A small doll appeared on stage before the sparks vanished, and it fell limp on the ground.

I darted forward, quickly picking it up. It was a traditional ragdoll with large black button eyes—the doll had curly pieces of yellow yarn for hair and white wings attached to its back with blue robes flowing out.

In my hands, it looked like a normal angel ragdoll—completely lifeless and still.

To make a descent like this, it would have already cost Archangel Michael an unspeakable amount of spiritual energy.

[You have received a new review!]

CIDER988 REVIEW: ★★★★★

I want to see Peijin do cool things, and if bad reviews are what kills her, I might as well leave this good one.

[Observers Chat]

Socrates: Hurry, Jia Li! You can only hold off karma for so long.

I felt a small burst of spiritual energy within me, though I knew it wouldn’t do much to the amount of karmic restraint. Gently placing the doll on my shoulder, I offered it a large smile. “This form is quite cute for you. I wouldn’t mind signing more contracts if I could keep you perched here.”

The doll was still hunched over on my shoulder, the big button eyes unblinking. I held back a snort.

“Zhige, here,” I called out, slapping the side of my leg as if the blade were a dog. “Can you feel pain?”

Amelia was now pressing her small forehead against Yang’s, and soon, I would be thrust into the arc’s punishment for invading the dungeon room.

Zhige shook back and forth to reassure me before nuzzling against me once more.

“Lucky you.”

I leapt off the stage and tried to run as far up the auditorium as I could toward the glass, but Yang quickly descended before I made it.

At once, massive sparks flew out around me and, like a swarm of infuriated hornets, surrounded and seared into my skin.

“Urgh!” I exclaimed, falling onto a knee.

My limbs kicked and convulsed from the burning pain. More and more sparks emerged around me and bit into my skin, vanishing and leaving burn wounds behind. Zhige trembled violently against me and tried to ward off some of the sparks.

Even if my physique level was at fifty or a hundred, the arc’s punishment would’ve overwhelmed me. I was breaking the room’s rules by passing the glass without a skill—allowing me to survive would be a massive flaw of the system.

I groaned, trying to stand up as the flurry around me began to completely block out my vision with nothing more but bright, angry sparks.

“Zhige, can’t you try a bit harder?”

Rather offended by my remark, Zhige flew above my head and grew in size—with the blade pointed toward the ground, it spun rapidly in circles to deflect the sparks around me.

Surprisingly, most likely due to Zhige’s incredible spiritual power, it deflected most of the sparks. Soon, the system would come for Zhige, but I could finally fight for a few desperate inhales.

“Archangel Michael…!” I wheezed, unable to finish my plea for his help.

To outsiders, I would look like a burning tower, sparks of fire and pure energy exuding out of me.

Before me, there was a sudden blue flash that I could hardly make out. It creeped closer until a small blue snout poked through the whirlpool of sparks.

“Chang?”

Oddly enough, he seemed strangely concerned with his scaly brows furrowed and his lips dipping into a frown.

“You need to get back behind the glass, Peijin.”

“I can’t.”

“You can never outdo karma. God of fortune and fate or not.”

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

I laughed pitifully, standing up and readjusting the doll. “You wanted a good show, right?”

Before me, Yang made it onto the stage and was fighting puppet Yang. Yang desperately swung his staff at puppet Yang, but puppet Yang matched his pace and swung back with eqaul force and superior skill. He wielded the staff seamlessly, creating distance between the two as he continued pulling Yue toward the end of the stage.

“Yue! Stop!” Yang cried, desperately trying to reach her, but the staff beat him back ceaselessly.

[Scathing Reviewer activated!]

I looked up at Chang with a small smile on my face. “I can’t leave until this dungeon ends. I trust Zhige and Archangel Michael.”

Divinity The One Who Fights in Front nods at your display of bravery.

Divinity The One Who Fights in Front also criticizes your behavior as unwise.

Chang’s expression fell immediately at my words.

“The doll… is that?”

“Yes, it is.”

“Do you understand what you’re doing, Peijin? How did he even agree to let you do that?” Chang’s voice grew louder and louder.

“Since when did you start doubting the gods?”

“If you’re a god, I can see why you got banished.”

Sparks continued flying around me as Zhige attempted to swing them off, but he was slowly being forced closer and closer against me. Sparks broke through his defense and ripped through my skin.

“Zhige, you need to leave me and help Yang kill puppet Yang,” I whisper to the spinning blade above me.

Faltering for a moment, Zhige hesitated with the command—as soon as Zhige left, the sparks would reattach themselves to me.

I let out a little laugh, brushing my hair back, “I know. I’m pissed off that Yang hasn’t ended this yet.” Gripping the doll tightly, I took in one last breath.

“Zhige, go.”

The blade darted forward, and I was immediately engulfed by the yellow sparks.

***

Yue’s POV

Liu Peijin has my best interest at heart.

That was a phrase Yue truly believed.

In fact, if she were asked to, she’d swear her life on this belief; however, she’d never confess to that. Peijin’s ego would be far too boosted.

Yue didn’t know where this belief came from, but it felt like it was an engrained part of her.

The two deeply resented each other, but there was an unspoken tension of respect between them. Yue deeply admired Peijin’s cunningness, and Peijin acknowledged Yue’s unparalleled growth.

But there was another truth that Yue believed.

If it’s in my best interest, Liu Peijin will abandon me.

These two truths managed to coexist within Yue, and in only a few days, cultivated a deep garden of fear in her heart. For one, Yue did not yet know if Peijin would abandon her for Yang or Amelia or Wei, as Peijin always managed to achieve everything; she never had to make such decisions.

Peijin, however, was still deeply cruel. Yue saw, felt, and accepted this when watching Amelia tremble with fear in the past room, and Peijin permitted it. In fact, Peijin fostered it.

“Y-Yang!” Yue screamed, wielding her spear nervously in front of her as the two identical figures viciously battled one another.

How could anyone tell them apart?

“Get out of here!” Yang screamed, looking over his shoulder while slashing through the air with the golden staff. “You’re at the end. Make it through! Peijin and I will hold off these imposters.”

The other Yang shouted, but his breaths were labored and weaker. “Don’t listen to him, Yue! He’s not real!”

The Peijin that had burst through the maze now vanished, erupting into no more than a golden flame, but the one that had been with her this entire time continued to fight relentlessly before a gray blade with a red eye suddenly appeared.

It swung at Peijin with unspeakable force, throwing her back with a loud cry.

A blade that can move on its own?

Yue couldn’t quite recall through her foggy memory.

The gray sword was immediately coated in thick layers of the yellow sparks, crackling and popping like a firework—shaking it off, it lunged at Peijin again.

Yang drew his staff into the air, swinging it down and causing the entire stage to splinter in half, sending everyone flying back. With a deeply fearful look, he turned around to make sure Yue was okay.

That’s right, he was the real Yang. The one who had gone through the maze with her, because Yang didn’t leave.

Yang was different from Peijin. It was clear he harbored a deeply odd fear for Yue, his entire body trembling like a weak autumn leaf around her, but Yang was a person who stayed. He stayed with her at the station, he stayed with Amelia during her level, and now, he stayed with her through the maze.

With a loud cry, Yue darted forward, pinning the imposter Yang against the ground with a flurry of attacks.

“Yue? What’s gotten into you? You can’t recognize me?” the imposter shouted. His eyes shook when he desperately looked up at her. He raised his staff to prevent himself from getting battered by her spear, but the imposter never struck back.

He craned his head and saw the glowing yellow figure in the audience, and his face fell, his eyes growing wide in horror. For a moment, his grip on his staff slackened.

“Peijin…?”

That wasn’t the real Peijin. It deserved to die.

Yue’s spear breached through the imposter’s defense and slashed his face, causing a deep cut to bleed down his cheek. With a quick movement, the imposter tucked his legs in before kicking out, sending Yue flying.

Suddenly, Peijin darted in, throwing the imposter to the ground. The blade chased after her tail, stabbing deeply into her back.

Peijin let out a deep guttural cry but continued to fight the imposter.

“No! Peijin!” Yue screamed, reaching out for her.

“Yue!” The imposter shouted, “Don’t you remember when I patched your wounds with the kraken mucus? Or when we saved Amelia from the serpent? I promised I wouldn’t leave you, and I didn’t!”

Yue paused, struggling to piece the events together. She could vaguely recall a promise being made.

Before she could reflect further, Yang’s hand firmly grabbed her wrist. “There’s no time, Yue. We need to get out of here. Peijin will catch up with us, believe in her!”

Yang tugged her firmly, sprinting toward the end of the stage and flinging her forward. With one last jump, Yue leapt for the end of the stage.

But she suddenly stopped.

Two arms were hooked underneath her armpits, pinning her tightly against a body.

Yue blinked up, confused, as she looked over her shoulder and met Yang’s eyes.

“Yang?” Her voice faltered now as the betrayal set in. She had chosen wrong. “Yang?”

A blade thrust straight through Yue’s abdomen, causing a line of blood to shoot out and splatter onto the ground. The blade let out a metal ring as Peijin removed the sword in a quick movement before piercing Yue more, over and over and over while Yang held Yue in place.

With a violent, guttural sound, Yue cried out as blood spurted from her mouth.