Chapter 460: Faith

Blood flowed down his dissected torso, staining the expensive velvet carpet red. Zong Wen could clearly feel his life force draining away, but he was completely helpless against it...

Liu Qingyan’s fingertip touched the back of his hand and slowly slid up his arm. The skin on his arm began to peel off smoothly, revealing the bloody palm and forearm muscles, as if he were being stripped of a flesh-colored garment.

There was no color left on Zong Wen’s painful face. This was undoubtedly a torture. Watching his own skin and flesh being stripped away, this visually shocking scene was crazily assaulting his sanity.

He spoke with difficulty, his voice hoarse:

"Let... let me go..."

"I... I will return your freedom... please..."

"Whatever you want... anything..."

Liu Qingyan’s fingertip slid across his shoulder, as if she were meticulously carving a bloody work of art. Facing Zong Wen’s plea, she shook her head slightly:

"No."

"Why... why..."

"Because he doesn't like you."

Liu Qingyan said softly, "So, you must die."

"He...?"

"He has already left the main city. Now that I kill you, it won't implicate him... When he returns next time, he will never have to see this face that disgusts him again."

Liu Qingyan released her fingertip. By now, most of Zong Wen’s skin had fallen away, leaving only an aged face covering his bloody torso, looking eerie and gruesome on the crimson carpet.

He seemed to think of something and spoke, word by word:

"Spe... cial Envoy??"

Zong Wen saw Liu Qingyan’s hand reaching toward his face. His desire to survive reached its peak, and he pleaded with all his might:

"Why... why do you want to help him kill me... he clearly... doesn't want to bother with you... and I! I... I raised you to the peak of Red Dust Main City... I am your benefactor!"

"People like you will never understand..."

Liu Qingyan’s fingertip landed gently on Zong Wen’s terrified brow. With a casual swipe, the wrinkled face skin fell off completely, landing lightly on the bloody carpet.

Zong Wen, now entirely blood-colored, knelt in the pool of blood. The dim candlelight flickered in the room, and the mirror opposite, usually used for girls to touch up their makeup, clearly reflected his appearance... At this moment, he was a mass of blood, his face dripping with gore, indistinguishable in age or beauty, showing only endless terror.

The figure in the black dress stood up slowly. Her skirt was already stained with blood, dripping steadily,

Liu Qingyan looked down calmly at Zong Wen, who had turned into a bloody man. She gripped his throat with one hand and spoke slowly into those terrified, despairing eyes:

"He is not just my benefactor..."

"He granted me redemption, gave me faith. He is the only Red-Clothed God on these ruins of mine."

Snap—!

As Liu Qingyan finished speaking, Zong Wen’s terrified head was snapped off instantly.

As Liu Qingyan released her bloody palm, Zong Wen’s head hung low, like a sinner kneeling in a sea of blood in repentance, already devoid of any breath.

He never imagined that after dominating Red Dust Main City for so many years, he would end up dying in his own private room where he played with his collectibles, dying in front of that soft, comfortable bed... He wanted to ravage a beautiful rose, but had his throat cut by its sharp thorns.

The dim candlelight flickered in the room. The girl’s face was expressionless. She stood for a long time, looking at Zong Wen in the pool of blood, then slowly turned her head to look toward the city gate of Red Dust Main City...

Her cinnabar-red lips curled slightly upward. Her eyes, like water, gazed into the void. She lifted her skirt with both hands and knelt on one knee in the direction Chen Ling had left,

Like a devout believer.

The black skirt bloomed amidst the bloody soil like a cold rose. Her lips parted slightly, and she murmured to herself:

"Liu Qingyan, with a humble gift... respectfully sees off Lord Chen Ling from the city."

[Audience Expectation +3]

[Current Expectation: 78%]

Two lines of prompts flashed before Chen Ling’s eyes. He was slightly stunned, his black trench coat stopping at the edge of the Red Dust Realm.

Chen Ling looked back toward Red Dust Main City. It had been a long time since he left the main city, and the city’s outline was already blurred... But in this pitch-black night, it seemed something was happening.

"Expectation rose again... What’s going on?" Chen Ling muttered to himself.

Expectation rising for no reason was never a good thing. Chen Ling carefully reviewed the recent events in his mind, but still couldn't think of any hidden dangers...

"Yi-ya?"

To avoid attracting too much attention, Chen Ling had covered the stacked banknote boxes with a black cloth. At this moment, the Jester was sitting on top, swinging his two short legs while looking at Chen Ling in confusion, seemingly asking why they weren't moving.

"...It's nothing." Chen Ling shook his head and continued forward.

The rise in expectation was likely related to the situation in the main city. Chen Ling thought it over—the conflict between the Beidou Consortium and the Huadu Consortium, the Jian Changsheng duo, Liu Qingyan, the Huang Consortium... all of these seemed possible.

Although he had left the main city, the storm he had stirred up during his few days there wouldn't dissipate just because he left... Chen Ling had a premonition that the situation in the main city would be quite turbulent for some time to come.

The note Chen Ling left for the Huang Consortium before leaving wasn't some secret technique to turn the tide, but merely a reminder...

As the Golden Society Special Envoy, Chen Ling was at the center of the storm of the five major consortia’s struggle and was most sensitive to the main city’s trends. Even the fighting between Beidou and Huadu had been instigated by him, and the conflict between the two sides had reached an irreconcilable point.

Chen Ling knew very well that the Huadu Consortium, which he had left gasping for breath, could not possibly be a match for the Beidou Consortium. Even if Zong Wen struggled, the fall of the Huadu Consortium was only a matter of time.

When a whale falls, all things flourish. The fall of the Huadu Consortium would inevitably release a large amount of resources. Chen Ling’s reminder to the Huang Consortium was for them not to fear the Huadu Consortium’s power and to start dividing or even annexing the Huadu Consortium’s resources as soon as possible. If they were late, and other major consortia intervened, plus some small consortia picking up the scraps, they would miss a great opportunity.

Although Chen Ling didn't know how much benefit the Huang Consortium could gain from this opportunity, it would definitely be more than the money he had scammed from them, which could be considered returning a favor... Furthermore, if the Huang Consortium really seized the opportunity, it could be considered something he had personally fostered, and perhaps it could become a major asset in the near future.

Chen Ling calculated the situation in Red Dust Main City in his mind, pushing a mountain of banknotes, and slowly disappeared into the end of the horizon in the night.