"Really, something terrible has happened!"
Many miners and mechanical engineers Data City watched the live broadcast. This large-scale military coup came quite suddenly, but strangely, it was not kept secret from the outside world. Every area seemed to be strictly sealed off, but ordinary people were allowed to take pictures and spread them online in various ways.
They even give interviews to ordinary people; many independent media outlets are covering this situation.
This also allowed the vast number of people in the wilderness who were temporarily unable to return to the Data City to get the latest gossip immediately.
"I told you this Federation was rotten to the core, right? You didn't believe me, and you kept bringing up how even a grassroots figure like Xu Min could rise to power. Now you see? Xu Min is nothing but a fart compared to those rich kids!"
"Who can argue with that? I used to think I lacked talent and effort when I saw those rising stars. But now I see, what's the use of talent? I'm just a slightly higher-level employee, hah."
"That's truly disgusting! Good riddance! It's been about time they did this!"
"Look, look! Xu Min is here! Oh, and Gong Mingrui too! My goodness, he hasn't been around for ages. Turns out he was involved too!"
"Of course, he was once a shining example for us ordinary people. He was my idol back then, and I always thought he had fallen from grace."
Everyone immediately focused their attention on the two well-known public figures, because they saw that many self-media outlets were swarming up to interview them.
"Mr. Xu Min, is it convenient to ask you questions now?"
"Hmm," Xu Min's attitude was quite gentle. Although what he had done was sensational, his attitude at this moment was not much different from his usual approachable style.
I have a little time right now, please ask me if you have any questions.
"Is this a military coup?"
A girl holding a microphone asked a direct and incisive question.
"Yes, in terms of its nature," Xu Min said without any attempt to hide it.
" The Central Federation has just fought a glorious national war, becoming the undisputed number one Federation. After that, it launched a brand-new virtual world, touted as a high-level Virtual Realm that all citizens can enter. The entire Central Federation is thriving at this time, so why do you want to start a civil war now?"
As soon as these words were spoken, many people realized whose side this person was on. But then again, in such a chaotic environment, how could someone who could be the first to break through to the front lines and conduct interviews be an ordinary self-media person?
"Precisely because this is a once-in-a-million-year opportunity for the Central Federation, we must resolve some of the malignant problems beforehand!" Xu Min said solemnly. "If things continue as they have in the past, with those large families monopolizing all resources, the situation for everyone in the Central Federation will not change in the slightest."
"You've probably seen the latest footage. In this new world, how unfairly we ordinary soldiers are treated! The local lord Chen Qing, supposedly allocates slots based on individual strength, but these aristocratic scions force ordinary soldiers to give up their places without hesitation. The threat they use is the Disintegration Program within us!"
As he spoke, Xu Min tore open his military uniform, revealing a distinctive mark on his chest and shoulder. "This mark is unfamiliar to many ordinary people, but for many of my comrades, it's an inescapable nightmare. Anyone of us who has the opportunity to enter the virtual world will have this program installed. Once the higher-ups deem us a threat, they can use this program to dismantle our data at any time—that is, to completely destroy our data life!"
"Mr. Xu Min, are you distorting the purpose of the Disintegration Program?" The female reporter interrupted Xu Min immediately, "The purpose of this program is for national security. It's a security mechanism activated to prevent overly powerful data lifeforms from damaging the Data City. This was officially announced a long time ago, wasn't it? Everyone who enters the virtual world installs this program, without exception, even the Speaker back then."
"No, not at all." Xu Min sneered, "I can say with certainty that all the marks on the scions of aristocratic families are fake!"
Do you have any evidence?
"A quick look at the destruction records reveals that over 18,400 destruction programs have been executed in the past thousand years, yet not a single one involved a member of a noble family. Isn't that the best evidence? Does it mean that over all these years, only those from non-noble families have posed a threat to advanced data lifeforms? That all members of noble families are law-abiding? A thousand years of records—do you really think this data is reliable?"
"This only shows that those who receive a better education from a young age have a lower crime rate," the female reporter insisted. "This doesn't count as evidence."
This remark immediately sparked a barrage of sarcastic comments online.
"Who is this woman? Is she asking questions on behalf of the media? Isn't she being incredibly biased?"
"Of course, it's obviously official."
"Heh, it's fortunate that Lord Xu Min was willing to patiently explain to her. If it were me, I would have slapped her long ago. Does this kind of unreasonable argument even deserve to be called a reporter?"
"Exactly! In a thousand years, there hasn't been a single high-level data threat to the lives of any aristocratic scions. It's all been us commoners. What? The aristocratic scions are well-educated and never pose a criminal threat, while we commoners are all bandits at heart, right?"
Immediately, not only Data City, but also inside the Data City, many people began to denounce the female reporter.
The chorus of condemnation was so chaotic that the female reporter felt overwhelmed and a sense of unease crept in. She wondered if she would be drowned by the crowd if she went outside now.
Suddenly, I realized that this money wasn't so easy to get. Given the current situation, even if I were torn apart by the rioters, I doubt I would be held accountable in the future.
"Your remarks will be judged by others. Please stop monopolizing the interview platform and give others a chance to speak."
The female reporter wanted to argue further, but seeing the overwhelming emotions of the crowd, she eventually became somewhat intimidated and reluctantly stepped down from her interview position. Several other reporters immediately followed suit.
"Mr. Xu Min, is the purpose of this coup to completely eliminate these corrupt and powerful families?"
One reporter asked excitedly, and many soldiers' eyes lit up at this question. This was the result they wanted most. Only by completely overthrowing those powerful families could a brand new situation be created!
Xu Min shook his head. Although he really wanted to do it, reason told him that it was simply impossible.
The Central Federation has not experienced a change of dynasty for millions of years. The powerful families have been stable for so long, and their influence is deeply rooted and profound. They cannot be easily eradicated overnight. Although they seem to have mobilized most of the soldiers and even the city's armed forces are cooperating with them, they know very well that completely eliminating the powerful families is a different matter.
Once those marginalized youths who have been observing in secret are forced into the fray, combined with the armed forces of the aristocratic families, the outcome is truly uncertain. Even though they outnumber each other, they may not necessarily have the upper hand.
Most importantly, if such internal strife were to begin, it would truly lead to a massive internal conflict, which is not what he wants to see.
The Central Federation is currently facing a once-in-a-million-year opportunity, an opportunity for all of humanity, and even a revolutionary evolutionary history for the entire data life. At such a time, it is certainly not possible to engage in internal strife and allow the Western Federation to take advantage of the situation. If that were to happen, Xu Min would truly become a sinner in history.
What he wants to achieve now is simply to make the entire Central Federation more equitable; all he wants is absolute fairness!
"We demand that the Federation cancel the Disintegration Program and ensure fair and transparent treatment for everyone in the New World. In order for the people of the Central Federation to maximize their effectiveness in the New World, we hope that everyone can be treated reasonably, instead of having the opportunity to squeeze out true geniuses because of privileges and mediocre people."
" The New World extremely dangerous, a thousand times, ten thousand times more dangerous than any of our current virtual worlds!"
"That's precisely why we need more Mr. Zhang Zhengyuan. Under the Disintegration Program, there will never be another Zhang Zhengyuan. This is our only demand. What we want is very simple: just a fair chance to compete!"