"Her Death God assessment only has five days left?"

Upon hearing this, Yang Lie was slightly taken aback.

He knew Yun You was an "intern" and had thought about hoping to drag the little girl down using the punishment after the "assessment expires."

But generally speaking, the toxic substance [Alisu] takes at least a month from entering the body to activating.

This duration is too long, prone to mishaps.

Thus, Yang Lie hadn't considered this method.

But if this time is shortened to five days, the situation is completely different.

Five days are but a fleeting moment.

However, he didn't immediately believe Aurora but crouched down, picking up a piece of soil stained with Yun You's blood from the ground, examining it for a while.

"Hmm..."

After a while, he nodded.

"Indeed."

"The Alisu has spread widely, already invading 70% of her red blood cells."

"At this rate, the toxicity will likely fully manifest within five days, causing long-term cardiac arrest and total organ failure."

"It seems we don't need to personally take action."

Yang Lie stood up smiling, patted Xie Kang's shoulder, and said proudly: "In the Apprentice Death God's worldview, dying from Alisu is the most disgraceful form of death, second only to being killed by mortals and low-tier Death Gods."

"If she dies like this, her teacher won't come looking for us, and won't even have the face to investigate."

"It really feels like even the heavens are assisting us."

"Haha... indeed."

Xie Kang laughed along.

He didn't care.

To him, Yun You's final fate was to feed the Tai Sui, so regardless of the method of death, it's essentially the same.

"Speaking of which..."

After laughing, Yang Lie looked again at blue-eyed Aurora.

But this time, his eyes held less contempt and more regard.

"Little girl, what is your purpose in saying these words?"

Yet another deadly question, a wrong answer, and the girl's head would roll.

Yang Lie's tone was gentle, matching his media persona. But within his voice was an underlying coldness and subtle scrutiny.

For anyone else facing such questioning from an Apprentice Death God, they would likely be drenched in sweat.

But Aurora simply looked at Yang Lie quietly, her eyes calm as a deep well.

"Apprentice Death God."

"I am but a commoner, what I think in my heart, you surely know far too well?"

"Survival is an instinct for all living beings, no one can escape this restraint beyond reason, right?"

With these words, Yang Lie understood.

Aurora Miles wants to defect to him.

It's the girl's only conceivable way to survive.

For this, she doesn't mind "betraying her companions," using her advice to the enemy to secure a sliver of life for herself.

"You're truly selfish and ruthless."

Yang Lie shook his head with feeling, said solemnly: "I remember your name is Aurora, daughter of old Miles, and you're only thirteen years old, right?"

"A girl not even thirteen, yet her mental state is so cruel... Ha, I admire you."

"After all, I was still wandering the streets at thirteen, begging for pennies."

"But..."

Suddenly, Yang Lie's tone changed, coldly: "I remember Wu Ming and her team saved your life, didn't they?"

"To secure a lifeline for yourself, you unhesitatingly sold out your saviors, without even a hint of guilt on your face."

"Do you really think someone like you, I, Yang Lie would recruit?"

"Maybe someday in the future when I face a more formidable opponent, you'll betray me just like today without a backward glance."

"You tell me!"

He roughly grabbed Aurora's neck, lifting the little girl into the air, questioning word by word: "Aurora Miles, would you do this?!"

"..."

The sudden lack of oxygen, combined with the cut-off blood supply to her brain, made Aurora's face turn crimson.

Yet her expression remained calm as ever.

No struggle, no justification, no screams.

She simply looked quietly at Yang Lie, frighteningly rational.

Even Yang Lie himself felt uneasy under such a gaze.

The Red-haired Death God knew, this little girl might defend herself, saying "she had no choice" with some grand rationalization... or she'd lie, swearing she would never betray.

Yang Lie had heard such reasons often and genuinely found them repulsive.

Lies, deceit; if they fool someone, that's fine, but if not, they're the epitome of weakness.

Yang Lie utterly loathed weakness, so he was ready to kill Aurora.

However, Aurora's reply once again surprised him.

"That's right."

The girl met Yang Lie's eyes, calmly answered: "In those circumstances, of course I would betray."

"I am willing to be loyal to anyone I recognize, but only if he can protect me."

"My thinking is absolutely rational; if there's even a slight chance of victory, I'm willing to try."

"But if it's truly at a desperate dead end, unable to be salvaged no matter what, betrayal can't be considered strange, right?"

"People from the Eastern Hemisphere have a saying, 'a wise bird chooses its tree to roost,' why should I hold on to loyalty when given no chance of survival at all?"

"It's not my fault, but your problem."

Aurora's words were extremely sharp, even making Xie Kang's brows furrow, thinking Yang Lie would act at any moment.

Any employer, or those in authority, generally dislike hearing such words.

The most important and valuable standard for a subordinate is always loyalty.

Being loyal to death is their highest praise.

Anyone who can't even do this, who won't even put on a show of loyalty, is certainly not favored by authority.

Xie Kang thought this way.

However, Yang Lie's view was completely different.

Because within her words, he heard other meanings.

Firstly, Aurora was very honest.

She knew Yang Lie was smart, so didn't use lies or false submission to insult the Apprentice Death God's intelligence.

This alone was enough to dispel Yang Lie's murderous intent within.

Secondly, although Aurora factually betrayed her companions, she emphasized one point—she contributed greatly to the team.

Even if only a sliver of hope for survival or victory remained, she was willing to stay with her companions.

This counts as quite loyal, since most who profess "dedication to the dragon king" often turn tail at the first sign of trouble.

Compared to those people, Aurora indeed embodies "loyal beyond words"...

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.