Chapter 134: If One Could Live

"So what?"

"So? What 'so' could there be?" Xi Renjie frowned and said in a low voice, "Brother Meng is gone. If any disaster from the Second or Fourth Districts comes over, we are doomed, not to mention those Gray Realm convergence points that are still fully opening... The Third District is finished, these forty thousand people are finished... and we are finished too.

Maintain order? Patrol the streets? Appease the public? What is the point of doing all this??"

Slap—

Xi Renjie slammed the wine glass onto the table, breathing heavily. His bloodshot eyes met Chen Ling’s, like a lion about to collapse from drunkenness.

"Chen Ling, are you afraid of death?"

"..." Chen Ling paused for a moment. "Actually, not that afraid."

"Good."

Xi Renjie took a second glass from the drawer, poured the liquor, filled both his glass and the one he pushed toward Chen Ling to the brim.

"After finishing this drink, let's go south together to intercept that disaster from the Fourth District... Even if we die, we will die on the battlefield."

Chen Ling looked down at the white liquor in front of him, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"You called me here just to have me drink with you... and then go die together?"

"Exactly." Xi Renjie slowly lifted the glass in front of him, holding it in mid-air, waiting for Chen Ling’s response. "Are you... willing to go on this trip with me?"

Chen Ling glanced at him, then picked up the glass with one hand, gave it a light shake, and clinked it against the glass in Xi Renjie’s hand.

"Alright, I'll go with you."

With that, he downed the liquor in the glass in one gulp.

Seeing this, a complex look flashed in Xi Renjie’s eyes, and he also drank the liquor in his glass.

The burning, strong liquor entered his stomach, almost searing through Xi Renjie’s chest. He put the glass down with a grimace, only to find that Chen Ling, in front of the desk, had started to sway involuntarily, a dazed look appearing in his eyes.

"Brother Chen Ling, your tolerance for alcohol seems poor?" Xi Renjie said slowly.

Thud—

Chen Ling’s eyes closed completely, and he slumped limply into the chair behind him, falling into a coma.

Seeing this, there was no surprise on Xi Renjie’s face. He put the glass back on the table, his expression incredibly complex...

"Chen Ling... do you know, I’m actually really jealous of you and Brother Meng." Xi Renjie spoke to himself. "You possess innate talent. In front of you, Aurora City doesn't seem so high and mighty... You can trample it underfoot at will for the sake of your so-called spirit."

"And I am a mediocre person who can never touch that city wall no matter how hard I try... I can accept my mediocrity, be a good Enforcer, handle relationships with the public well, not be greedy, not be arrogant... But no matter how much I act like Brother Meng, I can't become him."

"As an Enforcer, I cannot and should not refuse Aurora City’s orders; I stand at the crossroads, with death and mediocrity on the left, and the future and the Aurora City I dream of on the right... I have no reason to die here meaninglessly."

Xi Renjie took a deep breath, pulled a pistol from his bosom, and aimed the pitch-black muzzle at Chen Ling, who was sleeping in the chair... and pulled the trigger!

Click—

The chamber made a soft sound, but there were no bullets in the gun.

Xi Renjie slowly lowered the gun, a complex look appearing in his eyes as he looked at the sleeping Chen Ling.

"I don't know why Aurora City says you are a heretic, and I don't know why they must kill you, but you have fought side-by-side with me and risked your life for the Third District... After this shot, you are already dead, having died on the battlefield fighting the disaster."

"I'm leaving. Good luck... if you can survive the disaster."

With that, he walked past Chen Ling, pushed open the back door of the headquarters, and disappeared into the thick fog.

In the deathly silent hall, Chen Ling’s cold eyes slowly opened.

He looked at the puddle of spilled liquor on the floor, turned his gaze toward the direction Xi Renjie had left, and fell into deep thought...

Ever since entering the headquarters, Chen Ling had been using 【Secret Pupil】 to observe Xi Renjie’s micro-expressions and every move. He noticed that Xi Renjie’s hands had been trembling slightly. Combined with the sudden increase in audience expectation, Chen Ling naturally sensed something was wrong. After using a trick to fake the spilled liquor, he took the opportunity to pretend to be unconscious and slumped in the chair.

He didn't know what Xi Renjie had put in his glass, but falling down was definitely the right move. Even if he had misunderstood, he could just say he couldn't hold his liquor and passed out after one sip.

Only in this way could he test Xi Renjie’s purpose.

To his surprise, Xi Renjie didn't kill him. Xi Renjie doing all this was less about targeting him and more about giving himself a "result."

Of course, for Xi Renjie, whether he killed Chen Ling with his own hands or not didn't really matter. Even if he didn't do it, Chen Ling wouldn't be able to survive this disaster attack; the final result would be the same.

"Aurora City thinks I'm a heretic... and wants to kill me?" Chen Ling’s eyes were filled with deep confusion. "How could this be? Where did things go wrong?"

Chen Ling racked his brains but couldn't figure out how he had been exposed. He could only sigh, stand up, and walk outside.

Judging by what Xi Renjie said earlier, Aurora City had already contacted him and promised him entry into Aurora City...

"Things seem to be getting more and more interesting." Chen Ling muttered to himself.

……

"Brother Jie!"

Not long after Xi Renjie walked out the back door, Tan Ming rushed over.

Tan Ming smelled the alcohol on Xi Renjie and was slightly startled. Looking up, he saw the drunken face and immediately asked, "Brother Jie... did you really kill Chen Ling?"

"Yeah." Xi Renjie nodded, not wanting to dwell on this question. "What about the people on the list?"

"I've notified them. They're going back to pack their luggage and will meet at the station."

Xi Renjie’s footsteps faltered, and anger appeared in his drunken eyes.

"Pack their luggage?? What time is it, and they still want luggage? Do they know what the situation is right now?!"

"I told them, but they’ve worked hard to save up some belongings and feel it's a pity to just bury them in the Gray Realm with the Third District. After all, they’ll need to live once they get into Aurora City... But I gave a strict order that everyone must be at the station within fifteen minutes. It should be five or six minutes left now. By the time we get there, they should have arrived, so it won't really affect the timing..." Tan Ming explained hurriedly.

"Is this a matter of timing?!" Xi Renjie glared at Tan Ming, held it in for a long time, and then fiercely cursed four words:

"A bunch of idiots!!"