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墨書 Inktalez
Bit Island is a small island, a well-known place on the Western Continent. It is not famous for its greatness, but rather for its uniqueness. Bit Island is located off the coast of the Western Continent and serves as a place of exile for criminals from the continent. It offers no food or basic necessities for survival, leaving its inhabitants to resort to robbery and selling themselves.
This place is also abandoned, as women use their primal instincts to survive, leading to rampant diseases. With no one willing to bury the dead, plagues are common. Every year, there are a few days when City-States come here to purchase slaves from the Dawn Empire; only beautiful women and strong men have a chance of becoming slaves, which is their best opportunity to leave Bit Island.
Due to the abolition of slavery and the shift to labor systems, strong men are recruited for high-risk jobs, such as working in mines with no safety measures. Since then, the people of Bit Island have found a source of livelihood and no longer resort to cannibalism for survival. Gradually, gangs began to emerge to manage Bit Island. They protect farmers' fields and fishermen's boats to ensure food production on the island.
However, being Bit Island, new criminals arrive daily, and escapees are often shot dead. The Eternity Alliance holds the Dawn Empire accountable for this situation, but the Dawn Empire responds that this is their only means of dealing with dangerous prisoners—far better than how other City-States treat their prisoners like family.
As time passed, the first batch of natives emerged. Although their lives remained harsh, they at least managed to survive. Families began to form, and children were born.
When Eva was ten years old, her parents sold her at an auction attended by many wealthy outsiders. Although slavery had been abolished, for some people it was merely a change in name. Ten-year-old Eva was already quite beautiful and was ultimately bought by a man in his seventies.
Once she left Bit Island on the ship, the old man whipped Eva mercilessly; unable to perform sexually due to his age, he derived pleasure from her painful cries. At that moment, Regis appeared and killed everyone on board. He turned to Eva and said, "I want everyone to know that the people of Bit Island are not trash; I need your help."
The Criminal Squad was formed, and Eva, who had trained in the Six Elements, began her journey into crime alongside outlaws. They had acquired purchasing rights—not for the island itself but for people. They bought a new island five hundred nautical miles away. Every year, they would purchase people from Bit Island and take them to New Island. On New Island, there were rules in place; new residents had housing, farmland, and fishing boats. They could elect their own leaders to manage New Island.
Currently, New Island has only one thousand inhabitants because purchasing the island and acquiring equipment requires money; one thousand people produce little and mostly consume resources. Their goal is twenty thousand people—to build a City-State that would show the Dawn Empire that it is not because the people of Bit Island are worthless but because of the Dawn Empire's poor policies. The Cult of the Gods has already established a presence on New Island, opening churches and distributing food. However, whether expanding New Island or improving infrastructure or purchasing criminals from Bit Island requires funds.
Cui Ming applauded after hearing this: "That's great! I didn't realize Regis was so remarkable."
"You mean I'm remarkable?"
"No, you're just a sycophant grateful for Regis's rescue. You don't actually support his ideals," Cui Ming replied. "Regis does have some ambition, but what does that have to do with me? I don't lack money."
"Joining the Criminal Squad isn't about you coming with us to find money. Money isn't key; it's about the Dawn Empire. We already have enough money; we can immigrate whenever needed," Eva explained. "Our current work involves dealing with the Dawn Empire; they certainly won't be pleased with what we're doing. The Ding Family acts as dogs for the Dawn Empire and will negotiate with us to do their bidding in exchange for helping build New Island's infrastructure."
Cui Ming expressed doubt: "Hire you?"
"Of course, it's us. Would the Ding Family dare to kill indiscriminately? However, the Ding Family and the Dawn Empire need some dark methods. For example, the neighboring country of the Dawn Empire is a vassal state. On the first day of the new lord's tenure, he began promoting independence. The neighboring country is rich in minerals and was colonized by the empire in its early years. Since then, the empire has maintained a puppet policy, selling countless resources to the Dawn Empire at low prices. Yet this lord, on the surface a sycophant, secretly possesses integrity. What should we do? The Ding Family certainly cannot take action; ordinary assassins cannot kill a lord. This dirty work can only be done by us. Once the new lord is dead, the deputy lord will immediately replace his ten policies. The public will be dissatisfied, and the new lord will surely be ousted, but that will be two years from now." Although the lord is elected by the people, the candidates are provided by the Dawn Empire. This city-state is too important to the Dawn Empire; it is their only outlet to the sea and contains vast mineral resources. The Dawn Empire will spare no expense to control this city. The city sought help from the Eternity Alliance, which held a vote resulting in 98% of the public supporting the leadership of the Dawn Empire. Why was it so high? Because all polling stations were guarded by fully armed soldiers from the Dawn Empire. The remaining 2% were observation points sent by the Eternity Alliance.
Cui Ming said, "I saw in the news that shortly after the lord's death, a vote for annexation into the Dawn Empire was held, and finally 98% of the public approved it. According to interviews with citizens, joining the Dawn Empire would grant them free healthcare. Ha ha, pure trickery; you really have no way to counter it." The Dawn Empire is the strongest nation on the planet and one of the founding nations of both the Eternity Alliance and Force Alliance.
Eva said, "We are bad people aiding and abetting evil."
"Who isn't? From an outsider's perspective, the Dawn Empire seems terrible, but from its citizens' view, the empire has done many things for their country. The people of the Dawn Empire take pride in being part of it and look down on those from other nations."
"The principle of governance for the Dawn Empire is to be harsh externally but soft internally; thus, for thousands of years, it has remained the most powerful nation on this planet." Eva continued, "Putting this matter aside, if you are willing, we can hire you. Money means nothing to us, but sometimes we need help with various matters. If you assist us when needed, we will also help you in return. That’s how our Criminal Squad operates."
"Do you need help at present?" Cui Ming asked.
"Right now it's just this Spectral Cloak; we can discuss other business after the Assessment Match."
Cui Ming laughed heartily, pounding his fist on the table: "In essence, you want to pull off a heist without any investment." Going around in such circles just to get your hands on a Spectral Cloak.
Eva replied seriously: "This is a personal favor; we owe you one. When you need assistance in the future, we will do our utmost to help you. Now tell me, Cui Ming, why do I irrationally desire this cloak? Even if I collaborate with Wraiths, I still want this cloak. Why doesn't Regis stop me?"
"Why?"
"Because...the Ye Family has given us one last task: as long as we can kill someone, Regis's ideals can be realized." Eva explained: "This task is difficult; obtaining the Spectral Cloak feels like winning a lottery ticket. Unfortunately, it’s ultimately a commission from Silent City; we still chose not to push ourselves too hard. Cui Ming, you can find someone to swear an oath; as long as you are willing to give me that cloak, I will wholeheartedly assist you whenever you need help—even if it means going through fire and water."
"You want to repay Regis's favor by selling that favor to me." Cui Ming took out a key and placed it on the table: "The locker at the supermarket across from my hotel is yours; no need for repayment."
"Why?" Eva asked.
"Firstly, it's useless to me; secondly, if I refuse, I'm worried there might be trouble tonight. Since you're so eager for this item and it's so important to Ye Family—if you want to forcefully take it from me, I can't fight against you. At least I appreciate that you chose negotiation over violence." Thirdly, assuming you're telling the truth—at least you possess virtue in repaying kindness—then you'll definitely owe me one for my favor; I'll accept that virtue. If you're lying... well then it's a choice—an investment—it's up to how you see it. From Cui Ming's perspective, not giving Eva what she wants makes Spectral Cloak worthless. In life, one seeks benefits; it's best when honesty prevails.
Eva picked up the key and stood while watching Cui Ming write a series of numbers on paper: "I’ll remember this favor; if you ever need anything, just leave a message at any casino—I’m a super VIP and frequent those places often. You’ll receive your message."
"You don’t have to go that far," Cui Ming said sincerely.
"We can only be sure of killing, but not of getting the Spectral Cloak, especially in Twilight City; killing is quite troublesome," Eva said. "Remember, you can ask for anything."
Cui Ming smiled, "Now that you mention it, I feel a bit wicked."
Eva mocked him with her expression, "You wicked? With your fledgling appearance, who would even suffer a loss? If you need anything, I can accompany you tonight, and it won't count as a favor. I can even give you a Red Envelope."
Cui Ming was left speechless.
"Thank you," Eva nodded and turned to leave.
"Wait," Cui Ming called out to her, standing up and walking over to her side. He whispered, "The item is on the ceiling of the bathroom in the room next door."
Eva was at a loss for words, feeling touched inside. She hadn't expected this guy to be playing with her. She pointed at Cui Ming, unsure of what to say, before turning and walking away.
Cui Ming said behind her, "In this world, one must always keep a hand in reserve." If Eva got the key without trusting him, he would immediately run away with Mi Xiaonan. They could go to the palace and contact Prince Jayce for help. He had no use for the Spectral Cloak, but why should he let her benefit?
Eva extended her middle finger without looking back as she walked away.
"Hey, you could try talking to Dawn City," Cui Ming called after her. Although Dawn City had a large population, outside the city limits, the population density was low and many areas needed people. The city lord planned to focus on Kama Town for desert management and greening efforts. News reported that they were negotiating with surrounding City-States to bring in fifty thousand laborers. While the desert location was not ideal and Bit Island had its share of troublemakers, these were not insurmountable issues. There was a movie called Scarface Demon that depicted how a certain City-State drove away a lot of social dregs to neighboring countries. Those countries took them in, and twenty years later, the border where these social dregs lived transformed from a small town into a globally renowned city. Meanwhile, that country continued to produce a large amount of refuse.
Eva glanced back at Cui Ming before heading downstairs and leaving the casino. (To be continued.)
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