Star Gate

At the same time.

Li Hao once more returned to Night Watcher headquarters. One of the moderately sized buildings in the back, equipped with a large yard, was stuffed full of people. It was over capacity and guarded by only a few Night Watchers. They looked at Li Hao respectfully when they saw the young man.

There were a lot of people in the yard—they were very fearful of Li Hao when he came into view.

“May we go, Commander Li?” someone asked urgently. It was daybreak and they’d been kept here for a day. It was one thing to go without food or water, but many of them stunk. There was no place to take a shower or change clothing. They couldn’t even relieve themselves because there were too many people present.

It was a hodgepodge of disgusting smells and a lifestyle that some noble misses had never experienced before. They were on the verge of a mental collapse—they covered their faces or wrapped their heads with clothing. If anyone smelled them and then recognized them, they wouldn’t want to live.

It was an exceedingly difficult task to examine the particulars of several thousand people. Not to mention, Li Hao lacked a complete intelligence system. Some of them had volunteered information, but who would paint themselves in a wicked light?

They couldn’t continue holding several thousand people here, however.

“I need to make an example out of some of you,” Li Hao cut straight to the chase. “I’ve just arrived and it’s difficult to find one’s footing in Skystar City. Whether it’s Four Seas Company or the Skystar Colosseum, those concepts are too far removed from ordinary people. They’re not enough to make my name known throughout the world and establish my authority!

“I’m someone who speaks whatever’s on my mind. If I kill all of you, I’m certain to execute some innocents. But if I kill nine out of every ten, some evil will still walk free!”

“I can’t be bothered to examine all of your backgrounds, so you do it yourselves!” he declared coldly. “There are four thousand of you here, choose one hundred for me to publicly behead as an example! All of you are from great families and have the requisite channels, labor, and resources to choose.

“Select one hundred—and not just people from the Colosseum or regular people from the Four Seas Company. I want one hundred nobles! I want certain evidence why they should be killed! The kind where evidence and witnesses are present, in which the information is so complete that a single glance brings understanding why this person should die!

“I will then drag them to the marketplace to chop off their heads. The rest of you can go home after that!”

“……” There was a split second of silence before the screams started.

“You’re going to kill us?!”

“Remember, I’m killing just one hundred! The evidence needs to be clear and real, don’t think of forging it. I can’t be bothered to verify all of what you guys say, but I have my ways of looking into one hundred people. You guys choose the candidates yourself. I will not be involved. If you can’t select one hundred, then you’ll all stay here. Let’s see if your backgrounds are good enough to get you out alive!”

Some people’s mouths dropped with dismay and some gasped with horror. Li Hao was so vicious as to make them choose themselves!

Mu Xiaorong couldn’t help herself anymore and gabbled, “You… this makes us offend one hundred families…”

“That’s right!” Li Hao nodded with a smile. “Have you only just discovered that?”

“Do you know that this will…”

“Mean that I offend one hundred families as well?” Li Hao grinned. “I’m not afraid! They can come for my head if they have the guts to! You’re the ones who chose the victims, I wasn’t set on killing them. Also, killing them is a consequence of them breaking the law. There is reason for their deaths. If you don’t choose and wait for my investigations to complete, then there may be more than one hundred dead in the end. Some of you still won’t make it out at the end of the day!”

Terror, fury, and killing intent rose from the prisoners!

Li Hao was an absolute madman! It was one thing for him to offend people, but he wanted to drag them down with him! If they made their selections, the families associated with the one hundred would certainly hate Li Hao, but they might even hate the survivors more!

Why is it my son, my daughter that is dead, and not you guys?! Why was my child pushed out to be a scapegoat?!

Any with sharper wits about them knew what kind of storm was to come. Color drained from their faces and some people almost couldn’t stand straight.

“Commander Li… in this case… the smaller families… won’t dare… defy the greater families…” someone warbled with panic.

“The evidence must be there,” Li Hao responded firmly. “If you are a good person and the bigger families unjustly wrong you, then I’ll seek justice for you! But if you are a bad person, then it doesn’t matter what kind of family you come from. Villains should be executed, there is no issue with that.

“All I can say is that some might slip through the cracks in this process to come, that those even more evil than you guys might survive. That’s fine, with one incident comes a second. Those of you who walk out of the Night Watcher headquarters should watch yourselves. Pray that you don’t bump into me while I’m alive or it’ll still be your day of reckoning!”

“Are you that unafraid of death, Commander Li?” Fear of death flashed through someone’s eyes while they spoke in stern terms. “In all these years, no one’s dared to kill one hundred nobles at once in Skystar City or even the entire dynasty!”

“Now there is!” Li Hao pointed at himself with a radiant smile. “I dare! So you can stop threatening me. I’ll return all of your transmission pendants in a bit so you can contact your family, parents, and others. Find evidence for me to chop off one hundred heads—unless I die before that. You can also have your families send Arcanus to come kill me. It’s fine if they don’t, but I’m really looking forward to Arcanus assassins!”

The assembly froze. Send Arcanus to kill him! Li Hao’s cockiness was on full display and completely unmatched. Mu Xiaorong gave up on all hope and said nothing further. She only sighed; there was likely nothing that could be done to stop the young man.

Arcanus?

At this current point in time, where were there Arcanus willing to take such a risk? And how many could come? Li Hao was so conceited that he probably had certain reason and confidence to be so! Who was willing to stick their neck out first?

The Ministry of Finance had given up and the three great organizations didn’t dare brashly enter the royal capital. They were also wary of underhanded retaliation from the nine ministries. The nine ministries and royal family countered each other, so how was one supposed to produce enough Arcanus to kill Li Hao?

Thus, Mu Xiaorong clearly understood that there was nothing stopping Li Hao from chopping off these heads! And the key was, he was borrowing their hands to kill these people. Once their transmission pendants were returned and their messages transmitted, Skystar City would fall into massive chaos. If the various families could not eliminate Li Hao, then their thoughts would turn to who should die. Anyone can do, just not my children!

Good friends could turn on each other!

Many in the crowd were already swaying on their feet, their faces pale with horror. They knew what scandalous blemishes marked their record and that their families may not be able to protect them. There were many families here stronger than theirs.

In these circumstances, everyone would offer up those from smaller families first. That wouldn’t affect the rest as much. It wasn’t the patriarch of a family being beheaded, just a son or a daughter. In the presence of concrete evidence, people wouldn’t care if the person in question died. This was the choice that minimized losses the most.

Some knew they were about to die, so they grunted through furiously clenched teeth, “Will Commander Li dare kill Mu Xiaorong if she’s one of the names put forward?”

“Vote!” Li Hao smiled. “If she’s among the one hundred and there’s indisputable evidence for her crimes, I will behead her first for the rest of you to see! I’ll hack at her father and grandfather if they come too. Do you believe me when I say I’d like to see how many Arcanus there are in the Ministry of Internal Affairs?”

“……” No one responded to him.

Mu Xiaorong was as pale as a sheet before suddenly smiling. “I’m not afraid of this, Commander Li! True nobles may not be the evildoers and violators of the law as you think. You’re right, the innocent have nothing to fear!”

Li Hao snorted and didn’t think much of what she said. He tossed out some transmission pendants and turned to leave.

“Three days,” his voice came back upon the wind. “You have three days at most. I want results after that! If there are none after three days, it may be more than one hundred who die. Think on it carefully!”

Li Hao left. Shouts, curses, and roars of fury exploded from the yard behind him. Some even tried to make a break for it! But they couldn’t as they discovered that the number of Night Watchers had suddenly increased exponentially around them.

These Night Watchers who’d feared them before seemed to be different today. Some visibly exulted in schadenfreude, others ground their teeth in anger, and some more… fearfully looked at Li Hao in the distance. They didn’t dare let anyone go. Li Hao had said that one of them would be buried for each person they let go, so who would dare do anything for their prisoners?

……

Skystar City exploded with reaction when news traveled through the noble families.

“Crazy!”

“He’s seriously crazy!”

“Does this animal want to be enemies with the entire dynasty??”

“No, my daughter can’t die. She hasn’t done anything wrong and this has nothing to do with our family. It’s other people at fault, so why do they hold my daughter??”

“We need to plead our cases at the nine ministries and royal family. Li Hao can’t be allowed to do this!”

“……”

It took only a moment, but the entire city truly shook in the wake of the news. Further information circulated as too many knew the particulars, they couldn’t be concealed. It was almost on the same day that the tens of million residents of Skystar City learned of the news as well. They were all stunned beyond belief!

The Skystar Commander Office would publicly execute one hundred guilty nobles after three days—one hundred!

Heavens above!

Could nobles be… executed?

News that Demon Sword Li Hao, Skystar Commander Li Hao, would be executing one hundred nobles was more shocking than the demise of the Four Seas Company and Skystar Colosseum. Li Hao was the only topic in the marketplace on this day.

“This Skystar Duke is too brash. There won’t be a good ending in store for him if he kills nobles!”

“There haven’t been many nobles arrested in the past decades, to say nothing of being beheaded!”

“This isn’t real, is it? Maybe they’re just saying this. The nobles have so much power, would he really dare do that?”

“It’s best if he dares! Killing them is for the good! Those bastards have committed so many crimes, they all deserve death!”

“It’s easy to speak of, are you going to kill them yourself? If you do, I say this Skystar Duke will probably die himself!”

“Ai, it’s hard being a good person. The nobles grasp the reins of power in the dynasty. This northern savage is really… really… too brash! Killing two or three would do, but killing so many… What a pity!”

“Northern savage" wasn’t used in a derogatory way in this moment. It was simply punctuated with some regret and pity. The people did not think well of one person going against the entire ruling class. They felt that Li Hao would not be long for this world.

The news spread in all directions. It might be Li Hao’s moment of death in three days, not these nobles.

etvolare’s Thoughts

It’s a pretty damned good and devious plan though.