After I stopped trying, a rich woman trained me into a demon emperor.

This is not speculation.

It is the worst-case scenario.

Footsteps sounded behind me.

Xu Youwei has arrived.

She changed into a black combat suit that allowed for easy movement, her right hand still wrapped in bandages, a broken hairpin piercing through her palm like an unremovable nail.

Zhou Ran didn't turn around.

"Can't sleep?"

Xu Youwei walked to his side.

"Um."

She looked at the desolate black knife.

"On White Tower Island, if there truly is a way to unlock the power of sight..."

She paused for a moment.

Zhou Ran waited for her to finish speaking.

Xu Youwei looked up.

"Would you trade me for information?"

Zhou Ran turned to look at her.

Her face was very pale in the moonlight.

But she did not avoid his gaze.

She had held these words in for a long time.

From the moment Penglai used her as a vessel, from the moment Xu Changling implanted the Eye Power into her body, from the moment the Twelve Soul Coffins appeared on White Pagoda Island, she had been waiting for an answer.

Zhou Ran said, "Yes."

Xu Youwei's fingers tightened suddenly.

The silver eye in the palm trembled slightly beneath the bandage.

Zhou Ran continued, "I'll use you as bait."

Xu Youwei looked at him, her lips moving slightly.

Zhou Ran's tone remained unchanged.

"But the rope is in my hands."

"Whoever takes the bait, I'll kill them."

A night breeze blew by.

Xu Youwei lowered her head, her shoulders trembling slightly.

It's not crying.

It's more like something that's been stretched taut for a long time, finally loosening a little.

She said in a low voice, "Are you always this rude?"

Zhou Ran thought for a moment.

"Fatty Wang said I was being honest."

Xu Youwei's lips twitched slightly.

"He has a very strong bias towards you."

Zhou Ran implanted a black and gold talisman into her broken hairpin.

"When you're exhausted, it can sustain you for three breaths."

Xu Youwei looked at the runes on her palm.

"Three breaths again?"

"Enough for me to kill someone."

She remained silent for a moment.

"Zhou Ran".

"Um."

I believe you.

These three words were spoken very softly.

But it is heavier than any vow.

Zhou Ran didn't say anything nice, he just nodded.

"Come back alive, and judge Penglai yourself."

Xu Youwei turned and left.

She stopped again when she reached the door.

"Does Lin Qingxue know I've come to see you?"

Zhou Ran said, "She can see."

Xu Youwei stiffened for a moment.

In the distance, towards the center of the formation, a wisp of black light flickered slightly.

Xu Youwei took a deep breath.

"Then you tell her for me that I'm just asking about something important."

Zhou Ran: "You can say it yourself."

Xu Youwei walked even faster.

Zhou Ran watched her retreating figure, and the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.

We haven't even been to White Pagoda Island yet, but there are already signs of a chaotic scene in the backyard.

Fortunately, Fatty Wang wasn't there.

Otherwise, the whole manor will know tomorrow.

The next morning, Chen Ya delivered the final document.

The cover reads:

[Special letter from the global receiving delegation of Ching Hui Medical Trust to White Pagoda Island.]

The accompanying status arrangements are as follows.

Chen Ya, Chief Receiving Representative.

Zhou Ran, Safety and Special Pollution Treatment Consultant.

Xu Youwei, witness to the rights of people with special physical conditions.

Qin San, security supervisor.

Xiaorou, a consultant specializing in biological contamination detection.

Two demonic dukes, and emergency assistance personnel for foreign armed threats.

Fatty Wang stared longingly at the words "emergency assistance personnel for foreign armed threats."

"This job sounds way more prestigious than property manager."

Chen Ya said, "You also have a position."

Fatty Wang perked up.

"What?"

Chen Ya handed him another document.

[Temporary General Security Coordinator for Jiangcheng Qinghui Medical System.]

Fatty Wang watched it three times.

"This one will do too."

He tucked the document into his pocket.

"It sounds like someone who can manage a lot of people."

Chen Ya said, "That's true. If there's a problem, we'll come to you first."

Fatty Wang's smile froze.

"That was pretty exciting."

At 8:00 a.m., the delegation's information was uploaded through the encrypted channel left by the White Tower Council.

Inside the main control room, everyone was watching the screen.

The countdown starts.

ten seconds.

Five seconds.

one second.

The receipt for White Pagoda Island popped up.

There was no welcoming speech.

There is no process description.

Only one sentence.

[Chen Ya is permitted to enter the island.]

The next line of text then appeared.

The rest are to be executed immediately.

At 11 p.m. that night, at the Jiangcheng outer sea pier.

A medium-sized commercial vessel flying the flag of Ching Fai Medical Trust was quietly moored on the shore. The hull was pure white, and two off-road vehicles and rows of sealed boxes were fixed on the deck.

Zhou Ran stood at the very front of the deck, the sea breeze filling his clothes. The Taihuang Black Knife, wrapped in black cloth, was slung across his back, looking from a distance like an inconspicuous hiking stick.

Qin San, dressed in a black windbreaker with a communication headset hanging on his shoulder, scanned the cranes at the dock all the way to the distant lighthouse, not missing a single shadow.

Xiao Rou, wearing a light gray trench coat, was tidying up a medical testing kit. Inside the kit, various tiny worms lay dormant in several compartments.

Xu Youwei wore a white coat over her black combat uniform, and the bandage on her right hand was wrapped meticulously, perfectly concealing the outline of the broken hairpin in her palm, adding to her medical professional demeanor.

The two demon dukes, Xuan Ying and Gu Li, were dressed in sharp black suits by Qin San.

Xuan Ying loosened the tie around his neck and whispered to Qin San, "My lord, this item restricts the flow of magical power."

Qin San only replied with two words: "Endure it."

Gu Li was examining the small print embroidered inside the cuff of his suit: Qinghui Medical Trust Security Department.

He remained silent for three seconds.

"I followed the Demon Emperor in conquering various realms 30,000 years ago, and never held a rank."

Qin San adjusted his headphones: "Times have changed."

Chen Ya was the last to board the ship. She was wearing a dark blue business suit and carrying two suitcases. One was a silver briefcase full of documents, and the other was an evidence box containing the Emperor's Bone.

On the box wall, the three characters "wait, trial, kill" glowed faintly.

She placed the box on the table in the cabin, took out her phone, and sent a final message.

Send it to Lin Qingxue.

【Set off.】

A reply pops up three seconds later.

[I can see it. Come back.]

Chen Ya put away her phone and walked to Zhou Ran's side.

"I did not reply to the White Pagoda's reply," she said. "According to procedure, not replying to a letter is equivalent to not accepting it. But they don't follow procedure."

Zhou Ran nodded: "That's why they'll come to stop us."

"Yes." Chen Ya gazed at the boundless, dark sea ahead. "We'll enter international waters in four hours, which is the patrol area of ​​the White Tower Fleet."

Zhou Ran adjusted the black knife on his back.

"Perfect, four hours is enough for a nap."

3:17 a.m.

On the radar screen, three dots of light converged at high speed from different directions.

Qin San's voice came through the walkie-talkie, completely flat: "Three targets, two destroyers and frigates, and one supply ship, are forming an encirclement."

Zhou Ran walked out of the cabin, the knife still on his back.

On the sea, three gray-painted military-grade patrol vessels are cutting through the waves. No flags of any country are flying on their hulls; instead, they bear only an abstract white tower logo.

A male voice with a heavy Eastern European accent abruptly cut into the communication channel.

"Qinghui Delegation, you have entered the waters under the jurisdiction of the White Pagoda Council. In accordance with the island autonomy treaty, all unauthorized personnel must disembark and undergo a safety cleanup."

The voice paused for a moment.

"Only one authorized person, Ms. Chen Ya. The rest of you, please transfer to our ships immediately."

Qin San looked at Zhou Ran.