85: Tiandao Workers 9527!

"An appointment?"

Jack was stunned.

He glanced at the minced meat covering the ground and the broken walls still dripping with blood,

then looked back at the middle-aged corporate drone in a cheap suit with a worrying hairline.

The contrast in art style was so jarring it felt like a hemorrhoid cream commercial suddenly interrupting a horror movie.

"Are you freaking kidding me?"

Jack was already fuming.

He had just been mocked by Chen Du, and now some four-eyed geek was blocking his path.

He took a step forward and grabbed the man by his tie.

Spittle flew everywhere as he roared:

"I don't give a damn if you're 9527 or 007! Get out of the way, or I'll shove your head up your ass and kick it like a soccer ball!"

The man was pulled up onto his tiptoes.

Yet, not a single drop spilled from the thermos in his hand.

He adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses,

his eyes filled with thirty percent coldness, thirty percent mockery, and forty percent pity for the mentally challenged.

"Dear player, please mind your manners. This is a civilized workplace."

9527 sighed, his voice thick with exhaustion:

"Also, pull gently. I bought this suit through a group-buy deal; you can't afford to replace it if it's ruined."

As soon as he finished speaking.

An invisible wall of air surged outward.

This wasn't magic; it felt more like some kind of high-dimensional authority.

Jack was sent flying backward uncontrollably.

With a splat, he landed face-first in a pathetic heap.

"Words of Power? No... it's Rule Suppression."

Li Yaozhi's beautiful eyes narrowed, her long legs tensing as she whispered a warning, "Chen Du, this man is unfathomable. He might be a GM-level entity."

Chen Du didn't say anything.

He stared at the enamel thermos in 9527's hand, which was printed with "Serve the People," and suddenly smiled.

It was that feeling of a fellow countryman meeting another, eyes brimming with tears.

He straightened his collar and strode over.

"Don't be nervous, I'm one of yours."

Chen Du walked to the desk and pulled out a chair to sit down with practiced familiarity.

"If I'm not mistaken, brother, you used to be in the system too, right?"

"That aura, that Tai Chi push-hand move... you couldn't have mastered that without at least ten years as a government clerk."

9527's eyebrows twitched as he finally looked Chen Du in the eye.

"Oh? You've got a sharp eye."

Chen Du flicked his wrist.

An unopened pack of Soft Chunghwa cigarettes appeared in his palm.

He had traded for this on the exchange channel; it was the last pack he had.

A single puff of these 'Huazi' was more expensive than gold; it was a top-tier currency.

He calmly pushed the cigarettes over, sliding them next to the thermos.

"This damn place is full of Yin energy and dampness. Brother, have a Huazi to ward off the chill."

"Oh, how can I accept this... this is a violation of discipline..."

9527's mouth said no, but his body was very honest.

In that instant, he displayed the hand speed of someone who had been single for thirty years.

Swish!

The pack of Soft Chunghwa slid directly into his inner suit pocket; not even an afterimage was visible.

"Ahem."

The man gave a tactical cough, his complexion becoming significantly rosier.

"Little brother, you're sensible. Not like that white-skinned gorilla who doesn't understand the rules at all."

Not far away, Jack, who had just managed to stand up, turned green with rage upon hearing this.

FxxK?!

This works too?!

This is a brutal apocalyptic survival game! Not some damn office promotion drama!

"Brother, I'd like to ask you something."

Chen Du leaned forward and lowered his voice. "Behind this door... what's the deal exactly?"

He pointed to the tightly shut crimson door behind him.

"Looking at this setup, it doesn't seem like there's treasure inside. It feels more like..."

9527 gave Chen Du a meaningful look.

"Smart man."

He took a sip of goji berry tea and exhaled comfortably.

"Since you've made an offering, I'll give you the lowdown. This isn't a good place at all..."

9527 pointed to the pitch-black void overhead.

"Inside is a delivery room."

Chen Du's pupils constricted sharply.

"A delivery room?"

"Yeah. You players work yourselves to death to awaken talents and train your bodies, thinking you're evolving? Thinking you're cultivating immortality?"

9527 sneered, his tone full of mockery.

"In reality, you're just training yourselves to be healthier vessels."

"The ones inside that door... let's call them Evil Gods for now. They want to descend into this dimension, but the rules don't allow it."

"It's like an elephant trying to squeeze through a dog flap; if it forces its way in, it'll get stuck."

9527 gestured with two fingers.

"So, they need vessels, or what you might call mediums."

"The more perfect and powerful the body, the more power it can hold."

"Those with awakened talents... tsk tsk, they're just too perfect."

Boom!

These words were like a thunderclap exploding in everyone's ears.

An Nuonuo covered her mouth in shock, her small face pale. "W-we're... vessels?"

Xia Lai got goosebumps all over. "In other words... this so-called battle royale is actually a beauty pageant?"

"Selecting the most beautiful skins for those evil monsters to wear?!"

"You could put it that way."

9527 snapped his fingers. "Ten points. Too bad there's no prize."

Chen Du's face darkened completely, a golden light beginning to flicker in the depths of his eyes.

Everything made sense now.

Why were Ye Qiu and the others taken away? Why was that Ouroboros organization targeting talented players?

Because they were perfect... vessels!

"Who... is inside?" Chen Du's voice was ice-cold.

"Plenty of them. You could say it's a dance of demons."

9527 counted on his fingers. "The Lord of Joy, the Rotting Father, and one who likes playing with tentacles... anyway, none of them are any good."

At this point, he looked at the women behind Chen Du with a hint of pity.

"Especially those girls who came later; their purity is extremely high. If the Lord of Joy takes an interest and the Divine Descent succeeds..."

"Then they will no longer be human."

"Their souls will be crushed, and their bodies will become playthings. Tsk tsk, that scene... definitely not for children."

Crack.

A corner of the desk in Chen Du's hand was snapped off by sheer force.

Jack was listening, completely bewildered.

But he caught one keyword: "Divine Descent."

"If... we can kill those so-called Evil Gods, would they drop divine artifacts?"

A glint of greed flashed in Jack's eyes.

To him, this was just a special mechanic of a high-level boss.

As long as a health bar appeared, he'd kill even a god!

9527 glanced at him as if he were an idiot, not bothering to explain.

He raised his wrist, pretending to check his watch.

"Alright, small talk is over."

"I should get off work too. This crappy job has low pay, tons of bullshit, and they don't even pay for overtime."

9527 stood up and straightened his suit.

The cozy desk, the lamp, and the thermos began to warp and fade like a mirage.

"By the way, for the sake of the Huazi, I'll give you one last piece of advice."

9527's figure had already turned into translucent particles.

He winked at Chen Du, a trace of eeriness in his smile.

"In this place, if you don't want to become someone else's vessel or meat on a chopping block..."

"Then be a little more crazy."

"Only madmen are fit to survive in this fucked-up world."

Snap!

It was like a television being switched off.

The Heavenly Dao Logistics Department, which had been so full of life, vanished completely.

In its place was a blood stench so thick it was nauseating, as if they were standing in a slaughterhouse that had been active for ten thousand years.

The surrounding thick fog grew thinner and thinner.

Suddenly!

A blinding pillar of blood-red light shot into the sky, piercing straight through the darkness of the dome!

"H-help..."

Several weak cries for help drifted out from the pillar of light.

They were filled with despair, pain, and deep, deep fear.

That was... "Ye Qiu?!"

Xia Mo's expression changed drastically, and the sword name in her hand instantly unsheathed, radiating a piercing chill.

"It's Ye Qiu's voice! She's inside!"

Lin Keke was also frantic. "She's crying for help! She sounds so miserable!"

Chen Du suddenly looked up.

In his Golden Wheel Pupils, suppressed rage erupted like a volcano.

Evil Gods, is it?

Using my crew as vessels, are you?

"Everyone, listen up!"

Chen Du drew his long blade, its tip pointing straight at the blood-red pillar of light.

The man who was always grinning and joking now had no expression on his face.

There was only an endless, chilling intent to kill.

"Buff up."

"Today, I'm taking you all..."

"...to slaughter a god!"