DipNovel Chapter 21 Choice and Greed
Chapter 21 Choice and Greed
That evening, the intelligence agencies of the four major powers simultaneously intercepted a plaintext telegram from the Kingdom of Winners.
It wasn't Lu Cheng who posted it, it was Kerry.
The telegram contained only one sentence:
[The Water Dragon Beast's underground network has connected the entire territory of the mighty Dragon Kingdom, and the underground railway system is taking initial shape. — Kerry]
When the prime ministers of the four major powers saw this telegram, their expressions varied, but their eyes all conveyed the same message.
envious.
It's not jealousy, it's envy.
Pure, naked envy.
The water dragon dug a tunnel underground and discovered an underground railway system.
Meanwhile, the upright apes dismantled their bronze statues, polluted their rivers, drew their maps, and pieced together their eyes on the ground.
Prime Minister David put down the telegram and said to the First Lord of the Navy:
"Arrange for a warship to go to the 'Winner Monkey Country' tomorrow. I'll go myself!"
On the same day, Prime Minister George, Prime Minister Vito, and Prime Minister Massa issued the same order.
The four thugs finally abandoned all their pretenses.
……
The Winners' Kingdom, the government.
Lu Cheng looked at the four visitation requests lined up on the table, a slight smile playing on his lips.
John Bull Country, Jacques Chicken Country, Giuseppe Wolf Country, Taro Tanuki Country.
All four major scoundrels, without exception, came.
Carrie stood behind him: "Are you planning to see them?"
"I'll see you." Lu Cheng stacked the four letters together, "but not now."
"What are you waiting for?"
Lu Cheng walked to the window.
In the darkness of night, the water dragon beasts on the square were changing shifts.
The group that dug the tunnels during the day went back inside to sleep, while the group that woke up crawled out of the tunnels, shook off the dirt, and continued digging.
The sounds of their digging claws scraping the soil rose and fell, like a construction crew without a commander but with a clear rhythm.
"Wait until they truly understand one thing."
"What is it?"
Lu Cheng turned around.
"The Water Dragon's success wasn't due to luck, but to choice. The Homo erectus's success wasn't due to misfortune, but to greed. On Advent Day, everyone thought the Homo erectus was the safest because it seemed the weakest. But no one considered—how could a species that evolved towards intelligence possibly be weak?"
He picked up the teacup on the table and took a sip.
"The four major powers thought they were choosing the safest option, but in reality, they chose the strongest opponent. Now they know it, but it's too late. One hundred million upright apes have completed the first stage of evolution, the second stage has begun, and the third stage is unpredictable even by the system. Coming to me now isn't for advice, it's for help. The difference between asking for help and asking for advice is this—for those asking for help, I set the conditions."
The next morning, Lu Cheng was watching the water dragon beast digging a hole in the backyard of the government building.
This water dragon has been digging for four days and four nights, creating an underground waterway that leads directly to the sea, with a length of over seventeen kilometers.
When it emerged from the hole, it was soaking wet, with a sea fish in its mouth. Its large fangs had pierced the fish through, and its expression was as innocent as a child who had made a mistake.
Carrie ran out of the government building, holding a piece of paper in her hand.
"The Sky Curtain System has been updated. Second Phase Evolution Assessment Report."
Lu Cheng took the paper and glanced at it.
[Second Stage Evolution Progress -]
[Anomalocaris: Spring Claw - Level 2 Enhancement Completed. Progress 31%.]
[Giant Nautilus: Wrapped Arms, Level 2 Enhancement Completed. Progress 29%.]
[Terrellfish: Crushed Grit Mouth, Level 2 Enhancement Completed. Progress 33%.]
[Giant Dragonfly: Cage Legs, Level 2 Enhancement Completed. Progress 27%.]
[Giant Millipede: Gland stimulation, Level 2 enhancement complete. Neurotoxin has reached lethality. Progress 35%.]
[Anteomon: Impact Bone - Level 2 Enhancement Completed. Progress 28%.]
[Glitter: Cutting Tooth - Level 2 Enhancement Completed. Progress 32%.]
[Waterdramon: Digging Claws - Level 2 Enhancement Completed. Underground network coverage increased by 300%. Progress 15%.]
[Tyrannosaurus Rex: Skeletal enhancement complete. Size increased by 40%. Progress 41%.]
[Upright Ape: Intelligent Brain - Level 2 Enhancement in Progress.]
[Detected capabilities: Symbol system unification, cross-regional collaboration, environmental modification, water pollution control, sentry system, camouflage and covert operations.]
[Third Phase Forecast]
The light screen paused for a full five seconds.
[Prediction failed; the evolutionary path of the upright ape has completely deviated from the preset model.]
[System Note: This system has introduced a total of ten exotic creatures. It has now been confirmed that the Homo erectus is the only species that could not be predicted by this system.]
Lu Cheng folded the paper and put it in his pocket.
Messengers from the four major powers are already on their way.
This time, it wasn't a secret agent, a professor, or a envoy who came.
It was the Prime Minister himself.
He crouched down and patted the water dragon's head.
The water dragon raised its head, glanced at him with its mindless eyes, then yawned and continued digging.
"You're so much less troublesome. All you can do is dig holes, which is much better than those overly clever ones."
Lu Cheng stood up and watched the water dragon beast burrow back into its cave.
In the distance, a crack appeared in the clouds on the horizon, and sunlight poured through the gap, shining on the round, chubby water dragons in the square.
They lazily rolled over, their large fangs pointing skyward, ugly yet self-righteous.
Meanwhile, in Kyoto, the capital of Taro Tanuki Kingdom, more than 10,000 kilometers away, the character "代" (dai, meaning "to replace") made of white pebbles in the courtyard of Masa has gained another character next to it today.
"people."
The substitute.
Human beings.
To replace humans.
……
The twenty-first day since the arrival of alien creatures.
Lu Cheng realized he had overlooked something.
These days, the world's attention is focused on the upright ape.
The newspaper headlines were about the upright ape. The intelligence systems of the four major powers were keeping an eye on the upright ape, and even the Skynet system's announcement singled out the upright ape, saying it was "unpredictable."
Everyone's attention was drawn to the skinny monkey clutching the branch.
Until King William of Hanscat Kingdom sent a telegram containing only one line:
A giant millipede killed someone.
Lu Cheng stared at the line of text for a long time, then said to Carrie, "Contact Hanscat Country for me. Get a detailed report."
The report was delivered that evening.
It was a thick stack of papers, with thirty-seven photos attached.
Lu Cheng realized the seriousness of the problem as soon as he finished reading the first page.
In the second stage, the stimulating glands of the giant millipede evolved neurotoxins.
It's not the mild toxin that caused rashes like before; it's a true neurotoxin.
The poisoned person first loses the ability to speak, then loses control of their limbs, and finally suffers respiratory muscle paralysis. The time from poisoning to death can be as short as forty minutes.
The photo shows soldiers after being sprayed with venom by a giant millipede.
His eyes bulged out, his mouth was wide open, and his fingers were curled up like chicken claws.
Typical death by asphyxiation from neurotoxins.
More than two hundred people have died and over a thousand have been injured in Hanscat Country.
The number of giant millipedes has tripled since Advent Day.
"What did King William say?" Lu Cheng put down the photo.
Carrie's voice was very low:
"He said the Hanscat Kingdom was about to collapse. The giant millipedes ate everything—wood, leather, rubber, cloth, steam engine conveyor belts, soldiers' belts and boots. His army found that their rifle butts were being gnawed off, their grenade handles were being gnawed off, and even their cannon wheels were being gnawed in half. The frontline soldiers were now sleeping standing up because if they lay down, their boots would be gone."
Lu Cheng turned to the last page of the report, which contained a handwritten letter from King William.