Light Fortress -
Chapter 532 - 124 Balance_2
Chapter 532: Chapter 124 Balance_2
To set off for the Southern Continent, one only needed to wait a moment for a special plane, adorned with flower motifs, to come and provide transportation.
Lu Nanzhi had even thoughtfully provided an assistant.
Cui Zhongcheng quietly flipped through the pages of his book, speaking softly, "Mrs. Lu has spoken to me about the matter of the lamp... She believes you might need a helper. If you think it unnecessary, once you land on the Southern Continent, I will fly back alone."
"That would be rather embarrassing..."
"Now that I am here," Gu Shen said with a smile, not declining, "the affairs in the Southern Continent might indeed require your considerable attention."
I am not familiar with the Southern Continent.
But he knew Cui Zhongcheng well. Without a doubt, the second-in-command of the flower badge was exceedingly reliable when it came to "handling matters."
With an extra pair of hands, the effort required for this task would be greatly reduced.
Despite being acquaintances, there was scant exchange of pleasantries.
The two sat silently on the plane, awaiting takeoff and, ultimately, landing.
As Gu Shen watched the dome light cast upon Cui Zhongcheng’s face through the plane window, he realized... they hadn’t seen each other in a year.
The last time was on National Route 447, at the entrance to the Divine Temple Mountain Territory, where they had successfully completed a transaction.
A year had passed, and time seemed to have ceased on this man’s face, imbuing him with an indescribable elegance – ancient yet not decayed, subtle yet not showy.
Hours passed.
Cui Zhongcheng finished his book, then took out a notebook filled with text and softly began speaking, breaking the silence.
"The Southern Continent is the most chaotic of the Five Continents... Every year, Deep Sea expends a vast amount of computing power to perform ’balancing’ information processing on the Southern Continent."
"Balancing?" Gu Shen, who had been resting with closed eyes, slowly opened them.
"People live in the links of Deep Sea, and what they see, what they hear... are all processed information. To make a person aware of how terrible the world is, you just need to replace his search results, change his browsing pages, continuously bombard him with negative news; to make him think the world is a paradise... simply do the opposite," said Cui Zhongcheng tranquilly. "That’s ’balancing.’ Deep Sea has been doing such things since its inception, macroscopically altering the world’s impression on humanity, maintaining it at a balance point."
Gu Shen narrowed his eyes.
It sounds so benign... macroscopic changes?
In reality, this is manipulation of the human heart.
He suddenly realized... with Deep Sea, ordinary people are not truly broadening their horizons; rather, they will never again see the "real" world.
Everything they see is draped in a veil of nothingness.
And they can never tear it apart.
If you lack sufficient privileges, you can only ever live in a ’fictitious’ reality, at most casting a feeble voice of doubt with no power to change the world, and then, amidst the doubt of others, gradually beginning to question yourself.
"Because the situation in the Southern Continent is so dire... an unending stream of disastrous Transcendent incidents occurs without effective regulation," Cui Zhongcheng said in a low voice. "As a result, Deep Sea has to use increasingly more computational power to achieve balancing. The Central Federation has decided to take further steps."
"For example?"
"For example... moving the pilot location of the Awakened Plan from the East Continent to the Southern Continent," Cui Zhongcheng stated calmly. "However, this might lead to uncontrollable situations... because the local followers in the Southern Continent are numerous. They trust in their own ’gods’ more than the Federation Government."
Gu Shen frowned. "Storm God’s Throne?"
Cui Zhongcheng shook his head.
"It’s the intangible ’gods,’ not the real ’Gods,’" he asked with a smile. "If real gods appeared in the world of the common people, would they still worship and follow?"
Gu Shen fell silent.
Cui Zhongcheng took out a photograph and spoke slowly, "In fact... though the Southern Continent is chaotic, it’s not an easy task for Outer Continent People to enter Xiyin City. It’s a trade city open solely to the believers. Without being a follower, and lacking a solid identity, one would be quickly discovered."
Indeed.
Recalling the scene of Xiyin City in the photograph, the streets and alleys were filled with priests clad in colored hemp robes.
"However... there’s no need to worry about the identity. It has been arranged before our departure," Cui Zhongcheng said evenly. "Upon landing on the Southern Continent, your alias will be ’Amir’—passport, identification, they’re all behind the seat, along with a set of robes from the New Moon Church and a handbook of its tenets. Make sure to glance over it beforehand to avoid giving yourself away."
"Hold on... we’re going to enter Xiyin City like that?"
Gu Shen was momentarily stunned.
"No... not we."
Cui Zhongcheng frowned slightly and corrected him righteously, "Only you. You will enter Xiyin City alone."
"What about you then?"
"Don’t misunderstand, I’m just along for the ride... My trip to the Southern Continent this time is to negotiate a cooperation with a local general," said Cui Zhongcheng casually as he spread open his notebook. "I will assist you throughout, but from outside of Xiyin City."
"..."
Gu Shen took out the white robe and fell into a long silence.
The plane roared as it descended.
Cui Zhongcheng closed the notebook, extended a hand, and looked directly into Gu Shen’s eyes, solemnly saying, "I wish you a bountiful harvest."
...
...
The climate of Xiyin City contrasted starkly with that of Changye.
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