Master of Kaidan

Chapter 2: Chapter 2 Corpse Collection Is Dangerous

"Do you want money or grain?" The man in charge of distributing the "bricks" glanced at the cart behind Feng Xue and immediately asked.

However, it was merely a routine question, because before Feng Xue could even open their mouth, the man had already picked up three Wheat Bran Bricks—representing the three corpses on the cart behind Feng Xue.

Feng Xue had no intention to waste any words either. With a scan from the Identification function that came with the Golden Finger, they confirmed that each brick held at least 100 "Identity" points and immediately stuffed the Wheat Bran Bricks into the backpack they had brought with them through the time slip, pulling the cart to catch up with the Corpse Collectors walking ahead.

What gave Feng Xue a headache, though, was that after walking about five or six hundred meters, the group ahead suddenly split up.

"Ah, this... Could it be they all have different destinations?" Feng Xue's brows immediately furrowed, hesitating as to whom they should follow. After a brief moment of contemplation, their gaze settled on a middle-aged man who looked to be in his thirties, with a beard circling his chin that gave off an artist's vibe, yet he wore clothing with an antique flair.

It was this man who, on the very day Feng Xue had crossed to this world, had tricked them out of a brick.

They slid their hand into their sleeve, gripping the Short Blade hidden there, and Feng Xue was infinitely grateful that they had gone to an exhibition before crossing over. Although the Assassin's Creed outfit had no real Defensive power, the sleeve that held the Sleeve Sword did at least offer a place to store a Weapon.

Perhaps hearing the sound of the cart's wheels from behind, the man immediately turned around with alertness. At the same time, Feng Xue noticed that his left hand had also moved inside his clothing—undoubtedly hiding some kind of Weapon.

However, upon seeing Feng Xue, his expression relaxed slightly. Dragging a cart with at least six or seven corpses, he continued forward while speaking in a somewhat admonishing tone:

"Isn't this the new brother who just arrived? Corpse Collection isn't suitable for newcomers!"

"Oh? Isn't it just Corpse Collection? Is there some kind of trick to it?" Feng Xue feigned naïvete, half genuine, half fake. The man's eyes narrowed slightly and, flipping a Wheat Bran Brick, he then said:

"Of course, there is. How else do you think it could fetch such a price? But this is also the capital for survival. Give me one brick, and I'll tell you!"

Despite just having made 300 "Identity" points, Feng Xue still hesitated. After all, that was only enough for three days, and with the meager amount they had left over, they would still be dead if they failed to find new work within four days.

However, their hesitation didn't last long, for the three days since crossing over had made it clear to Feng Xue that finding work here was much harder than they had ever imagined.

Carefully extracting a brick from their bag, they didn't throw it to the man right away but mimicked him, tossing the palm-sized brick and saying:

"You go ahead. Anyway, I'm right here." Nôv(el)B\\jnn

With that, they concentrated their Consciousness, and a warm current flowed into their body from the Wheat Bran Brick. They clearly felt that their time in this World had been extended by another day—the sensation was akin to watching a 24-hour countdown timer increase in the upper right corner of their field of vision.

"Fine by me." The man was surprisingly agreeable but deliberately tightened his face and spoke in a somewhat eerie tone:

"These corpses could turn into Kaidan!"

"Kaidan? What's that?" Feng Xue, listening to the man's story-telling tone, was a bit baffled for a moment. The man paused and then as if he had just remembered said:

"I forgot you're new here."

With that, he patted his head as an explanation:

"An omen is a malevolent Kaidan. In this world, almost everything is made of 'Identity,' but only the 'Identity' possessed by True Objects is edible. The 'Identity' of Pseudo Artifacts is almost solidified, impossible to absorb, and the 'Identity' within our bodies as 'entities' carries a mark. If someone were to consume 'Identity' with a mark... well, to put it simply, it's like eating a person, which would corrupt and settle their own 'Identity,' eventually turning them into a monster devoid of reason. Those creatures are called omens."

After realizing that the dog crap which had triggered a bloody incident could very well have been a True Object, Feng Xue asked, "So this wheat bran brick is a True Object? Then what is a Pseudo Artifact? And what are these marks?"

"All things that are neither living entities nor True Objects—this world's soil, walls, air, and even the clothes you're wearing—are Pseudo Artifacts. As for the marks..."

At this point, the man revealed a somewhat disdainful smile:

"That's not information you can get just by trading a few bricks."

"Alright then, back to corpses. Why do they turn into omens?"

Feng Xue was very adept at controlling her curiosity, and she turned the conversation back almost without hesitation. The man didn't seem to mind and naturally continued the discussion, saying:

"It's not that they 'will' turn into omens, but that they 'might.' All creatures that die for reasons other than the exhaustion of their 'Identity' still have remnants of 'Identity' within them. During its settling process, this 'Identity' may constitute 'elements.' Well... you don't need to worry about that. In short, if certain conditions are met, they might turn into omens. Although the likelihood is small, the possibility still exists. For a small landfill site like ours, a single omen could completely destroy it."

"Elements..." The word stuck with Feng Xue as she thought about the 'Identification' functionality of her Golden Finger, and she made a mental note of the term before continuing,

"So does Corpse Collection mean transporting bodies to a special facility for processing? But why doesn't everyone take the same path?"

"Processing?" The man let out a snort of laughter and then shook his head:

"What processing? We Corpse Collectors simply ditch the bodies in the wilderness. Once outside the city, an omen can't stir up much trouble. As for why we split up? Obviously, the more bodies there are, the greater the risk of them turning into omens! Alright, we should part ways now. Give me the brick."

Feng Xue nodded, took a brick from her bag, and tossed it to the man. When the man received the brick, he paused slightly and then said with some surprise,

"I thought you'd try to be clever."

"You dare to haul so many corpses and know so much; even if you're not some reclusive expert, you're definitely skilled. It's not worth falling out with you over a brick," Feng Xue replied calmly, but she was also prepared to plead for mercy by handing over everything she had.

In the short time they conversed, she had already consumed two bricks. Even if he had ill intentions to rob her, there wasn't much to gain.

The man clearly had no intention of undertaking such an unrewarding task. He simply nodded, "You seem sharp. Looks like you'll survive longer. My name is Li. Call me Old Li. If you have questions later, come find me. Of course, I'll charge."

"Then you can call me Little Feng," Feng Xue nodded in agreement. As she watched Old Li turn away, she hastily added,

"Which way should I go?"

"Do you see the city walls? Just follow this road straight towards the walls, then exit through any gate you come across. But remember to avoid doors with guards; there are fields outside them." Old Li waved his hand without turning back and proceeded down a different road. Before leaving, as if remembering something, he turned to say one last thing, "Outside the city is the omen's territory. If you plan to keep doing this job, it's best not to dump in the same place."

Feng Xue, who had been startled by Old Li's sudden turn, watched him disappear from view and let out a sigh of relief. His gaze then moved back to the cart behind him, frowning as he focused on one of the corpses. As his gaze settled on it, two lines of small text appeared again—

Name: Corpse (Male)

Elements: "Human," "Male," "Suffocation," "Death," WERTU@%YS#@%%$&%I...