Snowflakes are flying and the world is freezing cold.
All the people who had passed the level on the fourth fragment were found, a total of eight people. They lived in different buildings in different communities. They were all mentally ill patients, including Xiangdong.
The fact that he wanted to commit suicide after returning home is enough to show that his condition was not good.
In the early years, Ping'an Town only had a small clinic run by Doctor Wan.
Later, after the fragments of the science and technology park were merged, the hundreds of people included doctors, nurses, both internal medicine doctors and surgeons.
So everyone built a hospital.
The hospital now even has a psychiatric department, and those patients were placed there.
Everyone knows that the mental trauma caused by completing a mission is different from ordinary mental trauma. Drugs are not very useful, and self-help is the main thing.
But having someone to help is always better than nothing.
After all, most people who come back are alone, no one is reunited with their families, everyone is lonely and in need of friends' care.
Chen Yang looked at Xiangdong, who had just washed his face and was now thin, with dark eyes and untidy beard. "When did you come back?"
"I don't know. I didn't pay attention to the time." Xiangdong sat on the chair carelessly. The water on his chin flowed down to his neck. A large area of his dirty collar was wet. The water marks were all black. He looked rough and sloppy. "A few months? Half a year? A year? About the same."
Chen Yang: “…” Is it almost the same
At this moment, Chen Yang didn’t know what to say.
There are so many questions I want to ask, but they are all twisted and colliding with each other. None of them can come out, like a ball of wool getting tighter and tighter.
"Old Chen, your place looks like a home." Xiangdong's hoarse voice broke the dull atmosphere.
Chen Yang said: "Eleven years."
Xiangdong looked dazed: "What the hell, how many years did you say?"
Chen Yang gave him a look that said “You heard it right”.
"Fuck..." Xiangdong looked up at the ceiling, "You've been back for eleven years, and you've only been in the virtual world for a year or two."
Chen Yang was stunned. He expected that the flow of time in the virtual world and the real world was different.
I didn't expect it to be so different.
Chen Yang reached for the wooden barrel on the table, poured out a handful of peanut candy and gave it to Xiangdong: "Eat it."
"I haven't eaten this in 800 years." Xiang Dong took a piece of peanut candy reluctantly, looking like he was about to die. "Do you have cigarettes?"
Chen Yang said, "It's just the pipe, which Chao Jian and I use. It's a personal item and not suitable for you to use." He glanced at the yard. The snow was falling harder. The cold was mixed with the smell of food. Chao Jian was busy in the kitchen.
"If you want it, I'll take you to town to find Old Man Sun in the afternoon and ask him to give you one." Chen Yang breathed.
He squinted his eyes to the east: "What about the tobacco?"
"Homemade." said Chen Yang.
Xiangdong smacked his cracked lips for a while and said, "Awesome."
Chen Yang held his forehead with his hand: "If you stay here for eleven years, you will know everything."
Xiangdong snorted and said noncommittally: "I thought I would have nothing to do after returning. Anyway, I have all the resources."
Speaking of which, his reward for clearing the game included a large amount of high school textbooks and extracurricular materials. Did they want him to finish high school and take the college entrance examination?!
In addition to teaching materials, there are also many daily necessities that every tasker will have, which are standard equipment.
"Not all resources are provided ready-made. Many are only raw materials, and we have to manufacture and process them ourselves." Chen Yang said in a difficult way.
The raw materials are not given casually.
The person who passes the level will be rewarded with raw materials in the corresponding work field based on the industry he/she worked in before.
For example, Lao Yuan, a resident of the Science and Technology Park, owns a bicycle dealership. The rewards for completing a level include materials and equipment related to producing bicycles. This attracted other interested people to join in, and everyone worked hard to explore and research, and finally made the first bicycle.
With the first one, there will be a second one, a third one...
Chen Yang felt that the advanced civilization was like a strict patriarch, and all those who passed the level on the Broken Earth were its children. Its educational philosophy was, I will pave the way for you, but it is impossible to pave it all the way. I will only pave the beginning, and the rest depends on you.
Therefore, those who pass the level do not come back as useless people, but develop into all-rounders. Most people are so busy that they have to make time for dating.
He hadn't had sex with Chao Jian for several days, and he fell asleep as soon as he touched the pillow because he was too tired.
"There are so many things to do." Chen Yang rubbed his brows, "All walks of life need manpower, you can go back and pick the one you are interested in."
"Tsk, the production team, right?" Xiangdong bit into the peanut candy. It was sweet, soft, and sticky. He could pull out thin threads of candy after taking a bite. His facial features wrinkled together. "Who made this? You?"
Chen Yang also started eating peanut candy and said indistinctly, "Chao Jian."
Xiangdong slammed the table and cursed: "Damn it, they put so much syrup, is it for people to eat? I think that guy has bad intentions, I hope your teeth will rot!"
Chen Yang: "... If my teeth are rotten, what good will that do him?"
Xiangdong looked at Chen Yang like he was an idiot: "Do you even need to ask this? Your teeth are ruined. From now on, you will feel inferior. You won't dare to go out, talk to others, and only rely on him. This is called disguised control."
Chen Yang gave Xiang Dong a look that looked like an idiot.
The two of them put away their somewhat unfamiliar banter and looked at each other in silence. There was a sense of loss and sorrow in each other's eyes as if they were in another world.
Xiangdong had long ago confirmed through dreams and Chen Yang's oral description that they were once teammates.
But looking back in person and getting back the memories is another matter, a whole other feeling.
In a sense, they all lived two lives.
They are all comrades-in-arms.
But for Chen Yang, it has been more than ten years, too long. His life has been filled with new people and things.
If he hadn't recited the names of his teammates when burning incense every month to refresh his memory, he would have forgotten the appearance of some people and the past in the virtual world.
Like the diary filled with the names of all the dead taskers, he had put it away long ago and he no longer remembered the people in it.
The wind was howling and the snow was swirling in its arms. It was almost New Year and the temperature was very low.
"A-choo--" Xiangdong sneezed. Before he came back, he was strong and healthy, and had never experienced the pain of mental injury. After he came back, he ruined his body and hurt his spirit, with sores all over his body.
He looked like a remnant of a soldier who had just finished a war.
Chen Yang smelled the aroma of pork trotters coming from the kitchen and closed the wooden door of the main room, blocking out most of the wind and snow. In the broad daylight, the room became dark once the door was closed, and he lit a candle.
He glanced at the flickering candlelight oddly, and an absurd guess popped into his mind: "You don't have electricity?"
"No." Chen Yang continued to eat peanut candy. "According to the division of the world fragments, the construction of each area is different. The Science and Technology Park has the Internet, electricity and running water. Ping'an Town has everything except the Internet. Only this small island has the style of the old era."
Looking eastward, he saw that the main house was indeed quite plain and out of tune with the buildings he had seen along the way. "There's nothing on the island, so why are you still living here?"
Chen Yang smiled: "I'm used to it."
Every day when he returns to the island after get off work, he feels like he is traveling through time and space.
The island is nice.
Next, Chen Yang and Xiang Dong were both lost in their own thoughts and did not communicate with each other.
Chen Yang took out a small wooden tube from the cabinet against the wall, opened the lid, reached in, and ate the sunflower seeds.
The fourth fragment is Lanxi District.
Xiangdong and seven other people who passed the customs were all registered in Lanxi.
"Here's your return." Xiangdong took out a black leather notebook from the bag he had thrown at his feet.
Chen Yang took it and flipped through it. It was all written down. They were all task records of each tasker. After he came back, Xiangdong met a lot of teammates. He didn't know how many of these people returned home.
"Among the people who have made it through the level I know, only you and Ayuan have eight-digit ID numbers. The largest number among the others is six digits, most are four or five digits, and a few are three digits. You guys are the best." Chen Yang said with a smile.
Xiangdong also laughed, full of arrogance: "This is called Niubi."
"Yeah." Chen Yang touched the thick notebook a few times, put it aside, and continued eating sunflower seeds.
"Why are you still upset after coming back?" Chen Yang said this incoherently after eating a handful of sunflower seeds. He was not familiar with the seven customs passers-by who ended their lives after returning home, and had no time to ask. But Xiangdong was different. He really wanted to ask why.
Xiangdong felt like he was joking: "Who the hell is so stupid?"
Chen Yang looked at him without saying a word.
The look was sharp, with invisible penetrating power, as if it could see directly through Xiangdong's ridiculous disguise.
Xiangdong's face turned from dark blue to gray, and then gradually turned into a dull gray. "No reason, no normal person can say a word, I'm holding it in!"
Chen Yang frowned. It was not that simple. Xiangdong's condition was inseparable from his last level, and the assessment area before he entered the last level. Who was in that mission? Bai Tang, Fengli, Xiang Zimu, the painter, Wen Qing... were those teammates among them
Chen Yang suddenly didn't want to ask anymore.
It’s better not to know some things than to know them.
This is what Chen Yang understood many years ago when he saw Chao Jian helping him uncover the truth.
Sometimes, it is appropriate for people to live in a confused manner.
Xiangdong kicked the table leg as if to vent his anger: "Why are all those people mentally ill?"
Chen Yang said: "The areas where those who pass the customs are settled are randomly assigned."
"There are only Chao Jian and I on the island. There are a dozen residents in Ping'an Town and hundreds in the Science and Technology Park. They are all different." Chen Yang said with a consoling tone, "There are normal people in these three places. You can rest assured."
Xiang Dong smiled wryly: "All of them?"
Chen Yang's mouth twitched, unable to refute. To be more precise, he was not 100% sure whether the other person had psychological problems, but... he knew about the one at home.
Those who pass the level are undoubtedly powerful. The word "pass" is the best proof of this. Although they all walk out of the finish line and return home on the same path, the appearance of their spiritual world is different, which depends on their personal experience.
For some people, the world is a post-disaster reconstruction. Seeds sprout, seedlings grow, seedlings become big trees, flower buds bloom into small flowers, one or two flowers connect into one, and everything is slowly coming back to life. For some people, the world is a whole piece of hard blood clot, solidified, dead, bloody and desolate.
There are also people whose world looks beautiful and full of life, but in reality it is just an illusion that deceives people and themselves, and it is decaying...
Not the same.
Everyone is an independent individual, carrying a variety of stories, and they cannot be put into a unified framework.
Thoughts like “I’ve made it through it, and I’m living a good and happy life, why can’t others? This is impossible” and “The scariest and most painful time is over, why should I give up? Then what’s the point of all my previous efforts and persistence? Isn’t it a joke? I really don’t understand what they are thinking” are cruel and unreasonable.
Chen Yang sighed in his heart.
"There's a bastard in Lanxi District who lives downstairs from me. There's only him and me in the whole community. He goes crazy all the time," Xiangdong bit the peanut candy very hard, as if he was tearing someone's flesh, and his sunken eye sockets were full of blood. "I thought there were so many empty houses in the community, so I might as well move in. But who knew that all of them were locked and I couldn't get in."
Chen Yang asked him to calm down.
"I'm very calm." Xiangdong's facial muscles were trembling. "I found an iron rod and smashed the door of that bastard and got in."
Chen Yang's eyelids jumped: "What did you do?"
"You killed someone?" he asked sternly. "You killed a passer?"
The population of Lanxi District is not eight, but nine
"I tried that, but it didn't work." The crack on Xiangdong's lip was bleeding, and it stained his teeth. He bared his teeth like a madman, "Just like accepting the mission prompt and the truth about the world fragments, a message suddenly appeared in my mind, prohibiting the killing of my people."
"Bah!" Xiang Dong spat out a mouthful of saliva mixed with blood and cursed, "Damn it, you even used brain wave attacks."
Chen Yang was very surprised: "I have been back for so many years, and this is the first time I hear about this."
As far as he knew, everyone usually got along pretty well. If there were conflicts, they would just complain and curse at each other at most. If things got bad, they would just stop interacting for a while, but they would never resort to physical warfare.
It would be even more impossible to kill someone secretly and hide the body. There are so few people, and missing one person would cause a sensation, and people would gather around to find out the cause of death.
Once discovered, being isolated is the lightest punishment, while the most serious punishment is death due to revenge.
Therefore, committing a crime is never a normal choice.
The way those who pass the level treat others and deal with things after returning is related to the rules.
During the mission, everyone is almost always looking for clues and avoiding death taboos to protect themselves. They won't kill teammates indiscriminately, and there is no battle royale mission setting where everyone draws swords on each other.
Even if force is used, it is to kill zombies, teammates who have been infected, mutated, and turned into monsters.
Therefore, those who pass the level are not addicted to killing. They are all poor people who have passed all levels of tests in terms of mental, moral and ability. Even if they are mentally ill, they will not kill indiscriminately. They will only be trapped in the quagmire they dug for themselves and gradually sink into it.
Even when Chao Jian was at his sickest, he would never swing his cane around for no reason and smash anyone to death.
Besides, those who can come back are all sensitive and careful characters. The so-called luck plays a big role. Their strength is average, but that is only compared with the absolutely strong ones. For example, Ayuan is the second resetter who has completed the least number of tasks and has the best luck among all the people who have passed the level. However, she is not a little white rabbit that can be slaughtered at will.
Who can you kill? You might not only fail to kill the person but also be killed by others.
Chen Yang asked Xiangdong how the brain wave attack worked and what it felt like.
Xiangdong: “…” He reacted quickly, “Has Chao Jian ever killed anyone?”
"No." Chen Yang took a sip of water. "Chao Jian smashed the head of a passer this summer for some reason. I didn't hear him say that his brain waves were attacked."
"Why don't you just ask him directly?" Xiangdong changed the subject, licking his lips and smiling, "I suggest you ask him when he's about to die. If he doesn't tell the truth, tell him to get lost."
Chen Yang rolled his eyes: "Describe the feeling of having your brain waves injured."
"I don't feel anything. I passed out anyway." Xiangdong mocked, "This is being supervised. How funny."
Chen Yang thinks that supervision is a good thing. The earth has been destroyed once by natural disasters caused by human activities. The excellent genes selected must not repeat the same mistakes and must be well protected.
A civilized society, harmonious development, and building a new home together. He will also provide psychological counseling to the person in his family and ask him not to cause trouble.
Of course, if others provoke you, deliberately make you disgusted, or bully you, you must fight back.
I will not offend others unless they offend me. But if someone offends me, I will feel sorry for it.
Chen Yang pondered for a moment: "It should be limited in time. Once the law is perfected, the higher-ups will stop caring about us."
Xiangdong said nothing and looked fearless.
There was a series of footsteps outside the door, neither fast nor slow. Chen Yang, who was curled up in the chair, sat up. He saw Chao Jian pushing the door open and coming in, bringing with him the tempting smell of food.
"It's time to eat."
Chen Yang walked over quickly, patted Bai Xue on Chao Jian's shoulder, and asked in a low voice: "When you smashed Xiao Jiang's head in the summer, were your brain waves attacked?"
Chao Jian rubbed his hair: "No."
Chen Yang observed Chao Jian blatantly. It seemed that he was not lying and was telling the truth.
I guess the situation wasn't that serious.
Chen Yang briefly mentioned the attack on Xiangdong, and his intention was obvious.
"Don't worry, I will restrain myself." Chao Jian pressed Chen Yang's shoulder, swept his cold eyes into the room, and met Xiang Dong.
Everything has changed.
Back then, Xiangdong was a healthy man with a rude and hot temper, and Chaojian was a patient.
Now they are all patients.
Chen Yang went to the kitchen to serve the dishes, and said as he walked: "Xiangdong, I have several kinds of wine here, all in the kitchen, come and choose what you want to drink."
Xiangdong said lazily, "Old Chen, if you want to ask, just ask all at once." He scratched his messy hair like a wild man, "If I don't ask this time, I won't tell you next time."
Chen Yang paused, pursed his lips, and did not move.
It was not until Chao Jian gently stroked his back and encouraged him that he spoke dryly: "Just say it directly. Talk about whatever comes to your mind."
"Okay." Xiangdong crossed his legs, "Then I'll just say whatever I want."
Xiangdong first talked about a mission he had. The five-person team, including Bai Tang, the painter, Zhao Yuan, and Fengli were all there.
The mission was very dangerous. Zhao Yuan and Fengli both died in the first half of the mission.
When the painter was saving the pineapple, the mutated pineapple bit off a large piece of his flesh and blood. He was seriously injured and only had one breath left. Xiangdong carried him on his back and pulled Baitang, struggling to find a chance to survive.
People's hope and despair are separated by only a thin veil, which allows one to see through both sides and can be seen through easily without noticing.
At that time, Bai Tang was injured again. Xiangdong couldn't bear it anymore and wanted to give up, but he was unwilling to do so.
How did you solve the puzzle in the end
It was Xiangdong who discovered the mark left by Chen Yang.
Fate is so wonderful.
Xiangdong said this and gave Chen Yang a thumbs up.
Chen Yang grabbed Chao Jian's arm and asked, "Have Fengli and Zhao Yuan been... reset?"
"Yes." Xiangdong said, "I always remembered them, but suddenly one day I forgot them. At that time, I was in the virtual world and didn't realize that I had forgotten them. I only realized it after I finished the game and got all the memories."
"With their rookie skills, if it weren't for me, the painter, and Bai Tang training them time and time again, and Wen Qing occasionally guiding them through games, they would be dead and there would be no chance to reset." Xiangdong laughed and stopped. He shook his legs nervously for a while and talked about the review task.
Xiangdong, Baitang and the three-member team of painters all went in. Their emotions infected each other. They were dropped into the air by an invisible, burning rope, which would shake violently when the wind blew.
Everyone was in a bad state, so everyone realized something and was walking on thin ice.
Before heading east to the last level, Bai Tang was on his left and the painter was on his right. The revolving lantern was a single-player mission and he didn't know their ending.
They were all reset twice, there is no third chance...
Chen Yang offered a pale and flimsy consolation: "Maybe Bai Tang and the painter have already come out, in other world fragments."
A sound whose emotion could not be discerned came out of Xiangdong's nose.
Chen Yang asked tentatively: "You and Bai Tang..."
"It's okay." Xiangdong said.
Chen Yang suddenly realized that Xiangdong's illness was Bai Tang, and he would get better if he saw Bai Tang.
But the problem is that Bai Tang’s life or death is unknown.
The same is true for painters.
The ending of Zhao Yuan Fengli after the second reset is also unknown. We can only say that they are both lucky and unfortunate.
Unfortunately, everything before the reset was deleted, and they had to start again with new memories and get to know their teammates again.
Fortunately, they have one more chance to be reborn than countless other taskers.
The two kids were able to reset, which meant they had passed the mission points line, but in all likelihood, not by much. If they want to pass the level, their luck must be similar to or greater than Ayuan's, otherwise it won't work.
Of course, it is not ruled out that they will have other adventures after the reset.
Chen Yang also wanted to know the information of a few other people, but Xiangdong was not in a good mental state now, so he was afraid that he couldn't continue.
"It's cold, the food will get cold soon. Let's eat first and talk while we eat." Without waiting for Xiangdong to refute, Chen Yang pulled Chao Jian to the kitchen with his shoulders slumped.
Chao Jian hugged Chen Yang without saying a word, rubbing his hands back and forth between the back of his head.
Every scent and heat from the kitchen smells like home.
A simple and ordinary life is hard to come by, how precious it is.
Chen Yang paused for a moment and exhaled slowly: "I'm fine, serve the dishes."
He lifted the lid of the pot and reached directly for the dish of food on top of the rice.
Chao Jian reacted quickly and grabbed Chen Yang's hand to prevent him from getting burned.
"Go get the dishes from the cupboard." Chao Jian said again, "Forget it, don't do anything, just stand next to me."
Chen Yang was distracted.
"Brother, the way you are now makes me feel like these eleven years have been wasted." Chao Jian threw the lid back on the pot, "Whether it's before or after the reset, you always ask about other teammates. Asking only makes things difficult for yourself."
Chen Yang moved his cold lips: "People have thousands of different personalities."
"I know." Chao Jian closed his eyes and said solemnly, "I just hope you won't abuse yourself too much, otherwise..."
His words were incoherent, his voice hoarse and helpless, "Otherwise I will eat milk tablets as meals, brother."
Chen Yang could tell Chao Jian was irritable and gloomy. The more he ate milk tablets, the worse his mood was. Everything about Chen Yang could be passed on to Chao Jian.
"I'll pay attention." Chen Yang touched Chao Jian's shaking hand, held it and rubbed it gently, "Actually, after I asked, my heart was blocked, and I gradually felt relieved. If I didn't ask, I would be more likely to get sick. But no matter what, it won't affect my life. Everyone has their own destiny and their own ending. How can everything be perfect?"
"Alright, alright," Chen Yang kissed Jian Jian's clean fingertips, "I'm hungry. If you don't believe me, just listen. It's growling."
Chao Jian's pursed lips loosened and he smiled: "Then serve the rice."
The lunch for three adult men is four dishes, one soup, and a large pot of white rice, which is enough.
Chen Yang drank medicinal wine, Xiangdong drank white wine, and Chao Jian drank boiled water. The three kinds of drinks of the three people revealed their temperament and state.
Xiangdong took a sip and two-thirds of the wine was gone. He drank too fast and choked several times. "Xiang Zimu and Miss Qiao live in the same neighborhood and they have a good relationship."
Chen Yang was stunned for a few seconds: "So how were they before you came out?"
"Xiang Zimu quit her job at the rehabilitation center and is composing music when she has nothing to do. Miss Qiao is receiving treatment. She was taking medicine eight out of ten times when she was on video. The remaining two times were when she was ready to sleep after the medicine took effect." Xiangdong smacked his lips, feeling a spicy sensation in his throat. The wine was stronger than he had imagined. "I guess they teamed up."
Chen Yang ate the vermicelli that was almost cold. The vermicelli was stewed with meat and dried chilies, so it was very spicy. He took Chao Jian's cup and drank a few sips of water before he stopped himself from coughing.
"Hipster reset."
After Xiangdong finished speaking, there was silence at the table. Then Chen Yang started coughing. It was no use for him to drink water as he started coughing again.
Chao Jian patted Chen Yang on the back and fed him a mouthful of hot soup.
While Chen Yang was swallowing the hot soup, he learned the reason for Wen Qing's second reset.
"He likes to experiment on himself for excitement. It's impossible for him to be lucky every time," Xiangdong said.
Chen Yang swallowed. Wen Qing’s journey took too long, too long.
Once Wen Qing wanted to stop because he was tired, but Chen Yang pushed him and he continued to move forward.
In the end, he stopped.
Start again.
Chen Yang thought of something, leaned forward and asked Chao Jian in a low voice: "Wen Qing reset it a second time, so has he untied himself from your uncle?"
"No." Chao Jian was eating, "Wen Qing's ID number has not changed. They still share the same ID number."
"After Wen Qing reset, I don't remember him, and he doesn't remember me. I have done five or six missions with him, and he annoyed me to death the whole time."
Xiangdong snorted, apparently he had been tricked by him again, just like the death trap at the train station: "Damn it, he is still the same, he hasn't changed at all, he still treats the task as a game, he doesn't want to reach the end, he just enjoys the process, a dog will always eat shit."
Chen Yang: “…”
"No, didn't you say that the virtual world has only been going on for a year or two? I remember that you only had four or five missions a year. So you almost always teamed up with literary youths?"
"Bullshit. Originally, my mission frequency was four or five times a year, but then it changed." Xiangdong put the empty cup on the table and stood up to reach for the white wine.
Chen Yang ate the pork knuckle meat that Chao Jian picked for him, with a frown on his face.
"This pork trotter..." Xiangdong scooped up a piece of fat and ate it. It was oily but not greasy. After he finished eating, he savored the taste and glanced at Chao Jian who was beside Chen Yang, "How is it cooked?" Tangshui'er loves to eat this stuff.
Chen Yang thought Chao Jian would not answer, but suddenly he heard him sneer: "You don't know how to do that."
Xiangdong didn't even swear or get angry, he just shrugged and said, "If you don't know how to do it, just learn it."
He noticed that the two people at the table were looking at him with expressions as if they had seen a ghost.
His forehead twitched and he started drinking with a hot face. As he drank, his heart grew colder and colder, until his internal organs were frosted.
"At that time, it wasn't just me who had more missions. All the missioners I knew were like that, taking on a mission every few days." Xiangdong said, "At that time, it was still a five-person team. It was me, Bai Tang, the painter, Fengli and Zhao Yuan. We were all there. The two children were under the most pressure, and the effect of the incense was weakened. People were panicked and had no hope."
In Chen Yang's left ear he could hear Chao Jian chewing food, and in his right ear he could hear Xiangdong talking.
The left and the right seem like two different worlds.
The world and hell.
"In the third month after the two children died, I had become very familiar with the literary youth who had reset the second time. We were still old comrades. Like before, we would get together to play games whenever we had time. One night, he gave me a small software and said it was a bug."
Xiangdong leaned back in his chair and said, “The software contains data.
Data of the entire virtual world."
"As of the time I opened the software, I couldn't remember the population of the country, the number of taskers, and the number of reserve forces. I also couldn't remember how many taskers were reset for the second time. I just remember that the data kept changing."
After a pause, Xiangdong touched his empty ear, where there was an ear hole and the small ring was thrown into the virtual world: "Lao Chen, and Lao Chen's girlfriend, do you know how terrifying the speed of data changes is? I just blinked, and the number of taskers decreased by three digits."
Chen Yang took a breath. He vaguely guessed something and turned his head to look at Chao Jian.
There may already be people who have completed the game on all the fragments of the real world. They are creating homes and are in urgent need of population.
As a result, the task frequency of the taskers increased, which accelerated the speed of survival of the fittest.
"I did nothing but stare at the data all day." Xiangdong wiped his face, "Tens of thousands of taskers died in the mission every day."
"Some of them made it through, but only about 99.9 percent at most. The rest died."
Xiangdong knew that the mission rules were cruel, luck played a big role, and the mortality rate was high, but when the real data was placed in front of him, the shock was so great that he felt an unprecedented fear.
Then Wen Qing told him that if the tasker died, the virtual world would be deleted.
"The buggy software was given to Wen Qing by his partner, Jin Xiaochang." Xiangdong said.
Chen Yang took a bite of rice and said, "Captain Jin Xiao is an illegal immigrant who passed the customs but didn't leave. He is not subject to the rules tampering and editing."
"No wonder." Xiang Dong was not surprised at all, and pointed at Chao Jian who was almost finishing his bowl of rice, "He is the same."
Chen Yang said "hmm".
Xiangdong had an expression that said "I knew it".
Perhaps he felt stuffy, so he went east to get some fresh air. He drank several glasses of white wine, but he still walked smoothly.
Chen Yang withdrew his gaze from Xiangdong and picked up some shredded meat for Chao Jian. He thought to himself, it turns out that Jin Xiaochang is really doing research...
But,
Why does Jin Xiaochang study the data of the virtual world
The peanuts on Chen Yang's chopsticks fell onto the table and rolled down.
Could it be…
Jin Xiaochang pays attention to the changes in data in order to ensure that when there are not many taskers left and the virtual world is about to be deleted, he can find a way to drag Wen Qing to the end in time
Noticing that Chao Jian was staring at him, Chen Yang patted the back of his hand twice and said, "I'll go ask Xiang Dong a few questions and then I'll be back. You eat first."
Chen Yang found Xiangdong under a tree in the yard.
The tree was planted by Chao Jian for him. The branches were very thick and remained green all year round. Now the branches and leaves were spread out, blocking a lot of snowflakes.
Xiang Dong guessed what Chen Yang was doing. Before he could ask any more questions, he said, "The week before I started the review mission, the frequency of the missions increased to a new level, with one every other day. On the morning of the day I started the review mission, the number of task takers was less than 30 million."
This means that many people complete the game, but even more die. The virtual world will be deleted soon, and if the literary youth does not come out, he will never be able to come out.
"What about those reserve kids? Are they all destroyed?" Chen Yang said in a hoarse voice.
"Wen Qing said that the reserve forces will be placed in another virtual earth, which will be filled with reserve forces from different countries. They will grow up there and enter the mission world." Xiangdong closed his bloodshot eyes, "Who knows the details? Our lives are already unclear, and we can't care about anything else."
When Chen Yang returned to the room, Chao Jian had already finished eating and was drinking soup. Chen Yang looked at Chao Jian for a while, then walked over and hugged him from behind.
For too many people, just living is difficult.
If you want a body and a life, you must stride forward with unwavering determination and reach the end without wavering.
"We must live a good life." Chen Yang said softly.
"I have been living a good life." Chao Jian said, "Whether or not Xiangdong has revealed that information, I will live a good life with you."
Chen Yang reflected: "Sometimes I complain and feel tired and bored. I write self-criticisms at night."
Chao Jian exposed his past: "Are you still squeezing more than a hundred words out of the toothpaste like last time?"
"When I write a word, I have to think for ten minutes and write very carefully." Chen Yang said seriously.
Chao Jian looked at him, making him blush, and kicked him.
The force is not strong.
His brother was reluctant to use harsh measures against him, and always acted gently, with much ado about nothing.
However, the next moment, Chao Jian's chin was bitten by Chen Yang.
"… "
When Chao Jian washed dishes, he would roll up his sleeves, and there were two words carved on the wrist of one arm.
—Return to God.
The Chaojian belongs to Chen Yang.
That was carved by Chen Yang for Chao Jian when the summer was almost over.
Originally, Chen Yang wanted to fool people and not carve any words for Chao Jian.
But when he got up to go to the bathroom several times at night and found Chao Jian not sleeping and staring at him, he had to change his mind and let Chao Jian get what she wanted.
Before taking action, Chen Yang looked up books, asked people, and made sufficient preparations to ensure success in one go, and tried to carve it as beautifully and clearly as possible.
Otherwise he had no doubt that Chao Jian would stretch out his other hand and ask him to carve.
Chen Yang poured the soup in the plate into the trash can. When he looked up, he met Xiangdong's gaze.
Xiangdong was standing at the kitchen door and saw the words on Chao Jian's wrist.
Chen Yang said hello to Chao Jian and left the kitchen. He heard Xiang Dong say, "Did you carve it?"
This is bullshit.
Apart from Chen Yang, who else in the world could do that to Chao Jian
"Every stroke is very deep. Maybe he secretly traced over it after you finished carving it?" Xiang Dong was not making a random guess. He had reason to believe that Chao Jian could have done it.
Chen Yang didn't say anything, and his expression seemed a little strange.
Xiangdong paused for a beat while kicking Li Xue: "Did you draw it?"
Chen Yang's silence indicated his agreement.
"He probably forced me to do that." Xiangdong said firmly.
Chen Yang went to the main room to wipe the table. In front of his eyes appeared the scene of Chao Jian grabbing his knife-holding hand, pressing him down, and cutting his skin and flesh with every stroke. His breathing became a little irregular.
With every stroke, Chao Jian became happier.
After carving, I asked him to trace it, with the tip of the knife tracing along the strokes of the two characters, over and over again, over and over again...
Chen Yang slammed the rag on the table with great force. He didn't know who he was angry at. He was so angry that his eyes were trembling.
“Be more open-minded. Your husband’s paranoia hasn’t happened in a day or two, a month or two, or even a year or two. He’s already beyond help. Carving the words won’t make his condition worse. If you don’t carve the words, he will always be thinking about it, and that’s scary.” Xiangdong sat at the table with his long legs crossed on the chair opposite.
Chen Yang calmed down for a while and continued to wipe the table.
"Old Chen, you'll be busy later, let's chat." Xiangdong rarely showed his mature side, "Let's chat."
Chen Yang understood and asked, "Do you get along well with Professor Bai?"
"Average." Xiangdong said this with a gentle smile in his eyes.
In order to make the atmosphere less depressing, Chen Yang joked, "You didn't cheat, did you?"
"Professor Bai has such sharp claws, how dare I do that?" Xiangdong began to "cry" to Chen Yang, telling him how strict his Professor Bai was with him, how hard it was to appease him when he got angry, and how petty he was. He said a lot.
Xiangdong felt dizzy after he finished speaking and leaned against the table to cushion his feeling. He couldn't describe how he felt. With so many friends around him, who would have thought that the person most suitable for talking about feelings was Chen Yang.
Just like besties.
Bah, what best friend, they are brothers.
He had had sexual feelings for Chen Yang in the past, but later they became teammates, old teammates, comrades-in-arms, and friends, and they evolved all the way until they were now fellows in distress.
This is fucking life.
Chen Yang shook the rag towards the trash can and said, "There is a temple on the island. I will take you there later. You can burn some incense for Professor Bai."
Before the reset, he burned incense for Bai Tang before the reset, and prayed to Buddha for the other party, praying that he could meet the person he liked again in the next life.
So Bai Tang was favored by the Buddha and his wish came true. He met Xiangdong again in his "next life".
Now, Chen Yang, who cleared the level after the reset, wants to burn incense to Bai Tang, who may or may not have cleared the level after the reset.
Chen Yang deeply understood the subtlety of the game of fate.
"Why burn incense? I won't burn any!" Xiangdong reacted violently and started yelling on the spot.
Seeing him like that, Chen Yang slapped him on the back and said, "Are you stupid? Incense can be burned for deceased relatives, and it can also be used to pray for the living."
Xiangdong: “…”
"Damn it, where is the temple? I'm going there right now." He didn't know if it was because of the alcohol or what, but he grabbed the corner of the table and didn't get up for a long time.
Chen Yang glanced at Xiangdong's hand that was grabbing the corner of the table.
The back of the hand was bulging with blue veins, the finger bones were rough and white, and upon closer inspection, it was still shaking.
"It's snowing heavily now. We can take a rest for a while. I'll go and do my work first. I'll take you to the temple later." Chen Yang turned and walked outside. A faint sobbing sound could be heard behind him.
Chen Yang walked out of the main room and looked up at the snowflakes all over the sky. When will the sky clear up
Xiangdong temporarily settled down on the island. The bungalow he lived in was at the end, about ten houses away from Chen Yang's house.
A house built of stone must have poor sound insulation.
In order to avoid embarrassment to each other and to avoid eating dog food until vomiting in the middle of the night, it is better to stay away from each other.
Xiangdong didn't look for anything to do, nor did he go to the hospital to see a doctor. He just looked at the scenery on the island and sat anywhere for the whole day. After meditating, he entered the sage time. It seemed that he had completed his training and was ready to face the thunder tribulation and ascend to heaven.
However, he never left his pipe, smoking several bags of tobacco a day, and his throat was almost blackened by the smoke. It was not until the bear cub was caught by Xiangdong that his addiction to tobacco was slightly reduced.
During the Chinese New Year, the island was very lively, and Chen Yang called all his teammates before and after the reset.
Wang Xin came to the island with her husband and three children, a large family.
There was also a gay man who got married not long ago and brought his family along. They were a newlywed couple, and their sweetness was enough to make you suffocate.
"Brother Dong, Brother Yang is calling you!" A Yuan shouted to Dong, who was squatting on a rock and puffing on his pipe.
"I got it." Xiangdong was still squatting.
Chen Yang personally dragged him into the joyous atmosphere.
Happy New Year.
Happy New Year! Happy New Year!
I wish you all the best in the new year.
I wish you and your family happiness.
…
The sound of blessings, accompanied by the clinking of cups, interweaves into the flavor of the New Year.
Chen Yang held Chao Jian's hand under the table and raised his lips to everyone. He hoped that there would be more people during the Chinese New Year next year, more and more every year.
I wish you all all your wishes come true.
The time after the New Year passed in peace, and in a blink of an eye all the flowers on the island were in bloom.
When the fragment from Penang floated over, Chen Yang was teaching his children at school.
There were sirens outside.
That is the kind of noise that would only occur if a major event occurred.
The school was suspended and the children were picked up by their parents, but they did not go home and instead headed to the fifth fragment.
There was no fear in the children's eyes, but curiosity.
Chen Yang followed Chao Jian and looked at the road signs. This was Penang, the city where the mission point at the beach was located.
Looking around, there were tall buildings and landmarks everywhere. The area was so large that Chen Yang initially suspected that the entire Penang had been preserved.
If this is true, then there is no telling how many people will pass through this city.
Chen Yang suddenly heard footsteps, and the people around him also stopped and kept quiet.
Everyone's perception ability is very strong and the difference is not big. They are now sensing something and are holding their breath.
That was the sound of wheels rolling over the asphalt road.
As they waited with bated breath, a bus slowly came in. The bus was empty and the driver was a man in his thirties with glasses.
Chen Yang's half-closed eyes suddenly opened wide.
There was a large poster on the body of the bus, which was an advertisement for the opening of a piano store.
The poster features a charming busty lady leaning against a piano, her red lips curled into an extremely charming smile. Next to her is a woman with black hair and a white face, whose facial features are as light as water, completely different from her flamboyant style, yet there is a magical harmony between them.
Chen Yang didn't know how long he had been staring at the poster. When he came to his senses, the bus had stopped. The man with glasses stopped the bus by himself. He suddenly saw a large group of compatriots and burst into tears with excitement.
The man with glasses said that he was registered in a county town and used to drive a bus. Among the rewards he received after returning was an A1 driver’s license.
He is willing to do his old job and it would be great if he could go home.
The man with glasses found a usable bus in the county. He usually drove the bus around when he had nothing to do. Today, he just sent a few people away and was preparing to go home.
"Are you the only one in the county?" A Yuan and Han Xing asked. Yan Zhi and Zhao Shiyu beside them looked at each other and each stood next to their own people.
The man with glasses wiped his tears and snot, his nose was red, and he looked like he was easy to bully: "Only me."
"Today I picked up four people, three men and one woman. The one who impressed me the most was a professor who looked like a banished immortal. I saw him on the platform almost every day. He seemed to be looking for someone..." The man with glasses was quite smart and took the initiative to explain to his compatriots.
A tall figure suddenly rushed over from behind the crowd, staggering, with a pungent smell of smoke and a cruel aura. He grabbed him by the clothes and lifted him up.
He quickly shed the sentimentality and weakness of the previous moment, his face turned stern, and he subconsciously punched back.
But after seeing the other person's expression, he retracted his fist, pushed up his glasses, and said politely: "Brother, can you let me go? Let's talk it over. You ask your questions, and I will definitely tell you what I know."
Xiangdong grabbed the clothes of the man with glasses, his eyes were fierce, his cheeks were tight, and he couldn't speak, as if he had lost the ability to speak.
Chen Yang asked the man with glasses on his behalf: "Dude, is the professor's last name Bai, Bai Tang?"
"Oh, yes, that's how he introduced himself. You know each other." The man with glasses said this, but there was no big reaction behind the lenses. He guessed it easily.
When Chen Yang turned his head, he saw Xiangdong running. He quickly found out from the man with glasses which stop Bai Tang got off at, and hurriedly told Xiangdong who was about to run far away.
"Drive to—"
As Chen Yang was shouting, the man with glasses revealed to others, "There are at least a few hundred people in Penang... I'm not 100% sure, I've only been back a few days, I'm just guessing, the internet isn't there yet. Oh, by the way, there's a guy named Zheng in the county next to my home..."
He is also an acquaintance. Chen Yang looked at the cloudless sky, it was a sunny day.
There are many towns in this city, and it takes several hours to visit the more distant ones.
Everyone divided the area on the spot, and whoever was responsible for that area drove and shouted with the horn.
The first step is to hold a group meeting.
The second step is…
I haven't figured out what it is.
We'll talk about it when the time comes. There's no rush. They have plenty of time.
Chen Yang peeled a piece of milk slice and gave it to Chao Jian, then hugged his head and kissed him hard.
Chao Jian is a patient and cannot feel any joyful atmosphere. He cannot see others but only his brother.
However, he liked to see his brother with a bright smile and light in his eyes, which made his heart warm and his soul hot.
Chao Jian pulled Chen Yang to the corner, pushed open his lips and teeth with the tip of his tongue with a milky flavor, and kissed him deeply for a long time.
Chen Yang responded enthusiastically. His soft and warm waist was pinched by Chao Jian. A wave rushed up from his lower abdomen, rushed to his heart, and spread in all directions.
The whole body is numb.
Chen Yang panted: "Are you feeling my happiness?"
Chao Jian rubbed his wet lips with her fingertips: "I'm feeling you."
"Don't flirt with your brother. Do it tonight." Chen Yang hooked his arms around Chao Jian's neck and tapped his shoulder with his burning fingers. "Come on, I'll take you to visit the big city on my bike."
The city is so big, which teammates are here
The spring breeze was blowing and the sun was shining brightly. Chen Yang rode his bicycle, and under everyone's pretentious but actually calm gazes, he turned around and gave Chao Jian, who was sitting on the back seat, a sunny kiss, and pedaled off.
Go find it.