Volume 4: People who challenge the light Chapter 47: Heavenly Punishment
The words of the "law enforcer" were righteous and stern, and I was stunned by the scolding. What a guy, I was suddenly charged with the so-called five deadly sins, which made me, the first corpse king, look like a cruel and unjust tyrant. After all, I was born in a poor family. I was forced to fight against the fifth corpse king Kaben and replaced the first corpse king Heitian to unify the zombie world. I survived step by step with my own hard work. Even if I used the help of external forces, they were my subordinates who I conquered after going through hardships. I never cheated or relied on any nepotism. I paid so much, but in the end I had to end up with such a miserable end of being threatened to abdicate. Where is the justice? Where is the justice? The so-called justice is still in the hands of you powerful people. You can make clouds and rain with a flip of your hand!
Of course, complaining is just making me angrier, but I dare not show any dissatisfaction on the surface. I have to plan before I act, and understand the whole thing first to see if there is any possibility of resolving the dispute peacefully. It would be best to find out the true strength of Santos. Even if I want to turn against him, I have to have at least a one or two hope of winning before I dare to take the risk. I definitely cannot do something like hitting a stone with an egg, which will only lead to my death.
I tried to make my tone more respectful. "Dear 'law enforcer', I have indeed acted rashly since I took office, but that was mostly due to lack of experience. Thanks to your teachings, I have now realized my mistakes and am willing to sincerely repent. I wonder if you can give me a chance and not deprive me of my status as the First Corpse King. I will definitely correct them one by one." Oh, why does it feel like an employee who made a mistake is begging the boss? What the First Corpse King is? I thought I could act lawlessly, but I didn't know that there were people above me who were in charge. It's really too cowardly.
Santos had a dead expression on his face, which did not change with my words. He looked like an iron-faced and impartial law enforcer. "Impossible. I've given you a chance before, but you didn't know how to restrain yourself. Instead, you became more and more aggressive. You have seriously violated the 'Law of the Dead'. The appearance of the 'law enforcer' is not a warning, but a trial and punishment for the 'lawbreaker'. There is no room for bargaining."
This result was within my expectation. Since such a high-level "law enforcer" was dispatched, I would not easily dismiss him with a few words. I guess he would have to pay a price. "Dear 'law enforcer', is there no other way to solve the problem except to abdicate and hand over the 'Supreme Corpse Crown' and release the control over the other three Corpse Kings?" I asked again, not giving up the last hope of a peaceful solution.
"I have already said that this is the final decision made by me as the 'law enforcer' according to certain provisions of the 'Law of the Dead'. You must execute it accordingly."
The door to peace has been ruthlessly closed. I will never be willing to give up everything I have achieved. If this happens, my ability in the "Dead Space" will be greatly weakened. Not to mention that it will be impossible to subdue the Terror Knight, even the Dark Knight, who I no longer take seriously, may not be easily subdued. With my combat effectiveness greatly reduced, how can I be qualified to sit firmly on the position of director? How can I rely on to obtain and defend my interests?
"Dear 'Law Enforcer', as the guardian of the two major species of skeletons and zombies, you have a heavy responsibility and must have very high abilities!" I put on a more respectful expression and tone. I don't know if this can be considered an improvement. In the past, I could never do this no matter what level of leader I faced in reality. Maybe it's because I can be more relaxed in the virtual world.
"Of course. In order to maintain the authority of the law, each level of 'law enforcer' possesses abilities far superior to the undead creatures under their jurisdiction. They can easily eliminate any 'lawbreaker', including the top emperors." Santos' tone was filled with pride.
I smiled and said, "I don't know what your specific abilities are and what your overall strength is. Could you please make a public introduction so that I can broaden my horizons and see how powerful the 'law enforcers' are?" I seemed calm on the surface, as if I didn't care, but I was feeling uneasy in my heart. I didn't know if the system restricted them from "confessing" their information. If I didn't understand it clearly, it would be hard to decide whether to turn hostile and take action.
Santos made several consecutive jumps, jumping high and far, very fast, and his ability was far superior to Taotao. He was definitely agile. At the same time, he made several gun flowers and stabbed a few times. Listening to the whistling sound that tore through the air, it was obvious that there was a strong force contained in it. It would definitely not be pleasant to be hit by it. This was not over yet. His lower body stood firmly on the ground, his upper body leaned back, raised the bone spear in his right hand, and with a slight gesture, threw the bone spear out like a javelin. It was as fast as lightning, whistling a hundred meters away, and then turned around and flew back to Santos's hand quickly. The weapon was indeed a javelin, and it was a javelin that could fly back. What a powerful "law enforcer". Just looking at what he showed, he has already combined the two major professions of knight and archer into one, and can be used at both long and short distances. Isn't he the nemesis of me, a necromancer and thief?
"I am the lowest level 'law enforcer'. My overall capabilities are roughly equivalent to those of the terrifying Earth Dragon Knight. My offensive and defensive attributes are slightly worse, but my agility is better than that. I can also carry out long-range attacks and can easily suppress the resistance of the Corpse King or the Bone King." After the demonstration, Santos made further additional explanations. As expected, he was very frank and said everything he wanted to say.
The Horror Earth Dragon Knight is definitely a very powerful existence, and can easily kill the Dark Knight or even the low-level Horror Knight. I have personally seen a Horror Earth Dragon Knight kill a bloodthirsty and crazy Horror Giant Bear Knight who was wandering in front of it in just a short time. Its strength is far above Red Star and Blood Bat, and it is also a kind of guy I never dare to provoke. But now the other party has come to my door, and there is no way to avoid it. I have more than a hundred Dark Knights and Black Warriors, as well as Red Star and Blood Bat, and Xiaobai, the Devouring Ghost King, and a large group of his brothers, so I may not be powerless to fight.
"If I refuse to accept the verdict and insist on not abdicating, what measures will you take?" With a plan in mind, I restrained my smile and my tone became tougher.
"For those stubborn elements who violently resist the law, they have committed unforgivable crimes. We have the right to carry out 'divine punishment' and use coercive means to destroy them."
"What is 'divine punishment'? Can you explain it in more detail?" If you don't understand something, you must ask clearly. There may be a lot of useful information in it.
"The so-called 'heavenly punishment' means that if you violate the will of heaven, we will punish you on behalf of heaven and use violence to eliminate the stubborn 'lawbreakers'. Once the 'heavenly punishment' begins, it cannot be stopped and can only end with the defeat of one party."
That is to say, if I dare to resist, if I fail, I will not only suffer the punishment originally sentenced, but also have to meet the old man and lose 5% of my mental power limit. Moreover, if Taotao and Hongxing also encounter any accidents, my mental power will be reduced by up to 11%. The probability of defeat is probably much higher when facing the "law enforcer" whose strength is equivalent to that of the terrifying earth dragon knight and whose attack methods are varied. When the time came, I hesitated again. Not to mention losing the "Supreme Corpse Crown", if lose some more mental power limit, I, the "world's number one wizard", will be even more unworthy of the name, and it will be difficult for me to mix in the camp of top masters.
"If I abdicate, can I regain the position of the Corpse King according to the 'Law of the Dead'?" If that doesn't work, then I can temporarily compromise and agree to abdicate. At worst, I can ask Xin Bi Tian Gao for help to determine the positions of the four Corpse Kings, find a way to kill one first, and then repeat the scene of unifying the zombie world. In the future, I will be more careful and stop provoking the "law enforcers."
Santos shook his head. "Once you abdicate, you will be completely deprived of the qualifications to be the Corpse King or even the Bone King. Even if you kill them according to the procedure, you will not be able to take over their thrones. You will only find someone else to take over. This is an additional punishment for 'lawbreakers' according to the 'Law of the Dead' - based on your behavior, you are not worthy of being the King at all!"
What you said was so hurtful. I felt like I hadn't done anything wrong. Was I really guilty of such a heinous crime? They didn't even give me a chance to repent and start anew. Wouldn't the "law enforcers"' judgment completely cut off my thoughts of compromise? It was obvious that they would rather die than resist!
"What will happen if the 'lawbreaker' kills the 'law enforcer'?" From what Santos said, there seem to be many "law enforcers". If I kill one, a stronger guy will come to avenge his dead brother, or he will be punished more severely. I can't afford the consequences of that.
"Such a powerful being will be called a 'God-defying One'. Not only will they be able to gain some abilities from killing the 'law enforcer', but they will also be beyond the jurisdiction of the 'law enforcer' and will not be bound by most of the relevant 'Laws of the Dead', and will enjoy great autonomy."
Listening carefully, I noticed the words Santos used, "not subject to most of the relevant 'Laws of the Dead'", which means that I am still subject to certain restrictions. "You mean, even if I become a 'God-defying One', I can transcend the constraints of most rules, but I still don't have complete freedom and am still subject to a certain degree of control?"
"Above all of us 'law enforcers', there are three 'chief judges' who have the highest law enforcement power and can make the final judgment on all creatures in the 'Dead Space'. If the behavior of the 'god-breaker' causes the wrath of heaven and the resentment of the people, and poses a serious threat to the existence and development of the entire 'Dead Space', the 'chief judges' will come forward to sanction them. Only by defeating the joint suppression of the three 'chief judges' can one become a true 'free man' in the 'Dead Space'. At that time, the 'god-breaker' is almost equivalent to a god-like existence. Perhaps only the supreme god of death can be his opponent."
There are actually three "chief judges" above the "law enforcers". In order to suppress the resistance of the "people", the dictatorship machine of the "ruling class" is indeed extremely huge! Even if you defeat the "law enforcers" and become a "defiant person", you still have to be careful and not do anything too out of line, otherwise you may be found by the "chief judge" at any time. It is really difficult to break the old system and make some changes!
However, I have no way to retreat. Unless I want to return to my previous state of doing nothing, I can only summon up the courage to fight back. Moreover, having tasted the benefits of powerful strength, it is difficult for me to endure the way of being despised or even ignored, and struggling at the bottom. If I don’t explode under oppression, I will only perish under oppression!
"If I refuse to abdicate, will you immediately begin to execute the 'divine punishment'?"
"Of course, all acts of disobeying the judgment of the 'law enforcer' must be severely punished. However, out of obligation, if you have such an idea, I advise you to weigh the pros and cons before making a decision and think it over carefully. Although you can't mobilize zombies, it seems that there are still many other types of undead who can help you, but these black warriors and dark knights alone are not enough to compete with me. What I told you before is only my ability in normal state. When executing the 'heavenly punishment', as an 'law enforcer', I can also perform a special skill called 'Thunder Fire Cave Heaven', which will create a thunder and fire hole in the sky, and huge thunder and fire balls will fall from it to attack you. It can also automatically adjust according to your location, and will keep tracking you and continuously release thunder and fire balls. Unless you die or my mental strength is exhausted, you will not be able to get rid of its attack." As if seeing through my intention to resist, Santos gave me timely advice, intending to persuade me not to act rashly.
The fact that my strength was equivalent to that of a terrifying terrestrial dragon knight was already enough to give me a headache, and suddenly a special skill called "Thunder and Fire Cave Heaven" appeared, with an "automatic navigation system" that allowed me to chase the target and attack. Doesn't this mean that there are bombs being dropped from the sky and "law enforcers" chasing me on the ground? I need to withstand attacks from both sides at the same time, especially the thunder and fire ball attacks from above, which are impossible to defend against and difficult to block. I can only rely on myself to dodge, which immediately shook my already firm confidence.
The difficulty of defeating the "law enforcer" is quite slim. I may have to meet the dead old man at any time, but the cost of surrendering without a fight is too high, and I can't afford it. Moreover, since I met the "law enforcer", I have been marked as "special state". Before this matter is resolved, I can't be resurrected or offline. If I forcefully leave the game, I will definitely be judged as a failure. Once I make a decision, I can't turn back. I have to be very careful. Although I lose the "Supreme Corpse Crown" by choosing to abdicate, it is extremely unfavorable for long-term development, but at least these dark knights and black warriors can be preserved. With the current strength, they can still call the shots in the human world for the time being; once I choose to go to war and end in failure, not to mention the loss of the upper limit of my mental power, these subordinates will probably also suffer heavy losses. At that time, I will have nothing. How can I survive!
