Chapter 115: Divine Weapon: The Glare of Diarrhea

Chapter 115: Divine Weapon—“Intimidate Anyone and They Run for Their Lives”

As the grand doors of the Council of Deliberation swung open, Xia Zheng stepped inside, accompanied by Mary and Ann. The cacophony that had filled the hall like a bustling marketplace instantly fell into a brief hush. Hundreds of eyes swiftly turned to focus on the trio, especially on Xia Zheng, evoking in him an unsettling sensation as if sharp needles pricked his back.

Yet, as a Mindmaster, he quickly reacted to this mental pressure, his powerful spiritual awareness instantly isolating him from the oppressive atmosphere, allowing him to relax almost immediately. Mary and Ann, witnessing this for the first time, were genuinely impressed. Facing such a gathering of seasoned veterans and immensely powerful figures, few could maintain such composure.

Xia Zheng’s demeanor earned him not only a reduction in hostile glances but also a growing measure of respect among the assembly.

At that moment, the presiding chairman spoke through the microphone: “May I confirm if the visitor before us is Mr. Benson Wood, the sole survivor of the Special Operations Unit from the Eternal Night Precinct of the Noon Sector 7, who was sent to Peijel City for frontline investigation?”

Xia Zheng found the chairman’s lengthy formal introduction exasperating but had no choice but to reply earnestly, “That would be me.”

“Very well. Mr. Wood, please take the seat directly opposite mine to undergo questioning by the Council,” the chairman said, gesturing to the chair across from him. Xia Zheng followed Mary and Ann to a row of seats on the right side, settling into the middle one, while the two women stood on either side behind him.

Turning back with a wry smile, Xia Zheng teased, “I feel like the defendant in a courtroom. Are you here to interrogate me?”

“Stay serious. It’s protocol. There’s nothing we can do,” Mary reminded him.

Ann grinned mischievously. “Hey, being grilled by the bigwigs of the entire Eternal Night Council? You’re basically the Federation’s top criminal. Consider yourself lucky!”

Xia Zheng shrugged off the jest. He had no intention of being led by the nose. Dealing with these old foxes—masters of wit and sarcasm—required cunning. He wouldn’t let them torment him unchallenged; he’d make sure they understood he was no pushover, but all done subtly, without leaving a trace.

The chairman composed himself and briefly summarized the intelligence and evidence Xia Zheng had submitted. A few other council members exchanged glances before one elderly gentleman stood. Wearing a dark wig and sporting wide golden spectacles, he appeared to be around seventy years old.

Pursing his lips, the elder said, “Mr. Wood, in your report you mention an overwhelming, invincible monster, a blood-red wall sealing off the satellite city, strange unknown creatures shrouded in white mist, and even the local police turning into living dead that attack people. Forgive my ignorance, but these descriptions sound like the ramblings of a madman. Moreover, the evidence you submitted—video files retrieved from a storage card provided by Dirot Wood—mostly consists of wildly shaky footage resembling a pseudo-documentary or special effects movie. The images are so blurry they’re nearly indistinguishable. Mr. Wood, do you possess more concrete evidence? Perhaps the corpse of one of these creatures or clearer videos?”

Laughter intermittently erupted from the opposite seats. Many of the elders regarded Xia Zheng with disdain, dismissing the crisis as little more than a rabies-like epidemic. Watching their whispered scorn, Xia Zheng’s eyes flashed with irritation.

Surprised by the council’s severe skepticism toward his reports and evidence, Xia Zheng recalled that the military had recently begun sealing off the satellite city. He asked Mary quietly, “The military’s lockdown should have yielded firsthand data and evidence. Have you found anything?”

Mary shook her head, her curiosity piqued. “The military dissected the bodies of those rioters but found no evidence of living dead. And there’s no sign of the blood-red wall sealing Peijel. Inside the city streets, there’s blood everywhere, along with scattered corpses, as if a great massacre took place.”

Xia Zheng’s mind replayed the moment when, after slaying the colossal monster, the blood-red wall dissolved completely. Unintentionally, he had destroyed crucial evidence—but he harbored no regrets. Under those circumstances, sparing that bloodline creature to preserve evidence was unthinkable.

Yet the military’s failure to discover the living dead surprised him. After all, he had fought his way through mountains of corpses—over a hundred thousand, perhaps even more. How could they all have vanished?

He sensed a pair of eyes watching from the mist—eyes belonging to the bloodline creatures, whose intelligence far exceeded his expectations and who had likely anticipated this day long ago.

Suddenly, a tall elder, slightly younger than the previous speaker and wearing a lighter wig, rose from his seat. Around sixty years old, he pointed at Xia Zheng and shouted, “Colleagues, perhaps we have all been deceived by this young man. The investigation team was not attacked but suffered internal strife leading to mutual slaughter. It’s simple: Benson Wood was the weakest among the ten in the unit yet the only survivor. This defies all reason. Both Dirot and Carol, the team captains, are qualified genetic warriors of the Federation with extraordinary strength, while Benson is merely a civilian staff member with intellectual genetic advantages. His skills are insufficient to survive such a dreadful environment. Therefore, I conclude that…”

Before he could finish, Xia Zheng fixed him with a glare. The elder suddenly gasped.

The man’s reasoning had almost convinced the entire council, coming close to accusing Benson of being the perpetrator behind the team’s annihilation. But he never got to say it. At that moment, Xia Zheng unhesitatingly unleashed his spiritual power, targeting the old man’s stomach, causing an urgent, uncontrollable bowel crisis.

“Gurgle, gurgle…” The sudden turmoil within left the elder’s face pale, eyebrows knit tightly, yet he struggled on.

“So I believe… he… Benson is the… Ah… excuse me, I need to visit the restroom…”

Unable to finish his accusation, the elder bolted from his seat, hands clasping his backside with unusual agility. The assembly stared in disbelief, silent thoughts running through their minds—how could such a powerful figure be undone by a sudden bout of diarrhea at this critical moment?

Seizing the opportunity, Xia Zheng spoke, “I am deeply pained by the baseless accusations and doubts just now. As the sole survivor of this investigation, I bear the grief of losing family and comrades—my uncle Dirot and others—and risked my life to bring you news of the living dead and the bloodline creatures. Yet I receive such injustice. Honorable chairmen and council members, when you spin your conspiracy theories, have you considered that if my intelligence is accurate, Eternal Night City faces utter destruction? Are you prepared to bear the responsibility?”

“Bold claims! Then how do you explain your survival? Was it mere luck? I suspect you are…”

Before the word “culprit” could escape, Xia Zheng shot him a piercing glare. The councilman immediately suffered a similar fate—an explosive bout of diarrhea that sent him fleeing while others covered their noses, disgusted.

The man’s shame was palpable as he hurried out, leaving a lingering stench in the air.

Mary and Ann frowned, instinctively pinching their noses to block the odor.

“I refuse to believe it. You clearly are…”

Another foul smell wafted through the chamber, stirring chaos. Although the council was no stranger to disorder, this sudden epidemic of diarrhea was unprecedented. Within ten minutes, over twenty elders either fled on their own or were carried out, each suffering uncontrollable bouts. The council chamber had become a chaotic, foul-smelling mess.

What on earth was happening? So many upset stomachs at once? Mary and Ann glanced at Xia Zheng, silently wondering if he was the cause—but it seemed unlikely.

In truth, it was Xia Zheng, though none could ever believe it, not even the victims themselves.

The power of a Mindmaster was beyond their comprehension. Though his methods were underhanded and crude, in this setting, inducing uncontrollable diarrhea was indeed a divine weapon.

Xia Zheng rose, a paper towel covering his mouth as a makeshift mask. Amid the humiliated glares of the elders, he boldly declared, “Peijel City’s population numbers in the tens of thousands. From what I know, more than ten thousand have turned into living dead. I believe as the investigation deepens, the truth will inevitably surface. Frankly, I have no obligation to debate reason or logic with you bureaucrats. We face a colossal crisis that could obliterate Eternal Night City. If you continue to doubt me and ignore the real threat, it will be too late when the disaster strikes. Esteemed chairmen and council members, this is no time for questioning—I will take my leave.”

Neither Mary nor Ann wished to stay a moment longer. They hurried after Xia Zheng, leaving behind a chorus of enraged, howling elders shouting curses like “Disgrace to civility,” “Infuriating old man,” and “How dare this upstart!”

Regardless of the diarrhea scandal unfolding inside the council chamber, once outside, the fresh air felt like escaping from hell itself.

“Hahaha…”

“Ahahaha…”

The two female officers finally burst into laughter. Xia Zheng restrained himself from joining in, mindful that as the culprit, any recorded laughter on camera might prompt those old men to silence him permanently.