Chapter 122: Destroying the Heart Through Murder

The moment Kong Jia lost his demonic power, all the tentacle monsters under his control in the tavern collapsed onto the floor. The tentacles on their backs vanished, and they reverted to their human forms. The tavern hall was in utter chaos, littered with injured monsters groaning in agony. Who would have thought that coming to watch a livestream would nearly cost one their life?

The proprietress, supported by Lin Dandan, limped out from the kitchen. She stared at the scene before her with wide eyes, and after a long moment, she burst into tears. "It’s my fault! I didn’t protect everyone well, and now you’ve all suffered. My heart aches so much..." She sobbed intermittently, wiping her eyes with her sleeves.

"Proprietress, you’re overdoing it..." even Lin Dandan, the bookkeeper supporting her, couldn’t bear it anymore and whispered a reminder to his dramatic boss. This was clearly a trap you set yourself. You stabbed someone in the back, yet here you are, crying and asking if they’re in pain. That’s just not right, is it?

"Proprietress, it’s we who failed to protect you..."
"It’s all that wretched Kong Jia’s fault..."
"I bet the Great Demon clans just look down on us grassroots types, which is why he rebelled like this."
"Damn it, aren't us grassroots monsters still monsters?"
"In this world, do the Great Demon clans think they’re inherently superior?"

In an instant, the injured monsters turned their resentment toward the Great Demon clans, blaming them for harming their innocent proprietress. "Look at how badly our proprietress is hurt—she’s even coughing up blood! The Great Demon clans look down on us outsiders and want to wipe us out!" The tavern was filled with voices denouncing those who prided themselves on their pure bloodlines and assumed superiority.

"Everyone, please, stay calm. Don’t let this incident ruin our unity. Besides..." she paused, "Kong Jia only made a mistake in a moment of confusion. Please, can we give him a chance?" Even though "fresh blood" was still leaking from the corners of her mouth and she appeared "weak," the White Lotus was doing her best to defend the scholar Kong Jia. The monsters in the tavern were moved to tears, praising their kind-hearted and benevolent proprietress. Seeing their reaction, the White Lotus gave Lin Dandan a triumphant wink; the goal had been achieved.

Li Changluo almost laughed out loud; the proprietress certainly lived up to her reputation. *Heh, a white lotus indeed.* Just then, however, he suddenly felt a wave of intense, burning heat rising in his stomach.

"It was this young man who defeated the scholar monster in the kitchen and saved me. He protected the Divine Furnace without fear," the White Lotus said, gently dabbing her eyes with her sleeve. Her delicate face was still streaked with tears—beautiful, truly beautiful. She turned and walked toward Li Changluo with a slightly unsteady gait.

"What are you doing?" Her face flushed red and white as she gazed at him with feigned shyness.

Li Changluo simply opened his arms, smiling at her. *Since you’ve put it that way, does this count as a hero saving a beauty? Since you’ve hinted this much, are you expecting a hug to thank the hero who saved the tavern?*

The White Lotus paused for a second before grabbing his wrist and pulling him to the center of the hall. The surrounding monsters made way, staring at Li Changluo with incredulity. This newcomer hadn't been here long—how had he suddenly become so powerful? Not only had he been recommended by the proprietress for the waiter position, but he had also defeated Kong Jia. *Could it be... has he been "taken" by the proprietress? I want to be taken too...*

Lin Dandan knew better; the proprietress was simply shifting the blame. She was telling everyone, "Look, he is the one who took down the scholar Kong Jia. Remember this face—if you want revenge, make sure you target the right person." The Great Demon clans had deep roots in this world. Although Kong Jia’s family was a smaller faction, the proprietress didn't want to stir up a hornet's nest just yet. Her plan was merely a "casting a brick to attract jade," testing how the Great Demon clans would react. She had no intention of burning all bridges, and she certainly wasn't going to be the one taking the blame. Lin Dandan adjusted his glasses, secretly marveling at his boss: she was truly a "white lotus bitch."

"Everyone knows that our waiter, Xiao Ji, died in the line of duty while suppressing demons in the East..."

The White Lotus stood in the center of the hall with Li Changluo. As she mentioned Xiao Ji’s death, she choked up again, and the monsters felt another pang of sympathy. "His name is Li Changluo. He is also a participant in this tavern's recruitment. He saved our tavern in a time of crisis, and I think..." she hesitated, "I want to nominate him to fill the vacancy left by Xiao Ji. Does anyone have any objections? It’s just that, like you and me, he is a small monster from that other world, so his status is..." The White Lotus finished and wiped away more tears.

Li Changluo, watching from the side, noted that there were no tears left to wipe.

"Proprietress, we follow your lead..."
"This tavern should have been run by us monsters a long time ago..."
"Exactly! So what if we’re outsider monsters? We listen to you, proprietress. You make the call."

The monsters in the tavern voiced their approval. They had already forgotten that just a month ago, they had mocked Li Changluo as a useless nobody. Now, they were clamoring to support him as the tavern’s new waiter. Li Changluo enjoyed the attention; even though he knew it was all a performance orchestrated by the White Lotus, he couldn't help but relish the feeling of being surrounded and cheered for. For this moment, he felt like the most dazzling person in the tavern.

"No, absolutely not..."

Suddenly, a group of people rushed through the tavern doors. Leading them was the old Toad Monster, followed by the mustachioed Mantis Monster and their entourage. The White Lotus didn't seem the least bit surprised by their arrival. She walked up to the Toad Monster and bowed respectfully. "Elders, you have arrived. I was just about to send word to you..."

Lin Dandan leaned in and whispered, "Proprietress, if it were the *other* you, you would have just used force to conquer everyone. You wouldn't go through all this trouble. Aren't you tired?"

"She... she wouldn't understand. To kill a person, you must first crush their spirit."

"After this incident, the Great Demon clans will have no prestige left in the tavern. After all, you were the one who turned the tide at the last moment to protect the tavern and the monsters..."

*Slap!*

The White Lotus patted Lin Dandan on the head and smiled gently. "I have no idea what you're talking about." She then turned back to the elders with a sorrowful expression. "The tavern has just suffered a great upheaval. You have finally arrived."