269: Chapter 269 The True Face of the Innocent Alliance! They Want to Cleanse the Entire "Commercialized" World

The protective shield of the golden token completely shattered on its third flicker.

The liquid text surged forth like a ravenous beast, the nearest black tidal wave now only three meters from Lin Chen. At this speed, they would be completely engulfed in five seconds.

A critical moment.

Lin Chen did something Golden Glazed never expected: he pulled out the freshly printed [Zeroing Storm Debt Risk Diversification Bond] prospectus from his chest, tore off the cover, and threw it towards the oncoming liquid text.

The paper cover did not dissolve upon touching the black liquid.

Instead, it emitted a golden light.

The liquid text rapidly retreated as if encountering a natural predator, forming a vacuum circle around the cover.

"What's happening?" Golden Glazed was stunned.

"debt contracts," Lin Chen stared at the glowing cover. "The liquid text is the 'grudge of forgotten stories,' while debt contracts represent 'mandatory causal connections.' Grudges cannot erode contracts because contracts themselves embody a stronger form of 'narrative constraint.'"

He quickly tore off more pages from the bond prospectus and scattered them around.

Sheet after sheet transformed into golden points of light, forming a temporary protective circle around the two.

But the paper was limited; it could only last thirty seconds.

"Ask quickly!" Lin Chen shouted at Golden Glazed.

Golden Glazed turned to the mummy controlled by the crystal: "What is the true purpose of the Purity Alliance?!"

The mummy's mouth opened and closed, its voice seeming to come from the depths of a deep well:

"...The Purity Alliance... was never about 'protecting nature'..."

"...That is merely the surface slogan..."

"...Their true goal... is to purge..."

"...To purge all... 'overly commercialized' worlds..."

"...Because those worlds... give birth to... 'Gods of Capital'..."

The mummy's hollow eye sockets turned towards Lin Chen:

"...You... are the evidence..."

"...When a world's commercialization index... exceeds a critical threshold..."

"...That world's 'Capital Law'... materializes... becoming an independent divine persona..."

"...And you... Lin Chen... are evolving in that direction..."

Lin Chen's mind exploded.

He suddenly remembered previous details: Why did the Zeroing Storm always prioritize attacking his star domain? Why did the seed of the heavenly dao specifically erase commercial concepts? Why did the Purity Alliance spare no effort to stop him?

Because he was a threat.

He was the nascent form of "Capital Ascending to Godhood."

"Who created the Purity Alliance?" Golden Glazed pressed.

The mummy's voice grew hoarser:

"...The founder... is..."

Before it could finish.

A black lightning bolt suddenly struck down from the sky, precisely hitting the crystal in the mummy's hand!

The crystal shattered!

The story world inside instantly crumbled, dissolving into countless points of light.

The mummy became a true corpse, collapsing to the ground.

The black lightning did not disappear after shattering the crystal. Instead, it twisted and reformed in the air, taking on a humanoid silhouette.

The silhouette gradually clarified.

It was an old man dressed in simple gray robes, with a benevolent face but eyes as cold as machinery.

"Inspector... Number Zero?!" Golden Glazed cried out involuntarily.

Lin Chen recognized him—this was the embodiment of the Narrative Layer rules he had seen at the shareholder meeting.

But this Number Zero was different from the pure rule entity at the meeting. There was a trace of... human-like obsession in his eyes.

"You should not have known this," Number Zero spoke, his voice utterly flat. "The Purity Alliance was founded by me three thousand epochs ago. The purpose is exactly as he said—to prevent Capital from Ascending to Godhood."

He looked at Lin Chen: "Your growth rate has exceeded my predictions. Therefore, I activated the contingency plan: the Zeroing Storm."

"You mean..." Lin Chen's pupils contracted, "the Zeroing Storm is not a natural phenomenon, but something you artificially created?!"

"Yes," Number Zero admitted frankly. "By activating the seed of the heavenly dao, I triggered a disturbance in the foundational concepts of the Narrative Layer, which in turn initiated the Zeroing procedure. The original plan was to purge all star domains with excessive commercialization indices, including yours. But I never expected..."

He paused: "...that you could turn the crisis into a business opportunity, even leveraging the debt of the Zeroing Storm to create financial products. This proves your 'Divinity of Capital' has begun to awaken."

Lin Chen's mind raced.

If Number Zero was the mastermind, then everything made sense—why Inspector 117 died, why the Kindling Project suddenly launched, why the bank forced him to sign the gamble agreement...

It was all a setup.

"So you're appearing now," Lin Chen calmed down, "intending to personally eliminate me?"

"No," Number Zero shook his head. "I can no longer directly eliminate you. The bonds you issued have formed 'debt bindings' between you and over a hundred trillion investors. Eliminating you would cause their investments to be completely lost, leading to a collective questioning of the rules across the entire Narrative Layer—that would shake the foundation of my existence."

He floated before Lin Chen and extended a hand: "I want to make a deal with you."

"What deal?"

"You voluntarily abandon the path of 'Capital Ascending to Godhood,' I stop the Zeroing Storm and forgive all your debts. You can take everything you currently have, go to a peaceful star domain, and live out your days as a wealthy man."

The terms sounded tempting.

But Lin Chen smiled.

"Lord Number Zero," he said, "you've made a commercial mistake."

"What mistake?"

"You've exposed your hand to me," Lin Chen looked directly into Number Zero's eyes. "You don't dare eliminate me directly because you fear shaking the rule foundation. This means your identity as an 'embodiment of rules' has a certain dependency—on the 'recognition' or 'compliance' of all living beings. Once a large number of beings no longer believe in your rules, you will weaken."

Number Zero's expression fluctuated for the first time.

"Therefore," Lin Chen continued, "our negotiating positions should be reversed—it's not me begging you to stop, but you begging me not to continue commercialization. Because every expansion of my business increases the influence of the 'Capital Law' and weakens your 'primordial rules.' The longer this drags on, the more passive you become."

Golden Glazed stared at Lin Chen in shock.

She never expected this man's first reaction at a life-or-death moment wasn't survival, but... analyzing his opponent's weakness.

Number Zero remained silent for a full ten seconds.

Then, he suddenly smiled—a cold, mechanical smile.

"Very well," he said. "Then I'll change my approach."

He snapped his fingers.

The surrounding liquid text suddenly all retreated. The grey desert began to tremble, the ground cracking open with countless fissures.

From the fissures rose thirteen gigantic stone pillars.

Atop each pillar floated a seed of the heavenly dao, each glowing with a different light—cultivation version, magic version, technology version, supernatural version... precisely the thirteen seeds of the Purity Alliance.

"Since you insist on becoming a god," Number Zero's voice echoed between heaven and earth, "then I will give you a chance to ascend."

"The thirteen seeds of the heavenly dao contain the ultimate laws of thirteen 'anti-commercial concepts.' If you can absorb and refine them all, you can become a true 'God of Capital,' transcending the rules of the Narrative Layer."

"But—"

Number Zero paused, his tone turning dangerous:

"This process requires you to abandon all your existing humanity."

"Your emotions, memories, interpersonal relationships, even your attachment to Su Qingyu, your friendship with Arrogant Dragon, your... whatever with Golden Glazed... all must be erased."

"Because a god does not need these."

The thirteen seeds glowed simultaneously, their light weaving together in the air to form a gigantic contract:

[Ascension to Godhood Agreement]

Party A: Inspector Number Zero

Party B: Lin Chen

Terms:

1. Party A provides the thirteen seeds of the heavenly dao to assist Party B in ascending to godhood.

2. Party B must voluntarily strip away all human components, transforming into a pure divine persona.

3. After ascension, Party B shall not interfere with the normal operation of the Narrative Layer.

4. If Party B refuses, Party A reserves the right to initiate the Final Purge Procedure—formatting all worlds associated with Party B.

Below the contract were the names of everyone: Su Qingyu, Arrogant Dragon, Zhang Hao, Golden Glazed, and others.

Their existence was written into the list of "associated worlds."

"Choose," Number Zero said. "Ascend to godhood, live eternally alone. Or... let them be buried with you."

Lin Chen looked at the contract, then at the pale-faced Golden Glazed beside him.

He remained silent for a long time.

Then, he looked up and said to Number Zero:

"I have a better proposal."

"Speak."

Lin Chen called up his system interface and clicked on a never-before-used function—[Divine Persona Simulator].

This was a hidden function unlocked after his Wealth System reached max level. It could simulate the might of the "God of Capital," but each use consumed one trillion dimension points and lasted three minutes.

He clicked to activate.

Instantly, an indescribable aura emanated from him.

It wasn't a display of raw power, but a suppression at the rule level—the surrounding liquid text began arranging itself automatically, turning into neat financial reports; collapsing spatial rifts began self-repairing, the repair traces forming balance sheets; even the thirteen seeds of the heavenly dao began to tremble slightly, their surface glow turning into flickering numbers.

"You..." Number Zero showed astonishment for the first time.

"I don't want to become a god," Lin Chen smiled. "I want to prove that even without becoming a god, I can achieve god-like effects using capital methods."

He called up the data from his recently issued bonds:

"Currently, over three hundred trillion investors hold my bonds. If I die, they would lose everything. So essentially, I've already formed an 'interest community' with three hundred trillion beings."

"If you want to move against me, you have to get past them first."

"And they—" Lin Chen enlarged the bondholder list, "—include Morgana, Alpha, the Universe Bank, even some employees of your own Inspector department."

Number Zero's expression completely changed.

"Therefore," Lin Chen concluded, "my new proposal is: you stop all actions against me, and I guarantee the Capital Law will not spiral out of control. We coexist peacefully."

"If you refuse..."

He clicked on the system interface, calling up a hidden command:

[God of Capital · Simulated Divine Persona Self-Destruct Program]

[Effect: Instantly releases all debt contracts, detonating the financial system of the entire Narrative Layer]

[Estimated Consequences: Three hundred trillion investors bankrupt, rule trust system collapses, Inspector authority fails]

[Confirm Execution?]

Lin Chen's finger hovered over the confirmation key.

"Choose, Lord Number Zero."

"Do you want a me who might become a god, or... mutual destruction?"

The desert fell silent.

The glow of the thirteen seeds of the heavenly dao began to flicker unstably.

Number Zero stared fixedly at Lin Chen, hesitation appearing in his eyes for the first time.

And just then—

Golden Glazed suddenly groaned and knelt on the ground.

On her wrist, the ice-blue Morgana mark was turning pure black.

From the mark came Morgana's intermittent voice:

"Lin... Chen..."

"Be careful... Number Zero... he still has..."

Before she could finish.

The mark exploded.

Golden Glazed vomited blood and fell unconscious.

Where she collapsed, a line of text written in black blood appeared:

"Number Zero's true identity is—"

"The Narrative Layer's 'Original Author's'—"

The text stopped abruptly halfway.

Because Number Zero had already acted, erasing that line.

He looked at Lin Chen, his eyes turning cold again:

"It seems our negotiation has broken down."

"Since you choose war..."

"Then I will give you war."

His form dissipated.

The thirteen seeds of the heavenly dao activated simultaneously, hurtling towards Lin Chen!