Chapter 519 - Five Hundred and Sixteen - ’It hurts so much, it hurts so much.

Chapter 519: Chapter Five Hundred and Sixteen - ’It hurts so much, it hurts so much.Apart from him,

she had never heard of any other player attempting to ascend to godhood.

Most were still making every effort to collect Silver Stars or trying to dominate the influence of various tribes, guarding against tribal wars, yet no one chose to delve deeply into the Curse in pursuit of clues for immortality.

After all, being metamorphosed meant actual harm to the spirit, and they were all refined egoists. How could they possibly risk becoming madmen, fighting for a non-standard instance world?

This instance would only have one victor, which meant that out of one hundred people, ninety-nine would end up with nothing. Most of their investments were just sunk costs, with many here merely for a vacation.

She had heard that other players had started to choose suicide to return, staying in such a polluted world for too long was not good for their mental state.

Since there was no hope of becoming the only victor, many felt it was better to go back and rest first, to give it their all in the Ninth World later. Otherwise, they would end up with nothing and attract all sorts of trouble.

In this light,

the Number One Player, who always rushed into the most dangerous places, seemed particularly admirable.

Luna felt that even if he had once been just an ordinary student,

the moment he stood in this position, no one was more suited than him.

Liu Haiyao was an exceedingly outstanding forum player, skilled at documenting the brilliant performances of various excellent players and writing articles about them.

Or rather, it would be more fitting to describe her as a "journalist."

The articles she published were appropriate in detail, with the information coming from real sources, and were very popular with the readers.

Her success to date was not the result of her efforts alone.

She had signed an agreement with the World Independent Institute, which endorsed and took a share of her articles to help promote them.

The world was changing rapidly, but it seemed as though there was an invisible chasm, gradually severing the connections between adventurer players and organizations. This subtle change was undeniably concerning.

A new era seemingly divided humanity abruptly into two classes. On one side were adventurer players wielding the power of humanity, on the other, casual players who could only watch from afar. Their contradictions increased as time changed, reaching a point that could not be ignored.

Today, Liu Haiyao focused on this topic, writing an article she was prepared to publish. Before posting, she needed to submit it to the Institute for review.

She walked through the corridor, knocked at the door, and pushed it open upon receiving permission.

Inside the office, a Western male with a countenance as ageless as the moon sat behind a computer.

"Good day, Cartes," said Liu Haiyao, taking a seat opposite him.

Dealing with people of various nationalities had become her daily routine. If it weren’t for the immediate translation system in the World Game, Liu Haiyao couldn’t have even dreamed of communicating in real-time with big shots who were once out of her league.

"Would you like a cup of coffee?" said Cartes.

"No, thanks, I prefer tea," replied Liu Haiyao, getting straight to the point, "Did you call me here for a reason?"

Normally, they could communicate remotely for review using something similar to QQ. The work software for the World Game was perfectly designed, as handy as a human arm. She usually submitted her articles and published them directly, but this time she was specifically summoned.

Carter slid the computer across the desk for Liu Haiyao to see.

"Liu, I’m sorry, but we can’t approve this manuscript," he said.

"Why?" Liu Haiyao looked utterly perplexed.

What she had written was about the conflict between Adventurer Players and Casual Players, a topic that had taken her considerable effort to compile. She not only had to track down various call-to-arms posts from the beginning of the game but also specifically sought out the data posts of the famous player Hubert, analyzing the overall situation of the "human points progress bar."

She knew that such explosive topics were definitely popular, as people always liked to argue about matters directly related to their interests and reputation. Things irrelevant to them were simply hung up high and laughed off as "watching the excitement," but when something touched directly on their interests, even threatened them, they would explode in anger like a flood breaching the fields, not stopping until both parties were hurt.

——Inciting their emotions and unleashing their anger was exactly what her pen needed to do.

Moreover, the situation was indeed critical now. People were still excited about the progress bar nearing 30%, believing that with nine months left, their future held great promise. But Liu Haiyao saw the instability of this progress bar. If the future was truly bright, then why were there one bad situation after another?

Some set themselves on fire in the square, some detonated bombs, others poisoned themselves and committed suicide... Statements like "humanity is doomed" were not uncommon, and many bizarre and odd-shaped churches had emerged, attracting many anti-human elements.

There had always been sensitive and clever individuals among humans; she believed many had noticed the lurking crisis. So why could she not speak out and make people vigilant?

"Liu, let me be frank," said Carter:

"...You know why, when you open the forum now, it’s all about topics related to the Eighth World, right?"

"Isn’t that natural?" asked Liu Haiyao.

During each World Instance’s activation period, the forum would be filled with topics related to that World Instance. For example, a week before, during the Maritime Banquet, opening the forum would reveal a comprehensive guide to various Soul Hunt and Soul Clan, summaries of different storylines, and not to mention derivative novels, short films, and merchandise sales that are highly entertaining.

Now, it was the same with the Eighth World. Apart from summaries of Qiongdi’s background, there were also predictions and bets on different players’ odds of winning, fierce debates over standings, with people in the forum arguing incessantly.

"Don’t you think that the discussion about the Eighth World is, in comparison to before, excessively dense?" Carter added.

Liu Haiyao was slightly startled.

An inspiration suddenly flashed through her mind, and she realized something.

...Right.

In previous instants of World Replica activation, even if there were many such analysis posts, they would not dominate the forums to the extent that they occupied the entire space.

Like dealing with the mentally ill in White Sand Paradise, recruitment posts from the Peace Dove Rescue Association, promotional posts for the "Hero Program" from various renowned scientists, and issues arising from suicide attacks and so on... These types of posts, important and that should be present, seemed to have been put aside now.

Looking around, the forum was now saturated with intense debates about the top players, with the scent of gunpowder spreading to every corner.

Rankings at the forefront, people glued to their screens, eyes bloodshot, were simply uninterested in any other topic.

...This could only be a deliberate flooding of the forums with combat posts, crowding out other topics and intentionally creating a contentious public opinion.

...This focused everyone’s attention on one point while sidelining other topics.

"Liu, we need to bring them courage, provide them with stability," Carter said: "...not scaremongering and chaos."

Liu Haiyao felt a bit lost.

"The Battle of the Hundred, where the strongest contenders in the world fiercely fight, directly clashing in combat, engaging in battles of wits, and negotiating with various story forces, until only one victor remains... Such thrilling events make even my blood boil with excitement," Carter said. "Since people like it, let them focus on that, then. Once they pay attention to it, they’ll feel an irresistible urge to join the game. This is a good thing; we shouldn’t obscure their view with dangerous information."

"...Even if there’s a risk of them undergoing metamorphosis?" asked Liu Haiyao.

"That’s just a minority of cases. Besides, isn’t the Eighth World still doing fine? It’s just that some people have died, their powers haven’t been wiped out," Cartes tapped his fingers on the tabletop, "People like to watch this, so let them watch. We shouldn’t go against the tide."

"...Understood." Liu Haiyao said.

"In the face of an unknown world and future, we are both juniors," Cartes said, "Focus on contemplative thinking, study earnestly, go with the flow, and don’t be the one who sticks their neck out. Even if your article were published now, it would only be drowned in a sea of flame-bait posts, without any benefits. It would be better to... wait a bit longer."

"I’ve got it." Liu Haiyao said, "To follow the world’s opinion dynamics and then make a corresponding report... I will put this article aside for now, and when there’s a loud discourses that ’human progress is slow,’ I’ll release it. That way I can... maximize the benefits."

Liu Haiyao bowed and left with her notebook in her arms.

The lesson Cartes taught her was infinitely valuable.

Shortly after she left, Cartes made a communication call.

He casually pulled a cigarette from the desk, lit it, and took a leisurely drag, displaying a thoroughly contented demeanor.

"Hello?"

No sooner had the communication connected when his expression suddenly began to fluctuate violently.

"—What?? Edward did what..."

"This is no joke!"

Having finished a day’s work as charlatans, Su Ming’an and his group returned to the Twenty-Ninth Tribe.

One of the stewards of the Tribe, Xi’er, greeted them and brought them to the best building in the tribe to rest.

"The nearby smaller tribes are mostly already gathered." Xi’er pointed at the sheepskin map in his hand, "However, Master Bai Shen, if we want to further spread the glory of the Lighthouse Church, we need to persuade some larger tribes. These smaller settlements are not enough."

Su Ming’an glanced at the map, which altogether showed more than a hundred gathering places, including various scattered settlements.

His diligent day’s work seemed to have fooled all the nearby smaller tribes.

Yet, the nearby Third Tribe proved to be a tough nut to crack. It seemed to have players like Aylan and Mirabelle hanging around. Because of the players’ involvement, this large tribe had not chosen to believe in the Lighthouse Church. Instead, they were shouting things like, "If your Bai Shen is so great, why doesn’t he come to persuade us himself? You’re all fakes anyway!"

"No problem," Su Ming’an said, "We’ll go there ourselves tomorrow."

If he wanted to push his Favorability to 10,000 points, the belief of the large tribes was essential.

Xi’er set down the map, excused himself, and left five people inside the stone building.

Before leaving, he shut the door securely, his glance at Su Ming’an suggesting something along the lines of "You are truly blessed."

Su Ming’an looked up and there were Luna, Xiber, Yamada Machiichi in women’s attire, Sha La... This group of tribespeople’s bad habit of treating female companions as wives was still uncorrected, truly a vice that was irredeemable.

"I... I’m going to head back first," Sha La said, her head lowered as she left.

"I’m off," Luna left even more briskly, pulling Yamada Machiichi along with her.

Only Su Ming’an and Xiber remained, looking at each other.

...Maybe also Yuanyuan, who was floating nearby.

"You’re going to the First Tribe?" Xiber spoke up, guessing Su Ming’an’s next itinerary.

"Yes, tomorrow is the seventh day of the war. We’re first going to subjugate the Third Tribe, push the Favorability beyond eight thousand, and then find Fengchang the day after," Su Ming’an said, "I must have his Black Python Authority. Is there another way than killing him?"

"Yes," she said, "Kill me instead, to exchange, and make him willingly hand over the Black Python Authority to you."

Su Ming’an felt a headache coming on; he knew Xiber was being sarcastic again.

He almost forgot... Fengchang still saw Xiber as the source of calamity; there existed an insurmountable hatred between the two of them.

"We’ll just have to see how it goes," he said.

Unless absolutely necessary, he didn’t want to confront Fengchang. Even if Fengchang’s Favorability had dropped to 90 and he was manipulating some bizarre cursed beast, having such a person as a friend was definitely better than as an enemy.

"Even if you don’t seek him out, I have to go either way," Xiber suddenly said.

"Why?"

"..." She paused for a moment, "I also need the belief of the First Tribe."

She was still harboring her dream of becoming a god.

Su Ming’an was close to gathering all the required elements, just lacking the Black Python and the Black Crow Authority, while she had yet to make any progress.

He had already seen the hints for the ending routes, knowing that if he himself became Bai Shen, it would achieve the Reincarnation Line’s TE·Day of Blossoming. If it was Xiber becoming a god, it would be the Jiu Shen Line’s TE·Jiu Shen’s Descent.

Either way, it was a TE, and as long as it was a TE, it was basically an SSS-ranked Perfect Pass.

Whom the achievement went to didn’t really matter, it would just lead to different world endings.

"Then the day after tomorrow, let’s go together," he said.

"Okay," Xiber said, "Together, we go."

"I feel like...I’m a bit hot," Su Ming’an said.

"...The air during the calamity period is spicy, just bear with it," she said.