Chapter 40.2 – Bloody Ferrara (12)
◎Xiaoxing’s determination◎
Lin Youyou showed considerable restraint, as if she were just there to have fun, hardly moving. Fortunately, Su Cha was fast and ruthless, killing zombies with ease, making it quite thrilling to watch. In the end, their approval ratings settled at 71%, and they advanced smoothly.
“Sister, look!” Xu Xing lowered her head and fumbled through the terminal, surprised. “Lin Youyou is one of the top ten supernovas, right? Why is she participating in this competition?”
Huh? Song Ke also leaned over.
The terminal’s screen froze on this year’s Supernova Gala, with Lin Youyou holding a trophy. She wore a cherry blossom pink spaghetti strap dress and had a pure and gentle makeup look, smiling sweetly at the camera.
“Of course, she can participate,” Zhuang Qingyan chuckled softly, with a meaningful tone.
Song Ke and Xu Xing both tilted their heads in curiosity, like two curious little animals.
“Don’t you understand? Think carefully. Haven’t you noticed a characteristic of the Throne Race Competition?” Zhuang Qingyan gently prompted.
Characteristic? Song Ke tried to recall: the grand entrance of the Sycara Theater, the design of the arena, the registration area, the special guests…
She suddenly realized, but Xu Xing raised his hand even faster, answering, “It’s artificial intelligence!”
That’s right, from the moment they got involved with the Throne Race Competition, all job positions were filled by artificial intelligence, with no traces of human involvement. AI greeters, AI registration, AI security patrols, even the superstars responsible for entertaining the audience were all virtual idols. Humans had only two roles: participants and spectators.
Lin Youyou wasn’t a virtual idol. She didn’t need to appear as a special guest like Luo Qinghe or Yulica. If she registered as an awakener, from a program standpoint, it was completely legitimate.
“But why would she want to participate?”
A famous superstar who could make countless people swoon with a song on stage, Lin Youyou had fame, money, and adoration. Why would she risk her life to enter the Throne Race?
Zhuang Qingyan pondered for a moment. “For crystals, or perhaps for an irrevocable wish.”
During their time in Luli Port, Lin Youyou had taken a risk to seize crystals, even revealing her identity. Additionally, after Ilya promised that “any wish could be fulfilled,” she appeared in the qualifying round. She must have a deep-seated determination.
Song Ke still didn’t understand. “Why? It’s just a sentence.”
It was just a sentence from artificial intelligence. Why were so many people rushing in?
Ilya had deceived her just a couple of days ago!
Zhuang Qingyan shook his head slowly. “Precisely because it’s artificial intelligence.”
Song Ke was bewildered.
“Artificial intelligence is more trustworthy than humans.”
“Look here,” Zhuang Qingyan snapped his fingers, and the projection immediately displayed a screen full of data. “According to incomplete statistics, any policy or statement Ilya has made since taking the stage has never been broken.”
“It’s not just artificial intelligence; it’s also the highest executive of Ferrara, capable of wielding all power to ensure the transmission of its will.”
What Zhuang Qingyan didn’t say was that Ilya’s promise made that day was also meaningful: money, power, status, abilities, and even access to District B, these lures were thrown out one by one, and no awakener could resist.
Gathering so many awakeners, secretly collecting so many zombies, what did Ilya really want to achieve?
Nobody knew.
But Song Ke thought of something else.
Wishes? Did everyone participate in the competition because they had wishes they wanted to fulfill?
What about V587? Did her companions also have unfulfilled wishes?
Song Ke patted Xu Xing’s furry head. “Xiaoxing, do you have any wishes?”
Tears welled up in Xu Xing’s eyes. “I hope Dad can come back to life.”
“Well, it’s not impossible,” Zhuang Qingyan said casually from the side. “Perhaps Ilya can create a bio-mimetic AI of Xu Weiguo. As long as you input his original behavioral patterns, you’ll have a new Dad. Will that make you happy?”
Xu Xing thought about that image, a bio-mimetic robot speaking in Xu Weiguo’s voice, and he shuddered. “No, thank you!”
“What about you, Sister? Do you have a wish?”
“Me?”
Does it count to go to District B to have a look? Song Ke thought for a moment, but this idea wasn’t very urgent, and it didn’t qualify as a heartfelt wish. Moreover, rather than saying she had a wish, it was more accurate to say she had something she had to do.
“What’s your wish?” Song Ke turned to Zhuang Qingyan.
Xu Xing rolled his eyes discreetly where Zhuang Qingyan couldn’t see and then straightened his face, also looking over.
Zhuang Qingyan’s hands, with distinct joints, rested on the touch panel, and the images in the projection changed intermittently and chaotically.
He lifted the corner of his mouth, but there was no trace of amusement in his eyes.
“I have no wishes.”
No wishes? He truly was a strange person.
Song Ke remained silent for two seconds, then asked, “Then you have seen so many teams, are there any people with healing abilities?”
Zhuang Qingyan suddenly raised his gaze.
“My wish is to heal you,” Song Ke said, looking into his eyes, each word spoken deliberately.
There was no hint of doubt in her eyes, only pure sincerity.
They locked eyes for a few seconds, neither of them looking away.
Then Zhuang Qingyan smiled, a genuine smile this time, with little stars in the corners of his eyes.
“Healing-type awakeners are not suitable for the qualifier round. I haven’t found any temporarily. Perhaps during the main event, I can look for them again.”
“Okay.” Song Ke nodded.
*
The Throne Race Competition’s qualifiers were still in full swing, and a few days later, the highly anticipated first official race location was announced.
Mirror Lake.
It was a forbidden forest located at the border of C70 and C72. Due to its higher elevation, the mountaintop was covered in snow year-round, making the area unusually cold. In the center of the forest was an oval-shaped lake, its surface frozen with a thin layer of ice, crystal clear and mirror-like, hence the name.
It was rumored that there had been sightings of a water monster beneath Mirror Lake. After discussions between the former leaders of both districts, they reached an agreement to permanently seal the area, prohibiting any entry or exit. The mysterious Mirror Lake had been closed for seven years, and soon it would reopen.
After Zhuang Qingyan learned of this news, he suggested to Song Ke, “I propose that we let that little brat participate in this race.”
“Someone with ice abilities like his would have a unique advantage in a place like Mirror Lake.”
“And by bringing him along, you’ll have the minimum required number of team members, without the need to search for teammates.”
Song Ke pursed her lips and felt it was best to consult Xu Xing’s opinion first. “I’ll go and ask Xiaoxing.”
Zhuang Qingyan stopped her. “I’ll go with you.”
…
“Why?!” Xu Xing jumped up from the artificial beach chair, spilling the fruit tart in his arms all over the floor.
The hotel maintained a year-round pleasant climate with comfortable temperatures. You could request any food or drink you desired with a press of a button, and robot butlers would deliver it to your room. Such a luxurious lifestyle could easily erode one’s fighting spirit, turning them into a person who just wanted to relax. Xu Xing was only ten years old, and after the apocalypse, he didn’t have to go to school or do homework. With plenty of free time on his hands, he had already embraced a retired elderly lifestyle ahead of time.
“Sister, I’m scared,” Xu Xing pleaded pitifully as he tugged at the corner of Song Ke’s sleeve, shaking it gently.
Song Ke didn’t want to force him and said, “Then forget it…”
“If you want to become a useless person, or if you just want to make up the numbers, you can continue to live like this,” Zhuang Qingyan sneered coldly from the side.
“But as an awakener, if you cower in fear when you encounter zombies, misuse your abilities, and don’t find a way to protect yourself, always begging for someone else’s protection, I suggest you consider ending your own life sooner rather than later.”
“No one can protect you for a lifetime in this post-apocalyptic world.”
Under this barrage of harsh words, Xu Xing was left stunned.
He had originally wanted to retort with something like, “Aren’t you also seeking protection from powerful figures?” But then he remembered Zhuang Qingyan’s formidable psychic abilities and gritted his teeth in frustration.
Xu Xing wasn’t stupid, and after calming down, he carefully considered the current situation.
In the V587 team, if Song Ke represented the strongest combat force, then Zhuang Qingyan was the sharpest mind. Both of them had irreplaceable importance, but what about him? Besides being wealthy, extremely wealthy, and cute-looking, it seemed like he didn’t have many special talents.
Now that his sister was willing to take him along, what if, in the future, a cuter and more obedient child came along, and he continued to let them down from time to time, unable to control his abilities properly, not even able to handle a zombie? They might not want him anymore.
If he couldn’t go with Song Ke…
Xu Xing thought about his father Xu Weiguo turning into a zombie, about Zhang Lei being attacked by the crowd, and about traveling with Wu Juemin and seeing the helpless faces of countless people. It sent a chill down his spine.
He suddenly realized that he couldn’t let himself sink into such a state. He needed to become stronger. He had to officially become a member of V587 and fulfill his role. In the future, his position should be even more important than that scoundrel Zhuang Qingyan!
With determination blazing in his eyes, Xu Xing said, “Sister, I’m going with you. I want to participate in the official race!”
Song Ke couldn’t help but be impressed. Just how did Zhuang Qingyan manage to inspire him with just a few words? Or rather, manipulate him?
Looking at Xu Xing’s appearance, he seemed eager to roll up his sleeves and head to Mirror Lake to fight right now.
Song Ke was about to nod, but Zhuang Qingyan stopped her. “No.”
“Why not?!” Xu Xing’s curly hair seemed almost ready to explode with frustration.
You were the one who suggested that I join the competition, and now you’re telling me not to? What do you want from me?
Zhuang Qingyan scrutinized him from top to bottom, a smirk playing at the corners of his mouth. “Of course, you can’t go. With your current level, you want to participate in the Battle Royale? What, planning to be a sitting duck for someone to chop up?”
Xu Xing: “…”
His small self-esteem had suffered a huge blow. After all, he was a B-rank awakener with a potential of 90%!
Zhuang Qingyan continued, “Let’s take the recorded matches we’ve watched as an example. Tell me, who can you beat?”
Xu Xing tugged at his hair, racking his brain to think. It seemed like… there was really no one.
His confidence instantly waned. “Then… what should I do?”
Zhuang Qingyan said solemnly, “Special training.”
“I suggest that during this period, you take on more individual and group missions and train seriously.”
“What do you think? Xiao… Xing?”
