"Li Zi died? I really didn’t know."
Jiaozi Niu didn’t feel much about the death of an old friend,
"Anyway, his consciousness had long been backed up . He might have already uploaded it. Just waiting for the electronic immigration zone of ’Starry Abyss’ to be completed so he could live there."
"No, it’s not that."
Xia Yubing glanced at Jiaozi Niu,
"Li Zi committed suicide."
"Suicide?" Jiaozi Niu’s pupils contracted in shock, "How could this be? In this day and age, soone would still commit suicide?"
Compared to simply dying, suicide was indeed rarer.
"He probably faced so unbearable pain. I saw his obituary on the news."
Xia Yubing took out her terminal, searched for the news article from that day, and showed it to Jiaozi Niu,
"Look—the police report: ’The deceased’s ho was clean and tidy, items were orderly, and no suicide note was left. The body died from an overdose of sleeping pills. It’s as if he had never been in this world at all.’"
Jiaozi Niu stared at the projected screen’s information, the black and white text conveying simple information.
The deceased was a young, handso man with a cold look, drooping eyelids, and mouth corners, appearing indifferent to the world. Despite looking unwell, his good looks would certainly have attracted many girls.
Now, he could only be immortalized in this black and white photo.
A familiar face, leaving so strangely.
"Li Zi... I rember he was good with swords, even though he had no real training. He sparred with the instructors quite well."
Jiaozi Niu mumbled,
"No matter what, he shouldn’t have given up on the future. Living is good. As long as you’re alive, there’s hope for tomorrow. This is just... too cowardly."
"You have no right to demand others to be as strong as you," Xia Yubing put away her phone, "He’s already dead, leaving no will. He probably had no attachnt to the future. There’s no need to criticize or bla him."
"If it were , I would never choose suicide," Jiaozi Niu insisted, "No matter what difficulties I face, even if dood, I’ll keep moving forward."
"Good thought, but not everyone is as brave as you. I had a good relationship with Li Zi. He was planning to go to college. Who knew this would happen?"
Xia Yubing shrugged,
"Co on, we should go to the dinner party."
"Yeah, we shouldn’t keep the manager and others waiting."
Jiaozi Niu, no longer dwelling on Li Zi, followed Xia Yubing into the clubhouse.
Passing through the fighting arenas, the sll of food imdiately filled the air.
"Oh, the aroma of noodles." Jiaozi Niu’s eyes lit up.
"An expert," Xia Yubing imdiately added.
"Co on, don’t use such old jokes. They’re too outdated, no punchline at all."
"I can’t help it. I’m just a nostalgic person."
Xia Yubing stretched lazily,
"When sothing becos nostalgic, it ans its era is over. But, since it’s rembered, it wasn’t entirely aningless or wrong."
"In an era full of spaceships, electronic immigrants, the Cosmic Federation, and neural-link gas, joining a historical martial arts club is already nostalgic," Jiaozi Niu retorted.
"Damn—I heard your two chatterboxes from far away."
The restaurant’s curtain was lifted, and a tall, thin young man raised his middle fingers to the two of them with a mocking smile,
"You two can talk about anything. If you arrived later, we wouldn’t need the TV; we’d just listen to you two. Put you guys on stage: after a sip of cola, seven parts turn into a cody act, and the remaining three parts, a half-pieces show of storytelling."
"Wow, Brother Wen Long, look at you. If I started doing cody, you’d have to clean the floors and bathrooms. Then, when you tune into ’New Star in Cody, Xia Yubing,’ and the audience applauds, don’t drop any pearls."
Xia Yubing spread her hands.
"Get out of here! Trick your friends, not yourself."
Wen Long looked at Jiaozi Niu,
"You’re here, Ah Niu. It’s been a while. How’s it going? Which university did you get into?"
"Huanfeng Thirteen Heavy Industry University, but there are hardly any classes," Jiaozi Niu said.
"That’s good. Co by more often to spar," Wen Long wiped the oil and flour from his hands and shouted into the restaurant, "Hey, manager, Ah Niu’s here. Let’s start cooking those dumplings!"
"Damn it. Why are you so late? I wanted everyone to make dumplings together!"
The manager Qi Qianlu shouted indignantly,
"Sherice insists on adding mozzarella cheese to the dumplings and even wants to bake them. God, soone stop him—And you, Cathy! Beer is for making duck, not for the chef to drink!"
"What’s with you guys and all these old jokes today?"
Jiaozi Niu retorted, suddenly leaping sideways out of habit.
Plop.
He lifted his head, instinctively turning and assuming a combat stance, his eyes eting a pair of beautiful brown-yellow eyes.
"Yo, Kiddo."
The girl greeted him, casually putting away her practice foil,
"Weren’t you preparing for exams? How co it feels like your reaction speed is even faster after not training for a year?"
"Hey, Jenna, why’d you bring out the weapons again?" Wen Long complained, "Did you sneak into the storage again?"
"Relax, relax, I have the key. I’ll put them back later."
Jenna didn’t care, smiling and looking at Jiaozi Niu,
"I haven’t slacked off all year. Getting stronger again? Planning to join the competition this ti? How about a few rounds later?"
"Not today," Jiaozi Niu thought for a mont, "Let’s catch up over dinner first. I’ll head ho afterward."
"Oh, speaking of that, too," Wen Long agreed, "I have stuff to do today as well, so I won’t stay long."
Jenna looked back and forth between the two, placing a finger on her cheek in curiosity,
"You guys, going to the sa ho?"
"Stop with the outdated jokes," Jiaozi Niu unexpectedly glanced at Wen Long and said, "I think I know what Brother Wen Long is up to."
"Heh heh, you guessed right," Wen Long grinned, giving a knowing look.
Bam!
"Sa here!"
A large box of cola slamd onto the table, and a hearty man rubbed his hands together,
"Jenna, your classic cola."
"Yay! Thanks, Kan Shan." Jenna imdiately leaned over the table, grabbing a few cans from the box. She quietly drank, looking quite like a koala.
"Kan Shan, you too..."
Jiaozi Niu gave a knowing, masculine expression.
"After all this talk, I have no idea what you guys are on about,"
Xia Yubing complained,
"Don’t tell , it’s ’that,’ right? Like those outdated movies, where the writer couldn’t create suspense, so they kept saying ’that,’ ’that person,’ ’the unspeakable XX.’ And just when they’re about to reveal the truth, they keep repeating ’that,’ unfinished before dying—stop being cryptic. What are you three doing this afternoon instead of attending the event?"
"’Starry Abyss!’"
The three responded in perfect harmony.
"Tch!" Xia Yubing showed a look of disdain, "What’s so interesting about gas?"
"It’s different," Wen Long gestured fervently, "This ga is incredible. Developed as an electronic immigration project. Xue Chen is already waiting near the server interface for the public test, afraid to miss a good starting identity."
"It’s just a ga. Is it worth it?" Xia Yubing scoffed, "I won’t seek validation in a virtual world."
"Speaking of electronic immigration—will we get to see Ailei and Li Zi again?" Wang Kanshan scratched his head, "Frankly, I got along well with them. It’ll be great if we can reunite in another world once electronic immigration starts."
"It’s just a ga. Electronic souls are just a bunch of data. How can that compare to real flesh and blood?" Xia Yubing glared at him, "Once the server shuts down, your youth, your property, your digital wife and family—all vanish. I won’t let money-hungry capitalists control my fate."
"I’m planning to join too."
Jenna raised her hand. The cute mixed-race girl drank her cola quietly, resembling a koala.
"Jenna, you..." Xia Yubing was incredulous, "You have such a fulfilling real life. Why think about finding validation in a virtual world?"
"Because I can’t do intense activities in real life," Jenna said, casually detaching her leg, "See, got a new one last month. My heart’s just had a cloned organ transplant. Doctor advised rest for six months, but I don’t want to idle."
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