Civilization: Beyond Two Worlds

210 Like a Demon

“Wait!”

Hong San’s shout tore through the sky, shocking everyone.

For a moment, there was a commotion in the crowd. Many people were surprised, but many people were flustered. In an instant, half of the people immediately lowered their heads or turned around.

Hong San strode over and pressed down on the shoulder of the person he had noticed.

“Turn around.”

His voice was surprisingly calm.

However, it made people feel a chill.

The man whose shoulder was grabbed trembled and deliberately shouted at the top of his voice, “Let go of me! What do you want to do?! Help! Kang De’s lackey…”

“… Brooklyn Rosser.”

Hong San said in a low voice, “Why are you here?”

Panic appeared on the man’s face as he struggled, “What did you say? I don’t know you! You’ve got the wrong person! Let go of me quickly!”

Hong San’s voice was soft and calm, “I know you, Brooklyn Rosser. Your family lives in North Town and became refugees because of the war. You joined us on the second last day before our team arrived in Valentine…”

Brooklyn retorted in a panic, “No! You’ve got the wrong person! It’s not me!”

“You think I don’t remember you because you joined recently and were with a group of ragged refugees, but you’re wrong. I know.”

“There are a total of seven people in your family. There are two children, Andy and Zia. One is seven years old, and the other is five. Your wife’s name is Mandia, and her arm was injured by the elves’ arrows. There are also your parents, Old North, and Old Lady Kaliga. The former is an alcoholic, and the latter knits a very beautiful sweater…”

Hong San took a deep breath, and his eyes slowly turned red, “I remember all your names and everyone who joined my team.”

His tone was still terrifyingly calm. “Now tell me why you’re here.”

“I’m sure you won’t have the courage or spontaneous mobility.”

He clasped the middle-aged man’s shoulder and looked straight into his eyes. “Tell me.”

When the man heard this and met Hong San’s gaze, for some reason, he choked and could not say many excuses. His teeth chattered, and his eyes were filled with fear.

Hong San’s expression turned ferocious like a malicious ghost as he roared, “—Tell me!”

This furious question and twisted face made the current Hong San extremely terrifying. However, this terrifying pressure could not only destroy a person’s guard but also make a terrified person hysterical.

The man who looked timid and like a farmer suddenly shouted.

Brooklyn’s face was also twisted. He roared, “Why should I come here? Because I want to live! You hugged Kang De’s thigh yourself and don’t care about us? You promised us that you would always ensure our safety! You promised! Why didn’t you do it?! Why can’t you do it?!”

“You’re unwilling to care about us, so we have to think of a way ourselves! Can’t we?!”

“I only want myself to survive and my family to survive! I don’t care about anything else! Isn’t that Kang De the princess’s husband?! Isn’t he a big shot?! Isn’t he a hero?! He’s enjoyed much more than us in his life! It’s enough now! We’ll be grateful to him for the rest of our lives if we exchange his life for the lives of everyone in the city! Why should we be the only ones to sit and wait for death?!”

He widened his eyes and stared into Hong San’s eyes, “You’ve already become Kang De’s servant, right? He’ll take you away, right? You’re not allowed to leave. You’re not allowed to leave. None of you are allowed to leave!”

This roar was really too powerful.

He could even make shameless words sound righteous.

The crowd was silent for a moment, then they erupted in twos and threes in agreement. Even those who were from the Heaven and Earth Association and subconsciously hid from Hong San raised their heads and slowly became confident.

‘You promised.’

‘You promised to protect us.’

‘You promised us!’

—Let us all survive!

“Lord Hong San, Lord Hong San, save us!”

The man looked at Hong San and suddenly revealed a fawning expression. He said repeatedly, “Kang De, Kang De is there. The elves only want him! If you’re capable, sneak up on him! Take him down! Tie him up! Give him to the elves! The elves will let us go and even confer you an official. We’ll all benefit! Alright! Alright!”

The motley crew echoed, “Yes! Yes! Yes!”

“Please save us!”

“Help us!”

“Protect us!”

“This is doing a good deed!”

“Everyone will be grateful to you!”

Those eyes went from guilty to matter-of-fact, from matter-of-fact to expectant encouragement.

They seamlessly switched.

They relied on someone wholeheartedly and hid behind him, looking forward to a good outcome.

It had always been like this.

Hong San looked at the people in front of him in a daze. He did not know them, and there were many people he knew. He could name them, the people in his team.

These people’s eyes were filled with anticipation and subconsciously emitted evil. The source of all this was because of their desire to survive. As long as they could survive, they could do anything.

Morality, loyalty, right and wrong, and shame could be ignored.

All of this… was so familiar.

Hong San suddenly grinned and laughed.

The man he grabbed was pushed out forcefully and knocked into the last person.

Hong San was laughing wildly.

He pointed at everyone, bent down, patted his thigh, and laughed wildly.

Then tears flowed.

“How disgusting.”

He smiled and laughed, then began to retch. He coughed and cried. Snot, tears, and saliva entangled and stained his entire cheek.

In order to live, their dignity, morals, and beliefs did not matter at all. The evil and ugliness subconsciously displayed by these people in front of him…

—It was the first time he felt like this in his life so far.

Hong San cried and smiled.

“How disgusting…”

He looked at his hand, the camcorder he was holding. The small screen reflected his shadow.

“—I’m actually such a disgusting person?”

“It’s really unimaginable.”

“In the past, I…”

He laughed wildly and slapped his face.

“—Was I such a disgusting piece of trash?”

Everyone looked at this Cathayan who was laughing wildly in surprise and bewilderment and felt an inexplicable chill and panic. Even people who did not know Hong San could tell that this person was different from before.

Hong San laughed wildly and pointed at everyone, his face filled with mockery and ridicule, “Are people worse than animals worthy of living? They’re not! People like us should die like dust to prevent dirtying this world! How disgusting! Disgusting! When I think of how you’re actually still living in this city that Prince Kang De protected desperately for you, I feel completely disgusted! Disgusting!”

“Let me tell you, your plan… is wishful thinking!”

“Did you hear that?! Did you hear that?! It’s not only you! Song! Chen! Huang! Can these dogs think of that logic and ambition? I know you taught them! I also know that with your insignificant ability, you don’t dare to do such a thing! Unless someone instigated you!”

“I also know who instigated you to come here! No wonder this group of people can swagger around at night! No wonder I didn’t see the patrol team interfere! You’re all bastards! Beasts! Animals!”

“You’re delusional!”

“You’ll die! Let me tell you! You’ll all die! From now on, no one will save you! No! This is your fate! Wait for death!”

At first, the people were forced by Hong San’s commotion. However, he was only alone after all. Later on, the commotion and dissatisfaction of the crowd continuously rose.

“Brother Hong San!”

Someone appeared at the back of the crowd. Since he had already said it, it was meaningless to hide. The leaders of the Heaven and Earth Association walked out from the crowd. Song Baoyi knelt on one knee and cupped his fists.

“Forgive me for offending you, Brother. I’m also fighting for everyone’s lives on this trip. It’s all to protect everyone’s lives. In the end, His Highness Kang De is only one person, and there are so many lives in the city. It’s obvious at a glance which is more important. Of course, I completely know that this matter is too difficult. I’m willing to shoulder this matter. I’m willing to burn incense and pray for His Highness Kang De every day in this life and worship him like a god. If Brother still feels that it’s not enough, I’ll compensate him with my life after this matter is over!”

Hong San could not help but laugh, “A life for a life? You’re not worthy! Let me say it again, dream on!”

Song Baoyi gritted his teeth and said, “Brother, we’re finally indebted to you. We’re really unwilling to fight you. Please think carefully… If you’re still stubborn, we can only offend you!”

Hong San sneered.

Looking at these “brothers”, his eyes revealed a faint cold light.

He was no longer disappointed.

“I’ve cultivated under Master since I was young and was taught many things by him. The ability he taught me is very useful. I used it to observe people’s expressions, see through their hearts, defend myself, and march and fight. However, I’m the only one who hasn’t used the ability Master taught me to do bad things and harm people.”

Hong San raised his head and stretched his neck with a cold smile, “Do you want to see it?”

That smile was as sinister as a demon.

The leaders and the people of the Heaven and Earth Association held their breaths. It was precisely because they had seen Hong San’s gentle, polite, kind, and calm appearance that they felt bone-deep panic and uneasiness when they saw this smile.

Hong San smiled coldly and turned to walk towards the Vidal Chamber of Commerce, leaving his back to these people.

For a moment, no one spoke.

When Hong San returned to the Chamber of Commerce and found Kang De, he was already holding Nick’s neck and pressing him against the wall. He held an axe in his right hand.

Hearing the commotion, the two of them turned around at the same time. Hong San stood there with something else in his smile.

“Master, Nick instigated this commotion and captured some people in the city. Most of them are people whose families died in the City War. Only he, the mayor, has a list of them.”

Kang De looked at him deeply. “You look like you need some psychological counseling.”

Hong San replied with a smile, “You don’t need it, and neither do I.”

Kang De turned around and looked at Nick in his hand. “How do you feel?”

Hong San walked over. “It’s as if the entire world has changed… as if I can do anything now.”

Kang De said indifferently, “Is it what your master taught you to do?”

When Hong San heard this, an unnatural and confused expression flashed through his eyes, “I’m afraid not.”

“But it doesn’t matter.” He chuckled, “In any case, Master is already extremely disappointed.”

“Then let’s continue the topic just now. Mr. Mayor, you seem to have made a mistake. You think I care a lot about Goethe. Your opinion comes from my identity. Tina’s husband, the Prince Consort of Goethe, was personally acknowledged by Princess Tina. Is that right?”

Kang De picked up the axe and the cold blade rubbed Nick’s cheek. “I’m afraid I have to tell you that it’s actually not the case. I’ve never slept with her. I’ve never kissed her, confessed to her, or anything, so much so that when I suddenly heard her announce that she’s my widow, I was still very puzzled. I even felt that this was a plan of hers to announce her attitude of not marrying for the rest of her life to prevent some messy princes from having other motives and coming to her side… Of course, that’s the truth. This is not important.”

“Do you understand what I mean?”

“This means that I don’t care what the Goethe people think of me.”

“I have a home. I can go back at any time. Moreover, my family will never know what I’ve done or how many people I’ve killed. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

“What are you threatening me with? Try threatening me again?”

Kang De said softly, “Why do you think that you can morally kidnap me with a meaningless reputation and these lives? Actually, I don’t care how many people die in Goethe. Do you understand now?”

Nick’s face turned red from the pinch. It was difficult to breathe and he was even a little dizzy.

When he heard this, he subconsciously muttered, “No, you care.”

Kang De’s eyes turned sharp and his grip tightened.

Nick’s expression changed, and then he woke up. It was even harder to breathe.

Hong San came to Kang De’s side and patted his arm.

Kang De let go slightly, allowing Nick to catch his breath. Hong San’s words sounded, “No matter what, you’re finished, Mr. Mayor. The good and rotten people in this city will die. If you still insist on this delusion of overestimating your strength…”

“Please remember that the reason why you’re not dead now, the reason why those rotten people outside are not all killed, and the reason why this city is not in chaos is only that His Highness Kang De is unwilling to dirty his hands. However, if the situation forces him, he can’t care less.”

“As for you…”

Hong San reached out and tidied up the mess of Nick’s clothes.

The skill of seeing through people’s hearts could not only guess their master’s current thoughts but also see through the opponent’s greatest weakness. It was only a problem with the user’s mentality.

He said gently, “You’ll always have fewer trump cards than us. We’ll always be more active than you. You think you’ve already risked everything and are not afraid of death, right? However, there are many things in the world that are worse than death, such as the reputation of the family and honor after death. Moreover, you might not die.”

Hong San turned on the camcorder and replayed it. Ever since Kang De handed this to him, in a short period of time, Hong San realized the many uses of this tool.

“We can record everything. It’s not to prove His Highness Kang De’s innocence, but to let you fall into hell. We can even bring you along and let you watch helplessly as you lose everything. You can even bring your family. What other family members do you value? What else do you care about? We’ll let you live and find those things one by one and destroy them for you to see.”

Nick’s eyes changed.

Even if he hid it very well, Hong San and Kang De noticed the fleeting fear and sorrow.

In their eyes, this was proof of their hesitation.

As long as he knew fear, there were flaws. As long as there were flaws, they could defeat him.

Hong San chuckled.

“Or you have another path. You can live. In fact, many people in this city can survive. You can surrender, lie, and do something to the elves that you don’t dare to do. You don’t have to worry about the stigma and disdain your family will suffer, because His Highness Kang De will testify for you. You can even have this magic equipment that can store recordings to store evidence and this agreement.”

“If you die, Prince Kang De will try his best to do something for your family so that Valentine’s glory and inheritance won’t be cut off… As long as you cooperate with us.”

Hong San turned around and looked at Kang De. He smiled and said, “Master, am I right?”

From an angle that Nick could not see, there was cold evil in the Cathayan’s eyes.

Kang De looked at him, then smiled. “Yes.”