The torrential rain continued to fall, yet the neutrons liberated by the substance rain did not kill all life on the surface; the damage was limited to units directly exposed to the rain.
For trees and rainforests, a substance rain might not be such a catastrophe.
After all, Dragon Satellite was a planet swallowed by forests, with endless expanses of forest covering the sky and continuously spreading outward.
For carnivorous Tree People, this might have been paradise; yet history repeatedly taught humanity that those who sought to build heaven on earth only ended up diving into hell.
Native organisms had secured a strong ecological niche within the forest, but this soon led to a green desert. Similar plants, madly competing for sunlight, caused a wild inflating effect, making it impossible for lower vegetation to grow. The forest floor lacked an interdiate shrub layer or ground vegetation.
Although plants did not compete with humans for air, their massive absorption of carbon dioxide significantly weakened the greenhouse effect, causing global temperatures to continuously drop.
From both an observer’s and a participant’s perspective, Li Aozi felt as if this phenonon confird the views in "Magic, Giant Dragons, and Mithril": everything’s essence was nothing but a flimsy setup, incapable of withstanding any turmoil.
The substance rain poured down, bringing hardship to human refugees while also devastating the Green Hell.
It seed as though no victory was truly aningful.
Reading brought Li Aozi considerable tranquility. Perhaps influenced by his environnt, he had recently developed a habit of introspection and debate, becoming intensely interested in topics like ti, civilization, science, and chaos systems.
But this serene contemplation did not last long as he was soon forced out of his philosophical reverie.
Because the rain had stopped.
"It’s ti to go, little beauty."
Knight rid, with a gunblade strapped to her waist, passed by Li Aozi and couldn’t resist a playful touch to his cheek, her deanor frivolous and her actions conspicuous.
"Keep up with , don’t fall behind."
Li Aozi closed his book, stood up, and left.
Three consecutive days of torrential rain had allowed him to finish a book. Alone in a room with a woman, especially one as frivolous as rid, yet nothing interesting had happened; it seed sowhat counterintuitive.
Li Aozi felt an unparalleled sense of calm, following rid along their path. He gradually began to understand why the description of the "Flower of Nothingness" task was so confusing and disorganized, and the victory conditions so ambiguous.
Void, reality, and romance—among these three ideologies, only one would prevail.
The key to solving the task lay within these three.
[Since rid is the protagonist... is it possible that changes in her ideology could affect the outco?]
From the books he had read, it was clear that the ideological current of Dragon Satellite was mired in confusion, chaos, and nihilism.
This was not surprising, given that the entire planet’s foundation was built on the void.
No pathways, no Starry Abyss myths, no society.
—Wait.
Li Aozi suddenly realized—wasn’t this so-called ’Pure Land’?
If not for the invasion of the void, this would have been a completely self-contained, unperturbed pure land, free from the interference of Starry Abyss powers, isolated from the world, peaceful and free for a long-lasting developnt.
With this thought, Li Aozi imdiately beca aware of many loopholes:
"Speaking of which, Knight rid, why are you never curious about where I co from?"
"Why should I be curious? I’m not your mother."
rid gave him a strange look:
"Blockade bodies co from places outside this planet, whether you co from the void or from another planet—how does that affect ?"
"There is a difference, though. After all, the narrative of the void wants to kill you all, utterly devour and assimilate. We’re different."
"And what about you, Mr. Leoz? How would your faction’s grand narrative choose to handle Dragon Satellite?"
"Most likely... kill ninety percent with a plague, blast the remaining nine percent with guns and cannons, and then use market and capitalism to enslave the remaining one percent, followed by colonial transformation, transferring our jobless vagrants, Puritans, and criminals who can’t make a living back ho—let them find new jobs here while developing an urban civilization."
Li Aozi shrugged after finishing.
"Mr. Leoz, aren’t you also very clear about the outco? The void has been on this planet for decades, and before that, the people here lived in an easy, relaxed kingdom life. Yet within just eighty years, social order was turned upside down, technological growth exploded."
rid laughed softly:
"Having been accustod to being enslaved and ordered around in their youth, now you want them to work and consu on their own; people with no labor skills programming in front of a computer—how could they possibly accept that? They’ve rely transitioned from one narrative into another while remaining slaves. The shackles on their bodies may break, but the shackles on their souls remain—does it really make a difference? Has anything truly changed?"
"I don’t deny that."
Li Aozi noticed that his charm seed to have little effect on rid.
He used the Eye of Truth to examine her information, but rid’s template was completely normal, an ordinary Eta (7) level.
Only in the skill bar, there was a glaring skill: Worldview of Nihilism.
Li Aozi had long discovered that the ’worldview’ of Starry Abyss was not just an ideological concept; it provided real spiritual augntation and resistance.
Nationalist virtues soared, villains had Social Darwinism, Objective Materialism was nicknad the ’God-killer template,’ and Subjective Idealism was simply a berserk divine artifact. Various radical progressive ideas tended to align with societies...
Nihilism was unique. All the nihilism in this world was the result of the void’s external irradiation; this was the void’s tool for invasion and expansion.
Under the guidance of nihilism, people questioned the aning of existence, ridiculed past myths and histories, denied the value of labor, opposed any war and organized unity, rejected entertainnt and reproduction—ultimately becoming hollow and bland. The only solace for their desiccated souls was found in the void.
rid was a nihilist, which perhaps explained her constant frivolous and indifferent deanor, but her actions were highly proactive. Along the way, no matter what she did, she did it herself.
Li Aozi, on the other hand, after a college education, had developed a materialistic worldview. Besides being a politician and industrialist, he could easily transition to realism; this wasn’t difficult.
"So, do you approve of the void?" Li Aozi asked.
"It doesn’t need my approval. Even for the void, existence is unnecessary; like how zero multiplied by anything is still zero."
rid casually replied:
"The future of the void offers no possibility for change. As adults, we should know that the world does not allow us to question it. History is a train moving forward; you and I are rely passengers or combusted fuel. We’ve never been able to decide where this track leads—even if it’s hell."
"I think you don’t have to be so pessimistic."
Li Aozi shrugged:
"I read the book you gave ."
"How did you feel?" rid asked.
"The essence of humanity is a flimsy setup. We muddle through life. The human body is no different; the appendix is useless, teeth only co in two sets, and once they are worn out, we have to use dentures. Consuming carbohydrates and calories makes people happy but overeating causes diabetes and severe health declines. Laboring for survival often ends in sudden death or collapsing on the job—what’s the point of such a being?"
Li Aozi sincerely shared his reflections:
"Not just humans, any living being in the universe seems pointless. Mayflies have a lifespan of one day while hibernating bears can sleep for six to seven months. For every civilization, concepts like history, mythology, and nationalism seem to have no practical use for a long ti. Culture adds artistic value but seems to serve no further purpose, and politics is a futile pursuit. War can be the most aningless action; every ti people try to solve problems through war, they only create more problems."
"But curiously enough..."
"It’s these utterly aningless things that make the world colorful."
As soon as Li Aozi finished speaking, a ssage popped up on his information panel:
[Realism Victory: 0.3%]
Reviews
All reviews (0)