Chapter 1106: The Manina Worldview Collapses
Chapter 1106: The Manina Worldview Collapses
Manina was taken aback by AI Cyblue's sudden change.
"What's going on? Did the system just upgrade itself?"
He cleared his throat and instructed Lanchi, "Lanchi, go and visit Morgen on my behalf. I'll join you later."
"Of course, Your Majesty." Lanchi was surprised by AI Cyblue's sudden human-like behavior, but he still had to follow the emperor's orders.
After replying, Lanchi immediately flew north toward the headquarters, quickly leaving Manina's vicinity.
...
As Lanchi departed, Manina curiously asked, "Cyblue, what's going on with you? Why are you suddenly so human-like? Did some part of your system upgrade itself?"
"No," AI Cyblue's tone suddenly changed.
But it wasn't just the tone that changed; the entire voice was different!
moments ago, AI Cyblue had spoken in a cold, young female Skrull voice. But after saying "No," its voice abruptly shifted to an old male voice from Earth's Huaxia region!
Moreover, the word "No" wasn't spoken in Skrull but in ancient Chinese!
Manina was immediately startled!
What was going on? Ancient Chinese? Was this an assassination attempt by the Earthlings?
Manina immediately reacted.
He released his protective spirit technique and used several life-saving items, layer upon layer of spirit shields quickly forming in front of him.
Only after piling up eight or nine layers of shields did Manina feel slightly more at ease.
However, he didn't completely let his guard down. He vigilantly scanned his surroundings, always on the lookout for an Earthling assassination attempt.
But "AI Cyblue" remained calm.
Looking at Manina's overreaction, "AI Cyblue" calmly said in ancient Chinese, "I'm not here to harm you. If I wanted to kill you, you wouldn't even have time to react. I control this AI system and want to talk to you about a few things."
Hearing this voice, Manina's heart, which had been pounding, began to calm down.
He quickly recognized the owner of this voice—it was none other than the sole planetary-level being of Earth, Emperor Dixin of the Zhou Dynasty!
Dixin, as a planetary-level existence so powerful that he was virtually invincible, had been a figure of great interest to Manina since the day he first appeared. Manina was well familiar with his voice.
Dixin had once intruded on a Skrull high-level meeting, speaking a few words to them. Thus, Manina immediately recognized that it was Dixin speaking to him!
Knowing that it was Dixin, Manina felt much more at ease.
Dixin was right; with his strength, he wouldn't need to resort to an assassination. He could kill Manina openly, and Manina might not even have time to react.
Moreover, Dixin had no reason to assassinate him.
Since Dixin had taken control of AI Cyblue, it was likely that he wanted to talk about something, as he said.
Realizing this, Manina quickly clasped his hands and spoke in halting Earth Chinese, "It's Emperor Dixin! I didn't expect you to come to me, and I overreacted. Please forgive me!
But, to be honest, why are you coming to me now? Could it be that there's a way to remove the 'Defeated One's Seal'?"
Manina believed that Dixin's visit could only be about one thing: a way to remove the 'Defeated One's Seal.'
He and Dixin had no prior connection; what other reason could Dixin have to come to him?
However, to his surprise, Dixin's hearty laughter echoed beside him, "Ha ha, I'm here to talk to you about something other than the 'Defeated One's Seal.'"
"Something else? What is it?" Manina asked.
"In a few words, it can't be explained... Here, I'll show you a document. After you read it, you'll understand."
As Dixin finished speaking, a paper document appeared in front of Manina.
The document was filled with ancient Chinese characters, but on the right side, there were complete translations in Skrull, allowing Manina to understand it without any issues.
Manina didn't say anything and quickly picked up the document, reading it word by word.
But it was better not to read it at all. The moment he saw the content, he was utterly shocked!
No, "utterly shocked" wasn't enough to describe it. The moment he saw the text, he couldn't believe his eyes, and his mind was like a storm at sea, with a thousand phoenixes soaring overhead!
"Impossible... How can this be... By the gods, is this real?!"
Staring at the document, Manina's arms and body trembled violently. His lifeless eyes widened, and beads of sweat poured down his forehead, quickly soaking his upper body.
"This... It can't be like this..."
In the end, Manina couldn't even support his own weight and fell to the ground, feeling as though his spirit was about to collapse.
The content of the document was too shocking! It was a million, ten million times more shocking than hearing Dixin's voice!
"Could it be possible that the content of the document is all fake?"
A thought crossed his mind.
But the moment this idea emerged, his mind immediately rejected it: "Impossible, this has to be real! Everything in this document fits together perfectly, with no holes in the story!
Moreover, Morgen and Alice's behavior has been so strange lately; I've noticed it for a while now. The information in the document perfectly explains their odd actions!
I never thought... I never thought..."
...
Sitting on the ground, Manina remained calm, despite the shock.
Dixin, the emperor, spoke calmly, "Manina, I know you're a smart man. Seeing these things, you should understand what you need to do, right?"
Manina, using all his strength, nodded weakly, "Of course, Your Majesty. I won't tell anyone about the contents of the document."
"Good." Dixin smiled, "When you need me, I'll appear again. We'll meet then!"
With those words, Dixin cut off his control over the AI Siblue.
Siblue's confused voice immediately echoed in Manina's ears, "Your Majesty, I was suddenly controlled by an unknown force, but fortunately, no encrypted information was lost. Should I send an alert to headquarters?"
"No need." Manina waved his hand to stop Siblue.
"Understood, Your Majesty."
"Your Majesty, you seem to be in a poor state, as if you've been overly shocked. What happened just now? Should I contact headquarters for you?"
The moment Siblue regained consciousness, the document Manina had been reading vanished into thin air, so it had no idea what the document contained or what had just transpired.
"No need." Manina waved his hand again.
He then instructed, "Don't disturb me for a while. I need to be alone to think."
"Understood, Your Majesty."
Thus, Manina sat alone on the hill of the Ninth Defense Line, digesting the information he had just received.
The information he had seen was truly shocking. He never imagined that Morgen had returned to usurp his throne, and Alice was his accomplice!
He had once trusted Morgen so much, even planning to pass the throne to him in the future. He never expected Morgen to have such treacherous ambitions!
Of course, the document provided by Dixin contained more than just this. Morgen's betrayal alone wouldn't have shaken him so deeply.
A significant portion of the document detailed information about the leader of the Dark Energy Rebel Army, Darak.
Darak had many loyalists within the Skrull forces, and Dixin had somehow uncovered all of them.
Clearly, Dixin was playing a long game, aiming to catch a big fish. He was planning something big!
...
Manina sat on the hill for over an hour, finally clearing his thoughts.
Only when Siblue sent a notification, "Your Majesty, the components for the Cracking Ray Flood Tower have arrived at the designated location. Vice-President Amelie is about to begin construction according to the plan. Please confirm," did he fully gather his thoughts.
Manina took a deep breath, stood up, and faced north, toward headquarters.
"Confirm. Let Amelie start the construction."
"Understood, Your Majesty."
There was also another matter. Manina had promised to visit his son Morgen, and he wouldn't break that promise.
But this time, his mindset was different when he went to see Morgen.
"Want to take my throne? I won't let you have your way. Not only that, since you've been secretly contacting the Dark Energy Rebel Army, you will all die!" Manina thought, flying quickly toward headquarters in the north.
...
Meanwhile, at the Skrull Alliance headquarters on Mount Fuji, 50 meters underground in a secret meeting room, Prince Morgen Leryang was discussing matters with a Stylus Silver woman.
Morgen Leryang, as Lanchi had guessed, was pretending to be corrupted by the "Defeated One's Steel Mark" and used this as an excuse to stay at headquarters, preparing for his coup.
The Stylus Silver woman he was meeting was none other than his teacher, Alice.
Alice still looked like the cute and lively girl she had always been, but her demeanor was now mature and serious, revealing her true nature.
"Morgen," she lay back in her chair, tilting her head to look at her good student, "Why are you suddenly hesitating now?"
Over the past two months, Alice's primary task had been to suppress Morning Star, the cat.
Morning Star had resurrected just nine days after her death, but under Alice's suppression, she had achieved no victories.
Every time Morning Star went to battle, whether openly or secretly, Alice would suddenly appear and deliver intense attacks.
Morning Star was no match for Alice and was always forced to retreat back to base.
For over two months, Alice had almost exclusively focused on Morning Star, ignoring everything else.
Her stance toward the Skrulls was also clear: she would only target Morning Star and not involve herself in anything else.
Alice couldn't do much about Manina, so she had to let things be and allow her to act as she pleased.
However, Alice had been a great help. Under her suppression, the cat Morningstar hadn't been able to make any moves, which considerably reduced the troubles for Scru.
As for Alice herself, if Morningstar didn't appear, she wouldn't bother showing up on the battlefield. As long as Morningstar didn't show up, she would stay in the rear headquarters, claiming it was "rest."
Right now, she was on her rest, so she came to the underground conference room to meet with her student and help him plan his power grab.
But just now, she noticed that her student seemed hesitant!
This puzzled her.
Why would her usually decisive student suddenly hesitate at this moment? Could it be that she hadn't seen through his hidden weakness?
Therefore, Alice's gaze became particularly sharp.
Seeing his teacher's piercing eyes, Morgan immediately felt his scalp tingle.
He hurriedly explained, "Teacher, you misunderstood. I have no hesitation at all! The throne is something I must obtain!..."
"Then why did you look so hesitant just now? Surely I didn't misinterpret it, did I?" Alice asked suspiciously.
"It's like this," Morgan wiped his sweat. "I wasn't hesitating because I couldn't make a move; it's because I don't know how to deal with the old ancestor and Plante. I'm afraid I won't be able to get past them."
Morgan wasn't lying. In the matter of seizing the throne, the biggest obstacle wasn't his father Manina, but the old ancestor Manina III and the god-tier powerhouse Plante.
Dealing with his old father wasn't difficult. Morgan was already stronger than his father, and he had the sub-dimension and his teacher's assistance.
But when it came to the old ancestor and Plante, he wasn't so confident.
After all, they were at the pinnacle of the god tier. If they interfered, things would definitely get very complicated.
Over the past two months, Morgan had already probed the old ancestor and Plante indirectly.
But because the matter was too delicate and these two old foxes were extremely cunning, Morgan hadn't been able to discern their true thoughts.
With the power grab imminent, he was genuinely afraid that these two old foxes would become the biggest destabilizing factors on his path, which was why he looked hesitant.
...
Upon learning that her student's hesitation was due to this, Alice couldn't help but giggle a couple of times.
These giggles were in a cute voice, making them sound especially sweet.
"Student, you don't need to worry about them," Alice said with an air of authority, her eyes curving into two crescent moons on her cute face.
"Oh? Teacher, what's your insight?"
"Actually, I took care of them yesterday," Alice said lazily.
"What did you say?!" Morgan was greatly surprised.
These two were already taken care of by the teacher?!
What method did she use?
If it were Morgan, he couldn't think of any way to handle Plante and Manina III.
After all, the throne was a matter between him and his father. For Plante and Manina III, it didn't matter who became the emperor.
But now, with the interstellar war between the Blue Planet and Scru, his usurpation would add a significant element of uncertainty to the war. Suddenly changing the commander in the middle of a battle was a huge taboo. Theoretically, Plante and Manina III wouldn't support him.
Yet the teacher said she had already taken care of it...
Could it be...
Morgan thought of one possibility, and it was the only one he could think of: "Teacher, did you promise them more benefits after the war?"
There are no permanent friends, only permanent interests.
Plante and Manina III must have chosen to support him because of the benefits, right?
But to Morgan's surprise, Alice calmly shook her head: "Not at all. I didn't promise them any benefits.
You must understand, the rewards after winning the war are limited. If we give more to them, won't we get less?
We, as teacher and student, are looking for opportunities to advance to the planetary level. We can't afford to waste a single bit of resources. How could we so easily give them more?"
"Then... what did you...?" Morgan was thoroughly confused.
Alice smiled calmly. "Let them speak for themselves."
She looked behind her and said casually, "The two of you can come out now."
As soon as she finished speaking, two figures appeared behind her.
Morgan focused his gaze and was once again greatly surprised!
Because these two were none other than Plante and Manina III!
Seeing them, Morgan couldn't believe his eyes.
By the gods! How did they get here?!
...
Actually, it was quite normal for Plante and Manina III to be here.
Currently, the main offensive on the front lines hadn't started yet, and Plante and Manina III were resting at headquarters, which wasn't far from Morgan.
Upon receiving Alice's notification, they immediately came to the underground conference room.
"Lord Plante... Old Ancestor... Why are the two of you here?"
Morgan's shock was indescribable.
He stumbled to his feet, his body stiff, half-suspecting he was in some sort of dream.
Seeing Morgan's panic, Manina III, his ancestor, quickly reassured him: "Don't worry, Morgan. We're all family. I'm your great-grandfather, and we share direct bloodlines. I wouldn't harm you."
Plante added with a smile, "Even though I'm not related to you by blood, I've been your great-grandfather's close friend for many years. I support your decision! The throne of Manina will be yours from now on!"
Morgan was at a loss for words.
His mind was frozen, and everything around him felt surreal.
Is this really the real world? Am I not trapped in some kind of illusion?
Alys, Plante, and Manina III could guess Morgan's reaction.
They didn't speak, only looking at him with the kind, gentle eyes of elders.
Alys even used her magic to disperse all the spiritual energy around them.
With no spiritual energy present, it was clear that everything was real, not a dream.
...
After about a minute of stunned silence, Morgan gradually forced himself to accept the reality.
Plante and the great-grandfather actually came out to support him!
With their backing, taking the throne from his father would be a piece of cake!
Now, all the power of the Sunlit Empire was on his side. Manina was alone and powerless. How could he possibly fight back? How could the Dragon Riders lose?
But there was one crucial question on his mind—how did things change so suddenly? How did his teacher convince Plante and the great-grandfather?
Morgan turned to Alys and asked, "Teacher, how did you do it?"
Alys didn't answer directly.
She turned her lazy gaze toward Plante and Manina III. "You two should explain this."
Plante and Manina III exchanged a glance.
Manina III stepped forward and cleared his throat. "Cough, cough, Morgan. The reason we support you is simple—we want to ascend to the Planetary Realm too!"
Plante chimed in, "And our need is more urgent! We only have a few hundred years left. If we don't break through soon, we'll die and our paths will be extinguished!"
"I see," Morgan nodded.
Plante and the great-grandfather's lifespans were indeed running out. It was natural for them to fight for a chance to live longer.
"But that doesn't make sense!" Morgan thought for a moment and quickly spotted a discrepancy.
He looked directly at Plante and the great-grandfather, puzzled. "Your desire to ascend to the Planetary Realm has nothing to do with me taking the throne from my father, right?
Even if we win the war against the Blue Star, if we give all the resources to you two, it still wouldn't be enough to help either of you ascend to the Planetary Realm within your lifetimes."
...
Morgan was right. The resources from the "Civilization Ascension Plan" weren't that abundant.
Ascending to the Planetary Realm required an unimaginable amount of resources!
For Morgan himself, participating in one "Civilization Ascension Plan" wouldn't be enough to ascend.
He estimated he would need to participate in at least three such plans, leading the Skrull people to victory against three alien civilizations, and using all the resources solely for himself. Only then would he have enough to ascend to the Planetary Realm.
Of course, it was impossible to keep all the benefits of a planetary war to himself.
If he didn't share, who would be willing to fight the next civilization?
According to Morgan and Alys's original plan, they intended to participate in seven "Civilization Ascension Plans," winning against seven alien civilizations. Only then would they have enough resources to ascend.
Each "Civilization Ascension Plan" had a 1000-year interval, meaning they would need 7000 years to have a chance at ascending to the Planetary Realm. The difficulty was clear.
Translating this to Plante and Manina III:
If Alys and Morgan gave all their resources to Plante and Manina III, they would still need 7000 years!
Even if the interval between plans could be shortened to 300 years with a petition to the Hymn, Plante and Manina III would still need at least 2100 years to gather enough resources. Their lifespans would run out in just a few hundred years.
So, no matter what, Plante and Manina III couldn't ascend to the Planetary Realm before their lifespans ended, even with all the resources of two planets!
This simple logic should be clear to Plante and Manina III, which only deepened Morgan's confusion.
(End of Chapter)
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