Mystery Paradise: Wishing Power Demon
Chapter 439 - 437: Unnatural Catastrophe

Chapter 439: Chapter 437: Unnatural Catastrophe

"Can we please temporarily prevent the military from intervening?" Chaoyang asked K.

"Why?" K did not understand, "The situation has already reached a point where the police can’t handle it."

"I don’t know where to start explaining, but based on the current situation, we can infer that the entity emerging from that portal may possess a unique ability to infect mechanical devices. Right now, only cars and other household machinery are affected, but if military weapons were to be affected, the situation could spiral out of control."

"Infect?" Ailuodi looked at him in surprise, "You mean that the Longjiu Army has made Earth’s machines also possess self-awareness?"

It sounded unbelievable, even against common sense, since most machinery wasn’t designed with automatic functionality in mind at the manufacturing stage—just like a doll without a brain, no matter how much you improve it, you can’t make it suddenly start talking. However, the Otherworld is full of mysteries, not only with more wishing power but also many other powers that are indescribable and incomprehensible. If this phenomenon is attributed to the mighty power of divinities, it’s not entirely impossible.

"I’ll try." Seeing how insistent Chaoyang was, K immediately used his connections to communicate up the chain.

About five minutes later, he shook his head, indicating his helplessness, "Unless ordered by the president, the military won’t agree to halt their operations."

Chaoyang wasn’t surprised by this result.

K had considerable influence in M City, belonging to the top tier in business, but when it came to governmental and military affairs, his clout wasn’t as significant. Moreover, the Canadian forces were different from their neighbors’, unified under the central government’s command; the municipal government couldn’t interfere with the military’s decisions.

He went online and saw that videos of the "mysterious void" appearing in the M City district had already topped multiple internet searches, including footage of people falling from mid-air and cars crashing out of control. However, most comments below expressed disbelief in the videos, deeming them special-effects pranks or AI-generated fakes. Canadian netizens brought out live broadcasts from their local news stations to prove that this was no joke.

At this moment, nearly an hour had passed since the portal opened.

Chaoyang walked over to the side of the banquet hall and dialed the Integrated Defense Control Center’s phone number—he knew this line was specifically reserved for his use by the Control Center, manned around the clock. As expected, the call was answered after just one ring, "This is the Control Center, what do you require?"

"Put your leader on the phone," Chaoyang said succinctly.

In less than ten seconds, Gao Wei’s voice came through, "This is Gao Wei."

"I suggest immediately cutting off direct flights to Canada and reviewing any flights and shipping routes connecting with Canada in the next 48 hours."

"What did you say...?"

Chaoyang didn’t offer further explanations and simply hung up the phone. He knew that such a hint was sufficient for these people.

The first batch of troops deployed to maintain order finally arrived at the scene. They began to block off streets, attempting to evacuate all residents from around the intersection, and even the reporters on site were being expelled.

"They’re not there just for public order," Ailuodi said with a worried expression, "What happens if people here enter the Otherworld?"

"That depends on what the one who opened the portal thinks," Chaoyang continued, observing the situation on-site through nearby cameras, "If only consciousness is allowed to pass, those without bodies will have their consciousness dissipate, which is no different from being dead; if both are allowed, the opener will have to spend a large amount of wishing power. Of course, they could also set it to one-way to minimize the loss of wishing power—after all, the circulation of gases within the portal also consumes energy."

"Do you think someone else opened the portal?"

"I’m concerned about a few things that the Demon said," he said thoughtfully, "That person mentioned a ’hometown’ and ’their place,’ which probably refers to Earth."

Because there’s a saying that angels from one’s homeland hunt demons.

This is also considered normal on Earth.

They are mortal enemies, and once a demon is exposed, it would bring about the angels’ relentless pursuit.

Ailuodi nodded slightly, "But I don’t think he’s from Earth... at least, he hasn’t had any encounters with angels before."

"What do you mean?"

"Because he referred to me as ’an angel who is worthy of enslaving her kin.’" She pondered seriously, "Perhaps he thought that the Speed of Wind and the rapid slashing I performed were deserving of the title of an angel, but the truth is, due to the near extinction of demons on Earth, the abilities of angels have also become sparse and ordinary, for example, before I teamed up with you, my strength was not even one-tenth of what it is now. I feel like his understanding of angels is still from the era of heresay, with a sort of retro feeling."

"I see." Chaoyang nodded thoughtfully, "So his knowledge of ’homeland’ is all second-hand, and those who call Earth their homeland are likely those who have left Earth for a long time and can’t return. ’Their place’ must be where Charlie was born and raised... a world different from Earth."

They had both lived on Earth and had opened portals to other worlds... Ailuodi and Chaoyang thought of a historical figure simultaneously.

"Could it be... him?" she murmured.

The Demon Awakener Sussas, who had fought against K and ultimately vanished without a trace.

According to K’s description, it was a desolate, dead silent world, as if it was the end of days; even a mere glimpse left an indelible mark on him.

"Mr. Zhao..." K’s voice suddenly interrupted their mental conversation, "Your speculation is probably right. M City is in big trouble..."

As he spoke, his eyes were still fixed on the screen, his tone filled with indignation, regret, and a hint of reluctance, an ability to express complex emotions that many humans may not possess.

Chaoyang followed K’s gaze, and what he saw was captured by a camera near a crossroad: a tank that had just come off a transport vehicle meant to clear obstacles suddenly sped up, crushing a commanding soldier nearby into a pile of flesh. At the same time, the turret was slowly turning, aiming its barrel at a troop transport truck fifty meters away.

The soldiers in the truck were completely unaware of the impending danger, continuing to disembark in an orderly fashion, organizing their equipment, and listening to their superior’s mission briefing.

Then the tank fired—

After a flash of light, the truck instantly turned into a brilliant fireball, the soldiers nearby fell in droves, and those who could still move were rolling on the ground as if screaming in shrill agony.

This camera didn’t have audio, so this series of scenes was like a silent movie, but even without any sound, it didn’t hinder the three of them from understanding how badly the situation on the ground had deteriorated.

What’s worse, the number of images on the large screen was decreasing rapidly, from the initial twenty-odd to just four or five now. Some were due to power outages, equipment damage, and lost information, while others had slipped beyond Chaoyang’s control, as if no longer mere tools at someone’s disposal, but life forms that had reawakened to self-awareness.

No one knew just how potent the spreading capability of this mechanical troop under the protection of the God of All Machines was.

But they all understood that the normal operation of human society was inseparable from the help of machinery.

"It’s not just M City that’s in big trouble..." Chaoyang said slowly, "It’s all of humanity on Earth that’s in big trouble."