305: Mo Ran's speech

A bearded man gave a passionate speech on stage; below, some discussed, some spat in disdain, and others shouted in agreement.

His general point was that this operation was different from every previous kill line, and overreacting would only be counterproductive.

Though everyone present lived a hard life, they hadn't yet been reduced to mere consumables.

If an unnecessary conflict was triggered, it would only implicate others. It had always been this way; once they had killed enough, they would naturally go back.

Furthermore, many newcomers had flooded in this time, most of whom hadn't yet escaped their status as vagrants; these people were already enough for them to kill.

When his speech finally ended, everyone booed incessantly.

This time was definitely not as simple as before, because they had already begun massacring civilians.

Everyone understood that once this precedent was set, it would be difficult to stop.

Yet people seemed to maintain their restraint; until he stepped off the stage and left, no one made things difficult for him.

It was just hard to say what would happen after he walked out the door.

A short while later, a bald old man stepped onto the stage, claiming this was a cleansing of sin by the gods. He said those so-called ordinary people were actually just like the vagrants, with demons hidden in their hearts, which was why they suffered this calamity.

He claimed to be the only one who could save everyone; as long as they paid 288 now to go to him for an "eye-opening blessing," they would have a chance to be spared.

He didn't have the same luck as the previous man. Needless to say, what kind of effect openly advertising in such a heavy atmosphere would provoke; thus, as soon as he stepped off the stage, he was invited into the men's restroom.

"Mo Ran, wait here for a moment. I've already spotted the owner of this place."

Mo Ran withdrew his gaze from the stage, took a sip of wine, and looked toward the second-floor railing in the direction Chu Tianci pointed.

Standing there was an old man in exquisite clothing, with even his beard groomed neat and smooth. Mo Ran recognized him; he was the behind-the-scenes owner of this Tavern.

When Mo Ran turned his head back, Chu Tianci had already finished his drink and was walking toward the man.

He then saw the two of them head to the third floor. Any higher, and he wouldn't be able to hear anything even with his Divine Sense.

Only after confirming Chu Tianci was far away did Mo Ran respond to Qing Xuan in his mind.

"Senior, Uncle Chu has left."

"Mm, very good."

"That fellow has a problem. If I'm not mistaken, he is the one Wilde actually sent."

"Senior... are you really sure?"

Although Mo Ran was aware of Qing Xuan's abilities, he still found it somewhat hard to believe.

"My knowledge base contains a vast number of contingency plans. A traitor with a weakness—this identity is far too common."

"Combined with various coincidences, he has certainly been used by Wilde. His wife and children are the conditions Wilde is using to blackmail him."

"Otherwise, with Wilde's style of devouring people without even spitting out the bones, since he caught him, why didn't he turn him into wine?"

"You must know that even with someone like you who still has utility value, he wanted to get rid of you more than once back then, let alone Chu Tianci."

"Then Senior, what should we do now?"

"Beat them at their own game."

"I want to see exactly what they intend to do by concentrating faith on us."

"Aside from anything else, that Stupid Lion alone can play a huge role. It is, after all, Holy Brother's Mount and has usage rights for Magic Treasures."

"When the time comes and the Power Of Faith is sufficient, the Stupid Lion's own statue can rival a Core Formation combatant. If it directly manipulates Holy Brother's Magic Treasure, it's equivalent to a Nascent Soul combatant."

"You should know that Holy Brother's Magic Treasures are extraordinary; they are definitely not something ordinary Nascent Souls of the Eastern Region can handle."

While the two were talking, a person who looked like a bartender suddenly approached.

"It's your turn."

Mo Ran was startled, thinking his mental conversation with Qing Xuan had been exposed.

Looking closely, he realized it was just a bartender with a flat expression.

Seeing Mo Ran dazed and unmoving, the bartender shook his head.

"Looking like a total greenhorn. If you didn't dare to go up, why did you sign up? It's too late for regrets now, get up there!"

With that, he pulled Mo Ran onto the stage. Mo Ran stood there with a look of bewilderment.

Below the stage, a young man dressed similarly to Mo Ran breathed a sigh of relief.

He knew he shouldn't have tried to show off by signing up. Fortunately, he had been clever when filling in the seat number and didn't write his own position.

It was just a pity for this fellow brother.

Mo Ran's mind was in a fog. He had been inexplicably dragged onto the stage and had a microphone shoved into his hand.

The eyes of everyone below were focused on him, so he had no choice but to give an awkward greeting.

"Uh... everyone... good evening?"

The audience was silent.

Mo Ran hurriedly called out to Qing Xuan in his mind, but Qing Xuan only replied with "Improvise, it'll definitely be fine," before falling silent.

Mo Ran had no choice but to bite the bullet, take two steps forward, and wave his hand.

"After experiencing today, everyone must be in a bad mood, right?"

The audience remained in dead silence.

Meanwhile, inside a room on the third floor.

"Bosses, that's the situation."

"The higher-ups require the harvesting of a large number of lives. If you still want to preserve your Families, you'd better find a way to gather the people and let them be killed."

"Later, when the people from the bottom break through the perimeter and enter the city area, your mission will be over."

"At that time, your Families will still be Families, and you can continue to enjoy your superior treatment. Otherwise, you can only die here and become one of them."

The Tavern owner had no reaction upon hearing this, only slightly raising his eyes.

A muscular man sitting opposite Chu Tianci was extremely dissatisfied.

"What the Hell do you mean? If they want to kill, then kill, why pull this stunt and make us look like villains to everyone!"

Chu Tianci shook his head.

"This time is different."

"The number of people needed is very large; those from the Pastoral Area alone aren't enough."

"Even though more vagrants flowed in this time, it's still not enough."

"We must include more civilians from Grace City to make up the numbers."

"So: the Pastoral Area revolts and massacres civilians, the Company suppresses it and saves the world. It's that simple."

At this moment, a dark-skinned young man wearing sunglasses to Chu Tianci's right took off his glasses and looked directly at him.

"What if I don't agree?"

Clearly coming from the streets, his whole body carried an Aura of someone who had seen blood.

But Chu Tianci had experienced too much and had nothing to fear. If it were before, he might have been intimidated by this Aura, but now he had nothing left to lose, so he glared right back.

"Suit yourself."

"Regardless, this is an open scheme."

"If you don't do it, someone else will."

"Your only choices are to resist or wait to be killed."

"And if you resist then, what you'll get will be far less than what you'd get by agreeing to the demands now."

"Think about it carefully yourself, and also think about what your subordinates will choose."

"I don't care what you do; I've already conveyed that Young Master's meaning."

"Whatever happens, just push Mo Ran and the Truth Cult forward at the critical moment."

It wasn't Chu Tianci's first time here, but it was the first time he was so at ease.

Usually, only the Tavern owner, the Company's black glove, would cooperate with him. The other Gang leaders were each more difficult than the last; how could he have the current 'treatment'?

If he could, he really didn't want this kind of 'treatment'.

As the four finished their talk, the fate of District 24 was thus decided.

When Chu Tianci pushed the door open with a face full of exhaustion, a spirited voice was coming from the lecture stage below, intertwined with the fanatical cheers of the audience.

Mo Ran clenched his fists, his voice gradually turning from raspy to sonorous.

"Everyone! I know why you came here. It wasn't to hear that 'they'll leave after killing enough' bullshit, nor was it to see those cowards who only know how to wave their fists but can't even hold a knife steady shouting slogans!"

"The hands holding your wine glasses are trembling! What's in your eyes isn't drunkenness, it's fear! It's the cowardice of watching your neighbors be dragged away and vagrant corpses piled at the alley entrance, while you can only bury your heads in wine jars!"

He took a step forward, his gaze sweeping across every numb face.

"You always say it's not our fault."

"That's right! It's the capital that threw us into the Pastoral Area like trash! It's them who cut off the food, raised the prices, and fueled the flames behind the scenes, causing our families to be torn apart and our homes destroyed!"

"But what about now?"

"They want to exterminate us! Yesterday it was the vagrants, today it's Uncle Wang at the street corner, tomorrow it will be you, me, and every single person sitting here!"

Mo Ran's voice suddenly rose, as if to tear through the air.

"Those who say we'll get through it if we just endure, wake up! Capital's knife is already at our throats. If we endure to the end, only a pile of dry bones will remain!"

"Those who shout about resistance but don't even know how to pick up a stone, stop deceiving yourselves! Your formalism is nothing but self-consolation before waiting for death!"

"We are not cattle or sheep! We are not livestock to be slaughtered! We are human beings! We are the people they stepped on but who are still clutching our last breath!"

He slowed his speech, but his eyes became even more determined.

"I was once as lost as you, until an existence told me: countering war is never about shouting, it's about gripping what's in your hands."

"Awakening numbness is never about persuasion, it's about letting people see the hope of living."

"That existence said what capital fears most isn't our anger, but our unity. What they fear most isn't our resistance, but our knowing—how to resist!"

Mo Ran reached out his hand, palm upward, his tone heavy and powerful.

"Now, I will tell you what to do. These aren't empty words; this is the path to survival!"

"First, stop the internal strife! From today on, the Tavern is no longer a place to drown your sorrows in wine, but our council chamber!"

"Able-bodied brothers, go at dawn to collect rebar, stones, and broken wood. Weld the iron gates at the alley entrances shut and turn the streets into a fortress!"

"Women, take stock of the food and medicine at home and distribute them centrally. No one can take more than their share, because we want to survive, and every bit of food must be used where it counts!"

"The elderly and children will be responsible for guard duty. As soon as you see someone in a Company uniform, report it immediately, and we will strike from both inside and out!"

"Second, remember the hatred, but more importantly, remember what we are fighting for! We aren't doing this for revenge, but to stay alive!"

"So we no longer have to fight like dogs for moldy bread, and so we no longer have to watch helplessly as our loved ones are taken away!"

"Capital treats us as trash to be cleared at will, so we will use trash to forge weapons. We, the bottom layer they look down upon, will tear their beautiful dreams to shreds!"

"Third, discard your illusions and prepare for battle! They have knives and guns, we have fists and courage! They have schemes and plots, we have unity that can move mountains! Today, if you put down your wine glass and pick up an iron bar, tomorrow you can protect your Family."

"Today, if you choose to shrink back and wait to be cleared, tomorrow your corpse will be just like the vagrants', tossed carelessly into a mass grave!"

Mo Ran's fist slammed heavily onto the lectern, the sound deafening.

"Everyone! We have fallen to this point not because we are weak, but because we have been deceived and exploited! Now they want to cut off our way of life, so we will fight! Rather than being slaughtered like cattle and sheep, it's better to die in battle like warriors!"

"Let capital see that the 'bottom layer' they stepped on also has a day when they stand up! Let them know that oppression has an end, and resistance will surely triumph!"

"Now I ask you, do you want to live? Do you want your children to no longer be born into this Hell?"

"Do you want those high-and-mighty capitalists to pay the price for what they've done?"

"Good! Then follow me! Put down your wine glasses and pick up your weapons! Guard the streets, guard your homes! Today, we fight for ourselves."

"Tomorrow, we live for freedom! Use our hot blood to break this cage, and use our lives to declare to them: we are not lambs, we are warriors! Fight! Fight! Fight to the end!"

*Clap.*

In the originally silent venue, a crisp sound of clapping rang out, and then the applause and cheers merged into one.

*Clap, clap, clap—*

Standing amidst the applause was Mo Ran, his chest heaving slightly, but his spirit exceptionally vibrant.