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Chapter 84: True Intentions Revealed

Hu Yan sat in the Longevity Tavern, feeling that something was off. Over time, he began to have a vague feeling of “just playing a game”.

However, what he ate couldn’t be faked. The flour in the tavern was dusty, and the rice porridge had a faint bitter taste. Even if it was called bean porridge, it had a strong bean odor that made his stomach uncomfortable.

He had never observed the “NPCs” so carefully before.

Some people lived a little better, burning bricks and mixing cement, while others lived in houses made from construction waste. In the settlement, there weren’t many fat people, and everyone looked thin and older than their actual age, bearing the signs of enduring hardships.

In fact, this place used to be livelier. Since the news of Y City’s lockdown spread, many well-off merchants had returned to Y City. Many stalls and shops had closed down, with only the Old Fourth shops still in operation.

As Hu Yan swallowed the slightly bitter porridge, he began to miss the “other side’s” milk custard and strawberry pancakes. Fruits here were considered luxury items, and the most popular ones were preserved wild fruits, with coarse and sour flesh that barely tasted like fruit.

In just one meal, he ate with great discomfort. But before he could finish the porridge, another person sat across from him.

Yu Jin, with his signature golden hair, plopped down opposite Hu Yan, causing a few drops of soup to splash out of the bowl. “Having a meal, huh?”

Hu Yan forced a stiff smile. “Yeah.”

“We sent away another five thousand people today, divided into ten teams, leaving quietly.” Yu Jin picked up a chopstick of noodles and made a loud slurping sound. “There aren’t many left now, and most of them are Blackbirds and the people from Groundwater. According to Captain Shu’s arrangement, this matter will be resolved in another week.”

“The situation on the Groundwater’s side is quite troublesome. They’ve realized there’s a problem since Luo Duan hasn’t shown up for so long. But for now, Chai Xuyang is keeping them in check, and their emotions haven’t gotten out of control.” Hu Yan wasn’t accustomed to being at odds with people, so he continued the conversation. “But the situation is stable now, and even if they want to cause trouble, they can’t.”

Thinking about recent events, Hu Yan began to daydream again.

Captain Shu was ruthless. During this time, the players gradually shifted from interacting with Luo Duan’s subordinates to interacting with the settlement’s residents. The recent lockdown had caused a large movement of people, providing players with a perfect cover.

The twenty-one people with the most intense hatred had left, and the various teams were gradually being separated. The players were relatively calm—they had undergone personality screening and received a higher education on “the other side”. Although they knew everything was fake, they couldn’t change their habits of dealing with people overnight.

After the conflict between Crooked Head and Chai Xuyang, the players couldn’t vent their frustrations on the settlement’s humans.

The adaptability of humans was terrifying. Over time, the players and the residents ate and lived together, gradually getting used to it. Uncle Pan collected the money from Zhu Yanchen, and the small inn was filled with bored synthetic humans from the underground stronghold. They would chat all day, turning a group of players into friends. They would occasionally gather for a drinking session, drinking until everyone hugged their bottles and cried.

A few days passed, and Uncle Pan even introduced some hunting jobs for capturing mutant beasts to the players, and everyone started earning money together. The players who didn’t want to move continued to idle.

With Uncle Pan’s affability and connections, he was given the recipe for the anti-erosion medicine. Uncle Pan didn’t tamper with it and managed to acquire a considerable amount, which he sold to the settlement’s residents. The surplus was taken by Uncle Xiong and sent to nearby settlements for sale.

After the business flourished, Uncle Pan even started selling the ingredients for the recipe. He had people sell the recipe to various settlements at a reasonable price. With the money earned, Uncle Pan exchanged it all for supplies and sold them at normal prices to the offline players.

With sufficient supplies and affordable anti-erosion medicine, the residents of the settlement didn’t complain much about the medicine’s troublesome side effects and its limited long-term effectiveness. At least they didn’t fall into panic when faced with the tightening distribution of medicine in Y City.

What was even more amazing was that Uncle Pan had a great reputation. Hu Yan hadn’t heard any rumors about him selling at high prices in other settlements. The Old Fourth must have contributed a lot to this, and it was clear that Marshal Zhu had intervened in this matter.

…Looking at it from a positive perspective, although this “sister-in-law” was emotionally complicated, for now, it seemed that their captain hadn’t chosen the wrong person. Zhu Yanchen had indeed put effort into the settlement and wasn’t the type of person to flip tables after a meal.

Every time Hu Yan thought of Zhu Yanchen, his expression became somewhat distorted—there were countless beautiful women in the world, and in <Erosion>, there were also pretty girls like Xia Liang. Why did the captain choose a man? Previously, Shu Jun had never shown the slightest interest in men. Could it be that he had to make sacrifices for the sake of his compatriots?

As Hu Yan was halfway through his meal, his face began to contort and distort again. Yu Jin coughed heavily. “By the way, when I was out earlier, Dr. Ai asked me to find you.”

“Dr. Ai?”

“Yeah, remember to go see her later.”

Hu Yan couldn’t taste the food anymore, worried that something had happened to Shu Jun.

“I need to go back to Y City.”

Ai Xiaoxiao was straightforward when they met.

“Huh?!”

“What’s with the surprise? It’s temporary.” Ai Xiaoxiao rolled her eyes dramatically. “I’m hitting a bottleneck in my research and need to get some new materials. The ones I have in stock can’t be used to come up with anything new, no matter how much I think.”

“Can’t you ask the Old Fourth for help?”

“They can’t help. I need to get supplies from the Tang family. The Old Fourth doesn’t have access to such advanced items. If I don’t go myself, those old foxes won’t provide the purest raw materials.”

“But what about the patients…” Hu Yan hesitated to speak.

“Recently, I’ve selected a few girls and boys who aren’t suited for fighting. I’ve taught them the basics of dealing with erosion, but they still can’t grasp it. They can memorize the medication for special circumstances. As for ordinary wounds, you guys who run on the battlefield should have medical personnel to handle them.”

Ai Xiaoxiao’s voice was calm.

“Taking care of patients by fellow compatriots can also make them feel better. I’ve made arrangements for a mudsled. We’re leaving at noon. If someone else comes looking for me, just be honest with them.”

As she spoke, Ai Xiaoxiao was packing her large backpack. Just as Hu Yan came back to his realization, Ai Xiaoxiao had already slung the backpack over her shoulder.

“To be honest, my research is almost complete. Once I bring back this batch of materials, I probably won’t need to keep going back and forth—by then, I’ll choose a few apprentices from among these people. During this period, keep an eye on them and observe their attitudes,” Ai Xiaoxiao said.

“There are plenty of people in the settlement. Wouldn’t it be better to find humans?” Hu Yan’s mood was complicated.

Ai Xiaoxiao was an expert in synthetic human care. Dealing with medical treatment for “synthetic humans” was one of the significant advantages humans had. However, when this information was passed on, it sounded like an insignificant home remedy for toothaches.

“People are more relaxed when receiving medical care from their own kind, and it’s easier to be honest. If the patient doesn’t trust the doctor, then how can they recover?” Ai Xiaoxiao waved her hand. “Besides, most of the people in the settlement can’t read or write. I’m not interested in being a teacher of the basics. It’s more efficient for me to teach you.”

“…Be careful on the road.” Hu Yan took a deep breath, and all the tangled emotions and conflicts in his mind instantly evaporated.

“Got it,” Ai Xiaoxiao said, biting a coffee-flavored lollipop. Her hair was tied up in a convenient bun for movement. “I also made a lot of erosion candies and left them in the usual place. Don’t forget to tell Shu Jun when he returns.”

“Speaking of which, now people aren’t allowed to leave Y City. Even if you manage to buy the ingredients for medicine, how will you get out later? Shu Jun has special abilities, but you—”

Suddenly, Ai Xiaoxiao smiled; a smile that wasn’t particularly attractive, with a hint of bitterness.

“When Y City collapses, people will naturally be able to leave.” She hummed with an unclear meaning.

As a “non-human” entity, Shu Jun had a simple way of sneaking out of the city.

People weren’t allowed to leave Y City, so supplies were transported outside using automated machinery. To prevent erosion, the supplies were sealed in boxes that were less than one cubic meter in size.

Shu Jun transformed his entire self into an Erosion Swamp and filled up more than half of a box. With the advantage of free water absorption of Monday, he spread himself thinly on the walls of the box, like a thin pancake. Thus, the two pieces of Erosion Swamps managed to squeeze into one box. The supply boxes were sealed in advance and covered with layers of anti-erosion packaging, so there was no need for further inspection.

Captain Shu successfully packed himself into a box and was about to be sent away when Marshal Zhu approached with a complex expression, even reaching out to touch the box several times, as if confirming the texture.

Just when he began to feel a sense of sadness that he was no longer human, Shu Jun was distracted by Zhu Yanchen. Annoyed, he extended an erosion vine, slowly pushing Zhu Yanchen’s hand away, and closed the lid of the box himself.

In this state, he didn’t have normal human vision, but he did hear Zhu Yanchen stifling a laugh.

‘This account can be settled when I return next time,’ Shu Jun thought discontentedly. Having adapted to the dark and narrow space, he gave up thinking about the pain of transitioning from human to non-human and pondered on “how to tease Marshal Zhu”.

The machinery moved slowly on the wet, muddy ground, taking several days to reach their destination. To prevent the people in the settlement from stealing the supplies, a part of the military didn’t return to the city but instead escorted the supply convoy.

According to Zhu Yanchen’s intelligence, these people would stop and rest every eight hours. As soon as the bumps stopped, Shu Jun eroded the lid of the box from the inside. He restored his hand structure, used his claws to cut open the anti-erosion packaging, and then quietly slipped out of the vehicle with Monday.

Once they were familiar with this process, they could take the opportunity to transport the “Suppression” weapons. After returning to his humanoid form, Shu Jun flexed his joints and felt satisfied with this “smuggling” experience.

The settlement was still the same, indicating that Hu Yan had managed things adequately during their absence.

After confirming that everything was normal, Shu Jun returned to the room of Uncle Pan’s inn. He immediately turned on the screen and checked the news from Y City—

Originally, he wanted to see the progress of the elections, but his face was covered with the residual images of X City. The video clips filmed by Zhu Yanchen were restored and magnified, looking quite horrifying.

In the footage, four-legged creatures crawled up and down, and Sweet Edge lay in the center of X City. Shu Jun didn’t feel scared; he only felt a faint sense of nostalgia.

“After expert analysis, it has been determined that this video is not artificially synthesized. X City has been abandoned for nearly two hundred years, and these four-legged creatures may be new mutant beasts. The giant human head in the footage has no reasonable explanation yet. Considering its size and appearance, the possibility of Erosion Swamp mutation cannot be ruled out…”

“…According to reliable sources, the machine that filmed this video belongs to a high-ranking official in the command center…”

The confident voice of the female host was full of determination and infectiousness. Shu Jun raised an eyebrow—if he remembered correctly, this TV station was sponsored by the Tang family. As expected, after the report, the main event began.

“Marshal Yi, what are your thoughts on the ‘Erosion Swamp mutation theory’?”

“We have received similar intelligence, and our researchers have made some progress. Theoretically, this possibility does exist, and it is highly likely to be related to synthetic humans.”

“The footage from X City was leaked less than a month ago, and it seems that our researchers have reacted quite quickly. Currently, this footage is being widely circulated. The Reunion Festival in Y City ended prematurely due to an ‘accident’, and Y City has recently been on lockdown. Our people are quite concerned about whether there is a connection between these events. Would you be willing to…”

“The Reunion Festival wasn’t terminated due to an accident but because of the synthetic human unrest. The abnormalities in X City ruins and the reinforced city defenses in Y City are all related to this matter—based on the current situation, some synthetic humans have gained the ability to control the Erosion Swamps, and their tolerance for it has significantly increased. The anomalies in X City were likely intentionally created by these synthetic humans to intimidate us.”

The program guests erupted into commotion, and Shu Jun snorted.

The Erosion Swamp mutation and synthetic humans weren’t the same thing, and Yi Ning certainly understood that. However, if the existence of the Erosion Swamp mutation was truly acknowledged, the people of Y City would definitely fall into panic. By focusing the issue on synthetic humans, it could still be defined as “the loss of control of military weapons”.

Regardless, he was ahead of Zhu Sheng in disclosing the information, and he could also gain a lot of favorable impressions.

“The situation was uncertain before, so we couldn’t disclose it. Now that we have gathered enough information, please rest assured, everyone. The current situation is still under our control, and the purifiers have been fully deployed. Y City is safe. These synthetic humans have no resource support and cannot last long. As long as we all work together…”

Shu Jun let out a massive yawn.

“…However, I have something to say about the player system.” After who knew how long, a sentence caught Shu Jun’s attention again.

“To be honest, the research on synthetic humans and Erosion Swamps has been stagnant for nearly twenty years. Under the control of the Zhu family, the research direction of the command center has always been focused on ‘optimizing the player system’. The reason we were able to determine the nature of the mutation so quickly is thanks to a special researcher.”

“Who is it?” the host asked cooperatively.

“Marshal Zhu Yanchen.”

Yi Ning answered crisply.

“We all know that Marshal Zhu has always been against advancing the player system. If it weren’t for Marshal Zhu’s years of dedicated research on the Erosion Swamp, we would not have discovered the connection so quickly and formulated a response plan. As far as I know, most researchers have halted their research on the player system and are now studying Marshal Zhu Yanchen’s papers, focusing on researching anti-erosion weaponry.”

Unexpectedly, the boss suddenly started praising his competitor. The program guests were momentarily stunned, and the venue fell silent.

“During the Reunion Festival, it was also Marshal Zhu who called for strengthened city defenses. If there are no unexpected circumstances, Marshal Zhu will be the biggest contributor to Y City’s handling of this incident. As a competitor, I have great admiration for his research on the Erosion Swamp, and I ask everyone not to spread unfounded rumors.”

“Uh.” The host was a bit dazed, attempting to redirect the conversation. “You just mentioned the player system. It is widely known that Marshal Zhu recently changed his stance and started implementing the player system. What are your thoughts on this matter?”

“I would like to invite Marshal Zhu to join us here for the discussion related to this incident, and you can consult with him then. To be honest, even our researchers can only understand a fraction of his papers. When it comes to professional matters, we still need experts to clarify.”

Yi Ning didn’t smile as he turned to the camera.

“This matter concerns the safety of the people in Y City and the settlements. I kindly ask Marshal Zhu not to decline.”

It seemed when all else fails*…. Xia Yufeng was completely clueless in scientific research, so if he were to participate, he would probably just stand there dumbfounded. If his identity were exposed publicly, things would become quite lively.

*This is related to the title, which is an idiom (图穷匕见) It refers to when the plan fails, the dagger (true intentions) is revealed. This implies that when someone’s schemes or intentions are exposed or their options are exhausted, their true nature or intentions are exposed.

That would be great.

Shu Jun happily turned off the screen and stretched his body.

That’s how it should be. The more chaotic, the better.

The author has something to say:

Marshal: A boxed boyfriend, rare sight. *pat pat*.

Shu Ge: ?!?!