Lord of Prayer

Chapter 35: Chapter 33: To Kill a Person

「Early morning.」

The square in front of Jinzhu University’s gate was surging with people, a crowd of new and returning students gathering for the start of the term. Among them was Zhou Chen, a miserable look on his face.

He was playing the part of an unlucky bastard who had just become an intern at the Star Association, only to lose half his Soul in an accident and be left with not long to live. Now, he was just waiting to die, so naturally, he had to appear a bit more dejected to be believable.

The details determine success or failure.

Before he even entered the campus, Zhou Chen sensed that he was being watched from the shadows. ’These Eternal Fire Fanatics sure are fast,’ he thought. ’Good thing my acting is on point.’

He pretended to be an ordinary person, acting as if he hadn’t noticed a thing, and walked straight toward the stadium for the opening ceremony.

“Respected teachers, dear fellow students, good morning…”

“Golden chrysanthemums bloom in splendor, the grand event arrives as scheduled. In this fruitful golden month of October, we welcome an exciting moment. Today—is the sixtieth anniversary of Jinzhu University’s founding, and in these sixty years, we…”

“Looking back, sixty years of history have yielded sixty years of glorious achievements. Looking to the future, I believe…”

“Today, I am very happy to see so many outstanding alumni returning to their alma mater…”

“Here, I would like to offer a few pieces of advice to our current students: First, be a person with ideals…”

Blah, blah, blah, blah.

After the principal finished, the vice principal spoke. After the vice principal finished, the dean spoke. After the dean finished, an outstanding student spoke. After the outstanding student, an outstanding alumnus spoke…

The whole affair lasted a full three hours. Zhou Chen was yawning and ready to fall asleep. Even the frequency of the secret glances in his direction increased significantly, likely because the watchers were bored and kept looking at him.

By a little after eleven, to the hopeful gazes and enthusiastic applause of the entire audience, the anniversary ceremony finally ended. Next up was lunchtime, followed by departmental exhibitions in the afternoon. But the main event wasn’t until the evening—the anniversary gala!

Not only would there be pretty young ladies with fair skin and long legs to look at, but you could also network with successful alumni. There was even a social dance—you could ask any willing female student to dance. For many, this was the best opportunity to hit on someone or confess their feelings.

What Zhou Chen had to do was find an opportunity during this time to get a fish to take the bait.

The university handled lunch, having converted the cafeteria into a large dining hall a few days in advance.

“Zhou Chen, how are the benefits at the Star Association? Why do you look so awful? Do you have to work overtime every day or something?”

A female classmate asked curiously at the dining table.

Instantly, everyone’s eyes focused on Zhou Chen. As one of the very few who had passed the exam and been accepted by the Star Association, Zhou Chen had been the man of the hour back then, the object of countless people’s envy and jealousy.

As the saying goes: The ultimate goal in the Cosmos is to become a civil servant.

Working for the Star Association was like having an indestructible iron rice bowl. As long as the World didn’t end, you could keep that job until you died, and the benefits were top-class.

Therefore, anyone who managed to get into the Star Association, even at the lowest level, would be the envy of a huge crowd and a hot commodity on the matchmaking market.

But seeing Zhou Chen now, everyone was baffled. It had only been a few months. How had he become so… drained?

Doesn’t the Star Association have great food?

“Sigh…”

Zhou Chen sighed, his spirits low and his expression gloomy. “Actually, working at the Star Association isn’t as good as you all imagine. I’m already thinking of quitting.”

“Quitting?” The group was astonished. Why would he quit such a great job?

’Could he have run into some kind of trouble?’

“Ah, well, there’s a confidentiality agreement, so let’s not talk about it. Let’s eat, let’s eat.” Zhou Chen waved his hand with a smile, but it looked incredibly forced, and his eyes were filled with profound sadness.

Seeing this, the others fell silent, tactfully refraining from asking more. They couldn’t help but feel a sense of melancholy. To think that Zhou Chen, who they had thought was doing the best out of all of them, had ended up in such a miserable state…

It was truly lamentable.

’What on earth did he go through?’

·

After lunch, the afternoon’s anniversary activity was a series of departmental exhibitions. Zhou Chen listlessly followed the group for an hour before making an excuse about not feeling well and leaving. He found a bench in a small park and rested with his eyes closed.

During this time, he sensed at least seven pairs of eyes sizing him up with unnatural frequency. Three people also tried to approach him multiple times, but for some reason, they always gave up in the end.

“Don’t rush. Wait a little longer.”

Jiang Che’s voice came through his earpiece. “They’re debating whether or not to make contact with you. Your status is too sensitive, after all.”

“It could also be that there are too many eyes and ears around. I’ll find a more secluded spot and see if I can reel one in,” Zhou Chen mused, then asked, “Can this earpiece be muted?”

“Yes.”

“Good enough.”

Zhou Chen stood up and headed straight for a distant restroom.

The moment he moved, the observers hidden in the shadows also changed their trajectories, intentionally or not, drifting in his direction.

Thanks to its remote location, the restroom was completely empty. Zhou Chen casually picked a spot, stood still, and stared intently at the white tiles in front of him, not daring to let his gaze wander downward.

’This would be social suicide. Literally.’

When he was done, he slowly pulled up his pants, dawdled over to the sink to wash his hands, and then splashed his face several times, but still, no one came in.

“Stop waiting. They’re outside, eavesdropping.”

Jiang Che, who was monitoring the surroundings through surveillance cameras, said calmly, “Go back and sit down. Wait a little longer.”