Chapter 786 Condition

“How do you know that?” Chen Xiaolian asked curiously.

“Out of curiosity, I had – back when he helped free me from the Development Team’s control – asked him about it.” Osgiliath’s voice became somewhat hoarse.

“You are already so strong. Why are you still subjected to the restrictions placed by the Development Team? What does the Development Team mean to you?

“The answer he gave me then was very clearcut. He absolutely could not defy the Development Team.

“For the sake of facilitating the management of the whole world, the Development Team had given him a very high level of authority and power. It would not be an exaggeration to say that the Main Controller was the Development Team’s only missionary in this world.

“In return, when the Development Team first created him, the first setting they put in place was that he absolutely could not defy any instructions from them.

“In the beginning, Augustine only knew how to obey the Development Team, acting according to the routine orders. But as time went by, he realized that, where the Development Team did not place specific orders in place, he could act on his own. For example, his actions of modifying my Exchange System and the others. Everything would be fine as long as he could hide it from the Development Team.

“When it came to instructions that the Development Team had clearly issued out, he had absolutely no way of defying them.

“More terrifyingly, the moment he appeared, he killed off a member of the Development Team with just one blow!

“That surpassed my original understanding of the situation!”

“You mean, the first GM was originally not that strong?” Chen Xiaolian was surprised.

This seemed somewhat different from what he knew.

“Yes. Augustine was certainly stronger than me, but he should not possess a strength that surpasses the Development Team’s strength.” Osgiliath nodded.

“Even the members of the Development Team who were there at the time became flabbergasted.

“They could not believe that the Main Controller would turn against them. More, they could not believe that the Main Controller could obtain a power beyond that of their original setting.”

“If that is the case…” Chen Xiaolian rubbed his chin and mused in a hushed tone, “It’s strange.”

“I had originally assumed that a member of the Development Team had turned traitor during that time and that it was he who gave the first GM more authority and power.

“Now, this speculation has been overturned.

“But if so… just who was it who bestowed the first GM such power?”

“Unfortunately, I did not have the time to ask Augustine about it.” Osgiliath slowly shook his head. “He also did not talk to me.”

“Although he had killed a member of the Development Team, there was a pained look on his face. He clutched his forehead with one hand while his face revealed a look of utter confusion and inner conflict.

“After some time, he calmed down somewhat and raised his head to look at the other members of the Development Team who were standing around him. He then extended his right hand.

“Seven golden seeds were condensed out upon his palm.

“Yes. Those were the seven seeds of the World Tree that you two had used to come here.

“But unlike the empty shells that they are now, back then, they were emanating waves of extremely terrifying power.

“After that, he said, “Do you fellows know? The so-called world is actually a tree.”

“Even the guys from the Development Team had a look of shock on their faces.

“They watched as Augustine opened up a gate, a gate that leads to this world.

“Then, Augustine turned around, telling me to bring Du Wei and Cheng Cheng with me through the gate. He also told me that after he has solved all the issues outside, he would come find me.

“I knew. There was no point in me staying behind. I would only become a burden to him. Thus, when the Development Team were roaring and charging forward, I brought Du Wei and Cheng Cheng with me to escape through the gate.

“At that time, everything here was different from what you see now.

“There were flowers, grasses, trees, birds, animals… this was not an instance dungeon. Rather, it was like the two worlds above, a vast and complete world.

“As soon as I entered this world, the gate closed from behind.”

Reaching there, Osgiliath paused for a while and a bitter smile appeared on his face.

“Back then, I had breathed a long sigh of relief.

“I thought that everything would be alright.

“I had lost Sophia and I too, was seriously wounded. However, it was not fatal.

“Most importantly, our children lived!

“Additionally, Augustine had displayed that strength.

“Regardless of where that power came from, the Development Team was no match for him.

“For some unknown reason, though, it did not take long before this world started collapsing.

“The lands cracked open and the living creatures here died. The whole world began to rapidly shrink.

“For me, it was as though I had fallen into an icy cave. I recalled something that Augustine had once said to me.

“He mentioned that, by using his authority, he had once – secretly – checked and analysed the basic template of the world.

“There, he saw its most fundamental command structure.

“When necessary, the Development Team could initiate a command known as ‘refresh’ to clear the whole world.

“However, this command had never been initiated before.

“After escaping into the third world, I had vaguely thought about it. Only, I dared not think too much about it.

“But upon seeing everything here collapse, I knew that the Development Team must have – seeing their inability to defeat Augustine – chosen to use their final move.

“Creating this world had been an impromptu action from Augustine. It was not complete. Due to that, the template of this world is completely the same as the Lower Plane that you lived in.

“This meant that the refresh of the second world, the Lower Plane, could also affect this newly-created and yet to be stabilized third world.

“Thankfully, the power I possess – courtesy of the source code – still worked here.

“I used all my strength in my attempt to protect my two children as the whole world collapsed around me.

“My power drained away at a rapid pace, but the violent waves of power brought about by the refresh seemed limitless. I watched as, bit by bit, the world around me was reduced to fragments that further crumbled to pieces. Only the small space around me – which I had to painstakingly maintain – remained intact.

“The final driving force that supported me, were the adorable little faces of Du Wei and Cheng Cheng in my embrace.

“Finally, when I was on the brink of utter despair, the refresh ended.

“As for me, I was completely exhausted. I was already seriously wounded to begin with. Add the over exhaustion into the equation, my life reached its end.

“As for this world…”

Osgiliath extended his hand to draw a circle around him. “It became the state it is now.

“No water, no food, nothing. As for Du Wei and Cheng Cheng, they were just new-born babies, not even a day old.

“My life had already come to an end. If they were to continue staying here, only death awaited them.

“Thus, I could only pin my hopes on the second world. The refresh was over. Perhaps, the Development Team had rebuilt the whole world again.

“Here, their chances of dying were 100%. If the second world had been rebuilt, they would at least have a small chance of surviving.

“And so, I used the final bit of my strength to send them out.

“On each of their necks was a metal tag with their names – Du Wei · Rudolph and Cheng Cheng · Rudolph. I had given those tags to them the moment they were born.

“Although… they may never know their origins, if they’re lucky enough to survive, they would at least have the chance to find out their names.”

“They were really lucky,” Chen Xiaolian said, his heart stirring. “The chances of them surviving were even lower than winning the lottery.”

Osgiliath sighed softly. “Sending Du Wei and Cheng Cheng out of this world was nothing more than the actions of a drowning man trying to grasp at straws. Deep down, I never thought that they would really be able to survive.

“Before dying, I carved out this tombstone. Other than my name, I carved nothing else. I had long since given up on the thought that anyone else might come here. And so, this place would become my lonely tomb, an everlasting existence.

“Unexpectedly, my strong thoughts towards Sophia and my two children would – despite my death – allow me to retain my consciousness as a sub-soul.

“But it’s only my consciousness. I could not leave this place or do anything. All I could do in this place of endless solitude is to think about Sophia forever… until you arrived.”

“So… all the efforts we poured into coming here were in vain.”

Chen Xiaolian finished listening to Osgiliath’s story.

“The abnormal power that the first GM obtained, we still could not figure out the cause, nor could we remove it. As for you… at present, you are just a completely powerless sub-soul, incapable of affecting the real world at all. You can’t even leave this broken world.”

“Du Wei and Cheng Cheng. Have they been well?” Osgiliath did not respond to Chen Xiaolian’s earlier words.

“Not long ago, they should have been living quite the decent life…” Chen Xiaolian hesitated for a moment.

“Honestly, I am not too familiar with them. Especially Cheng Cheng. I have only met her a few times. But if we are unable to deal with Shen, things will likely end up badly for us all. Just now, I told you about the old monsters trapped in the collapsing space of Zero City. The two of them are amongst the old monsters I mentioned.”

“Shen…” Osgiliath softly mumbled Shen’s name. “After learning that Sophia was pregnant, Augustine, who was chatting with me, had mentioned it. If he could have a child, he would name him Shen. Unexpectedly, his clone would actually be called that.

“It seems, somewhere we cannot see, there may truly exist this thing known as destiny.”

“Even so, Shen is no longer the first GM that you once knew.” Chen Xiaolian sighed.

“His situation, it may be more appropriate to call it a reincarnation. After the refresh, he lost all his memories and personality. You aside, Du Wei was once his best friend while Cheng Cheng was his… hmm, lover. However, for the sake of achieving his ideal, he did not hesitate to sacrifice their lives. You can forget about the relationship you two had in the past.”

“I understand.” Osgiliath. “Then, are you willing to help me meet Du Wei and Cheng Cheng?”

“The problem is, I cannot defeat Shen.” Chen Xiaolian shook his head, a wry smile on his face. “Once he emerges from the collapsing Zero City, he would come after me and snatch away the Oddity that’s in my hands. After he is done patching the world template, me, Du Wei and Cheng Cheng will die.”

“Perhaps, I can help you grow slightly stronger,” Osgiliath said with a smile. “Maybe even make you stronger than Shen.”

“For real?” Chen Xiaolian was shocked. “Just now, didn’t you say that you no longer possess any power?”

“Even though I no longer possess any power, I still have my experience.”

As he said that, a look of pride appeared on Osgiliath’s face. “Do not forget, I had also mastered all of the source code of the Lower Plane.”

“Can you teach me?” Chen Xiaolian’s eyes promptly flashed with joy.

The reason Shen was stronger than Du Wei and the other old monsters was because he had obtained the greatest number of wings, allowing him to master the highest number of source code of the Lower Plane.

If he could master all of the source code…

He should be even stronger than Shen!

“No.” Osgiliath shook his head. “I am just a sub-soul. I am incapable of passing the source code mastery that I had once obtained over to you.”

“Then… what’s your plan to make me stronger?” Despite his disappointment, Chen Xiaolian continued to look hopefully at Osgiliath.

“I can tell you… how to use the source code that you have mastered.” Osgiliath smiled. “The amount of power one possesses is indeed important, but… how to wisely use it is also important.”

Chen Xiaolian's eyes lit up.

When it came to the application of the world’s source code, Osgiliath was the one with the most knowledge about it, even more so than Shen.

“Naturally, there are conditions.” Osgiliath continued, “I will teach you how to use the source code so that you may, through the foundation that you possess, obtain greater power. In return, you must stop Shen, save Du Wei and Cheng Cheng and bring them to meet me.”

“Of course. That is my reason for coming here in the first place.” Chen Xiaolian smiled.