Sudden Judgment: Assassin's Demise

Under the players' "somewhat rough" actions, the nighttime inn presented an extremely bizarre scene:

Several men with grim expressions were chasing a woman.

This woman, however, kept moving through the inn's corridors. Every time she passed a room, she'd slip inside, then emerge with a look of annoyance.

This went on for a short while. No sounds came from the quiet rooms, but anyone who entered afterward would discover that the traveler on the bed had vanished.

The room's contents were tossed about, but nothing was taken.

Such behavior didn't seem to be motivated by wealth.

So, the question arose:

What exactly was this female thief "stealing"?

Answer: Cheng Shi's time.

After tailing Yun Ni through more than a dozen rooms, Cheng Shi was utterly disappointed.

He hadn't found a damn thing.

Aside from the travelers' luggage and a large amount of survival essentials, the biggest find was seeing some stylish QQ underwear in a lady's closet...

You know, that lady's taste... never mind, back to business.

The rooms they had just checked clearly housed ordinary travelers, not the person they were looking for.

Moreover, there were too many travelers in the inn. If they continued searching like this, even if they waited until dawn, they wouldn't be able to search the entire third floor.

Not to mention the two floors below.

If this continued, by the time dawn broke, Yun Ni would have to send back the travelers she had sent to "other planes."

At that point, panic might spread even more intensely throughout the inn.

Midway, Cheng Shi had reminded the others more than once, "Should we continue?"

The others' responses were interesting:

Fang Jue frowned, Du Xiguang smiled, and the Ascetic remained silent.

Clearly, the big shots also wanted to try their luck.

They were gambling that if they happened to find a useful clue, they might be able to save some time.

Since the big shots were unwilling to stop, Cheng Shi, as a follower, naturally had no say.

Let's continue.

However, life is like that; the more anxious you are, the less likely things are to go well.

These unconventional methods couldn't be sustained indefinitely.

At some point before dawn, the assassin lady's actions were discovered.

To be precise, she exposed herself.

As Yun Ni skillfully infiltrated another room, four men in black robes sitting neatly inside simultaneously opened their eyes and looked at her.

The moment four pairs of bright eyes opened, a power of Order began to surge!

The viscous texture was as if It had descended there before!

Yun Ni's expression changed drastically, and she turned to run.

However, the moment she entered the room, the outcome was already sealed.

Grand and solemn chants rang out one after another, their voices like thunder.

"Escape is forbidden here!"

"Shouting is forbidden here!"

"Resistance is forbidden here!"

"Quibbling is forbidden here!"

Terrifying holy lights erupted, instantly bathing the entire room in golden radiance.

Chains formed from decrees, like living things, tightened around Yun Ni's limbs.

She was powerless to resist and unable to call for help, only able to watch as she was restrained, then pulled by chains, raised high into the air.

Resembling the state of being torn apart by five horses.

Various pressures and negative statuses from Order relentlessly ravaged her body until the inquisitor on the bed, clad in judicial robes, opened his eyes, and this terrifying "punishment" paused for a moment.

But then, the nightmare began.

The inquisitor took his scepter of judgment from the void, his eyes glowing with purple lightning. He looked at Yun Ni, gently pointed to where she was chained, and slowly spoke:

"Do you plead guilty?"

Guilty?

Guilty of what?

Was sending sleeping travelers on a free trip to an unfamiliar plane considered a crime?

Isn't this just charity work?

Of course, if Cheng Shi had been the one caught, perhaps he would have thought so.

But for Yun Ni, at this moment, she felt neither joy nor sorrow.

She realized the identity of these people; they were clearly from the Grand Inquisition.

The Grand Inquisition had arrived long ago!

They had come to Everbloom Town without a sound, disguised as ordinary travelers, and infiltrated the inn to investigate!

That's right, if even players could pinpoint the killer's location, how could these inquisitors, who specialized in judgment, not have their own methods!

They had already locked down the general vicinity of the suspect, and might even have several persons of interest.

And she, she was just a "foolish deer" who had stumbled into their trap while they were waiting for their prey!

What was even more terrifying was that on the staff the inquisitor took out, she felt divine fluctuations similar to those of [Bloom Awaits Withering]!

Another Demigod Artifact!

This was the third Demigod Artifact she had encountered in a single day.

What did this mean?

It meant she could die!

Yun Ni had long anticipated that she might run into trouble, but she had been thinking the entire time about how to deal with the bizarre attacks brought about by [When Fear Arrives].

She hadn't expected to finally fall, but she had fallen to another Demigod Artifact of the Grand Inquisition.

After so much deliberation, the final outcome was still so absurd.

It was laughable.

Yun Ni seemed to give up on pleading her case, even though she felt she was innocent.

But when an inquisitor only wants to find you guilty, refuting them is worse than remaining silent.

At least she could preserve her last shred of dignity and not be a clown.

The inquisitor's words clearly indicated he wanted her dead.

Yun Ni laughed fearlessly, then turned her head away.

However, the power of [Order] ultimately forced her to speak.

An invisible pressure transformed into a transparent hand, gripping her throat and squeezing a response from her windpipe.

"...Yes!"

Immediately after...

With a "boom," lightning struck!

The sinner...

Turned to ash!

From confession to annihilation, not even the blink of an eye was wasted.

Even though in Everbloom Town, [Bloom Awaits Withering] equally protected everyone.

There were always other Deities whose will could bring death.

Just like the judgment of [Order], which could not be defied!

The inquisitor completed the execution, but did not seem satisfied. He looked at the spot where Yun Ni had vanished, his brow furrowed.

He had indeed sensed death, but based on his understanding of his lightning execution, the deceased sinner should have turned into a charred corpse, not disintegrated into nothingness.

This kind of death was more like something he hadn't seen in a long time...

The inquisitor beside him also noticed the abnormality, frowning in confusion, he asked:

"Sir, what is this?"

The inquisitor pondered for a moment, then said coldly:

"It's likely a special method from the worship of [Annihilation] from underground. It's nothing, the sinner has been executed."

If the inquisitor said the sinner was dead, then there was no possibility of survival.

The four inquisitors nodded simultaneously, then closed their eyes and returned to silence.

The inquisitor put away his staff, but did not close his eyes. Instead, he turned his icy gaze towards the doorway.

Outside the room, Fang Jue was covered in cold sweat, and Du Xiguang clenched his fists.

The two of them were only a step away from barging in after Yun Ni. Fortunately, Yun Ni had quickly sent a warning signal outwards the moment she entered the room, causing them to hesitate for a moment.

It was precisely this momentary hesitation that saved their lives.

The two of them retreated with grim expressions, all the way to the staircase. They only stopped when they encountered Cheng Shi and the Ascetic in the shadows, wiping the cold sweat from their brows.

Cheng Shi had not seen everything that happened inside or outside the room. Seeing the solemn expressions on their faces, his heart sank.

"Where is Yun Ni?"

Fang Jue's eyes darkened, and he remained silent.

Du Xiguang slowly shook his head, his meaning clear.

"Dead?"

Was Everbloom Town truly a town where one could simply die of old age normally?

Cheng Shi was utterly astonished. He widened his eyes, looking at that room, as if trying to recall who lived there.

If he remembered correctly, before they left, that room had been empty.

This meant that the person in this room had moved in during the short time the players had gone out to search for Wei Guan.

The two events had perfectly coincided!

"Who is inside?"

This time, Fang Jue spoke.

"[Order], I felt the fluctuations of [Order's] power."

The Grand Inquisition!

Without a doubt, it could only be the Grand Inquisition!

They had actually arrived already!

He had only just thought of it, and it had actually come true.

Cheng Shi felt as though Destiny was playing a cruel joke on him, his expression turning extremely grim.

The seven-day trial had barely begun, and on the dawn of the second day, another person was lost.

Six remaining, four left.

At the same time, the travelers sent to other planes by Yun Ni were suddenly "poofed" back, landing on their beds and waking up with a start, feeling as though they had just experienced a terrifying nightmare.

However, they had no recollection of the mastermind behind this nightmare.

Because the culprit had already been executed.