CHAPTER 44: CHAPTER 42: CRISIS ON THE ROAD

"The vehicle has reached the terminal station, please take your luggage and disembark."

As he traveled on the steam bus, Gu Xi realized that he was about to leave Victoria City.

Upon hearing the conductor’s words, Gu Xi stood up to prepare to get off.

At this moment, the conductor spoke again: "Take your luggage and get off."

Gu Xi turned around to see that there was only him left on the entire bus, and at the very back of the compartment, there was a not-so-large linen cloth bag piled up.

The linen cloth bag was quite conspicuous, placed directly on a seat.

Now with only Gu Xi as the passenger, the conductor naturally assumed it was Gu Xi’s belonging.

"That’s not mine."

Gu Xi looked up at the conductor, "You deal with it yourself."

After speaking, Gu Xi prepared to disembark.

The conductor was unwilling, as passengers leaving luggage on the bus were cumbersome for them, rather than beneficial.

This conduct was only passed down among steam bus drivers and conductors as a deceitful sign or object.

Previously, a driver encountered such a problem where passengers left their luggage on the bus, and when the conductor and driver took away the luggage, the bus vanished on its route the next day.

When they found the bus again, they discovered that from the driver to the passengers, not one survived; all were dead on the bus.

So now all steam buses have a clear attitude, no luggage should be left on the bus, and at the very least, it shouldn’t be taken by the conductor or driver.

Seeing Gu Xi about to get off, the conductor decisively blocked the entrance.

"Take your luggage and go!"

The conductor was six feet tall, weighing 180 pounds, and directly blocked the bus door at the entrance.

Gu Xi’s mood, which had just gotten a bit better, soured once more.

"What do you mean? I said that’s not mine."

Just halfway through his words, Gu Xi felt an unsettling aura behind him.

Turning around, Gu Xi found the entire bus had changed. The previously new-looking steam bus had water dripping from the ceiling, and the seats appeared as if they had decayed for decades.

Even the blocking conductor had transformed; his skin became green, and his body seemed swollen with an unimaginable amount of fat, enlarging multiple times over.

There were seams crisscrossing all over his skin, clearly indicating he was no longer alive.

Had it been anyone else suddenly witnessing such a scene, they would have been frightened.

But as an Undead Mage, Gu Xi could discern that this transformed conductor was still alive.

"Don’t move, or I’ll kill you."

Gu Xi pulled out his Bone-breaking Wooden Rod, pointing it at the conductor’s head, halting his potential outburst, and then drew a dagger, throwing it towards the linen bag.

The dagger flew less than half a meter in front of the linen package and vanished before Gu Xi could ascertain what was happening.

Did he miss?

Gu Xi was incredulous, as his throwing skill, honed in prison using mice, gave him certainty about hitting his mark upon release.

Realizing something was amiss, without hesitation, Gu Xi pointed at the linen package.

"Bone Spike!"

Three white bones pierced toward the linen package from three directions.

Simultaneously, Gu Xi witnessed a blur, and the compartment returned to its original state.

Now understanding the situation, Gu Xi realized that the package was a deceitful object, though its attributes and effects were unclear, it was evident it aimed at inducing fear and panic.

However, the deceitful object had met an Undead Mage this time.

The tricks were nothing in the eyes of an Undead Mage.

Instead, with the bone spike damage, it revealed its true form.

Knowing the circumstances, Gu Xi wouldn’t let such a deceitful object off easily; he quickly approached the package and smashed down with the Bone-breaking Wooden Rod.

Bang!

The Bone-breaking Wooden Rod’s special effect activated, turning the items inside and the wooden chair beneath into fragments.

The linen cloth from the package then rolled toward the Bone-breaking Wooden Rod, as if trying to swallow it.

As the linen spread open, Gu Xi saw the contents inside: a shattered mirror and numerous inert complete souls.

Seeing this, a glint of delight crossed Gu Xi’s eyes.

He flicked with his left hand, throwing a Mysterious Skull towards the linen, then pulled the Bone-breaking Wooden Rod out from it, striking the mirror heavily.

This time, upon impact, the already shattered mirror turned into powder immediately.

The Mysterious Skull also bit firmly onto the linen, dragging it backward forcefully.

Gu Xi took the opportunity to grab hold of a complete soul.

[You received Disaster Soul (Green) *107.]

[Disaster Soul (Green): A soul extracted under the influence of a certain special method, it has lost the vitality a normal soul should possess, only serving as food for Demons or raw materials for Devils.]

Holding the Disaster Soul, Gu Xi frowned, easily detecting its lack of functionality as an Undead Mage.

Such souls had died under the influence of certain rules, meaning they had unknowingly violated life-threatening regulations, causing their vitality to be drawn by the rule-setter after death.

The remaining soulless residue served only as materials or nourishment.

Even for creating an Undead, it was unwanted.

Wait, food?

Gu Xi suddenly had a thought.

Just then, the conductor ran over, timidly asking, "What is this?"

Interrupted by the conductor, Gu Xi lost his train of thought.

He glared at the conductor, "Nothing, just a random anomaly. It’s none of your business, I’ll handle it."

As he spoke, Gu Xi continued smashing the powder left from the mirror until all had turned to dust, then ceased.

Now his Bone-breaking Wooden Rod was covered in this powder, and Gu Xi used it to press a Disaster Soul against the rod forcefully.

The next moment, the rod, which looked like a Wolf Fang Club, transformed into a one-meter-long staff resembling a Civilization Staff, with a black body speckled with silvery powder, looking quite appealing.

[Bone-breaking Wooden Rod has been strengthened and upgraded to Shattering Staff.]

[Shattering Staff (Green, Wooden Rod)]

[Attack: 4-6]

[Equipment Requirement: Power 2]

[Special: Shattering, with a 75% chance to shatter the enemy’s bones, armor, or other defensive structures upon attack.]

[Description: Oh rod, shattering is your name, either you bring shattering to others or get shattered yourself.]

After enhancing the Bone-breaking Wooden Rod, Gu Xi found his Mysterious Skull wrapped in linen resembling a Mummy.

At this point, Gu Xi realized the nature of the situation.

He immediately stuffed a Disaster Soul into the Mysterious Skull’s mouth.

As a result, the skull quickly shrank to thumb size, while the linen multiplied.

As the transformation neared completion, Gu Xi’s expression changed, and he swung the Shattering Staff, sending the shrinking skull flying.

Boom!

In the next instant, the bus compartment expanded rapidly, directly becoming half the size of a football field.

A man in a black robe emerged from the other side of the compartment.

"I’ve been wondering why the anomaly got out of control; turns out someone disrupted my arrangement."