first player

Chapter 1625 Final Chapter: Crossing the Sea [53] "The Great Sage Yang Mermaid and the Unsincerous People Arrive (11)"

“…Su Qing? I remember you didn’t come here before.” A gloomy voice came from behind.

Behind him was a woman with long purple hair, whose beauty was so striking it was almost aggressive. She had a sharp jaw, upturned eyes, and an air of detachment as if she were scrutinizing her experimental subjects.

...Xiting.

In an instant, Su Ming'an recognized that face as that of the alluring and arrogant Lord of the Undead, Xi Ting.

“Edith,” Su Ming’an said.

"I don't like others interfering with my experiments," said Edith, the sixth-ranked player, calmly.

"Is there really no other way?" Su Ming'an didn't believe that Hui Bai and Antetolia would allow such a thing to happen unless there was truly no other way. The fate of the entire planet and the experimental subjects were mutually exclusive.

"You mean Hui Bai? Ha, that guy can't stop me." Edith turned her head. "If you want to condemn me, then come on, you're not the first. Why don't you guys come up with another way to survive?"

Suddenly, her communicator beeped, and her gloomy expression softened instantly, replaced by a smile: "Ante? Hmm, you were looking for me? Okay, I'm coming..."

She glanced at Su Ming'an, then turned and left.

Su Ming'an was observing Su Liujin when he suddenly noticed a timid female researcher standing behind the jar. She had long, slightly wavy, flaxen hair and dark brown eyes, and was about forty years old. She was secretly sizing up Su Ming'an.

Noticing Su Ming'an's gaze, the female researcher bit her lip, pretended to walk past him as if nothing was wrong, and nervously stuffed a note into Su Ming'an's palm.

Su Ming'an left the lab, opening his palm:

……

[2 AM, 302]

……

Su Ming'an returned to his room and quickly found the woman's contact information using his hacking skills. Her name was Su Yongchun, an experimenter. He dialed her communicator.

A slightly flustered voice came from the other end: "Who is it?"

"The person you slipped the note to."

"What, what did you say? I don't understand," the other person quickly denied.

“Don’t panic, I’ve already infiltrated the network, and our communications won’t be monitored,” Su Ming’an said.

"Why should I trust you?"

"The moment you slipped me the note, you believed me."

There was silence for a while.

“Let me guess, maybe you’ve always wanted to rescue the white-haired boy in the jar. Today you suddenly noticed an S-level access personnel coming to the lab and giving the white-haired boy a special look… You wanted to take a gamble, so you slipped him the note,” Su Ming’an said. “I checked your surveillance footage, and your pity for the white-haired boy was genuine… Are you the one responsible for creating his dream world?”

There was a moment of silence on the other end, then, as if finally making up his mind, he said in a hoarse voice:
"Yes."

“I replace pain with honey, injections with cotton, and prisoners with a little king whom everyone respects… I present him with whatever he likes. This is my job responsibility… to keep the test subjects in a pleasant mood. In the laboratory, our position is called ‘mother.’ We will actively enter their dreams through helmets, transforming into the image of their mother, guiding their emotions to remain stable.”

“…Don’t insult the word ‘mother’.” Su Ming’an was silent for a while before speaking. “A mother would not imprison her child, force the child to become what she wants, nor would she imprison her child in the name of love.”

The person opposite gave a bitter laugh: "Yes, this job comes with immense psychological pressure and guilt—you have to watch your 'children' grow up innocent and naive, you have to tell them with lies that this world is a fairy tale, and you have to prevent them from waking up and accepting the truth. After every warm moment with them, you have to return to this cold and cruel laboratory, look at them soaking in jars, and even witness them being killed... Even in death, they still think you are their mother."

“Gradually, I couldn’t bear it any longer. Just today, I noticed a dramatic shift in his emotions—he wanted to wake up!”

“Waking up means the data transmission will be interrupted, which means his experiment will fail… He will be crushed into a bloody, mangled embryo and thrown away for recycling. I secretly concealed the data today, but it will be discovered tomorrow! If we want to save him, we must get him out tonight.”

Su Ming'an was stunned.

...It turns out that "waking up" is "death" for Su Liujin.

No wonder Su Liujin had that expression when he said, "Why don't you want to wake up!" He had wondered how Su Liujin could possibly be someone who was running away from the truth and indulging in dreams.

The Jellyfish Emperor wants to live.

If you want to live, you have to accept a false fairy tale and a false life.

They were used, arranged, taken away, and killed.

Waiting for the "sunfish" that is destined never to arrive.

How many white-haired youths have died before? If there is only a one in ten thousand chance of survival, then countless other "Su Liujin" will be reduced to bloody, mangled embryos.

Are all those boys and girls soaking in jars... dreaming their beautiful dreams?
"So, why did you decide to save this person?" Su Ming'an asked.

“I’ve been a ‘mother’ fifteen times before. I’ve seen fifteen children live out their false dreams in their dreams. Some are celebrities admired by thousands, some are princesses living in castles, some are heroes who slay dragons… but one day they are all judged to be unqualified. Their happiness lasts only a few days or even half a day…” the other person said. “I personally said goodbye to them for the last time. They said ‘See you next time, Mom,’ but I couldn’t save them, couldn’t reach out, couldn’t say a word of advice… I can’t bear it anymore. This sixteenth child, I must save. Even if it costs me my career, even if I am imprisoned and tried.”

"What are your thoughts?" Su Ming'an asked.

“Originally, I wanted to destroy everything, but since you can hack into the network and have the highest authority, things are much easier now…” Su Yongchun explained his plan.

She would act first and inform later, pretending to "reclaim" Su Liujin, but in reality, she would have Su Ming'an secretly take him away. Once he got to the lower level of the Ark, the Ark with a total of 100 million people, once she controlled the network, there was no way she could find him again.

After listening, Su Ming'an remained silent for a while, then said, "What about the other children?"

“It’s a pity I don’t have the ability to save the world.” Su Yongchun smiled bitterly. “We often only save those we know best, don’t we? Just like you, didn’t you go straight for him and ignore the other children in the jars?”

This was just a dream; the real history had already unfolded... Of the tens of thousands of children, only Su Liujin survived.

Su Ming'an hung up the call and looked up at the cold ceiling.

At two in the morning, Su Ming'an set off, his figure flashing past under the cold white corridor lights, and the camera obediently shifted its view. He sensed another gentle force in the shadows cooperating with his actions, tacitly approving this betrayal.

...Are they Huibai and Antetolia? They are tacitly agreeing.

The laboratory door slid open silently, revealing only a few dim blue work lights illuminating the countless lives dormant in the nutrient solution. Su Yongchun was already waiting there, wearing a researcher's white coat, her flaxen curly hair slightly disheveled, and her deep brown eyes filled with tension.

Inside the cabin, the boy slept peacefully, his white eyelashes covering his pale cheeks, his body connected to countless tubes, like a delicate doll entangled in a spider web.

"Quickly..." Su Yongchun's voice was very low, "I have temporarily blocked his vital signs monitoring, but it won't last long."

Several tubes were removed. Su Ming'an lifted the boy's cold yet light body out of the life support pod. The boy leaned softly against him, strands of white hair brushing against his chin, with a fragile, icy touch.

...like a jellyfish about to melt.

Perhaps because he was no longer under the influence of the potion that sustained his dream, the boy's long eyelashes trembled a few times, and he opened his eyes with difficulty, just a crack. His eyes were a golden color, like the first melting of snow, veiled by a thin, ethereal mist. He struggled to focus, trying to see clearly the person holding him.

A faint, weak voice escaped from her pale lips, piercing Su Ming'an's heart unexpectedly.

"...Is it...the leader of the Lighthouse... who has come to pick me up...?"

"Have I become... a sunfish?"

His voice held no fear, no doubt, as if this was a scene he had repeated countless times in his dreams, finally arriving at this moment.

Su Ming'an's arms tightened suddenly, and his throat felt like it was blocked by something.

Su Yongchun, who was standing next to the control panel, suddenly turned his back, his shoulders trembled violently, and his dark brown eyes instantly filled with tears.

"go!"

Without further hesitation, Su Ming'an wrapped the boy tightly in a thermal blanket and quickly disappeared into the darkness.

Only when the footsteps had completely faded away did Su Yongchun, as if all her strength had been drained, slowly walk out from behind the control panel. She stared at the empty life support pod, her eyes vacant and sorrowful.

The laboratory lights cast a long, lonely shadow of hers. She murmured softly, her voice as light as a sigh:
Go forth... journey towards freedom.

She was a sinner, she knew it; she had witnessed the deaths of countless children, yet at this moment she was absolutely determined to save one child.

She didn't have the power to stop the experiment, which concerned the fate of the entire planet, and she couldn't let her "selfishness" affect everyone's future... However, she at least wanted to save one person, the luckiest one.

She was an incompetent "mother," too ashamed to see her child again. So when Su Ming'an left with Su Liujin, she remained hidden behind the control panel, refusing to look back. She emphasized to Su Ming'an, "Don't let the child know of my existence," she would sever all ties with his fate.

Go forth, fly to freedom, child with wings.

Su Yongchun took out a game console, a game she often played with her children in her dreams, and they loved this pixelated world.

Now, as the music plays again, she thinks of the fifteen children who have disappeared, feeling utterly powerless and silently weeping.

"Click——"

The alloy door slid open again, and several expressionless security guards entered. Leading them was Hui Bai. His eyes swept over the empty life support pod, his face showing no surprise.

Su Yongchun silently stretched out his hands, as if he had been waiting for this moment.

"Lock him up." Hui Bai waved his hand dismissively, his voice indifferent.

Two guards stepped forward and handcuffed Su Yongchun. Then, Hui Bai's fingertips tapped rapidly on his personal terminal, and an encrypted message was silently sent out.

The content of the message was completely opposite to his cold tone at that moment:
[Researcher Su Yongchun, ID S719, is suspected of irregular operations and has been detained pending trial. He will be given a lenient sentence.]

……

The metal tunnel stretched out beneath your feet, filled with the smell of engine oil and dust.

Su Ming'an held the surprisingly light boy tightly as they navigated the intricate passageways of the lower level of the ark. Whenever they encountered a camera, Su Ming'an would make a "finger gun" gesture, silently firing a shot, and the camera would retract—the gesture Su Liujin had taught him had been set as the unlock password by Su Ming'an.

"So cold..." Su Liujin's consciousness was blurred, her body was shockingly thin, and her face was as pale as paper. She was very different from the proud and unrestrained little king in her dream. She looked like a malnourished baby.

He gripped Su Ming'an's sleeve tightly: "I'm so cold... Master..."

"You won't be cold anymore." Su Ming'an carried him through the crowd, his eyes fixed ahead.

"It will never be cold again, Your Majesty."

……

If you keep me in your dreams,

Am I still the person you used to know?

……

The Ark's levels resembled an inverted pyramid; the deeper one went, the dimmer the light, the scarcer the resources, and the more rugged and dilapidated life became. Su Ming'an ventured deeper into the ark.

What they saw was cold metal, exposed pipes, and densely packed individual rooms. People were dressed in drab clothes, their faces weary, and they hurried about. The two eventually found a place to stay on the 37th floor—a forgotten lounge. The space was small, but secluded enough.

Su Liujin's body slowly recovered under the influence of the nutrient solution. He began to observe the real world, his brows furrowing slightly.

“This place…is different from the one in my dream,” he said softly, his fingers tracing the cold, rough walls. “And it’s different from what ‘Mom’ said…”

He no longer mentioned that title, his tone carrying a sense of desolation after being deceived.

……

"How do you plan to break free from this dream?" Su Lin's handwriting appeared in the mirror.

[I suspect this is still Su Liujin's dream; he can only wake up in Rovasa after he has fully recovered.] Su Ming'an wrote.

[So many layers of cuteness... This jellyfish is trapped in an endless sea of ​​cuteness!]

[What puzzles me is that Su Liujin dreamed of being the little king, dreamed of what Rovasa would look like in the future, and also dreamed of Hui Bi, Hui Chi, Hui Zi...] Su Ming'an wrote: [Could it be that before the planets merged, humanity already knew that Hui Bai would split into so many petals, and already knew what Rovasa would look like in the future?]

[I don't rule out the possibility of touching this tree.] Su Lin wrote: [Perhaps humanity has never truly escaped the vortex of the past.]

[It’s scary to think about it carefully. 】

[You need not be loyal; wait for the millet and willow embers to recover.]

……

Su Ming'an tried to wake her: "Su Liujin, you're still dreaming. Can you try to wake up?"

Su Liujin closed his eyes and tried, but after a moment, he opened them and shook his head helplessly.

"What method can I use to wake up?" Su Ming'an pondered.

“Perhaps, experience things you’ve never experienced before?” Su Liujin suggested.

Su Ming'an thought so too. This newborn little king was clearly still far from the Su Liujin he knew. Perhaps if Su Liujin were shown many rich things, he would awaken.

He led Su Liujin through the ark, observing its condition along the way.

—People's general anxiety about the future, their fear of dwindling resources, and their views on managers.

Amidst the low-level workers' complaints, they heard a mixture of awe and resentment towards "that blue-eyed Huibai," calling him cold-blooded and hypocritical, willing to sacrifice any part for the greater good; they heard fear of "the purple-haired witch Edith," describing her experiments as bizarre and terrifying; and they also heard a sliver of affection for "Antetolia," considering her the only one among the adults who occasionally showed warmth. But more than anything, there was numbness, acceptance, and the injustice that had to be swallowed for survival.