Chapter 134: The Great Calamity Doll’s Cocoon Chamber

【Boom!

Amid a thunderous roar, a blade aura burst from the forge carriage. The enormous Furnace Spider King was cleaved in two, raising a thick cloud of dust as it crashed to the ground.】

【With the Spider King’s fall, the other spiders began fleeing in all directions.

The rapidly moving Weaving Train soon left them far behind.】

【You heard the cheers of the crowd. A Demon Slayer sheathed his blade and looked toward the forge carriage, and your gaze followed his.】

【Inside the forge carriage, your Morning Star traced an arc before coming to a stop over the Demon Slayer who had defeated the Furnace Spider King, marking him.】

The Morning Star pointed at the Demon Slayer!

The scene before Chen Qi left him somewhat stunned.

He had released the Morning Star earlier in search of the Mechanical Heart. He had never expected it to end up pointing at a Demon Slayer.

Demon Slayers were high-level professionals from the Demon Abyss, renowned for their ability to combat humanoid calamities.

Yet the Demon Slayer who had delivered the final blow to the Furnace Spider King was actually a puppet!

It was like a dragon-slaying game in which, after the hero and his companions had endured countless hardships to defeat the dragon, the hero suddenly sprouted dragon scales amid the celebrations, turned around, raised his greatsword, and began grinning at his companions.

The instant an enemy fell, the moment one believed victory was assured, was also the moment one was most likely to let down one’s guard.

Chen Qi had to admit that the Cocoon Witch’s skill in crafting puppets had reached a terrifying level.

He looked toward the text and drew the Bow of Lamplight.

【“How did I do, old man? Conductor?”

The Demon Slayer held his greatsword and slowly approached the conductor. The lingering spirituality upon the blade had yet to disperse.】

A line of text appeared.

【Would you like to warn everyone aboard the train?】

Chen Qi looked at the text.

He was standing on the passengers’ side now.

Yes.

【You raised the Bow of Lamplight and drew the string taut. A Lamplight Arrow slowly took shape upon the bow.

“Conductor, you’d better watch your back.”

You fired an arrow at the Demon Slayer.】

【The elderly conductor looked toward you. He had never heard of your name, and in his eyes, you were merely an unknown nobody.

Yet the place where you had appeared, along with your status as a distinguished guest, instantly changed his attitude. He no longer dared to underestimate you.】

【The moment you issued your warning, the Demon Slayer had already swung his greatsword.】

【Your words awakened the conductor’s instincts. He made his decision without hesitation, and a tremendous furnace fire erupted from the steam armor covering his chest!】

【Lava Burst!

The conductor let out a thunderous roar. A searing pillar of heat shot from his chest and blasted toward the Demon Slayer.】

【Boom!

You watched as the scorching radiance illuminated the heavens. The powerful Demon Slayer was burned to ash, leaving behind only a broken puppet core that fell to the ground.】

【“Conductor, what are you doing?!”

The crowd stared at the conductor’s sudden action. To them, this was nothing less than killing the hound once the hunt was over—the conductor had suddenly murdered the great hero who had saved them all.

And you seemed like a demon who had bewitched the hearts of men, ensnaring the conductor with a single sentence! In their eyes, the conductor had already set foot upon the path of madness!】

【You saw several of the Demon Slayer’s comrades begin drawing their blades. The Demon Slayer had been their brother, and now, because of a single sentence from you, he had been reduced to ashes.

One after another, they pointed their blades at you.】

Chen Qi let out a sigh.

Not only could these Demon Slayers’ comrades not tell a puppet from a human, their eyesight was terrible as well.

【“All of you blind fools, shut your mouths!”

The conductor raised one hand and fixed you with a stern gaze. Then he bent slightly and said softly:

“Guest, thank you for warning me just now. It seems you know what happened. Could you tell this old man about it? Please.

“I may have grown dull these past few years, too absorbed in weaving, but please tell us—what happened to this train?”】

【At the conductor’s roar, which shook the carriage like thunder, the entire carriage fell silent. The others lowered their blades.

They looked at one another, then stared wide-eyed at the Demon Slayer’s corpse in the distance. The body revealed a mechanical heart and the structure of a mechanical brain.

Everyone drew a deep breath and looked at the prophet with reverence!】

A crucial line of text appeared.

【Wanderer of the World, would you like to tell everyone about the Cocoon Witch?】

To defeat the Cocoon Witch, they would have to unite everyone’s strength.

Chen Qi pressed Yes.

【The wind generated by the moving train brushed against your face as you slowly told everyone what you knew about the puppets!】

【As the crowd listened, they were thrown into shock and began eyeing one another with suspicion!】

【“The train doctor… no, the Cocoon Witch…”

The conductor fell silent for a moment.

The Cocoon Witch had been driven from New Capital District Eight by the Crow Witch. At the time, the Cocoon Witch had been gravely wounded by the Crow Witch’s weather domain.

Because his Weaving Train traveled throughout New Capital, the train staff often contracted strange and unusual illnesses.

For that reason, the conductor had taken in the severely wounded Cocoon Witch and allowed her to become a doctor aboard the train. She had fulfilled her duties and remained on the train for a full three years, treating countless people.

He had never imagined that he had invited aboard a monster who had set foot upon the path of madness and worshiped calamity!】

【He recalled several details. He vaguely remembered the Demon Slayer he had just killed.

That Demon Slayer had sought a stronger body and undergone surgery at the hands of the Cocoon Witch.】

【He recalled countless details he had previously overlooked, and he could almost be certain that everything you had said was true.】

【“Thank you, guest.”

The elderly conductor shook his head. He had boarded this train to escape the schemes and intrigues of human society.

He had lived aboard this train for far too long and traveled too far.

Yet before his death, he had still lost to the false face of a witch.

The conductor let out a long sigh, then quickly pulled himself together.

“Everyone, do as our guest has instructed!

“Spread this information and watch those who have undergone surgery! They may already have become puppets! The best way to identify them is by weighing them!

“Anyone who refuses to be weighed after undergoing surgery is to be attacked immediately. Do not hesitate!”】

【The people in the forge carriage sprang into action as soon as they heard the conductor’s order!】

Chen Qi looked at the text and released a long breath.

At least now they knew where the source of the danger lay, rather than remaining completely ignorant of their true enemy.

The next instant, a line of red text appeared.

【“Cocoon Sentence: Land of Impalement.”

The Cocoon Witch slowly entered the forge carriage and unleashed her killing move.

“You were one step too late, Weaver. And that inexplicable black flame is troublesome as well.

“Before long, it may even draw that old woman, the Crow Witch, here…”】

【The Cocoon Witch tilted her head upward at a forty-five-degree angle, her venomous, serpentine eyes staring at you resentfully.】

【In an instant, threads suddenly emerged from the walls. Like countless sharp bullets, they pierced through the entire carriage.】

Chen Qi gritted his teeth.

The Cocoon Witch had followed him from the other carriage.

【The conductor endured the attack head-on and stood before the crowd, roaring:

“This is my territory, witch! You are playing with fire and will burn yourself. You will pay the price!”】

【The conductor removed a blazing mechanical core from his hand. This core could activate the Weaving Train’s ultimate defensive weapon!

As long as he possessed it, he was the strongest person aboard the train.】

The Hammer Aspects were all masters of forging, but that did not mean they were incapable of combat.

Machinery, traps, weapons, and the like were all specialties of the Hammer Aspects.

Aboard the Weaving Train, the conductor could use this mechanical core to mobilize the defensive power of the entire train.

【The corners of the Cocoon Witch’s lips curled upward.

“That will soon no longer be the case, Conductor. I have entered an entirely new realm.

“Do you know what a domain is?”】

【You looked toward the Cocoon Witch. Dozens of pairs of hands woven from white threads grew from her body. Her white hair continued lengthening, while steel-sharp limbs emerged from within.

In an instant, she transformed into a terrifying spider monster.】

【The Cocoon Witch said softly:

“Welcome to calamity.

“Welcome to the Cocoon Chamber…”】

【Immediately afterward, white threads appeared from nowhere throughout the train and continued spreading!

You held your breath. You could feel that, along with the Cocoon Witch’s transformation, a terrifying calamity had taken shape.】

Chen Qi was startled.

【High in the sky, you vaguely saw a strand of spider silk drifting downward. Then you heard a lullaby.】

A line of crimson text appeared.

【The Morning Star’s appraisal has issued a warning: You are now within the calamity known as the Puppet Cocoon Chamber.】

(End of Chapter)