Indeed...
After listening to the Faceless Man, the Overlords of the Dead Realm couldn't help but nod in agreent with the judgent made.
Before today, not many of the Overlords had interacted with Leon. At most, they only knew of a crazy Cleaner.
But after witnessing him face the "Blood of the Dead" as a living person, the Overlords, who had only heard of him before, truly understood what the "Food God" represented.
If the opportunity strikes, he would indeed strike lethally!
Recalling the look Leon gave them earlier, the Overlords couldn't help but exchange glances, seeing deep apprehension in each other's eyes.
The gaze of the Food God was very... peculiar.
There was neither apprehension nor disgust, nor much hostility, but it made one shiver... If it had to be described, it was like looking at obstacles blocking the path.
If they can't be moved, they can be bypassed; but if they can be moved...
...
"You all actually ca."
Just as the resolve in the Overlords' expressions was firming, a slightly angry hoarse voice rose from beneath them. Following that, a small mound of soil suddenly arched up from the pale land on both sides of the Frozen River.
With slightly awkward expressions, the Overlords watched as a man made of pale clay erged naked from the mound, glanced at the Overlords standing beneath the glacier, and questioned with an unsightly expression:
"So, have you decided to open the {Frozen River}?"
"My lord!"
"First Dead One, my lord!"
"My lord... we're sorry..."
Upon seeing the man ford from clay, the Overlords imdiately bowed their heads in respect, greeted him, and the clay man motioned for them not to stand on ceremony, then looked up at the towering glacier with a complex expression and said:
"Don't call lord. I rely died a little earlier than you all. I'm unworthy of the title... Faceless Man, what do you intend to do?"
"First Dead One, my lord."
After a respectful bow, the Faceless Man looked down apologetically and said:
"I plan to open the {Frozen River}, and open the coffin that holds your body from before, cutting away one-third of your flesh, removing your six pairs of ribs, taking half of your heart, and then sealing these with the remaining materials of your coffin, and bury them outside the Sage's Cetery in advance.
When the people from the Cleaning Bureau step out from there, we will simultaneously destroy these parts of your body, dispersing all the accumulated {death}, freezing all those from the Cleaning Bureau."
"Heh heh."
Upon hearing the Faceless Man, the naked clay man couldn't help but let out a cold laugh.
"How considerate of you, to leave so for ."
"My lord."
Responding with a word, the Faceless Man bowed and explained:
"It was you who ground your backbone to dust and paved the way to the No Return Path, giving us the life we have today. Our respect for you is genuine, and if there were no other way, we wouldn't...
"Is there truly no other way?"
Breaking off the Faceless Man's words, the first of the dead, with a plain appearance but striking eyes, asked resentfully:
"The Cleaning Bureau's requirent for the Realm of the Dead is to maintain stable operations. They wouldn't attack you without sensing a true threat, so which side is truly at an impasse?"
"..."
"Alright, there's no need for such redundant words."
Motioning the Faceless Man to stop explaining further, the first dead one's eyes were filled with annoyance as he said:
"I oppose your decision! Leaving my body behind was for the purpose of repairs if the No Return Path is damaged, not for you to do this!"
"My lord, please reconsider."
The Faceless Man remained silent, but Grandma Crow-eye blinked her eyes and sharply pleaded:
"You aren't aware of the situation. Right now, we are backed into a corner. If we can't heavily damage the Cleaning Bureau this ti and capture the Food God, then in less than a hundred years, you might never see us again. In a sense, we are your children. Can you really bear to see that happen?"
Hearing Grandma Crow-eye's words, the clay man hesitated slightly, then shook his head once again and said:
"No, if you are gone, the Cleaning Bureau would need to send at least ten Cleaners of True God level to perfectly replace you, which is a price they cannot afford.
And back when humanity was at its strongest, the Cleaning Bureau never did so, and they won't now either. So as long as you approach the talks with sincerity and promise not to interfere in the mortal world anymore..."
"My lord!"
Interrupting the first dead one's words, an old man with a lantern who had been hiding in the shadows slowly stepped out with a hunched elderly body and said:
"We don't want to place our safety in the hands of human rcy... In addition, human beings, with their short and insignificant lives, cannot adhere to promises forever."
Glancing at the frost-covered back of the Goddess Patrol, the old man slowly straightened his spine, his expression calm as still water as he spoke:
"Even if the current Cleaning Bureau agrees to make peace with us, decades later, a Bureau controlled by the Food God might not. Given his style, he is likely to choose to kill us all.
And even if the Food God changes his mind and chooses to coexist peacefully with us, a new third director will eventually erge, even another Food God. Who can guarantee they will continue to keep their promise?"
"That's not the case!"
The first dead one couldn't help but frown upon hearing this:
"The Cleaning Bureau doesn't need to target the Dead Realm, and in the past few thousand years, although there have been many directors and executives, they all honored the agreent. The ones to break it first were you!
The so-called worry about humans breaking their promises is nothing more than an excuse to rid yourselves of the dead and interfere in the mortal world again! Whatever you say, I won't agree to you using my body!"
"First Dead One, my lord."
Speaking up after a long silence, the Faceless Man once again said:
"Does your corpse... truly belong to you entirely?"
"What do you an by that!"
"I an, at the ti, your corpse did belong to you, but it has been soaking in the purest death of the Dead Realm for countless years, marked by our presence. Can it not be considered a 'property' jointly owned by the entire Dead Realm?"
"You?!
"First Dead One, my lord."
Under the angry and disappointed gaze of the clay man, the Faceless Man raised his head to et his eyes, expressionless as he spoke:
"The 'property' of the entire Dead Realm should be used to protect the whole of the Dead Realm, so please do refrain from unnecessary actions.
Lastly, though I sincerely respect you, should you choose to side with the humans and the Cleaning Bureau, refusing to hand over your corpse...then we can only apologize!"
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