Chapter 1023: Despair on the Eve

The Silver King snapped his fingers. A moment later, a figure walked into the room.

The person wore a black robe, and mysterious alchemy patterns were etched into the palms of his hands. His head was bowed, and a respectful glimmer showed in his eyes.

"He is..." Lou Yu found the person very familiar.

"A former member of the Witchcraft Association, now the leader of the Rat Party, once hailed as the most talented alchemist... Duran," the Silver King said slowly. "My subordinates had dealings with him before and left a mark on him, but he was too elusive; it took several days to capture him alive... I've replaced his memories; he's completely under control now. With him, collecting the last two Philosopher's Stones shouldn't be difficult for you."

Lou Yu glanced at Duran a few times, then returned to sit on the bench.

"Is it about to begin?"

"A few more hours, perhaps..." The Silver King rested one hand on his chin, looking at the deep night outside the window. His other hand slowly rose, as if to reach through the window and grasp the entire world. "It's time to change the world."

"It's almost dawn...""Has Wu Duo not returned yet?"

Fang Liangye stood by the window, looking at the gloom under the deep night sky, and couldn't help but ask.

"...Not yet," another Rat Party member replied with some hesitation. "By rights, she should have been back in the afternoon... she's several hours later than expected."

An ominous premonition enveloped Fang Liangye's heart.

Meanwhile,

A commotion came from outside the warehouse.

"You made us work ourselves to death for three days straight!" a worker roared furiously at the factory gate. "Now our quotas are almost met! Why can't we rest?! Do you know how many people have died in this factory in the past few days?! Do you really have no humanity at all!!!"

The burning torches in the hands of the Usurpers of Fire dispelled the night, illuminating his face contorted with rage, and the many bloodless faces of the workers behind him.

Outside the factory, white sheets lay scattered, covering bodies. Beneath each sheet was a worker who had died in the factory. In just a few days, the number of workers had rapidly dwindled. The remaining workers were almost all sick; they no longer had the strength to speak, only endless resentful spirits whimpering in the wind.

The Usurper of Fire spoke expressionlessly:

"The King commanded you to work hard for these three days. It's almost the third day... The quota isn't met yet, so no one can rest."

"Open your eyes and look at them! They're all sick! Dying!! We need doctors! We need rest!!"

"There aren't many doctors in the Boundless Realm... And you have no time to rest."

The Usurper of Fire raised his gun, aiming at the furiously roaring man, and continued, "Seeing as you still have considerable strength, I won't kill you. Go back and continue production... otherwise..."

After two days of torment, the number of workers was rapidly decreasing. There weren't many workers left who could still produce. At this point, even the Usurpers of Fire dared not kill indiscriminately, for the more people who died, the fewer there would be to produce.

At this juncture, everyone was crucial.

Looking at the group's bloodshot eyes, which revealed resentment and fury, the leading Usurper of Fire narrowed his eyes and spoke again:

"One more thing... I know some Rat Party members are hiding among you. However, don't expect them to save you... Now, they are no different from actual rats in the sewers."

The Usurper of Fire gave a look to his companion behind him, and a woman covered in injuries was brought forward, falling clumsily to the ground after being kicked.

The moment they saw that person, the eyes of everyone in the warehouse suddenly constricted!

"Wu Duo?!?"

The person covered in injuries was none other than Wu Duo, who was supposed to have gone to find Mr. Fu. She was completely bound and appeared to have been through a struggle. She lay on the ground, her gaze inadvertently drifting toward the warehouse, then immediately shifting away, as if deliberately trying not to look there.

"Where are your other companions?" The Usurper of Fire knelt down, pointing his finger at the factory workers. "Are they among them?"

Wu Duo pressed her lips together tightly, saying nothing.

"Do you still think someone can save you? Don't you know that just yesterday, your leader was captured by the Executor of Judgment? You rats in the sewers have no way out at all. Confess now, and we might consider sparing your life."

Wu Duo stared intensely at him, showing no intention of speaking. Just as the Usurper of Fire was about to say something, a poisonous insect, seemingly from nowhere, suddenly bit him on the web of his hand.

The Usurper of Fire cried out in pain, crushed the insect, and then looked at Wu Duo in a furious rage:

"Drag her away, take her to the bell tower and execute her by firing squad!!"

"Then hang her body from the bell tower, and let those rats in the sewers see what happens if they defy us!!"

Several Usurpers of Fire immediately dragged Wu Duo away, walking towards the end of the abyss-like street.

The Rat Party members in the warehouse instantly had red eyes. They immediately wanted to rush out and kill the Usurpers of Fire, but were held back by their companions:

"We can't go out now," one said. "If we go out now, it'll be like telling the Usurpers of Fire that the workers have been harboring us... It will implicate those innocent workers!"

At this, everyone froze in place. "Then what should we do?!" they exclaimed. "Just stand by and watch Wu Duo be taken away and executed? She didn't betray us even to her death!"

"We can't make a move here," another said. "Then let's go directly to the bell tower and rescue her!! It's still some time until dawn; we're not without a chance."

"Both our leader and Wu Duo have been captured," someone else added. "We have no retreat... To hell with it!"

The last few remaining Rat Party members seemed to have thrown caution to the wind. They waited for the Usurpers of Fire to leave, then rushed out in a flurry.

Fang Liangye was about to follow them, but was pushed back:

"Mr. Fang, don't go..." someone said. "Protect yourself."

Ultimately, Fang Liangye was just an ordinary person. If a fight broke out, he would only be a hindrance to everyone. Of course, the Rat Party members never believed they would return alive from this mission.

They gave Fang Liangye a deep look, then disappeared into the street without looking back.

Fang Liangye stared blankly at this scene. In a daze, the image of the young boy running into the rainy night seemed to overlap with everything before him... A familiar sense of powerlessness surged in his heart once more.

"Damn it... It's like this again... Again!!"

Fang Liangye's eyes were bloodshot. He recalled the faces of Xiao Yu and Wu Duo, and the feel and warmth of embracing them to sleep last night. An unprecedented surge of anger welled up in him... He was angry not only at the Usurpers of Fire who had captured Wu Duo, but also at his own weak and powerless self.

Just then, his fingertips seemed to touch something. From his clothes pocket, he slowly pulled out a playing card... The Six of Hearts.