Chapter 391: Self-righteous Game
"The encirclement and suppression operation has finally entered its final stage. Now we bring you the first-hand news!"
In the city-state's 24-hour live broadcast room, female anchor Landa maintained a perfect work smile: "The third wanted criminal, Ji Huaisu, has just defeated the assassins hired by Speaker Parriman. The first-order encirclement and suppression operation has completely failed."
The male anchor, Gang Saburo, smiled and continued, "Three minutes ago, a major fire broke out in the Jingsha Senate. Speaker Parriman is trapped in the fire and his life or death is unknown."
"We cut to the second sequence, where we can see the wanted criminal Chu Hengkong rapidly approaching Mansa Star Castle."
"So far, none of the wanted criminals have suffered any serious harm. I think it can be basically determined... it can be determined..."
Landa's smile grew increasingly stiff. She tried hard to control her expression, as if she wanted to stop. But Kosaburo kept his mouth shut: "It can be basically determined that this encirclement and suppression operation has completely failed!"
“Total failure!” “Failure!” “Failure!”
The voices of the ace anchors' broadcasts echoed throughout the city-state, and the citizens stared blankly at the water curtains in their homes.
What the hell are they talking about? A few minutes ago, the Divine Guards had a huge advantage, but now they're completely defeated?
How many of the words of City Media are true?
The hosts' smiles gradually became uglier than tears; anyone could see the unnaturalness of the live broadcast. But they couldn't control themselves, because somewhere beyond the camera's reach, a certain beholder was staring at them.
"Come on, tell the truth!" Vander smirked. "Tell everyone something you don't know. Tell us the true identity of the wanted criminal and why the city-wide wanted order is here."
They were unable to resist. After all, if they truly had the mental strength to resist hypnosis, they wouldn't be the Speaker's gossip. So, bombshell news was released one after another, leaving the citizens of the city-state dazed.
"Regarding the wanted notice for the three individuals mentioned above...there is actually no concrete evidence..."
"According to the intelligence gathered by the Divine Guards, some of the 'enthusiastic citizens' involved in the wanted list are the terrorists who caused the riots at the Thorn Blossom Festival..."
Landa's lips turned blue. "These three people are most likely... the allied forces who protected the citizens during the Jinghua Festival. They were ordered by the higher-ups..."
She suddenly collapsed on the table, nearly collapsed: "Please let me go! This cannot be said! I can't explain it to the public!!"
Like a spark dropped into a frying pan, the city-state of Jingsha erupted in turmoil. Even the most clueless could see the hidden problems behind this wanted notice. The phones of the various Divine Guards were flooded with calls, and questions and doubts flew in like snowflakes.
Ji Huaisu stood behind Vander with a sneer. Everyone in the media building was bound by light ropes, unable to make a single sound. Hill, standing nearby, quickly said, "The boss's firewall is about to be breached. The enemy hackers are very powerful. They can't hold out for more than three seconds!"
"It doesn't matter. Our mission is complete at this point. Leave the rest to Akong and the others."
She sheathed her weapon and waited at the door with a quiet and obedient demeanor. A few seconds later, the door to the live studio opened, and Benningtik walked in with several grim-faced Divine Guards.
Banningtick pushed up his glasses. "Your actions have violated 32 laws, including Article 35 of the Jingsha City-State Public Security Law and Article 13 of the City-State Media Security Law. The Procuratorate is currently detaining and investigating you. Any questions?"
"No problem at all." Vander rubbed his tentacles and said, "Your Excellency the Prosecutor, please be aware that there was a dark force that slandered us before. We brothers are all good citizens!"
·
In a windowless room at the edge of Mansa Star Fort.
The troublesome Benningtic finally left, and Guo Yutu casually hit enter, regaining control of the media network. His mouse hovered over a video file.
"I've prepared a three-hour composite program as an emergency response. We can claim that the footage was faked by the enemy, or that the two anchors were coerced," Guo Yutu said. "Do you want to use it?"
"No need, let the Speaker solve it himself." Wang Quan said.
Guo Yutu threw the video into the recycle bin: "Got it."
"Your mission is to hold the last line of defense and try to keep them both out of Mansa Star Fort."
"receive."
A divine surveillance video played on the side screen. His old rival was still full of life, and he'd probably be under the giant lily in less than three minutes. Guo Yutu took a sip of Coke and suddenly turned off the camera. Pure white light reflected off his lenses.
"I've done my job diligently so far. Can we talk about something other than work during this last moment?"
"Please."
"To put it bluntly, you sincerely want to see this happen," Guo Yutu said. "Periman and Velus will both suffer losses. After both sides have revealed their true colors, you, the king, can leisurely step in and reap the benefits."
“That’s what I thought at first.”
"But the more time passes, the more strange it seems to me. If you're just going to sit back and watch the outcome, why bother sending us assassins down there in advance? Although we may not be loyal to you, Lerna and I will follow your orders no matter what. If you throw us in when the outcome is decided, we can at least take out a few captains. So, I've been thinking about this since today..."
"—You simply want to compete with Chu Hengkong, right, Wang Quan?"
Wang Quan laughed non-stop: "Do you think I'm a cowboy?"
"How could that be? Cowboys at least have a noble spirit of dueling, but that's not what you're into," Guo Yutu said. "A more appropriate metaphor would be 'sense of ritual.' Yeah, just like a game."
He spoke obliviously, "Some gamers like to use special units like the 'protagonist' or 'first companion' to deliver the final blow to the demon king. This sense of ritual is part of the fun of the game. As for other teammates, NPCs, and neutral units, they don't matter. If they like you, they'll be sent to the front row to interact with the boss and trigger special dialogue. If they don't care, they'll be discarded as cannon fodder."
Driven by this mentality, they choose not the most efficient strategy, but the most dramatic play. Sending out the entire army to slay the boss in one round would certainly speed through the level, but what about the fateful final battle? So, let the minions gradually chip away at the boss's health bar, and once the map is cleared, it's up to 'you' to decide the outcome, just like now."
Guo Yutu sneered and said, "Did you enjoy this game, player Wang Quan?"
The truth was just as he'd said. If he'd simply aimed for a safe victory, assassinating Chu Hengkong, who was in seclusion during the Jinghua Festival, wouldn't have been a problem for Wang Quan. If he truly wanted Parriman to succeed, he could have simply gone all out when the wanted notice was issued. If he was determined to wait until the end to reap the benefits, why expose himself so early? The best time to take the stage would have been after the bill was passed.
It's just a game.
Or rather, this person had long been accustomed to viewing the world from a lofty perspective. Therefore, everything seemed like a game to him. He possessed power on Earth, and the support of the abyss within the world of Shendong. He always had an endless supply of cards, and he had endless capital to support his actions.
So it can always be a god playing with the world, toying with all living beings and having fun.
"I'm a little distressed, a rare thing," Wang Quan said. "I don't think I've spent much time with you, but I didn't expect you to see through that."
"After all, I enjoy playing games, too. Players always resonate with one another," Guo Yutu said lazily. "It's a shame I don't have the strength of Lord Wang Quan to maintain my childlike innocence. I became a pathetic adult early on. All I do all day is work, tasks, and work... And work is different from games. At work, you have to give it your all."
He crushed the empty Coke can and threw it aside, then turned on all the screens.
"Enjoy your game, my Lord is about to start working."
The dark room lit up, the walls turning a pale white like petals. Through the translucent walls, he could see the smoke clouds approaching in the distance like an army.
Guo Yutu sat quietly within the white barrier, beneath him the ancient walls of Mansa Star Fort. This "secret room" was actually a tower built above the main gate. He sat on the border of Mansa Star Fort, and the pale white walls were the great lilies of the city's defense system!
The defense system was connected, information exchange completed, and the defense armament activated. Lines of characters flashed before Guo Yutu's eyes, and the countdown in the upper right corner of the virtual screen was rapidly progressing. He paid no attention to Chu Hengkong's advance, but instead focused on the system self-check that had just concluded.
A backdoor had been implanted within the Great Lily, a handiwork left by the Beholder. Its technique was incredibly advanced, and its methods were completely incomprehensible. There was no hope of fixing the bug before the enemy arrived, so emergency measures were taken.
A makeshift protective wall isolated the bug, then fixed it behind the command post. If they wanted to defeat the Great Lily, they had to get through here... through the defense line he was on.
"I won't give you that chance."
As they got closer, they could already make out the outline of the motorcycle. Velvet had disappeared, leaving only Chu Hengkong on the screen. The other party must have noticed him, and a tentative attack would likely follow in a split second.
But it couldn't be the "Staff of God." Not to mention that Velvet, hiding behind a hidden agenda, had already used that move in a previous battle, and using the same method again was too risky for her. Considering that it was merely her strange blade, bringing out the World-Splitting Wheel was the safest solution here.
But she wouldn't do that. She was used to saving her strongest cards for last, using her true killer move against Wang Quan. So, to preserve her fighting strength, Velvet withdrew from the front lines early... So, naturally, Chu Hengkong's spirited flying knife arrived first.
Guo Yutu felt a pang between his eyebrows. Before he could even think, the enemy's attack had already struck. The blood-red blade stopped an inch before being blocked by the Great Lily's defensive wall. He snatched the flying knife with a mechanical arm, completing a preliminary analysis before the attack collapsed. Targeted defensive information flowed into the Great Lily, and specialized opposing armaments were improved and updated with system support, then appeared above the city wall.
It was a pitch-black, antique-style cannon. Made of the same materials as the Black Death Army, its barrel was engraved with skull and ghost face patterns. The base of the cannon was directly connected to the large lily, and information flow converged at the muzzle, transforming into a dazzling brilliance.
"Death Cannon, fire."
The light's intensity steadily increased, bringing a startling sense of oppression. The overpowering presence distorted space, a destructive white light roared, piercing the city-state and illuminating the heavens and earth. Chu Hengkong abandoned his motorcycle on the spot, evading it at the speed of a Death Wing. This power was not something a mere particle 5 could stop; its presence had already broken through the ultimate barrier and reached the realm of demigods!
The Big Lily is a system that provides power through current.
The sacred tree, which is strong enough to protect Sephiroth 7 when fully deployed, has the status of Sephiroth 6 even when partially deployed.
After connecting to the system, Guo Yutu improved the existing defense system. His masterpiece, the "Death Cannon," was the final piece in the puzzle to complete the city's defense system. Powered by tidal currents, blessed by the sacred tree, and equipped with self-evolution mechanisms, the weapon was thus complete. The cannons were distributed regularly around Mansa Star Fortress, like the marks of a clock.
The secondary analysis was completed, the attack method was improved, and Guo Yutu pressed the attack button.
"Twelve Death Cannons, fire!"
(End of this chapter)
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