Cataclysm Chapter 83: Tomino’s Hell 01

Chapter 83: Tomino’s Hell 01

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

 

When Ma Shanfeng received the call and hurried over, it was still raining. He shook off the raindrops from his black umbrella, placed it in the bucket by the door, and entered. The atmosphere in the branch office’s living room was tense; everyone was present. The girls who had recovered their vitality had already taken rides home, but all had expressed their intention to come back and thank them personally. However, the people at the division were somewhat indifferent to this, as there was a more pressing matter at hand.

Ma Shanfeng first surveyed the current setup of the division. Mao Xiaoli and Zhang Qiudao were sitting by the dining table, the former drawing talismans while occasionally sneaking glances at the living room, and the latter engrossed in playing a game. Kou Xuanling was feeding Lu Xiuzhi, who looked weak and exhausted, with a bowl of tonic soup. Lu Xiuzhi was clearly trying to attract Kou Xuanling’s attention. Chen Yang was sitting on the sofa, flipping through Kui Xuan’s homework with a face so dark it seemed like it could drip water. Du Shuo sat in the armchair opposite, reading a newspaper and seemingly detached from the situation. Ji Jiang stood silently to the side, while Kui Xuan twisted her fingers nervously, standing before Chen Yang without daring to speak. The two Maojiangs stuck close to the wall, trying to minimize their presence.

The atmosphere was so heavy that no one dared to breathe loudly. Even the Fengdu Emperor flipping through the newspaper did so with lighter movements. Suddenly, Chen Yang closed the workbook and slammed it onto the table, glaring at Kui Xuan, “Write a few characters.”

Kui Xuan’s small shoulders trembled, and she looked pitifully at Chen Yang. Ma Shanfeng, feeling sorry for her, quickly stepped forward, “Did you catch the Demon Mother? And all those girls were saved, right? We should celebrate properly. How about I treat you all to a late-night snack? Some crayfish, perhaps?”

“Sounds good,” Mao Xiaoli jumped up, but then quickly sat back down under Chen Yang’s cold gaze, “Maybe not.”

“Write,” Chen Yang insisted.

Trembling, Kui Xuan picked up a pen and started to write, forming the first few characters. Chen Yang frowned deeply. Ma Shanfeng peered over and said, “What’s wrong? Still haven’t finished the homework? Oh dear, this child is only nine and already in junior high. Junior high homework is indeed a lot—an entire big school bag full. We should discuss with the teacher about reducing Kui Xuan’s workload. She’s still growing—”

Chen Yang interrupted him, “Uncle Ma, who notified you to come back?” As soon as he spoke, Kou Xuanling started coughing incessantly. When Chen Yang glanced over, he coughed even more violently. Lu Xiuzhi, scared, stopped pretending to be weak and grabbed the tonic soup to feed him. Kou Xuanling buried his head in the soup, ignoring both Chen Yang’s cold stare and Kui Xuan’s pleading eyes.

Normally gentle, Chen Yang’s anger made even Du Shuo retreat. No one else dared to provoke him either. Kou Xuanling had already done his best to secretly call for help for Kui Xuan.

Ma Shanfeng smiled warmly, “Just concerned about the branch office’s affairs. I couldn’t rest at home, my heart was pounding, so I came back to check. But seeing that everything’s resolved, let’s go for a late-night snack. Chen Xiaoyang, you and Director Du should come too.” Usually, Ma Shanfeng addressed him as Director Chen to uphold his authority. Calling him Chen Xiaoyang now was an attempt to calm him down.

Chen Yang responded, “Not going. Uncle Ma, sit down and take a look at Kui Xuan’s writing. You accompanied her to buy the fountain pen and calligraphy practice book. After several days of practice, there should be some improvement. Let’s check today.”

Ma Shanfeng’s smile froze, and he cleared his throat, stepping back to his seat. Chen Yang extended his hand to Kui Xuan, “Hand it over.”

Kui Xuan had sent countless pleading glances to Ma Shanfeng, Ji Jiang, and Mao Xiaoli, but all were ruthlessly ignored. She hung her small head and handed the notebook to Chen Yang, who took it and looked through it calmly before slamming it onto the table. The loud noise made everyone jump, even Du Shuo raised an eyebrow and slightly moved his fingers. People thought Chen Yang was gentle, but Du Shuo knew that Chen Xiaoyang had a lot of temper, which he usually hid, showing only to him. Du Shuo decided to stay out of it, continuing to read his newspaper. A child not listening and being deceitful needed discipline.

Chen Yang threw several notebooks onto the table, “Look at these! How many people’s handwriting is this? Kui Xuan, you really have guts, letting the Maojiangs do your homework. Do you think they have the strength to write with nails sticking out of their wrists? Even when the Demon Mother barged in, they kept doing homework. From Monday to Sunday, during lunch breaks and holidays, they have to do your homework. You’re worse than a taskmaster!”

Kui Xuan pouted, “They write so slowly and make many mistakes.”

“And that’s their fault? If you think you can do better, do it yourself!” Chen Yang reprimanded her with his hands behind his back.

Ma Shanfeng hurriedly intervened, “Kui Xuan is still young and growing. Doing too much homework isn’t good for her health. You’re her guardian, do you want her to always be ‘short’? Besides, she always tops her grade, so it doesn’t matter if she does the homework or not. And even if the Maojiangs made mistakes, Kui Xuan corrected them, which is even harder than doing it herself.”

The two Maojiangs: We apologize for copying the wrong answers.

Chen Yang snapped, “Uncle Ma, please stop talking. The more you speak, the angrier I get. Sit down and don’t say anything. A child needs discipline.”

Ji Jiang remained silent throughout, not reminding anyone that Kui Xuan was not a nine-year-old but a two-thousand-year-old feijiang. She thought it was good that they treated Kui Xuan like a child. Chen Yang and the others indeed saw her as a child, protecting her when needed and disciplining her when necessary.

Chen Yang sternly asked, “Kui Xuan, do you know your mistake?”

“Yes.”

“What did you do wrong? And what should you do after realizing your mistake?” he continued.

Kui Xuan looked around and then climbed onto the sofa, knelt, and pinched her earlobe while admitting, “Chen Xiaoyang, I shouldn’t have lied and had the Maojiangs do my homework. I should do it myself and not deceive you all. I will complete my homework on my own from now on.” She paused, tilted her head, and added, “Meow meow meow?”

Critical hit! Chen Yang clutched his chest, wanting to hug and kiss Kui Xuan, but Ma Shanfeng beat him to it, rushing over and calling her “precious” as he promised her candy.

Seeing the crisis was over, Mao Xiaoli and the others quickly jumped up and said, “Uncle Ma, you promised to treat us to a late-night snack. Don’t think you can get out of it.”

“I’m not backing out. Let’s go together.”

Kui Xuan cautiously looked at Chen Yang, “Chen Xiaoyang, will you come? If you don’t, I won’t go.”

Chen Yang reluctantly said, “No spicy food. Kui Xuan is a feijiang and can’t eat hot food, and spicy food is out of the question.”

“No problem, Brother Chen. Uncle Ma is now all about health and knows the best places to eat healthily,” Mao Xiaoli said as she picked up Kui Xuan and ran to the door, “Hurry up. The rain has lightened, and it’s still early, so we have more restaurant options.”

With the crisis averted, the others got up and headed out. Du Shuo looked up when the newspaper in front of him was taken away. He grasped Chen Yang’s hand, gently rubbing it, “Coming with us?”

Chen Yang glared at him, “You didn’t say a word the whole time.”

Du Shuo smiled faintly, “Isn’t it enough that you’re here?” Besides, in that situation, there was no chance for him to speak.

Hand in hand, they walked out the door. When Chen Yang turned around at the entrance and saw Ji Jiang and the two Maojiangs still standing in place, he asked curiously, “Aren’t you coming with us?”

Ji Jiang was momentarily stunned, then responded, “We are Maojiangs; we can’t eat hot food from the living world.”

“It’s okay. Kou Xuanling can eat, and most cold foods you can eat too,” Chen Yang replied.

Ji Jiang shook his head with a smile, “Our young master is a feijiang, different from us.”

“A simple talisman can handle that. There’s no real difference. Jiangshis can’t eat hot food from the living world, and neither can ghosts. But after offerings or rituals, ghosts can taste food from the living world. Based on this principle, Mao Xiaoli designed a talisman that allows jiangshis to eat hot food from the living world. Otherwise, with how often Ma Shanfeng takes Kou Xuanling out to eat, Kou Xuanling would have had stomach problems by now,” Chen Yang explained as he walked. “If you want to go, let’s go together. The more, the merrier.”

The two Maojiangs were tempted; they hadn’t tasted hot food from the living world in a long time. But without Ji Jiang’s approval, they didn’t dare to follow. Ji Jiang lowered his eyes, paused for a moment, then smiled, “Let’s go together then.” The two Maojiangs quickly displayed stiff smiles and followed.

At the door, Chen Yang and the others encountered Big Fatty, who immediately demanded to join when he heard they were going for a late-night snack. He was mercilessly teased about his weight, but being fat and carefree, Big Fatty didn’t mind.

By the time they had eaten and drunk their fill, it was still raining outside. After the merriment, everyone followed Ma Shanfeng to a foot massage parlor. Kou Xuanling was too young, and Ji Jiang and the two Maojiangs, being zombies, could only watch from the side. Chen Yang, seeing they had nothing to do, took out Kui Xuan’s homework, “Be good, do your homework while I watch.”

Kui Xuan was so shocked that she nearly cried, “Chen Xiaoyang, why did you bring my homework?”

Chen Yang, without a trace of guilt, said, “I thought that if you had nothing to do after eating, you could finish your homework here. Then you can sleep early when we get back, right?” He had become a typical parent, seizing every moment to supervise their child’s homework.

Kui Xuan, feeling wronged, lay down on the small table to do her homework while the two Maojiangs supervised. Meanwhile, everyone else enjoyed their foot massages, feeling so comfortable that they were on the verge of falling asleep. 

This scene was a true reflection of everyday life.

Kui Xuan eventually fell asleep and was carried back to the division’s bedroom. Ji Jiang covered her with a small blanket and turned around, whispering, “She’s asleep.” Chen Yang nodded and then left the room. Ji Jiang closed the door and said to him, “Thank you for your trouble.”

Chen Yang shook his head and said, “You shouldn’t have helped her deceive me.”

Ji Jiang smiled softly, his smile not as stiff as the other Maojiangs’, “She was so lively and adorable, trying to avoid homework by lying to you. I couldn’t bear to interrupt.”

“If she wants to live in the living world, she can’t be too spoiled,” Chen Yang said before heading back to his room. Upon opening the door, he saw Du Shuo standing by the window, looking at the rain outside. The rain had continued from evening till now, without stopping.

Du Shuo beckoned him, “Yangyang, come here.” He pulled Chen Yang into his arms and sighed, “Keep me company while I watch the rain.”

“What’s there to see in the rain?” Chen Yang asked. It was late at night, and outside was pitch black, with only the heavy rain visible.

Du Shuo smiled faintly, “It’s not the rain that’s interesting, but what’s in it.”

“Besides the rich vitality, what else is there in the rain?”

“There’s also the celebration of life.” Du Shuo pulled over his recliner and placed it by the window, lying down with Chen Yang. Chen Yang couldn’t see anything else in the rain and, having just had a foot massage, was already feeling a bit sleepy. Listening to the sound of the rain, he gradually fell asleep.

Du Shuo looked down at the sleeping Chen Yang, gently stroking his hair and shoulder. He adjusted his position so that Chen Yang could lie more comfortably, with half his body draped over him. He then continued to watch the heavy rain outside, as if there really was something celebrating in the rain.

The rain continued until the early morning. When the sun came out, the air was filled with the crisp sound of birds chirping and the fresh smell of the earth. The scent of grass mixed with the fragrance of flowers blooming on the branches, their petals adorned with dew, vivid and dripping. Many people got up early to exercise, and the entire neighborhood buzzed with activity, full of vitality.

Later that morning, the families of the rescued girls came to the division to express their gratitude. Ma Shanfeng came out to comfort them and then personally saw them off. Mao Xiaoli took the opportunity to sell many talismans and made a good profit. Soon after, the Taoist Association called to inform that the Demon Mother at Dazhao Temple had been re-sealed and would not pose a threat for decades. They also decided to re-seal and suppress the Demon Mother every few decades to prevent her from causing harm.

In the afternoon, under the watchful eyes of the division members, Chen Yang called Kui Xuan’s homeroom teacher, hoping to reduce her homework load. Given that Kui Xuan’s current body was only nine years old, she shouldn’t be overburdened with excessive homework. Fortunately, Kui Xuan’s grades were excellent, and the homeroom teacher eventually agreed to discuss with other subject teachers to reduce her homework load. After seeing Kui Xuan’s impressive kick, her classmates treated her like a master. Learning about her reduced homework load made them admire her even more instead of feeling jealous.

After dinner, Mao Xiaoli received a new commission, “Our division has made a name for itself. The client specifically requested us to take the job. But it’s very dangerous. Should we accept it?”

Chen Yang asked, “How dangerous?”

Mao Xiaoli replied, “Four stars, in the high-difficulty category.” She looked around at everyone present, “Shall we take it?”

Chen Yang looked at Ma Shanfeng, who said, “You decide.”

Everyone turned to Chen Yang. Taking a deep breath, Chen Yang said, “We’ll take it.”

—

Author’s Note:

Speaking of supernatural events, my mom had an encounter once. She said that when she first got married, an old lady she didn’t recognize strangled her in a dream, and when she woke up, there were strangulation marks on her neck. When she asked a practitioner, she was told the old lady had died there and needed to be worshipped.

My mom described the old lady’s appearance, and it turned out my grandma and aunt recognized her and confirmed she used to live in that house.

When I was little, we had to worship at a certain corner of our house every 2nd and 16th of the month. When I was young and ignorant, I would clap my hands and urge the burning of paper money faster. Now I know it was to worship that old lady.

Generally, people worship on the 1st and 15th, but for that old lady, it was the 2nd and 16th.

 

 

 

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