Chapter 1049: The Standoff Before the Experiment Ground |
Only two people remained in Cheng Shi's current squad: Fang Yuan and Meng Youfang.
Fang Yuan wasn't entirely convinced, but given that Cheng Shi had at least been orderly, he decided to see the Grand Scholars first before passing judgment.
Meng Youfang needed no persuading — he was already plotting how to leverage his limited identity to strike back against [Truth].
Chen Yi was actually there too, lurking in the shadows as before and overhearing everything Cheng Shi had said. But his distaste for [Deceit] followers made him unwilling to believe it.
However, if Cheng Shi's words were true, the Grand Scholars' schemes against the players would cost him any chance of getting closer to [Memory]. So he'd tagged along as well — he wanted to see for himself whether the Erudition Presidium had truly discovered these so-called Drifters.
The moment he confirmed that the Grand Scholars were also obstacles on the path of his devotion, he would spare no cost to eliminate them — and, just as he despised [Deceit], he would begin an endless hunt against the followers of [Truth].
Only Wei Zhi was absent. The combat expert had vanished the moment he'd given Cheng Shi that location, just as before.
Cheng Shi knew he was lurking nearby, waiting for his opening. As a "traitor" who'd abandoned the player camp to cooperate with the Erudition Presidium, there was nothing this lunatic wouldn't do for the success of the [Truth] experiment. Cheng Shi would have to stay vigilant.
Soon, they arrived at the western experiment site. By now, the Grand Scholars had been reduced to isolated remnants by Galusha's contingencies — the entire underground lab was extensively damaged, and the Erudition Presidium's sham experiment was on the verge of collapse.
But Cheng Shi didn't rush the attack. He knew that defeating or even killing the Grand Scholars was pointless — they were only puppets. Unless he found this experiment's Truth Limit, no matter how many times the Grand Scholars died, the players could never win.
So rather than forcing the issue with brute strength, it was better to extract information through the standoff.
He firmly believed that these old foxes were still human, and humans always had gaps in their armor. Otherwise, he never would've seen through the entire Tusnat deception in the first place.
With that reasoning, Cheng Shi stepped forward to the edge of the collapsed crater, looked down at the six Grand Scholar puppets with their varying expressions, and opened with a mocking jab:
"Give it up, you old fossils. I know the truth might feel devastating, but facts are facts — you're yesterday's news, sunk into the silt of history like discarded waste.
I am indeed a Drifter — but not one drifting outside this world. I drift outside this era.
The Tusnat you see now, from our perspective, has long since been sealed away in the dusty past. Want to know how the Erudition Presidium ends? Want to know how the Tower of Logic falls?
Look right here."
With a grin, Cheng Shi pointed at Galusha.
"The great [Folly] follower personally strung your skulls together and ended everything by boiling your wisdom dry.
Tsk — how pitiful. Even as you watched your own followers suffer, [Truth] never chose to protect you. And you never found the real [Truth].
Perhaps even [Truth] itself doesn't know what universal truth looks like. So the Tower of Logic's path was wrong from the very start.
No matter how hard you struggle, all you're doing is blindly charging down a dead-end road. What awaits you isn't the [Truth] you've yearned for over millennia — it's a wall called ignorance. You'll only dash your heads against it until you're broken and bleeding, and then — then you'll realize one simple thing:
The world is nothing but a massive cage, and [Truth] is merely the tallest jailbreaker inside it."
The moment those words fell, every Grand Scholar's expression turned ugly. Only Galusha's eyes shimmered with a strange gleam as she broke into wild laughter:
"Is what you said true?"
"?"
'Girl — is that really the point right now? I'm putting pressure on the enemy, can't you see? Why are you jumping in?'
'Do you really want to roast their skulls on a skewer that badly?'
Cheng Shi secretly rolled his eyes and ignored Galusha. After a pause, he looked back at Volent and said in a heartfelt counselor's tone:
"Scholar Volent — you and I actually share a connection.
San Dales is practically my second hometown, which makes the Consciousness Faith Department, in a sense, my field of study. And you, as its founder, would be something like half a teacher to me.
Teacher — I'm a kind person. I'll give you a chance.
I know that behind the scenes, you've struck a deal with my teammate Wei Zhi. Whatever his reasoning, the fact remains — he's betrayed the Drifter camp. He won't survive this experiment.
If Teacher Volent can see the light and guide us past [Truth]'s facade — help us see through [Truth]'s indifference — then I can guarantee that after this experiment, regardless of the outcome, I will lend you Wei Zhi's identity. You'll be free of history's shackles, free of ignorance, and welcome to join us — to join the great Drifter camp.
[Truth] is not the end of the universe. Only by joining us will you discover that this world is far vaster than you ever imagined.
What do you say?
I'll give you time to think it over. I hope you seize this opportunity, Teacher."
"..."
"..."
"..."
Cheng Shi's barrage was undeniably persuasive. Never mind the other five scholars shooting changed looks at Volent — even Galusha's eyes beside him had begun to glitter.
The pie the Drifter was painting was far too tempting. Even this Wise Man was starting to want a taste of that particular foolish act.
"Mr. Prisoner — are there any other traitors among your people?"
As she spoke, Galusha's crazed eyes swept over Fang Yuan, Meng Youfang, and even Chen Yi hiding in the distant shadows.
"..."
Cheng Shi's expression froze. He got the distinct impression that Galusha wasn't asking a question — she was calculating which of his teammates she could turn.
'This is bad. I need to stop painting pies. If I keep going, the Erudition Presidium won't be the thing that falls — I'll have shot myself in the foot.'
Cheng Shi cleared his throat twice, pointedly ignored Galusha once more, and after a beat of silence called out to the Grand Scholars again:
"How's the thinking going, Teacher Volent?"
"Not well."
The one who answered wasn't Volent — it was Wei Zhi, crawling out from the rubble around the experiment site.
The combat expert had no choice but to show himself. If he hid any longer, his identity was about to become Cheng Shi's bargaining chip.
His position was precarious. Although fragmented memories had put him on alert early, he still couldn't figure out — even now, having watched Cheng Shi shatter everything — how he'd been discovered when he'd hidden so well.
But discovered he was, and the president of the Reason Association harbored no regrets about his cooperation with the Erudition Presidium. In fact, right here and now, he wanted to persuade Cheng Shi to join him — to embrace this glorious fusion.
"Fate Weaver, you truly are remarkable.
Yes — the Grand Scholars' offer interested me. Just think about it: when a Grand Scholar who's accumulated thousands of years of knowledge from the Tower of Logic wants to merge with you — why wouldn't you be tempted?
The fusion of flesh is the natural direction of life's evolution. As long as consciousness remains independent, what's so hard to accept?"
Cheng Shi let out a derisive snort:
"Just the flesh? I'd say the Grand Scholars' appetite goes far beyond that. And when the one who climbs to the top of [Truth]'s Ladder of Ascent turns out to be one of the Erudition Presidium's Grand Scholars — will you still be laughing then?
Oh wait — by that point you'll have been devoured. Obviously you won't be laughing.
Wei Zhi, what baffles me is this: all your knowledge, all your understanding of experiments — it all comes from the Tower of Logic. So what makes you think the Erudition Presidium, which has run the Tower of Logic for millennia, would lose to you in a game of scheming?
Is it that brain of yours — the one even [Folly] wouldn't bother with?"
...