Chapter 852: The Effect

"Never able to advance?"

Zhang Qiang's mouth instantly dropped open after hearing that.

"What do you mean...?" he asked incredulously. "If a Sheng Xiao can never advance... then why would he choose to become a Sheng Xiao? What kind of logic is that...? What's the point?"

Bai Yang thought for a moment and said, "For 'absolute safety'. As long as you don't break the rules, no matter how many times you die in the Mian Shi Fang Jian, you'll always revive. That's what 'safety' means."

"Absurd... utterly absurd..." Zhang Qiang furrowed his brow slightly. "Isn't this putting the cart before the horse? This isn't 'absolute safety' at all. It seems like just hiding yourself away... If you stay stuck in the room forever... then..."

"Listen to me." Bai Yang glanced at the clock out of the corner of his eye as he spoke. "This entire city is one big scam. Everyone says that once a Sheng Xiao becomes Tian, they can get out, but the truth is, no one can ever become Tian."

As soon as he finished speaking, before Zhang Qiang and I could say anything, the sheep behind him froze in place.

"Are you joking... Bai Yang...?" Mian Yang said with a trembling voice. "Is what you're saying now also a lie to us?"

"This one isn't." Qi Xia said. "And neither will be everything I say next."

"What do you mean...?" Mian Yang's eyes flickered. "If you're not lying, does that mean the highest we can reach is Di Ji?"

"Yes." Bai Yang nodded.

Mian Yang paused for a long time, then reached out and grabbed Bai Yang's arm. "You left a way out for those two, but what about me...? I don't want to be Di Ji for the rest of my life."

"You, I have my own arrangements." Qi Xia said. "Once these two Can Yu Zhe are gone, you'll naturally become Di Ji. Then, you can wait for me in that position. As long as you survive until then, I'll take you down another path."

Mian Yang felt something was off. "Wait a minute... Bai Yang, what do you mean by 'wait for you'...? After these two disappear, won't you also become Di Ji?"

"No, not now." Bai Yang shook his head. "I still have a lot of unfinished business, so I can't become Di Ji."

"I'm getting more and more confused..." Mian Yang swallowed hard. "You're a Mian Shi Guan right now. After everyone in the room disappears... can you still choose not to become Di Ji?"

"Don't ask about that." Bai Yang sighed. "I have many things to handle, and I'm also short on time. If you all agree, this could be the last time we meet here."

"You... wait a second..." Mian Yang's eyes showed a hint of nervousness. "You wouldn't sell me out, would you? We both killed that dog, and now you're trying to vanish on me?"

"No, Mian Yang, listen to me." Bai Yang placed his hand on Mian Yang's shoulder and said softly, "Here's my first piece of advice: Once you become Di Ji, make sure to set up your game area in a very remote and deserted place. Never think about killing anyone— just try to buy time."

"Buy time...?"

Bai Yang nodded and continued, "If my guess is right, for a long time to come, this city won't have any intelligent leaders. Even if someone new unexpectedly builds an organization, they won't know the truth about this world. I can't be sure what they'll do— they might start hunting Sheng Xiao just like in other cities. Then, you'd be in danger. You all know... in a place like this, even if the Shou Ling goes mad, the others might follow suit."

"The 'Sardine Effect'..." I blurted out.

"What?" Bai Yang looked at me.

"I... I mean, this is the 'Sardine Effect'." I said quietly. "It's like a principle I read about before."

Bai Yang thought for a moment and said, "Interesting. Could you explain it to me?"

"Uh..." I hadn't expected someone like Bai Yang to not know this, so I explained seriously, "The 'Sardine Effect' refers to how sardines, being weak individually, live in schools and follow a strong leader. If you artificially make that strong sardine disabled, it loses control and acts erratically, but the other sardines still blindly follow it, just as chaotically as before."

Bai Yang pondered and nodded, then murmured to himself, "Yes... that's good... that's perfect... Having a short effect name etched in the subconscious is more convenient than full knowledge..."

"What...?" I didn't quite understand and was a bit stunned.

"Nothing." Bai Yang stared at me. "Yan..."

"Zhi Chun." I said.

"Yan Zhi Chun. Where did you see these principles and theorems?"

"Uh..." I tried to recall. "Mostly from scattered books on economics, management, psychology, logical thinking, game theory, and so on..."

"Good, I get it." Bai Yang nodded, as if calculating something in his mind.

At that moment, I found Bai Yang even more terrifying.

I had forced myself to read two books a week to keep up with the thinking of the strong, memorizing all the useful knowledge to handle more tricky situations.

And all those principles and effects from the books had given me many insights in life.

But if Bai Yang hadn't read all that... it just meant he was different from someone like me who relies on acquired effort and 'knowledge' as a weapon. His thinking was innately that of a strong person.

It was only after growing up that I understood this: Some people learn from books how others make cars, while others can truly 'invent from scratch' behind closed doors.

Mian Yang, standing nearby, didn't seem to be listening to our conversation. He just scratched the mask on his face. He still had the same incredulous expression as the last time I saw him.

"Bai Yang, how do you know so many secrets about this place?" he asked.

"Don't ask about that." Bai Yang waved him off. "You just need to know that whether it's the final task for Sheng Xiao— 'killing three thousand six hundred people'— or for Can Yu Zhe— 'collecting three thousand six hundred Dao'— neither can be completed. Otherwise, it'll bring disaster upon you."

"We can't even collect Dao...?" I asked again.

"Yes." Bai Yang nodded. "Explaining it would take a long time, so I'll keep it brief."

What Bai Yang said next once again exceeded my expectations.