Dice In The Darkness: Cthulhu Calls

Chapter 393: The Loyalty of "Ling Ishikawa"

Watching the triumphant Ling Ishikawa, Liu Xing smiled and said, "Ling Ishikawa, your journey to Hybrier this time has indeed yielded rich results. Those Magic Spells you acquired will be of immense help to us in dealing with the mythical creatures we’ll be facing next."

Wan Chongshan chimed in, "Absolutely, Ling Ishikawa, your return couldn’t have come at a better time. We’ll be relying on your Magic Spells to turn the tide. By the way, Ling Ishikawa, can your water control technique be used to sense the presence of the water ghost we’re up against?"

Ling Ishikawa raised an eyebrow and replied, "It should be possible. The essence of the water control technique lies in manipulating the flow and state of water, so I can clearly sense any objects moving in the water. Therefore, I should be able to detect the water ghost’s movements."

Hearing Ling Ishikawa’s assurance, Liu Xing breathed a sigh of relief. If Ling Ishikawa could sense the water ghost’s presence, it would make their task of dealing with it much easier. After all, they wouldn’t have to confront an enemy lurking in the shadows.

At that moment, footsteps could be heard coming from the staircase. Liu Xing quickly glanced outside the door and saw Hu Cang approaching.

Seeing Hu Cang, Liu Xing decided not to hide Ling Ishikawa. After all, Hu Cang was now considered one of them, and having spent so much time in the temporal distortion of Panlong Town, he had gained significant experience. Liu Xing believed that Hu Cang wouldn’t be startled upon seeing the current state of Ling Ishikawa.

"Mr. Ryuusei, what are you all doing here? I heard a commotion from downstairs," Hu Cang inquired with confusion.

Liu Xing smiled and replied, "Mr. Hu Cang, if you come inside and take a look, you’ll understand what we’re doing. However, please be prepared, Mr. Hu Cang, because Ling Ishikawa just returned, and his appearance seems to have changed."

Furrowing his brows, Hu Cang chose to enter the room.

Upon seeing Ling Ishikawa, Hu Cang took a step back in shock, bumping into the wall. He pointed at Ling Ishikawa and exclaimed, "Mr. Ling Ishikawa, how did you end up looking like this? Did you get transported to the Snake Cave?"

"The Snake Cave?" everyone echoed in unison.

Hu Cang nodded and continued, "The Snake Cave is a legend that has been circulating around several villages near Panlong Town for centuries. It’s said that deep within the mountains and forests surrounding Panlong Town, there lies a massive cave inhabited by snakes. If someone gets lost in the mountains and disappears without a trace, they are believed to have accidentally entered the Snake Cave and been devoured by the Snake King. However, before the incident I’m about to describe, the Snake Cave was merely a mythical existence with no concrete evidence to prove its existence."

"However, many years ago, a strange man wearing robes suddenly appeared outside Panlong Town. He came to Panlong Town seeking food and water, even though it was summertime. The stench emanating from him alarmed the townspeople, and they demanded that he reveal his true face before providing him with food and water."

"So, the strange man reluctantly removed his robes, revealing a face mostly covered in snake scales. This terrified the residents of Panlong Town. However, since Panlong Town already had Black Flood Dragon to handle such situations, the townspeople brought Black Flood Dragon in and began questioning the strange man about why he looked this way. At first, the man was in pain and unwilling to speak, but after Black Flood Dragon mentioned the words ’snake man,’ the man finally revealed the truth."

"The strange man’s name was Wu San, an outsider who had come to Rongcheng with a few friends to attend a wedding. A few nights ago, while passing through Longquan Mountain late in the evening, they decided to find a village to rest in due to the late hour. However, after walking for a long time, they still couldn’t find a place to stay. Eventually, they came across a cave. Exhausted, they decided to spend the night there."

"After setting up a campfire and assigning night shifts, they all went to sleep. When Wu San woke up urgently needing to urinate, he suddenly realized that one of his friends, who was supposed to be on night watch, was missing. So, Wu San woke up the others and started searching for their missing friend. They quickly discovered that their friend had ventured deeper into the cave. Wu San and his companions made a torch and entered the cave."

"They hadn’t gone far when the ground suddenly gave way, and they fell into a pit five or six meters deep. When Wu San and his companions regained their senses, they found themselves surrounded by snake men wielding weapons, eyeing them menacingly. The snake men didn’t attack with their weapons but released a gas that caused Wu San and his companions to lose control of their bodies."

"Subsequently, Wu San and his friends were separated, taken to separate rooms by the snake men. These rooms contained strange devices and items. Wu San was forcibly made to swallow a pill by the snake men and then lost consciousness. When he woke up again, he found himself back on the surface, but his body was covered in snake scales. Wu San was forced to don robes and wander."

"After sharing his ordeal, Wu San asked Black Flood Dragon for help in removing the snake scales, but Black Flood Dragon admitted his inability to do so. After all, even Black Flood Dragon wasn’t all-powerful. Thus, Wu San had no choice but to continue his wandering. Following Wu San, many others with partially covered bodies in snake scales, who had experienced a similar fate of entering a cave and losing consciousness at the hands of snake men, started appearing near Rongcheng."

After listening to Hu Cang’s story, Liu Xing raised an eyebrow in surprise. He hadn’t expected that there would be a snake man territory near Panlong Town.

However, the actions of these snake men left Liu Xing puzzled. Typically, for most mythical creatures, humans were either considered food or insignificant beings, hardly worth their attention. When humans fell into the hands of mythical creatures, they usually met a grim fate with no chance of survival.

So, were these snake men experimenting with turning humans into snake men? Liu Xing had a nagging feeling that these snake men had larger ambitions.

Therefore, based on the plot points he had heard from KP Green Light in the Fisher’s Village module, Liu Xing speculated that he would encounter this group of snake men in future modules.

It seemed a bit troublesome.

"So, Ling Ishikawa, did you go to the Snake Cave?" Hu Cang asked again.

Ling Ishikawa shook his head and evasively replied, "I wasn’t transported to the Snake Cave, but I ended up somewhere else. However, I did encounter snake men, and my current appearance is related to them."

After all, there was no need to disclose the Hybrier-related matters to Hu Cang.

However, Liu Xing suddenly remembered that when Wan Chongshan and Li Dian heard that Ling Ishikawa had crossed over to Hybrier, it didn’t trigger a Sanity check. This indicated that Wan Chongshan and Li Dian had likely seen and experienced a lot, but it also suggested that their Sanity points might be low...

However, this was quite normal; these were upgraded modules from the Shoggoth Region to the Hound of Tindalos area. Most player character cards wouldn’t have high sanity points since failing just once in an upgraded module meant starting from scratch. Players were unlikely to risk using a completely new character card for such an adventure.

"I see. So, it seems that these snake men aren’t unique to our Panlong Town. However, Mr. Ling Ishikawa, with your current appearance, it might be best not to go out casually. It’s quite terrifying for ordinary people, and it could attract unnecessary trouble," Hu Cang said earnestly.

Ling Ishikawa felt a bit embarrassed and scratched his head. He replied, "I’m well aware of that. After all, I can’t even stand my own appearance right now..."

Hu Cang nodded, got up, and said, "Well, let’s leave it at that. I need to go downstairs to check the storefront. If you need anything, you can come find me. I remember there will be masks for sale outside the market today. Would you like me to buy one for you, Mr. Ling Ishikawa?"

Ling Ishikawa shook his head and said helplessly, "No need. You see, I’ve already transformed half of my head into a snake man. Ordinary masks won’t cover these snake scales, unless it’s a full head mask."

Hu Cang nodded again and left the room.

Ling Ishikawa sighed with relief and smiled, saying, "By the way, before I was transported away from the Mage Tower, I had a magic book in my hands. Are any of you interested in becoming a Grand Wizard like me?"

As he spoke, Ling Ishikawa took out an old-looking hardcover book from his pocket.

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow in surprise and said, "Hmm? Why is this magic book a hardcover? I thought it would be a scroll or something."

Ling Ishikawa chuckled and explained, "You’re making assumptions, Ryuusei. Although Hybrier is a world of swords and magic, it’s also highly advanced in some aspects, not much different from our modern world. Therefore, Hybrier has a variety of books, including hardcovers, scrolls, bamboo slips, and even magic versions of e-books."

Liu Xing nodded and accepted the magic book from Ling Ishikawa.

The book was titled "Wizard Serak’s Insights" in Hybrier language. It contained Wizard Serak’s personal insights on thirty-six different types of magic. To read this book, players needed to have a Language skill level of 30 points or higher in Hybrier language. Afterward, they could learn the magic recorded in this book through education or knowledge checks, each with its own study time and sanity point deduction.

Next were the introductions to the thirty-six magics.

Liu Xing handed the book back to Ling Ishikawa, shaking his head, and said, "Ling Ishikawa, you must be trying to trick me. I can’t understand the language in this magic book at all. Unless I’m mistaken, this must be written in Hybrier language."

Ling Ishikawa grinned and nodded, "You’re right, this magic book is indeed written in Hybrier language. But I can teach you Hybrier language; after all, I’ve spent quite some time in Hybrier, and I’m proficient in it now."

Liu Xing shrugged and said, "Forget it; I have some self-awareness. I know my language skills aren’t that great, especially for an ancient language like this."

After chatting for a while, Liu Xing and the others went their separate ways to rest. There wasn’t much to do in the afternoon.

When only Liu Xing and Ling Ishikawa remained in the room, Ling Ishikawa took out a small black stone from his pocket and handed it to Liu Xing.

"Master, this is something I obtained from Serak," Ling Ishikawa said with a smile.

Liu Xing accepted the small black stone and realized that it was indeed valuable.

The Guardian Stone, a magic stone crafted by Wizard Serak, could automatically trigger when the wearer was under attack. After consuming all of the wearer’s MP, it would completely negate one attack that dealt less than 10 points of damage. However, after activation, the Guardian Stone would become ineffective. If the attack exceeded 10 points of damage, the Guardian Stone would also deactivate.

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow. Although the Guardian Stone had some drawbacks, it was still a life-saving treasure. He hadn’t expected that Ling Ishikawa would be willing to give it to him.

"Master, according to what my master said, this stone can block a fatal attack after activation. However, the drawback is that you can’t control when it activates. So, it’s highly likely that it will activate when you accidentally stub your toe. Also, after activation, you’ll enter a state of mental weakness, which is not a pleasant feeling," Ling Ishikawa explained seriously.

Liu Xing nodded and asked with curiosity, "Although this stone has some drawbacks, its benefits are quite obvious. So, why don’t you keep it for yourself, Ling Ishikawa?"

Ling Ishikawa smiled and replied, "Such a valuable item should be given to you, Master. After all, you are the cornerstone of our Worshipers of the Yellow Sect. Your life is much more important than mine, so I believe it’s better for you to use this stone."

Liu Xing finally understood why Ling Ishikawa had handed him the Guardian Stone. In simple terms, it was because his character card, "Ryuusei," held the role of "Master," while "Ling Ishikawa" held the role of his "Disciple." This involved loyalty settings because "Ling Ishikawa" had been following "him" during this period, and his loyalty had reached a certain level. As a result, "Ling Ishikawa" had received this valuable item and chose to give it to him.

For Liu Xing, this was a great boon.

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