Chapter 192

Chapter 192

The players who made such an absurd decision had taken over a printing shop, enthusiastically painting within its walls.

"Drawing: Failed"

"Sigh, I knew relying on dice wouldn't work," Milk Tea Dog sighed, gazing at the half-finished artwork in front of him, where the lines had suddenly become chaotic. "There's still too much unpredictability in using dice to draw."

"I told you, just assist me," said the player with the username Pink Bunny, squinting as she drew leisurely on a sheet of white paper. "I never expected my drawing skills to come in handy in this game. You never know when any skill might prove useful if you survive long enough."

"Hey, how's the drawing going?" A player behind her eagerly peered over, letting out an involuntary "Wow!" upon catching a glimpse of the emerging figure on the paper.

"Don't look while I'm still working on it," Pink Bunny couldn't help but push the player's head aside. "It gives me a weird feeling. Focus on preparing the rest of the background first."

Pink Bunny was actually not a standout among the elite players; rather, she was quite ordinary. Despite being an early adopter of the game, she missed the university's recruitment drive due to various reasons and chose to join the new port alongside the newcomers. Although her in-game username wasn't widely known among players, her fame in the fanfiction section of the forums was unparalleled.

Indeed, she was the legendary doujinshi artist.

Her representative works, such as "God × Guardian (Size Difference Love)," "Pastor × Clown," and "All Guardians," were highly acclaimed by a broad audience. While most of her works focused on BL (Boys' Love), her exquisite artistry allowed her to transition seamlessly into creating normal BG (Boys' and Girls') content as well.

Not to mention its vast repository of XP, surpassing the knowledge of this era, with themes like school uniforms, train scenarios, and late-night deliverymen – all considered classic tropes that the NPCs have yet to explore.

With the final stroke of her digital pen, Pink Bunny admired her creation and sighed wistfully, "I never imagined I'd have the chance to draw lewd illustrations for NPCs one day. Indeed, one experiences everything in a long life."

Incidentally, it was Pink Bunny who ingeniously came up with the idea for this salacious information network. The moment she proposed it, the forum erupted with enthusiasm.

Druid: Drawing lewd illustrations in the game, hahaha! Your minds truly know no bounds!

Black Cat: I don't understand, but I'm deeply impressed.

Matcha Latte: I wholeheartedly agree! Master, please unleash your artistic prowess!

Yeyue: Hahaha, there will be successors to my mantle!

The Strongest Male: This is too entertaining! Why can't we enter this dungeon? Why, I ask you?

Seeking Even Numbers: Although I find it amusing too, will this actually work? Hahahaha...

God Among Men: Though absurd, it should be fine. During the Renaissance, people's desires were suppressed deeply, leading to a rebound... The proliferation of many explicit books, including the popularity of 'Decameron,' doesn't it prove that humans constantly seek to fulfill their desires?

Tax Collector: Indeed, lust knows no race or gender; it's a universal pursuit for all! Any objections?

Black Cat: None at all.

Druid: In favor.

Not Crazy: In favor.

Matcha Milk Green: +10086 (Internet slang for strong agreement)

And so, with unanimous approval, this seemingly absurd yet genuinely absurd proposal was adopted, and the responsibility for its execution was entrusted to the forum's renowned fanfiction writer, Pink Bunny.

To reiterate, one truly encounters all sorts of games when living long enough.

As Pink Bunny worked on the sequel, the Divine Being on Earth brought joyful news – their ecchi illustrations had sold incredibly well and were quickly snapped up. Many residents inquired about the release date of the next volume, criticizing their cliffhanger as rather unethical.

Pink Bunny chuckled mischievously, pen in hand, "If we didn't leave them hanging at crucial points, how would they eagerly anticipate the next chapter? That's the allure of leaving them wanting more!"

The Divine Being on Earth concurred, while the NPCs from the Resistance Organization wore expressions of numbness. Was this really alright??

Disregarding the question of why a priest and a devotee would devise such a scheme, if this were to work, it would indicate a much larger issue with the world!

Dr. Fors couldn't hold back either. He asked, "Do you really think people will take this seriously when it's sandwiched between lewd illustrations?"

God Among Men replied, "Of course."

"Why?"

God Among Men was momentarily at a loss for words. After some thought, he said, "Because after they're done, they'll fall into a period of philosophical contemplation. We're targeting that golden moment."

Fors: "????"

"Joking aside... we don't expect them to believe it," God Among Men said with a smile. "We want to arouse their doubts and tell them—you're not alone."

...

Today, Morse finally got his hands on the second volume from Mrs. Cathy, as he had wished. When he went to buy it, he saw quite a few men or women wearing masks, pretending to be refined as they picked up a book wrapped in brown paper. When their eyes met, they exchanged a subtle, conspiratorial glance... cough.

It was a shame they didn't sell video tapes. If they did, Morse would have preferred something dynamic. But given the time, he shouldn't be picky about what he could get.

Morse stealthily returned home with the book, making sure his wife and children were absent before he retreated to a room to indulge in private contemplation.

After finally finishing the eagerly awaited segment, Morse tossed a used tissue into the trash can with a contented sigh and lit a post-read cigarette, preparing for a moment of introspection. It was then that he noticed something seemingly tucked away at the bottom of the page.

Could it be an included risqué illustration?

Excitedly, Morse flipped the white sheet over, only to discover that instead of the anticipated new storyline artwork, there were three photographs and a brief message.

The first photo depicted several wrapped corpses in a deep pit; some of the covers had shifted, revealing patches of black spots on their faces, indicating a large number of fatalities.

The second image appeared to be a residential area on the outskirts of a city, a place Morse recognized from a previous visit. The inhabitants here eked out a meager existence, barely scraping by. In this black-and-white photograph, adults lay deceased within their homes, while the children's eyes reflected a mix of pain and numbness.

The caption read: You're in the same city, but different worlds.

Morse fell silent, turning to examine the third photograph. This one was more blatant. There were no corpses or victims, nor any visibly sick individuals. Instead, it showed a banquet in full swing, with a few uniformed military personnel and well-dressed elites from religious circles clasping hands, their faces wreathed in smiles.

Morse was familiar with this world. Before the plague struck, he often accompanied his boss, the company president, to gatherings of the elite. Such smiles would grace their faces as they sealed one deal after another during these banquets.

But just the church and the military??

Morse instantly recalled the troops surrounding the city and the broadcasted promise of an impending recovery from the plague. The last time they inquired about the priest who had visited their neighborhood to preach, he had assured them, "The illness is under control, and no one has perished."

But now, if no one had died, what was the explanation for this photograph?

Morse had always been skeptical of the Church, and these images only fanned the flames of his doubts.

Was the outside world truly as the Church claimed? Had the plague genuinely been contained? Why hadn't the government made an announcement? Why were the lockdown and quarantine measures still in place?

What of the long-overdue repairs to power lines and communication stations? What was the Church's true intention?

Being confined at home lent itself to overthinking. Morse, lacking intelligence channels and unable to contact friends, had kept his questions to himself. But upon seeing this series of photographs, he instantly realized that the situation outside couldn't possibly be as rosy as the Church portrayed, and there were others within the city who shared his doubts.

They needed to establish contact with the outside world.

This was the single thought that raced through Morse's mind.

...

"In instituting their isolation measures, the Church has scattered its opponents like sand, preventing them from gathering. The lack of communication has erected walls of information, so those who doubted the Church in time found themselves alone with their suspicions, suppressing them because they knew that an individual's strength is no match against the Church," God on Earth explained in the conference room, outlining the rationale behind his actions.

"And we're here to tell them that they're not alone, that their doubts are valid, and that they have company."

Anthony nodded, grasping the divine intention. "You want to sow discord between the people and the Church."

"It's not about sowing discord, it's about necessity," the God Among Men said calmly. "Never underestimate the power of the people. Those who deceive and manipulate them are the ones who should be afraid, not us." He continued, "All we need to do is break the information bubble the Church has created. Even if only one person in each neighborhood stands up, it will give the Church a headache, and they won't be able to suppress the truth for long."

"How can you be so sure?" Fors asked.

The God Among Men smiled. "Because humans cannot resist the tide of their times."

Fifty years before the game, in the present-day Old Harbor, a time when television and large computers already existed, even though they had yet to reach every household. Undoubtedly, the age of information was surging forward like a powerful wave.

"Doctor Fors, you've been on battlefields, fought in wars. Surely, you must have used radio communication back then."

Fors was taken aback for a moment before realizing, "Of course, I mean, I definitely have."

"In such a big city, there must have been engineers. Did any of them manage to assemble radio transmission devices?"

"It's possible, some might have attempted it... but the Church can interfere."

"I understand, I was merely illustrating a point," the deity on earth said calmly. "They might be able to stop one or two, but once the city's inhabitants start suspecting, it would be impossible for them to hinder everyone from finding ways to connect with the outside world."

"Without radios, there are telegraphs, telephone lines, carrier pigeons if push comes to shove, networks of people, secret tunnels, even signal flares and firecrackers," the deity chuckled. "No matter how much they try to obstruct, humanity always finds a way to break through barriers and bridge distances."

He waved the notebook in his hand. "Just like how we laboriously convey intelligence to them through these pages."

"Human ingenuity can transcend all obstacles and barriers, gentlemen," he remarked.