It was easy to enter the fourth zone. There was a military outpost at the border of the east side of the city. Through the outpost, you could undergo a space exchange. After the exchange, you would enter the mutated shadow city from the normal shadow city.
A second ago, there had been heavy traffic behind me. It was a lively and bustling city. After I passed through the space exchange gate of the outpost, it suddenly became quiet. It was as if the entire world had left me. The originally clear and bright sky was covered by a chaotic gray fog, and the light in the surroundings dimmed as well. The sky in the fourth zone was monotonous because there was no need to prepare any scenery for the prisoners to relax. I lifted my head to look at the sky. The sun, moon, and stars couldn't be seen in the gray fog. Gray, the only color, covered the entire field of vision evenly. All the surrounding buildings and streets were twisted in a strange way. They connected and overlapped with each other. The cracked roads stretched into the sky, while the intertwined buildings twisted in midair at a strange angle. Then, they were half buried into the ground. A few hundred meters away, a skyscraper slowly rotated and floated in the air. Half of the building had been broken into pieces, cut into countless neat and smooth cubes. Lights flickered in and out of the cubes that had been cut into pieces. Next to the only flat road under my feet, there was a neon sign that poked half of its body out of the tar pit. On it was written in bright red, "Welcome to the fourth zone."
This was the scenery of the 'city district'.
"This is Liliana's bad taste …" I looked at the absurd and twisted things around me. They were made to look like real nightmares. It was as if someone had forcefully extracted the thought process of a lunatic and carved it into countless abstract symbols. The twisted and broken buildings and roads didn't lead anywhere. All the buildings and roads were scams. You would never find an end if you continued to walk forward.
I waited for a few seconds and saw a pipe sticking out of the ground not far away. It was as thick as an oil pipeline, and its surface was crudely painted with a layer of dirty, dark green paint. Underneath the paint was a suspicious dark red base. Suddenly, a pitch-black hole appeared in the pipe. Then, a one-eyed ghoul wearing a plumber's uniform and a funny red cloth hat crawled out of the hole. The ghoul's red cloth hat had a big "M" written on it. It carried an ancient-looking gramophone that was squeaky and unpleasant to the ears. It was a nursery rhyme that Liliana had written — The Story of the Wolf and the Spider.
I knew this ghoul. It had been working as a receptionist in the fourth zone for more than a year. Its favorite game was Super Mario, and its favorite activity was cosplay. It was also a music lover … There was nothing wrong with any of the above hobbies, but when they appeared on a ghoul, there was a problem. After all the elements were combined, it was the strange appearance before me …
The twisted ghoul limped to me and spoke in a hoarse voice, "Your Majesty, the prison warden is interrogating the prisoner. Are you …"
"Oh, I know. I'm looking for her." I waved my hand and said, "Open the door. Also, can't you turn off the squeaky thing on you?"
The ghoul cracked its head and flashed a big smile. As it opened the teleportation door, it said, "This is a gift from the prison warden to Pelby. Pelby likes the story of the wolf and the spider … The story of the wolf being eaten by the spider …"
I felt that I wouldn't be able to eat dinner if I continued listening to it. So, I quickly stopped and walked into the dark red teleportation door that the ghoul opened. In a flash, I arrived at the place where Liliana was' working '.
The place looked ordinary and it was a very spacious office. There was a spacious mahogany desk in the room and a huge bookshelf that took up the entire wall. However, I reckoned that no one would ever go through it. In the northeast corner of the room, there was a solid wood carved rudder with the words' Sailing the Sea, Braving the Wind and Waves' written in gold. On the wall above the rudder, there was an antique ink painting that depicted the scenery of green mountains and clear waters. This was an ordinary room that looked like the CEO's office of a large company on Earth. Other than the spaciousness and the nouveau riche decorations, there wasn't much that was worth paying attention to. If there was anything special about this room, it would be that there were no windows in this room. There was only a two and a half meter tall floor-to-ceiling window drawn with a crude watercolor pen on the east wall. This floor-to-ceiling window was obviously the work of a child. Not only were the colors gaudy, the frame was crooked and uneven. The window was painted with a child's imagination of the outdoor scenery: a grayish-blue crayon sky, a sun with a twisted smile, and a lush green lawn.
In such an exquisitely decorated and spacious office, half of the wall was taken up by a floor-to-ceiling window drawn with a watercolor pen. At first glance, it might seem strange and funny, but very quickly, you would feel that everything was surrounded by a crazy and bizarre atmosphere. And all of this was designed by the shortie who was sitting behind the desk and almost buried her entire body in the leather chair. The sole purpose of designing these scenes was to satisfy her evil interests.
"Yo, Boss, you're here. I'm busy."
Liliana jumped up from behind the wide mahogany desk and ran over. I caught her and patted her twice to show our intimacy. Then, my gaze fell on a corner of the office. Other than the watercolor floor-to-ceiling window, there was something else that was out of place in this office. It was two cages surrounded by energy beams. Two men wearing some sort of military uniform sat in the cages with ashen faces. They should be the captured Melroy prisoners of war.
Out of curiosity, I took a few more glances at the two prisoners. At first glance, they didn't look much different from humans on Earth. Of course, this was normal. Everyone knew that they were tall, had deep eye sockets, and had darker skin. However, I didn't know if every Melroy was like this. The only obvious difference between them and humans was their eyes. Instead of the whites of their eyes, they had a dark blue hue that looked like they were reflecting fluorescent light. These were the Melroy people. At first glance … there was nothing special about them.
However, it was them who became the first vassal to betray the Empire in history.
As I observed the two of them out of curiosity, they also raised their eyes and looked at me curiously. I couldn't see any fear or hostility in their eyes. Perhaps they didn't know who the people in front of them were, or perhaps they had already given up hope?
"You are the Melroy people?" I put Liliana on the ground and turned to ask casually.
There was no answer. The two of them only snorted coldly. I noticed that they didn't have any external injuries on their bodies. It seemed that the evil fellow, Liliana, hadn't started the torture session that she loved to see.
"You don't like to talk?" I walked up to one of them and felt that I was unbelievably calm. The person in front of me was an enemy, a proper enemy. They had betrayed the country tens of thousands of years ago and demolished my sister's previous home. They might have even killed a large number of Shiring Apostles in the hibernation facility in the process. Every single one of them was a capital offense. However, I was speaking to them so calmly. The man in front of me raised his head and looked me in the eyes. Suddenly, he cracked open his mouth and revealed a nasty expression. "Your time has long passed, son of a b * tch."
I said, "… Damn, you have quite a temper. Hmm, you have quite the guts. Do you really think that betraying the country is something that can be taken lightly? "
"Merlova will go further than you bastards. Merlova will replace you and become a true god. Merlova will conquer every world. Merlova will punish every heresy …"
"Is this guy crazy?" I was momentarily stunned. I turned to ask Liliana. The little lass pouted. "There are signs of brainwashing. He is extremely paranoid. I reckon that his genes, body, and soul have all been modified. That's why he isn't afraid of the Empire. Even if the Empire could stop children from crying at night in the entire void, he isn't afraid. This type is the most difficult to deal with. Simple interrogation by torture is completely useless. "
"Interrogation by torture?" The other Melroy prisoner of war sneered. "Tens of thousands of years have passed. You bunch of lunatics have indeed degenerated."
Speaking of which, even a clay figurine has a temper. I had been calmly chatting with these two prisoners of war for a long time. In the end, they didn't have a single good word to say … Alright, I admit that no one would have a good word to say in this kind of situation. However, the attitude of these two people was really displeasing. I had seen people who betrayed the country, but I had never seen someone who was so self-righteous after being arrested for treason! At that moment, I wanted to smack one of them with a brick (if it was Icetis, she would have smacked the two of them over by now). However, before I could do it myself, Liliana suddenly interrupted. "Erm, according to the rules of the Fourth Division, you should first introduce the living environment here to the prisoners. After all, you will be living here for a long time and you will have many neighbors —"
Liliana cleared her throat. Such a little lass who looked a little over a meter tall walking around here arrogantly probably made the two Melroy prisoners very concerned. Thus, the two of them really quieted down. Liliana nodded in satisfaction. With a sweet smile on her face, she introduced the living environment to the two new residents of the Fourth Division.
"First, in the Fourth Division, there are three long-term 'laws'.
First, the dualistic state. There are no citizens or laws in the Fourth Division. All lives here are only divided into two camps, the innocent and the guilty. The innocent have the right to freely enter and exit the Fourth Division, while the guilty are deemed to be able to accept all punishments without a trial. That is because the guilty have already gone through all possible trials before being sent here and are judged to have to be sent to the Fourth Division to be 'corrected'. Of course, there are also people like the two of you who are directly deemed guilty without a trial. You will meet these fellow inmates in the future. "
Second, human rights are frozen. The guilty in the Fourth Division are declared to have no human rights, not even the right to property or the right to die. You have a new name here, 'Dust'. This is your identity and all of your value. Here, all forms of torture, multiple deaths, soul extraction and torture, biochemical experiments, weapon experiments, and anything else you can think of are allowed to be carried out on the guilty. Yes, everything. Your imagination will never be able to match the reality here. Don't worry, you will soon see everything. "
Third, the end of the controlled state. All life in the Fourth Division is under control, including your life and death. Before the approval from the higher authorities, voluntary death is not allowed here. The guilty here may be killed for millions of times and resurrected for millions of times because they did not apply for the right to die. "
When Liliana said that, she suddenly raised her finger and waved it in front of the two prisoners. She smiled and said, "Oh yes, let me tell you a little thing to take note of. In the Fourth Division, 100% of the prisoners apply for death every day, but only 1% of them can get what they want. Here, death is the only thing worth pursuing. The prisoners will even fight for the right to die … Of course, you have the right to apply for death, but I hope you are strong enough. Every day at midnight, all the cells in the Central Prison will be opened. You have to fight until four in the morning. The person who is killed the least during this time will be completely killed before the next morning … or should I say, the qualification to be released. So, if you want to die in this place, the competition is very fierce. Well, don't show that expression. Believe me, every prisoner … after a few days in the Fourth Division, they will write a death application with tears in their eyes. Hehe … You guys are the same! "
Liliana had a sweet smile on her face, as though she was a child introducing her toys to her friends. However, what she said was not interesting at all. I looked at the expression on her face from the corner of my eyes. Her current smile was really familiar. Liliana always smiled. When she was with me, she would play dumb, act cute, and suddenly laugh for no reason. However, every smile was different from this one. This kind of pure, sweet, and innocent smile definitely did not come from her heart.
This was the most twisted of all of Liliana's masks. She would only show such a clean smile to the dead.
The two prisoners listened to Liliana's introduction in a daze. It seemed that they needed some time to understand this strange place. Then, they looked at each other and sneered disdainfully at the same time. The taller man stared at Liliana and said in disdain, "In the end, it's just torture. The holy Melroy warriors can ignore any pain. You can use as many tricks as you want."
"Of course, it will happen sooner or later." Liliana had expected such an attitude from the other party. She said indifferently and waved her claws in front of the prisoners. Then, two green halos appeared above the latter's head and slowly entered their bodies. "Anyway, I have patience and time. Well, let's see if it will be those experts who decipher your navigator first, or if I will let you two speak first. "
When the two prisoners saw the green light enter their bodies, the first thing they did was to subconsciously tighten their muscles. They thought that this was some kind of punishment. However, nothing happened after the green light entered their bodies, so they showed confused expressions. After hearing Liliana's words, the taller prisoner suddenly grinned. "Ha, so you want the coordinates of Melroy's homeland … Dream on!"
After saying that, a strange squeaking sound suddenly came from the prisoner's head, like the sound of flesh being burnt. Along with this strange sound, the prisoner's face was full of veins, as if he was suffering great pain. His teeth chattered, and turbid blood mixed with white slowly flowed out from his eyes, nostrils, and even ears. Finally, even his eyeballs were overflowing with thick, steaming fluid. I realized that the Melroy warriors actually had the ability to self-destruct!
However, Liliana just watched the scene in front of her calmly, as if she was watching a very interesting sideshow. The prisoner in front of her was twitching all over, and his head was glowing red as if it was cooked, emitting thick steam. Obviously, he was dead. The other prisoner next to him smiled mockingly at us. Obviously, he was also prepared. However, before the second prisoner could even activate his self-destruct mechanism, the first prisoner who had just died suddenly sat up.
The resurrected prisoner looked normal, as if nothing had happened. Only the blood stains and steam on his face showed that the uncomfortable suicide just now was real. He woke up from his momentary confusion, and his face gradually turned ashen.
"Uncle, you're so stupid, really." Liliana looked up at him. "You should know that the Empire has resurrection technology … Well, maybe they didn't use it on you back then. But did anyone tell you that the two of you were actually already dead when you were sent here? "
The two prisoners were instantly stunned.
"Yes, they were already dead when they were sent here. I reckon that the two of you committed suicide the moment you were arrested. But it seems that the two of you were quite confused at the time and forgot about it … Just now, uncle, you were resurrected for the second time."
The prisoner's expression changed drastically with Liliana's words. It seemed that the suicide that Liliana mentioned did happen. Now, they could finally be completely sure that in this place, death was not the way to escape.
"I put a little gift in your body just now," Liliana said with a smile. "It's that green light. From now on, you're blessed. You won't lose your mind, lose your five senses, feel sleepy, and won't have your senses dulled for any reason. Today is your first day in Division4. Later, someone will bring you to visit your new house and get to know your new neighbors. They're all very nice people. Every one of them has committed heinous crimes, and they're very adorable. They like new neighbors the most because the rule in Division4 is that every time you kill a new person, you'll get a piece of rotten raw meat as a reward. In the eyes of those people, you're … living food … So, for the rest of the time, I wish the two of you a happy reunion … Warden! "
Liliana snapped her fingers, and two skeletons wearing clown masks and medieval European king and queen costumes appeared out of thin air in the room. They pushed the prisoner's cage into a secret door that suddenly appeared in the wall. The two prisoners did not show any fear on their faces. It seemed that the brainwashing had given them amazing courage, and they could face the upcoming life in Division4 calmly. After the cage was pushed into the secret compartment, a faint whistling sound came from the other side of the wall. It seemed that the prisoner had fallen directly. A regretful look appeared on Liliana's face. "Ah, it seems that I forgot to open the elevator … Well, it's an acid pool down there anyway. No one will die from the fall." After that, she said to the two skeletons in costume, "Warden, these two prisoners are numbered Special 161 and Special 162. They'll be treated as special prisoners. No food is allowed to be given to them, and they're not allowed to eat human or their own excrement. After they're resurrected, bring them to visit Popo Kaka's merry-go-round … Hmm, why are they still here?"
"Lord … Warden," the skeleton in the king's costume trembled as he took off his clown mask. Under the mask was a piece of white paper pasted on his skull. On the white paper, there was a funny king's face drawn with a crude watercolor pen. It was bloated, dull, and had a mustache. "Lowly prisoner 38755 wants to know, how long will it take for my queen and I to …"
Liliana raised an eyebrow. "Oh, this question again? Didn't you order seventy-eight thousand 'lowly people' to watch an epic drama? Then each of you should die seventy-eight thousand times. Don't worry, someone will count for you. If you have nothing better to do, just go to the second canteen and lie down. If you can die seventy or eighty times a day, you'll be free sooner or later. By the way, I've heard enough of your questions. I'll ask you again in the future. The number of deaths is squared. If not, the number of deaths is cubic. Get out of here. "
The two skeletons in costume trembled as their joints creaked. Then, they quickly put on their clown masks and disappeared from the room.
"Boss, look at the two tyrants who shocked the Macro World back then." Liliana giggled and pointed at the ripples in the air after the two skeletons disappeared. "Look at how peaceful they are now."
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