Chapter 149

The lights in the conference room stayed on, and after several more hours of heated discussion and repeated weighing, time passed.

The ashtray was piled with cigarette butts, the coffee cups were empty to the bottom, and each face bore heavy fatigue, yet their eyes remained bright.

The people in the conference room came and went in batches, but the core few remained throughout.

They did not leave for meals except for essential bodily needs, and even sleep was at most a brief nap while waiting.

They obtained intelligence from Ye Lin, and after repeated cross‑checking and preliminary verification, they have essentially confirmed several core pieces of information.

The so‑called "game world" is most likely a parallel plane of their world; however, due to the presence of Mutation, that world has completely collapsed and now merely scrapes for survival in a wasteland.

The players did not arrive randomly; their consciousness traversed, "overlapping" or "fusing" with their counterparts in that world.

Another crucial point: one of the dominant forces in that world—the Church—conveyed a clear intent to cooperate through Ye Lin.

The Church said they too are plagued by "Soul Invasion" and hope to find its source and stop it together with them.

This shows the other side also recognizes the problem of the two worlds' connection: people in their world don't know when they will be replaced by people from this world, and when their people go to that world, they will bring the dangerous Mutation back here.

However, for now it appears they share a common enemy; the Church specifically named the company called "Dome".

This name is not unfamiliar to those present; from the painful testimonies of returning players, they have long heard of this company's notoriety—

capturing players, searching memories, and even using players for gruesome, inhumane human experiments.

Statistical data shows that the regions overseen by Dome are where players encounter the most incidents.

The Church also displayed cooperative sincerity; the mysterious Pope had Ye Lin recite several basic energy Runes.

Although Ye Lin herself is not a Special Ability Practitioner, when they handed the Runes to players who have awakened Aberrant Arts, they can indeed activate them; however, due to poor engraving materials and techniques, their effect is quite limited.

The other side provided this energy system completely unlike modern technology.

After that world experienced some "Great Cataclysm", the mainstream tech tree fractured; aside from the new energy mastered by Dome, the Church and most factions rely on technology that combines Runes with Aberrant Arts.

And in the future, if modern firearms cannot affect Aberrant Species, they will also need means to deal with Aberrant Species.

"The situation is clear," a security chief summarized in a hoarse voice, "we face a choice: whether to accept the cooperation proposal from the parallel‑world Church?"

"Cooperation? With a religious faction?"

A physicist wearing scholarly glasses furrowed his brow; although the Church seemed full of sincerity and even the Pope himself was negotiating, he still felt uneasy.

The other world wields that supernatural unknown power, and their understanding of it remains too scant; from the start they are doomed not to be on equal footing.

"What is their aim? Merely to solve 'Soul Invasion'? Might they use the chance to infiltrate their influence into our world? Don't forget, in their world 'gods' truly exist."

"But the threat of Dome is concrete and real."

The military representative spoke gravely; if cooperation is achieved, they could also leverage the Church's power to rescue compatriots trapped by Dome.

"If we refuse cooperation, how can we, with only our own strength, counter Dome's pursuit and persecution of players? Shall we stand by as our compatriots are captured and studied like livestock in that world?"

"And the Rune technology they provide......"

A female scientist in charge of researching Aberrant Arts had a spark in her eyes.

"Although only basic, it represents an entirely new path; if mastered, it could not only help us better combat Mutation but also possibly advance development in many other areas."

Fang Zhiyan spoke again, his voice calm.

"Cooperation is an inevitable choice; the key lies in the manner and bottom line of cooperation. What we need is not dependence but equality—a strategic partnership based on shared interests."

"What does the Church need from us? Besides jointly solving the 'Invasion' issue, do they also intend to use our strength to oppose Dome?"

He paused briefly, then posed a pivotal question.

"The Runes Ye Lin brought back, the Pope only let her note the most basic few, which means they are willing to share knowledge, but we need not elaborate on the Church's depth; this is a test and also a bargaining chip."

"We must set a red line," the veteran general declared resolutely, knowing that at such a moment they could not show weakness.

"Cooperation is possible, but we must ensure our sovereignty remains independent; moreover, the primary goal of cooperation is to safeguard players' lives, uncover the truth of the two worlds' connection, and halt the spread of Mutation."

"There is another issue," the official in charge of diplomatic affairs interjected promptly, reminding everyone.

"How can we establish a stable communication channel? At present we can only rely on players like Ye Lin who can shuttle back and forth to transmit information, which is far too inefficient."

The flow rates of the two worlds differ; while only a day has passed here, a full seven days have elapsed there.

The conference room fell silent again.

The pros and cons are now quite clear.

Cooperation could bring the urgently needed intelligence and technology, gaining allies to jointly confront Dome, but it also carries the risk of being exploited and of ideological infiltration.

Yet refusing to cooperate means players will continue to face that world's harshness in isolation, and the authorities' ability to obtain information and respond to the crisis will be severely limited.

Time ticks away second by second; if the pattern remains unchanged, the next possible 'return point'—midnight—is not far off.

They must make a decision within the limited time.

"Vote."

The veteran general looked around and said gravely.

"Those who agree to initiate preliminary contact and cooperation with the parallel‑world Church, provided clear red lines are set and contingency plans refined, please raise your hand."

Hands rose slowly in pairs; though some hesitated, ultimately more than half were raised.

The tangible threats and potential opportunities led most to grasp the olive branch from the other realm, even if it may be thorny.

Risk always accompanies profit.