Chapter 81: Like an Old Friend Returning (I) Like a dream, like dew, like a dream, like a bubble...

The mission took less than a month and was relatively smooth.

When Zhang Deng returned to the World Tree, Chi Xiaoxia had already heard the news and immediately made an appointment with him, but Zhang Deng was a little tired and did not meet him at that time. The two agreed to make an appointment again after Zhang Deng had rested well.

After two days of resting under the lights, I finally felt a sense of relief from not being able to obtain the antidote for the offshore Qitun. Then came the day of erasing my memories.

Wei Yuanye's memory erasure seemed to be more complicated. He would wait two days each time until a memory erasure plan was completed before going. Zhang Deng arrived earlier than him.

He and Chi Xiaoxia had been chatting online. When Chi Xiaoxia heard that he was going to erase his memory, she offered to take some time off to accompany him.

Zhang Deng felt that it was unnecessary to ask for leave to accompany him, as it was a bit too much of a sentimental commitment. However, Chi Xiaoxia had already said so, and Zhang Deng happened to miss him a little, so the two of them made an appointment to meet at the square.

Chi Xiaoxia was wearing a pair of white overalls today, which matched his pretty and cute face, making him look like a freshly graduated college student. He saw Zhang Deng from a distance and jogged over.

Zhang Deng asked, "Did you help me water Xiao Ai?"

"I went there last week when I had some free time," Chi Xiaoxia said. "Why, were you really moved?"

Zhang Deng said, "This is what you should do."

Chi Xiaoxia: "You are really annoying."

Zhang Deng said, "But I can treat you to ice cream if you go out."

"Do you want to eat it yourself?" Chi Xiaoxia was a little suspicious.

Zhang Deng said frankly: "Yes."

"Then I'll eat too," Chi Xiaoxia said. "I'm a little hungry too. I've been so bored these days you've been gone. When can I go back to your world and have a look? Aren't you going back to see the kittens?"

He naturally put his arm around Zhang Deng's arm, and the two of them walked forward while talking. Suddenly, Zhang Deng's peripheral vision caught sight of a person. He was stunned and stopped where he was.

That person was also stunned, and the two looked at each other.

He was a young man with a well-proportioned figure, even in great shape. His temperament was as gentle as jade. What was special was that there was a mole between his eyebrows, which destroyed his gentleness and instead brought a hint of divinity.

Zhang Deng always felt that people who look like this probably have some luck.

Thinking of this, he had a very strong sense of déjà vu, as if he had actually experienced a very similar scene.

Zhang Deng said: "You..."

The man looked at him and seemed familiar with him: "You are..."

Chi Xiaoxia said, "Do you know each other?"

He looked at the man's badge, read out his employee number, and said, "You must be new here. How do you two know each other?"

Zhang Deng: "Is this employee number very new?"

The man said, "I just got here the day before yesterday. It should be very new."

Zhang Deng noticed that he had a habit of standing with his hands behind his back when he spoke, and he found it strange no matter how he looked at it.

"What's your name?" Zhang Deng asked.

The man laughed and said, "How do I have a name?"

Zhang Deng was stumped by this question. He forgot that everyone was numbered and said, "Okay, this is it."

But he wasn't the only one who felt strange. The man also thought Zhang Deng looked familiar. He smiled and said, "Maybe I'm new here and feel lonely. I see you always want to make friends."

Chi Xiaoxia asked, "Have you newcomers not started school yet?"

"Starting school tomorrow," the man said, "Have you graduated already?"

Chi Xiaoxia said, "It's been a long time since we graduated."

"It's you, senior." The man made a gesture to bow, but after doing so, he felt that his behavior was inappropriate and stopped in mid-air.

Chi Xiaoxia said, "This kind of behavior is not popular in our World Tree. Just relax."

The man slapped his forehead and said, "I heard that the chip will be a little unstable when you're just born, and it takes some time to get used to it. I just don't feel like I'm used to it lately."

Chi Xiaoxia: "I heard that's the case. Today's chips are too complicated, so problems are inevitable. The old ones were much more stable. When I was first born, nothing happened."

The man asked, "Where are you two going?"

Zhang Deng said, "I just finished my mission. Come with me to erase my memory."

"In that case," the man thought for a moment and said, "Would it be convenient for you to travel together?"

The man said, "To be honest, I've been having trouble using this chip lately, and I'd like to ask if it can be repaired."

Of course Zhang Deng agreed. The three of them walked side by side. Zhang Deng quietly observed the man's gait and temperament. The more he looked at him, the more he wanted to get close to him. He didn't think he liked people of his type that much. Maybe it was because his aura was too familiar that he had this feeling.

Zhang Deng tried to trick him intentionally or unintentionally, but found that this person seemed to be just a new citizen of the World Tree.

Chi Xiaoxia quietly touched Zhang Deng and said, "What's wrong with you? Are you attracted to him?"

"This isn't good," Chi Xiaoxia whispered. "They live in the same world. He and Wei Yuanye see each other all the time. It's easy for something to happen, right?"

The man's ears twitched, and his expression stiffened. Zhang Deng didn't notice, but gritted his teeth and said to Chi Xiaoxia, "Are you crazy?"

Zhang Deng said, "I'm already dating Wei Yuanye, do I still need to change?"

Chi Xiaoxia was a little disgusted: "He wouldn't be that bad, would he?"

Zhang Deng said, "You don't understand."

Maybe it was because Chi Xiaoxia didn’t like men, he had no idea how handsome Wei Yuanye was in Zhang Deng’s eyes, to the extent that no one could compare to him.

The man asked, "What does it feel like to have your memory erased?"

Zhang Deng thought for a moment and said, "Because I'm just eliminating the event, it's okay."

"I remember I was sitting in front of a glass door." Zhang Deng raised his eyes and saw the huge glass door in front of him.

"The whole room was pure white, with only the glass door being transparent. There were some very tiny holes in the glass door. Behind the door was a creature with a body like a pig, but with a long, gray snout on its head that looked like a reproductive organ. Its snout would move."

Zhang Deng sat in front of the glass door and saw the familiar creature.

He smelled the fishy smell in his nose and heard Elia's prompt: "Please recall the content of the mission."

Zhang Deng suddenly thought, what if I don't listen to her?

He was slightly distracted when he heard Elia's urging voice: "Your heart rate is strange, please recall the content of the mission."

Oh, Zhang Deng thought, it turns out that it is by detecting heart rate.

Elia said, "I'm warning you. If you stay here too long, you'll lose all your memories. To complete the C-Class amnesia quickly, please recall the mission details as quickly as possible."

Zhang Deng had no choice but to close his eyes and slowly recall what he had experienced since the first day of the mission.

But for some reason, some new memories suddenly flooded his mind——

Yuzhou, Yingzhou—Qiang people, brocade vegetables? Kunlun Mountain!

Goose bumps suddenly appeared on Zhang Deng's face. He suddenly opened his eyes and saw that the offshore dolphin's tentacles were tightly stuck to the glass. It was staring at Zhang Deng with its eyes wide open.

Zhang Deng was startled and asked, "What's going on?"

Elia said, "Huh? What's going on? It seems a little out of control."

Zhang Deng covered his nose and said, "What a strong smell."

"What?" Elia hurriedly said, "Get out quickly, Zhang Deng, I've opened the door for you. The memory has been erased successfully. The drug concentration is too high. If you stay any longer, you will lose all your memory. Run, Zhang Deng!"

Zhang Deng ran away without saying a word. Before leaving, he looked back and saw that the offshore Qi dolphin was still lying on the table, staring at him with fierce eyes.

Zhang Deng felt a lingering fear. When he ran out, his head seemed even more dizzy, and many things that had just flashed by disappeared again.

Zhang Deng clearly felt that he had just remembered something, but it all disappeared in an instant, and his memory of the last mission was indeed completely cleared.

Chi Xiaoxia was sitting on a bench waiting for him. Seeing him come out, she was a little surprised: "Why so soon?"

Zhang Deng said, "I don't know."

Zhang Deng's expression was a little strange, and Chi Xiaoxia asked nervously, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

Zhang Deng said, "I think that offshore Qi-dolphin seems... seems to recognize me?"

"Hmm?" Chi Xiaoxia said, "That should be the case. Didn't it erase your memory?"

It shouldn't be that kind of understanding. What Zhang Deng actually wanted to say was that he felt that the offshore Qi dolphin hated him.

But Zhang Deng couldn't explain why he hated him.

Chi Xiaoxia suddenly looked behind him and said, "Your husband is here."

Zhang Deng turned around and saw Wei Yuanye approaching. He asked, "Why are you here?"

But in fact, Zhang Deng guessed that Wei Yuanye would come to find him after finishing his current work, so this question inevitably sounded a bit hypocritical.

Wei Yuanye said: "Hasn't started yet?"

"It's over."

"So fast?" Wei Yuanye was also a little surprised.

Zhang Deng was about to speak when a voice came from behind him: "Who is this?"

Wei Yuanye turned his head, and Zhang Deng deliberately observed Wei Yuanye's expression and found that Wei Yuanye did not have any special reaction.

"Who?" the man asked.

Wei Yuanye said: "679."

"A work number so early?" The man pointed to his work badge and said, "My number is five digits."

Wei Yuanye nodded: "New here?"

The man said, “I just came yesterday.”

"It's strange," the man said, studying his face. "Why do I feel that every time I meet someone today, they look so familiar?"

Wei Yuanye always seemed very cold towards people he didn't know: "People in the World Tree all look alike."

Zhang Deng guessed that Wei Yuanye's reaction might be because he really didn't know this man.

This is all very strange, Zhang Deng thought.

Based on Zhang Deng's understanding of the world, when so many things in his life appeared one after another that made him feel something was wrong, there must be something really wrong somewhere.

The man asked around among the staff, but couldn't find any good solutions to alleviate his chip problem. However, he was open-minded and didn't get upset. He just said, "Forget it. Everyone says it will get better in the future."

Before parting, Zhang Deng offered to exchange contact information with him. The man asked, "Would you like to meet up again in the future?"

"Of course." Zhang Deng had a very strange feeling about him. He felt familiar but not particularly fond of him. He just didn't want to lose contact with him like that.

Zhang Deng felt tired after clearing his memory. After the man left, Chi Xiaoxia suggested going to the square together, but Zhang Deng declined and said, "Tomorrow."

"I may not be free tomorrow," Chi Xiaoxia said. "The door from the last experiment needs another round of testing, and I need to keep an eye on it. So I'll make an appointment with you next time."

Zhang Deng said, "I think your dark circles seem to be getting worse again."

"Of course," Chi Xiaoxia said, "I've been working day and night, and I used all the time I saved up for my day off today, and you still don't want to play with me."

"Don't give me that," Zhang Deng said, "I'm going back to sleep."

Although he said he was going home to sleep, Zhang Deng couldn't fall asleep when he really arrived at the dormitory. He tossed and turned in bed. Wei Yuanye came out of the shower and saw Zhang Deng looking at him resentfully.

"I think you're hiding something from me," Zhang Deng said, "but I have no evidence."

Wei Yuanye said: "Without evidence, there is no fact."

"You're right." Zhang Deng turned over and carefully recalled the reaction of the offshore Qitun when it saw him, as well as some images that flashed through his mind at that time. Now his mind seemed like an empty photo album, and all the photos in it had been taken away.

Zhang Deng said, "I clearly remembered everything at that time."

This feeling is extremely unpleasant. Zhang Deng has no idea how to deal with the fact that he has lost his memory.

"Is this the end of the incident?" Zhang Deng said. "That's terrifying."

Wei Yuanye advised him: "It won't affect your life."

Zhang Deng asked, "Then how did you manage to survive so many periods of elimination?"

Wei Yuanye didn't answer immediately, but said: "This is what you are thinking."

Zhang Dengben was also obsessed with his own pain, but then he thought of Wei Yuanye, who had experienced memory erasure far more times than himself.

Will he also experience flashbacks when his memory is erased, with so many lost memories suddenly flooding back, causing sensory overload?

"No one resisted this?" Zhang Deng couldn't believe it.

Wei Yuanye thought about it and said, "It seems not."

"People here don't care much about these things." Wei Yuanye actually didn't seem to care much about this.

"So what do they care about?"

Wei Yuanye sat beside him, thinking for a long time, but couldn't figure out what they cared about. He was silent for a moment and asked, "Will you feel better if you write for a while?"