Huh?
They could log in to the websites already?
Many people in Stick Nation were surprised by that. They made numerous attempts to log into the websites that Ye Lingchen blocked, but they did not expect their umpteenth try to be a success.
“Hahaha, it looks like the Chinese hackers have been scared off.”
“Tsk, in terms of technology, how can the Chinese hackers compare to our Stick Nation.”
“Hacker Y doesn’t seem to be that good?”
“Turns out to be just a false alarm. Impressive but useless.”
“He ran away. Let’s celebrate, guys…”
…
Cheers resounded throughout the country, but little did they know that the virus had infected their computers the moment they entered those websites. From there, it began spreading rapidly from their computers!
The first computer, infected!
On the second computer, the virus was briefly blocked by the firewall before infecting it the very next moment.
On the third computer, the virus was discovered and appeared to have been removed by antivirus software, but in fact, it had already infected the system!
The fourth one was infected!
So was the fifth!
…
What happened next was a gradual spiral into chaos. One infected two, two infected four, and four infected eight!
They were done for!
The Stick Nation network was doomed!
It was time to settle scores!
Ye Lingchen went straight to some forums and webpages that insulted China—including the website of Hyun-Min Kim’s agent company—and started spreading it in large quantities!
Attack!
Attack!
Attack!
…
Two of Hearts commented, “It looks like Y is really gone, let’s mount another attack!”
King of Spades replied, “He might be gone, but we’re not going to just let it slide and forgive him because he couldn’t do anything on our websites. Attack him back!”
Big King was silent for a while. “We fight our own battles, just as before. Don’t linger too long in one area. It’s important to strike a blow at the Chinese hackers! If we encounter Y, we’ll retreat!”
“Haha, continue attacking.”
However, Little King’s exclamation came all of a sudden. “No, there’s a problem with those websites that have returned to normal!”
“F*ck! Damn it! Virus! It’s a virus!”
“Hurry up and tell everyone not to access those websites anymore. They’re full of viruses!”
“Someone’s computer has been infected! Hacker Y didn’t leave!”
At that moment, the hackers in Stick Nation had cold hands and feet. A look of horror appeared on their faces and they continued crying out.
“F*CK! My computer has been infected!”
“F*ck! Mine too! All the programs won’t work!”
“Damn, what the hell is going on? Why wasn’t there any notification from the firewall? This is illogical!”
“What kind of virus is this? I don’t seem to recall anything like it.”
Big King warned, “Retreat! Everyone, retreat! Check your computers carefully. Don’t open anything, no webpages, not emails!”
“This is horrifying! This virus is just plain horrible! Who did this?”
“What nonsensical question is that? It must be Hacker Y, that motherf*cker!”
“How did he do it? Through files? Websites? Chains?”
For top hackers to have their computers invaded by a virus was simply a shame.
The Stick Nation’s hackers were all in a mess, and the ordinary people had it even worse.
All of them were stunned as their computer died instantly even though it had been working rather well. They were all still full of smiles, and suddenly had no idea what happened.
Then, their pupils all expanded as they watched the pictures on their computers turned into a Y letter symbol. The name below had also changed!
Those who humiliate China must be taken down no matter how far they may be!
A new virus! It was a new virus!
Anyone who knew a thing or two about computers felt their scalp going numb.
At one of the Stick Nation forums.
A bunch of netizens were frantically venting out their frustrations, chastising the Chinese people’s behavior, insulting them for being the Sick Man of East Asia, for being shameless, unscrupulous, and various other phrases which filled the forum. Some people smugly posted about the Chinese network hacking incident on the forum, attracting lots of likes and gloating comments.
Ding!
At that moment, a link suddenly popped out from the top of the forum.
Oh? What document was it?
The file had no title and no one knew what it was. Many people thus clicked on it involuntarily.
Curiosity killed the cat, or so the saying went, and those netizens had obviously never experienced society’s brutal attacks. As soon as they clicked in, the entire computer system collapsed, with the operating program paralyzed and all their data vanishing.
The computer then automatically changed to desktop mode. All that could be seen was a bunch of Y pictures and the text below it.
Damn it!
They cried out in their hearts all at the same time. They tried to click on the desktop icons, to no avail. Some cleverly unplugged the power and forced the computer to shut down, but under their uneasy gaze, the computer still looked the same after the startup. Unwilling to give up, they restarted again and again until the computer crashed.
One single word appeared in their hearts at the same time: doom.
…
Inside an internet café in the Stick Nation.
Crackling sounds were heard coming from hundreds of computers.
Some people were playing games, while others were chatting, watching videos, or observing the hacker war between the Stick Nation and China.
However, a chain of screams broke out once a single computer was infected.
“F*CK! It’s lagging?!”
“F*cking hell, I was forced to quit after only halfway through my game!”
“Hey network administrator, what’s going on?!”
“Why is the computer screen blue? What’s happening?”
“Why are a bunch of Y icons popping up on the screen? What’s going on!”
“What’s the text under the icon? It looks like Mandarin?”
“Damn it, it isn’t a virus, right? What does this text mean?”
“The translation says… Those who humiliate China must be taken down no matter how far they may be!”
“It really is a virus! Hacker Y is a vile person!”
…
The same thing happened everywhere in the Stick Nation.
Anger, swearing, shouts, and cries echoed everywhere. Everyone panicked, and as time passed, their panic turned into despair as more and more computers were affected!
The company, website, and all kinds of data were all abolished. That night was destined to become a nightmare for the Stick Nation. The Y icon on the computer screen was very eye-catching, wringing their hearts and leaving a lasting impression in their mind.
That was how frightening it was to be dominated by Hacker Y!
One hundred units!
One thousand units!
Ten thousand units!
One hundred thousand units!
The numbers kept soaring and a shadow loomed in the sky above the Stick Nation. Anyone who saw the letter Y shuddered out of sheer fright!
…
Immediately after that, Stick Nation’s computer central, anti-virus software companies, and network security management offices entered an S-level warning state!
S-level was the highest-level alert and was analogous to an instruction of the highest order. The discourse centered around Hacker Y, and it was a war against Y-Virus!
Indeed, the name given to that virus by the Stick Nation was Y-Virus!
In that short period of time, it was no longer possible to count the computers that were harmed by the Y-Virus. Knowledge pointed to the virus being very harmful, spreading extremely widely, and having various means of transmission. It spread at an almost plague-like speed and was impossible to target. Even basic mitigation measures were useless.
The only way to prevent it was probably to unplug the network cable or stop using the computer.
At the very next moment, the International Computing Center also issued an alert about Y-Virus, listing it as an internationally-ranked S-level virus!
The Murican hackers were stupefied!
The British hackers were gobsmacked!
The Sun Nation’s hackers were dumbfounded!
Similarly, people all over the world were stunned stupid!
Powerful! Invincible!
No one thought that Hacker Y’s counterattack would be so rampant and powerful!
Hackers all around the world had christened Hacker Y as the emperor of the network!
The international hackers who had been watching the war shuddered involuntarily and retreated silently. They had no idea if Hacker Y would trace their network and send the virus too. That would have been unthinkable.
Alerts for computer viruses had not appeared for many years, since it was only in the initial stage of computer development that the viruses were a point of concern. With the improvement of various anti-virus software, viruses could no longer make any impact. On that fateful day however, everyone’s understanding underwent a completely subverted change.
The virus was not the most devastating aspect—it was the person who created it that was the problem!
Unlike other countries in the world, the Chinese had always been full of pride. That strong sense of self-respect rose from the depths of their hearts and flowed all over the body, making their eyes moist.
‘Why shouldn’t a young man wear a Wu sword? He could win back fifty provinces in pass and mountain.[1]’
Everyone dreamed of being a hero and everyone yearned to one day serve the country!
They saw Hacker Y’s courage in taking charge as well as his invincible heroism!
The network was like a battlefield, and Hacker Y deserved being called the god of network war!
‘How fortunate that he was born in their amazing China! How lucky that he and I are from the same country!’
[Did you see that? Did you see that, you Stick Nation fellas?! Those who humiliate China must be taken down no matter how far they may be!]
[Hahaha, they must’ve seen it all because their computer screens will be filled with that.]
[It isn’t only the Stick Nation. The entire world has seen it! Everyone will remember how the Y icon appeared tonight!]
[An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth! Hacker Y is really awesome!]
[My blood is boiling! Amazing. This is just incredible!]
[Good job! So cool! Finally, another Y for me to fangirl over. I love it! I love Y!]
[Who else would dare to underestimate China’s computer technology?]
…
The Stick Nation’s citizens were all silent. They were scared out of their wits and were helpless to face that virus. Their national network was in shambles, and the losses incurred were immeasurable.
At that moment, they finally realized the true meaning of helplessness and despair.
Ye Lingchen made a virus on a whim and turned the entire Stick Nation network upside down. Then, he stopped paying attention to it and wandered around the Stick Nation network.
He did not always have the chance to cause such a ruckus, so he might as well have a look at the Stick Nation’s interesting secrets. By then, the Stick Nation network was like Ye Lingchen’s playground.
He skipped through the network information one by one and found many interesting things that elicited frowns from Ouyang Qing and the others.
Most of them were about the Stick Nation entertainment industry, many of which were shady transactions and underhanded deals between celebrities. Ye Lingchen even found incriminating evidence linked to Hyun-Min Kim as well as the financial records of Hyun-Min Kim’s company.
After committing some of the more important information to memory, Ye Lingchen continued to dig deeper…
[1] Fifth poem from Li Ho’s (李贺) Thirteen Poems from My Southern Garden (南园十三首).
