Arknights' Lock of Heaven

However, these are not reasons that can be spoken aloud.

"We are troops directly under the command of Governor Wei Yanwu of Longmen!" Although he didn't know why the man had stopped attacking, the commander still seized this rare opportunity to catch his breath.

He stopped Lin Yuxia from doing anything; she was too young and couldn't handle the situation.

"I know you, Xia Yu from Rhodes Island. We are allies, we have identification codes. Stop your attack immediately!"

"Look around," Xia Yu glanced around, a cold smile playing on her lips, "Are you from Lungmen?"

"Look at the clothes on these corpses, these aren't Reunion thugs..."

Clang!

The chains beside Xia Yu gave a clear ringing sound.

“This dress,” Xia Yu pointed to a corpse, “is this what the Reunion Movement would wear on the battlefield?”

"Look at this apron. If he were part of the Reunion Movement, would he be rioting with a frying pan?"

The commander opened his mouth, but had nothing to say.

What could he say? These were all civilians from the slums who had died in the previous riots; were they just being used to make use of the trash and deceive everyone?

Some of them were originally thugs from the Reunion Movement; they were simply stripped of their uniforms and dressed in civilian clothes.

Why do this? To deceive Wei Yanwu?

Is this something I can say to outsiders?

So he could only remain silent.

Xia Yu on the other side could only keep a cold face.

What are you going to say?!

You're happy to drag things out, so why don't you just say so?

I'll listen attentively to whatever you say!

"These...these are all civilians who died in the previous disaster," fortunately, the commander, as expected of the leader of the Black Cloak, found a reason after a moment of silence.

"The reason we moved their bodies here is because... we need to be mindful of the impact."

As he spoke, he signaled by pretending to cover his back where he had just been hit.

Hearing him speak, Xia Yu was naturally happy to stall for time with him.

As for him calling for people, Xia Yu didn't care, since the more people in the black raincoat, the better.

Froststar's place can also relieve some of the pressure.

“This Reunion Movement attack on Lungmen was deliberately planned,” the leader’s mind raced, and he spoke haltingly, feigning a severe injury.

"Shortly after the news came out, the supervisory department from Yan Kingdom arrived."

At this point, he slightly raised his head and glanced at Xia Yu, only to find him listening to his explanation with a cold expression.

That's good, he thought with a slight sigh of relief. As long as he wasn't the kind of obsessive person who wouldn't listen to reason.

"Someone deliberately orchestrated this incident. The infected were merely pawns to be used. Cough cough, most of these people should be nobles from Ursus. They must have also contacted some... Lord Wei's... cough cough, opponents within Yan."

"Lord Wei regarded Longmen as his life and never allowed those people to interfere in anything related to Longmen."

"Ahem, but you should also know how much people envy Lungmen as the commercial capital of Terra."

“Countless people want to get their hands on this city. Cough cough, if it were a few years ago, Lord Wei would have been able to deal with them with ease.”

"But now, Lord Wei hasn't made a move for many years, and some people have started to have inappropriate thoughts again."

"They conspired with Ursus to plan this incident, cough cough, and at the same time sent people from the Inspectorate to investigate everything in Lungmen."

"Therefore, these corpses absolutely! Absolutely must not be seen by the Censorate. Otherwise, the defenses of Longmen are weak and unable to protect the citizens, making them easy targets for attacks against Lord Wei in the court!"

"Then they'll have a reason to send troops, under the guise of protecting Longmen, to extend their reach!"

"Therefore, Lungmen must resolve this incident beautifully. As the face of the party, the Guard Bureau must achieve a resounding victory to shut everyone up!"

"And these dirty jobs are done by us, the ones in the black straw raincoats."

“I admit it,” he said, bowing his head dejectedly, “Longmen was indeed careless this time. Cough cough, these citizens died because of our negligence…”

“But nobody wants this,” his weathered voice echoed in the sewers. “Governor Wei doesn’t want it, we don’t want it, and these citizens don’t want to lie in these filthy sewers.”

"But human desires are never satisfied. There will always be people who want more, people who will stop at nothing, people who will stir up trouble, and people who will climb to the top by stepping on the corpses of others."

His words carried a hint of sincerity, echoing softly in the sewers, "Over the years, I've seen a lot..."

"This is all our fault; we failed to protect them."

“I am the leader of the Black Cloak, and I am willing to pay any price for this dereliction of duty, including my life.”

"Ahem, but young man, I'm begging you, please don't expose what's going on here."

"I've dedicated most of my life to this city, and I don't want to see it tainted by those ambitious people in the final moments of my life..."

He first straightened up, then bowed down in reverence.

"I beg you..."

Lin Yuxia, who was standing to the side, was stunned.

If she hadn't known the background of their presence, she probably would have been persuaded.

Thinking of this, she quickly lowered her head and pretended to be sad, so as not to let the terrifying person opposite her see through her act.

The commander's acting was superb; if anything went wrong with her, she would have no face to face the people of Jiangdong.

Logically speaking, everything the Black Cloak Commander said was flawless.

It's flawless.

He readily admitted his mistake, stating that these citizens died because of his inability to protect them.

He expressed his remorse; this was a peaceful city, and no one wanted to be dragged into war.

He said he was willing to pay any price, including his life, to atone for his sins against these citizens, but please don't expose this matter.

He couldn't bear to leave the city where he had worked so hard for most of his life.

What kind of spirit is this?

Were you moved? Did you shed tears? Did you feel a pang of sympathy for him because of his sincere words?

Xia Yu replied, "Indeed."

After all, what he said really sounded very sincere.

Moreover, an elderly person is explaining to you in such a humble tone, with such a weathered and world-weary voice, as if they have seen through the ways of the world.

If he hadn't overheard the whole story and sensed that a considerable number of black-clad figures were already hiding around, he would have been truly moved.

This bad old man is very bad!

Look at the way he bows down; his feet are on the ground, his hands are outstretched, as if he could suddenly attack someone at any moment.

Ha ha.

60. You didn't expect that, did you? I was also stalling for time.

"I'm curious."

Watching the old man and the young man putting on an act, Xia Yu sneered, unmoved by either soft or hard tactics.

"According to you, you are the number one spy chief of Longmen. Given your status, you just so easily revealed everything to me?"

Clang!

The chains on Xia Yu's hands clanged, undulating like long snakes in front of her, completely preventing the Black Cloak Commander from suddenly attacking her.

A bead of cold sweat trickled down the latter's forehead.

"Do you look down on me, or on the profession of spy?"

"You give such a long answer to just a few random questions, it seems logical and well-founded, but do you think I'd believe it?"

"Lies are always hidden within the truth. Perhaps most of what you said is true, but you have definitely lied to me in some parts!"

"Why tell everything?" The commander in the black cloak made a quick decision, a bitter smile appearing on his face. "Because I see no hope..."

“Look at them,” he pointed to the subordinates who had been knocked down and bound by Xia Yu in the first place, “any one of them could easily kill and disperse dozens of Reunion thugs without taking any damage. Even those special squads equipped with sorcerers and heavy armor could not last long under their stalking.”

"But now? They're hanging behind you like dead fish..."

"What can I do if I can't even withstand one of your moves?"

He sat bolt upright and roared, "What can I do?"

"We can't beat you! We can't even withstand one move! How can there be such an unreasonable and powerful person like you in the world!"

What can I do?

"For the sake of this city, I, a dignified member of the Black Cloak of Longmen, have no choice but to humbly beg you..."

“If you’re still not satisfied, cough cough,” his straight back seemed to have lost all its strength, and he slumped backward against the wall, his tone filled with despair.

"Tell me, what can I do? What do you want me to do?"