Chapter 2222: Chapter 2222: Half the World Is Under Their Control
When more and more people discover that there is a problem with these guilds, the issue becomes truly significant.
Then, some people begin to connect, opening up information channels completely to each other, and exchanging information among themselves. Next, professionals start analyzing.
Originally, there was no such opportunity, but now it’s different. Once information is opened up, many things that were hidden before are unearthed. The upper class of various cities personally orders investigations, naturally revealing many aspects.
Gradually, people realize that the truth about this world seems somewhat different from what they imagined.
Initially thinking the world was becoming chaotic, with everyone fighting against each other—setting the stage for a world war—is a guise deliberately created by the enemy, people gradually discover, as some information is disclosed and researched.
After all, guild division is something that cannot be concealed, especially since it happened not long ago.
The vast majority are those who experienced such events before; many even witnessed their guilds splitting multiple times, each time inexplicably, looking almost the same.
Surely, the upper class wouldn’t make the same mistake every time.
Some people have noticed problems but don’t want to speak up, while others wish to speak but have nowhere to do so.
Now, after organizing a large amount of data, it becomes apparent that something is amiss.
Following the trail of these divided guilds step by step, people gradually discover how vast these originally unified so-called guild forces truly are—it’s essentially a virus-like division and expansion trend.
"The situation is already severe. Everyone, look at this map—this is the distribution map of enemy forces discovered through our research. If this force is indeed a whole, then half the world has already been under their control."
Of course, this is somewhat alarmist, as some cities have not been included by Du You—they are merely surrounded by their own forces. Without internal information, they still think these places have fallen. If Du You were here, he would know his territory hasn’t reached half, only near it.
Yet, this is already quite exaggerated; the doppelgangers hidden within are somewhat surprised. After all, these people can roughly discern their force range from such data.
Indeed, these folks haven’t contacted Du You, yet they still know quite a few things.
The ability to infiltrate their upper class is one of the doppelgangers’ skills.
Others remain silent, feeling a massive pressure. At some point, such a massive force unexpectedly appears in the world—it’s suffocating.
"According to our intelligence, these guilds expand using a virus-like split method. Whenever they reach a place, they take over the city from the guild initially. Then, the worlds controlled by their guild will be seized through guild battles, ultimately becoming part of them."
"The tier-eight strong of the opposing guilds are almost obliterated, with very few surviving. As for the tier-seven, some would surrender and join them, but most would also be eliminated."
"Where did they get so many strong? Can they control so many cities?"
"That’s another matter. They have a very powerful training mechanism, capable of nurturing a large number of strong rapidly to replace the previous ones. This is why we’ve consistently overlooked it."
Of course, this is just one reason, but it’s indeed terrifying.
Then, the image shifts, showing Du You.
"This person is crucial because we discovered that, among the first cities controlled by these guilds, part of it was here," the leader circles on the map.
"And Du You was in this city, within this area. The first tier-nine world opened previously was opened by him, perhaps the first tier-nine strong within this guild."
"You’re saying the one behind controlling this massive force could very likely be Du You."
They’re not unfamiliar with Du You; actually, when the first tier-nine world opened, Du You had already gained fame. As a tier-nine strong, and a self-aware one at that, his data is known among the high-level individuals.
Suddenly, someone raised a question: "But wait, Du You is powerful, yes, but he’s not old. Was he designing this from the start? I’m not questioning his strength, methods, or vision, but to lay such an enormous plan, how could a young person achieve it?"
The previous speaker continues: "Hence, we have two hypotheses. The first, Du You isn’t the leader in that organization, but a high-up. Even with such talent, enormous resources are needed to support such rapid growth."
Everyone nods; that’s likely. They’re aware of how much resources and credits one needs to advance to such a level.
Without someone’s backing, rapid growth in a short time is impossible.
"Then, what’s the other hypothesis, is Du You perhaps the leader of the organization?"
The counterpart nods lightly: "It’s very possible. We suspect that Du You wasn’t a genuine young individual. We suspect that during his first entry into the Other World, a powerful ancient being possessed control."
Isn’t that possession? Many think. But perfect possession isn’t easy. This approach greatly impacts oneself, possibly even erasing memories.
"Setting up such a scenario and elevating so rapidly, likely the controlling entity over Du You is a tier-nine strong. According to data, his first entry into the Other World wasn’t through the school but was himself already accessing. He gained substantial benefits, very likely where control started."
Du You’s doppelgangers are surprised—even though their analysis is incorrect, it’s quite close to reality.
Possession is accurate, yet Du You isn’t a native of this world but from another. Also, Du You isn’t an ordinary tier-nine but a peak tier-nine strong.
