White-clad deliveryman serving wine (1)

Shu Ningmiao clicked into the user's homepage named "Eliminate Evil and Promote Good." The profile picture was the default one, and there was no signature.

Following the other replies on his homepage, Shu Ningmiao found three or four posts without keywords, most of which were also related to physical discomfort.

The poster of a post inexplicably developed thin black lines on their face.

Another poster said that they had more moles on their body.

The most recent reply to the post in the "Eliminate Evil and Promote Good" thread was made a year ago. The original poster of this post did not have the above symptoms, but only said that his temper seemed to have become much worse than before.

The symptoms described in each post seemed unrelated, yet the replies from "Eliminate Evil and Promote Good" all contained the same question: "Do not try the folk remedies from your hometown?"

Even the best medicine can't cure all diseases; this person just looks like a salesman who sells fake medicine everywhere.

It's just that six or seven years have passed since he first replied to that post, and he hasn't given up promoting his folk remedies during those six or seven years. He's quite patient.

Some people replied to the private messages, while others simply ignored them. There were no further updates after the post, so its credibility is questionable.

Shu Ningmiao disappointedly returned to the original post, intending to try to contact the person who posted it to ask how he was doing. However, the forum prompted her that she had to register an account before she could post.

This website, called "Fufang Paradise," is a comprehensive lifestyle forum. Most of the posts are for help with physical discomfort, while others are casual chats and daily discussions.

It's clear that the users of this forum are not wealthy. Many posts contain the words "Yingjian" or "Xindi" in their titles, and the content mainly revolves around seeking medical advice and treatment. People who view illness as an economic burden are unlikely to choose to go to the hospital first, and the internet is their only means of self-testing.

Shu Ningmiao registered an account, clicked on the post she had just seen, and sent a message to the original poster.

'mn: Hi, I saw your post. How are you feeling now?'

As expected, there was no response from the other end. Just as Shu Ningmiao was about to leave the forum, she thought of the ID "Eliminate Evil and Promote Good" and narrowed her eyes again.

Since she had already registered an account, there was no reason not to take advantage of it. So she simply posted another thread on the forum, referring to the symptoms described in the replies to "Eliminate Evil and Promote Good," and combined them to write a sincere post seeking help.

There are hardly any active users on this forum now, and she expected that her post would disappear without a trace, but to her surprise, she received a reply as soon as she posted it.

Shu Ningmiao clicked in, her expression froze, and the person who replied to her was actually "Eliminate Evil and Promote Good". Has this person always been on the forum? How could it be so fast?

Her sixth sense had already alerted her faster than her thoughts.

Eliminate evil and promote good: Which district are you in, OP? I feel like I've seen your physical condition before. Do you want to try the folk remedy from my hometown?

His rhetoric was truly unchanging. Shu Ningmiao clicked on his profile picture, thought for a moment, and edited a message to send to him.

mn: I'm not in Pinhes right now and won't be back for another two months. Could you tell me the recipe? I'll see if I can get it from a nearby store.

Shu Ningmiao didn't offer to pay for the boy first. If this person was a fraudster selling fake medicine, he would definitely insist on face-to-face payment or online payment. If she simply wanted to help someone, it probably wouldn't matter.

To increase credibility, Shu Ningmiao searched for a pitiful kitten emoji and sent it over, then added a sentence.

mn: I'm really upset, there's nothing I can do...

It took them a long time to reply.

To eliminate evil and promote good: Try grinding scarabs into powder and swallowing them with water. That's what we used to do in my hometown.

She was surprised that this person told her about the so-called folk remedy so easily, but what was a scarab beetle? It sounded like something that would only appear in a crucible for making medicine, not a real species.

She immediately pressed for more information.

mn: What is a scarab beetle? Where can I buy it?

Shu Ningmiao waited patiently for more than ten minutes, but no matter what she sent, there was no reply from the other end. Helpless, she turned off the terminal and walked out of the bathroom.

The sun had already set below the horizon, leaving only a pale red sky. The patients who had been strolling in the garden had all returned to their wards, and the corridors were deserted with hardly anyone around.

Shu Ningmiao walked to the third floor and stopped in front of the familiar ward 309. She paused for a moment. Since leaving the medical center last time, she had not visited Arsia. Today, she happened to be here, and she hesitated whether to take one last look at the girl before leaving.

The door was ajar. Before Shu Ningmiao could push it open, a voice came from inside. The girl's voice was so weak that you had to listen carefully to hear it clearly, but it still carried a smile and was full of expectation: "Miaomiao, is that you?"

She moved quietly without making a sound, but Arsia called out her name directly. Shu Ningmiao had no choice but to walk in, and the scene inside made her freeze on the spot.

Arcia lay on the hospital bed, her face as pale as a faded flower petal, her face covered by a ventilator mask, which made her voice so muffled.

Her face was so thin it was sunken, and her health seemed to be deteriorating.

Shu Ningmiao sat beside the hospital bed and saw a simple vase next to her bed, in which were the yellow roses that she had given her before. However, after so many days, the petals had almost all fallen off, leaving only withered branches hanging listlessly on the edge of the vase.

Arcia looked up at her with difficulty, a gentle smile on her lips revealing two shallow dimples: "Today is truly a good day."

The girl seemed to possess a pure and innocent energy, and even so, her voice exuded a reassuring and joyful aura.

Shu Ningmiao placed her hand on her cold hand. Arcia's fingers were withered like flower branches covered with a layer of bark, thin and small, so cold that it seemed as if the liquid in the IV tube had replaced her blood, with no warmth at all.

"Is there some good news?" Shu Ningmiao asked in a calm tone, not wanting her to feel any pity.

“My brother came to see me today, and you came to see me too.” Arcia’s eyelashes fluttered like wings, and her emerald green eyes were filled with moisture: “...The sky outside is also very beautiful.”

Shu Ningmiao hummed in agreement. After so many things had happened, this was the first time she had noticed what color the sky was outside.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen anyone.” Arcia’s fingers twitched, gently poking her palm, as lightly as a kitten’s touch. “Have you been very busy at school lately?”

Knowing that she was stuck in the hospital room and couldn't go anywhere, and was so curious about everything outside, Shu Ningmiao simply told her the story of what happened during her supernatural ability practice.

Shu Ningmiao wasn't a very good narrator; she was straightforward and couldn't tell many interesting stories. Alcia's eyes rolled slightly, and she listened attentively.

After Shu Ningmiao finished explaining that Prometheus had hacked into the superpower practice system, Arcea frowned slightly, looking puzzled: "Why was the system so easily hacked?"

Shu Ningmiao was also very curious about this question. How could the most advanced technology developed by the smartest group of people in Pinne was so easily cracked by Prometheus?

However, the research center would not release the full data to show them how the system was hacked. Shu Ningmiao could only answer her: "Perhaps there are smarter people among them than Weston."

After saying that, Shu Ningmiao realized that she had used an inappropriate analogy. Although the genius was renowned, Arcia, who had been staying in the hospital for a long time, might not know who Weston was.

But Arcia didn't show any doubt on her face. She just widened her eyes slightly and turned her cheek to look at her: "You just said that the bad guy named Achini changed the system data just by moving his mouth. That doesn't make sense."

Shu Ningmiao knew she was smart, but she didn't expect her to know about this as well: "What's unreasonable about it?"

Arsia struggled to lift her arm, but couldn't. She smiled sheepishly at her and turned her head to the other side.

Among the books piled up by the window, a red-covered notebook appeared out of thin air in front of them, flipping open with a rustling sound.

Arcia skillfully used Pandora to 'control' the notebook, flipping through it quickly until she stopped on a certain page: "You see, this kind of system is usually equipped with a neural reverse valve, so when a person is inside the data, they cannot connect to the system."

Shu Ningmiao didn't understand the more technical details, but she could grasp the key points: "You mean, Achini, who is inside the data, can't directly manipulate or modify the system? It's possible that his accomplices are outside maintaining real-time contact with him—he gives the orders, and then the people outside make the changes."

“No.” Arcia shook her head firmly, a layer of fog appearing on her breathing mask: “Because real-time synchronization is not possible between inside and outside the system. Even if they have a way to communicate outside the system, there will be a significant delay.”

“Besides, didn’t you say that the broadcast outside the system was cut off at the same time?” Arcia’s voice was lighter than a feather swirling in the wind, but every word was clear: “To do that, the two-way HAD-U channel must be completely cut off, so that the inside and outside of the system are completely isolated.”

"After they left, the system's broadcast probably didn't resume, right?" Arcia said. "Once it's cut off, it's irreversible. They cut off the broadcast transmission between the outside world and the system, and they themselves have no way to contact the inside or outside."

Indeed, after Shu Ningmiao came out, she saw that the people at the research center had been trying to fix the broadcast screen for a long time, and they still hadn't finished it by the time she left.

Shu Ningmiao felt a little dizzy from what she said. She vaguely grasped some clues, but didn't fully understand: "Then the data modification happens entirely within the data? But you also said that people inside the data cannot modify the system."

“There’s still one possibility,” Arcia blinked. “Special abilities.”

What kind of superpower? This touched on Shu Ningmiao's blind spot: "A superpower that can change the system? Could it be an illusion?"

“It should be a neural connection-type ability.” Arcia’s eyes moved, and she turned to the next page of her red notebook. On this page was a hand-drawn diagram of a helmet’s structure, with dense handwriting next to it. Shu Ningmiao felt that it looked somewhat familiar.

Upon closer inspection, it bore a striking resemblance to the helmets they wore for their supernatural abilities.

Arcia's gaze lingered on the metal contacts inside the helmet: "The principle of this superpower, neural connection, is similar to that of the contacts. It allows you to enter the system's main control directly and silently through the contacts, because the body and the contacts are always connected. Even if you are in the data later, you can still modify the system data."

The only person who could wear this helmet was one of the students present at the time. Shu Ningmiao had guessed that Prometheus might have an inside man, but she never expected that the inside man would be a student from the String Light Academy.

It's illogical for someone with superpowers to support an anti-superpowers, anti-Pandora organization. Su Ni is already bizarre enough, and Shu Ningmiao felt he must have ulterior motives. Little did she know that Su Ni wasn't the only one like him.

Shu Ningmiao's mind instantly cleared. Following this line of thought, she could even figure out how Prometheus appeared in the combat simulation system.

"If someone with this ability is wearing a helmet and hacking into the system while holding another device, could they connect the two people on opposite ends?"

"That should be it." Arsia smiled weakly at her. Shu Ningmiao noticed that when Arsia talked about these things, her eyes were particularly bright and strong, with the vigor of a young person, like a flower bud bursting with life.

Shu Ningmiao touched her hair: "You're amazing."

Arcia paused for a moment, then suddenly smiled: "Is he even more powerful than Weston, as you said?"

“I think you’re much better than him.” Shu Ningmiao affirmed without blinking, and even added, “His lectures are just meant to put people to sleep. If you were a teacher, you would definitely be more popular than him.”