Gun of Ashes

Lorenzo slowly raised the black cube and voiced that astonishing hypothesis.

”We are all experts, experts in hunting demons, and experts don’t make mistakes unless we do so deliberately.

Yes, that’s right, Roger is an almost omniscient enemy; we can’t hide secrets, all we can do is distort the secrets, twist their original form into what we call the ’Death Row.’ To perfect the plan, we might have even used the Anti-Meme to erase everyone’s memory.

Each and every one of us cannot remain uninvolved.”

The more Lorenzo elaborated, the brighter his eyes shone. He realized that viewed this way, everything became much more reasonable.

All they had done was to protect the real plan; what seemed now to be desperately guarded was merely bait deliberately set for Roger.

Like a perfect con, they not only fooled Roger but also themselves.

”But this is just your hypothesis, Lorenzo,” Shao Liangye said.

”Yes, hypothesis. The plan has another premise: even after losing our memories, we must continue to execute it upon spotting these loopholes; otherwise, all our efforts would be in vain.

So, why would the version of us who devised this plan believe that we would remain stubbornly and blindly executing all of this after losing our memories?”

Lorenzo posed a counter-question.

Shao Liangye’s voice was hoarse. Despite not wanting to think this way, he said painfully.

”Creeds, we are tools, gears; we only need to execute unconditionally.”

Anonymous creeds, the regulations of the Purification Mechanism, these were what fully supported their blind and stubborn execution, pushing this loophole-ridden plan to the current stage.

”Not just that.”

Lorenzo said, holding the sharp Nail Sword across in front of him, softly speaking.

”Remember? Who proposed the Death Row plan?”

Shao Liangye was stunned for a few seconds, then replied slowly.

”It was you, Lorenzo Holmes.”

Lorenzo nodded in agreement, raising the Nail Sword, looking at the face reflected in its shining surface, his own, Lorenzo Holmes.

”Yes, I am the maker, I am the expert, I don’t make mistakes unless they’re deliberate.”

Lorenzo displayed a strange smile. If he were the one making such a plan...

Shao Liangye, on the other hand, was at an emotional loss, his mind blank. If things were as Lorenzo said, he only felt confusion and a lingering dread.

All plans were smoke screens: Old Dunling, Death Row, the all-out battle of the Purification Mechanism... all of these were smoke screens designed to make Roger believe this was humanity’s final counter-strike. They not only deceived Roger but also humanity itself.

That’s why they poured their full effort into forging Old Dunling into a stronghold to face the final battle.

But these were all false, just one of many disguises.

”No, this is still just your assertion, Lorenzo. If the Death Row plan is fake, then what is the real plan?” Shao Liangye questioned.

”I don’t know.”

Lorenzo shook his head frankly.

”You don’t know!”

”Yes, I don’t know, and no one would know. Deceiving the enemy and deceiving ourselves, only in this way can we avoid Roger’s observation.”

Lorenzo tried not to think ahead, to avoid imagining more possibilities.

”Don’t rush, Shao Liangye, just wait until the trigger pulls.”

Lorenzo said meaningfully, placing the communicator aside, ready to receive orders at any time, surrounded by Nail Swords.

The word ’trigger’ held profound significance for Shao Liangye, and under Lorenzo’s words, he began to tremble slightly. Always firm, he now began to harbor vague doubts.

”Why are you so confident, Lorenzo? Even if everything you’ve said is justified, we are facing Roger Cruz; any misstep and we lose it all.”

Shao Liangye’s voice was hoarse. It’s not that he was unwilling to believe what Lorenzo said, but the pressure from Roger was overwhelmingly heavy; he dared not gamble, nor had the courage to gamble.

”Because I have faced similar enemies. Back then, I wasn’t this strong, didn’t even know how to control the [Gap], and my enemy was far stronger than me. He could not only use the [Gap], but the skills he mastered were a hundred times more powerful.”

Lorenzo reminisced, a bitter smile on his face.

”I couldn’t defeat him head-on, cunning schemes wouldn’t fool him, just like Roger.”

”And then?”

Shao Liangye was curious. If the enemy was truly that strong, Lorenzo should have died, yet here he was alive, right before him, so the outcome was obvious.

”Then? I killed him, or rather, I think I killed him.”

Lorenzo seemed somewhat puzzled; many times he couldn’t determine whether Lawrence was dead or alive. Unlike himself, Lawrence had become a downright monster, one whose existence Lorenzo could barely comprehend.

”Against an equally insurmountable enemy, I was able to kill him, so I can also kill Roger Cruz.”

Lorenzo stood, walking up beside Shao Liangye. He was enveloped in a strange aura, one Shao Liangye couldn’t quite pinpoint.

”If you dare not gamble, then believe in me, put all your chips on me.”

”Bet on your win?” Shao Liangye asked.

”Of course, I will win, and I must win.”

Lorenzo gazed out the window at the chaotic white glow, contemplating conspiracies and plots, his hand tight around the [Echo of the End] in his pocket. Regardless of whether his guesses were right or wrong, Lorenzo was confident in his ability to overturn the situation.

To upend the table.

”But even before the final battle, it’s good to warm up,” Lorenzo continued, ”Interested in hunting down some demons that they couldn’t handle with me?”

A blazing white storm swirled in his eyes. Lorenzo sensed more and more demons emerging in the city; most were ordinary demons posing little threat to him. Yet amidst them, increasingly bizarre entities began to appear.

A peacekeeper frantically fired into the rain and mist, its firepower should easily tear flesh and blood apart. Even with the demons’ strong self-healing, the outcome would be the same.

Yet sounds of metal echoed from beyond the rain, as if the bullets struck something solid, sparking relentless bursts of flame drawing ever closer, until a sharp giant blade cleaved through the downpour.

A sound of metal tearing followed, the giant blade left a deep dent in the Peacekeeper’s armor, pushing it back several meters. It barely lifted its head, only to see a demon clad in iron armor walking out from the mist.

”Well prepared, everyone from the Purification Mechanism,”

The man trod atop the Peacekeeper, walking upward along its armor, stepping on its face armor obscuring its view.

”Let’s make the banquet more lively.”

Roger said, raising his hand, droplets of fresh blood ran down his palm, dripping into the armor beneath his feet.

He could feel the vibrations beneath his feet, like in an iron coffin where the deceased imprisoned inside struggled mightily, trying to resist the arrival of the Death God.

But soon his struggles ceased, the faint glow of flames ignited, spilling out from the gaps in the armor. The blaze grew more intense, and the Peacekeeper stood up again, this time with flames burning on its armor like a terrifying ghost.

Roger extended his hand, swinging it forcefully like conducting a grand symphony, while blood continuously seeped from his body, merging into the puddles underfoot, corrosively progressing farther.

He stood on the edge of Ascension, his body harboring the purest Secret Blood.

The demons emitted piercing screeches, drawn to it, they flocked around Roger, bloodthirstily licking the crimson-tinged water. As the erosion intensified, they transformed into more evil anomalies.

Amid the scarlet blood, the demon army stood firm under the rain and mist.