Change 91

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Chapter 91: New Arrivals

An awkward silence fell over the three of them.

Zhang Zhiyuan had expected Xue Quan to brush it off with a casual remark, but unexpectedly, Xue Quan asked, “How do we get there?” after pondering for a moment.

Zhang Zhiyuan’s opinion of him involuntarily went up few notches. “Please follow me.”

After going through identity verification and passing through two sealed doors, the trio arrived at a bright and spacious room. This place used to be a test lab, but now it had been converted into a place to log into the game, and it was also one of the few rooms here that could connect to the internet through an external network. Compared to the hidden room in the International Criminal Police Department headquarters, this room was much better equipped. Not only could it monitor participants’ various health indicators, but it could also record and analyze brain memory layers, EEG patterns, and many other aspects.

“It feels more like a laboratory where we are the test subjects,” Xue Quan remarked frankly.

“Let’s sit down first; we still have some time.” Zhang Zhiyuan walked up to a computer and sent a message using the previous phone number. Since the network here relied on physical fiber optics and blocked electromagnetic signals, they couldn’t use their cell phones for not possible. “Before we officially start, I want to talk to you about the Paradise,” he said.

“I’m all ears,” Xue Quan replied cooperatively.

Zhang Zhiyuan began to tell the story from the moment he first learned about the game of Paradise, explaining everything up until they hijacked the train and escaped during a fierce battle. He didn’t bother to emphasize the truthfulness of his story or the level of secrecy again, as he felt that there was no need to repeat it to someone who had been careful chosen as the third in command.

As expected, Xue Quan listened intently. Although his face occasionally showed a hint of skepticism, throughout the entire account, he never once expressed disbelief or called the story absurd.

“… So my job is to run the company they set up in Glorious Fortress on behalf of Paradise?”

“Only Paradise is the one that has this requirement, but he won’t put all the responsibility on your shoulders,” Zhang Zhiyuan replied after some thought.

“Is it because this is a multiplayer game, or maybe Paradise wants it to still resemble a game?” Choi Jeon-eun suddenly interjected.

“It’s okay if you look at it that way.”

Xue Quan turned to look at Choi Jeon-eun. “Why would Paradise go to such lengths?”

“What do you mean?” She momentarily seemed unsure of what he was asking.

“Why does Paradise insist on making the world of Paradise appear like a game?”

“Oh, you’re asking about that…” Choi Jeon-eun shrugged. “Maybe Paradise doesn’t want us to delve too deeply into it. Let me be clear , I have never been there myself, so all my information comes from what Zhiyuan told me. But if you stop and think for a moment, you can grasp the implications of creating something out of nothing in reality, even if it’s temporary. In a game, it is possible because of the underlying code and programming logic that makes everything work. So, what kind of principles would be needed to make it happen in the real world? Without turning it into a game, I bet you’d have a hard time just to accept this phenomenon, let alone follow the host’s instruction and complete tasks.”

Zhang Zhiyuan also found her words to be true too.

Even though he believed that the other world was real, he still felt a sense of unreality in the faced of the host’s various manipulations. In essence, he had basically treated Paradise as a highly realistic game that took place in the real world.

Just then as they were discussing about the game, a notification beep sounded from the computer.

After reading the message, Zhang Zhiyuan nodded to the others. “Paradise is now open to us. All we have to do is put on the VR headset.”

“Honestly, it’s hard for me to believe that the way to travel to another world would is through a VR headset.” Lying on a medical bed, Xue Quan picked up the nearby headset and said, “I thought it couldn’t simulate other senses?”

And indeed, it could not. The sole purpose of these VR headset was to allow Paradise to see the players themselves.

Zhang Zhiyuan thought this, but kept it to himself without saying anything out loud.

“We won’t be separated, will we?” Choi Jeon-eun asked with slight concern.

“No, based on past experiences, you’ll see me as soon as you arrive in the other world.” Zhang Zhiyuan said while putting on his headset. “Well then, let’s meet in Paradise.”

As soon as he put it on, a sudden strong contraction made him feel dizzy for a moment. But he quickly overcame the discomfort. This time, the onset of light came earlier than before.

The first thing he noticed was a faint smell of damp wood tainted with decay.

Zhang Zhiyuan opened his eyes and slowly sat up, realizing that he was in a coffin.

The Paradise is really getting more and more outrageous by the minute!

Or perhaps technical players like us who haven’t paid the entrance fee deserve to have inferior experiences compared to those who have paid? Just like second-class seats compared to those who paid full price?

“My goodness! Where am I?” Suddenly, a woman’s scream echoed in his ears. He turned towards the sound, and saw a gray-haired girl of about ten years old, struggling to climb out of her own coffin, “So smelly…so cold, Oh my goodness—there’s actually tactile feedback!”

This casual remark immediately revealed identity of the newcomer to Zhang Zhiyuan.

“Shh, be mindful of your status, don’t shout recklessly!”

“You are… Zhang Zhiyuan?”

“Yes, and where is our other comrade?” Zhang Zhiyuan looked around and noticed just how dark it was here. The only source of light came from above, barely illuminating half of the room. Unable to find the third member immediately, he felt a wave of fear wash over him.

Knock knock knock…!

A rhythmic tapping sound suddenly echoed from one of the coffins.

Zhang Zhiyuan and Choi Jeon-eun exchanged glances and quickly felt their way through the darkness to that coffin. Then, together, they used their strength to push open the lid covering the coffin.

“Huff… Where exactly are we?”

The person inside asked the same question as Choi Jeon-eun had.

“Comrade Xue?”

“It’s me.”

“We’ve arrived,” Zhang Zhiyuan said with a wry smile, “This is Paradise.”

Xue Quan took several deep breaths, sat up, examined his hands, then touched his face, murmuring softly, “I must say… all those past decades seem wasted now. He humans have really managed to create a gateway to another world.”

“Don’t worry, take your time to get used to it first. Your bodies should have been replaced, so you’ll need some time to adjust,” Zhang Zhiyuan gently guided them.

Regardless of their background or status, anyone who entered Paradise for the first time would undoubtedly doubt reality. It was a feeling he himself had experienced long ago when he first arrived in Paradise.

“I can control my body well, there seems to be no noticeable lag.” Choi Jeon-eun began stretching her limbs nearby. “Next is the sensory test… Ugh, this moss smells awful, like rotten mud. It seems that memories accurately reflect both smell and taste as well.”

Well…some people just adapt faster from birth, Zhang Zhiyuan silently added in his head.

“Strange…” Suddenly, he noticed that apart from the three of them, there were no other sounds in the room. This was different from his previous experiences. Where was Zhou Zhi? And Asahara Naruko?

Just as he was wondering, a familiar figure appeared in front of them without making a sound.

“Welcome to Paradise,” the host said, still wearing the mask. “I hope the new login location does not confuse you.”

Xue Quan and Choi Jeon-eun were startled and almost jumped in surprise.

Zhang Zhiyuan hastily explained, “This is just a hologram. Once we’re inside the game, the host can communicate with us at any time.” After saying that, he looked at the phantom figure, “Where are the others? Could it be that they’re all absent this time?”

“The others have already entered the game. You three are the last group.”

What?

Zhang Zhiyuan’s heart skipped a beat. The other players have already started their missions? Why didn’t Paradise send separate notifications this time?

Suddenly, he remembered a crucial question and asked, “How much time has passed since we robbed the train?”

“It’s already the eighth day,” the host replied.

Zhang Zhiyuan thought to himself, Just as I suspected! He’d only been back in the real world for a little over three days, but the time difference was almost double what it used to be! However, the rate at which time passed seemed to have changed compared to the second game—it seemed to be slightly slower now.

Recalling how there was almost no time difference during his third entry, he realized that he was. beginning to grasp the key to how the Paradise timeline worked.