The Mastermind

Because it was nearly 8:00 PM by the time he reached the dining hall, Ash naturally missed out on the limited-edition Seafood Lala Fat. He grabbed a few meat dishes at random and sat down to dig in.

"Does the food taste good after a victory?"

Ash looked up to see Valkas sitting across from him, holding a glass of water.

"To be honest, these leftovers are already a bit cold, and you guys bought up all the Lala Fat..."

"You could just order from the menu. You won 37 Contribution Points from me; it wouldn't kill you to spend one or two to treat yourself, would it?"

"Huh? Order? Spend Contribution Points?"

"You didn't know? Right, you've only been in here for two days." Valkas pointed to the menu board on the side of the dining hall. "You can order food at any time, regardless of the daily supply. If it's outside of free-roam hours, the dining hall will even deliver to your dormitory—as long as you pay the Contribution Points."

Only then did Ash realize that the menu board was actually an order form. He had previously assumed it was just for show—Look, leadership, we offer so many dishes here! We definitely aren't skimping on the inmates' rations!

The menu looked deceptively cheap at first glance; any three gourmet items totaled only 1 Contribution Point. For example, the popular trio of "Seafood Lala Fat," "Creamy Chicken Fettuccine," and "Mist Spinach Quiche" cost only 1 point, enough for a decent meal.

However, every Death Row Inmate started with only 50 Contribution Points, and 10 were automatically deducted every month. They were also the currency used to apply for the Deathmatch Arena. The lower one's points, the higher one's position in the Judgment Sequence, making it easier to be called up for the variety livestream show, Blood Moon Judgment.

Therefore, in this prison, Contribution Points were not just currency; they represented an inmate's life span. Consuming them was no different from slow suicide... or perhaps there was a difference: in slow suicide, you at least don't know when you'll die, whereas by spending points, you can watch your life quota dwindle away.

"Although there isn't much to do in prison, if you want to spend your points, you certainly can," Valkas said. "Hair styling, custom prison uniforms, purchasing specific toiletries... you can even spend points to upgrade to a better dormitory. A three-room, two-hall suite with windows costs 1 Contribution Point per day."

"1 point a day? That's insane. Who would actually live there?"

"Some do," Valkas replied. "Tiger of the 'Diamond' rank has been living in that VIP suite for years. He has more points than he can spend; there are always foolish newcomers giving them to him. If you convert 1 Contribution Point to 1 Gold Coin, Tiger might actually be wealthier in prison than he was on the outside."

Ash raised an eyebrow. "In other words... in the prison's assessment system, we inmates are only worth 50 Gold Coins?"

"You think that's too little?"

"Is it a lot?"

"Most ordinary people who haven't received a higher education won't earn 50 Gold Coins in their entire lives, and even some struggling Spellcasters can't manage it. An annual salary of 1 Gold Coin is enough to live a decent life in Kaimeng City."

Ash finally understood the true value of the Gold Coin in his pocket and realized just how corrupt this prison was—three meat dishes cost a year's wages! Was the Lala Fat inside a PhD graduate?

"I suddenly feel like these leftovers are actually quite delicious."

Valkas snorted and watched Ash in silence.

After eating for a while, Ash couldn't help but say, "Mr. Elf, I'm the type who can't pee if someone is watching me."

"Shh—shh—"

"I was just using a metaphor! You don't have to whistle to agree with me!"

"I just thought young people these days liked to eat and pee at the same time." Valkas smiled, then his expression returned to apathy. "What I'm about to say is just me talking to myself, mostly incoherent ramblings. If you hear it, you'd best act like you didn't."

Ash froze slightly.

"Besides being the president of the Elf Racial Rights Association in Kaimeng City, a member of the Kaimeng Parliament, and a university professor, Xilin Dor has a hidden identity: he is one of the secret backers of the Woodpecker Gang. On the surface, he acts to protect the interests of other races and opposes the Blood Saint Clan and Moon Shadow Clan councilors, but he has long been conducting backroom deals with both clans. The Woodpecker Gang is his black glove, and Mayor Financier of Kaimeng City owes his position in part to him."

"The Four Pillar God Heresy has been dormant for years, nearly vanished, except for one rumor without any evidence—eight years ago, during an archaeological excavation of the Eastern Ruins, it was rumored that important ritual texts regarding the Four Pillar God Heresy were unearthed. That same year, the Eastern Ruins were hit by a Void Realm storm, and most of the archaeological findings were destroyed."

"Professor Xilin Dor was the primary guiding consultant for the excavation team that led the dig at the Eastern Ruins that year."

"Xilin is a very patient elf; at least, I've never seen a creature who can surpass him in terms of forbearance. If he wants someone dead, it means that person possesses information vital to him—information that would cause him immense losses if leaked."

Valkas took a sip of water to moisten his throat and glanced at Ash.

"Theoretically, most Death Row Inmates have had their memories scoured upon entry. If there were any intelligence, the Sin Hunting Hall would have found it... unless someone's memories were never accessed."

So that's it.

Although Ash still didn't know his connection to Professor Xilin, he fully understood why Xilin was trying every possible way to murder him—the man thought Ash possessed a secret that hadn't been leaked yet!

Because of the Four Pillar God Heresy, the Sin Hunting Hall didn't dare to probe his memories, which made Ash Hiss the only inmate in the prison who still held a secret!

It was Xilin's good fortune that Hiss hadn't leaked his intelligence;

It was also Xilin's misfortune, because Hiss could report him at any moment!

To be fair, if Ash actually knew such a secret, he would have reported it to the Sin Hunting Hall immediately.

It wasn't that he was a malicious person who enjoyed harming others, but he was curious about Xilin. He wanted to become close cellmates with him, and if he had the chance to have a passionate collision in the Deathmatch Arena, that would be even better.

But the problem was—Ash really didn't know Xilin's secret!

He hadn't absorbed even a drop of the original Hiss's memories!

It was so frustrating. Ash also wanted to use Hiss's memories to help the Sin Hunting Hall bring the bad guys to justice.

After all, there were so many people breaking the law; why was he the only one who got caught!?

Unfortunately, he knew nothing.

What was even more infuriating was that others were afraid he would leak the secret, so they were trying every possible way to get rid of him!

Yet he knew nothing!

It felt as stifling as being wrongly accused by a teacher of stealing a classmate's stationery when he hadn't stolen anything as a child.

"Hey, you're still here? You didn't hear my ramblings, did you?" Valkas stood up and said, "Let's leave it at that for today. I'll find you for a brainstorming session when I have time."

"Really?"

"Haha, just kidding. I don't have the time, and you don't have the brain."

"Wait, Valkas." Ash called out to him. "Why are you helping me?"

Although Ash felt that Valkas might provide some information as a result of losing to him, the nature of this gift was completely different from what he had imagined—he had expected Valkas to throw down some harsh words, something along the lines of, "I am the weakest of the Dark Four Heavenly Kings, defeating me is useless, our people will be coming for you soon," or something similar.

Ash hadn't expected Valkas to defect so readily; did he come with his own built-in Moral Correction when he beat people up?

"I'm not helping you."

Valkas shook his head.

"I just want to cause some trouble for that bastard Xilin."

Spite was indeed a very reasonable motive. Ash struck while the iron was hot and asked, "Then do you know if there are any channels in the Prison to trade for Spell Spirits? If I can get a few sword-style Spell Spirits, I might have a chance to cause Xilin some major trouble—"

"None of your business."

Ash choked on his words and decided to try a more caring approach: "By the way, Valkas, since you failed to kill me and lost to me, will you be in any trouble—"

"None of your business."

"Then you at least have to tell me how Xilin will deal with me next, right?"

Valkas glanced at him, left behind a single sentence, and walked away.

"When we meet next time, you'll know Xilin's methods."

Ash felt that the reason Valkas had ended up in Prison was inseparable from his foul mouth and his penchant for speaking in riddles.

But at least he could be certain of one thing now: the mastermind behind all of this was definitely Hiss's former university professor, the Elf scholar Xilin Dor!

After finishing his meal, Ash didn't linger in the Prison and hurried back to his Dormitory, calling out directly.

"Sword Maiden? Are you there?"

"I am, but not entirely."

The Sword Maiden sat on the bed with her legs crossed, the deep Black Silk Stockings outlining her graceful curves. She rested her chin on her palm and eyed Ash askance.

"Something the matter?"

"It was you who warned me during the deathmatch earlier, right?"

Ash reached out, and the Substitute Spell Spirit, which was fast asleep while clutching its belly, appeared in his palm.

"The Microchip is still restricting my Spell Power output, so why was I able to trigger the Substitute Spell Spirit?"

"Isn't it obvious? You understood the knowledge of the Substitute Spell Spirit, and with the conditions being right, you directly triggered the Spell Spirit Resonance, allowing it to automatically exert its effect on reality. That's how other Death Row Inmates trigger their Spell Spirits in the Prison as well."

Although Ash had heard of this many times, he still couldn't help but feel amazed by the phenomenon: mature Spell Spirits could actually cast spells on their own.

"But how did I come to understand the 'Substitute' Spell Spirit?" Ash remained puzzled. "I haven't learned any knowledge regarding the Substitute Spell Spirit."

"You learned it, and you understood it."

Ash was stunned, suddenly recalling the words the Sword Maiden had used to warn him.

"Is it because of that sentence? 'If it hurts, just pretend you are someone else, and then it won't hurt anymore'?"

"Exactly." The Sword Maiden nodded. "When you understood that sentence, you naturally understood this Spell Spirit. At its core, a Spell Spirit is a collection of knowledge. Once you possess a Spell Spirit, even if you don't actively study, the knowledge of the Spell Spirit will actively pursue you."

"It's that simple?"

"It's not simple at all." The Sword Maiden shook her head. "Reading knowledge and understanding knowledge are two different things... If you hadn't been in extreme danger, covered in wounds, and on the verge of losing consciousness, you wouldn't have been able to resonate with the Substitute Spell Spirit. Learning alone isn't enough; empathy is a necessary condition for understanding a Spell Spirit."

Ash looked at the Substitute Spell Spirit on his palm, attempting to delve into its interior with his consciousness.

This time was slightly better than the last; Ash could understand the stream of information the Spell Spirit fed back, but he still couldn't grasp its structure. If a Spell Spirit were a dish, last time Ash hadn't even had a sense of taste and couldn't discern its flavor at all; this time, he could taste the flavor, but he didn't know how it was cooked.

"Being able to understand a Spell Spirit is already your limit. Unless it is a Natal Spell Spirit summoned by your own hand, you will never be able to find its hidden Gate of Truth."

The Sword Maiden saw through his intentions at a glance. "It must be a Spell Spirit born from the knowledge you possess for you to find its Gate of Truth. For Spell Spirits obtained through other channels, no matter how deeply you understand them, they are ultimately not yours."

"Truth must be pure and perfect; it cannot tolerate the slightest flaw."

Truth really is strict, isn't it?

Ash retracted the Spell Spirit and looked at the Sword Maiden.

"Why have you been gone for most of the day?"