Chapter 902 - This Game Is Too Realistic

Chapter 902: Places We've Walked Through Over the Years In the past, when "personally leading an expedition," Chu Guang would always make a grand departure in the Iron Heart, leaving behind a beacon of hope for the people at home. Following that, he would return with glory and victory in an equally grand manner. However, this time was different. Chu Guang quietly slipped away, bringing only X-16 and Lü Bei's team. They discreetly booked a train carriage without alerting anyone else. After all, this journey wasn’t about war, but a visit to the places he once fought, to see what they had become. As Chu Guang was typically seen in his signature blue power armor, few recognized him when he was out of it. Utilizing a holographic imaging device that allowed for subtle alterations in his appearance, none of the passengers realized that the leader of the Alliance was sharing their train until it departed. During the journey, Chu Guang went to the restroom. Shortly after, he overheard a conversation outside in the corridor. “Where are you heading, buddy?” “To Haiya Province!” “Haiya Province, huh? I’ve heard it's developing well. Quite a few settlers have moved there from the west. I’m planning to buy a building there and live off the rental income.” “Great minds think alike, my friend! I heard many people still live in cargo containers there. Once the settlement develops and job opportunities arise, the rental market will definitely boom!” “You’re buying a building too?” “Not exactly, hehe. I’m going there to build one!” “Oh! You're in construction! Pleasure to meet you! Ah… I left my business cards in my bag, my memory's not what it used to be.” “No worries, I did the same. Let’s exchange numbers and grab a meal sometime.” Hearing how prosperous the Alliance's residents had become, Chu Guang smiled with satisfaction. A couple of years ago, the Alliance government had issued bonds to increase liquidity, funds which now returned to the residents' pockets through production processes. These residents were investing this newfound wealth into new lands, aiding the immigrants in joining the Alliance in creating better lives and greater wealth. Life was indeed getting better. However, soon an untimely voice pierced through the door’s gap. “Stop bragging. If you guys are so loaded, why not buy a plane ticket?” Clearly, there wasn't just one person unsatisfied with the other's boasting, as more voices echoed in agreement. “Exactly!” “You probably got that cyber limb from smuggling in the coal mines! The rust-proof paint hasn’t even worn off yet. You quit right after surgery, didn’t you?” “Thieves stealing taxpayers' money, bragging like that!” The two boasters fell silent, glaring at the instigator before leaving without a word. Chu Guang, still in the restroom, felt a twinge of awkwardness. Alright. Even Dawn City hasn’t eradicated poverty completely. It was still too early for complacency; the Alliance had a long road ahead. However, looked at from another angle, at least ordinary people in the Alliance still cherished dreams of transforming their lives and becoming wealthy, willing to take steps toward their goals instead of believing in unreachable daydreams or only daring to think of them while lying down. That was indeed a positive sign. Compared to the residents of Dawn City, those in the South Sea Alliance and Silver Moon Bay were less content and some had even matched the players in terms of progress, leading the charge in new updates. This restlessness wasn't necessarily a bad thing; it was, in fact, the drive for societal advancement. As for the pursuit of wealth by ordinary people, it wasn't a destructive force but rather a catalyst for societal progress. Only when monopolized would it become a poison endangering the entire Alliance. Preventing such monopolization was part of Chu Guang’s current endeavors. Without occupying the restroom for too long, Chu Guang slightly adjusted his appearance with the holographic disguise system before leaving the restroom, making way for others in line. Back in the carriage, he passed through security at the entrance before deactivating the holographic system, making his way straight to the VIP compartment in the middle of the carriage. X-16 prepared a cup of red tea for him, setting it down gently on the table, and then stood aside with a tray in hand. Perching her chin on her hands, little Qi tilted her head curiously as she sat on the table, asking, “Master, isn’t there a toilet in the compartment? Why did you go outside?” Chu Guang smiled and replied, “I suddenly wanted to see how ordinary people live. Isn’t that a good thing?” Little Qi was puzzled. “Can’t you see that in Dawn City?” “You can see it, but the Alliance isn’t just Dawn City; many people live in places we can’t see,” Chu Guang replied, taking a light sip of tea and placing the cup on the gently rocking tray. “Moreover, what we see from the office and what we see in reality are definitely not the same.” Not quite agreeing, little Qi pouted slightly, “Hmm… Even if you sit in the office, I can see for you.” While satellites couldn’t be deployed in the current wasteland conditions, the hummingbird drones controlled by the shelter's server could be considered "low-altitude satellites." Flying at over 10 meters high, the small spherical drones could garner minimal attention while their 360-degree wide-angle cameras captured extensive areas without any blind spots. Long ago, when the "players" and "NPCs" were less reliable, it served as VM's communication relay and Chu Guang's eyes for observing within and outside settlements. “I’m not doubting your capability; we’re talking about different things,” Chu Guang chuckled at little Qi’s pouting before turning his gaze to the window. The train had left Spring City behind some time ago, and they had just passed the last station in the southern reaches of River Valley Province. The rugged mountain path that they followed seemed to end after passing through a tunnel, as the train slowly increased its speed. As familiar landscapes unfolded past the window, Chu Guang felt a wave of nostalgia. He casually asked, “What’s ahead?” Leaning on her palms, little Qi answered in a melodious voice, “Crossing that river, we enter Jinchuan Province, where there’s a town that worships lizards, rats, and humans.” Chu Guang’s curiosity piqued, and he replied instinctively, “Is it Dust Town?” Little Qi’s eyes widened in surprise. “Oh? You remember, Master?” Chu Guang laughed heartily. “It's only been a few years, how could I forget?” That place was where the Jungle Corps once fought, marking the first battle where the explosive gun was used. In that battle, they thwarted the Odd Tribe’s raid on survivor settlements around Jin River City and relocated the residents of Dust Town to safer areas. Later, a large Alliance army marched from here to the battlefield, engaging Torch Church and its mutant subordinates in Jinchuan Province. Come to think of it, though only a couple of years had passed, the changes were already significant enough for him to barely recognize the place. The rumbling sound as the train traversed the undulating waves, crossing the river, then surmounting hill after hill, revealed vast plains and gentle slopes to Chu Guang's view. Yet, the scenery before his eyes was even more breathtaking than before. What was once barren land now flaunted golden rice paddies. The weighty grains bent the stalks low, creating golden waves with each breeze that swept across. September marked the harvest season, notably the busiest time of year for Dust Town. Large machines with rotating drums worked tirelessly in the fields, and where their tracks and drums passed, it resembled the work of a barber, leaving behind a stubbly fringe. Those broken pieces were discarded straw. Trailing machines mixed blue nitrogen fertilizer into the soil, preparing it for the next cultivation cycle. Beyond the rice fields, far orchards planted with Cam trees and other species were managed by gardening robots produced in Boulder City. Though Dust Town housed only a hundred families, mechanical farming techniques allowed cultivation of land exceeding what the West Lan Expeditionary Army’s thousands of people could manage. Watching the townspeople far off loading threshed rice grains into sacks, Chu Guang mused, “I didn’t expect Jinchuan Province to have adopted mechanical farming systems as well.” He recalled when the Alliance first arrived; fields were tended by serfs, wielding hoes as their primary tools. Local farm owners would rather purchase several decommissioned Alliance propeller planes than switch to more efficient tractors. During the chaos sparked by the Torch, they narrowly avoided being carried off with their serfs. Of course, the situation in Dust Town differs from other nearby settlements. Thanks to Junk Lord and his two partners, who personally funded equipment for the locals and helped sell their produce to Boulder City, Dust Town rolled out mechanized agriculture earlier than anywhere else in Jin River Province. Elsewhere, in other settlements like Horsewrangler Town, the situation might not be as dramatic. Seeing Chu Guang’s interest in the farming machinery, X-16, standing with a tray like a tour guide, explained. “That’s the combined harvesting system designed by Boulder Heavy Industries.” Chu Guang paused in mild surprise. “Boulder Heavy Industries?” X-16 nodded and continued, “In June of this year, Mr. Ibers spun off the production lines for heavy mining equipment, agricultural machinery, and rail transport tools from Boulder Military Industries, establishing a separate new company run by a human CEO. This subsidiary has already become a new profit growth point for Boulder Military Industries and plans to list on the Dawn City Exchange.” It's not just Lister Group that's breaking free from traditional confines; Boulder Military Industries, the former behemoth, is carving its path out from that towering wall. However, Chu Guang hadn’t paid much attention to Boulder Military Industries’ non-military ventures. The last time he met with Ibers was when negotiating as a representative of the Alliance with North Island Heavy Industries. Perhaps that cooperation with North Island Heavy Industries sparked new ideas for Ibers. Since acquiring new leadership, the bionic figure slated for scrapping seemed to have returned to a semblance of normalcy. Chu Guang chuckled and said, “Quite good, though I didn’t expect that guy to have an interest beyond weapons.” The sleek black mirror surface of X-16 flickered, and in a steady tone, it responded, “Father said that only when the land’s value is maximized will people fight over it again... Suppressing food prices and increasing birth rates are long-term strategies to boost military sales for Boulder Military Industries.” Chu Guang choked on his tea, coughing lightly. “Cough… The price of food isn’t the sole factor affecting birth rates. I think he might be overthinking it.” X-16 nodded contemplatively. “Oh… I see.” Chu Guang doubted X-16 truly understood, but it didn’t bother him much. Ibers' penchant for chaos wasn’t new; it had existed long before Chu Guang knew him. The train eventually reached near Dust Town, stopping by a makeshift station. Two travelers disembarked there; they appeared to be backpackers from Ideal City. As Chu Guang gazed out the window, he caught sight of the station's wall. The original haphazard granite-and-cement low wall was replaced with a neat and more reliable concrete structure. The locals had indeed fulfilled their promises, constructing a larger, more beautiful village over the ruins. The high wall’s main entrance featured a relief depicting a giant Deathclaw, a plump rat, and a cloaked man. These entities were regarded as guardian deities by the town’s residents and served as photographic landmarks for tourists from Ideal City. Despite the extermination of nearby mutant tribes by players, occasional anomalies still wandered into the area. Although the Alliance’s mind-interference devices could repel them, locals trusted their rifles and self-built walls more, continuing the tradition of constructing watchtowers. Due to the limited passengers alighting at this station, the train only paused for three minutes before it resumed its journey toward Singularity City. Once a logistics base for the southern-bound Alliance forces in Jin River Province, Singularity City was now the most populated settlement in the province, surpassing even Guard House City to the south. Truth be told, this development surprised Chu Guang. Singularity City, according to his plans, was to serve as a massive rehabilitation center managed by AI. It aimed not only to wean locals off Fungal Nectar dependency but also to rid them of the “overdependent mentality.” They couldn’t always rely on external intervention and needed to independently find sustainable ways to thrive. Unexpectedly, the population here surged explosively from initial tens of thousands to a staggering 200,000. Contrary to other settlements, Frost showed no selective bias towards those choosing to stay. Although no Alliance ID cards were issued and no silver coins were earned from work, the perk was a stress-free existence regarding sustenance and attire, allowing indefinite stays—even a lifetime. The only stipulation was no return after departure, aside from a few belongings stored prior and silver coins exchanged based on points, nothing else could be taken away. As for tourists, they could rest at the station-adjacent inn or explore the farm, but they could only linger for a day and had minimal contact with locals. To ensure fairness, even the inn's staff comprised bionic individuals imported from Ideal City. The train here paused for a bit longer, with the flow of passengers being much denser than at previous stops, bustling footsteps echoing through the tiled platform. Unlike the southern River Valley Province stations, most alighting passengers were backpackers from Ideal City, not settlers intending to immigrate. Particularly the backpackers from Ideal City, they seemed exceptionally interested in this uniquely regulated settlement with ties to Kamau Corporation, their faces lit with excitement, even fervor. Chu Guang only discovered this after reading Brother Mole’s post. The “cloud amigos” from Ideal City’s Endpoint Cloud appeared to regard it as a sociological experiment site. Not only did they rate it highly, but they also deemed it the ultimate form of human societal development—a perfect utopia governed and managed entirely by AI, devoid of human exploitation. The equality here transcended even that of the Alliance, where residents achieved absolute equality while maintaining an unbelievable balance between production and consumption. In Chu Guang’s view, residents of Ideal City perhaps indulged too much. Many in the wasteland envied their lives, with even players from peaceful worlds marveling at their prosperity. Yet, they regarded a remote wasteland locale as their spiritual homeland. Nonetheless, that was their freedom. The Alliance, having profited considerably from Ideal City’s tourism revenue, lacked any grievance grounds. With plans to stay overnight and visit some old friends, Chu Guang, along with X-16 and Lü Bei’s team, discreetly disembarked and headed directly to the official passageway. Admittedly, this place had changed significantly, albeit less dramatically than Dust Town. After all, it had pre-existing expansive farmlands and orchards, merely augmented in area now. The most notable changes lay in infrastructure and housing within the settlement. A spacious road connected the settlement's entrance to a manor deep within the farmland, flanked by uniform streetlights, green belts, and prefabricated concrete buildings. These buildings structured into block-like communities housed parks for recreation, boiler rooms supplying hot water, and unified dining facilities. Between larger communities were schools, libraries, and hospitals, marking an infrastructural advancement unseen previously. Chu Guang was no stranger to the prefabricated concrete structures, originally designed as temporary housing solutions for the wasteland dwellers. Now, these structures constituted a key industry for Boulder City, with exports reaching as far as Port Galon in the Polo Province and beyond to Heavenly Capital. Curiously, having emerged from economic strife and prospered, Boulder City ceased constructing these themselves, considering instead exporting the outdated production line to Polo Province where demand remained robust. However, perhaps not even the residents of Boulder City expected that due to the skyrocketing demand for housing in Singularity City, the outdated production line that was supposed to be phased out ended up being retained. The moment Chu Guang stepped into Singularity City, Frost, who was working within the manor, immediately noticed him and, accompanied by Eclipse, greeted him warmly at the entrance. “Honorable Administrator, what brings you here?” “It's been a while, just came to see you all.” Seeing Frost and Eclipse in their maid outfits, Chu Guang nodded with a smile and continued, “The changes here are so vast that I almost thought I missed my stop… until I saw you two. If anything, you haven't changed a bit.” “Of course, my pursuit of art is eternal, and the artists from the Alliance always bring me delightful surprises.” Frost spun gracefully, lifting her skirt elegantly, a confident smile on her face, though it soon dimmed with a hint of concern. “If only the survivors in Singularity City appreciated art like those in the rest of the Alliance. I tried teaching them art, and although some attempted to learn… they rarely evoked that feeling in me… Sorry, I’m not sure how to explain it.” Perched on Chu Guang’s shoulder, little Qi chimed in, “...The intellect module burning up?” Frost’s eyes brightened, continuing excitedly, “Exactly, that feeling of the intellect module burning! Not that I'm tired of my current work, but their creativity either magnifies or diminishes the elements I provide in predictable ways, lacking novelty.” Chu Guang cleared his throat lightly. “You can't have it all… Some buffs—" he corrected himself quickly, “...qualities naturally contradict each other. You have to choose one.” “Contradict?” Frost paused, pondering with her head down. “Is it really contradictory? Logically... it doesn't seem to be.” Chu Guang was silent for a moment, offering an uncertain answer. “Perhaps that's the biggest difference between humans and machines. Humans don't follow logic or mathematical laws.” “Then what do they follow?” Chu Guang thought for a moment, “Perhaps intuition, or instinct.” Unlike machines, which are designed for a specific purpose, humans are not born with predetermined goals. The meaning of human life is often found during the journey, not preset from the beginning. Yet this philosophical question was too profound, and he wasn’t sure if the bionic being before him could truly grasp it. Just then, a soft voice came from behind Frost. “It’s not that hard to understand… Dad’s farm was like this before. I don’t feel much difference here.” “Yin Yin?” Chu Guang was surprised to see a young girl emerge from behind Frost. He was about to make a polite comment about her getting taller but recalled that her height wouldn't change anymore, and so he changed his statement. “How have you been? Adapting to the new body?” Yin Yin nodded lightly, her voice soft, “I’ve adjusted… but it feels like every day has lost its meaning since becoming a machine.” Eclipse, expressionless, interjected, “We are bionic beings, not just machines. There's a difference.” Yin Yin gave a helpless expression, as if to say, "Let's say so." Her calm and understanding demeanor was touching. After experiencing such a major change in life, she, like Lamb, appeared to have matured quickly. Seeing Yin Yin’s resigned look, Chu Guang pondered for a moment and spoke soothingly, “The meaning of life is something you have to find yourself. That is one thing we cannot do for you… but I am confident you will find it, just like Frost next to you.” Whether or not she was still considered a child, he hoped she wouldn’t fall into the abyss of nihilism. Yin Yin nodded subtly, whether she understood his well-wishes or not, she replied melodically, “I know, Administrator. Though I don’t envy Sister Frost's peculiar interests… Oh, by the way, how is Little Sheep?” Chu Guang gently patted her head with a smile, “I wouldn’t know for certain. I’ve heard she met her father and went to school like the other kids in Dawn City. If you miss her, I suggest visiting her directly.” Yin Yin’s expression turned apprehensive, “...I will.” Chu Guang could guess at the troubles in her heart, but that was her own affair. Rising, he turned his gaze back to Frost and politely asked, “I apologize for not making a reservation. This southern trip isn’t an official visit… Can you prepare some rooms for me? I plan to stay overnight.” Frost beamed with a radiant smile, replying warmly, “No problem at all, it's usually just me, Yin Yin, and Eclipse here, the manor is never short on empty rooms… Please, follow me, honorable Administrator.” Chu Guang nodded, trailing behind her as they entered the manor that once witnessed the battles fought by the Burning Corps. From the moment they stepped into the manor, Chu Guang noticed Lü Bei’s hand hovering near his waist, his eyes nervously scanning the surroundings, as if expecting someone to be concealed in the bushes. Particularly as they reached the annex building, Lü Bei’s expression was taut, like a tightly drawn bowstring. The Alliance’s aircraft had once landed there, with even the walls bearing traces of bullet holes. Seeing the young man’s tense demeanor, Chu Guang chuckled and remarked, “Did you find something interesting?” Caught off-guard by Chu Guang’s observation, Lü Bei flushed with embarrassment, scratching the back of his head, “I…” “It’s already the year 214; the battles here ended long ago.” Chu Guang patted him gently on the shoulder, offering reassurance, “I mentioned before leaving: we’re here to observe, not to fight.” **To Be Continued**