Star Trace Gate

Chapter 940 A Chaotic World, Betrayal and Self-Salvation

At the garrison headquarters, during a banquet.

Almost everyone with normal intelligence has realized that this terrible idea of ​​"buying life with money" must have come from Niu Dali, and Wang Anquan was just a scapegoat who was forced to compromise and agree.

This surrendered general had almost no say and was in a very pathetic situation. No matter how much mud Niu Dali threw at him, he had to endure it and even had to greet him with a smile.

However, while everyone saw through it, no one was willing to speak up for Wang Anquan, much less foolishly try to stop this "buying one's life with money" little game. From a purely financial perspective, Niu Dali had already made it very clear that this was a special "welcome gift" prepared by the existing officials of Beifeng Town to welcome the new officials from Tianzhao Temple.

What is the "greeting gift"? It's the Star Source that was collected by risking one's life. Everyone gets a share, and everyone shares it equally. Moreover, these newly arrived officials, who are ugly in appearance, don't have to reach out and take it themselves. Instead, the bald men in charge of killing will count and divide the Star Source equally and then secretly deliver it to everyone's residence.

To put it bluntly, everyone can just watch the show and get something for nothing without getting their hands dirty.

From a moral and humane perspective, in this war-torn migration zone, large numbers of people are dying every day. For the chaotic people who initiated the war, killing on the battlefield and killing prisoners at a banquet are essentially the same, with no difference whatsoever; at most, it's just a slightly different method of plunder.

In their eyes, these death row inmates were no different from chickens, ducks, geese, dogs, mules, or livestock. Even though this kind of indiscriminate slaughter without consulting superiors is certainly a violation of discipline, such things actually happen every day. It's forbidden by law, but tacitly accepted by human nature.

The chaotic faction places great emphasis on personal gain and loss, which is why the Village of Illusions repeatedly emphasizes fairness. Only when the wild dogs' own interests are guaranteed will they unite and become ruthless wolves. Therefore, the chaos after the city's fall is a tacit understanding: those with less ability take less, and those with more take more; as long as things don't go too far and no one reports it, everything is fine.

In this state of mind, the six monks, including Moro, and the seven chaotic players under Wang Tudou all showed expressions of great interest, even savoring the insincere wine. They knew they were about to receive a share of the benefits and secretly admired Niu Dali's genuine hospitality and social skills.

However, Wang Tudou himself did not show much joy or happiness. He seemed uninterested in the benefits he was about to receive, but due to the occasion, he did not feel comfortable refusing.

His disinterest wasn't due to aloofness or any pity. On the contrary, he was probably the most self-interested of all, to the point that he didn't want to get involved with the people here in any way.

Sitting in the main seat, Niu Dali watched the commotion behind the screen and asked Wang Anquan with a grin, "Old Wang, guess how much star energy we'll get today?!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Anquan forced a smile and said, "Weren't these prisoners already interrogated? They're either low-ranking rogue cultivators of unknown identity, including many first and second-rank ants; or they're those stubborn people who would rather die than surrender to my Tianzhao Temple; or they're servants of certain special departments of the Divine Court... These guys are all poor bastards... I think it would be quite good if they could hand over a few million Star Sources."

"Surely not?" Moro said with a smile, taking a sip of his drink. "These sixty-odd death row inmates, even if they're poor, they couldn't possibly hand over a few million, could they? Besides, how do you know there aren't any big fish hiding among them?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Anquan could only laugh awkwardly: "Hehe, I was just making things up."

"Not ready yet?" Niu Dali shouted impatiently at the screen as he listened to the conversation between the two.

“That’s good, sir.” A young, bald man responded loudly from the area surrounded by the screen.

As soon as he finished speaking, more than twenty bald men forcibly dragged the ten prisoners who were squatting at the front to the very front of the screen.

Immediately afterward, the young, bald man who was leading the group looked at the ten death row inmates with a mocking gaze and said in a low voice, "You all understood what Lord Niu said, didn't you? You only have half an incense stick's time to decide how much money you're willing to pay to save your lives. Alright, now light the incense, the game officially begins...!"

Upon hearing this, the ten prisoners, who had been inexplicably dragged to the banquet execution ground, all began to shout in terror, their bodies limp and powerless.

"My lord... my lord, I am just a newly enlightened first-rank rogue cultivator. I came to Northwind Town to see a friend, but I didn't expect to be caught in the war. I... I really don't have that many Star Sources. At most, I only have 370,000... Please have mercy, could you talk to that Lord Niu... spare my life, please." A middle-aged man who looked at least fifty years old knelt on the ground, kowtowing and begging for mercy while explaining his situation.

"Oh!"

The young, bald man who was leading the group kicked the old man in the head, then frowned and said, "Do you think this is your wife going to the market to buy eggplants, with discounts?! One million Star Sources is enough to live one day, not a penny less."

I'm begging you...!

"Get lost. If you say another word, I'll chop you up right now." The young bald man turned and left with an extremely cold look in his eyes.

The "price" of one million Star Sources for living one more day sounds truly absurd. Even if you can pay one million today, you'll still die tomorrow if you run out of money. So, people not involved might think, "I might as well not pay a single cent and just die standing up, at least that would disgust these damn bald guys."

But this kind of thinking is too rational, because most people can't face death calmly. In the moment before the steel knife falls, everyone wants to live, even if it's just for one more second, two more seconds.

Among these prisoners, many could not be identified. Take this old man, for example; he wasn't from Northwind Town, but was merely passing through when the Great Mighty Heavenly Dragon launched its war, and was thus arrested and imprisoned as a potential threat and troublemaker. Because he couldn't prove his identity, he might be a staunch agent of the Divine Court. And when faced with such "possible" cases, Chaos adopted a "better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free" mentality.

"My lord, my lord, I previously revealed the locations of two grain reserves of the Divine Court. I have rendered great service to our Tianzhao Temple! You can't do this to me... Please spare me. I can shave my head and pledge my loyalty to Tianzhao Temple!" A young prisoner pleaded, crying.

"But you're worthless now. Stop talking nonsense and quickly come up with something that can be used to offset Star Source."

At the very edge, a middle-aged scholar with a very respectable appearance turned to look at his fellow death row inmates and kept shouting, "Brothers, can you all scrape together one million Star Sources?! If not, can you help me?... I have 870,000 Star Sources, and I'm only short 130,000! Please, someone, have a moment's mercy and help me... I beg you."

“I have some,” an old man in a gray robe said after considering for a long time. “I have more than 200,000 Star Sources, which I can give you… but what will you do tomorrow?”

"Thank you, thank you... I'll talk about tomorrow!" The middle-aged scholar kowtowed repeatedly to the old man in the gray robe. Despite his damp crotch, his face revealed an undisguised joy at surviving such a disaster.

Soon, the half-incense stick's time was up.

The bald young man in charge of hosting the game stood behind the screen and shouted towards the platform, "Lord Niu, there are four people who paid one million Star Sources, one of whom paid with a magic weapon. As for prisoners who paid more than one million Star Sources, there isn't a single one. Haha, Lord Wang is right, these people are really all poor bastards…!"

"Only four million in the first round? Damn it, no fun, no fun...!" Niu Dali cursed and waved his hand, "Kill them, kill them, I'm annoyed just looking at them."

As soon as he finished speaking, the bald young man raised his arm and said calmly, "Raise your knife!"

"Swish swish swish...!"

Upon hearing this, the six Great Heavenly Dragons immediately raised their hands and summoned six identical broadswords, ensuring that with a single strike, these prisoners would be beheaded and their blood would splatter on the spot.

These knives were specially prepared to stimulate the senses of the adults on the high platform.

"Kill!" the bald young man uttered in an extremely cold tone.

"No, give me a little more time, let me persuade them, and try to raise more money!"

"You damned Tianzhao Temple, you bunch of bald monks, may you all die a horrible death!"

"...!"

The six prisoners who had not handed over their Star Source either looked at the flashing blade with trepidation or cursed loudly with resentment and regret.

"Puff...!"

The gleaming steel blades fell in unison, and six heads flew off. Blood spurted from the six necks, like ink splashed in water, bursting out from the front of the screen, staining the front and left/right sides of the screen red.

The air was thick with the smell of blood. The human head was slightly warm. The body twitched a few times on the ground and then fell still.

For a moment, the entire front courtyard of the garrison was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

"Haha, this is really exciting!" A monk who had come with Moro to take up his post broke the silence and took the initiative to say, "Come, let's drink together."

As soon as he finished speaking, amidst the laughter and comments, everyone raised their glasses and drank them down in one gulp.

Behind the screen, the middle-aged scholar who had received more than 200,000 Star Sources from the gray-robed old man and paid a full one million Star Sources to buy his life was now covered in excrement and urine.

He lay on the ground with a blank stare, muttering repeatedly, "I...I can live one more day, one more day."

"brush!"

The bald young man who was leading the group suddenly walked over, wielding a broadsword. His eyes were cold as he looked down at the middle-aged scholar, asking each word slowly and deliberately, "Did I say we could borrow Star Source from others?! You think you're so smart? You're such a damn spoilsport…!"

"what?!"

"Thud!" Without warning, the bald youth swung his knife, severing the middle-aged scholar's head in one stroke. He then kicked the scholar away, waving his hand and saying, "Take the rest away. Pay up again tomorrow! Come on, bring ten more prisoners...!"

The evening glow enveloped the middle-aged scholar's corpse, making the blood flowing from his body appear even brighter and more alluring.

On the high platform, Ren Ye showed no unusual expression, even exchanging toasts and whispering with Niu Dali. But no one knew that his heart was in turmoil, filled with countless struggles. He desperately wanted to save those behind the screen and had considered countless methods, but ultimately, none of them were suitable for the current situation and circumstances.

He was genuinely unsure whether what was happening now was the inevitable "main storyline" of the North Wind Town Secret Realm, and whether those who died were most likely remnant souls. If so, then whatever he did wouldn't affect the evolution of the Heavenly Dao. Because these people were also destined to die, and everything happening now was something that actually happened in the migration area 251 years ago.

This situation is like a reflection of the story's background; it is irreversible and something that travelers must experience.