The Salvation of All Humanity

It is said that the [Ex-Machina] is an absolutely rational race that will not attack others unless provoked. However, if provoked, it will escalate into a race-wide battle. They also possess an extraordinary ability to copy others, which makes all other races keep their distance.

To be honest, Riku is grateful that God has brought Schwi and his fate together.

Schwi's arrival brought about tremendous changes to the entire settlement.

The [Ex-Machina] is a race that can analyze, categorize, and interpret enemy information, and can even copy attacks.

During this great war, they also collected detailed information on all races except for the [Old Deus], creating an astonishing database.

Although it's necessary to conceal the identity of the [Ex-Machina] to avoid causing unnecessary panic, even secretly providing some assistance is enough to greatly increase the means of survival available.

As a result, no one was killed during the year, living conditions in the settlements improved significantly, and the need for "expeditions" was greatly reduced.

What made the young leader especially happy was that people were smiling more and more often.

But Riku understood that this was just an illusion of peace, built on a foundation as fragile as mud and sand.

As long as the high and mighty gods and the monsters that only know how to kill do not stop their war, this settlement could be destroyed at any time by the aftermath of the battle.

Therefore, he will still go out to conduct investigations, hoping to find tools or information that can further improve the human condition.

Fortunately, he was no longer alone throughout the year, as a little girl accompanied him.

"... Riku?"

Hearing the familiar voice calling his name, Riku lowered his head and looked at the familiar face.

"Ah, don't worry, Schwi, I was just lost in thought for a moment."

At the same time, Riku mocked himself inwardly: He had actually been spacing out in front of others, and he had become lazy without even realizing it.

"Then let's continue. That ruin should already be—"

"Etc!"

The girl suddenly interrupted Riku, looking solemnly towards the corner of the valley.

Riku understood what this reaction meant, and his expression instantly turned serious as he assumed a running posture.

"Unidentified energy fluctuation detected—enemy!"

Schwi's eyes flashed with a certain frequency of iridescent light, as if she were facing a formidable enemy.

"Wait a minute, don't be so wary, I'm just a slime."

A humanoid creature slowly emerged from around the corner.

"At least, as long as you don't attack me, I won't attack you."

"... Slime?"

"So you don't understand game references? But just know that I don't mean any harm."

Iori revealed her face and smiled slightly.

"Target detected—race is... unable to analyze, tentatively unknown!"

A petite girl dressed in somewhat oversized old clothes stared warily at Iori.

Her companion, a somewhat thin-looking boy, scrutinized Iori with a serious and earnest expression.

Humans... but how could humans be unable to analyze it?

But if it's not human, what other race would be willing to communicate with him so calmly?

Generally speaking, even the seemingly gentle Forest Spirit Race will skin and dismember any other race they meet!

"Schwi, it seems they want to communicate with us. Let's not attack yet."

Although Riku is young, his long tenure as leader, bearing the fate of thousands of people, has made him much more mature than he appears.

He understood a principle: when encountering the unknown, panicking and attacking are absolutely the most irrational actions—especially when one's own strength is not particularly great.

"I understand, but..."

The girl named Schwi said nervously, "Riku, don't touch him. This unknown life form has not been registered in the [database]. It may be a newly created weapon."

But even in the database of the Ex-Machina, there is nothing similar to the creature in front of us.

Although he is humanoid, he is neither a [Forest Spirit Race], nor a [Vampire Race], nor a [Orc Race]. Most importantly, even though he is a machine, Schwi can feel a powerful sense of oppression emanating from him.

The moment this life form came into view, it generated informational interference sufficient to cause malfunctions in thought processes, as if it itself were a mystery.

This level of power is already among the superior races... even ranking high among the superior races!

"Hey, don't make me sound like some kind of monster."

Iori was slightly speechless. "I am undoubtedly a human. I have neither claws nor wings. As you can see, I am just an ordinary human being."

"Negative."

Schwi a low voice, "Based on reasonable judgment, you are not human."

Iori smiled helplessly, feeling that since he came into this world, it seemed that no one considered him human.

"No, I am human. The reason you doubt me is because you have never seen what a human looks like after becoming stronger."

Iori said meaningfully, "But I can show you hope."

"I won't believe anything you say until you explain your identity. Schwi is right."

Seeing that Iori had no intention of starting a fight, Riku spread his arms to indicate that he was unarmed, cautiously took a step forward, but still leaned against Schwi.

"You really can't be human."

Riku continued, "Humans wouldn't appear in the wild so unguarded."

"Oh~"

Iori paused for a moment, then smiled helplessly, "I see, so that's the difference."

Upon closer inspection, Riku, as a real human (as if he weren't), not only covered his body with a cloak, but also had his hands and feet wrapped in something like bandages, and wore goggles on his face.

In short, the goal is to minimize the amount of exposed skin on the body, for one simple reason—to avoid contact with [Reigai].

Races that can use True Magic to shield themselves from the black ash are naturally unaffected, but humans are fragile creatures who cannot control elves. As soon as their skin comes into contact with the black ash, it will be rapidly corroded as if it had come into contact with strong acid.

Therefore, if humans want to be active in the wild, they need to wrap themselves up completely, just like Riku is now.

What about Iori?

The thin clothing, though clean, revealed bare skin, and there was nothing to protect the hands and feet; they were practically defenseless.

If it were a human, such attire would be absolutely impossible to survive in the wild, yet he stood there as if nothing was wrong in the wind carrying black and gray dust, looking very different from the humans Riku knew.

"Moreover, your skin is so fair, your teeth are very straight, you don't care about the noise around you when you walk, and your back is very straight."

Riku was like a detective. "Humans living underground aren't like you, and we don't have food that can keep our bodies that healthy."

"It seems I was being inconsiderate... but I didn't lie to you, and there was no need to."

Iori smiled calmly, "It's just that our inner selves are somewhat different."

"A lie... it doesn't seem like it. But it's just too suspicious."

Riku whispered, "Schwi, don't lower the alert level yet."

"Yes, but... Riku, be careful."

Schwi paused. "He's stronger than me—much stronger."

Clearly, the girl had little hope of fighting Iori and was extremely pessimistic about the outcome.

Although she wanted to explain, she realized that whatever she said would only arouse suspicion— Iori pouted.

To gain trust, you need to spend some time with the person... or at least find a reason that people can "convince"!

Iori thought for a moment, then suddenly raised her hand, alerting Schwi and Riku.

But they soon discovered that Iori was not attacking, but rather summoning a Forest Spirit Race from a spatial rift.

"True Magic, it really isn't human-made!"

"Schwi— "

"Please don't be in a hurry, I am indeed human."

Iori pointed to Jinna, who was lying on the ground covering her head, looking like a child with a huge... well, you know.

"She can prove it, right?"

Before Jinna could even process what was happening, Iori pointed at her, and she immediately nodded in agreement.

"Yes, yes, Lord Aizen is human, I heard it with my own ears!"

The boy and girl exchanged a glance and shook their heads. "The Forest Spirit Race don't respect humans that much, they even call them 'adults'."

It's no use saying anything now, is it?

Iori's lips twitched, and she took a step forward to grab Riku. Schwi immediately went into armed mode, looking like she knew he wasn't a good person.

"Schwi will protect Riku!"

... A moment later, the boy and girl leaned against the wall, huddled together. Schwi was unable to get up again, and completely without Overkill, rendered powerless with all her abilities sealed. Riku, on the other hand, opened his mouth and eyes, his gaze lifeless, looking as if he had been completely broken.

"You won't listen to reason, you just want to bombard me with information, huh?" Iori pouted.

Chapter 541 The Salvation Method for All Humanity

In the world view of "Game Life", there are sixteen... currently fifteen races, arranged from high to low according to their adaptability to "elves (True Magic)", which can also be simply and crudely understood as a power ranking.

In the main timeline, because the supreme god Tet forbids Plunder by force, everything must be resolved through games. As a result, the difference in combat power between different races is greatly reduced, and even Lesser Races may be able to defeat higher-ranking races in the game.

However, at this point in time, the war of the gods has not yet been decided, the Star Grail has not yet recognized a master, and there is no supreme god Tet. Therefore, violence remains the only factor that dominates the world.

It is precisely in this dog-eat-dog world, devoid of any moral or legal constraints, that humans, with almost no True Magic adaptability, have been relegated to the lowest rung of existence, slightly better than any unintelligent wild animal—and that's about it.

Superior races such as the Flügel and Dragon Race do not take Forest Elves, Dwarf Race, Vampires, and Orcs seriously, regarding them merely as "creatures." Humans, on the other hand, have an even lower status, similar to roadside flowers and grass.

Humans have neither True Magic talent nor high-tech means (most technologies in this world require the use of elves, which humans cannot use), and more importantly, they have no Old Deus to rely on, so they are practically powerless to resist in this great war.

The unknown AOE alone wiped out most of humanity, and the survivors struggled to survive in the extremely harsh natural environment. In the end, only a few dozen people, or at most a couple hundred, survived, hiding in the underground cave network as pitiful creatures.

This is far more tragic than the human tragedy depicted in "The Heroic Age".

The Iron race is actually a powerful force in the universe, but it has always been targeted by the Silver Race, so it doesn't show its power.

Therefore, Iori had no goodwill towards the alien races or aliens in this world from the very beginning. Especially after sensing the endless hatred hidden in the Reigai, he even had some extreme thoughts.

However, it seems inappropriate for him to make the decision; it should be left to the native humans who are the victims.

Ever since I learned that the CGs with [Presence Power & Recognition Power] could be farmed, the concept of "all of humanity" has become especially valuable to Iori. At most, there are only tens of thousands of humans in the current world, or even just a few thousand on the entire continent. It would be too easy for Iori to leave a deep impression on these people.

He's a very fair person. If you give me Art Style Value, I'll give you a hand. It's a win-win situation for everyone—that's why many people gather around him and become his helpers.

The human survivors in "Game Life" have little power or value, but since they can benefit Iori can give them a chance for revenge.

If they decide to wage war against any race, Iori, who has no qualms and is itching to fight, would be happy to be the "God of Humanity".

To be honest, he did think that Riku and the others would make that choice. Just as the God of War Arteshu said, if humans had the chance to make a wish, it would definitely be related to "pain", "despair" and "revenge".

—But it turns out that neither Iori nor Arteshu knew enough about humans.

At least, the young Riku didn't make that choice. Even though he understood how powerful Iori was from the "information," he didn't seek revenge against any race (he did have Flash Step impulse, but he didn't dwell on it).

Instead, he hoped that Iori could lead the survivors away from this latrine-like world!

In his mind, it didn't matter how many alien races he killed; what mattered was how humanity would survive in the future and how to enable more people to live a life free from fear and hunger.

—Of course, it's also because I really don't know who to hate.

There are just too many potential partners!

First, there are the gods who caused the great war, then the warlike races they created, and then the various biological weapons they manufactured... If you add it all up, they are practically at odds with the entire world.

From the perspective of this skinny boy, the idea of "defeating the whole world" was too exciting, and he didn't even think about it!

After being brought back to the village by Riku, Iori also observed the other people in the village and found that they were not as desperate or numb as she had imagined. Instead, they were living their lives very seriously.

According to Riku, living in this world is far more difficult to accept than dying, so if one is not optimistic and positive and can coexist with despair, one would not have made it this far.

Such people choose to leave their wishes for the future, rather than the past.

Neither Riku nor Schwi revealed Iori's identity. He entered the village as a "wandering refugee," while Jinna also used True Magic to disguise herself as a human and followed him in.

Because of Schwi's arrival, the village's conditions were gradually improving, and it had the capacity to take in more people of its kind, so their arrival did not attract much attention.