Chapter 1378: The First Day of the New World
The scene glimpsed through the crack years ago reappeared after the Great Deluge.
The Queen Mother was still in the distant s.p.a.ce. As Exodus got closer and closer to the distant planet, the planet on the screen got bigger and bigger. Looking at it, Lin Sanjiu seemed to be pressed by a breathtaking great force, motionless on the chair.
Even if she rationally understood the grand prize"s layers of onion metaphor, she still found it hard to truly understand this fact. How can the universe be layered?
All the rules she learned in the past no longer apply, and she never thought that the universe could also be broken. Even though she was constantly traveling through the doomsday universe, she always thought that the universe was the universe. It is unique and infinite, always stably embracing everything; whether it"s the end of the world or a deluge, it"s only directed at humans.
When she bowed her head, the ground under her feet suddenly broke and fell into the void, leaving her empty and without any survival rules to support her. Thinking she might fall into another unknown universe at any time, she felt like everything was about to lose weight.
"The s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p will land in fifteen minutes," Silas"s ever-calm voice sounded from the broadcast system, bringing Lin Sanjiu"s attention back. "All members, please be prepared."
Even the grand prize didn"t know what kind of world was ahead. Everyone in the hall showed a bit of tension.
"Has everyone already received a visa from me?" Ji Shanqing said softly as if he had no strength. He sat at the end of the long table, appearing listless, and looked around. "I checked. There are no signs of the Great Deluge on this planet, so the teleportation rules should still be valid."
Nu Yue raised her hand and asked, "When does the 14-month count start?"
Recently, she regained her vivacity. Lin Sanjiu observed that she was good at taking advantage of Silvan"s principles about women. It was said that she even had Silvan read poetry to her the day before.
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"In theory, teleportation time is indefinitely suspended after entering the modern world," Ji Shanqing replied blandly. "It"s most likely counted from the day we leave the modern world."
So, they would have to wait more than ten months for the next teleportation.
The news that many Twelve Worlds visas have been acc.u.mulated in the consular officer a.s.sociation was also mentioned, and the contact methods after separation were also explained. After the s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p stabilized on the ground, Lin Sanjiu checked her mind and found nothing else to instruct everyone. They would try to stay together as much as possible. Even if they were accidentally dispersed, they could still meet again in the Twelve Worlds.
The s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p landed in a clearing in a mountain forest. Like a tide, the engine"s sound engulfed half of the hill and startled many birds in the forest. After everyone had disembarked from the s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p, Lin Sanjiu looked back.
Silvan was leaning alone behind the door, his golden hair disappearing into the shadows. The clear green in his eyes seemed both cool and burning. He was not only looking at her but also at this doomsday. Only about ten steps were between them, but his eyes seemed to be separated by a distant riverbank.
1
"Aren"t you leaving?" she asked.
Silvan was brought back to reality, giving a wry smile, his deep voice vibrating like a feather sweeping over one"s nerves. "Let"s walk and talk. I want to ask you a question."
"What?"
When the two of them walked down the s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p, he dropped his eyes, then raised them again, his gaze seeming to sweep out a green wave. "How old do you think I am?"
He appeared in his twenties or thirties, but that couldn"t be used as a reference for a posthuman. Seeing that Lin Sanjiu didn"t respond immediately, he laughed. "Actually, even I don"t know how old I am."
"Doesn"t he have parents?" Lin Sanjiu thought.
Silvan said in a low voice, "I have been isolated from your timeline and the timeline of others for my whole life. I guess when the beginning and the end of my life come, I will finally find peace. Sometimes I really wish others could understand my situation, but then I think, even I don"t understand."
"I... I don"t understand," she said with a frown. Could this be a poem? It was too hard to understand. Besides, how could a living person still wait for the beginning of his life to come? Hadn"t the beginning already happened?
Silvan sighed, not wanting to say more. "It"s okay, you"ll know in the future... Oh, Ji Shanqing is calling you. He seems unhappy."
Lin Sanjiu glanced over, and sure enough, she saw the grand prize, drooping his eyelids and standing in the road ahead, waiting for her. She immediately felt embarra.s.sed, like a parent when their child was causing a scene, and quickly waved to call the grand prize over.
In recent days, this child looked a bit tired. He came over and took her hand, saying nothing more.
Despite everyone being on guard, there was no sign of anything wrong until they descended the mountain. At the foot of the mountain was a verdant small town. Most of the buildings in the town were detached houses, with milky yellow walls and brick-red roofs scattered among the lush trees like building blocks. Crows, wild peac.o.c.ks, and squirrels flew back and forth on the quiet and deserted streets, chattering and scattering at the sight of people.
The cars by the side of the road were covered in a layer of dust, the mailboxes of each house were stuffed with unclaimed letters and newspapers, and the tree branches and bushes hadn"t been trimmed for who knows how long, casting a shadow of greenery overhead, at the sides, and underfoot. The group walked through the town; their breaths softened as if they were afraid to disturb this deserted place.
After walking along the road for about ten minutes, Han Suiping was the first to stop.
"There"s no artificial signal here," he said, raising his limb and rotating it like an antenna. "I can"t hear anything. Shall we go inside and take a look?"
The three posthumans who had hitchhiked from the modern world turned their eyes to Lin Sanjiu in unison. They had been walking together for a long time and knew who was in charge.
"Let"s go," Lin Sanjiu said a bit awkwardly.
Now that she had regained all her fighting strength and her body had been meticulously conditioned by Ji Shanqing to peak condition, along with the presence of Silvan, everyone was quite confident. They chose a house randomly and found that everything inside was just ordinary residential scenery. The paintings on the wall, the small ornaments on the side cabinet, and the books left on the sofa felt like someone could walk through the door any moment.
"Why don"t we turn on the TV and see? Maybe there"s some old news that can tell us what happened in this world," Nu Yue suggested, picking up the remote control from the coffee table.
Just as Han Suiping said, "I can"t detect a TV signal; it"s useless," the TV turned on with a pop, displaying a person with their back to the camera.
The person, with short black hair reaching their shoulders and dressed in a suit, was sitting upright on a stool, facing a blue wall.
Everyone in the house suddenly went silent.
A line of text scrolled at the bottom of the screen, like a news ticker: "5:24 pm, August 19, Hummingbird Town, Blue Wall Watcher game launch, the game is currently in progress."
"W-what?" someone uttered, one of the posthumans who had hitchhiked along.
Someone patted the speaker to signal them to keep watching the screen.
A line of text suddenly rolled by as if it felt their gaze. "Welcome to the Blue Wall Watcher game! Due to the previous failure to successfully stop the game"s launch, the Blue Wall Watcher game has started. Please find the person facing the blue wall on the TV screen within the town. Remember, find them before the Blue Wall Watcher turns his head."
Nu Yue still clutched the remote, her knuckles turning white.
"Is it me," she said in a breathy voice, "or is the Blue Wall Watcher gradually moving towards the screen?"