Your Soul Is Filthy

Someone at the Bureau of Investigation had once said that, in the Imperial Policy's evaluation of each town's governance, the number of poor people and drifters was a very important metric.

The more poor people and drifters there were, the worse your development was. If you had driven your citizens into misery, didn't that mean you were incompetent? Naturally, points had to be deducted.

But while policies came from above, countermeasures came from below. Some cities had begun quietly dealing with their slums in all sorts of ways. Essentially, they were not arranging jobs, food, and shelter for those people, but erasing their existence.

If they drove everyone away, then there would be no poor people left, wouldn't there?

Out of sight = nonexistent!

Ryan had wondered why the Snake Mouth Gang had suddenly gone to meddle around the Train Station. Now it seemed that someone above had secretly promised them benefits, though officially it would definitely be dressed up as a policy beneficial to municipal development.

"Forget it. It has nothing to do with me."

Ryan fell silent for a moment.

Suddenly, the egg in his mouth tasted bland and flavorless.

The next moment, 'Shari' rushed out and, before anyone could react, gave the leader a vicious slap across the face.

Smack!!

Ryan instantly felt much better!

"Fuck it, it's a game anyway!"

Your Soul Is Filthy Beyond Redemption

The sudden turn of events left everyone frozen in place. Only the Snake Mouth Gang leader's screams echoed through the alley.

Although 'Shari' was a newbie, she had a solid 12 points of Constitution. That slap left the man dizzy and disoriented, like half his soul had been knocked out of him!

Before the man could react, 'Shari' grabbed his head and smashed it hard against the ground twice.

You're so kindhearted, so go to hell in their place.

Fuck! Someone's causing trouble!

Take her down!

The Snake Mouth Gang members who had recovered from their shock charged forward with clubs in hand.

'Shari' threw the leader aside, seized a club from one of the thugs, and began fighting back.

Facing more than a dozen people alone, she definitely could not manage it by herself. 'Shari' could only make use of the alley's terrain, fighting as she retreated and playing out a real-life Jackie Chan movie scene with the Snake Mouth Gang.

It had to be said that 12 points of Constitution were incredibly useful in the early stages. If it had been 'Lin Qi' back then, she probably would have died on the spot. Before changing classes, no matter how high her mana was, she could not put it to use. Constitution, on the other hand, was the real deal—it let you take hits and dish them out.

Bang!

A thug's head was smashed open by a single blow of the club, and blood and brain matter burst forth, splattering across the ground.

Even gangsters felt their scalps tingle at the sight, but they still had a vicious streak in them and were not frightened off by 'Shari'.

Quick! Help Big Sis!

Damn it, these gangsters! Let's fight them!

At that moment, a group of young people rushed out from the alley. They were all drifters from the slums who usually called 'Shari' Big Sis.

They had not dared to act earlier, but once 'Shari' appeared, they finally dared to let out the anger they had been holding in.

The fight quickly descended into chaos. With the help of a group of underlings, 'Shari' no longer had to circle around the gangsters and began fighting them head-on, gradually gaining control of the situation.

One gang member after another fell to the ground. The light of victory seemed almost within reach.

—Bang!

A crisp gunshot rang out, and the scene before Ryan's eyes came to an abrupt halt.

The shot hit 'Shari' directly between the brows. Without Transcendent Power protecting her, there was no way she could withstand it.

[Character Shari has died.]

"Fuck, they actually had a gun!"

Ryan cursed.

It was not unusual for gangsters to have guns, but the Empire controlled firearms rather strictly, so they generally would not take them out lightly.

"What a shame. If they hadn't had guns, those guys would've been finished."

Ryan's face darkened as he calmly exited the game.

The death of a newbie character was not enough to make him lose control, but since he had started this, there was no reason to quit halfway.

As he thought, he immediately switched character screens and moved to 'Lin Qi's' interface.

Meanwhile.

In an alley in the East District.

The Snake Mouth Gang members gathered together, glaring angrily at 'Shari', who lay in a pool of blood.

"Fuck, where did this guy come from? She could really fight."

"So what if she could fight? Didn't one bullet still take her out?"

"Brother Kahn, what do we do now?"

Everyone looked toward their leader. He had been slapped senseless by 'Shari' and then had his head smashed twice. If his underlings had not stopped her in time, he likely would have been beaten to death on the spot.

Even now, Kahn's head was still buzzing. He had been the one to fire that shot just now, and he had gotten lucky enough to hit 'Shari' directly.

"Find somewhere deserted and bury her. Check on the other brothers too... Fucking bad luck. How did we run into such a reckless lunatic?"

After saying that, Kahn turned around and viciously glared at the drifters who had helped 'Shari'.

"Come on, then! Want to keep fighting? Want to get beaten to death like her? Get the fuck out of here!"

Their expressions twisted with struggle, but in the end, they scattered like birds and beasts.

How could they possibly have the courage to provoke a gang, especially when the other side had guns?

"Pah!"

Kahn spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva, cursing as he walked to the side and sat down.

Though those drifters had left, the matter had already blown up.

The higher-ups had instructed them to handle this quietly. Drive away all the drifters and poor people, leave the territory to the Snake Mouth Gang to operate, and the municipality would look better on paper. It was a win-win situation.

But if they mishandled this even slightly, it could all blow up in their faces. After all, no matter what kind of people they were, they were still Imperial citizens. If things truly escalated, the municipality would not step in to solve the problem for them.

They might even use them as scapegoats to calm the situation.

"Brother Kahn, how about we deal with all those people from earlier..."

One of the underlings came over and spoke in a low voice, making a throat-slitting gesture.

Those drifters had all seen what happened just now.

Kahn's gaze flickered. There were not many people in this alley, only around twenty in total. As long as they kept it secret, no one in the vast Berman City would care if twenty drifters disappeared.

Who would care?

Would the mayor care?

Or would that Princess care?

"Find a few more people from the gang. Remember, don't make a sound about it, and don't tell the boss."

"Got it, got it."

The underling nodded repeatedly. He had only taken a few steps when a figure suddenly descended from above. Before he could react, a long leg flying through the air kicked him away.

"Who goes there?!"

Kahn was shocked. That person had fallen from the sky just now? From the Rooftop?

Not just him—the other Snake Mouth Gang members also wore expressions of utter disbelief.

"A nun?"

"No, she's a Priest!"

"A Priest of Janus. I know her, she's called Lin Qi."

"Did she just fly over here???"

"You must be seeing things. She just runs fast, that's all."

Hearing his underlings' words, Kahn also felt doubtful. How could anyone fly? Impossible. But was she really just fast?

He looked at the man who had just been kicked away. His head had struck the wall and burst open. He was clearly not going to survive.

The visitor had come with ill intent!

Whether she had flown or run was no longer worth dwelling on. Kahn gripped the Revolver tightly and snarled, "Fuck, take her down!"

She was alone. No matter how strong she was, how strong could she possibly be?!

Bang!

One of his underlings went flying.

Bang! Bang!

Then two more in quick succession.

She was so fast that they could not even see how 'Lin Qi' had attacked.

"What's going on?!"

Sshk—

Another underling. His chest was pierced through by a mysterious force.

Kahn's pupils shrank sharply. He swallowed hard, cried out, and turned to run.

"Demon! She's a Demon!"

Screams erupted behind him, but Kahn had no intention of stopping. He ran toward the alley exit with all his strength. In his field of vision, the exit drew closer and closer. As long as he reached that place, as long as he reached that place...

Whoosh!

A gust of wind swept past him, and 'Lin Qi' crossed over his head like a ghost, appearing directly in front of him.

Without a second thought, Kahn raised his hand and pulled the trigger. The Revolver instantly fired a bullet.

Smack!

The bullet suddenly froze in midair.

It had stopped just like that, as though an invisible hand had caught it.

"..."

"W-why..."

He did not understand. He was confused.

Kahn could not understand how 'Lin Qi' had done it, nor could he understand why she was killing them for no reason at all.

The people of Janus had nothing to do with them, did they?

"Your soul is already filthy beyond redemption."

'Lin Qi' said coldly.

Kahn froze, then suddenly roared, "Who the hell do you think you are, playing savior here?! I only cleaned up some useless lowlifes! I'm filthy? Then what are those rulers sitting high above us? They've committed even greater evils! Why don't you go deal with them?!"

Sshk—

A blade cut across his throat. Kahn's voice stopped abruptly, and his body fell backward onto the ground.

'Lin Qi' turned and left, tossing out a single sentence.

"Someone will collect their debts someday."

When Ryan walked into the Bureau of Investigation with a yawn, he saw people rushing back and forth across the office hall.