Otherworldly Desert Dust-Chapter 314 - 269: Otherworldly Dust, Activate

...

In a cemetery, the hues reflected from the sky turned the gray-white tombstones into the colors of the Five-Colored Stone. Li Feng held a black umbrella, looking up at the colorful spirit rain falling from the sky.

The spirit rain dripped onto the vegetation, prompting clusters of hydrangeas and tulips to bloom, turning the monotonous graveyard into a garden.

"The Awakener’s lock has been released," he said.

"We’ve successfully escaped, and now we’ll enter a long period of drifting, but at least we can have peace for a while."

A Mechanical Mouse stood atop its own gravestone, its vivid eyes unlike any precise instrument, almost human.

"If this is the outcome, then it was all worth it," Li Feng nodded as he spoke.

"The Yuan You energy we’ve obtained has also led us into the era of virtual exploration. Aside from the thirty percent of humanity that has fled, the rest will choose the lifestyle they yearn for. It doesn’t matter if they can’t adapt to the harsh cruelty of Otherworldly Dust," said Rat.

Li Feng’s gaze slowly moved down from Rat’s body to the black-and-white photograph on the tombstone. Its coloring seemed to revive under the reflection of the sky and flowers; skin pale with a rosy undercurrent, hair jet-black, a nose delicate like jade, lips a rich crimson.

"You don’t look happy at all," Rat observed, noting Li Feng’s expression.

"What I hoped for was that Otherworldly Desert Dust would be virtual, so I could shape the data carrying your memories, personality, and temperament back into your original form. When I put on the Virtual Helmet, I would meet you in the digital world... I’m just unearthing another form of immortality, one that current technology can realize: digital immortality. However, the whole universe seems to be against me as if flipping reality and virtuality, with you yet unborn in the real world and already vanished in the virtual homeland," said Li Feng.

Li Feng also had beliefs. His belief was simple: not to live forever himself, but to vividly see the deceased, to see her smile. For this goal, he unearthed a door – the terror behind it, as a mortal he did not know how to counter, but still, he exerted all his abilities...

"Now, I can only pin my hopes on time. The power of time controlled by Nuwa God End is narrow, like a small stream. If it hasn’t merged yet into a great river like Otherworldly Desert Dust, to reverse time within our homeland, we merely need to change the height at both ends of the stream. But to reverse such a vast and powerful river like Otherworldly Desert Dust, how tremendous must the Primordial Power be?"

"Although nothing in this world is impossible, even dealing with a poor imitation of high-dimensional life cost me my conscience. Of the virtues I possess, how much is left that I can sacrifice? I’m afraid that by the time I truly reach Human Holy Realm and truly turn back the broader sense of time, I will be completely unrecognizable."

Li Feng was speaking to himself, facing the person in the tombstone, but also conversing with the Mechanical Rat.

"These words—you can only say them to me and to yourself. They all firmly believe that you are the most rational and omnipotent explorer of life’s mysteries, but you’re really just a selfish mad scientist," Rat critiqued earnestly.

"Let me lie here alone for a while," Li Feng said.

"No way!"

Li Feng was caught between laughter and tears, having never imagined honoring someone who, like a mouse chattering away in the night, disrupted the quiet reflection upon life.

...

...

In the early morning, the clouds were light, unable to obscure the radiant sunlight of the rising sun, as a gentle light like that of sheer curtains spilled onto the streets...

The streets were bustling, with students shouldering their backpacks on their way to school, and many suited individuals briskly crossing the crosswalks with their briefcases in hand.

Billboards on skyscrapers rolled out advertisements about the virtual world, with authoritative experts emphasizing in alarmist tones that Otherworldly Desert Dust might not be real.

Not long after events transpired, people were more inclined to believe in the pleasant, so when many capitalists posted advertisements for virtual devices, some of the younger generation already believed that Otherworldly Desert Dust was indeed a virtual game.

After breakfast, as Wu Hen walked down the bustling streets, seeing people’s reactions to the experts’ statements, he began to wonder if Nuwa God End had activated some sort of memory-wiping Law.

This memory-wiping Law had caused the whole world to forget the hardships experienced not long ago, made everyone forget the truth that Li Feng had once declared to the world, and increasingly, wise individuals had joined preposterous debates. More absurdly, the Virtual Helmets he used to use were now being mass-produced and sold to the public at the price of a game.

It was clear that the official stance was one of candidness:

You can believe whatever you wish to believe.

If you like living a peaceful life and prefer not to deal with strange powers, then you can treat Otherworldly Desert Dust as just another virtual game, just as in the Internet age—you may not go online or care about the world situation, but that doesn’t mean you can’t work a nine-to-five job and live comfortably.

For those harboring a spirit of adventure and exploration, unwilling to be powerless in the face of future disasters, then put on the virtual devices and eagerly venture into Otherworldly Dust. Whether you can awaken in spirit, gain supernatural powers, or unlock the genetic code to become a more powerful life form all depends on personal ability.

Wu Hen too knew that home was developing into a new era. Naturally, the process would witness many absurd phenomena and a variety of ideological factions emerge. Even former environmentalists had risen again, blaming all current hardships on people’s failure to conserve water...

In recent days, Wu Hen dared not surf the internet, for he would stumble upon countless preposterous opinions.

"Brother Hen, let’s go on an adventure!" Wang Rui’s message came through.

"Where to?" Wu Hen asked.

"Garden Street, number sixty-nine!" Wang Rui immediately replied.

Seeing these lines, Wu Hen’s eyes crinkled with a smile.

Only an old buddy like him would understand. Though these words seemed plain, they actually hid a whole world within them, definitely not a place of upstanding reputation!

Wu Hen went there in high spirits, not even taking a taxi, and instead used his supersonic speed to zip through the bustling streets.

After the deployment of virtual reality devices began, Spirit Awakeners had informally agreed to a convention to not use supernatural powers in the homeworld... unless necessary, that is.

Unfortunately, this convention didn’t bind Wu Hen. No one dared to call Wu Hen a scoundrel, no matter how many spicy mini skirts his supersonic speed flipped up.

Arriving at Garden Street and coming upon that mysterious address, he found to his surprise that the venue was a very serene internet cafe. Wu Hen couldn’t help but stroke his chin.

Were pleasure spots nowadays decorated like this? Could it be a maid or stocking store?

It sounded slightly bland for his taste, but he thought he might as well give it a try.

Upon entering the cafe, Wu Hen realized it was no different from a high-end internet bar. Instead of outdated computers for web surfing, there were cinema-style loungers...

"Brother Hen, hurry over, let’s queue up for row five!" Wang Rui, upon seeing Wu Hen, immediately ushered him into an upscale private booth.

In the booth, rows of purple beds tantalizingly beckoned, but curiously enough, the female classmates lying on them were all wearing virtual helmets, which puzzled Wu Hen about what was actually going on.

"Wang Rui, the adventure you mentioned, don’t tell me it’s exploring Otherworldly Dust?" asked Wu Hen.

"What else could it be? Now the VR equipment has evolved and allows free entry and exit. Even if you die, it won’t harm the soul itself, it’s truly like entering a virtual game!" Wang Rui said excitedly.

"Free exit?" Wu Hen was surprised.

He remembered his own first time putting on a virtual helmet and desperately searching for an exit button.

But no such button existed.

Once the virtual device was on, your consciousness simply plunged into another world, and the only way out was to obtain a pure natural Yuan You.

"No way, as humanity’s strongest weapon, you don’t even know about this?" Tian Jia Bao said, astonished.

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"I’ve been home cultivating my health and spirit, disconnected from the net for several months," admitted Wu Hen.

"The world progresses rapidly. With enough Yuan You energy, the VR equipment is now universally accessible and completely harmless, and you can enter or exit at will," Wang Rui explained.

"What about if you die?" Wu Hen inquired.

"Dying just means your virtual helmet is wrecked. Just buy a new one," said Wang Rui.

"It’s that simple?" Wu Hen could hardly believe it.

"Yes, it’s that simple. Actually, VR technology reached this stage a long time ago. But because the Nuwa God End was in a weakened phase, and we didn’t have enough Yuan You energy to maintain the stability of our world, it was impossible to bring about an era of universal virtual reality. But after we made it through the toughest times, the plan naturally got back on the agenda and was implemented straight away," Wang Rui pointed out.

"So now, many people really do treat Otherworldly Dust as a virtual life game to explore. The games of the last era are all obsolete. And our classmates have even formed a small gang, planning to conquer the Otherworldly Divine Kingdom and establish an empire for our class," Luo Yuying said jubilantly, like a little bird leaping with excitement.

Wu Hen was speechless. He remembered that Luo Yuying once had a different mindset and thought Red Port was quite comfortable.

It turns out, as long as one’s life isn’t in jeopardy, everyone has a desire to dominate the Star River.

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Yet Wu Hen felt like he had been duped.

If Otherworldly Dust had been forcibly turned into a virtual game, then he was now a professional player. As a professional on vacation, he just wanted to rest and relax, but this was no different than being dragged by old classmates to the internet cafe for overtime!

"The VR equipment can now be networked together, meaning we can awaken within a single region. Although your Combat Power is already the ceiling for humanity, your Perception always has room to improve, right?" Wang Rui posited.

"I’d rather play cards with you guys than go to work," Wu Hen stated.

"The quickest way to elevate your Perception is to explore as an Awakener. Look, it’s all harm-free, and you can exit anytime. Think of it as joining us on a raid," Wang Rui insisted, using gaming lingo.

"Please, Lord Wu Hen, lead us newbies. We also want to evolve, to fly and tunnel through the earth, to have no limits!" several of the female classmates immediately pleaded with puppy dog eyes, their voices sweet and sticky.

*Sigh*, "Otherworldly Dust, launch!"