351: Mountain Rain

Li Aoz's Qualia-Direction silenced him.

From its terms for Li Aoz, such as "Gravity Manipulator" and "Star Abyss Person," we can infer that Li Aoz was Qualia-Direction from the moment he arrived on this planet.

This is not surprising, as Entropy, being Origin Species, also possesses the ability to monitor planets, not to mention the power it holds over Qualia-Direction, which resonates subtly with Li Aoz's [Gravity].

However, by saying this, it has essentially blocked all avenues and is determined to drive Li Aoz out.

Li Aoz had no choice but to speak:

"I need to think about this for a while and come to know my true feelings."

He called it "recognizing his true nature," but he just wanted to buy some time to figure out the details of Qualia-Direction. If it had any weaknesses, he might as well take advantage of them.

Qualia-Direction prevents him from resisting the void, then he can spread the Dao. You can't control the [Mutant] I cultivated myself, can you?

"In that case, you can stay in the village for the time being, but you will have to take care of your own food and lodging."

He said Qualia-Direction:

"Here, you cannot spread the Way, especially your Overlord's Path. The Way of Morphedria only brings suffering."

Tsk—

Li Aoz clicked his tongue slightly; his little scheme had been seen through by Qualia-Direction.

Besides that...

Li Aoz glanced to the side.

"Sir Mirrid seems to have disappeared?"

"Um?"

Qualia-Direction hesitated slightly, then said calmly, "Don't worry about it, she has her own rules. Maybe she went to the restroom."

[...'Maybe'?]

Li Aoz narrowed his eyes slightly.

Now that he's at least a one-year master's student, his intelligence is up to par, and he immediately picked up on the inconsistencies in the Qualia-Direction statement.

How could a Origin Species capable of perceiving the entire globe be unaware of the movements of those right under its nose?

Going with the flow, Li Aoz immediately asked:

"Speaking of which, you seem to have a very good relationship with Knight Mirrid?"

"... Is there?"

Li Aoz noticed Qualia-Direction's hesitation, spread his hands, and asked casually, "For the other Dragon Satellite people, you directly control them with religion or turn them into animals to reduce food consumption. Only Knight Mirrid, you gave her extremely high freedom."

"There is no difference. You are mistaken, visitor from Star Abyss."

Qualia-Direction a perfunctory reply, then immediately dismissed him. "You can leave now. It's three in the morning, and it's raining."

"Then, I'll take my leave now."

Li Aoz nodded slightly, then turned and left.

He walked a few steps away from the shrine, looked around and found no one there, so he used gravity to distort the light, entered a state of invisibility, and waited quietly at the entrance of the shrine.

A short while later, the small animals emerged in droves and happily went down the mountain.

Li Aoz waited for a while longer until the last Shar Pei emerged from the shrine. The dog didn't leave immediately but shook its head left and right, sniffing around in confusion.

"Strangeness..."

The Shar Pei looked towards the wall, only a step or two away from Li Aoz.

"There seems to be something... woof..."

"Angie!" a tabby cat called out, "Meow, what are you doing, meow? Everyone needs to go home."

"Something feels off here. I think I sense something unsettling."

"Don't make a fuss. You're not a real dog, you don't have such a magical sense of smell. Don't fall behind, the kitchen is making bone broth today. If you're late and don't get any, don't blame us for not saving some for you."

"What, bone broth? Wait, leave some for me..."

The Shar Pei followed the cat down the mountain, wagging its tail happily.

Li Aoz crossed his arms and continued to wait.

As night fell, he waited in vain for anyone to emerge from the shrine.

He continued to wait, since he wasn't in a hurry and could still find time to play some simulation management games.

As a top student, Dia Lan could relieve a lot of pressure for him, but White Candle Star was, after all, a legitimate Interstellar Civilization with a wide range of departments involved. If he wasn't careful, diplomatic disputes could easily arise, and many times he had to rely on Li Aoz to smooth things over with his charm.

To be honest, this was the first time Li Aoz had heard that Dia Lan was a native of White Candle Star. At least, she had lived on White Candle Star since childhood, and in terms of cultural belonging, she was much more dependent on White Candle Star than other places.

After graduating from university, Dia Lan could have chosen to stay in the Crystal Tower Civilization, where there were clearly better paths available, and even narrative work wouldn't have been a problem. However, he chose to stay and contribute to his homeland, which made Li Aoz very gratified.

In reality, his team is currently very small, and the players can only support the low-end workforce. The high-level combat power consists of only himself, Dia Lan, and Nefes.

As for government, economic, and logistical personnel, Li Aoz has good candidates—his two good buddies from university are still hanging out in another dimension.

It's not that life or death is uncertain... After all, the level of that other-dimensional world is extremely low. Knowing the Pythagorean theorem is considered a great sage. Alpha Rank graduate from a sports school (1) could destroy the world if he went in, and six tons of power could shatter the void.

To put it bluntly, even an idiot like Nimoting could easily wipe them out. If you sent someone like Nethermark Professor there, he'd probably become the god of knowledge.

Like Hobbes and Lucite, one is an Know-it-all and the other is a top student and a strong man. Li Aoz is only worried that those other-dimensional worlds may not be able to withstand their power of the Delta-rank (4).

It's simply not enough for the two of them to fight.

Once he finishes dealing with his current tasks, Li Aoz will get these two out of trouble; one will be in intelligence, and the other in civil engineering.

Due to the complexity of their affairs, the two only chatted casually, and Li Aoz did not reveal the truth about Dragon Satellite, keeping his promise to Qualia-Direction.

He looked up at the shrine.

Still, no one came out.

Let's wait a little longer.

Time passed by, minute by minute.

Li Aoz glanced at the system time: it was 4 a. m. on Dragon Satellite.

It's going to rain in an hour.

"Still no one is coming out."

Li Aoz had almost given up hope, especially since he had stayed there for so long and Mirrid still hadn't come out. He was starting to wonder if Qualia-Direction had figured out his invisibility.

Could it be that I was wrong?

Qualia-Direction, this shouldn't be the case, unless one can sense the very source of the Aoneng is activating.

If it could truly sense this, then it shouldn't be the Qualia-Direction. Lioz abdicated overnight, requesting the Qualia-Direction the agent of the [Dominion] system's chief god.

Tracking the activation of Aoneng is impossible, because that's the process by which Aoneng holders constantly research and refine it. Even Lioz himself probably couldn't trace the essence of the Authority, Qualia-Direction be able to? That just means it understands Arcane Aoneng than Lioz, Li Aoz admits it.

Li Aoz watched as time continued to pass, the air began to become somewhat humid, and as clouds and rain brewed, gusts of wind swept through the mountains.

He began to feel a tremor in his heart—the Weak Force. It began to project its power, enveloping the world, and every particle in the air began to undergo subtle changes. Their structures became fragile and sensitive, decaying outwards, and the intensity of radiation began to rise sharply.

Li Aoz guard at the entrance of the shrine, waiting quietly.

The weakening effect has begun.

His suspicions were about to be confirmed.

Several times, as I felt a tremor in my heart, the Qualia Rain began to fall. And coincidentally, the Qualia Rain only fell where Mirrid went.

Combining the hesitation and indecisiveness in his Qualia-Direction, Li Aoz's conjecture became clearer and clearer.

Tick-tock, tick-tock...

As the mountain rain struck, the trees swayed and the forest shook, the leaves stirred and crackled.

The Qualia Rain began to pour down, and any living creature began to flee. They frantically tried to avoid the indiscriminate killing rain, seeking even a leaf to shelter in, but daring not to have any contact with the rain for even a moment.

Screams echoed from the mountains. Li Aoz activated [Eye of Truth] and immediately saw the corpses of the void monsters decaying and being destroyed by the torrential rain. Even their bones were swallowed up by the rain and left without a trace.

Even mountain rats slightly infected with the aura of the void, attempting to dig burrows to hide, will be caught by the rainwater seeping into the ground and drowned.

In stark contrast, in those abandoned villages, cats and dogs sleep soundly to the sound of rain.

Mirrid once said that these children were abandoned by refugees in the village and that no one would come to support or help them.

The void can infect like a plague, and modern humans, once deprived of collective supplies, will find it difficult to survive in the harsh environment of nature.

The fragrant aroma of bone broth rose gently with the cooking smoke.

The wisps of smoke accompanied the heavy rain, creating a dreamlike scene.

Yes, I think I understand. It won't show itself unless we use some underhanded tactics.

Rainwater is purifying the world.

Sensing something, Li Aoz deliberately deactivated his invisibility, took a step forward, and stepped into the rain, seemingly wanting to embrace the downpour.

Snap! Li Aoz spread his arms wide, staring at the open umbrella above his head, and anger flashed in the purple eyes of Knight Mirrid.

"Keep an eye on things; bring an umbrella if it rains."

"Mirrid said coldly."

"You're back from the toilet?"

Li Aoz joked:

"You talked with Qualia-Direction for a long time, and I've been waiting for you to come out."

"You're talking like a little kid waiting to be picked up by their parents—but I'm not your mom."

Mirrid didn't say much; she turned to look at the heavy rain ahead.

"It's time to go, let's go down the mountain."

Li Aoz did not rush down the mountain. He turned to look at the shrine, cupped his hands, and said loudly, "May rain cleanse the world and may umbrellas protect all living beings."

Mirrid stood still.

"Although you keep saying that life, civilization, and existence are meaningless, aren't you actually the one who can't stand the joys and sorrows, and the suffering of living beings?"

With his back to Mirrid, Li Aoz smiled faintly, seemingly addressing the figures at the shrine, yet also others, and said in a low voice, " To Qualia-Direction Excellency."

How can there be rumors that I switched to a different writer?

He turned around and killed two women to prove his innocence.