Ancient Doomsday Traveler

Chapter 1 The Lonely Storyteller

"After beheading Jiang Menshen and Zhang Dujian, Wu Song saw wine and meat on the table, picked up the wine cup and drank it all in one gulp. He then cut off a piece of clothing from the corpses, dipped it in blood, and wrote on the white wall: 'The killer is Wu Song, the tiger slayer!'"

It is said: The greed of the military commander is utterly shameful; he plotted wicked schemes and sowed deep hatred. Little did he know that Heaven's justice would be revealed, and his blood-soaked corpse lay exposed—"

"Snapped!"

As the setting sun cast its last rays, the gavel struck the table, and Lin Xiu declared in a resounding, rhythmic voice, "Manhualou!"

Outside the Mandarin Duck Tower in Mengzhou City, Lin Xiu set up a table at the entrance, blocking the doorway, and began to tell the story of Wu Song's bloodshed at the Mandarin Duck Tower in a dramatic and passionate manner.

However, not a single customer in the Mandarin Duck Pavilion responded.

The only one who responded to him was the unconventional black donkey following beside him.

The black donkey has a tuft of hair on its head, which is quite long and hangs diagonally to one side, always covering one of its eyes, giving it a naturally unconventional and flamboyant look.

"Mmm~ Mmm~ Mmm~~~~"

The black donkey brayed, and the tuft of hair moved even further toward its eyes, so the black donkey had to keep braying and shaking its head in an attempt to get rid of the tuft of hair.

This action made the black donkey even more excited, as if it was listening intently to Lin Xiu's storytelling and wished it could follow Wu Song into the Mandarin Duck Tower and kick him a few times.

Helpless, Lin Xiu threatened, "Brother Donkey, if you bray again and wake up the living dead inside, I'll have no choice but to cut off your hooves and see if that can ward off evil."

"ah--"

Brother Donkey brayed for half a minute, then suddenly fell silent. The long hair on his head also quieted down, covering his eyes as if sealing the black donkey.

Lin Xiu sighed softly and looked at the Mandarin Duck Tower in front of him, which shared the same name as the one in the story of "Water Margin".

There are indeed people in the building.

Behind the counter at the entrance stood the hotel's accountant, who usually liked to lean against the counter, casually fiddling with the abacus beads, listening intently to Lin Xiu's storytelling.

Sitting at the square table next to the counter and near the door was Old Yan, a coolie who had come from the docks. He used to come to Yuanyanglou every day, buy the cheapest green ant wine for a dime, order no side dishes, and leave after drinking. At first, he wouldn't even sit down, but later, if he wanted to listen to storytelling, he would sit for a while at the table by the door.

The table in front was full of people, dressed in fine clothes and with frivolous expressions. Beautiful women served them. They were all noble people in the city. They had become obsessed with the story of Wu Song fighting the tiger, so they came every day to occupy the front row seats. They couldn't give up the pleasures of the brothel, so they specially invited beauties from the brothel to serve them.

And then there's the stunningly beautiful proprietress. Whenever there's an empty seat in the building, she'll find a place to sit, prop her hand on her cheek, and lean to the side, staring at Lin Xiu. It never seems like she's listening; it's more like she's looking at him. And now she's sitting right next to these young masters.

Besides them, there were other patrons sitting in twos and threes, all of whom were old acquaintances.

After all, the storyteller Lin Xiu's tale of Wu Song fighting the tiger was so dramatic and exhilarating that it was a real treat to listen to.

Moreover, Lin Xiu described the location in the story as Mengzhou City and Yuanyang Tower. After the story of Wu Song fighting the tiger spread, many people became curious about this restaurant and frequented it.

However, this lively scene in the restaurant had already been frozen in time.

Lin Xiu's gaze swept across the Yuanyang Tower. If it were any other time, the patrons would have put down their wine utensils and chopsticks, banged on the table and cheered, or protested that it was ending so abruptly at the crucial point, demanding that Lin Xiu continue.

But now, whether it's the accountant behind the counter, Old Yan at the door, the young master in the front row, the proprietress next to him, or the other drinkers, they are all frozen in place like wax figures, their skin dry and cracked due to loss of function, and their pupils dilated because they have long since died.

Or rather... could it be considered death?

This world, this city, has long been ravaged by disaster and has become like this.

No one knows how the catastrophe came about. In any case, when the catastrophe came, many people became like these living dead. They were usually still and seemingly dead, but when disturbed, they would suddenly attack, kill, and bite the living.

The living are either bitten to death or infected and turned into the same living dead.

Therefore, Lin Xiu asked Brother Donkey to be quiet, and Brother Donkey obediently quieted down.

Brother Donkey is fierce. His move, "Flat Sands and Wild Geese, Donkey Kicks," can easily turn an activated undead into a pulp.

When the disaster struck, most of the people in the city turned into the undead they are now. The remaining few either escaped, were bitten to death by the undead, or were infected and turned into the same undead.

The situation was critical at that time, and Lin Xiu was almost pounced on by a living dead man. It was only when Brother Donkey suddenly kicked out that the living dead man was completely killed with one hoof, and Lin Xiu was saved.

Therefore, Lin Xiu felt that the luckiest thing in the world after transmigrating was finding Brother Donkey.

And then there was the proprietress of Yuanyang Tower.

When I first transmigrated, I had no one to rely on but Brother Donkey. When I was desperate and almost killed Brother Donkey to fill my stomach, it was the landlady who took me in, gave me a place to live, and even tried to get me to make money by telling stories.

But now things have changed. The once vast city of Mengzhou has become a ghost town, and the shopkeepers in the streets and alleys have become living dead in the buildings. When they wake up again, it will only be a matter of life and death.

That's why he moved the table to the doorway to block it while he was telling stories, and stood outside himself.

This is to prevent the living dead inside from suddenly waking up and not having time to escape.

Lin Xiu sighed and said in a low voice, "Boss lady, you said back then that the story of Wu Song fighting the tiger was very good and that you wanted to hear it from beginning to end no matter what. I also promised to tell you the whole story."

Now that Wu Song's blood has spilled at the Mandarin Duck Tower, this story can be considered to have come to an end. Having fulfilled my promise to you, after tonight I should also leave this deserted city. We will never meet again.

"Mmm~ Mmm~"

Brother Donkey brayed twice more, but not as loudly as before; he deliberately lowered his voice, as if he were saying goodbye.

The landlady used to treat Donkey Brother quite well, providing him with fresh hay every day and occasionally giving him alcohol, successfully training him to be a drunken donkey.

Now that the landlady is practically a living dead, and we can't even drink wine anymore, Brother Donkey must miss her terribly.

Lin Xiu glanced at Brother Donkey, who immediately tossed his head and glared at Lin Xiu, his mouth twisting to reveal a mouthful of big front teeth, and he made a "pfft" sound, as if he was provoking Lin Xiu, "So what if I'm being arrogant!"

"This donkey is so disobedient, shouldn't we consider eating it?"

A woman's voice suddenly rang out.

Lin Xiu was startled and immediately took a broadsword from the saddlebag on the donkey's back.

The donkey was also pawing the ground with its hooves, its cunning eyes not only wary of the source of the sound, but also of Lin Xiu.