Fluorite Valley.
At dusk, centered around a certain hotel, several surrounding blocks fell into a dead silence.
There were no piercing sirens, nor were there any public announcements. To avoid alerting the target, the local Investigation Bureau's field agents wore plainclothes or standard municipal maintenance worker uniforms. Under various pretexts—such as emergency gas pipe inspections, structural reinforcement of hazardous buildings, or clearing the area for a large-scale night event rehearsal—they went door-to-door, persuading residents to leave temporarily.
“Ma'am, for your own safety, please cooperate and temporarily relocate to the designated shelter. It won't take long.”
“Sir, this is a municipal notice. We need to conduct an emergency safety inspection of this area. Thank you for your understanding.”
The process was quiet and efficient. Although the citizens were puzzled, they complied under the polite yet firm attitude of the officials, packing up and leaving with their families.
The evacuation inside the hotel was handled with even greater caution. A special commissioner from headquarters pulled the manager aside and quietly briefed him. Afterward, a professional, fake smile plastered itself across the manager's face as he nodded repeatedly. Turning around, he immediately notified all staff, “The hotel's internal system requires emergency maintenance. All employees are on paid leave.”
The employees smiled, delighted to go home early. The guests in the hotel were also politely escorted out one by one. As they left, the manager's fake smile crumbled, and he began cursing inwardly, calculating how much revenue and customer trust this sudden incident would cost him. The entire evacuation process was conducted with as little noise as possible. The target, the S-rank fugitive, seemed completely oblivious to it all.
Meanwhile, inside the hotel suite.
The foul sensation brought by the Curse Master lingered persistently in the air. After signing the contract, Yue Shi casually tossed it back to the Curse Master and instructed in a flat tone, “Go back and prepare first. There's a tough battle ahead very soon.”
The Curse Master froze upon hearing this. Absorbing the contract back into his body, he looked at Yue Shi in disbelief. “We just signed the contract, and you're already putting me to work?” He felt like a laborer who had just signed a deed of sale only to be immediately shoved onto an assembly line to tighten screws.
Yue Shi countered, “Do you have an objection?”
“...No,” the Curse Master muttered, scratching his chin. A stifling sense of having fallen into a pit right after escaping the water welled up inside him. “Is it dangerous?” he couldn't help but ask, wanting to assess the risk level of his first assignment.
Yue Shi replied vaguely, “I'm not sure either.”
The Curse Master fell silent for a moment. Ultimately, he said nothing. His figure began to fade slowly until he vanished completely from the room. He returned to his true birthplace to prepare for this unknown, tough battle, even though he didn't even know who his opponents were yet.
Only after the Curse Master's aura had completely vanished did the Ghost ask Yue Shi in bewilderment, “What exactly are you trying to do? You're not the type to take a loss. Why did you sign a contract with that dangerous fellow?” The terms of the contract seemed ordinary enough, but there might be a massive problem with the contract itself!
Yue Shi walked to the window, parting a crack in the curtains with his fingertips. He looked down at the quiet street below, his voice cold. “Because trouble is coming. The Curse Master is strong. I need his temporary combat power to use him as a wild card.”
The Ghost drifted around the room. “Is someone coming to cause trouble for us?”
Without waiting for Yue Shi to speak, the Ghost muttered to himself, “Then again, it makes sense. We took down the Iron Curtain Security Company in broad daylight without hiding our faces or our tracks. Since then, we've stayed in this hotel without making any attempt to conceal ourselves. We basically told everyone that a fugitive is right here, inviting them to come find us. It would be weirder if nobody came to cause trouble. Who will it be? The local Investigation Bureau? The Su family? Or headquarters?”
Yue Shi let the curtain fall and turned around. “Any of them are possible. Headquarters wanted me for 'destroying Chijing City,' so they definitely won't let this slide.” He was quite looking forward to this group of little snacks delivering themselves to his doorstep.
“Aren't you afraid of failing spectacularly? What if someone you can't handle shows up?” the Ghost asked with some worry.
“That's exactly why I dragged the Curse Master into this,” Yue Shi answered as if it were the most natural thing in the world. As for that contract? Once the Curse Master was dead, the contract would naturally become a useless piece of paper.
Ever since he summoned the Curse Master using the Replication Bead, he had harbored ill intentions. Yue Shi still remembered telling the Curse Master back in Lab 0, “The next time we meet will be the day you die.” How could he break his word?
“Still, the Curse Master's strength might not be enough of a guarantee, so I need to make more thorough preparations.” Yue Shi looked at the Ghost and said in an unquestionable tone, “We still have one more thing to do.”
The Ghost sighed helplessly. “What kind of trouble are you causing now?”
Yue Shi retrieved several items from his Painted Realm space. They were all looted from the Chijing City Investigation Bureau's armory and Lab 0. An array of explosives and artillery shells of various yields were laid out, enough to give any anti-terrorism expert a cardiac arrest.
“We need to bury these evenly beneath this city.”
The Ghost nearly short-circuited. “Are you planning to...?”
Yue Shi smiled. “Exactly what you're thinking. If necessary, I will take everyone in this city hostage.”
A statement that would make anyone's skin crawl was delivered in an incredibly casual tone. The Ghost felt a shiver run down his spine. He was no good person, but he could never be as... insane as Yue Shi.
Ever since destroying Lab 0 and personally torturing some of his enemies to death, the Ghost felt the hatred in his heart gradually fading. He had even tried to make peace with himself and coexist with this imperfect world. Yet, Yue Shi seemed to be growing increasingly extreme.
The success of his phased revenge had not alleviated his hatred in the slightest; instead, it had fueled his malice. A staggeringly massive and pure malice. Could he have already gone completely mad? Or had Yue Shi been a lunatic from the very beginning?
Despite the chaotic thoughts, anxiety, and resistance swirling in the Ghost's mind, he ultimately chose to join Yue Shi in his madness. He was already deeply bound to Yue Shi; pulling back and redeeming himself was impossible. He could only walk this dark path to the very end.
“Let's go. It's time to bury a few little surprises for this city.”
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