Chapter 1002: Coward and the "Hand"

"Fang Liangye, you're a coward!"

"The poisoned milk powder produced by those lunatics killed our little sister! Didn't you see how she was tormented in the hospital? She wasn't even a year old!!"

"I told you to come with me for revenge, but you refused! All you do is hang banners and write complaint letters! Didn't you hear what people said? That's Twilight Society's business! Do you really think the Sorcery Association has the guts to interfere with the Twilight Society??"

"Fine! If you, the older brother, don't dare to go, then I will! Whoever produced that poisoned milk powder, I'll kill them! What if it's the Twilight Society? I, Fang Liangyu, am not like you! I'm no coward!!"

"...No, Xiaoyu!!!"

Fang Liangye jolted awake from his nightmare!

Fang Liangye had a long dream... He seemed to be reliving that rainy night many years ago, when a fourteen-year-old boy, knife in hand, roared in anger before him, then rushed into the rain without looking back... By the time Fang Liangye saw him again, he was a corpse covered by a white sheet. The police officers said he was found on a desolate ridge, covered in bruises, as if he had been beaten to death.

That was the darkest period in Fang Liangye's life. He had never hated his own cowardice so much. He always believed that if people followed the rules, justice would prevail for them, but he was wrong... Justice only worked against those who also adhered to the rules. Fang Liangye could never forget the look in Xiaoyu's eyes that day—that mix of anger, sorrow, and contempt, which pierced him like a needle, becoming an unhealed wound in his heart.

As his own memories returned, the pain and self-reproach buried deep within him surged like a tide, overwhelming Fang Liangye... His cheeks were streaked with tears, and he sat blankly, his eyes empty. The Silver King had replaced his memories, allowing him to briefly forget the pain and self-reproach. Chen Ling's decisive and formidable memories had been like a drug, addicting him, intoxicating him, making him forget his regrets... Now, as the drug's effects faded, his true self returned, leaving behind only endless emptiness and anguish.

"I..." Fang Liangye looked at his ordinary, powerless hands, his fingertips trembling unconsciously.

Just then, a hand gently patted his shoulder. Fang Liangye instinctively turned his head, seeing a figure draped in a large red opera robe quietly looking at him, a complex expression in their deep, lake-like eyes...

"There's something I've always wanted to tell you," Chen Ling paused. "The Twilight Society has never had its own factories, nor has it ever sold poisoned milk powder... That so-called 'Twilight Society business' back then was likely a fabricated cover created by local unscrupulous merchants for their own profit."

Chen Ling had possessed Fang Liangye's memories, and naturally knew his past. Fang Liangye had always believed that the Twilight Society's toxic factory killed his sister and then murdered his brother Xiaoyu, who went to seek revenge. This was the source of his hatred for the Twilight Society. But in fact, anyone with even a slight understanding of the Twilight Society would know this was pure nonsense. First, most Twilight Society members hide in various realms; due to their missions, they cannot stay in one place for too long, much less build a proper factory and openly sell poisoned milk powder. Second, Xiaoyu, in Fang Liangye's memory, was beaten to death. If a Twilight Society member had been involved, killing an ordinary person would be instantaneous, and they certainly wouldn't leave the body lying on a desolate ridge.

The old Fang Liangye might not have believed Chen Ling's explanation, but having experienced Chen Ling's memories, the current Fang Liangye could naturally realize this... He lowered his head, clenching his fists tightly... then reluctantly unclenched them.

"I thought my fate was already tragic enough... but compared to you, what I've been through is nothing," Fang Liangye said, looking at Chen Ling. "I really envy your reckless courage. If I could be like you, maybe Xiaoyu wouldn't have died..."

Chen Ling shook his head. "There's no need to envy me. Both you and I know the price of becoming this way..."

Chen Ling helped Fang Liangye up and glanced at the Wuji Realm, which was shrouded in chaos in the distance: "...I should go now."

"Okay."

"By the way, did you get any results on that matter I asked you to investigate?"

At Chen Ling's question, Fang Liangye's body trembled slightly.

"Hello, I'm the newly appointed Deputy Chief Enforcer. You can call me... Tan Xin."

"I heard from the Leader that you don't like politics and aren't good at management... From now on, I will be your 'hand,' helping you manage the Aurora Realm."

"Me? I am indeed a Soldier God Path, but unlike you, a Shura, my divine path has no offensive power... If a fight breaks out later, remember to protect me."

"Even if you are my superior, you can't just disappear for so many days without a word, can you? Do you know how much effort I spent covering for you with the Leader?"

"You... *sigh*, never mind, let's just let it go this time... Don't be so willful next time, okay?"

"You're an adult, and you can't even write a performance review? Did you really put all your talent points into combat? If you submit such a blank report, the Leader will scold you again... How about this, put my achievements in there, that should get you through."

"No, I asked you to copy homework, and you can't even do that? Fine, fine, give me the pen, I'll write it for you, alright?"

"Leave the research of Lord Aurora to me; don't worry about it. Just understand the 'Wonderful Adventures of Panda Panpan: A Journey into the Amazing World of Magnetic Fields' that I gave you, and remember the data I taught you, and you should be able to get by with the Leader..."

"I really don't know how an idiot like you, who only knows how to fight, grew up so big..."

Tears streamed uncontrollably from Hongxiu's eyes. In a daze, all her memories flooded back, vast and overwhelming, as if she were once again bathed in the aurora's glow... She remembered the Aurora Realm was very cold, and life there was dull and monotonous, but only that figure was warm and brilliant, captivating her gaze... The entire realm gained warmth because of his presence.

"Tan Xin..." Hongxiu sat blankly on the ground. As if remembering something, she tremblingly took off the pendant from her neck and held the still-speaking tongue to her ear... Hongxiu wanted to hear his voice one more time.

At this moment, at this very moment.