True Apocalypse Game

As a small South American country, Colombia was previously known internationally for two main things: being the homeland of Marquez, the master of magical realism and author of *One Hundred Years of Solitude*, and its rampant drug trade.

In the 1980s, Colombia’s drug production and sales accounted for eighty percent of the Eagle Country’s drug market.

The head of the Medellin Group at the time, Pablo Escobar, was wealthy enough to rival a nation and was one of the seven richest people in the world.

In the beginning, Mexico was merely a middleman in the drug trade, profiting from the arbitrage. It wasn’t until Pablo was gunned down and the Medellin Group disintegrated that the "hardworking and brave" people of Mexico had a sudden epiphany:

’We can fucking make it ourselves! Who cares whose stuff those sons of bitches in the Eagle Country snort!’

After that, Colombia gradually faded from public memory. The only time it made the news was for the occasional gunfight between gang members fighting over the market share of avocado exports to the Eastern Power.

Due to its internal chaos, poverty, and high crime rate, Colombia had a poor international reputation, with many in wealthy nations in Europe and America viewing it as a country of thieves.

Musk continued:

"The data from that machine... even though I was under Hypnosis before, I can now recall the data flow. The commands were always received from the Medellin region of Colombia, and they’re tied to a contact. But the only thing I remember about this person is a string of numbers."

He immediately told the numbers to Shen Feng.

Hearing Musk’s words, Shen Feng nodded slightly.

’It wasn’t surprising that Cthulhu was hiding in Colombia.’

’After all, given Cthulhu’s typical MO, having just a few hideouts would be an understatement.’

’Besides, his prior intel had mostly pointed to the Central America region, which included Mexico and Colombia.’

He patted Musk on the shoulder and said:

"Go home, get some rest, build some electric cars and little rockets. Go party with some models. Just stay out of this kind of business from now on. It doesn’t suit you."

These Silicon Valley tech titans were on Shen Feng’s list of potential recruits for the Salvation Army. However, Shen Feng had temporarily ruled Musk out because his usual behavior was too erratic. He never expected the Purification Society to beat him to it, roping Musk into building some kind of giant Hypnosis device.

Musk nodded, once again expressing his profound gratitude to Shen Feng.

Ever since he was put under Hypnosis, it had been like a dream. He was controlled by an inner desire for the so-called Truth of the Cosmos. In a daze, he had come here, brought a few of his subordinates, joined the Purification Society’s team, and built this Hypnosis device beneath Mexico City.

The memory alone was terrifying.

"Which ones are your men?" Shen Feng asked.

Musk turned and pointed out two of his subordinates who were still alive.

Shen Feng snapped his fingers. The Gray Tide surged, and metal cocoons instantly enveloped the remaining Purifiers, swiftly consuming them until they vanished without a trace.

Once that was done, Shen Feng pulled on his hood and sunglasses. With his backpack on, he walked up the mound of earth created by the collapse, then leaped gracefully onto the road above.

The collapse had already drawn a crowd of onlookers from the neighborhood. Shen Feng, backpack in tow, squeezed through the throng and quickly vanished into the masses.

Down in the collapsed ruins of Spider Nest City, the Gray Tide continued to churn silently. It completely disassembled the mobile artillery piece, then gathered the largest Sacrificial Stone and its scattered fragments. It transported them away through an underground network that was gradually taking shape.

Musk sat on the ground in a daze for a long time before he finally seemed to come to his senses. He struggled to his feet, called over his two subordinates, and they began to climb their way out.

Some of the onlookers had found long ropes. They tossed them down, allowing the people below to grab on and be pulled to safety.

Musk, being a world-famous celebrity, was quickly recognized.

He immediately promised someone a large sum of money, bought a car on the spot, and headed for the airport with his two assistants.

The ruins of Spider Nest City were soon swarmed with people again, and the scramble for the ancient artifacts within quickly devolved into a free-for-all.

This time, however, things quickly calmed down under the supervision of gang members and military police.

After all, without being driven into a frenzy by Hypnosis, no one dared to cross the gangs of Mexico.

It was its own kind of order, in a sense.

Sitting in the beat-up Toyota, watching the growing commotion in Mexico City outside his window, Musk still felt dazed.

Even though he had only become a Purifier due to Hypnosis, he remembered everything that happened with perfect clarity.

He now understood that the Purification Society was just a bunch of antisocial scum bent on destroying the world, while the so-called Antichrist they vilified was, in fact, the world’s true Savior.

A being truly worthy of reverence.

’Who is this mysterious Antichrist, really?’

’The information he shared about the Parallel Cosmos was clearly all true; there wasn’t a hint of deception.’

The thought of all the bizarre Parallel Cosmos he had witnessed made Musk’s blood boil with excitement. He wished he could instantly become a friend, or even a subordinate, of this mysterious Antichrist, just to get closer to those endless, wondrous mysteries.

Just then, his pocket buzzed violently.

Startled, Musk pulled out his phone.

’I could’ve sworn I turned this off,’ he thought. ’Who is it?’

A line of text glowed on the otherwise dark screen:

Do you wish to understand the Truth of the Cosmos?

Below it were two options: Y/N.

Musk frowned and tapped Y.

Another question immediately appeared:

Do you wish to seek the Truth of reality?

Again, there were two options.

Feeling like he had nothing to lose, he instantly tapped Y without a second thought.

In the next instant, a blood-red eyeball icon appeared on the screen with a line of bold text beneath it:

Welcome to the True Apocalypse Game!

On the plane to Colombia, Shen Feng allowed himself a slight smile as he imagined Musk’s reaction to seeing the True Apocalypse Game.

The Salvation Army had now grown to tens of thousands of members, but that was still a far cry from recruiting all the world’s elites.

’Looks like I need to pick up the pace.’

’After all, if I don’t recruit them, the Whisperers and the Purification Society will, and that would be a loss.’

’It was a good thing Musk was only deeply hypnotized. If he’d been a devout Purifier, I might have had to eliminate him outright.’

’And that would have been a real waste.’

The flight from Mexico to Medellin, Colombia, was short.

Only after arriving did Shen Feng realize that Colombia’s second-largest city, once the heart of the great kingpin Pablo’s Cocaine empire, had gradually returned to a state of peace.

The city is nestled in the Andes Mountains at an altitude of 1,500 meters. Its pleasant, year-round climate is suitable for growing almost any crop, earning it the nickname "The City of Eternal Spring."

With his backpack on, Shen Feng looked like any other tourist as he walked through the city.

The various churches and low-slung buildings with their unique local style looked idyllic against the blue sky and white clouds.

A smile on his face, Shen Feng strode along the stone-paved road, heading toward the outskirts of Medellin.

Jingwei had already cracked the string of numbers he got from Musk.

It was a driver’s license number. They had found its owner, his residence, and the places he frequented.

A slum in the western suburbs of Medellin.

The deeper he went into the slum, the fewer tourists and friendly faces he encountered.

Clearly, while most of Medellin was relatively safe, it still had its no-go zones.

Just like certain rough neighborhoods in Detroit and New York.

Though the Medellin Group had collapsed with Pablo’s death in the 1990s, the crime here had never vanished.

Colombian narcotics police alone seized around 500 tons of drugs annually.

Even though the Mexicans had stolen the spotlight, Colombian criminals weren’t about to be outdone.

Soon, Shen Feng had been winding his way through the slum for over ten minutes, heading deeper into the heart of the dilapidated neighborhood.

At first, he’d encountered a few locals with kind eyes, some of whom even gave him looks that urged him to leave the area as soon as possible.

Further in, he saw scantily-clad streetwalkers with heavy makeup, and menacing tattooed men who stared at him without blinking.

But none of them said anything to Shen Feng; they didn’t even greet him.

This frustrated Shen Feng, who had been hoping to ask for information. He was just about to approach someone himself.

CLICK... The sound of a round being chambered suddenly came from behind him.

A hint of a smile touched Shen Feng’s lips.

’Finally, someone to ask for directions.’