Chapter 559: Chain of Doubt
It was daybreak!
Ling Ping’an got up from the game cabin.
His memory of the Legend of Nightmare seemed to be covered by a thin layer of membrane.
He did have an impression of it, but he only remembered the general situation.
Moreover, most of it was blurred.
It was as if he had been playing a flat-screen game and watching a new animation.
However, some things still lingered in his mind.
“Little Ke…” He thought.
Then, he picked up his phone. There was a number that he had never called before in his contact list.
He dialed it.
An extremely respectful voice came from the phone, “This is Little Ke Seafood…”
“I want a squid whiskers and a grilled fish…” Ling Ping’an said softly, “Send it over at 10 pm tonight!”
After saying that, he hung up the phone.
Meow!
His pet was calling out intimately at his feet.
Ling Ping’an picked it up and gently stroked it.
The kitten’s fur was very soft and comfortable to touch. A faint fragrance entered his nose, and it smelled very nice.
Ling Ping’an carried it down the stairs and opened the shop door.
The morning sun shone on the entrance of the bookstore, and the breakfast shop next to it already had people lining up.
Ling Ping’an smiled. He carried Bastet and walked to the end of the line, queuing obediently.
He liked this feeling.
He also liked being a person who followed rules.
Not only because he was a gentleman.
But also because this allowed him to regain the feeling of being a person.
And it also allowed him to realize that he was a person.
And not a monster!
…
Zhou Ke put down the phone.
It was the weekend. A’ning was watching cartoons on TV in the living room, giggling from time to time.
Zhou Ke watched carefully, then walked behind A’ning and squatted down.
He asked very gently, “A’ning, I’m going to deliver supper to a very important big brother tonight… A’ning, will you go with me?”
The naive little girl nodded happily, “Okay!”
Zhou Ke’s eyeb.a.l.l.s under his human skin trembled.
The prophecy was true.
The great ruler of the past would eventually meet the fate of extinction.
Only his daughter could change this predetermined fate.
A’ning…
Was the daughter of the prophecy!
…
Li Shouyi pushed open the hatch of the game cabin.
He took a deep breath.
He immediately reached out and a special phone fell into his hand.
He dialed a number. “This is Li Shouyi…”
“Gather all the generals…”
“Including the retired ones…”
“I want to hold a Blackguard safety meeting!”
He had learned a shocking secret in the Realm of Nightmare!
Now, he had to tell this secret to everyone.
Because, this secret would no longer be a secret very soon.
It was just as he had thought, that this world was going to change because of the Realm of Nightmare!
And it was going to change completely!
…
After queuing for about half an hour, Ling Ping’an finally bought the steamed dumplings and tofu pudding that he had missed for more than half a month.
Aunt Cai quickly handed him his breakfast and asked, “Ping’an, did you have fun?”
Ling Ping’an laughed. “The Imperial City… Was so-so… Actually, it wasn’t fun! It’s not as good as home!”
Aunt Cai chuckled, obviously not believing it.
After all, the Imperial City held a sacred position in the hearts of most people.
“Oh, right!” Aunt Cai seemed to have thought of something and said to him, “Ping’an… In two days, the Gonghe Party will be organizing a lecture on the streets. Do you want to go and listen?”
Ling Ping’an shook his head. “I’m too lazy to go!”
Aunt Cai was also used to it because Ling Ping’an had been like this for the past few years.
However, she still insisted on persuading him as usual. “Go and listen… It’s always good for young people to listen more!”
Ling Ping’an smiled and shook his head, expressing his refusal.
In the past, he didn’t want to go because he was afraid of trouble.
But now, he was also afraid of trouble.
“It’s better for me to interfere less in this world!” He thought.
If he interfered too much, it would definitely not be good for this world.
Because the gift of fate must have a price!
Just like this current world.
It was because of him that it became such a mess.
Therefore, he slowly walked back to the bookstore with his breakfast.
…
Li Shouyi walked into the underground base of the Blackguard.
Ning Qinghong, who had not yet left for Jiangcheng City, was waiting for him.
“Commander-in-chief… The generals are all online!” Ning Qinghong reported.
“Yes!” Li Shouyi nodded and walked into a s.p.a.cious modern command center.
The screens in there were all connected.
This was the Federal Empire’s highest security conference room.
It had an extremely strong anti-interference ability.
Whether it was electromagnetic interference or psionic power interference…
None of them could affect this place.
At least for now.
The generals across the screens looked at Li Shouyi and stood up one after another.
“Commander-in-chief!” The generals stood up and saluted at their respective underground command and communication centers.
“Take your seats!” Li Shouyi waved his hand and sat down.
The generals saluted again before taking their seats.
Ning Qinghong also sat down.
Li Shouyi sat on his chair and said to the generals behind the screens, “Everyone of you might have already known about the Realm of Nightmare…”
Everyone nodded and began to congratulate him.
The establishment of the Blackguard was a success.
This was already a public fact.
Many people had already joined the Blackguard and saw the authority of the Blackguard.
The honor shop…
The Nightmare Authority…
The Subs.p.a.ce…
These things alone were enough to move people’s hearts.
Especially those retired generals.
This was because the honor shop had a variety of medicines that could restore their blood and vitality.
Although the prices were all above 10,000 honor points, this gave them hope.
“But…” Li Shouyi muttered to himself and said seriously, “What I’m about to tell everyone is extremely serious!”
“As the founder of the Blackguard organization in the Realm of Nightmare…”
“I see more things than everyone else…”
“And I’m even more sensitive!”
As he spoke, he talked about the Mystic Bird Sun-circling Formation.
When the generals heard this, their eyes lit up.
“The Mystic Bird Sun-circling Formation?” Situ He’s eyes were even brighter. “Isn’t this the transcendental version of the ‘Dyson Sphere’?”
The concept of the Dyson Sphere had been proposed in science fiction novels decades ago.
It was constructed to completely envelop the sun in a spherical structure, absorbing the sun’s endless and never-ending energy for its own use.
It even used the sun’s strength as a seesaw board to open wormholes in s.p.a.ce and make interstellar travel a reality.
From the description and concept, the ‘Mystic Bird Sun-circling Formation’ introduced by Li Shouyi was a transcendental version of the Dyson Sphere.
The other generals began to discuss, “If that’s the case… If we obtain it, won’t we be able to start a great era?”
“Everyone in the Gonghe Party is like a dragon… The Datong Party’s vision of uniformity and unification… Will have a material foundation to make come true.”
They could use the energy of the entire sun for their own use.
Naturally, they wouldn’t lack any material things then.
Even mortals could live in a honey pot from birth to the cradle for their entire lives.
Famine, hunger, and exploitation would all become terms of history.
Moreover, the so-called Mystic Bird Sun-circling Formation was an extraordinary formation.
This meant that it could still provide psionic power that would never be exhausted.
Perhaps even ordinary people without talent would be able to use psionic power in the future!
As for transcendent beings, they would not have to worry about resources almost entirely…
As long as they worked very hard and marched on bravely!
Li Shouyi looked at the heated discussions of the generals.
However, he sighed. “Everyone… Everyone, do you think that the Realm of Nightmare is here to do a good deed?”
“Everyone, do you know where the honor points needed to exchange for the Mystic Bird Sun-circling Formation will have to come from?”
He stood up and looked at everyone. “The Otherworlds!”
“We will need to go to the Otherworlds and fight for the Realm of Nightmare!”
“Carry out his mission and fight tooth and nail for him…”
Thus, everyone quietened down.
Fight for the Realm of Nightmare?
In the Otherworlds?!
The first part was already a huge obstacle in many people’s hearts!
Because…
The strength of the Blackguard and the Blackguard was to protect the country.
Just like the strength of the Federal Empire was to benefit the world.
Invasion?
Conquest?
Even killing the innocent and stepping on their bones to rise to the top…
Was something unacceptable to most generals.
It was morally unacceptable.
And even more unacceptable emotionally!
This wasn’t pedantry.
But because all the generals of the Blackguard knew this truth: those who were good at swimming would drown, and those who were good at fighting would die on the battlefield.
The butcher who killed would also be killed by others!
Moreover, once they started slaughtering others…
Then, killing people from the Otherworlds would be killing.
Killing people from this world would also be killing.
Killing fellow countrymen would be killing.
Killing relatives would also be killing!
Swords never distinguished between the people you knew or not!
Especially the swords of violent organizations. Once they were raised, they could never be sheathed!
This was thousands of years of history that had told these generals the truth.
The weapon of war was something that saints only used when they had no choice!
A weapon that killed people would not distinguish between good and evil.
Just like how capital never distinguished between national boundaries nor good and evil.
And the Blackguard was set up to tame the transcendent beings.
Just like how the Monetary, Economic, and Work Safety Committee was set up to tame capital.
So, everyone knew.
As long as the Blackguard walked the path of strength and wealth, and didn’t differentiate between good and evil, they would be on the path of slaughter.
The Blackguard would inevitably become an evil dragon.
An evil dragon that wreaked havoc and ma.s.sacred the world!
Have you ever seen a man-eating tiger that doesn’t eat the rabbit in front of its own house?
Once that happened, it would definitely be an era of ritual collapse!
And in history, in the era when weapons were out of control, in the era where religious rites degenerated…
There weren’t just one or two people who died.
Nor were there thousands or tens of thousands.
It was tens of millions or tens of millions of deaths!
Even from the recent example of the collapse of the previous dynasty to the establishment of Taizu…
Half of the world’s population was directly lost!
Two whole generations of people died in the chaos of war!
With the current population size of the Federal Empire, the current technological level, and the destructive power of the transcendent beings…
If it really became chaotic…
Without the loss of more than a billion lives, how could it be an accurate reflection of the technological development throughout these years and the destructive power of the transcendent beings?
Immediately, an old retired general stood up and said, “Commander-in-chief, please don’t be old and decadent…”
“Back then, when Emperor Gaozong ordered Chu, Li, and Wei, the three transcendent being ministers, to form the Blackguard, he said that…”
“We should be the shields of benevolence, the guardians of the law, and the protectors of the people!”
“Anything other than that is not what we should do!”
Li Shouyi nodded as he listened. “What General He has said is naturally the truth!”
“But…”
“The problem now is…”
“We are being set on fire!”
“Because…” Li Shouyi took a deep breath and looked at the others. “How can we guarantee that if we don’t raise our weapons, the others won’t raise them either?”
“Everyone…”
“From what I already know, there are Crusaders who intend to establish an organization for the international ‘Holy Crusade Army’…”
“There’s also the ‘Awakened Alliance’ that the ruler of the Republic of South Kunlun of Kunlun state wants to establish…”
“There’s also the ‘Olympics’ that the Greek states want to establish…”
“The states in the Northern Land of Qin are also joining forces to establish the ‘Asgard Alliance’…”
“In addition, the various states and even the various local powers that have been invited…”
“Are all actively preparing to establish organizations…”
“So, all sorts of resources in the Realm of Nightmare are being undersold…”
“The prices of many things have directly pierced through the floor!”
“And these people… These organizations…”
“How can we be sure that they won’t be like us, unwilling to become the p.a.w.ns of the Realm of Nightmare?”
Li Shouyi’s words made everyone fall silent.
Because…
Everyone was clear.
That, although it was a modern civilization now…
In reality, the Land of Qin was still a society where the strong preyed on the weak.
Three hundred years ago, the colonists of the Land of Qin had burned, killed, and plundered the entire world, committing all kinds of evil.
The Shang dynasty tribes of the Northern and Southern Zhou were almost wiped out by them!
They had killed until their species were exterminated!
That was why when Taizu landed, so many Shang dynasty merchants had joined the imperial army from thousands of miles away to fight the colonists to the death.
Even now…
It might not be so that everyone in the Land of Qin had become good people.
Otherwise, how could Kunlun state have become so chaotic?
Could it be that the people of Kunlun State intrinsically loved chaos, internal strife, and poverty?
No!
It was because their neighbor was the Land of Qin!
On Earth, the people of the Land of Qin were all like this.
Could they be counted on to go to the Otherworlds and become better?
Impossible!
And once the people of the Land of Qin obtained great strength through the Realm of Nightmare…
Could they be counted on to harbor any good intentions towards the people of the Federal Empire of Xia after they returned to Earth?
Even if they were to discard these presumptions…
And the people of the Land of Qin really decided to change their ways and become good…
Then, how could they guarantee that the Blackguard of the Federal Empire would be kind-hearted as well?
What was even worse was that, even if the countries of the Land of Qin and the Federal Empire were to reach an agreement and everyone were to abide by the agreement…
How could they guarantee and control the other forces from doing the opposite?
This was an unsolvable chain of doubt.
It was also the source of wars and conflicts.
Countless wars and disasters in history had started like this.
If I suspected that you wanted to hit me…
I would want to strike first and kill you!
Those who did not do so were all killed in the end.
Thus, the entire meeting room was silent.
The generals on the screens were all dumbfounded!
…
Ling Ping’an ate Aunt Cai’s steamed dumplings.
He closed his eyes in sheer delight.
“Aunt Cai’s steamed dumplings are really delicious!” He exclaimed.
The news was being broadcasted on TV.
It was about stories of striking rich in the Legend of Nightmare.
A certain man was poor and dest.i.tute before, but when he won the game cabin, it was as if he had hit the jackpot.
In one night, his life had changed.
He had money, a house, a wife, everything!
News like this filled the screen.
Even though he had changed channels several times, it was still the same.
Ling Ping’an watched and his mouth pursed slightly.
“The gift of fate has never been free!” He said.
Who knew how many of those lucky people would live to see next year’s sun?
However, he had no intention of stopping them.
That was because he was already standing on a higher dimension, looking at the problem from a macro perspective.
“In either case…”
“I also hope that after I leave, this world… This world that had raised me can continue to exist independently…”
He already knew that the universe was dark.
The universe was even more dangerous!
The Children of the Sun was the end result.
The book collections in his bookstore was proof of that.
He ate his steamed dumplings and looked at the bookshelves behind him.
Most of those seemingly ordinary books…
Were, in fact, graves!
Every grave buried a civilization!
At least they were schools of thought!
They were once glorious and great.
But in the end, they became specimens, exhibits and collections.
“I’m really evil!” Ling Ping’an sighed.
Although he wasn’t the one who killed those civilizations…
His slaves had killed them to satisfy him.
I didn’t kill Boren, but Boren died because of me!
That’s all!
But he was already a monster.
Although, he still thought of himself as a gentleman and tried his best to maintain his humanity.
But humans wouldn’t be sad about the death of ants. They might even want to kill a few more for fun.
It was the same for him!