Reincarnated as a Demi-Human

Chapter 9: Junkyard Spider

The Scrapyard. The final resting place for run-down cars who've seen better days, now smashed together to form staggering towers—hills of scraps and parts scattered across the grounds and nearly flooding over the fencing. It was the last place anyone would consider taking refuge if one was hunted or chased by a group of angry demons. For Aizhen, this metallic graveyard was her only salvation from facing a fate worse than death.

Aizhen approached the gate and tried to jimmy the door, but it wouldn't budge. It's secured with an electronic lock and reinforced with chains. It required a pin to unlock, but Aizhen wasn't going to waste time guessing numbers starting with "1, 2, 3." Instead, she grabbed the lock, used her draconic strength to rip it off, and tossed it aside. Kicking open the door, she ran inside and returned to the gate. She used the fallen chains to tie the doors together, hoping it would hold long enough for her to find a place to lay low.

Aizhen strode down, gazing at the hills upon hills of scrap metal, parts, and assortment of junk that littered the area. Her nose cringed, picking up the foul rustic odor from the automobile's corpses when she cautiously approached the Jenga car tower. Black liquid dripped from the bottom stack, creating a fresh puddle near her feet. She took a step back to avoid staining her shoes, coiling in disgust at the sight of the 'blood' leaking from the vehicle.

How strange. Automobiles can bleed like mortals? She thought as she bent down to examine the dark ooze further. Dabbing a finger into the liquid, she rubbed it against her thumbs. The ooze left a dark mark on her fingertips. When she took a sniff, she turned to the side and coughed. It smelt like gasoline and charcoal burnt to ash. She brushed her palm against the side of her pant leg, but it just left a stain mark that made the embroidered dragon spew soot.

"Ewww...Okay, note to self: Never stick fingers in black bloodied puddles nor any liquid of that matter...." she made a mental note to herself, reaching into her pocket to take out a small sanitizer bottle.

She kept a few of the freebie bottles she received from the spa after Camille explained each of their use. The 'sanitizer' was a special elixir that allowed one to purify their hands without washing, but only used for emergencies like if you sneeze into your palms or get sticky syrup from sugar butterflies. In this case, having charcoal ooze on your fingers counted as an emergency.

Squirting a reasonable sum into her palm, she rubbed her hands together for a couple of minutes to ensure the sanitizer washed away the oil that had stained the tip of her fingers. After it settled, she inspected her hands- spotless and smelt of lotus flowers. How pleasant to replace the burnt charcoal smell in her sinuses.

Rising from the ground, she listened for any sign of Tanlan and his goons. She could only hear the munching of metal far off in the distance. It sounded like a monster crunching up the bones of his victims.

She managed to get distance between Tanlan and his gang. Earlier, she caught their attention to steer their eyes from the truck toward her. She darted down the block like a cheetah when they charged toward her. It was a good thing there weren't many pedestrians down the block; if there were, she'd warn them to head to safety before Tanlan caught up to her. The last thing she needed was innocent people caught in the crossfire.

Her next course of action was to figure out how to handle Tanlan and his men. She had managed to slip away from them, but she would have to fight if they came after her. Although she possessed dragon strength, she wondered what other abilities she had in her arsenal. Curiously, she flicked her fingers and watched a tiny spark fly through the air, reminiscent of flint striking an ember against a pile of sticks, only to vanish within seconds. She continued flickering her fingers until the tenth flick—whoosh! A ball of light formed in her palm and rose above her head.