Chapter Forty-Six: What, the Filthy Demon is Finished?

Late at night, after enduring a day of setbacks, Li Hua finally had some time for leisure. He had not expected that even now, so many people would persist in their stance, seeking to leave the Filth Faction and join the Purity Faction. These people, truly, could not see the situation clearly; did they not realize that the Filth Faction already held dominion?

Li Hua shook his head helplessly. It seemed that the path to spreading his gospel was still long and arduous. Still, several days had passed—he wondered whether the prolific Filth King, that mad genius, had updated his content. Li Hua was quite satisfied with the Filth King’s speed in producing videos; though it was never enough for his appetite, he knew that two high-quality updates a week was already remarkable.

It was precisely because every work by the Filth King was a masterpiece, a divine creation, that he had amassed so many fans in such a short time. Li Hua felt a certain pride in his favorite creator; truly, the Filth King deserved his crown!

Upon entering the Stardust Platform as usual, Li Hua frowned at the Three Kingdoms series that dominated the rankings. These days, more and more creators had begun to imitate the Filth King’s videos. Not only was there a lack of originality, but the quality was often poor, and Li Hua was growing weary of watching them.

Beep beep beep... Your followed creator has new activity.

Just as he was thinking this, the web page’s notification sounded, and Li Hua’s eyes lit up—he quickly clicked in. Ever since he had become a loyal fan of the Filth King, his following list had dwindled to just one, so each notification meant the Filth King had updated again.

Opening the video with hope, Li Hua was momentarily stunned—it was yet another Three Kingdoms theme? Could it be that the Filth King had exhausted his creativity and was recycling his old material? The endless repetition of these videos had left Li Hua somewhat disappointed. Although he knew the Filth King was the originator of the genre and it was reasonable to produce more while it remained popular, he still could not shake his unease.

In Li Hua’s mind, the Filth King ought to be a creator who pioneered new genres and wrought miracles; but reality rarely matched his imagination, and everyone has their off days—not every work can be a flawless masterpiece.

Still, since it was produced by the Filth King, it surely wouldn't be too disappointing.

With mixed emotions, Li Hua clicked on the video titled “The Chancellor & The Minister: Loyalty Masquerading as Treachery.” But whom was the title referring to? Minister Wang? Surely not Zhuge Kongming?

As the video began, the familiar barrage of bullet comments flooded the screen—but something was different.

"Declared love for the little angel!"
"The angel is adorable!"
"Opening scene, classic series!"
"Purity Faction present!"

Purity Faction 1
Purity Faction 2
Purity Faction 3
...
Purity Faction 10086

Hmm? What was going on? Where was the promised Filth Faction spam? Where were his comrades, the filth warriors? How had the Purity Faction taken over the bullet comments—and since when were there so many of them?

This couldn’t be allowed!

As an important member of the Filth Faction, Li Hua couldn’t stand by and watch; he had to reclaim the comment section.

"Filth Faction, where are you!"

Though he didn’t know why his fellow Filth Faction members were silent, Li Hua believed that with just one call, the superior numbers of filth brothers would soon drown out the purity spam.

The bullet comments did erupt as he expected, but sadly, not with the content he desired.

"Filth Faction? You need Bright Laundry Powder—cleans without residue."
"We pure souls cannot dance with the Filth Faction!"
"Brother, let me tell you honestly—there’s still time to switch sides."
"Join the group quick, spots are running out!"

...

What? Was the Filth Faction finished?

Li Hua stared in disbelief at the flood of comments on the screen. This couldn’t be! How could the Filth Faction, with its hundreds of thousands, simply collapse overnight? It made no sense.

Pausing the video, Li Hua decided to enter the group and inquire directly—surely the filth demons knew what was happening. But as soon as he logged onto the Big Penguin messenger, notifications began to chime incessantly.

Beep beep beep beep...

The icon in the lower right corner flashed with message alerts, and Li Hua, feeling anxious, moved his mouse over—only to be startled.

How could this be!

Quickly opening the messages and scrolling down, Li Hua was horrified to discover that in just a few hours, nearly a hundred people had left the group, and the exodus continued. If things went on, by morning, he might be the only one left.

Li Hua had painstakingly built the Filth Demon Group 66 thanks to his merits last time, and he hadn’t even been group leader for long—could it really be ending so soon?

Impossible! He had to get to the bottom of this.

Pulling up the friends list, Li Hua immediately contacted several other group leaders, hoping for answers.

After a long wait, one group leader finally replied.

"Group disbanded. Joined Purity Faction."

What? Joined the Purity Faction?

Li Hua's face twisted in despair. How could this happen? Wasn’t it promised that they would remain united in filth? Seeing that the other leaders hadn’t replied, Li Hua knew those traitors had surely switched sides as well.

Before he could start cursing, another message arrived, and the sender's icon instantly turned black—gone without a trace.

"You haven’t watched today’s video from the Innocent Little Angel, have you?"

The Filth King’s video today?

Li Hua stared in confusion at the paused video on his screen. Had everyone switched sides after watching this? Abandoned their brothers?

Impossible! Had the Filth King’s latest work really been so pure that it changed everyone’s minds?

Li Hua refused to believe the Filth King would ever release a proper, wholesome video—it couldn’t be!

With complex emotions, Li Hua solemnly resumed the video, and soon the familiar scenes and characters appeared before his eyes...

The same familiar army tent, the same familiar faces—everything seemed normal. Could Zhuge Liang and Wang Lang really have anything new to offer?

Thanks to reader Big Foodie Youyouzi for the generous reward of 1300 Stardust Coins—flowers! Thanks to readers Crescent Under the Setting Sun, Please Call Me Fat Guo, and Senluo Yake for their reward of 500 Stardust Coins, and to reader Overcast Sky for the reward of 100 Stardust Coins—flowers!