This Game Is Too Real
Chapter 415: The Rekindled Flame!

Chapter 415: Chapter 415: The Rekindled Flame!

When the door to the hospital room opened again, a host of "patients" had already returned to their beds, lying there like frosted eggplants, completely lacking the vigorous vitality they had shown before.

Standing next to Yun Yi, Yu Feng pressed his brow, feeling a bit of a headache, but he was just a merchant apprentice and it wasn’t his place to say anything.

Having put his shirt back on, Shen Rui walked out of the room awkwardly. He wanted to say something to change the subject, but Yun Yi beat him to the punch.

"What’s that?"

"Po, poker."

Embarrassed, Shen Rui grinned and scratched the back of his head as he explained, "It’s... a card game invented by those Blue Jackets. It’s quite popular in the taverns around here."

Yun Yi’s brow furrowed slightly, and the reflection in his glasses gleamed sharply.

"Tavern?"

"Uh, the alcohol doesn’t affect the treatments, and it can also help to prevent the spread of the ’mutated slime fungus’... That’s what the doctors and we have been told." Feeling a bit guilty under that sharp gaze, Shen Rui glanced around nervously, worried that a doctor might happen to pass by in the hallway.

Yun Yi fell silent for a moment, then sighed.

"Before coming here, I’d heard about your situation and had been very concerned about your safety... but now it seems I’ve worried too much."

Hearing that sigh, Shen Rui hurriedly explained.

"This, this isn’t our fault. Life outside the city is so monotonous that we have to find some... well, ways to entertain ourselves and pass the time."

"So your way of passing time is gambling?"

Feeling obviously in the wrong, Shen Rui said no more.

Straightening out discipline was not his job, so Yun Yi did not continue on this topic. After a pause, he brought up the next arrangements.

"In two days, you all will be transferred to West State City and take the return flight back to the Province of Yúnjiānxíng."

Hearing that he could go home, a joyful expression finally appeared on Shen Rui’s face.

Although life here was interesting, it was only suitable for a short stay, not for settling down. Without access to "Endpoint Cloud" and no immersive virtual entertainment spaces, boredom was inevitable over time.

Otherwise, they would not have resorted to playing cards.

"...You’ve lived here for a while now. Tell me about the situation here."

Responding to Yun Yi’s inquiry, Shen Rui, who had snapped back to attention, said eagerly.

"What aspects would you like to know about?"

Yun Yi thought for a moment and then said,

"For instance, what kind of organization is this Alliance, really?"

Shen Rui scratched his head, pondering for a while before answering,

"Their own explanation is... a self-help alliance of survivors led by the residents of the refuges. The full name seems to be the Human Revival United Front, also known as the New Alliance."

Human Revival wasn’t too bad.

Yun Yi slightly raised the left side of his eyebrow, his expression somewhat odd, but he didn’t say anything.

There were plenty of strangely named survivor settlements in the Wasteland. There was the Kingdom of three people, a Tribe of ten thousand, and a Federation formed by ten small villages.

An "Alliance" claiming to revive human civilization didn’t seem that odd.

Seeing Yun Yi remained silent, Shen Rui continued,

"Regardless of what they call themselves, the people here are pretty friendly, but it’s true that they have a fierce local spirit. Occasionally, some Waste Land Wanderers who don’t understand the situation come to cause trouble, and they are quickly controlled by those residents of the refuges..."

At that moment, he seemed to recall something and went on,

"Oh, right, those Blue Jackets, many of them are Awakeners! Including their Manager! Their biotechnology is very strong, and they seem to have mastered the technology to stably cultivate Awakeners."

Yun Yi nodded and didn’t find it strange.

Technological enterprises similar to this one were not rare; it was just that, like cloning technology, they were taboo and seldom used.

After all, awakening was no trivial matter, its cost being the sacrifice of the chance to produce offspring. As far as the overall fertility rate of society was concerned, it was not suitable for widespread promotion in a stable society.

Ideal City, to a certain extent, continued the laws and moral views of the Human Alliance Era. Although it recognized the identity of Awakeners, it did not revere them as the desperate Wasteland Wanderers did.

Becoming a "superhuman" through mechanical exoskeletons and bionic organs was not only a more stable and controllable direction for enhancement but also did not require the sacrifice of personal happiness.

But to transform the residents of the refuge into Awakeners was one thing; the fact that the Manager had awakened himself was quite another.

This was indeed beyond her expectations.

It seemed she had underestimated the man’s ambition.

"I understand the basics," said Yun Yi thoughtfully, after listening to Shen Rui’s account. "It seems that the situation here is more complex than I imagined... including that Manager."

"Complex?" Shen Rui asked with confusion.

"Yes," Yun Yi nodded, continuing in an even tone, "Ambition, cunning, and leadership... He possesses all the potential a person with ambition needs to have and is better at disguising and hiding than the average ambitious person. He makes himself seem harmless, his true intentions inscrutable."

Shen Rui scratched the back of his head with a subtle expression.

"But, I feel like he’s quite straightforward. The residents here really like him... Could it be that you’re overthinking?"

It wasn’t just him who felt this way.

Everyone who had interacted with that man could sense that he was easygoing, and the residents’ evaluation of him didn’t seem to be mere flattery or fawning.

This was worlds apart from the survivor settlements they had encountered along their journey.

He had seen cannibalistic tribes that devoured people alive and survivor communities that sophistically consumed humans. Those who called themselves civilized, like the village chiefs, even proposed to exchange girls of only eleven or twelve years old for the modern weapons in their possession, suggesting to offer them up as slaves... Of course, they had refused.

Rather than an ambitious man, Shen Rui felt that the person resembled the captain of the Pioneer, Lu Yang... more like an idealist.

However, these were just his personal opinions.

For instance, someone who called himself Mr. Hauser frequently cursed him on broadcasts.

"It’s not that I’m overthinking; it’s that you’re oversimplifying people," Yun Yi said lightly. "I won’t deny he has his upstanding qualities, but this doesn’t mean what I said is invalid."

She paused, then continued.

"This isn’t just my opinion. According to calculations made by the ’Intelligent Brain,’ there’s a 37% chance that the war was instigated by the Alliance."

The Intelligent Brain was the main server of Ideal City, the core of the "Endpoint Cloud" network, and also the business core of the Endpoint Group.

Although the other four major groups seldom relied on AI for decision-making, the level of automation in the Endpoint Group was very high, even higher than that of the Kang Mao Group, which made heavy use of bionic staff.

Shen Rui looked surprised, glanced left and right along the corridor, then looked back at Yun Yi and said cautiously.

"I feel... decisions based on limited intelligence may not be reliable, even if it’s from the Intelligent Brain. To be honest, I don’t have much faith in that thing, and we probably shouldn’t discuss this on someone else’s turf... they are victims, after all. Many died that day."

Yun Yi’s expression did not change, and she spoke in a calm voice.

"It’s just a reasonable suspicion. The initial attack on the Pioneer by the Army happened in the North Suburb of Clear Spring, and shortly after they left, they were intercepted by the Army again... Multiple coincidences make me feel things are not as simple as they seem."

"Of course, these are merely suspicions. I won’t present unverified guesses as evidence to the Council for deliberation. Unless we have enough clues to prove that he instigated this war to deceive us for aid, or for his own selfish desires."

Her view was not unique.

Within the Endpoint Group, there were quite a few others who shared a similar opinion.

Looking deeper, unlike the Silver Wing and Chang Ge Group, the business of the Endpoint Group was mainly concentrated within Ideal City. Most survivor settlements had no use for their AI technology or cloud computing services, so "expanding overseas markets" was of no benefit to them.

Therefore, even without personal sentiments, purely from the perspective of interest, they were unlikely to support the war.

Even though they ultimately cast a vote in favor.

Shen Rui opened his mouth, but in the end, he could only shrug helplessly.

"Alright, I can’t guarantee he’s definitely a good guy, I’m just sharing my opinion... I have a good feeling about that person."

"Understood, let’s not talk about that," Yun Yi switched to a more soothing tone and continued, "Oh right, I almost forgot to ask, how much is your treatment fee?"

Shen Rui was slightly taken aback.

He hadn’t paid much attention to that.

After pondering for a moment, he answered uncertainly,

"Seems like... five hundred?"

"That cheap?" Yun Yi looked at him with mild surprise.

Shen Rui: "Uh, I think it’s five hundred a day."

Noticing the expression on Yun Yi’s face turning unfriendly, Yu Feng, who had been silent, coughed and hurriedly explained,

"It’s silver coins, silver coins... not Cr."

...

The next morning.

The sky was just beginning to lighten.

End-of-the-world Lone Wolf, dressed in casual attire and yawning, stepped out of the refuge and found Wild Wind waiting for him at Resurrection Square.

As a life-skills player who also dabbled as a casual gamer, unless there was a major event, he rarely made appearances on the front lines or joined teams for dungeon runs.

After all, he had a deep understanding of his own ability to hold a team back.

Usually, he’d either be discussing professional issues with a few other players in the industrial zone and Factory No.81, or he’d be taking his fishing rod to the lake for some fishing alongside Little Fish.

Though his colleague here successfully dragged him into filling out a form, due to the differences in game style, they didn’t have much interaction in the game.

They mostly played on their own, occasionally meeting up.

To team up this early in the morning like they were doing today was a first in the past few months.

"What’s going on? It had to be discussed in the game?"

Lone Wolf looked at Wild Wind with confusion, trying to find some clues on his face.

However, although this guy’s game ID was nothing short of wild, his personality was quite reserved, showing little expression both inside and outside the game.

"In-game matters have to be discussed in-game," Wild Wind said earnestly, "Come with me, I’ll show you something good."

Lone Wolf asked instinctively,

"What good thing?"

However, Wild Wind didn’t offer an explanation and simply stated succinctly,

"You’ll find out when we get there!"

Well, now.

He was playing coy.

Lone Wolf raised his eyebrows, a tinge of curiosity surfacing in his eyes.

It wasn’t the mystery this guy was selling that intrigued him, but rather the excitement and thrill that flickered behind that poker face.

What kind of treasure would get this guy so pumped?

With curiosity, Lone Wolf followed Wild Wind to the train station at the northern outskirts of Dawn City and took the train to West State City.

After a bumpy journey of nearly a hundred kilometers,

the two got off the train as it was nearing noon.

Seeing that they hadn’t reached their destination yet, Lone Wolf, following in Wild Wind’s wake, finally couldn’t help but ask,

"How much farther?"

But—

The response was still just one phrase.

"Almost there!"

Lone Wolf: "..."

The only consolation was that the voice sounded increasingly excited. Maybe, just as this guy said, they were very close to the end.

Deep into the district of West State City.

Wild Wind confidently readied his weapon to check the situation on the streets, and seeing no danger, led Lone Wolf through a field of ruined buildings to the entrance of the subway station.

Little grasses growing out of the concrete cracks gently swayed, and the shadows under the concrete wall were covered with moss and rust-red streaks.

It was eerily quiet around.

Not a soul in sight, not even any living creatures.

Looking at the dark tunnel, Lone Wolf swallowed hard but followed Wild Wind as he showed no signs of stopping.

Feeling anxious, Lone Wolf walked along the subway tunnel until, just as he was about to repeat the question he’d asked half an hour ago, Wild Wind at last stopped.

Standing in front of a rusty iron door, Wild Wind knocked three times on the door.

Before long, there was movement behind the door, followed by a creaking sound as it opened.

Two soldiers wearing Type 5 Light Cavalry Exoskeletons stood on either side of the door.

When Lone Wolf saw the insignia on the soldiers’ breastplates and helmets, a look of surprise crossed his face.

Guards Corps?

How could the Manager’s Personal Guard be here?

"Please present your VM," one of the soldiers said.

Wild Wind immediately extended his arm with the VM.

The soldier who had opened the door for them stepped forward, checked his VM, and then turned to Lone Wolf, who was standing there motionless.

"And this one?"

"He’s on my team, and we came together. Can I bring him in?"

After hearing the request from the man from the refuge, the two soldiers exchanged glances, and one of them replied,

"Please wait, I will ask for the Manager’s permission."

Wild Wind nodded his head.

"Thank you!"

After a short wait, the two soldiers received a command to let them pass and moved aside to clear the entrance.

Seeing the Manager accommodate his request, Wild Wind breathed a sigh of relief, gestured to Lone Wolf, and led him through the hallway behind the door.

The security level here was exceptionally strict.

Not just the sentries at the door but also the cameras installed at corners of the hallway and the hanging automatic guns.

Anyone trying to force their way in would be turned into a sieve in an instant.

Looking at the heavy security around him, Lone Wolf glanced at his VM map and realized this area wasn’t charted on the map, which only served to fuel his excitement.

"Is this some kind of secret map? So mysterious."

Wild Wind didn’t answer; instead, he merely nodded his chin forward, leading Lone Wolf through the alloy doors that had just opened before them.

As the two passed through the door, the view before them abruptly opened up.

The spacious hall spanned hundreds of square meters, with personnel in work clothes bustling about, a scene of intense activity.

Above the door directly in front of the hall hung a sign that read "Reaction Room."

Following Wild Wind’s lead, they walked straight into the reaction room, where a metallic cylinder about ten meters in diameter soon came into view.

Numerous pipes were connected to the alloy shell, leaving only a palm-sized window through which intricate and elaborate parts could be seen linking together inside the hollow cylinder.

Lone Wolf’s face was full of astonishment, even shock.

He never expected that this inconspicuous subway tunnel would house such a profound mystery!

What surprised him even more was that the Alliance’s Manager, in azure power armor, was also present.

Not just that, quite a few people were standing next to the power armor.

Including the leader of the research team, Yin Fang, the vanishing Boss Xia and Little Fish from a few versions ago, and the genius little girl who had visited Factory No.81 and Goblin Technology previously... her name seemed to be Pai.

Lone Wolf lowered his voice and excitedly asked Wild Wind beside him,

"Is there some kind of ceremony about to take place?"

"The ignition of the controlled fusion reactor!" Excitement flickered on his face as Wild Wind tried to contain the thrill in his voice, replying with a slight tremble.

After the research team reached Level 6 (the maximum being Level 10),

players could use VM to look up the research plans and experimental schedules of the research team in the refuge, and apply for observer access.

Hearing Wild Wind’s words, a perplexed expression surfaced on Lone Wolf’s face.

What astounded him was not so much the controlled nuclear fusion itself, but that the Professor from Jinling University’s Physics Academy could get so worked up over it.

After all, in "Wasteland OL," controlled nuclear fusion wasn’t anything particularly rare, was it?

Considering the settings, those were research results from the eve of the Prosperity Epoch, and there were even darker technologies out there by the dozens!

"Controlled fusion reactor... the refuge has a reactor, doesn’t it?" Lone Wolf remarked with a strange expression.

"Yes."

"Is it necessary to come here to watch?"

Wild Wind gestured for silence, his gaze unwavering from the reactor.

"Don’t talk, it’s starting!"

Seeing how absorbed the guy was, Lone Wolf, despite his confusion, still closed his mouth, deciding to stick it out with his colleague to the end.

Not far away, the Manager standing by the railing glanced at the time, then towards the researcher beside him, signaling that they could begin.

The factories in Dawn City gradually suspended production, and the power station’s thermal power units ramped up to maximum output, allocating all electrical power to this thermonuclear reactor.

As the capacitors charged, the researcher beside the control terminal operated on the touch screen, and soon the cylindrical device began emitting a buzzing sound of electric current.

When the final button was pressed, the magnetic field in the entire space became as turbulent as a pot of boiling water.

Wild Wind pulled out a compass from his pocket and, watching the crazed needle, muttered fervently with eyes brimming with zeal,

"Magnetic confinement! It’s magnetic confinement!"

Lone Wolf stared at him dumbfounded, unsure of what to say next.

Not far off, Yin Fang, standing next to Chu Guang, pressed his brow, slightly headachy, and said,

"Magnetic leakage... indeed, it’s been too long."

Chu Guang frowned slightly.

"Will that affect anything?"

Yin Fang had yet to respond when Pai, standing beside them, eagerly interrupted,

"Don’t worry, it’s a minor issue! Once the magnetic confinement devices stabilize, the overflow of the magnetic field will naturally disappear."

Yin Fang nodded.

"Yes, that should be the case."

The magnetic field inside the reactor would adjust according to the state of the plasma; once the plasma stabilized, the magnetic field would naturally steady as well.

Clearly, this reactor was not relying on a Faraday cage for magnetic field shielding, nor did it have any of this superfluous design.

For this reason, the outermost wall of the reactor had left a small window for "visual observation" of the plasma’s running state.

Seeing the two researchers assuring there were no problems, Chu Guang continued to watch patiently.

An azure light appeared behind that palm-sized window, and as energy continued to accumulate, it quickly turned into pure white light.

That must be the plasma enveloped by the magnetic field.

Even through the heavy outer shell of the reactor, Chu Guang could directly feel the intense heat capable of melting everything and the terrifying energy contained within!

Not far away,

The technicians at the workbench diligently carried out their tasks, reporting the current situation in succession.

"Plasma temperature has reached critical level!"

"Probes have detected reactions occurring!"

"Reactor core is in good condition, the confinement device is working normally!"

"Energy surplus has reached self-sustaining conditions!"

"Cutting off external power supply!"

"Voltage difference has been adjusted!"

"Phase difference zeroed!"

"Frequency synchronized!"

"..."

"Grid connection!"

With the final command issued, massive currents passed through the cables embedded in the walls, and the ocean-like energy instantly filled the electrical grid of Dawn City.

The power station near the new industrial area, running at full capacity, gradually shut down its thermal power units.

With that moment, they had fulfilled their mission.

From now on, the Alliance would no longer need to burn wood and coal for electricity -- clean nuclear power would cover the entire territory of the Alliance through the electricity grid.

From the sparkling electric arcs of the steelmaking plant, to the electrolysis rooms of the hydrogen production plants, to the light bulbs, fans, and even air conditioners in every residential building...

The energy running through the grid of the Alliance had never been so abundant!

Looking at the white light in the reactor, which was gradually stabilizing, the tension on Chu Guang’s face finally turned into a sigh of relief and a smile.

From this moment on, the Alliance was officially stepping into a new era.

And on this barren wasteland, the seeds of civilization were finally reignited!

History would remember this moment!

Chu Guang turned to look at the people standing next to the reactor, as well as all the excited, pleased, bewildered, or clueless faces.

He unlocked his helmet visor and said with a look of approval,

"Well done."

"Everyone has worked hard!"

...

The reactor ignition was over.

Including the Manager, all NPCs had gone about their own business.

Only Wild Wind stood alone as if he had lost his soul, clutching a compass in his hand, his eyes blank as he walked out of the reactor room.

"Hey, brother, it looks like the ignition ceremony is over." Lone Wolf said quietly to Wild Wind who was standing stupidly in the hall.

Nuclear fusion was beyond his expertise, and he had watched for a long time without understanding anything.

When he heard his colleague’s voice beside his ear, Wild Wind finally snapped out of his daze.

However, the expression on his face was no longer excitement or joy.

Instead, it was loss...

Even disappointment.

"Brother, what’s wrong?" Lone Wolf asked with concern.

Wild Wind was silent for a long time before shaking his head and letting out a sigh.

"The gap is too wide..."

He hadn’t seen any cooling devices, perhaps they were integrated inside the reactor.

But how a reactor just over ten meters in diameter could contain such terrifying energy completely mystified him.

What was even more unbelievable to him was that he could clearly see the outline of the plasma through a small window with his naked eyes, without being blinded by the intense light...

Whether it was materials or design process, the reactor was a Black Box to him, still inscrutable even when placed right in front of him.

Instead, it made him feel that common sense was being overturned...

Lone Wolf looked at him in surprise.

The gap is too wide?

Well, damn...

Don’t tell me you’re planning on getting one in real life?!

Wild Wind looked at the compass tightly clenched in his hand. The needle that had been jumping wildly earlier had stopped trembling without him noticing and was pointing steadily in the direction it should.

The only thing he could be sure of was at the moment of ignition, a massive magnetic field must have been constraining the plasma.

But after the successful ignition, the overflow of the magnetic field had completely vanished.

So much so that he couldn’t even be sure whether the magnetic field overflow was contained or if the reactor wasn’t binding that heat greater than that of a star with magnetic energy at all...

Lone Wolf scratched his head, thinking aloud, "I remember... it was mentioned on the official website that the refuge’s reactor uses pure helium-3 as fuel, right?"

Wild Wind: "Hmm."

Lone Wolf: "Can we get that on Earth?"

Wild Wind: "We can’t."

Lone Wolf: "..."

Looking at the closed alloy door, Wild Wind’s expressionless face suddenly revealed a bitter smile.

He suddenly realized that worrying about how to bind that plasma was utterly pointless.

Deuterium-tritium fusion could still be ignited by laser.

But helium-3 fusion...

With those harsh reaction conditions, he couldn’t think of any way to ignite this reactor on Earth...

...

The news of the successful ignition of the West State City reactor quickly sprouted wings and spread through the streets and alleys of the Alliance, propagated by newspapers and broadcasts.

Chu Guang wasn’t worried about the reactor being coveted.

The company’s airstrip was next to the Tributary of Tianshui; besides the Grand Canyon, there was probably no one in the whole River Valley Province who dared to provoke those guys.

Moreover, unlike Earth in a parallel world, controlled fusion wasn’t such a rare thing on the Wasteland; in fact, nuclear fuel was much rarer than the technology itself.

Without the ability to use excess power, thermal power generation might not be a worse option than nuclear energy.

Of course, the Alliance did not have to worry about this issue for the moment.

Twelve "Tiger Whale" transport planes from the company had already moved from the airport north of Dawn City to the Open Space near the Tributary of Tianshui in West State City.

Thick cables, as large as pythons, were inserted into the side of the planes, extracting energy from the Alliance grid like a giant whale drawing water.

In addition, the waters of the Tributary of Tianshui were also being drawn.

A range of fuel cells, including Solid Hydrogen and Metallic Hydrogen batteries, were fundamentally different from chemical batteries; the former don’t carry oxidants and instead draw on oxygen from the air for redox reactions.

Using the entire atmosphere as the cathode is also why fuel cells have much higher energy densities than chemical batteries.

However, replenishing energy for Metallic Hydrogen batteries is a bit more troublesome; reliable power grids and abundant water sources are necessary conditions.

Standing in the newly marked airstrip, Yi Chuan was animatedly saying to Chu Guang beside him.

"... Judging from this rate, we can have the batteries topped up in a day at most! Once charging is complete, we can deliver a second wave of supplies in no more than three days!"

Currently, the company only has twelve planes capable of reaching a range of three thousand kilometers, but it won’t be long before they can assemble another twelve.

Twenty-four large transport planes will be equipped.

Relying on the power grids of both sides, they could establish a stable aerial corridor between the southern River Valley Province and the East Coast, continuously sending equipment and supplies to the frontline!

Chu Guang smiled and said.

"Thank you very much!"

"Don’t mention it," Yi Chuan replied with a hearty laugh, "We are allies on the same front, this is for our common victory, to defeat our common enemy!"

"Even for our common victory, we will not forget the help you provided at a crucial time."

Shifting his gaze from the enthusiastic young man, Chu Guang "inadvertently" glanced at the planes nearby.

After a pause, he sighed quietly.

"However, speaking of which, it’s such a waste for these planes to return empty. How about... we send some special products back with you?"

"Special products?" Yi Chuan was taken aback before laughing and waving his hands, "No need, no need, our assistance to you is free of charge! It is our obligation!"

As Chu Guang looked at the bright, sunny smile on the face of the young man, he couldn’t help feeling moved; if only everyone were as benevolent as him.

But...

That was obviously impossible.

Now was the honeymoon period between the Alliance and the company, and he had to seize this window of opportunity.

Whether for short-term or long-term reasons, he needed to take this opportunity to tie more interests between the two parties.

Otherwise, once the war was over, River Valley Province wouldn’t be as important to the company, and he’d have to engage in a veiled struggle with that reclusive rich neighbor.

Clearing his throat, Chu Guang said earnestly to Yi Chuan, who was refusing the offer.

"I know your help is free of charge, and we are very grateful for your generosity, but we can’t always ask for help whenever we’re in trouble, I would feel guilty!"

"There’s a saying here, ’a favor returned for a favor given,’ and we’ve prepared some gifts for you."

"Although they’re not expensive, they are a small token of our appreciation!"