Doomsday Wonderland c1-855

by N. Heller

  Lin Sanjiu knew about all the grand prize's little games, but she did not care about them. She could not say this out to Puppeteer because she knew what kind of reaction he would give. Beads of sweat oozed from her head, and however hard she racked her brain, nothing about what she should say to change Puppeteer's mind came into her brain. She implored, "But he has the code writing ability.."

  "He's not the only one." Puppeteer's voice thickened. "We still have the highest god if the grand prize is dead."

  Now, that explained why Puppeteer would say he was willing to look for them. It was because of the highest god. It occurred to Lin Sanjiu that Puppeteer did not care about the condition of the grand prize at all. If he was given a choice, she was very certain that he would save the highest god in the grand prize's stead. With that thought, Lin Sanjiu shot a glance at Soulsqn. Surprisingly, the usually talkative flesh worm was quiet. She lowered her head without saying anything and kept sliding forward.

  'If only I had something like flares…' Lin Sanjiu thought inwardly as she bit her lower lip. When she looked at the wall, Puppeteer's voice drifted from the front into her ears, "Don't even think about it."

  "What?" Lin Sanjiu countered brazenly. "I didn't think of anything." Be that as it may, her tone belied her words.

  "If you are thinking of blowing up the building to get them to notice you, I suggest you put that in your pipe and smoke it."

  "Why?" Lin Sanjiu asked blankly.

  "To the Veda, we don't exist now," Soulsqn raised her head and explained to her 'balloon'. "Do you still remember? All data flows under the surveillance of the Veda. If we, the 'non-existent', create a ruckus in the city, don't you think we would literally be telling the Veda that we are here? If the Veda realizes something and do a deep area search, then we will be busted!"

  Lin Sanjiu did not think of this since she was so fraught with anxiety. She frowned and thought for a moment before speaking, "Does that mean we can't make any interaction with the data here? Once we interact with them, the Veda will know, won't they?"

  "Yeap, basically," answered Soulsqn as she wiggled to Puppeteer's side. "Lord Puppeteer, am I right?"

  "If we don't do anything, how are we supposed to save the grand prize?" Lin Sanjiu raised her voice. "No matter what, I'll never—"

  Before she could finish her sentence, countless golden strands zipped across the wall, ground, and houses like a bunch of flying fishes and homed in at the pencil-thin tower in the distance. The three of them stopped their pace. They looked at each other and their faces turned pale.

  "That… that is the Veda, isn't it?" Soulsqn asked sharply. "Those streaks of golden light?"

  "Who said our hands are tied?" Puppeteer stared at the minaret in the distance. Half of his face scrunched as a satiric smile danced around the corner of his lips. "We can't act rashly and alert our enemy, but that won't happen if we hit the head first. Go after them!"

  Before the wind carried his words away, the world in Lin Sanjiu's eyes blurred. Following Puppeteer's footsteps, Soulsqn picked up her speed as well, causing the smoke that wrapped around Lin Sanjiu's limbs to turn into stripes. She looked at the minaret in the distance and felt a lump forming in her throat. However, no sooner had they covered even half of the distance, something happened to the exquisite white tower in the distance. Like a broken ice cream cone, a crack appeared in the center of the tower.

  The crack fanned out into a cobweb-like linear mark in the blink of an eye. Half of the tower crumbled and sent countless rubble into the air. Those broken fragments bobbed up and down in midair, and similar to what Lin Sanjiu had experienced just now, they slowly dissipated into the air like smoke.

  Apparently, when the surface of the minaret was destroyed, it would turn back into a set of data in the database. The white tower was not alone since there was a familiar figure that burst into the air along with its broken bricks.

  "Lin Sanjiu's" body and limbs were contorted at a sickening angle. The bones in her neck were obviously snapped, as her head was twisted and she lay on her back. Her face was also expressionless. Before she could touch the ground, her body turned into smoke and melted away.

  "See? I told you that it wasn't Sister." Ji Shanqing's voice wafted into Lin Sanjiu's ears. "Can you code something useful so that we can find her as soon as possible?"

  There were two small figures standing on top of the half minaret. One of them did not wear any clothes, while the other's long hair fluttered gracefully in the air. Without a doubt, they were the highest god and the grand prize. Below them, clad in golden armor, the Veda was traveling at a high speed on the exterior of the minaret and going headlong for both of them, but neither of them realized it.

  'Watch out!'

  Before she could send out a warning, the Veda glowed and revealed its true form in front of both of them as a large and deep abstract pool. The air was tainted with its brilliant golden luminance, causing the rest of the people to squint. Lin Sanjiu felt like her heart had stopped beating. She turned her head and growled at Puppeteer, "Quick. Go and help them!"

  Puppeteer answered her with a dry laugh without moving an inch. "Who should I help?" he asked mellowly. "Should I help the highest god or your grand prize?"

  "Isn't it the same?" Lin Sanjiu replied in a fl.u.s.ter. "They are both under attack—"

  "Have your eyes turned to smoke too?" Puppeteer stood up lithely and walked toward the white tower. Soulsqn hesitated for a second before scurrying behind him. "Take a good look for yourself."

  Lin Sanjiu lifted her head stiffly. She squinted and stared at the pile of rubble underneath the minaret that was wrapped in a golden glow.

  One of the two figures were standing stock still underneath the golden glow while the other doddered to the back. Even though she could not see very clearly, she was pretty confident that the one moving was her grand prize.

  'What's happening?'

  "You are indeed one of the subjects from the control group without observation," the Veda said serenely. It measured the highest god from head to toe. It observed the highest god with such concentration it was as if Ji Shanqing was not there. "You have developed well. You've even developed data analysis and code writing abilities. The paper cranes you created are the best example of your high-developed code writing abilities. However, your overall ability is raw and still in a very primitive state. If you think you can defeat us along with these people, I suggest you drop the thought."

  'Huh?' Lin Sanjiu frowned.

  Chapter 702 - Split Up Strategically

  'Lead a team of humans and attack them?'

  The sentence lingered in Lin Sanjiu's mind like a dazzling flame that kept her awake.

  The cloud of golden glow wrapped around the n.a.k.e.d man like the amniotic fluid of a mother's w.o.m.b. The exquisiteness of his perfectly chiseled body and flawless appearance froze at that moment. Floating in the air with his stiffened body and limbs, he had never been so close to being a sculpture before.

  The Veda hovered in the opening of the white tower. A myriad of gold strands spread out from the center of the large and multifarious "pool." They waltzed in the air as if they had their own consciousness, and sidled and diffused into the surroundings.

  "Specimen BC02751Ω, born in the Salvation Of God #3. The only true god from the period 700 to 900 after the planet welcomed its destruction," the Veda said calmly as it observed the rigid highest god who hovered in the air. The "reality" that Soulsqn cast on them was still in effect, so the Veda did not notice the approaching group.

  The large, recondite "pool" that glimmered with gold radiance slowly turned its body. From its angle, it seemed like it was looking at the grand prize. Under Puppeteer's guidance, the trio finally arrived underneath the white minaret. Lin Sanjiu looked skyward, but she could not see her grand prize from her standing.

  The next thing the Veda said caused Lin Sanjiu's heart to plunge even deeper into the pit of her stomach.

  "Even though I have no idea how you guys
got into a relationship with this subject of ours, it will only be a matter of time until we find out. Nevertheless, did you guys assume that once you'd found a person who possessed a "code writing" ability similar to ours, then you would stand a chance against us? I do not know much about you, but don't you find that idea a little rash and impracticable?" There wasn't any hint of sarcasm in the Veda's tone. "We created our subjects with our own hands, so to prevent something like this from happening, we planted an emergency button, a "background program" of a sort, in each of our subjects. Perhaps you didn't expect that your greatest weapon could be easily disarmed at any time when it came to us, the Veda."

  The moment the Veda finished its rambling, Puppeteer and his companions stopped right in front of the minaret. Soulsqn fell into a trance as she mulled over the things the Veda had just said. Then, she suddenly jerked up and a faint "huh" slipped out of her mouth.

  "This doesn't sound right…" The flesh worm looked to her left and right, a quizzical expression dawning upon her face. "Why does the Veda sound so…"

  Lin Sanjiu set her jaw tight and lowered her head, for she did not want to see the satirical expression that sat upon Puppeteer's face. As she expected, a cold and dry laugh slipped into her ears before Puppeteer began to speak. "I truly admire his capability in pushing everyone to become his scapegoat. So, how do you feel now? Do you feel lost at not being his Aunt Sally this time?"

  Soulsqn half turned around, but she still failed to read the situation.

  She now finally saw the light. That explained why the sound that came from the paper cranes was of the highest god and not Ji Shanqing. She had been suspicious about this. With all things considered, it should be her grand prize who was more eager to look for her, as the highest god had no reason to care for her whereabouts.

  However, it was the highest god's sound that was recorded in the paper cranes.

  As Puppeteer said, it was only the highest god who revealed his code writing ability throughout the entire time. Ji Shanqing must have said something to the highest god so that he would handle all the code-writing chores, and create and release the paper cranes. At the same time, he hid his true identity through an unknown mean but did not provide such a cloaking blanket to the highest god.

  "Even the Veda did not see that he's actually one of their kind, and thought the highest god had only brought in a few humans with him. He really nailed it this time," hissed Puppeteer in a low voice as half of his face screwed up in abhorrence. The air of malice about him suddenly snowballed to the extent that Lin Sanjiu could not help but shudder.

  "I wonder how he makes himself look like a human."

  Nobody could answer that.

  Lin Sanjiu shut her eyes close. Right now, there was nothing in her mind but meeting her grand prize. In a hoarse voice, she said, "He… He's just made it a habit to protect himself. I say we should go up there now."

  Since the Veda had built a backdoor program in each of their subjects, it should not take them too long to finish analyzing the highest god. Now was the best time for them to strike.

  "Nonsense," Puppeteer retorted without looking at her. The glitter around his eyes darkened. "Any thoughts on how to get in there?"

  What laid beyond them was a conundrum they had never anticipated. Perhaps not even an ordinary person would pay any attention to the problem they were facing, let alone posthumans. However, it was this trivial problem that was usually overlooked by everyone that had them stumped—the door was closed.

  The tall spire in front of them should be an Islamic minaret. The trio stood underneath the slender tower, glancing at each other.

  The door wasn't locked. They could even see the slit between the two wooden planks. If it was in the past, all they needed to do was push the door and they could walk inside. However, they could not do it here because they were considered as "non-existent". They could not interact with the environment, as the moment they pushed the door open, the Veda who had been observing the flow of data would realize the data that constituted the "door" had a reaction with "emptiness".

  "What if we climb in from outside?" The flesh worm straightened her trunk and tried her very best to look up. "Hmm… But I don't see any open windows. And, why is the wall so slippery?"

  "Have you forgotten that I have no legs or arms right now? How am I supposed to climb up there?" Lin Sanjiu frowned. She drifted back and forth as she tried to find a fitting opening they could squeeze themselves through. Even though she looked like a balloon right now, she was not a balloon in nature, so she could not just float herself to the top.

  The human and flesh worm could not work out a way to climb up the tower even after a prolonged discussion. Puppeteer excluded himself from the conversation and stood silently in front of the door. He gave people the impression that he was about to ram the door open, but didn't know why something was pulling him back.

  Lin Sanjiu looked at his back as a question arose in her heart.

  'What's he waiting for? Why is he not in a hurry to look for an entrance?'

  Time was ticking away, yet no solid idea or thought came into her mind. While Lin Sanjiu was having a panic attack, the Veda began speaking again, forcing her out of her anxious state and back into reality. "How fascinating. This subject has put a lock on his data." The Veda still had a monotonous tone even though it was expressing its surprise. "His intelligence is pretty well-developed. I should make a note of this and discuss with the other Veda on whether we should give him an upgrade or not."

  'That means we still have some time left…'

  Before Lin Sanjiu could relax, a sudden explosion of dazzling golden light came from the top of the tower, prompting her to jerk her head up. She was so shocked by what she saw that it ripped her of her ability to speak. The Veda that had been gyrating serenely on top of the minaret suddenly became agitated as if it were a pool of calm water that had been unsettled by a rock. In an instant, it was spinning so fast that specks of gold scattered all around the place. It looked like a huge golden tornado on the move, and they had a hard time opening their eyes.

  Lin Sanjiu caught a figure in the corner of her eyes, and she peeled her eyes away. She turned back to the front, only to see that the door had been opened. Startled, she looked around, but Puppeteer was nowhere to be found.

  "Has Lord Puppeteer gone inside?" Soulsqn asked.

  "Hurry up! Follow him!"

  Lin Sanjiu implored, "He's been waiting for this moment all along!"

  "What moment?"

  "He has been waiting for the grand prize to make his move!" Lin Sanjiu entered the interior of the minaret as well. Using the perilously dimmed light that filtered through the cracks and slits, Lin Sanjiu found a flight of staircases that spiraled upward, but there was nothing on the stairs. There was a huge cracked hole at the center part of the minaret. The dust-laden air filled her eyes.

  "Quick, over there!"

  "But nobody is here!"

  "He must be up there already!" Lin Sanjiu growled. She was so exasperated that she wished she could fly up to the top. "He must be running at his top speed!"

  Soulsqn replied something but Lin Sanjiu couldn't hear it. As she glissaded up the stairs, she asked, "Why would Lord Puppeteer find that brat to make his move?"

  "The grand prize has put in so much effort to divert all the Veda's attention to the highest god, so he must have left something up his sleeve." When Lin Sanjiu was explaining, a complicated yet sour sentiment welled up in the pit of her heart once more. Puppeteer must have thought about this as well. He had been waiting for the moment the Veda could not split its attention to monitoring the data while under attack.

  "Can't you go faster?"

  "Why don't you come?"

  Another flare of golden light came flooding into the tower again. The Veda seemed to be on the losing side, as even though its voice was indifferent, the speed of its speech was much faster. "Coordinates 220.344.20, 229.345.21, and 229.345.222 are under attacks. I repeat—"

  "
It is calling the other Veda!" Lin Sanjiu shouted. However, no matter how much she hoped the flesh worm could go faster, it seemed like the body structure of the Souls was not cut out for climbing stairs. When the abnormally long sentence of the Veda came to an abrupt stop, Lin Sanjiu and Soulsqn arrived at the opening of the tower.

  The spiral staircases ended there. Several rubbles stuck out of the opening while the masonry remained dangling at the crooked edge. The Veda was hovering in midair, scattering its gold dust all over the place. Puppeteer and Ji Shanqing were standing at the vestiges of the staircase, their heads held high as they looked at the Veda. When Soulsqn and Lin Sanjiu finally arrived, only the grand prize turned his head around.

  "Sis!" His eyes shone, but it was soon replaced by a bitter smile. "What happened to you again?"

  Huffing, Lin Sanjiu looked around, but she did not find the highest god.

  'What happened to the highest god. Is he still alive?' she thought inwardly.

  "When we were s.u.c.k.e.d into the cord, was it a coincidence that both you and the highest god ended up in the same place?" Lin Sanjii pitched her voice low and queried.

  Ji Shanqing did not reply to her question instantly. He turned back to the Veda. Then his cascading, satiny black hair moved—he shook his head.

  "It was my plan all along. I wanted to use him to distract the Veda's attention," the grand prize said softly.

  Chapter 703 - Ji Shanqing's Battlefield

  "Not bad, it's very convincing."

  From the mist of the pulsating golden glow in midair came the Veda's voice, still cold and taciturn. "The tactics you deployed respectively after you split up are not complicated. However, due to several reasons such as the interaction, timing, and other external factors, you guys have fortuitously brought this situation, which is also otherwise known as a small probability event, into the light. Nevertheless, I believe you should be able to realize that this is merely a temporary fluke."