Chapter 3093: Forming an Alliance
His words left the few of them exchanging glances. The reasons they dared to risk boarding Challenge Island were all very well-founded, and they were prepared to fight with their lives on the line. But Xu Huo's reason was somewhat absurd—merely because of social oppression and contract fraud, a person of his strength would take on a major corporation single-handedly? That was taking his own life far too lightly.
Ding Xiang and the others acknowledged that Xu Huo was indeed strong, but he wasn't strong enough to oppose the District Government. On the surface, his target seemed to be only Alton Corporation, but if things escalated, wouldn't the District Government intervene?
Yi Lan remained silent, but Ding Xiang kindly advised him, "Since you've already guessed some of the inside story, why bother taking this so seriously?"
An individual's power was insignificant compared to a group, let alone a massive entity like the District Government. Not to mention the number of A-rank players within an A-rank Wormhole Point, just the sheer stockpile of weapons was unimaginable. Especially the Hyperdimensional Space Instruments—A-rank Wormhole Points had reserves of small, reusable hyperdimensional instruments.
"Given your identities, you could live well without getting involved. Why sacrifice yourselves?" Xu Huo countered.
The comparison between the individual and the group wasn't just about the disparity in power, but also the disparity in human nature. From Xu Huo's perspective, even if he retaliated against Alton Corporation, what then? Without this company, there would be another. From the Inspection Department's perspective, even if they rooted out the corrupt elements within the government, what then? They couldn't catch them all, and there would always be more in the future. It was like a hole that could never be patched.
But why did they still rush headlong down this path?
Because they had set their sights on hope, on the side where the sun shone, and they hoped that in the future, the places bathed in sunlight would grow more numerous and larger.
"Then from now on, we are allies," Bai Po said. "To understand the clients of Challenge Island and get Alton Corporation's data, we have to enter the Spire."
"Challenge Island's defenses are very tight. Without a ticket, it's hard to escape. But to bypass these and not alert the company's people, getting the data will be difficult."
Since he knew where Alton Corporation's terminal was located, as long as he could successfully destroy it, it wouldn't be a wasted trip.
But this conflicted with Ding Xiang and Yi Lan's plans, as well as Xu Huo's plan to escape.
"Are you really unaware of the layout of the hyperdimensional instruments on the island?" Xu Huo asked again. "You should have some access to hyperdimensional instruments. Instruments like these shouldn't have too many variations."
Currently, the most common hyperdimensional instrument in A-rank Wormhole Points was a pistol. The bullets it fired could release a certain amount of hyperdimensional power, with a small kill radius. This was a weapon issued to the Enforcement Team, strictly controlled. Attempting to unlock or forcibly dismantle it would activate the gun's self-destruct program, releasing not other energy that could be defended against, but hyperdimensional space energy—impossible to block once touched.
"We can't say that," Yi Lan said. "The usage methods of hyperdimensional instruments are also classified."
Xu Huo gestured with his chin toward the outside. "If they're so classified, why are they used in a place like Challenge Island?"
Two layers of defense, matching the security of the 025 District Government Building. Was it because the powerful and wealthy were absurd enough, or was there another secret to this island?
Yi Lan and the others remained silent. To cope with Alton's inspections, they hadn't had special chips implanted in their brains, so they might not be able to resist Xu Huo's mental interference. Thus, they were ready to fall out at any moment.
"The people who truly grasp the core of the game are just that absurd," Bai Po said at that moment. "I once saw someone from the Game Government use a district as a chessboard. Wherever the chess piece was placed, that area was razed to the ground, regardless of human or beast—all killed without exception."
"What do you think they used to play chess?"
A-rank Wormhole Points strictly guarded against later Wormhole Points, never easily revealing their technological achievements. Some large-scale cross-district, cross-Wormhole Point teleportation instruments were single-use. Under this monopoly, all later Wormhole Points had to rely on their mercy. Even if they didn't openly interfere in the affairs of later Wormhole Points, whenever they wanted, they could take out energy weapons and treat them as toys.
Why didn't Super Players dare to easily set foot in non-ticket districts? Because those districts could seal off the entire area with hyperdimensional instruments, and even time-type items, which were almost unseen in other Wormhole Points, their Artificers could create.
"That attitude toward ordinary players and ordinary districts—how arrogant, how condescending!" Bai Po said with hatred. "We spend our entire lives reaching the peak of playerdom, only to find we're no different from ants crawling at their feet!"
Ding Xiang and Yi Lan fell silent. To some extent, they were also beneficiaries. The resources of many A-rank Wormhole Point districts weren't obtained through their own efforts but were directly allocated to them by seizing the initiative. Where these resources came from was obvious even without thinking. Among them were things that other Wormhole Points couldn't reach due to technological limitations, but also fruits soaked in blood, tears, and lives.
It was the same now. Taking the 025 District as an example, the District Government was still constantly exploring its surroundings. Some uninhabited districts, or planets, or even newly born districts would become their spoils of war.
That's right, new districts were still being born within A-rank Wormhole Points. Perhaps they migrated from distant places, perhaps they were new races that appeared due to wormhole movement. In any case, later-born districts wouldn't receive new designations. Instead, they would be directly and peacefully divided among the existing districts.
These could all be found in district records. For example, in a certain year and month, a district was incorporated under another district, either exclusively or shared with other districts.
Of course, this wasn't entirely a bad thing. At the very least, this new district would develop rapidly, far surpassing other districts.
As for whether there was any backdoor manipulation by the Game Government, that was unknown.
"Let's enter the Spire first," Xu Huo said. "Those with over 50,000 points should be the top players on the island. Presumably, not many have truly begun to degenerate."
Although the three parties had different goals, no one objected to entering the Spire. So they dispersed again to accumulate points.
After Ding Xiang and Yi Lan left, Bai Po lingered for a moment. He warned Xu Huo, "Aren't you afraid they'll leak your situation?"
"To Alton Corporation?" Xu Huo said. "Then they should first consider their own safety."
"The Inspection Department isn't as good as it seems on the surface," Bai Po said. "I've lived in the 025 District for some years. If the Inspection Department is willing to investigate Challenge Island, it's definitely not just to look into corruption within the government. There must be a greater interest driving them, otherwise they wouldn't have persisted for years. Don't let them use you."
"Weakness can sometimes be a tactic."