Ashe opened his eyes to find himself no longer within the confines of Shattered Lake Prison.
Truly gone.
The evidence was right there on his Holographic Screen, which popped up with a notification: “Alert, you have now left the Special Service Area of Shattered Lake Prison. Welcome to the Kaimon Service Area. Reply with ‘KM’ below this message to receive the latest travel information for Kaimon City.”
Yet, he hadn’t completely left.
After all, Shattered Lake Prison was just ten steps away, behind him.
It might not sound like much, but as mentioned before, the reason why Shattered Lake Prison had become a luxury hotel exclusively for death row inmates was due to its absolute seclusion.
And this absolute seclusion was based on the fact that Shattered Lake Prison was a water prison, isolated within an inland sea.
So when Ashe looked down, he could see the reflection of the Blood Moon on the dark lake surface tens of meters below, so beautiful it was surreal, so magnificent it made him feel insignificant.
It was a moment that should have urged one to express their thoughts and feelings romantically,
However, the only thing Ashe couldn’t help but do at that moment was tremble in his legs.After all, standing tens of meters above the sea surface with only one square meter of footing to hold you, would make anyone tremble.
“Ah! Ahhhhh!”
Not far away, a death row inmate screamed in horror: “How did I end up here? Let me go back, let me go back!”
“Didn’t I just walk out of the restaurant?”
“The Blood Moon Tribunal isn’t supposed to be here!”
“Complaint, I want to lodge a complaint with the council, you are ignoring the human rights of a death row inmate!”
While the inmates were shouting and screaming, a familiar yet frightening voice rang out from behind: “Good evening, gentlemen, ladies, inmates, it is now 8 PM Kaimon time. Good evening to you all, I am your Supervisor for tonight, Nago McMillan.”
The inmates turned around to see that they were indeed behind the Sea-view Terrace. The terrace was brightly lit at the moment, with Nago standing at the edge of the terrace, but he was not looking at the prisoners. Instead, he was looking at six floating orbs that seemed to burn like eyes in the air.
Though it was his first encounter with them, Ashe could guess by intuition that those six orbs were the world’s filming devices.
“As you can see, the Blood Moon Tribunal has begun. Audience members interested in viewing detailed information about the death row inmates can focus on the faces of the prisoners. Those who wish to change the viewing angle can focus on the different Camera Eyes to the left. Everyone can directly watch this tribunal by mentally invoking ‘Kaimon’s First Channel’, and the rules for tonight’s tribunal will be displayed on the right side of the screen.”
Everyone…
With a thought, Ashe mentally invoked ‘Kaimon’s First Channel’, and sure enough, the live broadcast appeared on his Holographic Screen.
He could even see himself in the broadcast, looking back over his shoulder with a sideways glance that seemed rather comical.
“The mode for tonight is the new ‘Confession on the Steel Wire’, with specific rules as follows.”
Nago stated calmly, “Firstly, it is the breeding season for the finger sharks in Shattered Lake, and according to records from previous years, there are about 35,000 finger sharks gathered in Shattered Lake at this time. Any creature that falls into the lake will be reduced to blood foam and disappear. The Fishing Association would like to remind everyone that due to the overwhelming numbers and accessibility of finger sharks this month, the monthly fishing competition will temporarily not include points for catching finger sharks. Members, please take note.”
As he spoke, Nago kicked a dead pig into the lake.
When the dead pig hit the water and caused a splash, hundreds of finger-sized sharks swarmed over it, making the surface of the water seem to boil.
Two seconds later, there was nothing left of the pig’s carcass—not even the bones!
Seeing this, Ashe’s legs did more than tremble; they went weak.
“Secondly, the Weather Sorcerers have announced that tonight is a night of Storm Spirit unrest, and the northeast Area of Kaimon is a no-fly zone for the time being. The Sorcerer Association reminds all members of the Storm Faction to take necessary safety precautions tonight and to remove all metallic items before entering the Virtual Realm.”
Nago took out a metal strip and threw it into the sky.
Crack!
A bolt of lightning split the night sky and shattered the metal strip to pieces!
“Thirdly, when the Voting Segment of the trial begins, the ‘Executioner’ will appear on the platform where the death row inmates are currently standing. This time, the Executioner is empowered with the ‘Flames of Atonement’, which will burn around the Executioner, causing no physical harm but severely scorching the souls of the wicked, burning away their sins and folly.”
“But rest assured, death row inmates, if you are innocent or truly remorseful, you can completely ignore the effects of the Flames of Atonement.”
Got it—so it’s either jump down and become fish food or stay put and suffer a painful death… wait a minute!
Ashe suddenly realized a loophole.
He wasn’t really Ashe Heath, so what sins did he have?
He almost got too absorbed in the role; after all, he was an innocent soul from another world!
“Fourthly, there is a Steel Wire in front of all death row inmates, stretching out to a safe Main Platform in the distance, which has various weapons on it.”
When the Lighting shone over, Ashe finally saw the thin Steel Wire under his feet, which looked like it could easily slice a person in two.
At the end of this hundred-meter Steel Wire was the Main Platform, which had all kinds of weapons on it: swords, spears, guns, and even cannons.
“Fifthly, we have the well-known Blood Moon Rule. At the end of the Voting Segment, the death row inmate with the most votes will have the honor of being the Redeemed of the evening; if someone reaches 50% of the votes earlier, the Voting Segment will end immediately, and we will move on to the execution stage.”
“Each vote will contribute to the power of the Executioner. The Executioner, embodying the sense of justice of countless citizens, will execute the death row inmate and personally deliver his Soul to Blood Moon Heaven, where the most benevolent Blood Moon Sovereign will forgive his sins and wrongdoings.”
“Those are the rules for this Blood Moon Tribunal.”
Nago turned to face the death row inmates and snapped his fingers.
“Now, please have the Central Chamber release the restrictions on the eight Redeemed.”
As soon as Nago finished speaking, Ashe’s Holographic Screen popped up with multiple notifications:
‘Virtual Realm access granted’
‘Arcane energy output permitted’
“Attack restrictions lifted”
Messages like this popped up one after another, dozens in succession, along with a sense of relief in his body as if a blockage had been cleared—there was no doubt this was what Medic [222] had mentioned, the only time death row inmates regained all their freedom: during the Blood Moon Tribunal, the prison would lift most restrictions on prisoners!
“All sinners, please strive for repentance. Under the illumination of the Blood Moon, penitence is the only path to Redemption.”
Nago smiled faintly, spread his arms wide, and announced loudly:
“The Voting Segment begins! Dear Audience, please cast your solemn vote, transform it into the power that upholds justice, turn it into the kindness that redeems sinners!”
“This moment is the time for judgment!”
Ashe suddenly felt a chill, as if the temperature around him had dropped ten degrees.
He looked down and saw the glow of the Blood Moon on the platform, twisting and morphing like tendrils, shaping into a crimson and ferocious spike monster that appeared behind Ashe!
Its body was entwined with ghastly blue flames, illuminating Ashe’s terrified face!
Ashe instinctively took a step back.
But as he stepped back, his heel hit the edge!
Had he not adjusted his balance in time, he would have almost fallen and become a nighttime snack for the finger sharks!
Why me… As Ashe issued the mental cry that every unlucky soul might, the Holographic Screen’s live broadcast in the top left corner popped up with information that answered his confusion:
“Current highest vote recipient: Ashe Heath, 49 votes.”
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