World’s End: My Keyword is One More Than Others

A conflict between Xu Wan and Mo Shengmin had already left Luo Yan overwhelmed, unable to handle the other Alien Star warriors emerging online.

The easygoing Lin Hong had given him a false impression, making him think that dealing with gamers wouldn't be difficult.

But now, Luo Yan finally realized how troublesome gamers could be. Getting them to unite and serve Bi Xing was even more challenging.

On the way back to the capital, Luo Yan didn't even dare to let Mo Shengmin and Xu Wan ride in the same car.

...

Imperial Capital.

National Strategic Defense Bureau Headquarters.

Mecha Training Ground.

Wang Zheng was piloting the Night Owl, fiercely battling Xu Wan.

Xu Wan wasn't using an advanced mecha, still opting for the Petrel.

The Battle Network didn't have a physical form, weakening the influence of mental power and the body on the mecha, making it easier to control than in reality, but that was relative.

Fourteen-year-old Xu Wan had no prior experience controlling a mecha, but after entering the Petrel, she only experienced initial discomfort before displaying strength comparable to the Battle Network.

Under her control, the Petrel fully unleashed its potential, moving so smoothly it didn't seem like a machine.

In reality, she replicated the Petrel's operations from the Battle Network.

However, the Night Owl was a top-tier mecha, and even after the Petrel exhausted its ammunition, it couldn't penetrate the Night Owl's force field shield.

Similarly, without using tracking missiles, the Night Owl's mecha cannon and pulse cannon ammunition also failed to hit the Petrel.

In close combat, the Petrel's broadsword skills were clearly not as smooth as Du Ge's. Although Wang Zheng was hit multiple times, he still managed to defend and evade thanks to the Night Owl's powerful kinetic energy.

However.

Wang Zheng's attacks still couldn't land on the Petrel.

Just like in her fights with Xu Wan and Mo Shengmin, Xu Wan's control of the Petrel always allowed her to narrowly evade the Night Owl's attacks.

There wasn't a single unnecessary move, making it seem as if Xu Wan was deliberately conserving her stamina.

...

Monitoring Room.

Luo Yan and Du Ge were watching the battle between the two mechas.

Luo Yan asked, "Lin Hong, what do you think of the two of them?"

"Mo Shengmin is probably telling the truth," Du Ge said, his eyes fixed on the battle. "This situation has never happened before; this time is an exception."

On the way back.

Luo Yan and Xu Wan shared a car.

Du Ge, Nalan Li, and Mo Shengmin rode in another.

In the car, Du Ge asked Mo Shengmin many questions about Nine Dragon Star, and his answers were flawless.

Du Ge was almost certain that Mo Shengmin was a native of Nine Dragon Star, not an imposter Alien Star warrior.

Nine Dragon Star didn't have a resource crisis. Their mission, sent by Pan-Universal Entertainment to the Alien Star Battlefield, was to eliminate all Alien Star warriors except those from their planet.

But when Du Ge asked what the punishment would be if he failed the mission, Mo Shengmin remained silent, only telling Du Ge that he had to do it.

Even though he didn't say it, Du Ge knew that they had likely also experienced being cleansed by Alien Star warriors.

In the face of an apocalyptic crisis, they would do whatever was necessary.

Moreover, being threatened with life and death gave them more motivation than a resource crisis.

Nine Dragon Star was a high martial world, with a martial level equivalent to the late stages of "Feng Yun." Mo Shengmin's identity in their world was the second son of the Martial World Emperor. The entire family of the Martial World Emperor had been killed by Alien Star warriors, leaving only him to escape.

It could be said that Mo Shengmin had both national and personal vendettas against the Alien Star warriors, making reconciliation between them nearly impossible.

Furthermore, Mo Shengmin's experiences after body possession had made his personality somewhat extreme.

Du Ge asked Mo Shengmin if the martial arts of Nine Dragon Star could be used on Bi Xing, but Mo Shengmin denied it.

However, at the time, Du Ge sensed that he was meditating and was skeptical of his answer. If Nine Dragon Star's martial arts level was comparable to the late stages of "Feng Yun," then their martial arts would involve the soul.

Like Sword Saint's Sword Twenty-Three, the divine doctor's resurrection of the dead, and the undying soul of Xiao Sanxiao, they had long transcended the realm of wuxia. If Mo Shengmin was the second son of the Martial World Emperor, the probability of him mastering some special martial arts was too high.

Du Ge didn't dwell on these things, as martial arts required time for cultivation.

Moreover, no matter how strong the martial arts were, they couldn't be stronger than his divine power, let alone the various bizarre company skills.

Mo Shengmin also didn't know which planet ultimately won on Nine Dragon Star; he only knew that the last strongest person on Nine Dragon Star was Sword Saint's youngest disciple.

Sword Saint's youngest disciple always acted as the leader of the natives, leading many natives against the Alien Star warriors, but in the end, he betrayed them, slaughtering almost all the strong on Nine Dragon Star alone, absorbing all their power, and creating his Blood Sea Sword Domain, with martial arts heights comparable to a god.

At that time, Mo Shengmin was on a mission outside and escaped the disaster. When he returned and saw the corpses of all the strong, he hid and never showed his face again, missing even the final battle.

Mo Shengmin speculated that his keyword should be disguise or hypocrite...

...

"Lin Hong, what do you think Mo Shengmin's keyword is?" Luo Yan asked.

"Separation, division, something like that," Du Ge replied. "His skill should be splitting in two; we must prevent him from using sharp weapons to harm others, or maybe he doesn't need sharp weapons. In any case, be cautious of him suddenly making a move."

"What about Xu Wan?" Luo Yan asked again.

"Can't tell, probably related to evasion," Du Ge said, looking at Xu Wan, who had almost maxed out her evasion points below, shaking his head. "It's not offensive. If they don't awaken stronger skills, they basically belong to the harmless type of Alien Star warriors."

Harmless?

Looking at Xu Wan, who was pushing Wang Zheng, piloting the Night Owl, into a corner with an entry-level mecha, Luo Yan was speechless. If this was called harmless, the ace mecha pilots on Bi Xing might as well hang themselves.

After a moment of silence, Luo Yan asked, "What's your chance of winning against the two of them?"

Du Ge glanced at Luo Yan and shook his head, "Don't get any ideas about me. My keyword isn't attack or defense; I just have the advantage of emerging earlier than them. I might not necessarily beat them."

"Not even one of them?" Luo Yan looked skeptical.

"With the Night Owl, maybe I could spar with Mo Shengmin," Du Ge said, "but I probably can't hit Xu Wan. He should have awakened an evasion-type skill, which are mostly passive defenses. Even if you adjust ten mechas, you might not be able to hit him."

"If you were to deal with them, what would be a good approach?" Luo Yan frowned and asked.

"To deal with Xu Wan, you could trap her, cut off her food and water. As long as the room she's trapped in is sturdy enough, she'll eventually starve to death," Du Ge said. "If you want to kill her quickly, lure her into a sealed space, set it on fire, or flood it. Even if she has evasion skills, she can't avoid high temperatures and needs to breathe. Put her in a container and heat it from outside; that should roast her to death..."

Goodness!

You really don't take her seriously, do you?

Luo Yan muttered in his heart and asked, "What about poison gas?"

"If Xu Wan's keyword continues to function, her body will automatically detoxify, so it's unlikely to poison her," Du Ge said, extending his hand and drawing a dagger, slicing his own arm.

Then.

Right before Luo Yan's eyes, his arm healed instantly.

Seeing this, Luo Yan's eye twitched involuntarily.

"For example, my keyword is trend," Du Ge smiled. "As long as my influence remains, my recovery ability will persist."

He couldn't resist setting a trap for Luo Yan.

If one day Luo Yan decided to deal with him, erasing his influence across the network, his low-key attribute would definitely skyrocket.

"What about Mo Shengmin?" Luo Yan asked.

"He's easier to deal with," Du Ge smiled. "With three mechas providing long-range fire coverage, he basically can't escape. In fact, most gamers can be dealt with using fire coverage. The key is to prevent them from grouping together. Once there are more than five, you can't predict the magical effects their skill combinations will have."

Luo Yan glanced at Du Ge, deep in thought.

After a moment, he asked, "Lin Hong, now that Mo Shengmin and Xu Wan both want to gather people from this planet to serve Bi Xing, what do you think about this?"

"If you're not worried about backlash, go ahead," Du Ge looked at Luo Yan and shook his head. "Right now, Xu Wan and Mo Shengmin can still balance each other, but if you really let them gather people, it's hard to say who will call the shots on Bi Xing, not to mention the National Defense Bureau."

"What do you suggest?" Luo Yan asked.

"Stir the waters!" Du Ge said. "Let them find people through the Battle Network. If anyone responds, give me the coordinates, and I'll help you take them out. Once more than ten people die, I guarantee the rest won't dare to show themselves."

"If I remember correctly, you gamers gain experience by killing each other, right?" Luo Yan looked at Du Ge with a peculiar expression.

"That's right. They all have their own agendas. I'm 100% thinking for Bi Xing," Du Ge smiled at Luo Yan. "It's better for me to gain experience and control things from the shadows than to hand Bi Xing over to those unreliable people.

Director Luo, there are too many gamers on Bi Xing now. We need to beat them into hiding, let them emerge sporadically, so the National Strategic Defense Bureau can control the situation and truly extend the battle line.

Don't think about recruiting everyone to work for you. Keep the number of gamers under three hundred. That's just right. You can use them against the Hill Civilization without letting them ruin Bi Xing."

"What if more Alien Star warriors start appearing on the Battle Network and are recruited by other forces?" Luo Yan asked.

"Director Luo, isn't that what our National Strategic Defense Bureau is for?" Du Ge laughed. "If they're sincerely serving Bi Xing, that's fine. But if we detect any signs of misconduct, we can assassinate them or capture them for research. Isn't that up to us?"

"Lin Hong, which planet are you from?" Luo Yan suddenly asked.

"Qi Yuan Star," Du Ge replied.

"The Qi Yuan Star with Du Ge?" Luo Yan's heart skipped a beat.

"Yes," Du Ge nodded.

"Then why didn't you mention Du Ge in the information you gave me?" Luo Yan asked.

"It's simple," Du Ge shrugged. "Because Du Ge didn't enter the game field this time."

"..." Luo Yan was stunned.

"Director Luo, Du Ge has already led Qi Yuan Star to three victories in the game field. We've won enough resources, and our burden in this game is the smallest," Du Ge smiled. "And with Du Ge's fame, everyone would target him. So why would we let such a great hero risk entering the game field?"

"That makes sense," Luo Yan nodded in agreement, but his expression didn't reveal whether he believed it or not.

"That's also why I'm willing to extend the battle line," Du Ge looked at the training ground and said calmly. "Without resource pressure, the longer I live in your world, the more I gain. If I can live for more than fifty years, I've gained a lifetime.

For a high-quality life, I naturally hope your world remains peaceful and stable. I don't want Bi Xing to be destroyed in two years, forcing me back to Qi Yuan Star. So, Director Luo, you can put aside your suspicions about me and focus on dealing with gamers from other planets."

"Do all Qi Yuan Star people think like you?" Luo Yan asked.

"Not necessarily," Du Ge shook his head. "Some people want to make a name for themselves. However, I can help persuade them. If you're worried about Qi Yuan Star people grouping together, you can isolate them in different places."

"Okay," Luo Yan nodded.

"Also, Director Luo, don't reveal that Du Ge didn't enter the game field," Du Ge said. "With Du Ge's fearsome reputation intimidating gamers, they won't dare to act recklessly. Moreover, the authorities can use Du Ge's name to scare people, just like Xu Wan did. Without Du Ge, anyone can be Du Ge."

At this moment.

The battle between Xu Wan and Wang Zheng was nearing its end. The Petrel's energy was gradually depleting, its movements becoming less agile, and finally stopping in front of the Night Owl. But the Night Owl's sword didn't strike down.

Winning because the opponent's energy ran out, with a mecha ten generations ahead, Wang Zheng couldn't afford to lose face.

Xu Wan opened the hatch and jumped out, not out of breath. She looked up at the Night Owl in front of her, "Wang Zheng, I lost. Controlling a mecha in reality is indeed different from the Battle Network."

Wang Zheng also opened his hatch, looking at Xu Wan with a somewhat desolate expression, "No, I lost. If you used a mecha of the same specifications as mine, I would have been defeated long ago."

"That Lin Hong, does he still want to compete with me?" Xu Wan smiled, looking at the surveillance camera in the training room, shouting loudly, "Don't you want to spar with me?"

"..." Wang Zheng opened his mouth but said nothing.

"Lin Hong, are you going down?" Luo Yan looked at Du Ge and asked.

"Of course," Du Ge nodded. "I'm representing the National Defense Bureau. Even if I can't beat them, I have to go down and dampen her spirit. Otherwise, how will you keep them in check in the future?"

To prevent Luo Yan from exposing him, Du Ge added another layer of insurance. As long as he represented Bi Xing and won against the Alien Star warriors, when Luo Yan exposed his identity, he would have to consider whether it would be embarrassing.

Moreover.

Du Ge also wanted to verify whether Xu Wan's keyword was indeed evasion.

"Thank you," Luo Yan was silent for a moment, looking at Du Ge and nodding.

...

Moments later.

Du Ge entered the training ground. He didn't use the Petrel but instead used the same Night Owl mecha as Wang Zheng.

This was Du Ge's first time piloting a real mecha since arriving on Bi Xing.

Sitting in the cockpit, when the connection lines linked to various parts of his body, he felt a surge of excitement from the bottom of his heart. Every man couldn't resist such a big toy.

Unlike controlling a mecha in the Battle Network, there was a slight heaviness, like wearing a thick layer of armor outside the body.

But this heaviness turned into smoothness after Du Ge commanded the Night Owl to take a few steps.

After Du Ge made the Night Owl perform basic actions like running, jumping, dashing, and turning, he noticed several areas of sluggishness in the Night Owl's mecha, both in power transmission and in some of the Night Owl's joint movements...

These sluggish areas might not be noticeable to ace pilots, but with Du Ge's high mental power, he could easily sense these anomalies, like when internal energy gets stuck at a certain acupoint during martial arts practice.

Combining the mecha knowledge he had learned at Imperial Capital University over the past few days, several solutions flashed through Du Ge's mind in an instant.

Theory is always shallow; one must practice to truly understand.

Indeed, relying solely on books couldn't uncover substantive issues. By improving these problems, he could definitely enhance the Night Owl's performance by twenty percent.

He was going to make a fortune.

Du Ge subconsciously licked his lips. What could be more low-key than improving a mecha's performance without seeking credit?

He could finally walk the path of a scientist...

...

Suppressing his excitement, Du Ge opened the public channel and asked, "Xu Wan, do you need a break? You just finished a mecha match, and if I win, it might not be fair."

Since he was pretending to be a native, he had to act thoroughly.

"No need," Xu Wan's Petrel mecha had already replenished its ammunition and power module, she said with a smile.

"Are you sure you don't want to switch to another mecha?" Du Ge asked, "My level is several grades higher than Wang Zheng's."

Wang Zheng silently cursed under his breath!

"No need, come on, I'm used to the Petrel," Xu Wan giggled, "I already know how to defeat the Night Owl, so don't cry if you lose."

"Arrogant," Du Ge snorted, piloting the Night Owl into the training ground first. As soon as the Petrel entered, he raised his hand and unleashed a barrage of bullets, blocking the Petrel from all angles.

Xu Wan maneuvered the Petrel with agile movements, breaking through Du Ge's blockade and raising her mecha cannon to counterattack.

Du Ge used tactical maneuvers to dodge, a technique he had just learned from Wang Zheng. Since he was pretending to be a native, he couldn't use the "Ten Steps to Kill One" wild style, although, in Du Ge's view, the wild style could better unleash the Night Owl's performance.

In the battle with Wang Zheng, the Petrel's bullets hit the Night Owl but were blocked by the force field shield.

But with the same actions, Du Ge was several times faster than Wang Zheng, and all the Petrel's bullets missed. While dodging, he could still counterattack, using various tactical evasion maneuvers to rapidly close in on the Petrel.

"Damn, so fast," Xu Wan couldn't help but exclaim, quickly maneuvering the Petrel to dodge the Night Owl's ammunition, then abandoning shooting and drawing her broadsword, intending to engage in close combat.

Last time, she wasted too much energy in a prolonged fight with Wang Zheng. This time, she planned to engage in close combat quickly, relying on her superior offense to deplete Lin Hong's mental power, thereby finding a flaw and breaking through the Night Owl's force field shield before her energy ran out.

No matter how strong a native's technique was, how could it compete with her mental power?

Lin Hong, who was rapidly closing in, played right into her hands.

Perhaps it was indeed due to Xu Wan's skill, as all of Du Ge's bullets were dodged by Xu Wan.

However, he didn't stop shooting, instead drawing his laser sword while running.

He wanted to test if Xu Wan could truly evade indefinitely.

The training ground wasn't large compared to the mechas, and both mechas were incredibly fast.

In a matter of moments, they were close together. Xu Wan's broadsword slashed at the force field shield, but Du Ge's Night Owl suddenly leaped high, pouring ammunition from the mecha cannon downwards, simultaneously using the pulse cannon to block the Petrel's lateral movement.

With a firepower net in front and pulse cannons on the sides, Xu Wan had no choice but to retreat. But she only took a step back before suddenly changing direction, heading towards the pulse cannon's position.

Zzz!

A faint electric current sound.

The Petrel mecha's control system malfunctioned, freezing in place, completely losing power.