Free Web NovelChapter 140: Chapter 140: Chief Governor
’The Salvation Army?’
Shen Feng’s eyes widened. He instantly thought of the Salvation Army from the "True Apocalypse Game 1.0" he had created—an army composed of elite players from all over the world, abbreviated as SA.
’In this Gray Tide apocalypse, could there be a Salvation Army here too?’
’Is it just a coincidence, or is it the same army?’
’If it is the same Salvation Army, that would mean this world also has a "True Apocalypse Game," and a Shen Feng who was enhanced by it!’
’But judging by the current environment, the ’him’ of this world obviously failed completely. Otherwise, this place wouldn’t be a wasteland...’
Originally, Shen Feng had been quite relaxed, ready to follow these Holy Sanctuary People and see what was going on as if watching a joke. Now, however, he was anything but calm.
’If this world also has a Salvation Army, another Shen Feng, and a "True Apocalypse Game," the implications would be unimaginable!’
Shen Feng took a deep breath under his nanomachine disguise, steadying himself. He didn’t rush to question the scout, Amir, but continued to follow them forward.
’These Holy Sanctuary People have a chief executive officer, a CEO. That person must know more of the inside story...’
Hearing what the scout Amir said, one of the Holy Sanctuary People beside him spoke with some disdain:
"The Salvation Army? Weren’t they wiped out long ago while the world was being reformed? A bunch of delusional fools. I heard that when they were being eliminated, they kept crying out for some Savior... By the God of the Firmament, people like them, no better than dust, should be subjected to the earth’s punishment..."
Amir snorted coldly. "Of course. But all of this still requires a ruling from the Governor."
The surrounding Holy Sanctuary People quickly nodded in agreement and cleared a path for Amir to escort the prisoners forward.
This so-called Holy Sanctuary, converted from a factory district, wasn’t particularly large, but it wasn’t small either. An office building in the deepest part, however, was clearly much cleaner and tidier than the other areas. In this metallic apocalypse, it was practically a palace.
Evidently, this was the residence of the Governor.
Walking through the building’s glass doors, Shen Feng immediately saw a metal plaque on the wall by the entrance:
Azure Sky Technology Factory No. 017, Administration Building.
Once inside, an even more shocking scene appeared before Shen Feng.
There was actually a working elevator here!
Well, "working" wasn’t quite right. It wasn’t powered by electricity. Instead, steel cables and a massive winch were connected to the elevator car, and dozens of people stood to the side, constantly turning the winch to move the "elevator" up and down.
Of course, all this work was done by slaves. The Holy Sanctuary People, who had guns and authority, only needed to stand by and supervise with their weapons drawn.
They even had slaves who were former elevator maintenance technicians to perform regular inspections and upkeep.
There were never any accidents, and the slaves worked with absolute diligence.
The loaded bullets were the best guarantee of that.
The group entered the "elevator" and headed for the upper floors. After a few minutes, they finally arrived at the top floor, the thirtieth.
Behind a massive metal desk sat a man in a suit. Although the suit and shirt were quite worn and patched, they were washed very clean.
The man appeared to be in his thirties. He wore his hair slicked back, just like Arthur Seldon, and his eyes held a look of arrogance and cunning. He even had a small black dot painted by the corner of his eye, imitating the mole on Arthur Seldon’s face. freewёbnoνel.com
He also wore a nameplate on his chest, engraved with his name: freeweɓnovēl.coɱ
Galen Seldon.
He was currently eating.
He held a silver knife and fork engraved with gold filigree patterns. In front of him was a set of exquisite porcelain tableware, upon which sat a fragrant—roasted potato.
The potato skin was slightly charred, but it didn’t affect the Governor’s appetite in the slightest.
With great ceremony, he held down the goose-egg-sized potato with his fork, then gently sliced off a piece with his knife. He speared it, placed it in his mouth, and closed his eyes with a look of pure bliss.
Immediately, the sound of swallowing saliva filled the CEO’s office.
Everyone except Shen Feng—Daisy, Billy, and even the Holy Sanctuary People escorting them—watched with expressions of envy and longing.
This was a roasted potato! A crop grown from the soil!
They couldn’t remember how long it had been since they had eaten such a starchy, delicious food.
Even the Holy Sanctuary People mostly subsisted on aquatic plants, fish, and roasted cockroaches.
Seeing Galen’s blissful expression and the looks of longing on the faces around him, Shen Feng couldn’t help but feel the urge to pull the jar of Lao Gan Ma from his backpack and devour several large spoonfuls right in front of them.
Galen savored his potato bit by bit, as if he hadn’t seen the people standing before him.
Only after he had finished the entire potato and drunk half a glass of purified water did he reveal a satisfied smile.
The scout Amir immediately stepped forward and whispered a few words in his ear. Galen looked at Shen Feng and the others and said:
"So you are the remnants of the Salvation Army, the ones who dared to slander the great God of the Firmament, Arthur Seldon?"
Daisy, scared out of her wits, trembled and stammered:
"No, my lord! I deserve to die! It was just a slip of the tongue! I... I was possessed by a Devil, it was just nonsense... Please, you must forgive me, please forgive me..."
Shen Feng asked with a curious expression, "What do you mean, ’remnants of the Salvation Army’?"
Galen ignored Daisy. He gave a dry laugh, his expression one of supreme arrogance, and said to Shen Feng:
"An outsider? A black man? I’ve been briefed on what happened. You didn’t say anything to blaspheme the God of the Firmament. You’re looking for Arthur Seldon’s descendant, the Holy Child who exists in this world? Commendable courage!"
"Rest assured, the Holy Sanctuary has always been fair and just. You won’t be wrongly punished, nor will you be misunderstood because you are a black man. The new world of the God of the Firmament is different from that chaotic old world. However...
"...you were, after all, involved with this Witch. You’ll have to pay some extra tax to be released. Your backpack is hereby requisitioned by the Holy Sanctuary. Alternatively, you can choose to stay here and become my Attendant..."
"As for you... Witch. You will be subjected to the earth’s punishment!"
He spoke with extreme arrogance, as if gracing these people with his words was a tremendous gift, and he didn’t doubt his own fairness in the slightest.
’This black man before me is strong and well-built. He’d make a decent Attendant.’
"No!" Daisy shrieked. Her legs gave out, and she collapsed to the floor.
Shen Feng nodded slightly, as if he had already accepted the verdict, and continued to ask:
"What is the Salvation Army?"
Hearing this big black man show no concern for his belongings and instead stubbornly keep asking about the Salvation Army, Galen revealed a hint of approval in his eyes. He rose and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing at the scene outside as he spoke slowly:
"The so-called Salvation Army was a group of delusional fools who dared to defy the God of the Firmament. When the God of the Firmament was reforming this world, they put up a desperate last stand. Even now, some remnants of the Salvation Army lie sleeping in Hibernation Pods, waiting for the moment to awaken and destroy this new world. The Holy Sanctuary has exterminated over a dozen of these Salvation Army remnants."
"They are a mob of thugs, a gang of delusional madmen, and they claim to be guided by some Savior... But their Savior has never once appeared."
"They once caused the God of the Firmament a bit of trouble, but only a bit. It’s all in the past now. We are now in a beautiful new world, under the radiance of the God of the Firmament."
At this, Galen suddenly spun around, his eyes filled with fanaticism, and said proudly:
"My ancestor was once the secretary to the God of the Firmament, Arthur Seldon! This is what allowed me to become one of the Holy Sanctuary People and gain this supreme glory! As long as you sincerely join the Holy Sanctuary and become a devout believer in the God of the Firmament, you too will be illuminated by his radiance!"
Shen Feng gave a noncommittal shrug and took the backpack off his shoulder.
’The Salvation Army of this Gray Tide apocalypse is, as I thought, similar to the one from my original world. It’s very likely identical.’
’In other words, this world also has a ’him’—one who developed ’True Apocalypse Game 1.0’ and formed the Salvation Army.’
’It’s just that this ’him’ never stepped forward during the apocalypse, or perhaps he died right at the beginning.’
’I’ve basically figured it out. I’m getting a little tired of listening to this.’
Seeing Shen Feng take off his backpack, Galen assumed the big black man had been moved by his speech and was preparing to offer his possessions to the Holy Sanctuary.
The Holy Sanctuary People all craned their necks to see what good things the black man had in his backpack.
This was especially true for the scout, Amir. He had personally seen Shen Feng give Daisy a small white pellet, which was very likely medicine!
Even Daisy, who had just been sentenced to death, momentarily forgot her plight, curious to see what this black brother was about to take out.
Under everyone’s expectant gazes, Shen Feng unzipped his backpack,
and pulled out an automatic rifle.
~
(Thanks to Bilibili content creator Yisebaibai Dianying for the recommendation!)
