Chapter 55

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Chapter 55: The Nun’s Vision

The moment he saw the nun appear, Zhang Zhiyuan finally understood why Paradise had specifically assigned him such a unique role.

Could it be that his casual suggestion was taken seriously?!

“Mister Zhang—” As Jeanne approached him, she seemed somewhat dazed but came to her senses after a while. “Apologies, for a moment, I thought I saw your other brother. You two do indeed look very much alike.”

“It’s alright, I’m used to it by now.”

“… Regarding your brother…” Jeanne lowered her head slightly, “I am deeply sorry to hear such unfortunate news.”

“Honestly… I was quite surprised too.” Zhang Zhiyuan felt a little uncomfortable all over. “But this is fate. When fate beckons, I won’t refuse it.”

“He was basically a good person; unfortunately, I didn’t realize it right away,” the nun said, a hint of sadness in her tone. “I wanted to express my gratitude to him in person … but I never expected…”

Off to the side, Zhou Zhi couldn’t help but cover his mouth.

Zhang Zhiyuan realized that if this conversation continued, his teammate might slip up sooner or later. Quickly interrupting her sentiment, he said, “Rest assured, he will surely feel your sentiments from heaven.”

“Heaven…?” Jeanne blinked.

“Ahem, I meant his place of eternal rest,” he clarified seriously. “May I ask why Miss Jeanne wished to see me?”

“Well…” Jeanne briefly outlined Zhang Zhiyuan’s friend theory briefly. “Afterwards, I tried to implement these suggestions afterward and found them to be remarkably effective, yielding quick results. In my experience, the simpler the theory, the deeper the underlying principles it conceals. Your friend’s medical research must have reached a level beyond our comprehension. This invitation wasn’t just my idea; all the sisters of Yeni Cathedral hope to learn these unknown truths of medicine from your friend!”

With those words, she deeply bowed at a 90-degree angle, “We humbly ask Mister Zhang to guide us!”

As expected, that was the reason!

Zhang Zhiyuan understood now… People in this world seemed to be unaware of the existence of microorganisms. Discovering that boiling water could significantly reduce the mortality rate must have been quite shocking to them, so their desire to learn more was quite understandable. Ultimately, it was his own fault for talking too much and inadvertently creating this situation.

Of course, Zhang Zhiyuan was not opposed to helping Jeanne within reason. After all, help to others and the provision of medical aid where possible is commendable in itself. However, he couldn’t understand why Paradise wanted to facilitate such an event.

Or rather, what was the ultimate purpose behind Paradise disguising this world as a game and going to such great lengths to send batch after batch of individuals here?

Was it for money? He really couldn’t see the Yeni Cathedral as a financially prosperous place.

Could it be for influence? The locals here are completely unawa of Paradise’s existence. Even the host usually appeared only as a holographic image; apart from the players, no one else can perceive him.

If neither wealth nor influence were the reasons, just what scheme was Paradise orchestrating?

***

“What exactly is your scheme?” Luo Di mentally frowned at Chaoyang’s holographic image. “These people here are all pitiful souls. Are you trying to extract Wish Power from them? They would die as a result.”

“Of course not. As I’ve mentioned before, this is a long-term business; I wouldn’t engage in practices that recklessly drain resources.” Chaoyang did not dodge the question, “The contract I made was with Miss Jeanne, and its terms are quite straightforward, albeit with modest profits.”

“Then why don’t you handle it yourself? It seems unnecessary to use pawns for such matters. I must say, your secretive behavior truly resembles the demons in stories—those who lurk behind the scenes and orchestrate evil deeds.”

Chaoyang rolled his eyes in silence.

This girl had no idea how easy it sounded when speaking from the sidelines.

Even though demons being proficient in various illusions and able to create objects using Wish Power seemingly out of thin air, these abilities come at the cost of sacrificing their physical strength! Moreover, each power also has significant drawbacks that are difficult to overcome. For instance, creating a clone of oneself appears to protect him from mortal dangers, but while controlling the clone, the Demon’s real body remains in a stunned state—in short, multitasking becomes impossible. In addition, maintaining too great a distance between the clone and the real body will greatly reduce the perception of the true body towards its surroundings.

As for the virtual images that appear to the contractors, they are really just projections with no other purpose beyond conversation.

The limitations of Wish Power creation are equally apparent. For slightly more complex objects, simply maintaining their existence consumes Wish Power, making it difficult to use this ability on a large scale, such as equipping an entire military force.

What is Wish Power? It’s his very life; once depleted, he will instantly die with no chance of recovery. As a result, Chaoyang naturally conserves on his creation ability whenever possible.

Furthermore, he cannot simply create items from his imagination alone. More simply put, he must first physically interact with an object and envelop it in Wish Power, much like taking a mold of it, before he can recreate it. This is why Chaoyang embarked on the foreign trip—to gain convenient access to sensitive items such as firearms, which would otherwise be challenging to obtain domestically.

Of course, what Chaoyang feared the most were the owners of those light pillars.

He could never forget the chilling sensation during his first direct encounter with them, as if even his very soul was about to freeze. The terror of impending death left him almost breathless.

Under these circumstances, delegating tasks to “Players” was the safest choice.

Even though the completion of the contracts would be less efficient this way, safety was paramount.

However, these reasons were related to his hidden advantages, so he naturally didn’t want to elaborate too much to the angel.

“What’s wrong with hiding and evading? At least I’m still alive. If someone could grant me a hundred Wish Points daily, I’d be happy to retire right now, even spending every day lounging on the beach under the sun. But is that possible?”

“This is your choice, but I admire courage more.”

“Like putting flowers on their graves every year, perhaps?”

Luo Di turned her head away, clearly unwilling to argue with him any further.

Meanwhile, Zhang Zhiyuan had begun explaining the basics first aid, occasionally asking about the situation at Yeni Cathedral. It was obvious that he was trying to give advice tailored to their actual circumstances. One could tell he had prepared extensively for such scenarios and could handle amateurs with ease.

The Russian seemed a little impatient, pacing back and forth until he finally could not resist giving Naruko and the others a meaningful look before walking alone towards the exit of the cathedral, muttering under his breath, “I didn’t spend a million dollars just to listen to lectures.”

However, perhaps mindful of the rules mentioned earlier by Chaoyang, he kept his voice very low, ensuring the nuns wouldn’t overhear him.

“The pieces you’ve chosen don’t seem particularly impressive,” Luo Di remarked with a hint of mockery in her tone.

“In the early stages of any venture, it is unrealistic to expect perfection,” Chaoyang replied nonchalantly, acknowledging the truth behind her words. At that time, his Wish Power was nearly exhausted, leaving no room for careful selection; he had to hastily recruit from the wealthy passengers on the Ocean’s Heart. His reasoning was simple: at least these individuals were well-travelled and experienced, and unlikely to tremble with fear when faced with an completely unfamiliar environment. If they started crying or panicking at every unexpected turn, their pirate narrative would quickly fall apart.

As it turned out, his overall strategy proved correct.

“Aren’t you going to stop him?”

“Let him be. After all, I can monitor his movements through his perspective,” Chaoyang replied carelessly. “If a major conflict arises, I can simply cut off his connection.”

The success of any endeavor inevitably depends on the talents and contributions of its participants.

Now that he had established himself, perhaps it was time to reorganize the group of players.