The Only Player in ‘Child of Stardust’
Chapter 367 - 256: Only Death and Taxes are Eternal

Chapter 367: Chapter 256: Only Death and Taxes are Eternal

The crimson blood waters churned like countless flood dragons, instantly submerging all rushing factory security guards.

In a terrifying erosion, the flesh of the factory security melted away, revealing their skeletons, which then began to soften and become viscous, eventually stretching and melting like burnt plastic within the blood-red expanse.

"Run!"

The surrounding employees, terrified out of their wits, rolled and crawled away from the blood ocean. After all, among those guards were Rank 5 extraordinary people, who were annihilated in a blink— not even a Rank 5 could withstand it, let alone themselves!

Fang Qing ignored these minor annoyances. The blood ocean expanded, taking root in the soil and bringing the entire area under her control, forming a ghost domain filled with chilling winds.

A rich scent of blood gradually emerged from the wind; in every sight, everything was dyed the blood-red of ultimate demise.

The bombardment of the Dark Army continued, and in a short time, they had destroyed half of the park area. The scorched earth trembled continually as billowing smoke covered the sky.

The blood ocean surged forth, sweeping through the ruins. In front of Fang Qing, who had ascended to Rank 6 after refining the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea Flower, the remaining resistance was too insignificant to be feared, and was brutally annihilated without mercy.

At this moment, the piercing alarm of the factory echoed, an emergency plan was initiated, and a swarm of fully armed Snack People charged out from the deepest parts of the factory.

"The real war starts now."

Zhou Yuan knew that these Snack People were the actual core force of the factory. Each was a remarkable Transcendent creation, the assembled army definitely no less formidable than the Dark Army, especially since this was their home ground.

At the forefront were warriors wielding giant bagel shields. They formed a line and charged, and as the blood ocean surged towards them, they immediately pounded those city gate-thick shields into the ground. A wheat-yellow light flared, rapidly expanding the shields to an exaggerated size, towering like an indestructible city wall.

It was an imposing spectacle, even if it did resemble slabs of bread.

Boom!

The scarlet blood ocean ferociously slammed against this wheat-colored city wall, erupting in a high-pitched roar. A single strike caused the surface to crack open with dense fissures, threatening to collapse.

Hum!

The wheat-colored light suddenly surged, forming a barrier that pushed the blood ocean outward, temporarily isolating it. Behind the wall, hundreds of Crisp Noodle Magicians waved their magic wands, casting protective spells to support the near-collapse wall.

The blood ocean struck again, but the wall remained stable, unmoving like a mountain.

In the sky, armed helicopters aimed their Gatling guns at the enemy’s position, a dense barrage of fire raining down like divine wrath.

Suddenly, a burst of orange shot up from the midst of the Snack People’s army, spreading like a giant umbrella to shelter its kin below.

"Is that... rubber candy?" Fang Qing, from within the blood ocean, was astonished.

Steel rain fell on the elastic rubber candy umbrella, leaving dense pockmarks. However, the anticipated penetration didn’t occur. Instead, the bullets were bounced back by the rubber candy umbrella, flying back at even twice their original speed!

Several armed helicopters were instantly turned into sieves, losing power and spiraling downward.

Boom!

The crashing helicopters burst into towering flames, and the timely escape of the Dark Creatures aboard narrowly avoided a fatal outcome.

"Wuu————"

A high-pitched horn sounded through the burning fire, followed by the stirring sound of iron hooves trampling the ground. The valiant Nougat Knight Order sped out, roaring and shouting as they plunged into the blood ocean.

Like an unstoppable white rainbow sharp sword, they carved a deep crevice in the crimson, utterly oblivious to casualties and relentlessly charging forward, straight towards the Dark Army!

Zhou Yuan didn’t need to give any orders; encased in heavy armor, the Midnight Knights surged forth on their steeds, their bodies emitting a dense shadow frost aura, racing like a polar storm.

The black and white torrents rapidly approached, and at the moment of collision, the Midnight Knights’ figures blurred entirely, making them immune to the enemy’s fierce attacks. The Rider Spears in their hands thrust forward brutally, tearing through the front ranks of the Nougat Knights and breaking into the milky-white current, instantly scattering their formation.

The charge continued unabated, and the Midnight Knights reached the Big Bagel Defense Line in no time. The team split into two, spreading to the sides like blades cutting through, ruthlessly destroying the enemies before them.

The Crisp Noodle Magicians were truly glass cannons, incredibly fragile. Despite being protected by numerous Snack People, they still suffered heavy casualties under the Midnight Knights’ assault.

The magic protection of the Big Bagel Defense Line finally collapsed, and with a loud crash, it was overwhelmed and engulfed by the blood ocean.

The hard bread warriors, soaked by the blood waters, immediately became soft and crumbled into dust in the vortex, and after dissolving them all, Fang Qing actually felt a bit stuffed, her mouth full of the taste of bread.

"Is this considered a midnight snack?" Fang Qing muttered, the blood ocean churning like a breached flood, dissolving one Snack Person after another.

These Snack People came in all sorts of strange varieties, including Ham Warriors, Butter Shooters, Lettuce Priests, Chocolate Boxers, Rubber Gummy Slimes, Spaghetti Tentacle Monsters, Starch Sausage Gunners...

In any case, Fang Qing was full.

Just as she was slaughtering fiercely, a cold arrow whistled down from the top of an office building.

A sense of crisis surged from the depths of her soul, and she decisively parted the sea of blood to let the arrow fall into nothingness. Upon closer inspection, the arrowhead was engraved with many peculiar and sinister runes, entwined with a dark and icy aura.

This was an arrow capable of eroding the soul.

Fang Qing’s gaze shifted toward the roof of the office building, where stood an Indian, bow in hand, clad in native attire, with an employee badge pinned to his chest.

[Reagan Food Processing Factory Board Member]

A high-ranking factory official? Why such retro attire? His rank was blurry to her perception, but she had nearly failed to dodge that last arrow, tentatively ranking him capable of contending with a 6th Rank... As this thought flickered through Fang Qing’s mind, the sea of blood boiled, unleashing towering waves that crashed toward the top of the office building.

The Indian shooter, calm and composed, repeatedly drew his bow and released several arrows, each strike carrying terrifying force akin to a tank’s main cannon, but to no avail against the ever-changing sea of blood.

"Defend."

Just as the blood wave was about to strike, a blonde Caucasian man appeared. He uttered a single syllable, and an invisible barrier unfolded, blocking the collapsing torrent of blood.

Then, more figures appeared atop the roof instantly, like teleportation. There were men and women, old and young.

Indians in native clothing, elite Caucasians in suits, astronauts in futuristic sci-fi space suits, Germans in WWII military uniforms, heavily made-up street girls...

Not only did they vary in ethnicity, but even the timelines they came from seemed distinctly different. What they all had in common though, was the board member badges hanging from their chests.

[Board members are appearing one after another, meaning the factory is starting to get frightened. These guys are easy targets for you, but you can’t just kill them because Reagan is still outside. If the factory falls too quickly, he’ll definitely flee, and you won’t be able to eradicate the factory entirely.]

"Don’t just kill them outright," Zhou Yuan communicated to Fang Qing, "Take this chance to train the troops."

"You’re the boss; your word is law," Fang Qing had no objections.

...

Meanwhile.

In the factory basement.

Under the lights, a Dharma Body that had been hiding for a long time sprang into action, stealthily approaching a vending machine and pulling out a standard-quality Paru Ball.

Since an agreement had already been reached, the capture of the vending machine was guaranteed at a hundred percent success with just a standard ball.

Perhaps Reagan was overly confident, thinking an invasion here impossible. There were no barriers set up near the vending machine, allowing Zhou Yuan to easily subdue it.

With a flash of light, the massive vending machine was consumed by the ball, and the entire cave instantly became spacious, leaving countless Snack People pausing in their tracks, their eyes filled with bewilderment.

Where did such a big vending machine go?

In the next second, several figures abruptly appeared in the cave, precisely the factory’s directors. Their gaze instantly locked onto where Zhou Yuan’s Dharma Body stood.

"What are you looking at?"

Zhou Yuan acted swiftly, unleashing several brutal beams of light that blasted the directors into the rock layers. He intentionally controlled the power to avoid instantly killing them.

Swoosh! The directors appeared again, each with a charred hole in their chests, as their flesh slowly squirmed to heal.

A middle-aged white man with a weather-beaten face coldly said, "No matter who you are, stealing factory property is the stupidest decision you’ve made. You will work on the assembly line until your soul dissipates, never to be freed."

"Hehe, you actually don’t know who I am?"

Zhou Yuan let out a cold laugh and pulled out a badge from somewhere, puffing out his chest and solemnly declared, "I am from the IRS department, here to investigate your factory’s tax evasion!"

"IRS? The National Revenue Bureau?" the middle-aged man blanched, instinctively paling.

It was well-known that among all the foolhardy actions worldwide, one called "tax evasion in America Continent" existed.

From billionaires to street thugs, from untouchable gang bosses that even the FBI couldn’t bring down to international drug lords the CIA couldn’t handle, everyone feared crossing IRS, the unavoidable checkpoint. Even illegal income had to be declared and taxed; any discrepancies found could mean hefty fines or even prison.

The IRS had the authority to arrest first and audit later, to directly freeze assets. If you upset them, they could throw you in jail for a week or two right off the bat and find various tax loopholes in the meantime. Once you were out, you’d tragically find that more than half of your fixed assets had evaporated...

Thus, for the people of the America Continent, the IRS was far more terrifying than the FBI or CIA.

"Only death and taxes are certain."

This phrase couldn’t be more fitting.

Zhou Yuan spoke righteously, "After my days of undercover investigation, I’ve gathered sufficient evidence of your tax evasion—you haven’t paid even a penny in taxes since the factory was established!

According to the tax laws of America Continent, I have the right to seize all assets here, and now the entire factory belongs to the IRS. It’s you who should be rolling!"