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Chapter 465: Chapter 461: Escapism
"Save me?"
Gu Jinlai looked at the demonic cultist whose bounty was as high as one hundred and twenty billion, vaguely guessing what he was about to say, yet his expression remained unchanged.
"Do I need you to save me? Or do you think you can kill me?"
"The one to kill you isn’t me. In some ways, we are the same kind of people. So, even though you have killed several Out-of-Controls as you call them and assisted Lan Yuxian in capturing Lei Jie and Chi Yan, for the past half-month, no one has really made a move against you."
Ding Zhongyuan spoke, pausing slightly: "You’ve spent most of your time in the Outer City District over these past two weeks, with only a Martial King by your side. You should know that we’ve had plenty of opportunities to attack you."
Previous Sweepers, to ensure their safety, often would not expose their identities, but secretly hunt those Out-of-Controls and demonic cultists listed on the bounty rankings.
Now, the Sweepers of Wind and Rain City are stepping into the limelight, and for safety reasons, Sweepers generally do not come to the Outer City.
Even if they do come, it’s usually to carry out missions, moving in teams.
Because...
The Outer City District is too chaotic, too crowded.
And far too removed from the Saints and Martial Saints, the magic stabilizers. When in danger, even if they send out a distress call immediately, it can often take more than a dozen seconds for help to arrive.
A Sweeper like Gu Jinlai, who openly operates in the Outer City District...
And is a deputy team leader of a Sweeper Team, can only be described as incredibly bold and skilled.
"You speak as if you could easily kill me, yet with my current ability, unless a Martial Saint or a Saint gets involved, which Out-of-Control or demonic cultist can even harm me? And if Saints and Martial Saints do make a move...have they prepared themselves to be discovered and killed by City Lord Zhao Hua and others?"
Gu Jinlai said quietly.
Although from the level of Karma emanating from Ding Zhongyuan, he didn’t seem to be a vicious person, that didn’t mean Gu would readily believe one-sided claims.
"I’ve said, the person who will kill you will not be us. On the contrary, the ones who will truly try to kill you are, in your view, those who you place great hopes on, like Dean Wu Tianya of the Martial Saint Institute, and City Lord Zhao Hua."
Ding Zhongyuan stated emphatically.
"Are you trying to sow discord?"
Gu Jinlai asked.
"Not at all. Do you know what the true essence of being Out-of-Control is?"
Ding Zhongyuan didn’t beat around the bush, speaking directly: "Undeniably, some of the Out-of-Controls indeed cannot tame their desires, becoming dominated by them and thus wreak havoc and poison living beings. However, the main reason why more than half are branded as Out-of-Controls is that they refuse to collude with the upper echelons of Wind and Rain City, oppress the common people, and aren’t willing to see the last Holy Land of the Human Clan turn into a repeat of the ancient catastrophe due to the greed of its internal members."
"Are you saying... they weren’t really out of control?"
"No, they simply aren’t willing to be evil like the high-ups in Wind and Rain City, which is why they are labeled as Out-of-Controls and then systematically exterminated by Sweepers like you."
Ding Zhongyuan said, looking at Gu Jinlai: "Do you know Long Xiangtian?"
Long Xiangtian?
Gu Jinlai had heard of that name.
He was a disciple of Dean Wu Tianya from the Martial Saint Institute and also the strongest Martial King at the institute in recent years.
He walked the path of Heaven and Earth Demigods, practiced Visualization Great Sun, and derived an invincible method equating top-grade Divine Skills, illuminating the world with a blazing, bright Dao level, rumored to tolerate no darkness or evil.
However, his adherence to "Justice and Brightness" later led him astray. Anyone who committed even a minor mistake would be executed by his severe methods until eventually, he began to lose control, prompting Dean Wu Tianya to step in, clear his own ranks, and kill him on the spot.
Ding Zhongyuan pulled out some documents and handed them to Gu Jinlai: "This is what Long Xiangtian discovered. Take a good look. You have only been in Wind and Rain City for a short time and may not understand... you might not even understand the darkness of the entire upper echelons of the Holy Dynasty..."
His voice grew deeper: "Perhaps, the initial intent of establishing the Holy Dynasty was indeed to forge a Holy Land for mankind, but as of today, the ruling class of the Dynasty has become thoroughly corrupt. Now, all they want to do is collect as much resources as possible to strengthen themselves and then... escape."
Saying this, he looked up toward the sky outside: "Flee from the Holy Land, and even from this world, using the technology left from the era of the Heavenly Master Civilization to escape to a brand new world..."
Gu Jinlai knew what Ding Zhongyuan was referring to.
Blue Star.
According to Ding Zhongyuan, the high echelons of the Holy Dynasty actually planned to flee to Blue Star?
"You mean to say, the high echelons believe humanity cannot defeat the Devil? They advocate for escapism, only thinking about plundering the resources of the Holy Dynasty before leaving this world, indifferent to the fate of its people?"
"Exactly."
Ding Zhongyuan stated solemnly, "These people can directly escape to other worlds to avoid the Devil’s encroachment, but we cannot leave. In this situation, all we can do is save ourselves. And because we aren’t willing to give up on this world, and want to gather all the power of the Holy Dynasty to continue resisting the Devil, we are labeled as Out-of-Controls and demonic cultists, and thus persecuted by everyone..."
"Self-rescue, saving the world... Is this your doctrine, as well as the real reason you are called demonic cultists?"
Gu Jinlai interrupted.
Ding Zhongyuan was silent for a moment, and it took a while before he said, "Everything we do, we do for our future, for the future of our Human Clan... Perhaps now, my words, our actions cannot be understood by your people. Those who stand in the light, its intense brightness makes many unable to open their eyes. But I believe, when the rulers of the Holy Dynasty reveal their true nature, when the world’s naivety really dims, you all will understand who truly represents the light, and who is truly the dark."
After speaking, he took out a book and said, "These are the evidence we have regarding people from Wind and Rain City like Zhao Hua, Wu Tianya, Jin Fantian, Cao Wudao, and others persecuting their own kind, even colluding with devils. Each incident is more than I can describe. I hope you can open your eyes and see, see the truth about them."
Gu Jinlai sat in his original spot, still without any movement.
"They are only using you now. Wind and Rain City has caused outrage both in heaven and among people. They still need to maintain the stability of the Holy Dynasty as they are not yet ready to flee. So, Zhao Hua and the others need a knife, a target to present the order of Wind and Rain City to deflect the superiors’ questions and to placate the public’s expectations. But when things are nearly done, Zhao Hua and the others will clean up starting with you," he said.
Ding Zhongyuan reached this point and did not continue, "I’ve said enough; you might still have some time. During this time, you can look more, think more. We really can’t bear to see someone who harbors light in their heart, to some extent sharing our aspirations, just throw away their life."
He handed a jade-like object to Gu Jinlai, "If there comes a time when you truly see the real face of those people in Wind and Rain City and want to join us, and work together to make Wind and Rain City, make the Holy Dynasty a better place, activate this, and someone will come and bring you to us."
Having said this, he did not dare stay there any longer. His figure flashed, and like a breeze, he vanished from Gu Jinlai’s sight.
Gu Jinlai held the jade and did not take any further action.
If he wanted, he could have made Ding Zhongyuan stay.
But...
Considering the dark, flame-like Karma on Wu Tianya compared to Ding Zhongyuan...
Yellow!
Such a powerful Deva only registered as Yellow, which was utterly astonishing.
You must know, at their realm, even if they’re upright people, as they rise, it’s inevitable to witness the fall of many forces. Therefore, even if they never actively oppress others, the passive accumulation of Karma would still bring them close to the level of Light Red.
The concentration of Karma on Ding Zhongyuan was even less than Light Red, which only proved...
He wasn’t just not a bad person; he could also be considered a broadly defined good person.
Compared to the others, the differences became starkly clear.
"Holy Dynasty... Holy Dynasty..."
Gu Jinlai murmured these words, his heart filled with heaviness.
The Holy Dynasty, formed from the Six Great Cave Heavens.
Forty-nine giant cities, each fortified by a National Guardian Saint.
And perched in the Imperial Capital, the Six Great Cave Heavens, are dozens of Void Immortals.
The strongest six among them even gained recognition by Divine Weapons, their combat power almost rivaling those of True Immortals stationed in the world.
Yet such a powerful force, faced with the invasion of devils, the upper echelons were desperate enough to consider fleeing with their whole clan.
How powerful then, must the devils be?
"Back when the devils had not yet become significant, the cultivator powers that had absorbed the remnants of the Heavenly Master Civilization claimed to rule over Thirty-Six Cave Heavens, Seventy-two Holy Lands, what splendor and brilliance that was, yet still, they were breached by the devils... Now the Holy Dynasty formed primarily by the six Cave Heavens attempts to combat the devils, turning it into a Holy Land for the Human Clan..." 𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒑𝒖𝒃.𝙘𝙤𝒎
Gu Jinlai could not help but sigh in his heart.
He was overthinking it.
Of course, this could also be Ding Zhongyuan exaggerating, using frightening rhetoric to coerce people into joining the sect.
Perhaps after the devils breached the Holy Lands, they, too, were greatly weakened.
Without truly decisive evidence, Gu Jinlai would not easily believe others’ words and make a final judgment.
...
The next morning, Gu Jinlai again led his team to eliminate one family after another on the blacklist, but...
The results were meager.
Continuing this way, unless he could ignore the evidence and execute based on the strength of the Karma on others, even clearing all other districts of the Outer City would hardly yield much Qingguang.
Seeing that the time agreed with Qi Yunxiao was drawing near, he instructed Qiao Muqi and others, intending to personally go to Hai Feng City to capture the criminals of the Ouyang family. After that, he took Zhao Yushu and left Wind and Rain City, heading straight to Hai Feng City.
