Chapter 918

?!!! After hearing the notification from the Secret Tail, Li Ang’s pupils sharply contracted.

Did something happen to Nicole? It’s been less than two hours since we parted!!!

“This is…”

Seeing Princess Philia suddenly appear on the ground, Alger first froze in confusion, then shot up from his chair.

“Ruben’s ability failed? Something’s happened to the Director!!!”

“Wait a moment.”

After gesturing for Alger to hold on, Li Ang gripped the only lead who might know what was going on and urgently asked:

“What happened to Nicole? Where’s the Scorpio Director? Were they ambushed?”

“Unclear.”

The Secret Tail replied:

“About two seconds before I called you, Nicole’s emotional state fluctuated slightly, then she told me to tell you to run immediately—and then nothing.”

Two seconds?!

Hearing this, Li Ang’s heart lurched.

From noticing something was wrong to the link being severed, only two seconds had passed? How could it be so fast?

Nicole’s team included a Zodiac Director, a Level-One Cleaner, and three Senior Level-Two Cleaners—this force should have held out for at least a while even against five or six True Gods. How could they be silenced in just two seconds?

“Oh, another message.”

As Li Ang was still reeling, the Secret Tail spoke again:

“Nicole told me to tell you they were ambushed at the Gemini Branch. Right after crossing the zone-separation wall, they were hit by a coordinated artillery barrage.

For some reason, everyone except her failed to react—no one moved, and they were directly struck by heavy firepower; more than half the block…”

“BOOM!!!”

As if to confirm the Secret Tail’s words, a violent explosion echoed from afar, causing the upper districts of the Kingdom of Krook to tremble.

“...were all obliterated.”

After finishing the second half of the message, the Secret Tail—which rarely spoke unless necessary—took a brief breath, then spoke again:

“Nicole says the other three Cleaners died on the spot. The Scorpio Director’s body was half-destroyed, then a serpent’s eye appeared in the sky and stared at her—her soul was sealed inside the ruined body.

Though the Scorpio Director and she are still resisting, they’ve already lost. Nicole tells you not to care for her—escape the Kingdom of Krook immediately with Princess Philia, and find a way to contact the Cleaning Bureau for help.”

“Understood.”

Li Ang, his face grim, nodded—and while the connection was still active, he swiftly declared:

“Tell Nicole to shout right now: ‘The Aquarius Director is my father, you can’t touch me!’ Then shut up completely. Don’t say another word to me unless we speak first—otherwise, treat our link as nonexistent!”

“Oh.”

As the Secret Tail acknowledged and relayed the message to the female journalist, Li Ang quickly summarized the situation to Alger, then frowned:

“That’s the situation. Do you have any way to remotely contact the Cleaning Bureau?”

“No…”

Hearing that three Level-Two Cleaners had been killed, Alger’s gaze dimmed slightly, then he shook his head:

“To ensure news always reaches the Cleaning Bureau no matter what, the Celestial Mirror for long-range communication has always been carried by the Director—but…”

But this time, the Scorpio Director was the one ambushed—and with her body half-destroyed, she may not have had time to use the Celestial Mirror.

Li Ang sighed, said nothing more, gently placed the unconscious Princess Philia back on the chair, and frowned in thought. After waiting a moment, Alger couldn’t help speaking:

“Li Ang, didn’t they say we should run immediately? So now…”

“No.”

Li Ang shook his head slightly and replied firmly:

“We can’t run now. We must stay.”

“But even the Director was ambushed!”

Seeing Li Ang, at this moment, act recklessly and refuse to abandon his companion to save himself, Alger felt admiration—but also a flicker of irritation:

“Even with the Director’s full team, they got wiped out. What can the two of us possibly do?

Right now, our best move is to take this damn princess and flee Krook immediately—avoid total mission failure—and then rush to the Central Bureau for help!”

“We can’t flee—if we do, we’re dead!”

Li Ang lifted his head and glanced at Alger, then asked:

“I ask you: what does the Cleaning Bureau value most? Preserving this royal member, ensuring Krook’s bloodline doesn’t end. Then what does the enemy value most?”

“That’s obviously…”

Wait—no!

At this point, Alger’s expression froze, then sweat broke out across his back.

The Cleaning Bureau wants to protect the princess—so the enemy’s top priority is to kill her, to completely sever Krook’s royal bloodline and weaken the Watch Palace’s power!

That means: the princess in our hands is the number-one target. Since the moment she was kidnapped, someone must have been monitoring every exit from Krook. If we flee now, our chances of being caught are near certain!

“Alger, on our way here, I observed the terrain around Krook through the airship’s window. Aside from a major seaport to the west, the other three sides are all flat plains.”

After a brief pause, Li Ang spoke gravely:

“My ability only confuses perception within close to mid-range—ensuring I won’t be detected—but long-range observation, like watchtowers, can still spot us.

Under these conditions, we can’t possibly escape with her. But if we stay inside Krook, we’re like a single drop of water in the ocean—the enemy won’t find us.”

“But… if we don’t leave, how do we notify the Cleaning Bureau?”

“That’s something we’ll figure out later.”

Li Ang shook his head slightly, reattached the Secret Tail to Princess Philia’s backside, handed her over to Alger, and said solemnly:

“Right now, our first priority is to avoid capture—only if we’re alive can we contact the Cleaning Bureau. For now, we can only hope the enemy believes Princess Philia died in the ambush, and will gradually relax surveillance outside the kingdom. Watch her for me—I’ll be right back.”

“Huh? Where are you going?”

“The Death Realm.”

Sitting cross-legged on the chair, Li Ang closed his eyes:

“After consuming the Three-Headed Dog God, I temporarily inherited a fraction of its authority—I can enter and exit the Death Realm at will.

Its so-called ‘Guardian of Death’ power is, in essence, the Doorkeeper of the Gates of the Dead—authorized to drive back those trying to escape the Death Realm, or block those who shouldn’t enter. This is the perfect moment to use it.”