Chapter 1651: The Weight of Gazes
Seeing Xu Huo following behind the group from Brown Skin City, Chi Xian and Tong Qi exchanged a knowing glance before heading over to meet him.
"Brother Xu, I have to say, I admire you from the top of my head to the tips of my toes now. Where did you get that Instance?" The players from Brown Skin City hadn't gone far, so Tong Qi asked in a hushed tone.
"Pure luck." Xu Huo brought out the Shelter as well, and took the opportunity to ask about the situation inside Brown Skin City.
Tong Qi patted Chi Xian on the shoulder. "Brother Chi is amazing. He took down three C-rank players by himself. Later, Young Master Mo and his bodyguard showed up too. They're still cleaning up in the city. Only a few players from Hope City escaped—they won't be a threat anymore."
Xu Huo nodded. Since the crisis in Brown Skin City was resolved, they could start transporting the antidote in.
"But Brother Xu, since you've got an Instance, why not just leave the game altogether? You wouldn't have to worry about where your next Instance is, what you need to do, or whether you might die in some unknown Instance at any moment. That would be great." Tong Qi's envy was almost tangible.
"Holding an Instance means you can't keep leveling up," Xu Huo said.
Obtaining an Instance Authorization was indeed a way to leave the game, but as the holder, you could only open and close the Instance according to the game's requirements. Not only was it hard to level up, but your strength couldn't improve either.
Tong Qi didn't understand his reasoning, but he was deeply impressed. Because if Xu Huo didn't keep opening the Instance, it meant he still had to participate in Ticket Instances every month. He couldn't even slack off by using a Random Instance. If he missed an Instance, when he resumed his player status the next month, the missed month would accumulate into a High-Risk Instance. The longer the absence, the higher the difficulty of the High-Risk Instance he'd be sent to.
"I guess I've really come to understand the gap between a top student and a slacker," Tong Qi sighed. "Our energy levels just can't compare. Some people can run two or three Instances in a month and still be full of energy. Someone like me—one Instance a month takes half my life, and I need at least half a month to recover."
"It's not that I lack ambition. It's just that my genes decided I'd never be a top-tier player." He put on a theatrical sigh.
Chi Xian smiled beside him, not continuing the topic. Instead, he looked at the distant Brown Skin City players and asked, "What are you planning to do with the antidote? Logically, this much antidote could save everyone on this island, but you know as well as I do that the real problem in Zone 013 is the environment."
"We'll work it out with the people from Brown Skin City," Xu Huo said. "We've done everything we can."
Even though Xu Huo had changed his face, he hadn't made any other disguises, so Cong Yu still recognized him. For a moment, gratitude mixed with admiration, and he seemed almost unable to believe it.
He touched his own face before walking over. Before he could even speak, tears were already streaming down.
Xu Huo looked at him calmly. "You've recovered well."
The big man nearly broke down sobbing. He choked back the tears and said in a trembling voice, "I don't know what to say... Thank you. Really, thank you... We were just strangers passing by, but I never thought you'd actually take Brown Skin City's problem to heart and bring the antidote..."
"Just a coincidence. I didn't expect to come to Zone 013 so soon either." Xu Huo gestured for him to start heading back.
"Never seen such a good person, have you?" Tong Qi walked over like an old friend and slung an arm around Cong Yu's shoulder. "Me, Brother Chi, and Young Master Mo all helped out. If you want to thank us, get some hot soup and water ready. We've been eating dry rations in the Instance for days—bad food, bad sleep."
Cong Yu immediately sent someone ahead to make arrangements. "There's a small isolation room in Brown Skin City with air purification equipment. Once it's cleaned up, you can rest there."
"Wearing a protective suit all the time isn't very comfortable," Chi Xian added.
The group walked back to Brown Skin City.
Cong Yu and the others didn't know what was in Xu Huo's Shelter, but they didn't ask or rush him. They just followed along. Along the way, a few more Brown Skin City players came over, greeted them excitedly, and joined the procession.
The people from Hope City had already been taken away. By the time Xu Huo and the others arrived, people from both cities were gathered outside, watching and waiting. Most of them were ordinary people—gaunt, barely recognizable, adults and children alike—all straining to look at them, as if offering a silent thank you.
Gazes have weight too.
The hopeless environment of Zone 013 trapped them in a numb, heavy shell, but they still tried their best to respond to kindness from the outside.
Under this kind of gaze, they entered Brown Skin City. Cong Yu led Xu Huo and the others to a place to rest, but the people from both cities didn't disperse. They kept following, as if to complete this ritual.
Xu Huo spotted the man from Hope City he'd met in the Instance earlier. The man was leading two children in the crowd and bowed to him gratefully.
Soon, they met up with Young Master Mo and Scarface Glasses. Both of them seemed a bit uncomfortable with the scene, keeping their faces stiff and unhappy.
To entertain them, some Brown Skin City players went out to find ingredients. But it wasn't just players who brought food—the ordinary people of Brown Skin City did too. Zone 013 couldn't grow normal grains, but it was rich in fungi. They gathered plenty of non-toxic or mildly toxic mushrooms, along with some wild vegetables, rice and flour brought back by players from other zones, a small amount of dried fruit and nuts, and some penned-up wild rabbits and boars...
In no time, the area outside the factory where they were resting was piled high with goods.
Tong Qi picked up a tattered toy doll and turned back to Xu Huo and the others. "This gratitude is really heavy."
No one else said anything. Tong Qi was right. The weight of this gratitude came from the fact that they had only temporarily relieved the crisis for the people of Brown Skin City and Hope City, not truly saved them.
"You see good people die from exhaustion and hardship, but you never see bad people die the same way. That's what happens when you try to be a good person," Chi Xian said as he cleaned his protective suit.
Xu Huo grabbed some nuts to eat and called over the children who were hovering nearby. He handed out most of the dry rations from his luggage compartment, along with some candy.
"Thank you, uncle!" The kids from Brown Skin City had tasted candy before, and their eyes lit up at the colorful wrappers.
"Brother Xu, don't you feel any guilt?" Tong Qi leaned in curiously.
Xu Huo half-reclined in a lounge chair and shot back, "Are you a savior?"
"No."
"Then there you go."
Xu Huo popped two nuts into his mouth. "Let's rest for a bit first. We've got work to do after we eat."
This little interlude passed quickly. Dinner was a lively affair, with many people coming to help. Faced with all the gratitude and thanks, Tong Qi and the others didn't say much, but they were happy inside—especially since they'd saved so many children and taken care of the Hope City players, removing a major threat from the island.
"Everyone," Tong Qi raised his glass, "I've met plenty of people in the game, but folks as warm-hearted and kind as us are rare. It's not often we get together like this. To fate, and to today's victory—cheers!"
(Chapter End)