Volume 3: Deep Blue Sea
Shu Xun subconsciously tugged at his hair. As Meng Muyu had said, “Winter’s End” and “Deep Blue Sea” are both planets that have been invaded by some mysterious force, leading them towards their demise. However, the manifestations of the two planets reaching their end are completely different. One is frozen, and the other evolves madly. If the former is passive defense, does it mean that the latter implies having the strength to fight, causing such an overload to promote a burst of life? Then, using evolved creatures to resist the invaders? After all, according to Meng Muyu, the invasion of this Deep Blue Sea happened a long time ago, yet the planet still remains in this state of overwhelming evolution. What could be the reason?
Moreover, besides the invasion mentioned by Meng Moyu, there should be some similarities between the two planets. These similarities must be the reason why two vastly different planets, located far apart, are invaded by the same force. But what are these similarities? Thinking about the holographic recorder, Shu Xun had a vague guess and turned his gaze back to Meng Muyu, speaking in a refined manner, “I have another question.”
Meng Muyu suddenly became vigilant. “What else do you want to ask?”
Shu Xun hesitated.
While unfolding his small bedroll, Big Bliss, who was eavesdropping, paused at this movement and looked at Meng Muyu. “You’ve learned this way of talking quite fast.” After speaking, he continued to deftly tidy up his bedroll by the campfire, then folded his wings, wrapped himself in the blanket, and assumed a posture ready to listen and sleep at the same time.
Meng Muyu cleared his throat, feeling a bit embarrassed inside. This way of speaking seemed to be infectious, and he unconsciously learned it. He looked at Big Bliss’s actions with an even more amused expression. Clearly, it was a butterfly, so how did it develop such a daily routine? “What else do you want to ask? What I know is really just this much.”
“You are one of the developers of ‘Deep Blue Sea,’ aren’t you? Don’t be nervous. I just want to know how you found me,” Shu Xun said with an elegant smile, soothing and comforting.
Meng Muyu indeed breathed a sigh of relief. “Seeing you, I feel like I’m a fake developer. Did you really not participate in the development of ‘Deep Blue Sea’? How come you seem to know more than I do…” Meng Muyu, now relieved, once again entered the talkative mode.
Facing the front with a face ashen, cracking and breaking twigs, Shu Xun’s smile stiffened slightly. He felt that Meng Muyu’s way of speaking was also unique, capable of answering a question for one to two hours without going off-topic, focusing entirely on what you said. However, sometimes, it was hard to pinpoint the main point.
After rambling for a while, Meng Muyu finally got to the point. “After the teleportation, the game system lost your logout signal from the nutrient pod. Upon investigation, it was found to be a temporal turbulence caused by four forces, leading to a system glitch. To fix the glitch, I entered the Deep Blue Sea as a player through the nutrient pod, searching near your disappearance point. However, I never captured the logout signal until Ye Qian arrived in the vicinity. Big Bliss and Little Bliss, the companion blue butterflies, finally sensed each other, not only through the connection between the butterflies but also through a strong energy enhancing their effects, connecting two worlds. Of course, there was also a strong counterforce. If you didn’t return before the butterfly signal disappeared, this repair attempt would fail, and rescuing you again would become very difficult.”
Shu Xun nodded slightly after listening. “It seems that the mysterious invading force is still present on this planet. Four forces: the temporal confinement of the Deep Blue Sea, the invaders, the teleportation energy from the nutrient pod, and…” and the innate time-traveling talent Shu Xun himself possessed. It was this force that, once Big Bliss and Little Bliss sensed each other it strengthened its effect, allowing them to break free from the peculiar temporal confinement. Suddenly, Shu Xun had a question. Did this time-traveling talent bring him to this timeline purely by coincidence?
“And what?” Meng Muyu asked with a curious expression. “How are you sure the invaders are still in the Deep Blue Sea?”
Shu Xun remained calm. “It’s not hard to speculate. According to what you said, the invaders entered the Deep Blue Sea a long time ago, but the rapid evolution of this planet has been ongoing, indicating that the resistance has never stopped. The invaders have been persistent and may have reached a point of no return. So, the Deep Blue Sea is undergoing frenzied evolution, reaching the peak of a life explosion—either new life or destruction.”
Meng Muyu’s expression fell into deep thought. What Shu Xun said was entirely reasonable and likely the current state of the entire planet. Indeed, evolving in such an overloaded manner, this planet was either evolving or facing death.
After a brief pause, Shu Xun continued, “However, the way Deep Blue Sea will be destroyed is currently uncertain. Each planet expresses its demise uniquely. If we could speculate on the destruction method of the Deep Blue Sea, perhaps we could prepare in advance. But since you know that the temporal turbulence is caused by four energies and that this planet is invaded by the same force, does it imply that Mr. Meng Muyu or StarPlay Entertainment possesses a method to trace that mysterious force? This could be the reason why they developed ‘Deep Blue Sea’ after ‘Winter’s End.’ This method might even be unknown to the military, or else they wouldn’t collaborate with StarPlay Entertainment. Instead, they would directly enter the Deep Blue Sea. Mr. Meng Muyu seems to know more than I initially thought, doesn’t he?”
Meng Muyu remained silent. Did he unknowingly dig his own hole again? How does this person’s mind work? He didn’t reveal anything, but it seemed like every word he spoke exposed everything. Meng Muyu felt that he could probably talk less in the future.
At the headquarters of StarPlay Entertainment, in the control room, the team members who had been closely monitoring their boss, continued their tasks silently, their gaze fixed on the silent Meng Muyu.
“I think after this game, the boss’s talkativeness might be cured.”
“No, I think the boss might not live until the end of the game because he’ll go crazy before that, then lose judgment and get eaten by a giant creature.”
“I feel like, when the boss returns, the crazier he becomes, the more talkative he’ll be.”
Silence spread.
In the live stream room:
“Talkative guy meets Shu Xun, and there’s no secret left to tell! Hahaha!”
“I feel like, after the Little Dumpling grows up, his IQ is higher. Just a few words scared Meng Muyu into silence.”
“Shu Xun is too amazing! Kneeling down! I’ve never felt my IQ is so lacking!”
“According to Shu Xun’s speculation, this world is still in the midst of invasion, and it seems to be at the final decisive moment. So, does it mean that if we can’t witness the evolution of a planet, we will have to witness its destruction with our own eyes? Regardless of the outcome, it’s absolutely shocking! Waiting for Shu Xun to clear the game!”
“Did none of you notice? Little Dumpling didn’t answer Meng Muyu’s first question, which was about the fourth force. Instead, he quietly shifted attention. Sadly, the startled Meng Muyu completely forgot his earlier inquiry. I wonder what Little Dumpling was about to say.”
“I think the person above can give up. Currently, if Shu Xun doesn’t want to say it, we might never know the truth in our lifetime…”
In the game world, Shu Xun waited for a while but didn’t hear Meng Muyu speak. So, with an extremely friendly smile, he said, “It seems I guessed right, and that’s why you’re silent.”
Meng Muyu, appearing confident, almost fell down. At this moment, he deeply experienced what despair meant. Speak, and too much is exposed; remain silent, and it’s still a problem. So, he decided to speak. “Yes, the StarPlay staff can continuously create history in survival games for a reason. StarPlay Entertainment indeed possesses abilities beyond ordinary people, but I won’t say. Continue guessing.”
A faint smile passed through Shu Xun’s eyes. Tugging at his hair, he spoke with a profound tone, “In the leisure of the night, since the boss requested it, I’ll take a guess.”
Meng Muyu, wearing a seemingly indifferent and confident look, felt a bit uneasy deep inside.
Shu Xun’s clear and gentle voice began to ring out at a steady pace. “You seem very confident, indicating that this ability is exceptionally rare and unknown to many. Your strong sense of belonging to StarPlay Entertainment is also a source of your confidence. Therefore, the one possessing this ability is not an individual but the collective, the StarPlay Entertainment members. Perhaps the members of StarPlay Entertainment have different abilities, but since they can jointly develop survival games, it implies similar abilities. So, if you haven’t experienced something that led to the development of these similar abilities, then StarPlay Entertainment members might be a part of a special bloodline, perhaps not even originally human.”
Meng Muyu remained silent.
“StarPlay Entertainment is particularly enthusiastic about real games, especially end-of-the-world games. Despite the enormous effort and resources spent, they persist in this. This game, ‘Deep Blue Sea,’ can be considered a one-time game. StarPlay’s profits may not be maximized with it, and you’ve also mentioned that ‘Deep Blue Sea’ isn’t your ideal development target. However, you still developed it. It seems like StarPlay has an obsession with end-of-the-world planets. Can we speculate that members of StarPlay Entertainment likely come from various major end-of-the-world planets, maybe even from the same race? It’s because of this that they are committed to end-of-the-world planets, wanting to save something. When we are unaware, StarPlay Entertainment probably saved numerous end-of-the-world planets through nutrient pods. And now, StarPlay Entertainment has encountered an unsolvable situation, hence developing ‘Winter’s End’ and ‘Deep Blue Sea,’ hoping for redemption in these end-of-the-world worlds…”
Meng Muyu’s expression couldn’t be described as anything other than stunned. No need for explanation; his expression clearly confirmed Shu Xun’s speculations.
The livestream room was also in a state of astonishment. No one expected that, just after meeting and with only a few sentences exchanged—some seemingly unrelated clues—Shu Xun could reach such conclusions. StarPlay Entertainment has always been a mysterious entity in the eyes of the public, almost described as elusive. As for the StarPlay members, people’s understanding was practically zero.
Shu Xun curled her lips. “Scared? Will you still accompany me?”
The shock on Meng Muyu’s face receded, revealing a touch of a prideful smile. In his eyes, there was a never-before-seen sharpness—a man capable of miracles couldn’t be merely a talkative person. It’s just that those who interacted with him weren’t enough for him to take off the mask. “Of course, only this way is worthy of accompanying me!”
Shu Xun laughed heartily and extended his hand. “Shu Xun.”
Meng Muyu also reached out his hand. “Meng Muyu.”
Deep wisdom shone in Meng Muyu’s eyes. He knew that what Shu Xun speculated was far more than what he spoke. Some matters involved the internal secrets of StarPlay Entertainment, so Shu Xun cleverly avoided discussing them. He positioned StarPlay Entertainment from the perspective of a savior, laying a perfect foundation for revealing the identity of StarPlay Entertainment members. The StarPlay members couldn’t stay hidden in secrecy forever. How to integrate into this world had always been a question Meng Muyu contemplated. Unexpectedly, he met someone so intelligent and warm-hearted, skillfully balancing everything.
Two slender palms clasped together. At this moment, neither of them anticipated the changes their handshake would bring to the world.
Ye Qian, sitting nearby, expressionlessly snapped twigs in his hands.
Meng Muyu almost forgot that a large wolf was crouching beside him.
As they released their hands, the snapping sound finally ceased. Meng Muyu sighed in relief. He was sure that if he delayed for another second, the nearby wolf, eyeing him eagerly, would have pounced.
Looking at Ye Qian and then at Shu Xun, Meng Muyu sighed. Fate was indeed a mysterious thing. Ye Qian could be said to be the first person Meng Muyu encountered who was as intelligent as himself, yet Ye Qian maintained a face of indifference, seeming to ignore everyone. This caused the talkative Meng Muyu to contemplate choking himself. Now, looking at the present, Meng Muyu could affirm that, at this moment, Ye Qian was probably scratching the walls in his heart, driven mad by his own stoic nature. Fate truly worked in mysterious ways!
