Chapter 260: The Momentum of Spreading Flames
In the twelfth year of the Demon’s Reign.
Collapse-style corruption and fraudulently claiming subsidies have become high-frequency terms. Many high-ranking officials have been imprisoned, and there are very many of them.
Of course, on Zhihu, they didn’t receive good reviews. People generally believe they are the cannon fodder of the power struggle, discussing various conspiracy theories back and forth.
But regardless of the truth, the atmosphere has become much more honest.
Some people complain that China does not prioritize technological innovation. They rejected new high-tech projects that had the support of overseas Chinese scientists and well-known domestic scientists, insisting they were just fraudulent claims, which truly hurt the hearts of many who wished to progress.
This resonated with many on Zhihu, who complained about their salaries, believing they greatly hindered scientific development.
For a period of time, “strong technological nation” became the latest sarcastic meme.
Thus, in Ji Ma’s eyes, China remained the same as before, unremarkable, with a dull and tasteless life.
So, for the first time, she accepted a request from a wealthy businessman from China to meet her, to pass the tedious time before her next whim.
In Ji Ma’s view, he looked very ugly, with a round face and head, and his black hair already showing signs of receding. A few years ago, he was completely bald, and at Ji Ma’s auction, he bought “Youth Water” for the tenth highest bid, gaining a few more years of youth.
The auction for “Youth Water” was very intense.
Each year, Ji Ma only auctioned off ten bottles of “Youth Water” capable of restoring ten years of youth. The auction mode was highest bidder wins, and unsuccessful bidders did not get their funds returned and had to drink it on the spot while the whole process was live-streamed.
Even with such harsh conditions, there were numerous bidders, and a wealth of money flooded into the auction. According to idle statistics, in just three years, the total auction amount exceeded what the United States allocated to NASA for space exploration in a year.
Initially, Ji Ma intended to make money and also profit from the pain gathered.
But unexpectedly, under the intense promotion of various media, the pain gained was negligible.
They spoke of the “trickle-down effect,” asserting that if some people became rich, the whole society would benefit too. They claimed personal freedom allowed individuals to spend their own money however they wished.
They argued that when billionaires purchased luxury goods, it benefited society and facilitated the circulation of wealth, which was much more scientific than a welfare system that fosters laziness.
Moreover, some packaged attending the auction as “starting from scratch, stepping onto the stage of dreams.” Others referenced one of Ji Ma’s past assertions, “Never profit from blood and sweat; never benefit from labor,” adding, “Unless the money is enough.”
Stories, theories, and jokes emerged.
Those billionaires buying “Youth Water” stubbornly became the heroes of slapping the demon king in the face.
Ji Ma, seeing the effects of wealth stimulating cultural and entertainment productions, decided not to make trouble.
She remembered that the businessman from China, who had previously flaunted on stage, was now droning on incessantly. Complaining about how China was butchering the fat sheep and, in the name of labor laws and antitrust laws, slaughtering the company he painstakingly built.
In the end, he almost cursed: “Now the elites are fearful, taking their capital abroad, let them die poor!”
Ji Ma vaguely recalled seeing someone on Zhihu say that many big bosses were emigrating; they were the top ten in every industry, elites among elites, the helmsmen of China’s economy, and surprisingly, some people doubted this was an issue.
Some were very pleased, as this proved that the environment in China was dire, forcing even the smartest to flee. Others peddled anxiety, claiming that China disrespected personal property and that sooner or later, they would plunder their wealth.
While Ji Ma felt they should be celebrating rather than complaining about the widening wealth gap and the threat of being hanged at any moment, she understood that emotions were often irrational and didn’t pay much attention.
The nearly incessant lamentations from the wealthy businessman made Ji Ma quite impatient. She waved her iron hand and said, “I’ll give you thirty seconds; I am not your therapist.”
“They froze my assets. As long as you speak up, willing to protect us, you will definitely receive ample rewards.”
“I’m not lacking assets.” Ji Ma snapped her fingers. “Goodbye.”
Two semi-transparent ghosts grabbed the wealthy man’s arms and dragged him back.
“There’s! Someone said! China has developed extraordinary powers! Established an organization called the Dragon Group to kill you and destroy the world~~~”
His voice stretched longer and longer until it vanished.
Ji Ma had heard such alarmist talk enough times that she was usually too lazy to think it through, considering it a waste of mental effort.
However, given her boredom today, Ji Ma blinked and did a divination for the businessman, discovering no trace of extraordinary powers, and thus dismissed him.
…
…
Little Ji, exuding a white spiritual light from her arms, cried tears of joy while George couldn’t help but embrace her tightly.
The white spiritual light was the result of faction detection, indicating that Little Ji had cut off her connection to her original nature and had truly stepped into the realm of goodness.
“Thank you,” Little Ji wiped her eyes. “I finally have basic empathy.”
George looked at her face, which resembled Ji Ma’s, and said, “No, I should thank you.”
“She…” Little Ji said, “She must be pitiful too. Although she has power, she hasn’t overcome the trauma of the past and continues to find pleasure and satisfaction in hurting others. Is there any way to redeem her?”
“I think the human court might give her such an opportunity.”
“No, I’m not asking about the public matter; I’m asking about you.”
“Me?” George said. “I do want to be merciful towards her, but people might not forgive her; this matter is not mine alone to decide.”
“Then at least, can I meet her? I have some things I want to say to her.”
“Sure.”
George gazed at Little Ji, the benevolent demon, a miracle of existence, much like a pacifist appearing among the blood god’s vampires.
He couldn’t help but stroke Little Ji’s head, thinking how nice it would have been if Ji Ma had stepped onto the path of goodness sooner.
Unfortunately, he lamented his own pride, failing to notice her complex experiences in time; had he noticed earlier, the outcome might have been different.
That night.
George had a beautiful dream. He dreamed of melodious celestial music, with Ji Ma among the flowers, dressed in a pure white dress, her eyes devoid of greed and desire, gentle and kind as she knelt on the grass, smiling at him.
However, her face blurred, becoming less like Ji Ma’s.
Then, George dreamt of Ji Ma’s victims, their loud accusations and expressions of anger directed at him. They charged, “Why don’t you gnash your teeth at that evil woman?”
The reproaches tore through the entire dream.
George woke up, alone, revealing an unusual expression of hesitation, guilt, and panic.
From a perspective of justice, he not only had to dedicate himself to righteousness, but also to his spirit. He harbored a sacred hatred towards Ji Ma.
But from a personal standpoint, he couldn’t bring himself to hate her. He continually recalled their wonderful moments together, thought of her soaring figure in the dark cave filled with flying bullets, which assured him that she had always been a reliable comrade.
He recalled, in the darkness, her bright golden eyes that shone with interest and her proud, discontent smile—a memory etched deeply in his heart.
He found it difficult to face her, gritting his teeth in hatred as he thought of tearing her throat out with his teeth.
Another “extremely important” meeting was convened.
“…To save all humanity is to save ourselves. We have encountered high-level personnel covertly opposing her in America; many are silently resisting, just waiting for the right opportunity.”
“The next step plan is to establish an international organization to assist everyone in liberation, and then send Comrade George to fight to the death and directly eliminate her.”
George raised his hand and said, “I have a proposal.”
“Please speak.”
“Would it be possible to consider giving her a chance?” George said, “Now that China can be secured, I can negotiate with her to try and persuade her back to our world.”
“I fully understand that your homeland is currently in turmoil and needs strong assistance, but our greatest advantage lies in the shadows. If negotiations fail, you will eventually have to return. She will stay on Earth for a thousand or even ten thousand years, until humanity migrates to space… and the secret response from America is that they would prefer her to die… but this issue can still be explored.”
“Sorry,” George said, “This proposal comes entirely from self-interest and has nothing to do with saving the world.”
The meeting room fell into rare silence. Currently, the “Spark Plan” is gathering momentum, but as a principal player in resisting the demon king fundamentally, George showed signs of wavering.
“Well… what if the organization requires a no-mercy approach?”
“I will fully comply with the organization’s arrangements.”
“Good, don’t lose heart. Circumstances may change by then, and we will act flexibly.”
Someone asked, “Why do we need to take risks to develop in America, the demon king’s territory?”
“This is the most prudent plan.”
“I have seen Comrade George’s report on his secret extraordinary abilities; since he can embody ‘I am for everyone, and everyone is for me’ to gather strength, why can’t we create momentum first, let him live-stream and directly gain support from hundreds of millions or even over a billion people, thus acquiring unmatched power to defeat her?”
“This is a last-resort emergency plan, akin to nuclear weapons. Our working leadership group believes it shouldn’t be used unless absolutely necessary. We need to act prudently and cannot treat the lives of people from other nations as negligible.”
“Does it have any negative effects?”
George replied, “No. The simple justice of the masses will lack flexibility.”
“What do you mean?”
“I will not go against public opinion.”
“Is it cannot, or will not?”
“As I lend strength in the name of justice, the essence is borrowing public power. How can I misappropriate public power for personal ends?”
After the meeting concluded.
The tightly organized group was secretly recruiting idealists.
Regardless of how Ji Ma liked to mock those resisting her, it must be acknowledged that in the unseen darkness, many were willing to dedicate their power and even their lives for elusive ideals.
This ideal transcended borders, bloodlines, and races.
Extraordinary contracts, legal powers capable of protecting members, and other extraordinary means effectively sifting and identifying potential members.
The international organization known as Spark, was sweeping across the world with the momentum of spreading flames.
While Ji Ma was reluctant to invest too much thought, managing her thousands of maids in a rough manner.
The Spark organization had already developed a tight and effective organizational framework around George’s extraordinary abilities.
While Ji Ma was busy trying to flirt with female athletes.
The Spark organization began secretly experimenting with how to quickly and massively remove Ji Ma’s kidnapping curse and conducting drills.
While Ji Ma complained about video games and how each generation seemed worse than the last, questioning when GTA 7 would be released and how many people hadn’t bought GTA 6 yet.
The Spark organization began repeatedly rehearsing the feasibility of its plan, with ignorant soldiers conducting multinational drills.
Of course, various information about Ji Ma was further investigated and validated. The “retired” maids had not undergone strict training, nor were they organized with discipline, making it easy to extract information. They even knew that Ji Ma loves to eat rapeseed flowers, having 298 meals of it in a year.
They also knew that Ji Ma’s hosted ceremony was called the Blasphemy Ceremony.
They just couldn’t figure out what the main purpose of the Blasphemy Ceremony was.
Even the witches were unaware, and Ji Ma had placed powerful curses in their minds to prevent them from leaking secrets, so George and Little Ji could not discern the main objective of the Blasphemy Ceremony through details.
However, this did not deter everyone.
Because after drills and calculations, it was determined that when Ji Ma faced George, she would lose her proud mobility and become a sitting duck. The most conservative estimate was that it would take five minutes to deal with Ji Ma.
The only chance of Ji Ma surviving would be to make the Spark organization hesitate, which meant kidnapping many innocents.
In other words, as long as she was ensured she couldn’t abduct the lives of many innocents, all that was needed was to remove the curses afflicting those around her, especially the majority of curses on ordinary citizens from major countries.
Through extensive expert calculations, a large number of elite minds reached a conclusion.
“Based on the current progress, within six months to a year, we can launch the most prudent and effective attack; this year is particularly critical…”
It is now the fourteenth year of the Demon’s Reign.
In a secret meeting, there were many people of different ethnic backgrounds present.
The speaker felt that his words were too serious, so he made an effort to add humor: “…Of course, based on historical experience, she will be negligent and complacent. Our members are loyal and trustworthy, well-trained, and have repeatedly extinguished unexpected incidents in their infancy.”
“Report! The oath paper numbered 1457 has burned! Someone has betrayed us!”
“Who?”
“Still investigating!”
George sighed, resting his hand on his chin. But such occurrences weren’t unprecedented and had been smoothly resolved in the past.
“…It’s the special agent Johnson.”
“How could it be him?”
He was one of the most resolute individuals in the Spark organization and a primary member of the pursuit team for traitors.
“Indeed.”
“He may not withstand the backlash of breaking the contract.”
“We must think of the worst-case scenario. Ten hours, only ten hours! After ten hours, he can break free from the contract’s restraints and call her name; that would spell disaster for us. Where is his last known location?”
“France.”
George opened his eyes and asked, “Where?”
“At the Paris Opera House in the capital of France, watching ballet; he is likely there to meet his mistress.”
George said, “I request to pursue him personally.”
“Very well, you will join a special search team.”
