Seized by the System

Not many were present at the summit. A brief glance over the various crowds gave them a headcount of approximately three hundred.

This was already good enough though; three hundred Pond-level powerhouses would be unbelievable to anyone two years ago if they were told that these powerful people were all from China. Two years ago, there were only a little more than them of them in China.

This was exactly what it means when people say ‘A hero is nothing but a product of his time’.

The three hundred Pond-level powerhouses were all leaders of their own clan, heroes among their pack, and the overlords in their respective regions.

Collectively, they represent thousands or even millions of Pond-level powerhouses that would arise in the future.

Xie Dong silently thought and realized that this Human Defence could only be truly implemented from these people before him.

At this moment, someone had already started to shout.

“Leader Xie, what are those defense techniques that you speak of? When will they be given to us? Do we still need to suit our teachings to the abilities of the learner?” Someone who could not wait had spoken up to ask for the aforementioned techniques.

This was the complete opposite of the cold and indifferent demeanor that the people had just when the summit had started.

As a person that had years of experiences in the Public Relations Department, Xie Dong was not surprised about the change.

Everything under the skies will come and go following the direction where benefit was headed.

Before this, the people in the summit thought that the Truth Department was asking them to contribute labor, money, and medicine to fight against the Descended Ones from the Upper Realm. Of course, they would have no motivation whatsoever.

Now, however, they realized that the Truth Department was actually here to gift everyone techniques and Merits.

On top of that, they were also here to teach everyone how to better gain Heavenly Merit, and how to have a breakthrough quicker than before.

Of course, none of the people here were idiots. They clearly knew that the only reason the Truth Department did this was to find someone to solve future incidents that are similar to the Parasite Catastrophe. They did not do this for charity.

However, to them, the benefits for both parties were not mutually exclusive. Thus, they were entirely fine with it.

This was how reality worked.

If one really wanted to form an organization to do something and ignored the importance of making all benefits with all parties as clear as possible, the only result that awaited would be a massive failure.

Morale can only be a catalyst. The true motivation will forever be actual benefits.

When Xie Dong arrived at this thought, he smiled and extended his arms once more, and settled down the crowd by indicating them to quiet down.

Soon, the summit returned to its initial state of silence.

It was obvious that he had managed to establish his presence among the people in such a short time by relying on meticulous pre-planning and the impromptu cooperation with the Venerable Dragon God.

“We have consolidated thousands of relevant techniques. After the summit, we will be doing an endowment appraisal before categorizing all of you and distribute them according to your compatibility with the nature of the different techniques. There is no need to be anxious…”

When the crowd heard that, they were hesitating once again.

Endowment appraisal? Would this expose their secret trump cards?

However, the leaders of smaller clans and groups were not bothered by that. After all, they were already grateful for the fact that they could achieve Pond-level.

If they could get some Heavenly Merits through the techniques given by the Truth Department, they might even have the chance to go a step further.

Xie Dong took in the change that he saw on everyone’s faces. He was not surprised by that.

As long as the firstcomers were able to benefit, everyone else would then go after it like a pack of ducks.

No matter what, it still looked like a win-win situation on the surface, and was in accordance with the benefits of the public. As long as this was the case, they would not need to worry about any major mishaps happening anytime soon.

“Now, we have a major task on hand that could directly increase the Heavenly Axiom’s sense of security. It’s easiest for us to obtain Heavenly Merit through that.”

“Eh? Mr Rich-man, wake up, don’t fall asleep through this. Was there such great news? Why would they not inform us beforehand…” Sir System was very unhappy.

Fang Ning quickly came out of the System Space.

Indeed, when he thought that Xie Dong wanted to have a long speech about the techniques, he had sneakily slipped into the System Space Lounge to sleep.

After all, with the System’s surveillance thread running to control the whole body, there was no way that Sir System would allow Vigilante A to fall flat to the ground after he fell asleep.

“Um…” At this moment, Fang Ning was feeling guilty after being caught red-handed. He quickly answered the System after some thinking.

“Perhaps they did not want the information to leak. Regardless of what happened, we were still not a member working under their structure. We’re just a Triple-A grade associate.”

“Forget it. Pay attention and listen. This Xie Dong does have some useful information to share.” Surprisingly, Sir System have let Fang Ning off the hook without much of a fuss.

This has somehow worsened Fang Ning’s guilt as he immediately replied, “Don’t worry, we’ll be able to get the most benefits out of what Xie Dong will share later. We’re still the boss around here anyway, and we can cause the highest damage, have the strongest influence, the highest intelligence, and…”

“And you’re still the laziest of all.” The System’s words ruthlessly stabbed at Fang Ning.

Fang Ning ignored that.

“Leader Xie, what exactly is this major issue that you speak of? Don’t keep us guessing anymore.” Someone at the back was starting to jeer.

“Hehe, don’t worry, I’ll tell you now,” answered Xie Dong with a smile.

It was a plan that was set early on to start with Human Defence, then transition to Earth Defence, and end with Heavenly Defence.

“Everyone should be familiar with the ‘mooncake’ that appears in the sky these days right?” Xie Dong suddenly changed the topic and asked.

“Uh, what do you mean, Leader Xie?” Someone asked, confused.

The moon that turned into a mooncake, and had its orbit running parallel with the Earth’s orbit.

Aside from the fact that its existence was blatantly against too many laws of physics, the phenomenon itself was enough to send shockwaves across the world and started ripples and waves among societies. Most news and media outlets have jumped on this hot topic and gained considerable viewership covering this issue.

Still, the adaptability of humankind was remarkable. A few months later, people had quickly got used to this, and different specialists and professionals have already proposed explanations using their own interpretation of the laws of physics.

How could the mooncake maintain stability right above the sky of the Earth and not cause any natural disasters or abnormality?

Ordinary people could do nothing but talk about it. On the other hand, a small portion of powerful cultivators has long stepped foot onto the mooncake and began to reap great tangible benefits from it.

There was no air on the mooncake. Thus, ordinary people and weaker cultivators will not have a chance of survival on it.

However, it was packed full with vitality that far exceeded what was available on Earth. Powerful cultivators could thus exist comfortably on the mooncake.

Naturally, this was because these true powerhouses would have already transformed their physique to a level far above an ordinary person. As long as there was a vitality supply, they could convert that to energy to support the movement of their bodies.

To do that, even Pond-level cultivators were not up to the standard. Only Lake-level cultivators and above could walk on the mooncake, and even they were barely reaching the standard.

Xie Dong spoke lightly, “The mooncake was one of the major tools that the Heavenly Axiom of the Earth uses to increase its sense of security…”

Many hissed in astonishment before sinking into deep contemplation, “Oh, so that’s what it is.”

If they were to connect the dots, it was almost obvious what the Truth Department wanted to do.

“That’s right. Just like what you’re thinking, we hope everyone can come together with one goal in mind, which is to develop the mooncake. With the plans and resources contributed by everyone, we could build a formation on top of it. We could then make it into an impenetrable front for us.” Finally, Xie Dong has explained his motive.

“With that, we could amass a great fortune of Heavenly Merit.”

“Um, Mr. Rich-man, we have no business with that,” said the System sheepishly.

“Why? Why did you lose interest in that so quickly?” Fang Ning was curious.

“Didn’t he make it clear? It would require a huge investment…” The System was very frustrated.

“Uh, you’re indeed much smarter now. Actually, this just meant that you’re really sensitive when it comes to money.” Fang Ning was impressed.

The people in the summit either frowned or was visibly excited by the announcement. Some were still unconvinced.

“Will this really get us Heavenly Merit?” Someone asked in disbelief.

Xie Dong outstretched his arms again and spoke to Fang Ning with the greatest respect, “Venerable One, I think that this question was most suitable for you.”

“You will definitely get Heavenly Merit. However, you still made a mistake in a few vocabulary choices, Leader Xie,” said Fang Ning offhandedly.

The crowd was astonished. Xie Dong looked terrified and was afraid that Fang Ning would cause him irreversible trouble. Everyone stared at Vigilante A anxiously.

Fang Ning waited for all eyes to be locked on him and basked in them before he declared, “If this major agenda was indeed completed, the Heavenly Merit that you could get will not be ‘a great amount’, but ‘astronomical’.”

His words were startling. Now, he had understood that the One Heavenly Merit that was shown in the System Notification was an unbelievably massive amount if it was given to someone else. It was definitely enough for them to break through a bottleneck in their cultivation.

100 Heavenly Merits that had triggered the Heavenly Fortune skill was a miracle in the eyes of everyone else…

Xie Dong heaved a massive sigh of relief while everyone else hissed in alarm.

An astronomical amount of Heavenly Merit? Achieving a Lake-level would be as easy as ABC if they were given even a tiny amount of that.

With that thought, many eyes in the crowd now burned with passion.

Even those cultivators that had made the decision early on to lead the way for the Descended Ones from the Upper Realm were now hesitating with their decision.

After all, the promises from the Upper Realm Descended Ones might not be entirely trustworthy. It might even become a deal with the devil.

The Venerable Dragon God, however, never lied nor caused anyone hurt.