Chapter 1247: Having Kids at Sixty
Xu Huo neither agreed nor disagreed, but he didn't make a move either. Instead, he asked, "Can you still walk?"
"Yes! Yes!" Chen Chou was overjoyed, getting up while spouting words of gratitude.
Players all had one or two travel tools; even with both legs broken, moving wasn't a problem for Chen Chou.
"Zone 001 looks more prosperous than any other district I've ever been to," Xu Huo said. "And more stable."
"Zone 001 is indeed a good place for players," Chen Chou habitually wore a smiling face. "But strong players find any place good; it's ordinary people who have it hard."
"Zone 001 has great welfare—ordinary people don't worry about food or clothing, and thanks to Evolution Agents, they rarely get sick. The biggest risk in their lives is probably the occasional player fights. But they're no different from those turbulent districts." Chen Chou revealed a cruel truth. "I've seen rich people lead beautiful children around like dogs... leashed dogs. A rich man's pet dog eats well and lives well, but it's still a dog, not a person."
"Have you been to other districts?" Xu Huo asked. "If you're talking about humiliation of dignity, many people have it far worse."
Chen Chou paused. "Does that mean just because someone else has it worse, we shouldn't hope for a better living environment?"
Everyone wanted a good life.
"That makes sense." Xu Huo exhaled white mist into the air—the temperature was dropping.
"With your strength, taking a few kids away shouldn't be a problem," he added. "This wormhole point has plenty of livable districts."
Chen Chou shook his head. "Ordinary people in other districts have no security. Not just where they live—district governments are places players come and go as they please. If you run into a random instance, you might die without even knowing why."
In terms of environmental safety alone, Zone 001 was far superior to other districts.
"So your goal is to establish yourself in Zone 001." No need to guess—that path wasn't easy. As the most prosperous district in the E27 wormhole point, especially as the seat of the entire wormhole point's central government, there were bound to be many players—both original residents and those who moved here for settlement. A C-grade player really didn't stand out here unless their name appeared near the top of the rankings.
"Once I become a B-grade player, my treatment in Zone 001 will change dramatically. Then I won't just adopt a few kids—I could claim an entire orphanage without issue." Chen Chou's eyes lit up, but then dimmed again. "But it took me over four years to reach C-grade. Who knows how long until B-grade..."
Xu Huo gave him a slightly surprised look. "Four years?"
As if sensing the deeper meaning behind that surprise, Chen Chou quickly explained, "My results are actually average... at best below average. Plenty of people take five or six years to level up once!"
"You can do at least twelve instances a year," Xu Huo said. Four years meant forty-eight instances.
"Players evolve, but intelligence doesn't necessarily evolve with it. When facing danger or uncertain instances, it's safer to forfeit and wait out the time limit," Chen Chou explained. "And you should know the death rate in instances—far more people die than clear them."
Player rank advancement was directly tied to instance clearance ratings. The higher the clearance rating each time, the faster the upgrade. Conversely, if clearance ratings were very low, with occasional failures dragging down the overall score, upgrades would be slower.
But there was another problem: players who consistently scraped by with low ratings and occasionally "forfeited" usually didn't live long.
"You don't know the C-grade instance patterns?" Xu Huo asked. Some instances, like random ones, had no time limit, or could only be escaped by clearing them—forfeiting wasn't an option.
Chen Chou knew this well, and his earlier enthusiasm faded. He forced a smile. "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it... live one day at a time."
He paused, then looked at Xu Huo with envy. "It must be nice being smart like you—high IQ, strong abilities, can handle any instance, treated like a VIP in any district. If I could be like you, I'd definitely live an easy life."
As he spoke, he seemed overwhelmed by despair, lowering his voice. "We ordinary people are the same—one breath keeps us alive, but letting go means we can't stand being trampled underfoot..."
The air fell silent. When Chen Chou didn't hear Xu Huo respond, he couldn't help looking up, only to find him calmly chewing on dried meat, even asking, "Want some?"
Chen Chou didn't really want any.
Soon, they reunited with Mu Yan and the others who had come looking for them. Chen Chou showed no embarrassment, actively greeting Mu Yan and Li Cheng.
Jiang Zifeng glanced at him. "His legs are broken—why keep him around? Might as well kill him and be done with it."
The comment was directed at Xu Huo.
Seeing Chen Chou obediently shrinking his neck, Xu Huo said flatly, "I have some personal business for him. I'll take care of him."
"We're all friends—no need to be so formal." Jiang Zifeng caught the smell of food on him. "Is your dried meat good?"
"Not bad—a specialty from another district." Xu Huo handed each of them a bag, then pulled out a large snack pack.
"So much candy." Ye Bingxin was surprised. "I didn't know you had kids already at your age."
"Haha, I'm waiting until I'm sixty to have kids." Jiang Zifeng cut in. "Think about it—players have an average lifespan of over a hundred and twenty. If I have kids in my twenties, and they have kids in their twenties, by the time I die, I'd be supporting four or five generations!"
"Besides, too many descendants isn't good for players either. Who knows when an enemy might come knocking? Grab one, and you have to save them. They might trace the whole family tree and wipe out generations. You'd be burning paper money for your own descendants during holidays."
Hearing his nonsense, Ye Bingxin held back before saying, "Can't your kids become players?"
"No need." Jiang Zifeng scratched his head. "I think my kids definitely won't be as smart as me. Kids inherit their intelligence from their mother, and my girlfriend isn't very sharp."
Ye Bingxin turned her head and started talking with Mu Yan and the others.
Jiang Zifeng kept rambling. "Besides, why have so many kids? The environment is bad. What if I die one day, leaving widows and orphans? That would be a tragedy."
"You think too much." Xu Huo said slowly. "How long has it been since you last saw your girlfriend?"
Jiang Zifeng actually thought about it. "About half a year."
"Half a year... Are you sure she's still alive?"
Jiang Zifeng fell into deep doubt. "We haven't contacted each other in a while, but probably, most likely, she's still alive. If she died, someone would definitely notify me."
Xu Huo smiled without saying a word. Chen Chou muttered on the side, "Being your girlfriend is the worst luck..."
Happy National Day, everyone! Have a wonderful time! ^_^
(Chapter End)