191: Chapter 191 The Ultimate Showdown: Money vs. Power

73 seconds after the freeze order took effect, the old shareholders' counterattack arrived.

It wasn't an attack on the worlds.

It was a direct assault on the rules themselves.

The operation interface before Lin Chen suddenly distorted, and all data streams began flowing in reverse—it wasn't a system malfunction; the underlying physical laws were being forcibly rewritten. Within the dimensional gap he occupied, the gravity constant began fluctuating wildly: 0.1 times normal, 3 times, 100 times, 0.001 times...

"President Lin!" Zhang Hao's agonized scream came through the communication channel. "My body... it's deconstructing!"

On the monitoring screen, Zhang Hao's virtual body seemed to be torn apart by an invisible hand, data streams gushing forth like blood. This wasn't a physical attack; it was his existential attributes being tampered with—the old shareholders had mobilized their last-reserved "primordial rule authority," directly modifying Zhang Hao's "life definition to non-life."

"Purchase 'Existence Stabilization'!" Lin Chen roared, pulling up the marketplace.

[Existence Stabilization Right (Single Target) Price: 5 billion dimension points]

[Purchase?]

[Yes]

Golden light enveloped Zhang Hao, and his body reconstituted.

But the old shareholders acted simultaneously.

The seventeen remaining shareholders pooled their final strength and activated the ultimate weapon they had buried deep within the platform—the Rule Zero-Reset Protocol.

That wasn't an attack on any single individual.

It aimed to reset all subsequently added rules on the entire platform to zero.

Including the Free Trade Convention Lin Chen had just established, the dimension tax system, the World Autonomy clauses... every rule he had modified since taking office would be erased.

"They're resorting to mutual destruction," Su Qingyu analyzed the data streams. "If the rules are reset to zero, the platform will revert to its state three hundred years ago—they regain control, and all the foundations we've built will vanish!"

[Rule Zero-Reset Countdown: 30 seconds]

Lin Chen immediately purchased the [Rule Stabilization Right].

Price: 100 billion dimension points

[Purchase Successful]

[Rules related to your personal authority have been reinforced]

But it could only protect his own portion.

The platform's public rules were still collapsing.

The light of the Free Trade Zone began to fade, the dimension tax system reported errors, and the World Autonomy clauses turned into garbled code one by one...

"Elder Mo!" Lin Chen connected to the Rule Advisory Panel. "Is there a way to counter this?"

"Yes! But it requires a sky-high price!" Mo Shan yelled back. "Once the Rule Zero-Reset Protocol is activated, it can only be overridden from a higher level—we need to purchase the 'Temporary Supreme Rule Modification Right.' The price is..."

He quoted a figure.

Ten trillion dimension points.

Lin Chen's current account balance: less than 1% of a hundred trillion, far from enough.

Countdown: 22 seconds

"Initiate emergency financing!" Lin Chen opened the Free Trade Zone's broadcast channel, addressing all worlds and viewers currently trading:

"Right now, I need ten trillion dimension points."

"Lend it to me, 20% interest, repaid in ten minutes."

"If you don't, the rules reset to zero, and everything returns to the exploitative era of three hundred years ago."

"Choose."

Silence.

Two seconds.

Then, funds flooded in like a tsunami.

Not as loans.

As investments.

The first to transfer funds was the Hermetic Order (the civilization that previously spent three trillion to buy a reincarnation slot), directly sending five trillion with a message: "No need to repay. We're investing in your future."

The second was the top-tier tycoons among the 120 million paying viewers, collectively pooling three trillion: "The medicine mustn't stop. If the rules reset, our emotional dosage will be gone."

The third was the platform's internal World Development Fund—Su Qingyu urgently allocated two trillion.

Ten trillion, secured.

Countdown: 15 seconds

Lin Chen clicked to purchase.

[Temporary Supreme Rule Modification Right] activated.

He obtained ten seconds of "god-tier authority"—allowing him to modify any rule on the platform, including the ongoing Zero-Reset Protocol.

But he didn't directly stop the reset.

Instead, he did something even more ruthless.

"Locate the source code of the Rule Zero-Reset Protocol," Lin Chen ordered Mo Shan. "Then—bind it to the existence definitions of those seventeen old shareholders."

Mo Shan instantly understood. "You want the protocol to reset them to zero as well when it executes?"

"Correct." Lin Chen sneered. "Since they want to erase all subsequently added rules, then they themselves—relative to the platform's original state—are also 'subsequently added.'"

Countdown: 8 seconds

The Rule Advisory Panel operated frantically.

Seven seconds later, the binding was complete.

The Zero-Reset Protocol would now identify those seventeen shareholders as "subsequently added rules requiring cleanup."

Countdown: 3 seconds

The old shareholders discovered it.

"No—!!!"

"Unbind it! Quickly, unbind—!"

Too late.

The countdown reached zero.

A golden light wave swept across the entire platform.

All rules Lin Chen had added were indeed temporarily erased—the Free Trade Zone closed, dimension tax collection halted, World Autonomy clauses vanished.

But when the light wave swept over the seventeen shareholders, it didn't stop.

Their existence definitions were judged by the Zero-Reset Protocol as "invalid subsequently added data."

One shareholder's body began turning transparent.

"I... my authority is disappearing..."

A second shareholder's data stream disintegrated.

A third let out a final wail before completely annihilating.

Seventeen old shareholders, annihilated.

They had killed themselves with their own ultimate weapon.

[Rule Zero-Reset Complete]

[Detected that all core authority holders have perished]

[Initiating Emergency Recovery Procedure: Restoring erased rules from the most recent backup]

The platform began self-repairing.

The Free Trade Zone's light reignited.

The dimension tax system rebooted.

World Autonomy clauses restored one by one.

But just as everyone breathed a sigh of relief—

The countdown stele deep within the Epoch Fissure suddenly plummeted.

7,402,319 → 7,000,000

7,000,000 → 5,000,000

5,000,000 → 3,000,000

"What's happening?!" Zhang Hao stared at the monitor.

"It's the Rule Zero-Reset just now..." Su Qingyu's face turned pale. "Even though it was restored, it created a brief rule vacuum—those worlds already wavering seized the vacuum period to collectively submit disconnect applications!"

Three million worlds detached simultaneously.

The activation threshold for the Epoch Restart Protocol was instantly breached.

Deep within the fissure, the black stele shattered.

In its place emerged a massive golden clock.

[Epoch Restart Protocol Activated]

[Final Phase Countdown: 10 minutes]

[This phase cannot be frozen, cannot be interrupted]

[The platform will enter a temporary restructuring state]

[Notice: All shareholder voting rights have been frozen]

[Absolute Veto Right will be available for use three seconds before restructuring begins]

Ten minutes.

Lin Chen only had ten minutes.

And his Absolute Veto Right could only be used once, in the final three seconds.

"Wait," Zhang Hao suddenly said. "If shareholder rights are frozen during restructuring... then President Lin, what about your Chairman authority?"

No sooner had he spoken than the operation interface before Lin Chen began graying out.

[Detected platform entering restructuring state]

[All administrative authorities temporarily revoked]

[You have been reverted to ordinary shareholder status (holding 58.2% shares, but voting rights frozen)]

He had lost control.

Now, he was merely a wealthy spectator.

"Hahaha..." The voice of Inspector 117 echoed from the void. "Lin Chen, you've lost. Once the restart begins, it cannot be stopped. In ten minutes, all worlds will be formatted, then rebuilt on a new epoch template. And you... will lose all memory like the other shareholders, becoming ordinary beings in the new epoch."

"Not necessarily," Lin Chen said.

He opened his account.

His balance still held ninety trillion dimension points.

He clicked on the marketplace, searching for [Authorities Usable During Restructuring].

A list popped up:

1. Restructuring Observation Right (observe the process, cannot intervene): 10 million dimension points

2. Data Backup Right (backup one's own memories): 100 million dimension points

3. Rule Imprint Right (implant one rule during restructuring): Price unknown (requires bidding)

The third one!

Lin Chen clicked for details.

[Rule Imprint Right]

Effect: Forcefully implant one new rule during the platform restructuring process, making it one of the new epoch's foundational laws.

Limitation: Only one rule can be implanted, and its content must not conflict with the restructuring's core objective.

Acquisition Method: After restructuring begins, enter open bidding. Highest bidder wins.

Bidding will commence in five minutes.

"So that's how it is," Lin Chen smiled. "The so-called restructuring is actually an auction. Whoever bids the most gets to set one rule for the new epoch."

"But you only have ninety trillion," Inspector 117 said. "And the Administration Bureau... has prepared five hundred trillion."

"Then let's see who has more money."

Lin Chen opened the Free Trade Zone's secured loan interface.

He pledged the platform's tax revenue for the next hundred years in its entirety.

Valuation: Eight quadrillion dimension points.

But this required the consent of all worlds—because they were the ones paying the taxes.

He broadcast again:

"Everyone, the situation is clear now."

"Either I win, and the new epoch operates by my rules—free trade, low taxes, autonomy."

"Or the Administration Bureau wins, everything returns to square one, and you continue being observed test subjects."

"I need money."

"A lot of money."

"Those willing to bet, authorize me to pledge your tax revenue for the next hundred years."

Ten seconds later.

The first world authorized.

The tenth.

The ten thousandth.

Seven million worlds, all authorized.

Lin Chen's available funds surpassed eight quadrillion dimension points.

Bidding began.

[Current Highest Bid: Epoch Administration Bureau, 500 trillion dimension points]

[Bidder: Lin Chen, 1 quadrillion]

[Epoch Administration Bureau, 2 quadrillion]

[Lin Chen, 5 quadrillion]

[Epoch Administration Bureau, 6 quadrillion]

[Lin Chen, 8 quadrillion (all-in)]

The Administration Bureau fell silent.

They hadn't anticipated Lin Chen daring to stake the entire platform's future.

Thirty seconds later.

[Epoch Administration Bureau withdraws from bidding]

[Congratulations to Lin Chen for obtaining the Rule Imprint Right]

"Now," Lin Chen watched the countdown—six minutes remaining. "I'm going to implant the rule."

He pulled up the editing interface.

Then, he inputted a simple rule:

[All beings in the new epoch have the right to know the complete truth of the 'Epoch Cycle' and freely choose whether to participate in the next cycle.]

Click confirm.

[Imprinting rule...]

[Detected conflict between this rule and restructuring objective (forced cycle screening)]

[Proceed with forced implantation?]

[Forced implantation requires tenfold funds: 800 quadrillion dimension points]

Lin Chen's account instantly zeroed out.

He now owed over seven hundred quadrillion.

But the rule was successfully implanted.

Countdown: 3 minutes 17 seconds

Deep within the fissure, cracks suddenly appeared on the golden clock.

Because the new epoch's foundational rules now included a "right to know and choose"—this fundamentally shook the forced cycle screening system.

"You..." Inspector 117's voice carried shock. "Doing this will cause the entire cycle system to collapse! Without forced screening, the very purpose of the Epoch Administration Bureau's existence—"

"Then find a new purpose for existence," Lin Chen said.

Countdown: 2 minutes 59 seconds

Platform restructuring entered its final phase.

The usage window for the Absolute Veto Right was about to open.

Lin Chen stared at that three-second window.

Then, he did something no one expected.

He forfeited using the veto.

Instead, using his last bit of credit, he purchased the [Restructuring Process Acceleration Right].

[Pay all remaining credit to accelerate the ten-minute restructuring to three seconds?]

[Yes]

Time flow accelerated wildly.

Ten minutes of restructuring completed within three seconds.

And the usage window for the Absolute Veto Right was skipped during the acceleration.

Restructuring complete.

New epoch rules took effect.

All worlds, all beings, simultaneously received a system notification:

[You have obtained 'Epoch Truth' access permission]

[You have obtained 'Cycle Participation' choice right]

[You have the right to know: the world you inhabit is an Epoch Administration Bureau testing ground. You have the right to choose: whether to continue participating in the next cycle screening.]

Silence.

Then, an eruption.

Seven million worlds exploded in uproar simultaneously.

The Epoch Administration Bureau's monitoring backend showed countless worlds initiating collective votes:

[Continue participating in the cycle?]

[Voting Result: No (99.7%)]

The Administration Bureau's foundation was shaken.

Because the rule Lin Chen implanted wasn't about resisting restructuring.

It was about rewriting the game rules.

Now, the beings knew the truth and chose to opt out.

If the Administration Bureau tried to force the cycle again, it would violate its own established principle of "respecting choice rights."

"You've won," Inspector 117's voice held weariness for the first time. "But the new epoch... also needs administrators. The Bureau can transform, cooperate with you."

"Agreed," Lin Chen said. "But the terms—"

Before he could finish, his body suddenly shuddered.

He felt his connection to the platform's core solidifying.

A side effect of the accelerated restructuring appeared—his consciousness was permanently imprinted into the new platform's foundational code.

[Detected abnormal binding]

[Lin Chen's consciousness data has fused with the platform core]

[Fusion Degree: 17%...34%...62%...]

"Lin Chen!" Su Qingyu exclaimed. "You're becoming... the platform itself?!"

Lin Chen looked at his gradually digitizing hands and smiled.

"Since we're making the rules..."

"Then let me become the rules."

Fusion Degree: 100%

He vanished.

Yet was everywhere.

The first light of the new epoch shone into all worlds.

And Lin Chen's voice resonated deep within every being's consciousness:

"Welcome to..."

"The era of true freedom."

Outside the window, the old epoch ended completely.

And the new rules were being written...

By an existence formed from the fusion of one man and the platform.