Chapter 163: Sinking or Rising?

Chapter 163: Chapter 163: Sinking or Rising?

Shi Zhile retorted, "But it’s often the minor details that determine success or failure."

Jiang Yuxing casually took out a bath towel and covered himself. "There’s nothing to be done about that. A person’s energy is finite. If I controlled every single thing, I’d have worked myself to death long ago."

Shi Zhile changed the subject. "Since you don’t know the minor details, then tell me the general direction of the game.

At the end of the game, do all the players die? Or do humans ascend to godhood within the game? Or perhaps, do humans break the game’s constraints and return to the real world?"

Jiang Yuxing went silent, so Shi Zhile pinched him, making him hiss in pain.

"Old Jiang, say something!"

Jiang Yuxing: "..."

Shi Zhile’s pinch turned into a caress. Jiang Yuxing instantly shivered and immediately pulled his bath towel tighter, backing into a corner.

"The beginning of the game is fixed, but the players are an unknown variable. You’re an uncontrollable factor, too. Even if I set a script, would you all really follow it?"

Shi Zhile didn’t say anything.

’If someone was that meticulous, who knows how many final paths they would set up for the protagonist.’

’If it were her, she wouldn’t follow the script.’

’But who’s to say that going off-script isn’t part of the script itself?’

Jiang Yuxing sighed again. "See? One path has three forks. Three paths have nine forks. And so on. Who could possibly know which path you’ll ultimately choose?

Even the most meticulous person can’t create different routes for every single turning point. Life is full of turning points. If you create every possible option, who can guarantee which one they’ll pick?

Since there are no guarantees, why should I go to the trouble of setting a definitive final ending for the game?

I provided the beginning of the game, but I won’t force an ending. Leaving the ending for you all to rewrite yourselves... wouldn’t you call that a form of favoritism toward you?"

Shi Zhile looked up at him. "If I only kill you, would that count as a form of favoritism?"

Jiang Yuxing: "...It would not!"

"What if I dismember you afterward? Would it count then?"

Jiang Yuxing: "...Sophistry truly is the domain of the unreasonable. If you’re going to be like this next time, let’s just not contact each other anymore."

Before Shi Zhile could say anything, a video call came in from Jiang Jing.

Shi Zhile suddenly lunged forward, yanked open Jiang Yuxing’s bath towel to expose his muscular chest, then answered the call and spoke quickly.

"I’m busy. Hanging up!"

Jiang Jing: "..."

Jiang Yuxing: "..."

Shi Zhile hung up, straightened Jiang Yuxing’s bath towel for him, and then retreated to a distance of over three meters.

"You’ve fed me your cynical advice, you’ve spoken your truths, so if there’s nothing else, you can leave."

Jiang Yuxing’s mouth twitched. "Do you have to be so pragmatic? At least I brought you a lot of information. There’s no need to kick me to the curb the second you’re done with me."

Shi Zhile emphasized with a deadpan expression, "I didn’t ’use’ you."

Jiang Yuxing: "..."

He was so exasperated he laughed. ’She really makes no effort to hide the fact that she’s using him.’

He tied his bath towel securely and rubbed his head. "Then I guess this is goodbye forever."

A Teleportation Gate appeared. He had just stepped one foot through when his towel was pulled back.

He was met with Shi Zhile’s completely sincere expression, and a flicker of anticipation rose in Jiang Yuxing’s heart.

"’Goodbye forever?’ Are you planning to die right now? If you are, can you do it at my hands? I’ve got my eye on your supplies."

Jiang Yuxing clutched his bath towel and yanked the corner free from her grasp.

"I’m a hard man to kill.

I won’t die until every last player is dead. Instead of coveting my death, you should covet the deaths of the other players. Kill everyone else, and I’ll be all cleaned up and waiting for you."

The Teleportation Gate closed before her eyes. Shi Zhile took a digital recorder out of her pocket, paused the recording, and played it back.

’He won’t die until every last player is dead. Is it because of the existence of energy?’

Unable to figure it out, she decided to stop thinking about it for now. After putting the recorder away, Shi Zhile started a video call with Jiang Jing.

When the call connected, the screen showed a long rectangular table surrounded by several people, a few of whom had familiar faces.

Shi Zhile’s calm expression cracked, inch by inch. "Just now..."

Jiang Jing cut her off. "They weren’t here just now. I just got to the conference hall myself."

Shi Zhile didn’t believe him for a second, but since he was offering her an out, she naturally took it.

The man at the head of the table was, as expected, Wen Changming. He wore a faint smile, the kind that instantly put people at ease.

"Comrade Shi Zhile, we haven’t had a chance to thank you for the gold mine you sent us last time. Coincidentally, we’ve just acquired over 300 portions of soil. We’ll send them over in a bit. While it can’t compare to the gold mine, please accept it as a small token of our appreciation. We hope you won’t mind."

Shi Zhile arched an eyebrow slightly.

’The previous agreement was very clear. The base has the usage rights to half of the land in the Planting Space, and whenever the base obtains soil, it must give half of it for upgrading the Planting Space.’

’It was clearly stipulated in the agreement, yet he’s framing it as a kind gesture. No wonder Wei Zhan said he’s full of bad intentions.’

She stepped into the next room, enlarged her panel, and aimed it so everyone was in the frame.

The moment everyone came into view, Shi Zhile clearly saw Wen Changming stiffen.

Shi Zhile smiled and got back to the main topic. "Has the sea level risen around the base?"

Jiang Jing aimed the camera at a screen that looked like a television, which was displaying a view of the island’s edge.

The waves were currently rolling with the sea breeze, much like playful young children.

"The sea level has risen. Around 8 a.m., when I was patrolling around the island, the water hadn’t submerged the beach yet. In less than four hours, the beach disappeared, and the water rose to the base of the courtyard walls.

The water is still continuing to creep upward, and the rain is heavier than this morning. I suspect the rising sea level might be related to the downpour."

Wen Bai, standing next to Shi Zhiyi, said, "That’s highly possible, but there’s another possibility: the islands are sinking. It’s not just Stone Island and Huaxia Base experiencing this; other islands are also seeing rising water levels.

The ocean is vast. Even with a downpour causing the sea level to rise, it’s impossible for it to rise that much in just four hours.

I’m more inclined to believe the islands are sinking collectively."

Mr. Wen said, "Let’s observe a while longer. Whether the water is rising or the island is sinking, there will be clues. The important thing right now is to stop the water from spreading across the island.

The temperature is dropping. If the seawater spreads to the living quarters, the probability of players getting sick will increase."

Shi Zhile suddenly recalled what Wei Zhan had said in the group chat and quickly checked the temperature.

For the half-month that the storm had been raging, the temperature had been gradually dropping by two degrees each day. Although she couldn’t see the future temperature, based on this trend, it wasn’t hard to deduce that the weather would turn cold very soon.

Once the temperature plummeted, the water that had spread across the island would freeze.

In this game world, no one could guarantee that the entire ocean wouldn’t freeze over.

While she was lost in thought, Shi Zhile received a message from Sun Ci.

She minimized the video call and checked the message.

"The water level on the South Sea Coast has stopped rising, but frost has appeared inside the stone houses. [Image] [Image]."