This Game Is Too Real

On the northern beach of Bartoya Province, soldiers from the Welch Governorate arrived on a makeshift dock constructed by the 117th Ten-thousand Men Team, taking temporary control of fishing boats.

The man in military attire held a pair of binoculars in his hands, squinting as he scanned the surroundings. It took him quite a while before he finally squeezed a sentence out of his throat.

"... Is this Bartoya Province?"

His name was Newman, the Centurion of the 10th Ten-thousand Men Team of the Weilant Alliance.

Though he served in Triumph City, many years ago he had been an instructor for a time on the northern beaches of Bartoya Province.

He remembered a small town called Rhino Horn, named because the beach resembled a rhino's head; when he had spare time, he would rent a small boat there and go sea fishing with a few friends.

But now there was no sign of any village or even the concentration camp that existed for a time—cleanly dismantled. The once beautiful beach now only held bombed-out concrete bunkers, craters, and sandbag fortifications.

Everything had changed.

It had turned into hell.

The Centurion of the 11th Ten-thousand Men Team also came ashore, lighting a cigarette from a lighter as he squinted and took a drag, looking at the land that had changed beyond recognition.

"Quite a change, isn't it? Everything is back to two hundred years ago when the war had just ended. On the bright side... at least Teil lacks so much high technology, and at least we haven't ended up like that."

Newman moved his Adam's apple slightly, nodding slowly.

"Mm."

He still couldn't comprehend why Teil had initiated such a foolish war, but suddenly understood why the Academy had hidden those pre-war technologies...

...

Tens of thousands of troops filed through the breakthrough opened by the 117th Ten-thousand Men Team in the northern part of Bartoya Province.

Seeing the troops from Triumph City, the survivors along the way joyfully cried as they came forward to greet them.

They wished to offer food and drink, but unfortunately, they had little nutrition paste left at home and may have carried strains of the "Mortal Serum."

Barfica of the 117th Ten-thousand Men Team ordered the soldiers to distribute some food to the survivors, and then handed them over to the unit responsible for establishing the isolation zones.

They not only had to take down Teil but also clean up the mess Teil had left behind.

Thick black smoke dotted the southern part of Yavente City, where iron airships hung in the low sky firing at the sky and ground, accompanied by the occasional "wooing" roar of rockets.

Even the iron airships now struggled against the dense assaults of the Alliance.

Due to the lack of close-in defense ammunition, one airship was even hit by guided weapons, breaching the firepower net and striking the gun deck below the iron airship.

Brilliant fireworks erupted instantly, rolling smoke engulfing half the airship.

Though the airship's captain reacted quickly, ordering the jettison of the exploding gun deck in time, the airship's structural components still suffered severe damage in the explosion, ultimately falling amidst the desperate gazes of soldiers to crash onto a pile of ruins.

Deflection shield could not provide absolute defense against missiles, only slowing them down.

The iron airships primarily relied on fixed machine guns and 20mm anti-aircraft cannons to handle missiles, hoping to shoot them down actively when they confronted the deflection shield around the airship.

This sounds reckless, but it was indeed quite effective.

However, during long-term confrontations with the Army forces, the Alliance realized a solution.

They replaced the missile's casing with armored steel.

As long as the guidance heads and power components could withstand a burst from a 20mm cannon, it was enough.

The rest was left to chance and quantity...

With the fall of the first iron airship, air superiority began to shift towards the Alliance.

The Homeland Defense Forces' 200th Ten-thousand Men Team launched a round of counter-attacks against the Death Legion's positions, but the counter-offensive lasted less than an hour and was forced to stop with the Skeleton Corps' maneuvering units penetrating their rear.

With ammunition replenished, the Death Legion resumed their advance, occupying the ground they had chewed, searching for any remaining enemies hiding behind their fortifications.

Even though Baldwin, the Centurion of the Southern Legion, continued to lead his men in valiant resistance, anyone could see their inevitable fate.

The outcome was decided.

The difference was merely in which day in February it would be finalized.

Objectively speaking, Teil's unscrupulous means managed to accomplish some tasks, albeit not many.

For example, before the final decisive battle, he "evacuated" the civilians of Bartoya Province, greatly reducing potential civilian casualties in street battles.

Though this is merely a result.

After all, Teil's intention was clearly not to reduce civilian casualties by doing this, but rather to drag survivors from the Wasteland from one mire into a deeper one.

It's just that his malicious intentions result well.

On another note, Weilant soldiers disdained mingling with civilians of the Weilant Alliance; some deserters even shed their uniforms entirely, absent the inclination to hide a gun while shedding their uniform, not doing what the Family Meeting did in Snake State and Mammoth State.

Furthermore, it significantly reduced civilian casualties by eighty percent.

Yet, despite this, the pain inflicted by the war on Yavente City's residents remained heavy.

Nevertheless, compared to the heavenly Neutron Feather Flow, it was far more merciful...

...

68th floor of the "Tower of the World."

Standing before the alloy wall, Teil gazed expressionlessly at the holographic window in front of him.

The war crept closer to his feet, while his loyal warriors were either being systematically decimated or systematically surrendering, seemingly as if the power bestowed by "Perfect Life forms" technology was fake.

A profound sense of powerlessness engulfed Teil, followed by anger and frustration.

For the first time, he, who wielded supreme power, experienced the sensation of a steering wheel that refused to heed commands.

Just then, urgent footsteps rang from behind him as Augustus, the Chief of Staff, stood before him and saluted with a pained expression, quickly reporting.

"Honorable Legion Leader sir... Triumph City has declared war on us, the defected 117th Ten-thousand Men Team has landed on the northern beach of Bartoya Province, and the Servant Army's 10th Ten-thousand Men Team responsible for defense has been annihilated. According to intelligence from the front lines, at least four Ten-thousand Men Teams are uncontactable; they may have surrendered to Triumph City..."

Augustus employed as gentle language as possible.

Yet no matter how gentle the language, it could not alter the dire predicament the Southern Legion faced that moment.

It's more than just running out of oil and letting the lamp go out.

Perhaps the term 'besieged on all sides' is more appropriate...

Teil clenched his fist tightly, his bones creaking, and only after a long while did he slowly relax.

Taking a deep breath, he turned his back to Augustus and spoke in a low voice.

"Understood."

Augustus waited quietly for Teil's instructions, but after waiting for a long time, there was no follow-up.

The chief of staff couldn't help but show a hint of anxiety between his brows, unconsciously using an urging tone.

"Commander... the homeland defense forces can no longer hold up, and the Allied forces are pressing towards us... I don't know if I should be saying this, but we should make preparations for the future as soon as possible."

"For the future?" Teil turned around and looked at the anxious Augustus.

Facing those cold and sharp eyes, Augustus held his breath for a moment, cold sweat creeping from his forehead.

He quickly lowered his head, trembling and awaiting Teil's reprimand.

Unexpectedly, Teil did not do so this time.

"Go back."

Augustus was stunned, unable to react for a moment, and then his face gradually turned pale.

Go back?

At this critical moment... the entire Yavente City is surrounded, where could he possibly return to?

Reading the meaning in those eyes, Augustus nodded tremblingly, squeezing out a weak "yes" from his lips before stiffly heading to the door.

He should have anticipated this result long ago.

He was the Chief of Staff of the Southern Legion; above him, there was no "above" to rely on.

From the moment he had exhausted all his tactics, the fate of the Southern Legion had already been sealed.

At least in the last moments, he wanted to stay with his family and move on to another world together with them...

Watching Augustus leave, Teil turned his gaze towards the holographic screen, slowly closing his eyes.

Why?

What exactly went wrong?

Was it because of that Pangolin?

If it weren't for that guy stepping onto the steps of the Glory Court and publicly announcing Julius' death, leading to the once united legion falling apart, how could the Southern Legion end up in such a sorry state…

Initially, he thought so, but upon careful consideration, it didn't seem to make sense.

The once united legion...

When was the legion ever united?

"Honorable Emperor Julius... All your children have abandoned you, and now only we Vellante people remember your teachings."

He sighed softly, switched off the holographic screen before him, and walked briskly into the adjacent laboratory.

Located on the 68th floor of the Tower of the World, the laboratory is the hotbed for cultivating the "Mortal Serum," where Martin, who placed his last card on the table, resides.

As Teil walked into the laboratory, Martin looked slightly uneasy, but he still nodded slightly to express his respect.

"Mr. Teil..."

Teil asked expressionlessly.

"Is there any new progress?"

Martin awkwardly shook his head.

"We... are still trying, but unfortunately, there is no significant progress at the moment."

The design of the Mortal Serum was already quite perfect, but unfortunately, it couldn't be spread and was stopped at the southern beaches of the Welch Governorate.

The Alliance's and Academy's researchers managed to stabilize the patients' conditions using only a small amount of drugs, while Triumph City's experience displayed in establishing quarantine zones was something they initially hadn't anticipated.

Perhaps the path of infectious disease was not a good idea; there are too many uncertainties in the Wasteland, and for the Enlightenment Society, it was a lesson.

They should employ more efficient methods...

But the method of the "Torch Plan" didn't work, nor did the Torch Church's methods. What other methods are there?

Should they just blow up this planet?

That... seems a bit too extreme.

What the Enlightenment Society needs is a pure planet, not a broken asteroid belt.

Moreover, destroying a planet isn't that easy.

While Martin was lost in thought, Teil had already approached him.

"You all should continue working hard, bring me my Biological Power Armor."

That was another gift from the Enlightenment Society to the Southern Legion — the legacy of the Torch Church.

Actually, it was more like borrowing from them to lay eggs.

The Enlightenment Society planned to use the production capacity of the Southern Legion and the ongoing series of wars to integrate shelter technology into the Torch Church's Biological Power Armor for modifications.

After all, the Enlightenment Society's individual combat capability was too weak, and they had suffered a loss before. The gray mutants and Wasteland Wanderers of the Great Desert were of little use, and producing Power Armor required a complete supply chain, so they had to come up with some alternative solutions.

However...

That Biological Power Armor was, after all, an experimental model, and it had yet to be tested on the battlefield.

Martin looked troubled.

"But that armor isn't finished yet—"

Before his words could even fall, Teil's hand was already placed on his shoulder.

"There's no time, take me there."

The undisguised killing intent made Martin involuntarily hold his breath, not daring to utter another word of refusal.

He swallowed slowly, nodding stiffly.

"Please, please follow me..."

Teil released his grip on Martin's collar, signaling with his eyes for him to lead the way.

The laboratory was silent; the researchers averted their gazes, not daring to make eye contact with Teil.

The two of them walked one after the other through rows of experimental devices and culture tanks, heading deep into the lab, soon arriving before a silver-white metal cabinet.

Biological power armors are different from regular power armors; the latter are just auxiliary equipment that can be taken off at any time, while the former need to be connected to the wearer's internal circulation system, making them difficult to remove if not careful.

Martin nervously approached the control panel, tapping the interface twice with his index finger. Soon, rows of green signal lights lit up on the surface of the silver-white metal cabinet.

Accompanied by a hiss of leaking air, a straight crevice appeared on the flat metal surface, and the tightly closed alloy doors soon opened to the sides.

At the same time the alloy doors opened, scarlet flesh extruded from the gap, its swelling and rolling resembling boiling lava.

Even Teil couldn't help but frown upon witnessing the sanity-eroding scene.

"Can this thing really be worn on a person?"

Martin nervously nodded.

"Theoretically... it can be. The Torch Church used it on the battlefield in Haiya Province, you must have heard?"

That thing gave the Allied forces quite a headache, and even nearly ambushed the Alliance's Manager — or so the Torch Church folks claimed.

Teil nodded expressionlessly.

He certainly knew.

After all, back then he had sent a 902mm heavy cannon over as a show of force to the Southern Legion.

Who would've thought, as time passed, it would soon be the Southern Legion's time of dire straits.

"How do you use this thing?"

Hearing Teil's inquiry, the fully tensed Martin paused, subconsciously replying.

"Just contact it and respond to its desire... Wait, you intend to use it yourself?!"

"Yes."

As the words fell, Teil had already moved forward, placing his hand on the scarlet flesh.

Blood-hued tendrils extended from the flesh, wrapping around his fingers, spreading up his arm, as if becoming a part of his body.

Simultaneously, a massive wave of negative emotion surged into his mind like a tide.

Slaughter!

Devour!

Destroy!

Consume everything!

A painful groan escaped from Teil's mouth, but quickly the low growl transformed into pleasure.

The ripple emanating from that indescribable flesh perfectly aligned with his innermost desire!

Yes—

Perhaps that was what he truly wanted, deep down he yearned to destroy everything, obliterating all that blocked his path.

Including those who opposed him.

Even those who supported him.

And even the Weilante people.

He wasn't driven insane, but rather naturally absorbed the waves and energy emanating from the flesh, wholeheartedly embracing the madness capable of annihilating everything.

If victory is unattainable—

Then let it be destruction!

Defeated by the Wasteland, the Weilante people were no longer the superior race; they were undoubtedly the most inferior, and inferior races should be weeded out completely by the jungle!

That's the choice of nature!

The sole path to higher life forms!

At this moment, Teil resembled an enraged, disappointed racehorse owner, determined to kill his best horse for failing to win the race.

If no one is willing to charge with him again—

Then he'd personally take on the task!

The scarlet flesh had already spread across Teil's body, extending from the floor beneath his feet in all directions.

In that instant, he seemed to have become a monster.

Or rather, a species that did not belong to Earth.

Martin's face was written with terror, shuffling backward with legs heavy as lead and trembling.

This is definitely not a power armor!?

Something must have gone wrong!

Suddenly, he remembered that in previous experiments, he had experimentally added a gene sequence from the Mutant mucor mother nest, suspected to enhance mimicry and recovery capabilities of life forms, into the power armor.

Speaking of that code, it's been ages.

It was initially obtained by the Pioneers of the Torch Church from the Mother Lair of Qingquan City—

"Quick, disconnect from it!"

Martin shouted, grabbing a liquid nitrogen canister from the side. Without a second thought, he aimed the nozzle at Teil.

However, before he could unscrew the safety lock, a scarlet tentacle whipped the liquid nitrogen canister out of his hand, swiftly wrapping around his body, lifting him off the ground.

"Ahhhh—"

Martin struggled desperately, kicking his legs frantically, but after all, he was just a feeble researcher.

Having completely merged with the fleshy mass, Teil swiftly appeared before him, his thick legs seemingly rooted in the flesh-covered floor.

"Disconnect from what?"

Looking at the pale-faced Martin, he forced a satisfied smile from his twisted face.

Meanwhile, the flesh creeping along the floor had already infiltrated the other rooms of the lab.

Seeing the scarlet flesh sweeping in like a tide, the researchers in the lab were dumbfounded.

And in that brief moment of their daze, the scarlet flesh lunged at them.

"Ahhh!"

Just like Martin's fate, a researcher nearest the flesh was instantly wrapped into a cocoon by a scarlet tentacle, and then squashed like a burst tomato into a heap of flesh.

The sudden crisis terrified everyone. The astonished researchers snapped back to reality, desperately rushing towards the safety exit.

"Sample breach! Run!"

"Damn it! Let go of me!"

"Uhh—crack!"

Screams echoed one after another!

In just a few breaths, the virus lab on the 68th floor of the "Tower of the World" turned into sheer hell.

The rampaging tide was merciless with these "nutrients" almost served up to its mouth, having just exited dormancy, it was starved, needing to devour flesh to expand itself.

Tentacles, like pythons targeting prey, easily twisted and caught up with the fleeing researchers, dragging them into that scarlet hell.

And those researchers who were lucky enough to escape one ordeal weren't truly safe yet.

After the scarlet tentacles claimed twenty lives and broke the nutrient tanks in the lab's storage, the nutrient-filled scarlet flesh started spreading along the ventilation shafts and elevator shafts, up and down the building.

Looking at the pale-faced Martin, Teil squeezed a faint smile from his twisted face.

"...I'm very satisfied with your gift. When I have time, I'll come visit you."

Martin stared at him in terror, his mouth trembling, eyes filled with despair.

"You... monster."

Teil smiled lightly.

"That's how insects see humans too."

With that, he lightly clenched his hand, causing the tentacle wrapped around Martin to tighten.

Like squeezing a water-filled balloon, he merely moved his fingers, crushing the weak and incompetent researcher into pulp.

"Splat—"

The spurting blood splashed onto Teil, and in just a few breaths seeped into his skin, completely absorbed and digested by him, becoming part of him.

A satisfied smile appeared on his twisted face.

At this moment, he seemed like an omnipotent god, standing at the top of the food chain, overlooking all beings.

There probably wouldn't be a stronger lifeform on this surface than him.

As for the identity as a Weilante—

It didn't seem that important anymore.

"Let's have a good fight... Alliance, Enterprise, Academy... and Legion."

"Hahahaha!"

Scarlet eyes shone with a terrifying gleam as Teil laughed loudly as if truly gone mad.

At the same time, gunfire erupted inside the "Tower of the World."

The armed security personnel and Teil's personal guards were driven back by the rampaging experiment, all despairingly turned into nourishment for that indescribable entity.

In just a few hours, the scarlet flesh had engulfed the entire alloy-building and began spreading onto the nearby street from the open alloy gates.

Seeing the dire situation on the ground, Old White, standing on the Viper transport plane, wore an expression full of shock.

According to intelligence from the Southern Legion's captives, the Mortal Serum's lab was on a certain level of this landmark building named "Tower of the World."

They planned to raid it, but before they could jump down, the opposite side self-destructed.

"Good grief... did we poke a hornet's nest?" Quit smoking, sitting across, also looking down, couldn't help but quip.

Old White said solemnly.

"I don't know... but to be honest, this thing looks like a Mutated slime fungus lair."

Upon hearing this, Quit smoking was taken aback and immediately said.

"A lair? Then leave it to Xiaoyu."

Theoretically yes, Xiaoyu was a nemesis to virtually all mutant slime fungus lairs.

In fact, not only Quit smoking thought of Xiaoyu, but Old White also immediately thought of it.

Falling Feather's Goblin Corps was just at the front line.

Without hesitation, Old White immediately switched the communication channel to get in touch with Falling Feather, who was flying in the sky.

"Falling Feather! It's up to you!"