Way of the Devil

Lu Sheng passed through the plaza quickly and found the bakery’s boss who was sitting before a fountain.

The reason why it had been this easy was because the boss was only slightly smaller than the plaza monster.

The boss was so fat that his round appearance resembled a roly-poly toy. He sat on the floor and was smiling benevolently. He was especially eye-catching.

The feature which Lu Sheng distinguished him by was the huge, dirty pastry apron around his waist. The word “cake” was printed with a huge font on it.

Lu Sheng stood before the bakery’s boss who was more than 10 meters tall and about eight meters wide. He looked up at him.

“Your wife Nana sent me here. She wishes for you to return. She’s been waiting for you all this while.” Lu Sheng conveyed the lady boss’s words directly.

“It’s alright. I’m doing fine here,” the pastry boss replied with a smile. “However, if you can help me find a treasure in this labyrinth, I’ll go back with you—”

“Bam!”

Lu Sheng’s right arm morphed into countless spirit-prompting threads which condensed into a huge palm. He smacked the mammoth boss onto the ground.

The ground shook and the rock slabs cracked. Dust flew everywhere.

“You!!” The boss’s mountainous body slammed heavily onto the ground with a loud crash. He was struggling to get back onto his feet.

However, he was immediately stopped by Lu Sheng, who hurled a flurry of punches at his head.

“Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam!”

In no time, the pastry boss fainted. With his face covered in blood, Lu Sheng dragged him by the feet through the plaza and walked toward the street where the bakery was.

Back at the bakery, Lu Sheng stuffed the boss’s huge body into the store. However, the shop might have been too small for him.

An old, shriveled lady in a white dress walked slowly out of the inner parts of the shop.

She looked at the bakery’s boss with tears streaking down her face.

“You’re finally… finally back…”

Lu Sheng stood at the side and observed this scene. He gradually felt his surroundings distorting and started to blur.

When he blinked, he was already standing in a dark and cold stone room.

A white-haired old man was standing before him. The old man wore a long, red robe and appeared stern.

“About the watchman at the plaza during the first stage, do you think that your actions were just?” the old man asked.

Lu Sheng immediately understood that this was a question about his performance before this.

“They were,” he replied.

“All you had to do was to pass through the plaza, and the watchman merely asked you one question. However, you killed him in the end. Just to pass through the plaza, you had taken a life. Are you really just?” the old man asked in a cold voice.

“Of course,” Lu Sheng responded solemnly as well. “If my answer hadn’t been satisfactory for him, he’d have eaten me alive. Hence, to reciprocate the gesture, I’ll kill him if I can’t give him a satisfactory answer. There’s nothing wrong in that.”

The old man looked slightly stunned. However, he had seen many extreme answers before this. He snapped back to the present quickly.

“What about the second stage? The bakery boss wanted you to help him find a treasure before he was willing to follow you back. Why did you choose violence, then?”

“Can’t I use violence?” Lu Sheng replied with a question.

The old man was slightly baffled. The bakery boss at least had the strength of a Divine Lord. None of the challengers should be able to fight him head on with his strength and explosive power.

Hence, the designer used this fact and included him in the test’s scope.

However, now…

“Alright, I have one final question for you.” The old man decided not to be confused anymore. “Do you think that your actions were just enough?”

Lu Sheng muttered to himself for a while.

“I’m just enough.” They were not mere words; he indeed felt that way in his heart.

“Very well.” The old man nodded slowly.

“Crack.”

Everything suddenly shattered. Lu Sheng’s vision blurred. To his surprise, he found that he was standing before the Ode Tower’s door again, just as if he did not budge from the very beginning and merely stood here.

‘Was that an illusion? Or is this…’ Lu Sheng narrowed his eyes. His opponent’s level was slightly out of his expectations.

However, a white letter slowly flew out of the door and reached his hands.

The message on the letter was clear. “Welcome to Libra City. Your camp is the Fair Men. Your test level: fourth-class.”

“What does this mean? I’ve succeeded?” Lu Sheng was stunned.

He had been here for so long. He knew the common knowledge of this world.

Libra City’s camps were divided into the Fair Men and the Justice Men. The Fair Men were headed by the Merchant Alliances and the Iron Fist Guild.

The Justice Men had two great armies and the Brilliant Light as their symbols.

The test levels divided the main city’s inhabitants into four classes. Each class enjoyed varying levels of benefits and treatment.

The fourth class was the lowest. It was clear that the test committee found him to be barely eligible.

“So, I’ve passed?” Lu Sheng did not find that too difficult. Libra City’s test was like playing a game.

He did not know that the actual script was for him to take up the bakery boss’s request, head toward the immense labyrinth, and embark on a long adventure…

‘Well then, I should join an organization and obtain the next step of my cultivation.’

Lu Sheng quickly left the alley. The white letter paper in his hand quickly condensed into a white seal. His name was inscribed upon it—Lu Yue.

Lu Sheng placed the seal in his sack and headed straight toward the inner ring of the main city.

After passing through several busy streets, he soon saw a big and tall defense line which shone with light green runes.

The black iron wall was covered in light green runes, dark red formations, and nodes. Patrollers manned the line in their full white armor. Heavy corrosive aura lingered in the air.

Anyone who wanted to get close to this place had to be at the Snake Level at least.

From afar, Lu Sheng could see the passage tunnel at the bottom of the iron wall. Individuals with outstanding airs about them passed through the tunnel occasionally. None of the passersby looked ordinary.

He walked up to the tunnel, and one of the guards went up to meet him.

“Are you a new Fair Man? From here, you may be transported to the Natash Merchant Alliance, the Era Merchant Alliance, or the Iron Fist Guild. If you want to head to the Central Library, you may be transported there directly with some additional fee.”

“I’d like to cultivate a more profound martial path. Do you have any good suggestions for me?” Lu Sheng inquired directly. As a Fair Man, he produced a small stack of ice money from his sleeve and gave it to him.

The little captain’s gaze immediately softened. He received the ice money without as much as batting an eyelid.

“Fair Men are mainly absorbed by the three Merchant Alliances, Iron Fist Guild, Hundred Weapon Sect, and many small and medium-sized sects. Besides that, there was some big shot in the nearby stellar zone who was recruiting disciples before this. Hence, one of our two great masters in the city, Master Red Moon is also recruiting disciples.”

Master Red Moon?

Lu Sheng was not privy to this information. He shoved another stack of ice money to the little captain.

The fellow broke into a wide grin. He did not even earn as much by guarding the passage for half a month. He immediately told Lu Sheng everything he knew.

As a member of the guard here, he had seen his fair share of eccentric people. The people also brought their information with them, which reached his ears as well. He explained about Master Red Moon to Lu Sheng right away.

Only Underworld Net experts at the peak of the Void Underworld tier had the right to be referred to as Masters. The experts of this tier were all overlords in their own right. They wielded great authority and were peak beings who could rule over an entire stellar zone.

“Master Red Moon is known to recruit a large number of disciples without discrimination. The old man has humans, demons, Heavenly Devils, elemental lifeforms, Anomalies, ghosts, and other kinds of beings as his disciples.”

“What should I do to become Red Moon’s disciple?” Lu Sheng asked again.

“That’s easy. I’ll have someone bring you over. To become a disciple, all you have to do is pay a registration fee, pass the test, and you’ll earn the privilege to become the Master’s disciple. When that time comes, all you have to do is give up 100 years of your life, and you’ll obtain Red Moon’s inheritance.” The little captain explained the process to Lu Sheng carefully.

However, the more Lu Sheng listened, the more he felt as if this was a cult…

“Don’t worry, Master Red Moon is a Fair Man. He’s one of the key figures in Libra City. Red Moon’s disciples are also a formidable force in Libra City. The main point is that you’re only a fourth-class citizen. The easiest organization to join in your case is the Red Moon Disciples.”

The little captain had a gentle expression. In truth, he was already a professional in adjusting his personality according to the kind of person he was dealing with.

He had encountered many Fair Men such as Lu Sheng. They were rich but were of the lowest classes.

They were not fair enough in nature, yet they wanted to join the stronger organizations of Libra City. Besides the notorious Red Moon Disciples, they truly did not have a second choice.

Red Moon was the only one who would lower his requirements with some payment.

Although, in the eyes of the other organizations, the Red Moon Disciples were locusts, a cult.

They were violent and greedy. In the name of the Fair Men, they brazenly went about to rob and extort resources from other lands. They were cruel in their undertakings and were far from united, especially when compared to other organizations.

However, there were too many of them. In Libra City, the Red Moon Disciples were the second largest force. Nobody could beat them in terms of the number of members.

One of the Four Wards was controlled by an apostle of Red Moon.

They were also often in conflict with the Brilliant Light and White Creek Army, representatives of the Justice Men. Both sides had their wins and losses.

After listening to the friendly little captain’s explanations, Lu Sheng walked into one of the Transport Formations beyond the tunnel.

One of the guards adjusted the parameters. A white light shone down and immediately enveloped Lu Sheng.

When the light dissipated, Lu Sheng had already vanished.

“Those who can join the Red Moon Disciples are rich, and they know how the world moves!” The little captain counted the ice money in his hands with relish.

As for the other Fair Men, the higher their class was, the more frugal they became, and the more rigid, too.

The main reason why the Red Moon Disciples were notorious was that after they joined and paid all the fees, they would immediately be exploited by their own organization right away.

Also, because of the low requirements, most of the disciples were not fair individuals at all. They loved to navigate through loopholes. Although they would not go so far as to act contrary to being fair, misleading business transactions happened quite often when they were involved.

Their reputation earned them another name in many other worlds—they were known as devils.

Rumor had it that the organization which Master Red Moon originated from was of the same nature. Currently, he led his disciples by teaching and example, resulting in them having the same qualities as himself.

Lu Sheng rode the Transport Formation. He did not have to pay for anything for the dozen transports he had to ride.

While he waited for the next transport, he paid some of the people around him for information about the Red Moon Disciples.