Crime Prison Island
Chapter 629 - 286 The Empire’s Greatest Enemy Lies Within

Chapter 629: Chapter 286 The Empire’s Greatest Enemy Lies Within

Sivina was puzzled. Wouldn’t it be better to swallow up the Green Empire, which only had one person?

Moreover, Lester was clearly a Quasi-Elephant King, and he had just snatched a Hidden Dragon Card, so defeating the Green Empire was almost certain. It was possible to completely annex them.

However, Gao Xin wanted to attack the Black Emperor Main City first.

It’s not that it wasn’t possible; to Sivina, it seemed that winning against anyone would be equally certain, but Lester had just offended them. Shouldn’t they target him specifically?

Gao Xin didn’t explain, but immediately went to the right-wing stronghold to brief Mandala and Li Fengqing on the situation.

Then he brought Mandala back with him.

"... That’s the situation. We need to verify whether Phoenix is a Hidden Dragon or not," said Gao Xin.

Sivina exclaimed, "Even if he is a Hidden Dragon, he’s no match for us. At most, he has two Hidden Dragon Cards, and one random card."

Mandala’s nose twitched as she said, "But he claims to have a True Dragon Card..."

Sivina scoffed, "I don’t believe it. That’s definitely bluffing."

"If he really has a True Dragon Card, he should use it right now. It would be best to directly push across the entire map; he might unify everything in one fell swoop."

"Why wouldn’t he do that?"

Gao Xin cut in, "Why should he? Don’t just see them as obsessed gamers. Winning quickly isn’t necessarily good; you have to consider his desires."

"If he is just a one-man faction, then even if he’s invincible, capturing the entire map would be very difficult."

"Because one person cannot hold nine strongholds. We just have to keep running around the map. He captures one area, we take back another, and he can never unify it."

"Drag it out to later; everyone will have powerful cards. He has offended everyone, so what will he do?"

"Even if he uses the True Dragon Card to wipe us out and achieve unification,"

"What would his gain be? Killing one person is only worth a hundred thousand points, and without high combat cards to double the score, the profit is very low."

"That is to say, using the True Dragon Card to madly chase us and push across the whole map is a high-risk and low-return affair!"

Mandala nodded slightly, "So he first approached the Big White Shark of the Black Pearl to form an alliance, and then tried to convince Tai Sui to join him... In this game, having more teammates is more useful than a single powerful combat card."

"Phoenix’s behavior, from beginning to end, is very consistent with the mindset of someone who has drawn a True Dragon Card."

"If I’m not mistaken, they’ve probably already convinced the Lester Alliance too."

Sivina’s eyes widened, "What? Are you saying the Green Empire and the Black Emperor have formed an alliance?"

Gao Xin scoffed, "Otherwise, what gave Lester the guts to snatch your card alone?"

"He, as a single nation, went directly after our five-nation card. With your personality, you would inevitably go to war with him. Doesn’t he know that?"

"Just with the Hidden Dragon Card he snatched, how could he withstand us?"

Mandala’s mouth curved up, "Exactly, the guy must be relying on something. He’s probably prepared some trap, just waiting for you to storm into the Green Empire."

"If I’m not mistaken, the current situation is our White Empire against the Green-Black Alliance."

"Uniting the weak to resist the strong is the basic move."

Gao Xin said, "That’s why we shouldn’t bother with him. We’ll just hit the hardest point on the opposite side..."

"Then, defeat is permitted, but not victory."

Sivina had been nodding along, but the last sentence left her astonished, "Huh? Only defeat is allowed?"

Mandala also looked at Gao Xin in surprise. They had already fought, yet they couldn’t win?

Gao Xin smiled, "If we are at a stalemate, it would be disadvantageous to us, and we would definitely be attacked from both sides."

"If we win big, and drive them away from their strongholds, our rapid advance would only make them join forces even more tightly."

"Our cards are not yet strong enough to achieve unification."

"So only if the White Empire is frustrated, proving that, apart from Sivina’s three Hidden Dragon Cards, everyone else is a traitor dragging the team down, can we disrupt the situation and dismantle their alliance."

"For this, it doesn’t matter if we lose two territories or some Elephant Cards."

Mandala’s expression became strange, "Play a fake match, and we act like traitors dragging our feet?"

Gao Xin said, "Your first card was the Yak, which you’ve summoned publicly. It proves that you were not originally a White Empire player. Although there’s the influence of the White Empire, can’t you act as a traitor card?"

Sivina exclaimed, "Mandala could indeed be from another empire."

Mandala touched her nose.

Gao Xin continued, "Li Fengqing also lied when he arrived, which we uncovered. He’s not innately white, so can’t he act as a traitor card as well?"

Sivina nodded again, "It’s possible; he could be from another empire."

Gao Xin pointed to himself, "Although I was the first to arrive at White Emperor City, my identity and cards have never been revealed."

"The Black Pearl said my level was too low, and I would definitely go to another faction to draw cards; this is completely true. So, I’m actually the most likely to be a traitor."

Sivina hurriedly said, "How could you be a traitor, Gao Xin! It was you who convinced me to join the White side."

Gao Xin waved his hand, "Right now, it doesn’t matter whether we are or aren’t. We have to play as if we are traitors."

"The only ones in the White Empire with solid identities are you and Yak. You have three Hidden Dragon Cards, and Yak has two Young Elephant Cards."

"When the battle starts, let you and Yak play the cards, while the rest of us will fight half-heartedly, only engaging with our true forms, without playing a single card!"

Upon hearing this, Mandala smiled, "Good plan, I agree."

...

Since the game’s start, it had already been over thirty minutes.

Phoenix was still at the White Emperor Left Wing, endlessly persuading Yak to ally with him.

Yak, seated there silently, not uttering a word as if he had become mute, made Phoenix waste his breath in vain.

Suddenly, Sivina emerged from the passage behind Yak.

Her eyes were defiant, "Phoenix! I heard you drew a True Dragon Card, come on, let’s have a couple of rounds!"

Sensing that the newcomer meant trouble, Phoenix furrowed his brow and retreated to the Black Emperor Right Wing stronghold.

Why would Sivina come here? Shouldn’t she be attacking the Green Empire?

Phoenix dared not stay on the White Empire’s turf to draw cards anymore. With Sivina coming in person, it was surely to expel him.

"They probably plan to expel me first and then go after Lei..."

While Phoenix was thinking, he saw Sivina and Yak charging out of the passage and breaking into the Black Emperor’s right-wing stronghold.

"What?"

Phoenix was startled to see Sivina openly deploying and summoning an Authority Angel.

Suddenly, a massive voice rang out: "The White Empire is at war with the Black Empire, both nations have entered the combat stage."

"Come on! Fight!"

"I have three Hidden Dragon Cards, show me your cards!"

Sivina was arrogantly provocative, striking out with the Authority Angel and four dragons!

The Authority Angel, with wings like a crowned helmet, revealed a constantly changing orange Force Field and instantly pushed forward in front of Phoenix.

"Phoenix Sky Decline!"

The latter did not dare to take it lightly, instantly overclocked to seven stages and unleashed his signature move.

The immense Phoenix, mournful like twilight, materialized in an instant, colliding with the orange geometric bodies of the three Authority Angels and blocking their overwhelming attack for him.

"Boom!"

The Phoenix was shattered, unable to sustain the joint attack of the three Authority Angels.

But the destroyed Phoenix, still maintaining an energy form like fiery feathers, scattered in a moment like a celestial maiden scattering flowers, splashing out and merging into the bodies of the three Authority Angels.

Bang bang bang, explosions rang out from within the three Authority Angels, their bodies swelling with energy bursts that self-destructed.

Of course, such minor injuries were not enough to shake the Authority Angels, as liquid metal and the Repair Field immediately restored the exploded areas to their original form.

However, this exchange allowed Phoenix to break free and rushed into the passage, retreating toward Black Emperor Main City.

"Haha, the Right Wing is giving up already?"

"Where’s your True Dragon Card? Why aren’t you using it?"

"I’d like to see where you can retreat to now!"

Sivina retracted the Authority Angels one by one, and then, along with Yak, pursued their quarry.

In Black Emperor Main City, Phoenix stood alone.

He did not retreat further, coldly watching Sivina: "Don’t push me, Sivina, I really have a True Dragon Card."

Sivina scoffed: "Then show it to me."

Phoenix, hearing the noise behind him, slightly tilted his head, and gave a final smile.

With a languid tone, he said: "I don’t need that card to deal with you."

"Black Pearl, change of plan, she’s coming to kill us."

The two people rushing hurriedly back through the channel behind him were precisely Black Pearl and Big White Shark.

They seemed to have been lying in ambush near Green Empire before.

Black Pearl’s face darkened further: "You pond scum, really think you’re invincible?"

"You don’t even know how to play this game!"

As she spoke, she instantly flashed in front of Phoenix, confronting the three mighty Authority Angels.

Sivina was burning with fury, watching as the Authority Angels were about to strike Black Pearl.

"Sivina, stop!" At the critical moment, Gao Xin appeared, halting Sivina.

Mandala also followed closely, emerging from the passage.

Suddenly, seven people were gathered inside Black Emperor Main City.

"What are you blocking me for!" Sivina roared furiously.

Gao Xin said: "Black Pearl is very likely a White Emperor player, and even in a state of war, you can’t injure players from the same camp!"

Sivina yelled: "That black ghost isn’t the same camp for shit!"

Gao Xin shouted: "It’s known that both Yak and you are naturally white, if you think Big White Shark is not a White Emperor player, then Black Pearl must be, otherwise where is your third naturally white teammate?"

"I can tell you, I’m not naturally white."

Sivina said angrily: "Can’t I even kill with a Combat Card?"

Gao Xin said sternly: "No, the peace phase and war phase are different."

"During the peace phase, players mustn’t harm any players, meaning players can’t harm players, but robots can; there are no violence restrictions on robots during the peace phase, and even killing Elephant Level robots can initiate a war."

"However, during the war phase, players mustn’t actively harm players from their own camp; ordering robots to harm her is giving a command to kill her, absolutely representing your initiative."

"Roughly only passive harm is allowable, like collateral damage from fighting that accidentally shakes to one another can be dismissed."

Black Pearl smiled seductively: "That’s right, oh, and all violence restrictions only apply to players."

"I can destroy your robots to my heart’s content!"

With that, she overclocked to seven stages and with her spear in hand, embellished with a purple Combat Body, powerfully pierced through an Authority Angel.

Sivina’s eyes widened, and her long hair flew in anger: "Ahh! Why should there be such restrictions!"

"She can sabotage her own empire’s forces, hinder my actions..."

"And I can’t deal with a traitor?"

Phoenix laughed heartily: "Don’t you get it yet? Sivina..."

"War of the Traitors, this game is really interesting, it’s different from the national warfare games we’ve encountered before."

He spread his arms wide, his tone laced with self-deprecating humor: "The greatest enemy of an empire is not from outside, but within!"

"Sometimes you know someone has betrayed the empire, damaging your own camp’s interests, yet you can’t touch her!"

"Unless she loses the support of the people entirely, you sway some confidants to your side, undertake a traitor-eliminating move, and execute her publicly!"

"And even then, you must first enter a cease-fire state; otherwise, in the midst of war, you absolutely cannot hurt your own people!"

His speech left Sivina utterly baffled.

Goddamn, how true is that, recalling the inner conflict at Sea King Port, isn’t it just like this?

Who is this damn game pointing at?

...

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