Chapter 668: Surprise (Part 1)

Don't dwell on it—you've already done everything you could, and done it perfectly.

After glancing at Li Ang's furrowed brow, the Red-haired Director couldn't help but offer reassurance:

On the bright side, even if Aquarius has targeted anomalies, if his rank isn't high enough, he might not survive the dual strangulation of the 【List of Designations】 and the 【Dead World Streetlamps】—he might just be killed outright.

Moreover, every branch director has celestial palace blessings within their own 'jurisdiction,' elevating their level; if it came to direct confrontation, Aquarius—stripped of his celestial palace rights and severely wounded—is weaker than many ordinary branch directors. He's no longer a threat.

Once the three directors free up in six months, or if any other director or branch head returns earlier, no matter how many tricks he's hiding, he'll have only one path left: death!

Sigh… for now, that's all we can do…

Though he still felt uneasy and hoped the Clearance Bureau would mobilize immediately to net both the Gemini Branch and Aquarius Director, since the three directors had chosen caution, Li Ang—as a mere Level Three Incident Handler—could only comply, though he added an extra layer of vigilance in his mind.

…

"By the way."

Sensing the mood had grown heavy, the Red-haired Director paused, then placed four small boxes on the table, smiling warmly:

"Since you gave me a surprise, I'll give you one too… guess what's inside?"

After studying the small boxes, Li Ang asked with sudden delight:

"Director, you've already gotten my Ram's Stomach back?"

"Tsk…"

Seeing Li Ang instantly guess the answer without hesitation, the Red-haired Director—who had been planning to tease him—lost his smile, then shoved the four boxes toward him, grumbling as he nodded:

"Yes, I got your Ram's Stomach back. I traded your 'Under-Bed Ghost Hand' plus two other small items for it, and I even asked Lord Taurus to restore it to its optimal state.

Now it requires no further cultivation—it's already at 8 Li Ang Points the moment you take it. Also, I've alerted everyone else in the Bureau: if anyone finds other parts later, they'll try to hold them for you…"

Oh! So that's why my 【Influential Connection】 badge flashed twice a few days ago—the resources were meant for this!

Hearing the Red-haired Director's words, Li Ang's heart leapt with joy.

Including the Ram's Stomach before him, Li Ang now possessed three of the Black Ram's 'Seven Offal': the horn, the heart, and the stomach. The tail was on the female journalist's person—he could likely get it too. That made four already.

The Black Ram had boasted that when all its parts were assembled into a single anomaly, it would rank among the top twenty to thirty in the Clearance Bureau—roughly between No. 020 and No. 030.

But that boast was later debunked by the Director and Lord Taurus; according to their estimates, even with Li Ang's 'High Compatibility (Demon Badge)' boost, the Black Ram's power would only reach No. 70 to 100—still far from the top twenty.

Yet once all seven offal pieces were assembled, his Demon Badge would also upgrade. The complete Original Sin Seven Offal, paired with a Demon Badge elevated to Chromatic Rank, might truly rival the top-tier anomalies!

"Thank you, Director!"

Filled with the thrill of imminent power growth, Li Ang sincerely thanked the Red-haired Director, then picked up the four small boxes and reached out to touch each one.

【Name: The Insatiable Stomach (Corruption, Greed, Desire)】

【Appearance: Four locked metal boxes, each containing one of a ruminant's four stomachs—the rumen, reticulum, omasum, and abomasum. Even without connection to any other digestive system, these four stomachs continue churning endlessly. Approach carelessly, and you'll hear demonic whispers greedily demanding all valuable things you possess.】【Abilities: Demon Stomach, Digest Anomalies, Desire Guidance】

【Cost: Either make a request it cannot fulfill, or satisfy its greed before each use. But note: once its greed is satisfied, the next desire that erupts will be even stronger.】

【File: The stomach of a near-divine-level great demon. Severely wounded, it lost consciousness and instinctively sought flesh and souls to heal itself, accidentally wandering into a slaughterhouse. Later, a man surnamed Char bought it and became its owner.

After using the Insatiable Stomach's desire-wish ability to gain a small fortune, he lost far more, and quickly realized the danger of the stomach. He locked it in a specially made metal box and hid it away, refusing to trade with it unless faced with an unsolvable problem.

Thanks to his exceptional caution and wisdom, he ensured his own safety—but left the Insatiable Stomach unsatisfied, perpetually weak, until he gave it to the Clearance Bureau to save his daughter…】

【Evaluation: This is an extremely unique functional anomaly. Beyond guiding its user to satisfy their own desires, it can digest anomalies the user swallows, temporarily increasing their Corruption Level, up to a maximum of 59 points.

Unfortunately, this immensely powerful effect cannot be used alone—it requires the 'Barren Raging Tongue' to swallow anomalies first. Anomalies forcibly ingested by other means cannot truly reach the Insatiable Stomach.】

【Corruption Level: 8 (5. )】

【Your Corruption Level has increased】

【Current Corruption Level: 5. 】

Holy hell—beyond guiding desire, it can swallow anomalies and temporarily boost Corruption Level? Up to 59? One step to near-divine power?!

Seeing the true effect of the 【Insatiable Stomach】, Li Ang sucked in a sharp breath.

For big shots like the Red-haired Director or Lord Taurus, this thing meant nothing—they already had Corruption Levels over 60 and needed no help from the Ram's Stomach to accumulate.

But for someone like Li Ang—a "combat 5. trash"—its effect was astonishingly powerful!

After all, an anomaly's potency and the number one can use simultaneously depend entirely on the user's Corruption Level. With only five points now, Li Ang couldn't even fully activate the 48-point 【Holy Spirit Pendant】, let alone the 8-point Black Ram. Using multiple anomalies at once forced him to cap his overall output.

Even better—he'd learned an incomplete Taurus Secret Art from Lord Taurus, which would soon produce a pile of useless anomalies like the 【Sharp Egg】. Perfect—he could feed them all to the 【Insatiable Stomach】, gaining temporary near-divine power at minimal cost!

All he needed now was to find the 【Barren Raging Tongue】, gain the ability to swallow anomalies, then use the Taurus and Aquarius Secret Arts to stockpile enough useless anomalies—his power could truly skyrocket!

It was… simply perfect.

…

With the hope of gaining temporary near-divine power and teaming up with the Director to crush Aquarius Director, Li Ang clenched the small box tightly and probed its interior with his will.

"Hmm?"

Sensing Li Ang's "invasion," the dormant will inside the box immediately awoke.

After sensing the will attempting contact and briefly judging its soul strength, the Insatiable Stomach's will let out a "tsk," openly expressing its disappointment.

'So weak… just a normal Level Three Clearance Officer. Who's running anomaly allocation here? Blind? Even in my fallen state, I was once among the great demons.'

After grumbling bitterly, the Insatiable Stomach's will traced back along Li Ang's will, muttering half-heartedly:

'Fine. Weak as you are, at least someone's using me now instead of leaving me locked away. Let me see what desire you have… hmm?'

'Huh?!?!'

(End of Chapter)