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Chapter 228 - 225: "The Story That Was Recorded in the Annals of History

Chapter 228: Chapter 225: "The Story That Was Recorded in the Annals of History

In the deep night, Dong Xue’s gaze struck him like a bolt of lightning.

...He hadn’t seen such a look for a long time.

Since the World Game began, it had been difficult to come across eyes so filled with despair, yet so full of yearning.

It was as if they held a firm belief in some inevitable fulfillment, while simultaneously knowing these were mere illusions; a blend of rationality and emotion, this ultimate paradox of expressions had once been his unyielding pursuit.

And now, he saw Dong Xue with such eyes.

...Although an NPC, it deeply moved him.

He walked out of the laboratory and headed to the fourth floor.

Xia Luoyang’s office remained unchanged from the day, so he turned it upside down, pulling down each psychology book from the shelf to check but found nothing unusual.

He even overturned the potted plant in the corner, excavating the soil, yet nothing special emerged.

He also didn’t see Xia Luoyang.

The Teacher’s Dormitory might be on a higher floor, which hadn’t opened yet on the First Night.

Restoring everything to its place, he went to his last destination for the night.

The surveillance room.

In horror games, the surveillance room is often a critical location. Although dangerous, it can provide players with much information.

As he approached the surveillance room, he suddenly saw a streak of white light flash by the door.

A small, cubic-constructed mechanical sphere flew by the door. As he drew nearer, he felt a swift blue light scan over his body.

...What was that?

The next moment, he saw the sphere suddenly emit a red light, as if about to explode.

"Shoo—!"

The surgical knife glinted sharply as he swiftly stepped forward, slicing through the mechanical sphere as if cutting through tofu.

Under that single stroke, the red light vanished.

As if its function was instantly destroyed, the mechanical sphere, now cleaved in two, fell to the ground, and all went silent.

Su Ming’an had been ready to use Spatial Displacement, but worried this gadget might destroy his clues, he decided to try the surgical knife instead.

He moved closer and suddenly saw a figure sticking to the side of the door.

It was a young man also dressed in a white lab coat. As Ming’an approached, the young man’s fingers made a gun shape, his fingertips shimmering with electric blue light.

But upon seeing Ming’an, also in a lab coat, the young man’s vigilance slowly dissipated.

"I really didn’t expect my fellow Doctor to be you," the young man said, not withdrawing his hand but stepping aside to allow Ming’an in.

Su Ming’an recalled that during the day he had memorized the appearances of the 29 other players; the young man was Player 16, who had shown no particular distinction during the day and had copied the Rules and Regulations in an orderly manner.

"You know me?" Su Ming’an stepped into the surveillance room, seemingly unworried about the young man’s gun-like gesture.

It was only on entering that he saw the young man had a cigarette lit in his other hand.

"Number Thirty," the young man smiled, tapping his cigarette so the ash fell softly: "...Number One Player, Su Ming’an."

"The Number One Player is downstairs," Ming’an pointed in the direction of the decoy’s room.

"No, since when does the Number One Player get pinned against a wall and beaten?"

"Well, that’s debatable, what if he is in Shadow State?"

"Huh..."

The young man blew out a puff of white smoke.

Through the dissipating smoke, Su Ming’an could see the other man’s conspicuously dark circles, his overly pale face under the dim light of the surveillance room...and the bloodshot veins at the bottom of his eyes.

The other man’s san value must not be too high.

"So I noticed it," the young man smiled and took a puff of his cigarette.

The cigarette tip, glowing orange, emitted wisps of white smoke as he half-closed his eyelids, looking somewhat fatigued, "...something felt off."

"Felt off?"

"My feeling about the Number One Player." The young man pointed at him: "He’s not it, you are."

Su Ming’an chuckled, brushed past him, and looked at the scenery inside the surveillance room.

He had noticed that there were still three of those dangerous mechanical spheres floating in the surveillance room. The previous one must have been responsible for the alert, while these three inside were this player’s attack method.

The screens in the surveillance room were brightly lit, and there was also a laptop placed next to it. The screen displayed incomprehensible codes and progress bars, seemingly carrying out automatic calculations.

The young man, upon hearing Su Ming’an’s indirect admission of his identity, followed him in.

"This is the crappy surveillance room of this broken place, the only place that can connect to the internet." The young man tapped his fingers on the table: "I must describe the internet speed of this crappy place—it’s literally the shittiest I’ve ever seen."

"This laptop is?"

"My prop, also considered a skill," said the young man: "My Doctor companion, you’re probably not very clear, during the clearance process, aside from sheer force, there are some skills inclined towards decryption assistance, which at times can be extremely effective."

Su Ming’an glanced at the computer screen, which was filled with dense white code; the cursor kept flashing like writhing ants.

"Skills in computing?"

"No, as for that, it’s merely personal wisdom," the young man laughed: "My previous occupation wasn’t exactly aboveboard, but here it proved to be miraculously effective—the wonderful laptop, that’s part of my skill."

The young man leaned against the door as if intending to completely sink into the darkness, sighed, "...although, I feel this kind of game is akin to a form of torture."

...By dividing the crowd, calculating class with points, in ways that could drive him mad.

And he didn’t even have the leeway to resist.

Although he was beginning to establish his strength within the game, and harbored great ambition, his heart was constantly longing for the original blue planet, despite ultimately being forced into a narrow corner by so many dark shadows.

...Just like now.

He faced the man in front of him, who had shaken a world, and grasping the reality that they had become "teammates," lit another cigarette.

Only nicotine could briefly clear his head.

"Decoding takes some time... To be honest, sometimes I’m amazed by the unscientific skills this world’s game provides," the young man looked toward the computer screen hammering out white characters: "The things it decodes, even I can’t understand a bit."

"The skills provided just let you know you can use them, they don’t give you space to learn and advance," Su Ming’an said: "Don’t think too much...acting according to the established rules is what a player is supposed to do."

He walked over to the screen to look at the images inside the surveillance.

The surveillance was divided into six screens: the first-floor corridor, the second-floor corridor, the third-floor large classroom, the third-floor cafeteria as well as the laboratory, and an outdoor scene.

Su Ming’an suspected this person had seen him coming up long ago.

Deliberately placing a mechanical sphere outside was probably a test of his abilities.

His attention was drawn to the outdoor surveillance, where he saw a forest scene with the murmur of a stream.

"Where is that?" he asked.

"Not sure, probably outside," the young man said, blowing smoke rings: "A mental institution, right? Rehabilitation, right? There should be some outdoor activity space. Maybe we’ll see it in a few days."

Su Ming’an nodded, confirming there was nothing special about this surveillance room and prepared to turn around and leave.

"Hey, where are you going?"

Seeing him about to leave, without the slightest intent to exchange clues, the young man took a step forward.

"Going back to sleep," Su Ming’an said.

"...Don’t you have a student to execute tonight?" the young man arched an eyebrow.

"He’s innocent, what would I execute him for?"

"Better to kill the wrong one than to let anyone off."

"Then I would be the first to report you, negligent Doctor." Su Ming’an stepped forth.

"Wait a second."

Su Ming’an heard a shout coming from behind him.

The next moment, he saw three mechanical spheres emitting a blood-red glow float through the air. Their segments rotated and fit together, quickly extending a dark, hollow barrel, aiming at him.

Su Ming’an laughed, "Are you going to take a shot at me?"

"No, I have some self-awareness," the young man shook his head: "However, someone asked me that, if I met the Number One Player, I must do something for you. My luck isn’t bad this time, I actually met you... so I have to complete the task entrusted to me."

"What task?"

"Let me... tell you a story."

Su Ming’an turned his head back with a bit of interest: "A story?"

"He said, ’This story must be heard by the Number One Player, and the Number One Player must share his thoughts after listening,’" the young man raised his hand: "I am being forced into this, it’s not that I personally want to tell you a story—apparently, he specifically selected this one for you, a story from his hometown."

"...Go ahead."

"’Once upon a time, there was a vast and boundless ocean, inhabited by a tribe of mermaids...’" the young man took a breath and began to narrate.

"’One day, seamen set out to sea, and their ship traveled through that sea area.’

"’The beautiful mermaid Princess was taken with the handsome Captain. She confessed her love to him, but he rejected her.’

"’The Captain said, he was leading his crew to distant places, to see lands farther away, to more and larger docks, to bring back gold and jewels to his country. He could not stop here.’

"’But the mermaid Princess said that she could give them the largest pearls from the sea bottom, the most beautiful corals, treasures they had never seen before, ensuring they need not toil any longer.’

"’Tempted by the prospect of increased ranks and honors, the crew urged their Captain: `Stay here, look how beautiful the Princess is.`’

Su Ming’an chuckled at that moment.

He roughly knew what kind of story this was.

The young man continued, sounding very serious.

However, his tone was dry, as if reciting text word for word, filled with the helplessness of being forced to tell a story, devoid of that engaged emotion:

"’The Captain hesitated.’

"’At that moment, the Princess said she could ensure their safe return home, offer them the sea’s treasures, granting his crew immense wealth and honor.’

"’She even offered to plead with the Sea Witch, asking her to cast a spell, to bless their country—ensuring that from then on, ships passing by would sail smoothly, never suffering from storms.’

"’Looking into the desirous eyes of his crew, for the sake of his own realm, the Captain agreed.’

"’The ship filled up with precious treasures from the ocean floor, the crew sang and danced, their sails billowed as they returned home amidst innumerable cheers and laughter.’

"’From then on, their kingdom gradually prospered, the citizens lived in peace and happiness, and all things thrived.’

"’And the seamen living there enjoyed endless riches and honor, leading happy lives ever after.’

"’They were hailed by the people as great Pioneers.’

"’And their King, with the jewels brought back, bestowed favors upon the people, becoming the Lord praised by the citizens as a wise and just ruler.’

The young man’s gaze was exceedingly calm as he said this.

The monitors behind him glowed, and his cigarette had also burned to the end.

"My story is over."

He exhaled, and white smoke swirled and shifted before his eyes.

The mechanical orbs hanging in the air silently receded, leaving the entire fourth-floor corridor in quiet.

Su Ming’an moved his feet slightly, producing a grating noise on the floor.

"Is it over?" he asked. "I don’t think so."

"No, the story has temporarily concluded here." The young man looked at him earnestly. "The story’s owner, who entrusted me to tell it to you, Boris, he’s hoping to hear your reflections after listening."

"Having been asked to tell me such a story, it couldn’t have been easy for you either."

"Undertaking what’s been entrusted," the young man said. "Could you share your reflections with me, so that I can convey them back? My doctor companion."

Su Ming’an was silent for a moment.

Barrages of messages rolled across the top-right corner, everyone holding their opinions:

[...What’s the point of this? Coming over just to tell a fairy tale?]

[This story is no good, no climax, no twist, it’s all over the place, a zero-point essay!]

[The classic mermaid and sailor fairy tale love story... but mixed with some exchanges of interests.]

[I think I’ve heard the name Boris... in the World Forum. It is said that he was a very famous Romanian sculptor on Zhai Xing before.]

[(What are they doing?) Not sleeping properly, nor exchanging clues, just the two of them discussing fairy tales here, a riddle people gathering?]

[Is this alluding to something? I feel like I vaguely understand...]

"The story, it’s not finished, is it?" Su Ming’an said. "Perhaps it’s because the unfinished part of it doesn’t seem very important anymore."

The young man watched him quietly, swiping on a screen, seemingly recording his words.

"The captain in the story, his ending, is no longer significant." Su Ming’an smiled, his voice ending with a hint of an upward hook.

"...After all, everyone else has found happiness."

"Indeed," the young man said. "Boris told me, if your first attention goes to the [Captain], you may hear the entire story."

He tugged the burned-out cigarette butt into a compartment in his backpack, continuing with the unfinished story:

"[The handsome captain was left in that sea area, accompanying the mermaid princess.]"

"[But the young princess, she didn’t understand one thing.]"

"[The captain is human, and humans need air, which they cannot breathe underwater.]"

"[The mermaid princess brought the captain into the sea, and the captain struggled to survive, wanting to surface.]"

"[But the mermaid princess didn’t want him to leave.]"

"[She pressed his head down under the water, forcing him not to escape.]"

"[Soon, the captain stopped struggling.]"

"[The captain drowned.]"

"[His last moment was fixated on the large ship sailing safely away, and the jewels on board that could change the fate of a kingdom.]"

"[His crew became great pioneers, his king, a sovereign of legendary fame.]"

"[And him, buried at sea, known only by the tears of the mermaid princess, unknown to others.]"

"[His crew buried the history of betraying their captain, masquerading as victorious explorers returning from an expedition, becoming figures loved by the people.]"

"[They did not see this as shameful.]"

...

"[Everyone says that only such a story deserves to be recorded in the annals of history.]" The young man lit a third cigarette, took a slow drag, and looked at him: "What’s your reflection after listening? Number One Player."

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