True Apocalypse Game

In the real world, Nick’s eyebrows shot up. He typed a sentence into the game:

"Alright, Motia. Of course I’m interested."

This Motia was a fairly strong player, and his name was definitely an alias.

Over the past few days of fighting, Nick had gotten to know him and could sense that the man probably had a police background, though he didn’t know from which country.

Motia nodded and said slowly:

"Based on the two game missions the developer has released so far, they’re both strongly correlated with the real world and point directly toward the end of humanity. The mission in the Stone Statue Apocalypse even had us saving the world directly. This current nuclear war wasteland apocalypse clearly has the same inclination.

From this, we can see he must be in a high-ranking position, with access to a massive amount of insider information—perhaps even the most classified information from various countries. That would give him enough data to make his deductions and draw these conclusions.

It’s also worth mentioning that while we’ve seen many tragic stories in the game, the situations for children in peril have been relatively better. Most of the small quests we’ve done have been about rescuing children...

Furthermore, the developer has a profound anxiety about the outbreak of nuclear war. This suggests he likely lived through some critical moments of the Cold War—those times when the Doomsday Clock was infinitesimally close to midnight, like the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis."

Hearing Motia’s analysis, Nick also nodded lightly and said:

"Not bad. Please continue."

He had made a similar analysis himself, which was more or less the same as Motia’s. However, Nick also understood that all of this was just speculation.

"If he lived through the Cuban Missile Crisis, loves children, and has deep feelings about the Doomsday Clock, then his age becomes obvious—he should be around eighty... And he holds a high-ranking position, has an extremely powerful research team supporting him, and might even be part of a secret society..."

Nick turned to look at Motia, feeling once again that this man was not to be underestimated.

He said, "Indeed. Many of the developer’s actions resemble the behavior patterns of those secret societies... Mount Hsuan Hermitage? Freemasonry? The Beard Castle Group? The Skull and Bones Society? Or an Eastern one, like the Hongmen? Hassan ibn Sabbah’s Assassin Sect?"

Before Motia could say anything, the deputy brigade commander beside them shook his head and spoke:

"The methods of those secret societies aren’t this conspicuous. The developer of this game doesn’t seem to care at all about his real identity being discovered. He’s never even warned us not to leak information about the game. It doesn’t fit the behavioral pattern of a secret society..."

Nick glanced at him and teased, "Haha, I didn’t think the silent Bernie would be interested in this. So, buddy, do you have any theories of your own?"

Bernie was silent for a moment before saying slowly, "I think... this might not be the work of a team, but an individual... And this person... this person may have actually experienced the events in the game! Otherwise, the details couldn’t possibly be so meticulous and lifelike..."

Motia chuckled dryly. "Are you saying this developer personally experienced the Stone Statue Apocalypse and the nuclear war wasteland apocalypse? Haha, I don’t recall such major events ever happening on Earth. Did I miss the news that day?"

Bernie shook his head and continued, "...Perhaps... In any case, this really doesn’t seem like the work of a secret society..."

In a high-rise building somewhere in the northwest of Eagle Country, Bernie Lynch sat in front of his computer, controlling his game character. He shook his head slightly and muttered to himself in a voice only he could hear:

’...At the very least, it can’t be the Beard Castle Group. Even if we assassinated John F. Kennedy, we wouldn’t have the ability to create a terrifying game like this...’

The three of them talked in the game as their vehicle moved forward, only to find that the more they discussed it, the more confused they became. Many of the developer’s actions aligned with some of their theories, yet contradicted others.

Soon, they could see the white, snow-capped peak of Cheyenne Mountain and the winding mountain road in the distance.

Everyone immediately became alert.

This massive granite mountain was about to become their toughest nut to crack.

Even now, they still hadn’t figured out how to breach it. All they could do was wait for orders from the Legion Commander and the other brigades.

’I hope they have a plan.’

The convoy soon reached the foot of the mountain. Just as Nick was about to order his Sixth Brigade to rest, he saw men from the other brigades in the distance, seemingly charging directly up the mountain road toward the entrance of the Cheyenne Mountain Military Base!

"Motherfucker! Have those bastards lost their minds? They’ll be stopped by the gates designed to withstand a nuclear blast, then slaughtered by the automated weapons hidden there!" Nick roared.

It wasn’t just that. Cheyenne Mountain itself could sustain a large population. It might even have more guardian tribes than Yellowstone National Park. A rash attack would result in heavy casualties.

Just then, his communicator crackled with static:

"...SHHH... Legion Commander to all brigades... SHHH... Legion Commander to all brigades... The defensive gates of the Cheyenne Mountain Military Base are open! Begin the attack immediately!... SHHH... I repeat, the defensive gates of the Cheyenne Mountain Military Base are open! Begin the attack immediately!... SHHH... Legion Commander to all brigades..."

Nick, Motia, and Bernie exchanged glances, able to see the joy on each other’s game character faces. Nick immediately gave the order:

"Sixth Brigade, attack formation! Charge! Get in there at all costs and find that damn artificial intelligence!"

BOOM! The sound of an exploding grenade came from the mountainside, right from the direction of the base entrance. The engagement had clearly begun.

Gunfire and cannon fire erupted immediately after, and figures appeared from all over Cheyenne Mountain—they seemed to be local natives.

The stirring sound of a bugle call rang out; it was the bugler assigned by the Legion Commander, sounding the charge.

Seventy years ago, that same call had struck fear into the hearts of the United Nations Army on the Northeast Asian Peninsula. Now, it was the signal for the Salvation Army to charge.

Tens of thousands of Salvation Army soldiers surged like a tide toward the Cheyenne Mountain Military Base, pouring into the deep, dark entrance.

After trying for so long, they were finally about to reach the ultimate answer!

Meanwhile, at the military base entrance halfway up the mountain, players from the First Brigade were continuously firing and throwing grenades into the entrance tunnel.

This five-hundred-meter-long tunnel was a veritable path of death, lined with automated weapons. At the far end, hundreds of fully armed soldiers stood guard.

But compared to opening the two-meter-thick alloy doors, this difficulty was nothing.

"RPG!" shouted a man in a black trench coat and a face mask. Someone behind him immediately handed over a rocket-propelled grenade launcher.

This man was none other than the Legion Commander of the Salvation Army!

The man dropped to the ground, poked the RPG out slightly, aimed at the defensive position deep inside the tunnel, and fired instantly.

The rocket, trailing fire and thick smoke, flew into the tunnel and exploded amidst the defensive position at the far end, instantly throwing the defenders into chaos.

"Snipers, provide cover and take out the automated weapon platforms! Everyone else, charge with me!"

The Salvation Army’s players and NPCs immediately got to their feet and charged into the tunnel, heading for the depths of the base!

Among them was the unsung hero of this battle, the one who had opened the base’s gates: Billy. He, however, seemed a bit dazed.

The real-world Billy was just as bewildered.

As a Chief of Staff at the real Cheyenne Mountain Military Base in Eagle Country, he naturally knew the entrance password for the base’s gates.

Using this sixteen-digit password and his own fingerprint data, he could open the real gates of the Cheyenne Mountain Base.

And just a moment ago, he had, almost as a joke, secretly entered the real-world password into the game and used his own fingerprint.

And then, 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

the gates had opened.