Infinite spooky game

Chapter 434 Gods (VI) Lu Li

"Lin Jue, to be honest, this outcome is beyond my expectations. Both He and I thought that you would be the one to win this game in the end."

Along the ridgeline near the summit of the snow-capped mountain, the pale sky and the silvery glaciers merged into one, gradually blurring the distinction between heaven and earth. Lu Li sat opposite Fu Jue, clearly wearing only a thin long overcoat, the brown hem fluttering in the cold wind, yet he showed no signs of being cold, his smile peaceful and serene.

Fu Jue, or rather Lin Jue, sat with his knees bent, tilting his head slightly upwards. His silver-white eyes behind his glasses reflected Lu Li's face: "When you say these things to me, are you speaking on behalf of yourself, or the Ancestral God?"

"You already know the answer, so why ask again?" Lu Li smiled slightly. "Human memory is insignificant compared to the billions of years of a god's lifespan. The knowledge and images touched by a fleeting glimpse are an unbearable burden on the fragile soul of a mortal. From the moment you abandoned me in 'The Sea of ​​No Hope,' I became the shell of the sea god."

"This was not my intention. When I was immersed in seawater and my body was filled with invisible tentacles, I tried to use every method I could remember to fight against the corruption of the gods and wrest control of my body from the will of the sea god. Unfortunately, I failed. But now it seems that this ending is not bad. At least I am no longer a pawn that can be discarded at any time."

The young man wore an unchanging smile on his face from beginning to end, gentle, sincere and earnest, as if he were telling a heartwarming story. But his eyes behind his gold-rimmed glasses were empty and lifeless, as if they could not reflect anything, or as if they could hold an entire snow-capped mountain.

Lin Jue listened patiently to his words, and unusually fell silent.

Lu Li's corruption by the Sea God was a result of his deliberate scheme. In order to gain more chips in the game of the gods, the Bureau of Mystery Investigation needed to completely control a god-level being. Thus, the Sea God was lured into Lu Li's body and sealed together in the containment chamber.

This move indeed greatly facilitated the subsequent actions of the Bureau of Mystery Investigation and the Sira Guild. Leaving aside the secrets and knowledge etched into the memories of the gods, the blood of the gods alone was invaluable. Mass-produced artificial weapons, imbued with divine blood, became items that could be brought into the game.

Although all the illegally manufactured items were banned in the Snow Mountain instance, Lu Li's role goes far beyond what is mentioned on the surface.

Gods cannot be killed, but beings that are also gods can devour each other. In the snow mountain instance, Lin Jue placed Lu Li next to Qi Si, intending to use this as a check and balance. Qi Si probably had the same idea, planning to control Lu Li through the contractual authority and use him as a trump card against other gods.

But none of them considered the unforeseen changes that might occur with Lu Li, just as a chess player rarely pays attention to the emotions of his pieces. After the bizarre game ended, all the abilities gained from it disappeared, including the soul contract and the puppet silk. At this point, Lu Li was undoubtedly beyond anyone's control.

Even if Qi Si had thought of this, he probably wouldn't care. As long as it's interesting enough, even death can be a surprise for him.

Lin Jue had indeed not considered this aspect. Having sat in the position of ruler for so long, it was easy to take everything for granted. Stripped of his emotions, he was different from before and naturally found it difficult to incorporate this into his calculations.

Of course, if it were the Lin Jue of the past, he would never have built his plans on the sacrifice of others.

Lu Li continued, "What I just said were the remaining emotions of that human named 'Lu Li,' and I will not talk about him anymore."

He paused, then naturally changed the subject: "You've clashed with Qi for thirty-six years, so you should be able to understand the reason and meaning of the existence of gods, which I won't elaborate on here. You should also understand the purpose of the ancestral god, but since this was specifically instructed by Him, I must explain this part to you again."

"If the rules are a giant computer, then the gods are the automatic repair programs on that computer, responsible for cleaning up junk files, eliminating viruses, and fixing bugs. Most of the time, simple improvements are enough to keep the computer running. But now the rules are on the verge of collapse and cannot be repaired by superficial improvement programs. So the ancestral gods, as the core program, appear according to the pre-set rules and are about to perform a formatting operation on the malfunctioning computer."

"Lin Jue, with your comprehension skills, you should be able to understand this."

"Simple, clear, and easy to understand," Lin Jue commented.

“And what I’m going to say is—” Lu Li slowed his speech, a formulaic smile appearing on his face, “The being that performs the formatting operation doesn’t necessarily have to be an ancestral god; it could even be a human. Whoever it is, they can live until the day the new world is built.”

"Moreover, he can also create the rules for the new world according to his own will. Whether it is an orderly world or a chaotic world, the rules will not care or interfere, as long as the logic is consistent and the evil can be stably recovered."

"That's precisely why both the Ancestral God and I hope that you, not Bai Ya, will win this game. You and I both know that it's always better for a rationalist to control the situation than for a madman to squander his hard-won power." He stopped there, simply smiling and staring intently at Lin Jue, waiting for his answer.

“I understand.” Lin Jue nodded slightly, moved his gaze to meet Lu Li’s eyes, and slowly said, “When the game ended, the world did not restart. You did not return to the Ancestral God’s command, but instead came to incite me to fight against Bai Ya. From this, I deduce that the negotiations between the Ancestral God and Bai Ya were not going smoothly, and Bai Ya used rule-level means to temporarily restrain Him.”

Lu Li readily admitted, "This is obvious, and I never intended to hide it from you. Before the world restarts, there is still room for maneuver regarding the ownership of the divine position. You just need to place more chips than Bai Ya on the scales, and the position of Ancestral God will belong to you."

"However, since you previously showed hostility towards the Ancestral God, the Ancestral God needs to sign a contract with you to ensure that you will not do anything contrary to expectations."

The party that sets the rules of the game personally intervenes, providing the players competing for the only chance with a sure-win strategy. Bizarre games are never fair, and the essence of the rules is to break them.

Lu Li's proposal was entirely beneficial; all one had to do was agree to cooperate with him to survive to the end without any risk, without having to scheme and plot to survive.

On the contrary, if they refused him, it would be a question whether they could even leave the snow-capped mountain alive.

"I won't do that." Lin Jue stood up and walked away from the mountaintop.

He spoke like a renowned scholar standing on a podium, presenting his proven views with unwavering composure: "I don't believe the world is beyond redemption and needs a reboot, nor do I believe humanity's fate should be controlled by the will of a god. Humanity will choose its own path, without the need for an externally imposed destruction. Therefore, I refuse to cooperate with you."

“I don’t understand your reason for refusing.” Lu Li got up and followed, shaking his head slightly. “You have already risen above the human race, possessing abilities and status comparable to gods, and cannot understand the emotions of those ants who only add burden to the rules.”

"For the past twenty-two years, you have become accustomed to being a dictator, personally establishing a new order, and herding foolish mortals. Although you are not a true god, they worship you as one. They are willing to be ruled and constrained by you, and they do so with pleasure."

"You would be the most suitable person to create a new world, so why not do it?"

"Because I am human." A golden-red hue suddenly diffused between Lin Jue's fingers, and the smell of blood spread exceptionally slowly in the cold air, so much so that Lu Li only noticed it now.

Golden four-sided dice emerged amidst the golden-red blood, and translucent puppet threads refracted thin powder, connecting Lin Jue and Lu Li.

Items stained with divine blood possess the ability to travel between the eerie game and reality. Even though the eerie game has been shut down, they can still function in reality.

Lu Li only then realized what Lin Jue had done during that time, and his expression changed slightly.

The puppeteer who controls his puppet threads has secretly stored up a portion of divine blood at some point, and at this moment, he unexpectedly uses those casual preparations to mobilize the power of the bizarre game in reality.

Lin Jue's fingertips twirled the delicate silk threads, his voice utterly calm: "I can sacrifice myself to ensure the world's existence; I can sacrifice a few to ensure the survival of the many. But I will never use the lives of all humanity to allow myself to eke out a living in a new world devoid of humans. This has always been my choice, and it will never change."

Lu Li gazed at him, as if she were seeing him for the first time, or as if a question she had had for many years had been answered, and she suddenly understood.

After a long, long time, a bitter smile appeared on the young man's lips: "This is not rational."

Lin Jue looked up at the wind and snow that obscured the road down the mountain, and corrected him, word by word, clearly: "This is the most rational decision for me, and it conforms to the principle of pragmatism."

(End of this chapter)