Chapter 48

Sudden Judgment: The Assassin’s Demise

Under the players’ “rather crude” actions, a bizarre scene unfolded in the night inn:

Several men with grim faces chased after a woman.

The woman kept darting through the inn’s corridor, slipping into each room she passed, then emerging moments later, visibly irritated.

The entire episode lasted only a short while, and no sound came from the silent rooms—but anyone entering afterward would find: the guests on the beds had vanished.

The room’s contents were scattered everywhere, yet nothing was taken.

This behavior hardly seemed motivated by greed.

So the question arose:

What exactly was this female thief “stealing”?

Answer: Cheng Shi’s time.

After trailing Yun Ni through more than a dozen rooms, Cheng Shi was utterly disappointed.

He found nothing.

Aside from the guests’ luggage and vast quantities of survival essentials, the only notable find was a few modern-style QQ underwear in a woman’s wardrobe...

Let’s not comment on this woman’s taste... never mind, back to the matter at hand.

The rooms previously checked clearly housed ordinary travelers—not the person they were looking for.

And there were too many guests in the inn; even if they searched until dawn, they couldn’t possibly finish checking the third floor.

Not to mention the two floors beneath them.

If things continued this way, by dawn Yun Ni would have to bring back all the travelers she had sent to “other dimensions.”

At that point, panic might spread even more fiercely through the inn.

Along the way, Cheng Shi had repeatedly reminded the others: “Should we keep going?”

The others’ responses were intriguing:

Fang Jue frowned, Du Xiguang smiled, and the ascetic said nothing.

Clearly, the big shots were also willing to gamble.

They were betting that if they happened upon a useful clue, it might save them some time.

Since the big shots refused to stop, Cheng Shi, as a mere hanger-on, had no say.

Keep going.

Yet life works this way: the more urgently you act, the worse things turn out.

This unconventional method could not be sustained.

At some moment before dawn, the assassin’s actions were discovered.

More accurately, she exposed herself.

As Yun Ni once again slipped skillfully into a room, four men in black robes sat neatly inside—all opening their eyes to stare at her at once.

The instant their bright eyes opened, a force of [Order] surged forth!

Its thick, viscous texture felt as if He had once descended here.

Yun Ni’s face turned pale; she spun and fled.

But the moment she entered the room, her fate was sealed.

Grand, solemn chants rose one after another, thunderous as temple bells.

“Here, escape is forbidden!”

“Here, shouting is forbidden!”

“Here, resistance is forbidden!”

“Here, argument is forbidden!”

Waves of terrifying holy light erupted, instantly flooding the room with golden radiance.

Chains woven from decrees, alive and writhing, tightened around Yun Ni’s limbs.

She could not resist, could not call for help—she could only watch helplessly as she was bound, then dragged upward, suspended midair.

Like a victim of dismemberment by five horses.

All manner of oppressive forces and negative states from [Order] ravaged her body, until the judge on the bed, clad in a judgment robe, opened his eyes—and the horrific “punishment” paused for an instant.

But what followed was the true nightmare.

The judge reached into nothingness and drew forth his judgment scepter; his eyes, swirling with violet lightning, fixed on Yun Ni, and with a light gesture toward her bound form, he spoke slowly:

“Do you confess?”

Confess?

Confess to what?

Is sending sleeping travelers on a free journey to an alien dimension a crime?

Isn’t that charity?

Of course, if Cheng Shi had been caught, he might think that.

But for Yun Ni, at this moment, she felt neither joy nor sorrow.

She recognized these people—they were from the Grand Tribunal.

The Grand Tribunal had arrived long ago!

They had come silently to Yongzhan Town, disguised as ordinary travelers, infiltrating the inn to investigate!

Of course—if even players could pinpoint the killer’s location, how could these professional judges lack methods?

They had already narrowed down the suspect’s general range, and likely already had several suspects in mind.

And she? She was merely a “silly roe deer” who had wandered into their trap while waiting for prey.

More terrifying still, on the judge’s scepter, she sensed a divine resonance identical to [Bloom Awaits Decay].

Another semi-divine artifact!

This was the third semi-divine artifact she had encountered in a single day.

What did it mean?

It meant she might die.

Yun Ni had long anticipated she might meet with misfortune; she had spent all her thoughts preparing for the bizarre attacks that came with [The Arrival of Fear].

But she never imagined her downfall would come not from those attacks, but from another semi-divine artifact of the Grand Tribunal.

After so much deliberation, the outcome was still absurd.

Ridiculous.

Yun Ni seemed to abandon her defense—even though she believed herself innocent.

But when a judge only wants to condemn you, rebuttal is pointless—silence preserves dignity, and avoids becoming a clown.

The judge’s words were clearly designed to ensure her death.

Yun Ni smiled fearlessly, then turned her head away.

Yet the power of [Order] forced her to speak.

An invisible pressure formed a transparent hand, squeezing her throat and forcing a response from her vocal cords.

An invisible pressure took the form of a transparent hand, squeezing her throat and forcing a response out of her vocal tract.

And then...

“Boom!” Lightning struck!

The criminal...

Turned to ash and paste!

From confession to annihilation, not even a blink of an eye was wasted.

Though in Yongzhan Town, [Bloom Awaits Decay] equally protected everyone,

Other gods’ wills could still bring death.

As [Order]’s judgment was irrevocable!

The judge completed the execution, yet seemed unsatisfied; he stared at the spot where Yun Ni had vanished, frowning.

He had indeed felt death—but knowing his own lightning punishment, the condemned should have become charred corpses, not dissolve into nothingness.

This manner of death resembled something long unseen...

The nearby tribunal members also noticed the anomaly; they frowned and asked:

“My lord, what is this?”

The judge paused, then said coldly:

“Likely a special technique from underground worship of [Annihilation]. Irrelevant—the criminal is dead.”

If the judge declared the criminal dead, then the criminal had no chance of survival.

The four tribunal members nodded in unison, then closed their eyes and fell silent.

The judge sheathed his scepter, but did not close his eyes; instead, he turned his icy gaze toward the door.

Outside the door, Fang Jue was drenched in sweat, Du Xiguang clenched his fists.

Both had been one step away from following Yun Ni inside—luckily, she had signaled them urgently the moment she entered, causing them to hesitate.

That fleeting moment of caution saved their lives.

Both retreated in grim silence, all the way to the staircase, where they met Cheng Shi and the ascetic hidden in shadow, before finally stopping to wipe the sweat from their foreheads.

Cheng Shi had seen none of what transpired inside or outside the room; seeing their grim expressions, his heart sank.

Cheng Shi did not see what transpired inside or outside the room; he saw the two men with grave expressions, and his heart sank.

Where is Yun Ni?

Fang Jue’s gaze darkened, and he said nothing.

Du Qiyu slowly shook his head, the meaning clear.

Dead?

Is Yongzhan Town truly a town where one can die of old age?

Cheng Shi was utterly stunned; he stared wide-eyed at the room, as if trying to recall who had lived there.

If he remembered correctly, that room had been empty before they left.

That meant the person in this room had moved in during the brief time the players were out searching for Wei Guan.

The two events perfectly missed each other!

Who is inside?

This time, Fang Jue spoke.

“Order—I felt the fluctuation of Order’s power.”

The Grand Tribunal!

Without a doubt, it could only be the Grand Tribunal!

They’ve already arrived!

He had merely thought it casually just now, and yet it had truly come to pass.

Cheng Shi felt the cruel joke of fate, his face grim beyond words.

On the second morning of the seven-day trial, another life was lost.

Six remain, now four.

Meanwhile, the travelers whom Yun Ni had sent to other dimensions were violently spat back, tumbling onto their beds and waking in shock, convinced they had endured a terrifying nightmare.

Yet they had no memory at all of the true mastermind behind the nightmare.

For the murderer was already dead.