My Notoriety Spreads Throughout the World-Chapter 436 - 376: Post-Apocalyptic Plague

Stepping into the beer tavern, a wave of Chen Pu's moldy air hit, and the sound of boots creaking on the battered floor echoed.

Xu Xiaoyou scanned around, finding the tavern in disarray: tables and chairs toppled, the King's portrait shattered on the ground, the wooden bar counter cracked and collapsed, and the walls inscribed with vile words, barely legible curses over time.

——"General Belisa is a sinner, get out of the Kingdom."

——"Execute General Belisa, behead her for public display!"

——"We will all die, we will all die because of this madwoman."

——"Damn scoundrel, see how I don't tear you into pieces!"

From these inscriptions, Xu Xiaoyou could clearly feel the resentment and anger from those who carved them.

「Clue 'People's Courageous Declarations' has been added to the notebook, available for viewing anytime.」

「Dungeon information acquired, current dungeon 'Terminal Illness Patient' completion has increased, current completion 0.01%」

「Your exploration of the dungeon world is deepening.」

「Main quest 'Sinner of Watchtower Kingdom' unlocked.」

「You are puzzled by the curses on the walls, surely something must have happened before this kingdom was ravaged by plague, could it be related to the commonly cursed 'General Belisa'?"

「Main quest 'Sinner of Watchtower Kingdom' completion conditions: Find out the reason people curse General Belisa and restore the truth about the plague that ravaged the kingdom.」

「Completing the task will earn a large amount of guild honor points and league point rewards, and grant the artifact 'Heart of Fanatical Devotion' and the title 'Kingdom Watcher'.」

"You, what's wrong, suddenly barging in like this?" Chichu Chun followed in.

Xu Xiaoyou pondered.

Did she see it wrong?

She clearly saw a familiar blue figure rush into this small tavern, but in the blink of an eye it disappeared.

Xu Xiaoyou couldn't help but think of the 'Mysterious Visitor' letter received before setting off.

Once or twice could be blamed on hallucinations, but occurrences like this can't be explained by coincidence.

"Hmm..."

Xu Xiaoyou squatted down with awareness, pinching the object picked up from the ground lightly under moonlight, squinting to find it was a strand of dark blue hair.

Bringing it closer to her nose, she detected a captivating fresh scent, like the subtle... fragrance of Blue Iris.

It was Tang Xin, she wouldn't be mistaken.

Had the other party entered Oasis?

Could the email she received initially actually have been sent by Tang Xin?

But if so, why did the email disappear in the end, and why did she avoid her so deliberately as if not seeing her?

No, all of this was too unrealistic, how could the other party be active in Oasis at this time?

Heavy doubts surfaced in Xu Xiaoyou's mind, her thoughts inevitably drowning in chaos.

Turning around, Xu Xiaoyou saw Chichu Chun silently stepping back, staring at her peculiarly, more accurately at her bizarre action of placing the blue hair at her nose.

"You, you?"

Seeing Xu Xiaoyou quietly put the hair into a small bottle and keep it, Chichu Chun looked even more horrified. Xu Xiaoyou merely lifted her eyelids, speaking lightly, "Don't overthink, I'm just preserving clues."

Finished speaking, Xu Xiaoyou turned and walked deeper into the tavern.

"Hey, you haven't answered my question yet!" Chichu Chun waved her fist in protest.

"Look around, see if there are any hidden artifacts or useful information in this tavern."

Chichu Chun's face drooped.

The two searched the tavern, and eventually, Chichu Chun did sense something amiss.

"You, come quickly and take a look!"

Xu Xiaoyou hurriedly stepped into the corridor.

The surroundings were dark, most candles extinguished on their stands, the walls crumbling with gray layers exposed. Such candle stands were placed every ten meters. A gust of wind blew out the candle at the corridor's end, its light dissolving into darkness.

Arriving before the second-to-last room of the corridor, Xu Xiaoyou saw a girl squatting in the center of the room, flipping the floorboard to reveal a cellar door, concentrating on trying to pick the chains with two iron wires.

Chichu Chun was confident in picking the lock, her profession's specialty in Stealth often included 'lock picking' as a life skill, and her 'lock picking' had reached level four proficiency, 'Master'!

This Young Master enjoyed sneaking into noble NPC homes in Oasis, prying open safes, and scattering valuables on the streets to watch people scramble.

Xu Xiaoyou was also confident in opening the cellar door, advancing with a calm face, she lifted her foot and kicked the cellar door hard.

Bang——

The cellar door collapsed under the kick.

The loud noise startled Chichu Chun, who jumped up, glaring at her accusingly.

Xu Xiaoyou shrugged, leading Chichu Chun into the cellar, descending the steps, passing through a cramped stone passage, arriving at an underground hidden room.

Their eyes barely adjusted to the darkness when a strong stench mixed with rust invaded their nostrils, making Chichu Chun frown slightly, but she was not particularly repulsed, having grown familiar with this scent during battles with those monsters earlier.

Iron bars stood by a small window, from outside it could be mistaken for a roadside drain, moonlight slanted in, dust swirled in the air, and the room's layout became clear to the two.

This place resembled a dungeon cell, with nothing except a wooden tub for holding flesh and blood, and a triangular iron bed in the center, where flies swarmed over the barrel, hinting that the contents had rotted.

As for who the barrel of flesh and blood was meant to feed...

Xu Xiaoyou focused on the central triangular iron bed, the blurred outline gradually cleared, showing a figure bound with chains, the swollen abdomen remarkably protruding.

It was a Ratman.

Seemingly sensing fresh air, the Ratman tried to sit upright, the iron bed creaked in motion.

But the Ratman was too weak, no matter how it tried, it couldn't support its exceptionally bloated body, ending with a muffled growl, its head pounding the iron bed in frustration.

"This is..." Chichu Chun's eyes flickered slightly.

"It's pregnant." Xu Xiaoyou divulged the truth.

Her gaze fixed on the creature's bloated, heaving, and prominently bulging abdomen.

Yes,

The woman on this bed was already pregnant before transforming into a monster, perhaps that's why she was imprisoned here in the basement.

And until the outside was overrun by plague, turning into a monster haven, no one set foot into this basement again, had Xu Xiaoyou and Chichu Chun not discovered it, the woman would have perished alone in endless hunger and solitude.

No...

This woman had long since died.

All this is merely virtual.

Xu Xiaoyou ended the monster's life swiftly with a whip, donned sterile gloves, and peeled back the filthy, excrement-stained, and blood-marked blanket from the woman's body. Underneath, there lay a small pile of white bones: leg bones, kneecaps, skull complete.

The woman's sharp face bore sparse, dirty, stiff hair, seemingly layered with thick grime, and her black beady eyes overflowed with murky tears.

Noticing the curled, degenerated, sharp claws tightly gripping something, Xu Xiaoyou pried it open, finding an old note with crooked writing: 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

——"Mommy will always love you."