Destiny Force on a Post

After recording the information on the Ghost Shark, he turned his gaze to the phone beside him, which was displaying a local supernatural creature forum.

Invincible Trash: 【The Truth Behind the Recent Military Exercise—The Man-Eating Monster in Ningcheng's Darkness!】

Posted: 1 hour ago

Zhao Jin didn't expect to find this kind of news in such a small forum.

Invincible Trash: “I'm sure you've all been hearing gunshots and strange shrieks in the city lately. Let me tell you straight up—this is absolutely not some military exercise. There are man-eating monsters wreaking havoc in Ningcheng!”

He then went on to describe many of the events that had occurred recently, including the gunshots heard in various locations and the gag orders that had been issued.

Chen Mo: “OP, how come I didn't know about this? Besides, isn't it normal to hear gunshots during a military exercise?”

Invincible Trash: “See for yourself. I snuck a picture earlier!”

Below his comment was a photo of a young man who had been shot dead beneath a building.

In the photo, the young man's hands were pitch-black, his mouth was wide open, and a long, black tongue extended all the way down to his chin.

Aoligey: “Holy crap, is this real? He looks terrifying. And I think I know which building that is behind him!”

Brother feiwh: “OP's photo looks way too real. Now that you mention it, it reminds me of my neighbor across the hall. A woman in their family died suddenly, and the authorities cremated her before her family could even see her one last time. It was so bizarre.”

Invincible Trash replied to Brother feiwh: “I'm betting your neighbor was eaten. Her corpse was probably too gruesome to look at, which is why the authorities didn't want to leave it around. Do you guys remember the murder in Yuankou District a few days ago? That was very likely the monster's doing.”

This small forum, which had only a few hundred members, gained over a thousand replies within an hour of this post going live.

Everyone on the forum was drawn to it. It was precisely because the forum was so small that the authorities hadn't noticed and deleted it yet.

Zhao Jin stared at the post, a strange look in his eyes. It can even work like this?

He wasn't drawn in by the user's leaks. Rather, as he looked at his phone, he noticed that a faint trace of Destiny Force was actually lingering on this post.

Yes, an online post—or rather, a piece of computer code—actually possessed Destiny Force.

Zhao Jin fell into deep thought. How can this thing have Destiny Force? What exactly are the conditions for Destiny Force to manifest from a non-living object?

He couldn't help but think of the Opera-Robed Puppet. That, too, was an inanimate object, yet it had birthed Destiny Force.

Suddenly, a spark of inspiration flashed in Zhao Jin's mind. He seemed to have realized something.

He picked up his phone and searched directly for the most popular post on the forum.

【One of the Most Widely Rumored Cryptid Monsters Since the Founding of the Nanming Kingdom: The Butcher!】

The moment he opened the post, a dense ray of golden light burst from the screen, nearly blinding him.

I knew it! It's all about how widely it spreads. The more people who know of an entity's existence, the more Destiny Force its information carrier will naturally contain! The corners of Zhao Jin's mouth curled up slightly.

He was thrilled. He had just discovered something that could alter destiny, something he had never even considered before.

And that was the cryptid monsters, gods, and deities rumored throughout the various nations of this world.

With this in mind, Zhao Jin prepared to infuse the post with Destiny Force. However, the moment the thought crossed his mind, he stopped himself.

This thing doesn't have a physical vessel in reality like the Opera-Robed Puppet did. If I directly pour Destiny Force into it, my meager reserves probably won't be enough to manifest the Butcher out of thin air. Zhao Jin frowned slightly. This was indeed a problem.

He tapped on the post about the Butcher and read through it. A few minutes later, he closed it.

He had a new idea. Perhaps he could use the minimum amount of Destiny Force to manifest the concept described in the post.

Zhao Jin's figure faded, and he vanished from the villa complex.

Inside Ningcheng Prison, in a solitary confinement cell, there were no lights. Everything was shrouded in darkness.

Inside the cell, a middle-aged man wearing a death row uniform leaned quietly against the wall, staring blankly at the ceiling with lifeless eyes.

A rapid succession of footsteps echoed as four prison guards arrived outside the iron bars.

The guard in the lead reached out and flipped the switch on the wall, illuminating the cell.

He pulled out a document, looked at the middle-aged man in the cell, and read aloud, “Lu Liang, your final trial is here. Come with us.”

Another guard took out his keys and stepped forward to unlock the cell door. Two guards immediately went inside with handcuffs and leg irons to restrain Lu Liang.

Lu Liang didn't resist. He let them shackle him and escort him out of the cell.

He glanced at the lead guard and said with a self-deprecating sneer, “Why even bother with a final trial? Haven't the higher-ups already framed me for everything? Is taking me to this final trial just to humiliate me again?”

The lead guard's face darkened with displeasure. “Every death row inmate gets one last chance. If you were truly framed, the higher-ups will naturally give you justice at the final trial.”

With a wave of his hand, he led Lu Liang away.

As the group walked toward the exit, someone watched them from behind.

Zhao Jin watched them with a calm expression. Lu Liang, is it? He is indeed a very suitable vessel for this role.

Ten days ago, Lu Liang had allegedly raped and murdered his own daughter, only to be caught by a group of passing vigilantes. Today's final trial was meant to sentence him to death.

Outside the cell block, a transport van was already waiting.

After the guards locked Lu Liang inside, the vehicle started up and drove out of the prison.

Inside the compartment, once the guards were no longer around...

Lu Liang lowered his head, tears welling up in his eyes. My daughter, Daddy couldn't protect you. It's all my fault. If I had known, I would have come home earlier that day.

“As a man, being unable to avenge your own blood and even losing your own life in the process... that must feel incredibly suffocating.” Suddenly, a calm voice echoed in the space.

The voice made Lu Liang freeze. He immediately looked up toward the source.

Sitting opposite him, at some unknown point, a young man wearing a suit and a fedora had appeared.

In his left hand, the young man held a notebook, and he was currently studying Lu Liang with an analytical gaze.

Lu Liang's eyes widened, looking as if he had seen a ghost. “Who are you?! How did you get in here?!”

He clearly remembered that before he got on, the compartment had been completely empty. Furthermore, it was fully sealed, with no other entrance besides the back door.

At this thought, he quickly glanced toward the viewing window at the front. The two guards driving the van had noticed absolutely nothing amiss.

Zhao Jin didn't answer his question. Looking down at the notebook in his hand, he said in a flat voice, “The Butcher. His wife was defiled and killed by a piece of scum.

“That scum had a powerful background. Despite eyewitnesses identifying him, he not only got off scot-free, but even dragged the Butcher to court. The witnesses even turned on the Butcher, claiming he was the one who raped and murdered his own wife.”

Hearing the other party recount the story of the Butcher, Lu Liang's expression instantly darkened. “What do you want? Did you appear out of nowhere just to tell me a story?”

He had heard of this rumor, of course. In the end, driven to absolute madness by rage, the Butcher had snatched a gun in court and shot the scum dead, only to be gunned down by the surrounding inspectors.

If the story had ended there, it would have been nothing more than a common tale of revenge.

However, the slain Butcher crawled out of hell the very next day, slaughtering every single person he laid eyes on.

Because of their apathy, he had been framed with no way to defend himself.

Because of their false testimonies, he, the victim, had been condemned to death. If they hadn't abetted the evildoer, he would never have become what he was.

The rage he held in life transformed the Butcher into a monstrous machine that knew nothing but slaughter.

Zhao Jin looked at the dark-faced Lu Liang, a slight smile playing on his lips. “This is no mere story. I am showing you a way forward.

“Or do you plan on watching your enemy enjoy his life in comfort while the corpses of you and your daughter are thrown into a mass grave, pecked at by vultures and torn apart by wild dogs?”

Zhao Jin's words made Lu Liang's entire body shudder. He broke down, screaming hysterically, “No! I don't want that! I want to avenge my daughter, even if it means dying! Please help me, I beg you... please...”

Every single second of these past few days, he had wanted nothing more than to kill that man. But his enemy's background was so immense that even in court, the judges treated him with the utmost respect.

Meanwhile, he was just an ordinary person—someone with absolutely no backing, whose death wouldn't matter to anyone.

Seeing this, the smile on Zhao Jin's face grew even wider. He reached out with his right hand and gripped Lu Liang's cheek. “Very well. I shall grant you this opportunity.

“In court, a gun will be delivered right to you. You won't need to worry about whether you know how to use it or if it will jam. All you need to do is blow that beast's brains out. Do it, even if it costs you your life!”

“Fine... As long as you give me the chance, I will definitely kill him!” Lu Liang spat out the words through gritted teeth.

He had been an orphan since childhood. It had taken so much effort for him to marry a wife, only for her to die of an amniotic fluid embolism while giving birth.

Now that his daughter was gone, his sole reason for living in this world had vanished as well.

Zhao Jin looked at him, his figure fading in front of Lu Liang before vanishing into thin air.

Staring at the empty space, Lu Liang became even more convinced that this mysterious entity would help him kill that scum.