Mountain Top Convenience Store
Jian Tanxi exclaimed with delight, "So that's how it is. It's wonderful that you've regained consciousness. You're an experienced researcher; you'll definitely be able to lead the surviving humans to safety."
Professor Pan Xian shook his head and said, "Judging from the current situation, no one can lead anyone else. Firstly, the survivors' intelligence should be about the same, while an old man like me is actually a bit out of touch with the times because of my age, and sometimes my reactions are not as fast as those of young people."
Secondly, after each game, teammates are teleported to different locations. Even if friendships are formed or teams are built during the game, they are scattered across the country after leaving the game, making it impossible to form a long-term team.
Jian Tanxi murmured, "You're right... So, does that mean we're all going to fight this battle alone?"
"This is the only way. Earth has reached its most dangerous moment. Every survivor should grow up quickly and see themselves as the hope of all mankind. Therefore, we cannot back down, we cannot give up, and we cannot think of relying on anyone. The only one we can rely on is ourselves."
Professor Pan's words were like a wake-up call. Jian Tanxi felt that the responsibilities on her shoulders were becoming clearer and heavier.
Now, whether she likes it or not, she is one of the remaining salvations for humanity.
Only when she becomes powerful will she have the opportunity to save others.
Therefore, her gaze became even more determined.
Jian Tanxi asked Professor Pan, "Have you been here ever since you left the first game?"
"No. After I was teleported to this convenience store, I stayed there for a few days before entering the second round of the game. After the second round ended, I found myself teleported to a factory. Fortunately, I am familiar with many cities, and I knew that the factory was not far from this mountaintop convenience store; it was within walking distance."
So I left that factory and came back here. It's more familiar here, and there's food too.
Jian Tanxi: "I see... So, you also participated in both games?"
"Yes, we should be about the same progress. In the second game, I got a special ability and a biosphere."
Jian Tanxi exclaimed in surprise, "You have ecospheres too?"
"Yes, right here."
A white halo appeared above Professor Pan's head, and then he took out an ecosphere from it.
This ecosphere is very similar to the one Jian Tanxi has, but upon closer inspection, the people, buildings, and landscapes inside are somewhat different.
It is evident that each ecosphere has its own unique structure, and each contains different people.
Jian Tanxi also took out her two ecospheres, and the three spheres floated side by side in the air.
Professor Pan asked with some delight, "You have two ecospheres now?"
"Yes, one has 100,000 people and the other has 200,000 people, totaling 300,000."
Professor Pan said, "My ecosphere has 150,000 people, and together we have saved a total of 450,000 people."
"Unfortunately, we don't know how to release them."
Professor Pan said, "It's alright, we can find a way slowly. Earth is now under alien control, so releasing these ordinary people wouldn't be good for them either."
"Hmm. Professor Pan, what's your second round of the game?"
"It's a guessing game. There's a paper figure on a table with five bowls upside down, one of which contains a ball. He quickly rearranges the bowls and then we have to guess which bowl has the ball. The game is played six times."
He did not stipulate that players must take turns guessing; one player could guess continuously, or any player could guess, and some players were allowed to remain silent.
However, if the player who comes out to guess guesses correctly, they receive a reward, while other players do not; if they guess incorrectly, that player dies, and the other players who did not guess will also be injured. Moreover, the final condition for passing the level is that no one can die, otherwise the others will also be unable to leave.
Several players were too afraid to take the risk and didn't try to guess. Later, another player with good eyesight and I kept playing and finally guessed all the balls correctly.
I played two rounds, and he played four.
My contribution score ranked second, so I received one superpower. The player who contributed the most received two superpowers.
Jian Tanxi asked, "So, the player who ranked first didn't take the Eco-Ball?"
Professor Pan: "Yes, he doesn't want to deal with other humans; he finds it troublesome. Moreover, he feels that aliens wouldn't let players take away other Earthlings so easily; there's probably something fishy going on, just that they can't discover it yet. So, he absolutely refuses the ecosphere."
So, in order, it was my turn to choose, and I took this ecosphere, which gave me my personal space.
Jian Tanxi: "I see. What would happen if no one chose this ecosphere?"
“I asked that question too. The paper doll, the Hogger, said they would take the ecosphere away. As for what they would do with it after that, he didn’t say.”
"It's good that you took it. Whether or not it can save them in the future, at least they are alive and well at this moment."
"Yes, it's a pity there are too many people inside, and it's impossible to communicate with them one by one. When I speak to them, they all speak together, it's chaotic, and I can't understand a word."
The two of them retrieved their respective ecospheres into their spatial storage.
Then, Jian Tanxi asked, "Professor Pan, what do you think these aliens are trying to do? If they only wanted to invade Earth, they could have locked up all the Earthlings in the ecosphere or killed us all. But they only locked up most of the Earthlings and made the remaining geniuses participate in strange games."
Professor Pan said, "I can't figure this out for now either. Maybe if we keep playing, we'll find the answer. By the way, Tanxi, you're a student at Beijing University of Technology, right?"
"Yes."
"Originally, if I hadn't suddenly fallen ill, I would have gone to your university to serve as its president. Unexpectedly, I fell ill and was hospitalized first, and then such a huge change happened on Earth... But we met again here, which is truly fate."
Jian Tanxi exclaimed in surprise, "So you almost became my principal... What a coincidence, hahaha."
Over the next few days, Jian Tanxi and Professor Pan stayed at this small convenience store.
There was a folding bed in the convenience store, and Professor Pan had been sleeping on it for the past few days.
After Jian Tanxi arrived, she gave up the folding bed and Professor Pan slept in a small wooden house not far away.
During the day, they would gather together and chat casually.
When Professor Pan felt bored, he would teach Jian Tanxi some biology, which was his area of expertise.
Since Jian Tanxi had nothing else to do, she studied diligently. Although she might not use this knowledge, it was enough to pass the time.
After class that day, Jian Tanxi took out one of the ecospheres, magnified it many times, and wanted to see if there were any people she knew inside.
However, there were too many people inside, and everyone looked a bit small, making it impossible to recognize them.
Moreover, many people stayed in their rooms and did not come out.
Some people sit outdoors, lost in thought, their expressions showing confusion and loneliness.
Although they live with many people, the people in an ecosphere may be randomly assigned, and those living in the same ecosphere may not necessarily know each other.
Jian Tanxi noticed that the people inside rarely interacted with those around them, probably because they were not very familiar with each other.
Professor Pan walked over and asked, "Tanxi, are you looking for someone you know?"
Jian Tanxi nodded: "Mm."
"The chances of finding it are very low, after all, there are only a small portion of humans here."
"I know."
At this moment, Professor Pan stared at a young man in the farmland, looked him over carefully, and said, "I do know someone. That young man farming is my colleague's doctoral student. They are in the field of agronomy."
Jian Tanxi asked in surprise, "Really? Where is he? What's his name?"
Professor Pan didn't answer. Instead, he frowned and looked at it for a while. Then he placed his hand on the ecosphere and said loudly, "Nan Jingyuan! Who told you to farm like this! The land you planted is all compacted. It's no wonder nothing can grow there! Also, who told you to plant eggplants and peppers together? These two crops are prone to dying if planted together. Don't you know that?"
No wonder your advisor always scolds you; you're the worst idiot ever! Even I, a PhD supervisor in biology, can't stand it anymore!
The young man in the field looked up in shock at the sky: "Professor Pan... Professor Pan's voice? How could his voice come from the sky? Did Professor Pan ascend to heaven? That's strange... Did my advisor ascend to heaven too? If he did, should I continue my doctoral studies or not...?"
Since Professor Pan's words were directed at that young man alone, the others in the ecosphere didn't know what was going on and remained silent.
Therefore, Professor Pan and Jian Tanxi heard every word Nan Jingyuan said.
Jian Tanxi kept laughing, while Professor Pan shook his head repeatedly, saying, "Idiot... I can't stand him anymore. Luckily, he's not my student. Tanxi, hurry up and put the ecosphere away."
"oh."
The moment the ecosphere was put away, Jian Tanxi's vision went black, and the familiar teleportation sensation returned.
It seems she's about to enter the third round of the game.
I just don't know what kind of game it will be this time, or how dangerous it is.
A short while later, she found herself in a room.
Her first feeling was heat.
After she landed, her second sensation was that the ground was shaking.
She couldn't stand steadily, so she had to squat down and hold onto the ground with her hands to barely maintain her balance.
However, the ground was still shaking, and the shaking was quite severe.
She almost slid down, but luckily someone caught her.
She turned around and saw Professor Pan standing behind her.
Jian Tanxi breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, she had some acquaintances with her this time, so she didn't have to fight alone.
Only then did she get a clear look at her surroundings.
This house was a fire room; the ground floor was completely engulfed in flames, and the fire was raging. No wonder she felt hot.
The house had no ground; she and Professor Pan were actually on a large seesaw.
On the left side of the seesaw were her and Professor Pan. On the right side were three unfamiliar young people.
In the middle of the seesaw is a relatively thick pillar, which is connected to the sea of fire below, but it does not conduct heat and will not be ignited.
The seesaw is about two meters away from the fire, and it is about 1.5 meters wide. If it can maintain its balance, it will not fall into the fire for the time being.
However, the three young people on the other side of the seesaw panicked and kept changing positions.
Therefore, the seesaw kept rocking, and Jian Tanxi and Professor Pan had to change positions at any time to maintain the overall balance.
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