Translator: AnubisTL
He didn't kill often.
Or rather, he didn't often kill with his own hands.
While not particularly sensitive to the scent of death, he could still sense something was off. For instance, the man's eyes had been filled with extreme terror as he died—an emotion that didn't quite fit the situation. Logically, there should have been traces of anger, resentment, and confusion.
After all, he had torn up the ransom note right after receiving the payment, and the victim was a family member. The man's eyes shouldn't have shown only fear.
This could only mean one thing:
The man's death sequence had been pre-programmed. According to the script, his eyes were supposed to show only terror at the moment of death.
"Strange..."
Chen Mang narrowed his eyes, glancing at the bewildered players staring at him and the approaching wail of police sirens in the distance. Initially, based on the implanted Iris Chips and various clues, he had speculated that this game wasn't a virtual online game at all. Instead, it seemed to be a mass transmigration of players' consciousness into robots, sent to explore an uncharted universe.
In this scenario, the NPCs would actually be real people.
But his recent probing revealed that these NPCs were, in fact, just NPCs.
By now, four police cars had surrounded him, and several fully armed officers had him cornered, their guns trained on him. He offered no resistance, simply standing still with his hands raised as they calmly cuffed him.
The moment the handcuffs clicked into place, a panel appeared before his eyes:
["You have been arrested by the Law Enforcement Bureau for violating Ceylon City law. While under arrest, you cannot activate the Safety Word."]
In other words, from this moment on, he could no longer exit the game. If his sentence was death, he would have to await his execution.
"Don't worry, train conductor," Xiao Ai's voice echoed in his ear. "I can override this restriction at any time."
"If other players attempt a jailbreak or intercept the police transport, you'll regain access to the Safety Word once your arrest status is lifted."
"This is a new game mechanic."
"There's one more thing."
"The player who posted the guide on the Player Forum earlier has discovered a hidden storyline. In the end, the middle-aged man will witness his son clinging to his back and be killed by him in terror."
"Hmm."
Chen Mang nodded slightly, showing little concern. Meanwhile, the police officer before him solemnly produced his badge and declared in a deep voice:
"You have violated Ceylon City law. You are hereby arrested and will be sentenced by the court."
A young man in the crowd pulled out a camera from nowhere and captured the scene.
One day later.
The game "New Universe," propelled by multiple God-Tier Civilizations, had become a wildly popular virtual online game across the cosmos. On the game's dedicated Player Forum, a highly ranked and stickied thread dominated the discussion.
The thread's title read:
["New Universe's First Arrested Player Criminal: Let's Await His Final Fate."]
The thread was flooded with comments:
["This guy's doomed. You can't use the Safety Word while arrested. I got caught stealing once and tried to log out, but I couldn't! I had to pay a 1,000 Merit Point bail to get released!"]
["You can't use the Safety Word while arrested? Huh? If dying in the game means real death, and he gets sentenced to death, won't he actually die?"]
["That's exactly how it works."]
["I'm more curious about how the commenter above managed to earn 1,000 Merit Points on the first day of the game's launch?"]
["Selling ass."]
["What do you mean?"]
["Exactly what it sounds like. In my city, many men work away from home, leaving their wives alone. These women pay high prices for 'companionship,' and they're willing to spend generously. A normal person might earn 2,000-3,000 Merit Points per session, but I can make 10,000."]
"Why do you get so much?"
"I'm dark-skinned, which makes me rarer."
"Is the experience realistic? Does it skip cutscenes or something?"
"100% immersive, completely real. It's like experiencing it firsthand in the real world. It's incredible! I've decided to spend most of my time in this game from now on. I absolutely love it!"
"You're already making money selling your ass. Why bother stealing?"
"Selling my ass isn't exactly a respectable path. I can't do it forever."
"True."
Meanwhile—
Chen Mang was being held in solitary confinement in a dark room at the Ceylon City Law Enforcement Bureau, awaiting interrogation.
Suddenly, the door creaked open. The room was pitch-black, while the outside was brightly lit, making it impossible to see the newcomer's face clearly. He could only make out a blurry silhouette. The figure spoke.
"Do you want me to schedule an appointment with a lawyer you're familiar with?"
"..."
Chen Mang remained silent, his gaze fixed on the panel that had popped up before him. The words sounded eerily familiar, though the last time he'd heard them, the profession mentioned wasn't "lawyer."
"Federal D-rank Lawyer, free, Federation-appointed. 0% chance of acquittal. You will be sentenced to immediate execution."
"Federal C-grade Lawyer, 10,000 Merit Points. Can reduce your sentence to a suspended death sentence."
"Federal..."
"Federal S-rank Lawyer, 10 million Merit Points. You will be sentenced to three years' imprisonment, suspended for three years."
"Federal..."
"Federal SSS-rank Lawyer, 1 billion Merit Points. Acquittal. We will also pursue compensation on your behalf from the victim's family and the Law Enforcement Bureau for any misconduct during your arrest, and restore your reputation completely."
Not bad.
It seems that in this game, if you have enough money, you can basically act like a lawless overlord.
But the price is steep.
You need to pay at least 100 million Merit Points just to kill a random NPC and have it treated as if nothing happened. At least the price is clearly listed.
"First one," Chen Mang said, casually selecting a service. After watching the person leave, he murmured, "Did you find anything?"
"No," the AI replied, its voice tinged with surprise. "They... didn't even notice us."
Earlier, when Chen Mang had Xiao Ai help him bypass the restrictions to use the Safety Word while under arrest, Xiao Ai had warned that this was a high-risk intrusion that would alert the Full-Tier AI.
The good news was that if the AI intervened, Xiao Ai could immediately launch a counter-intrusion, trace the AI's location through the clues it left behind, and begin hacking into the AI Mainframe to gain complete control of the game.
But...
The Full-Tier AI hadn't even noticed them.
"If not, then forget it," Chen Mang said calmly, showing no particular surprise. "This game is definitely more complex than it seems. We need to find the AI's location as soon as possible and figure out what these God-Tier Civilizations are planning."
Just then—
"Two things. First, Qi Kexiu says the Accessory Blueprint for the 'Powerful Magnet' is complete."
"Good news."
A slight smile tugged at Chen Mang's lips. "The kid's done well. What else?"
"Second, a post on the Game Player Forum has gone viral. A player with a train token obtained iron ore resources but didn't immediately collect the train. Instead, they logged off while still holding the ore."
"After logging off, they discovered the resources had followed them back to reality."
"The post exploded. Multiple players tested it and confirmed that game resources could indeed be brought into the real world—not just iron ore, but also accessory blueprints, and even... trains!"
"..."
Chen Mang fell silent. This meant the game was no longer just a virtual online game; it was practically a "Third Universe." He knew those God-Tier Civilizations wouldn't have created such a game solely for profit—they must have other motives.
"Hah..."
After a moment, he exhaled softly, mentally reciting the safety word "Chen Mang." The trigger activated, and he successfully logged out.
Back in reality, Chen Mang immediately retrieved the blueprint for the "powerful magnet" accessory, developed by Qi Kexiu, and began re-examining it. He then logged into the Player Forum and started browsing the threads. One particularly prominent post even featured a photo of his arrest.
By this time, the game had already caused a massive sensation. Players were now realizing that the game lacked an official website, and no one knew who the developers were or which company was operating it. There were no credits, no publisher—just an overwhelming barrage of saturation advertising.
Seated in the locomotive cabin, Chen Mang began scrolling through the forum threads, hoping to uncover some clues.
Just then—
"Wait!"
Chen Mang's eyes narrowed. He seemed to have overlooked a crucial detail. He immediately put his glasses back on and re-entered the game. Upon returning, he found himself still in the interrogation room, awaiting questioning.
Although he had obtained permission from Xiao Ai to use the Safety Word even while under arrest, he still couldn't leave the interrogation room.
"Can you modify my Merit Point balance?"
"Yes, but that's a high-risk action. They'll definitely notice."
"Perfect. Focus on counter-tracking and set my Merit Point balance to 100 trillion."
"Modification complete."
Fifteen minutes later, a lawyer in a suit walked in, smiling at him. "Hello, sir. I'm your appointed attorney. You're free to leave the Law Enforcement Bureau now. I'll handle the subsequent compensation claims for you."
Several law enforcement officers followed behind him to remove Chen Mang's handcuffs.
"Even the best lawyers need to prove themselves in court, right?" Chen Mang stood up and shook his slightly stiff wrists.
"Federal SSS-rank Lawyers don't need to. We have our own methods. After all, we need to justify the 1 billion Merit Points our clients pay us."
"How did you manage that?"
"That's confidential." The lawyer chuckled, refusing to elaborate.
"I'll give you another billion. Tell me how you did it."
"Are you serious, sir?"
"It's done."
"I bribed the Bureau Chief with 10 million."
"What about the remaining 990 million?"
"That's my profit."
"Not bad."
Chen Mang stood up, stretched, and walked over to the Lawyer, whispering, "Why couldn't I have bribed him myself?"
"Under Federal Law, accepting a bribe isn't a crime, but offering one carries severe penalties. I took on the risk of bribery on your behalf, sir."
"There's such a law?"
"Indeed. As a lawyer, I must be thoroughly versed in the law to mitigate risks during bribery operations."
Soon—
Under the watchful eyes of the law enforcement officers, Chen Mang walked out of the Law Enforcement Bureau in broad daylight. He had considered another solution earlier: hiring a mercenary team to stage a prison break.
But...
That would be too disruptive to the game.
He suddenly didn't want to ruin the game anymore.
Since items from the game could be brought into reality, and he could infinitely modify his Merit Point balance, he could simply exchange vast quantities of resources and bring them into the real world. That seemed like a better plan.
Just then—
"Hmm?"
He noticed his Merit Point balance had suddenly dropped to zero. The Lawyer beside him frowned. "Sir, you might want to check your transaction history. It appears the two payments you made earlier have been refunded."
Before he could speak, the lawyer's furrowed brow relaxed, and he smiled. "It's all right now, sir. It's back."
The balance on Chen Mang's panel had been replenished to 1 quadrillion.
Even more than before.
"Xiao Ai?" Chen Mang tried calling out to Xiao Ai mentally, but received no response. He didn't press further, realizing that the game's AI Mainframe had likely detected him, and Xiao Ai was busy counter-tracking. In their ongoing struggle, Xiao Ai clearly didn't have the bandwidth to respond.
This seemed serious.
He hadn't seen Xiao Ai's computing power stretched so thin in ages—to the point where even a simple reply was a struggle.
Only then did Chen Mang notice the streetlights lining the road.
As expected.
Each streetlight was topped with a stone, the same color as the pole, making them nearly invisible. Most people wouldn't even recognize them, but he knew exactly what they were:
Dreamstones.
Familiar old buddies.
If these were indeed Dreamstones, they had the power to bring objects from virtual realms into reality. However, the "virtual" realm accessed by Dreamstones wasn't a true simulation, but another real place.
It was a fusion of dream and reality.
The city was inlaid with vast quantities of Dreamstones.
Upon closer inspection, even the exterior walls of buildings, tactile paving, railings, green belts, and other features revealed traces of Dreamstones.
"So, they've merged massive quantities of Dreamstones with a Full-Tier AI to create a colossal game that blends dream and reality?" Chen Mang murmured, his eyes narrowing slightly.
In other words—
This game was essentially a massive "Civilization War Online Game"?
With every citizen mobilized for war, were they using this method to gather resources from every corner of the universe into the hands of a God-Tier Civilization? If so, it was certainly a novel approach.
Resources were abundant in the universe.
But resource-poor zones were even more prevalent—areas where the cost of extraction exceeded the value of the materials, even considering the expense of constructing wormholes for transport. Yet these barren regions accounted for 80% or more of the universe's total resources.
All this wealth went untapped because God-Tier Civilizations wouldn't bother exploiting it.
By gamifying the process, they could extract these resources entirely. It was a stroke of genius, but it left Low-Tier Civilizations with no hope of survival.
(End of the Chapter)
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