Evil Emperor Zun

Chapter 2026 Using One's Body as a Prison
Joseph and Griffin, despite their vastly different styles, are equally outstanding. In terms of ability and experience, they are both qualified to be leaders.

It was already a foregone conclusion that these two would become the new captains, one in the main role and the other in the deputy role; the other team members all accepted this. What Sindney needed to consider at that time was who should be whose deputy.

This isn't a simple matter of titles. The captain has more power than the vice-captain. If disagreements arise during a mission and neither is willing to compromise, the captain will ultimately have to make the decision, and the vice-captain must obey the superior's orders. And it's foreseeable that their future disagreements will be numerous. Choosing who will be the captain is tantamount to choosing the path the team will take. It's a decision that must be handled with utmost care.

Sindney initially favored Joseph. First, given comparable abilities, Joseph's background was far superior to Griffin's; second, as the captain of the Star Guardians, Joseph was a figure of considerable status throughout the entire universe, frequently required to attend high-profile events and interact with many important figures. Griffin disliked political and social interactions and was unlikely to be suited for the role; third, Joseph better understood the intentions of those in power.

Nevertheless, Sindney still intended to speak with them separately and hear their opinions first.

Griffin stood ramrod straight before him. He said he would completely submit to God's will and accept whatever the outcome.

When it was Joseph's turn, he sat lazily across from his desk, casually picking up a small wooden carving and fiddling with it. After a while, he slowly spoke:

"Sir, this question depends on what kind of team you want to build the Galaxy Guardians into."

"I'm not talking about what it actually looks like, but rather how it appears to the outside world."

"To put it more clearly, do you want people to think of the Star Guardians as someone like Griffin—upright, disciplined, and determined to fight evil to the end, never abandoning or giving up on any weak life—or someone like me—opportunistic, profit-driven, colluding with interstellar pirates, and willing to sacrifice useless civilians at any time?"

His words caused Sindney to fall silent. Joseph, observing the gradual change in his expression, smiled knowingly.

"It seems we've reached a consensus. Griffin is more suitable than me to be the face of the Star Guardians."

Although the primary problem was solved, Sindney's mood wasn't much lighter. That day, he repeatedly confirmed with Joseph:

"Are you saying this because you're prepared to cooperate with his work? Let me remind you, once your positions are finalized, they won't change easily. At that point, the responsibility of resolving differences will primarily fall on you, and you'll have to make more compromises..."

Joseph maintained his nonchalant demeanor throughout. Finally, he smiled calmly:
“Sir, I know what you’re worried about. You’re overthinking it. I don’t think we’ll get along that badly.”

"Although we chose different routes, our destination is the same."

After that, Sindeni announced the appointment of the two men. He observed them closely for a while, and seeing that they had carried out several missions together without any conflict, he finally felt relieved.

For Sindney, he was just grateful that the two of them didn't fight. He never imagined that one day he would hear Joseph tell him that he somewhat envied Griffin.

It was during a large team-building event for the guard that Joseph leaned against the bar, smoking a cigarette, and poured out his heart in the dim light.

"Let me make this clear first, I don't think there's anything wrong with me right now, nor am I taking my blessings for granted. It's just that Griffin is a very 'fresh' person to me."

“I don’t agree with his ideas, and I probably won’t in the future, but I believe he is a very genuinely good person.”

“I watched him doing things that neither brought him any merit nor made him stronger, and which seemed meaningless to me. But after spending a lot of time with him, I was indeed somewhat infected by his unique spirit and energy.”

"He was sincere, brave, loved life, and had many naive fantasies about the world, burning like a blazing flame. He would also wholeheartedly empathize with and dedicate himself to those he didn't even know."

"I'm sure I could never become that kind of person. On one hand, I think he's stupid, but sometimes I can't help but wonder what it would be like to live like that."

To put it another way, Joseph's life was like watching a play on set. No matter how exciting or moving the plot was, he couldn't get into it since he knew it was fake. It was rare to meet someone like Griffin, who would laugh heartily or cry loudly along with the characters in the play. These were emotions Joseph couldn't experience at all, touching on his blind spots. He didn't crave them, but he was indeed occasionally curious.

Joseph, who seemed "moved," appeared slightly different, or perhaps not. He would never admit it.

He would still rationally and coldly weigh the pros and cons, abandoning those he felt should be abandoned. But he began to spontaneously take care of the wife and children of one of the people he had abandoned.

According to him, the man had inadvertently obtained the key to a space pirate's vault, but after his death, the guards couldn't find the key among his belongings. He and his wife had a very good relationship, and it's highly likely he entrusted the key to her. The pirate, in order to retrieve the key, would certainly also be targeting his wife. He was simply using her as bait, waiting for the pirate to come to him.

Not long after, he indeed arrested the wanted criminal and made a great contribution.

In addition, he introduced a new initiative: when team members were on dangerous missions, the team would arrange for personnel to protect their families back home in case of enemy retaliation. The team members were very grateful. However, in front of Sindney, he bluntly admitted that he was just using small favors to win people over.

On another occasion, someone lured Griffin to a dimensional ruin under the guise of a survivor seeking help. Once inside, he discovered that the plane had been destroyed by a viral weapon, and the air was filled with high concentrations of the virus. His nearby airship was also destroyed by lurking enemies.

It turned out that Griffin's insistence on eradicating evil completely and his uncompromising style posed a great threat to the group of madmen in the Cosmic Sea. A space pirate wanted to get rid of him but did not want to bear the guilt of personally killing the captain of the Star Guardians, so he devised this scheme to lure him into the Desolate Land to fend for himself.

With Griffin's abilities, he actually had a chance to escape. However, he considered that this virus, capable of wiping out an entire plane, would be a catastrophe if it spread. He used his personal device to conduct a simple test, confirming that the virus could parasitize humans and could also be transmitted through the air.

After all the life forms in the original plane died in a short period of time, the virus should have disappeared naturally because there is no air in outer space and it could not continue to spread outwards. Now, having mistakenly entered this world, and with its body already eroded and parasitized by the virus, if it were to leave, it would become a host and bring the deadly virus into the outside world.

Realizing this, he decided to stay and end the chain of transmission. While his communicator still worked, he contacted Joseph, telling him what had happened and urging him to lead his team to seal off the area as soon as possible, preventing any unsuspecting people from entering before the virus completely dissipated. Unexpectedly, Joseph, who always prioritized maximizing profits, didn't simply accept him as a sacrifice after receiving the message. Instead, he risked his life to enter the ruins and carry him out. When Griffin regained consciousness, he found himself lying on a guard's bed; the virus was under control.

During his coma, Joseph used his resources to learn that this viral weapon was sold through specialized channels. As part of the equipment, if there was "poison" for sale, there would naturally be an antidote. He knew many people with connections in the cosmic sea and asked them to help him purchase the antidote at a high price.

As he recounted the events with such nonchalance, Griffin closed his eyes briefly, then opened them again: "...Was this also a matter of self-interest?"

His meaning was clear: the solution that best served Joseph's interests was to let him die, then take his place, while also saving a large sum of money on the antidote. He didn't believe the other party couldn't do the math.

Joseph had anticipated this question and answered immediately, "Yes, of course." He sat casually on the stool by the bed, his hands resting on his knees. "You see, if you die, I'll have to take over as captain, and people will transfer their resentment towards the Star Guardians to me. Maybe next time I'll be the one tricked into the virus dimension. I've thought it over carefully, and I think it's better to let you take the lead."

"Also, I paid for our team building last time, so it's your turn next time. If you don't get your money back this time, I'll be at a huge loss." He said it so casually, as if all he wanted the person in the hospital bed to remember was a meal, not the weighty debt of saving his life.

"I'm just paying for the antidote out of my own pocket first; the team will reimburse me later, of course. Besides, I'm getting credit for doing this for you."

Griffin didn't reply. As he wearily closed his eyes and fell asleep, a faint smile appeared on his lips.

Just as Joseph appreciated Griffin, Griffin's opinion of Joseph also changed as they spent more time together.

Although he didn't quite fit the public's image of a warrior, he knew this guy genuinely had a sense of justice. Otherwise, given his background, he could have cultivated in a more respectable way; there was no need for him to do such a dangerous and arduous job.

He was raised with an elite education and is used to pursuing high efficiency and high returns. Someone like him probably finds it very difficult to accept actions that yield no benefit. Therefore, even when extending goodwill to others, he is determined to find some "value" in it.

Let him be. At least they share the same goal, and they can be allies fighting side by side.

When Sindney heard these words from Griffin, he was overjoyed. Two completely opposite talents, when paired well, can complement each other's strengths and weaknesses; when paired poorly, they can be irreconcilable. Fortunately, they chose the better path.

When they are apart, they can shine in their respective fields of expertise. When it comes to dealing with various powerful forces, Joseph is adept at social maneuvering and well-versed in the culture of officialdom. He can always keep the host and guests happy. When it comes to tasks that are not very rewarding and are very hard work, as long as they can truly serve the people, Griffin will work hard without complaint.

When they come together, they can also change because of each other—Joseph becomes slightly less of a "hypocrite"; while Griffin himself, although still clearly defined by right and wrong, sometimes has to rely on the "illegitimate resources" provided by Joseph. For example, the time he bought the antidote, and also, with the constant conflicts among the villains of the Cosmic Sea, people often try to use the Star Guardians to deal with their enemies, and Joseph, who is familiar with them, can always receive a lot of valuable intelligence in advance. It was through this that Griffin was able to capture Arakiji.

Having served in the Star Guardians for many years, Griffin had come to understand that between black and white, there truly lay a gray area. To resist darkness, the power of white alone was insufficient. Joseph's adeptness in the gray area was essentially a means to better protect the white area. It was precisely because he took on all the dirty work that he and the other team members were able to maintain their purity, allowing them to proudly proclaim that they had lived upright lives, never tainted by darkness.

Griffin couldn't bring himself to eat and then curse. He could only learn to accept Joseph's gloomy ways.

However, Sindney saw that Griffin's first step was also the only one. He could barely accept the coexistence of gray and white, but he could never accept that the pure white he believed in never existed in the first place.

Righteousness, goodness, and greatness—these qualities, universally recognized as correct and vigorously promoted, are like layers of intense light covering the chaotic space, illuminating everything in their path with pure white. People cannot see the world beneath this protective coloration, and therefore remain unaware that the truth hidden around them is merely a deeper, more murky darkness.

Throughout the endless ages, those vying for world sovereignty have never been darkness and light, but rather true villains and hypocrites. Those who fail to see this, those truly "pure" individuals like pearls lost in the vast ocean, can only perish in the struggle.

Whether it's the various factions or the higher planes, they've never truly cared about the fate of ordinary people. It wouldn't matter if several planes and several star systems were wiped out. They only want the strong, the strong who can be used by them. As long as they themselves are safe and sound, who cares about the world being in chaos?

This is not surprising. To those who stand at the pinnacle of the world and live as long as heaven and earth, the weak common people are truly like ants and dust, offering them no value whatsoever. On the contrary, it is the top villains like Arakiji and Hiruzen Saku who are truly qualified to stand on equal footing with them and have the ability to seek benefits for them.

Useful villains can be won over, while useless civilians are not worth pitying. That's the reality.

These were truths Joseph could easily grasp, but Griffin simply couldn't. Of course, it wasn't just Griffin; he'd led countless teams, and there were always some foolish kids like this—the kind of "expendable material" the higher-ups liked, indifferent to personal gain, easily swayed by a few righteous and passionate slogans. Of those foolish kids, some sacrificed themselves, some chose to compromise their principles, and some never recovered after their faith crumbled. Only a very few, having witnessed all the darkness, remained steadfast in their beliefs.

Sindney couldn't quite define what kind of person he hoped Griffin would become. His efforts and persistence seemed futile to him, like the foolish old man trying to move mountains. He both hoped Griffin would come to his senses soon, yet sometimes couldn't help but feel a touch of admiration. After all, the world is never short of shrewd and calculating people, but noble fools are incredibly rare.

Joseph was right; getting angry with him was pointless. She'd always known that kind of person. If he couldn't understand, so be it, as long as he didn't cause any trouble. She was utterly tired of explaining the workings of the higher plane to him.

As Sindney was thinking this, Griffin, who had been silent for a long time behind him, suddenly spoke up.

"Sir, I have a request."

That wasn't the face of someone who had "figured it out," but rather the face of someone who had made a difficult decision, a decision that would inevitably come at the cost of trouble. Seeing him like that gave Sindney a headache; he wished he could just sew his mouth shut.

“I would like to ask you to connect my life energy with that of Arakiji,” Griffin said calmly, his eyes both icy and fiery. This was a decision he had considered for a long time, and his final compromise. “That way, I will be able to sense any unusual activity he might make in the future. Then, I will arrest him again. The lives of ordinary people that you look down upon, I will protect even if I am the only one left.”

“I was the one who released the beast from its cage, so I must take responsibility. I will fill the hole that the Kingdom of God created. Now that the cage that imprisoned him is gone, I will use myself as the chain. If necessary, even if it costs me my life, I will stop him from committing any more evil deeds!”

Sindney and Joseph were completely taken aback; they never expected that he would go to such lengths for his beliefs. They stared at him, their eyes wide with astonishment.