Facing an Ancient God for a Year

Chapter 2229: Chapter 2224: King of Crucifixion (14)

Knowledge is power. Regarding the operational mechanism of Lord Ariel Ai, I might know one or two things.

And just like how Lady Corin impatiently made a move earlier, her suspected ally under pressure committed the same mistake—this overly flexible behavior doesn’t quite fit Ariel’s character.

As mentioned before, some subtle differences can only be experienced by those within—like knowing whether the person chatting with you is really human.

If the Night Watchman has any grasp of Ariel’s situation, then "mimicry" would almost certainly be the most distinctive label.

Encounters between Li Gui and Li Kui are generally quite awkward.

It has been mentioned earlier as well, by the time one reaches the level of High Tier Transcendent, recognizing people is never about appearance; the nature of power is the core identifier.

So although Fu Qian appears calm and composed, he hasn’t even adjusted his appearance until now and used the name Ariel to directly expose two groups.

Yet with the absolute disadvantage in power compatibility, the hope to win this game of real versus fake looks very slim.

Fu Qian is not optimistic enough to mimic Ariel’s Sea of Light, though the effect of the Decree Residue similarly blinds people.

Using this method to deceive is indeed underestimating the heroes of the world.

So almost immediately, Fu Qian decided to rely on artistic conception to win.

It is well known that making something look realistic is just the first step in artistic creation; the essence is crucial.

Therefore, Fu Qian’s strange behavior at the moment is never an abandonment after being exposed, but rather an insistence on "self."

Of course, he does not intend to rely only on the idea of "being burnt without running," to persuade others.

The core significance of this behavior is actually to resonate with a question everyone can think of—what am I here for?

If not Ariel, is there any reason for a high-level Transcendent to do this?

From the start, he straightforwardly announced himself, only to find "impersonating" Native Council members exposed, resulting in taking an attack from a High Tier Transcendent without any meaningful damage.

No one would do that; the more control someone has over transcendent power, the more inclined they are to think so—unless it’s a puppet that truly would stop at nothing to achieve a goal.

Hence, even to maintain their worldviews, the Night Watchmen would certainly ponder more.

Of course, this is not yet the end of the mimicry game.

...

The sea of light and heat finally receded, and Fu Qian looked ahead.

The rag doll remained.

Logically, after revealing its identity, it could have gracefully departed.

But it seemed that Fu Qian’s reaction made it feel somewhat discomforted, as it didn’t rush to leave.

It didn’t continue to display power either, just stood there dumbly, even showing some non-human sluggishness.

The situation fell into a stalemate, even the rag doll in the corner remained motionless.

Though the previous impact didn’t cover a large area, it still annihilated all three white-collar workers, leaving no trace.

Yet among such continuous commotion, the Night Watchman behind the other rag doll chose to keep watching.

It seems the mimicry behavior of the Native Council still has some confusing effects.

What a pity for young people... merely mimicking the opponent, how could they possibly win?

In that moment, Fu Qian sighed inwardly, instead moving himself, raising a hand.

...

A deja vu of cobalt blue.

Not just the hand, Fu Qian’s whole body at the moment was evidently quite spectacular.

Wide areas of skin were gone, flesh was fused into a glazed form, with a strange hue on the surface.

Yet this didn’t prevent Fu Qian from admiring it, with wisps of golden flame seeping through.

In a blink, the Native Council’s frenzied flame, aimed to sever ties at any cost, had already condensed into a ball in his palm, emitting a heart-palpitating destruction.

So you choose not to move?

There is a saying: those who imitate me die, those who resemble me perish—

With movements slow yet steady, Fu Qian stepped forward to offer the fireball.

So, will you move now?

This action has a meaning in spreading the flame, unlike the attack after revealing your identity.

Even if you continue mimicking and endure, you’re still weaker in abstraction—boom!

As expected, considering all this, realizing it couldn’t clear the suspicion, the rag doll holding Ariel’s power directly faded into the Void the next moment.

But the booming sound wasn’t emitted by it, rather resulted from Fu Qian’s suddenly accelerated movement before it could completely disappear, spreading firelight.

Humph, mere petty beings thinking they can understand the Native Council?

No pursuit followed, as the flame in Fu Qian’s hand slowly dissipated.

This whole series of transformations must have caught the sole audience’s eyes.

No pretense of ignorance—Fu Qian turned his head, locking eyes on the Needle Witch’s rag doll.

...

The situation is extremely complex and the problem very tricky.

Though speechless, Fu Qian still deciphered all this from that face.

No surprise, even the Needle Witch, truly connected to the Native Council, might be confused now.

This shows how much introducing a madman can disrupt the thinking of a group of smart people.

This is genuine pollution, harder to fend off than the golden flame.

In deep self-reflection, with Fu Qian metaphorically taking on the Night Watchman’s perspective, his mood seemed somewhat heavy—physically too, maybe?

During a hardly noticeable moment, the rag doll in the corner actually moved out a little.

Still staring over here, its surface even revealed threads of red akin to blood vessels and a dense net.

Suddenly, Fu Qian felt as if the same restraint was applied to him—it wasn’t over.

Obviously, it was Needle Witch attempting to restrict his movement.

But given what he had done, simply confining seemed too lenient for him—boom!

At that moment, the heavily ravaged building seemed pierced by the Heavenly Punishment Sword, a dazzling brilliance descended from the sky, hitting precisely the spot where Fu Qian stood.

...

This is more like it.

Appearing simultaneously elsewhere, Fu Qian recalled the fierce killing intent, indicating these were the methods that should be used against someone like him.

Reality isn’t a rule-based mystery; unless necessary, it’s true the Night Watchmen don’t wish to destabilize here, but that doesn’t mean they can’t.

Clearly, despite earning first place in Ariel’s mimicry contest earlier, it didn’t deter them from finding reasons to stay.

Why was he not apprehended?

Fu Qian glanced around, unfortunately finding no trace of any old friends from the Native Council.

Indeed, what he did was quite simple, before the "Ariel" rag doll expunged the Wriggling Seed implanted within, he directly used Extreme Hunger Infection to leap here.