Tonight, Alice joins the hunt.

"Just like us... After all, this can be considered another form of cognitive interference."

The human spirit is such an unreliable thing. Before the strength of the spirit exceeds a certain threshold, so-called beliefs, so-called perseverance, so-called iron will and firm faith are ultimately nothing more than phenomena caused by the interaction of hormones and brainwaves. As long as the right method is found, it is easy to bypass that seemingly unbreakable mental defense, thereby achieving the effect desired by the practitioner.

People often believe that enduring pain signifies strong willpower. However, compared to pain, which is essentially the body's warning of danger, and various negative emotions reflecting physical and mental abnormalities, courage, tolerance, joy, enlightenment, and love—these positive emotions—are actually the greater test.

A highly skilled agent might remain silent and refrain from revealing any intelligence under torture that could condemn him to a lifetime of immersion in a jar. However, when he believes his mission is complete, his task finished, his environment safe, and his nation about to bestow honors upon him, he may experience uncontrollable mental turmoil, leading to a significant decline in his judgment and critical thinking abilities. At this point, a well-timed trigger... and everything will change.

It's just basic mind manipulation. For Alice, whose mind has been tempered countless times and who has even brainwashed herself countless times, this trick is almost effortless.

A few minutes later, the building also fell silent.

She entered the most important office in the building and began to examine its layout and furnishings. The important contracts and documents didn't attract her attention at all, because what she was looking for was already before her—she picked up a book that the office occupant frequently consulted. Opening the cover revealed a signed title page.

"The title page bears the signature of the current head of the conglomerate. Hmm, that's still a bit insufficient information." She gently touched the old signature, summarizing the depth and trajectory of the handwriting, as well as many other parameters, and then uploaded it to the information network linked to the Great Library.

Handwriting is only one part of the equation. Through it, she can determine the signer's posture when writing their name, how they held the pen, and even deduce their approximate height, weight, and physical condition. But this is just the beginning; there is much other information to collect.

Minutes later, a detailed character model materialized in her mind. She then uploaded this accurate model to the Great Library and issued the order to prepare for the incantation ritual.

Knowing so much crucial information—height, weight, appearance, skin tone, hair texture, distance between eyebrows, nose depth—even a pig could successfully curse a designated target to death through a ritual, provided there was enough magic power. Alice, however, wouldn't actually kill someone with a curse, because all she needed was to determine the location through the feedback from the curse.

Five minutes later, deep within a mountain range in North America, in an underground base almost completely shielded from external information and protected by several meters-thick composite lead plates to shield against solar storm rays, a loudspeaker used to broadcast messages and coordinate personnel suddenly started working spontaneously. Alice's voice came from it.

"Hello, everyone underground."

"I am about to announce several personnel changes. Please follow my instructions precisely. There can be no errors."

The same call was made at another base a few minutes later. One after another.

Chapter Sixty-Three: Dominating the Nation

At three in the morning, Alice left New York and continued south along the coastline.

At 3:19 a.m., Alice arrived in Washington.

At 4:42 a.m., she left Capitol Hill. Before she left, she made hundreds of phone calls from inside the Capitol, reaching virtually every powerful party member and member of parliament.

At 5:05 a.m., she arrived at the Pentagon and carried out a series of personnel appointments and dismissals.

At 5:30, crimson meteors rained down like a storm. Thousands upon thousands of engineering robots from the Great Library accurately landed in the three largest industrial zones in North America, traversing a thousand kilometers in the air. With the assistance of government officials who had already been deranged, they began transforming these industrial zones, establishing factories and production lines to manufacture robots.

Mental intervention is something that can be both difficult and easy. The difficulty lies in the fact that if you want to transform a living person into someone who still possesses the ability to think independently and can maximize their talents, you have to gradually correct their memories, confuse their cognition, and spend a lot of time to achieve the desired effect.

It's easy if the perpetrator doesn't care about the target's talent and abilities, nor does they intend to maintain this brainwashed state indefinitely. They only need to slightly adjust the hormone secretion in the target's brain to directly turn the subject into a mindless idiot who only knows how to obey orders—the damage to the brain isn't incurable. However, in this era, at this time… whether or not it's treated is irrelevant.

Alice's sole purpose was to keep the country's government and military out of the way. She had neither the interest nor the energy to rule the country. Therefore, she retained the lower-level officials while controlling the upper echelons of the nation—these brainwashed idiots would, for at least twelve hours, obey her basic commands like unfortunate souls on a truth serum. In less than ten hours, the first batch of robots would be fitted with realistic skin and replace these useless individuals.

Since Alice was able to create puppet dolls that were exactly the same as herself and had almost the same performance, it wouldn't be difficult for her to lower the material requirements and create synthetic dolls that wouldn't be exposed in a short time to replace those brainwashed big shots.

Of course, with time running out, it was only natural that flaws would be exposed. Of North America's more than 300 million people, aside from a portion of the mentally challenged, a portion of the shrewd and pragmatic, and the vast majority of ordinary people who only cared about their own affairs, there were bound to be millions of insightful and patriotic rebels. In an instant, the Americas were in turmoil, with spontaneous patriots, independent armies, rational lower- and middle-ranking officials, and small and medium-sized financial groups that had managed to escape all stirring up trouble—and then, under Alice's iron-fisted suppression, they were all reduced to dust.

She took control of the communications network, cutting off civilian use while retaining military use, and monitoring every movement within the military network—she certainly didn't have the capacity to manage it all by herself, but the master AI, Little Devil, in the Great Library and the Supercomputer 1, acquired from the Transformers universe, were perfectly capable of handling these simple yet tedious tasks. The rebels' movements and strongholds were quickly discovered and then dealt with according to their size.

—If it is a small force with only light weapons, then a squad of combat robots can be airdropped directly from the Great Library. With the air defense system ineffective and missiles unable to be launched, the impact of these teardrop-shaped cargo holds carrying mechanical soldiers upon hitting the ground is enough to clear the area. If any rebels survive, they can be killed in a few seconds. After that, the mechanical soldiers will establish patrol outposts to deter other American residents who dare to resist.

—Army forces and private militias equipped with both light and heavy weapons, after determining the location and inputting identification parameters, directly unleashed the curse via satellite network. Tiny amounts of fire, lightning, and frost were generated directly within the bodies and even the brains of these burly and strong soldiers, killing them all the moment the curse took effect. They might wail and struggle for a few seconds, but it was all in vain.

—But if it's a well-organized army that refuses to obey orders, hastily assembles, and establishes a defensive line relying on fortified positions, the Great Library will directly destroy that army along with its permanent fortifications using the Grand Cannon's firepower. Crimson lines will rip through the night sky, connecting the zenith directly to the ground. Within a five-kilometer radius of the impact point, the land will be turned into a dead zone by the intense heat and shockwave. The ground will be torn apart, and at most, only a vast lava lake will remain at the center of the impact.

Sending obedient soldiers to suppress the rebellion was also an option, but that would be far too slow, and there wasn't enough time to waste. Therefore, Alice didn't need American soldiers, whether they were compliant or not, so she didn't hesitate in her actions. Her rules were simple—eliminate all resistance and obstacles, and then build her own army in the shortest possible time.

She doesn't need human laborers, because at this moment she trusts machines more than flesh and blood. She also doesn't need human managers, because people make mistakes, have errors, and might cause trouble at crucial moments due to patriotism, revenge, or other strange reasons, thus preventing the Legion's projects from reaching their expected goals on time.

The inhabitants of America were worthless to her, or rather, they were worthless to her while they were alive—because of consideration for the moral compass of others in her team, and certain things that were best left unthought, she did not carry out Patchouli's plan to sacrifice the American continent to create the ancient indigenous gods from nothingness, thereby building a legion of the underworld and maximizing her own interests. Therefore, she would not deliberately slaughter or annihilate them. She would simply confine them within the cities, using powerful figures under her control, and employing cowardly or tactful officials to govern each city, making them appear exactly as they were yesterday—or rather, allowing the inhabitants to escape reality and tell themselves that everything was exactly the same as yesterday.

She needed a stable America, so she set about creating one. But this process didn't last long.

At 11:00 AM, the last remaining resistance force detected by the Great Library on the American continent was annihilated. Simultaneously, the first batch of robots equipped with bionic shells were produced and transported throughout the country to replace those important figures ravaged by mind control, nearly rendered permanently mentally impaired. Once this handover process was successfully completed, Alice finally obtained the Americas she needed.

The most powerful nation in the world has become her property, and her legions will be assembled within days. Her power will expand outwards in a very short time, reaching every corner of this land.

So……

"It took thirteen hours, nine minutes, and fifteen seconds. The revised plan is now largely complete, with the first step largely finished."

“It took longer than expected… but it doesn’t matter. It’s still within the margin of error.” Standing atop the highest mountain in the Americas, she nodded with satisfaction as she gazed at the Americas, which had gradually settled down and was rapidly advancing in the direction she needed.

The vast majority of Americans are completely unaware of what is happening. Without internet access, television coverage, newspapers ceasing publication, and radio stations ceasing operation—these factors alone could easily cut off over 90% of Americans' access to information. And that's exactly what Alice wants.

She didn't expect these commoners to do anything for her; she just hoped they wouldn't get in her way.

Factories are crucial; without exception, she has transformed all the large industrial zones near the mines into robotic processing plants—machines producing machines, workers manufacturing workers. With the technological support of the Great Library as a starting resource, she can easily create a snowball effect in industrial manufacturing. In fact, new mechanical soldiers have already been awakened in her factories and are participating in the expansion of the machines. Presumably, it won't be long before her legion begins to take shape.

However, "not long" is also a manifestation of "long." Before her legion could establish a basic framework, she had to remain in the Americas to ensure that no unexpected problems arose.

"In other words, I've been dragged onto this land by myself," Alice thought, lightly snapping her fingers.

Being inseparable from the Americas doesn't mean there's nothing that can't be done. The commotion she caused when she took action earlier was so immense that even if it fooled the vast majority of Americans, the rest of the world's nations weren't simply blind and deaf—they would soon notice the anomalies in the Americas and then send their own forces to probe.

In the open, she's a diplomat; in the shadows, a spy. One can imagine that this young continent will soon enter a… very lively period. And this 'lively period' will have another effect that Alice dislikes intensely—it will take up even more of her time.

Alice hates wasting time.

However, no matter how unwilling she was, what was destined to happen would still happen.

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

Meanwhile, on the Canadian border, at an inconspicuous abandoned estate in the Great Lakes region, Saito Kazumasa raised his hand and gently pushed open the slightly ajar door.

He knew where he was.

It was just an ordinary manor, old in history, but without any significant information. The manor was no longer inhabited, its owner long since deceased. It had simply aged naturally, without any conspiracy or involvement in any strange events. No secrets were hidden within the manor. Yet, for Saito Hajime, it remained an important place.

In another world, this manor is a secret stronghold of an Eastern assassin family in North America.

Zhao Yingkong belongs to an assassin family and is the most powerful assassin of her generation.

She also has an older brother named Zhao Zhuikong, who, barring any unforeseen circumstances, is now the captain of the East American team in the reincarnation world. And if Saito's memories are accurate, then Zhao Zhuikong should have been in this villa when he entered the reincarnation world.

Saito shook his head.

With his foresight, he really didn't want to comment on the complicated and tangled relationship between the Zhao siblings. It was a complete waste of time and utterly worthless. He knew very well that the two siblings were so close they could practically sleep in the same bed, and he also knew that if they met now, one of them would definitely be bedridden forever, sleeping the kind of sleep they would never need to get up again.

However, he didn't care about that. All he needed to know was that Zhao Yingkong would be coming here.

He walked into the estate, past the overgrown nurseries that were neglected and overgrown with weeds. Then he pushed open the door and entered the hall where the estate owner used to receive guests.

“I know you’re here,” Saito said calmly, his gaze sweeping across the dusty ground before settling on the cobwebs that covered every corner of the house. “Hiding is pointless, and I don’t want to fight you unless it’s absolutely necessary.”

The surroundings remained completely silent; even the sound of the wind had vanished. The most jarring sound in the entire room was Saito Hajime's heartbeat.

“I know you have doubts. You suspect there’s a traitor in the group.” He said, walking toward the center of the living room. “You even suspect you might be the traitor, because you’ve recently started to notice your behavior becoming increasingly abnormal, less and less like yourself.”

“Miss Alice once told you that this is because of another personality that is dormant within you—it’s just multiple personality disorder. It’s a very common condition; most people have it, and most people don’t even know they have it. Of course, there are some exceptions in your case, so your way of thinking is affected at times, leading to some unpredictable consequences—perhaps she shouldn’t have told you this.”

—The surroundings remained quiet.

"You are afraid of the consequences because you are unsure if you can control yourself... You have a problem defining yourself. Although your positive fighting power has become stronger, you have begun to lose sight of who you really are."

"I can help you get to know yourself and let you know your true nature."

“As long as you’re willing to appear before me.” He paused, then continued, “Of course, it’s you who voluntarily appears before me, not me personally dragging you out of some corner.”

He turned his head and looked at an inconspicuous corner.

Chapter 64 - I'm going to die without an audience _(:з」∠)_

"If you could adjust your tone and make the invitation less offensive, perhaps I would do as you suggest."

As she spoke, Zhao Yingkong's figure emerged from the shadows. She appeared in the exact opposite direction of Saito's gaze—not in the corner, but in the hall. She reached out and brushed her hand across the dusty wooden tabletop, and a thin layer of flame swept across the wood like a clean cloth, burning away all visible ash and dust. The fragile wooden tabletop remained cold, without even warming up.

"Come, please sit down." The assassin girl tapped on the table, and two clean cups and a spoonful of sealed tea leaves flew out from the cabinet beside her. Their kinetic energy dissipated as they passed over the table, so the teacups landed on the coasters, and the tea leaves fell into the cups. One cup was with Saito Hajime, and the other was with Zhao Yingkong.

She snapped her fingers, and the moisture in the air gathered at the rim of the cup, condensed, and transformed into pure water that filled half the cup before rapidly boiling. In less than two seconds, a delicate fragrance filled the air.

She didn't use any supernatural power; the force with which she tapped the table and snapped her fingers was that of an ordinary girl doing the same thing. Yet the vibrations, the waves, the physical phenomena caused by her two simple actions combined in a strange way to achieve the result she needed.

By chance, countless coincidences piled up together to form an inevitability.

The whole process was like a monkey throwing a stone onto the water, which skipped across the surface, and the sound of the skipping stones perfectly combined to form a joyful ode. Everything seemed like a coincidence, yet the concept of so many coincidences happening simultaneously and perfectly piecing together is far less significant than the Earth exploding in the next second.

[Probabilistic operations based on microscopic changes... no, is it 'minimum detail'?]

This is incredibly troublesome.

"Am I late?" Saito shook his head with a wry smile. He sighed softly, walked straight to the table, and without sitting down, picked up his teacup and took a sip.

The tea was fragrant, and the temperature and concentration were just right. Every single tea leaf was evenly infused into the warm water and perfectly distributed throughout every cubic centimeter of the liquid.

"Hmm, you're late." Zhao Yingkong picked up the teacup with both hands, sat quietly in the chair, and sipped the tea slowly.

"I'm awake now." Her tone was as cool as ever, but with a subtle vitality. This was specifically manifested in the light, rising tone at the end of her sentences, making it very easy to distinguish her from the 'Zhao Yingkong' who was previously in the Zhongzhou team, and to see them as two completely different individuals.

“You really shouldn’t have woken up at this time.” Saito Ichiji’s lips twitched slightly—of course he knew who Zhao Yingkong was, and he also knew that ’Zhao Yingkong’ was more than just Zhao Yingkong. He knew that this little girl, who had joined the Central Plains Team since the world of Ju-on II, and had been an important member of the team for a long time to come, serving as an assassin and secondary combatant until she ’unfortunately died’ in the final battle, was hiding a huge secret.

She possesses two personalities: one powerful, one weak; one wise, one... relatively less intelligent. One is dormant, while the other controls this body—but unlike typical split personality syndromes, the one controlling the body isn't the most powerful. Instead, the dormant one is the dominant personality, while the one constantly dealing with the Central Continent team is merely a prop casually created by the dominant personality—the gap between them is enormous, because the secondary personality has only unlocked the first-tier genetic lock, while the dominant personality is at the fourth tier.

The difference between first-order and fourth-order is beyond description. In fact, calculating the difference between the two is a pointless and foolish endeavor, because there is simply no comparability between them.

Is there a need to compare fireflies and the sun?

--unnecessary.

Saito gently pressed down on his black-rimmed glasses. He finally realized that things were getting out of control.

Originally, the primary personality, Zhao Yingkong, would have remained asleep indefinitely. She had long since given up hope, and the secondary personality was merely a tool she created to escape reality. She no longer cared about life or death, so even if the body controlled by the secondary personality were killed, it wouldn't awaken her.

—This is how it should have been!

“I don’t remember anyone waking you up, and…” Saito Hajime flicked his fingers lightly. “Given your personality, even if you woke up, you wouldn’t try to take back the body you’ve already given up… So, something must have happened to you, right?”

"Ah..." Zhao Yingkong downed the tea in her cup in one gulp. However, the topic did not shift in the direction Saito had hoped for. "You know me very well. So well that you even know certain information that only I know. At your current level, you can't read my mind, so you must have foreseen the future, right?"

Saito Hajime's gaze sharpened slightly. He suddenly asked, "How long have you been awake?"

"It's been a long time," the girl chuckled, resting her chin on her hand. "The first time I regained clear consciousness was probably in that temple. When that Japanese woman forcibly hypnotized my other self. I was already awake then, and even fought with that witch. Luckily, I was still a bit groggy at the time, so I didn't hit her hard and there were no serious consequences. Thank goodness." She patted her chest lightly, looking quite frightened.

Before her, Saito Hajime's face was so grave it was almost dripping with anger. He struggled to open his mouth, managing to squeeze out a few words through clenched teeth. "You... you've been watching since then? From beginning to end?"

"Because it's fun! I'm already awake, so why can't I watch a live-action movie before bed to pass the time?" she said matter-of-factly. "Besides, I didn't do anything unnecessary, and my body was properly controlled by the other me. Even when she exchanged that flame to devour my power, I didn't stop her. On the contrary, I secretly gave her a push and actively cooperated with her to fuse with my power. Otherwise, with just a mere B-grade enhancement she exchanged, she thought she could devour my Light of the Soul? What a joke! Even if I actively cooperated, degraded and diluted the power ten thousand times and packaged it up for her to absorb, she would still have a lot of effort. On her own, she would have been assimilated by me long ago, without even a trace left!"

“Is that so?” Saito lowered his eyes. “Then it seems I should thank you properly. You took such good care of her, thank you so much.”

"Yes, yes, I'll accept your thanks." The girl nodded with a smile, her little feet happily kicking up and down under the table, looking very pleased with herself.