Chapter 100: Sea God’s Protective Energy Shield

Chapter 100: Chapter 100: Sea God’s Protective Energy Shield

Jiang Yuxing smiled. "What is it you really want to ask? Your intentions are so obvious they’re practically slapping me in the face."

Shi Zhile said with a serious expression, "I dreamed about you. In the dream, everyone called you Commander-in-Chief.

The feeling was so real, as if I was actually there, living it."

Jiang Yuxing was silent for a moment. "Have you heard of wormholes? It’s said that interstellar wormholes can be used to travel through time and space. We’re in a game world, so we can’t see the future here. The dream you had... perhaps it actually happened in a parallel universe."

He continued, "Humanity is like a collection of living seeds. They’re put into a machine to be modified and sorted, leaving only the best ones to be sown, ensuring the continuation of the species.

In this game, we have to be able to provide for ourselves, and we need clever minds to outwit others.

Doesn’t it feel like we’ve been put into a machine right now, undergoing a selection process based on survival of the fittest?"

Shi Zhile mulled it over for a moment before nodding slowly.

’The meaning of human existence is to live and to propagate. If Earth was really about to be destroyed, it would make sense for humanity to hold a selection for its ’kindling’ to avoid extinction.

After all, no one knew where the next planet to welcome humanity would be.’

「The time was now four in the morning.」 The blizzard outside the cabin showed no signs of stopping.

Just as Shi Zhile was about to end the video call, Jiang Yuxing stood up. "You’ve rested long enough. Let me show you how cruel humans can be to their own kind."

"What?"

Jiang Yuxing said, "Killing monsters. Players killed by other players turn into monsters, and when they do, the gruesome state of their death is reflected on their new bodies."

As he spoke, he opened the door. The next moment, a monster crawled into the cabin.

Filthy, matted hair obscured the monster’s face. Both of its legs were broken, splayed out to the sides. Its elbows were bent outwards at unnatural angles, clearly having been snapped.

She had crawled in, her lower back caved in from a broken spine, dragging herself forward with her two mangled arms.

"Zhile, do you see clearly now? What happened to her is the price of trusting others too much.

Everything and everyone has two sides. In your eyes, the base might seem like the safest, most trustworthy place to devote your life to. But are there really no wicked people in there?

Hierarchies exist everywhere. In the base, the only ones who are truly protected are always those at the very top.

The only reason they keep you around and try to win you over is because you have value to them.

She was the only woman on our island. Her combat power wasn’t high enough, and she couldn’t find enough supplies. You should be able to guess what happened to her."

Jiang Yuxing took out an axe, killed the monster with a single blow, and threw it outside.

The door closed again, shutting out the snowstorm. But the mournful wail of the wind could still be heard seeping through the cracks in the wooden walls.

’It was easy to see what had happened to her. After a month of surviving in this game, very few people were still truly sane.

They’ve gone mad!

No! They were always mad. The game just accelerated their madness, bringing all the malice in their hearts to the surface.

They vented their own incompetence on that woman.

The door blocked the view, but not being able to see it didn’t mean it hadn’t happened.’

Jiang Yuxing’s voice was heavy. "Whether it’s an age of chaos or the end of the world, a man might only have to face death. But there are far too many ways for them to torture a woman. Zhile, a girl must always, at all times, prioritize protecting herself."

Shi Zhile’s heart trembled. In her more than twenty years of life, he was the first person to tell her to protect herself.

"If you’re already in a dangerous situation and can’t save yourself, then take everyone down with you."

Jiang Yuxing had a smile on his face as he spoke. The dim firelight flickered across his features, making him look particularly terrifying.

Shi Zhile: "...Okay, I understand."

As soon as she finished speaking, the system’s cold voice sounded from the other side of the video call.

[Congratulations, Player Jiang Yuxing, for completing the instance mission. Mission rewards will be distributed shortly. Upon mission completion, you may choose whether to exit the instance.]

Shi Zhile said, "You go ahead and take care of that," then hung up the video call.

’The monster Jiang Yuxing had just killed was the last one on his island. It seems the ’ghost’ has to complete all the missions to clear the instance.

If time runs out or the mission fails, the player will most likely die instantly.

There might be a blizzard outside, but a person’s will to live can’t be stopped by mere weather. I still have to be careful of Luo Jiuyin.

Should I take the initiative and attack?

Guo Funing and Hu Yaqin have turned into monsters. With the two of them keeping her busy, she won’t be able to spare the effort to deal with me for a while.

As long as they haven’t been eliminated, I’ll be safe at night.

As long as I don’t leave the cabin, she can’t hurt me. But knowing this game’s usual bullshit, the cabin’s protection will definitely disappear before midnight.

Rather than waiting passively, it’s better to set a trap and wait for her.’

Shi Zhile stepped out of the small room and calmed herself, listening carefully for any sounds from outside. Unfortunately, the wind was too loud; she couldn’t hear anything else.

「At 7:00 in the morning, the blizzard stopped.」

A moment later, the sound of footsteps crunching in the snow approached, finally stopping at her door.

There was a knock on the door. Shi Zhile asked through it, "What is it?" ℯℯ𝘭.

Luo Jiuyin’s voice was weak. "Let’s talk."

Shi Zhile, her expression blank, continued roasting her fish. "Talk about what? Who’s going to die? I know what the ’ghost’s’ victory condition is."

Luo Jiuyin sounded even weaker. "Right now, we’re the only two people on the island. The group chat shows one person remaining, so you’ve naturally guessed my identity. You’ve known for a while. I’m curious, why didn’t you try to kill me?"

’Why?

To sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight, of course. The more people died, the less I’d have to do myself.

Li Ran was killed by her, but he didn’t turn into a monster after he died. That’s when I guessed that players killed by the ’ghost’ don’t turn into monsters.

Since she was so useful, killing her would have been a waste.’

Shi Zhile said, "If I killed you, you’d turn into a monster. I don’t have a fetish for being hunted by monsters."

’I’m no saint. If it weren’t for the rules, with the way they were constantly plotting against me, I would have chopped them up with my axe hundreds of times over by now.’

Axe in hand, Shi Zhile stepped out of the small room and quietly moved toward the area behind it.

’I highly doubted Luo Jiuyin had come just for a friendly chat.

My agility and constitution are ridiculously low. I need a foolproof plan to get out of this instance completely unscathed.’

Luo Jiuyin was silent for a moment, then said softly, "Congratulations in advance for clearing the instance."

The footsteps receded as she returned to her own cabin.

The next moment, a panel popped up.

[Congratulations, Player Contentment Brings Happiness, for completing the seven-day survival mission. Current living beings on the island: 1. Instance mission successful. The player may choose whether to exit the instance.]

[Player Contentment Brings Happiness’s direct player kills within the instance: zero. Indirect player deaths caused: 3. Reward: Sea God’s Protective Energy Shield x1.]