American comics: Praising the sun, starting from Gotham!

Xiu En looked down at the hand that had soiled his pants, then glanced at the pristine white boundary of the altar beside him.

Blood flowed down the man's body, soaking the edge of the white floor tile and drawing a red line on the gray stone.

[System notification: A large amount of blood has been detected around the altar.]

[Determining...]

[Temporary Choice Triggered: Life is slipping away before your eyes; the host's choice will determine the altar's attributes.]

Xiu En raised an eyebrow.

The man was still breathing weakly, and his eyes were beginning to glaze over.

"Dude, you chose a good place to die, but you also chose a bad place to live."

Xiu En crouched down and used the muzzle of his gun to lift the man's chin.

"Or rather, are you here to deliver equipment to me?"

"System, give me a straight answer."

Shuen squatted down next to the unfortunate man, gesturing with his Glock on the man's forehead.

"Does shooting him give him more lifespan, or saving him give him more?"

Rain dripped from the brim of his hat, hitting the half-dead gangster's face.

[System in progress...]

Option A: Execute the intruder directly. Estimated reward: Lifespan +6 hours.

Option B: Life and Death in Control. Hold the power of life and death over others, transforming them into guardians and followers of the altar. Expected Reward: Lifespan +48 hours, gain 1 temporary follower.

"Understood."

Xiu En put away his gun.

"Although I feel like you're just making excuses for me to do good deeds, 48 ​​hours is too good to pass up."

Xiu En pulled out a few blue pills from his pocket, which the shotgun robbers had generously sponsored. They had serious side effects, but their advantage was that their pain-relieving effect was comparable to military-grade morphine.

"Open your mouth, I'll give you a treasure to eat."

Xiu En pried open the thug's chin, stuffed two capsules into his mouth, and then poured water down his throat to help him swallow them.

The thug coughed violently from the choking, and more blood gushed from his wound, but he was too weak to resist.

The medicine takes effect very quickly.

In less than two minutes, the thug's face, which had been contorted in pain, began to relax, his pupils dilated and his eyes became glazed, and he made incomprehensible groans.

"Now, let's do something exciting."

Xiu En tore open the thug's clothes, revealing the gruesome abdominal wound.

There were no sutures, and no alcohol.

He took out the lighter and simply heated the switchblade until it was red-hot.

"Sizzle!"

The red-hot blade pressed against the blood vessels at the edge of the wound, and the smell of burning flesh instantly overpowered the stench of blood.

"Ah! Haha... Hehe..."

The thug screamed, but the scream quickly turned into a strange laugh under the influence of the drugs.

He lay in the mud and water, looking at the dark clouds in the sky, as if he were seeing paradise.

Half an hour later.

The thug leaned against the plaster mannequin, a strip of cloth torn from the lining of Xiu En's old hospital gown wrapped around his abdomen.

Although his face was still as pale as paper, his mental state was surprisingly "good".

"Angel, are you an angel?"

Joey stared unfocused at Hugh, drool dripping from his mouth. "I saw... white light... and golden birds..."

"That's just the streetlights and your illusion."

Xiu En tossed him the remaining half-bottle of water.

"Listen, from this moment on, you owe me a life. This place is under my control. Anyone who tries to get close, either drive them away or wake me up."

"Yes, Archangel."

Joey gave a silly salute, the movement aggravating his wound, causing him to grimace in pain but still smiling.

[System notification: Successfully rescued and subdued the dying target.]

[Reward: Lifespan +48 hours. Current Lifespan Balance: 87 hours+.]

[Altar Defense: Slightly Increased]

Xiu En sighed as he looked at his new subordinate, who was grinning foolishly at the plaster mannequin.

"Alright, at least I won't have to keep watch alone for the next three days."

He retreated back under the dust cover and slept much more soundly this time.

……

The Gotham morning after the rain carried a musty smell of backflowing sewers, but this did not dampen Joestar's good mood in the slightest.

Xiu En was awakened by a strange friction sound.

He opened his eyes and instinctively reached for Glock under his pillow, only to see the thug who had been half-dead yesterday lying on the floor, wiping the tiles with his only intact sleeve.

"What are you doing?"

Xiu En sat up, a dull ache in his lungs making him frown.

The thug turned around, and a chilling light flickered in his eyes, which were dilated due to drug use.

Good morning, Archangel.

"I am purifying the sacred site. Last night, the golden divine bird told me that dust is a desecration of the light."

Xiu En twitched the corner of his mouth. Were those two capsules last night really that powerful?

"Golden bird?"

Xiu En asked a question he already knew the answer to.

"Yes! It was engulfed in flames, brighter than any neon light!"

The thug gestured excitedly, oblivious to the pain in his abdominal wound.

"It pierced through my body, burning away my previous weakness. Now, I am the one chosen by the golden bird."

He suddenly struck a contorted and exaggerated pose, pointing at the faint light of the rising sun.

"Archangel, I am Joestar!"

"Jostar".

Xiu En repeated the name, unable to resist asking if he still wanted to go to Egypt to fight vampires.

"Alright, Joestar."

Xiuen accepted this premise, since reasoning with a mental patient was a waste of time.

"Now that you have been reborn, you must fulfill the responsibilities of this new life."

Joestar immediately knelt down in front of the stone platform, kowtowed to the plaster mannequin with a missing hand, and then stared longingly at Shuen.

"Give the order: shall I use my blood to wash away the sins?"

"Violence cannot solve everything, at least not now."

Xiu En touched his empty stomach; the hunger during fasting was simply torture.

He pulled a few crumpled US dollars from his pocket and threw them in front of Joestar.

"Go to Chinatown and buy ten steamed buns. Remember, just steamed buns, if they have even a hint of meat on them, I'll roast you and offer you as a sacrifice to the heavens."

Joestar held the banknotes in both hands as if they were imperial edicts.

"Vegetarianism is a form of physical asceticism. I understand."

He nodded solemnly, struck a strange pose, and then stood up unsteadily, fresh blood seeping from the strip of cloth covering his abdomen.

Watching Joestar disappear through the gap in the unfinished building, Shuen re-examined the altar.

His pale face was reflected in the gleaming tile.

"Two days left."

Shuen leaned against the plaster mannequin, gazing at the somber Gotham skyline in the distance.

"Hopefully we can hold out until the beginning of autumn."

[System Warning: Low blood sugar detected in the host; it is recommended to reduce strenuous exercise.]

Xiu En sighed and held the safety amulet in his hand, playing with it.

Can this thing, along with a few rotten pears, really fool that deity called Bai Di?

Or is this so-called sincerity just a matter of who has a tougher life?