Chapter 360: A Day in the Bottom Tier of the Dragon Nest

"Time limit reached!"

"A new Mystic Domain conquest mission has been initiated. You are about to enter the Mystic Domain: 【Dragon Nest Star System】."

"The time flow in this Mystic Domain is identical to that of the real world."

"Difficulty level of this Mystic Domain: Nightmare."

"Commencing conscription!"

"Ten, nine, eight, seven..."

During the countdown, Li Yu and an unknown number of other Demon Star Command holders were directly teleported by the authority and power of the Demon Star Command into a certain star system within the distant 【Chaos Universe】.

As the familiar, nauseating sensation of traversing worlds faded, Li Yu immediately felt a surge of "instinct" and "information" pouring into him.

Subsequently, the notification tone of the Demon Star Command sounded:

"For this conquest, a local identity has been arranged for all Command holders."

"You may follow your instincts to complete your adaptation to this Mystic Domain; this will maximize your safety."

"You may also break free halfway, though the consequences are unknown."

"Disaster Star Command holder, your current identity is: 【A production line worker at the Storm Military Factory, Lower City District, Dragon Nest Interstellar Empire's 18th Colony Planet.】"

"Hm?"

Even someone as knowledgeable as Li Yu was shocked at this moment.

If he remembered correctly!

The Mystic Domain he had descended into this time was a large-scale human settlement.

And according to some information he had previously learned, in the Chaos Universe, the human race lived very poorly, sometimes with a status even lower than the filthiest Rat-men.

Thus, Li Yu also held some stereotypes, anticipating that the humans in this universe would be like refugees.

But now, keywords like "Interstellar Empire," "Colony Planet," "Military Factory," and "Production Line."

It sounded as if humans had already established a vast colonial empire in this star system.

Just as Li Yu was surprised, he had already accepted the instincts poured into him by the Demon Star Command and began to live the life of a beast of burden as an ordinary production line worker for the day.

He had yet to carefully observe the specific work content, as well as other information such as the environment.

Because at this moment, basic information about this place began to emerge in his mind:

"Dragon Nest Third Empire!"

"As the name suggests, this is a powerful empire within the Dragon Nest star system that has iterated to the third generation."

"During the first generation, the Dragon Nest Empire broke free from its primitive, ignorant state and initially possessed the power to explore the starry sky."

"In the second generation, the Empire had developed a crude interstellar fleet and possessed the means for long-distance voyages."

"This third generation means the Empire possesses a large amount of black technology and forbidden secret arts obtained through collusion with various Evil Gods and major races."

"The main race of the Empire is 【Human】. Besides this, there also exist minority races such as Lizard-men, Star Ape-kin, Snake-men, Heteromorphs, Wandering Rat-men, Blood-kin, etc., as well as some low-intelligence sub-servant races within various colonial star systems."

"The ruling class of the Empire is composed of the Elder Council and the Imperial Clan."

"The composition of the Elder Council is very complex, with all races represented."

"And the Imperial Clan is human."

"Of course, since they can be called the 'Imperial Clan,' their life essence has already transcended the human race; both in terms of the power they possess and their lifespan, they are already powerful long-lived species."

"For certain reasons, the Imperial Clan implements high-pressure rule internally, especially against their own kind, who are the most numerous. Although the Dragon Nest Empire is the absolute hegemon of this star system, a nearly massive number of humans have been reduced to the existence of laborers and slaves."

"There is a maxim widely circulated in the Empire, specifically targeting the human race itself, especially the bottom-tier humans."

"Your breath belongs to the factory, your blood belongs to the gang, and your soul belongs to the Dragon Emperor."

"Here, bottom-tier humans are not considered people; they are merely consumables."

"Because of the high-pressure rule from the upper echelons and the exploitation system operating to the extreme... extremely chaotic beliefs have appeared within this star system. Absolute order is only on the surface; chaos and disorder are the only truth."

"Main Mission 1: 【Change the World】. All Command holders may use any means to change or reverse the operating rules and belief patterns of this place. When the Command holder's actions cause large-scale disturbances in relevant destiny indicators, the mission is considered complete, rewarding merit points of equivalent value."

"Main Mission 2: 【Anchor Point】, which is also a survival mission. All Command holders must try every possible way to survive in this star system for more than ten days. After the time limit, when leaving, merit points will be awarded based on the final number of days the Command holder survived."

"For other side missions, please explore them yourself."

"Everything obtained from this conquest mission can be brought out of the Mystic Domain."

"Special Reminder!"

"There exist a large number of Legendary-tier and even Demigod-tier powerhouses within the Dragon Nest star system, which, converted to the path of ascending to godhood, are Sequence 3 and above."

"And due to certain reasons, all Command holders may be targeted by local powerhouses; please be careful to hide your identity."

After hearing this basic information, Li Yu immediately and keenly discovered some blind spots.

He made more direct inferences and confirmed certain facts:

The Demon Star Command had been thoroughly seduced and assimilated by the Reincarnation Heavenly Net.

Therefore, there was no more killing of enemies in the main mission.

Nor was there any emphasis on opposing factions.

The authority of the Demon Star Command had expanded once again; at least the narrative power this artifact obtained from the Curtain Master was no longer limited to time-space bubble small worlds and could already act upon the Chaos Universe.

The pollution and invasion of the Boundless Spirit Realm by the Demon Star Command and the Reincarnation Heavenly Net were still continuing.

All Command holders were either vanguards or helpers.

After silently realizing this in his heart, Li Yu's attention turned back to this so-called Mystic Domain itself.

It could be said!

His eyes were opened.

He now understood the meaning of those keywords.

The Dragon Nest Third Empire was very powerful!

The main race was human, and the ruling class also originated from the human race.

But in essence, they were no longer human, but transcended long-lived species.

They turned around and exploited their former compatriots as laborers and slaves.

As for the purpose of doing this?

The answer to this question was provided after nightfall.

On this day of descending to the 18th Colony Planet, for the entire day.

Li Yu did not act rashly, but completely integrated into the local identity given by the Demon Star Command.

A dignified "True Person of Food-Bait" at Sequence 4 of the Spirit Venerable path actually worked a full day of hard labor like a sweatshop production line worker.

Of course, because everything was handed over to the instincts gifted by the Demon Star Command, he still had leisure time to depict it in his mind from the perspective of an onlooker:

"This day, Lower City District."

"Early in the morning, the rusted ventilation pipes emitted a harsh buzzing sound. In the collective dormitory of only fifty square meters, dozens of workers sleeping on large communal beds were burned awake by corrosive liquid droplets from acid rain seeping through the ceiling... including me, a laborer with an ordinary appearance, parents both dead, a name no one remembers, and no one cares about."

"Every laborer's breakfast was a starch block containing some industrial waste, and a bottle of radiation-regenerated water that flickered with green fluorescence and had been recycled who knows how many times."

"Afterward, the foreman would use a laser pointer to brand the day's production quota code on the back of everyone's hand. Those who failed to complete it would have their oxygen tube quota deducted for three days."

"Workers squeezed into the dilapidated magnetic levitation elevator. An abrupt accident occurred; the car was overloaded, causing the cable to snap. Three unlucky souls fell into the garbage disposal shaft hundreds of meters deep and died on the spot."

"Because the air pollution index in the Lower City District exceeded the standard by ten times, and the respiratory masks worn by the workers were all leaking second-hand ones, the metal dust accumulated in the lungs was enough to ensure the average lifespan of most workers did not exceed thirty-five years."

"The worker I was disguised as worked on assembling laser gun core modules at the Storm Military Factory. One piece completed every minute, with a daily quota of hundreds. The dangers of the production line were also numerous; for example, within a single day, several laborers had their palms vaporized by plasma welding torches due to fatigue and mistakes. As soon as they became crippled, they were thrown into the furnace by the supervisor on the grounds of 'affecting efficiency,' not even leaving behind a complete corpse."

"Lunch, all workers had twenty minutes to eat. The food was 'Cockroach Paste' and 'Black Blood Soup.' The latter had some stimulants added, which could make people quickly perk up and maximize work efficiency, but the price was their lifespan."

"As for the former, it was said that the raw material was a giant scavenger beast called 【Space Cockroach】, which had a certain probability of causing pollution, making the consumer alienate into a Space Cockroach."

"Two people alienated on the spot and were killed by the Storm Mechanical Soldiers in the factory; their corpses were dragged away as raw material for new Cockroach Paste."

"Night shift, lottery system."

"One-third of all workers in the communal dormitory were randomly selected to 'voluntarily' give up sleep time to enter various reactors with excessive radiation for maintenance. The damage rate of protective suits was as high as ninety percent."

"According to some lucky old workers, at least a dozen people would die of acute radiation sickness tonight. After the corpses were processed, they would become the raw material for tomorrow's synthetic starch blocks."

These words, and the images derived from them.

Just looking at them was enough to make one's hair stand on end.

Even in a hell like Wanfu City, humans were not used like this—or more accurately, utilized.

The two words "beast of burden" were no longer enough to describe it; they were clearly the purest consumables.

What was even more shocking!

This was not just the treatment that workers received.

The lives of others in the Lower City District were not much better.

The tragic scenes he witnessed with his own eyes were many, many more:

"In the vast and dense shantytown of the Lower City District, a wife used industrial solvent to clean the skin of her husband burned by machine oil. The eldest daughter washed blood-stained sheets in a gang brothel, and the second son joined the 'Scavenger Boy Scouts' to rummage through the garbage dump for recyclable prosthetics, only to be bitten to death by aberrant beasts roaming within if he wasn't careful."

"A young worker who had just turned twenty but looked like he was fifty or sixty used a hidden laser diode to trade with a smuggler for 5 milliliters of painkillers to extend the life of his daughter who had a high fever... Housewives with too many children had to work in places selling their flesh to reduce the burden."

"Many gangs forcibly conscripted able-bodied men in their territories to participate in tomorrow's territorial battle. Those who refused were transformed into suicide bombs, and elderly people had to take the initiative to stand out and replace the children."

"A propaganda motorcade from the Upper City District, carrying holographic projectors, forcibly played 'Imperial Dragon Sound' in various shantytowns, claiming, 'Today's suffering is a trial; the ascended will return to the peaceful and sacred Dragon Homeland after death.' A hot-headed youth couldn't help but mutter, 'Why don't the Dragon-kin have to undergo trials?'"

"That night, he was reported by a neighbor and executed."

All these were what Li Yu saw and heard in one day.

The word "purgatory" was not enough to describe it.

As a "personal experiencer," if he hadn't wanted to plan for the long term, there were several times he almost couldn't help but rise up and attack.

With the power he possessed now.

Not to mention a mere Storm Military Factory, he could completely cover the entire Lower City District.

Those gangs and mechanical executioners who had mastered some black technology could all be wiped out with a single thought of his.

But according to the basic information provided by the Demon Star Command and the facts he had quietly probed and sensed throughout the day, he did not act rashly.

The Demon Star Command's description of this 【Dragon Nest Third Empire】 was that it was cruel and powerful.

This description was relative to the Command holders, and naturally included Li Yu.

Besides those eerie and horrifying black technologies!

Li Yu also sensed an unimaginably large number of Qi auras of divine entities, large and small.

Almost all of them were Evil Gods.

This aspect was somewhat similar to Wanfu City, but also vastly different.

Because Wanfu City was the territory of the "Curtain Master," who allowed various gods to establish strongholds there but would not allow them to run wild recklessly.

For example, previously, once there were signs of losing control, the City Lord's Mansion would immediately issue a narrative curse.

The sects and Evil Gods themselves that ran wild would all suffer backlash.

But here, it could be said that there were no taboos.

A large number of Evil Gods had successively supported their own "agents," whether they were those bloody gangs, the human upper echelons, or those minority races with special privileges... because it was a True God endowment system, these existences did not need to cultivate and did not need to worry about costs and side effects.

All they had to do was try their best to please the Evil Gods.

The Evil Gods were thus pleased, and even a piece of trash could become a Legendary-tier existence.

This world's operating rules!

Were like a dense web, spread out, sticking everyone to it.

The more they struggled, the more miserable they became.

There was not a shred of a way out.

The key was that this was only the 18th Colony Planet where he was currently located.

"The Dragon Nest Third Empire possesses a total of dozens of colony planets, guarding the 【Dragon Nest Star】 in the central area."

"Most of the Imperial Clan, the humans known as 'Dragon-kin,' live on this planet."

"Dragon Nest Star is also the planet in the entire star system that is rarely 'invaded by war'."

"As for the other planets!"

"Every year, they suffer from large-scale invasions and wars of various sizes. A batch of residents is slaughtered and devoured by invaders, and then a batch is immigrated from other planets to continue operating..."

"This is one of the reasons why the Dragon Nest Empire maintains high-pressure rule and operates crazily."

"Eternal and endless war demands."

"Not just defensive, the Dragon Nest Empire itself is also one of the external aggressors."

It seemed to be to verify Li Yu's thoughts.

At this moment, in the dead of night.

The Lower City District, which had never known peace, suddenly sounded an extremely sharp alarm. The content was something all the poor were extremely familiar with, but would always fear: invasion.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 361 =====