anovelconsole Chapter 1707 - 50: The Eighth Trial – Divine Vision
Chapter 1707 - 50: The Eighth Trial – Divine Vision
"Wang Xingkong!?" Su Ming’an immediately responded.However, there was no further communication from outside.
Su Ming’an took off the headset and placed it in the last page of the backpack compartment, where many "relics" were stored... Then, he looked at the slot machine.
No hesitation or confusion.
No compliance with the enemy’s wishes.
He stood still for a moment, as if adjusting something, then slowly extended his hand.
In the upcoming third round of the game, he participated in a game called "If You’re a Player, Go Down a Hundred Floors." It was a cooperative game where twenty players helped each other, jumping across platforms until they reached the bottom safely. Thanks to the great assistance of the other players and Su Ming’an’s command, this round was successfully completed.
The fourth round of the game was the "Claw Machine," using judgment and reflexes to control the iron claw to catch dolls. Su Ming’an also passed this round smoothly.
Then, he arrived at the fifth stage.
The light froze on three images: one was similar to a fruit-slicing game, another to a ninja-jumping game, and the third showed a group of people sitting on chairs.
Su Ming’an considered for a moment and chose the third.
"Swish!"
Upon reopening his eyes, he found himself sitting on a wooden chair, with three other participants beside him. Their chairs formed a circle. Surrounding them were lush bamboo forests, with birds singing and streams trickling.
In the center of the circle was a lady. Her pitch-black hair cascaded down to her waist, her eyes resembling deep jade pools. Her black long dress covered from neck to ankle, the high collar brushing her chin, and the hem falling like a waterfall, reminiscent of ancient forest moonlight.
"Welcome to stage 008·Divine Vision, contestants of group 72312. I am the host of this stage, Moonlight." The black-dressed lady said calmly.
...
[Participant (Su Ming’an), your fifth-round game is: Divine Vision.]
[Game Type: Competitive Game.]
[Game Introduction: You will return to a period in Luowasha from a deity’s perspective. You need to use your cards to ensure that none of your three values reach 0 or 100 points, as the game will immediately fail otherwise.]
[Please note that other people’s actions may interfere with your three values, and you can also use certain actions to interfere with others’ three values.]
[Game Victory Condition: You will win if all others fail.]
...
Su Ming’an was slightly taken aback.
This was his first encounter with a ’competitive game,’ where others needed to fail for him to win. This meant... the other three people would all die.
Su Ming’an slowly moved his gaze to the other three. He hoped not to see anyone he knew, because that meant...
"...Big brother."
An excited, familiar, slightly trembling voice sounded.
Upon hearing this voice, Su Ming’an’s mind went blank for a moment.
Reunion should have brought joy, but now it was the opposite.
He slowly turned his head and saw the white-haired young man sitting beside him. The young man resembled an ancient sword in its sheath, with short hair draped over his shoulders. His dark green tunic bore embroidered pines and cranes. Most striking was the long sword strapped to his back, with a black wooden scabbard adorned with a red tassel.
Mo Yan didn’t expect to meet his big brother.
Mo Yan had been praying not to encounter acquaintances, to avoid life-and-death struggle, and then saw the black-haired young man sitting beside him.
In that instant, all anxiety and worry dissipated reflexively.
After brief sorrow, only one thought remained.
—Great.
—With me here, big brother will definitely win.
Seeing other acquaintances would sadden Mo Yan, as they would have to desperately compete until life and death were decided. But upon seeing his big brother, he had only one thought—great, big brother can win.
Just thinking about this made him happy.
Mo Yan saw the other two contestants—both shrouded in mist, disguising their faces and figures, obviously from other civilizations. Luckily, he was paired with his big brother. Otherwise, his big brother would inevitably be targeted by these two, potentially facing a three-on-one. Now, with himself, it was two-on-two.
The two misty figures also saw Su Ming’an and Mo Yan, whispering and conversing, clearly recognizing each other as well.
"..." Su Ming’an clenched his fists.
He had "Soul Ferry," so even if Mo Yan died here, he could be reborn in the New World... provided that Su Ming’an must definitely make it to the end and survive until the day of the new world’s arrival. Otherwise, his death would mean the demise of countless souls awaiting rebirth.
Moreover, a philosophical question arises... would the reborn Mo Yan still be the one standing before him now?
"You have one minute to ask questions. Each person can ask one," the black-dressed lady said calmly, standing up.
They exchanged glances. The first gray mist person immediately asked, "I want to know if there is an option for joint victory or failure? For example, all four values dropping to 0 simultaneously, resulting in joint failure. Or someone intentionally delaying the stage, values never reaching 0 or 100."
As this question emerged, Su Ming’an sensed this was an expert. If someone intentionally stalled the stage, using a tactic that harmed others without benefiting oneself, like the two arsonists in the second round, the difficulty would greatly increase.
Fair competition and intentionally preventing Su Ming’an from winning were entirely different difficulties.
The black-dressed lady shook her head slightly: "It doesn’t exist. The four of you will stand on completely different grounds. One person’s value decreasing means another’s will increase; there is no scenario where all crash to the bottom. Also, you asked two questions, but I’ll answer only the first."
The other mist person, noticeable taller, said, "Then let that be my question for you to answer."
The black-dressed lady nodded: "The second question also doesn’t exist. You are facing an extremely extreme environment. Any slight mishap in the values will cause great fluctuations, and it can’t be dragged on for long."
Upon hearing this, the four had a rough gauge of the situation.
"...Big brother, this isn’t looking good," Mo Yan, with a keen nose, also sensed these two mist people were not simple and were probably top players in their respective civilizations. Just two questions, and the game’s foundation was generally clear.
Su Ming’an was about to speak when Mo Yan shook his fist: "But big brother is definitely stronger than them! Big brother is stronger than anyone!"
Su Ming’an looked at the black-dressed lady.
Everyone was anticipating what Su Ming’an would ask.
"...Who are you?" Su Ming’an asked.
The entire place fell silent.
While others focused on the in-game issues, Su Ming’an asked beyond the game. After all, the black-dressed lady never stated questions had to be within the game. Su Ming’an’s focus was never on this competition; his purpose here had always been to confront the high dimensions beyond the Cat Box.
The black-dressed lady was graceful, poised, and calm, reminiscent of streams, forests, and moonlight.
"I’m sorry, I cannot say," she replied.
Su Ming’an nodded, concluding she likely had connections to the high dimensions behind the scenes.
"Big brother, what should I ask her?" Mo Yan inquired.
"How to revive people who died in the trial," Su Ming’an answered.
Mo Yan asked immediately, but the black-dressed lady slightly smiled: "I don’t know. Well, the question session is over."
Mo Yan scratched his head in frustration, but Su Ming’an didn’t feel it was fruitless. Her response this time was ’I don’t know’ instead of ’I cannot say.’ If even someone of her level doesn’t know how to revive someone, it suggests there truly isn’t a method available openly.
...
[This round of the game begins.]
[Please, four participants, draw your faction.]
...
The lady in the black dress took out four cards and handed them to the four people.
Su Ming’an drew a card, the face of which showed a golden-haired girl, looking like a deity, in a white dress like a lotus.
Mo Yan’s card depicted an open eye.
The card of the short Gray Mist Person showed a pink-haired girl in a simple dress that swept the ground, her gaze indifferent.
The card of the tall Gray Mist Person depicted a purple-gold bird, wearing a wreath.
...
[Card drawing ended.]
...
[Participant (Su Ming’an), your initial Chess Piece is: Antetolia. Your faction stance is: A hundred million humans in voyage.]
[Your faction’s current values are:]
[Faith Value: 43 points (Humans have some faith in the leading players who will save them)]
[Goodness Value: 24 points (Humans believe they can reach a new world, yet the long and arduous life makes them feel distressed and despaired)]
[Danger Value: 71 points (Resources are scarce, and having long failed to find a foothold on a new planet, humans are very anxious)]
...
[Participant (Mo Yan), your initial Chess Piece is: one of the Awakeners. Your faction stance is: yourself.]
[Your faction’s current values are:]
[Faith Value: 63 points (One of your Vests is the Creator God of a certain low-level civilization, and they have extreme faith in you)]
[Goodness Value: 55 points (Although you interfere in other civilizations, you mainly help and do not act recklessly or cause harm)]
[Danger Value: 52 points (Since you stand on the side of Lü God, you have some enemies in the Black Water Dream. They may act against you)]
...
[Participant (xxx), your initial Chess Piece is: Yijulai’er. Your faction stance is: Mirror of Creation.]
[Your faction’s current values are:]
[Faith Value: 38 points (On a chaotic planet with little life, their faith in you as a Watcher is very strong)]
[Goodness Value: 5 points (In your eyes, there is only the interest of civilization, completely devoid of kindness)]
[Danger Value: 42 points (The planet is in a primeval chaotic state, with some life forms fighting each other. But you know that one day this planet will welcome a new group of visitors, bringing opportunities or danger)]
...
[Participant (xx), your initial Chess Piece is: Organizers’ Second Seat, Sique. Your faction stance is: World Game.]
[Your faction’s current values are:]
[Faith Value: 13 points (You do not care about people’s faith or consider yourself a Deity)]
[Goodness Value: 34 points (In High Dimensions, you might be considered one of the kindest)]
[Danger Value: 52 points (Your strength is sufficient, yet a strong curiosity and desire for exploration will soon lead you to abandon everything, actively falling into the Abyss)]
...
Upon seeing the system prompt, Su Ming’an immediately understood the mode of competition in this game.
Taking "One hundred million humans leaving the World Game, fleeing into the Universe on small worlds to find new planets, acting as pioneers for the following billion" as the historical background, the four participants stand on four completely different stances—Zhai XIng’s one hundred million human pioneers, one Awakener from the Black Water Dream, a Watcher from the Mirror of Creation (formerly Luowasha), and Sique, the chưa entered second seat of the World Game in Luowasha.
Any actions or operations by any of them would affect the other three.
The demise or downfall of one could even cause a catastrophic synergy affecting the other three.
Therefore, these four protect their values, influencing each other’s values, and ultimately achieve victory by ensuring the other three fail while they win.
He had played similar games before, but that Fate Simulator wasn’t a competitive game, more of a single-player game, where he could simulate and experiment with various extreme operations infinitely, solely aiming to achieve a perfect ending last time...
Hmm? Wait a minute.
Why does this sound a bit like his current situation?
Mo Yan immediately looked nervously at Su Ming’an: "Brother, your card seems to be the weakest."
Among the four factions, it’s clear the Awakeners and Sique are the strongest, followed by Yijulai’er’s side, and finally, the human side.
"No." Su Ming’an wasn’t nervous at all; on the contrary, he thought he drew the best card. "This game isn’t about power, but about management and vision. When we all stand in the Deity’s position to manipulate our factions, what do you think is most important?"
Mo Yan scratched his head: "Uh... the strongest person inside one’s own faction?"
Su Ming’an shook his head and gave the answer: "What’s most important is—the understanding of your own faction."
Mo Yan seemed to understand something.
"Just now, the Host said: [Values will fluctuate significantly if not handled carefully and cannot be dragged on for long], meaning failure often occurs in an instant, with very large changes." Su Ming’an said, "This complies with the logic of civilization competition—destruction is often very sudden. Perhaps a signal, a riot... could lead to devastating destruction."
"For example, the person who drew Sique, does he know when Sique will abandon everything and become mortal? Does he know how to operate to increase Faith Points for Sique, a person uninterested in fame and fortune? He doesn’t. He doesn’t even know what actions will cause Sique to suddenly turn dark, dipping Kindness Value to 0."
"Just like manipulating the ’vile ones of Heaven,’ without understanding this person fully, you wouldn’t even know when he’ll secretly escape, causing you to lose completely."
"That’s why I believe I drew the best card. Although my faction’s power is the weakest, as long as I operate well... it can survive a fairly long time."
After Su Ming’an finished, Mo Yan came to a sudden realization.
Meanwhile, the other two Gray Mist People were whispering to each other, seemingly discussing similar topics. Su Ming’an tried listening in, but found he couldn’t understand at all, just like listening to foreign languages without a translator.
Likely, the Gray Mist People were hearing what Su Ming’an said, also like incomprehensible Martian script.
"Brother, about my card..." Mo Yan was very worried.
"We have a great advantage, you don’t need to worry." Su Ming’an said. Su Ming’an had access to the most comprehensive information out of everyone. For much of Luowasha, his grasp of the information could be described as "overwhelming."
He knew every twist of this history, knew what people like Antetolia were like... he even knew Yijulai’er and Sique, and had personally entered the Black Water Dream, conversing with many Awakeners. He was very familiar with all four factions.
And any top-ranked player... even Lü Shu and Lu, players of such strength, had nowhere near as much grasp on the information as Su Ming’an did. They hadn’t delved deeply into this history, let alone the Sique and Black Water Dream factions, many probably didn’t even know what Black Water Dream was.
"Once the game starts, we may not be able to communicate in real-time. Try to connect with my Chess Piece." Su Ming’an said.
"Mm-hmm..." Mo Yan still didn’t quite understand how to operate specifically and could only nod.
...
"The game begins." The lady in the black dress stood up slowly.
Bamboo swayed, embracing the wind.
She raised the hem of her dress and bowed slightly:
"I wish you a victorious start..."
...