Forge a path to success

Chapter 379 War and Turmoil (The End)

The old commander's face hovered in their line of sight as he uttered the same admonition they had heard a hundred times: "On the battlefield, what we must be most wary of is not open or covert attacks, but the elusive mental control of heretics. It is the hypnosis of the Fallen, the emotional infection of the Calamity Species, and the mental pollution of the Demon of Imagination. Open and covert attacks may only result in the annihilation of a squad or battalion, but soldiers whose thinking is affected will lead to the destruction of an entire army."

"But if the enemy infiltrates our ranks and maliciously erodes your spirit in the name of freedom, how can we protect ourselves? How can we guarantee the security of our thoughts?"

Trek said coldly, "Only with unwavering will, my comrades. Only by arming our minds with a firm will to fight can we maintain basic rationality and protect our families."

"We are a city-state of thorns, not an island of hell. Our army has never had warlords or factions, only soldiers who defend our homeland. Our disputes always focus on how to fight and how to fight, not on how to escape war or how to withdraw from the front lines."

There is no way to reconcile in the war we face. Behind us are millions of families. Therefore, the military camps of the Jingsha City-State will forever hold only one ideology and one faction: to fight against the heretics to the very end!

The old commander's roar was like thunder, and the soldiers who were jolted awake could hardly stand up straight. Some of the veterans even burst into tears.

Like a grumpy general, Trek waved his arms and cursed at the screen without any regard for his image: "That's right, Jing Sha is an equal country where everyone has the right to choose, but there can only be one ideology in Jing Sha's military camp!"

Those who do not support this idea can rest assured. No one will force you to fight. You can go to the fields to farm, or sell balloons at the amusement park. If you feel that this place is no longer safe, there are still many seats available on the ferry; you can go to places outside the city-state!

"But after making your decision, please take off your uniforms and give me your serial numbers—"

The camera in the water screen gradually zoomed out, allowing people to see the scene around the podium.

There were people everywhere. Tree people, half-orcs, weak animals, and old humans filled the entire scene, so many that they were almost impossible to count.

There stood bookstore owners, restaurant cooks, band conductors, and flower gardeners—ordinary people who felt intimately familiar to the citizens, living among them. They took out their former medals, donned military uniforms and caps, and shouted alongside their former superiors.

"The veterans are still waiting to go back to the battlefield!!"

After just a few breaths, the tranquil pulse was drowned out by shouts.

Such were the voices of departed family members, and similar roars of ancient ancestors. As if inspired by the departed spirits, the soldiers living in the present roared with fury that flowed deep within the blood of the forest people.

"Fight to the end."

"Fight to the bitter end!!"

·

Thus, the dispute over the second line of succession came to an end.

Under the leadership of the current captain and inspired by the return of the old commander, the entire camp was once again united. The rusty iron crest gleamed with a dark luster once more.

“Some things are better left to the locals to say,” Vilbert concluded.

The bartender had also changed into his military uniform to watch the match today, leaving only two customers entertaining themselves in the small bar. Ji Huaisu enthusiastically picked out some sweet wine and asked, "You're actually treating this arena match like a press conference, aren't you? You take advantage of everyone's attention to bombard them with information, then raise your voice and reveal the truth, and that's pretty much it."

"This also required the cooperation of the soldiers. The second round was quite dangerous, and the atmosphere almost turned into a mourning theme," Wilbert said. "If it couldn't be reversed in the end, we would have to ask Captain Trek to adjust the theme of his speech, to play the emotional card in the name of the fallen comrades, and then point out the matter of mind control. Fortunately, Akong did a good job."

"You actually made Old Cui write two sets of manuscripts..."

“I had him write six sets.”

Ji Huaisu gave a thumbs up: "That's impressive, no wonder she's a ruthless female boss! But why does Old Cui have such a big influence just by giving a speech?"

“Because Jas Trek was once the most powerful person in the Jing family, and the position of commander-in-chief is enough to show how much the Jing family valued him. If he hadn’t been willing to accept the verdict after the war to take responsibility, the situation in the city-state might not be what it is now,” Wilbert explained. “And in the politics of long-lived species, rises and falls spanning decades are not surprising at all. Trek, who has been demoted for 20 years, is like a member of parliament who has been out of office for two years on Earth. His power is still there, just waiting for him to make a comeback.”

Ji Huaisu nodded and pondered, "But I must say, Old Cui's choice back then wasn't wrong... Someone has to take responsibility, otherwise what about public opinion? Insisting on staying in office back then would only have exacerbated the conflict."

“Who knows?” Violet smiled. “It’s better to focus on the present than the past.”

"Will we be able to defeat the forces interfering with the independence movement behind the scenes?"

"I'm afraid not. In fact, so far, we can only roughly guess at the existence of mind controllers, but we have no way to clarify their methods. Parryman is far more sophisticated than us in this regard, and it is unknown how effective conventional actions will be."

Ji Huaisu clicked his tongue: "Old Cui took a considerable risk to say that in public..."

“It’s always good to raise public awareness,” Wilbert said. “Be prepared, by bringing this to the forefront first, we are escalating the conflict. I’m afraid Parriman’s countermeasures will come soon.”

·

On the front lines of the desperate battle, on the imperial mothership, Lord Ranhe was meticulously reading a report.

"...The following calculations are made regarding the current situation of the city-states. Since the accurate probability is difficult to assess, they are arranged in order of probability from low to high."

1. The city-state successfully gained independence, and the attempt by the ideology of exclusive love to seize power failed. The deaths and injuries of approximately ten billion intelligent beings will significantly impact the course of destiny. A new demon born from this will cross the Second Abyss, following the causal path upwards, and upon arriving at the moment of the city-state's independence after traversing time and space, will devour the source of resentment, thus becoming the Seventh Heretic.

This possibility is what Ji Huaisu mentioned in his battle with Lingfeng as the "backlash of the tide of fate," which is the greatest crisis of Jingsha's independence, something that ordinary people cannot understand.

The current is the movement of the Sea of ​​Illusions, and the current of fate itself is the core mechanism of the Third Abyss. The Sea of ​​Illusions is the convergence of countless desires, thoughts, and emotions, and every action of all living beings is contained within it. Large-scale death of living beings will stir up the current in the most direct way, and its result will often be expressed in the most heinous way in the form of "demons".

Warriors like Ji Huaisu and Ling Feng, who were familiar with demons, could naturally foresee the consequences of large-scale casualties. The imperial lords, having witnessed countless counterattacks, could simulate even more detailed outcomes.

Ranhe continued reading: "2. That is, the Du Ai ideology successfully usurped power and, after occupying the Thorn Robe, devoured another new demon, thus becoming the Seventh Heretic... Although the Oracle believes this possibility is lower, I personally think that its probability of success is greater."

In rare cases, this force can backfire on the culprit that caused the disaster, amplifying its harmfulness hundreds or thousands of times. The former Grand Mage Vansalal's fall from grace and ascension to godhood due to his demon-slaying is one aspect of the causal flow within this current. The current Jing Sha Ru, having become the origin of large-scale death and injury, naturally has the potential to follow this same path.

Yongjie remained noncommittal: "Third point."

"3. Naturally, the city-state's independence will fail, the Solitary Love ideology itself will be corrupted by the First Abyss, and the Jingsha city-state will collectively fall into the hands of the Black Moon's divine children." Lord Ranhe put away the report. "Apart from this, the possibility of Jingsha's independence failing has increased by 10% compared to ten days ago. I think your strategic direction is basically correct. We should indeed remain on the sidelines."

“Not necessarily,” said Eternal Calamity.

"May I ask for your insightful opinion, General?"

"The allied forces within the city-state have assessed the capabilities of the Solitary Love ideology, but they do not yet understand its true nature," Eternal Calamity pointed out. "Therefore, current measures have not dealt a fundamental blow to it, and the situation has not fundamentally changed."

“I understand.” Lord Ranhe nodded slowly. “The new simulation report is expected to be generated in 2 hours and 31 minutes. I will carefully consider the route of advance.”

·

Inside the Speaker's residence in Mansa Starburg, the Royal Power is playing Trek's speech again.

"Launching a surprise attack in front of everyone, that's really her style." It chuckled and turned its head. "What should we do, Mr. Speaker? Judging from this momentum, a revote isn't out of the question."

Parriman remained silent with his eyes closed, seemingly lost in thought.

"It's alright, we were planning to use the second and fourth pulse sequences to buy time anyway."

"The time you've gained is probably less than you anticipated, isn't it?" Wang Quan mocked.

It snapped its fingers, and the scene on the water screen changed, showing the faces of the soldiers in the camp after the duel. Those faces were ashamed, guilty, and uneasy, and their eyes had become resolute again after Trek's speech.

"We need to rethink..." "How can we place our hopes on heretics?" "As expected, someone has influenced our thinking." "We should fight to the very end!"

Wang Quan sat down with his legs crossed: "What should we do, Speaker? Even if we urgently activate the Great Lily of Mansa Star Castle now, the situation hasn't fundamentally changed. The public is aware of the risks of independence. They'll soon want to 'do it again.' You'll soon be deserted by everyone!"

“It doesn’t matter,” Parriman said.

He also looked at the water curtain, his gaze devoid of emotion, hidden behind an iron mask. And in that instant, the soldiers' expressions changed.

Hesitation. Unease. Confusion. Cowardice. The spirit that should have been invigorated after the speech and duel instead reverted to its old ways, like a puppet being forced to retreat by strings.

"Perhaps...we should think about it some more?" someone said.

“Commander Trek is criticizing the Speaker, isn’t he…” “But he’s Speaker Parryman after all.” “The Speaker has always spoken up for the people.”

"How could the Speaker... be wrong?"

Wang Quan suddenly realized what was happening and clapped his hands repeatedly. Parriman lowered his head and stroked the mask.

“I’ve said this many times on different occasions, and I don’t mind repeating it again.”

“I am a container for ‘public opinion’.”

"My choice is the choice of the citizens of Jingsha."

“I never needed to win over followers, because the seeds of victory were sown 20 years ago. Their efforts and struggles were ultimately in vain…”

He held his mask and said slowly, "I am the entire independence movement."

Double update today, then I'll be taking a day off tomorrow~

Chapter 380 Secret Plot

Good evening everyone~ It's so good to see that you're all still alive after being apart for so long!

"It's only been a few months, and your standards are really weird," Qingye complained.

Qingxia gave Ji Huaisu a warm hug, then turned to look at the bookstore's bookshelves. Her eyes were practically sparkling.

"So many books! This place is amazing!"

"For a bookstore, this is the kind of praise we want to hear most," commented the editor, Poison Otter. Big Sea Seal held up a sign that read, "Welcome to preview."

After the second and fourth phases of operations concluded, the scattered members finally reunited. Except for a sniper whose whereabouts were unknown and Stone Seed, who had other missions, all the other members of the Wilderness Resistance were present. Manager Bangbangji had to drag down several more cloud sofas from upstairs, otherwise the lobby area would be almost full.

Ji Huaisu helped the excited Qingxia sit down and clapped his hands: "We can talk about greetings and entertainment later, after the war. Let's get down to business now. Let me introduce you. This is Ms. Violet Velus, our new teammate and strategist, and Akong's boss on Earth."

Qingxia stepped across the table and shook hands with the boss in a friendly manner: "Hello, hello, we always thought you were a man, we never imagined you were a woman."

“His tone can certainly be misunderstood,” Vilbert replied. “Time is limited, we may need to get to know each other better at work. What are your specialties?”

Qingxia put on her goggles and proudly declared, "I am very skilled in close combat, and my strengths lie in precise movements and overwhelming power!"

Vilbert glanced at the file created based on Chu Hengkong's description: "...What about the virus that is a lustful demon?"

"Primarily used to further enhance the intensity of close combat."

Violet noted "Fighting Style: Standard Unified Path" in her memo. She looked at Qingye with a glimmer of hope: "Then, who is this young lady from the Guangshi family?"

Qingye stood at attention and said, "Yes! I am skilled in stealth and close combat, and my specialties are agile speed and superb swordsmanship!"

Vilbert then looked at the various Heart-Binding Techniques recorded in the file: "You should have mastered many techniques..."

"My Musou Nishin-ryu is a school of swordsmanship that integrates swordsmanship, so the techniques are mainly used to assist in close combat."

Vilbert pondered for a moment, then added another line to her memo: "Fighting Style: Standard Unification Path".

She glanced at Ji Huaisu's "heavy firepower bombardment" and Chu Hengkong's "standard unification path" above, and couldn't help but let out a sigh.

"It seems that there is some overlap in the team roles you all have."

"No way." "That's not true." "Everyone has their own methods of fighting!"

“I understand. I will assign suitable tasks to everyone later.” She put the notebook away. “Now, please let the editor tell us about the current progress.”

The editor of the Poison Otter program pulled down a water curtain to explain: "To date, we have collected petitions from approximately 7100 million citizens. Among them, the fourth phase contributed 3000 million, the second phase contributed 2600 million, and the third and fifth phases contributed 1500 million each. The vote-gathering plan is progressing smoothly."

There are still 20 days until the bill officially takes effect, but according to Parriman's plan, the city-state will gradually isolate itself from the secret realm 18 days before formal independence, and will achieve complete physical independence 12 days before that. Therefore, we don't have much time left, and I suggest submitting the request for a revote as soon as possible.

"A question!" Qingxia raised her hand. "What do you mean by physically separating from the secret realm? Are they planning to push this tree into the sea?"

“No, that would be tantamount to plunging the city-state into a demonic siege, so they came up with an even bolder plan.” The Poison Otter turned the page. “They intend to send the city-state flying into the sky.”

The next page features a water screen projection depicting a floating continent soaring through the air, with an old tree sitting in the center of the island, beneath which are countless roots forming "spouts". The island is surrounded by pale white "petals", seemingly a wall separating the inside from the outside.

"Using divine power to provide temporary propulsion, and constructing an aerial ecosystem with the city defense device 'Great Lily.' According to the independence faction, this new device will draw upon the propulsion of the currents from the Sea of ​​Illusions as the power source for the city-state. Once the Great Lily is fully open, the Divine Tree will no longer need to supply the city-state with its own resources, and the protective barrier will officially activate." Poison Otter tossed his pen aside. "I won't comment on the probability of success."

Qingye remained expressionless: "How could that be..."

“I’ve seen the design drawings, and the plan is theoretically feasible,” Wilbert said. “There are similar precedents in reality; the ‘Flowing Bead System’ constructed by Huilong Youyou is the prototype for the giant lily.”

"Huh?" Qingye exclaimed in surprise.

"Huh?" Ji Huaisu exclaimed in surprise.

"Sister Huaisu, what are you exclaiming about? That's your hometown!"

"I always thought that water balloon was just something Yoyo casually made, but it turns out it took advantage of a trend..."

Wilbert tapped the table: "Judging from the situation with the second and fourth pulse sequences, Parriman has attempted to activate the Great Lily several times ahead of schedule. We stopped the deployment of these two pulse sequences in time, but the activation of his main base, Mansa Star Fortress, is probably beyond repair. Hill."

Hill, the secretary, rushed over and took the pen from the poison otter: "Yes, boss! According to the current calculations, once the Great Lily is activated, Mansa Star Castle will become a one-way isolated island. It will be impossible for outsiders to invade, but those inside can freely interfere with the outside world."

"How about using Old Cui's teleportation?" Ji Huaisu asked.

“That might be difficult, because the Great Lily’s defenses directly block the movement of ‘information.’ It’s like a firewall; even the Holy Grail can’t force its way in without a password,” Hill replied. “Our team of experts believes there are only two solutions: one is to use the force of a mass of 6 or higher to force it through, and the other is to find the Great Lily’s password… or to bypass the firewall’s virus.”

To resend the bill, an application would have to be submitted to the Upper House of Mansa Star Castle, but Parryman clearly wouldn't give up that opportunity easily. Qingxia raised her hand again: "Could we sneak into Mansa Star Castle before the giant lilies bloom?"

"If I were Parriman, I would wait for the surprise attack before activating the Great Lily to isolate external reinforcements, and then concentrate my forces to wipe out our elite troops."

"They've become sitting ducks..."

Ji Huaisu scratched his head: "I feel like we can't outlast him. If this thing can be activated at any time, the initiative will be in Parriman's hands. No matter what we choose, we'll just be walking into a trap."

"I have already made arrangements in this regard. In my opinion, we need to pay more attention to the enemy's overt forces."

Hill turned to the next page, displaying three factions marked with red circles: Parriman and the Tree of Love, the Royal Authority and Blood Pact Killers, and the Chaos Demons.

"It really looks pretty bad."

"It feels like I'll suddenly die halfway through..."

Qingxia pondered for a moment: "The captains are mostly on our side, right? We can expect them to limit the power of the Divine Tree of Love. The Earth's assassins were already killed by Chu Hengkong once before, so fighting them again won't be a big deal. The most dangerous one is definitely the last one..."

"Seriously, how do you defeat a level 7 god?"