Faulty Utopia

In the room, X continued to explain the past history to Sun Jack.

"Although the lucky survivors were divided into different cities, the compartmentalized environment made people feel very lonely. Despite all sorts of welfare benefits, happiness was low, and people preferred to immerse themselves in virtual games. Moreover, in such an environment, a large market was simply not possible, and the economy started to decline with market slump and currency deflation, leading to near-collapse of the capital circulation."

"Later on, Lan Meng came up with a method, which was to build a new city around the periphery of each existing city. Unexpected, right? The so-called Holy Grail People you've been talking about are actually the survivors from The Previous Era. As for the outer city and Metropolis where you used to live, they were created to serve those who needed to survive."

As he spoke, X nudged with his foot the face of one who was acting like a dog beside him, and the latter seemed to enjoy it immensely.

"So, was it Lan Meng's idea to create an efficient dumping market?" Sun Jack asked.

"No, it wasn't just a dumping market," X shook his head. "More importantly, after the existence of the outer city, what did you notice? With something to compare to, seeing others live in hardship made everyone's sense of happiness surge!"

With the snap of his fingers, various surveillance camera feeds from the outer city of Himalayas appeared before Sun Jack. There were prostitutes on the streets, gang wars, and more so, those who, in order to survive, became mere replaceable cogs in the corporate machines, moving like the walking dead.

Watching them, X took a sip of his drink with immense satisfaction, "Ah~ just like Lan Meng said, this is humanity. Seeing others suffer makes one cherish their own good life all the more. Without comparison, there's no sense of superiority."

"Rubbish!" Sun Jack's view of the FFP Boss worsened even further, realizing that it was he who initiated this dysfunctional and exploitative market model from the very beginning.

"You don't need to acknowledge it, the market will prove everything. After seeing the success of Lan Meng, all cities started to copy the model, and what do you think happened? Everyone's happiness index improved, and all economies were revived! Hahaha~" X burst into laughter.

As X laughed, others in the room followed suit.

"That's not all, right? You've played other tricks with this market, like orchestrating real-life 'Revolution' dramas, and using it as a stepping stone for your own gain."

As Sun Jack sat there with a cold face, X's laughter gradually subsided and layers of protective shields were activated around the room, completely blocking any external signals.

Then he floated over and sat next to Sun Jack, ordering everyone else to leave.

Once everyone was out, he leaned closer to Sun Jack and whispered, "What I just told you means that you shouldn't offend Lan Meng's FFP. He's a survivor from The Previous Era. Over the past thousand years, his capital has grown to unimaginable extents. On Earth, he's one of the wealthiest independent entities. Going against him, you have no chance of winning."

"Do you think overthrowing Metropolis gives you a chance against FFP? Don't fool yourself. A city with mixed capitals, like Metropolis, can't unleash the same power as a city monopolized by a single corporation."

"Moreover, aside from the 13 cities he actually controls, his capital, like tentacles, has infiltrated almost every city. It's very likely that some companies around you are his subsidiaries."

"I'll just mention one thing so you understand his power. The 3 lessons, do you understand? The one that could counter the AI Crisis by ignoring everyone's presence, that's established by international groups like FFP in collaboration with other two major capital groups across all cities."

"You think your situation is bad now? This is just the tip of the iceberg. You're still alive only because FFP is considering cost-effective ways to deal with you. Should they one day decide to abandon cost considerations, you wouldn't stand a chance at survival!"

X seemed genuinely concerned for Sun Jack, carefully explaining the whole situation to him so he could understand clearly.

Looking at Sun Jack's profile, X said with a complex tone, "Sun Jack, although you've made me lose a lot of money, I don't hate you. Money can be earned back. I have plenty of Golden Stock, but interesting souls are hard to come by in this world, and I truly do want to be your friend."

"Didn't see this coming; you seem to be quite concerned about me. But to be honest, I have a different view on what you've said," Sun Jack replied as he turned to look at X.

"Whether I can win or not isn't for me to decide, nor is it for Lan Meng to decide. It depends on how many people can't go on living," Sun Jack said.

"You say that you guys feel happy only when others are worse off, and your market economy can only recover when others are barely surviving."

"But have you ever considered the risks involved? If not so many people were living a life worse than death, how could I simply wave my hand and have resistance armies sprout up in all the cities? And why do they keep emerging relentlessly, no matter how many times you try to quell them?"

Being so close, Sun Jack could now see the nerve sockets on X.

Upon hearing Sun Jack's remarks, X excitedly slapped Sun Jack's thigh, "Right! That's what I was thinking, and that's why I approached you!"

"Look, I've thought of a way that could be mutually beneficial, maximizing our gains," X said with an excited tone.

"What way?"

"A release valve," X said, arching an eyebrow smugly. "Do you know that in ancient times, some countries had street marches to protest injustice? That was a release valve."

"Though it may be a soft approach, just a few days of protest can significantly relieve their pressure, then they go back to their normal lives. So, you could become the release valve for all cities."

"When FFP's people come, we'll say that you'll remain as the spiritual leader of these resistance armies. Don't surrender, just periodically release some videos to provoke those radicals. The more individualistic heroes, the better."

"Then we'll feed them some minor subsidiaries to be destroyed, allowing them to vent their pent-up anger. Afterwards, we'll find ways to eliminate those troublemakers."

"By tweaking such a release valve occasionally, the lower classes vent their frustration, they're happy and go back to their business, and we have fewer worries. This prevents someone else like Sun Jack from popping up in the future. We're happy, and you, by simply speaking a few words, get to live a very comfortable life. How about it? What do you think of my triple-win plan?"