A Holiday Afternoon

"Another prisoner has escaped from his cage."

David Victor, wearing a bathrobe, leaned against the window, gazing at the coastal scenery of Xiantai Port.

He pinched the pen and drew a line on the tip of her pink tongue.

--Flavia Cici Marcus's name was erased from history.

"I'm tired of hearing your story. From now on, you're on your own!"

The Level 2 reserve team successfully completed their mission. The Spirit Cloud Squad, including Jason Megan, also had to return to Zula City to undergo an investigation by the Politburo and submit their battle report.

Meteor was heading to the Southeast War Zone; he had fallen behind the assault team and needed to catch up with his older brother.

Captain Quack, Ethan, and the crew of the Nostalgia became honored guests in East Horse Port. They turned this story into a song and sang it for twenty-four nights in the far reaches of the world. When the Nostalgia was launched again with the waves in the floating dock—at the tail end of summer, the frogman and his companions embarked on a new voyage.

Of course! And there are also two hardworking little donkeys carrying the goods!

I appreciate Mr. FE204863 for carrying the camera for me for so long. He was actually very worried, like an old father, watching all of this happen quietly, feeling so heartbroken and helpless.

Such is the code of the Hound of Tindalos; if we arbitrarily interfere with the results of our observations regarding the Cauchy horizon, it could very well lead to the creation of a new imaginary space in the Dirac Sea—in short, this story seems to us like an unalterable, inviolable, iron-cast text.

Of course, I understand, and I am well aware, that talking about these strange terms is as bizarre as saying that pasta needs cement to taste good—there's a reason for it all, there's an explanation for it all.

Mr. Sixty-Three encountered some minor troubles in his personal work. He sent several solutions to the hound in an attempt to eliminate the expansion phenomenon at a certain spacetime node—this was his personal task, but he was unable to complete it.

At this moment, he needs some help; he needs to find another version of himself from another time and space to assist him.

His killing efficiency was far inferior to FE33031, and he was somewhat powerless when encountering troublesome transmigrators.

In the distant future, they will have another chance to meet, but not now.

--Gloria's death is now a settled matter, and we are making steady progress.

FE204863 can slowly, little by little, move towards the anticipated future, just as expected.

According to the normal timeline, the gunsmith should still be in Taiye at this moment, which is just right for him to bring Wang Damin back to the assault team.

Judas had just finished processing the distress signal from Black Wind Town when he suddenly discovered—

--Gloria Sebastian's dice have disappeared.

The treasure he regarded as the lifeblood of his career and fortune suddenly lost one of its components.

This unexpected turn of events prompted him to immediately pick up the Chaos Egg and contact the troops stationed in the East Horse Port to get to the bottom of the matter.

The blood-red mass of flesh flattened out, revealing a number plate. His fingers trembled uncontrollably as he dialed—the situation was utterly unsettling and terrifying.

"Axue?"

From the other end of the Chaos Egg came the response from the Wings of Light.

"Master Immortal."

"Where's Gloria Sebastian?! I need you to keep an eye on her. Where is she? Tell her to answer the phone."

"Patriarch!" Axue suddenly exclaimed on the other end of the phone, "I failed to save the Patriarch!"

"What?!" Judas instantly enraged, his dark skin turning red. "You bastard! What did you say?!"

Axue quickly explained, "I am no match for General of Tears. Gloria is unwilling to leave East Horse Port —she doesn't want to go, taking her blood slave retinue with her."

Judas's teeth chattered as he spoke; he simply couldn't understand why the nameless man, who had lost his gunsmith, still possessed such terrifying fighting power.

The leaders of the Immortals' alliance were always business-minded, leaving the dirty work, such as armed security, to their subordinates— Judas had never been on the battlefield, so he naturally misjudged the nameless man's fighting ability.

But he firmly believed that once the gunsmith died, cracks would inevitably appear in this seemingly unbreakable alliance.

Why? Why would Ming De choose this time to harass Shambhala?

To this day, Judas still believes that this is merely a disturbance, just like his disturbance of the Eureka Volcano City. At most, it can only be considered a demonstration of force, and it is absolutely impossible for him to wage a large-scale hot war that would be costly and exhausting.

This was the golden age of Ming De, the best time for it to recuperate and thrive. But the death of Gloria and the dust crystal arrows flying towards [Midas Touch] from Black Wind Town all reminded him and warned him—it seemed that something was about to happen.

"Where is the immortal embryo? Where is my medicinal ingredient?" Judas's voice was deep, his tone growing increasingly sinister.

Axue: "Uh, the Dark Face has already..."

"Understood." Judas immediately followed up with, "What about the nuclear bomb?"

Axue: "I'm not quite sure."

Judas: "There are only two kinds of bombs! One is that which has already exploded! The other is that which is silent! And what about the ones that are still unclear?"

Axue: "It didn't explode."

Judas: "Good heavens! It has fallen into the hands of Ming De?"

Axue's face was covered in cold sweat. Since leaving East Horse Port, she had not received any information about East Horse Port being destroyed by a nuclear bomb - everything seemed to be going smoothly, Dionysus died a violent death, and a new chocolate and candy company took over Que Mountain Street and opened a new factory.

"Are you worried about MK-28?" Axue quickly explained. She didn't want to take the blame. The only thing she was thankful for was that Gloria was dead—which was a good thing for her.

But for Judas, this was devastating news.

Gloria Sebastian is his lucky charm. Regardless of how the alchemy plan will proceed in the future, there are already seventeen Wings of Light in the Central Plains who have mastered the dice and rely on these magical artifacts to protect their lives and survive peacefully in the chaotic world.

Once the dice malfunction, will these thugs who survive on the front lines collecting flesh and blood essence still be able to behave themselves? Will they still be manageable?

"Axue! I need you to go to Dandong immediately!"

Judas was devoted to his cause, had an extraordinary advantage: he never blamed subordinates who still had value.

He doesn't get discouraged easily; he can quickly adjust his mindset and make the most rational judgment.

He didn't dwell on the past grievances between Axue and Gloria; he simply used self-interest to control his subordinates.

"You choose the people yourself, and you fill out the forms and sign the contracts yourself. Gloria is dead. I need you to use your Soul Power to control the cave dwellings of the six minor tribes and three major tribes of Dandong—there must be no mutiny or rebellion."

"You can use your talents to your heart's content, whether through intimidation or the grace of your soul, to make these blood-soaked beasts understand that you can control the weather, make demons active during the day, and intimidate warlords across the land—if things go well."

Judas hesitated for a moment.

But this hesitation sounded like celestial music to Axue. If the headmaster had been decisive and immediately come up with a backup plan, she might have remained fearful and doubtful for a long time.

"If things go well, then head towards the area around Wuling Mountain. There are still some half-hearted fence-sitters. If you can win them over—I'll choose you as my protector. All three feathers are indispensable."

"Yes, yes, sir!" Axue urged her horse on, almost moved to tears.

In fact, the death of Gloria Sebastian was not Judas's greatest concern.

Lady Feather's Dior Homme personality means that keeping her around would affect Judas's authority in the alliance. Sending her to East Horse Port to guard the Immortal Pill Cave is only a temporary expedient. It would be best if Fret Caesar could keep an eye on her, but if he can't, he should find a way to sow discord and get rid of both of these tools.

The lack of a suitable successor within the council was Judas's greatest worry.

Axue was not the most suitable candidate. This Blood-giving aristocrats from the Lapis Lazuli Guards was once regarded by Judas as an undercover agent and a spy planted by Ming De in the Wings of Light team.

But she was just too loyal, too useful, and too efficient at killing.

She alone could wipe out all 60,000 elderly, weak, women and children of Danqiu Kingdom in Axe Peak Mountain in one winter.

His ability to control wind and rain allows him to break through the limitations of day and night with the Wings of Light, enabling him to mobilize troops and march without regard to day or night. In the midst of war, such a spiritual army suddenly appears, and all warlords have to obey and cooperate with the Lingguang Buddha in spreading his teachings.

Judas simply couldn't understand why Axue would join the ranks of the Immortals.

Sometimes even the leaders of the Guiyi Sect are surprised and astonished.

Why is it that even they themselves don't believe in something, yet these exceptionally capable fools do?

Axue's reason for deciding to follow Judas was simple—she truly believed in the Blood Butterfly Bible.

When all life merges into one, the Original Seed becomes complete, and all living beings construct the same thought.

It is the Earth itself, the most beautiful creature.

It is both one and all things.

Listening to Axue recite the Blood Butterfly Bible fluently, this crazy woman then explained the allusions to the priest in detail, talking about the philosophical principles behind the scriptures—even Judas sweats like a soybean.

He felt an overwhelming absurdity driving him mad.

The alliance has been able to operate for so long, not because of this scripture!

Promoting Axue to the level of a feather was merely Judas's emergency measure.

Time changes everything; time is the most powerful weapon.

This statement seems to apply to Judas as well. Ten years ago, Ming De had no reliable new forces under his command and could only rely on the VIP team, which was in its prime, to protect the various administrative districts and maintain the most basic survival and security.

That was the heyday of the Guiyi Sect, an era when various Zero Platform were rampant, spreading chaos and panic.

The psionic ranks were facing a generational gap, and in order to prepare for the upcoming harvest season, the Twelve Elders Council kept postponing the task—they simply dared not send their most talented children to be devoured by ferocious beasts.

But what about now?

Children who begin Galahad education at the age of twelve or thirteen have all heard the story of the gunsmith.

Fifteen- or sixteen-year-old youths began to familiarize themselves with knightly combat skills, and after a few more years of schooling, they could transfer to the Legion's youth training team. Whether they were newcomers from the mortal world or natives born in the underworld, a large number of geniuses began to emerge from all age groups and fields of psychic abilities.

This unsightly colorless stone, this troublesome gunsmith—

--It seems like even in death his spirit will not rest. His successors have become incredibly audacious, daring to run wild in Shambhala before they've even grown up!

Ten years ago, Judas would have been smug, entrusting Fay to bring back some videotapes from the Nine Realms, wanting to see the listless and dejected look on Ming De's face when he was handling official business—this cat seemed to fall asleep at any moment.

It was always worried and obsessed with opera and drama, like a licentious king who lived only a day and died in a twilight, spending his days singing and acting with his useless passengers—the happier it was, the more at ease Judas felt.

This means it has no successors, this means it is about to die.

The Council of Five Kings was about to fall into the control of the Guiyi Sect, but their dream finally came to an end.

He too felt dejected and frustrated, watching his own inexperienced alliance team being brutally beaten by the boomerang.

Without the bases in various administrative regions of the Orient, it means that the Alliance will no longer have the vital forces cultivated by the Madness Butterfly Sect. Young artists with both virtue and talent, like Kang Que Johnny, will never exist again.

The evil geniuses born in Shambhala are short-sighted, completely unaware of the incredible power of modern firearms or the formidable might of the military in the information age. This place is essentially Judas's retirement home, and every effort must be made to reduce management costs—an unsolvable problem for Judas.

He could only wait, wait for the situation to reverse, wait for Ming De to weaken again.

We must outlast the Ming De warriors, turn the young into elders, and then turn the elders into a desolate graveyard—and slowly corrupt their youth ranks.

The good cat was taken back to the Nine Realms by two groups of swift-footed logistics personnel.

When it returned to the Council of Five Kings, it was given a severe beating by the enraged Hunter King —a brutal beating that hurt so much it knocked out its teeth.

It first read aloud the full text of the various articles of the "Criminal Convention" in front of all the cabinet members, and then spoke to Tian Shu, TRG, and the UN representative about the whereabouts of MK-28—explaining the many impacts of the nuclear explosion on the Spirit Realm.

Once her teeth grew back, Red Sister, who had helped the BOSS Prison Break, along with many other involved individuals, were all sent to the courthouse and placed in solitary confinement for at least three months. A thorough investigation will be conducted before a trial.

But the supreme leader still has to work overtime and continue working; he can't rest yet.

At this time--

--At the front-line base of the Black Wind Town assault team.

Little Finger and Thumb arrived together, rushing to the front line as reinforcements for the assault team. Beyond Taiye lay the vast Central Plains. The initial alternative battle plan mentioned that if the gunsmith couldn't handle the few demons at the bridgehead, they should War King for help.

Thumb- Brother had no desire to face the Gunsmith unleashing his full spiritual pressure—so he assigned Pinky to contact the Nameless Leader.

After finally enjoying a period of peace and leisure, having completed the basic planning for some of the river channels in the Taiye war zone, the gunsmith once again became obsessed with fishing.

The little finger also follows the leader.

"--Your complexion has been getting worse and worse lately," said the little finger, who was disguised as Feng Jiali's sister.

Mr. Jiang Xueming, on the other hand, had sunken eyes, prominent cheekbones, and was visibly thin.

"Being busy with work is normal."

The little finger says, "Its vitality is also rapidly dwindling."

"We finish work at one o'clock tonight, and then we have to work overtime to hand in our assignments." Jiang Xueming covered her face as she spoke of these things, her voice filled with both sweetness and helplessness.

Little finger. "It seems your wife is reluctant to part with you?"

Xiao Qi had no intention of letting Xue Ming off the hook at all.

During the two months of constructing the waterways, she seized every opportunity to embrace her husband and begin studying chess techniques.

She loved this man deeply, to the point of obsession, unable to bear being apart from him for even a second. She almost forgot about the serious matter of counter-terrorism and turned into a willful little girl.

Without the disturbance of her four children, she finally enjoyed a rare honeymoon in the foreign land of Shambhala. It's worth noting that for the previous seven years, the couple had mostly faced life-or-death situations.

"No, no, no!" Xue Ming quickly explained, "I can't bear to part with her either, I can't bear to."

Little finger: "Oh"

Jiang Xueming quickly pulled up the rod and caught a small fish fry, which he then casually released back into the water.

"She brought me some stockpiled goods, it was terrifying."

Little finger. "Inventory?"

Xue Ming was momentarily lost in thought, recalling his wife's appearance.

"She was only wrapped in a thin gauze dress. My God, how could there be such a beautiful work of art in the world? Mosquitoes could bite her flesh even through her clothes—I couldn't resist."

"Stop! Stop! Holy Father!" Little Finger was still young and didn't want to hear any of this, so she quickly put down her fishing rod and ran away.

Once the little girl had disappeared from sight...

The gunsmith quickly pulled up the fishing rod on his little finger, pulled out a large bluefish over seventy centimeters long, put it in his bucket, and a pure, kind, and healthy smile appeared on his face.

"I don't care!" Xiao Qi skipped and hopped to the reservoir, wearing a stylish new outfit from Taiye Fabric Store. Retro is also in fashion. "You left at ten o'clock this morning, and I didn't get enough sleep."

The gunsmith quickly showed the bucket; he had only caught one fish all day, and it was pulled from the pinky finger fishing rod.

Xiao Qi tilted her head, her lips were red and her teeth were white, and she looked radiant, as if she had returned to the age of seventeen.

"Okay, then give me your hand! Let me hug you for a while!"

Xue Ming pleaded, "I'll go to the east end to dig a nest later—we'll be setting off in a few days."

Xiao Qi pouted and muttered softly.

"Then give me your finger so I can hold it for a while."

Jiang Xueming, feeling rather helpless, took out his survival knife, cut off his finger, used Universal Elixir to grow it back, and handed it to his wife.

"Hahahaha! Hehehe! You actually gave it to me! I just wanted to hold your hand!" Xiao Qi simply squatted down next to her husband. "Does it hurt?!"

Jiang Xueming said innocently, "If you insist, I'll give it to you."

"Take her away! Take her away! Take her away!" Xiao Qi put her arm around Xue Ming's shoulder, put her fingers in her pocket, and dragged her husband toward the haystack.

"Hey! Hey!! Hey hey hey!" Xue Ming quickly put down the fishing rod, but couldn't break free.

A rustling sound could be heard coming from the haystack.

"Take off your clothes!"

"No! It's dirty!"

"Listen to me! I don't mind the dirt, but you go to the reservoir every day! What do you have to complain about?"

Haha! Don't tickle me!

"Hurry, hurry, hurry! I'm so anxious! Little Kitty need to be cuddled by their mothers!"

Okay! That's enough!

The camera was left outside! Yes, yes, yes.

Only Fragrant Dream and ruthless killers; only these Little Kitty picked up the fishing rod.

They sat back down on the bench, looked at each other, and then shared a deep kiss.