Working Records in a Weird World - 19

 

| WRIAWW | Are You the Boss of Ankang Community? | 19

In fact, after the weird domain was lifted, Zong Le did not sneak away from the villa as he had previously said.

There was no way around it, his sense of morality was just too strong. After doing something wrong, it was hard for him to convince himself otherwise. In contrast, the other D-level survivors, upon seeing the weird domain dissolve, immediately bolted without a second thought.

The low-level guy who had volunteered to give Bai Shao a massage had just applied the essential oil to his hands when he was pushed aside and ran off, leaving Bai Shao, who was lying on the chair, quite angry.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Zong Le quickly moved from the reception hall to an empty room on the second floor.

As long as he wasn’t in front of those S-level survivors, they wouldn’t remember the protection fee.

So, Zong Le kept a low profile and stayed quietly in the room until he saw the survivors running down the mountain enveloped in a white beam of light, and the voices on the outer corridor completely disappeared. Only then did he feel safe enough to come out.

Of course, before leaving the empty room, Zong Le didn’t forget to leave a small stack of money on the bed as compensation for accidentally damaging the reception hall.

As expected, all the survivors had been taken back to the infinite space by the main system.

The entire luxurious villa was eerily quiet, so silent you could hear a pin drop.

Taking advantage of the emptiness, Zong Le boldly made his way to the prayer room.

On the corridor, he saw quite a few remnants of a fight, the tapestry burned and pits. He also saw Madame Xue lying in a pile of candles, her eyes wide open and her body cold, and a figure sneaking around with a burlap sack.

“What are you doing?”

Hearing this, the person who was bending over to pull jewelry off the corpse’s fingers was startled.

When he turned around, Zong Le realized it was the villa’s butler. However, compared to his previously polite and courteous demeanor, the butler now seemed to have shed all restraints, revealing his greedy nature.

“You, you, you... why are you still here?!”

“Why would I leave?”

Zong Le gave him a strange look.

Although the butler had tried his best to conceal it, the sack he was dragging was simply too large, and the glittering treasures spilling out from the open end were hard to miss.

Feeling the weight of Zong Le’s scrutinizing gaze, the already guilty butler’s anger flared up, and he decided to drop the act.

“What are you looking at? The owner is dead, and all these treasures are now ownerless. I’ve worked hard serving this madwoman for so many years, doing all sorts of dirty work for her behind the scenes. What’s wrong with taking a little reward?!”

“And you, stop pretending to be clueless. You’re staying here for the same reason as me, aren’t you? To take advantage of the opportunity to grab some cash?”

Zong Le: ???

The barrage of accusations almost left him stunned.

However, Zong Le was always quick to focus on the key points, ignoring the butler’s useless, angry accusations and zeroing in on the truly valuable information.

“So, you’re admitting that you were involved in the Tianmen Mansion serial murders?” Zong Le narrowed his eyes and retorted.

His concerned radar for the Guiyi City’s citizen was activated.

After a moment, the butler lay on the ground, just like his predecessors, with his hands crossed, fainting in a rather peaceful manner.

As for Zong Le, he found himself in a dilemma, staring at one living person and one corpse on the floor.

"Based on past experience, calling the police would be pointless—they definitely wouldn’t handle this."

But leaving it like this was not an option.

Just as Zong Le was racking his brains for a solution, footsteps echoed in the corridor once again.

He looked up and saw the mortician, marked with the Taikang Yongle logo, returning. As before, the mortician ignored the gruesome scene, as if he had anticipated it, and silently pulled out a pre-prepared body bag to collect Madam Xue’s remains.

Zong Le noticed that this body bag was different from the previous ones—it was more finely crafted and specifically labeled with the words 【Premium Edition - High Priority】.

"Um..."

Zong Le stepped forward, intending to stop the mortician. However, the latter skillfully gestured in sign language and pulled out two certificates from his pocket. 

One was a disability certificate indicating the loss of his tongue, and the other was a work permit from the Guiyi City Crematorium.

At this point, Zong Le could no longer stop him and could only watch as the mortician dragged the body bag away.

After the mortician disappeared through the entrance of the underground garage, Zong Le rubbed his nose and dragged the butler out by the collar.

Zong Le’s reasoning was simple: even if the police wouldn’t intervene, he couldn’t let the accomplice of the mastermind behind the serial killings roam freely outside. 

What if they posed a threat to the safety of other residents in Guiyi City?

In such a situation, it was his duty to step up without hesitation.

But what he didn’t expect was that the commotion in the villa had alerted the guards outside, who immediately used their walkie-talkies to summon the security team from Tianmen Mansion. A group of them, armed with riot shields and steel batons, surrounded the entire garden. 

Even the young master, who had just been released after making a statement at the police station, was stopped from entering.

"This is my house!"

The young master, still reeking of last night’s alcohol, erupted in anger: "Do you know who my mother is? Madam Xue! She’s a prominent figure in Guiyi City, practically the boss of the entire area. Everyone must show her respect! Even the second-in-command of the southern gang, the Night Owls, has been pursuing her lately, sending her fresh flowers covered in morning dew every day. If you make me unhappy, you’ll all regret it!"

Just as the two sides were at a standoff, the young master suddenly collapsed.

The smoke on the lawn gradually dissipated, revealing a tall figure.

A black-haired young man, with one hand dragging the unconscious butler and the other fanning the air to disperse the dust, looked up and froze at the sight of the crowd outside.

"...Hi?"

But the young master’s reaction was even more intense. At first, he shouted, "Who are you? How did you get out of my house?" 

But the moment he clearly saw Zong Le’s face, he jumped a foot high like a rabbit.

"Ah—"

His scream tore through the night.

The bodyguards quickly surrounded him: "What’s wrong, young master?"

"That’s the thug who attacked me this morning!"

The young master would never forget the scene where the man effortlessly took down a group of teenagers like he was swatting chickens. Recalling the incident at the post station, he trembled like a sieve on the spot.

"What?!" Upon hearing this, the security captain of Tianmen Mansion was equally horrified.

"You're the new boss of the Ankang community at the foot of the mountain?!"

He took a step back, trying to maintain his composure. But the trembling in his hands betrayed his true feelings.

Not only the captain, but the other security guards were also terrified, nearly dropping their riot shields.

It was well known that the territories in Guiyi City were clearly divided. Every block, every building, and even every business had strict ownership. Powerful weirds occupied their territories like feudal lords in ancient times, while weaker ones ruled their small domains like local kings. 

These weirds divided the land clearly, and the rest of the NPCs lived under the rule of these weirds, whether strong or weak.

In recent years, fewer and fewer new weirds had emerged, with most being the familiar old ones. Even among weird, there was a severe class structure.

Unlike survivors, it was already extremely difficult for an NPC to transform into a weird, let alone become a powerful one. Thus, behind every powerful weird lay countless bones, soaked in the tears of the dead, having consumed vast amounts of blood and flesh.

Under these circumstances, it was truly baffling that the dilapidated Ankang neighborhood could give birth to a new weird. After all, just two months ago, the place was only occupied by a few insignificant minor weirds, hardly worth a glance.

But the person before them...

Feeling the complete absence of any presence in the Tianmen Mansion, the security captain broke into a cold sweat.

As the captain, he knew many secrets behind the villas. For instance, the resident of Villa 4, Madam Xue, had been making large donations to the Guiyi City Church for years and finally gained the favor of the church last year, successfully nurturing a genuine S-level weird.

For this reason, the security team had been particularly attentive.

Yet, no one expected that the S-level weird would die before it could fully manifest.

A being that could effortlessly eliminate an S-level weird—what level it was didn't need not be said.

Even though the black-haired young man stood there casually, showing no signs of strength or leaking any weird energy, appearing completely like an ordinary person, it was enough to make the security guards tremble in fear.

"The boss of Ankang community?"

Meanwhile, Zong Le still seemed confused about the situation.

But upon closer thought, it did seem like there was such a thing.

Just two days ago, after completing the happiness index survey task in the Ankang neighborhood, the newly formed family of neighbors from the building had come to visit him.

Along with them were the heads of other buildings in the neighborhood and the gatekeeper, all carrying gifts. They offered him a cigarette made from corpse oil and asked for his future guidance.

Zong Le didn’t smoke, so he declined the cigarette and local specialties but agreed to their request.

After all, the situation in Guiyi City was clear to anyone with eyes. Since the neighbors had come to ask for his help, how could the ever-helpful Zong Le refuse?

"Now I understand what you mean by 'boss,' but the Ankang Community is indeed under protection."

Seeing the other party confirm their identity, the team leader took a deep breath.

With such a powerful weird appearing and devouring an S-level weird in one move, the entire structure of Guiyi City was bound to change.

"Sorry for the disturbance. Please forgive our ignorance. We’ll leave immediately."

This wasn’t just empty talk. The captain genuinely led his subordinates in rolling on the ground, each of them covered in dead leaves. Under Zong Le’s puzzled gaze, they scurried away in disgrace.

Watching the security team retreat with their tails between their legs, the young master grew even more terrified and collapsed to the ground.

He realized he had truly messed with something he shouldn’t have.

Though the young master was nothing more than a freeloader, he at least knew his place.

In Guiyi City, there was no such thing as law and order. The police were practically useless. Weirds often preyed on each other, and the one with the strongest fist had the final saying.

Given the current situation... it was likely that the pillar of his family had been devoured by this black-haired weird.

"I was wrong! I was wrong!"

As a spoiled rich kid who lived off his family’s wealth, the young master instantly cowered, kneeling on the ground and weeping bitterly.

Seeing his sincere remorse, Zong Le felt somewhat relieved.

He nodded and said, "Don’t engage in illegal activities like this again."

Although he hadn’t done much, it was always good to guide someone back to the right path.

With that, Zong Le, having done a good deed, dragged the butler back to the Ankang Community.

Upon reaching the entrance, he found himself inexplicably greeted with a warm welcome.

Many residents he had never seen before—a plainly dressed woman with twisted limbs, a strange child playing with its saliva, and even an elderly man leaning on a bone-like cane—stood there with dark, cloudy eyes.

When they saw Zong Le, they grinned, revealing sinister, malicious smiles.

"Boss, we heard you went to the Tianmen Mansion at the mountaintop to challenge them?"

"Well done! We’ve been wanting to tear those arrogant rich people to shreds!"

Zong Le paused, ultimately deciding to ignore the embarrassing title of "boss."

"How did you know?"

"It’s all over the news!"

The evening news in Guiyi City had reported that a new S-level weird had appeared in the southern part of the city, residing in the Ankang Community on the outskirts. 

In one move, it had annihilated the infamous Black Widow, Madam Xue.

As locals, the people of the Ankang Community were well-versed in the art of opportunism and flattery.

Having acknowledged Zong Le as their master, they naturally took pride in his achievements. If their boss was making waves outside, they too could strut around with newfound confidence and no longer cower as they once did.

Only Zong Le stood there feeling uneasy.

He wasn’t the type to enjoy the spotlight, and besides, it was the silver-haired bad guy who had killed Madam Xue. If it weren’t for the main system erasing the memories of the relevant NPCs, he wouldn’t be taking credit for it.

But there was no way to explain this, so Zong Le quickly changed the subject to avoid further discomfort.

"I’ve captured a serial killer from the mountain. I know that the police won’t handle it, but I want him to face the punishment he deserves. Do you any of you have any suggestions?"

This speech had the air of a local tyrant consulting his loyal subjects, and the weirds were eager to seize this golden opportunity to show their allegiance.

However, the answers to this question was...

"What kind of punishment should be given? Why don't you let us eat—"

As soon as one weird started speaking, another NPC pulled them aside and whispered, "You can't say that. Our boss is mentally ill, he always thinks about doing good deeds. He even talks about creating a peaceful, friendly, and harmonious Guiyi City. So just humor him."

The low-level weird was dumbfounded and then shivered.

"A peaceful, friendly, and harmonious Guiyi City... Damn, isn't that hell?!"

"Yeah, the boss's goal is absolutely terrifying. He's a real living Yama King, far worse than the two major gangs. If I had to live in such a place, I'd rather be killed."

"Should we rebel now..."

"Are you insane? Do you really think you can win? Look at what happened to those weirds in Building 4. They used to be small leaders in our neighborhood. I don't believe there's a single weird talented in Guiyi City who can defeat the boss. As long as there's someone who can stop him, we'll just have to follow along for now..."

Completely unaware that his words had terrified his neighbors, Zong Le was still there, waiting for a response.

Seeing everyone hesitate, he decided to call on someone directly.

"Xiao Fu, you're the youngest and full of ideas. You speak up."

The weird child who was called almost knelt on the spot.

But there was no such thing as friendly cooperation among weirds. They were all filled with pure malice, they were eager to see one less person sharing the resources in the neighborhood. 

So, bathed in the gleeful gazes of those around him, the helpless weird child hugged his ball and stammered out a response.

"S-since the police won't handle it, what if we lock them up ourselves?"

Zong Le's eyes lit up. "That's a great idea!"

When the law fails to uphold justice, violence becomes the only path.

Coincidentally, there were quite a few empty rooms in Ankang Community that could serve as a makeshift prison.

A complete replica of Arkham Prison was entirely feasible.

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