Chapter 451: The Sinner

For twenty-four hours after Si Qi’s death, everyone who participated in the encirclement operation waited for the outcome in terrifying silence.

Si Qi had said that after his death, the oddities he controlled would go out of control; the news brought by Chu Yining claimed that Qi Si would return after Si Qi died, like a monster hunter cutting open a monster’s body only to release an even more terrifying one.

For the past half month, Si Qi, as a reckless madman and an inherently inhuman evil god, had cast too many shadows over this world. Even though his death was understated, people still suspected it was merely the prelude to another storm.

But gradually, the Investigators realized that nothing had happened.

Besides bringing a spiritual downpour, the death of the god also blocked all oddities from the past and the future. After Si Qi was trapped in Jiangcheng, he naturally lost contact with the oddities he controlled, making it impossible for them to be triggered. The so-called “loss of control” was merely a baseless threat.

As for Qi Si, although most people couldn’t understand the exact relationship between him and Si Qi, resurrection always requires a material basis. Si Qi’s body had been smashed to pieces in the car accident, and no one could see any possibility of it being restored to its original state.

Chu Yining’s deduction was baseless, likely stemming from some misunderstanding. Furthermore, because she mentioned “Lin Jue,” many Investigators suspected she was cooperating with Lin Jue to spread alarmist rumors and preempt a reckoning from the Federation’s high command.

The heavy rain finally stopped after three days and three nights, and Jiangcheng and the surrounding areas were revitalized after being washed clean by the rain.

【In the Land Where Gods Fall, all oddities, mysteries, and grotesqueries from the past and future shall perish.】

This rule was conceptual. Since the oddities located in the “past” timeline had vanished, people who died due to oddities should naturally cease to exist.

People who had died in Jiangcheng gradually resurrected, and those who had entered Jiangcheng’s borders and were contaminated or transformed into oddity creatures slowly regained consciousness.

They had no memory of death or the oddities, feeling only as if they had vaguely experienced a grand dream whose details they couldn’t recall.

The mental state of people in this era was mostly worrying, and they usually lived in a daze. Now that they woke up, they went out for work or school in a confused state, selectively ignoring the abnormalities in the details.

Soon, the memories of everyone except the Players underwent a certain change. They no longer remembered the deaths of relatives and friends, nor did they recall that Jiangcheng had been occupied by oddities, feeling only that life was ordinary and uneventful, with the biggest setbacks being failing entrance exams or being laid off.

The shattered city repaired itself at a visible speed, as if time were reversing. Asphalt roads pierced by vines smoothed out, cracks vanished without a trace; glass shards flew back into window frames, forming complete windows; bloodstains faded until they disappeared, and broken reinforced concrete lifted back to its original position.

All restorations were confined to Jiangcheng, but this was astonishing enough. Many capable individuals from around the world brought their contaminated relatives and friends from afar, seeking survival in this cradle greenhouse, insulated from oddities.

On May 20th, the Investigators found the three members of Tingfeng barely clinging to life in the tunnel. Thanks to the restorative effect of the rain, they still had a breath left. Unfortunately, most of their injuries were caused by the explosion, not oddities, so they could not be fully restored and required medical assistance.

After emergency treatment with advanced medical equipment, the three managed to save their lives, although they were destined to rely on wheelchairs for the rest of their days.

As soon as Yu Jinsheng opened his eyes, he mumbled, “Where is Qi Si?”

Li Yunyang, dressed in a military uniform, stood expressionlessly in the ward, carrying a fruit basket and representing the Oddity Investigation Bureau in offering condolences to the high-ranking members of the Tingfeng Guild.

Hearing Yu Jinsheng’s question, she replied with a strange expression, “He was killed by the god who came into reality during the previous God Descent event.”

Yu Jinsheng froze for two seconds, seemingly realizing that asking about the whereabouts of a terrorist right after waking up was inappropriate. He quickly and stiffly changed the subject: “Where is Lin Jue? I need to have a serious talk with him later. That bomb was definitely intended to blow us all up, right?”

“That’s right,” Li Yunyang answered truthfully. “The order he gave at the time was indeed to prevent any living creature from leaving the tunnel.”

Yu Jinsheng blinked twice and repeated the question: “So, where is Lin Jue? He didn’t avoid coming to see me because he knew what he did was shady, did he? Seriously, even if he doesn’t come himself, shouldn’t there be an apology and compensation?”

Li Yunyang’s expression grew even stranger, as if she was trying to figure out how to describe something that wasn’t easy to explain clearly.

After a moment of silence, she put down the fruit basket and said in a muffled voice, “Senior is currently in the interrogation room, undergoing questioning by the Federation.”

…Only another madman can fight a madman, and when one madman meets his end, the remaining madman is no longer necessary.

After all, they are equally dangerous to humanity.

Since Si Qi, trapped in Jiangcheng, could not mobilize the power of oddities, by extension, Lin Jue, who was also in Jiangcheng, was currently just a mortal.

This would be the best opportunity to control him. All it took was a few troops to lock him in a cage, preventing all possible future risks.

In the interrogation room on the fifth basement level of the Oddity Investigation Bureau’s Jiangcheng Branch, Senator Brook Hayes, who had died once, sat opposite Lin Jue, just like their meeting in Beidu on May 4th.

The difference was that this time, Lin Jue was restrained in the chair by handcuffs and shackles, with several guns aimed at his head, clearly the treatment reserved for a serious felon.

Senator Hayes’s smile remained amiable, and his gaze upon Lin Jue held the benevolence of an elder looking at a junior: “To be honest, Lin Jue, I didn’t expect you to choose to stay in Jiangcheng instead of fleeing this Oddity Exclusion Zone, this Land Where Gods Fall, during the chaos.”

“Why should I flee?” Lin Jue tilted his head slightly and retorted. “The Oddity Investigation Bureau is here, and the final Battlefield of the Gods will also be here. The final dungeon hasn’t ended, and the threat of a reboot still hangs over humanity. I have no reason to desert.”

“But none of that concerns you anymore,” Senator Hayes said with a smile. “In all fairness, I must thank you for creating this Land Where Gods Fall. The capable officers who sacrificed themselves in the past have been resurrected one after another these past few days. It seems your promises were not just empty campaign slogans. Although we have experienced death, we still have the confidence to fight the Supreme Rule, just as we did twenty-two years ago. However, this time, the leader won’t be you.”

Although the influence of the Oddity Game has not completely ended, and the White Raven and the Scales Church are also watching covetously, that is still better than letting a madman who dared to put all of humanity on the gambling table take power.

This was the consensus among all Investigators who opposed Lin Jue, and even Lin Jue’s supporters, despite believing in his original intentions, had no way to refute it.

Regardless of the reason, using the power of oddities to coerce humanity is unacceptable.

Thus, Senator Hayes and a group of veterans from Lin Jue’s era returned to the front lines, mobilizing the Federation army to surround the Jiangcheng Branch. Small nuclear bombs, capable of leveling half of Jiangcheng, were also aimed at the newly revived city, ready to be deployed at the push of a button.

Under multiple threats, Lin Jue allowed himself to be captured, accepting a trial whose outcome was already predetermined.

“Whether you or they believe it or not, I never held any resentment over the death of Wade. Presumptuous yet mediocre, he would have died at the hands of others even without you,” Hayes sighed and shook his head slightly. “But your biggest mistake was becoming the ‘Puppet Master.’”

He took a stack of pre-prepared A4 papers from a briefcase nearby. Written clearly on them was the Federation Government’s indictment of Lin Jue’s crimes.

He read the charges one by one, but his thoughts drifted back to thirty-six years ago, when he first entered the Oddity Game. Lin Jue back then was a passionate young man. Although he wasn’t as calculating as he was now, he possessed an extraordinary sense of justice.

More than once, he stopped the schemes of the Slaughter Stream Players, gently advising everyone who wavered: “The Oddity Game will definitely end one day. I hope all of us can maintain our fundamental humanity, and at least not realize that we have become neither human nor ghost only after the monsters have dispersed.”

It was impossible for any Player who came from the early days of the Oddity Game not to revere Lin Jue. It was like wandering fearfully across a dark land and suddenly catching sight of a vibrant bonfire; no matter how faint or mysterious its origin, the wanderers would approach it like moths to a flame.

Lin Jue was like a guiding light, representing both direction and hope. Although unbelievably young, he led everyone out of ignorance with the demeanor of a born leader, thereby gaining the courage to survive and the possibility of resistance.

Hayes at that time was merely a peripheral member of the Ark Guild and had only met Lin Jue a few times. The young man, who often wore a white suit, was approachable, cheerful, and sunny; no one could dislike such a person.

He was decades older than Lin Jue. Sometimes, looking at his own disappointing sons, he would think how great it would be if they were half as outstanding as Lin Jue.

After that came the catastrophe known as “Ragnarok” that occurred on January 1st, 2014. Whether it was because the Sunset Ruins couldn’t hold so many people, or because Lin Jue had anticipated the possibility of failure early on, Hayes and a group of Ark members did not receive the order to gather beneath the Tower of Babel.

It was three days later when he learned the news of Lin Jue’s sacrifice. Hayes, like all surviving Players, was shocked and regretful, and even voluntarily organized a private memorial service.

Not long after, Fu Jue, a follower of Lin Jue during his lifetime, stepped forward. Like a completely changed person, he rose to prominence within a single year, entered the high ranks of the Oddity Investigation Bureau as Lin Jue’s successor, and personally established the Jiuzhou Guild.

Many who had lived through the Lin Jue era had reservations about Fu Jue’s rule, just as creatures bathed in daylight find it hard to accept the coldness of dusk. But as time passed and Fu Jue accomplished concrete deeds one after another, Lin Jue’s influence gradually faded, and many of them tacitly accepted the fact that Fu Jue had replaced Lin Jue.

However, due to his political acumen, Hayes sensed a hidden connection between Fu Jue and Lin Jue. He had no proof, but he inexplicably felt they were like two sides of the same coin, representing two mutually exclusive paths.

Whether one called it conservative stubbornness or excessive suspicion, Hayes always held a bias against Fu Jue’s actions, which were completely different from Lin Jue’s.

Ensuring the continuation of the species through sacrifice, regardless of cost, certainly aligns with rationalist principles. But when the cost reaches a certain level, and humanity is suppressed to the point of decline, does such a civilization still have meaning?

Who can guarantee that the price paid will necessarily yield an equivalent return? If the fate of all humanity is manipulated with machine-like precision, can cold flesh and blood still be called human?

Hayes could not agree.

Nevertheless, before the start of the <Holy City> dungeon, he disdained colluding with representatives from the various County Branches. He didn’t even send a single person to the trial targeting Fu Jue.

What truly made him decide to stand against Fu Jue was the residual Puppet Threads found in Wade’s corpse.

Fu Jue of the prestigious Jiuzhou Guild was actually the “Puppet Master” of the Seraph Guild—what an absurd joke, yet it was a verified fact.

Hayes could guess Fu Jue’s reason for doing this: if the ideology he proclaimed was true, then he merely wanted to use a banner to gather all Slaughter Stream Players under his command and minimize variables.

But why should they trust Fu Jue? The identity of the “Puppet Master,” attached to anyone, is enough to label them as “crazy,” “unscrupulous,” and “self-serving.” Even if Fu Jue’s ultimate goal was genuinely to save all of humanity, who would dare take that gamble?

Now, resurrected and having quickly learned what happened over the past few days, Hayes felt no emotional turmoil upon knowing that Fu Jue was Lin Jue.

Perhaps from the moment Lin Jue chose not to truly sacrifice himself but instead crawled out of hell under the identity of Fu Jue, the statue of this savior was destined to be covered with an indelible stain.

There is only a fine line between enduring humiliation for a greater purpose and being afraid of death, and the boundary between a solitary figure shouldering humanity’s destiny and an ambitious dictator is also not so clear. No one could definitively say which one Lin Jue belonged to.

The fate of all humanity should not hinge on the virtue or vice of a single person. That is too impulsive and too insane—it is something only a Slaughter Stream madman would do. Hayes could not tolerate such a future.

Therefore, Lin Jue, burdened with uncertainty, had to be taken out of the game here.

Senator Hayes finished reading the three pages of A4 paper filled with charges and looked at the man restrained in the chair: “Lin Jue, by authorization of the Federation Penal Code and relevant special laws, you are hereby sentenced to life imprisonment for Crimes Against Humanity. Do you object?”

Lin Jue had maintained a calm gaze straight ahead from beginning to end, and his voice was equally composed now: “I have no objection.”

The heavily armed soldiers watched him, surprised that the process of forcing this dangerous individual to plead guilty was so smooth.

They were all ordinary people who had only recently learned Lin Jue’s name through global television broadcasts. In their eyes, he was nothing more than an unscrupulous ambitious individual who, although he had monopolized power for a short time, was quickly overthrown because evil cannot prevail over good.

He was so composed and candid. Could he have anticipated this outcome long ago?

The soldiers felt a slight doubt, but they quickly suppressed the irrelevant emotions. They escorted Lin Jue toward the depths of the fifth basement level.

After the oddities vanished, the containment rooms were all empty. With complete facilities and robust protection, they were perfect for holding prisoners.

Lin Jue was pushed into the containment room at the end of the corridor. The iron door locked behind him, and corresponding information appeared on the electronic screen.

【Name: Fallen Savior】

【Type: Human】

【Danger Level: S】

【Note: This person’s crimes are unforgivable.】