Evil Ritual

"Save your strength for later! You'll have plenty of time to enjoy yourselves after this!" one of the shirtless men said with a sinister laugh as he sharpened his blade. The blade had a dark red hue, clearly having tasted blood before. "Don't blame me, if I don't mess with you guys like this, I'll be the next one hanging."

"Boss, this is the Grand Theatre. Are we really going to do this like before?"

"So what if it's the Grand Theatre? I bet they want exactly this effect," the man said dismissively. "Think about it, once the main doors open tomorrow, people will discover a real murder play performed on stage. What could be more sensational than that? I bet the whole city will know within a few hours!"

"They aren't doing this for amusement, someone is orchestrating these serial murders..." Zhou Zhi murmured, "Why?"

"Perhaps to those people, this serial murder case is just a game," Joe James said with a cruel smile. "I wonder if I can get in touch with the mastermind."

"What, you want to get involved?" Taylor retorted.

"Just kidding, buddy, I don't have that kind of hobby."

"One of them is probably done for," Naruko suddenly whispered.

She was referring to the victim on the wooden pillar.

"Indeed." Taylor sighed. With the oil lamp's illumination, it was easy to see the condition of the three bound individuals: the first person's abdomen was directly cut open, blood soaking his torn clothes. At this level of injury, even if he were still alive, he couldn't be saved. The others were in no better shape, clearly having been tortured and beaten, their limbs covered in bloodstains and bruises. The perpetrators, however, seemed to be enjoying themselves, picking out torture tools and chatting, as if in a slaughterhouse.

"Right, now I want to ask the righteous Mr. Zhang," Joe James said mockingly, looking at Zhang Zhiyuan. "Do you still intend to let these people live and let the law judge them?"

His expression turned ashen.

"But their setup is quite elaborate. I wonder what the person behind this is after," the American grumbled. "Is the reporter we're looking for inside?"

Taylor squinted for a moment before nodding in confirmation, "Found him. He's the third one."

Just then, Chaoyang emerged from the darkness. "Mission update: Rescue Court Dane. If you can bring him out of the theatre alive, everyone gets an additional 500 Points."

As he spoke, Chaoyang sighed inwardly.

At this point, the contract's conditions could be considered fulfilled. After all, Judy had prayed for Dane's whereabouts, and "falling into the hands of serial murderers and ultimately dying in the Sinclair Grand Theatre" could certainly be considered an outcome. As a Demon who collected wish power, he shouldn't have invested any more resources, yet he found himself unable to disengage.

Points were virtual, but the wish power used to create tangible objects was very real. The cost had already increased with the second body reconstruction, and now issuing a batch of "empty checks" was like adding insult to injury. He knew this wasn't a rational move, but his body was more honest than his mind. At best, he could only hope to break even with this contract.

"Host, I want to redeem Points," Zhang Zhiyuan suddenly said.

"You haven't rescued Dane yet—"

"I'm talking about the initial Points. I only redeemed one Translation Tofu before, I still have 800 left."

Close call, almost gave myself away. Chaoyang smoothly changed his tune, "Of course, you can redeem whatever you want at any time. But I must remind you, neither the resurrection scroll nor the Healing Card can be used on characters within the Paradise game."

Because he couldn't truly bring the dead back to life.

And players were merely a combination of consciousness and a physical shell.

"I'll take two crossbows," Zhang Zhiyuan said.

"What, changed your mind?" Joe James teased.

"No, I'm giving the crossbows to you guys," he said, looking at Taylor and Naruko. "There are lights around the stage, you can't sneak up on them silently. Subduing them from a distance is the best option. There are nine of them, one crossbow won't be enough."

"I don't care, I'm not aiming for a no-damage kill anyway," the American shrugged. "I'm going in to have some fun."

Another burst of wild laughter echoed from the stage, sounding particularly chilling in the night.

"They're starting on the second one, hurry!" Zhang Zhiyuan urged.

"Let's go. Same as usual, Taylor and I will take the lead."

The Englishman regretfully spread his hands towards Zhang Zhiyuan. "Sorry, you'll have to operate this crossbow." With that, he and Joe moved towards the front rows near the stage.

Anthony and Naruko formed the second wave, silently approaching the central seating area—which offered a higher vantage point, providing a view of the entire stage.

Zhang Zhiyuan gripped the remaining crossbow, his knuckles turning white from the strain. Zhou Zhi had intended to follow Naruko, but seeing Elder Brother Zhang's state, he turned back and stayed with him in the eastern viewing area.

A new play was about to begin, and Chaoyang had already ascended the stage, silently observing everything.

The first to act was Asahara Naruko.

Despite her young age, she showed no discomfort or confusion. Even though it was her first time using a compound bow, she calmly lined up her target.

The bolt left the string, tracing a slight downward arc through the dark hall, precisely piercing one of the thugs' chests!

There wasn't even much of a scream.

The bolt head lodged directly in the target's lung cavity, the gushing blood choking off his attempt to cry out. Only a series of choking coughs were heard before the hit thug collapsed powerlessly to the ground, his accomplices taking several seconds to notice his abnormality.

"Hey, what's wrong with you!?" someone shouted.

Thwack! Another arrow followed!

This shot came from Anthony.

Chaoyang clearly saw the hit man roar in pain, clutching his stomach, blood spraying everywhere—this strike likely severed a major blood vessel, turning his death throes into the thrashing of a fish in a puddle.

The thugs finally reacted.

"Damn it, someone's attacking us from the shadows!"

"What the hell, this isn't part of the plan!"

"Guys, grab your weapons!"

Taking advantage of their confusion, Joe James and Taylor burst from the darkness, charging towards the Grand Theatre stage!

"Who are you! How dare you—"

"I don't understand a word you're saying!" Joe stomped onto a seat and leaped onto the high platform, his axe cleaving into a killer's face. The crunch of bone shattering echoed clearly through the hall.

Another thug lunged forward, thrusting his sharp knife towards Joe. James, he clearly struck home, but the tip of the blade failed to pierce James's body.

Taylor seized the opportunity and cut him down with a single blow!

"Country bumpkin, never seen a stab-proof vest before, huh?" the American taunted triumphantly. "Last time was just for fun, but this time, I'm serious!"

Four out of nine men were instantly down, and anyone could feel a sliver of fear!

And in a life-or-death struggle, fear only magnifies a disadvantage.

"Lord Ghost, this isn't what we agreed upon!" the bare-chested man yelled at the sky.

"I told you, I don't understand your bullshit!" Joe. James pressed his advantage, using his superior equipment to charge into the crowd, hacking at anyone close. Although he took several hits while attacking, cold weapons had difficulty penetrating modern soft armor. As long as he protected his vital facial areas, he'd be fine.

Taylor's performance, however, surprised Chaoyang, who was observing from the shadows. He could tell that Joe. James was fighting purely on sheer ferocity, but Taylor was different—he wielded a two-handed katana, striking rarely but always aiming for vital points, and choosing his moments precisely when Joe drew the enemies' attention.

If this were just a game, it would be one thing, but Chaoyang knew that everything they were experiencing now was no different from real combat. Few people could maintain such calm judgment amidst a scene of flying blood and flesh.

As a partner invited by the Americans, Chaoyang had also investigated Jason Taylor online. Various information indicated that the other party was highly educated, a PhD in biology, who had risen from a pharmaceutical executive to owning his own business, now worth over ten billion. He belonged to the same social class as Joe. James.

He hadn't expected such a person to be not only good at making money but also astonishingly adaptable to abnormal environments.

When the fifth person fell, the attackers' morale completely collapsed.

They no longer attempted to surround Joe and Taylor but turned to flee. After all, they had accomplices outside the theater, so there was no need to fight to the death against two seemingly invincible lunatics.

The latter were too lazy to give chase. Killing was, after all, a strenuous activity. Although he was enjoying himself, Joe. James's stamina was clearly waning.

Moreover, their objective had been achieved—reporter Kurt Dane was still alive.