Why can't humans do it too?

Heaven knows how much pain she endured being in a room with such a precious head. To reduce the torment, Jibril could only force herself to lie flat and try her best not to let her eyes drift toward the direction of the machine gun. After all, given the current situation, this machine gun was still on her side.

Damn it... I have to be patient~

Fortunately, it seems we don't have to endure it anymore?

Jibril was eager to try.

"...First...you must not kill anyone..."

As if she hadn't heard Jibril's words, Shubi's eyes showed obvious signs of mechanical halos rotating. Her timid words were almost inaudible among the scattered voices of the elves if one didn't listen carefully. The voice of the machine race was trembling almost imperceptibly. Was it fear?

Do machines also experience fear?

Unable to know, the trembling words of the machine-like creature were still being muttered in a low voice.

"...Secondly...no one will die..."

It was as if it were her creed. Even though she didn't need to breathe, in Sul's eyes, the chest of this machine-type creature was rising and falling slightly, as if simulating a human deep breath. Her arm, which had transformed into a blade, gradually deformed and contracted after she finished speaking, until it returned to a normal palm covered by a material similar to human skin. However, the abnormality on her body could not be concealed no matter what.

The rapidly spinning halo above his head and chest gradually slowed down and dimmed, as if he had done something wrong, and the machine-type stood there blankly with his head down.

"...Put it away," Sull heard Schwie's words, unable to describe the emotions she felt at that moment. Was it anger? Or helplessness? Sull could only repeat herself to Hinco and Jibril.

a long time.

"...Tch," Jibril ultimately didn't press the attack, simply clicking her tongue in frustration. The gathered elves dispersed again, and Xinke also dispelled the dense array of magical spells.

Without the light of the elves, the cave was once again dimly lit. However, the strange phenomena on Nona, who had fainted to the side, and the non-human races meant that the atmosphere of their conversation could never return to the previous state of feigning ignorance.

"Thank you." To be honest, Jibril's cooperation made Suer feel a little relieved. The pink-haired winged creature seemed to be gradually coming out of the head-hunting frenzy. At least when they first met, Suer was quite sure that Jibril would basically hunt down the extremely rare head of Shubi at all costs.

After spending so much time together, he had gained an accurate understanding of the rating criteria for the Skywing species.

Chapter 233 Suer Cannot Agree

"Anyway, nothing's wrong here, don't worry," Su Er said calmly, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. He turned his head and said, "Don't worry, it was just a little argument during a discussion. Can you give us some quiet space?"

“…Ah~, no problem, then I wish you a pleasant conversation in advance, okay?” Xin Ke nodded and said, her gaze sweeping over Su Er, Li Ku, and the furnishings inside the cave. As she spoke, the wooden door that had been torn off flew up and closed itself again, completely blocking out the sounds inside.

It's unclear how Shinko, Jibril, and Shubi, who have fully revealed their true forms, will communicate with Koro over there, or how Koro will try to mend the torn atmosphere in this situation. What Suer can't ignore at this moment are the two sentences that the machine race named Shubi murmured earlier.

Fortunately, we had lit several lamps to make the map clearer, so even after the table fell over and the things on it were overturned, there was still enough light in the cave, adding to the pervasive chill and silence that filled the cave.

Riku stood up from Suer's lower abdomen, swaying as he pulled up the overturned chair next to him and sat down, his arms resting above his knees, his fingers buried deep in his hair.

"...Has it already spread?" Finally breaking the silence, Suer lay sprawled on the ground, showing no intention of getting up, and simply muttered, "Your ridiculous rules?"

"...Is it ridiculous?" Riku chuckled self-deprecatingly. "Currently, only Shubi and I know about it. After all, the plan needs your opinion and the power of the Forest Spirits before it can be implemented...and maybe even the Skywings."

Yes, the words that Shubi just murmured were exactly what Suer had just heard from Riku. The new rules that this man claimed to be creating, new rules that could break the game between the divine species, but which Suer could not accept at all, along with the reason for the birth of these rules.

They even scoffed at it, regarding it as child's play.

"First, I cannot kill anyone... because if I kill someone, I will be killed, and I do not want to kill anyone."

In a low voice, Sull repeated the rules set by Riku without any emotion.

"Secondly, I will not let anyone die... because if I let people die, they will die, and I do not want anyone to die."

I really want to laugh.

"Third, you must not be seen through by anyone... because if you are seen through, you will die."

"Fourth, using any means does not count as cheating... because as long as it is not detected, it cannot be considered cheating."

"Fifth, their rules are irrelevant to us... because if we compete on the same stage, we are bound to fail, and our hearts will be rejected by those races that kill each other."

"And sixth, anyone who violates the above rules shall be deemed a loser... because incomplete rules are meaningless, and a victory achieved by violating the rules is worthless..."

He spoke faster and faster, repeating the rules set by Riku in rapid succession. These rules were not just something that flashed through his mind, but rather something that had been carefully considered and judged. It was precisely because of this that he found them even more unacceptable.

"Are you playing a game, Riku?" After a moment of silence, Sull asked softly, "You want to end the war, but you don't want any member of the entire race, including the gods, to die... What do you take this serious war for?"

"...It's a gamble where either we win the war or we perish, or we gain everything or lose everything...There are no draws or forfeits, it's just that kind of capriciousness that's more fantastical than fantasy itself," Riku answered, enunciating each word clearly.

“However, that is impossible,” Sur said without hesitation, standing up from the ground and gritting his teeth. “Victory without death and sacrifice is absolutely impossible.”

There has never been a revolution without bloodshed.

“...we just need to guide the battle from the sidelines,” Riku insisted.

"Even if it's just inducement, individual deaths will still occur amidst the shrinking power and mutual vigilance among different races, right? Or is it that as long as you don't kill them with your own hands or witness it, it doesn't count as violating the rules?"

However, such self-deception is clearly unacceptable, as it violates the second rule that Riku set for himself—a world where no one dies, where "no one" refers to any individual of any race.

"To take it a step further, according to your plan, we are 'ghosts' who lure the actions of various races from the sidelines. In order to avoid being detected as forest elves or winged elves, we cannot even use magic to disguise ourselves. We can only disturb the elves inside and outside our bodies by covering them with black ash or even swallowing it directly, so as to deceive and frighten those races with sensitive senses."

“Even if we can immediately use the decontamination fluid from Shubi or the magic of the Forest Spirits to dispel and heal the damage caused by the black ash, this is only based on the premise that everything goes smoothly and the time spent being infected by the black ash is not too long... How can we assume that every induction will be successfully completed in a very short time?” Suer further retorted.

The ability to consider the worst-case scenario is a quality that should be possessed when making plans.

"If too much time is spent, neither the stain remover nor the treatment will be able to save the body that has been excessively corroded by the black ash. In fact, the process is accelerated due to the differences in each person's constitution, and at that time it means death - the death of the 'ghost'."

[These physical injuries can be healed in an instant after obtaining the throne of the One God]—these words stuck in Riku's throat, unable to be uttered. He understood the meaning of Sur's words, which meant that in the worst-case scenario, there would definitely be "ghosts" who would die before the One God appeared.

Returning to the ocean of elves, they are indistinguishable from everything, beyond healing and resurrection.

"...Or is it that as long as we regard ourselves as non-existent, as invisible ghosts, we can avoid this death, and consider it... as not violating your rules...?"

Watching Riku's ten fingers gripping his scalp tightly, Sull asked softly.

It wasn't a casual rejection of Riku's plan; Sur had even carefully considered every aspect before he became even more unable to agree. He couldn't accept such a battle, and he couldn't convince himself to step onto the battlefield for such reasons.

Chapter 234 Belief

Sull knew that no matter how much Riku resisted his plan or how angry he was, this man would ultimately still stand by his side.

The fundamental problem in Riku's plan could not be solved... mortals cannot touch the Star Cup.

Even if the plan is successfully implemented and releases the Star Cup across the entire planet and the Elf Corridor, so what?

Humanity cannot lift that trophy; it cannot win a true victory.

Riku's punch just now was nothing more than an uncontrollable hatred—hatred for his own powerlessness, and hatred for Sur, who treated his and others' lives as pawns.

But Suer did not feel any pain.

“Abandon those beautiful illusions, Riku,” Sul said calmly, standing in front of Riku. “The gods have the power to treat everything in the world as a game, but for us, this is a war to the death… Victory, and then survival.”

"...As you plan, to expand upon what we've done before, and command even more people to die for victory?" Riku slowly raised his head and asked hoarsely.

"Ah, that's exactly what I need to do," he answered without hesitation. Suer felt that cowardice and hesitation were gradually disappearing from every cell in his body; he was ready.

“I don’t need to pretend to be a ghost, nor do I need to smear black ash on my body to lure those powerful races, and I will not erase my existence from humanity. I will lay out what I am going to do in front of every human being and tell them what they will die for.”

"Humanity advances on the Tower of Babel paved with the blood and flesh of countless heroes who were not afraid of death, stepping on the bones of their predecessors with every step. We must no longer deceive ourselves with the false illusion that the war will end one day. The sacrifices of the people should be rewarded in a substantial way!" Suer roared in a low voice.

"Forge all souls into one in this war, forging a spirit belonging to all humanity. Humanity must possess its own weapon, a weapon called the Divine Race! No matter the cost, we must snatch victory from those fools who don't know how to cherish it—victory is everything!"

His chest heaved rapidly, and Suer clenched his fists.

“…Isn’t this just like me?” Staring blankly at the excited Sull, Riku suddenly said with a bitter smile, “Victory or destruction, more willful than anyone else…sacrifice…”

In the end, Riku himself became lost in thought, as if he could see the image of the servants in the future described by Sull, filled with passion and hope for the future, facing death with equanimity, one after another.

“Ah, sacrifice,” Sull exclaimed, as if hearing the word for the first time: “What a beautiful word, yet every time it appears, it is accompanied by sorrow and pain. No matter what the sacrifice is for, if it is not followed by the word ‘reward,’ then the sorrow will become more sorrowful, the pain will become more painful, and sometimes it will even make the sacrifice too heavy, so heavy that no one can bear it—so heavy that only by abandoning it can one stand up.”

“Therefore, sacrifice must be rewarded, it must have value, and that is exactly what we should do, Riku,” Sur said in a deep voice, kneeling before Riku and suppressing his overflowing emotions. “Compared to sacrifice, making sacrifice meaningless is what we should hate the most.”

“...That will kill a lot of people,” Riku said in a low voice.

“People who will die may be more numerous than you can imagine,” without any intention of concealment or deception, Sull laid everything bare before Riku, “aside from the remaining embers, they may die to the point that you feel numb, or they may die to the point that you begin to doubt whether the hope we initially proclaimed still exists.”

“Nothing is less appreciated than something free,” Sur said, taking Riku’s hand from his head and cradling it in his own palms. He gripped Riku’s rough hand tightly and whispered, “I know what happened in the settlement. I’m so grateful to you all these years…”

"Ah, you already knew?" Riku said with a wry smile, "It was Cor who told you, wasn't it? Really... people's hearts are so complicated, completely unfathomable."

As he finished speaking, Riku seemed to have all his strength drained away. He let out a long sigh of exhaustion.

After several years of development, the settlement led by Liku has become the most powerful human force. In the past few years, it has attracted many people to join it, and the number of people in the settlement has increased to nearly 150,000. The several backup safe points that were originally surveyed have long been put into use as residences. However, this rapid increase in population has also brought many different noises, which are getting louder and louder.

The comfortable life provided by the supplies secretly supplied by the forest elves, along with the sense of security from not having to go on expeditions often, seemed to have made many people forget what kind of world they lived in. What angered Suer even more was that there were quite a few people who thought this way.

Following the anger was a deep sense of helplessness. Even in today's information-rich society, the majority of people are still ignorant, let alone in this world that can be described as primitive.

Being precocious and intelligent doesn't mean you can do everything. Managing these growing numbers of fellow citizens and listening to and meeting their needs had already exhausted Liku and Cole, who was not exactly adept at understanding people.

“It will be alright,” Sul said firmly, shaking Riku’s hand tightly. “I’ve come to proclaim new hope to them, a plan to make humanity great—and only I can do it!”

Equally fantastical was the plan conceived by Suer and perfected by the God of Suspicion and Xinke.

Before Riku could instinctively speak, trying to block Sul's way of speaking, Sul raised his voice and drowned him out.

After a long silence, Riku spoke in a hoarse voice, revealing Sul's future word by word.

"...You will die."

"I will die."

Suer affirmed without hesitation.

“I will be hated by their children, cursed by future generations, and cast into a statue to be infamous for eternity… because it must be done,” Sul said, looking into Riku’s eyes without a trace of confusion or hesitation. “We will gather all our strength, use our own gods to seize the throne of the One God, and thoroughly laugh at the incredulous expressions on the faces of those arrogant fellows at that time.”

"...Let them see what our struggle for survival is all about!"