Ten Thousand Ways To Eliminate Players

The Descended Ones are a double-edged sword; wielded well, they can harm others; handled imprudently, they can harm oneself. Lin Bai's Justice League set an example, and all nations planned to secretly follow suit, using the wisdom from the Descended Ones to develop themselves.

The Righteous Seven Sects and the Devilish Five Sects wiped out the newly arrived Descended Ones, blatantly refusing to leave them any room for survival and cutting off the nations' path to resisting the Cultivation World.

If you don't leave me any way to survive, why should I be polite to you?

We're all big shots here; if you're eating meat, you can't just leave not even a mouthful of soup for others!

After the Duke Zhenguo of Taiyi Country's command was conveyed to various regions, countries like Taichu Country and Taihao Country followed suit, overtly or covertly lifting the ban on the Justice League.

Banned publications such as *Justice Weekly*, *Heavenly Review*, *The Legend of Lear*, and other series published by the Justice League were gradually reissued, becoming popular reading material among the common people.

「…」

"[The second set of publications you founded has achieved national-level influence. Reward: Five Follow-up Invisible Cameras (already issued)]"

"[For a media company to maintain its vitality, it cannot be estranged from the support of excellent employees. Please cultivate three or more outstanding star reporters. Reward: Disguise Glasses (Three pairs) (Used to disguise identity during undercover investigations)]"

The media tycoon mission was inexplicably completed, and Lin Bai was awarded five Follow-up Invisible Cameras.

The Follow-up Invisible Cameras were very useful.

During use, they refracted light through optical fibers to achieve an invisible state. They could also be suspended at any desired position to record images, making them ideal for undercover work.

But at this time, whether for *Justice Weekly* or *Heavenly Review*, Players collected news either through forums or by directly buying it from other Players; there wasn't much need for actual interviews.

Of course, they couldn't interview the involved parties either.

Even if a Player could find the person involved, the relationship between the Justice League and the Righteous Seven Sects was extremely hostile. Attempting an interview at this time could get them killed in minutes.

*Justice Weekly* itself was created by Lin Bai. Public opinion was just budding, journalists were not yet Crownless Kings, and no one cared about their safety, let alone giving them bribes.

Especially since *Justice Weekly* and *Heavenly Review* served the Justice League, their own stance was biased. Why would their reporters go interview those on the other side?

Who else would they beat, if not you?

The reward for the new task, the Disguise Glasses, seemed good. Although they were meant for undercover work, once he got them, the System couldn't control what he used them for, could it?

Being able to disguise his identity meant Lin Bai had to get these rewards. However, regardless of whether it was the mission for the Follow-up Invisible Cameras or the Disguise Glasses, he planned to set them aside for now.

The Media System had sufficient influence. The Players involved were as busy as could be, so there was no need for further major development at the moment; the Players were too swamped to handle more.

「…」

The culinary competition was a cross-city level event. Even with Cultivators providing transportation, gathering cooks from Zhen City, Qian City, and the surrounding basic cities would take at least three days of travel.

So much information was leaked by the Players. Lin Bai's side had the most Players, so leaks were inevitable.

But the twelve Mahayana Realm experts from the separated sects—their arrival could be anticipated and prepared for.

After the article in *Heavenly Review* was published, the twelve Mahayana Realm experts seemed to vanish into thin air. The Justice League received no further news of them.

Based on their travel speed, it was estimated they would reach Zhen City in two to three days.

These two to three days could be described as the calm before the storm.

Lin Bai planned to use this time to acquire a few more Skills.

He checked the progress of the culinary competition in the city, visited Little White Fox's Demon Country to make his presence felt and offer a few words of encouragement to the Monster Race, met with the leader of the Supporting Group to deliver benefits to the fans, and went to the editorial department of Wild Wolf to discuss the art style and story structure of *The Legend of Lear* comic...

After Lin Bai systematically handled all the mundane matters requiring the Justice League's attention, he focused all his energy on the Great Language System's mission.

But as soon as the mission started, Lin Bai discovered that this new task was not as easy as it seemed.

Being a contrarian is easy, but being a contrarian who is well-reasoned and can force others to abandon their views is too difficult.

Lin Bai wasn't afraid to argue with others on major issues.

After all, he possessed excellent eloquence, and his status as Alliance Hierarch was undeniable. In formal debates, he had countless sophistic arguments to persuade others; even if he had none, he could invent them on the spot.

But at present, no one in the Justice League would discuss major issues with him!

Moreover, given his position, contradicting his own people on major issues could easily cause deviations in the League's policies.

He seemingly couldn't find any trivial matters to engage with either.

The interactions he encountered went like this:

He Qin walked past Lin Bai and greeted him politely, "Greetings, Alliance Hierarch."

This single sentence almost dumbfounded Lin Bai.

He took a deep breath and looked at He Qin. "Good? How is it good? It's not good at all! Broadly speaking, the Righteous Seven Sects and the Devilish Five Sects are eyeing us like tigers, and twelve Mahayana Realm experts could attack at any moment. Your cultivation levels aren't keeping up; if you were sent out, you'd be useless fodder, just courting death! Narrowing the scope, within the Alliance, there are more and more Descended Ones, any of whom could rebel at any time. With internal and external troubles, I have to worry about everything. So, tell me, how am I 'good'? How could things possibly be good?"

He Qin was taken aback by Lin Bai's barrage.

He was completely dumbfounded.

What's going on?

Is he under too much stress? Did something provoke him?

But isn't he usually quite arrogant?

Or perhaps... we did something wrong, and he's using this opportunity to criticize us?

He Qin flattered cautiously, "Alliance Hierarch, we can appreciate your difficulties. If there's anything we've done wrong, please tell us directly. Others might not dare to say it, but everyone from the Morning Yuan Sword Sect is wholeheartedly dedicated to serving the Alliance!"

"[Fear from He Qin +1+1+1]"

The background System's feedback clearly registered He Qin's emotions. However, before Lin Bai could ascertain if his initial outburst had persuaded He Qin, he was already veering onto a new point of contention.

Lin Bai had no choice but to continue his refutation: "Not necessarily. How can you be so sure that everyone in the Morning Yuan Sword Sect is wholeheartedly serving the Alliance? 'It's easy to draw a tiger's skin, but hard to draw its bones; you may know a person's face, but not their heart.' I've done so many outrageous things to the Morning Yuan Sword Sect—mocking you, robbing you of your resources—don't you harbor any resentment? I can't even guarantee the Puppets beside me share the same thoughts, so how can you? And how can you 'appreciate my difficulties'? Are you me? Do you know what I'm thinking? How can you be sure I'm having a hard time...?"

"..." He Qin looked at Lin Bai, utterly bewildered and unsure how to respond.

Waves of resentment surged through his heart.

Did the Alliance Hierarch get provoked somewhere?

Why did I have to be so unlucky as to walk right into the line of fire!

Lin Bai looked at He Qin, feeling a sense of helplessness himself. Have I persuaded him, or not?

Does completing this damned mission mean I'll have to offend everyone around me?

Will every great situation be ruined by me too?

Why is it so hard to get an Enlightenment Skill!

The two stared at each other, wide-eyed.

He Qin waited for Lin Bai to continue his tirade and then, hopefully, point him in the right direction.

Lin Bai, on the other hand, was pondering whether the System's mission required him to refute every single statement and how he could prove the other person had abandoned their viewpoint.

After some thought, Lin Bai picked up the writing board beside him and wrote: 'Do you think I'm right or not?'

He Qin paused, a weight lifting from his heart. He cautiously asked, "Alliance Hierarch, are you practicing Spoken Law Follows?"

Damn it all!

Lin Bai glared. "Which eye of yours saw me practicing Spoken Law Follows? Is that how Spoken Law Follows is practiced? I'm just correcting your mistake. Do you think I'm right or not?"

Son of a...!

Veins throbbed on He Qin's forehead. He clenched his fists a few times, suppressing the urge to rebel on the spot, and managed to squeeze out an ugly smile. 'Alliance Hierarch, you're right. Everything you said is correct. It is my mistake!'

Should I refute this sentence?

Lin Bai paused, then took a deep breath. "You're not wrong; I am. You clearly just greeted me simply, and I took the opportunity to stir up trouble. How could it be your fault? You're not wrong. I am!"

What the hell!

He Qin was speechless, feeling like he was going mad. At this point, I'm a hundred percent sure the Alliance Hierarch is practicing Spoken Law Follows again!

But last time he practiced Spoken Law Follows, there was at least a hint!

What on earth is he up to this time?

How am I supposed to respond?

Am I wrong, or am I right? You can't just keep going back and forth like this!

He Qin looked at Lin Bai, not daring to speak, and blinked innocently a few times.

Lin Bai nodded at him.

He Qin, as if relieved of a heavy burden, summoned his sword light and fled as if taking flight. Previously, when Lin Bai practiced Spoken Law Follows, He Qin had stayed by his side to cooperate, which had even allowed him to gain some favorability points with Lin Bai. This time, however, there was truly no way to cooperate!

Watching He Qin's panicked retreat, Lin Bai sighed silently. I'm completely unsure if the mission progress has advanced at all. What a troublesome mission!

As for the Mind Reading Ability, it isn't as suitable for this mission as I previously thought.

The key point is, I've used the Mind Reading Ability too frequently, letting others get used to it. It would lose its deterrent effect. If I'm going to use it, it should be at a crucial moment.

Lin Bai was trying to figure out how to complete the Great Language System's mission. A major battle was imminent; one more Skill would mean an additional life-saving ability.

My greatest trump card, doubling the decibel value, is a Pyrrhic victory—'injure the enemy by a thousand, but suffer eight hundred losses oneself.' It's not suitable for actual combat.

At that moment, Xu Longyun descended from the sky, landing before him. She said solemnly, "Master, Zhou Zhu is coming!"

Lin Bai subconsciously wanted to refute it. But on second thought, this is the damn truth!

How can I refute this?

Xu Longyun can't abandon her viewpoint either, right?

Besides, Zhou Zhu is a Mahayana Realm expert; it's clearly not appropriate to be flippant about this.

Lin Bai glanced at Xu Longyun and sighed quietly. He had to abandon the contrarian mission for now. "Where is he?" he asked.

"A Disciple of the Beggar Gang reported that Zhou Zhu appeared in Kui Water City two hours ago. He stayed for a moment, asked some Descended Ones about the events of the past two days, then set off for Zhen City. Zhou Zhu is skilled in escape arts; at his pace, he could reach Zhen City in a maximum of six hours." Xu Longyun looked at Lin Bai with concern. "He previously made a ruthless vow to kill you in one strike. Theoretically, negotiation is impossible. Master, are you confident you can take him down?"

"'Six hours? So fast?' Lin Bai asked in surprise. 'Wasn't it said he would take at least two days to arrive at the earliest?'"

"'Perhaps Zhou Zhu has made another breakthrough in his escape arts!' Xu Longyun said, looking at Lin Bai with a sigh. 'Mahayana Realm experts rarely fight, so the world knows little about their methods. Zhou Zhu also ditched those at the Hollow Realm to travel alone. It's normal for our assessment of his travel speed to be inaccurate.'"

He's alone!

Rush Moon is useless now!

Zhou Zhu is at the Mahayana Realm; without a preceding Hollow Realm stage for the card to target, it seems the Gold Edge Card can't seal him either...

Lin Bai swiftly assessed his available resources in his mind.

He quickly realized his two trump cards were useless.

Moreover, Zhou Zhu was from the Heavenly Dao Sect; the chances of persuading him were slim. Am I really going to have to fight him head-on?

However, the Skills I've shared are all at the Divinity Transformation Realm. Fighting a Mahayana Realm expert seems a bit too strenuous!

Do I have to use the Matchmaker's Red String ahead of schedule?

But, the animosity between Zhou Zhu and Master Wu Wang hasn't been maxed out yet...

"Master, what are you thinking about?" Xu Longyun asked, waving her hand in front of the preoccupied Lin Bai.

"Thinking about how to subdue Zhou Zhu." Lin Bai glanced at Xu Longyun, not betraying his inner anxiety. "The Justice League really needs a Mahayana Realm expert to oversee things!"

Lin Bai's relaxed expression eased Xu Longyun's concern somewhat. She looked at Lin Bai, hesitated for a moment, then said, "Master, that move you used to defeat Not Sad the other day—can you control it with precision?"

"Hmm?" Lin Bai frowned.

"Zhen City is home to nearly five million people. If you and Zhou Zhu fight heatedly and lose control, I'm afraid the citizens will be harmed." Xu Longyun lowered her eyelids, somewhat afraid to look at Lin Bai. She had previously guessed that Lin Bai held the culinary competition in Zhen City to use the populace as a shield, but now that the moment was near, she couldn't bear the thought. However, her reluctance could potentially limit Lin Bai's combat effectiveness. She lowered her voice and stammered, "Most experts at the Hollow Realm and above prefer to fight far away from cities."

"Xiao Yun, what kind of person do you take me for!" Lin Bai looked at Xu Longyun, shaking his head with a laugh. "No matter how shameless I might be, I wouldn't drag an entire city's population to die with me. Besides, the Justice League's principle is to bring cultivation closer to the common people. I wouldn't personally sabotage the Alliance's future."