Chapter 33: Against Whom to Raise the Blade

Firelight pierced the gloomy night, and pine resin dripped from torches onto the filthy road. The devotees holding the torches gathered in the square, facing a priest adorned with eye-shaped emblems who stood before them to make a loud proclamation.

"Brothers and sisters! I have just returned from the High Wizard’s chapel with two monumental pieces of news. First, Lord Adari, in his compassion for the hardships of the masses, has bestowed upon us blessed medicinal tea. Once you drink this broth, the blessing will enter your bodies, allowing you to endure the light-toxin for longer!"

The priest's subordinates handed out bowls of tea, and the devotees offered their profuse thanks. Most of them understood that this toxin was incurable; Lord Adari was truly different from the charlatans, never spouting empty lies about "curing the light-toxin." They drank the tea. Gulp, gulp. After the broth entered their bodies, a warm sensation spread within, followed by a flush of heat on their skin. It felt much better. So much better.

Seeing everyone finish their tea, the priest nodded slightly, his expression shifting into a somber mask, his eyes filled with deep-seated hatred and malice.

"The second piece of news is not good. I wish with all my heart that I could keep it buried in my soul forever, sinking into the mud with my flesh after I die. But it is so evil, so tormenting to my spirit, that I must inform you of the truth immediately, or I shall not sleep tonight. This secret also concerns the light-toxin spreading these days!"

The priest scanned the faces of the crowd; each face in the firelight was confused and attentive. He gritted his teeth in resentment: "Don't you find it strange? This curse suddenly appeared from the swamp! There were never any signs before! But that is not true. We have seen the light-toxin long ago; the last time it came, it turned the swamp into a river of blood!"

The priest took a photograph from his breast pocket, squeezing it so hard he nearly tore the paper. In the photo, a blonde girl stood with her back to a ground littered with corpses, her right hand gripping a massive shadow sword, her left hand’s light shield stained red with blood. Hundreds of eyes stared at that shield, at that familiar glow. It was the same light as that of the fluorescent corpses.

"Why did the Calamity Knight appear the moment the light-toxin emerged? Because the light-toxin is her power!" The leader spat with fervor. "Last time, she used the light-toxin to isolate God’s judgment and stole away the gods of the swamp. This time, she intends to erode the bodies of the faithful with the light-toxin and strip us of our lives!"

The devotees shuddered at these words. The same light, the same disaster—the divine messengers had said as much, so there must be a connection. Once they understood, they were filled with resentment, yet also with a helpless dread. No one dared to stand against the Calamity Knight, at least not alone. Gulp, gulp. They nervously drank the tea, their bodies feeling warmer, a surge of strength coursing through them.

"I have heard the oracle transmitted by the High Wizard. To end the toxin, we must strike at the source. As long as we kill the Calamity Knight, the light-toxin will vanish! Everyone can be saved!" The priest watched the people, who were emotionally charged by the drug's effects. "Do not fear! Think of your families!"

The word "family" acted like a spell, igniting the courage of the devotees to resist. Their complexions turned blood-red from the medicinal tea. They gripped their torches, followed the leader in a single file, and roared in unison. "Kill the Calamity Knight!" "Exterminate the light-toxin!" "Drive them out!" "Out with the cursed ones!"

Residents who hadn't dared to join the gathering locked their doors and windows tight, weeping while clutching their family members who had transformed into fluorescent corpses. Yet, more were infected by the madness of the assembly and headed out to join the crusade against the calamity.

The procession grew as it marched, individual sparks coalescing into a rampaging dragon of fire. In a frenzy of agitation, the fire dragon crashed into the stronghold of the Resurgence Force. Think of your families—this was divine will, this was for everyone. The medicinal power surged through their veins; people convinced themselves with various justifications, charging into the building with the intent to die, determined to perish with the source of the disaster.

"Where is the Calamity Knight!" "Come out!" "Kill her!"

The lights were on, but there was no trace of any living soul. They did not find so much as a scrap of waste paper.

The place was empty.

·

"That should do it." Chu Hengkong lowered his binoculars. The members of the emergency evacuation team sat slumped on the ground, still shaken.

They hadn't actually gone far; they were in an abandoned building on the outskirts of the settlement. The scattered, headless flies only had the goal of finding people, making them less likely to notice the buildings nearby. It would be easier to withdraw once they tired themselves out after a night of chaos and returned.

One team member was so terrified he smoked frantically, choking on the fumes. He coughed violently, his eyes red as he looked at Chu Hengkong: "Inspector, you are goddamn smart."

"This has nothing to do with intelligence; it's just about having experience. When I was on a mission in the desert, I felt an earthquake in the middle of the night, only to wake up and see the locals running toward us with bombs." Chu Hengkong smiled. "You look like a Swamp-dweller; what made you join the Central Court's force?"

The young man had dark skin and hair the color of deep green leaves. He crushed his cigarette butt and stepped on it hard: "I joined the force to do something for my hometown... but after three years, I realized it was useless. No matter what you do, they won't be grateful! They only know how to throw money at charlatans and throw their lives away! These people deserve to lose everything!!"

The young man fell silent after venting. The other team members remained quiet as well; speaking too loudly risked discovery, and they were still hiding. Chu Hengkong patted him on the shoulder and climbed the rusty iron ladder to the top floor.

Ji Huaisu stood on the roof overlooking the settlement, watching the frenzied people coming and going, her purple eyes reflecting the vivid firelight.

"I've had enough," she said.

Chu Hengkong nodded in agreement. "It’s pretty fucked up."

"Every time I come to the swamp, I wonder why I do this job? Why am I killing myself for these people?" Ji Huaisu gripped her fists tightly. "Yes, I am the captain of the Resurgence Force. I do my job, and I don't care what these idiots think. But every single time, they scramble to jump into hell. When I kill cultists and demons, they curse me behind my back. When I come to find them an antidote, they pin the curse on me... what is there to save about these people? I wish I could kill them all!"

Chu Hengkong listened silently, feeling her frustration and anger even from behind her. At this moment, Ji Huaisu was like a fierce beast; it seemed as if in the next instant, she might leap off the high-rise and tear the ignorant masses below into flying flesh and blood.

She was someone too ruled by her emotions, capable of being a police captain for years in the Central Court, yet also capable of turning the swamp into a river of blood in a fit of rage.

Her roar startled the searchers nearby, and two torchlights hesitated, moving toward the abandoned building. Chu Hengkong flicked two water bullets to create a distraction, and the people below were lured away by the sound, simple as rats.

"So, shall we act?" Chu Hengkong asked. "I have no objections. People must be responsible for their own choices; those who want to kill me deserve to be taken out."

Faint shadows lingered around Ji Huaisu’s hands, and a blade-like killing intent surfaced in the girl's eyes. For a moment, even Chu Hengkong thought the great sword was about to be unsheathed and the shadow beast would slaughter the crowd. But in the end, the shadows dissipated. She sat down slowly on the concrete floor, hugging her knees and hiding her head like a wronged little animal.

"How could I?" Ji Huaisu said wearily.

No matter how fierce she was in battle, she was ultimately a knight who wielded her sword for justice, not a heartless assassin. She could slaughter demons and villains, but she could not turn her blade against the deceived masses. That boundary was like a clear line carved in her heart; cross it, and she would no longer be herself.

In truth, Ji Huaisu didn't need to worry about the noise or hide in the shadows. She was a Point 2 entity; no one in the Deep Root settlement could hurt her. But behind her were the team members who hadn't evacuated, and before her were the deceived devotees. A direct confrontation would inevitably lead to bloodshed. She didn't want that, so she swallowed her pride.

That was why she was angry, why she struggled, and why she felt so powerless.

Chu Hengkong sat beside her and scratched his head. "There's no need to hold yourself to such high standards."

"You don't understand," Ji Huaisu closed her eyes. "You've only been here for a month; whether the people here bleed has nothing to do with you. But I grew up here. Winding Dragon City is my world and my home. I watched it go from prosperity to decay, watching the elders who once took care of me turn into withered bones in graves one by one...

"Now, we are the only ones left who can fight. I also think this job is bullshit, but if I don't do it, who will? Should I let my old man act as captain of the security force while spitting up blood?"

"You could go protect things that are more worth it."

"The Central Court and the Azure Swamp are both Winding Dragon City," Ji Huaisu said in a low voice. "They are both my home."

Chu Hengkong was speechless. He thought she was truly stubborn, yet he felt a sense of admiration. She was just like Xie An, a miserable person who took on too many responsibilities, doing things she "had to" rather than what she "wanted to." The only difference was that she was a Shadow-Turner, capable of bearing more burden and thus suffering more hurt—it was hard to watch.

·

At this moment, Ji Huaisu stood up again, patting her cheeks hard as if to cheer herself up, and said loudly: "Alright! Let's think of another way!"

"You're deceiving yourself," Chu Hengkong shook his head. "As if you could really just brush it off."

"There's no other way than to deceive myself. The fluorescent corpses must be dealt with, the cultists must be killed, and the old man is waiting for gold to save his life. There's no time for me to sigh," Ji Huaisu put her raincoat back on. "I'll go check the situation around here. If the crowd disperses, we'll withdraw early. Let's return to the Central Court for now."

Chu Hengkong didn't get up. He was recalling the past, trying to find useful experiences from his memory. He found some fragments he could use, but it wasn't comprehensive enough... simply "saving" them was useless. Saving without explanation would only cultivate the ungrateful.

He watched Ji Huaisu put her yellow raincoat back on, and an idea lit up in his mind.

"Hey, it's written all over your face that 'I have a terrible idea,'" Ji Huaisu said.

"I'm thinking about something," Chu Hengkong said thoughtfully. "If you can't make people love and revere you like a god... then you might as well make them fear you like one."

·

Ten minutes later, the Deep Root settlement square.

The searching devotees gathered once more, reporting that they had returned empty-handed. The priest, anxious for failing the task, did not blame them; he waved his torch to boost morale: "Do not be discouraged! Our devout faith has already taken effect; the Calamity Knight has fled in terror, and in this way, the light-toxin will gradually dissipate. In short, everything will—cough!"

The leader's speech turned into a shrill cry of pain as a black shadow descended from the sky like a giant eagle, pinning his head into the mud. The visitor stood up, planting his feet on the leader's back to stand before the crowd, his coat shielding the firelight like a shadow.

"It... it's the divine messenger!" the devotees exclaimed.

It was undoubtedly Chu Hengkong, the apostle of the All-Knowing God. His silver tentacles traced a circle in the air, and a ring-shaped blast of air erupted, extinguishing all the torches. The crowd fell into unease; having lost their illumination, they also lost their courage. In the darkness, only Chu Hengkong's eyes shone brightly, filled with a thick murderous intent.

"Listen well, and do not forget, for I shall convey the will of God," Chu Hengkong narrowed his eyes. "The All-Knowing God refuses to descend because the sins of the swamp are rooted in the heart of every one of you. Your great sins of ignorance and heartlessness have made even the God of Winding Dragon unwilling to cast his gaze upon this swamp! Now, the fury of the deity has transformed into the calamity that has descended upon you!"

Golden light pierced the darkness, manifesting as a great shield held in the knight's hand. In her other hand, she held the massive sword that had wrought such slaughter. She stood right before the crowd, behind Chu Hengkong. In an instant, terrified cries erupted from the crowd: "The Calamity Knight! It's the Calamity Knight!!"

They had been so courageous while patrolling the city, but were now just as cowardly upon seeing the real thing. Their fear almost drove the crowd to flee. And in that moment, before the flight began, a cold, sharp proclamation pierced their hearts.

"Carry this oracle to every corner of the swamp. Three days from now, the judgment of the Dragon God will arrive. On that day, all the wicked shall perish in sickness, and only the blessed righteous shall be delivered from the light!"