Players, Please Board the Train

Compared to Dr. Deng’s eagerness, Xu Huo was far more composed. He didn’t pester over this ”wasted trip,” nor did he rush to judgment just because he wanted an expert who understood Perfect Potions.

”The Black Epaulets will definitely be keeping an eye on the castle for a while, so you can’t leave for now.” After a moment, he continued, ”In a couple of days, I’ll get a non-player train ticket, and you can head to another Game Partition.”

Seeing that he was about to leave, Dr. Deng quickly called out, ”You really don’t want the Perfect Potion? Your evolution rate is still very low. If you get your hands on the S-version Potion earlier, you might be able to completely resolve this problem before evolution aftereffects even set in!”

”No one could have predicted what happened this time. I’m sorry the Black Epaulets became suspicious of you, but I’m sincere. I can definitely help you improve your potions. Besides, I know a lot of details about Dr. Wu, so even if you obtain the Perfect Potion someday, you’ll at least need someone trustworthy to verify its authenticity.”

Xu Huo turned back at his words and suddenly asked, ”Do you know what the normal lifespan of an Evolver is?”

”If you don’t recklessly consume evolution agents, you’ll live to at least a hundred and five before evolution aftereffects appear. That’s the effect for ordinary people taking evolution agents. Players who evolve naturally can extend their lives by fifteen to fifty years. However, most players end up experiencing premature aftereffects due to overusing potions.” Dr. Deng was thoroughly familiar with this common knowledge.

”In other words, as long as I take evolution agents step by step, I have at least a hundred more years of life.” Xu Huo said. ”By the time that comes around, do you think evolution aftereffects will still matter compared to life’s end?”

Just as everyone knows irregular eating and sleeping habits lead to illness and shortened lifespans, death’s doorstep still feels far away, making it hard to grasp the real consequences. So over the long stretch of time, people don’t pay much attention to these details.

Evolution aftereffects are the same for players.

Don’t players know the consequences of abusing evolution agents? Of course they do. But to survive in the game, they have no choice but to raise their evolution rates through such means. In fact, most players in the game are able-bodied young men.If Xu Huo had truly evolved through evolution agents given by the game, rather than relying on Dr. Deng’s private research, he’d be better off hoping that by the time he grew old, the Game Government would have developed and released the Perfect Evolution Agent.

And Xu Huo had actually used the S-version Evolution Serum, making Dr. Deng’s proposal even less necessary.

”Do you think a player’s lifespan is merely a hundred and fifty years?” Dr. Deng looked as though he’d made a major decision, his expression turning grave. ”That’s only true for players without perfect evolution!”

”Dr. Wu’s timeline of activity is so long, isn’t that precisely because of the benefits brought by perfect evolution?”

They had discussed this question before. Given the time span over which ”Dr. Wu” had distributed Perfect Potions, Xu Huo suspected that this identity might have been passed down through generations. After all, even ”Dr. Wu” would have gone through a long period of study before developing the Perfect Potion. Even if he’d created it in his twenties or thirties, he’d be quite advanced in years by now.

But after learning about ”curve time,” he’d developed another theory.

”Perhaps he uses curve time to travel through different spacetimes.”

Dr. Deng laughed upon hearing this. ”You think jumping through spacetime via curve time can turn back the clock? As far as I know, that’s impossible!”

”I don’t understand the theory, but if such a method were feasible, the Game Government would never have changed leadership, super players wouldn’t die, and this world would’ve fallen into chaos long ago.”

”So your conclusion is that perfect evolution can extend a player’s lifespan.” Xu Huo said thoughtfully. ”But my foundational evolution is already complete. Taking the Perfect Potion now wouldn’t have any effect.”

”As long as the Perfect Potion exists, there’s a chance it might work someday!” Dr. Deng’s eyes blazed like flames, exceptionally bright. ”It’s not like you’re dying tomorrow. With decades of time, there’s bound to be progress!”

The words weren’t pleasant to hear, but the logic was sound.

”I’ll think about it. Stay here for now.” Xu Huo had Mr. Dong lock him back up, then walked out of the annex on his own.

He looked up at the sky and saw a cloud... well, what could be called a cloud. Two or three numbers peeked out from within it. Perhaps sensing his gaze, those numbers kept fluctuating, hovering between six, seven, and eight.

Sure enough, professional work requires professional people. Even Xu Huo hadn’t expected the Black Epaulets could disguise themselves by hiding inside a cloud.

”Sir.” Mr. Dong came out carrying a glass cabinet containing a spider. ”This spider is nearing the end of its life. I’d like to give it a simple funeral.”

Xu Huo nodded. ”Where do you plan to bury it?”

”The garden maze.” Mr. Dong said. ”There’s a walkway specifically set aside for burying them.”

Xu Huo respected his hobbies and habits. ”Do I need to attend the funeral?”

Mr. Dong’s eyes shifted slightly in his direction. ”It would certainly be better if you could come, sir.”

Xu Huo said he would definitely attend. On the way back to the main castle, he added, ”The Rose Castle isn’t a dungeon anymore, so you can go to other Game Partitions to participate in competitions. However, I can’t travel with you the way He Pu did.”

”I don’t plan to leave here for the time being.” Mr. Dong said.

Xu Huo nodded and said nothing more. But when they returned, Painting Woman and Xiao Yuan stood at the entrance relaying Bai Kou’s message: she didn’t want to see spiders inside the castle.

Meaning Mr. Dong’s spider couldn’t be brought in.

”Miss Bai seems to really hate spiders,” Xiao Yuan whispered to Xu Huo. ”She told me and Sister Xiaochun to clean all the spider webs out of the house.”

”A lot of girls hate spiders.” Yan Jiayu poked her head in from behind to take a look, then said to Mr. Dong, ”Your spider is dying. Want me to chant some scriptures to help it pass over? That’s what we do back home.”

The glass cabinet was placed on a small table in the garden outside. Yan Jiayu changed into different gear, sat cross-legged beside the table, and began murmuring incantations.

Xu Huo led Painting Woman and Xiao Yuan to stand nearby as witnesses, while Mr. Dong fed the spider one last time. But the venomous flower-patterned spider could barely crawl anymore and was unable to eat at all. In the end, it climbed onto his finger and stopped moving.

Mr. Dong silently stroked the spider’s head. After a quiet farewell, he used a small knife to extract the venom from the spider’s body, then covered it with a small piece of white cloth. Following Yan Jiayu’s lead, he walked solemnly into the garden maze.

After the final goodbye, Mr. Dong buried the spider in a small wooden box beneath the flower roots.

”Shouldn’t you put up a headstone?” Yan Jiayu asked.

None of the adults had any particular reaction. Only Xiao Yuan looked up at her in shock and bewilderment, glanced at Xu Huo and Painting Woman beside her, and then lowered her head with a puzzled, dazed expression.