The death row inmates roared in unison, "What do you mean, you're not saying anything?!"
Yaxiu planted his hands on his hips and declared with righteous indignation, "To be honest, I'm actually a good person. I'd love nothing more than to feed you scumbags and bastards to the fish right this second, so how could I possibly let you out to wreak havoc on society? You guys just sit tight right here, undergo your ideological reform, and strive to die as soon as possible. Goodbye forever, everyone!"
"Aren't you a cult leader yourself?!"
"I am not, I did not, I am innocent."
"Who'd believe that?!"
"To think you don't believe an honest, upstanding person like me. I've noted you down. Heh heh, when the time comes, I'll be sure to cast a vote for you in the Blood Moon Trial."
"Wait, Fiend." A tall, delicate-featured death row inmate blocked his path. "Although I don't know your prison break plan, no matter what, I could serve as bait to draw the Sin Hunting Hall's attention and increase your chances of escape. It doesn't matter if you don't trust me, but compared to you, the Sin Hunting Hall will definitely take me, 'Lark' Jewel, far more seriously. I can definitely take a huge amount of pressure off you."
"Ah, Jewel, I remember you," Yaxiu smiled. "Back when Igola was looking for teammates, you were the very first one he recommended. He thought you were powerful, exceptionally sharp, skilled in healing and evasion, and knew every underground hideout in Kaimeng City, large and small. You were simply the best ally possible."
Jewel cracked a smile. "I'm flattered by the Fair Beast's high regard—"
"—Which is why he strongly insisted I leave you right here to wait for death," Yaxiu sneered. "Back when we came to recruit you, you made every excuse and gave us the cold shoulder. Now that the plan has succeeded, you're the one who isn't worthy to climb aboard!"
"Igola is way pettier than me. Since you offended him, I imagine before he leaves he'd use the Sinner Directory to make you lick the urinals clean. Hey, anyone here got diabetes? Maybe you could season it for him?"
Pushing past the grim-faced Jewel, Yaxiu had barely taken two steps before he was blocked by the prison guards.
"Yaxiu Heath," Nagu said coldly. "I know that reason won't get through to an obstinate, vile liberal criminal like you, so I have no interest in reasoning with you. I only ask that you either kill me or lift my restrictions! I cannot bear this kind of humiliation!"
Yaxiu blinked. "This kind of humiliation? Isn't your current treatment just the daily life of a death row inmate? Everyone's been through it—"
"But we aren't death row inmates! We shouldn't have to bear these shackles!" Nagu swept his gaze over the death row prisoners. "Whereas you—"
"They got what they deserved, I know," Yaxiu said breezily. "Just think of it as a rare professional work-experience program. It'll benefit your future duties. After all, how can a prison guard who has never even been an inmate ever become warden?"
"Besides, aren't these so-called shackles merely prohibiting you from attacking, verbally abusing, and relieving yourself wherever you please? Aren't these the very regulations you ought to follow? Why be so resistant?"
"As for your inability to pee when people stare at you, that's just because your nerves are overly delicate. That has nothing to do with me..."
Nagu was momentarily left speechless. Yaxiu nudged past him and whispered softly in his ear:
"Don't refuse to do good just because it seems insignificant, and don't casually commit an evil deed just because it seems trivial... I'm not asking you to sympathize with these scumbags, I just hope you won't turn into scumbags yourselves."
"Of course, you can also treat this as my personal revenge against you guards." He patted Nagu's shoulder. "Next time you take death row inmates to the Blood Moon Trial, better be a little gentler. Just send them to their deaths as a matter of routine business; don't treat prisoners like toys."
"When you stop treating people like humans, you aren't that far from becoming like them."
With that, Yaxiu pushed open the door and left. Nagu stood frozen in place, a mix of conflicted emotions swirling inside him—
*Clack!*
Yaxiu suddenly dashed back in, turned on the tap, and washed his hands. "Almost forgot." Then he hurried right out.
Nagu glanced at the shoulder Yaxiu had just patted, his feelings becoming even more tangled.
...
In the Central Hall, the five villains gathered.
Harvey the Necromancer said, "Aside from the five of us, everyone in the prison now has their movement restricted and has been subjected to the same level of restrictions as death row inmates. No one can disrupt our plan."
Igola the Swindler said, "According to the hunters, the transport ship must return to Kaimeng Lake Port by 7:00 p.m. at the latest. Otherwise, the port will inquire about the situation—because the port staff must clock out punctually at 7:30 p.m."
Langna the Gourmet said, "The transport ship has been cleared."
Ronald the Woodpecker, the "Golden Mouth," gave a thumbs-up, flashing a dazzling, gleaming smile. "I've already learned how to steer the transport ship! The five of us meet the minimum crew requirement to operate it!"
"Which means we can leave at any moment," Yaxiu said, looking around. "The only issue is, Harvey, if you want to kill Financier, you must delay his time of death until after 6:00 p.m. Whether by poison or bleeding him out, in short, we need enough time for our escape."
"Or... we could execute that crazy, spur-of-the-moment contingency plan."
Harvey tore open a sky-blue square wrapper with his teeth, rolled out a milky-white candy with his tongue, and tucked it into his mouth. Yaxiu took a closer look—wasn't that the Snow White brand moon sugar advertised on Kaimeng Channel 1? This moon sugar was claimed to be whiter than snow and sweeter than a princess, and what was even more outrageous was that after popping a candy, the model playing the princess in the commercial had been so thrilled she dropped right into a split on the spot.
It was truly hard for Yaxiu not to be intrigued—after all, he couldn't do the splits.
Though who knew Harvey had this kind of hobby?
Harvey gently crushed the candy with his tongue, a faint glimmer of vigor gradually rising in his dead, lifeless pupils. "I choose the contingency plan."
"Me too." Surprisingly, the second to agree was Igola. His fanatic gaze at that moment looked just like a creep catching sight of a beauty. "I can't pass up such a wonderful opportunity to put on a show."
"I object." Langna produced a nail file and manicured his nails, speaking impassively. "Leaving quietly is the safest."
"I side with Langna," Ronald laughed. "Whether out of sentiment or interest, the contingency plan is far too risky."
Two versus two. The decisive vote lay in Yaxiu's hands.
"Naturally, I prefer the safer original plan."
As soon as Yaxiu said this, Harvey and Igola's expressions darkened, while Langna and Ronald smiled.
"However..."
Yaxiu spread his hands. "It's my first time getting arrested, my first time becoming a death row inmate, my first time locked up in prison, my first time participating in a Blood Moon Trial... and now, my first time breaking out of prison."
"With so many first times already, what's one more?"
"Let us use the very first Blood Moon Trial we host to say hello to this sick nation."
Chapter 128