Witch, Fireball and Steam Evil God

Chapter 316 A Simple Idea
As the last fragment of memory turned into specks of light and dissipated into the air, the adventure book in Ethan's hand burst into flames.

The flames, devoid of heat, did not burn the skin; they merely burned the entire adventure book, which contained the crimson memories, to ashes, bit by bit. The ashes fell to the ground, forming crimson lotuses everywhere. The remaining energy revitalized the divine tree, and the parts assimilated by the machinery receded at a visible rate.

Argos did not continue its invasion of the world, but calmed down and patiently waited for Ethan's response.

Strictly speaking, this was their first meeting, but it felt as if they had known each other for a long time.

trust.

The word "Crimson" came to Argos's mind. It was a ridiculous word for an Old God who was above all things, but when Ethan solemnly told him that Crimson was dead, he truly believed it.

Unlike those ancient people, Ethan was the only one who would never deceive himself.

This thought was stamped into Argos's consciousness like a steel stamp. He was grateful to have met Ethan here, and even the thousands of years of imprisonment had become meaningful.

He believed that Ethan would find the truth, just as he had always done.

Huh?
Why did He have such an idea?
Argos looked down at Ethan, who stood amidst the ruins of the treehouse, bewildered by the sudden surge of thoughts within him.

For Ethan, the almost explicit clues in the Crimson Adventure Book helped him unravel the complex interpersonal relationships.

The goddess refers to the future Winter. Merlin's words to Crimson at the guild headquarters revealed her true identity—the daughter of the "boss." Although the boss's name is still unknown, all the clues so far indicate that he possesses immense power and can easily make someone disappear without a trace.

This also explains why Winter became a goddess.

These disordered planes were formed by her chaotic consciousness after she became a vegetable. This explains why the investigator could be in a Victorian-style city one moment and then suddenly find himself on a dead star with only oceans and no life, or a terrifying planet full of indescribable creatures the next.

Ethan grasped these concepts with ease, as if...

At some point, without his knowledge, he had already discussed it many times with others.

After reading Crimson's adventure log, a lot of information that even the guild did not know came to mind—such as the origin of the "abnormal plane".

They had met with Winter's attending physician because the project team firmly believed that the stability and danger of this world were all related to Winter's mental state.

"Being in a vegetative state does not mean being completely unconscious; her brain is still active, active in some place we do not know."

Ethan could even hear the attending physician's diagnosis echoing in his ears. The middle-aged man with a mustache was optimistic about the treatment. He seemed very interested in the research that the project team was conducting. In his words, the human brain is the most sophisticated instrument in the world, and humans have only developed and understood less than one ten-thousandth of it.

And now, a group of people are trying to open this Pandora's box.

"Anomalous planes" represent Winter's mental state, and the increasing number of "Death Star" and "unsafe" areas proves that her mental state is deteriorating.

The attending physician believes this may be because her subconscious warning mechanism has detected these outsiders, and she does not like a group of strangers entering her inner world.

"It's time to make a decision, old man."

Ethan heard this urging in his ears.

These are no longer fragments of Scarlet's memories, but his.

The location was still the research institute he had seen deep in the lakeside of Mistywood County, but the personnel structure had become much more reasonable. The relaxed and leisurely work atmosphere had disappeared, replaced by people in white coats surrounding him. Their faces were indistinct, but Ethan could feel that everyone's eyes were focused on him.

Everyone was waiting for his answer, because he had met with Winter's attending physician and learned about Winter's mental state from him, and also because he was the one who ultimately made the decision.

Winter's subconscious warning mechanisms are making the project's work increasingly difficult. Too many unexpected things have happened in the past few weeks—a scene engineer was attacked by an ice mammoth while building the city's framework. No one can explain why a creature that went extinct in ancient times would suddenly appear in the city and try to pierce the project's body with its tusks.

If he hadn't cut the link in time, he might have met with disaster.

Two colleagues from the historical documents project team were not so lucky. As they finished their work and walked out of the library, they were hit by a speeding train and thrown more than ten meters away. This time, they never "came back to life." After their deaths, they fell into a coma similar to that of Winter.

Winter's subconscious is retaliating against them.

Furthermore, the attending physician dared to assert that such attacks would become increasingly frequent in the future, and the resulting disasters would become increasingly difficult to avoid.

Winter is a bright girl, and she's rapidly learning to control her subconscious. If no action is taken soon, everyone on the project team will be in danger, unless...

An idea began to form in Ethan's mind.

Unless, they plant an idea in Winter's mind.

They recruited her, making her believe she was one of them, a designer on the project team with a complete and detailed identity. For experienced designers, creating a fictional character and making her seem like she actually existed is a piece of cake.

No longer a "god" who controls the subconscious world, but a human being with flesh and blood.

But the key question is, who should instill this idea in Winter?
This person must have enough courage and experience to cope with all sorts of unexpected changes and find the location of winter in this chaotic plane before being hit by a train that suddenly appears.

...This seems like an impossible task.

So the project team members looked at each other in bewilderment.

That person must be the one who understands Winter the most. All the “abnormal planes” are projections of Winter’s spirit. Only by having a thorough understanding of her mental state can one turn danger into safety from subconscious attacks. Moreover, that person must have a boundless imagination and a silver tongue.

The concept of implanting an idea sounds simple, but it is essentially a lie.

A colossal lie, so convincing as to be mistaken for the truth.

Then, everyone's eyes turned to him.

If we absolutely had to say who could accomplish this impossible task...

This is not a question, and Ethan doesn't need to look for the answer in a question, because in the fragments of Scarlet's memory, Merlin has already revealed the answer—that person succeeded. There was another person, or a group of people, who came here before them and successfully met the master of the subconscious world, implanting an idea in her mind.

However, even Merlin, who was an employee of the company, did not know the person's exact identity.

At that moment, Ethan heard that old question again.

Master, what do you do for a living?

On his journey to Sivarantin to confront the King of Gold, Ethan realized that he seemed to be missing a crucial part of his memory, and he asked himself this question. Now, it seems that the answer has finally been found.

The concepts of time and space become blurred at this moment.

The world before his eyes distorted, as if his consciousness had briefly drifted elsewhere.

He returned to his familiar office, no longer surrounded by people in white coats. Instead, he was greeted by a black-haired career woman with long, straight hair, holding a bubble tea. She had just bought the bubble tea from across the street, and her desk was covered with a recently completed design draft. She seemed unusually nervous and could only mask her anxiety by constantly sucking on the straw.

And what about him?
He was sitting at the table, reviewing the contents of the design draft.

"This is a world system modeled after the Victorian era, blending steampunk and supernatural elements. I have designed corresponding gods for each path... 'Old Gods,' what do you think of this name? Doesn't it have a Cthulhu feel to it?" Father, Balzatos.

Ethan spotted a familiar name on the design draft, and on the right side of the densely packed design documents was an image of Bazatos—of course, unlike the mysterious female artist with nine eyes and wearing a fleshy skirt that they later met, this old Bazatos looked more…fundamentalist.

Yes, they are designing a game.

Once this game is successfully released, it will bring revolutionary changes to the entire world.

That would mean that the concept of virtual reality has become a reality. Here, there is no research involving the brain, no girl who has fallen into a coma due to an accident, and the work atmosphere is quite relaxed. During lunch break every day, you can go across the street to buy a cup of milk tea. If you work overtime late, there are barbecue restaurants and ramen shops on the commercial street near the company. People push carts in the night market, and you can smell the aroma of barbecue and fried rice from a distance...

Their biggest enemy is a boss nicknamed "Baldy" who might reject their designs.

This is a minor annoyance that every adult encounters; it's nothing serious, and you can forget about it after a good night's sleep.

Why the Victorian era?

Ethan asked.

"...personal hobby".

The female colleague with long, straight black hair seemed somewhat uncertain in her answer, and asked nervously, "What do you think?"

"I feel good."

"Really?"

She smiled and said, "Then I'll submit it. If the bald guy approves it, I'll treat you to barbecue tonight to celebrate!"

"Aren't you going to have barbecue without me? That's interesting."

A plaintive voice came from behind the desk.

……

"Ethan, Ethan!"

The soft, fleshy pads pressed against his face, pulling him back to reality.

He met a pair of big, red eyes. The petite white ragdoll cat tilted its head, looking at him with suspicion.

"What are you thinking?"

The cat asked him.

"I'm thinking about having barbecue tonight."

Ethan blurted it out, and a strong sense of unreality surged through him in an instant, followed by an irresistible impulse. He followed his inner calling and hugged the white ragdoll cat tightly in his arms. The cat was startled by his sudden action and subconsciously let out a "meow".

The soft texture is real, and there's a fruity aroma lingering on the nose.

Everything was so familiar.

Immediately afterwards, Ethan saw the cat lower its head for the first time, shyly burying its face in his arms—since their relationship progressed further, Winter had adopted a proactive tactic and had almost never shown such a shy expression again.

....................................

Meanwhile, Zhuang Xiao's emotions gradually stabilized.

She and Merlin walked through the ruined streets.

"We can't stay up there for too long."

Merlin reminded her.

Just now, she remembered something about the con artist Zhuang Xiao. She wasn't a character she made up on a whim; you could find her birth certificate in the shelter. She was born in 2047—before their world was destroyed. She was also among the first members to enter the shelter. She had an apartment in Section C of the shelter. The apocalypse never made her change; instead, it made her even more ruthless.

Scammer Zhuang Xiao has a bad reputation in District C. The elderly people there always whisper about her and tell their grandchildren to stay away from her.

The identities of the Gold King tomb raiders can naturally be traced, and even the people in the shelter believe they are real.

But Zhuang Xiao still had many questions in her mind, "Why go to such lengths?"

She felt that she might not have recovered from the aftereffects yet; she had stayed in the treehouse for too long, and her thinking had been assimilated by the other side.

Upon hearing this, Merlin smiled.

"Because implanting an idea is so difficult. Colonel Zhuang Xiao, what kind of lie do you think can be so convincing as to be indistinguishable from the truth?"

Zhuang Xiao lowered her head, lost in thought; at this moment, she was still somewhat dazed.

Merlin paused for a moment and said, "That means even the liar himself believed it... This matter concerns our future, and we cannot afford to make any mistakes."

She genuinely believed it, which is why her brain remained in a state of malfunction.

When the iron gate was opened, Zhuang Xiao felt as if her entire understanding had collapsed, just like the world on the ground. All the knowledge and beliefs she had built up over the past thousand years had turned into a dream.

This has led to many new problems. At this moment, what troubles her the most is the "destined person" who has come before her.

The former project leader, a pioneer who entered that world earlier than them, successfully planted an idea in the goddess's mind.

Zhuang Xiaoben firmly believed this.

Who exactly is that person?

"Which person?"

"Ethan."

"do not know."

Having received a reply, Zhuang Xiao stopped and stood there, stunned.

"Colonel Zhuang Xiao, it doesn't matter, it has never mattered."

Merlin continued walking in the direction he had come from. As he walked further and further away, his voice became increasingly erratic, "The important thing is that he will become one of us, one of our comrades."

(End of this chapter)