Chapter 81-Game Descent: I Am the Sole Player
Chapter 81
Achievement: "Absolute Dominator."
S-tier item: "Portal."
Bai Shan wasn't sure whether Tomorrow's Dominator version 2.0 still retained this achievement and its reward. Of all the achievements she'd unlocked in version 1.0, only [The Sole Player] remained on her Game Panel — the rest had vanished.
Hai City seemed to exist in a zone between 1.0 and 2.0. Bai Shan thought the achievement might not exist out there anymore, but inside Hai City, it might still be viable.
Currently, she had killed one Leader Eagle. She was still four Level-50 mutants short of unlocking the achievement. Accomplishing that was far harder than simply driving to the Southwest Hydropower Station.
But the Portal's advantage wasn't just speed — more importantly for Bai Shan, it was stealth. The black RV was far too conspicuous. She needed to kill that super-class mutant silently and return without a trace.
A super-class mutant that required the second-ranked player on the Leaderboard to take down, suddenly eliminated by some unknown figure — who else could that be but Tyrant?
Bai Shan didn't mind leaving behind a Tyrant legend, giving those people who bounced around the World Channel and forums obsessing over Tyrant's identity some fresh bait. It was just that, for now, she didn't want to be formally linked to the Tyrant identity.
So obtaining a teleportation item for a swift, clean operation was the best approach. Otherwise, the risk of exposure was too great.
Bai Shan squeezed the back of her neck. Having freshened up, it felt as though all the fatigue and weakness had been washed away. Her mind was clear, her energy full — she even felt better than before she'd gone to scout Hai City's outskirts.
Thinking back, she realized the return trip had taken less time than the trip out, despite having already spent considerable stamina on the outbound journey.
Bai Shan turned to stare at the floor-to-ceiling window. She was preparing to head out again. This time, she would find and kill four Level-50 mutants within Hai City to see if she could unlock the achievement.
"Wait — someone's heading to the Southwest Hydropower Station!"
Jiang Yusong stared at the Game Panel, her earlier bleak expression swept away, her tone excited.
"Who?" Lin Huijun asked nervously.
"The strongest player currently in the southwest region — Wu Xinyou, ranked 66th on the Leaderboard, says she's already set out with a team. And Langsa Meiduo, ranked 91st. Besides those two from the Leaderboard, people from many surrounding cities and regions are responding..."
Lin Huijun blinked in surprise. "How does everyone know about this?"
Jiang Yusong shook her head, pleasantly bewildered. "Maybe because the Hai City Channel is public — someone saw it and word spread?"
It was also possible the Capital had deliberately released the information, encouraging capable people nearby to assist. After the game's arrival and the world's upheaval, the Capital's control over various regions had inevitably weakened. Although 19 of the top-100 Chinese players existed (not counting the mysterious Tyrant), only a handful maintained contact with the Capital.
The Southwest Hydropower Station was too far from the Capital. Mobilizing nearby high-level players to deal with the entrenched mutant was the best approach.
Bai Shan raised an eyebrow slightly and exchanged a glance with Lin Huijun. Lin Huijun immediately understood, turning to Jiang Yusong: "We need to use the bathroom in the RV. Give us a moment."
With that, the two left hand in hand. Jiang Yusong found it somewhat amusing — she guessed they wanted to check their Game Panels and were deliberately avoiding her, worried she might use her ability to peek at their screens.
Five minutes ago, she might have been a little annoyed. The Game Panel wasn't exactly top-secret — aside from when she was assigned identity-verification missions, she never used Light Magic to spy on others' panels.
But now, Jiang Yusong couldn't be bothered by such a small thing. She watched the national channel buzzing with life because of Hai City, and those dark feelings of cowardice, selfishness, and defeatism were suddenly illuminated.
Before, Bai Shan's words had sounded like a fairy tale to her — utterly impossible. Yet now, she could tangibly see a glimmer of hope.
The two returned to the RV together, sealing the doors and windows tightly. Bai Shan placed the flashlight she'd picked up outside on the table. Normally they kept lights to a minimum to save power — just one or two small lamps at night. Now Bai Shan switched on every light in the cabin at full brightness, then tossed the high-powered flashlight to Lin Huijun.
Light could destroy any Light-Seeking Algae that approached the Game Panel, preventing rejection.
Lin Huijun obediently caught the flashlight and shone it before her. The blue light screen popped up in the blindingly bright light.
Bai Shan also opened her Game Panel.
She didn't immediately check the channel or player forums like Lin Huijun. Instead, she stared unblinkingly at her personal information panel.
[Name: Tyrant
Level: 89
Talent: Tyrant's Grip (SS)
Skill 1: Inspection
Make physical contact with a target to view their Talent.
Skill 2: Tyrannical Command
Can manipulate any object touched by the right hand within a 10-meter diameter.
Skill 3: Admonition
All who bow before the Tyrant become subjects. The Tyrant may unconditionally invoke any subject's Talent.
Skill 4: Unlocks at Level 90
All Items: [Hunting Arrow] [Fengdu Tiger Tally] [Delusional Dream Realm] [Inextinguishable Sun Flame] (click to see more)
Active Buffs: Strength Enhancement 1000%, Agility Enhancement 800%, Night Vision, Double EXP (click to see more)]
...Level 89!
At the edge of Hai City, when the Game Panel had been jumping between Level 50 and 89, Bai Shan had already had a premonition — Hai City was a place strongly connected to version 1.0.
Tomorrow's Dominator 2.0 had capped her level. In Hai City, free from 2.0's control, Tyrant had actually reverted to her original level!
Although her fourth skill still hadn't unlocked, she now had access to several more high-tier items. For instance, [Hunting Arrow] — essentially a supreme upgraded version of [100% Hit Dart]. Its range could span an entire large city, locking onto a target until impact, with extreme speed and devastating lethality.
Combined with [Inextinguishable Sun Flame], once a target was in her sights, unless they teleported a hundred li away the instant she struck, death was certain.
Another SS-tier item, [Delusional Dream Realm], was a special item Bai Shan hadn't even used in version 1.0. It was tremendously powerful but could easily trap the user herself — a terrifying item she would never deploy unless the situation was truly dire.
Additionally, there was the area-of-effect time-reversal item [Flower of Reversion], the mutant-binding [Silver Moon Contract], the random magic spell [Abracadabra], and more.
Looking at the familiar Game Panel, Bai Shan felt the warm nostalgia of a long-awaited reunion.
She suddenly didn't hate this place as much anymore. One glance at the panel filled her with energy — she wanted nothing more than to hunt down every mutant Level 50 and above in Hai City and flaunt the full might of Level 89.
But she still had things to do. First, she'd check what was happening outside.
National Channel.
[Langsa Meiduo only made the Leaderboard two days ago. Hopefully she won't pull a certain someone and crash and burn at light speed.]
[You're Level 7 and you're critiquing a world-rank 91st?]
[On behalf of my family trapped in Hai City, I'm grateful to every hero rushing to help!]
[Nobody even fully understands what's going on in Hai City. Don't jump to conclusions — 'turn on the electricity and save Hai City'? I'm not buying it.]
[Exactly — Hai City had zero messages, then suddenly two people start chatting out of nowhere? Super suspicious. Who can prove they're actually from the authorities?]
[Better than groping in the dark! You don't have family or friends in Hai City so of course you don't care — taking advantage of the fact that Hai City people can't speak up on the channel!]
[Hai City needs saving, but what about other cities? The situation in Yunnan Province is dire — does anyone care?]
[Can we please not fight among ourselves at a time like this? News from Hai City is a good thing. Those who can help, go support the power station. Those who can't, send silent prayers. What's there to argue about!]
[I'm in Yu City, about to drive to the Southwest Hydropower Station. Wish me luck!]
[I'm only Level 10, but I've worked at a hydropower station before. Heading over too.]
[Count me in. I'm an electrical engineering student — right in my field. Already on my way.]
[I'm from Hai City, currently stuck abroad and can't help. All I can say is thank you!]
[Seeing that there are still people in this world upholding courage and justice makes me fight mutants even harder! Thank you all!]
The situation in Hai City, previously kept deliberately hidden, had exploded into public view all at once. The Chinese channel was livelier than ever, buzzing with discussion about Hai City.
Hai City had always been a prominent major city. Now that it had fallen into a crisis desperately needing rescue, the contrast was heartbreaking. The game was utterly impartial — it had destroyed the former glory of all human cities. Yet even when everyone was barely keeping themselves afloat, there were still people willing to step forward and charge toward a battlefield that wasn't their own.
On the Chinese channel, those supporting the restoration of the Southwest Hydropower Station to aid Hai City were the majority — at least among those bold enough to speak under their real names.
But on the World Channel, public opinion tilted the other way.
[Are the Chinese insane? Have they forgotten the rules of the game's second phase?]
[At the current rate of population decline, there's no way it'll be down to 80 million by March 6th. Conservative estimates say 150 to 200 million will remain. If the excess population isn't culled artificially, what awaits us all is a total wipe!]
[I don't think the Chinese would do something this stupid. There must be some other agenda.]
[Do you believe a city could exist without the game descending upon it? If there's no game, how would people in that city even communicate? I suspect this is all a self-directed farce.]
[If the monsters die from a bit of light, it proves Hai City's situation isn't that serious.]
[Being played by phony morality even during the apocalypse — how pathetic.]
[The 1st and 2nd ranked on the top-100 are both in China, and neither has shown up. Probably means this whole 'save Hai City' thing is just theater to placate the masses.]
[Who told you Tyrant is Chinese?]
[Our country seems to have places with empty channels too. Could the game really not have reached everywhere?]
[The Southwest Hydropower Station is the largest in the world. If the Chinese get it running again — letting human civilization and ingenuity shine once more — wouldn't that be incredibly cool?]
[For humanity's survival, we must abandon old morality and civilization! What China is doing goes against the tide of the times!]
Bai Shan watched the screen filling with endlessly refreshing comments and thought: whether or not she could get a long-range teleportation item, she had to make the trip.
If only a scattered few people went, her traces would be easily exposed. But judging by the Chinese channel, at least a hundred people were heading to the Southwest Hydropower Station. With that many people, it would be perfect cover to conceal her presence.
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