Leveling Up by Executing Monsters

"Is this cell of mine... special in some way?"

Lloyd pocketed the shimmering green potion and asked curiously.

The scholar, however, gave him a strange look and asked in return,

"Of course. Haven’t you studied Orbital Mechanics on your own?"

At his reminder, Lloyd took another careful look around and nodded in sudden understanding.

The arrangement of the cells did indeed have a hidden purpose. When the suppression Orbit inside each cell activated, the entire area would link together, forming a larger and more powerful suppression Orbit.

It was like a double-layered failsafe.

And this cell, Number 1, was the most critical link in the chain. It was something like the ’formation core’ from the Xianxia novels back on Earth. If something went wrong here, the entire Orbit would become unstable, and even risk collapsing.

With Lloyd’s current proficiency in Orbital Mechanics, understanding this wasn’t difficult. It was just that he usually focused more on miniaturization and portability, so he hadn’t considered these large-scale, combined Orbits and had almost made a fool of himself.

But after getting a clear idea of how this combined Orbit operated, he couldn’t help but ask another question:

"If this is such a critical core area, why was it made into a cell? Shouldn’t it be strictly guarded and protected?"

"That’s because this place is both the most important and the one with the strongest suppression effect. So... take care... and remember to carry the Saint Statue with you at all times."

The scholar left without finishing his sentence, patting Lloyd’s shoulder on his way out. It seemed like a gesture of both encouragement and consolation.

But his meaning was clear enough. Since it was the place with the strongest suppression effect, it was naturally used to execute the most dangerous Demons.

And that, of course, meant the most bountiful Madness Value!

Lloyd immediately grew excited.

He also instantly understood why his convenient Big Brother had specifically reminded him to carry the Saint Statue.

However... ’I still don’t quite understand what he meant by ’seize the opportunity’ in the transfer order.’

Fortunately, Lloyd would soon find out...

As the other twenty-odd Executioners arrived one by one, the Processing District officially began operations.

The suppression Orbits in all the cells activated simultaneously. A dense, oppressive feeling instantly filled the air, and the atmosphere became so heavy it felt tangible.

It felt very similar to what Lloyd had experienced on Floor -7.

Relying on his 75 points of [Inspiration], Lloyd could hear the death-cries of Demons and the sharp clatter of dragged chains, even through the thick layers of earth surrounding him.

Mixed in were the occasional grunts and gasps of the other Executioners.

Lloyd didn’t know what level of dangerous Demon they were facing; all he knew was that there was absolutely nothing in front of him...

No Demon had been assigned to Cell 1. While everyone else was busy, Lloyd could only ’eavesdrop’ from the side, feeling utterly bored.

He just waited and waited. Only after the other cells had finished their work, started cleaning up the sites, and temporarily left for a nearby temporary church to Eradicate Spiritual Contamination did he hear a series of approaching footsteps.

One of them was repeatedly confirming something:

"It’s not that I question the strength of your Radiant Sect, but this matter is of grave importance and allows for no mistakes or mishaps. You should know, this isn’t just about the two of us, or the cities of Radiant and Order—it concerns the future and safety of our entire civilization."

The other person hastily replied,

"I know, I’m well aware. So please, rest assured. We’ve summoned the best Executioner in the city, and he is sufficiently young."

"I hope he is truly excellent and truly young, and not some old fox pretending to be a spring chicken."

Then, Lloyd saw a walking wall squeeze into his cell.

Strictly speaking, it was a man so colossally built he resembled a wall. He had a square head, no visible neck, and his entrance made the previously spacious cell suddenly feel cramped. He had to duck his head to avoid hitting the lightbulb overhead.

He made no effort to conceal the fluctuations of his Spiritual Power. The faint wisps of Spiritual Power leaking from him were enough to cause Lloyd a slight stinging sensation, prompting both his Inspiration and his uncanny Intuition to warn him not to provoke this human wall.

’This must be a High-ranking Powerhouse, probably Tier Seven or above.’ When Lloyd tried to inspect him, all he got were question marks. He couldn’t even see his mental state.

’I wonder why he chose a life form like this?’

Beside the human wall was a Knight Commander Lloyd didn’t recognize, who looked like a kindergartener in comparison. The Knight Commander began to explain:

"Executioner Lloyd, this is..."

Before he could finish the introduction, the massive man took a step sideways, blocking him from view and standing directly in front of Lloyd.

He then pressed a hand on Lloyd’s shoulder, as if in greeting, while releasing a stream of Inspiration as thick as a hemp rope to inspect Lloyd’s condition.

Lloyd felt like his entire body wasn’t even as big as the man’s palm. Pinned like that, he couldn’t move at all.

’So I’m like a child in front of him, too. If my sister Evelor were here, she’d probably be no bigger than a newborn kitten...’

Fortunately, the man’s control over his strength was impeccable. He didn’t hurt Lloyd or cause him any pain or discomfort. He quickly withdrew his hand, nodded, and said,

"Not bad, not bad. A real youngster, and his Tier isn’t high. He meets the conditions perfectly. But I wonder about his dissection skills."

"He’s from the Eighteenth District, recommended by Sir Tirtus."

"Oh? Then he must be a great talent. Haha! Compared to working with those hypocritical madmen, I much prefer the people of your Radiant City."

As he spoke, the human wall pulled out a mass of Demon tissue from behind his back as if by magic and placed it on the workbench in front of Lloyd.

A ferocious, tiger-like smile spread across his face as he introduced himself.

"Hello, young Lloyd. I am Shandu, from the City of Order. A pleasure to meet you."

With that, he extended a fist wider than Lloyd’s shoulders, holding it out as if for a handshake.

There was no way to shake that hand, so Lloyd could only brace himself and give it a fist bump.

"Very good, young Lloyd. Let’s get down to business. This thing in front of you, I pulled it off a Karmic Demon. I need you to remove the nerve tissue and some feather-shaped bone fragments from inside it, while keeping the remaining structure as intact as possible."

The human wall shrugged and added,

"Regrettably, I know nothing about the [Wisdom] system, so I can’t be of much help. You’ll have to complete this process on your own...

Of course, if you need it, I can use [Law] to help you maintain your Rationality and focus, but that might lead to some unavoidable side effects."

"No need, I can do it myself."

Lloyd quickly shook his head.

’From Goldrinn at the symposium to this Human Wall Shandu before me, I can’t shake the feeling that something’s not right with the [Law] system.’

’Could it be that the city named ’Order’ specializes in producing muscle-headed brutes?’

Lloyd glanced at the Knight Commander, who had moved to the side, and heard him finish the introduction he hadn’t gotten to earlier:

"Sir Shandu is a Grand Knight Commander from the Church of Order. He works closely with us. We hope you will seize this opportunity."

The human wall added,

"If all goes well, I’ll give you an interesting little gift as a welcoming present."

’A welcoming present, he says. It’s really just payment...’

Lloyd understood this perfectly. He nodded, put on the white coat hanging nearby, and took out the most suitable tool for the occasion—the scalpel-style Spiritual Blade the Chief Judge had left him.

The request was to remove the unnecessary parts while preserving the remaining tissue as much as possible. Compared to the time the Chief Judge had him remove blood vessels, this was quite a bit simpler.

The piece of tissue on the table was about the size of a lamb. Its bloody muscle fibers were still twitching slightly, as if it were alive, which made Lloyd frown.

The human wall opposite him noticed his expression change and said in a low voice,

"It’s still alive, so it’s best to secure it."

As he spoke, he casually grabbed a white steel nail from the side. Twirling it like a toothpick, he applied a little force and pierced it straight through the solid metal workbench, pinning the mass of tissue firmly in place.

Lloyd nodded, then boldly channeled his Inspiration, activated his Spiritual Vision, and stared directly at the living chunk of flesh.

A pleasant notification chimed in his ear:

[DING~ Madness Value +5]

[DING~ Madness Value +5]

’Just this one chunk of flesh can emit this level of Spiritual Contamination...’

Lloyd remembered the last time he helped the Chief Judge dissect that ’ham’ which also came from a Karmic Demon. Back then, he’d suffered +1 Spiritual Contamination per second.

But that time, the ’meddlesome’ Chief Judge had used the power of [Wisdom] to provide him with spiritual protection, so the Spiritual Contamination he endured wasn’t as strong as this.

So, without any spiritual protection, at this contamination rate of +5 per second, he would suffer thousands upon thousands of points of Spiritual Contamination if the dissection process was even slightly slow.

It was a good thing Lloyd had a panel to absorb the Madness Value. If it were an ordinary person, they wouldn’t have a clue how to complete such a high-risk dissection.

’And for some reason, they seem to specifically pick young people with low Tiers to do this kind of work?’

Musing to himself, Lloyd brandished the scalpel and began to cut.

His mood was actually quite good, and he felt relaxed. It wasn’t often he got to enjoy such an abundant supply of Spiritual Contamination.

In contrast, the two onlookers seemed even more nervous than he was. They were secretly gathering their power, looking as if they might spring into action at any moment.