Chapter 173: World Conference

Chapter 173: World Conference

In the dimly lit hallway, the flickering lights cast eerie shadows, transforming a usually bustling area into a silent tomb.

Due to the domain's lockdown, all communication with the outside world had been severed. The base automatically switched to backup power to maintain the seals on the containment chambers, but only for a short while.

The mass slaughter within the domain had resulted in over 95% of the staff's deaths. Without proper management, several sealed entities had already escaped.

"Move carefully, and be gentle. The base is very dangerous right now."

Xue Pengkai cautiously surveyed the surroundings, whispering his warning.

The base's internal layout, with doors every few meters, was designed to prevent the spread of containment breaches.

Wang Lang carried Kelly's body in silence. His body, reinforced by dark magic, allowed him to hold her with one hand while the other clutched the Book of the Dead.

Several translucent figures materialized from the void. Their faces were indistinct, their forms twisting like formless smoke—these were the spirits summoned by the Book of the Dead's incantations.

"There's a sacrifice here."

The Son of Fertility suddenly spoke, and Wang Lang quickly moved to the spot, aiming the Book of the Dead at a pile of unidentifiable flesh and human tissue. The book emitted a crimson glow.

Crunch, crunch—

The sound of gnawing bones and flesh was bone-chilling. The mass of flesh disappeared, and the red light from the Book of the Dead intensified.

"We need one more. We can't delay too long, or it won't be a viable sacrifice."

Wang Lang glanced at the Son of Fertility, his meaning clear: if they couldn't save Kelly in time, he would become the new sacrifice.

The Son of Fertility's face remained expressionless. "I am always ready to offer myself for the god's arrival."

"What god? Which one?"

As the base's manager, Xue Pengkai had always been curious about this. The Son of Fertility had always referred to himself as a lamb, a sacrifice for the god, but never revealed the god's identity.

"I cannot speak the name of the god. It is something beyond human comprehension," the Son of Fertility calmly shook his head. "Unless you are willing to play the Babel Tower Song on the phonograph in an endless loop, until it collects all the languages of the universe."

Wang Lang, growing impatient, interrupted their conversation. "We need to hurry."

"We do need to hurry."

A portal suddenly opened, and a figure that made both Wang Lang and Xue Pengkai pale appeared.

Lu Ke slowly stepped out of the portal, offering a faint smile. "Sorry, Mr. Wang Lang, I forgot to grab something."

"You..."

Wang Lang's emotions surged, his veins bulging as he clutched the Book of the Dead. His hoarse voice echoed through the enclosed hallway.

"Die!"

With a surge of dark magic, a portal to another realm slowly opened, emitting a faint red glow. Countless undead creatures filled the other side, the most powerful spell recorded in the Book of the Dead—the Undead Catastrophe!

Snap!

With a sharp snap of his fingers, an invisible spatial portal appeared at the entrance of the otherworldly gate. The undead creatures that stepped through were instantly teleported to the sky on the other side, where they fell to their demise under the force of gravity.

At the same time, an invisible force yanked Wang Lang toward Lu Ke. He struggled fiercely, desperate to tear into his enemy.

"Spit!"

A glob of blood-laden spittle hung in the air before rebounding and splattering onto Wang Lang's face.

Lu Ke shook his head, looking at the helpless protagonist.

"Mr. Wang Lang, I'm not sparing your life because I don't want to kill you. It's because someone higher up wants to protect you."

Lu Ke glanced in the direction of the story editing department. "Thank them. Otherwise, you'd be dead by now. But don't thank them too much, as they only intend to use you."

Wang Lang continued to glare at Lu Ke with a look of unyielding hatred.

Lu Ke sighed. "You still don't understand the situation. Let me explain. The person standing before you is a morally bankrupt demon king, capable of destroying the world. I can sever your limbs, crush your body, and toy with your mind at any moment."

"Every time you anger me, my desire to kill you grows stronger, making it harder for those higher up to protect you."

Lu Ke gripped Wang Lang's chin, gradually increasing the pressure until his bones creaked and his face contorted in pain.

"If I were you, I would acknowledge the power gap and remain silent, submissive, and avoid angering me. Trust me, your future self will thank your present self for this choice."

"Otherwise, you won't have a future."

...

A crimson sword sliced into the fabric of the world, its wielder's swing bursting with brilliant light. The space shattered under the blow, its power unmatched.

Portals opened and closed in rapid succession, layering and repeating. The cunning enemy moved through the spatial rifts without pause, the vast range and frequency of their movements causing Anna to frown.

"Is that all you've got? Derivative Number Three, you're just a worm wriggling at my feet."

Luk appeared several dozen meters in front of Anna, his tone calm. "Fools seek power from the outside, while the wise seek it from within."

"Some people fight recklessly without thinking, while others know how to strategize."

This was the key difference between him and the Sealed Artifacts. The effects of the Sealed Artifacts were straightforward and powerful, but they lacked flexibility. Most of them also came with negative side effects, which often affected their users.

"Your words are meaningless. You will lose."

Anna sneered, raising her Sword of Victory once more. No matter what tricks he tried, as long as she held the Sword of Victory, victory was the only outcome.

The nature of Sealed Artifacts couldn't be defied!

Luk's figure continued to flicker through the space, and he spoke calmly, "You seem very confident in your sword. Let me teach you the art of battle."

His voice echoed from all directions, causing Anna to focus and carefully observe, trying to find a weakness.

"First, the Sword of Victory can indeed ensure your victory, but no one has specified when that victory will come. I can fight you for a whole day, a month, or even a year or longer."

Anna swung her sword in a reverse arc, her brow furrowing with frustration. Her Sealed Artifacts were powerful, but she found it difficult to deal with such elusive tactics.

A purple light approached, and Anna sneered, letting the unknown magic hit her. The Armor of Retribution could reflect any attack, whether physical, magical, or cursed.

Overconfidence often leads to mistakes.

Whoosh—

In her incredulous gaze, the purple magic enveloped her body, and Luk appeared unscathed in front of her.

At that moment, she felt an unusual calm, a calm that dulled her anger and sapped her desire to attack.

"The Armor of Retribution reflects damage, but if it's something beneficial to you, like my calming magic, it won't reflect it."

Luk spoke slowly, approaching Anna, who had lost her will to resist and could only defend herself with instinct. As she swung her sword at him, he struck the blade with his right fist.

Her weakened arm made her attack falter, and the sword's trajectory shifted. Anna tried to convince herself to attack, but the calming magic continued to take effect.

If it were an attack, even a mental one, the Armor of Retribution could return it tenfold, but calming was different.

Despite Anna's lack of aggression, Luk's left hand reached for the golden emblem on her chest, and information flowed into his mind.

Tier 3 Sealed Artifact: Emblem of Equality

Description 1: Fair, fair, and damn it, still fair!

Description 2: As the name suggests, this emblem enhances the wearer's attributes, with the enhancement matching the enemy's level.

Description 3: What? You say that the wearer's attributes plus the enemy's attributes exceeding the enemy's level seems a bit unfair?

Description 4: Sorry, but the world itself isn't fair.

The promotion condition for a Level 4 agent is to master two Tier 1 Sealed Artifacts or a Level 0 derivative, but in reality, veteran Level 4 agents typically have at least four Sealed Artifacts suitable for them.

Knowing your opponent's capabilities is always crucial.

"You can't win against me."

Anna, calmed by the magic and stripped of her desire to attack, paid no mind to Luk's actions. No matter what he tried, as long as she held the Sword of Victory, the outcome was set.

"True, but that's only if the sword remains in your hand."

Luk smiled faintly and suddenly pulled out something that made even the calm Anna's eyes widen.

"You!"

In Luk's hand was the Inequality Lipstick, which he had just received from Kelly's body via his derivative.

With a mix of hesitation, he applied the lipstick to his lips, covering half his face with his hand, and spoke awkwardly.

"Victory = Holding the Sword of Victory. Let it go!"

The nature of Sealed Artifacts was hard to defy, and Anna, trembling and in despair, released the Sword of Victory.

Ding—

As the Sword of Victory hit the ground, the causality shifted dramatically.

Anna's fate changed from victory to certain death. The Sword of Victory always brought victory, but once picked up, it could never be put down, or it would result in death.

Within a few breaths, Anna let out a scream and died for an unknown reason, the Armor of Retribution proving useless.

"The Emblem of Equality isn't truly equal, the Armor of Retribution doesn't retribute, and the Sword of Victory doesn't bring victory."

Luk chuckled, gathering the Sealed Artifacts from Anna's body into his personal storage.

Suddenly, his eyes narrowed, and a familiar, uncomfortable sensation washed over him. Without hesitation, a green magical light enveloped his body.

...

Future Tech, 13th Floor

The room was filled with high-tech monitors.

Manager Preller, with his cloudy right eye, stood in the center, watching the Sealed Artifacts escape, the deaths of Kelly and Anna, and Luk's assault on the base. After a moment of silence, he sighed.

"P03, please initiate the World Conference."

All the screens simultaneously displayed a square robot's virtual image, its expressionless eyes staring at Prell.

"Are you sure you want to initiate the World Conference and invite the other four leaders?"

"Confirmed."

With the confirmation, the screens dimmed and split into four.

A man wearing a mask with the character for "Joy" appeared on the first screen.

"Hello, Prell. It's been a while. The last time we met was during the Star Devourer incident, wasn't it?"

P03's mechanical voice chimed in: "Welcome, Lord 'Joy' of the Story Editing Department."

Prell gave a bitter laugh, "Don't mention that absurd script. If not for the excessive modifications back then, you wouldn't be running out of ink and making things so bad now, right?"

"I think it's fine. You didn't even issue a 'Wanted' notice, so the problem can't be that serious, can it?"

The second screen lit up, revealing a young man in black with a stern expression.

"Do you know why your future technology always malfunctions?"

"Welcome, Director Dark of Lighthouse Limited."

"Um, because we have the most sealed artifacts?"

"Exactly! Sealed artifacts should never exist! They should all be destroyed!"

"Mr. Dark, aren't you being a bit too extreme?"

"It's your constant attempts to profit from sealed artifacts that lead to such disastrous outcomes!"

The third screen lit up, and a somewhat haggard middle-aged woman in black appeared. Compared to the others, she looked like an ordinary middle-aged woman.

If Wang Lang were here, he would recognize her as someone both familiar and strange.

"Welcome, Director Qin Fang of the Psychological Treatment Center."

"The situation is already quite dire. It's a pity about Wang Lang. I spent twenty-one years cultivating him."

Prell bowed apologetically, "I'm sorry, Ms. Qin Fang. The oversight was due to my incomplete information on Derivative No. 3."

"Didn't you use the Tree of Wisdom to check his information?"

"He was well-behaved for eighteen years, so we didn't. We'll do better next time."

"Next time again."

Disappointment was evident on Qin Fang's face. "It's not necessary to use Wang Lang to filter pollution. Directly summoning Derivative No. 1 would be a boon for all of humanity. We would all ascend."

The fourth screen lit up, and a handsome man in an elegant suit appeared.

"Welcome, Representative of the Small Sealing Organization, Dr. Frankenstein P."

"I'm sorry, but I must disagree, Ms. Qin. That would only bring about humanity's destruction."

"Ha, what about when you blew the Doomsday Horn and summoned Derivative No. 2?"

"That was a research project."

Dr. Frankenstein P shrugged, "I just wanted to know if there were any patterns to what the Doomsday Horn summons."

Prell sighed, "Enough, everyone. The Future Fund is no longer capable of maintaining the sealed artifacts. This is my failure. The revenue from the next world's future technology will be reduced by thirty percent."

The other four exchanged glances and slowly nodded.

He took out a contract filled with unknown symbols, but only one-fifth of it was intact.

"Then, let's apply for a reset."

"Agreed."

"Agreed."

"Agreed."

"Agreed."

Each of them held a fragment of the contract. As they declared their agreement, the fragments erupted in a massive beam of light, shooting skyward.

"Grant Supreme Command Authority"

"Initiate Terminal Vertical Synchronization"

"Approve the World Reset Protocol"

"Worldline Reset Initiated"

The five beams of light connected, forming a circular disc in the shape of a snake biting its own tail. The disc began to reverse, and endless light enveloped everything.

...

In the deep darkness, Prell awoke from his slumber. He opened his sharp, single eye and pressed the red button beside his bed. A few seconds later, a staff member entered the room respectfully.

"Is there anything you need?"

"What time is it?"

"Do you mean today's date? It's January 1, 2124."

"Good." After a moment of contemplation, Prell said, "Prepare the program to destroy Derivative No. 3. I want the results today."

"Understood."

The staff member nodded respectfully and returned a moment later, his voice trembling.

"Manager Prell, Derivative No. 3... he... he's... gone!"

...

Dear readers, you might have noticed some deletions and modifications. This morning, I was informed that the SCP theme is no longer allowed, and the book would be removed if I continued. I've been making changes all day, and it seems other books involving this theme also need to be rectified or banned. I can't say I'm in a bad mood, but I'm certainly upset. All the carefully thought-out plots, foreshadowing, and future plans are now gone. It's my first time writing an original story, and this is the kind of thing I've encountered. Sigh.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end