Chapter 42: After All, He Is Still Just a Child

Page (1/3)

Chapter 42: He Is Still a Child, After All

The Empire State Building, Level Seven Underground.

Within the enormous circular chamber, which stretched two stories high, stood a round platform at the center of the first floor. Beyond it, darkness churned ceaselessly.

On the second-floor gallery sat row upon row of golden chairs engraved with strange symbols, each set far apart from the others.

Their occupants were elderly men dressed in expensive custom-tailored suits or pure-white ceremonial robes trimmed in gold.

Had an outsider been present, even someone who rarely followed the news would have recognized some of them as influential figures highly active in both the political and business worlds.

At that moment, these great men—who together controlled more than seventy percent of the Federation’s wealth and power—were all staring down at the white-haired old man in black robes standing on the circular platform below.

“Frank, do you know what you did wrong?”

The speaker sat on the second floor. He was a gaunt old man with a head of white hair, so ancient that he looked as though he might die at any moment.

His high-backed chair rose a notch above those of the others and was covered in intricate, bizarre patterns. Like a crown, it set him apart from everyone else.

Thud!

The white-haired old man in black robes, Frank, suddenly dropped to his knees. Supporting himself with both hands, he wept bitterly toward the man above.

“Chairman Bridges, I was wrong. I shouldn’t have attempted to summon the Omniscient God. I shouldn’t have sacrificed the elite members of the branch in order to escape. I shouldn’t have concealed it from headquarters…”

He suddenly stopped.

Bridges had raised a hand, signaling him to be quiet.

“Frank, it seems you still don’t know where you went wrong.”

Bridges lowered his trembling hand and sighed softly.

“You went wrong because you failed.”

Frank felt a bitter taste in his heart.

Yes. If the divine descent ritual had succeeded, his standing within the Heavenly God Society would have risen dramatically. Perhaps he might even have replaced this old corpse and become chairman himself.

But he knew regret was useless. He began banging his head against the floor and cried out loudly, “I know I’ve done many things wrong, but I’m willing to make amends. I’m willing to—”

“Cough, cough!”

Bridges coughed violently twice. His face twisted grotesquely, as though he were about to cough up his blood and internal organs.

After taking a moment to recover, he ignored Frank’s continued pleas for mercy below and shakily raised a hand, waving it once.

Whoosh!

From a corner below, five black tentacles shot out of the churning darkness in an instant. They bound Frank’s hands, feet, and head.

Frank’s expression changed drastically.

“No! Chairman Bridges, please give me one more—”

Crack!

Page (1/3)

Page (2/3)

Before he could finish saying “chance,” the black tentacles tore off his hands, feet, and head, dragging them into the darkness. All that remained was a torso spraying blood wildly.

Several sounds of chewing and swallowing echoed from within the depths of the darkness.

The people seated on the second-floor gallery showed no change in expression, as though they had long grown accustomed to such scenes.

Some were expressionless. Some were visibly excited. Others sneered with disdain. Most wore elegant smiles.

No one knew whether those were their genuine thoughts or merely masks worn upon their faces.

Yet whenever their gazes happened to pass over Bridges, a trace of fear and wariness would instinctively appear in their eyes.

When the Heavenly God Society was founded thirty years ago, Bridges had already looked as though he were on the verge of being buried. Now, three decades later, he still looked exactly the same.

He had clung to the chairman’s position all this time, neither dying nor truly living.

“Now, let us discuss the next matter.”

Bridges spoke listlessly, lightly tapping the armrest with his fingertips.

Discuss the next matter?

Many of them sneered inwardly. You call it a discussion, but how many times have you ever asked for our opinions?

Of course, none of them dared to say it aloud.

In truth, the reason Frank had been able to deceive Bridges, steal the divine artifact, and successfully initiate the divine descent ritual was that he had received their covert support.

They had done so because they wanted someone else to challenge the old monster who had occupied the chairman’s seat for thirty years.

The facts had proven that their plan had failed once again.

But they would not give up.

Frank was not the first person to die for this reason, and he certainly would not be the last.

At that moment, several monitors slowly descended from the ceiling. Each faced a different direction, ensuring that everyone present could see them clearly.

The black screens flickered to life.

A broad highway appeared on the displays.

As the camera drew closer, it revealed an off-road vehicle speeding along the road. There was only one person inside: a black-haired man whose muscles were exaggerated to an almost absurd degree.

“This child—I believe quite a few of you should have looked into him before, correct?”

Bridges slowly turned his head, his cloudy, lifeless eyes sweeping over the others.

Before long, several people spoke.

“His name is Jiang Garcia. From a young age, he displayed an extraordinary personality and unusual abilities. He possesses the special power to sense and eliminate dangerous species.”

“Three years ago, this child founded the Demon Elimination Company. Entering the world of dangerous species as an exterminator, he achieved a one-hundred-percent success rate. A year ago, he was publicly recognized as one of the strongest exterminators in the industry. His codename is Demon.”

Page (2/3)

Page (3/3)

“He rarely displays his true strength before others. However, judging from the energy fluctuations produced whenever he takes action, as well as the extent of the surrounding destruction, his power is unquestionably worthy of the title of strongest exterminator.”

“I once tried to hire this child as my bodyguard, but he refused me.”

“I also attempted to recruit him. I even offered him shares—enough for him to earn several times what he makes as an exterminator every year without lifting a finger. He refused that as well.”

“I’ve watched footage of this child’s battles. Very few exterminators possess strength like his while still retaining a human appearance.”

“Although this child is young, he is extremely powerful. Money has no influence over him, and his emotions are remarkably faint. One could say he has almost no weaknesses.”

“This child’s power comes from a source different from that of other exterminators. Most likely, it lies in his left arm.”

One after another, the assembled men recounted most of Jiang Ren’s life story, even revealing some highly confidential information.

When referring to Jiang Ren, they all instinctively called him a child. After all, even the youngest person present was already over sixty years old.

“Indeed, this child is a rare talent. It is a pity that he cannot be made to work for us.”

Bridges’ expression remained calm as he spoke in an indifferent tone.

“Now, it seems this child has made us his extermination targets.”

“What?”

Someone could not help exclaiming upon hearing this.

There was no denying that this exterminator was extraordinarily powerful—powerful enough to be called the strongest human being alive. But they did not believe that alone could pose any threat to them.

After all, they stood at the very summit of the pyramid of wealth and power. They controlled the food, clothing, housing, and transportation of hundreds of millions of people—and even their lives. They were “gods.”

How could a human possibly defeat a god?

Thus, apart from surprise, they felt mostly amused.

“Then how should we deal with this child?”

The corners of Bridges’ mouth lifted slightly, revealing a sinister smile.

“He is still a child, after all.”

“So let us send him to meet God.”

“Yes. We have always been very lenient when dealing with children.”

The outcome, unsurprisingly, was unanimous.

Some readers may be wondering, “Wasn’t the protagonist supposed to stop being human? Why is he still human in the first two volumes?”

Let me clarify: strictly speaking, the protagonist is no longer human in this volume, since his left arm is not his original one.

And, as a small preview, the protagonist will stop being human entirely in the next volume.

End of Chapter.