Chapter 123: Teleportation, Cyber Wasteland, Faction Mode

Chapter 123: Teleportation, Cyber Wasteland, Faction Mode

After signing the insurance contract, the countdown to the Abyssal Battlefield reached its final moments.

Lu Heng, Su Muyu, and Lin Zeyu high-fived each other, ready to embark on this unknown journey.

【Teleport to Abyssal World: Cyber Wasteland, Orion Lambda 838】

【World Introduction: This is a wasteland planet, a world that has been gradually abandoned during its civilizational development due to resource depletion. The planet is filled with semi-mechanical slums, industrial waste, old machinery, and a central computer system maintaining order.】

【Event: The Abyssal Descent has had a profound impact on this wasteland planet, plunging the world into chaos and giving rise to two fiercely opposing factions: the Central System Faction and the Rogue Servant Faction.】

【Danger Level: 4】

【Battlefield Mode: Faction Mode】

【Main Quests】

【1. Find a way to join either the Central System Faction or the Rogue Servant Faction.】

【2. Join one of the factions.】

【3. Survive for 15 days while being hunted by the opposing faction.】

【Challenge Quests】

【1. Destroy 30 combat units of the opposing faction.】

【2. Locate the source of Abyssal contamination and eliminate it.】

【3. Become a double agent, join both factions, and survive until the end.】

【Teleportation complete. Loading common language of Orion Lambda 838 world...】

...

As his vision slowly returned, Lu Heng opened his eyes, but everything around him was pitch black.

He was sitting on something that was gently shaking beneath him, seemingly inside some kind of vehicle.

At that moment, a bright light appeared in front of him, illuminating the surrounding space.

Lu Heng shielded his eyes with his hand, gradually adjusting to the brightness, and finally, he could see his surroundings clearly.

He found himself inside a cubic space, resembling the interior of a truck or similar vehicle.

Su Muyu had already woken up, and the light came from her Flame Arrow skill.

Lin Zeyu was leaning to one side, still unconscious.

Apart from their team of three, there were seven other people in the truck's cargo area, each wearing a cyber-style bracelet.

Everyone began examining their bracelets, and some even took out weapons, intending to break them.

Just as Lu Heng was about to speak up, a voice from the corner of the cargo area spoke first, "Don't force it open. I'm afraid it might explode if we break it."

The voice sounded familiar.

Lu Heng directed the light in Su Muyu's hand towards the speaker and recognized the person—Chen Zihan, the mutant with magnetic skills they had met during their first encounter in the Abyssal Battlefield.

They exchanged a glance, recognizing each other but silently acknowledging their connection without a word, and then shifted their gaze elsewhere.

The other mutants in the cargo area heeded Chen Zihan's warning and dared not force their bracelets open.

In truth, Chen Zihan's concern was valid, but not entirely accurate.

Lu Heng knew what these bracelets were—electronic shackles.

Forcibly breaking them would not cause an explosion, but it would deliver an electric shock powerful enough to stun a mutant.

The appearance of these electronic shackles meant that the mutants who had been teleported here were considered 'captured beings.'

They could only be called 'beings' because the identity of the natives of this world was still unknown.

Lin Zeyu was sleeping soundly, even snoring.

The snoring filled the cargo area with an awkward silence.

After all, it wasn't an ordinary feat to fall asleep in such an environment.

Lu Heng stood up and kicked Lin Zeyu to wake him.

Lin Zeyu wiped the drool from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand and mumbled, "What's going on? Where are we now?"

His consciousness gradually cleared, remembering that he had been teleporting into the Abyssal Battlefield just before falling asleep, so he immediately became alert, scrutinizing the other mutants in the cargo area with caution.

And they were all staring back at him.

Sensing the tension, Lin Zeyu moved closer to Lu Heng.

This action conveyed to the other mutants in the cargo area that they were a team.

There was no need to hide the fact that they were another team into the narrative.

Sometimes, revealing team identity could help unify the opinions of scattered mutants.

Of course, with ten people in the cargo area, there might be more than one team.

Lu Heng drew the Aurora Blade and pierced it into one of the iron walls, creating a hole through which blue-violet neon lights shone in.

Through the hole created by the Aurora Blade, they finally caught a glimpse of the world outside.

Below the grayish sky was a cyber city woven with blue-violet neon lights.

However, this cyber city was in a state of disrepair.

Just as described in the world information, this is a Cyber Wasteland world.

A planet abandoned due to resource depletion, this Cyber City is gradually decaying.

Broken roads remain unrepaired, and the extinguished neon lights will continue to dim.

Once bustling skyscrapers have become the turf of armed forces.

Su Muyu releases a reconnaissance eagle through this hole, observing the world as a whole.

She leans over to Lu Heng's ear and briefly describes what she sees: "We're in a vehicle similar to a truck, and it's unclear where we're being taken. There's very little traffic on the road, and within a five-kilometer radius, I haven't spotted another moving vehicle."

This is a typical Cyber Wasteland, and the entire world is in decline.

The city is no longer prosperous, and the world has lost its vitality.

...

Among the mutants in the carriage, there are sensory ability users.

Therefore, these people don't need to crowd around to observe the outside world.

After observing the outside world, Lu Heng strides to the middle of the carriage, observes the other mutants in the carriage, and then asks, "Are there any other teams here? Team leaders, come forward and introduce yourselves."

After saying this, two seconds pass.

Chen Zihan stands up and walks up to Lu Heng.

The two look at each other calmly, as if meeting for the first time, and introduce themselves.

"Hello, Lu Heng."

"Hello, Chen Zihan."

"How many people are in your team?" Lu Heng glances at the few people gathered behind Chen Zihan.

"Five," Chen Zihan replies.

"Three," Lu Heng responds, reciprocating with the same attitude of equal exchange.

This means that there are only two solo mutants in this carriage.

Lu Heng briefly observes the mutants in Chen Zihan's team and finds that they are all young, mostly around 20 years old.

Three of them have buzz cuts and sit with proper posture, revealing their identities as they are likely from disciplined forces.

If they are from disciplined forces, the likelihood of a betrayer appearing in their team is relatively lower.

Moreover, having interacted with Chen Zihan in the first Deep Abyss Battlefield, Lu Heng has some understanding of him.

Therefore, Lu Heng can increase his trust rating, but it is still necessary to remain vigilant.

"Shall we share the world information?" Chen Zihan suggests.

"Sure."

So, ten people gather around, sit in a circle, and begin discussing the information about this Deep Abyss Battlefield.

Chen Zihan asks everyone to take turns reciting a task, intending to identify any potential betrayers.

Lu Heng doesn't object and recites a task as requested.

However, Lu Heng is aware that this method cannot identify betrayers.

Because betrayers can also view the task information of the Deep Abyss Battlefield and will additionally receive betrayer tasks on top of that.

In fact, in the previous life, someone had analyzed that the unknown entity summoning mutants into the Deep Abyss Battlefield didn't have the ability to distinguish betrayers, so betrayers could also receive task information for the Deep Abyss Battlefield.

After confirming that everyone's world information is the same, the discussion starts to get to the main point.

Chen Zihan points out a strange aspect first: "This Deep Abyss Battlefield is a bit odd; there's no clear enemy camp, which is different from the previous Deep Abyss Battlefields we've experienced."

Lu Heng has also noticed this.

In the two previous Deep Abyss Battlefields, the enemy camps were very clear.

In the first Deep Abyss World, the enemy camp was the Horned Demon Overlord and his clan of Horned Demons.

In the second, the Evil God's Graveyard, the enemy camp was even clearer—the Dark God Barton and his servants.

But this Deep Abyss Battlefield is a little different.

The battlefield mode is "Faction Mode," but there are two factions in this world.

Moreover, according to the main quest prompt, mutants can choose to join one of the factions.

In other words, joining a faction is not mandatory.

However, these two factions are obviously hostile to each other.

The third main quest requires survival for 15 days under the pursuit of the enemy camp.

In other words, joining one faction will result in being hunted by the other.

This means that once human mutants join different factions, they will become enemies.

"Yes, if we join different factions, won't we become enemies?" a solo mutant chimes in.

Compared to those with teams, these two solo mutants in the carriage will face more pressure.

The two solo mutants are named Hou Lingshan and Liu Liangpeng.

Both have ordinary appearances, slightly darker skin tones, one wearing a T-shirt and jeans, the other in a short-sleeved shirt and casual pants.

The one who just spoke is Hou Lingshan, with a hint of depth in his eyes.

Liu Liangpeng raised his hand and suggested, "Why don't we all join the same faction? That way, we won't become enemies."

At this moment, Lin Zeyu interjected, "If we want to be safe, we might as well not join any faction at all."

Hou Lingshan disagreed, "The main quest requires us to join a faction, and it's mandatory."

Lin Zeyu chuckled and said, "We can find a way to join a faction first, and then on the last second of the 15-day time limit, we can join a faction to complete the main quest. Then, we can immediately return, and it'll be absolutely safe without any side effects."

"This... might have significant side effects," Chen Zihan reminded them.

"Is that so?" Lin Zeyu turned to Lu Heng.

Lu Heng nodded and said, "If you join a faction, you'll be hunted by the opposing faction. If you don't join any faction, there's a high probability that both factions will hunt you."

Lin Zeyu's eyes widened, and he said, "So that's how it works?"

Lu Heng continued, "Actually, joining a faction is less about opposing the enemy faction and more about the main quest hinting at how we should survive in this world.

"As long as we join one of the factions and hide within their base, there's a high probability we'll survive until the end."

However, since they were already in the game, if they only wanted to survive for 15 days and return, their journey into the Cyber Wasteland would lose half of its meaning.

Chen Zihan smiled and looked at Lu Heng, exchanging a glance.

After a brief exchange, he realized that although there were ten people here, only Lu Heng needed to be engaged in a meaningful discussion.

In this carriage, he represented one team, and Lu Heng represented another.

The other two solo players, after the previous discussion, didn't offer any constructive suggestions.

If they were to discuss action strategies, it would only be necessary to talk to Lu Heng.

Chen Zihan understood this and asked, "Lu Heng, what do you think?"

Lu Heng asked in return, "Do you want to survive until the time limit, or do you want to make a difference?"

Chen Zihan replied with certainty, "I want to make a difference."

Lu Heng nodded and said, "In that case, I suggest we join different factions."

Chen Zihan didn't object but started thinking seriously.

Lin Zeyu stared and said, "So, we'll be enemies?"

Lu Heng reminded him, "Look at the third challenge quest. It already hinted that we can be double agents, which suggests that the summoned existences, including us, might not be aligned with these two factions."

Chen Zihan agreed, "Indeed, let's decide on that. We'll join different factions and share information. The more information we gather, the better we can understand the situation in this Abyssal Battlefield."

"Okay, then it's decided." After deciding to join different factions, Lu Heng asked, "Which faction do you plan to join?"

Chen Zihan had already considered this question and replied, "I'd like to join the Central System faction."

Lu Heng, who knew more information, readily agreed, "Sure, then we'll choose the Rogue Servant faction."

From the names of the two factions, it was evident that the "Central System" should be a central computer-like existence in this world.

"Rogue Servant" was a shortened term for rogue servant robots.

In terms of power levels, the "Central System" faction should be stronger.

Therefore, joining the "Central System" faction would likely be safer.

After both parties reached an agreement, the two solo players hastily promised, "So, you've formed an alliance? Then I... I'll do the same. Regardless of which faction I join, we won't be enemies, and we'll exchange information."

The group continued to analyze the information revealed in the quest details.

"Let's discuss the situations of the two factions. What exactly does 'Rogue Servant' refer to?" Hou Lingshan asked a question.

Chen Zihan generously shared his analysis, "I've played the game 'Stellaris', and it has rogue servants.

"I'm not sure if the rogue servants in this world are the same as in the game, so I can only analyze based on the game's information.

"This world is a Cyber Wasteland, and even if it's now in decline, it was once advanced.

"The appearance of rogue servants indicates that this world once extensively used servant robots.

"For example, robots for sweeping, garbage collection, and any tedious tasks could be assigned to robots.

"When these servant robots reach a certain level of development, they will be connected to a network, but this network is likely separate from the citizens' network.

"Rogue servants refer to servant robots that have awakened and developed a collective consciousness..."

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end