Shadow Empire

Chapter 731 The Wall Collapses
The Lord in the crucifixion has a face full of sorrow, but also with some mercy and forgiveness, as if at the moment of his suffering, he had forgiven all the sinners.

I just don't know if he has forgiven the priest at this moment.

The priest turned back slowly with a feeling in his heart, raised his eyes to glance at the crucifix with its face lowered towards him, then turned his head to look at the supervisor.

"If you want to pray and confess, you can wait until tomorrow. It's night now and I need to rest."

He appeared to be relatively calm, but the hands clenched in his sleeves told him clearly that he was not as calm and strong as he thought.

The supervisor looked at him with a smile, "They have already confessed."

"What did you confess?" he asked.

"I confessed that you, as a cadre of the Holy Bell Party in Tomato Town, controlled the town's alcohol, call girls, and human trafficking crimes."

The priest's face turned ugly. "This is an unfounded accusation. Can you show me some evidence?"

The supervisor gave a very strange smile, "We are not the police, Father."

He leaned forward and rapped his knuckles on the podium. “We are the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Hazardous Substances. We can arrest the person first and talk to you about the evidence later!”

He even said something directly, "It's not impossible to forge some of them. You know, we are professionals in this area."

“Even the judge might not be able to tell!”

He stepped back to his original position and shook his head. "Catch him and tell him his rights."

Soon the agents behind the supervisor pinned the priest down and handcuffed him, reading out what he could do.

The priest remained silent throughout the whole process. He kept reciting the Bible in his heart, hoping that the Lord would give him the strength to fight against these evil people.

"what……"

"I said……"

In less than half an hour, he was willing to cooperate. It seemed that the Lord didn't care that much about him.

Of course, it is also possible that the Lord’s gaze was not upon him.

Torture will always be the biggest enemy of judicial justice, but sometimes it is necessary to deal with those who do evil.

Under the effect of torture, the priest, who had not experienced such pain in decades, could not hold on for long and gave up.

The Lord taught him many things, but he did not teach him how to endure pain.

All his insistence seemed not as important as himself. At this moment, even the beliefs he believed in had to give in to himself!

As the priest confessed all the crimes committed by him and the Holy Bell Gang in the town, the sirens of police cars in Tomato Town did not stop that night.

They kept knocking on the doors of some houses, bringing some people out, and covering their heads with their own clothes or with prepared hoods.

More details of the crime are being learned by the public. Some reporters from newspapers have come to the scene. They are eager to know what other horrifying details there are in this organized crime case led by a priest!

Dale did a great job and caught the target accurately, or rather, Lance provided him with the very necessary clues.

The assistance of the state police also made the compilation and arrest of the entire case smoother. A large amount of news materials were gathered in different newspapers. The reporters of these newspapers were like taking stimulants. They sorted out these materials almost without sleep, and then looked for news points that could make the newspapers sell well.

Four or five days after Dell began a full-scale push to catch these criminals, after careful review, a large number of newspapers began to report on the matter, as if they had made an appointment.

It is worth mentioning that the front-page headline of Likalai State's largest newspaper, The Tide, is no longer a huge ball that occupies the entire cover and even gives people a feeling that it is about to burst out of the newspaper. Instead, it is a criminal dressed in clergyman's attire and sitting in a cage.

This is a rare moment for Chao Bao to report such a serious matter!

Although people were not expecting this thing, they still bought a large amount of "Chao Bao" to confirm what it was. Even Nai Zi was no match for it!

I don’t know, I’m scared.

Many crimes related to the Holy Bell Party were exposed, and then a large number of "Bell Defectors" began to appear in the northern part of Likale State.

Some celebrities who had previously had good relations with the Saint Bell Party began to refuse to answer any questions from reporters who came to their doorsteps. Some were even more extreme and directly stood in opposition to the Saint Bell Party.

For journalists, it is certainly more interesting to make things difficult for celebrities than for ordinary people. They like to see those celebrities make fools of themselves, which can greatly boost newspaper sales.

Celebrities also reacted quickly. The concentrated media coverage made them feel the seriousness of the situation, and those with a keen sense of smell made decisions at the first opportunity.

All of a sudden, the entire Likalai State, and even the entire Federation, began to discuss this matter!

"Boom..."

Joshua's temper finally seemed to calm down a little as a Bible flew into the air and smashed a stained glass window with a loud "clatter" and "crack".

His study was already in a state of great disorder, with some things scattered everywhere.

The silver wine glass on the ground was still shaking back and forth, and there was not much wine left in it.

There are also some utensils and broken glass everywhere.

Joshua vented his anger severely. The pressure from outside was so great that he couldn't even raise his head.

Before these few days, he was still a saint of the Holy Bell Party, representing the will of the Lord.

A few days later, he became "the leader of a highly secretive and deceptive criminal organization entrenched in the northern part of Likale State."

Fake!

How can they be so fickle?
What made him even more angry was that many of those damn big shots who had worked with him in the past began to distance themselves from him.

Keeping silent and refusing to admit knowing him is the most respectable response from these people. Some people even directly fired at him, as if only by killing him could they prove their innocence!

He gasped and looked around with a hurt expression.

He couldn't help being angry, and he couldn't help being hurt.

At his feet, on a newspaper, was a photograph of Dale, executive member of the State Prohibition Commission, and two other members standing in front of an empty warehouse.

Behind them, mountains of wine were being moved out of the warehouse by forklifts, and many staff members were counting the wine. The title was named "The Collapse of the Super Warehouse".

A warehouse and millions of bottles of liquor were just destroyed like that. His heart was bleeding!

And this is just a warehouse!

He turned his head and looked at another newspaper with wrinkles and footprints on the ground. On it, a city councilor raised his hand to stop the reporter from taking pictures and left quickly. It can be seen that he is a little embarrassed now.

The headline of the report was "...MP refuses to admit links with the Holy Bell Party."

They not only have connections, but also transactions and much more.

On a half-pulled newspaper dragged across the table, a socialite called the Holy Bell Party a disgrace to the state of Likalai.

But the person who said this forgot that he also attended a special party hosted by Joshua!

These bastards!

Eat his food, drink his drinks, take his things, but now that something has happened, none of it works.

Joshua staggered down the sofa, his head supported by his hands, looking hesitant and confused.

He seems to have lost sight of where the future lies.

Soon there was a knock on the door, "Saints, they've arrived."

They refer to the senior cadres in the gang. They knew too much, so Joshua withdrew them all.

Rather than betting that these people have not been discovered and betrayed, it is better to stabilize the situation first.

He said "I understand", then stood up with his hands supporting his legs. He did not go out immediately because he needed to adjust his condition.

After about seven or eight minutes, he opened the door and walked out quickly. He looked no different from before, and his aura might even be stronger!
He came to the high-backed chair that represented supreme power, turned to face the people at the bottom of the stairs, put his hands on the armrests, and slowly sat down.

The chapel immediately became quiet, and people greeted him, and he responded one by one. He kept scanning these people, paying attention to some of them, and now he even didn't trust these people!
Who knows if any of them have been bribed?

He had never imagined that one day, things would be so difficult for him and his Holy Bell Party.

The chapel remained silent the entire time as no one spoke first.

This gradually solidified atmosphere lasted for about two or three minutes before Joshua raised his hand and patted the armrest. “Some of you also think we will lose in this matter.”

"But I will prove that it is just a small bump in our growth process, like a stone that can stop us from moving forward."

"All we need to do is smash it and throw it away!"

I don't know how many people believe these words, but he himself doesn't believe them. Even if this crisis is over, it will be difficult for the Holy Bell Party to regain its former power.

In the past, they could use some things to please the landlord class in the north.

Most of the towns outside the city are formed around the surrounding economic development. For example, there are some small towns near some farther factories.

A large number of workers lived there, and possibly some of their families, and then some people came along to provide supporting living services to these residents, and eventually it evolved from a residential area into a small town.

Here, all towns basically serve agriculture and animal husbandry. Either they have their own fields and ranches, or they play the role of farmers or cowboys and work for other farms and ranches.

So if we can deal with the farmers, we can basically make these people turn a blind eye.

They could do it, and even Joshua knew some people knew what they were doing, but those people didn't care much.

He could do worse things, as long as they weren't exposed.

Because only a few can tolerate it, and more conservatives cannot tolerate what they do.

If this incident had not come so suddenly, and someone had really been discovered, they would have had measures to deal with it.

But the bad thing was that it broke out too quickly and violently. By the time he found out about it, several senior officials had been arrested, two warehouses had been shut down, and a large number of gang members had been captured.

Things developed too quickly, so quickly that before he could even react, the situation had already collapsed uncontrollably!

Coupled with the abandonment of those celebrities, he once again tasted the same feeling his father had experienced.

Loneliness, pain, hatred, disgust, cold!
They acted so quickly that they made the decision without even giving it any thought.

This also made him realize once again that no matter how well he managed his business now or in the past, it could not change the fact that he was at the bottom of society!
As long as he is at the bottom, he has nothing to make others worry when making similar decisions.

"We are facing the most terrible crisis since the founding of the Holy Bell Party, bar none."

"It's like Doomsday!"

He opened his mouth slowly and began to quote biblical stories. The cadres and members of the Holy Bell Party in the chapel also fell silent.

Joshua still holds a very high status in their minds. He has always played an omnipotent role, so they somewhat blindly believe in him.

Those who have already started thinking have not actually come yet. They are already looking for a way out for themselves.

He changed his sitting position, and seeing that everyone's attention was focused on him, he continued, "Destruction is accompanied by rebirth."

"This is a disaster, but at the same time, it is also an opportunity and a new life for us."

"If we can survive this catastrophe, we will usher in a new evolution. We will become stronger and more indestructible. We can overcome everything!"

He looked at these people and uttered a name, "Lance White!"

There are almost no gang members in Likalai State who don’t know this name. A “genius young gangster” has emerged in an instant, lighting up the entire Likalai State and even the entire federation.

Distance can no longer prevent people from knowing him!

Only Lance has the ability to do this, and only Lance has such a great hatred for him.

In fact, he had also inquired about it himself, and found out that the person in charge of this action was Dale, the newly appointed executive member of the State Prohibition Committee.

Dale was Lance's man, and he knew it.

If you ask Joshua if he has any regrets now, the answer is definitely yes.

He originally thought that he and Lance were in the same class, both were gangsters, and were both seeking better development.

But who would have thought that Lance had already taken more than one step ahead?
If he knew that Lance was so powerful, he would definitely not assist Charles in fighting against Lance.

Not to mention a market of 200 million, he wouldn't even touch a market of 500 million.

Lance is his ideal form.

While he was still playing those games at the bottom of society, Lance had already begun to use the higher-level power of this society against him.

This is also what he, Bandy, and many people who want to be whitewashed and go higher desire, and it is their ultimate goal!

Many of them regard this as their federal dream, and fantasize about one day wearing formal suits and attending grand occasions and having cordial conversations with important figures.

What these people or dead ghosts didn't expect was that the federal dream would really come true one day just as the federal government said.

Someone in the chapel stood up, "I'm going to kill Lance."

Joshua looked at the man who stood up for more than ten seconds, then nodded, "You definitely can't do it alone. Lance is a very cautious person. Bring more people with you."

"If you can kill Lance, I promise that there will be a seat for you closest to my right hand."

The man who stood up bent down with a blush on his face, "Please wait for my good news!"

Then a dozen more people stood up and left the chapel with him. They were determined to win and bring down Lance!
People outside may not know this, but Joshua is actually somewhat of a capable man!
Joshua quickly grew stronger by combining religion with gangs through trickery, and he had to find a way to "enslave" these people.

Religion runs through the entire Holy Bell Party. These people are not only gang members, but some of them are also quite superstitious.

So superstitious that Joshua said the seats to his left and right represented a chance to go to heaven, if someone could sit on either side of him, twelve seats in total.

Then in the future these twelve people will go to heaven with him and enjoy joy and well-being!

Some people don’t believe it, some are skeptical, but some really believe it!

Those who did not believe were eventually marginalized and then slowly disappeared.

Those who were skeptical gradually and unknowingly believed it due to the firm belief of others.

In the end, those who stayed were those who believed in his words.

Seeing the volunteer take his people away, Joshua gradually calmed down, "We need more countermeasures. We can't just pin our hopes on Lance not taking care of his own life..."

"At the same time, we must also be prepared. Lance has used so many connections to deal with us, and it must not be just to discredit us."

Even though they already stink a lot, it wouldn't really make much difference if they stink a little bit more.

After a pause, he said, "He wants to destroy us!"

"We must be prepared to fight back. If he really dares to come, we must kill him in the presence of the Lord!"

After assigning some tasks that he himself didn't know whether they would be effective, he returned to his room, took out a phone book, found a number on it, and dialed it.

The call was connected quickly. This was the most senior person he could contact right now.

A state senator.

He just introduced himself, and the other party hung up the phone without even notifying the "master" to ask whether he wanted to answer the call.

Before hanging up, I warned him not to make this call again, at least not in the short term!
The emotions that had calmed down somewhat began to waver again.

He walked back and forth a few steps and dialed a number he didn't really want to call...

(End of this chapter)