The Informal Tomb Raiding Diary: She is the occupant of the tomb!-Chapter 102: This Childhood Friend Is No Ordinary Person
The old lady’s situation is making me uneasy. Bi Shi said she’s lost her memory. What if she remembers me, but I don’t remember her, and she uses my forgotten weaknesses to outsmart me?
Chen Qinghan sat at the dining table enjoying the free feast the old lady picked out, but I was restless, pulling my hair and trying hard to recall any memory related to the old lady.
However, her face must be different from what I remember, so I couldn’t find any relevant information.
"Forget it, I’ll just go ask her name," I released my hair, turned around, and went out to find Bi Shi.
I found that Bi Shi’s door wasn’t fully closed, so I just pushed it open and saw her hugging the old lady!
"Uh... I, um... never mind, sorry to interrupt!"
"Interrupt my ass, get over here and help me—" exclaimed Bi Shi, pressing against the old lady’s face, trying to push her away.
But the old lady had her arms tightly around her neck, so the distance wasn’t going to widen.
Looking closely, it seemed like they were wrestling, but maybe I was imagining it.
I quickly rushed in to pull the old lady away, casually kicked the door shut; if a murder were to happen, better if there were no witnesses.
"What’s going on? Is she trying to force a kiss on you?"
"Pft! She’s trying to suck my energy away."
The two of us managed to pry the old lady off. At this point, her facial features were all out of place, she looked like a monster.
"Maybe use the Karmic—"
"No!" Bi Shi abruptly interrupted me, "Using it on someone from our kind would get you seriously hurt too."
The old lady’s strength was beyond what I imagined. While we were distracted, she broke free from our grip and dashed out with lightning speed, almost leaving an afterimage.
"Don’t chase, you won’t catch her." Bi Shi rubbed her neck; it was a miracle the old lady hadn’t strangled her.
"What’s the deal? Didn’t she need your help? Why the underhanded move?"
"Heh, you saw what she looks like now. She wants to use my restructuring ability to restore her appearance."
Catching her breath, Bi Shi continued, "Giving her a little wouldn’t harm me."
I blinked, waiting for her ’but.’
"But she might not just restore her appearance, she could also recover forgotten people and events."
When Bi Shi said this, she looked at me in a weird way, then she pouted, "You owe me a favor."
"Can you at least give me a hint—like her name—so I can try to figure things out. Why do I owe you a favor all of a sudden?"
"He Su." Bi Shi gave her trademark cold smile and spat out a word.
Of course, it wasn’t really a word, but a name—He Su!
This time, no need to search purposefully, fragments of memory flooded my mind like a blurring curtain of bullet comments.
"You know, my memories of her are a bit overwhelming, I need a moment..." I slumped onto the couch, supporting my head, while bits and pieces of memories pieced together in my mind.
When everything settled down, I gritted my teeth, "Maybe I should go ahead and kill her. If there’s backlash, so be it. I have nothing else going on, I can take time to heal."
Bi Shi gave a particularly disdainful ’hmph’, "If you wanted to take action, she would’ve been dead ten thousand times over. You’re cold, yet nostalgic, such a contradiction."
I glanced at Bi Shi, she really knew me well. In those recent flood-tide memories, He Su almost monopolized my entire childhood.
In today’s terms, He Su and I were childhood friends, she was my only friend. We supported each other through countless difficulties and dangers. We weren’t bonded by blood in any real sense, but He Su definitely counted as family to me. Back then, I promised her we’d never separate...
But what she wanted was different from what I wanted, which made things complicated. Even more troublesome was the fact she was never the harmless cutie she seemed to be, she’s been much more ruthless than I was in some respects.
"In a single-gender environment, many would turn out bent—not for any particular reason but loneliness. Yet you’re the acknowledged steel-straight-girl, holding the title of the tribe’s straightest person."
"What ridiculous ranking is that? I’m very disappointed in this tribe. Are they all just a bunch of bored drama queens?"
"How could they be idle? War, development, legacy, and gossip are all serious matters."
"For you to say something like that, you must not be someone serious."
"Gossip is in a woman’s nature."
"..." I couldn’t argue with that, since I often eavesdropped and my fascination for gossip was no less than anyone else’s.
"What are you planning to do now? She’s replicated so many genetic clones, living in such a deformed way. Do you want to stop her or just let her be?" Bi Shi suddenly turned serious, discussing the important matters.
"Genetic clones?"
"Yes, replicating herself and constantly devouring her own kind for life and memory continuation. This method has always been banned by the tribe because of its obvious flaws, which you’ve seen."
I knew He Su was ruthless and extremely radical. Hearing about her devouring herself didn’t surprise me at all.
"But, hang on? The black-clad people? They..." Indeed, during the repetitive gene replication process, after devouring and fusion, ’newcomers’ would undergo some changes, causing appearance differences, so I didn’t recognize her.
He Su didn’t have innate regenerative abilities. She could only extend her life using clumsy means. Every time the main body aged, she’d consume the cloned younger gene-ed person for genetic updates. That was her ability—to gain longevity by eating people.
To retain memories and special abilities, she would definitely consume herself, no wonder those black-clad people looked like the walking dead.
"Wait! You injured her just now; is she off to eat someone now?" I sprang up, but Bi Shi didn’t move. She just looked at me.
"Do you want to stop her?" Bi Shi asked.
This stumped me, because she was devouring herself, and everything she replicated was essentially her appendage, unified under her command.
If I reported this, I might not even be able to provide evidence. She’s been doing this for years without any issues, right?
"I think... how about I give her some energy, and you two talk it out?"
"Talk my ass, she’s long lost to the darkness. She won’t listen to anything I say."
I recalled that dream; it was about memories of He Su. We’d argued countless times and fought countless battles to no avail.
Every time, I tried to have a serious talk with her, but she’d always give me that ’not listening, not listening, don’t agree’ attitude.
Then came the quarrels and scuffles. I must admit, without the Karmic Fire, I couldn’t beat her.
"But I still need her to tell me when that time came."
"Which time?"
"That’s a secret!"
"Eat shit!"
"Whatever."
It’s hard to imagine such a meaningless conversation took place between Bi Shi and me.
With the restoration of memories, some indescribable feelings also awoke. As if I just somehow knew, such a conversation could never have happened between Bi Shi and me before.
