Chapter 852

"Alright."

Upon hearing Li Ang's question, the Iron Princess paused her thoughts and sneered:

"I can't say the name of that person, but I can tell you this: the one who leaked your file is one of the eighty-seven Division Directors of the Cleanup Bureau."

"…"

Hearing the Iron Princess's words, Li Ang let out an exasperated click of his tongue.

Though he was only a Level Three Cleanup Agent, his file had been involved in three incidents classified as "True God" level—and according to Cleanup Bureau rules, such files could only be accessed by someone with the authority of a Division Director or higher.

So ever since she finished reading his file, he had known the traitor among the Cleanup Bureau must be one of the remaining eighty-six Division Directors, excluding his own boss; thus, the Iron Princess's statement had only widened the suspect pool by one.

"Heh."

Watching Li Ang momentarily speechless at her answer, the Iron Princess finally exhaled, curling her lips upward, then tilting her chin slightly:

"I won't take advantage of you. You gave me two pieces of information—I'll give you two in return. To find out who the traitor in your Cleanup Bureau is, look into the operation in recent years where you lost the most personnel!"

The operation with the heaviest personnel losses…

After jotting down the remark with half-skepticism, Li Ang grunted:

"Then while we still have time, do you have any other intelligence to trade?"

"Yes."

After her glass eyeball blinked slightly, the Iron Princess spoke:

"I spent six full years preparing to create this opportunity. I want to know: how long have you prepared for today?"

"…"

How long have I prepared for today? Hmm… strictly speaking, this armed coup against the Wang Gong—I only started preparing last Saturday…

"For a while."

Judging from their earlier exchange that the Iron Princess was proud and craved validation, Li Ang feared that if he told the truth outright, she might break down—so he hedged:

"Though I've only been in the Cleanup Bureau a short time, I've prepared seriously for a long while—waiting for this perfect chance."

I see…

Hearing Li Ang's answer, the Iron Princess's mood improved considerably.

Though her greatest failure stemmed from betrayal—not lack of skill—if she'd been easily defeated by someone who barely tried, it would've been humiliating; Li Ang's "seriousness" offered her considerable comfort.

"Your turn."

Confident she had just engaged in a "high-level duel," and only lost because of a traitor in her own ranks, her pride satisfied, the Iron Princess blurted out:

"Ask whatever you want! Even ask two more questions—I'll answer depending on the situation."

"Then thank you."

Noticing her tone had softened, Li Ang blinked, then asked the question he most wanted to know:

"What is your goal in attacking the Wang Gong?"

"You ask that…?"

The Iron Princess frowned at the question.

"Of course to kill every single member of the royal family—what else could it be?"

"…"

Oh come on… why didn't you say that sooner?

Hearing her answer, Li Ang's eyes flickered with frustration.

The royal family had plenty of soul-corrupted bastards, but most were related to Veronika—he didn't dare act against them easily. Had he known she planned this, he could've let her clear them out first, then moved in to arrest her.

"Wait?!"

Noticing Li Ang's expression had changed, the Iron Princess suddenly realized something, her eyes narrowing with suspicion:

"If you didn't know my target, how could you have prepared your rebel leader identity in advance—and bring so many people to ambush me inside the Wang Gong?"

"…"

Because I was here to start a damn rebellion myself—who knew you'd pick today to cause trouble?

"You misunderstand."

Quickly switching on the 【Master of Performance】, stabilizing his expression, Li Ang lied smoothly:

"I knew your goal was to cleanse the Wang Gong—but I'm not asking about that surface-level objective. I want to know the deeper purpose behind it."

So you meant this…

Calmed by Li Ang's unshaken demeanor, the Iron Princess hesitated, then spoke with a resigned tone:

"I'm dead anyway… fine, I'll tell you: our goal is to kill…"

"Crack!"

Like countless predecessors who revealed critical secrets only to be instantly silenced, the Iron Princess suddenly shuddered—a sharp, clear cracking sound echoed from her chest.

Damn, can't you wait five more seconds?

Sensing something was wrong, Li Ang immediately reached for the Iron Princess, hoping to extract more intel while she was still warm.

But her body shrank instantly—within a blink, she became a tiny iron doll, barely taller than his palm—and Li Ang's hand closed on empty air. Then came another crack, and she shattered into pieces on the ground.

Immediately after, the old king, who had passed out when Li Ang broke the window and was tied to his waist, began groaning—and from afar, the iron rebels' bodies suddenly revealed patches of flesh.

Shit! The Princess is still inside the Mirror World! Living people can't stay there long!

Noticing the 【Iron Wang Gong】 effect was fading, Li Ang swiftly reached for his cufflink, pulling out the doll-sized Princess, then grabbed the scattered iron fragments—just barely managing to grasp a handful before they turned to dust.

【Name: Remains of the Slayer King Three (???)】

【Appearance: A handful of metal shards continuously cracking, further fragmenting until reduced to fine powder】

【Ability:?】

【Cost:?】

【File: An anomaly that was accidentally triggered by a verbal spell under the deception and manipulation of Level Three Cleanup Agent Li Ang of the Virgin Division, resulting in total destruction. Its material, soul, rules—all components were utterly obliterated; even reversing time cannot restore it.】

【Evaluation: Given the immense divine essence preserved in the residue, this anomaly's origin is highly unusual—possibly containing the soul or flesh of a True God-level entity.】

【But after being shattered by a powerful verbal spell, aside from its overwhelming divine essence, it holds no value whatsoever—even using it to craft anomalies would cause them to rupture and destroy due to the residual, potent verbal spell.】

【Corruption Value: 60】

"…"

So after all that, I ended up with two possibly false answers and a handful of True God-level ashes?

As Li Ang stared at the Iron Princess's ashes, marveling at how fast she'd been silenced, the real Princess, who had been tossed aside, suddenly regained mobility and lunged at him.

"Li Ang!"

"Hmm, I'm here."

Catching the Princess as she threw herself at him, Li Ang soothed gently:

"It's over—the anomaly has been dealt with."

"No, I mean—"

"No need to thank me."

Embarrassed by the watching rebels, Li Ang quickly clapped a hand over her mouth and replied earnestly:

"You don't owe me anything. Just do what you're supposed to do from now on—that's the greatest thanks you can give me… Huh? Why are you untying my belt?"

"Head! His head!"

Shoving his hand away, the Princess tugged at his belt, face flushed with urgency:

"My father's still tied to your waist!"