Chapter 113

Almost immediately after losing contact with Xie Xubai and the others, the magician noticed the unusual stagnation in the number of days remaining.

Even after searching the entire city without finding Xie Xubai and the others, the magician didn't panic. The puppet clone he had created for his teammate, player A, was still running and hadn't been forcibly interrupted, which meant that they were at least out of danger.

Over the next few months, he observed the situation, determined the number of players still alive, and witnessed the hardships the city had endured with his teammates.

In the first two months, the novel infectious disease completely transformed into a major epidemic. Local officials, seeing that the truth could no longer be concealed, quickly lifted the lockdown and reported the actual situation.

However, this plague far exceeded people's conventional understanding. In just over ten minutes, the infected person would go from a vigorous and healthy person to a person on the verge of death, and then disappear into thin air at some unexpected point, as if they had been erased from existence by the world.

Such a bizarre event had never occurred before, which drew great attention from the Alliance's political authorities. However, no matter how many experts were sent, they could not explain why this strange phenomenon occurred using existing scientific theories.

By the third month, experts had finally determined the route of transmission of the plague, but the truth, once revealed, seemed like an absurd joke.

Because the virus spreads not through blood, air, or physical contact, but through the mind.

Yes, you didn't misspoke, and you didn't mishear.

Thought.

The most noticeable symptom of initial exposure to the virus is impaired thinking, often resulting in blank stares and slowed reactions.

Then, they will forget some common sense things, such as how to put on shoes and open a bottle. After a while, the condition worsens, and the reactions become more exaggerated. They will forget who they are, how to walk, and even that they are human. They will imitate cats licking their fur and dogs barking, and fantasize about growing wings and flying into the sky.

Someone jumped from a tall building, their white brains mixed with bright red blood and flesh splattered all over the ground.

Those who witness this bizarre scene, even if they have never had close contact with the patient, will have the terrifying image etched in their minds, recalling it from time to time, and experiencing the same symptoms at some point in time.

Air can be isolated, but how can we stop divergent thoughts? If the brain doesn't think, doesn't function, isn't it dead? Is there really such a horrifying disease in the world that spreads viruses through thoughts?

This discovery has almost completely overturned the human medical system. Many experts went into a frenzy during the research process, desperately crying out: This is an unprecedented disaster! If no forceful intervention is taken, humanity may be wiped out!

As if answering this call, in the seventh month, the plague raged in dozens of districts and counties, gradually spreading to surrounding districts and counties.

This was only because the Alliance's political situation reacted promptly and mobilized all available armed forces within the city to save the city; otherwise, at least half of the city would have fallen.

No one expected that Fu's Pharmaceutical, which was almost ruined by liquidation and rectification at the same time, would suddenly emerge at this critical juncture and propose the existence of another dimension.

The vehicles they modified were actually able to traverse space and successfully enter the Otherworld. The sacrifices of the rescue team were tragic, but the successful rescue of the survivors gave people a glimmer of hope.

Two months later, Fu's Pharmaceutical successfully developed a vaccine, transforming itself into a heroic enterprise amidst the disaster. The news caused a sensation throughout the city. Hearing that Fu's sole heir was even braving difficulties to travel to another dimension to control the source of pollution, the citizens cheered enthusiastically, some even moved to tears!

As a result, the Fu family received the highest level of courtesy in the entire city, with the H City Alliance Branch personally reporting to them and giving them the green light.

Fu's Pharmaceuticals became the top pharmaceutical company in the area, and its public credibility soared. In line with the arrival of the Fu family in the underworld, overnight, all drug manufacturers were replaced by "Fu's Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Co., Ltd."

—This hellish opening act was what Dr. Li and his team faced as soon as they arrived in the real world.

The sun was shining brightly overhead, dispelling all the chill. Before my eyes could even adjust to the warm sunlight, countless microphones were already shoved to my lips.

Outside the quarantine zone, crowds thronged, and reporters, seemingly forgetting that they might be carrying the virus, bombarded the other side with questions about the situation in the inner world, their expressions bordering on fervor.

"Are you people rescued by the Fu Group?" "Have you found the source of the virus? Are you able to develop a stable vaccine on a large scale?" "I heard that a certain manager of Fu's Pharmaceuticals has been on the front lines, is that person named Pei Yuheng?"...

Dr. Li was stunned. Hearing the reporters twist the truth, attributing Pei Yuheng to Fu's Pharmaceutical Company and pinning all the credit on those treacherous villains, he was enraged and glared at them, shouting, "Bullshit!"

Fortunately, Player A was nearby and quickly used an item to silence Doctor Li. Taking advantage of the chaos, they took the group away.

Dr. Li held complete records in his hand, including video footage of Fu Zong transforming into a monster after his mysterious death. These were strong pieces of evidence to accuse the Fu family.

Perhaps fearing this, it wasn't long before the mysterious organization approached the magician who had taken in Dr. Li.

The mysterious man in the white suit and mask said politely, "A magician ranked among the top five on the power list. I've heard so much about you. This seems to be our second formal meeting?"

The magician sat cross-legged on the rooftop, the tallest commercial building in the area for several kilometers. Below him lay the Chengnan New District, a disaster-stricken area. The buildings were well-equipped, but no lights were on; it was deserted and looked like a dead zone.

He idly fiddled with the playing cards in his hand: "The way you talk reminds me of some arrogant idiot who started spouting nonsense about elimination and that everyone should just accept their fate and give up on passing the level. So I dragged him into the trial pool."

Players are not allowed to use skills and force in the player space, but they are not restricted from taking people to the trial pool or guild territory for "sparring".

The mysterious man's eyebrows twitched slightly, as if recalling the tragic end of his accomplice.

The obsidian earrings, styled like playing cards, swayed slightly. The magician narrowed his eyes, looking at him with a half-smile: "You've come to me now, do you want to follow in his footsteps?"

"..." The masked man lowered his posture, "You misunderstand, we have no hostility, you see."

He pointed to the desolate and ruined streets: "This place used to be bustling with traffic and prosperity, but now it has been polluted and occupied by monsters in another layered area, and is completely abandoned."

"This is an inevitable trend, a predetermined fate. The struggles of a single group cannot change anything, just as the dinosaurs could not escape the comet hitting the Earth, and the mammoths became extinct due to climate change and human hunting. Since this is the case, why not go with the flow?"

The magician glanced at him and sneered, "To you, is betraying humanity and becoming the system's lackey just going with the flow?"

The masked man seemed not to understand his sarcasm: "No, the system can only be considered a representative of destiny at best, not the 'momentum' we should follow."

"Magician, I heard that you didn't participate in the first two dungeons and were instead in seclusion in the Trial Pool. Actually, your seclusion was a pretense; you wanted to verify the truth of some information—didn't you notice that the number of dungeons in the Trial Pool is seriously inconsistent with the actual situation?"

The magician remained silent, gazing intently at him. Suddenly, the masked man opened his arms and burst into laughter, as if embracing destiny: "You've discovered it too! The time required to complete our trials is actually far more than three years! Everyone is unknowingly stepping into one cycle after another!"

"To be honest, our lord has long foreseen destiny. It was the same last time, and the time before that, and it will be the same this time! Humanity will be completely overthrown, the real world and the strange world will merge, and the Fu family will dominate the region!"

With a wave of his hand, the masked man revealed the scene of the other world to the magician like an open screen, and laughed wildly: "Take a look."

The magician frowned and looked over, then suddenly raised an eyebrow: "When your master was trying to understand fate, did he see a golden exclamation mark?"