Spare Me, Great Lord!

As of now, Lu Shu’s triumphant return was still a secret known only to the elite few of the Heavenly Network. Lu Shu wondered if the Collection of Gods would provide him with another wave of distress points if they learned about his fake death and the deep sea white sand scam.

However, the entire organization had virtually been destroyed. Even if there were people unhappy about him, there would not be too many of them alive to generate distress points.

Meanwhile, thousands of kilometers away in Japan, Yaeko had paid her visit to many hidden clans consecutively. In merely three days, she had grown up under immense stress and had even earned unanimous support from those she had visited.

It was not only because of her possession of the remaining resources of the Conservatives, but also her competent mastery of skills inherited from Oda.

At the moment, the shocking news of the collapse of the Collection of Gods had been spread across the world. Despite their disadvantage in the absence of high-end Class A combat powers, the Collection of Gods, together with the Department of Faith Theory, the Phoenix Society and the Heavenly Network, were initially all on the same starting line.

Therefore, the sudden elimination of a potential external threat caught everybody off guard.

The news set the Darkness Kingdom in uproar for half a month. Coral’s involvement in the actual battle was widely known too, but it seemed impossible that she alone could overthrow the whole Collection of Gods.

It made no sense. Various big organizations were looking for traces in support of an alternative possibility, but to no avail.

In fact, Lu Shu’s involvement was completely unexpected. His identity and actions had been strictly confidential before Takashima’s advancement to pseudo-Class A, and almost all witnesses of his participation in the fight were dead now.

Nie Ting’s takeoff from the Capital towards the Collection of Gods was video-recorded. In the Capital, there were some people hired only to stay in rented rooms all day and watch Nie Ting’s flying directions closely…

It was not very helpful, actually, because Nie Ting might have chosen to fly southward before going northward upon reaching a certain altitude. After all, his movement could not be captured outside the Capital or when he was high enough.

Besides, the job carried high risks. Usually, once their photos were uploaded, they would be arrested by Hao Zhichao’s team before they had time to retreat…

Thus, Nie Ting’s involvement in the battle was suspected by many. But his arrival might have been too late even with his Class A flying speed taken into account. Back then, by the time Nie Ting reached the fortress, few were still alive. And he had already left with Lu Shu when spies from other big organizations rushed to the place for a closer look.

As a result, the battle became a mystery. It was widely believed that the crucial piece to the puzzle was well hidden from public attention. On the other hand, the Heavenly Network seemed to be behind the hiding, because Nie Ting trusted that Lu Shu would perform better away from the limelight. In other organizations, those in charge of foreign affairs tended to be high-profile figures, such as Howard from the Phoenix Society.

But that probably would not work well based on Lu Shu’s personality…

From the start, no one associated the battle with Lu Shu’s death. Although it was true that the Heavenly Network and the Collection of Gods were aged-long enemies and there were disputes over the credibility of Lu Shu’s death news, it was certainly impossible for a mere Class C to be related to such wide-range disruption.

Coral took the greatest credits. Her combat power was now ranked one of the top among Class B’s.

In the meantime, Lu Xiaoyu was barbecuing her beef slices as Lu Shu recounted the battle, down to every minor detail. Suddenly, she raised her head and asked, “Who’s that again? Coral? Why did she appear in Japan? Is the Collection of Gods her enemy too?”

But Lu Shu had no idea!

“However, she can be considered your life savior. How are you planning to pay her back?” Lu Xiaoyu asked casually, dipping the cooked beef in her sauce plate and sending it to her mouth.

For steamed boat sauce, Lu Xiaoyu preferred a mixture of sesame oil and vinegar to peanut sauce or sesame paste, because the former had a more lasting flavor.

Lu Shu grinned. “Don’t worry so much. Let’s focus on the food.”

Lu Xiaoyu shot Lu Shu a glance and kept silent. She was genuinely grateful for Coral’s act of saving Lu Shu.

They spent over 400 bucks on the food. But Lu Xiaoyu did not even hesitate when she paid the bill. As compared to Lu Shu, she was much more generous, like a new upstart…

Nie Ting and Shi Xuejin did not bother Lu Shu further about the matter of the Ninth Heavenly King. It seemed that they had purposely given Lu Shu some time to consider, neither hasty nor giving up on the prospect.

On the third day, Hao Zhichao came to inform Lu Shu of his participation in Liu Xiu’s funeral. Lu Shu had planned to buy a set of black suits, because dress code did matter for that kind of occasions.

However, Hao Zhichao returned again with a set of Heavenly Network uniform made specifically for Lu Shu’s size. It was the black cloak that Lu Shu once saw them wearing.

It was not the first time Lu Shu had visited the secret base in the Lingjing Lane. Besides Hao Zhichao, Nie Ting, Shi Xuejin, Zhong Yutang and You Mingyu, no one knew why he was there, as few were aware that it was Lu Shu who brought Liu Xiu back.

Zhong Yutang and You Mingyu came from Yuzhou specially for the funeral, because Liu Xiu was sent for the mission by Zhong Yutang, and he was also You Mingyu’s comrade.

During the funeral, Nie Ting delivered a speech at the memorial. He glanced over the audience and said calmly, “In this mission, Liu Xiu claimed the credit for wiping out Takashima Tairatsu, but he was martyred as a result. Liu Xiu was born in 1983 and he had been acting on a secret mission in the Collection of Gods for 11 years 2 months and 17 days. During his mission, he was unable to return for his mother when she passed away due to sickness. Last month, he requested to return home for a bowl of authentic minced meat noodle. I approved. But I never expected he would come home this way.”

Nie Ting paused. His emotions could hardly be concealed under his composed facial expressions. Nie Ting continued. “In this era, fortune and fame are widely sought after, and many are no longer willing to bear hardships. They are concerned about job promotions and salaries. As for the safety and security of our country, they leave them to others.”

“Since they are unwilling to fulfill those duties, we have no one else to turn to. It is our obligations. It is my honor to work with everybody present today, to be able to uphold our belief and passion, together, in this unpredictable world.”

“Today, Liu Xiu stood up. Tomorrow, it might be me, Nie Ting. I, Nie Ting, may die, but the Heavenly Network and our country, China, will always live on and thrive.”

“May all fighters of the Heavenly Network advance forward fearlessly in the upcoming apocalypse. So long as there is a single spark, we can set a prairie ablaze.”