Chapter 128: Susu Heard It

The sports car’s engine roared, its harsh sound shaking the surroundings.

This was completely out of character for Lin Liuli, who had always kept a low profile. But she could no longer afford to care.

The situation was extremely perilous.

As the possessor of a Lesser God Core within the God Core Organization, Lin Liuli knew all too well what it meant when one of the organization’s priests appeared.

To her, it meant death.

A God Core priest would never appear merely to issue her a warning.

Within the God Core Organization, priests held an exalted position. They belonged to the organization’s upper echelon, and every priest carried an overwhelming presence.

To become a priest, one had to possess nation-destroying strength. Only then would one be qualified.

The true mystery surrounding the priests lay in the fact that every time one of them left the organization, it caused upheaval throughout the world.

On the wanted lists maintained by the Dream Master Associations of the various nations, every priest ranked no lower than the upper echelons of the three great Nightmare organizations.

For that reason, priests rarely left the organization.

And once one did, something momentous was certain to happen.

The priest’s appearance in Jiangling City needed no explanation. He had clearly come for Lin Liuli.

The priest might not care about Lin Liuli’s betrayal, but he could not possibly disregard the Lesser God Core within her.

The Lesser God Core was of immense importance to the God Core Organization.

It was the fruit of their research, the foundation that gave them the confidence to stand alongside the three great Nightmare organizations.

If they stripped the Lesser God Core from her, the God Core Organization could cultivate another Vermilion Bird.

But once the Lesser God Core was taken from her, there was only one outcome for Lin Liuli.

Death.

Certain death.

No one could survive after having a Lesser God Core forcibly removed.

The Lesser God Core was a devastating weapon.

But to its possessor, it was also a deadly poison.

The Lesser God Core had long since fused with her soul. Once it was removed, her soul would inevitably collapse.

Her high heels struck down again and again as she pressed the accelerator to the floor. The engine’s roar exploded across the streets, echoing through the skies above Jiangling City.

Yet through the rearview mirror, Lin Liuli could still see that white-clad figure drifting after her.

With every step he took, it was as though he shortened the distance between places themselves.

No matter how fast the sports car went, she could not shake him.

In fact, the distance between him and the car was steadily shrinking.

If not for the Lesser God Core within Lin Liuli, which was restless and poised to erupt at any moment, and if not for the priest’s cat-and-mouse attitude, he would have already given chase at full speed and stopped the car.

Cold sweat streamed down Lin Liuli’s forehead.

The wheels spun without pause, and the sports car raced along the streets like a streak of red fireworks.

In the distance, the modest residential complex where Du Fang lived gradually came into view.

Lin Liuli bit her lip. She knew this was extremely inappropriate, but at present, it was her only hope.

She understood very well how terrifying Luo Luo was.

She was not an ordinary Fallen God.

In truth, Lin Liuli did not want to trouble Du Fang. But when confronted with genuine death, she could not remain calm.

She had no choice but to make one desperate gamble.

She would bet that Du Fang’s family members could suppress the priest.

It was a mad idea.

To contend with a nation-destroying existence…

Only a national-level Dream Master could oppose such a being.

But national-level Dream Masters were exceedingly rare. Over all these years, the entire Great Xia had produced only a few dozen Dream Masters who had been rated at the national level.

Jiangling City did not even have a national-level Dream Master stationed there.

Only Jiangnan Province possessed one.

Thus, Lin Liuli was filled with unease. She did not know whether she truly had any hope of surviving.

But whether she could survive was one matter.

Whether she would fight for that final sliver of hope was another.

In fact, Lin Liuli had long since guessed that the priest would come looking for her. That was precisely why she had chosen not to leave Jiangling City.

Only in Jiangling City did she have any chance of survival.

If she fled to another city, no matter where she went, the outcome would be the same.

Death.

…

The priest walked with his hands clasped behind his back, watching Vermilion Bird flee while flooring the accelerator.

Beneath his mask, the corner of his mouth curled into a mocking smile.

“Like a stray dog.”

“Pathetic. Inferior.”

“Betraying the organization? Why would you betray the organization? Everything you have today, your ability to survive in this chaotic world—it all came from the opportunity the organization gave you!”

“An ungrateful mongrel, running away with the organization’s treasure.”

The priest spoke with icy indifference.

His words crossed the distance between them and pierced Lin Liuli’s ears like needles.

Lin Liuli’s expression turned ghastly. Blood even began to seep from her ear canals.

Suddenly, the steering wheel went out of control.

Lin Liuli slammed on the brakes.

The tires skidded, shrieking as they tore across the pavement. The sports car rolled repeatedly, striking and scraping against the ground as sparks flew in every direction.

At last, it crashed violently into a wall.

Inside the vehicle, Lin Liuli, disheveled and battered, shoved open the damaged door and rolled out.

She kicked off her high heels and ran barefoot toward Du Fang’s residential complex.

As she ran, she activated the Lesser God Core within her.

A shrill bird cry seemed to ring through the air.

Flames erupted around her body, as though the Vermilion Bird had spread its wings in flight.

Lin Liuli’s speed increased sharply.

The white-clad priest followed behind with his hands clasped behind his back. He appeared leisurely, but in truth, he moved as swiftly as lightning.

Within Jiangling City, the authorities had naturally responded to the strange activity surrounding the white-clad priest and Lin Liuli.

In fact, a number of armed helicopters were already circling overhead. They had followed Lin Liuli’s sports car and were now tracking the white-clad priest pursuing it.

At the command center of the Dream Master Tower, Wen Ji’s usually cold expression had long since crumbled. Cold sweat poured down his face, and his eyes were filled with terror and despair.

He stared at the images transmitted from the armed helicopters.

Even through the live footage, that white figure radiated an oppressive presence so terrifying that it was difficult to breathe.

This was a nation-destroying powerhouse.

At that moment, President Tang Nai’s solemn voice rang through the earpiece.

“Wen Ji! Pay attention! Pay attention!”

“The situation is extremely serious. The God Core Organization has sent a priest. This priest’s special ability is creating clones. His true body appears to have entered the urban district!”

“Activate every detection device in the city and locate his true body!”

President Tang Nai’s voice was sharp and commanding.

Wen Ji pressed a hand against his wireless earpiece, his voice filled with unprecedented gravity.

“President…”

“The target has been located.”

“He is in the urban district of Jiangling City. He is not concealing his movements at all. He is openly hunting a red sports car.”

“According to our intelligence, the person inside the red sports car is Vermilion Bird, one of the Four Guardians of the God Core Organization.”

“Also, the target seems to have detected our surveillance. Every monitoring device has malfunctioned!”

Wen Ji was drenched in sweat as he spoke with grim seriousness.

“Damn it!”

President Tang Nai cursed furiously through the earpiece.

“What the hell is the God Core Organization doing? Have they mistaken Jiangling City for one of their own branches?”

“Azure Dragon, Blood Rabbit, Vermilion Bird, the White Jade Priest…”

“Damn it!”

Even the normally composed President Tang Nai could no longer restrain himself and erupted into a string of curses.

“Deploy the elite teams. Keep them locked onto the target from a distance and determine his objective. Remember, do not engage recklessly. He is a nation-destroying powerhouse. The elite team led by Thunderstorm and Wu Qi is absolutely no match for him!”

President Tang Nai issued the order.

Wen Ji received it and immediately relayed it.

The teams led by Thunderstorm and Wu Qi had originally been ordered to head toward the outskirts of the city. They promptly changed direction and rushed toward the residential complex where Du Fang lived.

Meanwhile, inside the Dream Master Tower, Chen Xi, Si Nan, Zhao Lu, and the others also left the Wildfire Team’s office.

They hurried toward Du Fang’s residential complex.

They were elite team members now. There was no reason for them to hide inside the Dream Master Tower.

They would naturally head to the battlefield and fight alongside Jiangling City.

…

The residential complex where Du Fang lived was deathly quiet.

Lin Liuli, her entire body engulfed in flames like a Golden Crow wrapped in fire, rushed into the complex.

An oppressive silence hung over the grounds.

The residents had all hidden inside their apartments, too frightened to come out. Every one of them trembled in fear.

Lin Liuli stood within the complex, her expression bleak and desperate.

“You rushed here without even looking back. You came to find Du Fang, didn’t you?”

“What a pity. He isn’t here. He went outside Jiangling City, where I have trapped him.”

The priest’s mocking voice drifted over from afar.

Lin Liuli’s heart jolted.

Upon hearing his words, an inexplicable sorrow surged through her.

Du Fang was not here?

He was not even in Jiangling City?

To her, this was nothing less than terrible news. It was tantamount to a sentence of death.

She breathed heavily.

“You thought Du Fang could save you?”

“How did someone as foolish and rebellious as you ever come out of the God Core Organization?”

“He was one of my targets from the beginning.”

“Once I deal with you, traitor, and reclaim the Lesser God Core, Vermilion Bird, I will pay him a personal visit. He killed Azure Dragon and destroyed my Lesser God Core. I will make him pay in blood!”

“I will personally strip the Fallen God from his body, drain his blood, shatter his bones, fuse them into the flesh of an artificial Fallen God, and lash his soul until nothing remains.”

The priest’s words were filled with cold cruelty.

In truth, this was exactly what he intended to do to Du Fang.

As the God Core Organization grew increasingly powerful, the priest had become far less cautious within Great Xia.

Lin Liuli’s expression turned even more grim.

The priest’s words weighed heavily upon her heart.

She turned her head and looked at the lights still glowing from apartment after apartment.

Her heart was filled with guilt and sorrow.

She had brought this crisis here.

Once the priest attacked, he would never concern himself with ordinary people.

Lin Liuli knew there was nowhere left to run.

But she would not surrender without a fight.

“The God Core Organization… Your so-called ideal of world peace is complete bullshit! Your ideals are all lies, nothing but hypocritical falsehoods!”

“You’re nothing but a pack of madmen!”

Lin Liuli gritted her teeth.

The Lesser God Core within her began to spin with ever-greater intensity.

She was nearly ready to follow Azure Dragon’s example and detonate it.

The priest narrowed his eyes.

He was naturally concerned that Lin Liuli might truly detonate the Lesser God Core. That was why he had never dealt her a fatal blow.

The two faced each other in the middle of the residential complex.

They were like a nuclear bomb on the verge of detonation.

The priest was not the only one tense.

Beyond the complex, everyone watching the scene was on edge.

At the command center of the Dream Master Tower, Wen Ji’s palms were slick with sweat.

And yet…

In the midst of that drawn bowstring of tension—

Inside the residential complex, on the thirteenth floor, a girl stood unsteadily on a balcony.

Her hair hung loose around her face. She wore a long white dress stained with blood, and in her hands she clutched a “soul painting.”

Tears of sorrow streamed endlessly from the corners of her eyes, which were covered in porcelain-like cracks.

Then, all at once, her tears stopped.

The girl tilted her head and listened intently.

The downturned curve of her lips, which had been sorrowful only a moment before, transformed into an impossibly sharp upward hook.

“Su Su thinks she heard someone say they want to skin Brother-in-law, pull out his tendons, and shatter his bones?!”

“What a wonderful idea!”

“But anyone who hurts Brother-in-law has to die!”

“Who… is looking for death?”