Chapter 210: Bargaining

The three conditions were the result of a discussion between the three base leaders and all the assembled seniors.

Originally, one of the conditions concerned the seniors, but they disagreed, even threatening to dissipate in protest. In the end, Shi Zhile made the final decision.

The misdeeds of a subordinate system were naturally the main system’s responsibility. There would be compensation. The Wish System still existed, so as long as she had enough energy, she could make a wish for the seniors to survive before the game was destroyed.

The Main System tapped his fingertips together and frowned slightly. “The second and third are feasible. The first is not.”

One of the base leaders asked, “Why?”

“The consciousnesses of those controlled by the rot-corpses have been obliterated. No one can restore them. Shi Zhiyi, Jiang Jing, Tang Yan, Wen Bai, Sun Ci…”

He rattled off a long list of names, so many that he finally just added, “and so on.”

“None of them can be resurrected. In addition, players killed by explosions from system-produced items, and players killed by Jiang Yuxing’s own hand, also cannot be brought back.”

He looked at Shi Zhile. The meaning was obvious: the players killed by the explosions were the ones she had killed with the dolls in the battle royale mode. They could not be resurrected.

The three explosions had killed over a thousand players.

Adding the people Jiang Yuxing had killed himself, the number was in the tens of thousands.

Shi Zhile’s fingertips trembled slightly. The people killed by her dolls had all been trying to kill her; she didn’t care one bit whether they lived or died. But she cared about her sister.

She wanted Shi Zhiyi back!

“My sister and the others died because of the System. If their bodies can’t be revived, then let their souls exist. Advanced Systems can bind to souls, so let them bind to their souls and go do missions in other worlds to earn a chance to return.”

Main System: “That’s possible. As for whether it will work, I don’t know either. Being a mission host isn’t easy. If they fail their missions, their souls will be obliterated.”

Fearing Shi Zhile would act rashly, Wen Changming quickly spoke up. “If they don’t bind to a system, what will happen to their souls?”

“They will dissipate after the game ends. You can think of it as their souls scattering to the winds.” He looked at the assembled seniors. “That includes you. The souls from your original world were very weak. Your awakening and continued existence are all due to the excess energy within the game.”

Shi Zhile said, “Then have the seniors bind to systems, too.”

Main System: “…”

His gaze swept over Shi Zhile, and it looked like he rolled his eyes.

‘How can someone say something so shameless!’

‘Does she think Advanced Systems are a dime a dozen?’

“No!”

Senior Sun was just about to speak when Shi Zhile clapped a hand over his mouth.

She asked, “Then what should we do?”

The Main System’s aloof expression nearly cracked. “…You’re… asking me?”

Shi Zhile nodded and added, “How can we make the seniors stay?”

‘She wanted a solution. Since her method wasn’t feasible, he should just openly give her one that was. As long as she achieved her goal, she didn’t care about the rest.’

The Main System fell silent.

Senior Sun sighed and exchanged a look with the other seniors. Their eyes were filled with acceptance.

They had seen the progress of later generations, knew that their descendants were safe, and confirmed that the nation had grown strong and prosperous. They had no regrets.

As for dissipating or having their souls scatter to the winds, they didn’t care.

Wen Changming’s eyes darted. “There are 581 Advanced Systems that were hijacked by the Corpse Rot System. In saving ourselves, we also saved them, which in turn saved you time. If you find this difficult, then just have each of them grant us three conditions.”

‘581 systems, including the Wish System—three conditions per system. Having them each contract a hundred-odd hosts shouldn’t be too hard, right?’

The mind-reading Main System: “…”

‘One after another… just what kind of people are these!’

He took a deep breath. “No! But I do have a solution. I can merge the game into your planet, which would be equivalent to putting a protective shield around it. This would satisfy your third condition, and they would be able to exist indefinitely.”

“As for the players whose consciousnesses were obliterated, we can have them bind to systems, but I can’t guarantee they’ll be able to complete their missions and return here.”

Shi Zhile exchanged a look with the three base leaders, then turned to the other seniors. Only after seeing everyone nod did she agree.

“If the game merges with Earth, will there be any side effects? How long will the game’s protective shield last? And where will the energy come from?”

A flash of regret passed through the Main System’s eyes.

‘If they hadn’t asked so clearly beforehand, he would have cut off the energy supply to the game next year. But since she asked, doing that would be difficult now.’

“Your excavation and mining have already left Earth riddled with wounds. Covering Earth with the game will allow its energy to further repair the planet.”

“I will provide the energy for the game, but only for 50 years. Once the energy is cut off, the protective shield will disappear. Although they won’t dissipate since they’ve absorbed my energy, they will fall into a deep sleep after the shield is gone.”

“A deep sleep?”

Main System: “They can be awakened, but they will be invisible to the naked eye of living humans.”

After some haggling, the Main System finally increased the fifty years to seventy-five.

Finally, Shi Zhile looked at the Main System but called out to her Wish System. “System, is your boss trustworthy? Is there any chance he’ll go back on his word? As the boss, he should be setting an example for his subordinates, right? Showing them what it means to be a man of his word—honest, trustworthy, someone who always follows through.”

The Wish System popped up: [Rest assured, Host. Although our boss can be a bit petty, he’s actually quite trustworthy. He’ll keep his word.]

Main System: “…Hah!”

Wish System: [Still, I think it’s better to sign an agreement. If the boss tries to back out, you can just have the super-grade system go public with it in the System World.]

The Main System’s expression grew even colder. In his mind, he cursed this rebellious child a thousand times over.

‘That stupid piece of shit. Can’t it tell this little menace is just taunting me because she’s afraid I’ll go back on my word?’

He directly blocked the Wish System and walked away.

The next day, the sun rose slowly in the east.

Outside the secret base were neat flowerbeds and towering skyscrapers. The asphalt road looked even smoother under the sunlight.

The road was lined with all sorts of small shops, and people walked along it, their faces filled with excitement.

“The system broadcast this morning said that over the next month, players who died will have their memories wiped and will gradually return.”

“Everyone in the chat channels is saying that other places have returned to how they were before the game, too. Our roads are back, the houses are back, and everything inside our homes is unchanged. If it weren’t for the wounds still on my hands and the fact that I’m still sallow and gaunt, I would’ve thought surviving in the game was all just a dream.”

“These little storefronts haven’t opened yet. Once their respective owners come back, they’ll be able to open.”

Shi Zhile stood there in a daze, as if in a dream.

She looked back toward the end of the road. In that direction were Stone Island and Huaxia Base, and most of the pedestrians on the road were headed that way.

[Host, what’s wrong?]

Shi Zhile snapped back to her senses. “Has it merged?”

[Yes, but the merger isn’t complete yet. The animals, weapons, and vehicles from Earth haven’t been integrated yet. It will probably take another month or so.]