and a chilling silence.

Upon realizing he had slept for too long, the hairs on the back of Hongyu's bare neck stood on end, and a chill ran down his spine to the top of his head.

Something's not right, something's not right!

He immediately pricked up his ears, desperately trying to catch those familiar sounds in the deathly silence.

That kid from Qiaoxi was his number one sleepyhead; his loud, bellowing snores, which shook the leaves, were the unwavering background noise throughout the long night.

Even if the other three soldiers couldn't hold on and drifted off to sleep, in the dead of night when all was quiet, their comrade's signature breathing should not have disappeared so completely just a few steps away around the corner, leaving not even a trace.

Hongyu suddenly held his breath, his gaze rapidly sweeping across the four corners of the room.

His four soldiers should have been like four iron nails, firmly wedged into their respective sentry posts, forming an impenetrable security network, but at this moment, there was no one in sight.

Only the cold, emotionless moonlight mercilessly spilled onto the empty sentry post, illuminating a lifeless, pale expanse.

"Qiaoxi! Wancheng! Yunbo! Atai!"

Hongyu opened his somewhat dry and hoarse voice and shouted loudly to the Qianyan Army soldiers on his post. His shout crashed into the thick night, but it was like a stone thrown into a bottomless abyss, not even causing a ripple.

The only response he received was a silence that grew increasingly thick, as if it were about to completely devour all life.

Hongyu tried to move his feet and leave his post to investigate, but standing still for a long time had made his calves stiff as iron, and his numb and heavy legs felt like they were filled with cold molten lead and were completely unresponsive.

Hongyu then suddenly realized that his nap had been unusually long.

Although he was used to taking naps, he was always vigilant and on guard against the elusive patrols of the squadron leader or instructor. He had never slept so soundly that he was completely unaware of his surroundings.

This belated realization made Hongyu even more flustered.

at this time.

From the thick, impenetrable shadow in the corner of the eaves, a figure stepped out without warning.

The pale moonlight sparingly outlined his silhouette.

This was an elderly man with graying hair, dressed in a well-tailored winter-style shirt and crisp trousers, with a pair of gleaming black leather shoes that could reflect the moonlight.

His face looked amiable, even with a reassuring kindness.

The visitor was Russell, the butler of Pantalone, the executive officer of the Northern Bank.

Russell strolled slowly to Hongyu, his steps as unhurried as if he were taking a walk in his own backyard. He tilted his head slightly, and a kind smile graced his well-maintained face, as if he were wearing a perfect mask.

"May I ask who you are calling?" Russell's voice was gentle and soothing, like a casual greeting between old friends, yet there was an indescribable eeriness in the deathly silence.

The sudden appearance of the stranger, and the ghostly way he appeared, instantly made Hongyu tense up.

The muscles in his arm bulged, and with a sudden jerk, the heavy white-tasseled spear emitted a deep hum, its cold tip carrying a chilling killing intent, instantly locking onto Russell's throat.

"who?"

Hongyu's roar ripped through the deathly silence, every syllable filled with vigilance and tension.

Upon hearing Hongyu's question, Russell's perfect smile remained unchanged, but he stopped in his tracks and stood firmly in place.

The old butler calmly raised his right hand, which had been loosely clenched, and slowly opened his fingers like an elegant bouquet of flowers, his tone still gentle yet chilling:

"Don't be nervous, are you looking for them?"

Four cold metal plaques hung prominently from Russell's five well-maintained fingers.

Those were the identity plaques that the soldiers of the Thousand Rock Army were bound to with their blood and flesh, and they were determined to defend them to the death. The cold moonlight flowed across the metal surface, reflecting a chilling light that made one's heart tremble.

The moment Hongyu saw the cards, his pupils suddenly contracted into two pinpoints of despair.

One of the plaques bore the hand-carved, crooked characters "Qiaoxi," which Hongyu recognized all too well. The other plaques bore the names of Yunbo, Atai, and Wancheng.

An overwhelming chill instantly pierced through every inch of Hongyu's spine.

Identification tags are the second life of Thousand Rock soldiers. The tag is the life, the tag is gone; the tag is gone, the person is dead. This is an ironclad rule known to everyone in the Thousand Rock Army. Once the dog tag is removed, it means…

Hongyu's heart felt as if it were being gripped by an invisible giant hand, and he sank into a bottomless ice cave. The smiling old man in front of him had turned into a demon in human skin.

The instinct for survival and the fury of blood feud with his comrades exploded together. Hongyu twisted his wrist sharply, the tip of the gun pressed down instantly, the heavy butt of the gun pressed against his waist and hips, every tendon in his body burst out with extreme power, like a bow drawn to its limit, ready to unleash a fatal spearhead in the next second.

Fortunately, Hongyu's remaining rationality had not been completely consumed by cold anger and despair.

The old man before him could silently make four fully armed elite soldiers of the Thousand Rock Army vanish without a trace; he was no match that the old man could contend with alone.

Hongyu's right hand moved with lightning speed, tearing off the metal whistle that was pressed against his neck, ignoring the sharp edges that scratched his skin.

This is the second most important emergency alarm device in the Chiiwa Army after alarm fireworks.

Without hesitation, Hongyu raised his hand and stuffed the cold whistle between his teeth. His chest expanded violently like a bellows, and his lungs inhaled enough air to rupture the whistle membrane.

"laugh…"

The expected loud whistle did not sound; instead, there was a short, muffled sound of a sharp blade tearing through flesh and fascia.

All of Hongyu's actions, all his strength, and all his hopes froze completely with that strange noise.

That breath, brimming with alarm, was abruptly blocked deep within the spasming, constricted throat, turning into a silent sob.

A cold, sharp glint suddenly pierced through the skin directly beneath his Adam's apple without warning.

The inspector's longsword, stained with hot blood, gleamed with a cruel and cold light under the moonlight, its tip menacingly protruding from Hongyu's neck.

The excruciating pain instantly tore apart all of Hongyu's nerve connections. His body convulsed and trembled uncontrollably, and the world in his vision spun and twisted wildly before being rapidly swallowed by boundless darkness.

In the instant before his last shred of consciousness was completely extinguished, Hongyu's unfocused and cloudy pupils, with the last of his strength, struggled to focus forward.

The old man, whose lips curled slightly upward, his smile radiating a contemptuous satisfaction that seemed to hold the power of life and death, a condescending gaze upon the struggles of ants. He then spoke towards the area behind Hongyu:
"Thank you for your help, Inspector Daryl." (End of Chapter)