Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Qin Yu leapt onto the cooking platform and placed his hand on a human man's body. Strength instantly poured into the man's body, temporarily suppressing the drugs within him. He gasped out loud like someone that had just been fished out of water, breathing in great heaving gulps. But because of the pain in his body his face was pale and he rolled up in a bundle, constantly shivering.

But what surged in the depths of his eyes was excitement. He twisted his neck around with great difficulty and looked at the corpses of the obam around him. He croaked out a laugh as if he was crying, "Haha…haha…they died well, they died well…brother, I have no idea who you are, but I, Liu Sheng….thank you…for allowing me to see this…"

"If they want to eat me, then let's see who dies first!"

"Happy…I'm happy…to see the end of these beasts before I die, I have no more regrets!

"Brother, throw the corpses of these beasts into the pot…I am hungry, I want to eat one last meal before I die!"

But not everyone could accept the reality of what had happened to them. A woman lay on a frying pan, her skin already turned crispy yellow. She desperately tried to escape. When Qin Yu rescued her, she reached out a hand and grabbed him. Her eyes were filled with fear as she cried, "Save me, please save me, I don't want to die yet…"

Her weak voice was filled with despair as well as some hope and pleading.

Qin Yu was silent for a moment. He slowly said, "Sorry, but I cannot save you."

"No…" The woman suddenly collapsed. When she burst into tears it affected the rest of her flesh and blood, causing her skin to crack open. A jelly-like substance poured out, bright red in color.

"Ah! It hurts, I don't want to die, I don't want to die!" She struggled as he bod continued to break apart. Flesh and blood fell down in massive chunks, revealing her wriggling organs and white bones inside. Although she appeared intact on the surface, underneath the skills of the obam chefs her body had already been separated and she had become genuine 'delicacy'.

"Brother, kill her. Lessen her pain so that she can leave this world with some dignity still." A human man to the side bitterly said. After a pause he continued, "And after that, if I could trouble you to send the rest of us along the road too. The methods of these beasts were far too ruthless. I can't endure the pain much longer…please allow me to die like a man!"

"Cough cough…so it's not just me that feels like a knife is cutting up his insides. The sooner I die the sooner I can be freed from this pain…at the very least I can say I am a human. I can decide my own life and death, I am not a meal on the obam's dinner table!"

Qin Yu took a deep breath. He closed his eyes and reopened them. The woman's pained-wracked body suddenly wasted and the desperate look on her face gradually relaxed. There was a faint smile on her face as if she was reliving a wonderful memory.

At the same time her pupils began to widen until they lost focus. Slowly, they dimmed down…she had died. This was by Qin Yu's hand. With his powerful soul interfering with hers, he created a dream world for her. He separated her from all perceptions and cut off the pain she was feeling. This might not be the ending she wanted, but was the best possible ending she could obtain.

"Brother, send me away!" A man said. His four limbs had been chopped off and the severance points were all bright and clear as jade without any blood seeping out. Fresh flowers, fruits, and vegetables embellished his body as he formed a complete plate. He bared his teeth and forced out a smile. "Brother, my name is Hu Tao. I am a human…"

Qin Yu nodded, "Hu Tao, I will remember you." Soul force erupted and the man's eyes clouded over. He gently smiled as his eyes closed.

As Qin Yu walked around, he sent away whoever he encountered. When he returned to his original spot, he found only six people alive; two women and four men. The pair of women thought they could still endure so they wanted to continue living. The attitudes of the men were much simpler. Two of them wanted to see Qin Yu prepare the obam as food, and the two others wanted to eat their fill before they died.

Little Zhao's eyes were flushed red as tears fell down her cheeks. She thought back to many years ago when her parents were cruelly turned into food by the obams. She wiped away her tears and looked at Qin Yu again. When she saw his solemn and respectful expression, her appearance unconsciously became gentler.

Snowside looked at Qin Yu who really did seem as if he was prepared to cook up a meal of obam. Her lips moved as she said with some difficulty, "Although I don't think it's appropriate to say this right now, shouldn't we take advantage of this moment to escape? If we stay any longer then we really will die!"

"Ah, that's right! Brother, hurry and flee, don't worry about us!"

"Run!"

"The rest of us will die soon. It doesn't matter what we eat."

Qin Yu didn't even turn his head. "I will leave, but not now. There is still some time so I will help you realize your wish." He paused for a moment and said, "But I haven't cooked in many years and the materials here are strange, so I fear that the flavor won't be too good."

"Hahaha, it seems that brother has another plan in mind. Then, we don't say anything else. The flavor doesn't matter at all, the key point here is the mood!"

"Then we will wait to have a great meal!"

"Brother, just a simple meal is fine. After we finish eating you must leave."

Qin Yu nodded and began to process the corpse of a white and plump obam. This pig-like life form had a decent meat quality, but he feared that in his hands it likely wouldn't taste good.

"Allow me to help." Little Zhao walked over, "When it comes to preparing food, women are more skilled."

Qin Yu looked at her and said, "Alright."

He turned and found a table. Clearing it away, he placed chairs around and set the six people around it.

"Please wait a moment."

As he finished speaking he closed his eyes. He was also waiting.

With how much Steward Dorafi respected the City Lord, he would surely come to personally examine the creation of the 'human feast' in order to prevent any accident from occurring. As for Qin Yu, he would be waiting here for him to arrive.

Little Zhao obviously understood Qin Yu's thoughts. She glanced over at him, shame rising in her heart. She discovered that from beginning to end she never truly saw Qin Yu at all, and gave him an inferior evaluation based on nothing at all.

She saw how calm he was. To accomplish this in such a dangerous situation, how could he be a timid and cowardly clown who only wanted to seek out attention from women?

At this time, Little Zhao suddenly relaxed. Without any reason at all, she felt that Qin Yu could complete the mission handed to them by the miss and also leave this place safely.

So what she needed to do now was peacefully prepare a final meal for these pitiful fellow humans of hers.

..

Back kitchen.

"Steward Dorafi!"

"We greet the lord steward!"

"My lord, you have arrived."

There were respectful greetings all around.

Dorafi had no expression but his eyes were as dark and dire as a wolf's. "How goes the preparation of the human feast?"

"Reporting to the steward, it is in the process of being prepared." An obam said with a flattering look.

Dorafi sneered. "Lead the way! Since this is a meal that the City Lord is preparing for nobles from the imperial city, I must personally inspect it before I can feel relieved."

Those damned humans, they actually dared to assassinate him! He could only dispel his anger by watching these humans being cooked!

"Yes. Steward, please follow me." An obam led the way, guiding the group to the dining hall.

…

Qin Yu's thoughts stirred and his eyes flew open. "They're here!"

The entire dining hall was covered by invisible rules that blocked out outside perception. It was impossible for anyone to sense what was happening inside.

But these invisible rules wove together like a net. Any aura that entered would be caught.

Qin Yu already remembered Dorafi's aura; he naturally wouldn't make a mistake.

On the table, finely crafted utensils and plates had been set. Steaming pieces of meat were set around and several people were boisterously eating.

Seeing Qin Yu open his eyes, one of them asked, "Brother, are you leaving?"

Qin Yu nodded. He stood up and said, "This is as far as I can accompany you. Everyone, take care."

"Brother, be careful. We won't see each other from here on out, so we can only repay your benevolence in our next lives!"

"Leave, leave! You must survive!"

Qin Yu turned without another word. Little Zhao and Snowflake followed close behind.

…

Dorafi suddenly stopped. He twitched his longe nose. There was an unusual scent in the air…this…this was the scent of blood!

His eyes widened and shocked anger appeared on his face. He opened his mouth to roar but before he could a giant invisible hand gripped tightly onto his neck, suppressing all sounds.

Kacha -

The sound of cracking bones was especially clear. Steward Dorafi maintained a panic-stricken look as his body slumped to the ground.

"Ahh! The steward has been assassinated!"

"There's an assassin!"

The obam following behind him immediately developed blood red eyes. The steward had been killed right in front of them so they would be inevitably implicated no matter what. What awaited them was the rage of the City Lord and them being burnt down to ashes.

But soon, the fear and anger became meaningless. Fluctuations appeared in the air. It was like a tide and also a great maw, completely swallowing up these obam!

"Mm?" The air shook as Qin Yu stepped forward. He raised a hand and grasped at Steward Dorafi's corpse.

Bang -

Space vibrated and the steward's corpse disintegrated into powder. All that was left behind was a black stone. As if feeling a threat, the stone struggled to escape the spatial imprisonment but couldn't do so beneath Qin Yu's strength.

Little Zhao's eyes brightened. "Qin Yu, hurry and seal it!"

There was no need to remind him; Qin Yu was already moving. His fingers clenched into a fist and the black stone fell into his palm, no longer moving.

"Let's go!"

Qin Yu shouted out loud, rushing away. At the same time his appearance began to change, unexpectedly changing into that of Steward Dorafi.

After leaving the dining hall, Qin Yu shouted out, "Hurry and get out of the way! The City Lord needs this human woman delivered outside the city gates so that the imperial city nobles can enjoy a snack!"

Before the guards could respond, he rushed away with Little Zhao and Snowside.

Right now this was a race against time. Dorafi had already been killed. Without exception, the terrifying aura that had been in the City Lord Mansion had already noticed it. If he couldn't flee by the time she hurried back, all that awaited him was death!