Chapter 545: Nothing Like a Victor

The moment the live stream cut in, every terminal across the network was filled with blood‑red headlines.

The second trial.

Defendant, Federation distinguished deception master, Chen Huaiyuan.

In the subway of the Demon Metropolis, someone had just brought a ramen fork to their mouth when the screen lit up.

On the North America Frontline, a soldier was napping against a sandbag when his wristwatch vibrated three times.

In the Qiu Ce Yuan dormitory area, the students had just finished night training, and the Communicators simultaneously flashed the same image.

The lobby of the Purple Gold Mountain Club.

Jiang Yuan was half‑kneeling at the foot of the stairs, his combat uniform soaked with blood.

Qin Zhixia's mechanical prosthetic arm hung in midair, Liang Wen's black windcoat was speckled with glass shards, Su Ming stood at the doorway, and the Time Marrow Worm's pattern was forced back under the skin by a dark‑red rule.

In the Second Floor private box, Chen Huaiyuan lay against the bullet‑proof glass, his face drenched in sweat, his pant legs soaked.

That disheveled appearance was nothing like the decorated veteran in the dossier photo, as if they were different species.

The comment barrage was blank for two seconds.

Then it went crazy.

"Is this old Chen?"

"A city‑defending hero? Pah!"

"Sixty‑three lives in Locust Tree Gully, the authorities explain!"

"Who is the Investigation Bureau really protecting?"

"Stop the spin, the evidence is right in your face."

"Seven‑Eyed King, kill him!"

Federation Command Center.

All the screens in the Technology Department were flashing red.

L sat in the corner, fingers tapping the keyboard, while a cat sticker flickered in the screen's reflection.

"First layer cut failure."

"Second layer reverse hijack failure."

"Thirty‑seven backup channels hijacked."

"The live stream link does not rely on conventional networks."

The Technology Department Head's forehead was drenched in sweat.

No one in the conference room spoke again.

Lord Wei sat in the main seat, his back perfectly straight.

The blood‑red headline on the screen reflected onto the old man's face, carving deep into his wrinkles.

"Continue cracking."

He said only four words.

The Technology Department Head's throat tightened: "Director, if we delay any longer, Chen Huaiyuan will die in front of the whole network."

Lord Wei did not look at him.

"Crack it."

Those two words landed, and everyone could only bow their heads and type.

Purple Gold Mountain Club.

Zhou Ping stood up.

He walked to the front of the box, his palm pressed against the shattered bullet‑proof glass.

Behind the glass, Chen Huaiyuan's eyes darted wildly, his lips trembling fiercely.

"Zhou Ping, wait, wait!"

"I can compensate you!"

"Your sister's treatment, I'll handle! Top‑grade! Foreign resources, elite medical team, I'll provide everything!"

Zhou Ping watched him through the glass.

"A few years ago, there was a girl in Locust Tree Gully who also begged you."

Chen Huaiyuan was stunned.

Zhou Ping raised his hand, a dark‑red blood line slithered from his fingertips, threading through the glass cracks into the box.

"She said her brother was only six years old."

Chen Huaiyuan crawled backward, his back hitting the sofa.

"That was a special period!"

"What do you know? Back then the Weird Domain erupted daily; without me, the Southeast Frontline would have collapsed!"

"Sixty‑three people for three cities, worth it!"

In the lobby, an off‑duty operative had gnawed his own teeth to the roots.

Qin Zhixia's mechanical prosthetic arm emitted an overload warning.

She stared at the old man in the box, her throat moved, but she said nothing.

Zhou Ping nodded.

"Worth it."

He curled his five fingers.

The dark‑red blood line pierced Chen Huaiyuan's chest.

No blood spurted out.

The first thing that emerged was a lump of grayish‑brown stuff.

That lump had a monkey shape, a human face, slender limbs, its claws clutched Chen Huaiyuan's ribcage and wouldn't let go, its mouth open in a silent roar.

Mountain ape.

The Fierce Ghost origin that Chen Huaiyuan relied on for fame.

It was also the monster spawned by the sixty‑three lives of the Huai Tree Gorge.

Chen Huaiyuan let out a scream as horrible as a slaughtered pig.

"Don't!"

"Zhou Ping! You can't move it!"

"It's my life! It's my merit! It's Federation property!"

Zhou Ping's hand kept pulling outward.

The blood vessels tightened one by one.

The mountain ape's claws dug into Chen Huaiyuan's flesh, pulling out dark streaks of cracks.

Chen Huaiyuan rolled on the carpet, tears and snot streaming, showing no trace of the dignified bearing of a senior advisory council member.

Jiang Yuan braced the stair railing and stood up, the Black Card trembling between his fingers.

The crown suppression was still in effect.

The Dark Shadow Court was reduced to a half outline, like a beast whose throat was clamped.

"Zhou Ping."

Jiang Yuan spoke, a heavy metallic scent filling his throat.

"Hand him over to the Federation for trial."

Zhou Ping didn't even turn his head.

"Jiang Yuan, do you believe it yourself?"

Jiang Yuan's finger halted.

Zhou Ping's tone wasn't loud, yet it pressed the whole hall into a suffocating pressure.

"Two years."

"A sealed archive can lock for two years, an advisory seat can be held for two years, a medal can be worn for two years."

"You want me to return the person?"

He gave a slight smile, a light one.

"To whom?"

"To the person who wrote the reservation advice back then?"

"To the person still weighing PR risks today?"

"To those whose first reaction while watching the live stream is not to investigate the case, but to cut the signal?"

In the command center, many people instinctively lowered their heads.

Wei Gong still stared at the screen.

Those aged eyes did not look away.

Jiang Yuan was silent.

Liang Wen stood nearby, his gloves completely extinguished.

The person usually most outspoken now said nothing witty.

Su Ming whispered, "He's feeding on public opinion."

The words just fell.

The live stream's bullet comments scrolled even faster.

"Hand over to the Federation? Then seal the archive?"

"Stop joking, the official trial only judges those without backing."

"The Seven‑Eyed King, act!"

"Kill Chen Huaiyuan!"

"Kill!"

Seven eyes atop Zhou Ping's head widened even more.

The mountain ape inside Chen Huaiyuan was finally dragged out halfway.

The creature struggled desperately, its sharp claws shattering the floor, spitting out garbled human words.

"Don't kill me."

"I have defended a city."

"I have saved people."

"I have merit."

Those words came from the mountain ape's mouth, making listeners' stomachs turn sour.

Zhou Ping pressed down with his five fingers.

A dark red rule rolled over.

The mountain ape's limbs were flattened first, then its torso, and finally the grotesque face bearing Chen Huaiyuan's features.

Snap.

A lump of grayish‑brown debris fell onto the expensive carpet.

Chen Huaiyuan's body collapsed along with it.

His hair turned visibly white, his skin wrinkled into dry, thin paper, and his once tall frame shrank into a hunched lump.

The Deceiver's origin was stripped away.

Federation early merit, A Ji upper‑tier combat power, honorary member of the Special Advisory Group.

After the Fierce Ghost was gone, he was just a death‑afraid old man.

Chen Huaiyuan lay on the ground, first feeling his chest, then his face.

Then, he collapsed.

"Don't kill me!"

"I plead guilty! I admit!"

"Huai Tree Ditch was my doing! The sealing was also approved by me!"

"I can apologize publicly! I can pay compensation! I still have assets, I will donate them all!"

"Zhou Ping, I beg you, give me one chance!"

He knelt on the ground, pounding his head wildly.

His forehead struck the carpet, leaving a wet red patch.

"Jiang Yuan! Qin Zhixia!"

"Save me!"

"I am willing to cooperate with the investigation!"

"I am willing to disclose the other members' issues of the Advisory Group!"

When those words were spoken, several Senior Executives in the conference room turned ashen.

The barrage on the screen scrolled and changed direction.

"Did you hear that? There are others!"

"Investigate the entire Advisory Group!"

"This old thing still wants to sell out teammates on his deathbed, hilarious."

"Don't let him live; if he lives, it's another sealed‑package deal."

Zhou Ping did not rush to kill.

He stepped aside, clearing the path.

"Come up."

In the corner of the hall, a girl stepped out.

She was very young, just over fifteen, wearing a denim jacket faded to gray, her shoes stained with mud.

Both hands gripped an ordinary pistol, trembling violently.

It was not a Deceiver weapon.

It was not a Rules item.

It was simply an old‑style handgun most common in the human armory.

As she ascended the stairs, her knees trembled.

Dao Ba Nan tried to help, but she brushed him aside.

The girl reached the private room door, looking at Chen Huaiyuan through broken glass.

Chen Huaiyuan stared blankly.

"Who are you?"

The girl forced a few words out of her throat.

"Huai Tree Ditch."

Chen Huaiyuan's whole body went rigid.

The girl raised the pistol.

"My name is Xu Xiaoman."

"My father is Xu Chenglin, my mother is Zhao Guifen, my brother is Xu Doudou."

"They all died in the ancestral hall."

She spoke very slowly.

Each name was bitten out painfully.

"That day I had a fever, my uncle took me to town for an injection, and I survived."

"For two years I kept dreaming that someone was clapping behind the door."

"I kept wondering, if I were also inside, would I not have to live alone."

Chen Huaiyuan recoiled, pressing his whole body against the wall base.

"It's not my business!"

"No, it's not—I've already pleaded guilty!"

"You can't kill me! If you kill me, you become a murderer too!"

The girl's hand trembled even more violently.

The barrel bobbed up and down.

No one in the live stream kept sending jokes.

Even the craziest barrage dwindled considerably.

Jiang Yuan raised his hand, then lowered it.

Qin Zhixia closed his eyes briefly.

Liang Wen muttered a curse under his breath.

"This world, damn, really knows how to pick a knife."

Zhou Ping stood beside the girl, not urging.

He merely pulled back the crown rules half an inch, letting everyone see this clearly.

It was not a monster devouring.

It was not a weird execution.

It was not the gods toying.

It was a survivor demanding repayment from the butcher of that year.

Chen Huaiyuan crawled toward the girl's feet.

"Child, I was wrong."

"I will kowtow to you."

"Spare me, and I'll be your ox and horse!"

Xu Xiaoman watched him.

After a long while, she asked: "My brother is six; did he also kowtow to you?"

Chen Huaiyuan's lips moved, but he could not speak.

The girl pulled the trigger.

Bang.

The gunshot echoed in the hall.

Chen Huaiyuan's forehead burst with blood red, the back of his head struck the wall, and his body slid onto the expensive carpet.

That medal rolled out from his pocket, stained with blood, stopping at the edge of the shadow where the crystal lamp's light could not reach.

Xu Xiaoman stood where she was, the pistol slipping from her fingers.

She did not cry.

She merely raised her head to look at the empty private room's ceiling, her lips moving a few times.

No one could hear clearly what she was saying.

Perhaps she was calling for her parents.

Perhaps she was calling for that six-year-old brother.

Perhaps it was nothing at all.

The livestream room paused for a beat.

Then the entire platform went completely out of control.

"Locust Tree Gully, reclaimed."

"Twelve years, finally someone opened the door."

"The authorities owed her a trial, and the Seven-Eyed King gave it."

"Seven-Eyed King!"

"Seven-Eyed King!"

"Those whom the law cannot kill, the weird controllers, ought to be killed by someone!"

Folk deity-making came violently and scorching.

The Seven-Eyed Crown's pattern was frenetically shared.

Someone made it into an avatar.

Someone stuck it on protest slogans.

Someone posted old news screenshots of Chen Huaiyuan in the comment section, then crossed out those honorifics one by one.

Merit.

Hero.

City defender.

All were covered by the blood-red "murderer".

General Command Center.

The Technology Department Chief looked at the data, lips dry.

L pressed the final Enter.

The screen popped up a failure prompt.

"Cut off the window, close."

She looked toward Wei Gong.

"He won the propaganda war."

Wei Gong's hand on the table showed bulging veins, then slowly relaxed.

The old man spoke, his tone still steady.

"Organize all of Chen Huaiyuan's files."

"Make it public."

Someone lost their voice: "Director, making this public now equals admitting Zhou Ping's judgment was correct!"

Wei Gong looked over.

"Could he have killed the wrong person?"

That person was left speechless.

Wei Gong stood up.

"The Federation's prestige is not won by covering up."

"If rotten meat is not cut away, it rots to the bone."

Starting tonight, the special advisory team will conduct a full review.

In the meeting room, no one dared to say another word.

Purple Gold Mountain Clubhouse.

Zhou Ping retracted the phantom crown.

The dark‑red tide of rules pressing on Jiang Yuan and the others receded like water.

The Dark Shadow Legion stood up again, but did not pursue.

They stood in silent formation, the armor still bearing the marks of having submitted.

This is harder to watch than being injured.

Zhou Ping walked down the stairs.

The Avengers made way.

Xu Xiaoman was supported by the scarred man, still trembling.

Jiang Yuan stood in the center of the hall, blocking the way.

The bloodstain on his chest was still wet, and behind him the Dark Shadow Court lay in ruins.

"Zhou Ping."

"You killed Chen Huaiyuan; the people will see you as a hero."

"But the blade you unleashed won't cut only the wicked."

Zhou Ping halted.

"Then let's see if you can catch up to me."

Jiang Yuan gripped the Black Card.

"I will catch you."

Zhou Ping nodded.

"I'll wait for you."

He looked toward Qin Zhixia, then toward Su Ming and Liang Wen.

"You keep the order; I won't stop you."

"But I will kill those law‑defying spellcasters that the law cannot touch."

The dark‑red blood lines behind Zhou Ping split open into a spatial rift.

The Avengers walked into it one after another.

Before leaving, the scarred man turned back and gave Liang Wen the middle finger.

Liang Wen laughed angrily on the spot.

"Hey, this guy's pretty polite—his parting gift is so international."

No one responded.

Zhou Ping finally stepped into the rift.

Seven blood‑red eyes opened beyond the rift, then closed.

The blood lines faded.

All that remained of the Purple Gold Mountain Clubhouse was shattered glass across the floor, a collapsed security door, failed rule patterns, and the corpse of Chen Huaiyuan lying in a private room.

Before the live feed went black, the camera lingered on Jiang Yuan and the others.

They stood in the ruins.

Like victors.

Yet utterly unlike them.

Qiu Ce Yuan infirmary.

The screen turned to snow.

Chu Che sat behind his desk, the gold‑thread glasses reflecting the screen's afterimage.

Outside, people were running, someone was shouting to switch channels, and others were preparing postwar accountability.

Here, however, it was eerily quiet.

He reached out to turn off the screen, picked up the wine glass beside him, and took a light sip.

"The ratings aren't bad."

"And the emotional curve is quite beautiful."