"Yes, yes!"
Daniel Zhang said hurriedly. "This kid just ate my casserole bone stew that cost 300 to 500 yuan the night before, and the next morning, he ate a big pot of fried dumplings, fried buns, and steamed buns that cost more than 100 yuan without batting an eyelid. He ate half a month's worth of my food expenses, punched a hole in the wall of my house, and tore apart my thick dictionary. This must be a superpower!"
"I know all this," the hunter said.
"Of course, he's an Awakened, and a Deep Seer who has awakened at least five lifetimes of memories. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to injure Tattooed Tiger and force White Night to show his true strength. Well, let me change the question. Why did this college student named Li Yao come to you? Why did he analyze the Ark Foundation and the Apocalypse with you?"
"This, I really don't know."
Daniel Zhang said honestly, "He said a lot of strange crazy things. I didn't believe him at all, but the situation was beyond my control. I could only agree with him and racked my brains to deal with him. Finally, the Apocalypse's reinforcements came!"
"… Well, maybe you don't know much more than us on this matter," the hunter said.
"Let's put this strange college student aside for the time being. After all, we're more interested in you, Teacher Niu."
"Me?"
Daniel Zhang's voice changed again, from the croak of a drake to the cry of a hen. "Who the hell did I offend? I've always been law-abiding, I believe in the organization, and I believe in the government. I don't steal, rob, or act like a hooligan. I'm just writing books at home when I have nothing better to do. Why are you all looking for me? And if it's not a burly college student, it's a male agent in a black suit and sunglasses?"
"Yes, this is also something we need to figure out."
Hunter seemed to show something to Zhang Daniu. "Teacher Niu, please look at this — this is the latest ranking of your novel 'Forty Thousand Years of Cultivation' on the website. This … the 'monthly votes list' is 98th, and the 'recommendation list' is 114th, right?"
"Yes, it's me."
Daniel Zhang said shamelessly, "Aiya, this month's monthly votes actually made it into the top 100. Not bad, not bad. Congratulations. So, what's the problem?"
"There's nothing wrong with it. It's just that it doesn't fit our usual pattern of operations."
The hunter said, "Mr. Niu, please don't be nervous. It's true that the Apocalypse Organization has erased a lot of … in your words, 'creators of fantasy worlds'. Let's leave aside whether or not it violates the law of morality and humanity for now. Trust me, we have a very reasonable explanation to ensure that such erasure does not violate morality and humanity. Instead, it is necessary to maintain the order of the world. However, regardless of good or evil, we are very strict about the selection of the erasure list.
"Generally speaking, there are only two kinds of creators of fantasy worlds that deserve to be monitored or even further erased.
"First, creators whose works are very popular and influential, possibly triggering the resonance of the souls of billions of people. For example, 'Father of Starlink' Garriott. In the Starlink World on the Internet, there are at most tens of millions of people playing online games at the same time, and hundreds of millions to billions of people are affected by derivatives and subcultures. It is not hard to imagine how much influence his words and actions, as well as the new creation and modification of his works, have, and how many people can be awakened.
"Second, of course, we are not materialists. Perhaps some of the 'observers' have awakened very early memories. The fragmented, bizarre fragments cannot constitute a popular and best-selling work, but at the very least, the creativity, originality, passion, and sincerity that they show in their works cannot be hidden. In other words, at the very least, they are 'good but not popular.' Even if they are not good or popular, at least there is a certain shining point in their works that can be perceived by the experts in our organization.
"However, when it comes to your works …
"Mr. Niu, I don't know if this will hurt your self-esteem, but in the past, when we monitored and erased web writers, in terms of influence and popularity, they had to be in the top fifty, top thirty, or even top ten in a similar comprehensive ranking before they could be noticed by us.
"As for the quality of your book, let me think about how I should evaluate it. I've read one or two hundred chapters myself. My personal conclusion is that you are not worth the resources of the 'Apocalypse Organization' to monitor and erase even a temporary worker. If anything happens to you, it will definitely not be our doing but a real accident. Do you understand what I mean?"
"Well, I kind of understand."
Daniel Zhang said, "No, I still don't understand. You don't want to erase me, and I don't want to be erased, either. Isn't that the end of it? I'll write my book dutifully, and you will be responsible for erasing all the people ahead of me on the monthly votes and recommendation ranking. No problem. I have no objection. Then, why are you looking for me?"
"It's not us looking for you, but the people of the Ark Foundation looking for you. To be more precise, the head of the Ark Foundation, 'Red Pole Star,' is looking for you."
The hunter said, "You can simply regard the Ark Foundation as a terrorist organization that endangers the world. Such a terrorist organization will naturally be monitored and hostile by the entire world. As the head of a terrorist organization, the first priority is to hide yourself and try not to reveal any information. Once you reveal any clues, you may encounter the malice of the entire world. Do you understand?"
This was the second time Li Yao had heard the name "Red Pole Star." It turned out that this man was the head of the Ark Foundation.
However, why did the hunter — Hugo? Smith's statement was so strange. Was the Ark Foundation the terrorist organization that endangers the world?
Since he admitted that his organization went on a killing spree at the T3 Game Fair, this matter could never be cleared. Shouldn't the Apocalypse be the terrorist organization?
"I, I think I get it."
However, he heard Daniel Zhang say again, "Just like those terrorists hiding in the mountains and deserts, I remember that there was a very famous leader of a terrorist organization two years ago. That guy, the one with a big beard and a big bandage, seemed to have exposed his whereabouts through his mobile phone. A commando team and a few missiles killed him."
"That's right. For the leader of a terrorist organization, 'existence' is the most important thing. It is extremely irrational to show up easily, unless the mission is so important that they must take risks no matter the cost."
The hunter said, "Believe me, 'Red Pole Star' of the Ark Foundation is by no means an irrational guy. He never makes mistakes and never takes risks.
"However, he issued a very clear order from the mysterious' Ark 'that is shrouded in fog and distortion all year round. He mobilized a lot of resources and prepared to come to Jiangnan City to kidnap you — so much so that he partially exposed himself."
"Huh?"
Daniel Zhang was startled. "Why would he kidnap me?!"
"I don't know. That's not all," the hunter said.
"Almost at the same time when 'Red Pole Star' issued the order, the 'Prophet' of the Apocalypse also received a revelation and learned of your existence. He asked us to follow the clue. The more we investigated, the more surprised we were. As it turned out, 'Red Pole Star' did not notice you until now but had already noticed you half a year ago. But at that time, he was scared that he would be discovered by us and did not dare to do anything. He only kept an eye on you in secret. It was not until now that the world was collapsing that he finally couldn't help but take action.
"So, please tell me, Mr. Niu, why did a … rather common writer like you get the attention of 'Red Pole Star' of the Ark Foundation and 'Prophet' of the Apocalypse at the same time? What secrets are hidden in the novel 'Forty Thousand Years of Cultivation'? "
Daniel Zhang was silent for a long time.
He seemed to be considering it carefully.
"I don't know much about the structure of your two organizations, but it sounds like 'Red Pole Star' of the Ark Foundation and 'Prophet' of the Apocalypse are both leaders, right?"
Daniel Zhang asked.
"Exactly."
The hunter replied.
"Then, it's only natural that the leaders of the two superpower organizations have extraordinary wisdom and can see through the mysteries that ordinary people can't see through, right?"
Daniel Zhang asked again.
"Indeed."
The hunter replied.
"Then, could there be such a possibility —"
Daniel Zhang said, "'Red Pole Star', the leader of the Ark Foundation, and 'Prophet', the leader of the Apocalypse, read my novel at the same time and discovered the talents that were hidden in my words that ordinary people couldn't understand?"
"… Impossible."
The hunter said coldly.
"Then — then I don't know."
Zhang Daniu's voice sounded like he was about to cry. "Hunter, you have to believe me. You have to believe me. Look at me. Do you think I'm the kind of person who is not afraid of violence and who can remain silent in the face of threats and temptations?"
"You don't look like it."
The hunter pondered for a long time. "Usually, an 'observer' is an anomaly among the Awakened. They may not have awakened great power, but they can often observe the deepest part of their soul and remember the countless secrets of the distant past. Also, with the support of the ancient memories and secrets, they have a strong and pure soul, personality, and will. They can be down and out, but they are extremely proud. They are incompatible with this world because they have their own beautiful and self-sufficient world. They are the kings of the world that they have created. Until the moment their bodies perish, they will fight to defend their world. To be honest, you don't look like such an 'observer'."
"I don't want to be an Observer either. Why don't you let me go? I promise I won't say anything. I'm a tight-lipped person."
Daniel Zhang said pitifully, "Or, do you have the kind of memory erasing equipment like the ones in the movies? A small stick. With a click, I'll forget everything that happened in the past three days!"
"No."
The hunter said, "Usually, we use pistols to erase the target's memory."
Daniel Zhang: "…"
"Besides, I'm not responsible for determining whether you're an Observer. I'm only responsible for bringing you back. When the time comes, the Prophet will figure out everything."
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