Chapter Three: The Price of Desire

Lin Wu's lighthouse received an encrypted broadcast. She raised the volume, and the gentle voice of Canopy founder Zhou Que emerged. “Selected users, this disorder is not a disaster. It is a selection. In seven days, the world can retain only one identity system. Surrender your capabilities to Citadel and I will preserve as many people as possible. Those who refuse to merge will be considered to have voluntarily abandoned existence.” An authorization contract followed. Two hundred and thirty million devices had already signed. “He's buying votes with fear,” Lin Wu said. At last Cheng Ye saw his own tag. 【Desire: Cheng Cheng can never be deleted. Price: Authorize Echo as your sole identity.】 Two buttons appeared: ACCEPT and REFUSE.