The Last Gentleman

As Granny Chicken caressed the young girl's head in her hands, the countless chicken-like eyes covering her forehead radiated a deep sadness.

"I have another rather excessive request.

If you're confident enough, I hope you can bring me the living head of the village chief. As a reward, I'm willing to offer everything I possess, including these old bones of mine."

Gazing at the girl’s head cradled in Granny Chicken’s arms,

Yi Chen stepped back with his right foot, placed his left hand over his chest, and bowed slightly.

"I will do my best... But before we head to the village, Granny, you’ll need to share all the information you have with me."

"Very well."

From Granny Chicken's hand, Yi Chen received a hand-drawn map of the tree-wall area. It detailed the layout of the village and the church, as well as the villagers' daily patrol routes and schedules within the forest.

In another record regarding the Church, Granny Chicken admitted she had never encountered them directly and therefore could not gauge their strength. All she knew was that these people rarely appeared in the village. When they did, they were always shrouded in ceremonial robes.

The most distinguishing feature of their robes was the ‘Church Insignia’, which Chicken Granny had sketched with simple lines:

A circular emblem,

Inside which curled a fetus,

Its umbilical cord encircling its body to form a ring,

Seemingly symbolizing reincarnation and rebirth.

"The time is almost up. If you don't return to the surface soon, my chicken coop might be exposed."

"One last question.

Granny, have you encountered other human teams? Have you cooperated with them?"

"Of course, I’ve seen them. My children always take note of outsiders who try to approach the village. But I never made contact with them, for a simple reason.

When Little Pei passed by them swiftly, they barely noticed him. Even when they did realize, they couldn't catch him.

With that level of competence, they are no match for the diseased pathogenic village, let alone the mysterious Church lurking behind it. Collaborating with them would only increase the risk of exposure.

Before avenging my children, these old bones of mine must stay intact."

Having said this, Granny Chicken hunched and stood from her seat.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

With one arm holding her "granddaughter," she opened a hidden passageway to the next room for Yi Chen.

"After reuniting with your companions, Little Pei will guide you to another path leading to the surface."

Reluctantly, the newly freed black chicken, Xiao Pei, came forward at Granny Chicken’s behest.

Before it could speak, the familiar plant tendrils wrapped around its neck like a leash.

This time, however, Little Pei did not struggle. Although it deeply resented outsiders, it acknowledged that this young man had saved its life from a madman.

Following the path opened by Granny Chicken, Yi Chen soon arrived on the other side of the underground area—the Trap Room.

Just as Granny had mentioned, villagers searching nearby who might discover the chicken coop had been lured by the chicken flock into traps and were all imprisoned here.

As the man and chicken emerged from the passage, Little Pei flapped its wings in fear and quickly hid behind Yi Chen.

The battle here had long since ended.

In the center of the Trap Room was a small "mountain" of corpses, over four meters tall. Sitting cross-legged at the top was Jin, dressed in a dapper floral suit.

In her right hand, she held a buzzing pig-head chainsaw.

Her left hand rested on mouth as she yawned lazily.

"Just a bunch of brainless, incompetent disease-spawn. No coordination whatsoever~ They rushed in one by one to die.

At first, testing my new weapon on them was mildly entertaining, but it quickly became boring.

This village really has a knack for churning out useless garbage.

William, it seems like you’ve already finished your negotiations over there. How did it go?"

William responded, "We’ve obtained enough intel to speed up our uncovering of the truth and access more interesting things."

Jin pressed on, "So, should we kill this chicken-raising old hag?"

These words made Little Pei immediately lose his temper, trembling all over.

“Not for now. Granny Chicken can help us with our subsequent truth investigation and allow us to encounter more dangerous things in advance.”

“I’ll listen to you~”

Jin lightly jumped and landed beside Yi Chen, then squatted down to pat Little Pei, causing it to crow in fear continuously.

“You… you’re following me, cluck cluck!”

Little Pei led the two, running at top speed along a slightly uphill secret passage.

It suppressed the fear inside its body, wanting to get these two terrifying humans out of here as quickly as possible.

When it pushed aside the huge stone blocking the ground exit, it returned to the forest where it was first discovered. The stone path leading to the village was not far away.

It was as if the two had disappeared for over ten minutes and had returned to the main path of exploring the village.

Since they were back on the surface, Xiao Pei had no intention of leading further. It spoke human words again through its beak:

“Walk another six or seven hundred meters and you’ll reach Shepherd Village, cluck cluck!”

Yi Chen didn’t force it. He immediately released the vines around his neck and squatted down to touch the chicken’s comb.

“Hmm! Let’s meet again after we kill the village chief.”

“The whole village has changed. We haven’t been inside for a long time.

The village chief… is very dangerous, and the people in the church are also very dangerous. I’ve seen someone from the church by chance; they can [fly].

They are completely different from the villagers you dealt with before. Be very careful, cluck cluck!”

The more Little Pei spoke, the more frightened it became. It immediately spread its wings and dashed back into the secret passage in a flash. Although it looked like a chicken, it could move the huge stones with its claws and seal the entrance.

At that moment,

Jin’s emotions changed drastically. She turned around and wrapped her arms around Yi Chen’s neck, her mask pressed close. He could even faintly hear her breathing.

“Who knew these chickens were quite interesting. It’s my first time encountering such mutated animals that don’t actively attack humans. Maybe afterward, we can catch one and keep it as a pet.

Luckily, William, you stopped me back then… Did I scare you a bit before?”

“It’s okay, I understand.”

Jin tilted her head slightly. “Understand? If I change my mind now and turn your head into a bomb… would you still understand me?”

Yi Chen responded expressionlessly, “If you really need to turn my head into a bomb to eliminate the strong enemies here, I completely understand.

When that time comes, please send the rest of my body back to the Easton Cemetery. It would be like going home.”

Upon hearing this, Jin seemed to take him seriously.

“Really? Then we have a deal!

If we find ourselves in a dangerous situation and the flesh on my body is completely consumed, I’ll cut off your head and use it as a ‘final bomb.’ After all, your brain is where the emblem is engraved, and it has consumed so much of the patients’ brain fluids!

A bomb made from it will definitely unleash a true crimson lotus!

Quick, let’s pinky swear!”

As Jin lifted her pinky, Yi Chen didn’t hesitate to hook his pinky with hers.

Once the agreement was made,

She slightly pulled her mask aside with one hand, revealing her familiar pinkish lips, and lightly kissed the side of his face.

This sudden ambush made Yi Chen step back abruptly, putting some distance between them.

The reason was simple:

The moment their lips touched was more dangerous than any previous contact… It seemed like she was trying to inject some timed explosive substance into his head.

“Don’t be afraid. I won’t blow up your head now~ This is just a simple reward for you.”

Saying that, Jin took a step forward, pressed her lips to the side of Yi Chen’s ear, and whispered softly.

“Let me tell you something secretly! You are the only man who has received my kiss without having your head blown up. By the way, would you consider this your first kiss?”

Yi Chen didn’t want to respond. He pointed to the path leading to the village ahead.

“Let’s go. We’ve already been delayed for a long time.”

“Boring~”

[TLN:- Well... This kinda confirms that Jin is female I guess]