Chapter 413 - To Sway
TL: LifeisaJourney
From the 40 lucky souls that were saved in the soul storage to the unfortunate players whose bodies would be selected for sacrifice, it was all part of the conspiracy.
Zhan Nan Shan had to supervise the laboratory facility. His most important concern was increasing the soul-seizing success rate, especially when a person’s soul became more powerful as their level rose. A powerful soul like that, when stuffed into a feeble body, the chance of it not exploding was very low. This was a mentally exhausting obstacle, which was why he chose to remain in isolation from the village. He couldn’t manage two places at once, so he gave leadership over to Qiu Zi Tao. This was an inevitable decision since he valued the duty of a soldier.
Another factor Zhan Nan Shan had to consider… With such a huge Village, it would attract the attention of other high level beta players or high level native players on this island.
This was something Zhan Nan Shan wanted to happen. If such people were to appear, then he could shorten the time he would have to nurture people. Once strong individuals appeared, he could use his scheme to lure them into the Mountain Valley Laboratory for the three trials. After completion, they would willingly enter into the spirit-seizing capsules under the false promise of obtaining rewards. Then his comrade-in-arms could take over the body.
To thoroughly plan this out, he even had Qiu Zi Tao cooperate beforehand. On the first trial, Qiu Zi Tao purposely killed several of his companions and left the remains behind. This was a facade to confuse the later players into thinking that there were three trials.
Without a doubt, this scheme was extremely elaborate. Even Liu Gan, when he was in the lounge of the first trial, was tricked into believing in the facade; he thought the three trials were real.
When Liu Gan first showed up to the village, Zhan Nan Shan didn’t worry about it too much. He could measure up Liu Gan as around level 10. At most, Liu Gan would’ve been a match for one of his comrades. However, Zhan Nan Shan’s opinion of Liu Gan started to change after the battle with Qiu Zi Tao. Zhan Nan Shan had a whole new level of respect for Liu Gan. It was mainly due to Liu Gan’s ability to make prompt decisions that the village was handed over to Liu Gan. At the same time, the map revealing the Mountain Valley Laboratory was also handed over to Liu Gan.
Zhan Nan Shan knew that every strong individual would want to continue gaining experience to self-improve. These individuals would be interested in these types of secret laboratories. It would only be a matter of time before they found the location once they had the map.
When Zhan Nan Shan communicated with the Dragon Commander regarding Liu Gan, it turned out that the Dragon Commander was very interested in that person. Since Liu Gan’s performance in the three trials was outstanding, both Dragon Commander and Zhan Nan Shan were very pleased with the result.
During this period of time, the laboratory had a breakthrough research in implanting souls. Now, the body of lower levels could withstand the souls of higher level players. Through this new process, the player’s body underwent a transformation. As long as it was a body that belonged to a level 5 player, when injected with a level 11 or 12 soul the body would reach at least level 10 during the strengthening process.
Dragon Commander made a decision; he didn’t want to wait any longer, so he ordered Zhan Nan Shan to revive him in Liu Gan’s body. He believed that with such an outstanding shell, even if it was a lower level, it wouldn’t be a problem. It wouldn’t even take him long to return back to level 15.
As long as the Dragon Commander successfully took Liu Gan’s body, all the other soldiers weren’t as important. To reach this goal, other soldiers were injected into the bodies of the level 5 and 6 players. Once the new souls were injected into the body, they didn’t immediately hijack the body. This created the false impression that the original players had obtained the reward of leveling up quickly inside the capsule, hopefully luring Liu Gan into the reward capsule so they could inject Dragon Commander’s soul into his body.
No one thought that even with such an elaborate plan, Liu Gan would be able to see through it. Since Liu Gan wouldn’t cooperate, this situation escalated to the point where anesthetic gas was used. It was something Zhan Nan Shan was hesitant to do, because an unconscious Liu Gan during the process of soul injection would cause harm to Dragon Commander’s soul. However, even after Zhan Nan Shan released the knockout gas, it was useless against Liu Gan.
In one last attempt, Zhan Nan Shan ordered the soldiers with the newly obtained bodies to suppress Liu Gan, and then force him into the capsule. What was unexpected was that Liu Gan knocked them all down with a wave of his hand. It was as if he had cast some witchcraft that caused all the soldiers to simultaneously fall to the floor without any will to fight.
Zhan Nan Shan’s plan was well thought out, with alternative precautions in place. Under normal situation there wouldn’t have been any problems. His mistake was choosing the wrong target. He shouldn’t have targeted Liu Gan. In the end, he suffered a double loss instead of a gain. Now that things had gotten to this point, it was impossible to accomplish the mission ordered by the Dragon Commander.
“I established this village for another purpose. It can be used to obtain great benefits. If you allow me to continue with my mission, I will find another body suitable for my Dragon Commander. In return I will tell you the other purpose and the benefits,” Zhan Nan Shan tried to persuade Liu Gan.
“Sigh, now that we have reached this point in stage, you still want to trick me. Do I look like the type of person to be so easily tricked?” Liu Gan looked coldly at Zhan Nan Shan.
“I’m not trying to trick you. When I was hunting by the seaside, I encountered a very strange woman. She has a high-tech Underwater Laboratory. She required a lot of players as experimental samples. She told me that in exchange for providing her with players, she would give me powerful weapons. Even the greataxe in your hand was exchanged for with the lives of a dozen players,” Zhan Nan Shan went on in detail.
“Underwater Laboratory?” Liu Gan furrowed his brow.
“Yes, we can cooperate. All you have to do is help me finish my mission, I can guide you to her so you can exchange for more powerful weapons. That way you can become even stronger. If you want to join us in our mission, I am sure our Dragon Commander would welcome you. He would train you…” Zhan Nan Shan continued to sell the idea to Liu Gan.
“That woman that you have mentioned, is she the one that rides a jellyfish as she appears from the sea?” Liu Gan asked. From Zhan Nan Shan’s description, only one person came to Liu Gan’s mind - Su Nina.
“You…” Zhan Nan Shan starred at Liu Gan in shock.
“No wonder the Beginner Village’s cafeteria had deep sea fishes as a dish… Seems like she gave those to you as a gift?” Liu Gan continued asking Zhan Nan Shan.
When Liu Gan first arrived at the Beginner Village, he was able to eat deep sea fish. That aroused his suspicions; this place had a hidden secret. Finally, the puzzle was solved. It was Zhan Nan Shan who used the lives of other players as commodities to exchange with Su Nina for goods.