Chapter Seventy-One: The Social Structure of the Strange Creatures in Skywell City

Feng Tianlin burst out laughing at what he’d just heard—these bizarre creatures had developed a society, and even had an upper and lower class? He walked up to the stands and casually patted the head of an enormous orange tabby cat. “Why didn’t you go fight just now?”

At his touch, the massive feline twisted its head around, dragging rolls of fat with it, and shot him a disdainful look. “Meow~ Mind your own business.”

Hearing this, Feng Tianlin stroked the cat’s fluffy head, then leaned in and whispered coldly into its ear, “Try talking to me in that tone again.”

The words sent a chill straight into the tabby’s core—its ears flattened and fur bristled all over its body. This was an instinctive reaction, a cat’s natural response to danger.

“What are you doing, meow~?”

Feng Tianlin didn’t hesitate. He seized the scruff of the tabby’s neck and yanked it straight off the seat. The orange cat was utterly powerless, pinned to the ground and whimpering.

This was a C-rank bizarre creature, and yet Feng Tianlin, who was also C-rank, completely overwhelmed it.

The entire audience was thrown into an uproar. They stared at Feng Tianlin in disbelief—who would have thought a bizarre creature would dare stir up trouble here? And by his side, they noticed the demon marionette, cowering obediently.

As all eyes turned toward him, Feng Tianlin smiled softly, tossed the fat cat aside, and swept his gaze over the crowd of bizarre beings.

“Allow me to introduce myself. I am the Nightmare Doll, the true master of this city. There’s a new chief in charge now, and the rules are changing!”

With that, he unleashed his terrifying domain, plunging the surroundings into a dark crimson haze. Qixuan and Bailangen also released all their own formidable auras in support.

This series of moves cowed every bizarre creature present. Not one dared make a wrong move—all eyes fixed on Feng Tianlin.

“The new rule is: when humans invade, every bizarre creature without a special duty must fight on the front lines. No more sitting here and feasting on the fear and terror of human children!”

His decree was a heavy weight, pressing down on every creature’s head. Some were dissatisfied, but it made no difference—they all knew that disobeying this doll was a death sentence.

“Since no one objects, we’ll call that unanimous consent.” Feng Tianlin smiled, withdrew his bizarre domain, and said, “Now, tell me more about this arena. It’s quite an entertaining setup.”

Indeed, the fear generated in this arena was an exquisite delicacy.

The demon marionette, seeing Feng Tianlin’s gaze, hurried to explain:

“This arena was the idea of a human. He suggested we let children fight each other below, so only a handful would survive. In the process, they produce massive amounts of terror and fear, and the parents on the stands do as well, worrying for their children. The children who win in the arena are then trained by us and may eventually fight alongside us.”

Feng Tianlin nodded, though he was still a bit surprised. “You actually took advice from a human?”

---

“Yes, after all, we’re bizarre creatures. We know our limits—our intelligence can’t match that of humans, so we can only compete with them in this way.”

“Aren’t you afraid they’ll rebel?”

“Impossible. We give them everything they want—the most beautiful women among them, endless treasures, sumptuous foods...”

“Food?”

“Yes, we spared several of the city’s top chefs. We need to feed those humans who supply us with fear.”

Feng Tianlin couldn’t help but nod. These bizarre creatures had actually organized the city fairly well.

“In the past, there were very few intelligent bizarre creatures in our city. But starting yesterday, their numbers exploded. Now nearly all C-rank and higher beings possess high intelligence, and even many lower-ranked ones have become quite clever.”

Feng Tianlin understood—this was probably the full-scale onset of the Bizarre Revival. But that wasn’t the end. Sooner or later, this planet would enter a brand new era of the bizarre. Who knew what would happen then, or what conditions would bring about that new age?

Watching the children below continue their savage battle, he didn’t feel pity. After all, humanity had done much the same in the days of civilization. If the adults couldn’t do it, they sent in the children, making them bear everything. There was nothing especially cruel about it—it was simply another method.

A more direct one.

“Is there more?” he asked.

“There is, there is!” The demon marionette eagerly led Feng Tianlin and his companions on a tour of other strange places designed to manufacture terror and fear.

There were rooms where timid people were forced to watch horror movies, places where guests experienced endlessly thrilling amusements, and even scenarios where victims watched themselves being devoured...

At last, they were brought to a familiar place—the ruins of the former Bizarre Creature Investigation Bureau of Skywell City. Amidst the city’s devastation, this building had remained remarkably intact.

“This is where I live. From now on, it will be your residence, too. During the day, you can absorb terror and fear at the factory; at night you’ll handle city affairs.”

Most bizarre creatures preferred to be active at night—Feng Tianlin understood that much. But city affairs? What could a bunch of bizarre creatures possibly have to manage?

He frowned. “City affairs? What affairs?”

“Oh, just stuff like searching for humans hiding underground, dealing with human attacks—mostly formalities, really. We learned it all from humans.”

Feng Tianlin snorted. “So what’s the difference between us and humans, then?”

“What do you mean?”

“Nothing.” Feng Tianlin strode inside. The place was crawling with bizarre creatures, wandering aimlessly.

---

“What are these guys doing here?” He eyed the bizarre creatures, puzzled.

“Oh, they’re civil servants,” the demon marionette replied with a grin.

“And their job is?”

“They... guard the place?” He seemed unsure himself.

Feng Tianlin couldn’t help but laugh in exasperation. “So you’re telling me they just laze around all day, milling about here?”

“Not exactly. Sometimes they go out searching for human survivors...”

“Enough! Why keep a bunch of useless bizarre creatures here?”

“It’s all learned from humans. We have no management system of our own, so we just emulate them...”

Earlier, Feng Tianlin had thought these bizarre creatures were rather clever. But in the end, they were simply copying human society without understanding it.

He shook his head and told the demon marionette, “From now on, you’re my secretary. You’ll continue managing the city day-to-day.”

The marionette nodded.

“I want you to deliver my first order,” Feng Tianlin continued.

The marionette nodded eagerly.

Feng Tianlin closed his eyes for a moment’s contemplation, then spoke: “From now on, every bizarre creature in this city must be put to work—no more idling. Whether it’s searching for human survivors, guarding the terror factory, or training for combat, everyone must contribute. Labor should be rewarded: assign a creature to record everyone’s results, and allocate time in the terror factory accordingly.”

The demon marionette’s eyes lit up—distribution according to labor! No wonder things had felt off before.

“How should we allocate it?” he asked.

“However you like. For example, if you find one human survivor, you get an hour of absorption; two survivors, two hours. At the end of each week, hold a grand evaluation—the higher the ranking, the greater the rewards.”

The marionette grew more excited with each word, slapping his wooden head in delight. “Alright, I’ll get right on it!”

“And set up a human breeding factory, too. Otherwise, if all the humans die out, we’ll be in trouble.”

“Understood, I’ll see to it at once!”