Infinite: Dawn Game

"I...I saw my daughter."

Uncle Gong said.

See it?

Yu Shijiu's expression became more serious. He walked to the open space next to Uncle Gong and sat down, completely ignoring the dirt on the ground.

"Where does your daughter teach?"

Yu Shijiu was very curious about the child version of Yang Wan that she saw last night. If Uncle Gong's daughter really taught in Changsheng Village, could she also see the child version of Yang Wan during the day?

That shouldn't be possible—

"She's there! She's teaching there!"

Uncle Gong, who had been quiet all along, suddenly stood up as if he had been driven mad by a sudden stimulus, and then stumbled toward the river not far away.

Yu Shijiu looked down at the chubby guy, who was clearly also a little confused, and said seriously:

"This isn't where I'm going, you see that clearly?"

Fatty: "..."

If you're going, then go! Who are you trying to fool here, meow!

Seeing Fei Fei roll her eyes, Yu Shijiu was even happier and chased after Uncle Gong towards the river.

I wonder if I'll run into a giant earthworm today... but that earthworm was so badly injured last night, it probably can't get out now, right?

Yu Shijiu's mind was filled with all sorts of chaotic images, but when he saw Uncle Gong stumbling and running to the riverbank and kneeling down, his eyes lit up even more.

"Uncle Gong!"

Yu Shijiu's shout was exceptionally loud, so loud that even Uncle Gong, who was kneeling by the river muttering to himself, turned around and glanced at him.

The man completely ignored Uncle Gong's obviously empty eyes and squatted by the riverbank, looking at the water with great interest.

"Does Sister Gong teach here? But this place is all water, how can she teach? Is it a swimming lesson?"

"..."

"Puff - cough cough cough -"

Inside a monitoring room, Wang Rui, who was responsible for monitoring and predicting the status of players in the live stream, suddenly spat out the noodles she was holding.

Her face turned red from coughing, and the player next to her handed her a glass of water with a look of disgust.

"Watch out, is it really that funny? How are you going to clear game dungeons with such a low threshold for humor?"

"Thanks, cough cough, but I don't need to play games," Wang Rui swallowed a large gulp of water and burped, then lowered her head to slurp up some noodles, pointing her index finger at the screen:

"Oh, right," she mumbled, "after you go out, tell Brother Lu to pay more attention to the 'Longevity Village' game instance in the future."

"Its storyline is too long and can easily make players get immersed in it. If players enter this game again, remember to bring some auxiliary items to help them see reality clearly."

"What do you mean?" The baby-faced male player next to him was a little confused.

"I feel that this game instance is quite peaceful. Everything that happens is within the normal range. Apart from being a bit disgusting, it seems pretty easy?"

“…” Wang Rui rolled her eyes and cleared her throat:

"Easy? Shut up, you idiot! The 'Eternal Life Village' game instance is obviously much harder than Yu Shijiu's previous two game instances. Both the plot and the character background stories are incredibly difficult! Think about it, which game player enters the illusionary realm on the first day and knows all sorts of stories?"

"……What's the meaning?"

"What I mean is, this game instance is probably being made easier, you idiot!"

As she spoke, Wang Rui's eyes flashed with countless 0s and 1s, forming a dense array of code numbers, like a bionic robot from some future world.

"Of course, we cannot rule out the possibility that Yu Shijiu's violence triggered the plot."

After a few seconds, Wang Rui's eyes returned to normal. She quickly divided the huge screen in front of her into countless tiny screens, then lowered her head to continue eating her instant noodles, letting out a burp.

"Thanks! I'll treat you to some barbecue skewers next time I get my paycheck!"

Baby-faced male player: "...No need, just tell me when Yu Shijiu and the others will be able to clear the game."

Which game with a three-day time limit can drag on like this? It feels almost like a survival game dungeon that lasts for ten days or more...

"It's not clear yet," Wang Rui replied immediately, speaking earnestly.

"Haven't you noticed? Even though it seems like we've found a lot of clues, nobody has actually figured out how to actually pass the level."

All we know are that earthworms have become spirits and are causing trouble, and that the old people in Changsheng Village are absorbing the lives of young tourists and sacrificing tourists who were not "chosen" as offerings... In reality, these things don't really matter much for the sacrificial ceremony on the last day.

At most, they'll know how and when they'll die.

"Isn't it true that you can clear the game if you survive to the third day?"

The baby-faced male player said instinctively.

“But they have to survive,” Wang Rui sighed. “Based on my observations, I think quite a few players will die by the last day.”

As she spoke, Wang Rui lowered her head and gulped down a large mouthful of instant noodle soup, then squinted her eyes contentedly and burped.

"But Sister Feng, Yu Shijiu... um, and that annoying guy Zhao Xuan, the three of them definitely won't die."

After all, they are either perceptive enough, intelligent... or simply crazy enough.

Yeah, he won't die.

Wang Rui thought.

--------

By the river, Yu Shijiu sneezed right after he finished speaking. He wrinkled his nose, rubbed it, and licked his lips somewhat blankly.

Is someone secretly talking badly about him behind his back?

On the other side, the words "swimming lesson" seemed to calm Uncle Gong's manic emotions for a few minutes. The fear and pain on his face subsided for a moment, and then his cloudy eyes became clearer.

“No…” Uncle Gong slumped down on his knees by the riverbank, “She’s right here, down in this river…”

Yu Shijiu raised an eyebrow and subconsciously looked at the calm river surface, an unbelievable guess gradually welling up in his mind.

Could it be——

"I saw her yesterday..." Uncle Gong murmured, still recalling the scene, gazing at the dead insects floating on the river surface.

“She told me, ‘Dad, I’ve been tricked. I’m having a terrible time in Changsheng Village. I feel terrible every day. It feels like bugs are crawling all over me…’ At first, it was itchy, then it hurt. She said to me, ‘It hurts so much, Dad. Why didn’t you come to find me sooner…’”

Uncle Gong's voice grew louder and louder, his previously calmed spirits becoming excited again. He suddenly turned his head, his scarlet eyes staring straight at Yu Shijiu, the spiderweb-like red blood vessels in the whites of his eyes tearing and spreading once more.

"Nineteen, do you know? I was so sad, so heartbroken. My daughter was split in two right in front of me. She screamed and cried, 'Daddy, save me! Save me! It hurts so much!'... But I couldn't do anything, I couldn't do anything... And then, and then she started laughing again..."

Uncle Gong grinned, a smile that seemed neither like a cry nor a laugh.

"She laughed and said she regretted it, regretted coming to Changsheng Village to teach out of sympathy, regretted being tricked into teaching in Changsheng Village by a group of swindlers, and then, she could never leave Changsheng Village..."