Chapter 1874: Chapter 1872: Nightmare IV Difficulty (Censorship Is a Bad Civilization)
After the radiance passed, Fang Zheng arrived once again on a brand new land.
"Alright, what should I burn this time?"
Fang Zheng squinted his eyes, glancing around. He had considered that if it was like last time, another superhero world would be ideal. However, the previous one had already been burned down, so what would it be this time?
Batman?
Speaking of which, Gotham City does seem quite flammable.
But then again, where am I right now?
Fang Zheng tilted his head, looking around. This place seemed like a tropical city, a vacation spot...or so it felt?
Yet, at that moment, the TV news from not far away caught Fang Zheng’s attention.
"NASA has established a base here, and today, the Lighthouse Project officially unfolds. The island’s satellite equipment will send strong signals to outer space, hoping to connect with the possible..."
"Oh ho..."
Upon hearing this, Fang Zheng squinted again. Hearing such a science fiction-like "hint" upon arrival suggests it’s not about annihilating superheroes this time...well, that’s somewhat displeasing.
But since the hint is known, predicting the future is much simpler for Fang Zheng.
Thinking of this, Fang Zheng closed his eyes, and soon, the boundary of the future appeared before him—death, war, smoke, invasion...ah, so that’s what this is.
Fang Zheng reopened his eyes, the corners of his mouth curving slightly into a smile.
Mmm, simply burning America does seem a bit dull; watching it struggle amid destruction might be interesting.
Thus, where to go next became clearer.
America, New York.
The man with glasses stepped out of the house, carrying his belongings onto his bicycle and sitting down. For him, this was just an ordinary day. The plan ahead was to meet his father at Central Park and enjoy a pleasant time. That’s how it was for the man.
So he cycled out into the street.
However, as soon as the man arrived at the road junction, suddenly a truck roared past, crashing directly into him, then smashing him and his bicycle against a not-so-distant wall. With a "boom," the truck crashed into the wall, appearing to be out of control as it finally stopped. The man and his bike were completely flattened, crushed into pulp.
"Crack!"
Soon after, the car door opened. Fang Zheng stepped down from the truck, surveying the mashed remains with satisfaction.
"Indeed, one has to do it themselves."
Saying this, Fang Zheng reached out his hand. He could feel the world’s fate changing in that moment.
The Savior was dead, and the entire world was destined for unavoidable destruction—such was originally the case.
But...
At the same time, a system alert appeared before Fang Zheng.
[Detected fate protagonist killed, instance difficulty raising from "Normal" to "Nightmare IV"]
"There has never been a real savior, nor any Immortal Emperor..."
Seeing this, Fang Zheng chuckled.
"If the absence of a savior means the world’s destruction, then let it perish."
On the contrary, making Americans saviors is more intolerable.
If only Americans can save the world, then it might as well be destroyed.
Fang Zheng took a step back, satisfied once more with his work, then snapped his fingers.
"Woosh———!"
Soon, flames erupted, engulfing the mutilated corpse along with the truck. Within the roaring blaze, Fang Zheng’s figure vanished.
This world was in 2005.
That year, Super Girls captivated streets and alleys.
That year, pop music was still bubbling with talent.
For Fang Zheng, it was also a year full of memories.
Watching students playing basketball on the playground, the bustling crowds and shops around, and noisy pop music from loudspeakers all unwittingly brought Fang Zheng a sense of returning to past student days...
"Commander?"
At this moment, a voice sounded next to Fang Zheng, turning his head to find Iona curiously watching him.
"The fleet has assembled, requesting the next command..."
"Hmm, just stay here for now and be careful to remain hidden."
As he spoke, Fang Zheng took out a handkerchief and wiped the corner of Iona’s mouth, which had ice cream on it.
"Yes, Commander."
Iona nodded, then looked at Fang Zheng again.
"What shall we do next?"
"Just wander around aimlessly."
"Huh? But Commander, won’t this battle be tough? Shouldn’t we prepare in advance?"
"No need, just make sure you defend this area at the beginning, the rest you don’t need to worry about."
"Is that so...?"
Hearing Fang Zheng’s answer, Iona was somewhat surprised. She knew Fang Zheng had gathered two full Azure Fleets in one go, originally thinking it would be an offensive battle, but it turned out to be a defensive one?
"That’s right."
Fang Zheng nodded.
"Don’t worry about other places getting blown to bits, just focus on this place."
After the difficulty level was raised by the Dimensional Codex System, Fang Zheng had already reviewed it with Future Sight. How should he say it... Nightmare IV lives up to its name, this difficulty is almost comparable to the Mass Effect World’s Reaper invasion war... the truncated version.
If Fang Zheng still had the Star Forging Dragon King, he would definitely unleash it, but even without it, it’s no big deal. This time, Fang Zheng doesn’t need to protect the entire planet. On the contrary, for Fang Zheng, the more damage elsewhere, the greater the benefit to him.
However, Fang Zheng did not plan to communicate with the authorities of this world. This is not the Free World, and he can’t interfere for too long or too deeply. After all, Resource World is used to be burned. So besides taking this chance to eliminate other targets, the rest must be handled by the local authorities themselves.
As for now...
"Come on, let’s continue to shop, anything you want to eat or drink?"
"Huh? Just me?"
"Of course, consider it a small compensation."
Fang Zheng often took others out for dates, but Iona rarely went out, which was expected. After all, she was the flagship of the Azure Fleet. Unlike the Crimson Fleet, which focused on protecting the Heavenly Dao Palace, the Azure Fleet’s mission was to follow Fang Zheng in expanding territories. Each time Fang Zheng unlocked a new map, the Azure Fleet had to follow immediately. The more maps Fang Zheng opened, the more territories Iona would have to manage. In this situation, it’s impossible for Iona to have the time to go out and play like others.
This time, Fang Zheng seized the opportunity and took Iona out shopping.
And while following Fang Zheng around, Iona was clearly happy. It was obvious, as she kept eating all along the way, not just because the snacks were tasty.
After that, Fang Zheng took Iona to the amusement park, cinema... practically visiting every place they could.
The streets presented a scene of harmony and peace. No one knew what would happen tomorrow, and for them, life was seemingly ordinary and repetitive. Yesterday was the same, today is the same, and they believe tomorrow will also be the same.
But Fang Zheng knew that tomorrow... would not remain unchanged.
In fact, as night fell, astronomers around the world quickly reported an extremely urgent message to their superiors.
A massive unidentified object was approaching Earth’s orbit, with unknown intentions.
And for Fang Zheng...
"Finally, it’s coming?"
Standing in Iona’s command room, Fang Zheng silently watched the colossal presence outside Earth, a massive mobile fortress larger than a Titan. Only the Star Spirit Ark Ship could compare to it. Fortunately, Fang Zheng had anticipated this, so he transferred the main fleet containing the Spear of Aton here.
Next...
"Let’s enjoy a good show here."
As he spoke, Fang Zheng murmured to himself. He made a gesture, and soon, the screen quickly switched to the western hemisphere, where it was just turning daytime.
On screen, people who were living peacefully just moments ago suddenly encountered an unimaginable situation—gigantic shadows blotted out the sky, with warships several kilometers in diameter appearing like flying saucers, emerging from the clouds over each city and capital. They almost seemed to enclose the entire Earth, surrounding it completely.
No one knew the purpose of these aliens, and upon seeing the saucer-like ships casting shadows, some people chose to run madly, while others excitedly rushed to skyscrapers, holding signs to welcome the aliens. The entire city’s order seemed to collapse at that moment, with various ideas and actions intermingling into chaos.
Compared to the idiots in the western hemisphere, the eastern hemisphere was clearly more cautious. But even so, after the saucers appeared, they immediately evacuated the public to shelters and bunkers. Next, the countries quickly held a joint meeting to discuss how to resolve the current issue.
Of course, the final decision was still to try diplomacy first, and have the Americans handle the communication—especially since just days ago, America’s "Lighthouse Project" was the talk of the world, and before long, aliens came knocking. You make your bed, you lie in it, so who else should be responsible?
Exactly, this is one reason Fang Zheng despises these idiotic movies... the damn mess you created, so it’s only natural you clean it up, and not only to clean but to apologize to the innocent nations and citizens harmed by your stupidity and then roll away crying.
Yet you dare portray yourselves as saviors?
I spit on that!
But this time... thinking of what America would become next, Fang Zheng was already impatient.
Own up to your mistakes, even if you have to eat dirt while crying!
