Translated by XephiZ

Edited by Aelryinth

"The Cold Prince is a great strategist, just like Salan. His infamous masterpiece was the incident of the Red Mediterranean Sea. The water in the eastern Mediterranean Sea turned red for half a month. The scent of blood lingered in the cities along the coastlines of Greece, Egypt, Italy, Turkey, and several other countries. It led to the worst plague and invasion of sea monsters in the past decade, resulting in uncounted deaths," Zhao Manyan informed him.

"Incident of the Red Mediterranean Sea? Why have I not heard of it before? Why didn't the media report it, if it was that serious?" Mo Fan asked, confused.

Mo Fan knew how big the Mediterranean Sea was. How many people's blood would it take to turn the sea red and the scent of blood linger in so many countries along the coastline?

"Do you think it's something they could afford to tell the public? Lots of people kept demanding to learn the truth, they asked for democracy, but there are certain things that can't be made public. Publicity means giving exposure to the mastermind of the incident. It will stir up the urge to commit crimes among the lunatics. Those that hold a strong grudge and hatred for society will follow in their steps. It would further strengthen the Black Vatican's influence in the world and help them grow!

"Just look at Salan; so many people are mimicking her after the Calamity of the Ancient Capital. Many cities are suffering because of her. The number of Salan's worshipers could fill up the entire Mediterranean Sea. Even the younger generations who have had enough of society think of how 'cool' Salan is. Studies have proven that laughter is contagious, but so is evil. The maniacs of the Black Vatican might just be some people that have thoughts after being mistreated, and which eventually led them astray… perhaps they were only ordinary people before," Lingling said sternly.

Every person had good and evil sides. There was no clear boundary between what was good and evil. A mother who stole money just to feed her daughter was not necessarily evil, nor was the daughter who killed the judge for pronouncing her mother guilty for stealing the money kind. Even a gentle person could turn into an unforgivable criminal after they were provoked!

Many people had lots of negativity in them. Their minds were constantly occupied by thoughts of killing the people that bullied and humiliated them to vent their frustrations. Those that were poor were hoping that everyone else would suffer together with them. They hoped the rich and the blissful people would suffer just like them. If they were given a button to make everyone suffer like them, it was very likely they would press the button, since they believed they were beyond redemption and burst out laughing...

The button did exist. The Black Vatican was the button. Zhao Pinlin was one of the people that had decided to press the button. He was just an arrogant, proud student on the bus, but what did he become at the villa?

If the Calamity of the Ancient Capital had not happened, his mind might not have been filled with evil thoughts. Without those thoughts, he might not have chosen to step into Fang Shaoli's trap...

Most people did not have their own moral strength. They would pretend to be mature by arguing it was just how the world was in coldness, disdain, and envy. The truth was, they were no different from immature kids; they did not have their own beliefs, and they lacked the ability to judge on their own. They were blindly following others. Parents did not allow kids to watch gory and violent movies because they were afraid the kids would be influenced by the movies, since they had yet to discover the right values. It was the same reason the authorities would try their best to gloss over news about tragedies from the public.

Not every adult had mature thoughts and beliefs. Perhaps they might not immediately become a crook after seeing evil deeds, but if they found a chance to do evil, they might hesitate and make the wrong decision, just like Zhao Pinlin had made.

Even if the odds of making a wrong decision were only increased by a hundredth, or even a thousandth, it would still be devastating for the world. If they were unlucky and another criminal genius like the Cold Prince or Salan was born, the time before another tragedy would happen would start ticking!

Therefore, was it really necessary to tell the people who demanded democracy everything, when most of them were just trying to satisfy their curiosity, or even gloat over the sufferings of others?

If they could reduce the number of criminals in the world by thousands or even tens of thousand by trading away the right to know everything that happened, why would they even bother with democracy?

---

The incident of the Red Mediterranean Sea that the Cold Prince was responsible for was not made public, sealed off by the European Union and the Shoreline Alliance. Therefore, it was unlikely for Mo Fan, who learned most of his knowledge from textbooks, to read about it. As a matter of fact, many incidents across the world were sealed off by the authorities. They were not trying to point their fingers at others, but to limit the negative impact of the incidents, since there were just too many fools in this world.

"Salan's influence is even greater than the Supreme Pontiff of the Black Vatican. I believe the Cold Prince, who's also a psychopath, doesn't want people to think he's inferior to Salan. The incident of the Red Mediterranean Sea wasn't that significant compared to Salan's achievements. If the Cold Prince is planning something, it's going to be worse than the incident of the Red Mediterranean Sea without a doubt, and there's a chance it will happen in our country," Lingling said.

"F**k the Black Vatican; why do they have to pick on our country when there are so many countries in the world?" Zhao Manyan cursed.

"We can't let it happen!" Mo Fan swore.

Mo Fan was aware that the conspiracy was beyond what the few of them could handle. They had to ask the authorities for help. Mo Fan immediately thought of Han Ji. The man would clearly be the first to step forward if he learned the Black Vatican was up to something.

However, Han Ji could only represent the Clock Tower Magic Association. If the Cold Prince was planning something worse than the incident of the Red Mediterranean Sea, he obviously needed the help of someone with greater power. Mo Fan believed it was better to contact Zhu Meng. As a Councilman, he would have more say in things like this.

"Aren't you close with Chairman Shao Zheng? Why don't you try contacting him? If he gives us permission to investigate the Cold Prince, we should be able to get more help," Zhao Manyan also had the same idea.

"I'll try." Mo Fan dialed Chairman Shao Zheng's number, but his secretary answered the call.

"Mo Fan, have you found any new clues about the Totem Beasts? I've read your report regarding Outer Mount Kunyu and told the Chairman about it. We did send some people to search for the Giant Purple Sacred Linden, but they weren't able to find anything useful. It's very likely that the demon has gone into hiding. It won't dare to show itself for a long time," the secretary, Gu Lian, said to him immediately..

"Well, there isn't anything to report about the Totem Beasts, but I do have something that I believe the Chairman should know. Is he available?" Mo Fan asked.

"The Chairman is currently at Dalian's maritime battlefield. The situation along the shoreline isn't looking good. Something serious is about to happen. The Chairman has already proposed sounding the alert for five thousand kilometers along the shoreline. I'm afraid he will be very busy with it for some time. You can let me know if there's anything important," Gu Lian said.

An alert for five thousand kilometers of shoreline?

Mo Fan initially thought he had heard it wrong. He asked Gu Lian to confirm that, and to his surprise, Gu Lian repeated exactly the same words!

"Isn't the shoreline of our country only around twenty thousand kilometers long?" Mo Fan asked.

"Yes, which means more than a quarter of the shoreline will be placed on alert. It's been a long time since the Chairman had a chance to get any rest. He's trying to convince the country to place more attention on it, but the politicians think he's overreacting. They said it's normal for the sea level to rise every year," Gu Lian said.

"But still… placing a quarters of the shoreline on alert, isn't that..." Mo Fan agreed that the proposal sounded a little crazy.

"I know, a lot of people are assuming our Chairman is going nuts (sigh) but the Chairman insisted on trusting his instincts. Is the thing you mentioned more serious than that?" Gu Lian asked.

"Ugh, it does sound more important than what I have… but I still think it's important to say it," Mo Fan said.

Mo Fan briefly explained the possibility of the Cold Prince conspiring in their country to Gu Lian, and how an Elder of the Enforcement Union had already fallen victim to it.

"Do you have any solid evidence?" Gu Lian asked seriously.

"We have found out there's a traitor in the Enforcement Union, but we haven't learned anything much," Mo Fan said.

"I'm afraid the Chairman can't do anything about it if that's all you have. He's allocating every resource he has to the shoreline. It's true that we should be treating a Red Cardinal of the Black Vatican seriously, but the Chairman can't attend to two things at once. The Chairman could only assign the other Councilmen who aren't cooperating with him at the moment to handle it if you have enough proof," Gu Lian said.

"I thought our nation would be united if there is any trace of the Black Vatican after what happened at the Ancient Capital," Mo Fan sighed.

"Don't worry, if there's solid evidence, no one will dare waste a second further. Therefore, can you please get some evidence from the traitor? We must locate the Cold Prince and learn what he's up to. That way, we'll be able to allocate resources to the matter accordingly!" Gu Lian encouraged him.

"So the higher-ups are only willing to make a move if we have information on the Red Cardinal or solid evidence about what he's up to?" Mo Fan asked.

"There's a Preventive Committee. You may be able to ask them for help, or let them handle it from here if you want. I believe they can handle it well," Gu Lian told him.

---

Mo Fan's heart sank after hanging up the call.

He did not blame the Chairman and the secretary for not taking his warning seriously. What Gu Lian said was reasonable, if they tried to make a move before collecting enough evidence, it might be a waste of their time and resources. Besides, sending too many people to search for the Cold Prince might alert him instead! On the other hand, there were other problems that needed more attention for the time being...

"How is it?" Zhao Manyan asked.

"We'll have to find some convincing proof," Mo Fan replied.

"Mm, we are just giving them a heads-up," Lingling seemed to have predicted the outcome.

"Then let's start with the traitor! Humph, we'll be making the move instead this time, and giving the Black Vatican a devastating blow!" Mo Fan promised coldly.