"North Carolina is a Restricted Area nation with severe class stratification. When it was unsealed, the entire country was still a feudal empire. Although many years have passed and they’ve shed that backward system, the overall situation hasn’t improved much. The class system is deeply ingrained. The upper class lives in luxury—better than you or I—while the lower class can’t afford food or clothing, with an average life expectancy of less than forty-five years.

The upper class has never seen the lower class as human, not even as a labor force, but as livestock. The top 1% of the elite rich suck the blood of the 14% middle class and the 85% poor. That’s the real reason North Carolina’s leadership is so wealthy.

All these factors combined meant that North Carolina’s leadership was bound to have an attitude of indifference toward the Crystal Disease. Reducing their exploding population is one reason. On the other hand... heh, those crystals might be a product of a virus from the Abyss, but aren’t they also ’Extraordinary Materials’?"

’The rich in North Carolina are probably laughing themselves to death right now, aren’t they?’

A single wave of Crystal Disease solved their increasingly bloated population problem, and its byproduct is an Extraordinary Material. Sure, it’s a source of infection and has a certain degree of danger, but how many Extraordinary Materials aren’t dangerous?

Blacksmiths and Alchemists will even use materials from the Abyss that are maxed out on danger, let alone these virus crystals.

Those aren’t crystallized corpses—they’re stacks of shiny Gold Coins!

Zhou Chen asked in a low voice, "Doesn’t the Star Association do anything about it?"

"Do anything? With what?"

Jiang Che said lightly, "Zhou Chen, don’t think the Star Association is full of good people. While there’s certainly a group of idealists fighting for world peace, there are just as many who are only in it for themselves. North Carolina is a sovereign nation with many complex factors involved. It’s not easy for me to explain.

You need to understand, the Star Association isn’t omnipotent. It has to maintain the functioning of the entire World and be on constant guard against invasions from the Abyss. It can’t just send a Crowned King to suppress the situation every time a country has a problem. Besides, North Carolina has its own Crowned King. How many people would dare to flagrantly violate the lockdown laws he enacted?

And if we really did send a Crowned King, it would be an invasion of their territory. Their side would definitely fight back. A battle between two Tier Five individuals would be far more destructive than the Crystal Disease."

"Then what about North Carolina’s local Star Association branch?"

"They naturally side with the rich. Their president and vice president both come from North Carolina’s wealthy districts. How could they possibly care about the lives of the poor? For all we know, they probably think letting the Crystal Disease spread to reduce the bloated population is a good thing for the country, an effective way to relieve North Carolina’s pressures.

Of course, to keep their jobs and stay out of prison, they’d never show that side of themselves publicly."

"That’s only a good thing for the upper class," Zhou Chen sighed. "What if the Crystal Disease spirals completely out of control?"

"Then they’d ask the Star Association for help, of course."

Jiang Che gave a rare, sarcastic smile. "The only reason the Crystal Disease hasn’t appeared in the outside world for so long is because of North Carolina’s lockdown laws. Once the King of North Carolina lifts those laws, how many infected people do you think will flee to the outside? It would become a global pandemic. Even if the Star Association didn’t want to clean up their mess, they’d have to hold their noses and do it.

Now that the Crystal Disease has appeared in the outside world, I’d guess North Carolina’s leadership is pulling the strings from behind the scenes.

—Enough people have died. It’s time to end this purge."

’This world is so dark...’ Zhou Chen lamented internally. ’But really, there’s not much to say about it. Where there is good, there is evil; where there is light, there is Darkness. Forget about an entire country—sometimes even just going to work is full of backstabbing. And it’s not like people who climb the ladder through unspoken rules are a rare sight, is it?’

·

「Twenty minutes later, the Rain of Life program was initiated.」

The global Purification began.

Twelve minutes after the program’s initiation, the Rain of Life descended upon Jinzhu.

Raindrops fell with a PITTER-PATTER, blurring the glass window. Zhou Chen stood by the window and observed. On the surface, the Rain of Life looked no different from normal rain, but it contained Extraordinary Power and a burgeoning Life Force.

"Shouldn’t we go out and stand in the rain? Wouldn’t that be more effective?" Zhou Chen asked curiously.

"You can if you want, but don’t come inside after you’re done," Jiang Che said flatly.

The Rain of Life would diffuse through the air. Even a shut-in who never left home would eventually inhale the cure just by breathing. Of course, standing in the rain was more effective and direct. The Life Force contained within the Rain of Life could even incidentally treat some other illnesses.

Twenty minutes: the Rain of Life fell across the entire Eastern Continent.

Fifty minutes: Europe, Asia, and Australia were all enveloped by the Rain of Life.

One hour and thirty-six minutes: the Rain of Life covered the globe.

Then, another twenty minutes later, Jiang Che received the first feedback report.

The Rain of Life’s Purification was a success. With the exception of North Carolina, those infected with Crystal Disease in other regions showed significant recovery. After a brief observation period, healthy individuals who had been in contact with the infected no longer showed symptoms, and no Crystal Disease virus was detected in their bodies.

However, in North Carolina, the origin point of the Crystal Disease, the effects of the Rain of Life were less than ideal.

The Crystal Disease there was rapidly mutating and evolving, several versions ahead of other regions. The antidote had a very limited effect.

After reading the report, Jiang Che glanced at Zhou Chen. "I should’ve sealed your mouth with duct tape."

"Hey, how is this my fault, sir?" Zhou Chen felt wronged. ’You were the one celebrating prematurely...’

’Still, this shouldn’t affect our promotions and raises. After all, the other regions are temporarily safe, so that counts as a merit.’

’As for North Carolina... there’s no use worrying about it. They can’t change anything anyway.’

·

After finishing his overtime, Zhou Chen returned home. When he saw Li Xiye sitting on the sofa watching a movie, a wave of warmth washed over him.

"You could’ve gone to sleep. You didn’t have to wait for me."

Li Xiye shot him a look. "Don’t flatter yourself. I wasn’t waiting for you. I was just bored and catching up on movies I’ve missed over the years."

"...That hurts my feelings, you know."

"Then go be sad somewhere else and don’t disturb my movie. Oh, and grab me a Coke while you’re at it."

Zhou Chen wanted to say something but held his tongue. ’Fine,’ he thought. ’Who told this daddy to love you so much?’

He went to the fridge, grabbed two Cokes, and returned to the living room. He sat down and casually picked up a cold slice of pizza from the table and started eating.

"How did things go?" Li Xiye asked, twisting open her Coke.

"The Star Association released the Rain of Life and has curbed the spread of the Crystal Disease. But the virus version in North Carolina is too advanced, so Antidote 1.0 didn’t have much effect. I guess there will be evolved forms of the Crystal Disease causing trouble later on," Zhou Chen sighed.

’The good news, though, is that the biotech lab now has experience and is rushing to develop a more effective antidote. Maybe it won’t be long before a specific cure appears and completely eradicates the Crystal Disease.’

Then, Zhou Chen told Li Xiye all the details he knew.

"A Poison Master from Fallen Paradise..." Li Xiye took a sip of Coke. "What Tier is he?"

"Tier Three."

Li Xiye immediately lost interest. "Then never mind."

"What were you just thinking of doing?" Zhou Chen asked suspiciously.

"If he were Tier Four, and you begged me, I would’ve gone and killed him, then let you take the credit. You’d get a promotion and a raise, and I’d complete my Advancement. A win-win. Too bad he’s not."

"You’re a bit too intense..." Zhou Chen’s mouth twitched. ’But what can I do? She has the power to back it up.’

"And whose fault do you think that is?" Li Xiye looked at him pointedly.

Zhou Chen immediately fell silent.

"Alright," Li Xiye reached out, pinched his cheek, and chuckled softly. "I’ve already forgiven you, so what are you still blaming yourself for? If you really feel bad about it, then just treat me well. Don’t lie to me again, and don’t leave me again."

Those once awe-inspiring, majestic eyes were now filled with tenderness. Zhou Chen didn’t look away. After a long moment, he nodded seriously.

"I will."

·

「Late at night.」

Just as Zhou Chen lay in bed about to fall asleep, his consciousness stirred. He faintly heard someone calling out to him.

"Mr. Lamp God, I need your help..."