As a weirdo, I like being a Kamen Rider

"Help?" Lin Chen chuckled, then shook his head. "No. From now on, what I said before doesn't count. We will become rivals."

"What?!" Kouta Kazuha was shocked and subconsciously took a half step back. "Could it be... Lin Chen-san, are you also going to destroy this world like in that fake world?"

Seeing his tense expression, Lin Chen's temple throbbed slightly, and he frowned, saying, "Why are you bringing that up again? You idiot, when did I ever say that?"

He took a deep breath, his gaze sweeping over the two of them, his voice low and menacing: "Now I'll tell you a secret. If you want to save this world, there's a very simple way. In the Helheim Forest, a unique fruit has already been born."

"Once you obtain that fruit, you will gain power equal to, no, far surpassing, that of those overlords and alien beings. Those overlords only possess basic authority over this forest. But to obtain that power…"

He paused, then said, "You will be able to control the entire forest, or even the world, at will."

The curtain is about to rise in Chapter 268.

"What kind of fruit is that?"

Kouta Kazuha was the first to step forward, his eyes burning with urgency. If even the power that those overlords could wield could be obtained by humanity, did that mean there truly existed a way to save the world without sacrificing anyone?

Although Kaito didn't speak, he had already lowered his hand from the Sengoku Driver and was staring coldly at Lin Chen, clearly waiting for an answer. His intuition told him that the information this man possessed was far more valuable than the shrouded research data of the World Tree Foundation.

Lin Chen leaned against the damp rock wall, arms crossed: "That's the forbidden golden fruit from the Bible."

"Golden...fruit?" Kouta Kuzuha was taken aback.

"The supreme power nurtured by the Helheim Forest is also the ultimate prize of this trial of civilization." Lin Chen raised his eyes, his gaze sweeping over the two shocked faces. "Those who consume it will gain the power to transcend life and death, to dominate the entire forest, and even to reshape the world."

A brief silence fell over the cave, broken only by the soft sound of water droplets falling from the ceiling.

The one with the rune mark was the first to react, his eyes sharpening: "Such an important thing...where is it?"

Lin Chen's lips curled slightly upwards, revealing a meaningful arc, and he slowly uttered a few words:

"Now, it is in the hands of Bai Ya, the king of the alien overlords."

Kouta Kazuha noticed another question and asked, "What is the Civilization Trial?"

His voice echoed through the cave, trembling almost imperceptibly. He vaguely sensed that he was about to touch upon a truth far greater than that of the "Outsiders."

Lin Chen glanced at him: "The Helheim Forest erodes various worlds not for destruction, but for selection. When a civilization is corrupted by the forest, the trial begins. All the struggles and deaths of humans and otherworldly beings are merely nourishment for this selection. Ultimately, the Golden Fruit will choose two individuals—the Man of the Beginning and the Daughter of the Beginning—granting them the power to reshape the world. As for those who are not chosen..."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the glowing moss deep within the cave, his voice turning colder: "Seeing those aliens, can't you guess what their fate will be?"

"What a joke..." Kouta Kazuha's face turned pale, his fists clenched tightly. "Are you saying that all of us... the people of Zeya City, everyone in the dance troupe, are just expendable materials used as 'trials' by this ghost forest?"

"That's one way to understand it."

Kaito listened in silence, his eyes growing increasingly sinister. He suddenly spoke, his voice low and cold: "The World Tree Foundation...do they know? Did Kureshima Takatora and his group already know all this, yet still use us to collect data?"

“What they know is just the tip of the iceberg.” Lin Chen straightened up, as if he had thought of something. “Especially Wu Dao Guihu, his situation is not good!”

"Then why are you telling us this? If you also want the Golden Fruit, then we're enemies now. What benefit do you get from sharing this information with your rival?" Kaito asked.

Lin Chen didn't answer directly, but turned and walked out of the cave: "Who knows..."

World Tree Foundation, Research Lab.

Zhanji Lingma stared at the constantly scrolling data stream on the screen, his eyes behind his glasses narrowing slightly. The household registration system had no record of him, and although his financial account regularly received huge sums of money, there were never any expenditure records—no spending, no transfers, and even the bank's surveillance cameras couldn't capture his presence.

“A ghost…” Sid leaned against the wall, fiddling with the lock-seed in his hand.

Minato Yoko, clutching the folder, frowned deeply: "We've been tracking this for three months, and all the clues point to him not existing. Who exactly is he?"

As soon as the words were spoken, the speakers in the corner of the research room suddenly turned on automatically, and loud electronic music blasted into the enclosed space. The three of them turned around abruptly and saw that DJ Sagara had somehow gotten into a swivel chair, wearing headphones and tapping out a beat with a relaxed expression.

"Hey everyone." He took off his headphones, revealing his signature grin. "You've been looking for me so hard, is something urgent?"

Ling Ma pushed up his glasses expressionlessly, his voice calm yet sharp: "Who exactly are you?"

“Me?” Sagara opened his arms, his tone as relaxed as if he were hosting a late-night radio show. “Just an observer. Watching this trial, watching you all, watching everything… an observer.”

"Stop playing tricks." Sid stepped forward, his hand already on the driver.

Xiang Le, however, didn't care at all. Instead, he looked at Ling Ma with great interest: "Zhanji Ling Ma, a genius scientist, the core of the World Tree. You went to great lengths to investigate me, not just to satisfy your curiosity, right? How about we make a deal? You're the one I can't figure out the most among you. Tell me your true purpose, and I'll answer your questions."

The lab fell silent for a moment.

Lingma stared into Xiang Le's eyes and suddenly laughed. That laugh held no warmth, only naked ambition: "I want to find the 'Forbidden Fruit' in the Helheim Forest that can rule the world. Humanity is too insignificant; only by obtaining that power can we break this absurd trial and become the master of the new world."

“Oh?” Sagara raised an eyebrow, then his smile faded, and he nodded seriously. “Not bad ambition. In exchange, I’ll tell you that the forbidden fruit does indeed exist in this forest, and it is currently… in the hands of those overlord aliens.”

“The overlord of the alien realm…” Yaozi repeated in a low voice.

“However,” Sagara held up a finger, his tone becoming meaningful, “a variable has appeared in this trial. An outcast has entered the stage; he does not belong to this world and is not bound by any rules. His appearance will determine the final outcome of the Golden Fruit.”

Ling Ma's pupils contracted slightly: "What did you say?"

Sagara put his headphones back on and swayed gently to the beat, his figure beginning to become transparent. "Anyway, the game is getting more fun. Good luck, players."

After receiving that shocking secret from Lin Chen, Kouta Kuzuba fell into a daze. He sat alone in a corner of the dance troupe's warehouse, staring at the dappled light and shadows on the floor, not even touching his favorite desserts. His eyes, which always burned with passion, now seemed devoid of light, leaving only bottomless confusion and pain.

"Kōta".

Gao Siwu's voice came from the doorway. She walked over, squatted down, and looked up at his face. As the person who knew him best, she immediately noticed something was wrong: "What happened? You... have been acting strangely ever since you came back."

Kota Kuzuba opened his mouth, wanting to smile and say "It's nothing" as usual, but the secret weighed heavily on his chest, making it almost impossible for him to breathe. Facing Mai Takashi's clear and worried gaze, he realized that he couldn't hide it at all.

A deathly silence fell over the warehouse.

When facing Mai Takashi, Kouta Kazuha did not want to hide anything and confessed all his secrets to her, including how he had transformed into Gaim and killed his friend Yuya Bando, who had eaten the Helheim Fruit and become an Alien, without his knowledge.

After learning the full truth that "the world will eventually be swallowed up by the Helheim Forest and the World Tree Corporation has been hiding the truth all along," Gao Siwu was shocked for a long time.

After an unknown amount of time, she slowly stood up. Her face was still streaked with tears from the death of her friend, Bando Yuya, but her eyes held an unprecedented firmness.

“This can’t go on.” She wiped away her tears, her voice trembling but filled with unwavering determination. “We have to tell everyone the truth. Tell everyone in Beat Riders, tell every citizen of Zeya City. They have the right to know!”

"dance……"

"Kouta, you can't bear all this alone."

However, when Mai Takashi revealed the truth to the Beat Riders members, the entire warehouse erupted in chaos. Shock, fear, and anger spread through the crowd. Meanwhile, in the shadows of a corner, Mitsumi Kureshima stared intently at Kouta Kuzuha, his eyes chillingly sinister.

"Idiot..." he muttered through gritted teeth, his fingers almost crushing the beverage can in his hand. "Tell Sister Wu the truth, and then have her reveal it to everyone? Do you know how much chaos that will cause? What good will it do for ordinary people? It will only increase panic!"

He turned abruptly and left, his face ashen, his heart churning with anger and anxiety. He had his own plans. And now, Kouta's unauthorized actions were pushing his schemes into an uncontrollable abyss.

Meanwhile, in the underground laboratory of the World Tree Foundation.

Quwen Jiedou stood before Zhanji Lingma, his eyes cold and direct: "Give me greater power. I want to surpass those overlords."

Sengoku Ryoma adjusted his glasses, a meaningful smile playing on his lips. These were the words he'd been waiting for. Ordinary Sengoku Drivers were indeed no match for an Over Lord, and the burning ambition in the young man's eyes made him the perfect experimental subject.

“I understand.” Lingma turned around and took out a silver-white driver and a Lemon Energy Lockseed radiating a dangerous light from the safe. “This is the Genesis Driver. When used with the Lemon Energy Lockseed, it will grant you power far exceeding your current abilities. But…”

He tossed the drive to the ring-fisted creature, his eyes scanning it as if it were a useful tool: "I need you to use it to challenge the Overlords. Bring me back all their combat data."

Kaito caught the driver, feeling its heavy, cold touch, and sneered, "Using me? Just what I want. As long as I can gain power, I don't mind being your hound for once."

......

Standing before the floor-to-ceiling windows on the top floor of the World Tree Foundation building, Wu Daogui held a newly released report on the accelerating rate of erosion in the Helheim Forest, his brow furrowed. The report showed that the situation was nearly three times worse than expected, meaning that the time before Zeya City was completely swallowed up was rapidly shortening.

"director!"

The office door was flung open, and a guard in a black uniform rushed in: "Unidentified individuals have forcibly broken into the headquarters building!"

Wu Daogui's eyes narrowed. Who was so audacious as to dare to break into the World Tree Foundation all by themselves?

"Notify Minato Yoko and Sid to bring their men over immediately to resolve this."

"Reporting to the Director, Ms. Minato and Mr. Sid are not currently with the conglomerate!"

"What about Zhanji Lingma?"

"Dr. Lingma is conducting classified experiments in the underground laboratory and refuses any communication interruption!" Wu Daogui said helplessly. With their core combat force absent, he had no choice but to step in himself.

The elevator plummeted downwards, and the moment the metal doors opened, Wu Daogui stepped out. However, the sight before him made him pause slightly—

At the end of the corridor, a dozen heavily armed guards stood ready, their dark gun barrels all pointed at the center of the passage. In the very center of that encirclement, a man in a dark trench coat leaned casually against the wall, his hands in his pockets, as if he weren't the one being gunned down.

It was Lin Chen.

Noticing Wu Daogui's arrival, Lin Chen slightly turned his head, a half-smile playing on his lips:

"Hello, Director Wu."

Chapter 269 Common Goal

Knowing that Lin Chen meant no harm, Wu Daogui waved away the guards who were standing by in the corridor and led Lin Chen into the top-floor office. The heavy soundproof door closed behind them, completely shutting out the noise from the outside world.

He didn't beat around the bush; he went straight to the desk, sat down, clasped his hands under his chin, and scrutinized the uninvited guest with the sharpness of a scalpel.

"sit."

Lin Chen leaned back on the sofa as if he were at home, crossing his legs and adopting a relaxed posture.

Wu Daogui stared at him for a few seconds before getting straight to the point: "Who are you?"

“A traveler.” He raised his eyelids slightly, his tone languid. “As for his identity… he doesn’t really have any identity.”

"What is your purpose in breaking into the World Tree Foundation?" Wu Daogui's voice was cold and hard, carrying the oppressive aura of someone accustomed to a high position. "Is it to steal secrets, or are you acting under someone else's orders?"

Lin Chen did not answer directly, but turned his head to look out the floor-to-ceiling window.

"You're worried about the erosion of Helheim Forest, aren't you?" He withdrew his gaze, a cryptic smile playing on his lips. "I've already learned about your World Tree's so-called 'Ark Project.' It won't save Zeya City, much less the world. At best, it'll only allow a few elites to linger a few more days in the apocalypse."

Wu Daogui's pupils contracted.

Project Ark is top secret; even within the World Tree, very few people know its code name.

"...How do you know all this?" His voice deepened, and his hand unconsciously moved towards the drawer.

“I know far more than that.” Lin Chen, seemingly oblivious to his subtle movements, continued, “The Helheim Forest isn’t just an ordinary interdimensional invasion; it’s a ‘Trial of Civilization.’ I know the Over Lord holds power over this forest, and you can’t even find their capital. I also know…”

He paused, his gaze piercing Wu Daogui's eyes, and spoke slowly and deliberately:

"Your younger brother, Mitsujima Gojima, is doing some very dangerous things behind your back. And your subordinates aren't on your side either."

The air in the office seemed to freeze.

Wu Daogui remained silent for a long time, finally looking at Lin Chen, his voice carrying a hint of barely perceptible weariness:

"What do you want from telling me all this?" He wasn't blind to his subordinates' little schemes, but as long as they were still working hard to save the world, he could ignore their underhanded tactics.

"What do you want? No, I just don't want to be led by the nose by others." Lin Chen also stood up, walked to the desk, placed his hands on the table, and leaned forward slightly. "I have another way to save the world. That way can save everyone."