Wow! The item-dropping rate is really high!

The words were ice-cold, yet this was the most rational choice.

Rather than allow these people to turn into followers of chaos due to the corruption of high-dimensional space in the future, it was better to clean up now and remove future troubles.

The two executioners with more seniority furrowed their brows tightly, their eyes sweeping over the civilians who were gradually regaining their consciousness, with a hint of reluctance in their gaze.

Although the likelihood of corruption was high in the future, at this moment, they clearly had not truly reached that point.

To cleanse them now...

Some civilians with sharp ears who were nearby heard Franca's words and the ones who had just stood up immediately knelt down again, pleading for mercy repeatedly.

"No... please!"

"Don't kill us! My lord!"

"It was Wallis who threatened us! We're not on the same path as him!"

The voices were in disarray; every person was arguing from their perspective, trying to secure a chance to live.

Bai E stood to the side, silent.

Even considering slipping away.

The demon was dealt with, the benefits reaped; the rest... probably had nothing to do with him, right?

But his curiosity about the emergence and cause of the demon, as well as how the Arbitration Place conducted its business, made Bai E want to stay and see how they would handle the situation.

The multitude of pleading voices echoed in his ears, representing the tiny will of each ordinary person who had suffered, striving to live.

The two slightly more experienced executioners, even after having executed countless demon Believers, still softened and hesitated whenever they faced moments of mortal pleading.

To kill, was for the greater good.

Otherwise, in such a lawless settlement outside of the city, if these corrupted humans secretly organized together, who knows if they might cause a bigger mess than today, and that would be a major problem.

But at least at this moment, right now, these people were only innocent victims.

They were not the so-called "purists" of the institution, not yet crazy enough to mercilessly kill without discrimination any who had slightest contact with anything related to "demons."

"..." The two old partners exchanged glances, speechless.

It was hard for them to make this decision.

Franca didn't press them further, merely looking at the demon's corpse with a hint of wariness.

"Additionally, what's the situation with this demon?"

A regular-level demon had exhibited such formidable strength.

Franca was naturally quite clear about the definitions of strength for summoned demons; theoretically, a large group of Believers must have summoned it, otherwise it wouldn't be so difficult to handle.

But there wasn't one.

Although Franca arrived late, observing the battlefield was a basic skill that every master who faced combat needed to possess.

She hadn't found any traces of large-scale sacrifices at the scene, which indicated that the group of Believers who summoned this demon might not be as large as she had imagined.

This was abnormal.

All abnormal situations were valuable for analysis and documentation.

"It's a demon offspring," the dual-blade executioner said with a complex look as he glanced towards Kuang Xin, Xu Ruoguang, and others who were still conducting rescue operations not far away following the sound of wailing underground.

In fact, one was right beside him—Gong Yan, who had helped him up.

Hearing this term, not for the first time that night, Gong Yan's eyes flickered, bracing herself internally.

Demon offspring, was it referring to them?

Was it specifically about her team, or... the entire community of players?

From the moment Gong Yan discovered that this game was as real as a true existing world, they had already been quite curious in their private chats about how the original inhabitants viewed them, these players who had suddenly appeared.

After all, the behaviors of the players were very discordant with the background style of this world.

Now... perhaps they finally had an answer.

Bai E stood still and also quietly pricked up his ears.

Players? Demon offspring? What was this another world insider's information he didn't understand?

"Demon offspring?" Franca watched Kuang Xin's back as he tried to move a huge rock, her beautiful eyes slightly narrowing, "They are the demon offspring?"

She had already recalled meeting three of the people... she had seen them, and had even given them a bottle of Exorcism Essential Oil.

And now... these demon offspring clearly knew the mysterious master who had appeared abruptly; otherwise, they wouldn't have looked so relieved at the first shot, even before she was aware of it.

Perhaps this mysterious master was the same 'lord' they had mentioned before?

Yes... everything matched up.

Franca's eyes once again swept over the kneeling pleading civilians and returned to the present.

The dual-blade executioner was looking at Gong Yan beside him, making good on his promise, "I said that I would explain everything to you in detail after it was all over... You are the demon offspring."

"... All the people you come into contact with have a high probability of becoming demon Believers, not all, but compared to normal circumstances, the probability is at least ten times higher."

"... Meanwhile, those humans who turn into demon Believers after coming into contact with you, their strength surge is unimaginable compared to their original level, far exceeding any demonic favor acquired by Believers in the past, which is quite abnormal. The demon we just confronted was clear evidence.

According to records in our Arbitration Place, a demon summoned by a single person should never have such strength."

"... I don't know if this situation is your intention, or an unfortunate event that simply happened to you without your knowledge. But I must fulfill my responsibility—bring you back to the institution."

Indeed, the institution didn't have a blanket death sentence for demon offspring.

Without a clear understanding of the cause, such a drastic measure was too extreme.

They needed extensive research...

To be taken away, and labeled with an ominous title, this very likely meant the loss of freedom.

Gong Yan visibly took a subconscious step back.

Dai Lian, who was supporting another executioner, also stepped back, his eyes even more overtly filled with a cautious hue.

"Hey, hey, hey! We just fought together, we don't need to fight another battle, do we?" Franca raised her eyebrows, glancing to the side, "This gentleman, they are your people, right? How should we deal with this, want to give us some advice?"

Franca deliberately led the conversation towards this mysterious person.

The other party was powerful, and perhaps had discovered characteristics of the demon's children earlier than they had, otherwise, why would he coincidentally choose such a group of demon's children as his subordinates?

It's just that the other party's allegiance was unclear.

At this moment, he could kill demons and had previously saved a demon believer right before their eyes...

Plus, the ideas about his goodness, even innocence, they heard from his subordinates...

Such a strange stance.

Compared to the demons they had dealt with and the wondrous demon's children, Franca was more curious about the mysterious organization leader with whom she had crossed paths several times.

Bai E stayed motionless, listening from start to finish to the words the enforcer revealed to the players.

The children of demons?

All the NPCs that came into contact with players would turn into powerful demon believers...

Is it because... of the feedback mechanism that reflects player's strength?

But why was he unaffected?

Plus, the demon centered around "greed" they had just dealt with...

A myriad of connections flooded his mind, and Bai E had a vague guess, but he dared not confirm it.

"I support their own choices," Bai E replied softly.

"You have already made an enemy of us at the Arbitration Place once," Franca said, with a flickering gaze that was elusive.

The two barely-standing enforcers were desperately signaling to the young, reckless lady—

Have you lost your mind?

The enforcers were just more focused when hunting demons and dealing with demon-related affairs... or one could say paranoid.

But that didn't mean they were fools.

The expert before them had just easily slain the high-dimensional demon that all three of them had been helpless against; how could these three defeated and wounded officers provoke him?

If they angered him, their ashes could be scattered by him.

And even the institution wouldn't seek revenge against him because of this.

That's the rule.

The reason why they at the Arbitration Place had such immense privileges in handling demon-related affairs was that they had virtually no rights elsewhere; when a human hadn't breached any demonic taboos, the enforcers had no reason to attack a powerful human.

Franca, reckless, merely curved her lips into a strange smile.

Bai E did not look at her directly but his tone became dangerous as well, "What's on your mind?"

From their few encounters, he knew that Franca wasn't the paranoid type; she must have an ulterior motive.

"How about this..." Franca's gaze swept over the scene, the civilians were still kneeling on the ground, incessantly kowtowing.

Everyone had heard about the Arbitration Place's actions; they were utterly merciless when it came to eradicating anything related to demons.

They could even hunt down to the ends of the earth.

Offending the Battle Gang, one could always survive by moving elsewhere.

Being targeted by the Arbitration Place... there was probably no safe place left on the planet.

Perhaps burying oneself in a grave might be somewhat more peaceful.

Fear came from deep within; by this point, many had already broken their foreheads from kowtowing.

"Them..." Franca's finger shifted focus, landing on the players, "And them... How about you help us manage them?"

All the words spoken were intended for Bai E.

Whether they were civilians or the children of demons...

Franca had sparked this entire conflict with the aim of binding all these issues to the mysterious expert.

If he truly was as glorious and upright as his subordinates claimed, if he truly had the determination to implement those bright ideals... then let it begin.

From this moment on!

Step out! Step into the sunlight!

No more sneaking around!

Through this corner of the world, let the masses recognize your existence. Enjoy new chapters from empire

Let me see... just what kind of person you really are!

Franca's eyes burned intensely, fixating on the figure beneath the dark brown robe.

"What do you say? The demon's children are dangerous, these people are destined to decay. Without a strong figure to oversee them, you know... we won't feel at ease, and we don't have enough manpower..."

The answer was obvious, and Franca paused for a moment before continuing, "So from this day on, this territory... shall be governed by you, or your subordinates. The demon's children... the civilians who have witnessed demons, we'll no longer interfere, we just need your assurance! They... will all be safe."

With that, Franca turned her gaze to her two colleagues, "Seniors, this approach is acceptable to you, right?"

"Agreed!"

"Agreed!"

They couldn't agree more.

As long as they didn't start fighting right then and there, everything was not a problem.

The issue of the demon's children could be discussed later; the civilians who had personally experienced the demon calamities didn't necessarily need to be executed on the spot.

And Franca's proposal actually hit right at what they desired; having the mysterious expert in front of them oversee this district was incredibly reassuring. Even if another demon calamity occurred, it would be just a matter of two arrows—very comforting indeed.

Franca's lips curled slightly and she looked back at Bai E, "So... your answer?"

[Hint: The rise of a faction's reputation also requires support from a physical territory. You're standing at the edge of a decision with enormous influence. Faced with the opposite party's proposal, you decide...]