Chapter 062: The Consultant with a Ten-Million-Yearly Salary

Rudolph fell with a thunderous crash, and Sterr swiftly ascended to power. The first thing he did was to quickly appoint his own trusted confidants, replacing the favorites of the former corpulent ruler. Naturally, this brought about open and covert struggles, a blood-soaked storm of power transitions, but as he had reached an agreement with the other four bishops, they allowed him to stabilize the situation as quickly as possible.

The days of violence and bloodshed were long past! Now, everyone was a businessman, an entrepreneur. Heaven? That was just a fable to beguile the masses! Where in paradise could one indulge so freely and joyously as in the world of mortals?

At once, Sterr invited Li Lekang to serve as his “special advisor.” It was a position of supreme honor and utmost leisure, with no demands but every privilege that Sterr himself enjoyed. They were allies now; Sterr had sold his soul to Li Lekang, gaining a demon as his patron, and he even harbored ambitions for greater power.

Yet all could not be rushed. Sterr had his own strategy; after years of patient waiting, he was ready to make his mark at last!

As for Li Lekang, he was less concerned with such matters. He had no knack for mundane power struggles; fame and fortune brought far greater delight. Of course, as a demon, infiltrating the stronghold of his sworn enemies’ faith, and recruiting their upper echelons as subordinates, was an amusing venture. He was intrigued to see how far Sterr could stir the pot.

Then, he returned to his primary task. It was time to submit his mission.

Rudolph’s soul, tainted with seven deadly sins, was of superb quality; it avoided the flaws that would arise from forcibly patching together the sins of several lesser souls. This level of excellence, Li Lekang believed, would surely please the Demon Queen.

He submitted the task to Scroll Spirit. The soul stone vanished instantly from his package, and soon after, Scroll Spirit updated the task status:

[You have completed Elimi’s Seven Deadly Sins Soul Task]
[You have earned +1 card draw opportunity]
[You have delighted the Queen with a beautiful gift, gaining +10 favor with Elimi]
[Elimi’s attitude toward you is now ‘Friendly’; within her domain, you will receive tax reductions, trade discounts, and numerous privileges]
[You have earned priority access to Elimi’s bounty tasks, with a chance to trigger exclusive missions]

A wave of status updates signaled the perfect completion of the task! The card draw was precious, but even more valuable was the leap in the Demon Queen's favor—from 50 to 60, elevating him from stranger to “friendly.” Winning the friendship of a Demon King was no easy feat; too many sought to curry favor, and they rarely needed to commission others, so debts were seldom owed.

Li Lekang, seasoned in games, knew that even a modest +10 could demand a bloodletting grind in-game. Hell, too, was a place where relationships mattered; securing this bond, clinging to the Demon Queen’s coattails, meant that if anyone ever cursed him to hell, Li Lekang could laugh aloud at the threat.

At last, the eagerly anticipated card draw arrived. Li Lekang bathed and changed, cleansing away the mundane aura.

He sat cross-legged, meditating and hoping for a stroke of luck.

“Come on!”

“Congratulations, you have drawn a ‘Storage Ring.’”

“Excellent! Bring it to me!”

Storage items had always been favorites of collectors and scavengers in games; often, when the backpack was full and a rare item dropped, one had to make hard choices. There was nothing more comforting than venturing forth with an arsenal and a pharmacy on one’s person.

Now that the ring had manifested in reality, its value was even greater! Its appearance was plain and unadorned, but when Li Lekang put it on and scanned the internal space with his mind, he found about a hundred cubic meters—enough to fit several cars. From now on, important objects, magical items, or anything else need not be locked in a safe.

He could retrieve or stash things at will, easily deceiving any observer.

For Li Lekang, this was a treasure!

“All this effort has paid off perfectly!”

His mood soared; the task had been completed with little exertion, he had won the Demon Queen’s friendship, recruited new followers, and strengthened his team—what a windfall!

In his exuberance, he couldn’t help but dance around the room; when Judy knocked and entered, he greeted her with a dazzling smile, took her hand, and improvised a ballroom dance.

Judy was bewildered, but she smiled and matched his steps, showing off her dancing skills.

After twirling and striking a pose, Li Lekang praised, “Beautiful!—What brings you here, my dear?”

Judy could see he was in a superb mood, and it was infectious. “I’m here to tell you to prepare for the Talent Show competition; you’re about to go on stage.”

“Oh… I almost forgot, I still need to compete for a spot in the quarterfinals.”

“That’s why you need me!” Judy was especially sweet. “Tell me your requirements.”

“No specific demands—the props arrived with the car last time. Maybe you could think about how to promote me, keep stirring up attention, edit some videos and post them online.”

“All of that is in the plan. By the way, Saint Group sent over your performance's one-million-dollar check, and they also delivered an employment contract—inviting you as a special advisor, with an annual salary of ten million?”

Judy was unsure about this recent development. Rudolph had suddenly fallen, Sterr had quickly taken the reins, and in the midst of a power struggle, had time to invite a magician to his team?

Most people would be unable to untangle the reasons behind this, and Li Lekang couldn’t explain it either; he simply laughed, “They need a few tricks to spice things up—religious organizations, you know, they’re especially rich. It’s perfectly normal!”

“Ten million dollars a year is normal?” Judy pressed him again.

“Am I not worth it?” Li Lekang laughed, draping an arm over her shoulder. “Don’t overthink it. Come with me for a meal, and let’s discuss my schedule for becoming famous!”

“I think my brain needs to slow down!” Judy was still a bit dazed.

“I’ll get you a glass of fine wine and a delightful meal,” Li Lekang said, leading her away. “This is a land where miracles happen every day—just trust me!”

As the bishop of the Western Diocese, Sterr couldn’t claim absolute power, but he had authority over team personnel, appointments, and even hiring consultants with million-dollar salaries—it was hardly excessive.

Saint Group’s religious wealth had been amassed over many years; they invested in numerous industries, most famously in Saint Corporation, which engaged in lucrative fields such as financial investment and consulting.

They also had their own logistics company, and even a fleet of transport planes; their security company, equipped at military-grade levels, was practically a haven for elite veterans.

Not to mention the collusion of capital and politics behind the scenes—backroom deals abounded, and many senators spoke on their behalf. This was the true money-and-power elite.

Rudolph, who once wielded these forces, was arrogant to the extreme; even when faced with prosecutors’ accusations, he paid them no mind, and even threatened to have someone “deal with” the prosecutor.

Had Li Lekang not intervened, Sterr overthrowing Rudolph single-handedly would have been nearly impossible.

But now, the overwhelming power of the supernatural over ordinary people ensured the process was flawless. Sterr’s cold face finally broke into a smile.

Serving the devil, in his view, was anything but a bad thing.