Chapter 398: I Am Human, I Am Just Sick
The Skin Painter’s face twisted ferociously. “You cannot go!”
Jiang Tong frowned. “This is my business.”
She had only come to the Skin Painter to ask if there was a better way to see her brother.
Over the past few days, she had not strayed far from Dongyang and Taoyang. It felt like an invisible force was pulling at her, keeping her from going any further.
When she heard the news that her brother was gravely injured and on the brink of death, she suddenly understood—it was that bond pulling her back.
She had to go back and see her brother one last time.
In these days, more and more memories from her time as a human resurfaced.
She remembered someone trying to take her away, and her brother shielding her, getting beaten so badly he spat blood. The warmth of his blood splattering on her face felt as vivid as yesterday.
She also recalled that the day she was lost, it was because she craved the taste of food and forced her brother to find some for her… To this day, she still didn’t know what food tasted like.
Zombies could only smell rot and blood.
In her memories, her brother was always dirty, thin, like a wild wolf protecting its cub—baring his fangs at anyone who approached.
But during her days in Taoyang, the brother she saw was gentle, relaxed, and content—no longer worrying about food and survival.
Taking him away would ensure his safety, but she couldn’t give him a good life.
If that was the case, she should leave alone.
But before leaving, she had to see him one last time and say a proper goodbye.
Her brother didn’t like it when people left without saying anything.
The Skin Painter, in her rage, could no longer maintain her human disguise. Her face erupted with festering red patches that squirmed and crawled across her skin, spreading from her face to her neck—revealing her true form.
She grabbed Jiang Tong’s chin and spat through gritted teeth:
“Listen to me carefully—this is a trap! I may not know why they’re luring you there, but it’s definitely good for humans and bad—maybe even fatal—for us!”
Jiang Tong slapped her hand away in disgust. “Let go. I don’t understand what you’re saying.”
The Skin Painter flipped her over and slammed her to the ground, sending clouds of dust flying.
“You can go north, to the coast, even across the ocean—I don’t care. But Taoyang? Absolutely not! If they can lock up Bone Wings, they can lock you up too!”
Jiang Tong swiftly got up and struck at the Skin Painter’s rotting face. The force of her blow cut through the air like deadly blades—enough to reduce an ordinary mutant to ashes.
The Skin Painter blocked with both hands, retreating several steps from the impact.
Her expression grew more twisted. “I should have known you were a traitorous fool—an incomplete mongrel!”
“I am not a mongrel.”
The Skin Painter sneered. “A zombie who eats human flesh but thinks like a human—if you’re not a mongrel, what are you? Ridiculous!”
Jiang Tong’s expression shifted unpredictably before she finally lowered her gaze.
“I am human. I’m just… sick.”
The Skin Painter laughed coldly, stepped forward, and grabbed Jiang Tong’s throat, her voice dripping with hatred and killing intent.
“Low-level zombie mutations like you are all useless—just like Bone Wings. We’ve evolved perfectly, while humans are nothing but ants beneath our feet. With a flick of a finger, we can make them suffer unbearably. And yet, you and your kind—either imprisoned by humans or deceived by them—disgust me.”
Jiang Tong pried her hand away, her compound eyes gleaming coldly.
“My brother never lies to me. I just want to see him one last time. There is no trap. And during my days in Taoyang, they knew I was different—but they didn’t harm me. So, there won’t be any surprises. Please, don’t interfere.”
The Skin Painter’s eyes grew darker. “Your compound eyes are showing—do you want to kill me? You know you’re no match for me.”
Jiang Tong replied calmly, “Even if I can’t kill you, I can injure you badly. Step aside.”
The Skin Painter squinted as Jiang Tong took a couple of steps away.
“This is your last chance,” she warned. “Abandon your pathetic human brother and return to my side. I’ve already made contact with Siren and the one across the ocean. With you, there will be four of us—enough to shatter Taoyang’s barrier and rescue Bone Wings. Together, we’ll reshape the world and build a new order, a new nation—”
“Otherwise—”
Jiang Tong didn’t respond. She just kept walking.
Murderous intent flared in the Skin Painter’s eyes as the red patches on her skin squirmed and writhed.
She lunged at Jiang Tong.
Jiang Tong narrowly dodged her fatal strike but felt a searing pain—her arm was marked with a red patch.
Once planted, these patches spread across the skin, corroding flesh and bone until only an intact human skin remained.
It worked on both humans and zombies—though it wouldn’t kill a zombie, it inflicted unimaginable pain.
Clutching her arm, Jiang Tong glared at the Skin Painter. “Are you really determined to fight me?”
The Skin Painter laughed chillingly.
“Fight? Don’t be naive. Rather than let you serve the humans, I’ll just kill you now. I gave you a chance—you didn’t take it!”
A fierce wind tore through the sky as the Skin Painter struck first, and the two clashed in a battle that shook the heavens.
As the fight wore on, the Skin Painter gained the upper hand, her rotting face twisted with madness.
“After I kill you, I’ll kill your human brother too. I hate your fake, sentimental bonds—whether it’s sibling love or motherly affection! If he really loved you, why did he abandon you? Why didn’t he use his wealth to save me while I rotted away in agony?! Humans… all deserve to die!”
“You touch him, and I’ll kill you!”
A thousand pupils fractured and multiplied in Jiang Tong’s left eye, blazing with fury and desperation.
In this broken world, in this bleak existence, she had nothing left to hold onto.
If she died, perhaps she wouldn’t feel anything anymore—maybe she could even be reborn.
If she had a next life, she wanted to be human again.
She wanted to know what food tasted like.
The battle raged on, shaking the heavens and earth.
Amid the blood-soaked smoke and the darkness of night, nothing could conceal the unfolding war.
