Chapter 37 Preparing the Body - The First Step

Hearing Erin's request, Yu Sheng was somewhat surprised; he didn't understand why she would bring up this matter so solemnly at this time.

Although they had indeed discussed creating a body for the doll in the painting more than once, it had never been settled. On one hand, it was because there was still a lack of trust and understanding between Yu Sheng and Erin; on the other hand, there were simply too many chaotic matters at hand, and Yu Sheng had not had time to consider the issue of Erin's body.

But now, seeing the doll Miss's extremely serious expression, Yu Sheng realized she wasn't bringing this up on a whim or out of caprice.

He looked at Erin with an inquiring gaze.

"I want to go with you," Erin's answer was also very simple, "as an additional safeguard."

"Are you sure?" Yu Sheng's expression was a bit subtle, "Of course, I'm not doubting your ability..."

"Listen," Erin interrupted Yu Sheng, she leaned close to the edge of the frame, her face almost taking up two-thirds of the space, speaking with an unusually serious tone, "I'm not joking with you—I may not know exactly how you plan to deal with that 'entity', but judging from the fact that you can bring back 'local products' from them, you must be somewhat capable. As for what those capabilities are specifically, I won't ask, but you need to understand, when dealing with the Exotic Realm, relying solely on 'combat ability' is not enough, at least not when dealing with a tricky entity like 'Hunger'."

As she spoke, she retreated slightly: "Create a body for me, allowing me to regain some freedom of movement. Even a rough one is okay, as long as I'm free from the damn constraints of this oil painting, I would be able to do so much more. Although I won't regain all my power, I'm surely much stronger than the ordinary investigators or so-called Spirit Realm detectives, and Exotic Realm Hunters, even if I've forgotten much knowledge, I still have the instincts of a living doll."

Yu Sheng stared steadily at Erin; Erin's crimson eyes were fixed on Yu Sheng.

"I can help you, Yu Sheng," Erin said earnestly, "We've already worked together once during our trip to Hu Li's Dream Realm."

This time, Yu Sheng took longer to think than he ever had before, and afterward, he had to admit Erin had a point.

His mind was set on returning to that valley, to deal with the "Entity-Hunger" there, but he knew that the chances of going in rashly and exterminating that monster by himself were indeed low—he was not afraid of death, and in the process of devouring "Entity-Hunger," he had gradually become stronger, but this enhancement clearly had its limits, and "Hunger" was not easy to eliminate.

Relying on repeated deaths to "drag the corpse" and exhaust the monster might be a solution, but it was clearly the last resort. If he could have an ally who was competent in combat and had some understanding of Extraordinary Power, that would definitely be better.

All he needed to do was to give some trust to Erin and free her from the painting.

And this trust was already established after they plunged into Hu Li's Dream Realm together and woke up from the nightmare to meet and spit bile at each other.

"Looks like I need to make a trip downtown," Yu Sheng breathed out lightly, leaning back into the chair, "I need to buy materials like clay and fake hair from specialized handicraft stores, which aren't available in this old neighborhood."

The doll girl in the painting blinked, and after realizing what was said, her expression turned joyous: "You... you agreed?!"

"If you're not too demanding about the quality of the body and trust my handiwork," Yu Sheng waved his hand, "I can give it a try."

"I'm not demanding, as long as it looks human, I can reshape it myself—just don't mess up during the 'Alchemy' process," Erin hurriedly spoke as if afraid Yu Sheng might back out if she were too slow, then after another thought, she turned her face with a subtly complex expression, "And... And if you really can't find suitable materials..."

Yu Sheng looked curious: "What if I really can't find the right materials?"

"...You could use dough."

Yu Sheng was stunned for a few seconds, finally showing the most shocked expression since he had met Erin: "Huh?!"

Erin quietly explained: "The materials are just a medium, the effective part is the alchemy process, your blood and my soul..."

Yu Sheng was completely bemused: "Hey, no... I understand settling for the next best thing, but isn't this a little too inferior?!"

Erin thought about it and decided to try to get by with an innocent smile to melt Yu Sheng's heart.

It worked.

But Yu Sheng still decided to go out and buy some things.

"I'll still go buy some proper clay, the amount needed to mold a body for you shouldn't be small, let's not waste food. Besides, I have other things to purchase," Yu Sheng sighed, getting up and speaking offhandedly, "You stay home and watch TV, if there's any problem, call me remotely—if the TV crashes again, just wait for me to come back."

He then grabbed the remote to turn on the TV for Erin, who obediently nodded in the screen: "Oh... then hurry back."

Yu Sheng agreed, donned his coat, and walked toward the porch.

Grasping the doorknob, the first thing he did was steady his mind. It wasn't until he had confirmed there weren't any scenarios outside involving a volcano crater, meteor rain, sulphur lakes, little green men with Light Sabers, or elf sisters with mechanical augmentations that he took a deep breath, pushed open the door, and successfully stepped onto the old streets of Wutong Road.

Yu Sheng suddenly found this whole situation quite amusing.

Journeying to the ends of the earth was easy for him (leaving aside for the moment whether he could return or whether it might kill him). In contrast, simply stepping onto the street from his door now presented more of a challenge...

Walking toward the bus stop, Yu Sheng nonchalantly surveyed his surroundings.

He didn't know when it started, but the nerves he used to feel walking in this immense, unfamiliar city had quietly dissipated. Walking on streets that couldn't be considered his "hometown," he felt a sense of calm—and even a touch of... elation and anticipation.

Even the bright and almost dazzling sky seemed like a pleasant sunshine color now.

Street vendors were selling things at the corner, scattered pedestrians passed by, and some kids who had caused some trouble ran screaming past with adults chasing and cursing behind them.

Yu Sheng wondered whether any of those "professionals" Erin mentioned were among these people—those who protect this city from the shadows, engaging with the Exotic Realm. Did anyone notice that something was slightly "off" in this peaceful and tranquil old district?

His thoughts even wandered into guessing which of the pedestrians looked foreign, which one could be undercover, and which might be a Spirit Realm detective or investigator.

The uncle frying scallion pancakes at the roadside stand looked the part since he changed to someone not so skilled today; the auntie hanging laundry out on the balcony across the street might also be a possibility, since he'd never seen her before; what about the screaming child who just ran past? According to Erin, Spirit Realm detectives have the "magic" to alter their appearances, which is quite fascinating...

Anyway, the energetic young man squatting on the ground with a tank top, dyed yellow hair, and music blaring from his phone was definitely not one—it was too far off.

Humming a tune, Yu Sheng walked through the old streets, brushing past Li Lin squatting on the ground with a tank top and dyed yellow hair (a wig), playing music out loud on his phone.

After a while, Xu Jiali (male) who was almost two meters tall, swayed onto the street. He glanced at Li Lin, who was following someone, and crouched down next to him to light a cigarette, squatting there like an animated companion.

"Is that getup reliable?" Xu Jiali asked.

"Totally," replied Li Lin offhandedly, "I used to dress like this for field surveillance operations. Even when my pancake-vendor colleagues got busted, I never was—I even have an 'anime fighter' outfit that's even more discreet; once, it even convinced a Boundary smuggler that I caught, and he couldn't believe an anime character could be a spy from the Special Service Bureau."

The muscular man was bemused: "What's an anime fighter outfit? Sounds like a force field type of Power Armor? You're not allowed to use that stuff in the Boundary Land, right?"

"...Can't explain it to you," said Li Lin with disdain, moving away, "Stay away from me, you're too bulky, don't blow my cover."

"That's impossible. My aura is even more like an unemployed vagrant than yours," the muscular man retorted with a grimace, "But as for you, you haven't found anything all morning, right? Honestly, even if there is something hidden here, it's highly unlikely to be a 'person.' It's probably a creepy entity or an Exotic Realm Erosion point or similar stuff, which matches the clues you've found so far—damn it, there was such a commotion in Boundary City last night, who knows what the situation is like at the Bureau now. We'd still have to wait here like idiots staring at something we don't even know..."

Li Lin ignored the muscular man, took out a large power bank to connect to his phone, then deliberately turned up the speaker volume a bit louder.

Meanwhile, three hours later, Yu Sheng had already purchased everything he wanted in the city's shopping center.

Now, dragging both large and small bags, he found a secluded spot to begin contemplating.

He had bought quite a few items—the weight wasn't a problem for him at the moment, but carrying everything and squeezing into a bus to get home would indeed be inconvenient.

So, he had a bold idea.

He thought it was really worth a try.

Yu Sheng looked up one more time to check that no one was paying attention around him, then quietly extended his hand towards the empty air next to him—the door took shape in his hands.

Three seconds later, deep within the Special Service Bureau headquarters in Boundary City, countless operatives, clerks, team leaders, and their Director Baili Qing, who had been working overtime to the point of consciousness blur, were catapulted from their chairs by the sudden blaring of alarms...

Yu Sheng walked home with several big plastic bags.