The Gentleman at the End

Due to the intervention of the Great Emperor, the restless circus interior fell silent.

With the support of Marquis Enwei, Glatoni returned to his original seat. However, the right half of Zede's body, which had been forcibly swallowed by Glatoni — the part completely Pathological and corresponding to the "Clown's Arm" — unexpectedly dug through the Abyss and crawled back to the clown's body.

Glatoni could also distinctly sense a red curtain unfurling in space, forming a stable path that bore the arm back to reality. In his current dire state, stopping it was entirely beyond him.

On the Observation Platform,

The Great Emperor expressed no dissatisfaction or evaluation regarding Glatoni and Enwei's actions. His gaze merely shifted from the clown to the final opponent, William.

He only wanted to conclude this farce quickly and return to the Monarch with the spoils of war as soon as possible.

He maintained a special connection with the Monarch, allowing him to remain unaffected even under such a Fake Abyss. Currently, there were no unusual signs.

…

In the audience seating,

Wrapped merely in a few strips of silk, Lust. Nast was already gently leaning against Glatoni's side, using her forked tongue, heart-shaped, to lick his wound.

The chest hole, pierced through by a fist down to the soul, was slowly healing under such licking.

Nast seemed to taste something different, "Glatoni~ it seems you haven't devoured that human, have you? Rather, you used the gastric juices in your body to help him cleanse a malignant tumor?

While licking you, I could slightly taste the flavor of that corpse. My senses shouldn't be wrong.

Why take the risk to save a human? It's not like you at all… In our manor's previous competitions, every opponent was devoured by you.

I clearly remember even the former Gluttony was consumed by you without a bone left. That scene looked so appetizing."

Glatoni responded calmly, "My mouth, unwilling to eat this person."

"What makes this different… isn't it just another opponent? Could it be this human is too unpalatable, or you don't want that clown to absorb and bolster his strength?"

Faced with Nast's questions, Glatoni did not know how to answer.

Earlier, he had completely passed out in the arena, only gradually waking due to the strong, threatening scent of a tumor, and upon opening his eyes, saw Zede nearly consumed by it.

While still semi-conscious, Glatoni instinctually swallowed Zede's completely Pathological right half.

Why he did so, Glatoni didn't know.

He understood one thing: he learned much from Zede and engaged in a thrilling final duel. Even in defeat, he had no regrets.

This duel was the most exhilarating of his life, not for slaughter, hatred, or devouring, but merely to discern a simple victory.

He didn't want such a rival to die so easily.

Meanwhile, Marquis Enwei, who was retrieving the Blood Plague, softly spoke, "Nast, once you fully suppress the desires within the Blood Plague and comprehend 'what is life,' perhaps you will understand Glatoni's actions."

"Hey~ you two talk like you're better than me. We are born of the Blood Plague; why suppress it? I live comfortably, intertwined with Sloth, and have no desire to restrain it~"

Despite the seductive undertone in Nast's words, neither man was interested.

Enwei no longer discussed the matter and shifted the topic to the present,

"Next, we just need to watch the Great Emperor's performance. I wonder to what extent the opponent can push the Great Emperor, and if they can let us witness the Great Emperor's former prowess in battle."

Nast remained unconvinced about William, the Great Emperor's opponent, "Wishful thinking, aren't you~ these people, even combined, wouldn't be enough for the Great Emperor to cut down."

"The first two performances exceeded our expectations in some respects, so maybe the final one will be very interesting. Given their audacity to challenge the Great Emperor, they must be well-prepared. Let's enjoy the show."

…

The entire circus was silent.

The meditating William slowly opened his eyes, dispelling the distractions from his mind. The most critical moment was at hand.

A strand of his hair had turned silver as he attempted to Sensing the False Moon, dispatched earlier to the Monastery to rendezvous with Yi Chen, but there was no response.

This situation caused William to frown slightly.

The reason he had assured that Yi Chen would return before the match was that he had performed self-Divination using the Astrologer's Plague Trait,

Although not able to Stargaze like Principal Daislin, he could Divinate for Yi Chen, who was part of him, and the final Divination indicated Yi Chen would certainly return at the last moment to help.

But now, there was a discrepancy between the situation and the Divination outcome,

'Little Grape, did you see the False Moon?'

'No…'

'If not, then come back; we might need to join forces to deal with the strongest among the "Seven Marquis."'

No sooner had the words left his mouth,

than a searing heat penetrated the tent, forcing the blood denizens to look up, their Blood Plague reacting to the heat, becoming active, and even beginning self-regulation of blood.

Even the Great Emperor displayed a slightly surprised expression,

"Evil Sun?"

With a fierce and hot beam of light descending, landing precisely on William.

Within the light beam,

a dark entity swiftly descended, landing on William's shoulder, its fur rippling like flames.

Marquis Enwei had already deduced, "A specially created 'Evil Sun Carrier,' it must have absorbed at least four pieces of Evil Sun Firewood to achieve such an effect… To wield such an Evil Sun Carrier is rare.

Glatoni, did this person exhibit Evil Sun traits when in the human city?"

"No… in my impression, only 'Death' and 'Moon' were his traits.

This Evil Sun source is unknown, and his Death Aura has lightened significantly, as if he's a different person. Quite peculiar."

"Peculiar indeed, the Great Emperor seems intrigued as well."

…

Opposite the Observation Platform.

Little Grape, as always, stood with hands on hips on William's shoulder, staring at Emperor Pulaid with the eye protruding from his mouth.

Just one glance caused saliva to drip copiously.

The Emperor's twin eyes were the most delicious 'grapes' he had ever seen. However, a single gaze had his entire body trembling, with blood oozing from his fur.

"William, you're going to fight someone like this?"

"Yeah?"

Little Grape instinctively bickered, "If you want to die, say so! I'll just drag you to the Original Tomb and bury you myself."

"No confidence at all?"

"No, this person is almost indistinguishable from the Plague Master except for lacking 'qualification'; even with our strongest efforts, we'll be slain."

"That's why I want to wait for Mr. Yi to arrive before formally starting… By the way, did you really not see any trace of the moon outside?"

"No."

"Then there's no helping it. I've signed a Soul Contract with the opponent; this duel cannot be canceled~ let's prepare to go."

As William steadied himself to rise, a sense of discord arose.

He suddenly felt as if something extra had appeared in the 'Fake Abyss' he created, as if a gaze was watching him from the shadows.

His instincts made William turn his head,

towards the audience seat previously affected by Zede's punch, where a smiling spectator who should have been dead sat on the broken edge of the Observation Platform.

Not only was the spectator not dead, but the smile had vanished, hinting at threads of a Death Aura.

The more William looked, the more something felt amiss,

He shook his head vigorously, and refocused, by then, that unfamiliar spectator had transformed into a black-haired youth, his waist entwined with Parasites.

"Yi…"