Silent Crown

Chapter 272 Must Treat the Disease

"Sir, I have sinned." In the cell, the white-haired boy in shackles gazed at the newcomer. His dirty face had a fawning expression. "I betrayed my mother’s hopes and came back to Avalon."

"Sir, don’t listen to him! I’m the sinner!" In another cell, a white-haired man yelled in fear, "I’m the one who had sinned! I betrayed the priest’s discipline and did many unethical things!"

"Sir, I have sinned as well!" A frail old white-haired man in the cell up above poked his head back. His face still looked vaguely like Ye Qingxuan. He studied his younger self and cried, "I missed so many opportunities and wasted my entire life for a shallow excuse. I’ve accomplished nothing in my life."

"I was born a sinner, sir!" an angry white-haired youth pounded on the bars and yelled. "I was born locked up in this cell! I was destined to lead a painful and pitiful life!"

"I have sinned too! In order to return to Avalon, I purposely became closer to Wolf Flute, gained his trust…"

"I’ve sinned! I broke the Father’s heart to follow my own ideas."

"No, I’m the sinner! I harbor sinister thoughts and keep my teacher and senior in the dark. I never tell them what I truly wish to do…"

"I took advantage of a little girl! That girl sees me as an elder brother!"

"I…have sinned!"

"Have sinned!"

"Sinned!!"

"Sinned!!!"

The quiet dungeon was filled with rising voices. The boy, youth, man, and old man behind the bars screamed hoarsely, pleaded fawningly, accused angrily, cried, yelled, shrieked, laughed…The sounds rose like waves, digging into Ye Qingxuan’s heart, cutting apart his mind. He could barely breathe. It was as if he had been torn into thousands of pieces. They accused and denounced his crimes without talking.

Sinned, sinned, sinned, sinned…He was a great sinner with multiple crimes!

Sweat rolled down Ye Qingxuan’s back as he began to pant. All that remained in the world was the angry and chaotic accusations, until finally—boom! A crisp sound shot out. The echoes from the instrument head resounded in his brain. They transformed into rolling thunder, dissipating the cacophony.

Everything returned to silence.

The cells in on either side were still silent and empty but Ye Qingxuan was somehow kneeling on the ground. The dagger that had been in his boot was now pressed to his chest. It nicked at the flesh with a cold stinging pain.

Freaked out, Ye Qingxuan threw the dagger away. Looking down at the faint wound on his chest, he seemed to feel the pain of piercing his heart. "What is this…"

This time, he felt goosebumps as he looked at the empty cells. There was a strange atmosphere everywhere. Each inch of air was filled to the max with the thick negativity. Darkness surged. Burned. A hoarse moan sounded deep in the darkness.

Ye Qingxuan’s head shot up. There was a figure shackled with layers of chains in the burning darkness. The figure emanated a wild aura. The demonic twisted silhouette was hidden behind a veil. The golden hair was dyed red and dust covered the white dress.

Ye Qingxuan could vaguely see her eyes behind the red veil. There was endless darkness and wildness in those eyes, as well as sulfur and burning firelight. It was like a dragon at the brink of death—the Ripper.

-

Ye Qingxuan’s body tensed instantly. He finally understood how those demons outside had died… Like him, they had probably been affected by the Ripper’s wild aura and fell into frenzy. Had the Ripper lost control again?

Ye Qingxuan scared himself with the sudden thought. However, nothing changed in the Ripper’s eyes after he waited and held his breath for a while. They were still empty and unfocused, filled with chaos and craze. Even when the gaze fell on him, it was as if the Ripper was looking at grass. There was no sign of perception.

Ye Qingxuan stared at the Ripper silently. After a while, his gaze moved to the shackles and it finally dawned on him. All those handcuffs and shackles were probably put on by the Ripper herself, right?

She knew that she was going to lose control so she came here, closed all the doors, and restrained herself here with the chains. Along the way, the affected demons could not withstand the craze. Going wild, they killed each other. This all came from the terrifying aura she emanated subconsciously.

Ye Qingxuan would have dug out his own heart and died in this dark dungeon if he did not have Jiu Xiao Huan Pei. Compared to the terrifying aura, the Ripper’s own strength was extremely weak. She was as weak as a candle in the wind. She seemed to be burning herself up and venting out this strength.

Thinking of something, Ye Qingxuan held his breath and looked into the unclear darkness. Moonlight lit up in his eyes.

Under the moonlight’s glow, the darkness finally grew clearer and he could see what was hiding deep in it—it was the Eyes Within the Eye, the evil within evil. This was a mark of Satan!

The mark of the satanic eye was carved onto the Ripper’s chest as if drawn with blood. It was embedded in the flesh, engraved in there. A dark and crazed aura flowed from it endlessly, eroding the Ripper’s body. This was the curse of Hyakume. The mark was where Hyakume’s gaze was focused. He had put the Ripper in his eyes and reflected his power from the abyss into her body. This meant that the Ripper was being transformed into a demon every second of the day. Her original wild power was also rebelling against this process.

The two powers used the Ripper’s body as a battlefield to fight to death. There seemed to be an invisible ax in their path. Blood spurted out but the wounds quickly healed, only to be torn apart under another battle.

Bending down, Ye Qingxuan looked at the puddle of blood that had turned into a stream. The Ripper had probably been stuck in this torture for days.

He slowly approached.

"Presumptuous!"

When he was only a step away, a sharp crack suddenly appeared under his feet. Pebbles flew up and shot at Ye Qingxuan’s face. The Ripper screamed as if she had either woken or was trapped in a nightmare. She raised her eyes but emotions battled in her crazed eyes.

She was looking at Ye Qingxuan but it was as if she was looking at something horrible. She murmured in panic, "Dirty, it’s dirty…it’s all dirty…"

Looking at her eyes, Ye Qingxuan felt as if he saw faces hidden in the darkness. He could not find a focal point. There seemed be thousands of people. And it was the ancient lingua franca…

Had she been possessed by King Arthur? Turning into a psychotic killer after being possessed by King Arthur. This was an unfunny joke.

"Calm down." Ye Qingxuan raised his hands. "I don’t mean harm. Maybe I can help you. We don’t have much time."

"It’s you! Mordred." The Ripper stared at him from behind the shackles, though her eyes were unfocused. Her voice was hoarse and wild. "Why do you not kneel before me? You’re clingy and linger…you b*stard can never be shaken away, I know! I know! I should’ve killed you long ago! No, you’re already dead Mordred, you’re already dead…Merlin? What is Merlin doing now?!" The Ripper yelled as she convulsed, "Traitor! You group of traitors! Guinevere, Percival, and that creature Merlin, you all want to betray me!"

Ye Qingxuan suddenly heard metal grating. The chained Ripper suddenly jumped forward to rip him apart but was stuck in midair, restricted by the shackles. The strength cast forward scraped Ye Qingxuan’s cheek, leaving behind a bloody mark. Blood flowed down his face and joined the bloody stream on the ground.

He stumbled back in the silence. His heart had started convulsing painfully again. Looking back in shock, he heard footsteps approaching from outside the dungeon door. That f*cking dark musician had caught up again…

"My friend! Where are you?" Naberius’ voice resounded amongst the ruins and neared. His tone was filled with anticipation. "Escaping can’t solve any problems. How much longer are you going to hide for? Are you testing my sincerity? Please be rest assured. My enthusiasm will melt your cold heart!"

"Are you crazy?!" Ye Qingxuan thought. If possible, he really wanted to slap that question on Naberius’ face. That man seemed determined to force Ye Qingxuan into becoming a dark musician and make headlines.

But why?! How come everyone was crazy these days? There was a crazy dark musician outside the door and a crazy Ripper inside the door. The entire Avalon’s Shadow was crazy.

"This is a disease. They need treatment." Ye Qingxuan clenched his jaw and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. Finally deciding, he muttered, "Friends, you all need treatment!"

-

"Mr. Holmes? Why must you reject my enthusiasm? Can’t you see my sincerity?" Under the fog of the ruined square outside the dungeon, Naberius paced and gazed around. His smile was filled with warmth.

Every few meters, the dirt of the ruins would rumble and a corpse would climb out to show him the direction Ye Qingxuan had gone in. He gradually walked straight to the youth’s location.

In the end, he stood outside the dungeon and gazed happily at Ye Qingxuan’s hiding spot. "Did my enthusiasm make you shy? That’s understandable! Understandable! Chasing so bluntly is truly impolite. You must feel embarrassed, right?"