Chapter 170: Fear Power Rather Than Cherish Virtue

The three of them paused. Prompted by Su Mu, they suddenly realized that the King being a sea god's familiar wasn't so unreasonable after all—in fact, it made perfect sense.

"As expected, there is nothing new under the sun," Mu Qing said, parting her lips slightly. "Only this time, they've replaced the livestock with humans. Mr. Su, is our next step to publicly reveal that the King is a sea god's familiar?"

"We have to expose the truth!" Yang Dongqing gritted his teeth. "This beast not only pens people up like livestock, he's using innocent citizens against us! Once we reveal the truth, Hu Jie's subjects and those transcendents will definitely rise up against him. The situation will completely reverse!"

Su Mu simply smiled in silence. Noticing his expression, Mu Qing couldn't help but ask, "Mr. Su, do you see a flaw in this plan?"

"What could be flawed about it?" Yang Dongqing looked confused. "I think it's the best option. If we don't expose the truth, the four of us will be making enemies of the entire Sea Kingdom. We can't possibly fight that."

Su Mu shook his head. "You still don't understand human nature."

Mu Qing's heart stirred. "Mr. Su, are you worried the citizens won't believe us? That is a real possibility. After all, Hu Jie is the King, and we are just outsiders. If we publicly claim that the King is a sea god's familiar, hardly anyone will believe it. But we can execute a decapitation strike!

"I asked around about Hu Jie's abilities a long time ago. He has lived in the Sea Kingdom for ten years, so his power is no secret. His Silver Law is Sequence 32, Paper-Cutting Wraith, which allows him to create and control paper figures. I suspect the reason Hu Jie can maintain a human appearance is because he hides his true body inside a paper figure.

"If we can just land an attack on him, we can break his paper disguise and force him to reveal his true form! When that happens, the citizens will definitely side with us."

"Excellent!" Lu Dongliang grew excited, rubbing his hands together. "I've been sick of that Hu Jie for a while now. Leave this task to me. After I activate my Berserk state, Mu Qing, use your vines to throw me at him. While fully Berserk, I'll definitely be able to hurt him!"

At this moment, Yang Dongqing, whose intelligence usually lingered below average, became uncharacteristically clever. As the saying goes, even a fool is bound to have one good idea.

Yang Dongqing's eyes lit up in pleasant surprise. "There's no need for all that trouble! I have a method that doesn't require taking any risks and will still expose Hu Jie's true form."

"What method?" Mu Qing looked at him suspiciously.

Yang Dongqing smiled smugly. "Su Mu possesses an Illusion Technique. All he has to do is cast it on Hu Jie and disguise his appearance to look like a sea god's familiar."

After proposing this method, he grew even more pleased with himself, feeling like an absolute genius for coming up with such a foolproof plan. His inspiration primarily came from their time at the Statue, when Su Mu had disguised the rotting flesh on Tie Feng's body as burn wounds.

Mu Qing and Lu Dongliang were pleasantly surprised. They had never expected Su Mu to be so versatile or to possess such methods. With this, their chances of success were much higher.

Unexpectedly, Su Mu sighed. "Like I said, you don't understand human nature. If you truly did, you would never have come up with such a useless plan."

The three of them froze. Yang Dongqing, who had finally managed to show off for once, asked anxiously, "How could it be useless? As long as we expose the truth, we win. No matter how strong Hu Jie is, could he really withstand a siege from every transcendent in the Sea Kingdom? This isn't the ocean; this is land!"

Su Mu's expression was unreadable. "Do you really think Hu Jie secured the support of the entire Sea Kingdom simply because of his status as King? Do you think those transcendents and citizens will turn on him the moment he is exposed as a sea god's familiar?

"You're wrong. The real reason those transcendents obey Hu Jie's orders is because he's a sea god's familiar!

"As long as a sea god's familiar declares that they will trigger a tsunami to drown the Sea Kingdom unless we are killed, we are destined to stand against the entire nation. Whether that threat is spoken by Hu Jie representing the sea god's familiar, or by him transforming into one and saying it himself, the effect is exactly the same."

"How could that be the same?" Yang Dongqing said in disbelief. "A sea god's familiar is a monster, and the King is a human! Once everyone realizes they were deceived by the King, they definitely won't listen to him!"

Beside him, Mu Qing seemed to figure it out, her face growing increasingly grim. "Mr. Su is right. We've been thinking about this too simply. This world was never black and white, and not everyone is willing to stand on the side of justice.

"Mr. Yang, just imagine for a moment. Even if things went exactly according to your plan and everyone learned that Hu Jie was a sea god's familiar, what then?

"Would everyone really rebel against him?"

"Why wouldn't they?" Yang Dongqing felt that Mu Qing was being absurd. What kind of nonsense was she spouting?

"Sigh." Mu Qing let out a breath, her slightly youthful face revealing a maturity unsuited for her age. "What if Hu Jie announced that he would trigger a tsunami if anyone dared to attack? Mr. Yang, you have a fiery temper and no family here, so you can risk your life in a desperate struggle, but what about the others?

"The people here had their edges smoothed out long ago, and they've grown accustomed to this life. All Hu Jie has to do is casually say that everything will remain the same as long as they continue to obey him. Do you think people will listen?

"Refuse, and everyone dies together. Obey, and everything stays the same—with food, drink, and women provided. If it were you, what would you choose?"

Yang Dongqing's excited expression instantly cooled, and his face inevitably paled.

Su Mu said flatly, "The crux of the matter is that compared to outsiders like us, the citizens are far more terrified of the long-established might of a sea god's familiar. Even if he lacks the ability to unleash a tsunami on land, the mere threat will strike fear into the citizens and transcendents alike.

"Then, driven by that fear, they will attack us."

"Heh..." A suppressed chuckle squeezed out of Yang Dongqing's throat. "So even if we side with humanity, even if we stand on the side of justice, even if the truth is laid right in front of everyone's eyes, they'll still choose to help the monster? Fuck!"

He violently slammed his fist against the ground, his chest tight with an anger that had nowhere to vent.

"Why is it like this?!"

"Because the people of this island nation only fear power rather than cherish virtue." Su Mu's calm words exposed the coldest truth.

"Hahaha... as expected of Mr. Su. What an insightful evaluation!" The praising voice of King Hu Jie suddenly rang out from outside the house.

Mu Qing and the others experienced a drastic change in expression. Lu Dongliang, the quickest to react, was the first to strike out toward the source of the voice.

Bang!

The wall shattered on impact, and a paper figure was sent flying outward. It fluttered in the air a few times, fully dispersing the force of Lu Dongliang's blow before landing safely on the ground.

Simple facial features were sketched onto the paper figure's face. They were extremely crude, like the shoddy work of a down-and-out painter. Not only was there no aesthetic appeal, but it also exuded an eerie, bizarre aura.

If one looked closely, they would discover that the paper figure's features bore a striking resemblance to Hu Jie.

The paper figure flashed an uncanny smile at the group. "I didn't expect Mr. Su to see through the essence of this place after only two days on the island. Just as you said, so what if my identity is exposed? The only reason I hid my identity was out of compassion for my subjects. I simply didn't want them living in constant fear, as it is detrimental to reproduction.

"So what if they know the truth? The truth has never mattered. What matters is that whoever can make them feel fear, is who they will obey!"