Bengtie: My death fueled their madness.

Shaking off thoughts irrelevant to the present situation, Qi Zhimu said goodbye to Ruan Mei.

"I have some personal matters to attend to, please excuse me."

"Are you going to cause trouble for Duke Netherfire?"

"Yes."

"I can help you," Ruan Mei said softly.

"I appreciate your kindness, but I cannot accept such a favor from a genius. I have already marked Duke Minghuo with a hunting mark; he cannot escape."

Upon hearing Qi Zhimu's refusal, Ruan Mei almost blurted out that favors didn't need to be repaid, but she held back and explained calmly:

"I offer to help you for the following reasons: firstly, I want to obtain some material from Grand Duke Netherfire for research purposes."

"Secondly, the Grand Duke of Netherfire stole this cluster of phase spirit fire that I borrowed from the Black Tower, which almost made it difficult for me to explain myself to her. I do not intend to let this matter go easily."

"Even if you don't go looking for trouble with Grand Duke Netherfire, I will."

"Through recent research, I have found a way to use phase fire to reach the desired coordinates in a very short time."

"If you were to pilot a spaceship and make a round trip, it might take more than three days to reach the space station."

"We have a common goal. I'll take you through phases, and in return, you help me kill Grand Duke of the Underworld. How about that?"

Upon hearing these words, Qi Zhimu's face showed a hint of interest.

He was confident that if he killed the Grand Duke of Netherfire within three days, the other party would not survive even half a second longer.

But that requires controlling the flow of time in one's own actions, which can be exhausting over time.

Ruan Mei had many ways to take the life of the Grand Duke of Minghuo, but she made him do it to settle old scores.

Hmm...it seems there are no downsides.

"Alright."

"Well then, it's a pleasure to work together." Ruan Mei couldn't help but raise the corners of her mouth slightly as she reached out her hand to Qi Zhimu.

Looking at that soft, boneless, fair hand, the latter felt a sense of surprise, reached out his right hand, gently grasped her fingers, and then let go.

"It's a pleasure working with you."

……

Yonghuo Mansion.

The planning of a preparatory ceremony is underway.

"Pinocchio, the star of the grand event, the cradle of fallen dreams, the dark side of the coward..."

"The family prepares a feast, and guests are invited to attend. The golden blood of destruction will flow together, offering a grand sacrifice to Him!"

"Children of Flame, this is your coming-of-age ceremony."

Not long ago, a wisp of Netherfire infiltrated the Black Tower Space Station, intending to stir up trouble and undermine the station from within. The Netherfire Grand Duke, now exuding an air of authority, was giving a warning to several figures below.

Akash, my most sentimental child.

"I will ignite your eyes and teach you to pluck the strings. You shall play a banquet tune on a four-stringed instrument, and silence the hymns of harmony."

"That's exactly what I was thinking, Father." Akash stroked his cello, a wicked smile spreading across his face.

Duke Minghuo nodded and then looked at the white-clad girl beside him.

"Dubra, my wisest child, I set your body ablaze and bestow upon you the power of knives, saws, axes, and halberds."

"You shall temper the iron sickle with sulfur, bestow upon it joy and sorrow, and let the actor's blood and tears flow into the River Styx!"

"Yes, Father." The man in white bowed respectfully.

Grand Duke of the Underworld shifted his gaze to the left, looking at a red-haired woman.

"Katrina, my bravest child, I ignite your heart and give you a heart full of boiling blood."

"You shall break open the treasure trove of your patrons with your fury, melt down their gold, and make an image for our benefactor!"

"No need to say more, old man!" Katrina said boldly.

"Finally, Constance... my most ambitious child, my best child."

Grand Duke of the Underworld's gaze finally settled on the woman in the center, who had long horns and wore a wide-brimmed hat.

"I have nothing more to teach you. Just remember to let the midnight of Pinocchio wither and die, take away everything you love, and leave only the grave of memories!"

"Hahahaha..."

Katrina laughed loudly, suddenly pulled on the iron chain in her hand, and stepped on the heavy hammer at the end with her foot.

"There's no need for her to step in; I'm enough on my own!"

"Katrina..." Constance began softly.

"ha?"

"It's better to be pessimistic...maybe we'll all die?" A ghostly blue flame ignited from Constance's left eye and tail, then vanished in a flash.

"Shh..." Akash gestured for silence and began to play his cello: "When have desperados of destruction ever feared death?"

"But we should also plan ahead... Father, this journey is dangerous, what is our way out?" Dubra asked.

"A way out? As always, there never is."

Grand Duke of the Underworld descended from his throne, scepter in hand, and swept past the four people, stopping in front of a projection of a peculiar hotel.

A deep, authoritative voice slowly rose into the air.

"Destruction is a glorious moment; if one seeks survival through base means, life is far too long."

"Enjoy Pinocchio, embrace her invitation, prepare this beautiful dream to welcome her new master from Topfit—"

"The Eternal Flame Mansion, Grand Duke Afrit of the Underworld!"

The last word had barely left his lips when a sudden, sharp slap echoed throughout the space.

Then, a clear and melodious praise from a young man rang out.

"Well said."

"Who is it?! Come out here!" Katrina shouted, turning her head left and right to find the source of the sound.

"I'm right behind you..."

puff-

The longsword pierced through flesh, spraying out a large pool of crimson blood that fell to the ground.

Katrina looked down with difficulty, staring at the blade piercing her heart, her eyes filled with disbelief.

The blade slashed horizontally, cleaving Katrina's heart and half of her body in two.

"Katrina!!"

Akash's ferocious gaze swept behind him, but he didn't see a single person in sight.

However, the same muffled sound rang out the next second.

The process and result were the same again: another corpse appeared on the ground.

…No, there are two.

The white-clad girl who summoned a puppet behind him had her head roll to the ground almost simultaneously with Akash's.

The remaining expressions in the three pairs of wide-open, unclosed eyes were completely identical.

They never saw the assassin's shadow, let alone his face, until their deaths.

The Grand Duke of the Underworld slammed his scepter into the ground, unleashing a torrent of flames that instantly engulfed the entire space.

However, the assassin was still nowhere to be seen, and Duke Minghuo's gaze suddenly turned to a certain place.

Constance, who should have been standing there, has vanished without a trace.

He couldn't even tell whether the former had defected or died the most silently.

The flames seemed to have an effect.

About twenty meters in front of Grand Duke Netherfire, ripples appeared in the space, and a tall figure stepped out from them, holding a long sword.

Shaking off the blood from the surface of the sword, Qi Zhimu's lips curled into a sly smile, and he tilted his head slightly.

"It's been a short time, I've missed you dearly. Hello, Mr. Alfred."

"It's you..."

There was a hint of surprise in Grand Duke Netherfire's voice.

"How is this possible? How could a mere human arrive at the Eternal Flame Mansion in such a short time?"

"Don't think that just because you're the Fire Demon of Tofet and have a connection with the Phase Flame, you're the only one who can use that thing," Qi Zhimu replied casually.