The avalanche bullet shattered Zhou Yu's forehead.

The mental link severed—

The radiance of the Ruler of Truth slowly dissipated, the mechanical sniper rifle disassembled, turning into a sky full of flowing light, returning to Gu Shen's sleeve.

He breathed out a long breath.

Because he had been forcibly extracted from the dream, terrifying images of that blood-fire waterfall remained imprinted in Gu Shen's mind… but he knew that it was all over.

Zhou Yu was dead.

【Annihilation Dream】 was dispelled.

The people standing in the street slowly awoke, not yet realizing what was different… because their time had been frozen at that moment, but some couldn't help but turn their necks, feeling a slight ache in their limbs.

The slumbering capital city regained a hint of life and vitality, the people on the streets resuming their movements like fireflies.

Inside the auditorium, the Lucerne Orchestra's performance also slowly came to a stop, not only because the will of blood and fire had dissipated… but also because the piece had ended, the Heroic Symphony truly reaching its finale.

…

…

"The situation… is roughly like this."

Gu Shen briefly explained his experiences in the dream… of course, omitting Chu Ling's presence.

The two titled powerhouses stood beside Zhou Yu's corpse.

On the Jiangba embankment, the two titled powerhouses who had engaged in a brief battle now silently stared at Zhou Yu's corpse, both with a hint of dimness and sorrow in their eyes… the genius adjudicator of yesteryear, after ten years, his appearance unchanged, still possessing a stern face with sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes, even in death, only his brow slightly pale.

Controlling a power like 【Annihilation Dream】, he had once been considered the successor to the Grand Adjudicator.

It was a pity… he had left too soon.

Zhou Yu lay on the lawn, a gentle breeze blowing through his hair, because the avalanche bullet had damaged his body's "logic," so those strands of hair were no longer strong, easily lifted by the wind.

Like ashes that had been completely burned.

Or like the ash at the end of Zhou Jiren's cigar.

Before long, he would be completely "shattered"—

"Shu… congratulations."

Gu Zhi's complexion was somewhat pale, perhaps because his spirit had been ignited by blood and fire when he faced Owl head-on… now he looked somewhat listless, and his voice sounded weak.

But the congratulations in his words were genuine.

"You've taken on an extraordinary student."

Gu Zhi examined Gu Shen once more… when they met at Jiangba, he hadn't seen anything special about this S-rank, and it was still the same this time.

Gu Shen seemed very ordinary.

But… that shot just now was anything but ordinary.

Just from the point of breaking free from Owl's "spiritual control" alone, it was enough to prove that this young man had a one-in-a-million talent for dream interpretation… this alone was enough to justify the "S-rank" rating.

At a critical moment, he dared to shoot, and he even hit!

This little guy really had a… big heart.

Would he have dared to take that shot when he was younger?

Gu Zhi felt a little regretful and said, "It's just a pity… Zhou Yu was just one of the many 'vessels' in his control. Owl's true form is hidden somewhere."

"There's nothing to regret."

Zhou Jiren flicked his cigarette ash and said softly, "This guy is hiding behind the scenes… his true form is likely not even in Dongzhou. Killing this vessel means that his plans in the Dadu District will suffer a huge blow."

Suitable vessels were not so easy to find.

"Don't you think… his behavior is very similar to…" Gu Zhi suddenly spoke, then hesitated.

"Choosing favorite transcendents to become their 'representatives'… this is what the Seven Gods of the Fireseed do." Zhou Jiren had nothing to hide and spoke directly, "It's just that Owl's methods are too inferior. He can't find willing followers, so he uses his abilities to brainwash others, cultivating them into 'believers' who are loyal to him."

"Their behavioral logic seems somewhat similar… but in reality, Owl is a clumsy imitator."

"The Seven Gods bestow their own power for the apostles to use. The Gods don't care about returns, and the apostles will surely repay with loyalty. Owl is the opposite. He chooses to cleanse the mind first, ensuring loyalty, and then seizing the body and forcibly taking the power."

Zhou Jiren said lightly, "They seem the same, but in fact, there's too much difference between them."

"One is to share and bestow supreme power, strengthening others."

"The other is to hollow out puppets to strengthen oneself."

Indeed… Owl was an extremist obsessed with the old world, while the Seven Gods were selfless pioneers who opened up the future's glory. The two were vastly different in terms of both vision and mind.

Gu Zhi looked at Zhou Yu's corpse and, after a moment of silence, asked, "What about the files?"

He had just opened his mouth.

A muffled sound came from above the tower.

"Dong!"

The old clock trembled violently, and the crows trapped inside finally regained consciousness.

Zhou Jiren glanced at the old clock, ignoring it.

He raised his five fingers.

【Sacred Wood】 rose from the ground, transforming into a close-fitting coffin around the ancient clock, muffling the dull impact sound and isolating the sound interaction between the outside world and the top of the tower.

"I will submit Owl's ability profile to the council. If there are no more follow-up serial incidents in the Dadu District, then the special investigation team's mission will be considered complete… As for the auditorium attack, it will be successfully solved with Zhou Yu's execution as the ending." He put his hands in his suit pockets and said softly, "This is the complete file."

"You know that's not what I wanted to ask…" Gu Zhi frowned and said bluntly in front of Gu Shen, "This little guy killed the person… Your report is equivalent to erasing his功勞."

"Just pretend you didn't see it."

Zhou Jiren said indifferently, "Or, if you want this merit, I can also cooperate and revise the file… 【Frost River】 Gu Zhi killed Zhou Yu and made a great contribution."

The old man suddenly fell silent.

Because he understood Zhou Jiren's true intentions.

"There are many people in this world who follow a ridiculous logic called the 'no-weakness theorem'… The strong show weakness, and the weak put on a show of strength. But who is the real strong, and does it have anything to do with external appearances?"

Zhou Jiren looked at Gu Shen, his cigar, which he hadn't properly smoked, had already burned out.

After the shot, he had been thinking about the follow-up handling.

"Don't care about what others think of you… become a true strong person first."

A bullet from the third layer of the deep sea, taking away the titled-level Zhou Yu, was simply a miracle.

But writing such a record into the files and passing it on to the ears of those in the council… would not benefit Gu Shen in any way. He would be pushed to a position that he shouldn't be in right now.

How many people blindly and enthusiastically praised him, that's how many people would expect him to be ruined.

"I understand this principle."

Gu Shen smiled and said, "I know my own capabilities very well…"

Just as he was speaking.

There seemed to be a commotion in the auditorium—

Someone whispered:

"Madam Lu!"

"Madam Lu, what's wrong?"

…

…

(Not in good condition today, just one chapter)