# 1799
Chapter 1799
Not a Game?
With the light-headed security guard's control removed, Lin Qiye ultimately met the same fate as Shen Qingzhu—killed by the nearly unstoppable 【Group Photo】 + 【Cheer】 combo, dissolving into scattered light on the stage.
After dying in the game, Lin Qiye's consciousness plunged downward. When he opened his eyes again, he found himself back beside the hospital bed.
In the stark white hospital room, a ghostly green sphere of code slowly rotated beneath the ceiling. A line of code wound like a ribbon around Yuzuri Takishiro's wrist on the bed; his eyes were closed, as if in a deep sleep.
Lin Qiye turned疑惑 in puzzlement to find Shen Qingzhu standing by the corridor window, silently puffing a cigarette. Guan Zai sat with drooping head on a bench, hands rapidly typing at nothing.
"Why did you pull us out?" Lin Qiye asked, puzzled. "Didn't the game not end yet?"
Guan Zai slowly lifted his head, his eyes already bloodshot.
"The game hasn't ended... but it no longer matters to you two..."
"Why?"
Guan Zai gestured toward the bed with his hand.
"His lifespan won't last until you revive."
Lin Qiye spun toward the bed as if struck by lightning. On the bed, Yuzuri Takishiro's face had gone deathly pale. An IV drip and monitoring wires had somehow reappeared on his body. Two doctors huddled beside him, murmuring low with furrowed brows.
"He doesn't even have ten minutes left? We were in there less than an hour... Didn't they say he could hold on for days?"
Guan Zai shook his head. "Your consciousness experienced only one hour inside the game, but outside... two days have passed."
Lin Qiye stood frozen.
"Also, maintaining the data for all three of you inside the game puts a huge strain on me... Since you two can't survive until the next revival anyway, I just kicked you out directly."
Lin Qiye studied Guan Zai before him. Compared to before they'd entered the game, the man looked haggard beyond measure. Hosting the consciousnesses of two Human Apexes and one god in the game had drained him severely.
Seeing Guan Zai in this state, Lin Qiye, who had been mentally prepared to give him a beating, couldn't bring himself to do it.
"Is there still a chance for him to become a god?" Lin Qiye asked quietly.
"...Hard to say." Guan Zai sighed. "I designed this game merely to push him. To make him actively try to create a law... Until the very last moment, no one can know if he'll find that契机."
Lin Qiye stood silent for a moment, then nodded.
"Understood. No matter what, I'll have Wu "Old Dog" come over first... even if it doesn't work, we can at least preserve his consciousness."
Lin Qiye reached for his phone, only to discover several missed calls on it—all from the past day or two, from Min Junliang.
Lin Qiye frowned, a bad feeling creeping over him. He immediately dialed back.
"Hello?"
"Hello, Commander! You're back?!" Min Junliang's voice was frantic with anxiety.
"What happened?"
"..."
...
After eliminating Shen Qingzhu and Lin Qiye, Aimeimei's gaze shifted to the far edge of the venue.
In the vast sea of people, no trace of Yuzuri Takishiro could be seen.
Aimeimei coldly hummed. Her eyes swept across her surroundings as her voice rang out through the microphone across the entire venue:
"Yuzuri Takishiro, come out and face me!"
As her words fell, the audience below wore bewildered expressions, looking around in confusion, not understanding why Aimeimei suddenly said this.
In the spacious venue, not a single disturbance emerged, as if he simply wasn't here.
Aimeimei narrowed her eyes at this. "Fine... if that's how you want it, don't blame me."
In the next instant, the 【Group Photo】 countdown appeared on the screen behind her.
"Three... two... one! Say cheese~!"
As the image on the screen froze, still no disturbance occurred in the venue.
How could this be?
Why didn't Skill 2's judgment succeed?
Aimeimei received a judgment-failed notification, bewilderment flickering in her eyes. She turned back to the large group photo on the screen. A failed judgment for 【Group Photo】 meant Yuzuri Takishiro had definitely appeared in the picture!
Just then, a calm voice emerged from the speakers:
"Don't bother. You won't find me."
"The truth is, breaking your combo-kill setup isn't hard at all... As long as you avoid being seen while completing 【Group Photo】."
"Seven Night-ge and Qingzhu-ge were judged-killed by you because they were both in combat at the time, making them instantly visible... Now I've changed clothes and hidden among these tens of thousands of spectators. As long as I don't take the initiative to attack you, you can't spot me. Even if you locate my position in the photo, I can quickly change positions."
"In that case, no matter how many times you use 【Group Photo】 or 【Cheer】, you can't do anything to me."
At the edge of the southwestern stands, a teenager in a jacket and baseball cap kept his head bowed, speaking slowly through a microphone tucked in his sleeve. In this enormous venue, his presence was utterly unremarkable.
Aimeimei's gaze swept across the venue, but she couldn't distinguish Yuzuri Takishiro's form at all. Frowning, she spoke again:
"You think delaying things until those two revive gives you a chance? If I had to guess... you can't even hold on for ten minutes in your current state, can you?"
While speaking, Aimeimei gave the three security guards a meaningful look. They immediately rushed into the crowd to search for Yuzuri Takishiro.
Yuzuri Takishiro glanced at his health bar, a helpless expression crossing his face.
【350/350】
As time passed, his health bar depleted faster and faster. Now he lost nearly fifty points per minute. At this rate, he could only survive another seven minutes at most... He wouldn't live to see Lin Qiye and Shen Qingzhu revive.
"I don't understand. I'm a player just like the other two. Why are you specifically targeting me? When Guan-shu designed you, did he add some strange settings?" Yuzuri Takishiro asked, puzzled.
"Player?" Aimeimei laughed lightly. "You don't actually think this is just a game... and that I'm a boss character in a game, do you?"
Hearing these words, Yuzuri Takishiro frowned slightly, not understanding what Aimeimei meant.
If it's not a game... what could it be?
Aimeimei's gaze grew sharp. She spoke slowly: "You've been to the basement. You must have seen those things. The Second Pure Land, artificial gods, experiments... Seeing all that, doesn't it feel familiar?"
"Aren't these just game background lore that was designed?" Yuzuri Takishiro frowned. "【Pure Land】 was destroyed long ago. There's no second 【Pure Land】 in this world, nor will there be a second artificial god."
Aimeimei coldly smiled.
"You're wrong... This sports arena was indeed generated by the game, yes. But everything you saw underground, and me—all of it is real." Aimeimei paused. "That includes the 【Second Pure Land】 and the artificial god experiments... And the one who created them is called Ōyabu Tsunayoshi."
"This name may not be familiar to you, but you should know his other name..."
"He is 【Mirror Disaster】."