An Interrogation from the Dead

Inside the passage blocked by rubble and debris, blood flowed freely from the Ren Gu lying on the ground.

His blood soaked through the metal plate on the ground, washing away the surface dust.

Loquat Candy gently lifted his foot and moved it to the side, avoiding the blood that stained his shoes.

Then, he looked up at the figure standing motionless in the darkness on the other side of the passage and spoke again in a low voice.

"Very restrained, Director... I thought after hearing what I just said... you would be furious and rush forward to kill me."

Lin Yu's icy voice came from the other end of the passage.

"I'm not that stupid," Loquat Candy... "You're too good at hiding yourself. Compared to the 'Secretary,' perhaps your abilities aren't as good, but in terms of 'danger,' that guy is far less dangerous than you."

Loquat Candy sighed, "Don't say that. The 'Secretary' isn't weak; he just had no other choice... After all, he had to shoulder the responsibility for the entire 'Copper Furnace' organization, so he could only choose the method of 'sacrificing himself.'"

"Moreover, the 'Copper Furnace' is already on the Error track... the further it goes, the more mistakes it will make."

Upon hearing Loquat Candy's words, Lin Yu's voice came again. "Really? Loquat Candy... You really aren't on 'Copper Furnace's' side, are you?"

"Isn't it obvious? Everything I've done, even to force out the 'Secretary' as an undercover agent and bring 'Copper Furnace' to the surface," Loquat Candy said calmly. "On this point... you and I are actually on the same page, Director."

"It's just that our methods are different—I'm a little more radical than you."

After Loquat Candy finished speaking, Lin Yu remained silent for a long time in the shadows on the other side of the passage before speaking again.

"'Radical'... Doctor Tang, you call your approach 'radical'?"

"You killed 'Sherlock'."

Lin Yu spoke, his voice revealing little anger.

But in the shadows on the other side of the passage, the undisguised Killing Intent was almost tangible.

Hearing Lin Yu's accusation, Loquat Candy gently shook her head. "I don't think what I did counts as 'murder'... Objectively speaking, his final life was indeed ended because of me."

"But before he met me, he had already fallen victim to the Secretary's methods, just like 'Gao Shan'... The Secretary is very skilled at 'curse' techniques. Even if I don't kill him, 'Sherlock' will only live a few more hours after returning to reality."

"It's less like 'murder' and more like... end-of-life care."

"I love Loquat Candy," Lin Yu said casually, and Lin Yu responded again.

"It's really unpleasant that you're using this 'explanation'... What's even more unpleasant is that it doesn't seem like an 'explanation' to you, but rather your true thoughts."

"But... is Fu Luo really doomed to die? Doctor Tang —you could even save 'Benevolent King,' are the 'curses' of 'Secretary' truly unsolvable for you?"

He spoke with a hint of accusation in his voice.

"Loquat Candy, I know you always find a self-consistent reason for what you do. You always believe that what you do is 'necessary' and 'the optimal solution'... but these are all just your excuses."

"You've become so used to deceiving yourself that you can't even see the 'truth' anymore."

"So, Doctor Tang, I'll ask you one more time... With your abilities, when you saw 'Sherlock,' were you really... unable to save him?"

"Even if in reality you could only give him a 'quick death' at that reservoir, you were there in the [Instance] too, right?"

Hearing Lin Yu's question, Loquat Candy sighed deeply, "You could see that... No wonder you could guess that besides the 'Secretary,' I was also involved in the 'Sherlock' and 'Gao Shan' incidents."

"How did you determine... your ability?"

Faced with Loquat Candy's question, Lin Yu chose to answer directly, "Yes, whether he's called 'Secretary' or 'Chancellor,' he didn't demonstrate much ability to cut with 'sharp weapons'... After returning to reality, he also couldn't get to the reservoir immediately."

"On the contrary... Loquat Candy, you had ample time and motivation to get there."

"But... I can only guess that besides the 'Secretary,' there are other people involved in this matter—but I didn't know it was you, and I'm not even sure if you and the 'Secretary' are actually working together."

"I was able to identify you... only because of A Luo."

As Lin Yu spoke, a look of curiosity appeared on Loquat Candy's face for the first time.

"Sherlock... what does that mean?"

Lin Yu said in a low voice, "Answer my question first, Loquat Candy —whether in the City That Never Sleeps or in the Real World, did you really never have a chance to save Fu Luo Supreme from beginning to end?"

Upon hearing Lin Yu's words, Loquat Candy shook her head and replied, "I haven't tried it, how would I know... I've never treated anyone harmed by the 'Secretary' using his methods."

He paused for a moment, then said, "Well, to be honest... I guess there's still a way if I wanted to save them."

"But... this was never one of my options in the first place."

"The Director's " and "Sherlock's" death was sealed the moment he got too close to them."

"From the moment he was chosen by the 'Hacker' to help you investigate the 'Copper Furnace,' his fate was sealed."

"Whether I save them or not, it's the same."

"It's candy," said the Loquat Candy.

Fuck you.

From the shadows, Lin Yu cursed aloud.

"What nonsense are you spouting? How is that any different from saying 'everyone is destined to die the moment they are born'?"

The Loquat Candy chuckled softly.

"Yes, there's no difference—that's truly what I think too, Lin Yu."

"Everyone must die... but if someone's death is meaningful enough, I have no reason to interfere."

From the shadows, the figure took a step forward.

"Really? Loquat Candy, is that what you think?"

A single step was all it took for the figure to emerge from the darkness into the remaining light of the corridor's lamps.

That figure... was not Lin Yu.

The gray-haired youth looked at the Loquat Candy, and seeing the utterly astonished expression on its face, he began to question it.

"Do you see my death, the death of the Captain Shan... even the life of Comrade Ren Gu as some kind of 'necessary sacrifice'?"

Fu Luo stared at the Loquat Candy, his deep eyes as clear as a mirror.

"You bastard, are you really a member of 'Order'?"