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Chapter 776 - 774: "Smile.

Chapter 776: Chapter 774: "Smile.

Beili Sier’s pupils were veiled with a layer of half-dreamy, half-awake mist as he lifted his head and stared intently at Su Ming’an.

Even Beili Sier himself realized something — the Su Ming’an by his side seemed not to be Yasa. But he never wanted to uncover this truth, as it was too cruel for him.

He stretched out his hand, and in the thick darkness, he seemed to want to touch Su Ming’an’s face, to confirm whether this was Yasa or not. But soon, his hand stopped in front of Su Ming’an’s face, his fingertips trembling, not daring to come closer, as if there was a barrier between them.

In the faint darkness, it was so quiet that only the sound of tubing writhing and their breathing could be heard.

Five seconds later, Beili Sier suddenly withdrew his hand as if he had been electrocuted and said in agony,

"I’m sorry, I’m sorry... I don’t dare, I don’t dare to confirm..."

"Yasa, you’ve come back, right? I’ve finally waited for you, answer me ’yes’, please? Just say ’yes’ once, I beg you, I beg you..."

His tone was almost servile, his eyes pleading, not at all like the proud valley owner he had been — what had Acto taken from this young man? Spirit, soul, will, dreams, years, pride? Or everything?

Once the person in his heart died, Beili Sier was like a tree hollowed out at its core. Apart from that tiny bit of hope with which he deceived himself, he had nothing left.

...If one day Su Ming’an irrevocably died, never to exist in this world again, would Lv Shu become like this too?

Su Ming’an quietly looked back at Beili Sier, thinking of Lv Shu. The current Lv Shu, just like Beili Sier, depended on him to grow, regarded him as the "only one," just the same as Beili Sier did now.

Once he was gone...

Who would stand by the tomb of memories, never able to walk away?

Who would become a ghost that watches day and night?

He heard his own voice in his ears, resolute, "Beili Sier, Yasa has not come back."

"...Are you Yasa?" Beili Sier’s body shook violently, almost imploringly, he asked again.

"I am not," Su Ming’an answered.

"...Are you Yasa?" Beili Sier asked again.

"I am not."

"...Are you Ya..." Beili Sier still couldn’t let go.

"I am Su Ming’an, Beili Sier, I am Su Ming’an," Su Ming’an said.

Beili Sier’s pupils seemed to lose their luster from then on, and the whole world seemed extremely quiet. He stood there, head drooping, arms dangling, as if suddenly nailed to an invisible cross.

He was the most loyal to Acto.

Others, like Tretiya, Acto, Noah... they all recognized that "Su Ming’an is Su Ming’an" and silently kept the dead Acto in their memories.

They wouldn’t ask Su Ming’an "where did the original Acto go," or "is Acto really dead," just glossed over the topic.

But Beili Sier would always wait in the valley, never able to walk out, never able to accept the fact. He waited in the valley every time without exception, through the years, endlessly unchanged, like an NPC in a fixed position.

—He must have had many dreams of "Yasa coming back" to easily fall into such beautiful dreams. Any slight fluctuation in emotions, and he would misrecognize Su Ming’an again.

Unable to awaken, unable to start a new life, living day and night in a drunken dream. Time could not erase the scars Acto left in his soul; each day was spent in painful memories.

He would not fall in love with someone new, nor would he be loyal to a new leader; had not a clone accidentally entered the valley, he would still be waiting there, making beautiful dreams day and night until the end of the world, dying with it.

—Yasa Acto was such a good person.

Understandably, someone would love and respect him so enduringly and fervently, spending an entire lifetime and all their energy remembering him. Beili Sier was just such a person.

Even though he saved Su Ming’an, it was not out of regret or guilt, but because he treated Su Ming’an as Acto—he could fearlessly face death as long as he was saving Acto, ready to endure a thousand cuts and extreme torment.

If the person he was saving wasn’t Acto, he wouldn’t even feel guilty for walking away, as the world’s morals and order could not bind him.

The flexible tube beside him began to squirm again, Su Ming’an no longer looked at the distraught Beili Sier, instead pressing his fingers against the back of his neck, attempting to contact Captain Mu.

He called out a few times, but Captain Mu still did not respond.

"Click."

Suddenly, a beam of white light fell, illuminating the darkness around the two men and locking onto their location.

The voice of the Deity suddenly came from a speaker in the ceiling, still carrying traces of anger, "Found you, Su Ming’an, I’ll be right there."

"Captain Mu! Captain Mu! Can you hear me?" Su Ming’an tried to call out as he started running. Beili Sier paused briefly on the spot before following him.

The lights overhead consistently followed them, and the footsteps of the Mechanical Army gradually approached from behind. Su Ming’an swung his arm and released a Spatial Vibration, sending the Mechanical Army tumbling like melting butter. These sacrificial troops were likely pure machines without human consciousness.

The voice of the Deity still echoed in their ears, with a deep reverberation, "Strange... Beili Sier, why would you choose to save him? Sometimes, I truly can’t fathom what you’re thinking, setting a trap for Su Ming’an then regretting it, causing your own demise yet going to the rescue yourself. Such contradiction, what exactly are you doing? Don’t you admit that Acto is already dead?"

Beili Sier’s pupils trembled slightly.

"Oh, I see..." the voice of the Deity trailed off, sounding as though he had realized something obscure.

After ten seconds, his voice suddenly emerged again:

"...So this is what ’Love Beyond Death’ means?"

Su Ming’an had just regained some of his hearing when he heard this phrase and almost stumbled.

He really didn’t want to engage with whatever the Deity was thinking; the pressure from this persona was simply too overwhelming.

"Hmm..."

The haunting voice of the Deity lingered as if contemplating, and fifteen seconds later, the Deity again spoke, "Su Ming’an, I see you’ve had a delightful talk with Beili Sier in the dark, promising never to leave him."

"?" Su Ming’an’s expression remained unchanged.

"So, does this mean a marriage alliance is indeed useful?" the Deity’s tone had an epiphany-like quality, "You really like blonds, how about I give him to you?"

Su Ming’an’s consciousness blurred slightly, the only thoughts left in his mind were—Are you sick?

"Zzzzz—" At that moment, a sound of electricity crackled next to his ear, and the chatbox for Captain Mu became increasingly clear, suggesting the signal was improving.

...

[Captain Mu (22:58): Can you see this? There should be no problems with the signal now.]

[Captain Mu (22:58): Su Ming’an, the only way to break through is—you need to find a medium that can spread across the city-state.]

...

Now the entire city-state was engulfed in emotional resonance, with "sound" as the medium.

Captain Mu had laid out the only way to disrupt this situation.

...

[Captain Mu (22:58): Emotional resonance is fundamentally a method that uses sound waves and frequencies for memory implantation and emotional hypnosis, presenting in the two-dimensional world as the fluctuations and collisions of zeros and ones. Since you all are brains in a vat, just matching a specific frequency can alter one’s memory and thinking patterns—that is to say, once authorized and the prerequisites met, this resonance can be activated, also perceived as a chain reaction in programming. Just as one plus one inevitably results in two, it follows a fixed protocol.]

[Captain Mu (22:59): I possess half of the admin account. I know the frequency and protocol to disrupt this resonance. But I need a medium that can carry this resonance, that is, a "sound" medium.]

[Captain Mu (22:59): As long as one person can transmit sound, no matter what he/she says, I can begin decrypting the protocol—in simple terms, just like your Missionary Halo, as soon as you speak, regardless of what you say, you can cure others’ deficiencies.]

...

"So... you’re saying...," Su Ming’an gasped, "you need a device that can transmit voices throughout the city-state, and someone to speak for you?"

Although Mu’s explanation was unclear, he could roughly understand what the other person meant.

...

[Mu (22:59): Exactly.]

[Mu (22:59): Please grant me the authority.]

...

Su Ming’an vaguely sensed something was off. "Have you already found that person?"

...

[Mu (22:59): ...]

[Mu (23:00): You must have guessed by now, there’s only one person who fits the bill.]

[Mu (23:00): No one has the right to refuse when they have the ability to save the world, and besides, I believe she won’t refuse. This is not a suicidal mission, just passing along a message.]

[Mu (23:00): Please say ’grant authority’ to allow AI Yeah to grant me permission to communicate with her signal tower.]

...

"..." Su Ming’an remembered the way that girl looked at him.

When she looked at him, her eyes were always bright, filled with admiration, longing, reverence... all that was beautiful, like a lotus blooming toward the sun from the mud.

...

[You ask why I would be what the councilman of Atlanda calls a ’key figure’? This identity seems to have bestowed all my luck, and everyone has begun to care for me.]

[I feel anxious, fearful. Why would someone as humble and ordinary as I receive so much high-level help?]

[But if it can help you... that would be the greatest luck of being a ’key figure’.]

[As long as it can help you...]

...

The window in front of him drew closer, and Su Ming’an leaped out, rolling onto the open terrace, the fierce rainstorm beating down on him.

Looking down, the sights of the city-state far below him, the lights were like a dazzling galaxy, the zoomed-in streets and alleys appearing like a miniature world in his eyes.

This was the central government building, set on the outdoor glass platform at 21F. Below his feet was transparent glass, seeming as if a slight excess in force could send someone plummeting into the abyss.

This was not the best battleground for a final confrontation, but he had no way out. Two straight, intense white lights "snap" enveloped him, the sound of a helicopter overhead.

He looked up, and it turned out to be a flying helicopter. From under the clicking rotors, Deity supported the helicopter door, standing at the doorway, looking down at him coldly, his khaki coat rustling in the wind.

"Asking you one last time," Deity said, "are you staying or not?"

The Observer’s system invitation popped up again, and Su Ming’an still shook his head, his eyes only cold.

"I had originally agreed with Lin Guang not to harm you," Deity said, "but unfortunately, you disagree."

He raised his hand, and instantly, the helicopter extended its dark gun barrels, all aiming at the glass platform where Su Ming’an stood. Even the window that Su Ming’an had broken earlier spilled out a great many Mechanical Army. At a single command, the fragile glass platform would be submerged under gunfire, soon shattering into pieces.

The person standing on the platform would also fall from the high building.

Representatives of two civilizations faced each other from a great height.

Their souls were so alike, their ideals so lofty. Had there been no war, they might have been friends.

Unfortunately, there were no such things as ’if’ in their reality.

The absolute contrariety of their stances, a fight to the death in the civilizational war, meant they absolutely had no way out, not even enough leeway to look back.

"Snap-snap-snap—"

The torrential rain poured, the heaven and earth dark as one, and the city-state at this moment was extremely quiet, a million soldiers and civilians falling to the ground, awaiting an unknown fate.

The victor would possess all the resources of the defeated civilization. The loser would lose everything, their civilization perishing, the consciousness of billions of beings vanishing. This was a battle neither side could afford to lose.

In the violent noise of the torrential rain, Su Ming’an shifted his gaze.

He turned his head, gazing into the distant night of the city-state, now barely visible, but as if through the heavy curtains of rain, he could see a place very far from him.

There, as if standing was a signal tower, within which, a girl clutching a white cat shivered.

Her gaze was always very pure, her voice though soft, always very firm.

That shoulder, once full of domestic violence bruises and pinching marks from clients, now bore the weight of millions.

The city-state had always been letting her down.

Yet in the end, having painfully grown up in The Fringe, she, who had borne it all, was to forgive the world.

"Grant authority," he spoke, his voice very, very soft.

It seemed as if a voice flashed by his ear and quickly disappeared.

Hundreds of kilometers away in the Border City, a black-haired girl straightened her back. In front of her, Mu’s message popped up.

...

[Xiao Mei.]

[This will be the coolest live broadcast, so smile.]

...

She curved her fine eyebrows.

Facing the dawnless dark night, facing the somber torrential rain, facing the crowds surrounding the tower below.

"Bitch! Come down here! Should strip you naked and throw you in a filthy ditch. Shouldn’t have let you into the signal tower..."

"Hurry, break the door! Only the last two doors left! Pull her down to go and apologize to the City Lord..."

Listening to these voices filthy to the extreme,

she hooked her lips.

Her pale face smiled faintly.

...

"All right."

"Smile then."