Ark, they don't revolve around you

"Zhuang... Ning!"

"Ah, Duke." Zhuang Ning stood up. Black Snake was surprised to find that he had changed into a double-breasted dark blue military uniform with red embroidered cuffs and a raised collar. In an instant, he changed from a man bathing on the beach to an iron-blooded soldier. "Sir, what are your orders?"

"Do you find this interesting?"

"What did you say?" Zhuang Ning showed an innocent expression. "This is all secondary creation based on your memory. I have tried my best to ensure its authenticity. But if you are not satisfied, Duke, I have even more ruthless means!"

He smiled sinisterly, "It's not difficult, my Lord Duke. I have some experience in surrendering. At this moment, we have killed the dog emperor, turned our backs on him, and surrendered with courtesy, and we still retain our title!"

“Shut up.” Black Snake roared, trembling as he pointed at the cloud-like warships. “This is all fake! Do you think it’s fun to show me the operas you rehearsed?!”

"Actually." At that moment, Zhuang Ning's expression disappeared. "It's quite interesting. I have seen many interesting ways from your memory."

He pointed at Ursus from a distance. At this moment, he was neither a boy enjoying the sun on the beach nor an officer. He was like a king, with furious red in his eyes: "You understand, Duke."

"Of course this is all fake. None of this is real." He grinned and whispered softly, "But you should still take a good look."

"Because, if I cannot subdue you in the end, this will be the end of Ursus, and I will treat your land in the most brutal way."

"This... is your future!"

Chapter 61 What You Desire

Next, Black Snake experienced the destruction of his country at least a hundred times, from Casimir's Silver Spear Pegasus to Leithania's Witch King, from Kazdel's Demon King to Victoria's Steam Knight. Zhuang Ning is indeed a very moral demon who keeps his word.

"Kill! The enemy is here. Ursus may be big, but the Castle of Saint Steed is behind us!" the man shouted arrogantly, not realizing that his costume and makeup were different from those of others. Tianma with the silver spear looked at the idiot with disdain and nailed him to death on the tower with a shot.

"Ah, I'm dead." Zhuang Ning tilted his head, and there was a touch of red in his mouth. It was not blood, but ketchup. Black Snake saw clearly that this man had smeared ketchup all over his mouth and body in a flash. He blinked his eyes emotionally, like a saint being nailed to the cross, "Ah, my Ursus, my dear motherland, don't hurt her!"

What a good actor! Looking at the tears on his face, I thought it was a farce.

But the black snake's eyes were bloodshot. Fires were burning in the city, and the dead were lying next to each other. This immortal soul was numb, and it felt that no matter how Ursus perished, he would not even blink an eye.

Perhaps it was boring to perform a one-man show, so Zhuang Ning reached out and pulled out the gun stuck in his body, jumped down, jumped next to Black Snake, and said dissatisfiedly: "I've performed so hard, shouldn't you support me and applaud or something?"

The black snake looked at him.

Her eyes were filled with resentment and hatred, yet also a little bit of sadness. She said nothing and let the north wind whip at her soul.

"It's boring." Zhuang Ning clapped his hands, took out a large bread dipped in salt, and took a bite. From the sound coming from his mouth, it seemed like he was chewing a stone. He spit a few times and said, "No, this thing has been frozen for too long. It's like a stone. Why don't you try it?"

The black snake stared at him, his eyes full of resentment, but he still didn't speak.

The sound of fighting was still ringing.

A Casimir Kuranta overwhelmed the Ursus woman, who was a noblewoman, pitiful and called her husband's name plaintively.

"Kasheina." Zhuang Ning watched the scene with interest. "Look, this is very realistic, isn't it? Well, this is not done by me. I just made a framework and everything happened naturally. Your magic is really powerful."

"Shut up." Kasheina finally opened her mouth, and the black snake died like a beast. "This is not my magic, demon."

"How can it not be your magic? Didn't you say that all this is fake? Why can't I be happy if it's fake? Don't you know how much effort I put into finding this fun?" Zhuang Ning was even more unhappy.

He clapped his hands, and the bloodstains on his body disappeared. He changed into the most beautiful Gallic noble dress with a white towel turned up at the collar.

Suddenly, the chefs rushed over pushing the food carts. They eagerly opened the lids, revealing delicious delicacies on the plates. It seemed that the bread he had just had really ruined his mood, and he had to have the most wonderful meal to heal it.

Maybe because he felt it was awkward to eat alone, the man thoughtfully prepared a portion for Black Snake. Black Snake wanted to resist, but she was starving. She didn't understand how she, as a spiritual being, could be hungry. She thought it was a trick played by this despicable man.

"You are a bad guy, and you say I am despicable. I am also very sad." Zhuang Ning picked up the fork and said excitedly, "These poultry are fed with truffles. Look at this crayfish, which is cooked with the best butter and Parmesan cheese. Look at this fish, which has to swim to the river 300 kilometers away from Saint Jun Castle..."

He introduced the dishes incessantly like a cook, but he ate with great generosity, devouring the food in no time. At the end he drank a glass of champagne and rubbed his hands.

In comparison, the black snake is much more elegant. After all, this black snake is a noble born from the land, and elegance is engraved in her bones. When she came on stage as Kashena, how many people came for her face?

After having a good meal and a good drink, it was time to talk about life and ideals. Zhuang Ning hesitated for a moment and said, "Duke, look, we have been reincarnated so many times. Why don't you give up and be my slave? It would be great, and we can enjoy a good life."

The black snake said nothing, using silence to express mockery. At this moment, she did not have the arrogance of a bad guy, but instead exuded a spirit of sacrifice like the Virgin Mary.

Zhuang Ning was deeply moved, but he changed the subject: "Duke, you know, I used to like Dongguo cartoons."

"..."

"Oh, you don't say anything, but I know you're definitely thinking, 'Fuck you, you idiot!'" Zhuang Ning shook his head. "Everyone has had a paper wife when they were young. It's so nice. They belong to you. But some people say they have their own lives, but that's stupid, because those paper people were born for the players' money. How can such people have their own lives?"

Zhuang Ning might have felt that the topic was off topic, so he coughed and said, "Sorry, I've gone off topic. This topic is too sensitive. Anyway, what I want to tell you is that I once read a book from the East called A Certain Magical Index. There is a very powerful villain in it, named Othinus. She is amazing and can easily reconstruct the world."

"But the hero of that book is just a high school student. Because his special abilities are out of control, the female devil tries every means to destroy the hero's will."

Zhuang Ning suddenly laughed. That smile was very strange, with cunning and a hint of curiosity. "But the hero is too strong. He remains unmoved even if the whole world betrays him. Let him die. It's impossible for me to admit defeat."

"Oh, you may think this is nothing, a clichéd story. Anyway, the protagonist will definitely defeat the villain in the end, right?" Zhuang Ning inexplicably became cold, "But that female devil was almost able to destroy the protagonist's will."

"Guess what method she used?"

Kashena was horrified and felt that she was not a snake, but the man in front of her was the real snake. It was he who tempted humans to eat the fruit of original sin, and since then no one in the world has been able to escape.

Now, the demon snake named Zhuang Ning murmured: "She created a beautiful world, a beautiful world where only the protagonist is not needed. In that world, all tragedies do not exist. It is like being in heaven or paradise. There are no wars, hunger, and exploitation. You are just not needed."

"Don't look at me like that. I'm not a demon. This is a fake world. It's a movie-like story I made up." He whispered softly, so gently, "But I have thought of how to make you surrender."

"The Ursus you desire can only be created by me."

Chapter 62: Indenture

Black Snake stared at the scene blankly. In his eyes, he saw a country full of vitality and flourishing Ursus. The people lining the streets of this country were more energetic than ever before.

She came to the park and saw an old man sitting on a bench. Spring had arrived, branches and leaves were sprouting, and the sky and earth were adding a touch of green.

The spring in Ursus is very short. In the mythology of Ursus, the god of spring is a boy who is loved by the goddess of winter. However, the god of spring rejected the courtship of the goddess of winter. The goddess of winter was also the god of revenge, so she killed the god of spring with a sickle.

Therefore, most of the time, Ursus is shrouded in the cold winter. The male god will revive in spring every year, and the goddess will express her love to him again, and then kill him. This is a cycle that can never be broken, just like the White God will always be killed by the Black God.

Only this year's spring is exceptionally long. The ice and snow on the branches have melted, and flowers are blooming, smelling faint and pleasant.

Black Snake's heart palpitated. This was an illusion. The man gave her a dream. Everything in this dream was false. But she still stood there in a daze, not moving for a long time.

"Little girl, little girl." The old man said, "The snow has just melted, aren't you wearing too cold clothes?"

Kasheina smiled and shook her head without responding. The old lady did not ask further questions, but just said: "It's great, the war is over, but we finally have peace and a new life."

"Peace? Don't you think it's a temporary and illusory thing?"

"That's what we're pursuing. If the war starts, we'll be corpses on the battlefield."

Kashena crossed the street and came to the factory area. The furnaces were running and it was incredibly hot even in winter.

"Where are the infected?" she asked curiously.

"Infection?" Others looked at him with a ridiculous look. "Ore disease has been conquered. Don't you know that, Miss Noble?"

Kashena apologized, but she was smiling. She didn't mind the woman's sharp sarcasm.

The more wars and hundreds of destructions one has experienced, the deeper the feelings in one's heart.

Even though she knew this was just an illusion prepared by an evil man, she couldn't help but shed tears.

This snake has a heart of stone, and regards human life as worthless. She believes in social Darwinism and sees war as inevitable. She doesn't mind winning or losing the war, as long as she can kill the burdensome people and bring them new life.

But at this moment, feeling the sunlight shining down, the black snake's last line of defense collapsed.

A man walked towards her, wearing a neat military uniform with his collar turned outward. It was impossible to tell his rank or race, he just looked like a junior officer.

But Black Snake stiffened for a moment. She recognized the other party. After a second, she smiled and said, "You win."

She gave in.

After going through so much suffering, she finally gave in to the man who overwhelmed her.

As she uttered this, her whole body relaxed and she fell to the ground, like an athlete who was exhausted and could no longer get up after hearing the end of a long-distance race.

The man used hundreds of nightmares to trample on her dignity and ideals, like thunder and like a king, but in the end, it was such a beautiful illusion that broke her down.

So she cried softly, like a child, attracting the attention of others.

The man dressed as a soldier was a little embarrassed, and hurriedly helped her up, but his words were still merciless: "How dare you, sir, perform such a great ceremony? Please stand up quickly!"

He smiled, but there was still no smile in his voice: "But I am glad of your surrender, Black Snake."

Zhuang Ning embraced her enemy and naturally had to comfort him because he had crushed her spirit. After all, he was a good man.

The two walked to the cafe, and Black Snake sipped his coffee in the corner, gazing up at the lush greenery.

The person opposite handed over a contract and smiled: "Sign it, this is your indenture. Although I am a devil, I am definitely a dedicated devil. As long as you sign the contract, I will do my best to make Ursus better. Although it may not reach the level of this beautiful dream, it is at least half of it, right?"

The woman took the paper silently and took a look. It was an excessive contract. The wording stated that the immortal black snake was the property of Dr. Zhuang Ning. During the contract period, the black snake was not allowed to resist in the slightest. It should call Zhuang Ning its master, obey Zhuang Ning's orders, and give everything for Zhuang Ning's great cause. From now on, everyone would prosper together and suffer together, and the contract would take effect only after Zhuang Ning's death.

It emphasized simplicity and crudeness, and then listed a long list of details. Even with Black Snake's thousand years of experience, he couldn't find any flaws. Black Snake smiled helplessly and slowly signed his name.

The contract takes effect.

At this moment, she exhaled, and although she seemed to still be burdened, she still uttered the word in a tiny voice: "Master."

"..."

Zhuang Ning remained silent, and his expression disappeared again. Black Snake almost had PTSD from this person's disappearing expression, and hurriedly said, "Is there something wrong? I am here according to the contract."

"No." The doctor still looked solemn. "Call me again. Didn't I hear you clearly just now?"

"..."

"The contract shows that black snakes are not allowed to resist their masters." Zhuang Ning repeated, tapping the table with his hand.

"Owner."

"very good."

"Master, master..."

"You can stop now. How did I become so perverted?" Zhuang Ning whispered and laughed again. Black Snake found it even more ridiculous. She could not see through this evil spirit. When they first met, she did not even think that this person was an obstacle, but her great cause was destroyed by this person.

And the strange contract just now. The moment it was signed, she was bound by a great power, which was the power to subvert her magic. If the immortal black snake called himself a god, then that existence was the rule and the fate. In the mythology, the gods could not resist the fate. Even the greatest gods would succumb to the iron hammer of fate and rush to the dusk battlefield where they were destined to die.

Zhuang Ning took a sip of coffee, added milk and sugar, and stirred it gently. He didn't look at what he was doing the whole time, and his attention was focused on a blooming flower.

He asked, "Do you know what flower that is?"

"sunflower."

"Yes, the sunflower, it always faces the sunny side. The Ursus people's desire for sunshine is just like that flower." Zhuang Ning smiled faintly like a philosopher. At this time, he returned from his crazy state to an ordinary person.

But he also had the arrogance of a commander and a leader. Over the past thousand years, Black Snake had seen all kinds of temperaments in too many people. The one who impressed her most was the former emperor of Ursus, who was an absolute monarch. Three Wendigos conquered a city, and two pairs of hands disturbed the land. A monarch represented the will of a country.

But it's just one country.

And this man seems to symbolize the entire earth. He stretches out his hand and catches the sunshine. He smiles quietly, as if the whole world will obey his orders.

Chapter 63: The Iron-Hearted Master

"I've been reading the history of Ursus recently." Zhuang Ning's voice was not loud, and it seemed as if he was talking to himself.

Black Snake was stunned for a moment: "Reading history books? Why not ask me?"

"You are a walking history book. You have experienced every great change in Ursus, but that doesn't stop me from reading the history of Ursus."

He picked up the book on the table and calmly opened it. The book was very old, and the paper was lightly yellowed. "Sometimes, reading history is different from experiencing it personally. Personal participation is just being swept up in the tide of the times, and it is impossible to face it fairly and objectively, but bits and pieces of history can show the thoughts of people of a certain era."

"So." Black Snake narrowed his eyes and asked curiously, "What do you think of the history of Ursus, Master?"

She called out "master" naturally, and it was so embarrassing the first time, but she soon got into the situation. This snake was not an animal that would surrender easily. When she lowered her noble head, she couldn't help but wonder what kind of person her master was.

"Ice-cold." Zhuang Ning cast his eyes to the outside world. "Ursus has been expanding since its birth. It has rarely stopped for thousands of years, to the south, to the west, and to the east. The hero you are advocating is the Wolf Duke in the song of the warrior. He is a powerful wizard who can change into various forms. He once turned into a wolf and bit off the throat of Emperor Sargon, hence his name. He also has many good friends, a giant with infinite strength, and a farmer who drags a plow to plow the fields. When the three of them are together, no demons or monsters can defeat them."

"That's not surprising."

"It's not strange, but the more I read, the more sad it feels. In fact, war is helpless, and there will always be bloodshed and sacrifice. Only when people are forced to do so will they turn their swords against each other. Ursus's writings and poems always have a kind of desolation like snow."

This sentimental man was completely different from the emperor just now. He sighed and said, "You are very lonely. You originated from ice and snow but always want to integrate into the core circle. Gaul was once the holy land of Ursus. The Ursus imitated the Gauls' clothing. The upper class people used the Gaulish language. The poets used the best words to praise the Gauls because Gaul was the overlord of the core circle at that time. But the Gauls looked down on you and regarded you as barbarians."

"Gaul has perished, and no noble will speak the Gaulish language."

"Yes, you personally participated in the war to divide the old Gaul land, but so what? Ursus's situation has not changed. A warlike country - this is the consensus of almost all countries. Yan Country calls you Rakshasa, which is a kind of ferocious and vicious evil ghost that eats human flesh. Did you know that?"

Of course she knew it, but expansion is a must for a country that pursues militarism, and not expanding would be chronic suicide.

Black Snake didn't want to talk about this topic: "What does this have to do with you? You are not from Ursus."

"It does matter, Black Snake, because this kind of environment gave birth to you. You are the embodiment of loneliness, warmongering, and longing for light." Zhuang Ning smiled slightly. The impetuousness in him had completely faded away. When he was violent, he was still the king who could easily bring destruction. However, when he showed kindness, he was like a saint in the Gospel.

Black Snake was stunned. This man gave her a candy after whipping her with a whip. Did he really think it would work?

Black Snake wanted to sneer, but he couldn't say anything, because when this man talked about loneliness, he seemed to empathize with him. Perhaps this word touched his nerves, so he was rarely willing to say more.