Defeat the system! Kiss my little monster!

Floating in the air, barely surviving, it recorded the current situation and pulled out a data panel to glance at the current task progress bar.

Name: Shen Yu.

[Current Rebirth Completion Status: 37%]

Gouqie Tousheng, clearly satisfied, folded up its mechanical bed and floated behind the beaded curtain. The bed still held a little warmth, and Gouqie Tousheng instinctively squatted down and settled comfortably onto the larger bed inside.

*

The next day, Shen Yu opened his eyes at the appointed time. It was still dark outside, and the inner palace was shrouded in darkness.

Shen Yu frowned and sat up. His arm ached, but the rest of his body felt fine. Confused, Shen Yu rubbed his arm and looked behind the beaded curtain.

Wen Yu was still asleep with his back to him. A faint purple light appeared above his body. Shen Yu shifted his gaze and saw that Gou Qie was also fast asleep, lying on top of Wen Yu's waist-length black hair and hugging his data card.

Shen Yu: "...?"

He stared at that side speechlessly for a long time, then got up, changed his clothes, and walked out of the inner hall.

Today was the day the spies from the photo studio were to deliver the antidote to him. Shen Yu had already told the head housekeeper the location and arrived early at the backyard to wait.

Kunning Palace was under constant surveillance by palace maids and eunuchs, but the back courtyard was rarely visited. Wen Yu had said that there were many poisonous creatures in the back courtyard, and most of the palace maids and eunuchs were afraid of these things, so they dared not linger there.

This became a good place for Shen Yu to communicate with the photography studio. He had previously taken the opportunity to explore the backyard several times, and there were indeed several giant pythons roaming in the woods and poisonous scorpions lurking in the sand, making it a dangerous area that was clearly visible to the naked eye.

Shen Yu asked Wen Yu for some medicinal powder that could dispel poison. Wen Yu himself was immune to all poisons, and the powder he ground himself was quite effective. After Shen Yu used it a few times, the poisonous snakes and scorpions would consciously retreat to the side when they smelled his scent.

Shen Yu arrived at the location he had marked earlier. A moment later, another figure dressed entirely in black walked out from the side path.

"Shen Yu?" The person who came stopped and asked Shen Yu.

Shen Yu nodded, sized up the newcomer, and asked, "Are you Ying Ji?"

"I am Ying Shiqi, a humble person." The mask on the newcomer's face was old, and his eyes were black. He looked at Shen Yu and spoke slowly, "The Lord of the Pavilion already knows about your situation and specifically sent me to help you."

As he spoke, he tossed the medicine bottle in his hand to Shen Yu.

Shen Yu took the document from behind, glanced at Ying Shiqi, and said, "I can still handle Wen Yu, but he is very wary, and I haven't been able to find an opportunity to make a move yet. However, His Majesty's secret guards also came after hearing the commotion last night, and I'm afraid I'll be overwhelmed."

“I’ll deal with Mu Yuyuan,” Shadow Seventeen said calmly. “You find an opportunity to kill Wen Yu.”

Mu Yuyuan is the new commander of the secret guards. Shen Yu had heard of him back when he was in the photo studio.

This man was a martial arts prodigy. He entered the palace at the age of fifteen and single-handedly killed ten high-ranking shadow guards from the Shadow Pavilion at the age of sixteen. He then became famous in one battle and was appointed as the current commander of the secret guards at the age of eighteen. He was also the youngest commander of the secret guards in the Yue Kingdom in a hundred years.

Before Shen Yu came to Yue Kingdom, the Lord had mentioned Mu Yuyuan's name many times and told Shen Yu to be careful.

Shen Yu had previously lived in a post-apocalyptic world, fighting zombies and killing countless traitors. But in this world, without guns and ammunition, and with Shen Yu only being an ordinary person who had studied martial arts for a few months, he would likely have to expend considerable effort if he were to face Mu Yuyuan.

Shen Yu glanced at Ying Shiqi. Ying Shiqi was about the same height as him. The only part of his eyes that was visible under the mask was narrow and long, and the emotions inside were calm and unwavering.

In the photo studio, people are ranked according to their abilities; the lower the number, the stronger the ability. Shen Yu had seen Ying Shiqi in the photo studio before. Back then, Ying Shiqi was a middle-aged man nearing fifty. Now, this person has taken his place, so he must have just won the competition not long ago.

"You don't look very old," Shen Yu said. "Do you need my help?"

After handing over the reins to Shen Yu, Ying Shiqi was about to leave when he heard Shen Yu's words and paused, then chuckled softly: "Brother, I'm already several hundred years old."

Shen Yu: "..."

"If I need help, I'll inform the head maid in advance. Please keep an eye on her situation." After saying this, Ying Shiqi walked back towards the path she had just come from. "See you next time."

His figure disappeared into the dense forest. Shen Yu watched him walk away and stuffed the medicine bottle into his shirt pocket.

Dawn had broken, and the white light gradually revealed the outline of the dragon atop the palace. Shen Yu calculated the time that had passed, then turned and walked towards the Kunning Palace.

The palace maids and eunuchs would get up at dawn to wash and prepare for their morning routine. Now that time had long passed, Shen Yu wanted to avoid arousing suspicion and should try to get back before Wen Yu woke up.

He walked along the side path, weaving through the dense forest. Mounds of earth appeared intermittently in the backyard; these mounds, dug by unknown people, appeared haphazardly beside the forest path, and giant pythons often coiled around them.

Shen Yu glanced at the mounds of earth, and then suddenly stopped in his tracks just as he was about to leave.

The mound near the backyard exit was covered with unidentified purple-leaved wildflowers, which almost covered the entire hillside. Below, the grass was lush, unlike the previous mounds of earth which were barren and desolate.

Shen Yu stopped in his tracks. Along the way, he had seen at least seven or eight mounds of earth, all of which were piled up with yellow soil and covered with weeds, but none of them were as lush as the flowers and plants on this mound.

The only thing they have in common is that they all have similar purple-leaved flowers growing on them.

Shen Yu didn't know the origin of these purple-leafed flowers. He hadn't read any ancient books on the subject, and at this point he only vaguely remembered the shape of the flowers, intending to ask Wen Yu about it when he got back.

Shen Yu stood in front of the mound by the door, deliberately trying to remember the characteristics of these purple-leaved flowers, and then squatted down.

The strong, putrid stench rushed directly into Shen Yu's nostrils.

Shen Yu frowned, his gaze slowly sweeping over the purple leaves and flowers on the mound, confirming the source of the scent.

These flowers and plants themselves had no odor, and Shen Yu hadn't smelled anything unusual when he stood in front of the mound. He picked one of the flowers and smelled it closely, but it still had no scent.

That stench of decay...

Shen Yu's gaze stopped. He used his hand to remove a little soil from the area where the purple leaves were growing most densely, and he could feel the stench of decay growing stronger and stronger underneath.

Shen Yu vaguely guessed something, so he continued digging and, after brushing aside the surface layer of soil, found a rotten finger.

It wasn't completely rotten yet; only a little bit of the white bone joints were exposed.

Shen Yu looked for a few seconds, then heard footsteps outside. He quickly pushed the soil back to its original position and stood up.