As a player, can you be normal?

Chapter 768 The Player's Niche
Let's summarize the whole incident.

The most troublesome thing isn't the ancient god, but how Qiu Mi and the others ended up on the train by such a coincidence.

There was only one answer Li Nuo could think of.

The player who was above level 99 used the other guys in the corridor to attack him.

And then, by sheer coincidence, they encountered the ancient god "Amidala," which can only mean that there's a powerful force behind it all. Well, the answer is now clear.

The mastermind behind the scenes in the script tampered with it.

In other words, there are two beings who can control the direction of the story. Adding Lino in 1888, that makes three. If we also include the missing Soren, there are a total of four people controlling the direction of the script.

Question: What would be the outcome if four men were fighting over one woman?
A: They killed the woman, and in the end, the four men were together.

In layman's terms: Four manipulators have turned the story into a complete mess, ultimately leading to utter chaos and a life-or-death struggle between the four.

Li Nuo didn't want things to turn out this way. He decided to withdraw from the competition, so he shouted into the carriage, "I'm a good person!"

The courtroom on January 2, 1888.

When Sister Hei and the others heard him call himself a good person, they were all numb.

Xiao Wu narrated the story the whole time, while Li Nuo listened in. If Xiao Wu said anything she shouldn't have, he would interrupt her.

Such as now.

Xiao Wu almost revealed the story of the three thousand blood gems.

Blood gemstones, regardless of their actual value, still hold the title of "gemstone." Three thousand is a huge number, and we mustn't let others know.

So you just slapped me?

Xiao Wu covered her face, puzzled.

Li Nuo was pouring water for Sister Hei when he turned around and threw the thermos at Xiao Wu's face.

"My hand still hurts!"

"I beat you to death!"

If Lenny hadn't run to the middle to set a screen, the two would have really gotten into a fight.

Okay, break time is over.

Let's go back to November 21, 1887.

While Li Nuo was tidying up the blood gems in the carriage, the Cairo Star staff, who could maintain their composure at any time thanks to the [Mouth Substitute], finally spoke in a serious tone.

When will you be back?

We accidentally released the "Emperor of Fiery Destruction"! Help...

God knows what those little guys did.

Li Nuo sighed.

"Tell me about this mission."

Instead of trying to figure it out yourself, you might as well just copy the answer.

Then wait a moment.

We lack the necessary permissions to see the truth; that bastard "World Tree" is acting as a firewall.

[Hmm... there's some news that I can see.]

[Amidala is the embodiment of the Blood Gem, residing within this train. It must be destroyed to restore stability to the train. Ordinary methods won't work; its true form is far away, so we must attack using methods similar to its own.]

Similar to Amidala's methods, those are the methods of the ancient gods.

Li Nuo couldn't help but cover his mouth, afraid he would laugh out loud. Three thousand shots of [Crimson Particle Torrent] were so cruel.

Xiao Wu created a clone and played rock-paper-scissors with the original. The loser went to the front of the car to open the door. The original lost, so Xiao Wu recalled the clone and created another clone, continuing until she won the game.

The clone ran to the front of the car. There was an entrance to another dimension at the connection between the front of the car and the carriage. At first, they thought it was something created by the "immortal" players, but now they realized that it was a safe house that the ancient god had made for himself. Puppets who were bewitched by the ancient god could enter, but people who could not be changed generally could not enter.

But Mai has two aspects: she is a modified warrior in the world of Claymore, and she is also a father.

If it's impossible to determine whether it's a person or feces, it can usually only be classified as a "product outside the rules".

She opened the front door of the car, threw her head inside while leaving her body outside. In this way, she essentially occupied both the interior and exterior, creating a bug that caused Amidala's alternate dimension to cease to exist.

After completing all the above operations, the headless Xiao Wu gave Li Nuo an "OK" sign.

Li Nuo waved his hand, signaling Xiao Wu to move aside and fully expose the main entrance so he could aim more easily.

This kind of operation is basic for them.

But Qiu Mi was dumbfounded.

"How are your heads shaped?"

He uttered a question that resonated deep within his soul.

"Given by my parents."

As Li Nuo answered, he crushed the first [Blood Gem]. A red laser beam burst out from the fragment, shot into the front of the opposite car, and slammed directly into the walnut-shaped camouflage of "Amidala".

But then a voice cried out, "Ah—!"

The entire carriage suddenly deformed, and the space expanded.

A face pressed against the roof of the car as someone slowly squeezed into the vehicle.

The ancient god "Amidala" has appeared.

The 【Emil's Mask】pop-up panel.

[Sub-deity, Amidala]

Danger Level: B~S-

【Attribute: Normal】

[Abilities: Grab (throwing technique, grabbing the target and trapping them in an illusion), Scream of the Compound Eye (the eye in the brain releases a large amount of light), Ground Slam (destroying the environment, each attack alters the state of the environment)]

Also known as the Weak Gods of Earth, they rule the Dreamlands, but are not as powerful as the Great Old Ones, and their intelligence is even inferior to that of most humans.

The prototype of Amydala comes from H.P. Lovecraft's "Whispers of the Night".

As the train's interior continued to expand, its enormous form appeared before the group.

It has many slender arms, rough and dark skin all over its body, and a complex ellipsoid on its head, covered with a large number of short tentacles. Inside its skull are countless eyes.

[Side quest triggered: Defeat Amidala]

[Task Difficulty: lv99]

[Quest Reward: Amidala's Core]

[Task Details: Three in total]

There was more than one Amidara here; three had merged together. Its face was like a blooming walnut, and nearly twenty arms clung to the air, as if holding onto something to keep itself suspended. Its enormous body was like a small mountain, and its shadow pressed down on everyone.

Qiu Mi couldn't help but kneel on the ground. The moment he saw Amida, he became thin, his cheeks sunken, and his beard covered his jaw. In just a few seconds, he turned into an old man.

An unknown fear compelled Qiu Mi to submit.

But Li Nuo and Xiao Wu were not affected in the slightest.

This has nothing to do with curse resistance.

There is an implicit rule in Bloodborne that no one knows about, not even the system will tell you.

Cognition determines difficulty.

If you regard the ancient gods as true gods, you are a subordinate. If you have other beliefs or understandings that surpass your understanding of the ancient gods, then the ancient gods are nothing more than extraterrestrial demons.

In the world of Elden Ring, the laws of the stars block them.

The flames of Dark Souls prevent them from casting malice upon the world.

The world of Bloodborne was originally their stage, but the technology brought by Bulma turned the Old Gods into a "biological phenomenon".

For Xiaowu, she had seen the Elder Dragon from Monster Hunter, and those gods who could control the ecology were already imprinted in her memory. In Insignia, she fought against the Hand of God, and the seeds of malice were something she could cut off long ago. In the world of Claymore, she saw the Emperor Anmi, whose power was enough to turn the world upside down.

She has seen far too many bizarre and outlandish things.

Just as Xiao Wu said, she had no reason to fear the so-called ancient gods.

For Li Nuo, his lifelong faith was his love for Cha Bai, which was loyalty to the goddess of nature. The only god he believed in was his partner, and he stood shoulder to shoulder with the mechanical evil god.

Although the two were under the shadow of the ancient gods, their figures had long surpassed the height of the world. The stage for players was not the demons and monsters in front of them, but the mind that could maintain its original heart after seeing the vast world.

Therefore, they are not affected by the ancient gods.

Xiao Wu handed Li Nuo the blood gem, and Li Nuo began to knead it.

The spectrum of the Crimson Particle Torrent illuminated the train, and countless red beams bombarded Amidala. The Blood Gem shattered on the ground, and the beams pierced Amidala before finally breaking through the train.

Finally, the train derailed on the tracks.

Amida turned to dust in the crimson light.

Since He is a minor god, there is no need to seal Him in a capsule, which saves trouble.

The train derailed and overturned in the mountains.

The darkness in the distance recedes, and the winter dawn rises.

Li Nuo and Xiao Wu sat side by side on the grass, leaning against the overturned train, their faces covered in dust. "In the end, the most dangerous thing was the derailment..."

The little dancer was numb.

Li Nuoren is even more numb.

"Xiao Wu, do you still remember how many blood gems I made?"

"About a hundred or so."

"Well, my hand speed is fast enough..."

"As expected of the Witcher's pile driver."

"Don't be ridiculous."

[Side quest triggered: Defeat Amidala]

[Quest Reward: Amidala's Core]

Task settlement.

Three walnuts fell out of the panel, one for Li Nuo, one for Xiao Wu, and one for Qiu Mi.

Li Nuo tossed the walnuts around, feeling that besides playing with them, they might be useful for making an interesting decoction.

At this moment, Qiu Mi came over from not far away, and his complexion had returned to normal.

"It's incredible that he survived."

Qiu Mi stood in front of Li Nuo and extended his hand.

"The next time we meet, we might be enemies, but I will try my best to keep my teammates in check and not cause you any trouble."

"Teammates?"

"Ah."

Li Nuo seemed to understand something, stood up, and grasped Qiu Mi's hand.

"Thank you, [Residual Blood]."

No sooner had Qiu Mi finished speaking than Li Nuo thrust out with his right hand, piercing Qiu Mi's face, his fingers emerging from the back of his head, drawing out thick blood.

[One player killed]

Experience points gained: 12000

[Time remaining until next upgrade: 693000/700000]

Xiao Wu watched this scene listlessly.

"The poor [Reincarnator] has become upgrade material."

Qiu Mi collapsed to the ground.

The wounds on his face were imbued with azure fire, and his soul was scorched.

Li Nuo sat back down next to Xiao Wu.

"It's not an upgrade material."

As soon as he finished speaking, a panel popped up in front of the two of them.

[The Nightmare Has Been Killed]

"He just said he would try his best to get his teammates to stop, which means he is still in a dream, the dream of the 'Reincarnator.' If it isn't resolved, it will be an eternal cycle."

Li Nuo's explanation was brief and to the point; he didn't want to delve into the details, as long as the goal was achieved.

[Break the Nightmare: Reward 10000 Experience Points]

[Upgraded: lv98→lv99]

[7000/800000 points away from max level]

Xiao Wu stood up, dusted off her bottom, and stretched in the sunlight.

"What's next? The train has derailed, so Cainhurst won't be able to go, right?"

Li Nuo looked into the distance.

A familiar figure emerged from the woods.

"Amuro?"

Amuro, who came from "The End", ran over to Li Nuo as if he had seen an old friend from many years ago.

"Mr. Li Nuo! You've come to save 'Cain Hearst'!?"

As Amuro slowly approached, Li Nuo stood up, his expression blank.

"Xiao Wu..."

"what?"

"Run...run!"

He grabbed Xiao Wu's ponytail and ran, accidentally pulling off her head. Xiao Wu could only run after Li Nuo.

At dawn.

A man, facing the sunlight, chases after a headless woman and a man holding the woman's head.

……

A dreamlike place in a certain region.

In the "Death Corridor," the player "Lennon," who is above level 99, is sitting atop a bunch of mutated creatures.

The following content appeared in his notebook:
—"Qiu Mi and his group tried to escape the overall narrative, but unfortunately, Bolie among them saw the [Inner Eye]."

—"Although Pore tried to pretend he didn't see it, the Inner Eye had already seen him. An unexpected event occurred, and the group was taken away by the Inner Eye."

"Where they were taken is not important... What is important is that in their new region, they were corrupted by the ancient gods and fell into a madness from which they could not extricate themselves."

—"They will be trapped in the cycle of reincarnation forever."

—"On the train to Cainhurst."

The above is the outline set by Lennon.

The information about Li Nuo and the others going to Cain Hearst comes from a one-time location tracking device.

But what followed still exceeded his expectations.

"Unfortunately, the person who got on the bus was the 'Warrior of Light'."

—"The Warrior of Light who has deciphered fate, who has restrained fate, has thus cracked the code of reincarnation."

Lennon fell silent.

"The Warrior of Light... Has that guy really gotten this outrageous?"

So Lennon opened his skull, took out his brain, and put it to his mouth.

"Hey, this is too difficult. We can't handle him. You guys figure it out yourselves."

The sound traveled to somewhere in the real world.

A trading city by the sea.

In the bustling city, on the magnificent observation deck, "Urashima Taro" from the "Corridor of Death" received a voice message.

"Received. Then please go and bother the other players in the corridor."

Urashima Taro turned around and looked into the house behind him.

“Mr. Fenrir, we tried one last time, but that guy just wouldn’t budge.”

"Ok, I see."

The city's lord, Fenrir, raised his teacup as a gesture of respect.

"Then let him come to the Great Maze."

Urashima Taro paused for a moment. Behind him, on a city building, was a promotional poster for the "Great Maze Challenge".

"You mean that competition in the Sumeru Maze?"

"Yes, it was originally prepared as a welcome gift for you players."

Fenrir took a sip of tea, and the scalding hot tea made him fall over, with the chair landing on top of him.

"Damn it... I forgot I'm a cat-tongued person... Oh, right, Mr. Urashima Taro, I'd also appreciate it if your fellow traveler friends from another world could participate. It's a competition that can get you to the 'Golden Tree,' I bet you worm-like creatures will swarm there like you're seeing fruit, won't you?"

Urashima Taro stuck his tongue out at him.

"Never!"

Fenrir opened its mouth, snapped its teeth shut, and bit down on Urashima Taro's head from a distance.

Urashima's headless body fell to the ground.

Fenrir picked up a tissue from the table to wipe his mouth, chewing with bulging cheeks, blood still dripping from his beard.

"That's not up to you."

(End of this chapter)