From the Abyss of Stars

96. Proliferative Alienation

 

"Contact the Rose Army, attack Abyss Humanitarian, announce it to the world."

 

Li Aozi repeated Jane Neria's words, each goal sounding somewhat ironic.

 

"Contact the Rose Army, not to mention if we can even reach them, or if they will send troops—how long will it take just for them to arrive?"

 

"Attacking Abyss Humanitarian is even more absurd—it's clear that doing so would stir international opinion and bring condemnation. Would the Rose Army ignore such a reputation?"

 

"Announcing it to the world is pure nonsense. The Rose Army can't even control its own social media and public opinion. Do you expect people to believe the words of rebels?"

 

"This is not rebellion, this is reform."

 

Jane Neria said calmly:

 

"This shelter holds extraordinary value and can assist our cause against the Four Nations."

 

"If you simply kill everyone without occupying and managing it, Frost-Plated Republic can still support a new Abyss. But if the Rose Army occupies this place, we can turn it into a bridgehead towards Frost-Plated."

 

"I understand your concerns—don't worry about your interests. As someone who severely damaged Frost-Plated's lackeys, the Rose Army won't be stingy with rewards."

 

"No, you don't understand."

 

Li Aozi waved his hand, shouting:

 

"Do you think this is about splitting the spoils? It's not. I don't care about the Rose Army, and I don't care about Abyss' assets. As for Frost-Plated—it's bound to be destroyed, but I don't want them to get off easily."

 

"Then according to your meaning, the Red Arrow people—"

 

"It has nothing to do with Red Arrow." Li Aozi disliked Jane Neria's tone. This kind of rational coldness and self-righteousness was a characteristic of the Rose Army and the fundamental reason for their failure.

 

"I said, Nomi was our companion, not you, and certainly not the Rose Army. Cooperation is possible, but you need to show trust."

 

Jane Neria's personality couldn't be negotiated with subtly. Otherwise, she'd lead you astray. However, Li Aozi's high 【Charisma】 attribute was advantageous, making his words hard to ignore.

 

"Trust?"

 

"I don't want promises; I want something tangible."

 

Li Aozi gestured with his thumb behind him:

 

"If you need the long-wave radio to notify the Rose Army—it's in the communications room over there. That's fine, no problem. But you must follow us first, kill all of Abyss, and then whatever happens, I don't care. It's not my interest, giving it to the Rose Army is fine."

 

Not only is it fine, if the Rose Army can push through and take Abyss, it would save Li Aozi a lot of infrastructure renovation costs. Given Frost-Plated's lousy environment, players would need to move to the outer regions.

 

When players arrive, the well-equipped, self-contained Abyss Humanitarian shelter would naturally become the first choice.

 

At that time, with his promotion and reputation, monetizing traffic would be easy.

 

Li Aozi was always a realist. Aside from some bottom-line issues, everything else could be discussed calmly.

 

Nomi was already dead—but her body had revived as Jane Neria.

 

From a relationship standpoint, Li Aozi saved Nomi, but Jane Neria was the one revived, inheriting the gratitude and life-saving favor from Li Aozi and Qiu Ran.

 

Using gratitude for leverage, forcing deals, were common player tactics.

 

He was polite to Nomi because she had shielded him, and they had fought together from Abyss Humanitarian to the outer regions, battled Law IV, and returned—it was a life-and-death relationship.

 

Without Nomi, Li Aozi immediately reverted to his player mindset.

 

"Don't talk about those lofty revolutionary goals. I don't care. Whether Frost-Plated people die, or the planet explodes, I might just watch the show. Frankly, I'm very double-standard. As long as it doesn't happen in front of me, with blood splattering on me, what does it have to do with me?"

 

Li Aozi never denied his double standards. Instead, he embraced it, believing it made him happier.

 

Nomi's death weighed heavily on his heart, but when he moved, he felt even more unrestrained.

 

—Now, the priority was to gather all strength to eliminate the remaining Abyss Humanitarian members and deal with the upcoming issues.

 

Besides, Li Aozi needed 2 million Derby to put a bounty (promotion) on himself.

 

His goals became clearer, his thoughts smooth, returning to his player mindset.

 

Looking at Jane Neria again, his gaze turned indifferent.

 

Jane Neria stared at him, about to speak, but Li Aozi saw through her thoughts:

 

"You want to use my impersonation of the Rose Army against me?"

 

"This is not a big deal. The Rose Army doesn't care about origins for those with ambitions..."

 

He smiled:

 

"Right? Bard Lumon, Chu Haosheng, and Rome Costa—the three moderate Rose Army members who were purged by Orvin and Wang Geliang. You specifically mentioned their merchant and lawyer backgrounds."

 

Jane's expression changed: "I don't know what you're talking about—"

 

"Let me tell you a fact. The Rose Army's internal disputes are meaningless. The era is as it is. People trapped by gravity on the ground will never look up to the sky."

 

Li Aozi sneered.

 

In his past life, players didn't have a good impression of the Rose Army, far less than their impression of the Metro Brotherhood.

 

The reason was simple. The Rose Army had internal strife even when they had the largest scale and support from six outer-region warlords.

 

The conflict arose because the radicals led by Orvin Duly and Wang Geliang accused the moderates of being too weak. They believed strict economic sanctions should be imposed on those trading with Frost-Plated because each trade deal resulted in severe blows to frontline soldiers.

 

The moderates argued that such actions were social regression. Frost-Plated already had extreme moral and legal standards. As reformers, the Rose Army couldn't adopt the same approach. Otherwise, they would lose the public's support.

 

Ultimately, the moderate leaders were secretly dealt with and assassinated during a vacation by the radicals, causing an uproar within the Rose Army. Some young officers, unable to accept internal strife, led their soldiers to the mountains to fight guerrilla warfare.

 

Players hated this kind of meaningless internal drama.

 

At that time, players weren't familiar with the nuances of the game world. According to their usual rigid game impressions, there was no conspiracy or scheming.

 

It was just a matter of not being strong enough!

 

Still not strong enough? Then you must get stronger!

 

Already at the universe's limit? No problem, move to the next layer of the universe, explore the limits of individual strength!

 

With such thoughts, most people went silent during their next venture into the Abyss.

 

Li Aozi valued the Rose Army for attracting players to spend their money on accessories and the 【Mutant】 path.

 

But he wouldn't invest too much, knowing that historically, the Rose Army's combat effectiveness, without the international camp's strong men and women, was questionable against Frost-Plated and bound for destruction.

 

According to his memory, the current president of Frost-Plated was busy with territorial disputes with Tianhuan, with Dai Weilin's faction eyeing internally. Historically, agent Yavanna likely died in the president's purges.

 

Once the president had free hands, the Rose Army would be easily dealt with.

 

Overall, the Rose Army wasn't much better than Frost-Plated.

 

Especially with the shadow and disruption of impostors, the Rose Army's internal chaos was like a pot of mixed grain porridge.

 

Li Aozi's barrage of blows left Jane Neria feeling pressured.

 

Using gratitude for leverage, though morally coercive, was effective with the reputation-conscious Rose Army.

 

Justified actions were crucial, especially since Abyss Humanitarian was an international humanitarian organization. No matter how much the outer-region people cursed—who in the international community cared about them?

 

The Four Nations would only self-congratulate, rallying in anger, and have a reason to launch large-scale reprisals against the Rose Army.

 

They might expand control over the outer regions, establish more transit cities for military logistics, and provide a series of services for anti-terrorist soldiers—this was normal, as soldiers needed food, drink, and entertainment.

 

They might also relocate the unemployed population, solving unemployment and stabilizing society. The public would be satisfied, the international community pleased, and political risk minimized.

 

As for the dissatisfied outer-region people, let them remain unhappy.

 

Li Aozi stared at Neria.

 

Despite her poker face, her eyes showed heaviness.

 

The scandals Li Aozi revealed were hard for a guerrilla team member like her to accept.

 

Moreover, anyone with a brain would understand the Rose Army's predicament.

 

After attacking Abyss Humanitarian, Li Aozi could move to the outer regions, spend some money, and get a fake identity, entering Tianhuan openly.

 

The Rose Army couldn't; they were too large to run.

 

They could fight Abyss

 

Humanitarian but couldn't bloodily massacre a humanitarian organization like Li Aozi—this was why Jane Neria wanted to retreat and wait for the Rose Army's main force.

 

Even if Frost-Plated's troops arrived, fighting the regular army was a justified military action.

 

Li Aozi's goal was to massacre Abyss Humanitarian, conflicting with Neria's: she wanted to win cleanly and take the shelter facilities.

 

If she didn't cooperate with Li Aozi, moral issues aside, she knew Li Aozi's strength in defeating the Cannibal, slaughtering Abyss Humanitarian, and the White Fang Gang.

 

If she wanted to leave easily, Li Aozi probably wouldn't let her go.

 

So, after some negotiation, they reached an agreement.

 

"I can't participate in this unjust battle."

 

Jane admitted, extending her hand:

 

"But I hope to exchange this Omega energy for my departure and to send the location of Abyss Humanitarian."

 

"Deal."

 

Profit.

 

Having someone else develop and renovate Abyss Humanitarian's facilities wasn't a small project.

 

And if impostor signs reappeared—he'd blow up Abyss Humanitarian's reactor.

 

The key was retrieving Nomi's Omega energy. With that, Li Aozi could search for her body and wandering soul with two 【Domination】 knowledge points.

 

Reviving people wasn't common, especially those long dead. Months were enough for a body to rot, but Li Aozi felt he should try.

 

Li Aozi grasped her hand, sending neural tendrils into her. Jane Neria's brow furrowed, groaning, as her pupils flashed red and black, and blood vessels bulged like roots.