Chapter 187.2: World Mission Completed
When this news appeared, the city lords should, in theory, have burst into laughter and gathered to celebrate their plan coming to fruition. By riding on the coattails of the local power, [Ota], they had successfully completed the World Mission.
But the city lords’ responses were the complete opposite.
[…They’re attacking [Norn] now, too? Wait, wasn’t [Zipa] just beaten so badly that its top brass abandoned their headquarters and fled?]
[Replying to upstairs: [Ota] didn’t attack [Zipa]. [Zipa]’s higher-ups fled because they’d done something shady themselves. But the [Zipa Company] is still around. Judging by the current situation, [Ota] will probably send people to attack it next.]
[Speaking of which, if [Zipa]’s higher-ups have fled, doesn’t that count as having wiped them out?]
[Probably not. The entire [Company] has to be confirmed gone before it counts.]
[I’m honestly not surprised that [Zipa] fled. To be frank, watching the battles these past few days has scared the hell out of me.]
[Scared too +1]
[Have you seen that video of “a lone soldier blowing up an artillery depot—and actually succeeding”? [Ota]’s soldiers are even more ferocious than ability users. On the battlefield, they’re completely crushing [Zephyr]. Honestly, thank goodness the World Mission doesn’t force us to eliminate every [Company]. If [Ota] were added to the list of enemy targets, I’d immediately evacuate my residents and run for the hills.]
One of the more optimistic city lords chimed in.
[Look on the bright side! Sure, the locals are fierce, but they’re working for us! The stronger they are, the greater our rewards will be. Doesn’t that make you feel a lot better?]
Another city lord replied:
[Not at all. At first, I was happy to see [Ota] crushing [Zephyr]. But now I’m watching [Ota] fight [Zephyr] with one hand, take on [Norn] with the other, and kick [Zipa] mercilessly with its foot. I’m genuinely getting nervous. [Ota] is far too ferocious. It gives me the feeling that even the Cognition Lock might not be able to hold it back.]
[Chirpy Fish Safe City: @Where’sMyMom Safe City, you’ve hit the nail on the head!]
[Chirpy Fish Safe City: The most terrifying thing about [Ota] isn’t just its formidable combat strength. As I’ve watched it fight its way through these battles, I’ve become increasingly aware that [Ota] itself operates according to a highly organized and coherent system of logic.
[It has order, powerful expansion capabilities, and a complete resource-recycling system. It has its own administrative structure and legal system. I won’t even get started on its armed forces and tactical procedures. Its technological level and the ideological indoctrination of its employees are both terrifyingly advanced. It’s practically a hexagonal powerhouse with no blind spots and no weaknesses whatsoever.]
[Chirpy Fish Safe City: Tell me, do you really think a place like [Ota], capable of taking on all three major [Companies], equipped with a complete set of operational rules, and seemingly overflowing with talent in every field, wouldn’t know about the vulnerabilities of our residents?]
After this analysis appeared, the group chat fell silent for more than ten seconds.
The truth was, all the city lords had already sensed something was wrong.
Their behavior in sending residents into the world had been rather like an adult telling a five-year-old child, “Santa Claus is real.”
The child would believe it because their world was still so small, making them easy to fool.
But by this point in the war, any city lord who wasn’t blind could see that [Ota] wasn’t a child at all. It was a strong, healthy adult possessing both intelligence and power.
Would such an adult believe a ridiculous story like Santa Claus?
Cheng Qisheng, who was silently lurking in the chat, had a different take.
Thanks for asking. [Ota] would believe in Santa Shell.
[Greenroot Safe City: [Ota] really is terrifying. We can only be grateful that Moon Silk Star has a Cognition Lock, and that this planet isn’t particularly interested in exploring the universe. That’s what allows us to hide above the clouds. Otherwise, with [Ota]’s current level of control over Moon Silk Star, having our Safe Cities descend onto the ground would be practically tantamount to s**cide.]
[Greenroot Safe City: Watching [Ota] fight is certainly nerve-racking, but I’ll say it again: just think about it, everyone! If [Ota] eliminates all three [Companies], that’s three separate rewards for us!]
[Greenroot Safe City: It’s obvious we’re about to win. We’re just one final push away! We’ve invested so much in the early stages. No matter what anyone says, I’m going to see this through!]
Once again, Cheng Qisheng looked at Greenroot City’s lord’s messages with mixed feelings.
Once again, Cheng Qisheng couldn’t help marveling at just how much Greenroot’s City Lord sounded like a shill.
The lord’s messages gradually eased the tension in the group chat.
[That’s true. We don’t just have the Cognition Lock to rely on. We also have floating devices that let us hide above the clouds.]
[And Tier 6 Safe Cities can flee quickly, too, which makes things even safer.]
[No matter how fierce [Ota] is, it’s still a local power with its own limitations. Sure, it’s terrifying, but wouldn’t it feel a lot better if we just treated it as our hired muscle?]
[…Maybe not. It looks like the type that would kill its own boss.]
[Then let’s treat it as a cooperative partner instead. [Ota] doesn’t know we’re cooperating with it, of course, but we’re actually pretty lucky to be able to ride on its coattails and get a share of the World Mission rewards.]
[HOLY SHIT!! MAJOR INTEL!! [Ota] really has sent troops to attack [Zipa]! There wasn’t even the slightest hint along the way. [Zipa]’s higher-ups have already fled, and saying that the [Company] is being crushed is actually putting it mildly!]
The city lords’ group chat exploded all over again.
[Wait, does that mean [Ota] has split its forces into three groups and is attacking all three major [Companies] simultaneously?]
[Wow! Does this mean we’ll be able to complete the World Mission and flee very soon? I don’t want to stay here another second. I keep feeling that once [Ota] finishes off the three [Companies], it’ll come after us next.]
[Spit, spit, spit! Stop saying such unlucky things! Remember, we have the Cognition Lock! As long as we stay inside our Safe Cities, we’re absolutely safe!]
[I’ve got an idea! Before we flee, can we use our ability user residents to steal a large quantity of weapons from [Ota]? We can just run away after stealing them. It won’t be able to catch up with us anyway.]
[Great idea! [Ota] really is obscenely wealthy. Have you seen its arsenal? It’s ridiculous!]
Cheng Qisheng had been silently lurking in the chat, but as she read those messages, her eyebrows gradually rose.
She could understand the city lords’ desire to grab as much as they could before running away.
But as the one who might get robbed, the great Creator God of Blue Sea would naturally have to make some preparations.
“Aether, how many mantle-piercing weapons do we have left?”
Aether floated over at an unhurried pace.
“City Lord, after the war ends, Blue Sea should have approximately 201 pieces of mantle-piercing Liuli remaining.”
Cheng Qisheng glanced at the number of city lords who remained: 199.
Good. That settled it.
Cheng Qisheng had already gotten more than enough out of this world. She had no desire to actively start a war between Safe Cities.
But if any city lord actually dared to reach out and try to take something from [Ota]…
Heh heh.
If all else failed, there was still the [Heaven’s Punishment].
To be safe, she lowered her eyes slightly and issued an order to her believers.
“Keep the progress of the battles under control. I want all three [Companies] eliminated at the exact same time.”
The Blue Sea residents fighting on the battlefield, their eyes gleaming with excitement, paused for a single second before charging into battle with even greater ferocity.
How could they keep the progress of the battles under control?
Obviously, by maintaining absolute suppression of the enemy.
—The higher-ups of the [Zephyr Company], who had already lost the ability to fight back, stared in confusion as the [Ota] soldiers suddenly stopped advancing.
—The [Zipa Company], having lost its leadership, had already prepared to raise its hands and surrender. Yet it discovered that the [Ota] soldiers had merely surrounded them and were making no further moves.
—Meanwhile, the [Norn Company], which still had some ability to resist, was experiencing a one-sided beating.
In three different regions, against three different [Companies], three groups of Blue Sea residents were all working toward the same command from their God.
Finally, five days later, the [Norn Company], which had still been desperately attempting to turn the tide, lost its last remaining ability to fight back.
Watching this unfold, Cheng Qisheng transmitted the news to her believers.
At the same moment, outside the [Zipa Company] in Hal City and on the battlefield at Manluota, all the Blue Sea residents slowly raised their eyes.
Standing alongside them were residents from other Safe Cities, most of whom looked as though they had turned themselves into hedgehogs by sticking weapons and equipment all over their bodies.
They had no idea why their [Ota] comrades had suddenly become so excited.
But who cared?!
Burdened with all kinds of high-tech weapons and having already stored plenty of spoils of war—nuclear crystals, supplies, weapons, and more—back at the [Ota] camp, these residents from other Safe Cities had spent the entire campaign experiencing the thrill of earning rewards for every enemy they killed.
They had only three words to say:
KILL! KILL! KILL!!!!
This massive war, which had dragged on for several months, finally came to an end six hours later.
Under Blue Sea’s precise control, all three [Companies] declared their destruction at almost exactly the same minute.
At that very moment, however, the [Ota] soldiers who remained on the battlefield after the war ended did not remove their armor or begin cleaning up the battlefield.
Instead, they aimed their mantle-piercing Liulis at the skies above the clouds—
The Safe Cities that had been watching the battle from overhead immediately relocated to other areas at breakneck speed.
The assembled city lords were nearly scared to death.
[Greenroot Safe City: ??? Holy shit, I’m moving first!]
[Where’s My Mom Safe City: What’s going on?]
[Hahaha Safe City: The worst-case scenario has happened! [Ota] has broken through the Cognition Lock! It took out all three Companies in one go, and now we’re next!]
[Aaaaaah! If I’d known this would happen, I never would’ve come up here to watch the battle! That was way too close!]
[Has the World Mission still not been declared complete? I need to get out of here!]
[Replying to upstairs: Are you planning to leave as soon as the World Mission is declared complete? Your residents are still with [Ota].]
[It’s fine. I only sent out one million residents. I can accept the losses.]
Sure enough, after this city lord finished speaking, one person disappeared from the city lords’ group chat.
The remaining city lords were all quite shocked.
[He actually left? He’s giving up a million residents and the mission rewards?]
[Now that’s what I call being a real coward! I couldn’t do it. Even if I were going to leave, I’d at least wait until the mission rewards were distributed before going!]
[The main thing is that [Ota] hasn’t chased after us. If it could pinpoint the locations of Safe Cities, I’d run too.]
[Everyone, don’t panic. Maybe [Ota] has simply noticed that something is wrong with the sky. But with the Cognition Lock in place, it can’t identify us.]
[How can we not panic?! It’s not like you haven’t seen how [Ota] dealt with the three Companies! Ah, hurry up and release the World Mission rewards already! The moment I get my reward, I’m leaving this world immediately. I’ve traveled through so many worlds, and I’ve never encountered a local power with such overwhelming pressure!]
[At this point, I think everything was part of [Ota]’s scheme! Did it plan from the very beginning to lure us out, then kill the city lords and seize our Safe Cities?!]
[Stay calm, stay calm! I have milk tea. Just 100 nuclear crystals a cup, and it helps people calm down quickly. Everyone should buy a cup and relax!]
[Could you please stop advertising at a time like this?]
[I’ve calmed down. By the way… is it possible that one of the city lords among us has already had their Safe City seized?]
The assembled city lords were like people who had just seen a ghost, plunging into all kinds of wild speculation and conspiracy theories. Amid the chaos, a message from Blue Sea Safe City stood out like a sore thumb.
[Blue Sea Safe City: Everyone, don’t worry. We’re just taking precautions to stop you from stealing our mantle-piercing Liuli weapons.]
[Where’s My Mom Safe City: @Blue Sea Safe City, friend, did you buy any milk tea? Because your theory is the least believable one of all.]
—At that moment, an official notification finally appeared in the city lords’ group chat.
[Zephyr Company: Confirmed eliminated.]
[Norn Company: Confirmed eliminated.]
[Zipa Company: Confirmed eliminated.]
[Detected that this mission was completed through the joint efforts of multiple Safe Cities.]
[The contribution rankings of all Safe Cities will now be announced, from highest to lowest—]
[Blue Sea Safe City: 92% of total mission contribution.]
[Congratulations to Blue Sea Safe City for completing the World Mission.]
[Three Heaven’s Punishments have been distributed in full.]
