Simulation of Destruction, Why Am I Always the Arbiter

His arrangements immediately put the pre-deployed forces into motion, a request from Ye Chang'an.

Seven days was enough time for him to deploy his forces, but he hadn't expected it to actually be necessary.

"Child, did you foresee all of this when you made this request?"

"If that's the case, did you also foresee that the Arbiter who would appear would be you?"

"Even so, am I still supposed to kill the Arbiter as you requested?"

Old K muttered to himself, looking at the Arbiter on the screen with a complex expression.

What should have been a perfect finale had taken such a turn at the very end.

He was also unsure of what to do.

Who would arrange for their own death by firepower in advance?

Moreover, looking at the Pseudo-Arbiters kneeling on the ground in the footage, Old K doubted if this firepower would be enough.

Dealing with just Maris, who could casually create a three-thousand-square-meter ice surface, would be difficult enough.

"Alas, do your best, and leave the rest to fate."

Old K sighed and made another call, contacting countries around Germany to prepare for battle.

The army that appeared in Germany would definitely move in some direction, so they needed to determine whether it was west or east.

Heading east would mean passing through Shenzhou, while heading west would mean crossing North America.

The Mu Continent, located on the other side of the Earth, was relatively safe for now.

But safety was only temporary.

"Let's go, and give this place a trial."

Arbiter Chang'an cut off the live broadcast and looked to the west. The massive floating stage was also slowly moving under the control of a Pseudo-Arbiter.

The death soldiers on the ground followed on foot, a vast army of millions, dense as an anthill, and more death soldiers kept joining them.

They didn't have to follow; Arbiter Chang'an hadn't ordered them to.

Although the Arbiter could have done so, Arbiter Chang'an hadn't.

These people, no, these death soldiers, these Pseudo-Arbiters, were all following voluntarily.

Before they even left German territory, Old K's deployed army blocked their path.

"Fire."

The commander gave the order to fire, and concentrated flames surged towards the Honkai army.

Arbiter Chang'an indifferently raised his hand, activating his authority to replicate. But what was replicated was not ordnance.

It was musical instruments.

Arbiter Chang'an: ???

PS Cocoon of the End: This container is flawlessly perfect, yet there's something subtly wrong about it.

Chapter of Creation: Journey to a New World: 34. All Pseudo-Arbiters Defected

Flutes, pipes, zithers, lutes, trumpets, erhus, accordions – a large number of musical instruments materialized out of thin air through Arbiter Chang'an's use of his authority.

He was a bit stunned, unable to comprehend why he had produced these things.

As the shadow of the Cocoon of the End, he knew very well that his authority was not to replicate musical instruments, but to replicate anything – as long as he could understand the "explanation" of the created object.

So, what he had intended to replicate was the ordnance in the hands of the army, but what came out were gaudy musical instruments.

And once he started, he couldn't stop. All sorts of miscellaneous instruments floated around him, which was baffling.

The bullets were almost at his face!

Fortunately, he wasn't alone. He had a large number of Pseudo-Arbiters around him, and any one of them could stop the incoming bullets in mid-air.

This person had acquired the technique of using Honkai energy for Telekinesis.

"..." Arbiter Chang'an was speechless. After all the musical instruments of one type had appeared, he finally saw the ordnance he wanted.

He was indifferent, controlling the ordnance and aiming its barrels at the enemy, unleashing a hail of bullets towards them.

As the Arbiter of Reason, he could control what he replicated with just a thought.

If one automatically playing flute was excluded – that wasn't under his control, and he didn't know who was controlling it.

He ignored it, only focused on eliminating the enemy.

As a result, the bullets he fired were also stopped in mid-air, done by that same Pseudo-Arbiter.

"Chang'an, why did you attack them?" the Pseudo-Arbiter who had mastered telekinesis asked, confused. The other Pseudo-Arbiters also looked over.

They didn't understand why their side was attacked, nor why Arbiter Chang'an had launched an attack on the other party.

"...This is their trial," Arbiter Chang'an explained, though he didn't want to.

After all, they were his own people… even though he wasn't human.

"What kind of trial?" Maris asked blankly, casually creating a large patch of cold air that froze all the army's weapons.

"...A trial to see if they are qualified to be called my kind."

"Oh~ How do you trial that?" Maris asked again.

"...Destroy me, or be destroyed by me."

Maris: ???

Other Pseudo-Arbiters: ???

They were collectively stunned, looking at Arbiter Chang'an in disbelief. Maris took the lead in questioning him.

"You want to kill them?"

Arbiter Chang'an nodded, then he was questioned.

"Who are you?" Maris asked coldly, her face like frost. The Pseudo-Arbiters also glared menacingly at Arbiter Chang'an.

They weren't suicide soldiers; they were Pseudo-Arbiters who retained a certain degree of self-awareness.

Although their consciousness was incomplete, they still sensed that the "Chang'an" they followed was not right.

"I am… Honkai!" Arbiter Chang'an hesitated, but he still didn't use the name of the container.

As soon as he spoke, a variety of dangerous items were aimed at him.

This was because Maris and the others didn't follow Honkai, but Chang'an.

As loyal listeners of the Chang'an Melody, as fervent fans of Sleepless Chang'an, the deepest memory in their residual consciousness was Chang'an.

Especially for the experimental victims, the Chang'an Melody was their only solace during the brutal experiments. Ye Chang'an, who recorded the Chang'an Melody, was their only faith.

They loved the Chang'an Melody so much that even though their bodies detested it, they couldn't stop loving it.

After all, Ye Chang'an, who recorded the Chang'an Melody, was worth it!

They certainly liked him because he, as a superstar, could solemnly apologize to them, the nameless ones, under the global live broadcast.

Even with only residual consciousness, they still believed Ye Chang'an was like a god.

That's why they unhesitatingly offered their loyalty when Ye Chang'an became an Arbiter.

To them, who were still human, Ye Chang'an was a god.

For the Honkai-aligned Pseudo-Arbiters, the Arbiter was a god.

With the two combined, there was no reason not to offer loyalty.

But this loyalty did not belong to Honkai; it belonged only to Chang'an.

And so, the current scene unfolded.

"Give us Chang'an back!"

Thousands of Pseudo-Arbiters roared in unison, giving the impression they would fight if words failed.

Arbiter Chang'an looked at the Pseudo-Arbiters speechlessly. The scene was terrifyingly quiet.

Only the flute, controlled by an unknown entity, was playing the "Chang'an Melody."

At the end of the melody, Arbiter Chang'an spoke.

"You… want to undergo the trial too?"

"Rumble…" Continuous attacks triggered explosions. This was the answer from the Pseudo-Arbiters.

Trials and such were not important to them at all.

"Very good!"

As the smoke cleared, Arbiter Chang'an emerged from the melting ice, unharmed. His red eyes glared furiously at the Pseudo-Arbiters.

He shouldn't have had emotions, but he felt anger.

Because he felt betrayed.

"You, prepare to face the trial."

Arbiter Chang'an gritted his teeth and spoke, activating his authority. In the blink of an eye, he reproduced a sky-covering torrent of weaponry.

As an Arbiter, he was very strong because he had a flawless container.

Therefore, the amount of Honkai energy he could mobilize per unit of time was extremely large. As long as he used his authority, he could immediately create countless firearms as numerous as the stars.

Then, open fire!

"Da da da~"

The hail of bullets couldn't even begin to describe the scene.

It wasn't like they were shooting bullets; it was like they were throwing them.

He wanted to beat these traitors to death with bullets.

But thousands of Pseudo-Arbiters weren't to be trifled with. Each activated their abilities, either to defend or counterattack, and for a time, Arbiter Chang'an was overwhelmed.

His authority limited his performance, as he could only replicate so much at the moment.

It was like having a million dollars in cash but only being able to buy junk food.

He was so angry, so furious, that he started thinking.

"Huh? Is this... swordsmanship?"

He saw the Tai Xu Sword Form from his body's memories and suddenly understood. He turned, conjured a sword, and began fighting the Pseudo-Arbiters.

~

~

"Uh, Commander, they seem to be fighting amongst themselves," a private said, lowering his ice-cold rifle.

"I can see that. You don't need to tell me," the commander snapped back. He glared before turning his attention back to the people fighting on stage, feeling uneasy.

This situation is a bit off. I should report to the superiors.

He accessed the wartime communication and reported the situation to Old K, who was also staring blankly at the live feed from the satellite.

"Weren't these people allied with the Arbiter? Why are they fighting?"

Old K didn't understand. Old K was greatly shocked. Old K was convinced this was a play that Ye Chang'an had arranged long ago.

After all, the leader of the Pseudo-Arbiters was Maris, Sleepless Chang'an's agent, who was definitely coached on countermeasures.

Old K immediately felt at ease.