Chapter 58: Settling Accounts (Part II)

Thorn District, White Feather Station.

The middle-aged man who kept the pigeons, seeing that no one was around at this late hour—likely due to the chaotic brawl in the Central District—decided to head downstairs for a break.

He walked down the stairs, brushing past someone standing on the rooftop without ever realizing there was a second person there. Naturally, unable to see the "true" him, he could not hear the person's voice either.

"This round was a failure."

According to the plan, Shigure Reiichi would not have arrived in time. In his despair, he would have made a final trade at the cost of his own life to restore the life of Caldesia Spencer. The nearly omnipotent Cursed Scales would have been removed from the board today; with Shigure gone, the plans for the Zero Island side would have proceeded much more smoothly.

Gongsun Ce would have been locked in a protracted, grueling battle with the Dust Explosion, or at the very least, his strength would have been severely depleted. Weakened, he would have been easily dealt with or driven mad by the erosion of malicious information. The End Sword would have been recovered, and this troublesome Dragon-kin would have been completely cleared from the chessboard.

"As long as Xuanzhi-kun holds the Dragon's Head, the final insurance mechanism of the Azure Sky City will not fail. I didn't hold high expectations for the awakening of all Dragon-kin, but failing to eliminate even one was beyond my predictions."

Coo, coo. The large pigeons tilted their heads. Animal instinct made them aware of someone's presence, yet they could not perceive his appearance, much like a small monkey scratching its head at a video recording.

The pigeon's pupils reflected the figure.

He was not tall, and he looked young. His features were refined, his eyes pitch black, and he had flowing black hair, dressed in a beautiful black robe. From his appearance alone, he looked like a child in his early teens.

His voice was as youthful as a child's, yet the words he spoke lacked even a shred of innocence.

"Which was the true objective? Both were, and both were means to disrupt the situation."

Being able to trigger the awakening of numerous Dragon-kin was naturally a good thing, and eliminating pawns that repeatedly caused trouble was also a successful outcome for this round. Use the false to mask the real, use the real to mask the false; how to move the pieces depends entirely on the situation.

*Sword Coming*

He reviewed the entire situation again. He realized that the flaw in this round was not the Heavenly Pole he had been guarding against, but two insignificant commoners. The actions of Miles and Qiluo had caused an unforeseen chain reaction. He still had the strength to correct it... but blocking Heavenly Pole was already a gamble. With the Azure Head District now on alert, acting in person again would be unwise.

"It was merely a casual move; there is no need to risk myself."

He had unleashed the power of the Spirit Prison Realm to create a fake "Dragon of the Netherworld" to send to Azure Head. If the interception failed, he could use that opportunity to probe the man's bottom line. And indeed, Heavenly Pole had been cautious and dared not act rashly because of this fake dragon, exactly as he had anticipated.

Perhaps it was the fear of the events of three years ago repeating themselves that made him so cautious.

Even those at the peak of the Creation Realm were human in the end. As long as they had hearts, they had emotions; as long as they had thoughts, fears, and desires, they could not escape the chessboard. Conversely, the emotions of small pawns could occasionally cause them to veer off the predetermined track and perform unpredictable actions.

The person stretched.

"As for the lesson learned... you were right. It is best not to underestimate the pawns. If I had spent a little more effort on the pawns, this round would have taken a different turn."

It was just a game he had set up during his spare time while waiting, merely to pass the time. Success would be natural, and failure would be of no consequence.

There was no opponent here; from beginning to end, it was merely one person amusing himself. It had nothing to do with his true purpose.

"Data collection for Test Subject 293 is complete. With this, I should be able to understand myself further. And then..."

A cluster of glass-colored crystals appeared in the boy's hand.

"The power of the Void Flower Realm, recovery complete."

The crystals in the Abinos Mountains were merely remnants. To truly recover the power of the Void Flower Realm, he would need to search carefully in the airspace where it had descended.

He looked at the power of the Glass Dragon with satisfaction and made it vanish from his hand.

This was the reason he had induced Gongsun Ce and Shigure Zero to meet; this was the purpose of his stay in Azure Sky City until now—to take the power of the Glass Dragon into his own hands.

With two of the six realms' powers now in his possession, they were one step closer to eternal life.

Tap. Tap.

The sound of footsteps climbing the stairs came from behind; it was surely the middle-aged man returning.

He did not care. He leaned against the doorway and muttered to himself contentedly, "How should I play the next move?"

The man who had reached the rooftop replied with enthusiasm.

"Shall we fight?"

The moment he heard that voice, the person's composed expression twisted slightly.

"Wha—"

Walking up from downstairs was not the breeder of the bio-pigeons, but a long-haired swordsman in green robes carrying twin blades.

Ming Ke stared straight at him, saying with great interest, "So that's what you look like. Shall we fight?"

The person retreated abruptly to the center of the rooftop, no longer able to remain as calm as before.

"Ming Ke?!"

Ming Ke tapped the hairpin on his head.

"I can always find what I'm interested in."

You have done many things in this city. If I didn't listen to some music to distract myself, even this hairpin might have malfunctioned due to the interference.

Wind, scent, sound—traces of that pink-haired girl were mixed into many, many places. If you keep looking, you eventually end up in front of her.

But he wasn't looking for a harmless child like that, but the source of the strange smell. He had pondered for a long time when he saw Qiluo this morning, only half-understanding, and could only make one guess: perhaps the ability was the same, but the person was different.

He followed the faint guidance of the hairpin and continued his actions, circling Azure Sky City in a wide arc. The path he had walked over these three days was exactly where the person had been. And once this route map was mastered by his old friend, finding this person was easy.

Ming Ke raised his hand and pointed to the sky.

The chess player with the appearance of a child hurriedly looked up.

" ?!"

He saw a beam of light. This light pierced the dark night and landed on his head, pointing out his location in an almost provocative manner.

"Xuanzhi-kun?!"

Ming Ke nodded with a smile.

The person could no longer afford to waste time. He waved his hand, releasing a sheet of glass crystals to engulf the swordsman, and ran toward the edge of the rooftop at top speed, attempting to escape this dangerous place!

Flutter! Flutter!

The giant pigeons, seeing the glass crystals, flapped their wings in terror, scattering white feathers everywhere. In this flurry of snow-white, a corner of black clothing was revealed.

At the edge of the rooftop, a man in a black coat sat on the ground with a bold, unrestrained posture. He looked at the panicked child, stroked his chin, and said in a strange, mocking tone: "I haven't heard enough, let's keep talking."

"Heavenly Pole?!"

The person could no longer afford to say anything. He channeled the power of the Dragon of the Netherworld with all his might, flooding the rooftop with gray-white mist, and rushed into the night sky without reservation, attempting to escape the encirclement from the air!

He flew up into the moonlight, passed through layers of clouds, and calculated his position in his mind. In the span of a few breaths, he landed deep in a narrow alley. He activated a mechanism hidden in the shadows; the dilapidated wall vibrated, revealing an iron door.

Lingering in fear, he pulled the iron door open and escaped inside.

He saw a floor covered in white feathers.

"Wha—"

Flutter! Flutter! The startled pigeons flapped their wings desperately, unable to break free from the iron bars. The swordsman in green stood by the door, the crystals beside him shattered; the painter in black sat in front, wearing a mocking sneer.

He was actually back at the Gray Feather Station in the Thorn District, the very place he had just tried so hard to escape!

"Out of tricks? Then go to hell."

The light in the night sky grew brighter. He clutched his chest with a ferocious expression and spat out a large mouthful of black blood.

"Cough-wah!"

His complexion turned black and purple, blood leaked from his seven orifices, and black spots crawled across his exposed skin, making him look as terrifying as if he were possessed by an evil spirit. The person could no longer speak. All the strength in his body vanished, his legs went weak, and he collapsed to the ground.

"Ah... ahhhhh!!!!"

Ming Ke reminded him kindly: "You've been cursed."

Tap, tap, tap.

Another set of footsteps sounded from the stairs.

This time, the person who stepped onto the rooftop was a middle-aged man wearing purple official robes and a black official hat.

Liu Zhongwu bowed with a beaming smile: "Hello, hello, I am Liu Zhongwu from the Ritual Office. I have admired you from afar for a long time, but unfortunately, my official duties have been so busy that I am only now able to find the time to meet you in person. My hospitality has been lacking, and I have failed to welcome you properly. Please forgive any slights."

He stared fixedly at the visitor, his mouth opening and closing, unable to form a single coherent sentence: "...ah, ah..."

Yan Qi thoughtfully supplemented for the guest: "This moron says he loves to play chess."

Liu Zhongwu frowned and scolded: "How can you speak to a guest like that?"

Ming Ke tried hard to suppress the urge to laugh.

Director Liu's expression changed again, replaced by a friendly smile, and he asked kindly: "What a coincidence, I love to play chess too. I like playing Go. My skills aren't great; I just use it to pass the time after tea. May I ask, what kind of chess do you excel at?"

Yan Qi tapped the floor: "He was jumping all over the city, he must love Chinese Checkers!"

Qin Ming said seriously: "His chess style is very strange; it might be Five-in-a-Row."

The two wicked men echoed each other, then laughed out loud at the same time.

The look of bitter hatred in the person's eyes was almost enough to flow out like venom.

"Azure Sky City is a good place. Good scenery, good environment, and good development. As for chess, we have plenty of time to play slowly..." Liu Zhongwu rubbed his plump white fingers together. "Since you've come all this way, don't leave."

The person's features twisted and melted like a burning wax figure. In the blink of an eye, he became a grotesque sight. His skin, muscles, and bones all melted into liquid bit by bit, turning into a puddle of foul-smelling black water!

A tiny, emerald light shone within the black water, and only his howl of extreme resentment remained in the air.

"How dare you...!!!!"

The true form of that green light was an ancient jade pendant. Yan Qi held his nose and picked it up: "It's unlikely this is the main body. Fatty, do you have a count?"

Liu Zhongwu pinched his fingers to calculate.

"There should be one more. Unfortunately, his constitution is special; it's hard to say if he can be cursed to death, but at least he'll lose more than half his life."

Ming Ke shook his head and sighed: "How vicious."

·

Abinos Mountains, deep within.

In the glass-colored crystal mountains, a child holding a cloth bag suddenly changed his expression.

"The Heart-Linked Jade is lost..."

Another beam of light shone on his head. The child's main body was terrified.

"There's more?!"

Blood from the seven orifices, rotting bones, and corroding hearts—the terrifying curse played out once again!

"—Ah, ah, ahhhhhhh!!!!!"

He wailed miserably and shrieked shrilly, using every ounce of his strength to fight against the insidious curse. But the more he resisted, the more intense the pain became; the more he struggled, the more venomous the curse grew!

The cloth bag in his hand fell and rolled down the hillside.

"Ah... ahhhhh..."

The inhuman screams grew weaker. The person's skin turned entirely into a black, sewage-like substance.

Unable to stand any longer, he crawled toward the foot of the mountain with extreme slowness, leaving a trail of black filth like a snail's path on the ground.

A long sigh drifted from the cloth bag in the distance, a voice the person had heard before.

"The warning is given; the choice is yours~"

·

Thorn District, Pigeon Station. Liu Zhongwu retracted his finger seals.

"Someone has intervened. The timing was perfect; I can't pinpoint the exact range."

Yan Qi waved his hand: "Give me 20 Manifestations, mobilize all forces to lock down that entire sector! I'm taking the Gongsun kid and the Shigure kid down there!"

Liu Zhongwu's eyes almost popped out of their sockets.

"Master Yan, you don't know the cost of living until you run a household. 20 Manifestations? Do you think we're in Suberbia three years ago?"

The painter frowned: "Your dump can't even scrape together 20 Manifestations? Then 10 will do."

"Do you think Manifestation-realm experts are cabbages sold in bulk?! Except for those in key positions who cannot be moved lightly, all the remaining Manifestations in Azure Sky City have been slaughtered by that fool!!! The only one available now is Shigure Zero. I'll authorize him for you—do you dare use him?"

Liu Zhongwu pulled over a staff member's chair at the pigeon station and sat down. He thought of the glass crystals and Netherworld mist used by the mysterious person, and then thought of Qin Ming, whose actions were unpredictable. He shook his head and said, "Even if I abandoned my duties to go with you, it's hard to say if they don't have a backup plan. This matter is of extreme importance and should be handled with the utmost caution... Let's stabilize Azure Sky City first, and then leave it to His Majesty to decide."

Yan Qi looked carefully at the jade pendant in his hand, raised his eyebrows, and didn't know what he had discovered.

He tucked it away and laughed: "Heh, exposing their bottom line isn't a wasted trip."

The man in green waited for the two to finish speaking before asking gently, "What are you talking about?"

"What are we talking about? We're talking about how you, Qin Ming, are a fool!"

Liu Zhongwu's nose was almost crooked with anger: "Who do you think is responsible for this awkward situation?! Who slaughtered the backbone of Azure Sky City?! Who knew they were being used and still intended to awaken 5.7 million Dragon-kin?! Huh?!"

Ming Ke's expression remained unchanged, and he was righteous and bold: "Me."

Director Liu had been in the bureaucracy for many years and his ability to maintain composure was usually excellent, but today he broke into a rare, furious tirade: "You bastard! Lawless! I'll curse you to death, you scoundrel!"

He rolled up his sleeves and charged over in two steps. The man in green's eyes lit up: "Want to fight?"

Seeing the tension between the two, Yan Qi reached out a hand and stopped Liu Zhongwu.

"You're still proud of yourself, eh?" He took out a writing brush and sneered, "Using Creation-realm power against two children—you've lost all sense of shame!"

Ming Ke said seriously: "No—"

"Bullshit, a child is a child. No matter how strong the power is, they are still children."

"You—"

"I'm scolding you!"

Liu Zhongwu sat back on the chair and hummed a little tune. Ming Ke said helplessly: "I've had something I wanted to say to you for a long time, Yan Qi."

Qin Ming said in a deadpan voice: "You value talent and despise small details—impolite."

Yan Qi retorted immediately: "You obsess over small etiquette and lose the greater righteousness—immoral!"

Ming Ke held back for a while, then said stiffly: "I can't out-talk you."

"I have reason, so naturally you can't out-talk me!"

Yan Qi took out his writing brush; Ming Ke drew his twin blades.

"Free now?" "I don't fight without a benefit."

"One move to decide the winner." "Fine."

Liu Zhongwu stood up with his hands behind his back, removed the shackles of the giant pigeons, and let the startled birds fly into the sky.

"Mind the impact, don't make too big a scene."

He walked down the stairs step by step, thinking that the personalities of his old friends hadn't changed a bit. Should he say they hadn't grown in all these years, or had they already become exactly who they wanted to be?

The birds had all flown away, and only the two middle-aged men occupied each side of the rooftop.

The man in green robes held his twin blades, and a dim yellow sky, a fantastical world, appeared behind him.

"Strange Phase: Creation Realm—Asura Pure Land."

Heavenly beings attain purity; Asuras are called warriors. Constant warfare—truly a pure land.

The man in black robes flicked his wrist and wielded his brush; a single drop of ink shone like a star, perfect and flawless.

"Quiet Phase: Breaking Realm—Taiyi Seal: Heavenly Pole Palace."

Taiyi is the North Star, unmoved in the firmament. Surrounded by the stars, this is the Heavenly Pole.