Xu Xiaoyou suddenly fell silent. She finally understood where the hatred of the people in the bottom-level carriages came from.
Was the doctor she was playing the instigator of this plague on the train?
What bothered her more was why she was chosen to play the role of the doctor.
Was it because of her extraordinary charm?
She looked at the players returning with the soldiers. Including the initial pink-haired girl and the unlucky player who died at the start of the plot, there were originally twenty-six players. Now, only seventeen and a half remained.
As for why there were seventeen and a half...
In a corner, a dazed player scratched his head. One of his arms was missing, and he was losing a massive amount of blood. The health bar above his head was dropping every second, yet he stood there blankly, as if he couldn't feel the pain.
This guy had turned off the pain feedback system. At this rate of blood loss, he wasn't far from death.
In Oasis, one could turn off pain feedback, but any experienced person would harshly scold a rookie for doing so.
It would cause a severe deviation in their physical perception between the virtual and the real once they left the immersion device.
It all came back to the offset syndrome of the spirit sea. People on the Star of Art were cursed by the Stars; those in Red Heaven suffered from constant fear; and the people of Oasis were deeply troubled by offset syndrome.
There was only one permanent solution: never leave Oasis. By never returning to reality, there would naturally be no sensory deviation.
This made her think of Alley No. 5. When a person's soul and consciousness were forever imprisoned in the virtual world of Oasis in this manner, could it be considered that they were eaten by a monster on some level?
They became a permanent piece of data in the vast virtual world of Oasis—nourishment.
When the physical body in reality withered to a certain extent, there was only one outcome left for those who chose to leave the immersion tank.
Entropy turned into distortion.
For those 'dream-wanderers' soaking in immersion tanks until they became withered husks, did they really choose to stay in this virtual world of their own free will?
This speculation made a chill run down Xu Xiaoyou's spine.
At that moment, a youth suddenly rushed out of the crowd, clutching a small knife like a madman, and lunged at Xu Xiaoyou.
"You killed Nana!"
A foul-smelling wind swept from the youth. Before he could reach Xu Xiaoyou, the soldiers standing by on both sides moved. They easily restrained the youth and pinned him to the floor.
"Don't move! Stay still!" a soldier barked. Another soldier, well-practiced in handling such situations, pressed his knee against the youth's neck while raising his gun to intimidate the restless people from the lower decks.
Seeing the dark muzzles pointed at them, the people of the lower decks silently unclenched their fists. The darkness on their dirty faces deepened, and two elderly people huddled together, weeping.
"You damned..."
The youth gritted his teeth and looked up. Xu Xiaoyou remained expressionless, her hands tucked in the pockets of her white lab coat, looking down at him. Her indifferent amber eyes shimmered with a beautiful light in the darkness.
"You killed Nana. I won't let you go, even as a ghost..."
"You demon, you killed everyone. You made so many people homeless and broke their families. We will never forgive you, even in death..."
Xu Xiaoyou didn't speak. Seeing the two soldiers roughly drag the youth up, Tang Qing opened her mouth to say something, but eventually lowered her head and remained silent.
The two soldiers opened a steel observation port below the carriage window. Outside was a world of ice and snow. Distant city clusters were covered in snow, frozen into spectacular white sculptures that had turned into silent, blood-colored shadows. The blizzard howled relentlessly.
The people from the lower decks watched as the two soldiers dragged the youth over. Ignoring his struggling and screaming, they thrust his arm out through the port. A heart-wrenching scream rang out, and the youth soon lost consciousness. When his arm was pulled back in, it had been frozen into a curved, cold, hard ice sculpture.
A heavy dragging sound came from the darkness, like a massive figure dragging a heavy hammer across the steel floor.
From the shadows, a slender bionic robot wearing a silver mask slowly emerged, dragging a hammer weighing hundreds of pounds. Its flawless, smooth body emitted a strong scent of blood, like an executioner who had carried out countless sentences.
At the sight of this robot, everyone, including the soldiers, quickly lowered their heads as if seeing a nightmare, not daring to look at that aesthetically perfect form.
"The ignorant, I shall punish."
Everyone watched in horror as the bionic robot gripped the hammer handle with both hands and suddenly swung it in a wide arc. Using the momentum, it smashed the youth's frozen arm. Bloodied ice shards flew like a horizontal rainstorm, sweeping across the entire carriage!
"The transgressor, I shall execute!"
The crowd turned their eyes away, unable to bear the sight. The carriage was filled with the youth's agonizing wails. The bionic robot then approached Xu Xiaoyou under everyone's gaze, knelt on one knee, looked up, and devoutly took Xu Xiaoyou's hand, pressing it against its own face.
"I have already dealt with the transgressor, Doctor."
Xu Xiaoyou's heart stirred slightly, but her face remained unmoved. "Step down."
After saying that, she withdrew her hand and, under various gazes, dissolved into the darkness with Tang Qing.
Along the way, the soldiers in the bottom-level carriages showed her great reverence, nodding their heads in greeting. Although the resentment and hatred deep in their eyes were no different from the people of the lower decks, there were bionic robots patrolling every few carriages. Some were as tall as mountains, others as slender as ghosts; no one dared to lift a finger against her again.
Xu Xiaoyou sighed. She really was playing a quite atrocious bastard.
Following Tang Qing back to her laboratory, Xu Xiaoyou saw several researchers gathered around an operating table recording data. Lying on it was a little girl with dark red, parched long hair. her little face was dirty, her nosebleed had just dried, and she was painfully thin.
As soon as she saw Xu Xiaoyou, she turned her face away, her nostrils twitching slightly as she forced a faint smile.
"Dr. Xu, I... I feel okay. Did I succeed this time? Can I save..."
As if feeling the weight of her words, the little girl's voice became low.
"Can I help everyone?"
Under the pale lights, the little girl lay on the cold operating table, her skeletal hand slowly reaching toward the ceiling.
A happy, longing smile appeared on her face, as if she could see everyone's smiles and the blue sky.
"Mother will surely be proud of me..."
Whether it was Tang Qing or this little girl, Xu Xiaoyou saw shadows of people she knew in them. This feeling made her very uncomfortable.
"This is...?" Xu Xiaoyou looked at Tang Qing.
Tang Qing replied, "Doctor, the virus vaccine has reached its final stage. We have already completed experiments on infected animals."
"These are all necessary sacrifices."
"Why not choose adults?" Xu Xiaoyou asked.
"It seems you really don't remember anything." Tang Qing's eyes dimmed.
"Because the effectiveness of testing the drug on these children is the best. The adult 'volunteers' at most lasted until the second round of experiments before they went mad and died."
"That's enough for today's experiments. Let them leave," Xu Xiaoyou said.
Tang Qing didn't say much more. After the research team members recorded the experimental data, they left the laboratory one by one.
Only the little girl remained on the operating table. After a long moment of daze, she sat up. A nosebleed ran down her dirty face. She hurriedly reached out to wipe it, and Xu Xiaoyou saw that her arms were covered in bruises and needle marks.
Xu Xiaoyou shook her head, silently draped a coat over the little girl, and patiently wiped the blood from her face.
"What is your name?"
"My name is Xiao Li, Doctor."
Hearing this name, Xu Xiaoyou's expression froze for a few seconds.
Xiao Li didn't look well. Her body was feverish due to a rejection reaction to the vaccine; her forehead was burning.
"I have to go back, or everyone will worry."
Xu Xiaoyou didn't know what to say. Perhaps silence was the best way to stay in character. She nodded wordlessly.
Before leaving, Xiao Li suddenly stepped forward and hugged her. "Doctor, they all say you are a bad person, but I believe in you."
"You are doing these things because you want to save everyone and lead them away from suffering."
"You told me that the ice and snow will end. At that time, beautiful flowers will bloom on the ruins of the cities. I really want to see the flowers bloom with my own eyes. Doctor, can you make a promise with me?"
"What promise?" Xu Xiaoyou crouched down.
"When the time comes, can you go see the flowers with me?"
Xiao Li smiled and held out her pinky finger as if to make a pinky swear. Seeing Xu Xiaoyou remain silent, Xiao Li lowered her head in awkward unease, worried she had said something wrong. "Is my request too much?"
"No." Xu Xiaoyou hooked her small, thin finger and said with a smile, "The ice and snow will melt. You will see them—the flowers blooming on the ruins."
After Xiao Li left, only Tang Qing and she remained in the large laboratory. Xu Xiaoyou asked Tang Qing to bring the researchers' register and then let the girl leave, wanting some peace alone in the lab.
Even though she knew these were just virtual dungeon plots, she couldn't help but be affected by their realistic side. Were these living faces just Oasis's sick joke at her expense?
Xu Xiaoyou flipped through the register briefly.
【Dungeon information obtained. Completion of the current Sisyphus Train dungeon has increased. Current completion: 1%】
【Main Quest: Uncover the entire truth and develop the antidote.】
They were all ordinary researchers—or rather, the best available from the lower carriages. Like Tang Qing, they were merely her research assistants, following experimental protocols.
She was the only doctor who truly understood viral biology.
When she reached a certain page, Xu Xiaoyou stopped.
【Chief Research Assistant: Tang Qing.】
【Female, 17 years old.】
【One of the original members of the Winter Project. She displayed excellent biological talent during the viral apocalypse. With an intelligent, capable, and meticulous personality, she stood out and became the chief research assistant.】
【The clue 'Winter Project' has been added to the notebook and can be consulted at any time. Dungeon completion increased.】
Winter Project?
Xu Xiaoyou's heart skipped a beat. Was this related to the crisis on the train?
She remembered the vials in her coat and took them out.
【Dungeon Item: Mutant blood sample.】
【Quality: Dim (White).】
【Usage Conditions: Entry-level biology, entry-level virology.】
【Description: A blood sample extracted from a mutant. Drinking it can provide nutrition and hydration.】
After sealing the mutant blood sample and placing it under the microscope, a wealth of virology knowledge flooded Xu Xiaoyou's mind. She was surprised to find that even though these blood samples had been outside a host for a long time, they still maintained extremely strong biological activity, preying on other cells and dividing at an incredibly fast rate.
Such a rapid metabolic rate clearly defied common sense.
【The clue 'Rapidly metabolizing mutant blood sample' has been added to the notebook and can be consulted at any time.】
"Doctor, please come with us."
Just as she intended to study it further, a soldier's voice came from outside. It was Caitlin, whom she had seen in the squad earlier, along with the muscular man beside her. They were both holding guns; their tone was more like a threat than a request.
Xu Xiaoyou silently stood up and followed the two tense-faced individuals out of the lab. Behind her were several soldiers armed with live ammunition; she felt like a prisoner being escorted to the execution ground.
As they walked through the corridor, she took a moment to analyze the muscular man's information.
【Human Resistance: Gru.】
【Male, 37 years old.】
【A member of the Resistance. Detailed information requires increasing this NPC's favorability.】
Before long, she was led to a room filled with thick smoke. The faint yellow light from an old tungsten lamp dissolved in the rolling white smoke. A dozen people were standing in two rows around a table, arguing fiercely.
"Those damned nobles at the front are truly relentless! They're using the power resources again to force us to send clearing squads to deal with the zombies for them!"
"How many times have they made clearing requests this month?"
"Those damned robots—they say they're for our safety, but in reality, they're just spies sent by the nobles to monitor us. They'll do anything to keep us under control. I saw them crush old Chuck the electrician's head with my own eyes!"
"The grain harvest is still falling this year..."
"Our stored 'protein blocks' are almost gone."
"Has the train's radio code been cracked yet? We can't go on like this; we have to find a way off this island!"
"How are we going to survive the winter this year?"
"Another refugee riot broke out in the rear carriages. Damn it, why do we have to deal with these things?"
The people arguing finally noticed the escorted figure. The man at the head of the long table had a vertical scar over his right eye and protruding cheekbones. His narrow, hawk-like eyes squinted slightly, revealing a hint of dark ruthlessness.
"Dr. Xu."
As soon as he spoke, the room fell silent. The two factions that had been arguing fiercely turned their hostile gazes toward her.
"Can you explain this sample collection mission? You had already collected the samples ahead of schedule, so why did you insist on heading toward Carriage G-13?"
"Because of your sudden change of mind, our transport team suffered heavy losses on this mission. Who is going to bear the responsibility for this loss?"
"If you can't explain yourself, those damned bionics won't be able to protect you. You aren't leaving this room today!"
The man's voice was near-furious as he slammed the table and stood up. His powerful aura left everyone present speechless.
Xu Xiaoyou, of course, was not intimidated by the man's aura. She thought of a counterstrategy with an expressionless face, her peripheral vision catching the glowing pendant around her neck.
【Dungeon Item: Lover's Pendant.】
【Quality: Dim (White).】
【Description: A pendant containing a loved one. The loved one's face in the center has long since blurred, with deep longing entrusted to the yellowed photograph. The moment the disaster broke out, it was left behind in Carriage G-13.】
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