Chapter 1212
Chapter 1212 - 1198 Rain
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8 min read
When the world was ablaze, what could mortals do?
"I will extinguish everything, at least, the flames before my eyes..."
The words of Mei Yuge, known as the "Soothing Rain" from the legends, had once inspired many.
And now, the "legendary woman" adorned with a multitude of honors stood upon the ashen hills, gently waving her wooden staff.
The slight drizzle, following her gaze, turned into a downpour.
The burning villages regained their peace under the torrential rain, yet the "robbers" who were plundering would not stop there.
The Lava Clan, which had turned into bandits, used their extraordinary traits to immediately notice the figure on the hill.
"It’s her! Kill her!"
Noisy shouts arose below, interspersed with sporadic gunfire.
If it had been Mei Yuge from ten years ago, she would have ducked in terror by now, but she remained calm as if she heard nothing.
She simply waved her staff in silence, adjusting the area of rainfall.
Someone stood in front of her.
"...Don’t retreat, this is our own homeland!"
"Do as the big sister says! Protect her front."
Facing the charging robbers directly were militia armed with stone spears and iron axes.
Yet not long ago, they were just ordinary fishermen...
"Think of our children! ’A slave who doesn’t know to resist is not worthy of sympathy.’ If we cannot fight for ourselves, then, we will not be saved..."
Hearing these familiar words, Mei Yuge suddenly looked down to see a completely unfamiliar Long Hand Clan person—seemingly a militia captain trying to boost morale?
"...His words, his ideology, have they spread here too?"
Time is always the most incomprehensible magician; although that man had gone ten years ago, as time passed, his "influence" only grew stronger.
He had taught too many disciples.
In this age of clashing powers, those young people who received his mentorship and adopted his ideas, much like "students studying abroad" during tumultuous times, supported by foreign backgrounds, naturally became leaders in various places.
And his ideology, his words, being straightforward and pragmatic, naturally spread far and wide, especially since his ship traveled the world, bringing resources, food, and weapons to other regions, and with them, culture and ideas.
The seeds he had planted also gradually sprouted over the years.
Even that man, the founder of the Holy Ship Commerce Association, had become a "mentor," a fighter, a cultural symbol in the eyes of some locals...
"Your Excellency! My lord!"
The shouts of the militia below recalled the wandering attention of Mei Yuge.
She touched the scar on her cheek; even such a lackluster opponent posed no challenge, but getting lost in thought on the battlefield is never good... If that man were here, he would have uncaringly punched her head without any pity.
"An Xin..."
Subconsciously, she mimicked that man’s way of speaking—with that slightly pleased tone mixed with her calm voice, so familiar and nostalgic.
Every time, when faced with desperate situations, once that youthfully cheerful voice rang out as if returning to a boring afternoon on Earth, her heart filled with anxiety and unrest would rapidly cool.
"...You have all done very well already, the rest, leave to me."
The Lava Clan bandits had reached the foot of the hill—those timid farmer militiamen were insignificant before the extraordinary races, but they indeed had done their job by drawing all the enemies to Mei Yuge.
"..." The silent woman gently waved her long staff, and the downpour in front of her suddenly intensified at least by double.
After being taught in actual combat, she better understood why that cunning fellow would say, "If your words can’t give you an advantage on the battlefield, then keeping your mouth shut from the start is a good choice. Oh, and don’t be stupid enough to scream out your moves like the names of dishes; it’s so dumb I can’t even bother to explain."
"...Heh, maybe ’time’ has come, why do I keep remembering the past..."
The swinging staff brought a ferocious storm, and even the sturdy dwarfs were toppling about, unable to stand firm.
Those simple, disposable projectile firearms breezed past, but Mei Yuge ignored them completely.
In front of her apparently undefended stance, there was an invisible defense of ice crystals...
"Even if you’re sure you can win, that doesn’t stop you from preparing for failure..."
The woman shook her head, not in denial of such teaching, but often it took a setback in real combat to leave a deep memory.
She, and her companions, due to "ideological differences," chose to strike out on their own.
But looking at the outcome, that decision back then might not have been a good thing...
The whisper in her heart became the fully-formed "Rain of Sealing."
That small area, just a few dozen square meters, yet it became the converging point for all the rainwater.
"Ah, ah, this is unbearable."
"Counterattack... can’t see! Just pick a direction and fire back!"
The excessively dense rainfall and gale took away their vision, restricted their movements, and even, submerged them into a quagmire.
The sandy traps, as expected, turned into mires that devoured life once touched by the heavy rain.
Watching the increasingly uncomfortable dwarves, Mei Yuge did not show an ounce of mercy.
To her, a routed squad might not mean much, but let just one get away, and the village might see a devastating retaliation.
Still in silent incantation, the raindrops instantly gathered, turning into sharp ice spikes.
"Ah, ah, ahhhh!"
In an instant, the area filled with rain became a human purgatory, filled with screams of agony, and the puddles on the ground merged with the blood.
𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖
But this, was still just the beginning.
"Solidify."
Above Mei Yuge’s long staff, a vague phantom of a three-headed dragon lingered.
One head spewed steam and Thunder Flame, another was surrounded by cold ice, and the last head, seemed to be playing with water.
The dragon cried out joyfully, as the water in the ground and the quagmire started to freeze at an unreasonably rapid pace, turning into solid ice.
"Three states of water," it was its name, as well as the evolved form of the "second life" bestowed by Lu Ping’an, sharing the same Rule System powers as its master.
It could freely transform its master’s controlled "rain" between "gas," "solid," and "liquid" states...The gap between its upper and lower limits was huge, something the former Mei Yuge couldn’t manage, but now...
The silent woman retracted her wooden staff and turned to leave.
She had no habit of reveling in slaughter, and the increasingly deepening screams behind her signaled their fate.
When their feet were frozen to the earth, enduring the near endless assault of icicle rain, what else could be their outcome?
Finally, when the ground was covered in fresh red rainwater, the "Soothing Rain" had completed another tranquilizing.
Leaning on her wooden staff, she left limping... smiling as she declined the precious fruits and vegetables the villagers offered, partly because these items might be what they used to barter for winter supplies.
On the other hand, when alone, she wouldn’t accept food gifted by anyone... To the current Mei Yuge, goodwill was as common as malice, and it was better not to give others a chance to repay kindness with resentment.
"Seventeen hexagonal coins of remuneration... Plus, the equipment of the routed soldiers, not bad, at least not at a loss."
All things can be traded, and free service might be the most expensive and unsustainable of all.
Even if the villagers’ "reward" might be negligible to her, Mei Yuge still took the agreed payment, though this time it was a little different.
"Your Excellency, I... I think I saw one of your companions a couple of days ago."
A young man of the Long Hand Clan stepped forward, hoping to provide some intelligence to the hero who saved their village.
"Companion?"
"Yes, he was wearing a badge marked just like yours."
Following the man’s direction, Mei Yuge saw the emblem on her own hood.
The "Commerce Association Badge," which didn’t have a long history, was the "registered trademark" of the institution’s move towards corporatization.
It was a golden scale emblem, and on the two ends of the scale, one side was a Peace Dove, while the other side featured coins, gunfire, and fists... very eye-catching, and very much in line with that man’s bad taste.
A companion? Which one? She didn’t recall hearing about anyone active in this region...
Initially, Mei Yuge didn’t take it seriously, but as she listened, she became visibly excited.
"The young man who closes his eyes as if he can see everything? Is he the one who speaks gently, hardly ever getting angry..."
Her voice was calm but quivered with excitement, and as she confirmed it was indeed the person from her memories, her staff dropped to the ground.
"...He, Lu Ping’an, is back?! And not far away?!"
— End of Chapter 1212 —