I! Cleaner!-Chapter 998 - 917: Hm?

Leon's hair turned white?!

After hearing Amien's words, the red-haired director was slightly taken aback, hurriedly picked up the document, carefully scrutinized it, and indeed saw a small tuft of white hair on Leon's head.

What's going on?

After running his fingers over the image on the document to confirm there were no issues, the red-haired director frowned deeply.

Although this image isn't an actual photograph, it's drawn using the [Puppet Painter] technique, which captures the mental image directly from the painter's memory, ensuring there's absolutely no mistake.

So Leon's hair... was it that the soul pushed down from the Cliff of the End hasn't been fully restored? Was there an issue because the soul's "filling" for the body's "ends" like hair was incomplete?

"It shouldn't be a problem with the soul."

After closely examining Leon's image, Amien shook his head, denying the red-haired director's speculation, then pointed at the Taurus director beside Leon and said:

"I have a deep understanding of human bodies. If the white hair were due to imperfect control of the flesh because of soul damage, it should look like Taurus's hair: somewhat withered, with a slightly grayish-silvery white hue.

But Leon's hair hasn't lost its luster or turned gray. It's a very vibrant white that doesn't seem like the result of life force loss; rather, it looks like... um... have you seen puppies?"

"Puppies?"

"Yes, those little mixed-breed puppies."

After a moment's thought, Amien blinked and elaborated:

"Some mixed-breed puppies may be one color when they're born but change to another color as they grow. I feel Leon's current state is somewhat like that."

"..."

You certainly said it eloquently... but I think I get what you mean.

Staring at that tuft of "highlighted" white hair on Leon's forehead for a while, the red-haired director seemed to understand something, then closed his eyes slightly and nodded calmly:

"Maybe that's true... Amien, you'll definitely have a spot for the underworld training this time. Do you have any other matters to discuss?"

"No."

For someone in the workplace, "Do you have anything else?" basically implies "I have something to do, you may leave." Amien certainly understood this, nodded, then promptly left the director's office.

After she left, the red-haired director reached to his ear, lifted a strand of vivid red hair, gently rubbed it, and sighed softly.

Leon... the luminous white, the deep black... I understand now.

...

"I get it! Ahaha! I understand now!"

Just as Leon passed through the cold gray mist outside the Ghost Gate, bathing again in the cold sunlight of the present world, a black goat's head suddenly popped out from his cufflink, laughing joyfully with sparkling eyes:

"From insisting on waging war with the Realm of the Dead, to having some souls penetrate deeply into it, then letting the Cleaning Bureau and the Realm of the Dead fight to mutual destruction, and finally, especially saving the Taurus director who supports you the most... all this was your plan, wasn't it?"

"..."

"..."

"Who are you?"

"?!!!"

Unexpectedly, Leon's first words were these, causing the black goat's mind to blank out, then its eyes immediately turned red, nostrils flaring to the limit as it breathed heavily like a bellows.

Seeing the black goat about to explode so quickly, Leon waved his hand, smiling as he explained while continuing his journey:

"Don't be hasty, I'm just kidding... you just fell out of favor a bit, it's not like you accidentally died. How could I forget you?"

You better not!

Seeing Leon actually taking the initiative to ease the tension, the black goat, which was one step away from breaking down, took two deep breaths, then said with a dark expression:

"Leon! You jerk..."

"Hmm?"

"You..."

"Hmm?"

"You..."

"Mm."

Damn you!

Feeling the True God-level presence of Leon's 60-point Contamination Value, which surpassed its peak of only 59 points, the black goat couldn't help but swallow its anger, change its address, and on one hand mentally cursed Leon's ancestors, while on the other hand tried to squeeze out a smile:

"Following you around during this time... I've had some... suspicions. If you don't mind, can you hear me out to see if there's any substance to my analysis?"

"Speak."

"..."

Faced with Leon, who after getting ahead spoke one word at a time in response, the black goat gritted its teeth in agitation, then plastered a smile on its face:

"Your goal is to completely control the current world, to have it operate entirely according to your will. However, the Cleaning Bureau, which insists on maintaining the status quo, would never allow you to achieve your wishes. So the Cleaning Bureau has, in fact, become your greatest obstacle."

"Perhaps."

What do you mean perhaps? It's certain!

Glimpsing the noncommittal expression on Leon's face, the black goat curled its lip in disdain, then extended its head to continue:

"But although the Cleaning Bureau is corrupt and muddle-headed, it still holds humanity's most powerful forces, which even a nation can't contest against. You haven't grown to the point where you could suppress all opposition by force, either.

So you chose a different path: while using the Kingdom of Lutung as a foundation, you band together with major kingdoms to gain support, on the other hand actively approaching the Cleaning Bureau seeking promotion, trying to become part of the higher-ups and dip into decision-making power."

"That's hard to say."

Still bluffing!

The black goat sneered internally, squinting its eyes:

"After the events with the Realm of the Dead, you immediately saw your chance. By urging the Cleaning Bureau to take offensive actions, you lured them away from the Star Palace's blessing and the Watcher's Palace's protection, into fighting the Overlords of the Dead Realm in disadvantageous territory.

Moreover, fearing that the Realm of the Dead would choose to negotiate due to its fear of the Cleaning Bureau, you deliberately descended early to kill one of the overlords as cruelly as possible, thereby expressing your disgust and hostility towards the Realm of the Dead, making them understand the consequences of surrender, forcing them to unite against the Cleaning Bureau in a life-and-death battle."

"Heh." 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

Intent on his journey, Leon couldn't help but chuckle after hearing this, a bit helplessly:

"You have quite the imagination."

What do you mean I have wild imaginations? I only think; you actually do it!

Not believing a word Leon said, the black goat reflected on what it had recently seen, smacked its lips, and continued, filled with certainty:

"After the battle with the Realm of the Dead, Capricorn director and six Zodiac directors went to the Heavenly Mountain and won't be back for a while. As for the Sagittarius director, who has always been wary of you from the beginning and could influence Taurus's decisions, was temporarily left beneath the Cliff of the End.

The Taurus director trusts you tremendously; without the Sagittarius director's reminder, he basically would do whatever you say. The Cancer director, with limited thoughts and nearing the end of life, will be busy imparting secret techniques to the next director in the future, so he doesn't have the energy to keep watching you.

So now, you're the sole brain of the Cleaning Bureau. Until Capri director and the Zodiac directors return, nobody can oppose whatever you want to do.

And the Realm of the Dead, nearly wiped out through the Cleaning Bureau's cost, has become the underworld branch under your control. Together with the Crolock Kingdom's body replication technology, as long as you grasp these two aspects, you can essentially hold most Cleaners by the throat.

The Cleaning Bureau now is entirely yours!