"What...what happened to them?" Han Meimei's clear voice became hoarse. She had never seen what a person looked like when life naturally came to an end.
Perhaps she saw it, but inexplicably forgot about it long ago.
The two old men remained silent for a moment.
The old lady said softly, "This is old age."
Is being old really that scary?
Han Meimei did not press further, but her eyes revealed a hint of fear.
"Everyone gets old." The old man sighed. When he saw young people, he also lamented the ruthlessness of time, but who hasn't been young?
Han Meimei's eyelids twitched slightly. She remembered that there were old people in the dungeon, but most of the time players were busy solving mysteries and would just brush past the old NPCs they happened to meet, without paying any special attention. Even with NPCs that were directly related to the main storyline, players were unwilling to spend too much time paying attention to them, let alone random NPCs.
Han Meimei, preoccupied with her own thoughts, stopped speaking, and Li Lei silently stayed with his girlfriend.
"Grandpa and Grandma, what did you mean by the second group of people?" Cheng Shuang asked obediently, raising her little hand.
Most of the elderly people in the family liked children. The old lady, who was called "Grandma," put away her sad expression and imitated the little girl's delicate tone, asking in return, "Little friends, are you outsiders? Only outsiders would still have the concept of a hospital in their minds, and would still see us!"
Despite his lighthearted tone, as if he were teasing a child, it sent a chill down the spines of several people present, including Han Meimei, who snapped back to reality in an instant.
What do you mean by "saw us"? Have they unknowingly gotten themselves into a dungeon?
"Haha, Old Zheng, look at these kids, they're so easily frightened!" The old lady suddenly grinned, revealing a mischievous smile.
Several people...
The old man, known as Old Zheng, was actually about the same age as the old man, but his energy and spirit were far less vigorous than the old man's. He coughed lightly and said, "Old Xu, be more serious!" Then he looked at Han Meimei and said, "When that girl was wandering outside the hospital two years ago, Old Xu was right in front of her, but she didn't see anything."
So that's how it is!
The group slowly breathed a sigh of relief.
Cheng Shuang frowned slightly. Although her question had not been answered, Grandma Xu's words had already revealed a lot.
First, these elderly people were aware of the presence of outsiders.
Secondly, the hospital...
Wait, what connection does the outsider's mind have with the hospital?
The little girl stared blankly, recalling the first day she stepped into this land of death. She saw the convenience store, the office building where Uncle Sun worked, and the familiar streets of Brother Du Jun. Could all of this be memories in their minds, constructed from the deepest part of their memories?
She had this suspicion when she was working on the bus copy...
Cheng Shuang patted her forehead with her small hand, feeling that her imagination was about to run wild.
How is that possible?
If the wanderers could do that, they would have long since passed the time of the maintainers' arrival, and all the other planets in the same plane would have been beyond saving.
Even if the maintainers go, they'll just be food for the homeless. After all, if they can't control their own thoughts and feelings, what hope do they have for survival?
Du Jun carefully observed the expressions of the two elderly people. Seeing that they showed no extra emotion, indicating that they were already used to this situation, he asked, "So, old folks, you have been forgotten by the people of this world?"
"That's a fair description." Grandpa Zheng couldn't stand standing for long, so he sat down on a creaky folding bed. As soon as he sat down, the other elderly people followed suit. "Please sit down, and we'll talk slowly."
Sun Han frowned. The other three elderly men had blank stares, like puppets, their faces sallow and devoid of any vitality. This was more than just old age. Moreover, judging from their skin, they didn't have many wrinkles or blemishes.
Following his gaze, Grandma Xu turned around, gently patted the hand of one of the elderly people, and smiled at Sun Han, "This is my husband. He was a world-renowned neurosurgeon back then." She paused, "He was also among the first batch of testers to come in."
Cheng Shuang kept her mouth shut; she had a feeling that she was about to learn the truth about this world.
"Let's get to the point!" Grandpa Zheng took over from Grandma Xu, his expression grave and his tone urgent. "We don't have much time left. If we tell you everything, we might be completely captured and banned by the system. You must remember that."
"A century ago, or perhaps even earlier, with the rapid development of technology, a medical institution developed a rehabilitation-type four-dimensional space that allowed patients with severe damage to their cerebral cortex to awaken their consciousness and be reborn by entering the four-dimensional space. At the time, society was in an uproar, thinking it was just a joke to attract attention. But soon, this medical institution was acquired by a globally renowned game company for a high price, and a game called Eternal New World was born."
At this point, was there anything else they didn't understand?
When the medical project that awakens consciousness in four-dimensional space was linked to games, it immediately reminded Cheng Shuang of the holographic game equipment in Du Jun's room.
The "new world emerging from the cocoon" on the ticket turned out to be a game space.
All the indigenous people continued their lives in the game.
"The emergence of the Eternal New World is not a technological advancement spanning centuries; it is accompanied by a catastrophe. In fact, there should have been signs long before its appearance, but we hastily ignored them. Don't ask me what the catastrophe was; we can't remember anymore." Grandpa Zheng waved his hand, glanced at Han Meimei's pale face, and continued, "Our planet can no longer accommodate us; the external environment is no longer suitable for human survival. The first batch of people who can enter the game are top talents in various fields, also known as testers. Of course, these people cannot be young people; young people are the reserve force, the hope of humanity."
Cheng Shuang pursed her lips; the so-called testers were more like a suicide squad.
According to Grandpa Zheng, the disaster struck too quickly, and the game might not meet the requirements for release. That's why more talent is needed to develop a completely new and unfamiliar game system.
Her guess was answered.
"The Eternal New World is more like a self-developing independent plane. I don't know how to describe it. I only remember the first day we entered it. The sky and earth were empty, and suddenly they changed in an instant. The tall buildings, streets, and vehicles, except for the crowds, were no different from the cities we remembered. But at the same time, with each step, we would fall into another completely new world, similar to the game instances that young people talk about. We would not really die, but over time, our spirit, will, memories, and so on would unknowingly disintegrate with each death or serious injury in each instance."
Han Meimei's lips trembled as Li Lei tightly gripped her cold hand.
She wanted to ask something, but couldn't manage to utter a sound.
This cruel reality was so shocking to her that it felt so unreal.
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