I Went Crazy Killing in the World of Gods and Demons - Chapter 83

Chapter 83

The moment Ling Fang spoke, the entire department’s breathing hitched, instantly putting them on high alert.

Including Xie Qingling herself.

After glancing at the department members sitting upright with solemn expressions, Ling Fang withdrew his gaze and continued, “First, let me ask you allwhat are your thoughts about the River God’s Bride incident?”

“Lao Yu, you go first.”

The named Yu Wei pondered briefly and said, “This is a man-made conspiracy exploiting the villagers’ desperate desire for survival. The root cause behind it is humanhumans invited the River God, humans spread the curse of fear, and humans control the villagers.”

Ling Fang nodded, then called on the next person: “Xie Qingling, your turn.”

“I…” Xie Qingling paused thoughtfully before adding, “I believe a massive organization orchestrated this tragedy. This organization possesses considerable powerit was established at least thirty years ago. Through decades of development and continuous recruitment, it has grown into a substantial organization.”

“This organization, like our department, has mastered the method of praying to deities to receive Bestowments. They seek out Awakened individuals among the populace or artificially cultivate Acquired Spirits to strengthen their forces. They operate under certain guiding principles, using misguided beliefs to nurture Evil Gods and harvest Incense Offerings.”

Ling Fang nodded in agreement with Xie Qingling’s analysis.

“Correct.” Ling Fang turned his gaze to the remaining three. “What about you?”

“I have nothing to add,” Shen Huaizhou said.

“Neither do I,” Ye Anran replied.

Dai Xingyu exclaimed indignantly, “An evil organization like this should be completely eradicated!”

Ling Fang offered no response to his outburst.

With that, the discussion about the River God’s Bride concluded.

“I returned to headquarters for a meeting these past few days to report on the River God’s Bride incident. After a risk assessment, headquarters has elevated Future City’s danger rating by one level.”

The danger rating increased?

Xie Qingling was stunnedshe hadn’t known cities received danger ratings.

Was this related to the River God’s Bride incident?

Was that organization truly so formidable?

Noticing her confusion, Ling Fang patiently explained the details: “City danger ratings are divided into five levels, from one to five, with higher numbers indicating greater danger. Future City was originally Level Twoit’s now Level Three.”

“This means Future City is no longer the tranquil city it once was.”

“Extremely dangerous Singularity Events could occur here at any time.” Ling Fang spoke gravely, even resting his forehead in his hand and closing his eyes momentarily, his brow furrowed in deep thought.

The five present fell into silence, the meeting room so quiet one could hear a pin drop.

Yu Wei chuckled lightly, appearing unperturbed. “When I joined this department, I was already prepared to die in the line of duty.”

Shen Huaizhou tapped his temple. “My head’s been hanging by my belt all along.”

Ye Anran and Dai Xingyu exchanged a glance, thinking that as a doctor and a herdsman respectively, they rarely encountered high-risk affairsdeath was unlikely to come for them. But on the other hand, if even they died, then the others…

Thus, they refrained from voicing any opinions, because no matter what they said, it would sound like a jinx, like a curse.

Xie Qingling didn’t say much either. Instead, she fired off a series of questions: “Director, is the increased danger level in Future City related to the River God’s marriage? Or is it connected to that organization behind it all? Just how terrifying is that organization? Is the danger level rising because they plan to make Future City their long-term base? And since I joined the department, there have been so many more Special Eventsis that also tied to them?”

Her words struck a chord, hitting the heart of the matter.

Ling Fang: “That organization is called The Eleventh Citadel.”

“The Eleventh Citadel?”

“Yes, The Eleventh Citadel.” Ling Fang kept rubbing his leather gloves as he explained, “The term ‘Ten Directions’ originally comes from Buddhism, referring to the ten directions. Later, it came to symbolize the Ten Pure Lands, the Ten Worlds.”

“The Eleventh Citadel dislikes the current world. They want to recreate a world entirely different from this onean Eleventh World. That’s why they call themselves The Eleventh Citadel.”

Ling Fang let out a soft, cold snort. “Of course, that’s just their excuseusing grand rhetoric to inflate their importance. They overestimate themselves. They’re nothing more than a group of arrogant, delusional outlaws who think they can breed a powerful Evil God to control the world. They’re vermin hiding in the shadows, afraid of the light.”

After venting for a moment, his tone quickly turned somber. “But the trouble is… they’re not the only ones with such ambitions. They may each have their own hidden agendas, but driven by similar or identical goals, they’ve gradually found like-minded individuals and gathered into a sizable group.”

Ling Fang let out a heavy sigh.

“Over the years, departments in various cities, especially the headquarters, have been committed to eradicating The Eleventh Citadel. From the moment we learned of their existence, we’ve been locked in a struggle with thema battle that has lasted over twenty years now.”

“To prevent anyone with ulterior motives from learning about The Eleventh Citadel and defecting to their side, even within the department, information about them is not publicly disclosed.”

“But The Eleventh Citadel’s activities have already infiltrated our Future City. If you remain completely unaware of them, you’ll be at a severe disadvantage and in great danger if you ever encounter their members. That’s why I applied to headquarters for permission to disclose information about The Eleventh Citadel internally. Only after receiving approval did I convene this meeting.”

Ling Fang’s expression remained stern, almost icy, as he emphasized once more: “Don’t underestimate the enemy. According to headquarters’ statistics on casualty rates in Special Events departments across cities, our mortality rate when facing Ghouls is twenty percent. But if we confront The Eleventh Citadel, the casualty rate immediately exceeds fifty percent.”

“Remember this: they are demons who show no mercy to their own kind, killers without a shred of remorse. They are cunning, ruthless thugs devoid of any virtue.”

The moment Ling Fang finished speaking, the surroundings fell into complete silence.

An eerie, quiet atmosphere began to spread.

Previously, they had only known that some individuals with extraordinary abilities, operating outside the organization, refused recruitment by the department and hid among the populace, living ordinary lives like regular people.

At the same time, there were others who, while also rejecting recruitment, remained restless, occasionally causing minor troubles for the department.

But no one had expected that in the dark corners beyond their sight, there existed an intricate organization deeply rooted for decades.

The silence stretched on for about five minutes, with no one speaking.

Finally, Xie Qingling was the first to break the quiet.

She asked, “Minister, is there any other information you can share? If we’re going to face an enemy, this is far too little to go on.”

“We don’t know much about The Eleventh Citadel. They are highly secretive and operate covertly. This ‘River God’s Bride’ incident was a scheme they orchestrated. If they hadn’t slipped up by chance, we might still be unaware.”

Ling Fang explained, “They take pleasure in creating bloody, terrifying, and violent incidents among the populace, exploiting the darkest aspects of human nature to cultivate a breeding ground for the birth of the Evil God. They can receive Bestowments from artificially nurtured, low-tier deities like the River God. Even ordinary people can gain authority over energy from these deities. These malevolently nurtured deities are indiscriminate when selecting their Devotees.”

“This means that every opponent you encounter could wield some form of Mystical Power, yet their abilities remain unknown. You must find ways to uncover them yourselves and not let the enemy strike first.”

“As for who leads The Eleventh Citadel, no one knows.”

“Beneath the Leader, there are two Priests responsible for managing the daily affairs of The Eleventh Citadel.”

“The Priests report directly to the Leader. No one knows what the Leader looks likewhether they are male or female, young or old.”

“The two Priests are one male and one female. The male is the High Priest, and the female is the Junior Priest. Under the Priests, there are nine Divine Envoys who directly interact with the believers. And the believers…”

“Are people like Tang Tian.”

“Believers are either Spirit Users they’ve recruited or ordinary individuals with malicious intent who handle their worldly affairs. In short, The Eleventh Citadel is a highly structured organization with a complete and diverse membership.”

“They have a large number of believers lurking in every corner of various cities, blending in with the general populace. They only reveal their true nature when carrying out their schemes, which makes our work extremely challenging.”

“Whether The Eleventh Citadel will use Future City as a long-term base of operations remains unknown, but you must remain vigilant during your missions.”

Ling Fang took out five formation disks from a box.

The disks were made of black terracotta, adorned with chaotic and bizarre patterns painted in silver.

“These are the formation disks allocated to our Future City by headquartersthe Immortal Slaughtering Formation. The material of these disks is mixed with self-growing Xirang and specially crafted Secret Elixirs, allowing the Immortal Slaughtering Formation to be activated instantly.”

Ling Fang glanced at them. “From now on, you must carry the Immortal Slaughtering Formation disks on every mission. Always be prepared for the possibility of encountering the Evil God.”

“When using the Immortal Slaughtering Formation, no incantations are needed. The Spirit Soil grows upon contact with earthjust slap it directly onto the ground.”

“Understood!”

“Received!”

The five of them looked gloomy and listless, devoid of their usual complaints and sarcasm about meetings, leaving only complex worries behind.

Dai Xingyu leaned back in his chair and murmured, “I might die today, or I might die tomorrow…”

Seeing them like this, Ling Fang instead revealed a seemingly arrogant smile, though it was quickly masked by his usual calm and stern expression. “There’s no need for you all to be like this.”

“After all, The Eleventh Citadel is still just a group of ordinary mortals. They may be cunning, they may hide in the shadows, but they are still humanthey can still die.”

“Cockroaches also move in the dark, but there’s no need to fear cockroaches.”

“If you encounter them, just crush them.”

Ling Fang stood up. “I’ve said all this not to discourage you. Being overly afraid of your opponents makes victory impossible.”

Xie Qingling nodded. “I understand, Minister.”

“Next time we meet them, we’ll crush them without mercy!”

“Excellent!” Ling Fang nodded approvingly. “There’s one last matter for this meeting.”

“Regarding the handling of Tang Tian, headquarters has issued an execution order.”

“Everyone, remember Tang Tian’s characteristics. If you encounter Tang Tian, eliminate him on the spotshow no mercy.”

“Received!”

The five responded in unison, their morale instantly soaring.