Chapter 2890: Freedom
The composition of the Eerie Sound Knights didn't seem particularly strong, after all, there were still B-level players among them, yet they could repeatedly succeed and retreat unscathed. Besides Jin Feixue's considerable strength, they also couldn't do without the support of player families.
However, it was truly somewhat surprising that so many people had set their sights on them.
"Now you don't have to worry," Shi Sanjiu said. "Even if they can retreat unscathed, they'll probably be tied up in knots recently and won't have the time to keep staring at you."
Xu Huo didn't reply. Both he and the Eerie Sound Knights had now exposed each other's secrets. With the cards on the table, it was just a matter of waiting for the final showdown.
He couldn't concern himself with matters in District 011. As for District 014, he had entrusted it to Nie Xuan and Bai Kou. Zone fusion wouldn't happen overnight; it would likely last for a long time. The best preparation he could make right now was to increase his evolution rate.
Just as he was about to put the Holy Sword Society matter on hold and go search for the Perfect Potion, a vice president of the Holy Sword Society personally came to visit.
The visitor was an old man who seemed very easy to talk to. His gaze swept over Xu Huo, and he immediately smiled. "The student surpasses the master. If all the younger generation were geniuses like this, the world would be at peace."
"How should I address you, sir?" Xu Huo asked.
"Just call me Old Qi," the old man said. "Young man, take a walk with me."
Xu Huo said a word to Shi Sanjiu and followed Old Qi out of the estate.
The scenery outside the Shui family estate was beautiful. Walking along the tree-lined avenue, the view was filled with bright, clear colors.
"The scenery here is really nice," Old Qi said. "There are many places as beautiful as this in District 033."
"Do you like such scenery, sir?" Xu Huo smiled. "It's not just District 033; many zones are the same."
Old Qi nodded. "The Holy Sword Society's original intention was to create more peaceful places like District 033, to strive for a space where the weak can live and work in peace. But doing things is much harder than talking about them."
"Human nature is uneven and often contradictory. Good people can become bad, and bad people can become good. But as long as the goal we pursue is the same, we have to sacrifice some minor details."
He turned to look at Xu Huo. "No one is perfect, just as no water is absolutely clear. Leave room for everything, so everyone has room to breathe."
There is no absolutely perfect thing in the world, nor a person who is one hundred percent kind. Some things simply cannot be judged by good and evil alone. A person plants a tree by the river. One day, someone might fall into the water and, by chance, grab that tree and save their life. But when the planter cuts down the tree, another person who falls in might lose that chance.
From the perspective of the living parties and the onlookers, even because of a single tree, grievances have already formed. Whether it's cause and effect or a twist of fate, blindly pursuing right and wrong is meaningless in the eyes of the Holy Sword Society.
The deaths of the vast majority of people in the world are meaningless. Whether anyone cares or not, it's all the same.
The voice of the weak is as faint as a mosquito's hum, and the bloody revenge of the strong, no matter how many grievances it spawns, will eventually dissipate in some way.
"I understand what you mean, sir," Xu Huo said. "But my code of conduct differs from the Holy Sword Society's. I can't see things too far ahead; I focus more on the people and matters right in front of me."
"The Holy Sword Society initially pursued a peaceful world. Does a peaceful world only consist of the world itself, without the people in it?"
"According to your reasoning, sir, no one is perfect, and no water is absolutely clear. Can the Holy Sword Society truly achieve its initial pursuit? Or does the Holy Sword Society only care about reaching the milestone of its goal? What difference does that make between the path before and after?"
Old Qi chuckled. "Your view isn't wrong either. But before things are done, no one can say for sure what the scene will be like then."
"Since you're also curious, why not come and see with us?"
"When the distant view becomes the scene before your eyes, you can compare it with your thoughts today."
Xu Huo smiled but said nothing. The old man had a glib tongue. Not only did he not argue, but he went along with Xu Huo's words.
After a brief pause, Xu Huo changed his strategy. "It seems both the Old Holy Sword Society and the New Holy Sword Society are short on people."
Old Qi wasn't surprised at all, nor did he mind Xu Huo's attitude towards the two societies. "One more person joining means one less person opposing. Everyone is striving for the future of humanity. Whether old or new, it's all the same to us."
Xu Huo raised an eyebrow slightly. "But isn't the Holy Sword Society's approach contradictory?"
Old Qi's smile faded, and he looked calmly at the wind-rippled water in the distance. "People are born arrogant. Good people pride themselves on the belief that evil cannot triumph over good, convinced that evil, being vile, will ultimately be eliminated. Evil people, on the other hand, firmly believe that the devil is a foot taller, thinking good people are pedantic and overly reliant on principles, thus losing the power and means to win."
"Did you hear that?"
"They are opposites yet interdependent. Neither side will ever completely disappear."
"Since that's the case, why belittle the power of one side?"
"You have talent and uphold justice, believing that those who kill the innocent deserve to die. But do those who kill the innocent truly deserve to die? Perhaps from another angle, they aren't so irredeemably evil either."
"The game's initial classification of players into three types was unfair. Did Cannibal Players really want to become Cannibal Players?"
"The Holy Sword Society simply didn't ignore them or ostracize them."
"From your standpoint, would you kill all Cannibal Players?"
Xu Huo remained silent. Leaving everything else aside, the old man was right about one thing: people are indeed very arrogant.
At its core, both the New Holy Sword Society and the Old Holy Sword Society were operating under the banner of improving the game world's environment, but in reality, they still wanted to control the game world. The only difference was that the rule-makers would become them.
Regardless of whether they had the ability to ensure the game world truly improved, it was essentially the same old wine in a new bottle.
The Dimension Crack game shouldn't have existed in the first place.
"Human progress is always slow, and sometimes it even takes a step backward. But that is precisely where the preciousness of the human spirit lies," Old Qi continued. "Everyone is striving for a better life."
"With your abilities, why not give it a try?"
Xu Huo slowly smiled. "Is everyone really striving for a better life?"
Old Qi narrowed his eyes. "If you have any thoughts, you can speak them out. I'm old, and perhaps many of my ideas are outdated."
But Xu Huo shook his head. "I have absolutely no interest in the Holy Sword Society's grand ambitions. However, I have indeed made enemies of the Holy Sword Society. There will inevitably be conflict in the future. Since your persuasion has failed, sir, how does the Holy Sword Society plan to deal with me?"
The bounty under Dimension had Xu Huo's face, but the Holy Sword Society wasn't directly involved. They still needed time to sort out the connections between the people involved. Of course, one reason they hadn't acted rashly was that they were weighing whether it was necessary to kill Xu Huo. Although everyone in the bounty had now become the unprecedented three-directional evolution genius, there was truly only one.
Xu Huo hadn't revealed his full power in District 033, but based on what was known, he was already a rare genius. The Holy Sword Society was willing to trade the lives of some of its members for his friendship.