The Name Engraved on the Pocket Watch

"Huff... huff..."

As the Fourth District's tower descended into chaos, Jie La Er walked out against the flow of people.

He was breathing heavily, his body trembling slightly, and his vision was blurred; he could barely see the path beneath his feet. If Bai Wei hadn't been constantly directing him in his mind to "turn left and right," he probably would have fallen seven or eight times already.

He forced himself to walk into a small alley, and after making sure no one was around, he collapsed to the ground with a thud.

At this point, his right eye was almost blind, and he was also experiencing a needle-like pain that was even more unbearable than when he had gouged out his left eye with a dagger in Somu City.

"Am I...going to go blind?" Jie La Er asked Bai Wei.

"Not yet," Bai Wei said calmly. "That guy is just an ordinary person. Dealing with him won't cost you too much. You should recover soon."

Upon hearing Bai Wei's words, Jie La Er nodded and said nothing more.

I was still careless.

Bai Wei sighed inwardly.

I almost got exposed, so dealing with this guy required using the Rule of the Left Eye. It's like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut... no, it's like using Decapitation Tachi to kill a chicken.

Of course, this is also because the situation in Lyra is indeed much more complicated than he imagined. In the original storyline, players should officially enter this map a month later. By then, Jie La Er will have long been dead, and the competition between the various forces in Lyra will have basically ended. The entire Lyra is like a powder keg about to explode, with the fuse already lit, and everything is heading towards irreversibility.

Although the protagonist eventually solved the problem, he paid a huge price, at least losing that piece of the body forever.

Now, if Bai Wei wants to enter the game and grab the body parts before everything becomes irreversible, he must face more and more unknown risks.

If this happens once or twice more, Jie La Er's body will give out before he can retrieve the body parts. At that point, it will be difficult for him to even find a new host to get rid of this troublesome situation, let alone continue to steal body parts.

Is this what happens when you're greedy?

Bai Wei thought to himself jokingly for a moment, then noticed that Jie La Er had been standing silently to the side for a long time, so he said calmly, "You surprised me a little."

"What?"

"I thought you would ramble on a bit more," Bai Wei said. "For example, asking me why we killed him when he was just an ordinary person. Or that we shouldn't have attacked him before witnessing his outrageous behavior, as it violated the rules... To be honest, the fact that you didn't bring up the rules with me is surprising."

In the past, Jie La Er would never have answered Bai Wei's question, but now that they had made a "new deal," he could no longer hide it, so he slowly said, "I gave him a chance."

"Um?"

"I said I've already given him a chance," Jie La Er repeated. "He's not corrupt, but I'm sure he knows something, and he's even involved... Of course, the main reason is still our first deal."

"Oh?"

"You let me use this eye." Jie La Er's fingers gently rubbed the bandage on his left eye. "And I, in turn, am responsible for your safety and finding you a next host. This is our deal, so no matter how you look at it..."

Jie La Er paused.

"He can't survive."

Bai Wei was very satisfied with Jie La Er's explanation.

Although Jie La Er was clearly more difficult to deal with Ulu, after two days, this stubborn rock who had previously adhered to the rules to the point of accepting even death-defying missions finally began to cross the line.

And it wasn't just a small step across the line, but a giant leap.

Of course, in Bai Wei's view, Jie La Er was just trying to catch up with the pace that had stagnated over the past decade.

"Of course." Soon, Bai Wei heard Jie La Er calmly say, "When everything has settled down, the truth has come out, and the rules have been re-established, I will pay the price for everything I have done."

"That does sound like something you would say," Bai Wei said with a faint smile. "If things really do come to a close one day, what you do will be none of my business."

This time, Jie La Er remained silent for a long time, seemingly lost in thought, and Bai Wei did not ask him anything.

Just as his right eye was gradually recovering, and Bai Wei thought he was about to leave, Jie La Er suddenly said, "What would happen to me if that power were used a few more times?"

"At the very least, it would be permanent blindness." Bai Wei didn't hide anything from him. After all, Jie La Er had experienced it once and could guess it himself. "It also depends on the opponent, so I've always suggested that you get my finger attached. The cost is at least less than losing your eyes."

"But these are all irreversible costs," Jie La Er said. "In the end, my fate is the same as when I first met you...?"

Bai Wei knew that Jie La Er was referring to Ulu, so he replied, "You can avoid becoming like that."

Is this a choice?

"Certainly."

"And what about him?" Jie La Er asked. "Did he also have a choice?"

"If I told you that until that very last night, he still had a chance, and could have chosen to live, would you believe me?"

Jie La Er remained silent for a long time before softly saying, "I didn't believe it until today."

Bai Wei remained silent.

"Visas, I'm not afraid of death, but I'm afraid of you," Jie La Er said. "If it were just death, even if I were to become like the previous person, I wouldn't care. I just want to find the truth, I just want to cleanse the pollution that threatens Lyra, but I myself... don't want to become a greater pollution."

Jie La Er didn't finish his sentence, but Bai Wei understood... He once again refused to have his finger reattached.

Especially after witnessing the true power of this eye today.

As he always said, he was not afraid of death, even if it meant dying like Ulu, but he was more afraid of being controlled by Bai Wei, which would lead Lyra to an inevitable abyss.

What a troublesome guy.

But Bai Wei wasn't in a hurry. "If you can really solve everything on your own, then I'd be happy to relax..."

As he spoke, Bai Wei decided not to dwell on the topic any longer.

"Now that guy is dead, even without clear evidence or knowing the specific facts, the person who succeeded him will definitely pay more attention to you, and things will get even more complicated from here on out."

This is also why Bai Wei doesn't care whether Jie La Er is willing to reattach his finger immediately.

Today's events were unexpected and almost exposed him.

But from another perspective, this might not be a bad thing.

With Terrell dead, the person behind him won't be so slow to keep watching, because Jie La Er is definitely out of control in his eyes now.

Jie La Er clearly realized this as well, and nodded slightly. "Perfect timing, I'm going to find him too."

"Who should I look for?"

"Bishop Huo Er Man of the Fourth District," Jie La Er said slowly, putting his hands in his pockets. "It's understandable if one Affairs Assistant has a problem, but if both of them do, then it can only mean that he's also in trouble. I just don't know why...hmm?"

Jie La Er suddenly felt something in his pocket.

He took the contents out and found several bloodstained parts.

This is a fragment of the Clock of Desolate Time Terrell used before.

Jie La Er stared blankly at the fragments.

Bai Wei asked, "What's wrong?"

Jie La Er frowned slightly. "The Clock of Desolate Time was standard equipment for the Pioneer Force ten years ago. After the second-generation Pioneer Force, 'Devil,' was established, they replaced it with new standard equipment. So why is he still using this?"

Hearing Jie La Er's words, Bai Wei also turned his gaze to the scattered fragments, then his pupils flickered slightly, and he immediately realized something. "... Oh?"

But before he could speak, Jie La Er pulled out his own "Clock of Desolate Time" for comparison.

Judging from the wear and tear on their surfaces, these two Clock of Desolate Time should be from the same era.

Then, Jie La Er noticed that there were some engravings on these fragments of the Clock of Desolate Time. Judging from the force used, they were deliberately engraved, not ordinary scratches.

He suddenly realized something.

Because the complete Clock of Desolate Time also has such markings, on which is engraved the name— Hermes.

So Jie La Er bent down and began to piece things together on the ground.

He didn't have many parts, so he could only arrange them roughly. Naturally, he couldn't see anything from the engravings. However, when Jie La Er used his dagger to cut away the dust on the ground and "connected" the engravings, a complete name finally emerged.

Jie La Er glanced at it once and then fell into a long silence.

Because this name is precisely...

"Jie La Er".