After reading the contents of the email, Feng Qi was unable to calm down for a long time.
The truth was far crueler than he had imagined.
At first, he had believed that the Scarlet Institute might be conducting a series of brutal experiments, perhaps even using living people as test subjects, making it an extremely evil research organization.
But he had never doubted the Scarlet Institute's stance.
Although he did not approve of their inhumane research methods, he believed that the Scarlet Institute had carried out those studies for the sake of humanity's development and to secure final victory in the struggle against Domain Creatures.
But now, he realized the truth was far more complicated than he had imagined.
The emails left behind by his future self revealed a great deal of information. The most important point was this:
The Scarlet Institute was very likely controlled by transcendent Domain Creatures and was carrying out a plan to assassinate human geniuses.
At that moment, he suddenly understood why every time he entered Future Dreamland, he saw a World's End scenario.
When worms infested the inside, the development of human civilization was like a tree with rotting roots. No matter how high it grew, it would eventually collapse.
Moreover, the Scarlet Institute was an extremely influential research organization. It possessed numerous privileges and could even carry out the prohibited Rune Modifier Project. Its influence over humanity's development was undoubtedly enormous.
Given time, that influence would spread like poison throughout the historical process, silently leaving human civilization terminally ill until it finally welcomed the end.
If that really was the truth, he suddenly understood why Cultivation Methods rated three stars or above in the Database were kept confidential instead of being completely shared.
Perhaps the Scarlet Institute had also participated in creating the Star City Database, and they did not want humanity to develop too quickly. That was why there were so many access restrictions.
Of course, he had no way of knowing whether that was truly the reason. It was merely a guess.
But the possibility that the Scarlet Institute had been infiltrated by Domain Creatures was practically an established fact.
Thinking of this, Feng Qi made a decision.
He had to find a way to destroy the Scarlet Institute and completely remove this poison from the course of human civilization's development.
But for the moment, he could not think of a way to do it.
What else could he do? Find a way to shut that goddamn organization down!
"Narrator, do you have any ideas?" Hearing the Narrator's voice, Feng Qi immediately asked.
Whenever he was at a loss, he called for the Narrator: Narrator, do you know what to do? Yuanfang, what do you think about this? Think my ass, I'm just a heartless hint machine... But perhaps you can keep looking through the email messages for an answer!
Feng Qi: ...
When it came to getting under his skin, the Narrator never disappointed him.
But after mocking him, the Narrator still pointed him in a direction.
So Feng Qi opened the mailbox again and reread the messages left by "himself."
As he read, one particular message gave him a spark of inspiration.
"Learn from my mistakes. The Scarlet Institute's influence is enormous. Before you possess the strength to contend with the Scarlet Institute, never expose your secret. No one will believe you. They'll only think you're insane."
Feng Qi had always had an idea.
He wanted to cooperate with the upper echelons of the nation. He believed that with the nation supporting him, the benefits he gained from entering Future Dreamland could be maximized, and he would no longer need to worry about lacking money to replenish his energy.
Even problems such as the Database's access restrictions could be easily resolved later. When the Star City Database was created, they could leave him access credentials, ensuring that he would be able to browse all the information when he traveled back.
After all, how could an individual's efforts compare to the support of a national institution? That was why he had always believed that cooperating with the nation was the most correct and optimal choice.
But now he had changed his mind, because his future self had already tried doing that and had failed under the Scarlet Institute's influence in multiple areas.
No one had even been willing to believe what he said. They had instead believed that he had developed mental problems.
So he chose to heed his future self's warning and not expose his secret before he possessed the strength to contend with the Scarlet Institute.
As for how to acquire the strength to contend with the Scarlet Institute, several directions emerged as he thought.
Improving his own strength was clearly crucial. If he became strong enough, then even if someone tried to assassinate him, he would be able to protect himself. Once he became powerful enough, he could even destroy the entire Scarlet Institute alone.
But his method of increasing his strength was somewhat slow. He had to continuously hunt Domain Creatures in Future Dreamland, and with Little Black pursuing him, the time he could remain in the dreamland each time was limited.
Unless he could solve the problem of replenishing his energy, he could make enormous gains in strength every day.
But that problem was not easy to solve right now. The price of death was too high.
Beyond improving his own strength, another idea surfaced in his mind.
Could he build a powerful force to oppose the Scarlet Institute?
He immediately thought of Lin Ran, Mu Qing, Wang Jinsheng... With the help of the Future Database, he felt that he could absolutely recruit the geniuses of the present era and bring them into an organization of his own creation.
That way, he could protect them from assassination while also relying on the aid of those present-day geniuses to fight against the Scarlet Institute.
As he considered it, his plans for the future gradually became clearer.
He thought of Three Growth Paths that could be pursued simultaneously in reality.
The first was the growth of his own strength. Every time he entered the dreamland, he would hunt as many Domain Creatures as possible, ensuring that he had the ability to protect himself and perhaps even obtain formidable strength.
The second was to protect those present-day geniuses who might be persecuted and secretly establish an organization to oppose the Scarlet Institute. He had to uproot it completely.
The third was to continue copying Cultivation Methods from the Future Database and bring them back to reality, using that future information to advance humanity's development. After officially entering the academy, he could apply to become an academy teacher and pass on what he had learned.
As for other plans, he could not think of any for the time being.
After checking the time, he decided to think through the details after returning. Right now, the most important thing was to use his limited time to look up more information.
After all, Little Black remained an unsolvable headache.
Like Life-Reaping Impermanence, it was always chasing behind him, waiting for the right opportunity to bring him before King Yama.
Next, he entered Mu Qing's name into the Database.
After he clicked search, relevant information appeared.
Mu Qing (Leader of the Dawn Rebels):
Introduction: Originally a student at Star City Academy, she joined the Domain Battle Squad as a warrior after graduation. However, during an investigation operation, she betrayed her team and personally killed the squad captain. She later recruited a large number of Scavengers, established the human rebel army known as "Dawn," restarted the Rune Modifier Project, and began fighting against humanity.
Her hands were stained with the blood of countless innocents. She led the rebels in massacring several cities. Her crimes were heinous, and she was despised by later generations.
Tags: Rune Modifier, Leader of the Dawn Rebels, Human Traitor
Personality: Brutal, cold-blooded, unscrupulous
Netizen comments:
Swaying With the Wind: Heh—ptui! I came here to spit on this Human Traitor. Good riddance!
History Enthusiast: I carefully reviewed Mu Qing's historical records and found that much of the information had been kept confidential. But from the limited records available, I discovered a point of suspicion. Mu Qing's actions after graduation had clearly been normal, and she had shown no tendency to hate humanity. Why did she suddenly seem like a completely different person? I think there may have been some hidden reason, but Mu Qing's grave sins cannot be erased. Because of her, human civilization regressed by at least a hundred years.
Feng Qi had already guessed how people in the future would evaluate Mu Qing, so he was not surprised.
But when he read one of the comments, his expression immediately changed.
Fallen Leaves Return to Root: I reviewed historical materials related to Mu Qing, and one piece of historical information left a deep impression on me. At that time, Mu Qing had not yet betrayed humanity, but her best friend Feng Qi was already on the verge of a mental breakdown. He babbled nonsense every day, saying things that made no sense.
Facing the outside world's condemnation of Feng Qi, Mu Qing, who was already a renowned Domain Battle Squad captain at the time, once said something to the drunk-as-a-skunk Feng Qi during a school reunion reception:
"When I was being excluded, you stood by my side. So when everyone in the world condemns you, I am willing to believe everything you say and stand by your side too, even if you're drunk as a skunk and stink to high heaven."
When I read this, I could not help but wonder: if Feng Qi had still been alive back then, would Mu Qing have betrayed all of humanity?
Or rather, was Mu Qing's betrayal of humanity related to Feng Qi being questioned by the world and ultimately dying of unknown causes?
Before you continue