Working Records in a Weird World - 69

 

| WRIAWW | There's No Way I Can Beat Him | 69

The B-level survivor, Roland was locked in combat with the hanged little girl in the playroom.

Without a doubt, this child had become a willing accomplice, a soul unable to rest after dying by a weird, was now bound as a type of earthbound weird within the apartment.

Her once-lively face had withered into a horrifying mummy, with deeply sunken eye sockets. She still wore the pink dress her mother had bought for her on the day she died, now stained with dried grayish-black blood.

The ribbon noose in her hand whistled through the air, ready to strangle its next victim.

Crack! Crack! Crack!

The most terrifying thing was that every toy in the playroom obeyed the girl's commands. With just a wave of her hand, teddy bears and Barbie dolls would rise unsteadily and lunge at Roland.

Although the toys were harmless, their overwhelming numbers proved distracting. Fortunately, Roland's agility kept him from being overwhelmed, a close encounter would have been disastrous.

From a simple estimate, this little girl should be a B-level weird.

Having subordinates were common in high-level missions, where powerful weirds often commanded lesser minions. The hidden A-level weird was no exception.

B-level versus B-level should have been an even match, but Roland had to remain vigilant against potential attacks from the hidden A-level weird. Fortunately, Liu Jianhua noticed his predicament while evading the groom's assaults and shouted a crucial warning: "The key is the ribbon hanging from the ceiling!"

The little girl's attacks intensified with rage at this. Roland's heart sank, but relief came as Jiang Chou slipped through the doorway just before it sealed shut.

"Quick! Give me a hand here!"

Though Roland had clashed with Jiang Chou during their last mission, he saw nothing wrong with fighting for one's own interests. Survivors weren't always peaceful, without the three major guilds collecting protection fees, the merchant guild's mercenary commissions was still there.

But right now, the current mission took priority.

That split-second decision to turn his back proved fatal. In the next moment, Roland felt excruciating pain pierce his chest.

"Guh—"

Whirling around in shock, he only caught Jiang Chou's retreating figure.

It was too late. Only then did Roland remember Zong Le's recent warning, the A-level weird in this apartment could copy others' appearances and tricking victims into letting their guard down. 

In combat, human reflexes had limits. A single second of negligence could change everything.

How long could someone live with a ruptured heart?

Roland's vision blurred rapidly. The massive blood loss and the attack rendered him unable to move.

Even though he knew the 1st was overseeing this mission, his survival would be guaranteed if he could just seek help outside the playroom, but he couldn't even activate Flash Step.

He could only watch helplessly as the ribbon nooses coil around him as the little girl's giggling echoed.

At brink of death, holy light suddenly descended from above, precisely enveloping Roland.

Instantly, his punctured heart mended, restoring circulation.

"Watch out!"

Somehow, Zong Le, who should've been battling the Bride weird, stood there gripping the fruit knife he had thrown to him earlier. Roland hadn't noticed his entry, when he'd retrieved the weapon, or how he'd fought the weird.

But in that moment, countless ribbons severed midair. The little girl weird suspended from the ceiling instantly had her throat slit, leaving only a head rolling across the floor.

'This is a C-level survivor? Even S-levels aren't this strongly insane, right?!'

After confirming that the crisis was resolved, Roland finally couldn't hold on and fell unconscious.

Joshua who arrived, looked at Zong Le inquiringly.

Zong Le, who entered his combat state was completely different from his usual innocent look, but instead had a kind of coldness that made him unapproachable.

This coldness was not reflected just in his expression, but in the ruthless efficiency with which he'd snapped the weird's neck, and the overwhelming power that left no room for resistance.

Neither Roland nor even Joshua had fully processed his movements. In a flash, the weird Bride got instantly obliterated in a single move. The next second, Zong Le had disappeared from his sight.

This was not the first time he had seen such speed that was almost like teleporting. He had personally experienced it at Guiyi City's church, yet witnessing it again left him at awe.

What was even more terrifying was that the person who possessed this power was not only fast, but also powerful in strength, perception, mental strength...all without any weak spots.

The ring on Joshua's finger burned as desire spread wildfire through his veins.

"He's fine. He just lost too much blood and temporarily lost consciousness."

In order to suppress this feeling, Joshua resorted to changing the subject.

Through their brief interaction, he easily confirmed that Zong Le had sharp instincts. He had to tread carefully, or he might easily scare off his prey.

Even so, that fleeting glimpse of greed in his eyes sent a chill down Zong Le's spine.

The black-haired youth picked up his fruit knife, warily scanning his surroundings, but he couldn't find the hidden weird.

"The figure that stabbed him fled six o'clock," Joshua 'helpfully' reminded. "But I must warn you, sometimes ignorance is bliss. If you insist on opening Pandora's box, you'd better be prepared to handle what comes out."

Before he could finish speaking, Zong Le had already vanished from sight.

Watching this, the silver-haired patriarch simply shrugged.

He casually threw a protective barrier around Roland lying on the floor, then cheerfully followed after.

Having spent countless years in the infinite space, Joshua had witnessed the disillusionment of all kinds of idealists. Though someone as extreme in their lawful goodness as Zong Le was rare, he firmly believed that even the purest kindness person would eventually fall under reality's harsh tempering.

Zong Le considers others to be "so nice and kind." Whether it was those two survivors whose arguments ended up dragging him into the fire, or the insignificant ants from his past records who'd wronged him, they were just ants that he could crush to death with one hand.

However, Zong Le had no intention of holding a grudge, and even spoke for them. He was so magnanimous that he was not like an ordinary person.

How could any human being lack even the most basic negative emotions?

So targeting Zong Le's unique traits, Joshua rewrote his script.

What else could he do? When brute force failed, psychological warfare remained.

And psychological warfare had its advantages. After all, no matter how strong someone was, they could still crumble from within.

What Joshua truly wanted was to exploit the opening when those mental defenses finally collapsed.

......

Zong Le had always been fast. The moment he got the information, he flashed hundreds of meters down the corridor.

Because the weird domain unfolded too suddenly, the scene in the living room was a bit chaotic.

The weird that had died here began causing trouble, while they also had to guard against the original weird. With teammates' skills flying everywhere, the situation quickly descended into chaos.

"Huh?"

Jiang Chou stood at the end of the corridor, seemingly having just escaped pursuit. He looked surprised upon seeing Zong Le.

After the weird domain activated, the entire apartment became unsafe. Joshua was the first to deploy a protective barrier, anchoring himself at the center, while Liu Jianhua activated his medium abilities, securing himself in place to guard against sneak attacks from the weird.

In this case, according to logic, the talented newcomer should stay in the protective barrier. A mere C-level was not a powerful A-level like Dong Feng, wouldn't it be suicide to run out rashly?

"Why did you come here? I just saw that weird transform into my appearance and run this way. You're only C-level, this isn’t a fight you should be involved in. Go back to Lord Joshua."

Despite the well-meaning warning, Zong Le didn’t retreat.

The black-haired youth took two steps forward, his gaze sweeping over the apartment walls.

As long as Zong Le wanted, nothing could hide from his sight. Right now, he could clearly see that the weird lurking in the apartment hadn’t passed through this area in the last half hour. There were no fresh traces of weird energy nearby.

"Senior Roland was stabbed just now."

"What?!" A flicker of unease crossed Jiang Chou’s face before he feigned shock. "How? That damn weird must’ve been too deceptive." He then urged again, "Hurry back. I can sense it nearby. If a fight breaks out, I won’t be able to protect you, I’m only a agility-type."

"Why do you keep insisting I leave? With me here, you have an extra pair of hands to track the weird."

After being humiliated again and again, Jiang Chou’s irritation flared. "You are a C-level, why are you so arrogant? What's the point of you staying here, you would just hold me back."

"Hold you back? Aren't you just afraid your attempt to assassinate Senior Roland will be exposed?"

"Y-You—what nonsense are you talking about?!"

Seeing the other’s aggressive yet guilty expression, Zong Le wasted no more time. His body tensed slightly before his right leg lashed out like a whip—

Thud!

With a dull impact, Jiang Chou, who had struck first was sent flying like a broken kite, skidding across the smooth corridor floor before crashing into a display case at the end, shattering the glass of the display cabinet.

Even now, Jiang Chou’s was still confused.

As a A-level agility-type, he had the upper hand, how had a C-level defeated him in one move?

The black-haired youth bent down and picked up the dagger from the floor.

"Weirds only bleed black. This blood on the blade looks fresh."

Seeing that he was exposed, Jiang Chou discarded all pretense, his mask slipping away. "Fine! So what? I wanted Roland dead! Who told him to humiliate me during the last mission and steal the artifact that should’ve been mine?!"

But what truly sealed his decision was the bounty notice he’d stumbled upon in the underground guild’s announcement group shortly after the mission began.

This particular artifact happened to be the one Roland had seized during their last mission, and a exceptionally generous reward had been offered. Jiang Chou, already harboring resentment, had decided to take the risk.

"I admit I might have underestimated your strength, but what can you do about it? Things like this happen all the time, survivors killing each other isn’t exactly rare. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth,"

In Jiang Chou’s mind, Roland had long been dead, his heart pierced clean through: "Don’t tell me you’re playing a righteous cop? Don’t make me laugh. There’s no such profession in the Infinite Space."

Even as Jiang Chou continued his excuses, Zong Le’s fist was already whistling through the air before slamming into his face with brutal force.

Crack!

The sharp snap of a nose breaking echoed down the hallway.

Zong Le has never shown any mercy to such criminals who have evil intentions and even dare to kill. The man crumpled to the ground, falling unconscious before he even hit the floor.

"So, what do you plan to do now?"

A smooth, elegant voice suddenly cut through the air as Zong Le stood over Jiang Chou’s beaten form.

"I did warn you, didn’t I? The human heart is far harder to predict than any mission."

Joshua had appeared at the corridor’s corner at some point, his silver hair gleaming coldly under the dim light. This time, he made no effort to conceal himself, instead watching the one-sided beating with leisurely amusement.

His long fingers traced idle patterns in the air, weaving a few soundproof barriers around them, ensuring the violent commotion from the living room wouldn’t disturb this little spectacle.

"Though, to be fair, he’s not entirely wrong. No one in the Infinite Space cares about these matters. If you get killed, it can only be regarded as your own bad luck."

Otherwise, why would so many low-level survivors grovel before the high-level ones?

Seeking benefits was one thing, but avoiding trouble was another. Though the survivors are from the real world, after staying in the gloomy copies and the high-pressure environment where death is possible at any time for so long, their morality​​will inevitably be somewhat distorted. 

The most prominent point is that there are no laws, and everything depends on personal morality.

Given Zong Le’s previously demonstrated hatred for evil, Joshua was keenly interested in what choice he’d make now. 

Not one to miss an opportunity, he fanned the flames: "This matter should be handled carefully. If you let him go, he might just come after Roland again. After all, an A-level can strut around the Infinite Space with no consequences, so long as they don’t run into an S-level."

"With the mission deadline approaching, I have thought of a way to have the best of both worlds."

The man leaned in slightly, his voice dropping to a whisper, laced with a hypnotic allure as he dangled the bait: "It just so happens that I also can't stand this kind of backstabbing behavior."

"Right now, it’s just the two of us here. Whether he faces punishment for his actions, it’s entirely up to you."

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