Plague Doctor
chapter-269

Translator: Lonelytree

Leprosy, smallpox, black plague, cholera and legionella pneumonia. The pentagonal lobby was an altar. The stench that rose from the pus asphyxiated Gu Jun’s team.

“That body that died from black plague, doesn’t it remind you of the little girl that we saw earlier…” Lou Xiaoning pointed out. Her fingers covered her mouth.

“Looks like it…” The Zoog rambled in panic. “I can sense a familiar smell from it.” Gu Jun studied their environments. Endless eyes appeared to be staring at them through the five walls and the raised ceiling. The gaze was unfeeling. He then turned to the five children’s bodies. Was it really the body of that little girl? How long had Afterlife Cult been in existence that it was already active during the black plague?

“The fruits of darkness sprouts…” A splitting headache occurred and Gu Jun was reminded of the flexed burial and the stone statue from the Early Qin tomb, the Innuits’ ritual as well as the records of suspected occultist activities all over the world…’Could the cultists have been active during the spreading of the Black Plague during middle century Europe? How long has this ritual at the House of Worm been going on?’

“Death is inevitable, none of us can escape from death…” the girl’s voice echoed in his ears. Gu Jun’s eyes focused because suddenly the body of the black plague victim disappeared from inside the fireplace. The next moment, it moved to stand before them. The face filled with pus and black blotches announced emotionlessly, “Not even you, doctor.” Was that an illusion? But everyone saw it and it shut the Zoog up immediately. Before they could do anything else, the bodies of the other children came alive. They crawled out from the fireplaces and the pustules on their bodies burst from their movement.

“Doctor.” The girl, who died from the black plague, demanded, “How do you plan to save us with your measly power? Do you really understand the secret of life and death?”

With a loud boom, the room around them started to swirl and the pentagonal lobby started to change. The walls and ceiling morphed into sticky, yellow pus. The room dissolved into a sickly ocean that intended to consume everything. A giant shadow suddenly appeared at the spot where the girl was originally standing. It was larger than a giant whale. It amalgamated from clusters of rotten meat, its endless twisted limbs flailing about. The ghastly mouths at the end of each limbs snapped on and off, dripping with disgusting pus. It was the legionella pneumophilia bacterium magnified several thousand times!

It sat there wiggling like a creepy worm. The creature’s body was covered in a blanket of human eyes. The eyes embedded in the creature had different colors of pupil. With every blink, pus leaked out from them. Before this giant worm, Gu Jun’s team appeared so small. They only glanced at the eyes for a second before images of plagues surged into their mind…

“Epidemic, disease””The wounds on both humans and animals pustulating””30 to 40 percent fatality rate””The plague claimed the whole family.” They saw prehistoric men dying on the plains and in the forest ravaged by disease. They saw holes filling up with dead bodies and then torched in fire during the middle ages. They heard a children’s ditty that was purportedly sung during the black plague…”Ring around the rosey, Pocket full of posies, Ashes, ashes, we all fall down.”

Then they were brought to the near future where Jiang Xin Municipal, San Hai City and the cities all over the world turned into ghost towns as the population wasted away. These cities were dying, the world was dying.

“Ah…” Lou Xiaoning gripped her head and started to wail. His pistol fell into the pool of pus and her assessment stone glowed dangerously red, the opaline itself was cracking. Enormous sense of pain and helplessness consumed her, driving her crazy. The same was happening to the land’s travellers. The loss of the City of Kindle, all the pain and confusion they had experienced since they left their homeland clawed at their mind… Could they really… overcome this divine visitation of the plague… when they could not even defeat the thousand-eye worm before them… Before divinity, humanity’s determination and strength… was as worthless as filth.

“Doctor, for human beings, the ultimate truth is death. It is the fairest judge, for death is inevitable, how do you plan to resist the truth?” The girl asked. Gu Jun’s head exploded. The strange worm evoked the darkness within him.

‘…Better than us? This pustulating worm is better than us? Laughable… But human, is your own power enough to prove it wrong?’ Gu Jun’s veins pulsed and his muscle twitched. ‘Some cultists, no, not even cultists, just a mere worm can bring the world to its knees. Why? Because they have channelled the power beyond humanity… the power of the Great Old ones… Doctor, with your weak medical knowledge, who can you save? No matter how hard you try, the ending will always be the same, death… Even yours… Ashes, ashes, we all fall down.’

Only

“Shut up…” Gu Jun gritted his teeth and his whole body shook. His hands moved to sign the Ancient Seal but before he could, he collapsed into the sea of pus. His body was overwhelmed by listlessness and pain, it seemed to weigh down on both himself and the Son of Steel. ‘Facing the mutated creatures, and the unresolvable plague… Do you really think common power is enough? Reach out for the fruits of darkness, they are not only accessible to the cultists… The truth of this world is death, the worms of death will live with the Heavens and Earth forever.’

“No, shut up.” He gripped the Carlot autopsy scalpel. Gu Jun refused to surrender to darkness. “If you wish to die, then go ahead. Be my guest…”

“Are you talking to us?” Some of the eyes in the giant worm twitched as they turned to look at him. “Mr. Gu, looks like you still don’t get it. Death is not scary, it is an opportunity, death is an ascendancy to break free from the shackles of normalcy.”

Gu Jun’s heart shuddered as he staggered backwards… Those eyes… were from the wilted faces and the old man from the lighthouse… And the voice… Wait, it was the voice of the man who demanded the document from him! Had these people sacrificed themselves to summon this worm?

His kin that the Zoog saw… They had become part of the thousand-eye worm.

“Mr. Gu.” The voice began again as all the eyes on the worms turned to look at Gu Jun. The latter was the only one still resisting for the rest of his team had already gone down on one knee. “We have misunderstood you and you have misunderstood us.

“You are an answer.” The voice rose in intensity. “Accept your power and awaken your consciousness. Come to us, Son of Misfortune, Master of Plague, for we are your servants!”