The crowd surged towards the final floor.

It was a completely open space, with nothing there except for the two paintings placed at the end.

This was the final work.

The people had a premonition.

With excitement, they gathered in front of the two paintings, yet tacitly left a large space, allowing Ethan and his companions to go over.

Ethan reached the front of the crowd but did not proceed further. Instead, he gestured for El, Ned, and particularly Oswaldo to move forward.

A gesture of invitation.

"Ladies and gentlemen, as you can see, I am proud to introduce, among the most profound works today, one of which of course is the 'Final Justice' that I promised before."

Ethan extended his hand, pointing to one of the paintings.

These two paintings also differed in how they were displayed; one was simply placed there, precisely the one Ethan pointed at—'Final Justice.'

The other was still covered, with not a single part visible to anyone.

But just 'Final Justice' alone was enough to surprise everyone, because it was a work entirely different from Ethan's usual style.

Ethan's previous works were mostly of whimsical style, bizarre, abstract, more symbolic and figurative, aligning with his surrealist ideology.

Yet this piece was rare in its realism style.

Ethan fully and accurately restored the entire scene of the trial by the sea from that day.

Including the characters present, the detailed environment, even the sky's color and wind's force were depicted to a perceivable extent.

And in terms of the overall layout and expression of intent, it was straightforward to understand at first glance.

Ethan did not showcase the scene from the trial, instead capturing the moment before the trial, exactly as he described to the reporter at that time, recording the reporter's likeness.

The painting depicted the confrontation between him and the reporter, with the reporter's face meticulously portrayed, recognizable to those familiar with him.

As for Joseph, the presiding officer of the trial, he was hidden behind Ethan.

Like a hunter releasing a hound to hunt, silently watching the scene.

The entire scene depicted Ethan besieged from all sides, heroically resisting under the sun.

There was even a rich epic feel to it.

Just seeing this scene already gave everyone a powerful impact.

Let alone what lay behind this painting.

Silence.

The entire audience seemed enchanted by a spell of silence.

A good full minute passed before someone began to clap.

Then came the continuous hearty applause from the entire audience.

After a long while, possibly three or four minutes, the applause began to wane.

"Five million."

Someone in the crowd offered a bid directly.

"Mr. Ethan, I mean no offense, but it is truly magnificent, and I am willing to pay five million for this painting, please sell it to me!"

"Ten million."

Without any fancy words, someone immediately intercepted.

Such generous offering naturally came from Jackson of the Royal Capital.

"Fifteen million."

Unexpectedly, another contender emerged, one of Jackson's companions, an art collector from the south, known to be a large farm owner named Wes Costner.

"Wait a minute, everyone, now is not the time for the auction yet, why not wait until you've seen my second painting before proceeding?"

Ethan interrupted everyone's bidding.

The crowd realized this made sense.

'Final Justice' was already so spectacular, what kind of level would the covered painting reach?

"Sir Oswaldo, didn't you express curiosity about what surprises I prepared for today? Would you like to unveil it for everyone?"

Ethan looked smilingly at Oswaldo.

"No problem, it would be my honor."

Oswaldo did not decline and slowly walked over, pulling off the cloth covering it.

In the next moment, the truth of the concealed work was fully revealed to everyone.

The content of the painting was…

It seemed to be a person eating something.

Indeed, this painting reverted back to Ethan's whimsical, surreal style.

The main body of the painting was a monster seemingly made of steel, voraciously devouring some fish, blood spilling everywhere.

And this person appeared to be floating in the sea, with towering skyscrapers and floating cars present in the water.

This was…

The crowd fell silent again.

This time, the silence arose because some people didn't understand it at all, while others understood it too well.

Because today, among the attendees of the exhibition, some were not Wenster residents, and naturally did not understand the situation in Wenster.

Hence, they couldn't comprehend the painting's meaning.

But the other part were Wenster residents, who faced everything in Wenster daily, and instantly got it: the painting was about land reclamation from the sea, seawater intrusion, and the populace suffering terribly, while someone was gleefully feeding with blood dripping from their mouth.

That steel monster, wasn't it unveiled as Governor Oswaldo?

Ethan's move was exceptionally bold.

"Ethan, you really gave me a tremendous surprise indeed."

Oswaldo seemed to be seriously appreciating the painting.

After watching for a while, he nodded: "A very bold expression."

"Really bold?"

"Too bold."

At this moment, someone in the crowd suddenly asked, "Mr. Ethan, what is the title of this painting?"

"The Last Supper." Ethan looked at this person and recognized him as a reporter from the Wenster Daily.

This person was certainly not a plant sent by Ethan; after all, anyone with normal perception could grasp the connotation of this painting.

"May I ask another question? Is this painting expressing your dissatisfaction with the City Hall's land reclamation plan? Is this steel monster, by any chance, a veiled reference to... Governor Oswaldo?"

The boldness of this question stunned the entire audience.

It seemed as if some undercurrent was rushing swiftly.

Some people who came today to solely participate in the auction suddenly realized they might have been dragged into something significant.

"Is that so? I didn't see that at all, Ethan?" Oswaldo seemed to want to laugh it off.

El quickly stepped in to mediate: "Haha, Mr. Roberson the reporter, perhaps you're being a bit too sensitive, it's just a painting, an exercise in surrealism, haven't you heard of Ethan's theory? You shouldn't link everything to reality, right, Ethan?"

He certainly didn't want today's wonderful events to be spoiled; he aimed to quash any unstable factors from the outset.

Yet, just at this moment, Ethan smiled: "What if I say that's exactly it, Governor Oswaldo?"

He looked directly at Oswaldo.

The crowd erupted.

And sounds of increasing density seemed to be approaching; if listened to closely, they resembled the footsteps of many people.

Who has arrived?

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