The deity’s expression was calm, with only the pupils trembling faintly.
Many people had already gathered around the building, and due to the large commotion here, soldiers were gradually converging.
They lifted their heads and stared at the distorted, huge otherworldly monster. Buildings, platforms, alleys, streets—everywhere was packed with people. Although most residents were still hiding in fear inside their buildings, thousands of warriors who had taken up arms were already present.
So of them were still in their dungeon prison uniforms, so had broken armor, and so were even standing shirtless in the pouring rain, the cold rain mixing with pools of blood. The dark, dense clouds pressed down on the crimson eyes above the sky, as if the city-state was sinking into a black and red dream.
"Hum hum hum hum—"
The crimson otherworldly creature still protected the building, its six pairs of sharp blades scraping together, and a large wave of chanical beings erged from the central governntal building.
"Protect the chief!" the soldiers cried out one after the other, forming an indestructible ring of iron netting around Su Ming’an and the others at the very center.
People’s hearts began to gravitate towards Su Ming’an.
When the girl’s voice intervened in this absurd worldwide broadcast, when she scread her throat raw to clarify the truth for the real city lord, and when the deity couldn’t suppress Su Ming’an’s voice, people had already realized sothing was amiss.
"...I’ve always admired your ability to embellish and your eloquence. Is this how you conquered those followers of yours?" ca the deity’s voice from above.
"Bland words persuade no one. Only consistent ideals and interests can make them walk with ," Su Ming’an said.
At these words, the deity chuckled lowly, "Consistent ideals? Like the ideal of the World Ga, where humans collect all the Points on the progress bar?"
Su Ming’an suddenly looked up, gazing at the silhouette of the deity above the building.
The deity said, "What if I could complete these for you? Would you be willing to stay then?"
...
[NPC(?) invites you to beco an "Observer." (If you choose to agree, you will stay in the City of asurent and beco a permanent ’Ruler.’)]
...
Su Ming’an decisively refused, "Impossible."
The deity laughed, and the next mont, his whisper reached only Su Ming’an’s ears, "If it were the real Acto, would you agree then? I see how much you like him."
Su Ming’an’s eyes flickered slightly, and after a mont, his voice lowered a bit, "How can you compare to Acto?"
Upon hearing this, the deity seed to hear the funniest joke ever. Although Su Ming’an couldn’t see the deity’s expression, he could tell from his tone the mockery in it.
"I can’t compare to Acto? Hahaha..." The deity covered his face, and his laughter rang clear, "Well, that’s the funniest joke I’ve heard in years! I think even if the Ruined World were destroyed, even if you died here, I would savor it carefully."
...
[(?) Favorability: 70 5! (Friendship Line)]
...
Su Ming’an’s brows furrowed slightly as he gripped the hilt of the Sword of Yarman.
At that mont, everyone in the battle was listening to the standoff. Outside of the defensive line, the flesh of humans was interwoven with the cold chanics, their hatred burning fiercer than any fire.
"Su Ming’an, we’ll escort you into the building!" Yamada Machiichi approached, followed by Violet, Che Kylstia, Rimu Sheng, and others.
At this point, only by breaching the building could they truly threaten the deity. The deity didn’t have many tricks left, whether it was Emotional Resonance traps or Faith traps, all were shattered by Su Ming’an.
The remaining three hundred or so players promptly followed suit, escorting a Faction Leader like Su Ming’an ant Contribution Value, and they would, of course, fight to the death.
"Su Ming’an, you take control first, we’ll follow up with the final blow!" Rimu Sheng shouted as he ran.
In an instant, a crimson scale hue flickered on the back of Su Ming’an’s hand as if a blood-red halo had perated through, and those densely packed chanical army units—under the suppression of the scale—at that mont froze in place.
This was the mont!
"Fire!"
Violet’s exalted voice cut through the icy rain, with arrows, energy waves, fireballs, ice blades... a dazzling array of effects violently flashing in the quiet night. The shockwaves expanded like waves, sweeping forward, and the scorching air wave tossed up shards of glass and bullet casings, flipping and tearing apart the chanical army in front of them!
No fewer than forty summoned beasts burst out from the group of players, lions, brown bears, cheetahs, gray eagles... Their fur as sturdy as armor, their claws sharper than steel, with one swipe, tal fragnts flew!
Su Ming’an’s "Judgnt" skill was inherently a forceful control effect, and the "control damage" combo easily resulted in critical hits, with dense blood-red numbers soaring up, the chanical army collapsing like twisted ant swarms in this downpour.
...
[HP-698! (Critical hit!)]
[HP-1319! (Critical hit! Magic suppression!)]
[HP-1209! (Critical hit! chanical enhancent! Weakness Strike!)]
...
Maintaining the Bright State, Su Ming’an held the Amber Knife in his left hand and the Sword of Yarman in his right, charging forward like a sharp sword in the midst of the crowd.
Raise the sword, sprint, slash—
Chang Feng seed to pervade the entire city-state.
The kill information on the system panel flowed like a waterfall, rapidly listing hundreds of entries!
"Buzzing—"
The roar of a Ta Wei being echoed.
"Swoosh!"
The six pairs of blade edges suddenly slashed at Su Ming’an, making a sound like rolling thunder, even sucking away the surrounding air, making it thin.
"Defend!" Violet called out upon seeing this.
"Clang—clang—clang—clang!"
A series of clear sounds like intense drum beats resonated as over two hundred players each raised their hands, struck defensive poses. The next mont, several Defensive Barriers ballooned like inflated balloons, swiftly propping up. With their varying attributes, they shone in different colors, casting halos over Su Ming’an’s head as if the players had constructed a steadfast rainbow bridge for him.
Underneath the colorful radiance, Su Ming’an’s pupils also seed to reflect similar hues, resonating with emotions that had soaked an entire world, far more complex than the intricacy of these colors.
At that mont, all sounds around his ears seed to vanish, the endless Whispering being cast behind his mind, as nurous halo alerts in the upper left corner of his field of vision crazily pulsated!
...
[You have received the "Child of Nature’s Protection," Mana Points recovery speed 35%]
[You have received the "Moon Goddess’s Blessing," Defense Value 5%]
[You have received the "Gaze of the Cain Sassar Giant," Attack Power 20 points]
[You have received...]
...
Unlike the scene of Sea Monsters attacking Pulaya, this ti the players were generally strong, with Combat Power Values ranging between 1000-1500. Under their blessings, Su Ming’an unleashed trendous strength.
"Boom—!"
The blade of the Ta Wei creature slashed down, cutting through layer after layer of Defensive Barriers, but failed to cut through Su Ming’an’s body. Su Ming’an had already charged out before all the Defensive Barriers shattered, closing in on the abdon of the giant mantis.
Behind him, ca cries of astonishnt from the Players—the combat power of the Ta Wei creature was a whopping 4500 Points, and the impact of its slash was like an earthquake or a landslide, turning the entire white stone street into dust, with tiny white fragnts fluttering like snowflakes.
"Boom—Boom—Boom!!"
Su Ming’an was now almost at zero distance from the mantis.
Having crossed this most dangerous distance, the players were no longer important, and now he was the only one who could inflict damage on this monster.
His Swordsmanship Mastery, in the Bright State, guided his arms and waist, slashing at the mantis’s abdon at the most suitable angle. The "Weakness Insight" skill precisely marked the spot for a critical hit, and after a sharp ring, green blood sprayed out.
...
[HP-2209! (True Damage! Weakness Strike!)]
...
The health bar above the Ta Wei creature dropped by 3% instantly. Since Su Ming’an was taking on an opponent above his level, the damage from this sword strike wasn’t terrifying. But if it were another player, they would probably only be able to inflict damage in the teens or twenties.
He switched to his left hand’s Amber Knife for another strike!
...
[HP-1579! (Magic Series Damage! Weakness Strike!)]
...
The next mont, the abdon of the mantis began to swell slightly, clearly about to unleash so terrible attack. Su Ming’an imdiately used Spatial Displacent to dodge away, his movents extrely smooth.
"Boom—Boom—Boom!!"
Just like a heavy hamr falling from the sky, black pits exploded around the mantis, and players finally started to sustain casualties.
Su Ming’an landed on a street lamp, moving his arm to flick off the green blood from the blade. He knew it would be a tough battle; the mantis’s health bar was too thick. And with limited numbers of teleports, getting hit even once would make it hard to escape unscathed.
"Gurgle gurgle—" Like transparent jellyfish rging together in the air, the Purple Grade weapon [Levitating Cannon] appeared behind him. This high-Attack Power artifact suitable for taking on challenges above one’s level could help him push down the mantis’s health line.
The muzzle pulsed with a bright white luster, ready to fire at any mont.
But just then, the mantis, which should have been pursuing its advantage, stopped in its tracks, ignoring the players that were running around chaotically.
Its abdon swelled, and its black, beady eyes glanced around as if suddenly regaining consciousness, making a faint sound.
"...Su, Ming’an."
It looked at Su Ming’an atop the street lamp, its expression sowhat pained. Its six pairs of blades scraped together, and it let out a hoarse chirp but did not launch its next attack, as if struggling against its own bodily instincts.
—This monster actually had consciousness.
Su Ming’an was slightly startled. He had always wondered how a creature with 4500 Combat Power was cultivated, and from this scene, it was very likely that it had been transford from a human.
"Su... Ming’an." The mantis called out to him again.
"Beili Sier?" Su Ming’an finally recognized whose voice it was.
It had been a long ti since he had seen Beili Sier. He had sent people to protect the valley where Beili Sier was, but then they found the place suddenly deserted. He thought Beili Sier had left the valley, but he hadn’t expected...
Just then, the mantis suddenly extended two blade arms, their speed lightning fast, and in an instant, clamped around Su Ming’an’s body and dragged him through the window into the building.
...
In the pitch-black signal tower, the girl with black hair hung her head low.
She clutched the silver six-pointed star pistol in her hands like a stuffed toy, huddled in a corner as if it could provide her with warmth and strength.
"So cold..."
She whispered softly. Tonight’s ergency ca suddenly; it was the white cat that had dragged her by the pant leg to the signal tower. She didn’t have ti to put on more clothes when she left, wearing only a thin pink bear onesie, so sheer that the bruises and pinch marks from dostic abuse were visible on her wrists.
She stared into the darkness before her, the clanging noises of tal striking the door and the signal tower master’s harsh curses still rising from below. It reminded her of the countless cold nights when her father had smashed the door open.
"Ming’an! You bitch, co down for your old man!"
"Damn it, today I will drag you out and beat you to death no matter what!"
The tower master cursed and raged. His seat beneath his buttocks had been granted by today’s City Lord, and he didn’t care about any true or false lords. Without this steady job, his whole family would be left out in the cold. Only by punishing this troubleso girl could he atone and redeem himself.
"Boom— Boom— Boom!!"
The grating sound of the door being bashed ca closer and closer, the iron door at the bottom had already been breached.
The roar of chanics magnified infinitely in Ming’an’s ears, mingled with the sharp sound of disintegration, sending up a primal fear from within her body. Behind her tiny fra, the endless sky visible through the glass windows encased her like an overturned bowl—alone and desperate.
"..." She hugged herself tighter.
The dark signal tower lood like a tombstone, crushing all of her breaths.
Her life had always been cruel and lonely, with humanity’s ugliest side constantly accompanying her. She never had the mother’s love and warmth that other girls were born with, only an endless barrage of beatings and abuse. She was like a monetized object, as if she had nothing but her body, unworthy of a clean and pure soul.
Sitting in the cold signal tower, she rembered a childhood night when she read in a corner of the wall, so cold that her hands and feet turned purple. How she had dread of an independent life, the chance to enter the city for an honest job. Instead, her drunk father returned, shattered everything, tore up her books, and thrust her into the dirtiest of boundaries.
Her nightmare seed like it had never ended.
After leaving The Fringe, she fell into a whirlpool of cold violence at work, as if she were born with original sin.
"Click— Clack." A faint sound broke the silence, and she lifted her head to discover that the live broadcast screen had beco empty; Su Ming’an and the Deity were nowhere to be seen, the cara only showing an aerial view of the City-State. The control of the signal had returned to her hands.
...Had they gone to face the final battle?
...Did that an she was no longer needed here?
Trembling, she stood up and looked out of the window, at the crimson eyes suspended in the firmant.
...No, she couldn’t leave just yet; she was the only one who could still broadcast ssages to the outside world.
In this world, there would still be people looking up to those eyes. As long as she could convince a few more with her words, she could save one more person, prevent them from being invaded by Ta Wei.
She steadied the trembling radio receiver beside her, her lips quivering as she opened her mouth.
...
Could he see her efforts?
Could he... rember soone as insignificant as she was? She was incredibly unpleasant, weak to the point of being detestable, and so lowly that she always needed to be saved by others.
"If this were a fairy tale," she thought while shivering,
"Would I be a Cinderella rescued by a prince on a white horse, or a nightingale who stained the roses red with her own blood?"
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