It was finally over. Jiang Chen headed to the power armor and took out two brick-sized aluminum heat agents. He then returned to the hall and threw the aluminum heat agents at the still-functioning super computer before pressing the detonation.
The blazing flame melted the steel frame instantly, the core of the device vaporizing in the bright flare. The flashing decimals disappeared, signaling the collapse of another world.
Jiang Chen quietly lit a cigarette to enjoy the not-so-glamorous fireworks.
In the fire, he saw Yao Tingting, Zhao Peng, his classmates, and George.
The first sixteen years of his fictitious memories faded. He didn’t know who his “parents” or childhood friends were in the virtual world.
Perhaps it wouldn’t take long for his memories of the five-day cycle to become covered in mist.
At least he wouldn’t be troubled by the fictitious reality anymore.
Although the hard drive that stored the artificial intelligence data was destroyed, he kept the processing equipment and threw it into the storage dimension. It would come in handy for a virtual reality game in the future.
He flicked the cigarette bud away and walked to the vial filled with a dark green liquid.
“Hmm, how do you open this?”
He scratched his head, sighed, and then pressed every button he could possibly press.
“What? It worked?”
The green liquid began to descend gradually, and the tubes attached to the girl’s body retracted. Following the drop in water level, the girl came to slowly sit on the ground, leaning against the vial wall.
Silver hair, pale skin, and a graceful but frail figure—it was as if everything had been “designed” to perfection. Or perhaps too much attention had been placed on striving for that perfection. It was to the point that her dreamy character looked surreal.
Like an elf from a fantasy world? The only difference was that her ears were not pointed.
“Should I prepare a set of clothes for her?” After a moment of thought, Jiang Chen opened the storage dimension and took out another protective suit. Although it was a bit too big, it was good enough for now.
As for why he felt so calm, it was only natural. There was nothing to see on the body. Even if she did seem out of this world, he had seen plenty of gorgeous girls before.
Mhmm, her measurements were between Yao Yao’s and Ayesha’s.
“Urrggg—!”
The girl’s eyes opened, and without any warning, she began to vomit.
Green liquid poured out of her mouth and nostrils, splashing onto Jiang Chen’s shoes even as he hastily stepped back.
“Hack! Urgh—” Without being conscientious of her movements, the girl thumped her chest as she struggled to expel the nutrient supply from her digestive tract and lungs.
[It’s not food? That’s not so bad.]
Jiang Chen glanced at the green liquid on his shoes, lifting his feet to lightly give it a shake.
Unfortunately, the liquid was sticky; he had no idea what it was made out of.
When the girl finally became conscious of her surroundings, she squinted her eyes to adjust to the light around her.
But when she caught sight of Jiang Chen, she flinched back like a startled rabbit.
Somehow, by leaning back, her figure became even more dangerous. There was no bush.
“M-Men?!”
“Mhmm, you’re right. Why don’t you put some clothes on?” Jiang Chen shrugged and handed the protective suit over.
“Inferior creatures,” she cursed under her breath. She reached out with a look of disgust only to find that the man had retracted the clothes.
“You, what do you want?” Sensing the hint of hostility on his face, she scooted backward with a look of horror.
“What did you call me?”
“Inferior creature! Am I wrong?” Although frightened, she defiantly bared her teeth and glared back at him. Only, her hands seemed too busy as she couldn’t cover both the top and bottom.
“Oh? Is this how you thank the person who saved you from the prison?” Jiang Chen raised his eyebrows with a smile.
The artificial intelligence was destroyed, the bacterial source was eliminated, and the battle on the surface should have already ended. With plenty of time on his hands, he suddenly had a desire to tease this short-tempered girl.
[Inferior creature? This is considered a curse, right?]
“Was I wrong?” The girl kept her head up and stared right back at Jiang Chen. “I, I told you the clue, and you let me out. This was the exchange.”
She sounded defiant and callous, but then why her shoulders were shaking?
A playful smile hovered on Jiang Chen’s face.
“Oh? Think carefully, did we really make a deal?”
“Of cour—!” The aggressive words began to slip out before they choked, her expression stiffening.
“Isn’t, isn’t this obvious?” Her voice sounded much weaker.
She realized they had never made a deal.
“Oh? Do you not know the rule of the wasteland?” Jiang Chen smiled.
“Rule?” The girl was lost.
“Since I saved you, then under the rule, you are now my slave.” Jiang Chen smiled devilishly.
He had learned the smile from Sun Jiao, although he couldn’t quite mimic the naughty feeling.
As for the rule? That was all bullsh*t. If you actually got saved in the apocalypse, that was no different from being captured as a slave.
“Slave?” The girl’s face immediately lost all color.
“Right, slave.”
“What, what do you want to do to me?” The girl’s lips trembled as her legs reflexively pushed her backward despite the fact that she was already pressed flat against the cold vial.
“Me? I’ll do whatever I want. Such as….” The devilish smile bloomed larger on his face.
This is so funny! He suddenly found that he was becoming naughtier.
“Stay away from me! You pervert, rapist, psycho—!”
The girl’s mental condition collapse as she shouted hysterically.
Jiang Chen’s expression suddenly turned awkward as his mouth twitched.
[This girl must be paranoid and delusional. I haven’t even done anything yet.]
“Eh?”
The girl stared blankly at the clothes covering her, then turned her gaze up at Jiang Chen with watery eyes.
“Such is teaching you manners. Since I saved you, the least you could do was say thank you.”
The girl bit her lips. She lowered her head, using the clothes to cover her figure before ashamedly saying, “Thank you.”
Her voice could not be stiffer. It sounded as though she had been terribly mistreated.
[Why is it so difficult to say thanks?]
Jiang Chen sighed. If he really threw her out into the world outside, she would be devoured to the bones. Her short temper really made people want to commit crimes.
[There was no safe zone in the real world. Even if you hide in a room, people will still find you.]
“Your name is Lin Lin, right? Let me reintroduce myself. My name is Jiang Chen. I may look slightly different compared to the virtual world.”
Lin Lin rudely ignored him, choosing to cautiously observe him instead.
“Where is x71291?”
“That thing? I destroyed it.” Jiang Chen shrugged and pointed his chin at the fragmented junk metal.
In an instant, Lin Lin’s face turned green.
“What?! Are you crazy? You know that is—”
“The product of twenty years of research, data from three thousand lives, right?” Jiang Chen interrupted her angry shouts without the slightest consideration for her feelings. He glanced at the junk metal. “It should not have existed in the first place, so I destroyed it.” Of course, the processor was still useful, so he kept it.
A tear rolling down, she said with a sorrowfully, “But you can’t.”
“You’re quite funny. Do you find it fun to be threatened? Then why don’t I just torture you like a slave. Would you like a collar?” Jiang Chen raised his eyebrows while laughing unscrupulously at her teary eyes.
“You!” Her face, which had been slightly red, paled again. The expression on this man’s face reminded her of the situation she was in.
“Regardless, I did destroy it.” Jiang Chen sighed, unwilling to waste any more time with her. “Put your clothes back on. I’ll take you out of this place.”
“Yes! Did the Spaceship of Hope leave yet? My father is aboard; he must be waiting for me. Hold on, I have to go to the launch center at Jiuquan. Take me there, and I can ask my father to get you a ticket.” Lin Lin’s expression varied rapidly—sometimes frightened, sometimes anxious, and in the end, she settled on trying to lure Jiang Chen.
Jiang Chen’s expression was rather odd, however. He did not look as ecstatic as Lin Lin had thought he would be.
“Are you really crazy or what? What year is it?”
Confused, Lin Lin asked, “What year is it?”
“September of 2190. If you’re talking about the Space Colonization Ships launched by the United Nations, it successfully launched in 2176.” Jiang Chen watched as Lin Lin slowly collapsed.
“No, this is impossible.” Her eyes were shaken. Trembling, she covered her face with her hands, the protective suit slipping from her grip.
The distorted sense of time was especially prominent in the virtual world. Although she knew that she had spent a long time in there, she hadn’t expected years to have passed!
“There is nothing impossible. The elites, as you so call them, abandoned this piece of land to ruin another planet.” Jiang Chen shrugged. To be fair, he didn’t care about what happened in this world.
Although, the act of destroying a hometown and then enjoying life elsewhere did sound familiar.
“Dad left me here.” Lin Lin’s eyes brimmed with tears, her slim shoulders trembling as she sobbed.
Jiang Chen was silent.
It was fun teasing pretty girls, but he still couldn’t accept tears.
After a moment’s hesitation, he sighed.
“Maybe, from another perspective, he left hope on this land.”
“Eh?” Lin Lin looked up with her teary eyes and stared blankly in his direction.
“You are the hope he left behind. He trusts that you can bring change here. Don’t you have all of the knowledge in your head? Then do something with it.”
Jiang Chen didn’t know how to comfort people, so this was the best he could do.
The tears had at least stopped; he felt relieved.
“Hope?” Lin Lin mumbled.
“That’s right.”
“In this situation.” Lin Lin stared at her hands and watched as the last tear drop rolled through her fingers.
A hint of humor appeared on her face. Her crystalline eyes lit up with something akin to hope.
“In this case, what I can do is reluctantly help these inferior creatures.”
Huh?