46: Chapter 46 Using a borrowed knife to kill

"I'm done! I quit!"

At two in the morning, the Thousand Faces Cult's main camp erupted in its 137th mutiny. This time, the leader was a One-Eyed Werewolf who stood atop the instructor's corpse and roared:

"Eating moldy bread every day, doing eighteen hours of hard labor, and we still have to pay a damn accommodation fee! Do they really think we're slaves?"

Behind him followed over three hundred soldiers, similarly covered in scars. These people were once the elites of the Thousand Faces Cult, but now they were all sallow and emaciated, their wrists covered in brands left from scanning codes.

"Rebel! Loot the granary and go home!"

"Kill those Yin Soldiers!"

"Take back our nether talismans!"

The riot spread like wildfire. Soon, more than half of the military camp joined the rebellion, totaling over eight thousand people.

When the news reached the city wall, Zhang Hao's legs went weak from fear:

“M-Master! They're coming to attack!”

Lin Chen was eating a late-night snack and didn't even look up: "What's the rush? This is the perfect time to test the new features."

He opened the system and found the [Third-Party Services] section. It listed various hirable Bizarre Monsters:

[Ghoul Tribe: Specialized in surprise attacks, fee: 500,000 nether talismans]

[Hanged Ghost Alliance: Proficient in assassination, fee: 800,000 nether talismans]

[Headless Horseman Order: Mass charge, fee: 1.2 million nether talismans]

Lin Chen scrolled directly to the bottom and selected a special option:

[Lord of Nightmares: Creates collective hallucinations, fee: 5 million nether talismans]

"This one will do." He clicked to confirm payment.

In the next second, the rioting soldiers suddenly froze collectively.

In the eyes of the One-Eyed Werewolf, all the companions around him turned into delicious roasted whole sheep. Salivating, he couldn't help but bite into the nearest one—

“Ow!” the bitten soldier screamed, “Are you crazy?!”

But in that soldier's eyes, the One-Eyed Werewolf had turned into a cup of instant noodles. He subconsciously reached out to grab it, resulting in scratching the other's face bloody.

The entire military camp fell into chaos. Some saw their comrades as hamburgers, some saw tents as toilets, and one Corpse Monster was hugging an instructor's leg and gnawing on it, crying while chewing: "Mom, this chicken leg is so hard..."

“Possessed! They've all been possessed!” The unaffected soldiers retreated in terror.

But this was only the beginning.

Lin Chen hired a second team: [Mirror Ghost Replication Troupe].

Beside every rioting soldier, a mirror image clone appeared. These clones were identical to the originals but specialized in causing destruction:

Just as a soldier was about to drink water, the clone would knock over the canteen;

When someone wanted to bandage a wound, the clone would snatch the bandage away;

Even when someone went to the toilet, the clone would steal the toilet paper.

“I can't take it anymore!” A Thousand-Faced Cultist raised his blade to hack at the clone, but the clone suddenly materialized and slashed him back.

Even better, Lin Chen also activated the [Bounty Stacking] function:

[Kill a rioting soldier: Reward 100 nether talismans]

[Kill a mirror clone: Reward 50 nether talismans]

[Accidental injury to an ally: Fine 200 nether talismans]

Now, even the soldiers who hadn't participated in the riot saw red.

“Move aside! That clone is mine!”

“Don't snatch it! I saw it first!”

“You hit me! Fine!”

A massive free-for-all broke out in the camp. Soldiers had to guard against crazed comrades, scramble to kill clones, and be careful not to accidentally injure allies—after all, the fine was higher than the reward.

The One-Eyed Werewolf had it the worst. He was surrounded by ten mirror clones, each mimicking his speech:

“I'm done! I quit!”

“I'm done! I quit!”

“I'm done! I quit!”

“Shut up!” The werewolf swung his claws frantically, but couldn't hit any of the clones.

At that moment, a Yin Soldier pushed a small cart past, with a sign hanging on it:

[On Sale: Clone Identification Mirror, 1,000 nether talismans each]

[Rental: Illusion-Breaking Talisman, 500 nether talismans per hour]

Without a second thought, the werewolf scanned the code and bought a mirror. The moment he aimed it at the clones, he was stunned—the mirror showed small text following the bounty amounts for these clones:

[Special Note: Killing this clone may result in the original body suffering synchronized injuries]

Unfortunately, it was too late.

He had already swiped and shattered three clones.

“Pfft—” The werewolf spat blood and collapsed, three deep, bone-deep wounds appearing out of thin air on his body.

On the other side, a few clever soldiers pooled their money to rent an Illusion-Breaking Talisman. The moment the talisman paper burned, they finally saw the truth:

What roasted whole sheep? Those were comrades they spent every day with!

What mirror clones? Those were all hallucinations!

“Stop! Everyone stop!” They tried to intervene.

But the blood-crazed crowd couldn't listen at all. A Corpse Monster pinned a comrade to the ground, crying:

“I'm sorry, but I'm just so hungry...”

With that, he bit through the other's throat in one go.

When dawn arrived, the riot had subsided.

Of the eight thousand rebels, fewer than a thousand were still standing. The ground was covered in corpses; some killed by comrades, some by clone backlash, and some... starved to death.

Lin Chen stood on the city wall to inspect the results.

“Clean up the battlefield,” he instructed the Yin Soldiers. “Drag those who can still be used to the construction site, and throw those who can't into the septic tank.”

After tallying the losses, Zhang Hao reported excitedly:

“Master! This wave only cost five million nether talismans to solve eight thousand rebels!”

“And we tested the new features along the way!”

Su Qingyu looked at the tragic scene below, her face pale:

“Isn't it a bit... cruel?”

“Cruel?” Lin Chen pointed at the corpses. “If they had charged into the Fortress, we would be the ones lying there now.”

He turned to look at the surviving thousand soldiers:

“You're in luck.”

“Now you have a chance to make up for your crimes.”

The soldiers looked up numbly.

Lin Chen flashed a smile:

“I'm going to form a 'Suicide Squad'.”

“The mission is simple: deliver a letter to the Thousand Faces Cult's headquarters.”

“Of course, the survival rate... is 0.1%.”

The soldiers looked at each other.

Delivering a letter to the headquarters? How was that different from suicide?

“Unwilling?” Lin Chen arched an eyebrow. “Then continue working to pay off your debt, twenty hours a day for the next three hundred years.”

The soldiers immediately knelt in a crowd:

“I'm willing!”

“I'll deliver the letter!”

“Pick me, pick me!”

Compared to endless hard labor, they would rather die a quick death.

Lin Chen nodded in satisfaction and handed a letter to the One-Eyed Werewolf—this guy had a tough life and actually managed to survive.

“Remember, it must be personally handed to the current Sect Leader.”

“If you die halfway, let the next one continue the delivery.”

The werewolf took the letter with trembling hands. Several large characters were written on the envelope:

[Acquisition Offer: Thousand Faces Cult Headquarters and All Assets]

[Offer: 1 nether talisman]

[Validity: 24 hours]

How was this a letter? It was clearly a declaration of war!

But the werewolf didn't dare refuse. He asked cautiously:

“Um... is there travel money?”

Lin Chen smiled: "There is."

He handed over a QR code:

[Suicide Squad Exclusive Loan: Maximum limit 1,000 nether talismans]

[Interest: 100% daily rate]

[Overdue: Soul Dispersal]

Werewolf: "..."

He finally understood now why those previous captives would rather die than resist.

Dealing with Lin Chen was truly a fate worse than death.

Watching the tragic backs of the Suicide Squad as they set off, Zhang Hao couldn't help but ask:

“Master, will they really go deliver the letter?”

“Of course not.” Lin Chen shrugged. “They'll try to run away halfway and then be executed by the system.”

“Then this letter...”

“It was delivered long ago.” Lin Chen waved his phone. “An electronic version was sent to the Thousand-Faced Sect Leader's inbox a minute ago.”

Zhang Hao was dumbfounded.

Then why send people to their deaths?

Lin Chen patted his shoulder and said earnestly:

“This is called corporate culture.”

“If you don't let employees experience despair, how will they know how happy their current job is?”

Just then, a system notification sounded:

[Ding! Thousand-Faced Sect Leader has read the email]

[Reply: Lin Chen! I will tear you into ten thousand pieces!!!]

Lin Chen smiled.

Replied so fast?

Looks like he's driven mad with rage.

Perfect, he loved seeing the look of an enemy's impotent fury the most.