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Chapter 589 - 586: "Aren’t You a Hero?

Chapter 589: Chapter 586: "Aren’t You a Hero?

The middle-aged man staggered to his feet, his clothes soaked with rain and blood.

"It’s you... sitting in the wheelchair, you are the City Lord..."

He walked unsteadily, clenching his fists so tightly that his bones cracked.

"Looking down on us little people struggling must be interesting, right? Making us live and work according to the rules you set... must be fun, right? I used to see you as the hero I worshipped, but when I was hit by that anesthesia gun, I understood..." Jeremy dragged his leg, laughing maniacally with a fierce look in his eyes: "...ha, hahaha... we’ve all been deceived—we’ve all been domesticated by ’Dawn,’ it placed the Taming Ring around our necks, driving us like dogs, and yet we willingly became part of the City-State, enslaved for life..."

Su Ming’an yawned, not saying a word.

Jeremy’s gaze was heavy.

"—City Lord, aren’t you the hero who led Doomsday City to resist? Aren’t you the most intelligent genius of all time?

You people, you simply can’t understand the survival philosophy of us mediocrities—The distance between us, greater than that between man and dog!"

Jeremy’s fist, still stained with the blood of a young girl, was raised, his veins exposed, his knuckles pronounced.

"—So!! People like you geniuses should never have been born! Your existence has turned us mediocrities into complete fools, you’ve squeezed our living space—what Dawn System, what Emotional Overload, I have lived my whole life honestly, never intending to commit any crime—"

His face twisted malevolently like a ghost as he threw his fist furiously towards Su Ming’an.

"It’s you—it’s you who have driven me to this desperate situation—ahhh—!!"

The punch fell, bringing with it a violent gale.

Su Ming’an reached out, his fingers slightly curved, and precisely grabbed the opponent’s fist.

Jeremy was stunned, his blow stopped abruptly as he tried to pull back his hand, yet Su Ming’an’s gripping fingers did not budge, causing intense pain in his fist.

"I don’t want to comment on you." said Su Ming’an, "The moment you became an aggressor, you lost the right to plead for yourself."

He pulled with his right hand, and uncontrollably, Jeremy fell to the right side, receiving a heavy blow to his abdomen the next instant.

"Bang!"

Su Ming’an withdrew his left hand that had struck Jeremy’s abdomen, and his body flew like a massive stone, crashing into the brick wall and falling to the ground.

He was indeed in his Shadow State, but that didn’t mean he was powerless, as the fragility of the Shadow State was only relative to the Bright State.

Su Ming’an glanced at the girl lying in the corner. The intermittent thunder illuminated her face half-submerged in a puddle; she hugged her head, her arms covered in bruises.

...

Su Ming’an saw that the girl wasn’t badly hurt. He had stopped Jeremy in time before he could inflict more serious injuries.

The surrounding street lamps remained off, and no one dared to open their windows or doors at such times.

Clutching warm orange juice, he turned towards the alley mouth but suddenly sensed an emptiness above.

The rain seemed to have stopped.

He looked up to see a bright red umbrella, like a red cloud, held above his head.

A flash of vivid red swept across his field of vision as he lifted his head to meet a pair of dim eyes.

The girl had gotten up, holding the umbrella for him with her body all wet.

Her features weren’t very beautiful, but they were soft enough, her clear eyes full of bloodshot, deep bags, and dark circles.

In the dim light, her skin was too pale, and some bluish veins were visible. The most striking thing was her lips, a vivid red against the snow-white.

The bright red cape draped over her raised arm, beneath which was a simple white shirt with sleeves rolled up, revealing delicate forearms and collarbone.

... She looked like an elf of the night.

There were still bruises on her face, perhaps fresh from just now or residual from older wounds. These scars stitched her together like a rag doll, beautiful yet fragile.

Su Ming’an knew her name was Xiaomei, Dong An’an’s "night shift" sister.

"You..." Su Ming’an was about to speak when she "shushed" him.

She took out a handkerchief and wiped his chin.

"We’re very close to the war band’s base, be careful not to be overheard." she said: "...We are both unlucky ones being pursued, aren’t we?"

"Do you know me?" Su Ming’an asked, as he was not wearing a mask.

"Yasa City Lord." she said, without using his surname.

"Do you not hate me?"

"Although I am a person of inferior persona and have been heavily persecuted, the fault should not lie with you," she said: "The fault lies with those who oppress and deliberately persecute us, doesn’t it? You’re just the creator of the rules; you can’t control everyone."

Her brows furrowed slightly, her eyes as clear as a mountain stream.

Su Ming’an was about to speak when suddenly a female voice came from behind.

"—Yo? Su Ming’an?"

A woman with wheat-colored skin and a toned body stood on the rooftop.

This instance was full of hidden dragons and crouching tigers, many strong players. This woman dared to face him directly, clearly a formidable player.

"Su Ming’an? Should be right, not many wheelchairs, easy to recognize." the woman jumped down, her legs long and straight.

She observed Su Ming’an, his entire body drenched, his shirt front stained with blood, losing the invincible aura he used to have, appearing easier to tackle.

"What’s up?" Su Ming’an asked indifferently.

"Such a cold attitude, don’t you consider me important?" the woman smiled and said, "Whether I yell for help on the world chat or report to the external Mechanical Army, you’re doomed."

"It doesn’t matter, the Dawn System has already locked onto my location." Su Ming’an said.

"Really cold." the woman pursed her red lips: "I am called Violet."

Su Ming’an was not concerned with what she was called.

However, that name did sound somewhat familiar...

"Know why I’ve come looking for you?" the woman licked her lips: "Come on."

"Huh?" Su Ming’an held the Glory Hunt in his hand, puzzled by what she meant by "come on."

The next moment, a panel appeared in front of him.

[Player (Violet) demonstrates her personal special skill (Secret of True Love)]

[(Secret of True Love): Engaging in a bodily fluid exchange with a Player can restore 30-70% of the other person’s Health Points and Mana Points.]

...

Su Ming’an: ?

"You must really need to replenish your state," Violet’s eyes narrowed like a snake’s, she even began shedding the few garments she had on: "Whether you turn off the live stream or not doesn’t matter, on the contrary, I like the thrill of it, under the gaze of the whole world..."

Su Ming’an’s face darkened.

He remembered where he had seen Violet’s name—it was on the "Weird Player Ranking." This woman’s biggest hobby was collecting "targets" to use this skill on.

"Bang!"

A gunshot rang out. He fired directly at Violet who had her clothes half-off, and with a crisp "snap," the woman’s figure turned into foam and disappeared.

Often engaging in such perilous exchanges, she had means of escape.

"Putting on airs?" Violet’s voice floated in the air, she scoffed: "Standing next to those types of working women, yet you scorn me,—what? Do you prefer the innocent type?"

Upon hearing her words, Ann’s slender shoulders shuddered violently, and she coughed several times, her thin body trembling.

"Leave now or it’s a High Tower Invitation," Su Ming’an said.

He didn’t know Violet’s location; otherwise, he would have sent a High Tower Invitation her way immediately.

Violet was somewhat fearful; she was afraid he could actually send a High Tower Invitation, and like a cat, she disappeared into the night.

In the pouring rain, with loud thunder and flashing lightning, Ann gripped her red umbrella tightly.

"Let’s find shelter from the rain... I’ll take you to my place," Ann said softly.

"Okay," Su Ming’an replied.

He indeed needed a place to take shelter.

She pushed him and walked slowly for a distance. Her red umbrella was too small for two, so she tilted the umbrella, trying to cover his side more.

The torrential rain splashed through the gaps, wetting her cheek, her eyes squinted, coughing lightly, her face flushed with an unhealthy pallor, her shoulders soaked by the cold rain.

As they passed a tavern, voices of comfort floated out, along with the scent of alcohol and the sound of music, emitting from the warm inside. The contrasting cold outside felt like a completely different world.

Ann passed by the tavern in silence, her fingers pale and colorless.

Moments later, as if trying to break the tortuous silence, or perhaps seeking validation from the once high and mighty City Lord, she spoke softly:

"...Do you think I’m dirty?"

"Not at all," Su Ming’an replied.

Back on Zhai Xing, he had seen people of this occupation. In the virtual world, those eager to make money quickly were not uncommon.

...But they and the current Ann were completely different.

Some people did it to climb into high society, some to marry into wealth, some to exchange for further desires and benefits, some for the thrill, and some just to support their family.

People with different goals, even if they are doing the same thing, they are not the same.

"The dirty ones are those who crave vanity—those who force you, making you view your body as a ’resource for survival’. They take advantage of their position, yet force you into such a state. Your body is your own, not anyone else’s," he said. "You are just trying to survive, not dirty at all. You are just a victim of the societal structure."

He felt her shaking.

Not just sick or cold, her hands pushing the wheelchair were shaking violently, the pale back of her hands showed bulging purple veins.

A faint sob came from behind; he did not turn around.

...His words were practically scolding Yasa Acto himself.

If it wasn’t for the type eight Persona classification, those with inferior Personas would never find a job, she wouldn’t have to resort to trading her body for money. She might have been beaten to death in a fit of rage by Jeremy had he not arrived.

People living in The Fringe, their anger has nowhere to go but into violence. This is all too common.

Just using their superior physical conditions to vent their anger on women who can’t fight back, proclaiming them dirty from their lofty positions, how are they any different from devils?

From Ann’s recent passive acceptance, covering her head, crouching like a hedgehog, it seemed she had become accustomed to such beatings.

At her age, she should be in a classroom studying, not out at midnight, bruising herself all over.

He suddenly understood—

Why the world needed "exams."

If not for exams, directly evaluating everything based on a Persona Test to assign work positions, would result in this.

No room for effort, not suitable means not suitable.

...

[Why should we learn so many useless things? We don’t use functions when buying groceries, we don’t use English in daily communications, just exams all the time; it would be good if we didn’t have to study for exams.]

...

These were words he had heard many Zhai Xing kids saying.

But now, listening to Ann’s sobbing cries, he knew if she had the opportunity to take exams, she wouldn’t have fallen to this state.

—Who deprived her of her potential?

—Who pressed her down into her current social class?

"Want a drink?" he lifted his hand, holding that bottle of warm orange juice.

Ann’s deer-like eyes blinked, hesitantly she took the juice: "...For me?"

"It’s just you here."

"Uh..."

She shrank her hand, holding the warm bottle tightly.

The warm heat permeated through her pale palms, slowly soothing her skin. Suddenly, she felt the harsh night wind seemed not so cold anymore.

"City Lord Yasa, you are very different from the rumors," she said. "You... actually talk to someone like me, you even offer me juice..."

"A Persona test can be a standard for determining job suitability but cannot represent a person’s superiority or inferiority," Su Ming’an closed his eyes:

"Otherwise, what makes us different from pre-programmed robots?"

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