Chapter 560: Kill Them All
In fact, before the banquet began, various signs had already indicated that the General Administration had prepared defenses, but Xin Hui and the others still launched their operation with reckless abandon. This was inherently somewhat unreasonable. The only explanation was that both sides in the conflict had a certain understanding of each other, and Xin Hui and the others had to take the risk. As the Grand Archon had said, kidnapping and holding him hostage was not the most important thing; the most important thing was to let the people in the banquet hall escape.
Xin Hui gritted her teeth. "Are you going to kill everyone here?"
"The ones who kill them are the rebel forces left behind by the former Grand Archon. What does that have to do with me?" The Grand Archon made no attempt to hide his intentions.
The officials of the General Administration and the high-ranking government members who were still hoping for his rescue were stunned, turning their gazes toward the Grand Archon. The white-haired old man glanced at a player beside him.
"Something was added to the wine," the player said after inspecting it with a prop. "But I can't identify what it is. It's not poison, though."
The Grand Archon smiled slightly. "If it's not poison, then it should be fungal fluid. You wanted to use the high-ranking government officials to carry the fungus out and once again turn Clown City into an infected city. Compared to me, you're betting even bigger."
"You drank the wine too." Xin Hui glared at him hatefully.
The Grand Archon raised a hand, and someone nearby immediately took out an injection and administered it into his arm. "Over the years, quite a few people have brought data from the fungal nest. There aren't many fungi that can quickly infect the human body and spread over a large area. Most are non-lethal, just requiring a long treatment time. But if antibodies are injected before infection, this process can be reduced to a single ordinary injection."
"Grand Archon!" A beautiful woman threw herself at his feet. "You can't just stand by and watch us die! We put in a lot of effort when you took office!"
The Grand Archon's expression remained unchanged. Without hesitation, he shot her through the head. Ignoring the corpse on the ground, he instructed the players, "Kill them all."
No sooner had he spoken than several people suddenly stood up from the crowd and threw the miniature bombs they were carrying toward the doors and windows!
Several loud explosions followed. The main entrance of the building collapsed, and even a large section of the wall crumbled. As dust flew everywhere, the trapped government and General Administration personnel charged past the players and surged madly toward the door, all of them rushing out of the building in a single wave.
However, the players who had been ordered to kill did not move. Only when most of them had fled did they line up at the entrance and aim their guns at the crowd.
These people couldn't possibly escape.
And that was indeed the case. When the first group of runners were sliced into pieces by invisible rays that suddenly appeared in the air, the crowd screamed and retreated.
Unfortunately, the situation behind them was no better. The players opened fire, and after the dense gunfire subsided, the ground was piled high with corpses. Only a few people who had been covered by the dead survived, and they were eventually cleaned up by the players.
The banquet hall became empty.
Now, only the Grand Archon's side remained, including the players and the invited guest Yuan Cun, totaling fifteen people.
On Xin Hui's side, aside from the seven or eight who had been holding the hostages and the four or five who had blown open the door, and not counting the dead, there were twelve in total.
In addition, there were several hostages and a few family members of the banquet attendees who had been too terrified to run.
The situation was clear at a glance.
Xu Huo stood by the window. He had already seen when the rays were generated that not only the front door but the entire building was surrounded by rays, angular and square, more like a cage.
His gaze swept over the players beside the Grand Archon and finally landed on the honored guest, Yuan Cun, who was casually playing with something that looked like a small fence. Noticing Xu Huo's gaze, he looked up and met his eyes.
This should be the strongest player present.
"A space prop?" Xu Huo tilted his chin toward him.
With a mask on, his expression was unreadable. Yuan Cun said nonchalantly, "An outsider player? If you want to leave, do it now."
Xu Huo smiled slightly, then looked at the Grand Archon and the others, gesturing with a "please" motion.
His attitude made Yuan Cun and the Grand Archon take him seriously. The latter said, "Clown City's hospitality has been lacking. Please don't take offense, sir. Once this matter is resolved, I will entertain you properly."
Xu Huo's expression remained unchanged. He folded his arms as if he were just watching the show.
Xin Hui glared at him hatefully, then threatened the Grand Archon again, "Never mind others, but aren't you going to care about her life?"
The Grand Archon remained unmoved. However, Lang Lang, whose neck was being gripped, gently patted her hand. "Let go. He came prepared, so he must have guessed that I was the mastermind."
"Lang Lang..." Xin Hui was anxious, but under the other's gaze, she still released her hold.
Lang Lang stood there calmly, looking at the Grand Archon. "Originally, I wanted you to open the protective wall, but it seems impossible now."
"Open the protective wall? To let those xenomorphs into the city?" The Grand Archon laughed derisively. "You're as simple-minded as your father."
"I did think simply," Lang Lang nodded. "I thought the best way was to infect the people of the General Administration and the Government Hall. That way, the fungus would spread within Clown City. Experiencing that pain firsthand might awaken your conscience."
"These people have no conscience!" Xin Hui said indignantly.
"But if the roles were reversed, the best approach would naturally be to isolate or directly execute these infection sources, so the fungal origin could be controlled." Lang Lang sighed. "I didn't expect you to be so ruthless, killing everyone without even verifying."
"I raised you, but I never expected you to betray me," the Grand Archon said.
"It doesn't matter," Lang Lang said. "I just wanted to know, if you're so ruthless to others, what would you do if you yourself were infected with the fungus?"
The Grand Archon's face changed instantly. "You already made a move! Impossible! You had no chance!"
Lang Lang chuckled and pulled open the zipper on her side, revealing a patch of scarred skin. "When you spent the night with me, didn't it occur to you that I might have been infected with the fungus too?"
The Grand Archon's face turned ashen. "Have someone prepare the antidote immediately!"
Lang Lang tore off a piece of dry skin from the scar and blew it away in her hand. "This fungus takes three months from infection to onset. Only in the third month do marks appear on the skin, followed by organ failure. As of now, there is no effective treatment in Clown City."
"Lang Lang!" Xin Hui grabbed her hand. "You knew this fungus was incurable, so why did you do this!"
Lang Lang pushed her hand away and smiled. "All my family died in the underground nest. If it weren't for revenge, I wouldn't have endured until today."
She looked at the Grand Archon. "I don't just want him to pay with his life—I want everyone in Clown City to pay the price!"
As she finished speaking, she struck the pendant on her necklace hard. A few seconds later, successive explosions rang out from different directions in Clown City!
(End of Chapter)