Volume Six: What She Lost, What I Gained - The Demon King of Money

Snap!!

The sensations of her hair, her flesh, her skull, and her brain matter traveled through the nerves in my palm to my brain, telling me the fact that I had completely crushed her head.

Let's say goodbye for now.

"I'm sorry, I don't plan to make room for you in the Blood Prison Space. This is truly goodbye, Sick Spider."

Boom!!!

Blood Flame erupted, reducing her headless corpse to nothingness, leaving no ashes.

To kill her without giving her a chance to start anew, especially since she was a woman two hundred years old inside but looked like a lovely young girl outside—isn't that a bit cruel?

Um...

... maybe a little bit?

No... to outsiders, it's probably not just "somewhat" cruel, but "quite" cruel.

If she were trying to assassinate me while I was sleeping, I would probably just teach her a lesson and that would be the end of it.

But I cannot tolerate being betrayed or colluded with the enemy in private. I'm sorry, but betrayal is the one thing I cannot tolerate.

Although she helped me along the way, I didn't owe her anything. Now that she and Yu He were trying to sacrifice me to resurrect Blood Fiend, I killed her.

Anyway, she's not my real daughter; she just regained her body through me.

If I replaced the Sick Spider with someone else— Little Ying, Sin Annihilation, Xiao Wu, Winnie, or even Haoyue—I probably would have killed them in a fit of rage. But I believe that Xiao Wu, Winnie, and Haoyue are the only three who would never betray me, so the assumption is invalid.

So...

"Mr. President, you've been standing there dumbfounded since the beginning. If you have anything to say, please speak now..."

With a wave of my hand, the pool of blood on the ground—the remnants of my own body after being completely destroyed by the Cold Blood Poison —floated up and was absorbed into my body. The hundreds of millions of lives temporarily existing within it instantly returned to my control. A scorching torrent spread within my body. I looked at my reflection in the crystal coffin; my long black hair gradually turned peach-pink, my pupils changed color, and the overall outline of my appearance began to lean towards "Ye." Although many traces of Blood Fiend still remained on my flesh, I was essentially "Ye."

I assimilated the Blood Fiend's body.

Seeing his beloved's body gradually transform into that of an enemy, and witnessing all his efforts come to Yu He, what will Yuhe think?

Enraged? Sorrowful? Despairing?

Or is it--

"Oh... it failed."

He frowned, sighed deeply, and shook his head.

"Although I was mentally prepared, well... never mind, there's no point in saying more. Success and failure are fair to everyone, so... let's just treat it as a failed investment."

That's what I said.

He didn't show any extreme emotions; he was disappointed, but he didn't lose control.

He and I are very similar.

They are very good at using absolute rationality—or something that transcends rationality—to control their behavior.

Even if his long-held hopes are shattered, all his efforts are in vain, and the love in his heart can never be conveyed, he can still swallow it as a small failure.

I suddenly realized how truly terrifying he was.

"Well... I'm sorry, Miss Ye, for giving you unpleasant memories."

"... quite an unpleasant memory."

"I must apologize to you, because what follows... may bring you even more unpleasant memories."

"--!?"

Ding!!!!

"Take a taste of this: a single strike worth ten Tong Coin, and... my rage!"

Rumble rumble rumble!!!!!

The world I perceived has disappeared.

Light, shadow, air, ground—everything was twisted into a painful mess; pain permeated everything, from the body to the soul.

All that remained was the terrible feeling that it had flown away, and flown very far away.

The life force within me burned fiercely, providing me with energy. I instantly regained consciousness and saw—

"Ah..."

The lowest level of the Business Capital city, the largest urban layer, was reduced to ruins by more than 70%, as if tens of thousands of tornadoes had just ravaged the area. It was so sudden that I had no sense of reality.

I was punched and sent flying to the other side of the city.

"How does it feel, Miss Ye? My attack, 'worth ten Tong Coin '?"

Yu He's voice seemed both distant and near. I looked around, trying to find his figure in the dark red seabed, but—

Splash...

I heard the sound of metal clashing.

Rustling...

I heard the sound of papers fluttering in the air.

The sound source isn't just one place; it's everywhere, like... behind me?

Turning my head, I saw a large, half-ruined bank. The banks on Spirit Star also had ATM-like devices, but their principle was more akin to the 19th-century Earth's difference oscillator than Earth's high-tech products, possessing a romantic steampunk aesthetic. Spirit Star's bank cards weren't Earth's magnetic cards, but rather metal plates with inscriptions cast from molten spirit stones, yet their usage was similar to Earth's ATMs.

Now, each ATM's dispensing slot has become a small waterfall, with banknotes—countless banknotes of the highest denominations—cascading down. The waterfall of banknotes seems endless; these colorful little pieces of paper, captivating countless hearts, quickly cover the ground and, drawn by some unknown force, surge into the air. The streams of banknotes from dozens of ATMs converge into one, and dozens more converge into a single stream. Looking out, thousands of streams of banknotes seem to be surging into the sky from the bottom of the Business Capital —a bizarre yet beautiful sight, imbued with a surreal quality.

It wasn't just banknotes that surged forth; countless coins, and even gold and silver bars poured out of various banks, exchanges, and jewelry stores, reflecting the searchlights and dazzling the eye.

Wait... a searchlight?

"I don't really like making a big fuss... but to welcome a distinguished guest like you, it would be too impolite not to put on a grand show!"

The moment I realized this, the entire city was suddenly illuminated. Streetlights, rooftop spotlights, wall lights, and even the interior lights of every building and room all lit up at the same time. The Business Capital, which had been turned into a ghost town by my blood tide, was now alive again. What was even stranger was that... although one-seventh of the city had been reduced to ruins by Yu He's attack, it was now standing there perfectly intact.

Not only at the bottom of the Business Capital, but even on the floors above, the banknotes seemed to have gone berserk, fluttering down from above and enveloping the entire city—a real rain of money. Yu He stood atop the tallest building—the Grey Starling Headquarters Building—where banknotes, coins, gold bars, and checks seemed to lose their gravity within a radius of about 100 meters around him, floating slowly around him.

Beneath your feet is a fountain of money, above you is a shower of money, and as far as the eye can see is a brightly lit city that never sleeps.

The exaggeration was even greater than that of the lady.

"If you think it's too tacky, I can only apologize—but what can I do when I'm so poor all I have left is money?"

Yu He toyed with his checkbook in one hand and held three pure gold bank cards between his fingers in the other, then bowed to me.

When he raised his head again, for the first time, a fighting spirit flickered in those indifferent eyes.

"--Oh?"

His eyebrows suddenly twitched, and he looked up—at that moment, I felt an overwhelming pressure coming from above, heavier than mountains and more majestic than the sea!

Before I could even recover, an equally terrifying pressure came from another direction above my head, no weaker than the former!

Both of these oppressive forces were, without exception, greater than those emanating from Yu He and his wife!

A slight smile appeared on Yu He's lips.

"Ah, just as I planned, reliable reinforcements have arrived."

"You..."

"I already mentioned it, didn't I? 'Someone will handle Miss Haoyue and the Planet Will,' there's no need for me to lift a finger... Of course, the same goes for Miss Xiao Wu."

"... What exactly did you do?"

"It's nothing. I just sent the existence of the Planet Will and Miss Xiao Wu's investigation report to the Leader and Gustav respectively before you found my secret room."

"You!!!!"

Leader, and Gustav?

Gustav's threat is the most direct. The Leader shouldn't be able to easily go outside the Void Space, so he should have sent Gustav to retrieve Little Butterfly... But why do I feel two equally terrifying pressures? One is definitely from Gustav; he's already arrived in Business Capital! But who is the other? If it's just an ordinary high-ranking member, it's too strong; if it's the Leader himself, it's a bit weak. Could there be other hidden experts within the organization?

"Stop guessing. I've said it before, I know everything about Business Capital, and I know what's happening at sea. Your lovely daughter seems... to be starting to go in a bad direction, doesn't she?"

"What..."

I was jolted awake, suddenly remembering what I had witnessed long ago at the Central United Academy.

The Leader's appearance prompted Little Butterfly to briefly awaken as the Planet Will, but because it was not yet complete, the power she displayed was not that amazing.

If, just if, the Leader briefly appeared on Haoyue's side and, through some means, induced Little Butterfly's Planet Will will to fully awaken—

"No way...?"

"It seems you've realized it... It's said that millions of years ago, this planet hated humanity. If it were the Leader's power, restoring your beloved daughter to that cold, cruel, and emotionless Planet Will would probably be a piece of cake. Perhaps... you might even witness your daughter torturing and killing her lover. That's the Leader's twisted sense of humor."

"You bastard!!!!"

I immediately spread my Flame Wings and rushed upwards! Little Butterfly! Hao Yue! Xiao Wu! Oh no, this is terrible! I thought we could easily beat Yu He with three against one, but we've been tricked from the start! The enemy they're facing is even stronger than Yu He, whom I'm facing!

"Don't be in such a hurry, your opponent is me!"

A torrent of banknotes crashed down on me, blocking my way.

Self-destruct!!!

The powerful firepower of the Summer Blossom Fireworks exploded on the seabed, and before the aftershocks had even dissipated, I had already been resurrected. However, what shocked me was that the Summer Blossom Fireworks, which had almost destroyed the entire Cathedral of the True God, couldn't even break through my torrent of banknotes!

Why!?

"Why not trust your companions a little more? Let them handle their own affairs. If you insist on helping them, then please—"

"--Should I kill you first?" I roared.

He smiled slightly and gestured to me in invitation.

"Come, my honored guest."

"Come on, Miss Ye."

"Come, Heir of Warrenstein."

"Come, brave warrior, let me return to the battlefield after a century."

"Come on, can you create a miracle just like you did when you defeated the lady?"

"Come on, let me see, who has more money, you or me?"

Money is power, wealth is life. As long as Human Society exists, power and life will never be exhausted.

The financial Demon King, the economic overlord, the pinnacle of wealth, has finally stepped onto the battlefield himself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Oh dear... I guess some people can't accept this. A treacherous Sick Spider is killed so easily, especially one who looks like a young girl. I bet some readers have already started cheering for President Yu and shouting for that scumbag Ye to be beaten to death.

But... that's exactly what Ye did. In her opinion, being too soft-hearted is unacceptable. Although it might be a bit ruthless, who would let go of someone who almost killed them? Besides, including the time at the Central United Academy, the Sick Spider had almost killed Ye twice already. She couldn't be allowed to live.

Thus, it's a battle between Yue-chan and the Planet Will, and between Ye and President Yu.

Many of Yu He's character settings were added on a whim, but now, with characters like Ling Ye, Nid, Yu Jie, Yu He, the men in the Hundred Transformations novel... they were all fallen angels in their past lives. Ling Ye worked tirelessly for Wu Ye and ultimately sacrificed himself for her; Nid became king but lost his sister, and probably can't love anyone anymore; Uncle Yu Jie is a true man, but he didn't get a happy ending because his soul was stolen by his brother...

Ling Ye: Keep it up, Yu Ge! Even though you'll still be single in the end, don't be discouraged!

Nid: In short, please don't be discouraged by temporary setbacks; you are our last hope.

Yu Jie: If you have time, let's get together, the four of us brothers, have a drink and chat about women.

Ling Ye, Nid, and Yu Jie: We will always be your strong spiritual support!

Yu He: Thanks, brothers, I'm in! I'll drink this bowl of Ganges water, and in my next life I'll still be the male lead in the Hundred Transformations Scroll!

Ling Ye:... Let me think about it.

Nid: Uh... this...

Yu Jie: No, don't be impulsive! Are you serious?

Actually, I quite like this character. Anyone else like President Yu? Let me know in the comments!