Chapter 538: The Madness of “Players” and “Game Architects”
“Boom—!”
Once again, the deafening sound of explosions erupted. At this moment, Shali had completely ignored the regulation prohibiting the use of extraordinary power during this outing. After all, this was a special circumstance beyond the application.
The reason she didn’t retaliate immediately was that the aggressor’s attack was too strong. If she were to engage in a direct confrontation, especially in the center of the city, the destruction would be even greater.
According to the principle of “whoever destroys pays,” this would nearly leave her bankrupt!
Even her Small Treasury wouldn’t be enough to compensate!
She was hoping that by moving in circles, she could attract the attention of nearby extraordinary beings for assistance, but she never expected the opponent to have no idea about restraint.
At that moment, Shali heard a sound completely different from the explosions of conventional weapons, which immediately sparked a glimmer of hope—other extraordinary beings were on their way.
After all, this was during the holiday period for most extraordinary academies.
“It seems I won’t be able to meet Tan Han today… What exactly are those guys after? Could it be…” Shali quickly thought of the crystal crown she had brought along.
This was her final decision made under pressure, something she planned to hand over to Tan Han personally, which is why she carried it with her.
The concept of “Extraordinary Knowledge” was almost unheard of among common students at the Witch Academy, and even advanced students did not know much about it. However, this certainly did not include those from the All-purpose Association; they were well aware of many things that ordinary students in the Witch Academy didn’t know.
Even the so-called script and fortune concepts had been known to some of them before they were exposed.
The concepts of “Extraordinary Knowledge” and the Great Spellbook were not difficult to understand at a certain level since some students followed instructors who studied the Great Spellbook or were familiar with it.
For some matters, direct inquiry could yield answers, but how much one learned depended on how much the instructor was willing to share.
Once the concept of the Great Spellbook was understood, it instantly dismantled the simple spellbook classifications established by those students. Their pursuit of the Excessive Consumption Spellbook, the Universal Spellbook, and even the mythical Million God Spellbook, which could never possibly appear in the Witch Academy, became insignificant in the face of the Great Spellbook.
The classification of the Great Spellbook was based on types: Small Spellbook, Spellbook, Great Spellbook. Their previous understanding of classification was still confined to the singular category of “Spellbook.”
But now there was another problem—the Great Spellbook was something even Extraordinary Witches eagerly sought, and no student had ever acquired one, making it something they could hardly even think of.
However, they could still acquire “Extraordinary Knowledge” through certain means.
From the instructors’ lectures, “Extraordinary Knowledge” was not uncommon in the Witch Academy. There were many places within the academy that students could not access—those secret areas were where the top scholarly witches congregated, trying to create the Great Spellbook as a matter of honor.
At this moment, Shali could only think of these things; it was obvious that the opponent’s battle strength could not be that of an extraordinary mentor, meaning it must be… students. Otherwise, it couldn’t be a civilian extraordinary organization, right?
That was absolutely impossible!
Extraordinary resources only originated from extraordinary academies, and even if they leaked into the civilian sector, it could only be in small quantities. However, judging from their “luxurious” appearance, it was evident they had deep pockets.
“I wonder which extraordinary academy’s students are coming to assist…” Shali thought to herself, preparing to join the battle.
Earlier, her opponent had the advantage in numbers, but now that reinforcements had arrived on her side, she certainly wouldn’t allow her opponent to face these guys alone.
“Huh? Tan Han? Wait, how could Tan Han be here?” Upon seeing that figure, Shali immediately recognized her. Although she didn’t want to admit it, this appeared to be the city where Tan Han lived. She had initially planned to contact Tan Han here, not expecting her to show up directly!
“Seriously… why act like a hero? This city doesn’t need you to save it. Why step forward like this?” Shali cursed under her breath, but her primary feeling was still worry.
While she genuinely believed Tan Han was strong, clashing head-on with these reckless foes was not a wise choice.
At this moment, the entire city was already blaring evacuation alarms, but ordinary people who had lived comfortably for countless centuries had only heard such alarms during periodic drills. Yet with the terrifying explosions and collapsing buildings, they instinctively understood it was time to escape.
As Shali prepared to engage in the frightening confrontation, she discovered that Tan Han was not the only one confronting the enemy.
Several extraordinary beings had gathered here, including students from the Wizard Academy, the Elf Academy, and even the Birdman Academy—these were, in Shali’s eyes, the best allies to restrain those guys.
However, when she appeared, she once again instantly attracted the hatred of those players.
At this moment, the players were also having a tough time.
“Warning: The player body is under an unknown curse, stamina significantly decreased, minor corrosion effect beginning on the right calf.”
“Alert: Your Flowlight—Type II aerial cannon was struck, hitting the identification core module. Please retrieve it as soon as possible to avoid collateral damage.”
“Damage report: The fire suppression platform you deployed has been violently destroyed. Manual removal for module recovery is recommended.”
“Top-level permission notice: Mission target has appeared, and has been locked and marked. The mini-map has been updated in real-time.”
As those information prompts frantically popped up, the three players became somewhat flustered and closed the voice notifications, but they couldn’t ignore the messages that appeared in their field of vision. Combat was like this—one mistake could lead to total failure.
They had not expected reinforcements to arrive so quickly and for the enemy’s firepower to be so fierce, completely inconspicuous from their appearance.
Who would have thought that a delicate girl flying on a broom could suddenly transform into a towering fire entity several meters high, charging at them, while also summoning similar fire monsters?
Who would have expected those pointy-eared humans wielding primitive bows and arrows could destroy a floating cannon equipped with an energy shield in a single hit?
Who could have thought that a being neither human nor ghost would use curses? This world’s extraordinary waters run so deep?
But the higher-up game architects had issued a strict order, even making exceptions to provide them with powerful equipment supplies, but this would take time to load.
And they needed to delay time for their plans to work.
Perhaps… they could try to negotiate with them.
However, upon seeing the target suddenly disappear from their view and reappear again, they all let out a sigh of relief.
At least their opponent hadn’t chosen to flee; the worst-case scenario had not occurred.
“What the heck are you guys? You’re the civilian extraordinary terror organization reported on TV, right?”
Seeing their opponent severely injured by their surprise attack, they understood that the next attacks had not caused much harm, mostly dodged or defended against. They realized that the best chance for a sneak attack had slipped away; now it was just about enduring.
Yet these guys had destroyed so many buildings along the way, causing numerous deaths. They must pay for this!
Just as everyone prepared for their opponent not to respond, the other side spoke up directly, surprising them because these guys had never disclosed any information, not even a single word.
“Meaningless questions! Our target has been her from the start! Hand over the item, and we can cease destruction!” The player spoke in broken language via simultaneous translation.
Upon their words, everyone present focused their gaze on the indicated direction.
That direction was Shali, who had just emerged not long ago.
At this moment, Shali also realized everyone’s eyes were converging on her, their curious, shocked, and doubtful gazes made her uncomfortable.
And Shali clearly heard what that guy had just said.
“You think you can have it your way? Who dares to speak so openly about robbery?!” Shali shouted angrily, realizing how obvious it was that they wanted to shift the responsibility onto her.
As long as there was even one discord on her side, they would want to settle the matter quickly, thereby fracturing their alliance.
“You must be from the Witch Academy, right? What on earth have you got that has them so interested?” The nearest person from the Wizard Academy asked.
“That’s inconvenient to disclose.” Shali gritted her teeth; matters regarding “Extraordinary Knowledge” couldn’t be just revealed. It was already so coveted in the Witch Academy that others wouldn’t necessarily be unaffected.
“I recognize you, Velvet Scarlett Shali…” At this moment, someone from the Holy Angel Academy spoke, after all, as a top academy constantly targeted by a certain person, he had to recognize her name.
“If it’s not that important, just give it to them. Do you know how much public infrastructure has been damaged and how many deaths have been caused due to this conflict ignited by you?!”
“Birdman… maybe you should look in the mirror before you start speaking. It’s not your loss that’s concerning, is it? What qualification do you have to make decisions for me?!” Shali was infuriated upon seeing these Birdmen, and especially since the other party was directly targeting her without considering the bigger picture.
“Right, I have no qualification, but I have the right to ask on behalf of those millions of ordinary people who died innocently because of you. Is your so-called item more precious than their lives?” The other side retorted ruthlessly, making those nearby frown.
Especially the wizard who didn’t get along with the Holy Angel Academy, but it was clear that the wizard and Witch Academy weren’t exactly compatible either. He seemed to be just watching the show.
Such developments perfectly aligned with the players’ thoughts, and they hadn’t expected the conflict between these groups to run so deep.
Of course, part of this was also due to them not taking the players’ strength seriously.
But who would have thought that their players would strike back at these self-righteous individuals?
Just as the argument was about to escalate again, Tan Han couldn’t hold back any longer.
“Enough! Our target has always been those guys; everything is their doing. Are you blaming the victim here?!”
“She’s no victim; she’s the culprit who caused all this!” The person arguing with her wasn’t shy to retort immediately.
Perhaps he had been accustomed to standing on a moral high ground from the beginning.
As Holy Angels of the Holy Light Church, which was spread across every corner of this world, they automatically felt it was their duty to give a voice to everyone, to speak up on behalf of the believers or potential believers of the Holy Light.
In their view, the Holy Angels voluntarily bore the weight of everyone’s voice, and their questioning rang out loud and clear.
The doctrines of the Holy Light had reestablished their worldviews and values, achieving a terrifying level of inclusiveness such that any voice of dissent would be countered by their self-consistent logic.
Some had once said that the Holy Angels were a bunch of madmen trapped in their own world, occasionally coming out to wreak havoc on others, and aside from the Holy Angels, no one would refute that.
At this moment, this principle was manifested vividly.
“Hey, I say… have you guys forgotten about us! We didn’t come here to listen to your mutual accusations!”
“Hahaha! We’re here buying time while you idiots squabble! What a grand show!”
With that sharp mockery, everyone seemed to just register what’s happening, seeing the three of them now showing a haughty posture, a terrifying power erupted from their bodies.
Countless tiny block particles coalesced into shapes, and their original battle armor and deployed weapon platforms disintegrated into translucent modules, absorbed into their cores.
“Awesome, it’s actually this…”
The first player to complete the transition looked at the virtual display before him, falling into a frenzy of excitement!
In his view was an entire set of armor, and with just one glance, they recognized it as the “God Slayer” series battle armor, which in its debut battle had slain a being claiming to be a god in the world. Subsequently, this series of armor inherited the name “God Slayer.”
Never did they expect they could gain access to such equipment. The treatment of the Pioneer Excavator was unexpectedly good!
Although it couldn’t have been bestowed upon them directly, even being allowed to try it out would be something they could brag about for a long time.
Then, accompanied by an overwhelming pressure that made one’s heart race, the armor on that individual underwent a transformation.
The external appearance, fused with futuristic technology and unknown mythical elements, radiated terrifying visual effects simply by standing in the air, manifesting the majesty and intimidation of a civilization in war and invasion.
Countless extraordinary pixels outlined streamlined contours that gleamed under sunlight, reflecting an unknown material’s luster.
The continuously emerging particle effects stirred up a visible aura, creating an impressive momentum that struck fear of the unknown.
In these players’ mindset of “special effects equal strength,” this return to simplicity by abandoning cumbersome external combat platforms showcased the coolness of the “God Slayer” series armor, with runes and pattern effects pervading the entire space as if it had entered its home ground.
Even vision would benefit from filters.
“Let’s try this strike capable of slaying gods!” the armored figure shouted, taking advantage of the moment!
The other two could only reluctantly step aside, their current positioning relegated to supporting the God Slayer battle armor, doomed to be side characters. However, they did not dare to show any dissatisfaction, as every move they made was under the watchful gaze of those high-level game architects. Any instance of disregard for the bigger picture would surely result in their immediate reckoning!
The God Slayer wielded a bizarrely shaped tapered lance, appearing in his hand. Just gripping it released a sharp ringing sound. Countless effects swirled as he raised the weapon’s tip toward the enemy.
A terrifying blaze burst forth from his chest, signaling the armor that the God Slayer had completed charging at this moment.
Without any hesitation.
He transformed into flowing light, leaping high into the air. This strike transpired like a blazing meteor, emitting a shrill whistle sound as it raced forward.
This was the d*ath cry issued by the God Slayer, on behalf of the gods!
The next moment, the entire world seemed to lose its color, as absolute power reduced this area of the city to dust, with buildings failing to maintain their original frameworks.
All that remained was the very embodiment of annihilation capable of silencing all things.
However, those game architects knew that the “Technology Core” would not be destroyed under this strike.
That was an unknown creation capable of inciting a second technological revolution—a power could hardly be vanquished by the derived force of the All Worlds Terminal, which was of the same origin.
