The Con Begins!

Although Russell called it Habi, whose aesthetic sense was ahead of the entire history of human development, the Prompt Device was a Conservative Faction member when danger was involved.

But—

That sounded really annoying!

He was clearly contributing to the Honkai world, yet he still had to be so careful when doing good deeds...

Tonight, he had to make that Penguin call him Daddy!

Otherwise, he would not be able to sleep.

Russell thought so.

Uh... even so, didn't you come here for the Originium sickness inhibitor factory? Saying that makes your sense of justice seem rather lacking.

At that, the corner of Russell's mouth twitched, and his expression turned sinister.

"Don't say anything that harms the unity between the host and the cheat system."

Even the Prompt Device fell silent.

There was a reason Ya Zi's entire clan had been kicked all the way out of Yan's capital and exiled beyond Ningguta, straight into Siberia.

They were too damn petty.

While the Prompt Device wondered why that clan had not been banished to America instead, Russell logged into the chat group and started shooting the breeze with the others.

"Family, I'm standing outside a bathroom. There are two impossibly youthful, beautiful girls inside. Do you think I should go in?"

Russell launched a poll in the chat group.

"Type 1 if you think I should go in, 2 if you think I shouldn't, and 3 if you think I should stand half inside the bathroom and half outside."

"Boss, did using too much prophecy drain your brainpower and make you devolve into a horny monkey?"

That was Huihui, who had been ruthlessly worked like a beast of burden by Russell and had some grievances stored up.

"Incorrect. I never evolved. I have always been a horny monkey."

"I have always been a fish that slipped through the net of human evolution."

Russell solemnly corrected Huihui's wording.

Was that even something a human being would say?!

"Russell, stop making such weird jokes all the time. It's not good."

That was Megumin, whose personality was quite serious.

She did not think Russell really wanted to peep on a women's bathhouse—what kind of person would talk about that in front of a whole group of girls if he were actually planning to do it?

But even as a joke, it was still rather inappropriate.

"A bath? It's been so long since I soaked in one... It's so hard to find an inn on this land equipped with smart toilets and smart bathtubs."

Skadi's attention had completely veered off into some corner.

The ladies' responses were all full of personality.

As for the men—

"Brother Russell... when will the Shadow Clone Army come relieve me..."

Naruto let out a miserable wail from inside the mine.

Aahhh...

Why was Russell's mine so huge? He really could not take it anymore!!

He did not care at all about peeping or anything like that. The future Hokage-sama only wanted someone to take over his shift.

"Oh, my friend, why waste your time on boring women?"

At the Mafia base, Valmont licked his fingers as he counted stacks of American dollars.

He liked Russell.

Ever since Russell had helped him get rid of the ever-haunting Holy Lord, he had liked him quite a bit.

And now, he had discovered that Russell seemed to have effortlessly arranged for a certain someone to be dealt with.

After learning that Russell had a strong Chinese influence, he spent quite some time reading Chinese classics, such as Jin Hua Mei, The Jealous Wife, and Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

When he read the section about Three Visits to the Thatched Cottage, it was as if the clouds had parted and enlightenment had struck him.

He felt that he was like Big-Eared Bei Bei, and that he needed a strategist like Russell, someone who could foresee the enemy's moves, to help him rebuild the Mafia empire.

"Oh, my friend, put down that boring mine and come assist me in establishing a Mafia empire."

"While robbing places around the world, I happened to acquire two Talismans as well. One is the Horse Talisman, and one is the Tiger Edict. One of them was already promised to you. If you join the Mafia now, I can give you the other one too."

Russell was stunned by those words.

Wait, when had Talismans become things one could casually pick up while robbing places?

Had Valmont and his bunch of useless idiots actually become this impressive?

"You haven't run into Jackie Chan?"

Russell asked tentatively.

According to the Script, the Mafia were stepping stones among stepping stones, permanently assigned to be comedic relief.

Shouldn't they have been spun around and whipped like tops by Jackie Chan?

What else could it be? The fundamental rule of that world is the balance between good and evil. The great demon Holy Lord disappeared, so evil weakened. To maintain a new balance in the future, a new demon had to be awakened.

"Jackie Chan and the others... are dealing with another demon?"

Russell seemed to understand something.

"Oh, my friend, you truly are a prophet."

Those words made Valmont immediately recognize a fellow expert. He gave Russell a thumbs-up.

Worthy of being the Zhuge Liang he had chosen.

He really delivered.

"Jackie Chan's group seems to be fighting some demon called Tarak. They don't have time to trouble me."

A polite yet awkward smile immediately appeared on Russell's face.

He had thought they had become stronger.

Turns out the righteous heroes simply had no time to clean them up.

The world needed demons, and it also needed warriors of justice.

With the evil dragon gone, Tarak, the Demon King from Japan, had naturally awakened to fill Holy Lord's vacancy.

Jackie Chan and the others were probably busy enthusiastically beating up that bunch of Japanese demons, with absolutely no time to deal with the Mafia's useless lot, who would be fringe delivery riders even if they joined Meituan.

Still, this guy's offer was anything but small.

The Horse Talisman—power of expulsion and restoration.

It could expel harmful abnormal external forces from the body, dispel physical ailments and other harmful conditions, and restore any shattered or damaged object to its complete state.

Even among the Twelve Talismans, it ranked near the top.

By comparison, the Tiger Edict was rather troublesome.

The Tiger Edict's ability was the harmonization of yin and yang. It reconciled conflicts between the other eleven Talismans' magic, allowing all their powers to blend and balance within the Holy Lord without causing disorder.

But it also had a side effect: it would split the holder into two personalities with opposite temperaments, existing as independent individuals.

Hmm, it seemed a little hard to use.

Valmont really was a good guy.

If he had Talismans, he would actually give them away.

But this guy was also truly weak.

If his record were even a little more normal, Russell would have immediately waved his hand and declared, "Brother Waguo, say no more."

"System, what do you think about joining the Mafia?"

Russell asked his Prompt Device.

I don't really recommend joining. This Mafia group is too useless, but Valmont is offering far too much... Why not go over there and make do for a while?

Even the Prompt Device was somewhat hesitant.

Russell pondered it for a while before finally deciding to meet up with Valmont.

Since Jackie Chan and the others were fighting the great demon Tarak, they had clearly obtained Masks as well.

Naruto was almost being squeezed dry. He needed to find someone to take over his shift. Besides, matters concerning a certain factory also required enough skilled workers.

The soldiers brought by a single Shadowkhan mask were most likely not enough.

He would definitely still have to go raid District 13 in the future.

"Hmm, I'll come talk to you all another day about joining the Mafia."

Russell made his choice.

"Good. A gentleman's word is something even four horses cannot catch!"

Valmont, this punk-styled Zhu Yuanzhang, uttered a strange oath.

After finishing that round of conversation, faint rustling came from afar, like someone in pajamas moving around.

Russell's gaze instantly sharpened.

Then he looked outside.

The sky was already dark.

It was almost time to act.

The Con Begins!

Dreamland.

It was perhaps the most wonderful place in the world.

Because once one entered it, all the chaos and troubles outside no longer had anything to do with them.

They could immediately enter full slacker mode.

But for Durandal, dreamland was also an excellent place for training.

In her dream, the beautiful blonde girl stared solemnly at the enormous Honkai mantis before her.

Mantises were among nature's finest hunters.

Their necks could rotate 180 degrees, ensuring flexibility in the movement of their bodies.

Their eyes were quite similar to human eyes, capable of three-dimensional vision and of accurately determining a prey's position at high speed within two-tenths of a second.

Their body structure was equally perfect. If a mantis were the size of a human, it could lift a thousand kilograms.

Of course, such a terrifying creature would not exist in reality.

But dreams were different.

"It should possess a body as tough as Soul Steel, be able to use Honkai energy to some extent, have neural reflexes even faster than mine, and possess greater strength..."

The girl named Durandal added new settings to the mantis before her.

Once all the settings were complete, the mantis came to life.

It shrieked like a prehistoric beast, its piercing cry directly causing an earthquake. In the next instant, it transformed into a black shadow and appeared behind the Penguin, striking straight for the big goose's heart!

Durandal instinctively swung her lance, but in the next instant, an immense force surged through it and blasted her a hundred meters away!