Euphemia's idea to attack Bai Kong's most vulnerable spot—his eyes—was a sound one. However, it was based on one crucial assumption: that her attack would actually hit its target.
The razor-sharp tip of Euphemia's silvery spider leg froze in mid-air, a mere half-inch from Bai Kong's eye. Bai Kong, his face a picture of nonchalant superiority, watched her disbelief. Then, with a casual kick to her knee, he forced her into a helpless kneel.
Euphemia let out a low groan as her body—now a pathetic, fallen puppet—knelt before him. But Bai Kong wasn't finished. He leaned down, grabbed the long silver hair at the back of her head, and yanked it violently.
A sharp, searing pain forced Euphemia to crane her slender neck back, her eyes locked on Bai Kong's. As he saw her face contort with fear and indignation, his own eyes filled with the sinister delight of a predator toying with its prey.
"Since I rarely get to come out," he whispered, a smirk playing on his lips, "I might as well tell you something that even that useless Chen Kong doesn't know."
"That fool always believed the essence of the Void Rune was 'assimilation' and 'concealment.' But those are just the instincts of a predator. Because…"
Bai Kong leaned in, burying his head near Euphemia's ear. His warm breath made her shiver. Then, his tone shifted from sinister to disturbingly gentle. "...The true essence of the Void Rune is devouring."
As his final word fell, Bai Kong suddenly bit down on her delicate collarbone.
"AHHHHHH!!!"
The pain of her soul and flesh being torn apart simultaneously ripped a horrific scream from Euphemia's throat. Her body convulsed violently, arching like a shrimp. Her pupils rolled back in their sockets, leaving only the whites visible as her screams echoed through the passage.
The starlight blood—the source of her power—was greedily devoured by Bai Kong. Her core, her very life force, withered and dimmed at a horrifying speed.
Soon, Euphemia's consciousness plunged into a chaotic void. An enormous, indescribable creature made of white bone appeared before her eyes. Its sheer size made the surrounding 'planets' look like nothing more than delicious 'food.'
Driven by a powerful will to survive, Euphemia summoned her last reserves of strength. Silver spider silk shot from her fingertips, wrapping around Bai Kong's body in a desperate attempt to pull the 'monster' off of her.
But what happened next was truly despairing. The tough, tenacious spider silk instantly disintegrated into pure starlight particles the moment it touched Bai Kong's skin, which was covered in the Void Rune: Dustification.
This 'Dustification' ability, which Chen Kong could only activate with his right hand, had now become a passive ability that covered Bai Kong's entire body. And judging from the results, the effect of his 'Dustification' was far stronger than Chen Kong's.
After what felt like an eternity, Bai Kong, finally sated, let go of Euphemia. Her body, now without a source of power, crumpled to the ground like a broken puppet. Her once lively purple eyes lost all focus, showing only the whites as her body uncontrollably twitched.
Bai Kong looked down at the bleeding teeth marks on Euphemia's collarbone and wiped the corner of his mouth with a satisfied smirk.
"The taste is just so-so, but as an emergency food source, it's barely acceptable."
With that, Bai Kong turned and walked out of the passage without hesitation, leaving Euphemia to lie on the cold ground. Her vacant eyes stared blankly at the ceiling until the light in them finally faded away.
Soon after Bai Kong's departure, the camera's focus shifted to the gaping hole in the wall next to Euphemia. The sight behind the wall was stomach-churning. Piles of small, dense white bones lay stacked like a mountain. The bones belonged to children, all between the ages of eight and twelve. Each skeleton bore clear cut marks, showing that they had undergone inhuman torture before their deaths.
Upon seeing this, the chat for the show's viewers exploded. Many remembered the 'orphanage list' that 'Ink Wash' had shown Vivian not long ago. That list was a record of adoptions from an orphanage under the Church of Gears, and the person with the most adoptions was none other than Euphemia. The list had shown that all the children adopted by Euphemia had gone missing. Only Yuchen had been lucky enough to survive with William's help.
Before this episode, the viewers had wondered what happened to the orphans Euphemia adopted. However, they had underestimated the cruelty beneath her beautiful exterior. It was clear she hadn't just adopted children from a single orphanage. The 'bone mountain' before their eyes was proof that the number of her victims was far greater than just a few dozen.
This woman, with the face of an angel, had a heart more wicked than any demon. In comparison, Bai Kong, who had his evil written all over his face, now seemed almost handsome to the viewers.
After revealing Euphemia's past atrocities, the show's camera returned to Bai Kong. He was now walking down a dark underground passage, stroking his chin and muttering to himself.
"Tendo sure is a control freak. He told me to give Chen Kong's body back after I dealt with the little spider. A joke! Who am I? I am the noble Qiong!(Dome,Heavens, Immensity)"
"Forget about a mere memory projection fantasized by a furniture piece. Even if the real Tendo Simei came before me, I wouldn't even give him a second glance!"
Bai Kong suddenly stopped and turned to a mirror-like piece of glass. He cocked his head to the side, admiring his reflection with a self-satisfied grin.
"Miracle Stone: Void, that wicked woman, thought that by sealing me inside her, I'd never get out. Little did she know that my 'greed' is something a mere stone can't contain!"
"Look at this! What a perfect vessel! A perfect body that has fused with the Miracle Stone and my supreme power. Once I regain the other half of my strength, which is in that red-eyed girl, I'll have everything I need!"
"At that point, I don't care what you're called, Tendo or whatever. I'll just..."
Just as Bai Kong was reveling in his deceit, his expression suddenly twisted, and his laughter came to an abrupt halt. The next second, his eyes widened in horror as he stared at his violently trembling left hand. This was the hand that housed Chen Kong's star-source power, the Fantasist.
"No! This is impossible!"
"Why? How can a memory projection actually..."
To the viewers' amusement, Bai Kong, who was laughing just a second ago, now collapsed with a splash into the puddle-filled underground passage.
After an unknown amount of time, the 'Bai Kong' in the water finally got back up. But when he raised his head, the arrogant and sinister look in his eyes was gone, replaced by a pure confusion.
The viewers immediately knew what had happened. The person who had just woken up wasn't the evil Bai Kong at all; it was the kind protagonist they all knew—Chen Kong.