Chapter 53: Welcome Emperor E to His Company and Dungeon.

Chapter 53: Welcoming E the Emperor's Grand Arrival at His Company and Domain.

"So, when can I take over your directorship?"

The moment these words were spoken, Hao Youqian broke out in a cold sweat, his back soaked as he fought to suppress the curses on the tip of his tongue.

Hao Youqian would sell his soul for money—what was most important to him?

Money, of course!

And what did Kaleidoscope Advertising Company represent to Hao Youqian?

—An endless stream of orders and wealth, pouring in with no effort!

Wu Suer wanting his advertising company was no different from asking for his life!

Stimulated by the immense stakes, Hao Youqian's eyes reddened with veins, yet in this critical moment, he found a cold clarity.

His obsession with profit jolted his long-dulled, money-corrupted brain back into high gear. A sudden thought struck him:

The unfamiliar young man before him claimed to be Wu Suer—but where was the proof?

Though his mannerisms bore traces of the arrogant prophet from a century ago, who could guarantee this wasn’t a carefully rehearsed deception based on gathered intelligence?

Even if he truly was Wu Suer, hadn’t he already been stripped of power in the divine struggle back then?

Wu Suer claimed to now serve the current Lord of Fate, but that was merely just his word…

The entire mystical world knew the true victor of the divine throne remained hidden behind the curtain, their identity and status still ambiguous—they had yet to truly step onto the stage and usher in a new era in the mystical realm with their ascension.

What if Wu Suer was simply feeding him lies to conceal his own wretched state, attempting to swindle him out of his fortune?

With this in mind, Hao Youqian steeled himself. This concerned his life’s savings—he couldn’t afford to be fooled so easily!

Though his thoughts raced, Hao Youqian pasted on a respectful smile and replied as diplomatically as possible, "Ah, your contributions to our company are indeed unparalleled. However, matters of corporate transition are rather complex and cannot be settled in a short time…"

As he blathered to stall, Hao Youqian subtly reached behind his back, making a grasping motion.

His fingers seemed to dig into thin air, and moments later, a circular lens as dark as night appeared in his palm.

Item: Laplace's Demon Lens (B+)

Domain: Truth Domain

Status: Bound

Usage Conditions: Place the lens over your eyes to perceive previously incomprehensible truths. Duration: 5 minutes. Cooldown: 12 hours.

Description: Through the lens, all existing rules, laws, and formulas of the world will reflect in your gaze… The gates of truth shall briefly open to you.

As his meaningless chatter dragged on, Hao Youqian noticed Wu Suer growing visibly impatient. Seizing the moment, he held his breath and swiftly raised the lens to his eye.

Once activated, the black lens shimmered with pinpricks of starlight.

Characters representing knowledge and truth flowed across its surface like a constellation of truths in the dark, converging into the eyes of its current user—Hao Youqian.

Hao Youqian couldn’t help but widen his eyes hungrily, his pupils contracting with excitement—he couldn’t wait to uncover the true nature of the man before him!

Hao Youqian believed that, as someone with the bloodline of divine beings, even if this truly was Wu Suer, directly observing him wouldn’t cost him dearly.

Yet, the moment he peered through the lens—

"AAAAHHH!!!"

A scream that could wake the dead tore from his throat.

His pupils burned as if seared by the sun, instantly igniting and melting away. He felt his eyeballs liquefy into a viscous mix of pus and blood, spilling from their sockets.

His mind was thrown into scalding oil, his thoughts twisted and snapped like bubbles rising violently, scattering chaotically through his brain until coherent thinking became impossible…

For a moment, he felt his soul had detached, drifting thousands of miles away from his body.

Was he screaming? He wasn’t sure.

All he knew was that as his trembling hands tried to catch his melting eyes, he faintly registered the violent vibrations of his vocal cords.

Perhaps he was… shrieking hysterically.

Hao Youqian’s fractured thoughts stuttered to a halt.

He couldn’t describe—nor comprehend—what he had just seen in the young man before him.

He thought he glimpsed Wu Suer’s smooth white hair and golden-red eyes, but then it morphed into countless intertwined serpents, their gold-veined serpent eyes gazing down at him with icy disdain…

At this point, Hao Youqian’s mind finally snapped like an overstrained wire.

Chu Fu looked up in surprise to find Hao Youqian facedown on the table, utterly unresponsive—whether dead or unconscious, it was impossible to tell.

The scattered gold coins clattered to the floor with a bright, mocking jingle—yet even the sound of wealth couldn’t rouse Hao Youqian. He was truly in a deep coma.

Chu Fu sat across from him, arms folded, pensive.

He had indeed sensed an intensely probing gaze moments earlier, and then…

Then Hao Youqian had collapsed so abruptly that even Chu Fu hadn’t reacted in time.

His phone cackled mockingly, "Play stupid games, win stupid prizes."

"Living in the mystical world for centuries, yet still failing to learn restraint with his gaze… No wonder the Nightmare clan kicked him to the curb…"

Chu Fu immediately understood—Hao Youqian must have seen something he shouldn’t have through that artifact.

Though he still couldn’t pinpoint the exact nature of his own true form, at his weakest, he could devour the Moth God—a being nearing divinity. Even Twilight Calamity treated him as a peer…

Thus, his essence undoubtedly surpassed Hao Youqian’s comprehension.

With Hao Youqian incapacitated, Chu Fu rose idly and wandered around the office as if he owned the place.

After examining the bookshelf spines, fiddling with knickknacks, tossing gold coins, and poking at the money tree in the corner, Chu Fu suddenly noticed that the lattice-paneled wall behind Hao Youqian’s desk seemed to conceal a hidden door.

Pushing Hao Youqian and his chair aside, Chu Fu slid open the concealed panel, revealing the space beyond.

The hidden room was small—a cramped two square meters—but it didn’t need to be large, for it served only one purpose:

To house the core of the advertising company—the A+-ranked artifact, "Pandora’s Box Foundation."

Despite its name, this artifact wasn’t merely a baseplate.

Intricate, barbed filigree radiated symmetrically across its silver surface, their needle-sharp thorns stretching toward the corners where they bloomed into roses of exquisite danger.

Above the silver base floated three dark gray glass spheres, each containing eerie eyeballs—these were three fragments identical to the "Pandora's Heart."

The spheres were drawn to each other yet repelled at the same time, rotating at a constant speed. No matter the angle of rotation, they always formed a stable equilateral triangle structure.

Chu Fu observed them for a moment before stepping forward and poked one of the glass spheres.

The moment he made contact, the Playground System's interface appeared before him:

「Detected that you have defeated the dungeon boss: Hao Youqian (Semi-Nightmare).」

「Detected that you have obtained the dungeon's core: The Base of the Pandora's Box.」

「Recalculating your mission progress now.」

After a brief pause, the mission summary refreshed with new results:

「Exploration Progress: 100%+

Main Mission: As a substitute tester, collaborate with five players to test five advertisements. (5/5 · Completed)

Special Mission: Become the new owner of Kaleidoscope Advertising Company. (Completed)」

「Evaluation: 100% is merely the system's limit, not yours.

Now, when outsiders dare to address you by name, my heart skips a beat—what were they thinking? You are the Ad Slayer, the new owner of Kaleidoscope Advertising Company, the nightmare of former director Hao Youqian, the uncrowned leader of teamwork, the dungeon destroyer…」

「Additional Reward: Authority over the C+-level dungeon "Kaleidoscope Advertising Company." As the new master of this dungeon, you gain the authority to rename it, modify its background, and set player entry conditions.」

"……"

Chu Fu was speechless at the system's strange evaluation. He skimmed past the long list of titles and focused on the so-called dungeon authority.

「Dungeon Name: Kaleidoscope Advertising Company (Customizable)

Difficulty Level: C+

Location Coordinates: Fourth Dimension · First Universe · Galaxy · Intersection of the Material and Dream Worlds

Player Entry Conditions: None (Customizable)

Current Status: Normally operational」

Within Chu Fu's Playground System interface, a small crown icon now appeared alongside the usual player forum, system shop, and inventory icons.

Tapping the crown, a 3D model of the advertising company's building instantly appeared, allowing him to observe every floor and every employee's status at a glance.

From this perspective, he could even modify each floor's area and decoration—though such changes required extra points.

Even the employees could be customized…

"Wait, hold on," Chu Fu frowned, muttering in disbelief. "Don't tell me he was so stingy that even the employees were system-generated?"

A closer look confirmed his suspicion. Every employee shared the surname "Hao," with names like "Hao Laicai" and "Hao Jinbao." Their personal profiles listed no relatives or friends, as if they were born solely to toil under the exploitation of their black-hearted boss, Hao Youqian.

The piles of gold piled in Hao Youqian's office made it clear that the company's assets had reached a terrifying amount.

Yet these employees, overworked, earned only two to three thousand per month—just enough to get by in human society after work.

——To make them more efficient, Hao Youqian had given them bodies and minds indistinguishable from humans—yet denied them the freedom and respect they deserved.

Even Chu Fu couldn't help shaking his head, feeling how evil this was.

"These employees are products of occultism. They have no blood relatives and were born as adults with basic knowledge implanted in their minds. But in reality, they seem no different from real humans…"

"Do they count as real living beings?"

Chu Fu asked curiously.

His phone fell silent for a moment before countering, "Do *you* acknowledge them as genuine, complete beings capable of independent lives?"

After a brief consideration, Chu Fu nodded. "I do."

With those three words, unseen threads seemed to weave through the air, coiling around the employees' limbs and necks—giving them complete "fates."

The tiny employee models in the 3D model stopped moving, as if sensing something, glancing around in confusion.

"Good," the phone said. "Then they *are*—both biologically and from an occult perspective."

"So, what will you do with them now?"

Unlike Hao Youqian, Chu Fu had little interest in fame or wealth. After some thought, he mused, "Once I take the Base of the Pandora's Box, this company won't be able to function anyway. And I have no desire to run a business with so many employees…"

His gaze drifted around the office before settling on Hao Youqian's beloved gold coins.

"Give each employee one gold coin as compensation, then let them go. As for the rest… I'll 'take care of' them on behalf of our former director."

"Then…"

A smirk curled his lips as he pointed at the still unconscious Hao Youqian.

"The system confirms this dungeon is mine now. Why don't we just kick him out? He’s just in the way here…"