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Chapter 255 - 252: "The Last Lesson

Chapter 255: Chapter 252: "The Last Lesson

[In this twisted environment, people can’t trust anyone.]

[They subconsciously become obedient and compliant because from the very beginning, they are not encouraged to be creative.]

[If they stop in their tracks, they are seen as lazy.]

[The teachers of White Sand Paradise confiscate their will with experience, and the nurtured gradually become extensions of their limbs.]

[Sheep in the rain fall to the ground, and people are pushed forward.]

[—They become the projection in someone’s eyes, dark figures unable to resist, trapped in the snare called "excellence" with no way to turn back.]

[They "swear to fight to the death".]

[They "Heaven rewards the diligent".]

[And yet behind this effort, the High Tower has already collapsed.]

[—In this advancing tide, light has never converged into another beam of light.]

...

Daylight fills the sky, and in the office at the top of the high-rise building, a man in a suit sighs towards the black-haired girl.

"...It’s a pity, Miss Lin Jiang, about our contract plan..."

"Are you terminating the contract?" Lin Jiang turned her head.

Compared to her appearance in the instance, she looked much more haggard, with dark circles under her eyes and a frail figure, appearing like an ordinary girl with a lack of spirit.

"...Yes," the man nodded, "I judge that Miss Lin Jiang’s current state is no longer suitable for renewing a contract with Oje Gebu, and our supply of equipment to Miss Lin Jiang will also be terminated..."

Lin Jiang smiled and tapped her fingers against the windowsill.

Even though she had no aura of power on her and indeed lacked any strength, the man speaking felt a distinctly obvious threat looming toward him like a tide.

"Miss Lin Jiang, we..."

"Bang!"

Before he could finish his sentence, the door behind him was violently pushed open, and a white-haired man strode in.

"Mr. Michael, because of a momentary mistake by Miss Lin Jiang, you’re terminating the contract we’ve negotiated for a month?" The white-haired man entering asked the man in the suit, his tone serious.

"Mutual benefit, that’s the purpose of our signing the contract." Michael smiled awkwardly.

His smile was gentle, his tone firm, and his words carried a cruel intent to terminate the contract:

"But now that Miss Lin Jiang has already failed once, even if she won’t be like Miss Iris, able to re-enter the arena, the value she can bring us is far less than before.

The scales are unbalanced, the transaction has failed, the contract should justifiably be terminated, Mr. Qin."

"..." Qin Er furrowed his brows, "Miss Lin Jiang’s strength is evident, and even if she failed once, she still has the opportunity to rise again in the subsequent instances. Terminating the contract now is just short-sighted."

Michael glanced at Lin Jiang leaning against the windowsill.

Her pitch-black eyes were also quietly gazing at him, her composed demeanor revealing a hint of concealed madness.

He instantly looked away and shook his head, "I admit, there’s a suspicion of ingratitude on our part, but changes in Miss Lin Jiang’s strength and subsequent results are also written into our contract, and I am merely the representative."

"There’s no room for negotiation?"

"I will sincerely apologize to you."

"Forget it, Qin Er," Lin Jiang spoke, "If it needs to be dissolved, then let it be dissolved. The current me truly can’t shoulder your ’great responsibility’."

She deliberately emphasized "great responsibility," her words laced with hidden sarcasm.

Michael didn’t say much, just bowed deeply and then turned to leave.

The steady sound of footsteps quickly faded away, and the door was gently closed.

The cool breeze from outside gently blew in, lifting the girl’s flowing black hair.

She sat by the window, tilting her head, not speaking, her smile mixed with some indescribable meaning.

Qin Er sighed.

"Humans are always shortsighted," he said.

"...I can understand the distrust of the partners," Lin Jiang smiled, "After all, it was indeed me who failed. Everything has been wiped clean, everything starts from the beginning. The cost of failure is too great, it’s like starting from scratch to help a useless person, they dare not gamble."

She turned her head, looking through the glass at the people walking below the window, watching the fountain of Boss Rabbit’s statue in the central square as it surged with water, and seeing children frolicking and playing nearby.

The world seemed especially beautiful, as if nothing had ever happened.

As if humanity had never been involved in this "catastrophe."

...If one were to ignore the live broadcast LCD screens present on every street corner.

Lin Jiang watched this scene quietly, tucking away some bangs that obstructed her view.

Michael was the seventh person to come to her to dissolve the contract.

After she returned from the game instance, having had all her Strength wiped clean, these people flocked to her like flies, one by one wanting to dissolve their contracts with her.

The organizations that had originally agreed to team up with her in the Seventh World and were supposed to provide her with Equipment and Props, all backed away. Even those who chose not to dissolve the contract demanded exorbitant terms, attempting to take advantage of her dilemma.

Many are willing to add flowers to the brocade, but few are willing to send charcoal in snowy weather. Such is the way of the world.

Perhaps she couldn’t blame these people for their shortsightedness because the time cycles of the game instances were short, and the changes in the World Game happened fast; it was only natural for people to focus on the present. With one failure, her chances to rise again were diminished; she needed to accumulate from one World to another, and it was normal for these organizations to seek other experts.

"Chang Ying has always had people closely monitoring the progress bar of humanity," Qin Er said, "Although its Value fluctuates all the time, at the moment of your Death, the progress bar’s Value plummeted by 1.27%."

"1.27%." A flash of astonishment crossed Lin Jiang’s eyes as she pondered the number, "...That’s remarkable."

"Yes, quite remarkable," Qin Er said, "Based on our judgment, your Combat Power ranking should have been tenth at that time. When the tenth Player’s Combat Power Points were wiped clean, the overall progress bar dropped by nearly 1.27%... It can be deduced that the weight of the top-ranked Players is immense, with each of the top ten occupying no less than 1.27%."

"So now, those people should value the top-ranked Players even more."

"Right," Qin Er said, "And not just those people, but everyone—in fact, after the progress bar dropped by 1.27%, almost everyone noticed this situation. Everyone realized that the influence of the top-ranked Players seemed to far exceed their expectations."

"Hmm," Lin Jiang nodded, "I will return to my former position."

As she said this, her tone was casual, as if she had no doubt in her mind that she would fail.

Six Worlds had already passed, and the accumulation of the top Players had become increasingly substantial. Despite starting over, she hadn’t entertained the thought of giving up.

Her eyes remained clear, and her slender body seemed to contain immense explosive power.

Just sitting by the windowsill, Qin Er could feel the weight of her simple words.

"...Also, Lin Jiang, I personally hope that you won’t grow to hate the top-ranked Players because of this failure,"

After a quiet moment, Qin Er suddenly said.

Hate?" Lin Jiang rested her hand on the window ledge, her gaze somewhat distant, "Why should I hate?"

"Considering the circumstances of the previous Worlds..."

"Looks like I really hate the top players, especially Su Ming’an?" Lin Jiang smiled, "Maybe I did before, but not necessarily now. After all, it was my own mistake this time. I got screwed by that guy who played the mechanical flying sphere—no way around it—but actually, I don’t hate Su Ming’an. He’s quite exceptional."

"Do you trust him?"

"No, I trust the interest between him and me," Lin Jiang said. "Once I return to the position of a top player, I will be incredibly safe. He is a person with a big-picture perspective, he won’t kill someone out of personal selfishness. When I become a top player and have enough bargaining chips, he won’t target me specifically. Otherwise, I would’ve died when I first faced him."

"..."

Qin Er stood silently in place for a moment. "All the top players have traceable origins and are backed by some figure. But there is one exception."

"Ordinary student."

"Right... Lin Jiang, you know, even you have our support, but that person... seems to really just be an ordinary student. People have investigated his background, it’s very common, without any trace of extraordinary involvement."

"I really don’t know where he gets that sense of complete control over everything." Lin Jiang said. "This time in the Sixth World, when I came into close contact with him, this feeling became even more apparent. I found that he was totally off guard when facing me, and I simply can’t imagine why he would be so confident. An ordinary student, reaching such heights, must have someone behind him."

"What do you think it could be?"

"To the public, the organizers."

"And your view?"

"I don’t think so," Lin Jiang said. "If he were sent by the organizers, it wouldn’t have gone this far. Everyone in the world thinks so too, it’s too obvious, which makes me doubt it."

"Some say that he will slip up in the Sixth World, that his emotions are too unstable compared to normal, obviously affected by the environment of the Sixth World."

"I don’t think he’s the kind of person who would be driven mad by that, his calmness has always exceeded my expectations."

"Probably, maybe?" Qin Er said as his wristwatch suddenly beeped.

"Another one?" he said.

"Terminating the contract?"

"Yes."

"Let’s go." Lin Jiang withdrew his hand. "The situation in this world no longer allows us folks struggling in the cracks to live in quiet desperation. To rise again... we must double our efforts in the next world. I’m destined not to keep up with those undefeated top players, but some of them will eventually fail. This period will be long, and I am destined to participate in it."

"Let those short-sighted who terminated their contracts regret it."

"Exactly that."

Lin Jiang smiled, with turbulent emotions flowing in his eyes.

...

Outside the door, Xia Luoyang, holding a gun, had a cigarette in his mouth.

He exhaled a ring of smoke, his eyes full of vicissitudes.

"...You’ve come back after all," he said.

"I just want to save Dong Xue."

"Yes, that’s right, you’re not wrong," Xia Luoyang said. "But you are now radiant, why come back to the past?"

"I’m just trying to save myself," Su Ming’an ventured.

Xia Luoyang took a drag on his cigarette.

His finger remained on the trigger, showing no intention of letting go.

"Let me teach you one last lesson, Xia Luoyang," Xia Luoyang said. "Although I might not be qualified to call myself a teacher, I have, after all, awakened some self-awareness. I want to help you, to teach you this... final lesson."

"You want to preach to me?" Su Ming’an showed an interested smile.

"I once dreamed of curing my children with electrotherapy, and to this day I believe it was the right thing," Xia Luoyang said. "I won’t say much to you, as you have grown and matured, and your will is no longer swayed by my words—I just want to tell you, Xia Luoyang, you will regret saving Dong Xue, or perhaps you won’t."

"Your riddles are hard for me to understand," Su Ming’an said. "If you want to educate someone, make your point clear."

"My point is..." Xia Luoyang spoke, and suddenly fired his gun without warning.

"Ding!"

The bullet fell to the ground, and Su Ming’an appeared behind him, pressing a finger to his temple.

"How do you know you should have been like this? What makes you think you’re supposed to save Dong Xue?" Xia Luoyang didn’t turn around, not even withdrawing his gun-holding hand. "I’m a person full of contradictions, often sober and often awakened, just hoping one day to escape this mundane vicious cycle. I just want you to understand, some things are not meant to be changed."

"Before the instance reset, you said I definitely wouldn’t regret it. Now, you tell me I will regret it." Su Ming’an said. "You really are contradictory."

He deliberately mentioned the instance reset information, wanting to see if Xia Luoyang would react.

Sure enough, Xia Luoyang spoke:

"... Another reset?" he said. "Will you succeed this time?"

Saying this, he turned the gun around.

Without hesitation, Su Ming’an immediately sent out Oblivion.

[HP-2000! (Fatal wound!)]

...

Su Ming’an had realized long ago that Xia Luoyang’s combat power was actually not strong; in the previous loop, Xia Luoyang only fired a few shots, like a regular person who merely possessed a gun. Xia Luoyang’s speed, stamina, strength were all weak, easily killed.

Contrarily, Xia Luoyang’s bullets were terrifying, almost able to kill with one shot.

Therefore, sensing Xia Luoyang was about to shoot, he no longer dared to spare his life.

A cryptic conversation, he seemed to understand some things.

[*You killed Xia Luoyang (affiliated with White Sand Paradise), Exp+8000!]

[...]

A series of messages popped up, the gains no different from the previous loop.

Xia Luoyang fell to the ground, blood spreading across the floor.

...

[Perfect Pass Route·Escape Line: 65%]

...

Su Ming’an dared not linger here longer.

The only one who could recognize his existence had died; wearing a white coat, he quickly surveyed the three floors, discovering a safe.

The safe had a three-digit combination lock; he entered the code, A44. The safe automatically opened.

Inside the safe, he found a note, a car key ring, and a correct map of White Sand Paradise.

[Obtained Clue Lu·Xia Luoyang’s Warning]

[(Xia Luoyang’s Warning) "Be wary of the student..."]

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