Chapter 1070

〈 Chapter 1070 〉 1070. Spirit’s Atlantis

I opened the wooden door.

Dozens of armed men were surrounding the entrance in a tight circle. Most had black hair, and some wore cheongsams. At their center stood a Chinese man with short black hair, slanted eyes, and dressed in a black cheongsam.

He looked like a snake. And he wasn’t looking at me—his gaze was fixed on Li Mei.

“Zhang Chao. I didn’t expect you to move so quickly. This is surprising.”

Li Mei’s voice was stiff.

“One of our funding sources, Zone 4,344, was suddenly attacked. Thanks to that, the Black Bamboo Gang is in chaos right now.”

“Well, good thing you’re here. The person who attacked the Black Bamboo Gang is this guy. Take him down.”

Li Mei betrayed me instantly. I’d expected it, but it still left a bitter taste. I tightened my grip on her chest even more.

“Ugh…! Let go! Zhang Chao! What are you doing?! Hurry up and kill this guy!”

“You’re making me laugh just by existing.”

Zhang Chao smirked.

“Li Mei. Don’t you think you’re underestimating both me and the Black Bamboo Gang? Zone 4,344 isn’t just any place—it’s a special zone where the rewards are high. Even the Black Bamboo Gang tried to conquer it once and failed. So tell me, why did such an impossible feat suddenly happen? Right after its administrator—you—went into the Forest of Beasts. And then what do we know? You two waltz out together all chummy-like?”

Li Mei’s expression hardened like stone. She didn’t react even as I kept kneading her chest. Unlike her frozen face, her chest felt delightfully soft.

“Clearly there’s been a misunderstanding. I didn’t betray the Black Bamboo Gang. Think about it logically. I have no reason to, and there’s no way Li Mei and this guy could defeat the Rag King alone.”

“But you did. And I bet this guy holds the control rights now, right? Probably eliminated or killed off the others for maximum gain. It’s not uncommon to use someone and then discard them when they’ve served their purpose.”

Zhang Chao sneered. His obnoxious laugh made me want to punch him.

“No! This guy defeated the Rag King all by himself and obtained the control rights! I saw it with my own eyes!”

“The Black Bamboo Gang spoiled you too much if you think you can insist on such ridiculous lies. Fine, though. We’ve got time, and I’m curious to hear your story. Enlighten us. How exactly did this guy single-handedly take down the Rag King?”

“Well… the Rag King suddenly appeared… and he was weakened because he’d poisoned his own tail….”

Li Mei’s voice grew weaker as she continued. She knew it herself—if it sounded unbelievable to her, an eyewitness, how absurd would it sound to everyone else?

“…and then his legs got tangled, so he fell over… and got poisoned again… and then lightning struck….”

“Expect me to believe *that*?”

“I know you don’t believe it! But it’s the truth!”

“Let’s say I do believe it. Doesn’t matter. The evidence of your betrayal is already clear, isn’t it? Anyone looking at you right now would assume you betrayed someone.”

Li Mei bit her lip and tried to swat away my hand from her chest. I only clung to her tighter, trailing my hands down from her chest to her thighs and buttocks.

“You must be enjoying all the attention from this guy, huh? Li Mei, do you know what scent you’re giving off right now? It’s the kind you’d smell in a brothel district.”


The pungent smell of mixed bodily fluids filled the air. “And hey,” he continued, “your hair, thighs, and arms—are all dried with semen, aren’t they? Oh wow, even a red hickey on your neck? Looks like you two had quite the party.”

“I WAS RAPED BY THIS GUY! RAPE!”

“I’ve seen women who were raped for over 12 hours—it was brutal. But their skin wasn’t glowing like yours.”

“It’s… it’s because of my special condition…”

Lee Mei hesitated.

She realized no words would save her now.

“…Black Bamboo Syndicate has already ordered me to be dealt with, hasn’t it?”

“Traitors to Black Bamboo always meet a miserable end—but you? You’ll suffer an especially wretched fate. Living as a whore from now on—oh, and for the next month, you’ll be MY plaything. Truly, I treated you so well when I wanted just one hug… if only you’d given yourself to me, none of this would’ve happened.”

Lee Mei glared at Zhang Chao.

“You psycho bastard. Even if I die, I’d NEVER let you touch me. FYI, rumors about your impotence have already spread throughout Black Bamboo.”

Zhang Chao’s face froze for a moment.

“Haha… interesting rumors.”

His awkward laugh confirmed it: He really IS impotent. Suddenly, his bloodshot eyes widened.

“Oh? You tried to charm me? That seals your betrayal then!”

“How… how didn’t it work?!”

“Did you think I wouldn’t prepare against your abilities? Black Bamboo already suspected your treachery. Did you know? Every man in Black Bamboo has fantasized about having you in their arms.”

Zhang Chao approached her with a sinister grin, wearing black gloves tipped with razor-sharp claws.

“…Eugene-sama, please lock the door.”

Lee Mei spoke softly to me, without hostility.

“Why are you suddenly obedient?”

“I’ve always been obedient. After all, I am Eugene-sama’s cumdumpster.”

Lee Mei smiled faintly at me, and I returned the smile.

“Quickly, lock the door! This door can only be opened by its master or a manager chosen by them. It requires certain conditions—it’ll buy us time.”

It wouldn’t last long though; less than a day, judging by Zhang Chao’s relaxed demeanor.

‘Things are working out nicely.’

My relationship with Black Bamboo was ruined, but things with Lee Mei were improving. She’d been abandoned by Black Bamboo—or rather, they mistakenly believed she betrayed them. Misunderstandings form easily, but clearing them up is ten times harder, especially when the other side doesn’t even want to listen.

‘Lee Mei has nowhere else to go. Even if she had trustworthy allies, standing against Black Bamboo would be impossible.’

In short, the only person she could rely on now was me.

“What are you waiting for?! Hurry up and lock the door!”

“You could do it yourself!”

“I lost my managerial privileges after you became the master. I CAN’T close it!”

Holding Lee Mei protectively, I stepped back as Zhang Chao and the Black Bamboo men entered the Forest of Beasts.

“Spare Lee Mei. The man must die.”

Zhang Chao’s cold voice chilled the atmosphere. The tension before battle—a familiar feeling.

“…We’re screwed.”

Lee Mei muttered in despair.

There were over fifty opponents, each battle-hardened warriors—essentially a specialized combat unit. And Zhang Chao himself was a formidable opponent, his overwhelming presence making that clear.

“…Eugene-sama, could you give me a dagger?”

“You’re fighting too?”

“No. To commit suicide. My future holds nothing but life as Black Bamboo’s sex slave. Death would be preferable.”

“Haha, suicide? We’ll just rape your corpse anyway. Someone like you? Totally worth the time.”

Zhang Chao mocked Lee Mei, who bit her lips until blood trickled down. I wiped the blood away with my thumb.

“Don’t bite your lips. Don’t even think about biting your tongue.”

“…Eugene-sama, you COULD leave me behind and escape… yet you don’t. You truly loved me, didn’t you.”

“That mouth of yours? It’s meant for sucking my cock.”

At this, Zhang Chao’s expression twisted in rage as he watched us chatting amiably.


It seems dividing the isn’t sitting well with someone.

“Plan change. Don’t kill that brat easily. Since he messed with our Black Bamboo Gang, let him pay the price.”

Judging by his obsession with Li Mai, it looks like he had a secret crush on her all along.

‘My girl dared to eye my woman, so she must die!’

I’m not running away.

However, taking them all on alone is tough. Even if I’m fully recovered, there’s still a numbers gap. Especially since I need to protect Li Mai from getting hurt, which raises the difficulty.

“Lord of the Heavens, lend me a hand here.”

「The Lord of the Heavens gives you an unimpressed look.」

I kinda saw this coming.

My patron deity isn’t the type to jump in just because their contractor’s in trouble, and no divine seat can casually intervene without proper payment thanks to system rules. Plus, the cost for intervention in situations like these skyrockets astronomically.

But things change when you properly ask for help.

「Available AP: 844,480」

“Lord of the Heavens, please accept 300,000 AP as an offering.”

AP.

We’re not in a temple, so efficiency might be lower, but this still lets me legally call upon divine assistance.

A divine seat can grant skills or items, or lend part of their power. The latter’s more cost-effective given the current situation.

「The Lord of the Heavens accepts your offering.」

「Part of the Lord of the Heavens’ power flows into you.」

「For 30 seconds, you may use part of the Lord of the Heavens’ power.」

Power surges within me.

I feel my spirit invigorated by overwhelming strength. I release some of it into the air, filling the atmosphere with lightning invisible to the naked eye, yet surrounding me completely.

“Heavenly Lord…?! What the hell! Is he Zeus’ contractor?! Kill him! Now!!”

Zhang Chao screams in shock as they charge at me. But they’re way too slow. Like, yawn-inducingly slow.

‘…Never used Instant Thunder or Lightning Flash before… So this is the power of one of the top-tier gods?’

30 seconds.

At first, it felt too short, but this is more than satisfying. Still, spending 10,000 AP per second feels kinda ridiculous.

I resonate the lightning in the surrounding air.

A storm of lightning erupts. A massive windstorm filled with blue lightning rotates around me, wiping everything in its path clean. The only ones left standing are me and Li Mai in my arms. Her face, eyes wide and mouth agape in astonishment, was rather adorable.

The storm devastates a 100-meter radius in 5 seconds before vanishing.

Surprisingly, Zhang Chao survived the lightning storm. His subordinates didn’t leave a trace. Though Zhang Chao himself isn’t unscathed either—his whole body is charred black, and he doesn’t seem fully conscious. Standing is about all he can manage right now.

「You gain 600 AP.」

「You gain 1,200 AP.」

「You gain 843 AP.」

…

Since this isn’t a trial period or anything, I gained AP instead of life points. Roughly 30,000 AP total.

“Zhang Chao. Why won’t that guy die?”

“…Zhang Chao’s unique trait is Half-Man-Half-Zombie.”

“Half-Man-Half-Zombie?”

“Living Zombie. A living zombie. Once he dies, he revives as a zombie. After spending 100 days as a zombie, he turns back into a human.”

“So we just need to kill him again while he’s in zombie form, huh.”

Zhang Chao starts regaining consciousness, twitching his body.

“It won’t be easy, though. I heard zombie mode boosts stats by 50%. Lower intelligence is the only downside.”

“Watch this, Astrapae.”

BOOM!

A bolt of lightning strikes Zhang Chao from the heavens. It doesn’t just split his body in half—it burrows deep into the ground, causing an earthquake that splits the earth. Lightning shoots up from the fissure into the sky.

Astrapae released lightning from underground. Though the range is only about 30 meters, the power surpasses even the lightning storm. The lightning discharge happens five times in succession, turning the ground into a cloud of thunder.

Li Mai swallows hard watching the blue lightning flow through the cracked earth. Then she flashes me a super cute smile.

“Mr. Yoo Jin. I’ll forever be Mr. Yoo Jin’s loyal follower.”

I smile back at her.

“Got it.”