Chapter 387 - 369: Eldest Senior Brother, Where Are You?

Chapter 387: Chapter 369: Eldest Senior Brother, Where Are You?

[Anhe City - Skies Above the Ruins]

Mr. Youquan (in his possessed state) wore an extremely "sincere" smile, looking like a benevolent elder counseling a rebellious junior.

"Young friend, as long as you nod, I guarantee that I will not refine you into my second body."

"You will be the sole heir to my faction within the Ghost Spirit Sect."

This was an incredibly weighty promise.

Had it been any other low-ranking Demon Cultivator from the Ghost Spirit Sect, they would have bowed their heads in submission long ago just to survive and climb higher.

However, as Su Ling’er listened to these words, not only was she not the slightest bit swayed, but a strong sense of physical revulsion washed over her.

’It’s the same old story.’

’Back at Qingxu Temple, my master, Xuanyuan, a man supposedly of the righteous path, said the same things. He told me I was the hope of the sect, that he would help me reach Foundation Establishment, that I was a future pillar...’

’...yet in the end, he tried to slaughter me and all my fellow disciples without a moment’s hesitation!’

’Even a so-called righteous master was like that. A demonic patriarch who treats his disciples as spare vessels... his guarantee... I can’t believe a single word of it!’

Su Ling’er said no more, simply tightening her fists, which were emitting black smoke.

...

Seeing Su Ling’er’s continued silence, Mr. Youquan, who was as old as he was cunning, knew exactly what she was thinking.

The benevolence in his eyes vanished in an instant, replaced by a lofty indifference.

"It seems, young friend, that you don’t respond to the soft approach. In that case, I will have to spell out the reality of your situation."

Mr. Youquan glanced down at the ruined city below.

"Young friend, you now have two choices."

"First, submit to me. The future might be uncertain, but at least for now, you will live, and Anhe City will live."

"Once you’ve grown strong enough, if you are ruthless enough, you might even have a sliver of a chance to break free from my control. I’ve lived a long time; I would be quite entertained to watch you struggle."

"Second, refuse me."

As he spoke, he slowly raised his right hand and pressed it gently down upon the empty air.

RUMBLE—!!!

The sky collapsed.

The dark clouds and mist that had shrouded Anhe City, as if answering a summons from some unseen will, instantly began to churn and condense.

A colossal, sky-blotting palm, large enough to cover the entire city, formed from the black clouds and countless roaring wraiths, began to slowly descend!

The lines on the giant palm were terrifyingly clear; each crease was formed from thousands upon thousands of wailing, resentful souls.

"If you refuse."

Mr. Youquan’s voice echoed between heaven and earth. "Not only will Anhe City beneath your feet be destroyed and its people slaughtered, but not a single living thing will remain."

"You will watch helplessly as all the people of this city, as your parents and kin, are ground into a bloody pulp right before your eyes."

"And as for you, you will still be taken back to my sect."

"At that point, I will not be so... persuasive... in taking you as my disciple."

"Young friend, the time you have to consider... is running out."

...

[Below - Amidst the Ruins]

As the sky-blotting palm descended, the entirety of Anhe City was plunged into darkness.

"Help! Is anyone up there?!"

"My leg! Somebody help me! I’m down here!"

Deep within the ruins, the injured, buried beneath rubble and unable to see the sky, were still screaming for help with all their might.

They were unaware that their doom had arrived, still desperately waiting for a sliver of hope.

On the surface of the ruins, however, a deathly silence had fallen.

The people who had been digging frantically let the tools in their hands fall to the ground with a CLANG.

They listened to the cries for help from beneath their feet, gazed up at the giant palm about to crush everything, and let their hands fall to their sides.

’Even if we dig them out... what’s the point?’

’We’re all going to die anyway.’

Several elderly women clutching children knelt down, facing Su Ling’er in the sky, their wails heart-rending.

"Miss Su! I’m begging you! Please, just agree to his terms!"

"If you become his disciple, everyone in this city can live!"

"You’d be suffering this injustice for our sake! We, the people of Anhe City, are not ungrateful! Even if you join a demonic sect, we will worship your longevity tablet for generations to come! Please, have mercy, just bow your head!!"

But there were also men whose courage had not yet fled, who roared with bloodshot eyes, trying to drown out the pleas for surrender. "Shut up! You want Miss Su to become the disciple of the monster who destroyed our entire city? Have you no shame?!"

"Miss Su! Don’t worry about us! Where there’s life, there’s hope! As long as you live, you can avenge us in the future. That would be enough!"

But most people simply collapsed to the ground, staring with hollow eyes at the giant palm. "This is fate... An ant can’t escape being crushed."

"I’m tired..."

...

[Anhe City Regional Channel]

[Everyone just give up. This is a f*cking max-level player ganking the newbie village. It’s a scripted death, plain and simple.]

[Why are you all just waiting to die? The hand hasn’t landed yet, so hurry up and dig out a few more NPCs! You get contribution points for every one you save! Every point counts!]

[That Miss Su needs to surrender already! Don’t let the whole city get wiped for the sake of some "righteous integrity"! If the mission fails, we’re all screwed!]

Meanwhile, in a corner of the ruins, Councilman [BiquCountryGo4] was pounding the ground in fury, letting out a mournful cry, "FUCK!!"

"I just rerolled from the neighboring Biqu Country! I finally managed to become a councilman, and I’ve sunk my entire fortune into this character! How am I about to die again right after getting started?!"

And the most critical part was... his already lean wallet was now completely empty!

For a freelance player like him, this latest reroll had already exhausted his last savings.

If this character was wiped here, and if he wanted to keep playing—not as a ’Drifter,’ but to keep up with the game’s patches—he would have no choice but to turn to the nightmare shared by all: [Leviathan Bank].

That was a road of no return.

Once he took on a loan from Leviathan, if he failed to pay the interest the next month, what awaited him wasn’t just an "Adam’s Heavy Hammer" enforcement mech descending from the sky to physically arrest him.

He would also be directly expelled from Ava’s panoptic surveillance zone and exiled to the chaotic and disordered "Outlaw Zone."

With no surveillance and no laws, it was a living hell where the crime rate was off the charts.

He didn’t dare to imagine it, let alone go there. Compared to that fate, it was better to just scrape by on subsidies inside Ava’s domain.

’But I don’t want to delete my character and start over, or become a Drifter! I finally became a councilman, finally got a foothold outside the dynasty’s control... This was supposed to be a god-tier start! All I had to do was lay low and I would’ve been set for life!’

’I don’t want to start over!! I don’t want to be a Drifter!!’

...

[Anhe City - Skies Above the Ruins]

Beneath the giant palm, amidst the wails of the entire city.

Only Su Ling’er, at the eye of the storm, remained calm and composed, because she knew her Senior Brother had her back.

However, that "composure" was starting to crack.

She suddenly felt control over her own body inexplicably return to her.

’Wait, what???’

"S... Senior Brother?"

’No, wait, Senior Brother, where are you?’