Alt Mercury fell into slumber once more, only this time...

He truly would not wake up again.

After Arlan Mercury left, Lin Yu could already feel the power of 'belief' surging forth—although it wasn't yet enough to cover the fact that Alt Mercury was still alive, once more and more nobles awoke and more and more 'belief' gathered, then Alt Mercury would truly attain eternal peace.

At this moment, Lin Yu let out a long sigh of relief, feeling as if a massive boulder had been lifted from his heart.

Right now, the 'Promotion Trial' was mostly complete; he was almost within a single step of reaching the 'Second Tier'.

"Thanks a lot this time, Old Zheng... you were truly the biggest contributor this time."

Without borrowing Old Zheng's abilities, without Old Zheng's help in holding off Arlan Mercury, Lin Yu's plan would have utterly collapsed in the face of Arlan Mercury's absolute violence just now.

Admittedly, Arlan Mercury gave up his obsession voluntarily because of his elder brother's words, but if he couldn't withstand the first furious onslaught from Arlan, Lin Yu would have had no way to create the situation for him to have a dialogue with Alt Mercury.

So, Old Zheng's contribution was indeed indispensable.

Although he had almost collapsed from exhaustion just a moment ago, Old Zheng, having caught his breath, started talking tough again.

"No problem, we're bros. Besides, I was just lending a hand. Did you really think I was that tired? Pfft, I'm a 'Third Tier' expert, piece of cake."

Then, Old Zheng paused before speaking again. "But let's not play things so close to the edge next time... Other things aside, that last moment when you withdrew—what if Alt had coughed or something?"

"Besides, withdrawing early was pointless anyway!"

Lin Yu curled his lip. "Who said it was pointless?"

"Wouldn't it have been the same if you had me withdraw the corpse after Alt started chatting with his brother?"

"Other than looking cool, what was the point of withdrawing the corpse early?"

Old Zheng asked, puzzled.

Lin Yu answered softly. "Of course, it was to let you 'free up' the thread... You were occupying almost all of the mental power just now."

"So, I told you to withdraw the corpse to free up that mental power again, so I could handle any sudden situations... After all, I wasn't certain Alt would definitely say the words I hoped for."

As Lin Yu spoke, Old Zheng froze for several seconds before realizing what Lin Yu had intended.

If Alt hadn't stopped Arlan just then, hadn't continued to appear firm, Lin Yu would have instantly used his mental power to manipulate him, making him perform according to the script Lin Yu desired.

"Fortunately, he really was a gentleman whose words matched his heart," Lin Yu sighed. "The family ethos of the Mercury Family is much better than that of the Sleepless Sky Family."

"You're really terrifying," said Old Zheng, who had just been moved by the parting scene between the two brothers, instantly retracting his sentimentality. "Honestly, I now believe your joining 'Order' was just a temporary measure. Someone like you is clearly more suited for our 'Psychological Society' or the 'Free Alliance'."

Lin Yu didn't respond to Old Zheng.

After all, Old Zheng was following him; sooner or later, he'd find out... that he really had joined both of those places.

However, Lin Yu didn't agree with Old Zheng's assessment of him either.

"I was just doing my utmost to complete the task. This 'Promotion Trial' is so difficult; where would I have any energy left to care about these guys' feelings?"

Lin Yu said with a sigh.

"Even though Alt Mercury can be made to 'die' completely soon, even now, we're still one final step away from completing this 'Promotion Trial'."

"After all, only when I receive the commission payment for the C-77 job will this 'Promotion Trial' be considered complete."

"And the employer of this commission... is also quite a troublesome character."

Lin Yu remarked. Old Zheng was very surprised.

"You know who it is?"

"Of course," Lin Yu looked towards a corner. "Sleepless Sky Huoxing, I know you didn't go far—that was just a hastily dug tunnel, it doesn't connect to the underground pipes, does it?"

From under the floor tile that had been lifted in the corner of the auditorium, Sleepless Sky Huoxing poked her head out.

"Heh, you're really something... How did you know?"

"First, if the people who built Sleepless Sky Manor had any brains, the 'pipe' you usually move through would definitely not pass directly under the Sleepless Sky Family's auditorium..."

"Second, I still don't believe you'd miss out on watching this spectacle."

Lin Yu said calmly. Sleepless Sky Huoxing climbed out from the ground and patted the dust off her clothes.

"Alright, seems you've really got me figured out... But, from what you just said, you suspect I'm the employer of the C-77 commission?"

Sleepless Sky Huoxing asked with great interest. Lin Yu also asked in return.

"Do you have any reason not to be?"

"Although Alt Mercury wasn't a Chosen One of the God of Life, he had a large amount of 'life energy' on him. Arlan obviously didn't want that stuff either... It should be useful to you, right?"

Hearing Lin Yu's analysis, Sleepless Sky Huoxing burst out laughing.

"Okay, okay... It really was me—who else would commission such an interesting thing if not me?" Sleepless Sky Huoxing spread her hands. "To think you saw through it, how annoying... It seems the only option now is to silence you."

As Sleepless Sky Huoxing spoke, she snapped her fingers.

The corpses previously controlled by Old Zheng wobbled as they stood up, all turning their gaze towards Lin Yu.

Lin Yu looked at her, remained silent for five seconds, then also laughed.

"Good impromptu acting, Your Excellency Sleepless Sky Huoxing, but I was just teasing you."

Upon hearing this, Sleepless Sky Huoxing pursed her lips. "I know, you didn't really think I was the employer just now—but, since you have the answer, hurry up and reveal it."

"Of course, I called you out precisely to share this answer with you."

As Lin Yu spoke, Sleepless Sky Huoxing narrowed her eyes.

"Aiya... That phrasing makes me smell danger. Rather than 'sharing the answer,' your tone sounds more like... you're about to drag me into the water."

She said, then clapped her hands.

"But it's fine, I like this feeling of being dragged in!"

"Thanks for that..."

Lin Yu said, then walked over to Sleepless Sky Huole's side. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

"In short, although you commissioned the job yourself, I still thank you for your tremendous help—so..."

He lifted the sleeping Sleepless Sky Huole, pressing the bone blade against the chest of this slumbering young lady.

"Can you settle the payment now?"

"Respected Head of the Sleepless Night Family, Your Excellency Sleepless Sky Yonglian."