The Fourth Quadrant of Online Games

"After the server was shut down urgently due to unknown reasons last night, this morning, Mr. Wu Zheng, the producer of the legendary brain-computer access game DELTA and the vice president of the city's technology giant FREE, held a press conference to sincerely apologize to the players and admit that last night The inability to log out during the [-]th anniversary commemorative event was an unforgivable and serious mistake, and I announced my resignation on the spot.”

"His speech did not respond positively to another issue that broke out in the early morning. Regarding whether brain-computer access equipment will cause health problems for some players, relevant departments have quickly intervened in the investigation."

"Once this problem was exposed, the stock price of FREE has fallen off a cliff today, and its market value has shrunk sharply. Players have mixed reactions to this. There have been a lot of voices claiming to sue FREE on the Internet, but at the same time, there are also some players in various places. The big social network launched a call to 'keep DELTA going' and received an incredible amount of support."

"The latest news is that Wu Zheng, who just announced his resignation from FREE this morning, owns a number of shell companies and is suspected of many misconducts, including fraud, infringement of commercial secrets, and threats to the personal safety of others. The relevant evidence is very strong. Detailed, presumably will soon face multiple lawsuits."

On the second floor of the laboratory on the [-]th floor of FREE, Xiang Hong and Huang Xinzhi stood side by side. The young president put his hands in his pockets, and his eyes were not fixed on the air screen that was scrolling different news on the table, but kept looking at below.

The lively and bustling laboratory in the past is now quite deserted. Not only are the colorful holographic projections gone, but there are only a few employees left, and some of them are walking outside with cardboard boxes.

"It's really a hurricane." Huang Xinzhi turned off the news, with a little unbearable expression on her face, "Winter is coming soon."

Xiang Hong popped out a sentence: "Aren't you going?"

Huang Xinzhi was taken aback: "Why, you want to fire me?"

Xiang Hongpi glanced at her with a nonchalant smile: "The company is like this, if you stay, I'm afraid you won't be able to raise your salary in the past two years."

Huang Xinzhi patted her chest and breathed a sigh of relief: "I thought I was going to settle accounts after the fall and deduct my salary... Mr. Xiang, there are not many conscientious bosses like you this year. Please let me rely on you as well." side."

Seeing her sincere smile, Xiang Hong snorted softly and took a cup of brewed black tea from her hand.

"Mr. Xiang, forgive me for asking one more question." Huang Xinzhi seemed to be unable to hold back her curiosity, "Did you find someone to expose Mr. Wu's scandals?"

Xiang Hong put down his teacup and asked back, "What do you think?"

Huang Xinzhi was embarrassed, and said: "Whether it is to pursue the victory or to cut off the wrist of a strong man, judging from the results, doing so is beneficial to FREE. It's just..."

"Just what?" Xiang Hong raised the corners of his mouth, "It's just that doing this is a bit too destructive?"

Huang Xinzhi raised her eyes, looked carefully at her boss's expression, and muttered a few times, as if in tacit agreement.

"I didn't do it. I have his tricks in my hand, but this is not my style of doing things." Xiang Hong said bluntly, "Since you have decided to do things with me, I will not lie to you."

A momentary surprise appeared on Huang Xinzhi's face, and it quickly turned into doubt: "Then, who did that?"

Xiang Hong took a sip of tea and said, "It's Wu Zheng himself."

I don't know if his last words played a certain role, or if he simply gave up on himself after finding out that he had nowhere to go, Wu Zheng not only stood up and shouldered all the responsibilities on the bright side, but also stabbed himself several times secretly. Knife, relying on the practice of completely ruining its reputation, draws a clear line with FREE.

His good Uncle Wu had obviously been defeated by him, but he still acted so carefully in the end.No matter what the reason is, he did this to save FREE to the greatest extent when the building was about to collapse.

"Mr. Xiang, I have set up personal permissions for you to access the Delta server at any time as you said." Huang Xinzhi looked down at the progress of the project, "But why is this? Isn't there no one in the game anymore? "

Xiang Hong's hands trembled, and the tea in the cup rippled slightly.

"You're wrong about one thing. Not all players logged out of Delta yesterday," he said with a frown. "There's one more person who hasn't come back yet."

In DELTA, on the satellite of Xie Lan III.

For the first time, the Tyrian didn't wear his armor. Instead, he was wearing a commoner jacket with the sleeves rolled up high, and he was earnestly watering the strangely shaped plants in the ground.

If there is a second player who comes here to take a look, he will definitely find that this planet has changed a lot compared to before.Not to mention earth-shattering, but at least there is a corner where there is no longer only desolate ore, but a yard, a slightly crooked but decent hut built of stones, and the front and back of the house. A few touches of fresh green.

It is really not easy to open up wasteland on such a congenitally deficient planet. In the past, the Tyrians would rather single out a [-]-time ore master than think about how to build houses and farm land all day long.But as long as you think about it, that egg octopus monster named Weng can even build a place as big as Dai Yaxing, so it's even more impossible for him to blow you up with a single shot.

He also couldn't figure out how much time he spent in the game. This month or so was a downright cold period for FREE. He spent most of his time in the company every day, but as soon as he could breathe a sigh of relief, he You will be logged into the game immediately.

"His consciousness is not in the game, so even if he forcibly exits, he may not be able to wake up immediately."

"Sorry, I don't know what to do either."

In the early hours of that day, when he rushed into the affiliated courtyard of Jiang University with the unconscious person in his arms, he found the professor surnamed Li that day, but he only got this answer.

Obviously everyone is back, even the little girl and Da Jing are recovering, why, why is that person unable to wake up?

In the first few days, he forced Huang Xinzhi to search every line of DELTA's code, just to find out the sea of ​​nothingness.Huang Xinzhi, like him, was busy in the company for more than 30 hours without closing his eyes. He almost dug DELTA three feet into the ground, but unfortunately he still couldn't touch the edge of the wormhole.

"Sorry, this is the same as the virus that day. The person who wrote this code knows DELTA better than I do. He must have set up a lot of restrictions, so I haven't been able to find it for so many years. Give me a few more years It may still be the case." After suffering two setbacks in a few days, his research director was also very listless.

Feel sorry?

He really didn't want to hear any more apologies.

So he chose the most stupid way, and went into Delta by himself to see how he could find out the person who refused to go home.

However, he flew the spaceship around the Moran galaxy countless times, and even broke into the nebula several times, but he couldn't find the blue entrance.

Ever since that ship rushed in with that person on board, the Sea of ​​Nothingness has disappeared from Delta.

He wandered around in the game, almost every corner of DELTA, and went to every galaxy that he had no chance to go to before. At first, he wanted to see if that person would hide somewhere and roam free alone. , It just became a day-to-day walk and look.

Every time he came to a strange planet, he would think, these are the places that person has been to, right?

It turned out that his delta was so big.

He walked through valleys covered with red snow, through forests covered with iron thorns, saw volcanoes spouting blue lava, and saw two suns rising from the white sand.

He thought to himself that the next time he met, he would tell the man that he was no longer a rookie who didn't know anything about Delta.

In the end, he had no new planets to visit, so he came back here and built a hut bit by bit with his hands.

Every night in the past month, he wore a connected device and slept on this desolate ore star.

What kind of person would run into the game to sleep?

In the past, he must have dismissed such stupid things, but now, he is more ridiculous than those people he used to despise.

He suddenly understood why.

Because the person he most wanted to see couldn't be found in reality no matter what.

He had to get into this illusory dream again and again, and then dreamed another dream in this dream night after night. In the dream, he would see the man standing at the door, looking at him with a smile, and talking to him. After a long time no see, he finally went home.

This night, after watering the growing ghost claw vine, he was going back to the house to sleep.

At this time, he heard some strange noises coming from above his head.

It seemed that something was flying towards it, and he was wondering if it was some strange big bird, or some meteorite that didn't fly to fall here, but when he looked up, he was stunned.

It was a dilapidated ship.

How bad is it?It was so rotten that he couldn't believe that this piece of scrap metal could be a boat in his entire life. It was clearly handmade by a handicapped elementary school student using the cheapest water and iron screw caps he picked up. .The ship was smashed all the way down with sparks, dropping parts all the way, those metal parts with sparks smashed the land he worked so hard to plant, and smashed a skylight for his beloved hut by the way——

For the first time in his life, the Tyrian, who was about to draw his gun at the slightest bit of discomfort, stood blankly in the face of the intruder falling from the sky, completely forgetting to draw his gun.

Because he still clearly remembers that there is no one else in this game except him.

"Ahem," a second voice rang out, and a figure climbed out of the shattered cabin, "Old Cat, this boat is really not driven by someone."

The guy raised his head as he spoke, looking ashamed as always.

Looking at each other, he was also stunned.

The passer-by looked at you and said, "What, what's going on? Why are you here and still dressed like this... Wait, am I late?"

You paused for half a second when the shot exploded, and rushed towards the man in a posture of riding a thousand miles away to take the head. Then, ignoring the ashes on the head and face, he hugged the man's waist tightly.

"Shut up," his voice trembled, "Pu Yiyang, you are such a fucking bastard."

He couldn't wait any longer, not even a second.

After finishing speaking, the Tyrian took out his gun like lightning, put it against the heart of the man in his arms, and pulled the trigger without hesitation.

Pu Yiyang watched the blood spurt out of his body and splashed on the silver hair of the Tyrian. The next second, he opened his eyes on the bed.

He turned his head in a daze, just in time to see another person's hand clasping his five fingers tightly, and when he raised his head again, he saw that person was sitting on the edge of his bed with his head slightly lowered, the metal cover behind his head It is looming under the long hair.

How many days has passed?

He looked at the thin man's chin, the faint cyan under the tightly closed eyes, and stretched out his hand, which was still a little disobedient, to touch the tired face.

A little wet.

He stared blankly at another drop of water seeping out from the corner of the man's eyes, and it was as if a flood had sprung up in his heart, drowning him from head to toe.

The man moved suddenly, raised his other hand, and clenched his wet fingertips tightly.

Xiang Hong, who immediately logged out of the game, also opened his eyes.

"Hi, long time no see," Pu Yiyang grinned, and greeted the people around him again, "I miss you so much."