DPM Chapter 83-Deception
Translated by Snowfall77
The Federation President’s face fell, unwilling to believe what he’d been told by Ouyang Yi: “What did you say?! Didn’t they say they were just tricking him to obtain few cells? What happened for it to get to this point?!”
Ouyang Yi spread his hands, assuming a chagrined expression: “I don’t know, but the military fucking did it. Maybe because Qinglong offended the Marshal? I hear they hated each other before the last days……only……”
Naturally, the hushed conversation between the two men couldn’t concealed from the people around them. Soon enough someone else furtively inquired about what was going on, and half a minute later everyone in the hall knew.
Some were quite stunned, aiming their ire at Ouyang Yi: “We did have Qinglong?! Didn’t you claim that the Night Shard was slandering us and using the disappearance of Qinglong as an excuse?!”
Some were more worried than anything: “We’re done for, once the Night Shard finds out……”
Still others weren’t in the mood to discuss it loudly, instead whispering in each other’s ears. Wasn’t it best to give the Night Shard whoever was responsible? Sacrifice the perpetrators for the sake of Federation peace? Or better yet, pin it all on Ouyang Yi?
His ears pricked up, Ouyang Yi heard their low tones. Obviously he was aware his popularity and usefulness were not they’d once been. And he had initiated the plan to deceive Qinglong in order to score some points, never expecting the military and Luo Ying to be so shortsighted and utterly ruthless.
Knowing himself on the cusp of another crisis, Ouyang Yi stood up straight, clearing his throat to address the crowd: “Everyone, this quibbling is pointless now. The mutant is already dead, and we need to keep this information secret while buying ourselves some time. If not, who knows what else could happen?”
“I know what you’re thinking. Hand over Ouyang Yi and our problems will be solved! But what if the Night Shard’s anger doesn’t stop with me? He’s an unreasonable demon. Since we’ve reestablished communication with the mutants, we’ve been gathering intelligence on him. You ought to see the Night Shard’s history, and the things he’s done!”
Ouyang Yi’s words had the desired effect of catching the attention of everyone in the hall.
Next, the hall’s 3D imaging system started up, Ouyang Yi having had the foresight to rush a presentation of the Night Shard’s ‘history.’
“There nothing much to say about him from before we left the Earth. The Night Shard was a common soldier. But he became infected and was unable to board his ship. Therefore he hates the Federation.” Ouyang conveniently skipped his own private encounters with Ye Fan to focus on newer information.
“This person, he was once given shelter by a well-intentioned mutant named Wang Ruoxu, in the city of Xi’an. Wang Ruoxu even
heavily relied on the Night Shard. Guess how the Night Shard repaid his friend and benefactor? He murdered all the mutant’s brothers, solely to gain control of Xi’an and its population for himself!”
“Then he went to the bombed City C to kill the last remaining troops on Earth! That squad had lasted almost four years, and they thought their long-awaited salvation had finally come. Yet their commander was murdered the moment he arrived at Xi’an.”
“The Night Shard has used every bloody method under the sun to maintain his regime. Anyone who dissatisfies him the slightest, he slaughters!”
The 3D imager promptly popped up a model of the Night Shard, hands stained with blood, cruel eyes, surrounded by massive piles of corpses as he towered atop a mountain, one hand grasping an enemy’s decapitated skull.
“His most common technique is to kill local leaders of mutant groups and take over their territory.”
Now the hall was shown an animation of many mutants crawling and struggling before a black-clad Night Shard, his feet planted in bloody remains, appearing altogether malevolent and terrifying.
“Qinglong was the last mutant on Earth who could compete with the Night Shard. But, for some hidden purpose of his own, the Night Shard is using this Qinglong incident to incite all the mutants’ hatred towards us, the Federation!”
“We are the elite of mankind, the hope of humanity! The Night Shard though, he’s a brutal savage. He doesn’t deserve to be our friend.”
“You think compromising with him will work? Go ahead, hand me over. If my death ends the Night Shard’s ambitions, then I’m not afraid to die. But he won’t be satisfied. The military, Luoshi Research, they all had a hand in Qinglong’s death too. That lunatic devil already has the ulterior goal of ruling over all of humanity! He wants us to crawl under the weight of his foot, just like those mutants do. Give over one or two people to him, and the Federation will get what it wants?!”
Practically shouting himself hoarse while gesticulating like an overwrought actor on a stage, Ouyang Yi successfully shocked and awed his audience.
Still, the fear in everyone’s hearts couldn’t be dispelled. Not now that they knew the Night Shard had the ability to directly drop a nuclear bomb on the moon. If he wasn’t happy, he could reduce the Federation to flying flakes of ash.
What was to be done?
The whole hall felt like they were about to collapse and resorted to mumbling into one another’s ears again, considering themselves driven into a corner.
Finally someone couldn’t bear it any longer and opened their mouth: “How about……we tell the Night Shard the truth? Appeal for forgiveness?”
Ouyang Yi instantly retorted. Because he knew the others might have a shot at the Night Shard’s forgiveness. However when it came himself, it was absolutely impossible.
Quarrelling erupted after Ouyang Yi’s rejoinder, unchecked until a young staff member burst into the hall.
There were less than a hundred people in the hall, and everyone understand the contents of the meeting to be a matter of upmost confidentiality. Confronted with the intrusion of a lower staff member, people simultaneously ceased their noise-making, the hall turning suddenly deathly quiet.
The staff member had no idea what all the racket had been about, yet he was so excited he was almost dancing about: “Big news, big news!”
Nevermind no one there wanted to hear big news. They’d had enough ‘big news’ to tie them into knots already.
The president was on tenterhooks though, so he bit the bullet: “What news?”
“The curvilinear theory formula!” The staff member was almost shouting in his glee, “The great Ai Ba, after ten exhaustive months, has finally verified the correct formula! The test was successful! The ship that did the jump through space has returned with cosmic matter from ten light-years away!”
After another long moment of stupified silence, the hall broke out in roars of celebration.
The curvilinear theory formula had been proven, the experiment verified, opening up many, many new things for scientists. However, for most of the people in the hall, it only meant one thing—they could now leap through space. And that meant they could thoroughly free themselves of the Night Shard. Along with no more remaining stranded on the moon.
Within the vast universe, there were innumerable planets with environments similar to Earth. Yes, too many to count.
There, there’d be no more deep grudges with some Night Shard mutant, no nasty, vicious freak out for their blood. The Federation didn’t even have confront the whole Qinglong situation.
The president was so beside himself with relief he walked the whole crowd over to Ai Ba’s laboratory, asking the staff member: “Why did you come? Where’s Ai Ba?”
The staff member breathlessly replied: “After the success of the experiment, he passed out from the emotion of it all. He hasn’t come to yet.”
Unfortunately, after Ai Ba did wake up, the Federation’s overall cheerful mood became cloudy once again.
The Federation’s Planning Committee and the Manufacturing Department convened a meeting calculation what it would take to build a ship to carry the entire Federation. The end result was that the fastest they could possibly build such a spaceship would be a month.
While the deadline given by the Night Shard was only two hours away.
“For the present, our only option is……delay and deceive. Those two strategies.” After much debate, it was became unanimous. However, right now, what was the Federation going to show the Night Shard? They couldn’t very well show him a corpse.
“I propose the Presidential Recording system be activated.” A senior military official suggested. “We’ve been developing a vital measurements imaging system for a few years now. It won’t look exactly the same here, but with judicious use of our electronic equipment, we should be able to make a convincing facsimile.”
“We find someone familiar with Qinglong, who can imitate his manner of speech and posture. Then the technicians modify the relevant parameters and send the video recording back to Earth. It might fool the Night Shard for long enough.”
“Fine, it’s all we’ve got. But who’s going to do it? Who among us knew Qinglong well enough to pull it off?”
The military promptly searched for Qinglong’s old colleagues, anyone who’d worked with him for a time before the last days.
However, even among those who’d known Qinglong, there were none capable of imitating him with the level of subtlety required.
Meanwhile, the technical staff were also running into difficulties. They had no real appearance date on Qinglong, and could only rely on description and a few photos, which was not enough to create a credible virtual image.
One more time, Ouyang Yi stepped forward: “Go to Luoshi Research and tell them to provide the body. Then let a restoration expert reconstruct the body. As for……mimicking Qinglong. Except for Luo Ying herself, it seems the only person here familiar enough with Qinglong happens to be me!”
Luo Ying was in the process of recombining the specimen’s genes when she was told someone wanted to speak with her.
What she was told nearly caused her to crumble. Violently trembling, she went back to her research room, watching the military go back and forth, taking research materials. Her heart aching like it was disintegrating away inside her.
The ten years she’d promised the military would be done in two months. Just two months. And she’d be able research independently, working on whatever she wanted. She’d even started imagining, how upon her return to Earth, Ye Fan would build her the most magnificent research institute. Then, in return, she’d develop suitable foodstuff for the mutants.
Luo Ying stared at the dead body laying in the useless fluid. For the first time, the magnitude of the crime she’d committed hit her.
Nutrient solutions sluggishly drained away from the body hollowed out of its heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys. The white bones, the bare skull, exposed.
It wasn’t that Luo Ying hadn’t had her doubts, and it wasn’t that she hadn’t guessed. It was only that, when handed the key to unlocking the secrets of the mutants, Luo Ying had chosen to numb herself. She’d even repeated to herself the military’s words: “This was an enemy of the Night Shard.” Using that sentence as a shield whenever her misgivings wouldn’t fade away fast enough.
But now, she knew everything. The truth had been made clear. Luo Ying fell into her chair like she was made of spineless mire.
DPM Chapter 83-Deception
Translated by Snowfall77
The Federation President’s face fell, unwilling to believe what he’d been told by Ouyang Yi: “What did you say?! Didn’t they say they were just tricking him to obtain few cells? What happened for it to get to this point?!”
Ouyang Yi spread his hands, assuming a chagrined expression: “I don’t know, but the military fucking did it. Maybe because Qinglong offended the Marshal? I hear they hated each other before the last days……only……”
Naturally, the hushed conversation between the two men couldn’t concealed from the people around them. Soon enough someone else furtively inquired about what was going on, and half a minute later everyone in the hall knew.
Some were quite stunned, aiming their ire at Ouyang Yi: “We did have Qinglong?! Didn’t you claim that the Night Shard was slandering us and using the disappearance of Qinglong as an excuse?!”
Some were more worried than anything: “We’re done for, once the Night Shard finds out……”
Still others weren’t in the mood to discuss it loudly, instead whispering in each other’s ears. Wasn’t it best to give the Night Shard whoever was responsible? Sacrifice the perpetrators for the sake of Federation peace? Or better yet, pin it all on Ouyang Yi?
His ears pricked up, Ouyang Yi heard their low tones. Obviously he was aware his popularity and usefulness were not they’d once been. And he had initiated the plan to deceive Qinglong in order to score some points, never expecting the military and Luo Ying to be so shortsighted and utterly ruthless.
Knowing himself on the cusp of another crisis, Ouyang Yi stood up straight, clearing his throat to address the crowd: “Everyone, this quibbling is pointless now. The mutant is already dead, and we need to keep this information secret while buying ourselves some time. If not, who knows what else could happen?”
“I know what you’re thinking. Hand over Ouyang Yi and our problems will be solved! But what if the Night Shard’s anger doesn’t stop with me? He’s an unreasonable demon. Since we’ve reestablished communication with the mutants, we’ve been gathering intelligence on him. You ought to see the Night Shard’s history, and the things he’s done!”
Ouyang Yi’s words had the desired effect of catching the attention of everyone in the hall.
Next, the hall’s 3D imaging system started up, Ouyang Yi having had the foresight to rush a presentation of the Night Shard’s ‘history.’
“There nothing much to say about him from before we left the Earth. The Night Shard was a common soldier. But he became infected and was unable to board his ship. Therefore he hates the Federation.” Ouyang conveniently skipped his own private encounters with Ye Fan to focus on newer information.
“This person, he was once given shelter by a well-intentioned mutant named Wang Ruoxu, in the city of Xi’an. Wang Ruoxu even
heavily relied on the Night Shard. Guess how the Night Shard repaid his friend and benefactor? He murdered all the mutant’s brothers, solely to gain control of Xi’an and its population for himself!”
“Then he went to the bombed City C to kill the last remaining troops on Earth! That squad had lasted almost four years, and they thought their long-awaited salvation had finally come. Yet their commander was murdered the moment he arrived at Xi’an.”
“The Night Shard has used every bloody method under the sun to maintain his regime. Anyone who dissatisfies him the slightest, he slaughters!”
The 3D imager promptly popped up a model of the Night Shard, hands stained with blood, cruel eyes, surrounded by massive piles of corpses as he towered atop a mountain, one hand grasping an enemy’s decapitated skull.
“His most common technique is to kill local leaders of mutant groups and take over their territory.”
Now the hall was shown an animation of many mutants crawling and struggling before a black-clad Night Shard, his feet planted in bloody remains, appearing altogether malevolent and terrifying.
“Qinglong was the last mutant on Earth who could compete with the Night Shard. But, for some hidden purpose of his own, the Night Shard is using this Qinglong incident to incite all the mutants’ hatred towards us, the Federation!”
“We are the elite of mankind, the hope of humanity! The Night Shard though, he’s a brutal savage. He doesn’t deserve to be our friend.”
“You think compromising with him will work? Go ahead, hand me over. If my death ends the Night Shard’s ambitions, then I’m not afraid to die. But he won’t be satisfied. The military, Luoshi Research, they all had a hand in Qinglong’s death too. That lunatic devil already has the ulterior goal of ruling over all of humanity! He wants us to crawl under the weight of his foot, just like those mutants do. Give over one or two people to him, and the Federation will get what it wants?!”
Practically shouting himself hoarse while gesticulating like an overwrought actor on a stage, Ouyang Yi successfully shocked and awed his audience.
Still, the fear in everyone’s hearts couldn’t be dispelled. Not now that they knew the Night Shard had the ability to directly drop a nuclear bomb on the moon. If he wasn’t happy, he could reduce the Federation to flying flakes of ash.
What was to be done?
The whole hall felt like they were about to collapse and resorted to mumbling into one another’s ears again, considering themselves driven into a corner.
Finally someone couldn’t bear it any longer and opened their mouth: “How about……we tell the Night Shard the truth? Appeal for forgiveness?”
Ouyang Yi instantly retorted. Because he knew the others might have a shot at the Night Shard’s forgiveness. However when it came himself, it was absolutely impossible.
Quarrelling erupted after Ouyang Yi’s rejoinder, unchecked until a young staff member burst into the hall.
There were less than a hundred people in the hall, and everyone understand the contents of the meeting to be a matter of upmost confidentiality. Confronted with the intrusion of a lower staff member, people simultaneously ceased their noise-making, the hall turning suddenly deathly quiet.
The staff member had no idea what all the racket had been about, yet he was so excited he was almost dancing about: “Big news, big news!”
Nevermind no one there wanted to hear big news. They’d had enough ‘big news’ to tie them into knots already.
The president was on tenterhooks though, so he bit the bullet: “What news?”
“The curvilinear theory formula!” The staff member was almost shouting in his glee, “The great Ai Ba, after ten exhaustive months, has finally verified the correct formula! The test was successful! The ship that did the jump through space has returned with cosmic matter from ten light-years away!”
After another long moment of stupified silence, the hall broke out in roars of celebration.
The curvilinear theory formula had been proven, the experiment verified, opening up many, many new things for scientists. However, for most of the people in the hall, it only meant one thing—they could now leap through space. And that meant they could thoroughly free themselves of the Night Shard. Along with no more remaining stranded on the moon.
Within the vast universe, there were innumerable planets with environments similar to Earth. Yes, too many to count.
There, there’d be no more deep grudges with some Night Shard mutant, no nasty, vicious freak out for their blood. The Federation didn’t even have confront the whole Qinglong situation.
The president was so beside himself with relief he walked the whole crowd over to Ai Ba’s laboratory, asking the staff member: “Why did you come? Where’s Ai Ba?”
The staff member breathlessly replied: “After the success of the experiment, he passed out from the emotion of it all. He hasn’t come to yet.”
Unfortunately, after Ai Ba did wake up, the Federation’s overall cheerful mood became cloudy once again.
The Federation’s Planning Committee and the Manufacturing Department convened a meeting calculation what it would take to build a ship to carry the entire Federation. The end result was that the fastest they could possibly build such a spaceship would be a month.
While the deadline given by the Night Shard was only two hours away.
“For the present, our only option is……delay and deceive. Those two strategies.” After much debate, it was became unanimous. However, right now, what was the Federation going to show the Night Shard? They couldn’t very well show him a corpse.
“I propose the Presidential Recording system be activated.” A senior military official suggested. “We’ve been developing a vital measurements imaging system for a few years now. It won’t look exactly the same here, but with judicious use of our electronic equipment, we should be able to make a convincing facsimile.”
“We find someone familiar with Qinglong, who can imitate his manner of speech and posture. Then the technicians modify the relevant parameters and send the video recording back to Earth. It might fool the Night Shard for long enough.”
“Fine, it’s all we’ve got. But who’s going to do it? Who among us knew Qinglong well enough to pull it off?”
The military promptly searched for Qinglong’s old colleagues, anyone who’d worked with him for a time before the last days.
However, even among those who’d known Qinglong, there were none capable of imitating him with the level of subtlety required.
Meanwhile, the technical staff were also running into difficulties. They had no real appearance date on Qinglong, and could only rely on description and a few photos, which was not enough to create a credible virtual image.
One more time, Ouyang Yi stepped forward: “Go to Luoshi Research and tell them to provide the body. Then let a restoration expert reconstruct the body. As for……mimicking Qinglong. Except for Luo Ying herself, it seems the only person here familiar enough with Qinglong happens to be me!”
Luo Ying was in the process of recombining the specimen’s genes when she was told someone wanted to speak with her.
What she was told nearly caused her to crumble. Violently trembling, she went back to her research room, watching the military go back and forth, taking research materials. Her heart aching like it was disintegrating away inside her.
The ten years she’d promised the military would be done in two months. Just two months. And she’d be able research independently, working on whatever she wanted. She’d even started imagining, how upon her return to Earth, Ye Fan would build her the most magnificent research institute. Then, in return, she’d develop suitable foodstuff for the mutants.
Luo Ying stared at the dead body laying in the useless fluid. For the first time, the magnitude of the crime she’d committed hit her.
Nutrient solutions sluggishly drained away from the body hollowed out of its heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys. The white bones, the bare skull, exposed.
It wasn’t that Luo Ying hadn’t had her doubts, and it wasn’t that she hadn’t guessed. It was only that, when handed the key to unlocking the secrets of the mutants, Luo Ying had chosen to numb herself. She’d even repeated to herself the military’s words: “This was an enemy of the Night Shard.” Using that sentence as a shield whenever her misgivings wouldn’t fade away fast enough.
But now, she knew everything. The truth had been made clear. Luo Ying fell into her chair like she was made of spineless mire.
