Lord of Prayer - Chapter 70 - 62: Crazy Thursday

Chapter 70: Chapter 62: Crazy Thursday

It was a bit disorienting at first, but the stabbing pain in his head had started to subside.

“You just used too much brainpower. The amount of data you were receiving and analyzing was too massive, so your brain overloaded,” Xiao Yan said helplessly, looking at the real-time data analysis on his tablet. “To put it simply, your CPU overloaded and fried itself.

But it’s not a major issue. A good night’s sleep should fix it.”

“So is my brain going to fry itself every time I use my Ability? Are all Ascenders’ brains this weak?” Zhou Chen took the towel offered by a service robot and wiped the blood from his nose.

“It shouldn’t be that bad. You just pushed it too hard this time. Just be more careful and hold back a little in the future.” Xiao Yan asked, “Can you continue with the test?”

“No more tests. My head’s killing me. I’m going back to sleep,” Zhou Chen sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

“You should sleep here in the research department. You’re completely blind right now; even getting back to your dorm will be a hassle,” Xiao Yan reminded him.

“…Good point.”

·

·

「The next day, at three in the afternoon.」

In an office on the 66th floor of the Financial Mansion.

Qin Zewan, Director of the Jinzhu City Financial Bureau, stared grimly at the man in the holographic projection.

He was a middle-aged man in an expensive suit, refined and gentle in appearance. His warm smile made people instinctively want to get closer to him.

—Fu Qing.

The richest man in the Jinzhu Region, a titan of influence who could blot out the sky with a single hand, and a great philanthropist in the public eye.

But it was precisely that gentle, refined smile that made Qin Zewan feel utterly disgusted.

He admitted to having done his fair share of evil deeds, but they were nothing more than a drop in the bucket compared to Fu Qing.

More than a decade ago, during a period of sensational political strife, Fu Qing had specialized in doing some big shot’s dirty work. He’d committed countless acts of murder, arson, and family annihilation. His hands were stained with blood; he was evil to the core.

Later, under the protection of that same powerful figure, he had adopted a new identity and had his past completely whitewashed. With such a powerful backer, he slowly seized control of Jinzhu’s maritime shipping and devoured most of the black market industries, using methods that were nothing short of ruthless.

Yet this irredeemably wicked man had to pretend to be a cultured, upper-class gentleman or a benevolent tycoon who cared for the common people every single day. In Qin Zewan’s eyes, that gentle smile was a facade of hypocrisy that ran bone-deep, down to the very depths of his Soul.

It was nauseating.

“Qin Zewan, your time is running out. The Star Association is investigating. Under normal circumstances, we’ll be saying our goodbyes in about two hours.” Fu Qing’s hologram leisurely sipped his afternoon tea.

“Did you sell the information on those smugglers to the Star Association?” Qin Zewan slammed his hand on the desk, demanding furiously.

“I did,” Fu Qing admitted freely. “I believe it’s better for the black market to have only one person calling the shots.”

“Aren’t you afraid your greed will be the death of you? The more you swallow, the more you expose yourself. Those smugglers will rat you out sooner or later,” Qin Zewan said, his eyes filled with malice. “Besides, you sold me out. Do you really think I won’t do the same to you?”

“Is that so?”

Fu Qing smiled. “First of all, I personally promoted both Birdman and Snow White. They’ve passed the many tests I set for them, so I have complete trust in them, as well as sufficient countermeasures in place.

Birdman, in particular, is exceptionally capable. I can always count on him to get things done. I’m even thinking of grooming him to be my right-hand man.

Although the two of them were at odds before, they’ve reconciled now. With them on the job, taking control of the entire underground market is just a matter of time. You don’t need to worry about that.

Secondly, before you sell me out, I suggest you think about your wife and daughter abroad. Oh, and you have an illegitimate son, don’t you? It took me quite a bit of effort to find him.”

CRASH!

In a fit of rage, Qin Zewan grabbed the teapot from his desk and hurled it at Fu Qing’s hologram. The teapot passed through the projection and smashed heavily onto the floor, shattering into pieces amidst a splash of tea.

“Since you’ve gone after them, there’s no way I’m letting this go! Just you wait, you’re a dead man!” Veins pulsed on Qin Zewan’s forehead, and his eyes were bloodshot.

“Who doesn’t know how to drag someone down with them?!”

“You can try. I have no intention of stopping you,” Fu Qing said lightly, completely unconcerned.

Without hesitation, Qin Zewan pulled out his phone to turn himself in, but at some point, it had lost its signal.

“Save your energy. Other than this secret, dedicated line, all other signal transmissions have been blocked.”

“What exactly are you trying to do?” Qin Zewan looked up, staring daggers at that hypocritical smile.

“You can think of it as…”

Fu Qing thought for a moment. “A final chat between old friends.”

“You and I are no friends,” Qin Zewan said, his gaze savage, wishing he could tear Fu Qing limb from limb. He ground out through clenched teeth, “Just wait. Even if you do manage to swallow all of Jinzhu’s underground industries, you won’t be on top for long. That new team leader from the Special Operations Team will come knocking sooner or later.”

“I’m not worried about that.” Fu Qing set down his teacup and smiled. “Things in Jinzhu are about to change. You haven’t heard the news yet? The Eternal Fire has appeared in Jinzhu, and traces of them have been found in several nearby cities. They’re definitely planning something big, which is why they’ve been so active.

If I’m not mistaken, Jinzhu will soon descend into chaos. That Special Operations Team leader should be more concerned with how she’s going to protect herself.”

“Mm… alright, time’s about up. You should die now.”

The cruel words were so sudden that Qin Zewan couldn’t even process them.

Beside him, a trusted bodyguard who had followed him for over a decade suddenly drew a gun. A lethally powerful Alchemy Bullet erupted from the barrel with a flash of fire, instantly blowing the head off another Ascender bodyguard, splattering brain matter everywhere.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

The bodyguard fired several more shots, eliminating everyone else in the room, leaving only a stunned Qin Zewan.

“You, you… Why?!” Qin Zewan pointed a trembling finger at him in disbelief. This was a man who had been his trusted subordinate for over a decade!

“It’s simple. He’s been my puppet for many, many years.”

Fu Qing said nonchalantly, “Send him on his way.”

「3:13 PM.」

On the pedestrian street below the Financial Mansion, huge shards of glass suddenly rained down from the sky, crashing heavily onto the ground and exploding into dust, causing countless passersby to scream in terror.

Immediately after, a dark figure plummeted from the sky, landing with a sickening THUD and bursting into a mangled pulp of flesh.

In the office, Fu Qing’s hologram vanished.

The bodyguard used brute force to smash Qin Zewan’s phone, computer, encrypted communicator, and other devices to pieces, ensuring the record of this secret call from the dark web would disappear from the world forever.

Finally, the bodyguard started a blaze. He stood in the roaring Fiery Fire and raised the pistol to his own temple.

BANG.

·

·

「The Research Department.」

Zhou Chen opened his eyes. The side effects of the Blindfolded Sunglasses had worn off, and his vision had returned.

He yawned groggily, pulled out his phone to check the time, and realized he had slept late into the night.

Then, as usual, he started scrolling through his news feed.

[Jinzhu City’s Largest Ocean Aquarium Officially Opens, Grand Opening Sale, Tickets Only…]

[Crazy Thursday Is in Full Swing! Get Twenty Pieces of Spicy Fried Chicken for Just Nineteen-Ninety-Nine…]

’Damn, I forgot it was Crazy Thursday. I wonder if any places are still delivering at this hour…’

[Night of Liquidation! 300,000 People and 6.9 Billion Yuan Affected as Cryptocurrency Plummets Nearly 30%! US Stocks Tumble, Nasdaq Down 5% in Intraday Trading, Countless Crypto Miners Take to the Rooftops After Failed Speculations…]

’Serves them right! I want to see jumpers! I want to see rivers of blood!’

And as he thought that, Zhou Chen actually did see a “jumper.”

[This Afternoon at 3 PM, Jinzhu City Financial Bureau Director Qin Zewan Committed Suicide. According to eyewitnesses, Qin Zewan fell from the 66th floor of the Financial Mansion and died on impact. It is reported that Qin Zewan had long been sheltering smugglers. He is believed to have committed suicide out of fear of punishment after learning the Star Association was launching an investigation into him, destroying evidence of his crimes before his death…]

’This…’

Zhou Chen froze. If he remembered correctly, this Qin Zewan was the backer for smugglers like “Iron Python” and “Lady Grey.”

’Jiang Che was investigating him, and he just commits suicide out of fear? Didn’t he even think about trying to stall for time? Isn’t this suicide a little… too fast?’

’And what about his Ascender bodyguards? Were they all just for show…?’

Zhou Chen quickly realized that the news was probably just the official story for the public.

He quickly got out of bed, planning to find Jiang Che and get some real answers.