novellk Chapter 1708 - 51: [This Is Your Third Regret: Unseen Perspectives]
Chapter 1708 - 51: [This Is Your Third Regret: Unseen Perspectives]
Su Ming’an opened his eyes.It felt as if his soul had detached from his body, floating above a navigating spacecraft in the universe. He had entered a scenario, overlooking the floating small world from the perspective of a "god."
...
[Story Background: In 2021, the World Game entered a billion cycles of reincarnation, buying time. One hundred million people boarded the small world called "Luowasha" and headed to the unknown universe, creating a chance for survival for the remaining billion people. Later, they found a colorful planet called the "Mirror of Creation," which successfully fused and transformed into "Luowasha·Mirror of Creation."]
[However, due to hasty actions and insufficient resources, the small world, even with one hundred million people aboard, was stretched thin, turning into a militarized ark where each person had only a tiny personal space. Food was rationed, and strict classifications of permissions ABCD were enforced.]
[Many people just wanted to stay in the World Game rather than risk venturing into the vast universe. Nowadays, the hard life of resource scarcity was far inferior to the feasting and merrymaking in the World Game. The actions of Hui Bai and others to protect civilization’s survival had, however, sparked massive public resentment.]
[Your initial chess piece is "Antetolia," who will act as your subordinate "protagonist." You can monitor her movements in real-time and manipulate her to perform certain operations. Your degree of interference is related to your faith value.]
[As you perform certain card operations, the number of chess pieces you can manipulate will increase. But be careful, the greater the degree of interference, the larger the changes.]
...
Previously, when Su Ming’an played the "Fate Simulator," he could completely control the protagonist "Xiao Su," but now he could only indirectly interfere with "Antetolia." After all, Antetolia was an independent person.
According to the original history, there are three key points ahead.
First, Edith’s experiment—creating an artificial "deity." This is where Su Liujin originates.
Second, the expedition team of Blake, Rock, Kasadia, and Su Qing landed on the "Mirror of Creation," encountered Yijulai’er and the World Tree, and learned that the binary star fusion was a lie of the World Tree; the truth was that the World Tree wanted to devour one hundred million people. In desperation, Kasadia fused with the World Tree’s core, and just as he was about to explode from the energy, the high-dimensional Sique invested in him, helping him ascend to a high dimension and become the new Third Thrones.
Third, at the moment of the binary star fusion, the one hundred million humans in the ark were collectively transformed into a new race by the rules, plunging into great chaos. At this time, Kasadia forged the concept of the Radiant Mother God with lies, making people worship this righteous god to gain faith and stabilize order. Then, according to the peaceful agreement with Yijulai’er, Hui Bai, Ludwig, Mu Changying, Blake, Ran Bo, Rock, Mao Lian, and others jumped off a cliff to erase their memories and start anew.
"If those two Gray Mist People don’t seek victory and are bent on killing me, they’ll interfere with my three values at all costs, even if it means mutual destruction," Su Ming’an pondered. "One faction is Yijulai’er, and the other is Sique... I must be cautious of two key time points—first, when the expedition team contacts Yijulai’er. If Kasadia perishes prematurely, my faction will be doomed. Second, when Sique invests in Kasadia. Thankfully, Sique is not being manipulated; it’s being indirectly interfered with. But if the Gray Mist People take action causing Sique to withdraw the investment, my faction will equally be destroyed."
They were not possessing Sique or Antetolia but were indirectly interfering from a "god’s" perspective, like an invisible hand.
Given Sique’s aloof personality, the Gray Mist People wanting to interfere with him... it’s bound to be extremely difficult. They could try all sorts of operations, but the lazy bird would remain as it is.
"Wait... invisible interference, an unperceivable invisible hand guiding the world towards the desired direction—have we become the Lord of Dreams?" Su Ming’an realized this.
This game is essentially a "Dream Master Simulator"!
Experience firsthand what the Lord of Dreams does, how a "god" outside the sandbox secretly manipulates the future inside the sandbox.
This perspective is incredibly terrifying... Even someone like Antetolia, a pinnacle figure in human civilization, cannot perceive anyone interfering with her. The entire civilization unknowingly moves towards one direction.
With a thought, Su Ming’an’s spiritual body transformed from the vast star sea into a gentle breeze, reaching the interior of the ark.
The ark had a hundred floors; the lower one went, the dimmer the lights, the scarcer the resource allocation, and the rougher and more dilapidated life became. Su Ming’an flew deeper, seeing cold metal, exposed pipes, and dense personal rooms...
People’s clothes were dull, their faces weary, moving with hurried steps.
Su Ming’an raised his view, looking vertically through the hundred floors of the ark from top to bottom.
One by one, text bubbles appeared:
[...can’t hold on any longer, those tears, resentments, opposition... Years ago, we subjected the World Game to a billion cycles of reincarnation, and the hundred million we brought out resent us, why we took them away from their homes...]
[So tired.]
[Are we having nutrient paste again today, I’m really going to puke...]
[People in the lower levels are still starving.]
[History is never just about glory; more often, it’s silent, sorrowful, with subtle cries, all smothered under the phrase "they are great pioneers."]
...
Su Ming’an’s view quickly found Antetolia. As one of the pinnacle rulers, she was not indulging herself on the top floor but appeared on the lower level.
In Su Ming’an’s perception, her figure was like a pixelated character, a blonde pixelated character playing the violin, surrounded by some children.
...
[Your chess piece "Antetolia" is playing an instrument, calming the children.]
[You can use "cards" to interfere; every turn, you receive 3~7 cards, and the number and strength of the cards are related to your faith value.]
[Each turn, you can play a maximum of 1 "Action Series" card, 1 "Retention Series" card, and 2 "Conceptual Series" cards. The "Conceptual Series" cards must be paired with an "Action Series" card to be used.]
[The game consists of five turns.]
[For the first turn, please play your cards.]
...
Su Ming’an looked down, noticing his current faith value was 43 points, and he received 4 cards this turn.
...
["Peeping" (Retention Series): Peep at the actions of the other three factions this turn; after they finish their operations, you perform yours.]
...
["Action Description·Low Level" (Action Series): This card must be used in conjunction with a Conceptual Series card. Once paired, it will implant a related concept into any faction. As the card is low-level, it can only affect life below the average line.]
...
["Collective Consciousness·Intermediate" (Action Series): This card must be used in conjunction with a Conceptual Series card. Once paired, it will implant a related concept into any faction. As the card is intermediate, it can only affect life below demigod level.]
...
["Concept: Stay Away" (Conceptual Series)]
...
Su Ming’an was stunned.
...This is entirely different from the "Fate Simulator"; it’s a completely new game.
The "Fate Simulator" still used means understandable to humans to interfere with the world, such as having conversations with people to soothe their emotions; or building some structures to promote the development of the medical system; or constructing some city walls and levees to block war and floods...
But this game uses concepts that are above the world as weapons.
Collective consciousness, inserting actions, exchanging concepts... This is obviously something even difficult for high dimensions, requiring the strongest batch of high dimensional entities.
——It’s indeed the "Dream Master Simulator." It’s just divided into four perspectives. Su Ming’an and others are not manipulating Antetolia, Sique, the Awakeners, and Yijulai’er, but interfering with these four factions from the "god" perspective of the Lord of Dreams.
Su Ming’an thought for a moment and played "Peeping."
...
[Please choose the target you want to "Peep."]
[Mo Yan, Gray Mist Man 1, Gray Mist Man 2]
...
Su Ming’an decided to see what the "Yijulai’er" camp was doing to respond, and chose Gray Mist Man 1.
As the perspective shifted, he saw the pink-haired girl Yijulai’er staring indifferently at the land as chaos just began.
Gray Mist Man 1’s cards in hand were: "Tragic Factor" (Conceptual Series), "Action Description·Low Level" (Action Series), and "Communication" (Holding Series). With only 38 Faith Value, he had only 3 cards.
Gray Mist Man 1 had already used the "Communication" card and was speaking with Gray Mist Man 2. Perhaps due to the card’s enhancement, this time Su Ming’an understood their language.
Gray Mist Man 2’s indistinct voice came, "Your Goodness Value is only 5, too low... Let’s raise it first. The opponent’s three values are relatively balanced, it’s not easy to quick kill."
"No, we must attack first," said Gray Mist Man 1, "Their camp’s Goodness Value is only 24, indicating the group is long-term oppressed, suffering, and on the edge of despair, with morality and compassion being eroded. An unexpected tragedy can be very effective. I’ll use ’Tragic Factor’ paired with ’Action Description,’ targeting the child next to the chess piece ’Antetolia’ in their camp."
"Alright, then attack. After all, I don’t know Sique at all, I’m afraid solely defending will lead to a bust, we must attack to seize the initiative," said Gray Mist Man 2.
Gray Mist Man 1 played "Action Description" + "Tragic Factor" cards, targeting the child beside Antetolia. Soon, a tragedy would ensue.
...
["Tragic Factor" has been implanted. Slight narrative anchor point shift.]
...
Su Ming’an, seeing this scene, realized the opponent had indeed hit the nail on the head. In an extreme environment like the Ark, any tiny misfortune could be magnified.
His 24 Goodness Value and 71 Danger Value could not withstand shock. Once "Goodness Value" plunges due to group moral collapse, or "Danger Value" skyrockets due to suspicion conflicts, it could instantly lead to game failure.
He had to respond.
In hand, he had "Collective Consciousness·Intermediate" and "Action Description·Low Level" two action cards and "Concept: Stay Away" one concept card.
Though the card descriptions were vague, Su Ming’an roughly understood how to use them. Action cards were akin to verbs, concept cards like nouns, and holding cards were some special effect cards.
— should he use "Collective Consciousness" + "Stay Away" to build group range psychological defenses, or use "Action Description" + "Stay Away" to precisely intervene in the tragedy about to happen to the child near Antetolia?
"Collective consciousness focuses on the group, action description focuses on the individual..." Su Ming’an quickly pondered.
He had no "negation" cards, unable to stop the child’s tragedy from occurring, the only measure was to divert attention so people wouldn’t focus on it and thus not affect the greater whole.
Reflecting on this, he felt helpless, this is the deity’s perspective, unable to care about the life and death of a single child.
The effect of the "Peeping" card was for one’s own operation to proceed after the other three groups finished operating. After himself, Mo Yan’s Awakener camp and Gray Mist Man 2’s Sique camp had not operated.
What would Gray Mist Man 2 do? Would they coordinate to attack? How would Mo Yan respond?
"I’ll wait for their operation," Su Ming’an made the decision.
Meanwhile, against the backdrop of Black Water Dream.
"What should I do..." Mo Yan looked at his 5 cards.
...
["Fine-tune Narrative Anchor Point" (Holding Series): Focusing all four participants’ observations in one area or onto a chess piece, unable to see other areas, resulting in sight loss. This card can counter the "Peeping" card.]
...
["Omit" (Holding Series): After playing the card, skip the turn’s non-major plot without affecting the general situation, leaving only the key parts.]
...
["Narrative Conversion" (Action Series):]
[Original meaning: switch from God’s view to first person, consequently altering information depth.]
[Card effect: after playing the card, you switch from the "God" view to the "Human" view, directly controlling a chess piece to operate, operation intensity related to your camp’s Goodness Value.]
...
["Perspective Shift" (Holding Series):]
[Original meaning: piecing together one event through multiple characters’ perspectives.]
[Card effect: after playing the card, your own chess piece shares a period of plot movement with others’ chess pieces.]
...
["Concept: Vigilance" (Conceptual Series)]
...
"I can’t figure it out... Though I can understand the literal explanation, putting them together makes my brain turn to mush... Is this the high-dimensional view? I am somewhat confused..."
Mo Yan hesitated on how to use them. His task was to assist his elder brother, but directly interfering with his brother’s camp seemed not easily feasible.
"First observe the situation, I can’t make trouble for my brother." Mo Yan didn’t use them recklessly, only using "Fine-tune Narrative Anchor Point". The card’s effect was to concentrate everyone’s gaze on a certain area, leading to loss of sight of other parts. He chose a dangerous zone named "Abyss of Resentment" in Black Water Dream, famous for chaos and peril.
As Mo Yan played the card, system prompts simultaneously appeared at the edges of Su Ming’an’s, Gray Mist Man 1’s, and Gray Mist Man 2’s vision:
...
[Note, all participants’ perspectives will forcibly focus on "Black Water Dream·Abyss of Resentment" for the remainder of this turn. You cannot observe any conditions of your camp or other camps outside this region.]
...
"What?" Gray Mist Man 1 and Gray Mist Man 2 exclaimed simultaneously. Their vision forcibly drew away from Yijulai’er and Sique, plunging into a kaleidoscopic abyss.
Su Ming’an was also startled, but he immediately realized this was Mo Yan’s handiwork. Mo Yan was using this method to forcibly interrupt Gray Mist Man 1 and Gray Mist Man 2’s subsequent operations targeting Su Ming’an’s camp!
The effect of "Fine-tune Narrative Anchor Point" was "lasting for the remainder of this turn," and Su Ming’an was positioned for final operation due to the "Peeping" card. This meant that while Gray Mist Man 1 and Gray Mist Man 2’s vision was locked in the Abyss of Resentment, Su Ming’an could still perform the final operation of this turn!
Limited on time, Su Ming’an immediately played the card.