Chapter 152: Sister and Brother

"Who is he?"

"Could it be... the Corpse King of Jiangbei?"

"What?"

"......"

Several people among the group had escaped from Jiangbei and quickly recognized Lin Dong.

At the same time, it all clicked into place.

Why had Yang Zhonghang suddenly turned into a monster?

A demon!

He was a demon!

With the Black Scorpion members suppressed, Yang Zhonghang broke free from the energy bind and charged wildly toward the crowd.

Waving his massive claws, he shattered one man's skull, then grabbed another, bringing him close to his mouth for a savage bite.

Half of the victim's body was torn away as blood spewed forth like a fountain.

The rest of the crowd was paralyzed with terror at the gruesome sight. The burly man from earlier trembled violently, shaking like a sieve.

At that moment, Yang Zhonghang's ferocious gaze locked onto him.

"Can I bite you now?"

"Yes! Uh... no!"

The big man stammered incoherently, his legs shaking so violently that a warm wetness spread across his pants—he had pissed himself out of sheer terror.

Yang Zhonghang's hatred for him reached its absolute peak.

With a fierce lunge, his massive claws plunged forward, piercing the man's abdomen with a wet crunch and lifting him entirely off the ground.

"Ah—!"

The man's face contorted in agony as he shrieked in despair.

"So, you know what pain feels like too..."

Listening to the big man's miserable screams, Yang Zhonghang felt an intense surge of excitement. He didn't want to grant him a quick death; the suffering he himself had endured would be repaid tenfold!

He tightened his grip, crushing the man's body with a series of sickening cracks as a dozen ribs snapped at once.

The big man's shrieks intensified, reaching a hysterical pitch.

Yet the tenacious vitality of an Awakened kept him from passing out. At that moment, death would have been a mercy, but survival was impossible.

With a sudden, violent yank, Yang Zhonghang tore the man's intestines right out of his body.

The big man convulsed all over. Despite the scorching heat of summer, an intense chill gripped his core as his life force rapidly drained away.

Raising his head in a daze, he saw Yang Zhonghang's terrifying, gaping maw descending upon him.

A nauseating stench filled his nostrils, and the razor-sharp fangs drew closer by the second. Yet the big man felt no more fear, only an overwhelming sense of release.

"Crack!"

Yang Zhonghang bit down, tearing him completely to pieces.

The surrounding onlookers fell into even deeper despair.

Too brutal...

Looking at those faces, hatred welled up in Yang Zhonghang's heart once more. They had murdered his parents and violated his elder sister; debts of blood must be paid in blood.

Charging straight into the thick of the crowd, he flailed his massive claws wildly.

In an instant, severed limbs flew through the air, and a mist of blood erupted, turning the immediate area into a veritable Shura hellscape.

With a little subtle assistance from Lin Dong, mere seconds were all it took for Yang Zhonghang to slaughter everyone present.

With that, silence fell over the village once more.

As far as the eye could see, utter devastation reigned. Bloodstains and shredded flesh littered the ground—among the dozens of people, not a single intact corpse remained.

"Very good, full of spirit..."

Lin Dong surveyed the scene with his eyes, finding it quite satisfactory. After all, these 'provisions' had already been neatly butchered...

Having slain his enemies with his own hands, Yang Zhonghang stood amidst the carnage, his massive frame heaving with heavy breaths. The manic look in his eyes gradually receded. He slowly lowered his head to gaze at his blood-stained claws, a hint of confusion washing over him.

"I miss my sister..."

......

Back in Peace Village, a few living presences still remained—those who had been enslaved and abused by the Black Scorpion and refused to lower themselves to the thugs' level.

Among them was Yang Zhonghang's elder sister, Yang Huijuan.

Clad in tattered rags, she and four other women had been locked away in a dark cellar. Having heard the commotion outside just moments before, they wore expressions of utter panic.

"What on earth is happening out there?"

"Are the Black Scorpion and another faction fighting?"

"I think I heard some kind of monster..."

"Oh god!"

"......"

The five women shivered like newly hatched chicks in a freezing gale, huddled together in a corner.

Before long, however, heavy footsteps approached, growing closer and closer by the second.

Gripped by terror, they instinctively held their breath.

*Rumble!*

The ground began to shake. A massive claw tore the cellar's roof right off, and a figure leaped down from above.

The monster looked ferocious and menacing, exuding an aura of pure malice, as if it would devour anyone in its path.

"Ah—!"

The women screamed in unison.

Yet the monster merely stood in place, staring blankly at them without making a further move. After a long silence, a sound rumbled from its throat.

"Sister..."

Due to the structural changes in his body, Yang Zhonghang's human speech was far from standard; it came out deep and muffled, resembling the grinding of rolling boulders.

"Huh?"

The five women froze in bewilderment, not understanding what was happening.

However, Yang Huijuan stared fixedly at the creature. Although her brother's appearance, physique, and voice had undergone drastic alterations and bore no resemblance to his former self, she could still recognize him through the faint glint of humanity deep within those eyes.

"You are... Zhonghang?"

"Mn."

Yang Zhonghang lowered his massive head.

"Waaaaahhhh~!"

Weeping bitterly, Yang Huijuan rushed forward and threw her arms around the monster's thick arm, her tears bursting forth like a broken dam. The two siblings had suffered unimaginable hardships before reuniting—one now human in mind, while the other had become a monster.

Yang Huijuan wept for a long time.

Two trails of clear tears also streamed from Yang Zhonghang's ferocious eyes, revealing a gentleness completely at odds with his terrifying appearance.

Above the cellar, Lin Dong silently observed everything without urging them to hurry.

After a moment, Yang Huijuan wiped away her tears.

"Brother, how did you become a monster?"

"Because..."

Yang Zhonghang recounted the entire sequence of events—how he had sought his revenge and personally slain his enemies.

"Sis, am I very ugly now?"

"Not ugly... not ugly at all..."

The tears Yang Huijuan had just managed to check began to flow anew as her hands caressed her brother's hardened skin.

Before long, however, a flash of resolute determination crossed her eyes, as if she had made up her mind.

"Brother, don't be afraid. Sister will become a monster to keep you company."

"Sis, you..."

Yang Zhonghang trailed off, hesitation in his voice.

Yet Yang Huijuan's resolve was unshakable. She raised her gaze toward the surface, where Lin Dong's upright figure stood tall. His expression remained calm, and his cold eyes looked down upon them from above like a supreme ruler of this world.

Bending her knees, Yang Huijuan knelt directly before him and lowered her head deep to the ground.

"Mn."

Lin Dong understood what she meant.

This was also her best chance at survival.

With a flick of his wrist, he tossed a vial of the G-Virus down into the cellar.

Without a second thought, Yang Huijuan reached out and picked it up. In truth, deep down in her heart, she had long since felt disgust toward her own 'defiled' body, having contemplated suicide on multiple occasions.

Perhaps living on in a different form wouldn't be such a bad choice after all.

She drove the syringe forcefully into her flesh. As the dark purple liquid surged into her system, bulging veins snaked across her entire body, and she let out a cry of agony as her transformation into a monster began.

Yang Huijuan's physique swelled continuously until she reached a height of four or five meters. Unlike Yang Zhonghang, however, her skin took on a pale blue hue, resembling overlapping scales.

Despite her gargantuan form, she still retained some feminine traits.

Most uniquely, a thick, powerful tail sprouted from her lower back....

It was said that humans possessed tails in the earliest epochs of history, which merely degenerated over time; now, that trait had evolved back into existence.

Once the transformation was complete, Yang Huijuan shook her massive head, the joints of her body popping loudly as the agony faded from her expression.

Turning to Yang Zhonghang, she split her ferocious mouth into a wide grin.

"Hehehe, Brother, now we're both the same..."