Vile Beast

Councilor Wang's body stiffened.

He certainly still remembered the name Su Ya.

She was a girl who had sold herself from Yuguang; she wasn't exactly a beauty, but she was fair-skinned, soft-bodied, and possessed a gentle temperament.

He had been fond of how she loved life despite her lowly status and miserable existence.

And so, on an evening he had carefully arranged to ensure no one would disturb them, he made his move.

Just as he had expected, the girl's flavor was indeed intoxicating; the despair of her struggling in vain while being unable to change a thing was what he loved most.

He wanted to see that exact expression on the faces of those Yuguang bitches.

They were all filthy and base, yet they always liked to pretend they were noble—in the end, weren't they all destined to become nothing more than a rag?

The only thing that caught Councilor Wang off guard was that, from that single night alone, Su Ya had actually become pregnant.

She later gave birth to a boy.

Although he had always wanted a son, a mongrel born from such a lowly status and bloodline could naturally never be considered his kin.

At the same time, the affair had thoroughly ignited the jealousy of his overbearing wife.

Su Ya was sold off to the Green Bamboo Company, turned into a low-level, cheap prostitute, and driven out of the city along with the child.

Afterward, Councilor Wang never bothered to pay attention to what became of that Yuguang girl.

He was never short of women, nor was he lacking in ways to stimulate his mind or entertain himself.

But now, hearing that name from the mouth of Li Wei, he was completely stunned.

"A bitch from Yuguang?"

He stared into Li Wei's eyes, his face full of confusion and incomprehension.

"You stormed into my home and killed my security and my wife just because of a bitch from Yuguang? What value could someone from that place possibly have? If you had revealed your identity and come to my door directly, I could have compensated you for it!"

Li Wei met his gaze, and in those eyes, he saw no sophistry or repentance—only a sense of entitlement regarding what he had said, and an inability to comprehend Li Wei's actions.

This made Li Wei narrow his eyes; instead, he became curious about the mindset of the people in this world.

"Then if someone from Yaoguang died, could that be compensated as well?"

"How can you make such a comparison!" Councilor Wang's voice was tinged with anger, as if he believed Li Wei was mocking him. "How can the base livestock of Yuguang be mentioned in the same breath as the people of Yaoguang?"

His words were so definitive that even Li Wei felt the absurdity of it all.

"They both have two eyes and a mouth; just because they weren't born in the same place, does that mean they aren't human?"

"Laborers from Sun City, farmers from Zhulan, special admissions to The Academy." Councilor Wang recited the exact same words that Bishop Twilight had once spoken within The Church. "They are all just base livestock! From birth to death, they are only meant to be beasts of burden. Being allowed to live is the greatest gift bestowed upon them; how could such things possibly be qualified to covet being human?"

After his voice fell, the reception hall sank into silence.

Li Wei chose not to continue this futile exchange with him. Back when he was in Yuguang, he had only been able to feel the numbness of those laborers and the way they lived like walking corpses.

But here, hearing these remarks from the mouth of the city's ruler—a man who even posed as a benevolent and approachable councilor—he finally understood where the sickness of this city truly lay.

However, Li Wei was no doctor; he had no intention of curing the people of an entire city.

He was simply a debt collector.

"Since you mentioned compensation, then bring out what is owed right now."

As Li Wei spoke, he walked closer to Councilor Wang. He pressed one hand onto the councilor's head, and then, with a clean, swift motion, he drove his short sword into the man's heart without a moment's hesitation!

At that moment, Councilor Wang seemed unable to process what had happened; he stared at Li Wei, his eyes bulging as if they were about to pop out of their sockets.

"It was just one. From Yuguang."

Li Wei had no desire to listen to his repulsive rhetoric any longer. After pulling the short sword from Councilor Wang's chest, he decapitated the councilor right in front of Chen Xueming, who was trembling all over and retching from the overwhelming stench of blood!

[Kill confirmed: Illegal funds 7,225,300,000, EXP 72,253]

[Experience Points 244,635.2/500,000]

Having killed his way here, the biggest hauls were naturally this councilor and his wife; the two of them possessed a combined net worth of over ten billion, contributing 100,000 EXP to Li Wei.

But these were still just a side dish.

Casually pulling a tablecloth from a nearby dining table, he wrapped up the heads of the man and woman before turning his attention back to the only living person left in the reception hall.

Chen Xueming didn't dare meet Li Wei's eyes; his trousers were already completely soaked, and he lay limp on the sofa, sobbing powerlessly.

"When I was killing that woman, I think I heard her say that her husband was meeting a business partner."

Li Wei, his face splattered with blood, raised an eyebrow.

"What kind of business are you in?"

"Hu—human resources," Chen Xueming struggled to put on an expression even more humble and fawning than the one he had shown the councilor earlier.

But upon hearing his answer, a playful smile appeared on Li Wei's face.

"A human resources company, huh? There are only three in Yaoguang. I wonder which one you belong to?"

"Gr—Green Bamboo! Sir. If you have any needs, I can represent the entire company and make decisions to satisfy your requests! I can even give the whole company to you!"

He knelt on the ground, desperate only to beg for his life.

Li Wei did not speak; he simply pulled a small notebook from his pocket and flipped to the first page.

"Green Bamboo. Hmm, your company still owes the families of those indentured laborers a total of 3,776,800 in unpaid debts. Are you aware of this?"

Chen Xueming was stunned for a moment, but he reacted quickly; he was far from being as oblivious to the situation as Councilor Wang.

He immediately raised the black briefcase that had originally been intended for the councilor.

"Th-these gold bars are worth 4 million in total! I'll pay! I can pay right now! Consider the extra portion as interest for those laborers' families!"

Li Wei opened the black briefcase and glanced at the number of gold bars inside; based on the value of gold in this world, this case was indeed worth that amount.

Amidst Chen Xueming's incredibly fawning smile, he took the case and locked eyes with those eyes full of a desperate craving to survive and be granted mercy.

The next second, Li Wei thrust the sword in his hand into his chest.

As the blood sprayed out, his voice finally sounded in Chen Xueming's ear.

"I hate human traffickers, to the point of wanting them dead."