I made the right bet!
The other party killed Ziyue. From the perspective at the time, he was a villain who would kill innocent people without batting an eye for some purpose. He was an extremely terrifying person.
But upon closer examination, this guy is probably far more noble than the other big spenders.
" General Liu wants to stop them, right?"
"Young people are really interesting," Elder Liu chuckled. "I killed your companion without batting an eye, and you still think of this old man as so noble?"
"It's hardly noble," Pu Yunchuan said coldly. "To kill an innocent person for a purpose, especially one who was a very important friend of mine, I truly cannot empathize with you. If I had the chance, I would definitely kill you."
"Oh?" Elder Liu laughed upon hearing this, "According to the files, you're a technician who's never even killed a chicken, but when you talked about killing me, the tone was so casual, it didn't feel like it was your first time killing someone."
" Old General Liu is being overly sensitive; it was just a hot-blooded young man's impulsive remark."
"Hey, I've been a hot-blooded youth before, but I'm definitely not like you."
Say what you want.
Elder Liu smiled upon hearing this, "Even if your guess is true, what do you plan to do?"
"I want to know what Mr. Liu wants to do first?" Pu Yunchuan asked doubtfully, "Why on earth did you take the risk and betray them?"
"Well," General Liu said in a low voice, his smile fading, "I'm asking you, if the experiment succeeds and they're forever Samsara in this game world, what will happen?"
"Huh?" Pu Yunchuan was taken aback, then asked doubtfully, "What could happen? You carefully survive in the game world, become as strong as possible, and then slowly gain control of that world within the game's rules."
"Is that all you can think of?"
" Elder Liu is referring to things outside?" Pu Yunchuan wasn't stupid; he immediately understood.
"Of course it's about the outside world!" Elder Liu laughed. "What good is it if you become powerful in that virtual world? People outside can shut it down and ban it whenever they want. Once they become data beings, many things are no longer up to them. Take you, for example. You seem perfect, growing up in the virtual world, living a different life, seemingly without a lifespan limit. But all of this is predicated on the outside world being willing to support you. What if the outside world isn't willing anymore?"
Pu Yunchuan: "."
He had been pondering this situation for a while. Those behind-the-scenes financiers were all incredibly powerful, but if they suddenly became data entities, they would be dead men, both legally and by common sense. Who would maintain their power then?
Future generations have long wanted to inherit your legacy; do you still intend to remotely control them in the digital world and continue your power?
Is it possible?
The Central Federation has always valued loyalty, filial piety, benevolence, and righteousness; yet, under the weight of immense interests, how often have cases of fathers and sons turning against each other become rare?
Throughout history, how many crown princes have rebelled?
How many children were deposed or even killed?
These behind-the-scenes financiers wield power comparable to King Level in ancient times, some even surpassing the ruler of a nation. If such individuals were to become virtual beings, would their descendants obediently serve them?
The wealthy who want to live forever do so to continue enjoying their power, not to peacefully become electronic pets.
"What do Elder Liu think they will do?"
"What do you think?" Elder Liu sneered, "A bunch of old fogies, they can't even chew rice anymore, but their hearts are still so big. In the end, they just can't let go. Since they can't let go, they will naturally take action. Data Life, if they want to continue to hold power, there is only one possibility."
"Let data life become the mainstream of the world!" Pu Yunchuan continued.
"Looks like you do know something after all," Elder Liu chuckled. "You're quite something, kid. You're nothing like the tech geek described in the files."
"Can they do it?" Pu Yunchuan asked curiously.
But in his heart, he already had the answer, because in history, less than ten years after his death, the situation in the world suddenly deteriorated, various forms of extremism ran rampant, and friction between countries increased. Many fires could not be extinguished, and even nuclear deterrence could not stop some crazy ambitious people.
It's a secret nuclear weapon that somehow leaked from some unknown country.
Then someone used it first, and once panic set in, it got out of control. First the first, then the second, and eventually everyone disregarded everything else.
The massive release of military weapons accumulated over hundreds of years, while not enough to seriously damage the Earth, would certainly leave the Earthlings in a state of near destruction.
It far exceeded the scale of any war in history, and the number of casualties was terrifying. Of the world's billions of people, it is said that less than one billion remained after the war. The post-war world was shattered, and people died every Heavenly Capital from radiation sickness and lack of access to healthy water and food.
The countdown to humanity's extinction has begun, and it's now being measured in days.
It was at that time that the Data Life Project was restarted, and humanity entered a new era.
Looking back at that great battle, was it truly an unstoppable historical tide?
Pu Yunchuan had strong suspicions at the time that the fate of the world was concentrated in the hands of a few people, and that this seemed to be the case throughout history, even in modern civilization.
Even with historical evidence, he still found it hard to believe that someone could actually go to such lengths for their own power.
"Heinous" is an understatement to describe such an atrocity!
"Yes!" Elder Liu's single word instantly made Pu Yunchuan go blank, as if his computer had crashed.
"You have no idea how much power those people have," Elder Liu laughed. "Do you know why wars—no, world wars—have stopped for so many years? Even when I first started out, there was a major war, but it was all localized and never reached the point of a national war. And this balance has lasted for hundreds of years. Do you know why?"
"Because nuclear weapons would result in excessive casualties."
"Ha," Elder Liu sneered, "Historically, monarchs who loved to wage war never cared about casualties. The deaths of their subjects were just numbers to them. As long as their ambitions could be realized, what did it matter if all their subjects died? Do you really think this is like what you see on TV, where people are always fighting for the common people?"
"The reason they've maintained this balance for so long is because the destructive power of a nuclear war could potentially wipe them out as well, and also cause their assets to shrink!"
"Radiation can completely destroy a place, rendering it utterly useless. The benefits of such simple destruction are too small, far less than the profits from trade exploitation, which would maintain a balance. This is because those in power know that it doesn't matter how many people die; they will regenerate like ants in a few years. But if a place is completely destroyed, it's not very meaningful. Do you understand?"
Pu Yunchuan: "."
"Now that these people are no longer human, and can live well with just an internet connection, and can no longer enjoy the outside world, do you think they will still have any reservations?"
"I see." Pu Yunchuan sighed inwardly. He had only suspected it before, but now he was completely certain.
The war that nearly wiped out humanity was orchestrated by this group!
"So, Elder Liu, what do you want to do?"
"Kill them."
"Will it be of any use? Even if we kill them, new ambitious individuals will emerge, and this plan will be restarted sooner or later."
"That's something for those who come after us to consider. I, this old man, don't have the ability to manage things in the future, but right now, they want to do that. No way!"