Chapter 106: Dark Undercurrents

The indigenous people of this other world are still simple and pure-hearted, untouched by the terrifying power of online 'chicken soup' wisdom!

After Small Brain Tiger Downhill finished his persuasion, he and Saint Linda continued onward, arriving at a secret underground passage. It was a Victorian-style circular corridor, lit by flickering, dim lights. Exquisite stone bas-reliefs adorned the walls on both sides, creating a profound and somber atmosphere.

As they delved deeper, the underground space expanded.

Eventually, they reached an immense dark cavern. There, a colossal, hundred-meter-tall giant, skinned and composed entirely of raw red muscle, stood silently on the earth, emanating a breathtaking aura.

"Pope... our church's ultimate war weapon, intended to stop the Evil God, has it succeeded?" Linda asked, looking at a mass of fresh, serpentine flesh nearby, which was none other than the muscle player Xue Bai Xue.

Xue Bai Xue had long become the Pope of this Church of Light, secretly conducting research by utilizing the vast resources absorbed by the church.

Nearby, Small Brain Tiger Downhill, Zai Ke Duo Shou, and Qiu Ming Shan Che Su had gathered.

This was an underground meeting of players on the "good" side.

Xue Bai Xue sighed, stating gravely, "Just now, a few more people were attacked. Over the years, we're down to only six remaining. Our numbers are dwindling, but we've managed to reclaim some wild species from those 'red-named players' and have collected over twenty different body structures. We can now barely assemble a super-weakened version of an Evil God—this is the Church of Light's strongest weapon!"

The Evil God, originally created by Xue Bai Xue, was now being reassembled and studied in a weakened form. Although difficult, they had made some progress.

Their slow progress was due to their lack of external contact; they dared not seek help from "cloud players" as it would expose their identities and locations.

The surviving players present were divided into three factions.

All six had reached the level of a Third-Tier Wizard.

The first faction, consisting of Small Brain Tiger Downhill and Xue Bai Xue, had secretly established the Church of Light. They were stirring, remaining the most deeply hidden, and had even become the main force in the popular efforts to encircle and suppress the Evil God.

The second faction, Zai Ke Duo Shou, had cultivated their own species of "Ahoge" (cowlick) monsters, specifically the Mediterranean Ahoge Bird Beast. They had carved out a territory for themselves, becoming a renowned monster, often targeted by witches and the Church of Light.

The third faction, Qiu Ming Shan Che Su, operated as a guerrilla force, causing trouble everywhere.

Qiu Ming Shan Che Su slammed the table. "I'm absolutely furious! It's been completely proven that those seven are truly malicious 'red-named players'! Even if we can't win, we must take them down with us! We have to stop them, otherwise, the entire Wizard World, this wizard civilization that the Alchemist Emperor painstakingly built, will be destroyed! They came to this world not for a game, but for their own selfish desires, bringing only destruction and invasion!"

Over these past eight years, they no longer viewed this as a game but as their real lives.

The people here were flesh and blood.

Those affected by disaster would weep, shed tears, and wail.

Parents would despair over the loss of their children.

Wizards would break down after losing their closest friends.

It felt like a catastrophe, a truly breathtaking and real world.

And they, standing by, had for eight years witnessed devastated streets, ruined towns, and the silent horror of war. Those seven evil 'red-named players' had trampled on lives, indiscriminately slaughtering, pushing the survivors' inner turmoil to its absolute limit.

They had matured.

Eight years were enough to change many things, prompting transformations in people.

Whether it was a game or not, or whether a game could be made so realistic, it no longer mattered to them.

Their sole purpose was to stop it all.

Xue Bai Xue's face was solemn as he whispered, "Although now only Qiu Ming Shan Che Su and I remain as 'muscle players,' the two of us can still control this giant! This time, my plan is for all of us core members to concentrate in the giant's nape. This means that no matter how strong our regeneration ability is, if the nape is suddenly attacked, we'll be completely finished!"

Zai Ke Duo Shou, a Mediterranean balding bird, attended this meeting for the first time. Looking up at the giant composed of raw red muscle, he asked, "It can regenerate continuously, and its nape is its weak point. Is this an 'Attack on Titan' situation?"

"Foolish!"

Qiu Ming Shan Che Su shook his head gently, his expression utterly grave. "Your vision is still too limited, lacking foresight. Let me show you what this ancient giant truly is!"

Saying this, Qiu Ming Shan Che Su took out a small wizard's staff, using it as a transformation device, and raised his hand high.

"Tiga Transformation! I too want to become light!!"

The staff erupted with brilliant white light.

He ran towards the giant, instantly disintegrated, and merged into its body.

Meanwhile, the colossal giant's alchemical gem on its chest glowed red. It slowly opened its eyes and stood up, causing the entire vast underground space to tremble and shed dust.

The others exchanged glances. Amidst the solemn atmosphere, a faint smile suddenly appeared. "Over the years, with all the running, chasing, and fleeing, we've all slowly matured and become leaders of our own factions. Only Qiu Ming Shan Che Su remains as absurdly silly as ever."

Meanwhile, on a bustling street.

A slender man, clad in a wizard's robe, wore earphones. A line, coiling like a writhing blood vessel, connected the earphones to a small, exquisite music box in his pocket.

As he listened to music, he politely inquired of passersby, "Could you tell me if any monsters have appeared in the nearby forest recently, or if anything strange has happened in the city?"

After a series of inquiries, he gathered some information and silently marked it on a map.

"The desolate woods nearby? Strange things are lurking there. I hope to find something... After all, if I don't collect you, you'll eventually die at the hands of others. If you fall into *their* hands, then this Wizard World will truly be doomed!"

"To this world, they are the true Evil Gods invading from another."

"They will destroy this simple land, those damnable robber nations!"

Long Ji sighed, standing on the bustling cobblestone street, silently looking up at the azure sky.

Over the years, he had developed deep feelings for this land. "You think it's just a game, but you don't realize it affects the destiny of an entire world, the lives and deaths of tens of millions of people!"

The entire Wizard World was vast.

If one intentionally hid, even they would find it difficult to locate them. Moreover, the survival of the remaining individuals was no accident; they were seasoned in escape tactics and had vanished without a trace.

Unlike the others, who controlled giant beasts with their muscle forms, Long Ji had gradually shrunk, even taking on the form of an ordinary person.

At that moment, a passing Third-Tier Wizard sniffed, her face suddenly aghast. "This is a nauseating, evil stench, could it be...?"

She turned her head to look at the young wizard, who had been asking passersby questions everywhere and wore strange alchemical creations on his ears, but he had already vanished.

The witch's expression froze. She whispered hoarsely:

"He is the Evil God hidden among the crowd, 'The Nameless Mist' Yog-Sothoth."