Monsters Die When Killed-Chapter 68 - 41: True Demon

70% OFF. A full 70% discount. It wasn’t just Su Zhou who couldn’t resist; probably no one in all of Hongcheng could.

But in reality, not many people actually cared—at least, not as many as you might think.

The reason was simple. To put it bluntly, the discounted laptops were just ordinary home models from two or three years ago, already outdated. In a world of ever-evolving electronic technology, a two-year gap meant a world of difference in performance.

Furthermore, after news broke last year about breakthroughs like the Exoskeleton Armor Guard and various new AI technologies, it was basically common knowledge that many manufacturers would be releasing civilian models with far superior performance by the end of the year.

’Some people even say the country plans to launch the world’s first personal information terminal... you know, like the Pip-Boy from the Nuclear Radiation Series. An information terminal worn on the wrist like a watch, but with a flexible, folding screen, not a big, brick-like thing.’

Su Zhou was a skilled gamer himself, so when it came to games, he naturally sounded like an expert.

After all, with his reaction speed and control, he could easily rival professional players, whether he was playing *Cat-rio Maker* or *Counter-Evil Elite*. Even in MOBAs—a genre that sometimes relies less on mechanical skill—his clear thinking and flawless execution meant he wouldn’t make blunders like firing a skill shot backward at the high ground or forgetting to activate his Black Emperor Staff. He could often carry Shao Shuangyue up the ranks.

In any case, with the potential launch of a brand-new personal information terminal, newer-generation products were holding their value, but all sorts of older electronics were being sold off at a discount. This was the perfect opportunity for Su Zhou to buy a few devices for himself and Yara to use for certain activities he couldn’t risk doing on his home computer.

This time, Su Zhou didn’t ride his bike, instead choosing to walk. Wanshou Palace Commercial Street wasn’t that far.

Three years ago, the Electronic Street would have been indistinguishable from any other shopping district. But after a massive renovation back then, the entire street had become a sight worth seeing.

There, Academy Mechanicians from the Zhengguo Academy would demonstrate the robots they’d designed for their projects, having them dance, play the erhu, or even cook and perform other displays of talent for the public.

Of course, there were also venues for Mechanics to showcase the various specialized exoskeleton armors they had designed. Some could help the disabled walk normally or allow a person to lift half a ton, while others could assist with delicate operations, guaranteeing the user’s hands wouldn’t tremble in the slightest during an experiment.

Of course, all these demonstrations could only be conducted by elite Scholars from the official Academy who had obtained the rights to do so. The scope was also limited to this one street, with the goal of showing the public the current rate of technological progress.

For example, three years ago, a Mechanician’s robot might have broken down just trying to do the robot dance; now, they could dance the samba flawlessly. Three years ago, a civilian exoskeleton armor nearly crushed its Mechanic’s hand; now, it could be controlled as freely as a real limb.

Showcasing such rapid technological progress to the nation naturally inspired immense confidence.

’An Elementary Transcendent has no real advantage against the power of the state.’

Walking down the street, which was filled with a Zhengguo-cyberpunk aesthetic, Su Zhou remarked to the Snake Spirit in his mind, ’Take my strength, for example. I could easily crumple those robots and Exoskeleton Armors into a ball, but those are just civilian models. If it were military-grade combat armor, I’d have to get in close to even stand a chance of taking one down—after all, I don’t have any way to block bullets.’

’It’s not that I’m planning to rebel against human society or anything. But if I want to assess my own value, I have to compare my personal strength against the power of the state. That’s the only way to get a clear picture of where I stand.’

’You’ve thought this through very clearly,’ Yara’s voice, tinged with approval, echoed in his mind. ’But don’t underestimate yourself. Let’s say an ordinary human equipped with combat armor and firearms is like being fully armed while also having mastered advanced Magic Techniques. In that case, you’re practically a blank slate right now. The comparison isn’t fair—not to mention, with your Talent, it won’t take long for you to become a mid-to-High Tier Transcendent capable of creating Celestial Calamities like earthquakes and typhoons. At that point, even an entire civilization would have to treat you as a serious threat. They are two different paths.’

’Of course, that way of thinking isn’t quite right, either. Human civilization is a massive collective, and Transcendents should be part of it. It’s a bit arrogant to single yourself out and compare one individual against the whole... As for Magic Techniques, although your Talent for the Extraordinary is strong enough to surprise even me, Su Zhou, if you want to learn efficiently, it’s best to wait until after you’ve eaten the Wisdom Fruit.’

’What do you mean, "a serious threat"?!’ Su Zhou listened intently to Yara’s advice, but he couldn’t resist retorting at the end. ’Why would anyone treat me as a threat? Yara, don’t project your own past onto me, okay? If it were me, I’d definitely be an honored guest of many civilizations!’

’Hey! I had one of my incarnations become the Main God of a civilization, you know!’

As they conversed, Su Zhou picked a familiar shop and went inside.

"Yo, Azhou! I’m a little busy, so just look around for now."

"No problem."

As soon as he walked in, Su Zhou heard the familiar voice. He smiled and greeted the middle-aged shop owner, a man in his late forties who was busy helping a customer at the front counter. The owner was a regular at the gym, so they were acquaintances. In fact, he was the one who had told Su Zhou about the electronics sale.

This was why he had come to a physical store instead of shopping online—it was good to do an acquaintance a favor. Besides, the extra walk wasn’t a bad thing.

Naturally, this prompted a sour comment from the Snake Spirit, ’You really get along with people everywhere, don’t you?’ and Su Zhou’s smug reply, ’Of course!’

However, as Su Zhou was in the discount section looking for a suitable laptop, he overheard the customer at the front desk complaining.

"Hey, boss, my computer’s been black-screening and shutting down a lot recently. I’m wondering if some bugs got inside?"

"Could be." A few sharp tapping sounds followed, and then the owner’s voice spoke up again. "Yep, I hear something in there. Let me open it up and take a look."

At first, Su Zhou just smiled to himself and asked Yara, ’What color do you like?’

But as Yara replied, ’Red!’ he suddenly remembered his ’Insect Repellent’ bloodline ability and froze. ’Wait a second. If there were really cockroaches in there, why didn’t they scurry out the moment I walked in?’

Casually grabbing a magenta laptop and a camera, Su Zhou turned to look at the situation over at the counter.

The muscular, balding shop owner was at a repair bench to the side, removing screws. Meanwhile, the customer—a man who, judging by his features, didn’t look particularly friendly—was standing meekly to the side, patiently waiting for the owner to sort things out.

’Studying is so you can talk calmly to assholes, and working out is so assholes will talk calmly to you.’

For some reason, that quote suddenly flashed through Su Zhou’s mind.

But soon enough, his question was answered.

"Agh!"

After prying open the laptop case, the muscular owner was about to check the area around the battery and motherboard—that’s usually where bugs hide out—when he was apparently bitten by something. He instinctively jerked his hand back, causing the laptop to tilt and fall.

Luckily, the repair bench had a soft mat, so the laptop wasn’t damaged. The customer’s eyes nearly popped out of his head, but after a glance at the owner’s bulging muscles, he swallowed the curse on his lips and asked with feigned concern, "You okay, boss?"

"...What the hell is this thing?" The owner rubbed his sparsely-haired head in confusion, then frowned at his hand. There was no wound, but he felt a sharp, burning pain—like he’d been electrocuted.

The owner put on a glove, reached into a gap in the computer’s chassis, and pinched. He pulled out something that looked like a piece of modeling clay, or maybe a blob of translucent gray jelly.

"What is this thing?"

Holding it up to the light, the owner, the customer, and Su Zhou, who was watching from the side, could all clearly see that it was a gelatinous blob about the size of a person’s thumb.

Tiny sparks of electricity, almost imperceptible to the naked eye, flashed across its surface. Its gray body writhed and contracted, as if trying to escape the grip of the owner’s plastic glove.

Of course, it didn’t succeed.

"Just how filthy is your place that you can grow a slug like this inside your computer?" the owner asked, astonished. The customer, whose initial annoyance had vanished, was completely baffled. "I have no idea. I’ve never even considered it."

"The only trip I took recently was to Pengze. I haven’t even left the state!"

Without another word, the muscular owner tossed the gelatinous blob into an empty water bottle, then finished disassembling the laptop. Finding no more blobs, he continued with the repair.

Meanwhile, Su Zhou was asking Yara in his mind, ’This thing... the more I look at it, the more it reminds me of you...’

’In a way, you’re not wrong.’

The Snake Spirit, surprisingly, wasn’t angry. Instead, she admitted it quite naturally. ’I formed a pact with you and used your blood to be reborn in this world. In a sense, this body of mine is a special kind of "Blood Slime" or "Blood-Gelatin Monster." That thing over there is a fairly rare "Thunder Slime."... It seems to be the type that lives near the batteries of electronic devices, siphoning off their power. They usually cause a device’s charge to drain for no reason. This one was probably only discovered because it grew too big.’

’A Slime, huh...’

Su Zhou blinked and nodded thoughtfully. Hongcheng was a humid city with plenty of forests and rivers, so it wasn’t entirely surprising for something like this to appear. Besides, the Snake Spirit’s ability to collapse into a red, stress-ball-like shape also suggested that its current body was essentially similar to a Slime.

This incident only went to prove one thing.

The Spiritual Energy Revival had truly begun to enter the daily lives of ordinary people.

And it was beginning to gradually—and would eventually completely—change everyone’s daily habits. For instance, people might start checking their power banks and computers to see if electricity was being stolen by Thunder Slimes, or exclaiming things like, ’Damn it! My phone is dying way too fast, do I have a Thunder Slime?!’

Not giving it much more thought, Su Zhou went to the counter, exchanged a few pleasantries with the owner, paid for his items, and left.

After buying his things, he didn’t head back right away. Instead, he took a walk through the adjacent Wanshou Palace Mall, searching for any possible traces of an Evil Demon’s spiritual qi.

’There it is, just as I thought.’

After buying three spicy chicken skewers (650 calories) from a street food stall, Su Zhou walked casually along the road, disguised as a hungry student. The commercial street was bustling, and the crowds would have dispersed any weak spiritual qi trails, but his Spiritual Vision allowed him to see them clearly: faint, dim traces of an exceptionally ’empty’ spiritual qi clinging to the rooftops and walls of the buildings. ’Yara, do you recognize this scent?’

’It’s still very faint.’ The Snake Spirit could share Su Zhou’s Perception and had its own unique methods of identification. This time, however, her tone lacked the ease it had during the Wood Centipede incident. ’But this is different, Su Zhou.’

"Hm?" Still eating his chicken skewer, Su Zhou was a bit slow to react, simply grunting in acknowledgment.

’I’m always going on about Evil Demons, but to be honest, the Wood Centipede was just an omnivorous Spirit Plant, the Beloved of some other Celestial God. This is different.’

Yara’s tone was now completely devoid of emotion.

’This aura... it must belong to a genuine "True Demon".’