Ming Dynasty and New Rome and Infinite Magic Machine

Chapter 1610 Questions
“Can’t even this kind of settlement be reached?” Hermanubis asked in surprise. “Let me reiterate our position—if you can withdraw the lawsuit, then we can pretend that the whole thing never happened. We will bear any losses ourselves.”

"Then let me reiterate my point of view—at this point, you have no chance of reconciliation! I said before that you could reduce the amount of land Han Xingzhi farmed by 20%."

"Then why not now?"

"Because we've discovered that you've caused irreversible damage to Han Xingzhi's body! Isn't that right, parent?"

"Huh?" Han Wu was stunned for a moment. "Oh right, right! He hasn't eaten since he was starving, he's almost starving to death."

"Would it really be like that?" Hermanubis stared with his dog eyes, tilting his head. "The curse only says he won't have enough to eat, it doesn't say he'll stop eating altogether. He can definitely get the necessary nutrients to sustain life; he's just not getting enough to eat. I don't think it'll really come to that."

This was what they had agreed upon beforehand. The initial statement was that Han Xingzhi would not starve to death during this process; he would simply "never have enough to eat for the rest of his life." This was a soft constraint, not a hard one.

"But you've scared him," Shangluo emphasized. "He used to be such a cheerful child. Now you're not letting him eat, and you're using cats and dogs to cruelly rub salt into his wounds. He was scratched by a cat and is still in the hospital. The doctor said to Han Xingzhi's parents, 'Has he been diagnosed with psychological problems?'"

"Oh yes, yes, yes," Han Wu replied. "The blood test results just came back. Our child has post-traumatic stress disorder. Now, his legs tremble at the sight of a cat, and he runs away at the sight of rice. You've ruined such a good child."

"Excuse me for being blunt, but he didn't seem very bright to begin with."

"That means your poisoning began the moment the child was born!" Han Wu exclaimed, adding dramatic flair. "This child was so adorable and lovable when he was little. He would greet everyone he met, and he could count from one to one hundred at the age of three. Now he's become such a颓废 (颓废 is a difficult word to translate directly, but it implies a state of listlessness, apathy, and lack of motivation) person. You bear an undeniable responsibility for this!"

"Um, can we really blame ourselves for this?"

Shangluo chimed in, "If you don't think it counts, then the negotiations have broken down."

“Wait! Ladies and gentlemen! Everyone over there!” Hermanubis exclaimed in surprise, “I thought we were discussing something serious. Isn’t this about the future of our two nations?”

“Let me emphasize this,” Zhu Xianxi, sitting in the middle, began, “This matter only concerns the future of Rome, and has nothing to do with our future. However, considering that young people are the future of the nation, there’s nothing wrong with what you’re saying, but you should emphasize whether you’re referring to a nominal future or a real future. I believe this matter is clearly far more important to Rome than to us, and you should show some sincerity in this regard. It seems they don’t intend to let you off so easily.”

“Alright.” Hermanubis nodded. “So, does this mean the negotiations have broken down?”

Shangluo confirmed with the "student's parent" next to him and replied: "Yes, you can consider the negotiations to have broken down. There is no need for us to continue discussing this issue. See you in court."

“We will be ready.” Hermanubis stood up.

He first bowed to Zhu Xianxi: "I am sorry to trouble Your Majesty the Holy Emperor with today's matter. We should not have brought such a problem to Your Majesty's court. But some issues simply must be resolved."

“I understand.” Zhu Xianxi nodded. “I think you two should have some more in-depth communication, which would help solve the problem. For example, I think you should explain why you didn’t invite your master to us.”

“My master cannot be there for some special reason.”

"Oh, really?" Shangluo asked. "Then can I interpret this as meaning that you are not representative of him?" "I didn't say that."

Could you explain that point?

"I'm sorry, I can't."

"Okay, that's all for today. I'll see you off."

"Please wait, please wait. I'll be going now, so I won't cause you any more trouble."

Hermanus stood up and, without waiting for anyone to see him off, left the door under the escort of the Imperial Guards.

“Hmm,” Zhu Xianxi looked at Shangluo, “This dog god is different from what I thought. If it were like Longlong, I would praise it as ‘extremely intelligent’, because Longlong is essentially a panda. But this one, I can’t detect any beastly elements in his body. He seems to be just a dog-headed person.”

"Yes, that's how the Egyptian gods were. The heads of the beasts were merely symbols of their divinity; in reality, beneath those heads lay the souls of humans."

"So your goal is to lure out one of the Roman sun gods?"

“Hmm.” Shangluo nodded. “It was an out-of-control sun—Rome had too many things out of control, but this one was particularly out of control. What made it so powerful was that if other out-of-control things disappeared, they would all go to it.”

This is why Amun-Zeus appears dangerous. His danger goes straight to the root of the word "danger"—he is unknown; no one knows how dangerous he is, only that he is about to do something big.

Conversely, if we can find out Amun-Zeus's weakness, everything will be much easier.

To be honest, the most terrifying thing for Rome right now isn't Amun-Zeus.

"What is that?" Zhu Xianxi asked.

"It is I. I am Apollonia, the most dangerous existence for Rome—you see, I am here with China, with Shangluo. Losing to China was the direct cause of Rome's demise. And what completely shattered Rome's confidence was Shangluo's display of his power here. He's a propagandist, and I'm doing the same thing. If anyone poses a threat to Rome's future, Amun-Zeus is nowhere near as powerful as me."

Zhu Xianxi thought for a moment and nodded, saying, "That makes sense."

In fact, Apollonia was the sun god of Rome, the very entity that led to Rome's demise. Apollonia's escape, and the series of missions she subsequently accomplished in collaboration with Shangluo, all point to one thing:

Rome, with no future.

(End of this chapter)