【Paper Cutter】 had read the previous chapter, the one where 【Shuttler】 was kidnapped and You Shuo received the intel.
He had no interest in the Nightwatch's internal affairs, but when he saw the latest chapter — when the rescued 【Shuttler】 struck You Shuo from behind on the neck — his pupils quaked.
"There can be traitors planted inside the Nightwatch?" He got the distinct feeling that the entire world was a giant amateur production.
He'd always assumed the Nightwatch was the most powerful force governing ability users. He never expected that even an organization like that could produce a traitor.
【Paper Cutter】 had originally started reading the manga because it disclosed information about the Surface World and Hidden World. He personally had no fondness for any of the characters — in fact, he rather resented the Nightwatch.
The Nightwatch policed ability users — people like him. It was only natural he wouldn't like them.
After marveling briefly at the Nightwatch's internal vulnerability, he scrolled on. His biggest question was still about Bi Xi. As he read further, the first hints appeared. In the manga, after 【Shuttler】 communicated with his superior, he let out this remark:
【"Even that legendary Demon God — He only had eyes for you."】
【Paper Cutter】: "Demon God?"
Did such a thing actually exist in their ability user world?
Wasn't that just an urban legend? A scary story adults used to frighten children — that was all it was supposed to be, right?
Even the ability user world had to follow basic logic. Where would a Demon God come from? Surely the world's power level didn't jump ten-thousandfold after the Trisolaran showed up while his stayed the same—
Wait. No way... right? A creeping dread settled over him as he continued scrolling.
Perhaps manga villains all loved to flaunt their brilliance in front of the protagonist. The mini-boss called 【Boulder】 was exactly that type — he said he deeply admired 【Yanmo】. Paper Cutter couldn't fathom what there was to admire about the Nightwatch. Then Boulder went on at great length about everything, including 【Shuttler】's true identity.
"【Shuttler】 is 【Jiao Tu】?" Paper Cutter's pupils quaked again. If he remembered correctly, 【Shuttler】 had pulled off a life-for-a-life rescue of You Shuo early on in the manga. Was their brotherhood really that flimsy? Had it all been an act?
If so, the performance had been spectacular — a years-long charade, from the moment You Shuo joined the Nightwatch all the way to now.
He found something odd about this part of the manga. 【Boulder】 said he admired You Shuo because of something about destiny — he couldn't parse it, couldn't make sense of it. It felt like something had been cut, though it didn't affect the plot.
When 【Boulder】 dropped dead just like that, his pupils started quaking yet again.
"Who's this now? Nightwatch?" he said, eyeing the newly appeared character.
No identification. The figure's slender frame made it impossible to tell if they were male or female. They wore a hood and a white crescent-moon mask that concealed their entire face.
"New character? New member for the protagonist's team?" Paper Cutter murmured, drawn into the story before he'd realized it.
Someone who helped the protagonist was naturally on the side of justice — and this person clearly held considerable goodwill toward the protagonist.
They carried the protagonist down the long corridor, as if walking through an entire lifetime.
【"Keep going. There will always be someone behind you, supporting you. You're You Shuo, after all."】
Even the dialogue brimmed with the righteous spirit of a new team recruit — passionate, stirring, deeply moving.
"Out with the old, in with the new, is it?" Paper Cutter was impressed by the Nightwatch's personnel turnaround speed, though it made sense when he thought about it. A traitor was a traitor, no matter how deep the bond. Work still had to be done, the city still had to be protected.
If you asked him, that was exactly what was so terrifying about these justice crusaders — you kill me, I kill you, but as long as duty demands it, they could act like nothing happened and join forces all over again.
The manga had shown this with 【Yanmo】 before. Readers all knew he was someone who valued his bonds deeply — he would shed tears, feel grief, even go offline entirely because his emotions got the better of him — but once he sorted through those emotions, he performed brilliantly.
Having both strengths and flaws made a character feel like a real person. Of course, even after reading the manga, Paper Cutter didn't have the nerve to exploit 【Yanmo】's emotional vulnerabilities. After all, 【Yanmo】 was merciful toward the people close to him; toward strangers like Paper Cutter, there wasn't a shred of emotional weakness to exploit.
When it was time to kill, he killed. 【Quick Blade】 had only survived because he still had value — otherwise 【Yanmo】 was equally proficient in the art of surgical precision, knowing exactly where to carve to keep someone alive and in screaming agony.
So far, nothing connected to this "Demon God" had appeared, and Paper Cutter gradually sank deeper into the story.
The base's alarm lights suddenly flared red, then just as suddenly went dark. The doors opened. The suspected new team member had left You Shuo at the entrance and vanished.
Sui Xiao arrived on the scene — which meant 【Yanmo】 had regained combat capability.
"【Shuttler】's done for." Paper Cutter said with relish.
Paper Cutter had no warm feelings for the Nightwatch, and he had even colder feelings toward 【Jiao Tu】, who'd killed quite a few ability users. Who knew whether 【Jiao Tu】 might come for his head someday if left alive?
When You Shuo activated his ability, Paper Cutter flinched. This was the downside of manga — the art's sheer force hit so hard that even his knees ached in phantom sympathy.
But then came the confrontation between former teammates.
In the bullet comments, plenty of manga readers were flooding the screen with [No, please don't]. Yiluoqi, as the second male lead, had a substantial fanbase. Paper Cutter, outside the manga, had no questions about what came next. He could have predicted this plotline's outcome with his toes.
Meeting alone was the captain's final courtesy to a former life-and-death comrade. If Yiluoqi refused to turn himself in and chose to resist, 【Yanmo】 would not hold back.
A B-rank space-time ability user, hemmed in by the barrier, couldn't flee — and had no chance of defeating an A-rank ability user.
Which was why Paper Cutter had said it: 【Shuttler】 was finished.
Every informed bystander who'd read the manga knew this. Yiluoqi, who'd actually spent years alongside You Shuo, knew it too. So he didn't try to run.
【"I can file a petition for you. If you were coerced, leniency is possible. If you acted of your own free will—"】
【"Then you'll kill me, right?"】
【Yanmo】 had laid out his own bargaining chips. They were both adults — let's keep this dignified and not make it uglier than it had to be.
"Not bringing Sui Xiao along means he didn't want her involved in pressuring a former teammate. He'd rather be the villain alone. Yanmo can be terrifying sometimes." Paper Cutter turned the page. "The night before, Bi Xi outmaneuvered him and 【Quick Blade】 ended up dead. The very next day, he's sitting right beside Bi Xi, chatting about stars and moonlight like nothing happened."
He felt he already knew the ending. His scrolling carried a hint of nonchalance.
"This is just how these Nightwatch types are..."
【"He is everywhere. Perhaps He only cares about you — but what if? What if a soul as wretched as mine could also earn His gaze?"】
No — what the hell was this?
Paper Cutter's pupils, after twist upon twist, were now in full seismic meltdown. Wasn't this supposed to be the "Nightwatch deals with a traitor" plotline? Why had it suddenly switched to the fantasy channel?
Him?
Everywhere?
Yiluoqi was about to die and he'd lost his mind — what was he even saying?!
Paper Cutter's pupils kept quaking as he read on, each panel more alarming than the last, each panel more horrifying.
【"I offer up my battered, broken soul, and beseech You to cast Your gaze downward — to grant my humble wish."】
【"Bi Xi, I want to be free."】
Why was he calling Bi Xi's name now?!
Paper Cutter genuinely couldn't understand. Was Bi Xi supposed to just appear out of thin air and conjure up freedom—
Black sludge erupted upward in the frame, surging violently. The sheer impact of the black-and-white linework felt as though it stabbed directly into Paper Cutter's eyes.
That murky darkness heralded something ominous — and heralded that the story's ending had changed.
There was no internal Nightwatch conflict. There was only the catastrophic collapse wrought by an overwhelming external force.
Green eyes. Red tassel earrings. The moment His name was called, the Demon God descended.
【"Aiya, aiya — people of this era certainly are passionate."】
The Demon God's face filled the frame. In that massive close-up, He seemed to smile at the readers beyond the page.
Those eyes, like gemstones brimming with iridescent light, merged with the richly rendered silhouette from the title page.
【"Transaction complete. I'll be taking your soul."】
The devil's look of satiation was dripping with charisma on the manga page. But for ability users outside the manga, this was not what they felt at all.
"!!!" Paper Cutter's hand spasmed and his phone went flying, crashing hard against the floor.
"You've got to be kidding me. What the hell — that's impossible, how can this be real..." he muttered. The phone screen had shattered, the web of cracks reflecting his body like he himself had been torn apart.
The phone lay still on the ground, but he didn't have the courage to pick it back up.
He didn't dare look at that image again — that face. It felt as though the moment he saw it, He would see him in return. And after that, He could descend upon his body at any time.
So this was... the Demon God?
In that moment, not a single thought of resistance stirred in Paper Cutter. Only one phrase echoed through his mind—
Don't look at Him. Don't attract His attention. Don't let Him look this way — run!
Run. Run as far as possible!
It didn't matter where he could hide — just don't let Him see!
But He was everywhere. Could they truly escape?
"The legends are real." In the end, he covered his face. "Mom, I'm so scared. Somebody save me."
This kind of monster was no longer a product of the ability user world. He transcended ability itself.
If a monster like this wanted them dead, they would probably vanish just like Yiluoqi — without the slightest power to resist.
Not even a trace of their existence would remain. Just like that — gone from the face of the earth.
He felt terror, and he was utterly helpless against it.
...
【The Jiao Tu Arc of《City's Edge》has concluded. A new round of Popularity Voting begins!】
【Please cast your precious vote for your favorite character!】