Chapter 285: 284 Untitled

Immortal Body and Seer…

Though both are equally sneaky abilities, Joshua can see the future—would he do this unless he was certain he could kill you?

As expected, amid the anxious glances of the rebels, the middle-aged Joshua did not immediately agree, but instead voiced a demand.

"You cannot leave the thermos behind—you must take it all with you!"

Having already banned Pion's predecessor, the prepared middle-aged Joshua continued:

"Just like you've made countless choices before, next is a slightly worn broom—you'll ride it away, but you must hand it over for them to take, along with the pendant around your neck, a puppy with yellow fur on its head, and…"

"No."

After refusing the middle-aged Joshua, Li Ang coldly warned:

"Don't try to trick me—I know exactly what conditions you'd expect me to accept. Except for the thermos and the broom, I won't hand over a single other thing."

"Hmph, dying struggles."

Likely having tested this outcome across multiple futures and knowing Li Ang would immediately fight to the death with him, the middle-aged Joshua did not press further, but pointed to a doorway at the other end of the secret harbor:

"I've already opened the door in advance. Once they pass through it, they'll reach the mountains on the other side of the capital. But don't expect them to deliver a message for you."

"I won't leave such a stupid loophole—the door is cursed with a mental-disrupting anomaly that suppresses everyone who passes through. Neither they nor the contents inside the thermos will have time to find help for you."

"…"

"Besides that…"

…

With time to prepare, the ability to foresee the future is truly cheating.

Following the middle-aged Joshua's "instructions," Li Ang handed over the broom and thermos to the rebels, then performed various other assigned tasks, and silently prayed that the version of himself Joshua saw in the future shared the same intentions as the one standing here now.

Based on the information he'd touched from the 【Gate of the Other World】, if only traveling one or two days into the future, Joshua could enter and exit repeatedly—but reaching a more distant future demanded staggering costs and energy, making consecutive openings impossible in a short time.

So the only way to deceive this half-baked "seer" was to create a major commotion and fake his death for a short while, betting that with insufficient information, Joshua would see him "dead" and leave without reopening the gate to view a further future.

As for the possibility of failing to deceive him…

The odds were very low.

Glancing at the 【Immortal of the Wine】 badge in his panel and feeling the lamb's heart and horns linked to his own aura, Li Ang quietly eased his tension.

With his current arsenal, he couldn't possibly kill that many guards—but surviving was more than enough. The chance of dying here was far too low; the version of himself Joshua saw dying in the future was almost certainly faking his death.

After all, beneath the boarding tower was utterly open, with not even a single tree, let alone a door he could use. If he chose a location far from any door, preventing Joshua from inspecting his "corpse" up close, the chance of deceiving him was nearly guaranteed.

Yet while Li Ang felt confident in his survival, the rebels had no idea of his true plan.

After receiving the broom and thermos from Li Ang, watching their new leader willingly sacrifice himself so they could escape safely—even the most "reckless" Oliver's eyes turned slightly red. The more emotional Lucy sisters bit their lips white, tears rolling down their cheeks in large drops.

Naturally, they had doubted this new leader, whose origins were suspicious and who clearly didn't match "Little Bagins." But after Li Ang's description, they had glimpsed a future path for the first time—and chosen to follow him for now.

But after this ordeal, seeing their new leader choose to stay behind and "heroically die," even smiling as he comforted them, the rebels' lingering doubts vanished completely.

What pained them more was that this new leader—whose courage, wisdom, vision, and character were nearly flawless—would be killed by the old leader's treachery, sacrificing himself to prevent war.

The two leaders they had known: one young, passionate, pure, and radiant like a newborn sun; the other sly, secretive, beneath contempt, whose soul rotted faster than his flesh.

Now, this young, passionate soul would die because of his unwavering convictions, murdered by a creature whose soul was already decayed. Such a brutal contrast made the rebels' hearts ache with unbearable pain.

…

"You will always be our leader."

Oliver cast a cold glance toward the middle-aged Joshua, said nothing, memorized the faces of both leaders, then bowed deeply to Li Ang.

One by one, the rebels followed suit—some with furious expressions, others filled with hatred, glancing at Joshua before bowing to Li Ang, their faces etched with genuine sorrow.

"…"

Damn… this feels like a funeral…

Uncomfortable under the rebels' solemn demeanor but unable to reveal his plan to fake death, Li Ang activated 【Master of Performance】 and politely returned each bow.

With the enhanced emotional power of 【Master of Performance】, his gentle yet resolute gaze deepened the rebels' grief—and even the middle-aged Joshua, who had already witnessed this scene, couldn't help glancing over, his eyes filled with complex emotion.

Too bad… but like you, I have no choice either.

As Joshua sighed over their similar fates, Li Ang suddenly turned his head toward him and asked calmly:

"Joshua, those people on the airship…"

"Fine."

Before Li Ang could finish his request, the middle-aged Joshua, having "rehearsed" this moment several times and knowing exactly what he'd say, answered directly:

"The people on the airship don't have to die. You can carry them out and let them be taken away—but they must be locked up. They cannot contact the Kingdom of Korok."

"Understood."

Li—Resigned-to-Die, Virtuous, Courageous-to-Sacrifice, Benevolent, Loving—Ang nodded, even smiled at Joshua, then reentered the airship.

Once his figure vanished behind the hatch, Joshua, under the rebels' furious stares, pulled out a small signal pistol and fired a red flare into the sky with a sharp bang.

"Hurry up."

Beneath the crimson glow of the flare, Joshua coldly urged:

"For his sake, I won't kill you rebels today. But if you're still here when the guards arrive, don't blame me if you get shot dead!"