As a player, can you be normal?

Chapter 559: The Lost Sixteenth Doctrine of the Steel Soul

——Act 1——

A story from over a thousand years ago.

Atreus stood on top of the tower, holding the [Ancient Gear] in his hand, looking a little absent-minded.

Fina stood behind him, her hands on his shoulders.

The two looked at each other.

They looked at each other speechlessly.

Narrator:

Thousands of years ago, the [Black Pearl] was decomposed into [Ancient Gears], and the messenger from Ys yearned for adventure.

It was also from this day that the ancient gods were destroyed by Atreus.

Until five hundred years ago, that year Atreus's footprints disappeared in the long river of history, and that year also saw the changes in the world.

What you will see next are all hand-drawn drafts.

Atrus left his footprints in every corner of this land, slaying monsters, killing gods and saving the world. He is an unsung hero.

Because of his red hair, he was somehow labeled the "red-haired sex maniac". In his later years, he went to the Far North and then disappeared.

But in the hundred years that followed, his legend continued to be told around the world.

In the small town of Qibel in the Blue Sea Country, the red-haired boy who suppressed the ancient monster was him, but he was accompanied by a girl named Aita at the time, and the girl looked almost exactly like Fina, one of the Gemini goddesses.

A red door appeared on the screen.

There was a child standing inside the door.

The child stepped out of the door and came into this world from the border prison. This was the birth of the evil demon.

——End of Act I——

……

Huo Liuli: “…”

She always felt that what she had just seen was just a prologue, so she called Li Nuo, but the line was busy.

At this time, an employee of the family knocked on the door.

"come in."

"Miss, regarding your father's memorial service..."

"I'll take care of it. Find me some people."

Huo Liuli turned around, her eyes clear and firm.

"I need a few experts in history, and preferably some theology, get them to me as soon as possible."

An hour later, Huo Liuli moved the video to her own large RV, and all the historians she called squeezed into the car.

Fire Glaze replays the first scene.

Historians and theologians point out two key points in this scene: one is the legend of Atreus, and the other is the hypothesis that evil spirits appeared five hundred years ago.

"So, there are still doubts about these two points?" Huo Liuli was puzzled.

A scholar pushed up his glasses, which were as thick as bottle caps, and said, "Atlus does exist, but the evil demon appeared five hundred years ago, and only the 'Soul of Steel' church has records of it."

This information was what Thea told when he was chatting with people in the city-state of Belia. The later stories about the evil spirits came from the academic research of the late Pope of the city-state of Belia.

In fact, they are all real historical events.

Huo Liuli picked up the goblet, glanced out the window, and drank the red wine in the glass in one gulp.

"Keep reading."

……

——Act 2——

This is a cozy small town.

The opening announcement points out that the city was destroyed by war more than a hundred years ago.

The story comes to the eve of its destruction.

A burly warrior returned home and placed the bounty on the table.

His child was lying on the bed. The little girl looked pale and looked like she had not eaten a full meal for a long time.

A plague broke out in the city, and the outside world blocked the city's imports and exports. Only my father, who is a warrior, can go out of the city to do some deadly work and earn cheap bounties.

The warrior bowed his head.

This money was not enough for them to eat, because the plague was rampant and merchants outside raised prices to an unaffordable level. The rats in the city were worth more than humans.

"If this continues... people will eat each other."

The warrior murmured and saw his child's lips move.

"dad."

"Um……"

The girl opened her eyes and forced a smile.

"I had another dream... In the dream, you took me to the beach..."

"Ah."

The father touched the child's forehead, feeling the biting coldness in his big hands, and picked up the purse.

"I, I'll go get you some food."

"it is good."

The door closes.

The little girl was the only one left in the room.

She looked toward the window.

There was a boy sitting there.

"you are?"

"I?"

The boy was only twelve or thirteen years old, about the same age as the little girl.

"Don't worry about who I am. You're too sick to speak."

The girl shook her head.

"There's nothing we can do... The city is sealed off. The outbreak of the plague is too horrible."

The boy jumped off the windowsill, sat next to the girl, and asked with a smile: "I can help you solve it."

Girl: "Can my dad and I have enough to eat?"

Boy: “Is this what you wish for?”

Girl: "Yeah. If possible... I hope everyone in the village can have enough food."

Boy: "Then the contract takes effect."

The boy left and found the garrison outside the city. The city was blocked to stop the virus, but the plague would spread outward along with the monsters lurking in the city.

"Slaughter the village."

The boy appeared in the garrison's room and, with an innocent look, expressed his terrible thoughts to the soldiers who managed the place.

"Slaughter the village?"

"Kill everyone and the virus will stop."

The boy's answer was both brainless and rude.

"You can wear the clothes of soldiers from the enemy country, and then the problem will not be on your side."

The boy clapped his hands, and the military commander's mind was controlled by him.

In this way, the agreement between him and the girl would be fulfilled. If the girl, her father, and all the villagers died, they would not have to worry about starvation.

……

Huo Liuli pressed the pause button.

"I've seen this incident in a textbook."

She looked at the group of scholars behind her.

"One hundred and twenty-seven years ago, a plague of rat monsters broke out in the town of Melia, and then disappeared overnight."

A scholar solemnly told the story on the screen in front of the TV.

"The truth behind the massacre was to start a war..."

The cold history and the truth behind it seemed to slowly emerge on TV.

"Only one little girl survived in the village. Her father was a soldier and hid her in a cellar, so she survived by chance."

"But the girl was almost dead when she was found. She seemed to know that her father was dead. Before she died, she even asked others if a little boy her age had survived..."

"Regarding the report from the military district, someone did see a little boy coming in and out."

Those scholars used "unofficial history" to piece together the stories on the screen.

Huo Liuli bit her fingertips and her pupils trembled.

"And then... they all died?"

"All dead."

"Not a single one was left, and the plague in that village...was not resolved."

"Who is that little boy?"

"do not know."

Huo Liuli didn't understand why Li Nuo and the others wanted to shoot this thing. The actor who played the little boy was a follower of "Soul of Steel", and the rest were played by villagers from Cross Village. The scene was reconstructed by computer calculation, and the picture quality was very rough, but such a rough thing actually reflected past events that had happened in history.

She cancelled the pause button and continued watching TV.

The next part of the story should be the massacre of the whole village.

On the screen, next to the little girl's bed, stood a tall and thin man.

He has a pair of amber snake eyes, like a monster.

Phil picked up the rotten apple from the table, took a bite, chewed it and asked, "I've eaten your food. I can complete a commission for you. Tell me."

The girl was puzzled: "Big brother, what do you mean?"

Phil: "I'm a demon hunter, not some big brother."

Girl: "Well... nothing much, I just hope the plague will end soon."

"Okay." Phil stood up, pulled out his knife from his waist, and walked out of the house.

On that day, the army suddenly swung their butcher knives at the people, and a guy with amber snake eyes used a magic called [Seal of Axi] to restore the consciousness of these controlled guys.

On the same day, he killed the source of the plague, a magical beast that spread the curse.

By the way, kill those merchants who raise prices.

Various tomato juices were running around on the screen.

The whole story ended so abruptly in the crudely made scene.

His name is Phil.

A demon hunter.

A week later, Phil left the village and the girl, who had almost recovered, followed him out.

"Big brother...you, you're leaving?"

Phil waved his hand, said nothing, and didn't want to stay.

The girl shouted, "Where can I find you when I grow up!?"

All I heard was: "Soul of Steel!"

——End of Act II——

……

Huo Liuli and others outside the screen were silent.

"Keep watching..."

She wanted to see what kind of shit Li Nuo and the others were going to shoot.

……

——Act III——

More than a hundred years ago, the Obsidian Kingdom had a famous mercenary organization.

They disappeared during an operation. It was said that a tide of beasts appeared during that operation and the group of magical beasts trapped these people on the mountain.

Many people have died.

The corpses were piled up together. Most of them were killed by the fierce attacks of the monsters. Their bodies were torn into pieces. It was a pity that these guys didn't even have a grave in the end.

Bardock was their leader. At the moment, he was frustrated and didn't understand why the monsters appeared here and why those monsters attacked them.

His adjutant, a man named Fanny, sat opposite him and cried and told the truth.

"I saved a little devil not long ago, and he said he wanted to repay me."

"What brat?"

"It doesn't matter... I was just joking and telling him that we are a bunch of people who live on the edge of a knife and we just hope not to die in the enemy's firepower net."

Bardock suddenly grabs Fanny.

"Isn't that child only twelve or thirteen years old?"

"Yes, a boy." Fanny was a little flustered. He had never seen Bardock so excited.

"Damn it!" Bardock gritted his teeth and said, "That's a fucking demon!"

Then, Bardock told a story. When he was a child, he heard from his family that a little boy once appeared in his hometown.

The village chief at that time didn't like outsiders, so he gave the child a small sum of money and asked him to leave.

The boy asked the village chief, what is your wish?
The village chief said that his dog died recently and he wanted a loyal pet to guard his house.

That night, a man-eating dog appeared in the village chief's house. His family was reduced to nothing but bones after one night. The village chief went crazy, but the man-eating dog stayed by his side, as loyal as a knight.

Fanny: "The legend of the devil?"

"Yes..." Bardock said, "Later I heard that a little devil who called himself the 'Evil Lord' appeared in this world. People's description of him was very similar to the devil that the old people talked about in my memory."

At this point, Fanny was stunned, realizing that it was he who had talked nonsense to the devil and killed all his brothers.

"We...will be killed by the monsters, just because I communicated with the devil..."

Fanny drew his dagger and tried to slit his throat, but a large black hand seized the blade.

"Wells, don't stop me!"

The big black man named Wells crushed the blade of the dagger with great force, and blood flowed on his black skin, but because it was too dark, it was basically impossible to see the bleeding.

"I can communicate with those monsters."

Wells stood up, put on his sunglasses, and walked out of the cave.

"I will save you, even if it costs my life."

Half an hour passed.

Bardock decided that he could not sit there and wait for death, so he took his brothers out of the cave and prepared to support Wells.

Since we are brothers, let’s die together!

"Yo~man!"

Wells sat in the middle of the bushes and rapped in front of hundreds of monsters.

"Wells..."

Bardock, Fanny, and all the brothers who were still alive were dumbfounded.

Wells turned his head and explained, "Hey, brother, I am the son of the wizard of nature. Yo, so brother, I can communicate with monsters, man, they are all my brothers now. You damn brothers, come and meet my brothers!"

The monsters all lay down, meaning to greet Wells's brother. "No, no, no..." Bardock couldn't accept the scene in front of him. He looked at Wells and asked, "You... Why can you communicate with monsters?"

Wells: "Because I am a follower of the Soul of Steel!"

——End of Act III——

……

Huo Liuli turned around and asked: "Is this also a historical event?"

A scholar wearing a wig said, "There is indeed a mercenary named Bardock. I remember he was from the Blue Sea Country a hundred years ago..."

Someone continued, "They were the number one mercenary group in Blue Sea Country. Later, they died inexplicably and were swallowed up by a tide of beasts in the mountains. When they were dug out, their bones were not even complete."

Huo Liuli refilled the glass of wine and held the glass. The red wine looked like blood.

"So the story on the screen is true..."

"Fanni existed. He was the only mercenary who survived. He had gone mad." A scholar said, "That incident was later reported in a thick black theory gossip magazine. When Fanni met a little boy in a mental hospital, he went crazy and shouted 'Give me back my brother's life'. Well... I have also studied his symptoms."

"That little boy..." Huo Liuli paused: "Evil demon?"

Everyone does not speak.

What Li Nuo and his team filmed was very strange. It was reflecting what happened in history. The protagonist seemed to be a demon, but behind each theme was the Soul of Steel.

"Keep watching."

……

——Act 4——

The protagonist this time is Nanami.

The scenes are very simple, and it can be seen that they were shot anywhere in Cross Village, so more of the immersion is told by the narration.

She stood on the land covered with scorched smoke, looking at the ruined city walls and countless corpses, her eyes full of confusion.

"It was my fault……"

"It was my fault……"

"it's all my fault."

The war happened in a very strange way. The neighboring country was a big country, the Northern Empire, and she was just an ordinary village girl from the Obsidian Kingdom.

The great power in the north suddenly launched a war.

Many people died.

The missiles tore everyone's bodies apart, the mushroom cloud blocked the sun's rays, hearing seemed to disappear, and the world became silent.

There was no desire to live in the girl's eyes, as if a dead person was looking at the gray sky.

But it all started out pretty boring.

That day, the girl saw a handsome little boy in the forest.

The boy asked her for some water, and to thank her, he said, "I can grant you one wish."

The girl thought for a moment and said, "I don't need anything."

Boy: "So, it's all cleared?"

Until the day when the war broke out, the boy appeared in front of the girl again. He said proudly, "I just want to try conquering the world recently. Because of the contract with you, I plan to use the war between the two countries to see what the human race will become."

The girl didn't understand. She shook her head in fear: "I don't understand."

The boy showed her the artillery fire in the sky and said, "Clear everything. Isn't that what you need, my friend?"

Girl: “Why are you doing this…”

Boy: "Well, I learned a little while ago about a doctrine called the Soul of Steel, and it says that you can do whatever you want, so I'm going to give it a try."

Back to the present, the girl stood in the devastated city and took tired steps.

She wanted to find out the truth and take revenge, so she spent the rest of her life searching for the so-called "Soul of Steel".

She searched and searched but couldn't find it, so she finally decided to commit suicide.

On the day she jumped into the sea, at the moment of death, she suddenly heard a voice.

"You have found the 'Soul of Steel'."

——End of Act 4——

……

This time everyone was silent.

There is no need for communication this time.

About a hundred years ago, an inexplicable war between the Obsidian Kingdom and the Northern Empire became the fuse for the rise of evil.

The story of the movie is set against the backdrop of this war.

Two hundred and fifty thousand lives were wiped out that night.

Life is as thin as paper.

impermanence of life.

If what the movie says is true, then the evil was behind the war.

Huo Liuli realized that the evil demon that had been forgotten in history and now plunged the sky into darkness might be more terrifying and twisted than everyone imagined.

"Miss, are you still watching?"

one scholar asked her.

Huo Liuli pressed the switch.

"Keep watching."

……

——Act V——

In the library, a man wearing glasses sat on the sofa, drinking coffee elegantly.

"It's amazing."

The man's glasses reflect the words in the book, and the narration describes his elegance, as if this man enjoys the privilege of being a director.

"In the past hundred years, almost all the disasters on this continent are related to you."

"No, no, no...Sir, what you said is not accurate."

The boy stood in his room, his back to the light source, his entire body almost in darkness.

"Sir, when I came to this world, I didn't remember anything in my mind. It was a little robot that gave me a doctrine that reminded me that I was actually a demon."

The boy appeared behind the man with glasses, with an evil smile on his face.

"Sir, I remember that before I became a demon, I was also an adult, founded a mercenary organization, and even helped many people. But when I remembered that I was a demon later, I realized that what I did before was so boring. Now I am just returning to my original nature."

"Controlling other people's lives, is this your nature?"

"Life is nothing to you, sir."

"Oh, what do you mean?"

"You give birth as fast as rabbits. You don't care about time, place, or who you are with. You just mess around day and night. You should understand this fact. History tells you that the creatures who are best at slaughtering and getting women pregnant can stand at the top. And in terms of murder and sex, you humans are indeed experts. Why do you take life seriously?"

The man with glasses looked at the child, and no emotion could be read in the eyes of either of them.

"Is this the answer you get after existing for hundreds and thousands of years?"

"Rather, it's what I saw." The boy did not continue the topic, but said: "Okay, sir, I want to start a war and gain greater fear, so as to make the world colorful. Do you want to be my companion?"

This scene is a must-read story in the textbooks of this world, the Devil and the Scholar. Once upon a time, a scholar was invited by the devil to harm the world together. The devil promised him wealth and glory, but the scholar was unmoved.

The scholar was cursed with a malicious curse, and as a punishment he would never be able to see anything other than books with his eyes.

But the person playing the scholar on the screen at this time is called Soren Lee.

Few people know that he was one of the four founders of the "Soul of Steel" doctrine.

Soran closed the book and placed it on the table.

"Even if I reject you, you can't do me any harm."

"Sir, you are too confident."

"Do not."

Soran took off his glasses, his eyes firm.

"Because I believe in 'Soul of Steel'."

——End of Act V——

……

——Act 6——

The scene returns to the prologue.

Nanami took off her hood and faced Atrus.

"We are looking for ways to solve the problem. We are always looking for ways to defeat the evil."

Atreus saw three people walking out behind Nanami. They were the demon hunter Phil, the son of the nature wizard Wells, and the scholar Soren Lee.

The narrator describes that these people chose to save the world because of their belief in the Steel Soul.

Atlu: “…”

Note: In the game, Atreus basically knows how to say "...", and this feature was retained by Li Nuo and others in the movie.

"Atlus Christine, an adventurer active on the stage of history. It is the will of the Steel Soul that tells us that we need you this time."

"..."

"Our opponent is a high-dimensional demon. We need the power of faith of the Gemini goddesses and your bravery. The evil demon has activated the [Black Pearl] and is ready to destroy the world. The only ones who can destroy the [Black Pearl] are you and the Gemini goddesses of the ancient country of Ys."

Nanami stretched out her hand and smiled with dimples.

"Join us and save the world once again."

Atlus shook his head, meaning that we alone are not enough and the opponent is too strong.

At this moment, the boy and girl sitting on the roof turned their heads.

Nanami suddenly frowned.

"This person is..."

Li Nuo was the young man, and he looked at everyone in confusion.

"I'm……"

Soran suddenly understood something: "In the 'Soul of Steel' doctrine, there is a demon hunter mentioned. He is God's enemy. But when God wants to save the world, His enemy will temporarily help as a friend. That demon hunter has a strange elemental power."

Phil nodded: "Yes, I am one of God's enemies. He has my shadow."

Phil thought acting was really fun and he acted very seriously.

Li Nuo immediately threw out Cang Huo.

"I, there is a blue flame on my body, am I really a demon hunter?"

Li Nuo added some words to himself temporarily.

"God told me that I am actually a warrior of light. So that's it. I am a warrior of light."

This scene was NGed dozens of times. Li Nuo had to reveal that he was a warrior of light, otherwise he would always make trouble.

Cha Bai was stunned for a moment, then immediately remembered his lines.

"So you are, you, you are the Warrior of Light!"

When the black man Wales saw Chabai with white hair and snow-white skin, his eyes lit up.

"Hey, such a white girl, are you the legendary 'white-haired witch'?"

Cha Bai pointed at himself and put on a clumsy expression of "I see".

Nanami is an idol who has acted before. Chabai stays with Li Nuo and Maljie all day long, but she still can't act. She just doesn't have that talent.

"Yes, really? I am the White-haired Witch."

Narrator: Just like that, several people blessed by the "Soul of Steel" are ready to end the suffering brought by the evil demons. Standing behind them are the twin goddesses, the followers of the Soul of Steel, and the craftsmen who were forgotten near the Tower of Dam...

——End of Act 6——

……

The RV where Huo Liuli was was eerily quiet.

After a moment, she asked the scholars behind her: "What do you think?"

"It was quite reliable in the beginning, but how come it became..." in the sixth act?

“It’s become like a stage play.”

"Yes, a stage play!"

"But it feels so strange to turn a stage play into a movie."

Huo Liuli also felt something was wrong, so she called Li Nuo again, and this time the call went through.

There was a lot of noise over there on Li Nuo's side.

"Friends, what did you end up photographing?"

"Wait a minute." Li Nuo shouted anxiously: "Die! Why is there only meat in Soran's meal?!"

After a while, Li Nuo answered the phone.

He asked, "Have you seen all the previous ones?"

Huo Liuli: "Well, I've seen it. It's something that has happened in history. You added your own characters into it and rewrote the tragedy created by the evil demons. Is that what you mean? But I still want to ask, what's going on with Soul of Steel? Is this a stage play or a damn church propaganda advertisement? You guys went to Belia City-State and all converted to religion? Come on, my friend, that church..."

Li Nuo: "WWE is actually about two opposing sides. The devil is one side, so the one that can oppose the devil must be something with a lot of gimmicks."

Huo Liuli's eyes widened, she understood!
"The clash of the two most terrifying things is very interesting... full of gimmicks... this is what you call a stage play."

"The fun has just begun, my lady."

Huo Liuli frowned slightly, she got out of the car immediately and stopped in an empty corner.

"A good show?"

Li Nuo licked his lips and smiled happily.

"WWE cannot do without fighting. What you just saw was just a plot setup. It was crudely made and could be further processed. But what follows will be different. It will all be a very exciting visual feast."

"You...wait a minute, I thought you were going to wait for the army to arrive before joining in and taking action!"

"That's too late."

Over the past two days, through interpreting historical documents and other materials, Li Nuo has become increasingly aware that the awakening of evil spirits is inextricably linked to the teachings of the "Mechanical Cult."

The sixteenth article of the Steel Soul Doctrine is blank. Li Nuo and his team left it blank in order to create suspense.

If we were to fill in the sixteenth point now, it should be: You must find a way to clean up the mess you have made, no matter whether it was intentional or not.

Now tens of thousands of believers have taken their positions nearby.

The players are reciting their scripts.

The Tower of Dam is not far away.

"Our god is ready to take action."

Li Nuo glanced at Maljie who was sleeping on the ground.

Huo Liuli: "God? Take action? How? What are you going to do? No, what is the Church of Steel Soul going to do!?"

In front of Li Nuo was a tablet computer connected to Tanggula Mountain, and Brother Ting on the screen was preparing for his part at any time.

"Anyway, just wait and see the final film."

Li Nuo hung up the call with Huo Liuli.

"Brother Ting."

"Ah."

"Nuclear bombs can be used at any time, right?"

"can."

(End of this chapter)