CHAPTER 105: CHAPTER 102: HITTING THE ROAD! ENCOUNTERING THE OGRE DEMON KING?

[You pretended to persuade Belia to return to the City of No Night, your words subtly implying you didn’t want her to be implicated and suffer an unforeseen disaster. However, having already boarded the pirate ship, Belia could not turn back. She told you that all aircraft would be detected by Celestial Palace-1’s reconnaissance satellites, so if you wanted to avoid them, your only option was to leave on foot.]

[Since leaving by air was impossible, you straightforwardly tossed the problem back to Belia. You had clearly promised to lead her on a brave journey across the world, yet it had now come to a point where she had to be a nanny for a huge problem like you. However, Belia remained completely oblivious to the situation.]

"Alright, I’ll lay my cards on the table. I’m the bad guy, okay?"

But does the influence of Celestial Palace-1 extend this far? I have to contend with it within ten years... it looks like this challenge won’t be easy at all.

Chen Pingchuan scratched his head, thinking about how he only had ten years left.

In life, things go wrong nine times out of ten. This is just too much for me.

So, this Energy Crystal mine is a must-have. I need to find a place where I can develop safely. Being stuck in a small place like the City of No Night is no solution.

[Belia was silent for even longer this time. When she looked up at you again, the sparkle in her eyes startled you, as it was completely unexpected.]

[Belia told you that you could head west on foot into the Barbarian Land. Very few powers developed there. Although its technology was said to be underdeveloped and its lifestyle primitive, if any place could offer you refuge, it would surely be there.]

[And so, you embarked on the westward journey.]

"Haha, a journey to the west. Am I Tang Monk? Or am I Sun Wukong? You’ve got to be kidding me."

"People always say I like to complain about you for no reason. But just look at this! What kind of simulation info is this? System, you’ve changed."

While muttering to himself, Chen Pingchuan didn’t feel as optimistic as his expression suggested. The trajectory of his future was becoming increasingly incomprehensible.

However, there was one piece of good news: it seemed he had found a path to survival. Just as the simulator said, he could go west to find a base to develop his power. Once he became strong enough, nothing would be a problem anymore.

Having figured this out, Chen Pingchuan’s mood began to settle. He no longer cared about the changes in the simulation, as these were things he could not change.

[On the first day, you encountered a hunting convoy. Their equipment was very outdated: old-fashioned, fuel-powered vehicles, tattered trench coats, and flintlock guns that fired pellets. It was the kind of gear so obsolete you both naturally disregarded it.]

[Under the group’s wary gazes, you single-handedly disarmed them all. The only shame was that your dashing coat was riddled with several holes during the fight. For this, you kicked their leader, Big Beard, several times.]

[Big Beard felt your ruthlessness and assured you that he would do his best to fulfill any request you had. You were satisfied with his attitude and curious to see the refuge he had mentioned.]

[You and Belia arrived at the refuge of these wasteland wanderers. It was called a refuge, but in reality, it was just a temporary settlement of cobbled-together tents. Due to the scarcity of Black Demons in the wild, these wanderers didn’t need to worry about being attacked.]

[Your arrival alarmed the elderly, women, and children in the refuge. The women grabbed iron spatulas and large spoons, adopting a vigilant posture. But upon seeing the men you had bound in a row, they knelt on the ground, pleading earnestly with you and Belia.]

[You suddenly understood the meaning behind the saying of a house so bare that even a thief would scratch his head in confusion. Just as you were about to let these people go, a woman pulled a six-year-old girl out from a tent. By the looks of her, she was only a few years younger than Belia.]

[You found the woman’s actions baffling because this time, you hadn’t made any unreasonable demands. Besides, for a girl of this age, you were a god, not a beast. You felt your divine status had been insulted and were about to make an example of them.]

[But the woman’s next words stopped you in your tracks. She said that if you were sent by the Demon King, you should take the child, and begged only that you spare the men’s lives. Without the men, she explained, they would all perish.]

[Looking at the thin girl’s timid eyes, you discovered that even gods possess a merciful heart. You asked them who this Demon King was. They replied that they didn’t know, only that he liked to eat people—preferably young boys and girls, because their meat was tender.]

HISS...

Chen Pingchuan inhaled sharply. Even before the apocalypse, the lives of the lower class were difficult, but not to this extent.

So, did the Red Rain really start because of me?

There were many things Chen Pingchuan hadn’t understood in the past. Looking back now, he realized the signs had been there all along.

He had lived in this world for three years and had never heard of or seen a creature like the Black Demon. Even if this creature was something researched by the Blood Beast Ban, why hadn’t he seen it on Spirit Beast Island during the simulation? More importantly, he was the one who had provided the Blood Beast Ban with the Black Demon blood sample in the first place.

So, was it possible that he had brought the Black Demon into this world, which led to the Blood Beast Ban’s research into them, and subsequently the emergence of the Red Rain—a highly corrosive bio-virus?

Although many points still don’t add up, this scenario is the most likely one.

Chen Pingchuan found himself trapped in the famous chicken-and-egg paradox: which came first? The logical conundrum gave him a slight headache.

Sometimes, the biggest problem for a smart person is being too smart.

Chen Pingchuan stopped dwelling on the cause, as it was impossible to trace back. He decided to focus on what he could do now. With that thought, he plunged back into the grand undertaking of the simulation.

[You and Belia exchanged a look, a surprising, unspoken understanding passing between you. You obtained a route map to the Demon King’s camp from the woman in exchange for the lives of Big Beard and the other men.]

[In just half a day, you reached the location of this "cannibal" Demon King. Seeing the two large boulders at the entrance of the survivor camp, you felt a strange sense of familiarity, as if you’d seen this camp somewhere before.]

[Several guards were patrolling the camp entrance. They noticed you and Belia, and upon seeing Belia’s childlike appearance, their faces lit up with joy. To your surprise, they didn’t attack you immediately but instead invited you to join their camp.]

[Your life path has reached a turning point. Please choose carefully.]

[Option A: Choose to enter the survivor camp instance in your true form to explore and uncover the secrets lurking in the shadows. The unknown represents high risk and unknown rewards, though for someone with a seventh-level bodyguard, it’s just an entertainment instance.]

[Option B: Turn around and leave. What do a few mortal lives matter to me? Why should I waste my time here? This choice, though decisive, may cause you to miss many important things.]

Chen Pingchuan’s expression was odd. The choice offered by the simulation this time was so obvious it required no consideration.

"I choose to enter the instance in my true form!"