Chapter 40: I Will Bear Your Wish

Game of Deception

The reason was simple.

No matter how low the difficulty of a game was, it could never be infinitely low.

As long as someone accumulated enough chips to drastically alter the annals of time... they would easily be erased by the massively changed past.

This was essentially just waiting to die.

"...There's no helping it."

Gao Fan smiled helplessly, his bloodstained face full of exhaustion. "We don't have a true captain, after all."

"Isn't that 'Ironblood Leader' your captain?"

"Of course not," Gao Fan said. "At the very least, it would have to be someone from the Domain of Force or the Domain of Virtue. If a team lacks a true core, it simply cannot expand. Once the numbers grow even slightly, it will inevitably fall apart.

"Only by uniting people through 'force' or 'virtue' can they be commanded and managed. Only then will people listen. Without someone from the Domain of Force acting as the leader, or submitting to the leader, there is almost no room for resistance the moment a real conflict occurs."

"...I misjudged someone." Gao Fan sighed. "Our 'leader' wasn't brought back by me."

'Yes, I could tell.' Ming Po remarked inwardly.

But he didn't interrupt Gao Fan's narrative, choosing to listen quietly instead.

"Xiao Ning, Wen Yu, and I entered during the same Preliminary Match. Our Host was from the 'Domain of Virtue'. Because of that, she didn't assign us an overly difficult game..." As Gao Fan spoke, his thoughts gradually drifted back to the past.

At that time, twelve people had arrived.

They were stranded on a deserted island without any tools or supplies.

The island was a small, ten-square-kilometer landmass with abundant marine resources, but no fresh water. There were also some animals and unknown fruit trees scattered across the island.

The mission objective was to survive for seven days by any means necessary.

'...Huh?'

'Why was your game so easy?'

Ming Po listened in sheer bewilderment.

To him, a difficulty level like that was no different from a casual picnic.

And it wasn't just him... anyone with even a passing knowledge of wilderness survival could easily accomplish it.

Unless attacked by an animal like a bear, it was highly unlikely that anyone would even die.

But clearly, it was impossible for any ferocious beasts to exist on a deserted island of that size. Unless they were artificially introduced—the food chain there simply wasn't sufficient to sustain a predator population.

The only real difficulty, perhaps, was figuring out how to make the others listen.

"The first two days were actually quite good," Gao Fan murmured. "Everyone worked together. We built temporary shelters and a seawater filtration device... we had gathered some food, and it looked like the mission would be completed soon."

"And then someone started causing trouble, right?" Ming Po said casually.

Gao Fan nodded in silence.

This was perfectly normal.

When humans were pushed to the brink of life and death, the sheer pressure of survival made it easy for them to band together... but the moment that pressure eased, fierce disputes were far more likely to erupt.

Thinking of this, a memory flashed before Ming Po's eyes—a fragment of a heated argument among several companions while climbing a snowy mountain.

"There was this one guy... who wanted to control the others through violence. He wanted to be the leader... and his target was clearly Wen Yu," Gao Fan spoke softly.

Even by Ming Po's standards, Wen Yu was undeniably a very beautiful girl. Unlike Lin Ya or internet celebrities like Raccoon, she looked exactly like a young lady from an incredibly affluent background.

It wasn't surprising that someone would set their sights on her in a lawless wilderness.

"At the time... another man immediately voiced his opposition. He was very smart, likely highly educated. He was the one who had guided us in building all the survival gear... in fact, he was the only one among us who actually understood wilderness survival.

"His target was obviously Wen Yu as well. But compared to that dangerous brute, this man at least seemed refined and unlikely to resort to violence. So, Wen Yu and I threw our lot in with him. Aside from us, most of the others felt the same way... only the two most unpleasant individuals chose to join the other guy.

"Consequently, the team split. We were actually quite thrilled at the time, thinking we had finally chased away those annoying jerks... and without the support of our facilities, they were bound to die out there. Although they looked physically stronger, we had nine people, giving us an absolute advantage in numbers."

"Ah... I can probably guess what happened next." Ming Po shook his head. "Something happened to your leader?"

"...Yes." Gao Fan remained silent for a moment before nodding. "When we woke up... we found that he had been captured, tied to a tree, and stoned to death.

"If he were still alive, perhaps everyone would have tried to find a way to rescue him. But he was already dead... and so, the team instantly fell apart.

"But they had absolutely no idea how to maintain or use the facilities. After tinkering around for a whole day, they only managed to waste a significant amount of purified water and food.

"Although that man was strong, he didn't know how to hunt either. None of us knew how to fish or hunt... and we had pretty much scavenged all the edible fruits we could find. Some of them even caused stomachaches...

"And so... he decided to eat the former leader's flesh."

"Did you eat it?" Ming Po asked curiously.

For the first time, Gao Fan showed anger. "Of course not! Or rather, only four people ate it... we realized that if we stayed there any longer, it was highly likely we would become their next meal.

"Fortunately, he probably realized that if he continued to expend energy, surviving would become even more difficult, so he didn't make another move on Wen Yu. Therefore, Wen Yu took Xiao Ning and me and fled."

"Because you two looked the youngest, right?" Ming Po guessed why Wen Yu had done that. "She's quite clever... you two are technically of the opposite sex, which would invoke a protective desire in you, yet make you easier to command. And because you were 'younger', your personalities were naturally more docile and obedient... at the same time, being boys, you could help with some of the physical labor.

"The reason she brought two people was probably also for checks and balances."

"Yes..." Gao Fan looked exhausted just recalling it. "Fortunately, although the deserted island was small, there were still places to hide. We hid in a cave for three days, encountering wild dogs and snakes along the way... as well as other refugees seeking help.

"After we fled, two more people died at the camp. In the end, that 'leader' himself was bitten to death by a venomous snake... after that, some people went mad, and others fled. Our food and fresh water were already running low by then, but Chang Ning still split his own share and gave it to them.

"...Which immediately attracted even more people."

No wonder he ultimately left the team, despite having obtained a Title from the Domain of Virtue.

Ming Po shook his head.

Because his very kindness had brought danger upon Wen Yu and Gao Fan.

"In the end, I was the one who led them through the dense jungle to escape. Those people quickly lost our trail... and precisely because of this shared experience of hardship, we formed a permanent team. I let them all stay at my house so we could participate in the games as a group, lowering the risks.

"Xiao Ning would often undertake dangerous actions to help others... which also brought us more danger.

"And later... after Xiao Ning realized that his actions frequently conflicted with ours, he left the team on his own.

"I originally intended to take Wen Yu to find the next reliable team... However, after secretly participating in a game by herself, Wen Yu brought that man back.

"He seems to be a former classmate of Wen Yu's. Of course, even though she called him her boyfriend, I think he's just a simp.

"She brought him to my house without saying a word to me—what could I possibly do? He already knows where I live, and he knows my real name. Yet I don't even know his full name."

Gao Fan spread his hands helplessly. "After all... I'm only this tall."

"You could just kill him." Ming Po narrowed his eyes and spoke softly. "Just like... what happened to your first leader."

"The two of them live together, which makes it too difficult." Gao Fan looked somewhat despondent. "Of course, you could also call me a coward... If I expose any intention to kill him, he will kill me."

"What are their abilities?" Ming Po asked. "Titles shouldn't be unique, right?"

"Low-level Titles aren't, but special Titles with a certain classic significance like 'Frankenstein' should all be unique."

Gao Fan offered the information very readily. "The Diplomat's ability can simultaneously increase mutual favorability. The more secrets each party knows, the more favorability increases. And the 'Moon' prefix allows her to exchange secrets for secrets in the dead of night... Brother Xiao, you should already know this one.

"As for the 'Leader's' ability, he can use words to command those who are willing to obey him."

"Spirit words?" Ming Po was astonished. "It's that powerful?"

"Pretty much. As long as someone verbally acknowledges 'I will obey your commands' or 'I am willing to submit', he can directly order them to do anything. And augmented by the 'Ironblood' prefix, even if the target falls unconscious or into a state where they cannot move, as long as they can hear his voice, they can still be controlled."

Gao Fan explained the other party's abilities in meticulous detail.

This was clearly also the reason why he didn't dare to rebel.

"Then how do you break it?" Ming Po asked. "The Domain of Balance... shouldn't it be an equal exchange like the 'Diplomat'? Or like you, completely devoid of any offensive power."

"The flaw is actually quite simple. He cannot directly order the target to die, or to jump off a cliff... The more the target resists, the more physical stamina he consumes. He can only control one person at a time, and if he switches his command, the previous person breaks free from his control. Therefore, he will only enter a game with one of us at a time," Gao Fan explained.

—So that was it.

Ming Po realized that the battles and gambits between Deceivers of the World were, in a sense, information warfare!

In a situation where neither side knew the other's abilities, even a very weak ability could very likely allow the weak to defeat the strong!

With Gao Fan's intelligence, Ming Po had finally truly integrated into the circle of Deceivers of the World!

Suddenly, Ming Po thought of something.

He asked casually, "You mentioned earlier... that the Domain of Force plays the role of a 'tyrant' or 'protector' within a team. So I suppose the Domain of Wisdom should take the role of a strategist or commander...

"Then, what about the Domain of Slaughter?"

"...They're just a bunch of psychopaths."

Gao Fan frowned deeply. "Even our previous leader could only ever belong to the 'Domain of Force' at best, and could never obtain a Title from the 'Domain of Slaughter'.

"The act of overwhelming others with power falls under 'Strength'. Even if one kills everyone in the process, it still belongs to 'Strength'. Only when the sole purpose itself is killing can one obtain the 'Domain of Slaughter'.

"So... if possible, we usually prioritize targeting Deceivers from the Domain of Slaughter. Because no one knows what they are thinking. Moreover, in terms of pure combat power, Deceivers from the Domain of Slaughter usually cannot compare to those of the same tier from the Domain of Force... What they excel at is merely the 'ability to kill others', and all their Titles come with negative side effects.

"Of course, unless it's a pure battle of wits or a pure physical combat game... then people from the Domain of Wisdom or the Domain of Force must be eliminated first. Because they're just too skilled."

Gao Fan added, "At least, that's how it's played at our rank. Whoever the expert is, gets targeted first."

"I understand..."

Ming Po nodded slowly.

He stared at Gao Fan for a moment, and just as Gao Fan was beginning to feel a bit creeped out by the intense gaze, Ming Po suddenly asked, "What is your wish for participating in the Game of Deception, Gao Fan?"

Hearing these words, Gao Fan froze.

But soon, this clever little man understood the intent behind "Brother Xiao's" words—

—If necessary, he would kill him.

Whether a conflict of interest arose during a game, or if he was forced to abandon him to escape... or even if they had to fight to the death in a final game.

He would kill him.

And after that, he would help him fulfill his wish.

It was like finding a scapegoat to take the fall for a crime, and asking them, "How much money does your family still need?"

The moment those words were spoken, it was equivalent to selling himself out.

Although incredibly cold-blooded... it felt surprisingly okay.

It was far better than being sold out mercilessly without ever being asked, and having half the cut taken to boot.

"...You'll resurrect me, right?"

Gao Fan couldn't help but plead.

"As long as you don't betray me."

Ming Po smiled, coaxing him in a low voice. "Although there can be only one final victor... they never said that this one person can only do one thing, did they?

"If I obtain the authority of a god, why wouldn't I help my friends?

"Although by then you probably won't even remember me... won't know that you had a friend like me. But your wishes will all be fulfilled, and you'll live a happy life in a peaceful world. What's wrong with that?"

Gao Fan remained silent for a moment before stating his wish.

"I want to resurrect my parents."

"Done."

Ming Po nodded. "I'll remember it. I will bear your wish."

Saying this, he pointed toward the main door.

"Then come on," he stated. "Let me see what you're capable of.

"Teach me how to team up and enter a game."

Ming Po didn't plan on switching back to his "Werewolf" Title, nor did he intend to return to his own home.

He intended to see just exactly what kind of mettle his "teammate" possessed.