Is this the true state of war? Humanity is so insignificant… like slaves to those weapons, illuminating them with their lives… Long Yuehong watched as bombs fell and missiles flew, covering the area where the "Old Task Force" was located.
He knew that the bulletproof armor modified from the Jeep couldn't withstand this level of bombardment at all. Whether they could survive depended solely on luck.
Long Yuehong felt as if his life had begun counting down, filled with both despair and attachment.
Despair because he couldn't think of a way to escape, and could only watch helplessly. Compared to opening the door, getting out, and rolling for cover, the Jeep at least provided a layer of protection as long as it wasn't directly hit. Attachment because he was unwilling, didn't want to die like this, wanted to return to "Pangu Biology" to show off his gains on the surface to his parents and younger siblings, share the experiences he could talk about, and live a normal life with relatively abundant supplies.
Just then, he heard Shang Jianyao shout from the other side of the back seat:
"This is unscientific!"
What's unscientific… As Long Yuehong was bewildered, he saw Shang Jianyao pounce over, throwing a punch.
The fist was aimed directly behind his ear!
Hey! You think it's unscientific so you hit me? The thought had just flashed through Long Yuehong's mind when he was caught off guard and struck by Shang Jianyao's fist.
With a bang, his vision went black, and he passed out.
In that instant before, Long Yuehong saw out of the corner of his eye that Team Leader Jiang also propped herself up from the passenger seat, punching Bai Chen, who was driving, with her right fist, while aiming her left palm at "Garibaldi" Giuseppe.
Jiang Baimian's movements were only a fraction of a second slower than Shang Jianyao's.
The sensation of unconscious darkness gradually disappeared, and Long Yuehong regained some thoughts:
Why did Shang Jianyao shout that it was unscientific?
Why did being unscientific mean he had to punch me?
This is good too. Being bombed to death while unconscious is at least less painful…
As his thoughts wandered aimlessly, Long Yuehong suddenly felt the darkness shaking.
The shaking grew more and more violent, forcibly opening a gap in the darkness, letting in dazzling light.
Long Yuehong suddenly opened his eyes and saw Shang Jianyao's body stretched over from above "Garibaldi" Giuseppe, one hand grabbing his shoulder and shaking him, the other holding a flashlight, shining it on his face.
"…" Long Yuehong was first bewildered, then raised his hand to shield his eyes. "Stop, stop, stop!"
"He's awake," Jiang Baimian, in the passenger seat, stopped Shang Jianyao.
Shang Jianyao regretfully turned off the flashlight, released his hand, and sat back down.
Long Yuehong's heart stirred. He suddenly sat up straight and looked around.
He found that the Jeep was intact, none of the team members were injured, and although the surrounding streets looked a bit dilapidated, there were no signs of bombing.
More importantly, the Jeep seemed to have just left the Sika Luo Temple's attached parking lot, which was not how he remembered it:
They were almost turning onto another road!
"This…" Long Yuehong blurted out, "A dream? Were we just dragged into a Lucid Dream?"
"And a connected one," Jiang Baimian replied in a low voice from the passenger seat.
"It's changed from a single-player game to an online game," Shang Jianyao chimed in.
"I almost caused a car accident," Bai Chen was still unnerved by the fact that she had fallen asleep and dreamed without realizing it.
On the one hand, the bombing in the dream made her feel the approach of death, and on the other hand, the brief sleep in reality almost made her drive the Jeep into a building next to the road, through the wall.
Long Yuehong suddenly understood, and looked at Shang Jianyao and asked:
"You said it was unscientific because you felt it was unreal and suspected it was a dream?"
"That's right," Shang Jianyao said seriously, "We all think that no one in 'First City' would be so generous as to deal with us. It's too wasteful. All our bounties combined couldn't buy a few missiles, could they?"
That's right, that kind of treatment is something only company action clusters can "enjoy"… Long Yuehong recalled the dream just now and felt that it was indeed the case.
Shang Jianyao continued:
"Once I suspected it was a dream, I decided to use you to experiment.
"Unconsciousness in a Lucid Dream is equivalent to unconsciousness in reality, and after becoming unconscious, you lose the ability to sense your surroundings, so you are no longer affected by the deadly attacks in the Lucid Dream."
Long Yuehong took a few seconds to respond:
"Thank you!"
He wasn't too angry, because if Shang Jianyao didn't use him as an experiment, it would mean he was being left in the dangerous queue.
At this moment, Bai Chen glanced at the rearview mirror:
"Team Leader, are we being targeted by an Awakened of the 'Mind Corridor' level in the 'Dawn' domain?"
This is much stronger than the Nightmare Mare's "Lucid Dream," and that person seems to have the ability to force sleep!
The thing the "Old Task Force" was most worried about had happened.
"Forced sleep" paired with "Lucid Dream" seemed so unsolvable!
Jiang Baimian nodded with a solemn expression:
"That's right.
"From now on, we might re-enter the dream at any moment, and we won't be able to detect it ourselves. Our cognition will deceive us."
…………
In the Northern Wastelands, Han Wanghuo, Zeng Duo, and Genaewa circled around, left the heavily polluted area, and entered a small town ruin, finding a place to shelter from the wind and rain.
After lighting a bonfire, Zeng Duo sat beside it, watching over the kettle placed above.
In the flickering firelight, she suddenly laughed:
"When I was little, I most yearned to go hunting with adults, searching for various supplies in the ruins. But now, I only hope for a pollution-free farmland, where I can survive without taking any more risks."
Han Wanghuo, who was preparing dinner, glanced at her:
"You're still thinking about yourself."
Zeng Duo smiled awkwardly:
"That's normal, isn't it? If there's a choice, everyone wants to have a better life. Isn't it because there isn't one?
"Last night, I dreamed that my illness could still be cured."
Han Wanghuo's expression suddenly froze.
A few seconds later, he said in a deep voice:
"I dreamed it too."
"Ah?" Zeng Duo looked blank.
Genaewa's red glowing eyes looked over:
"You've been dragged into a 'Lucid Dream'?"
"What was your dream like?" Han Wanghuo hurriedly asked Zeng Duo.
Zeng Duo didn't remember the details of the dream so clearly anymore, but she could still describe the overall situation.
After listening, Han Wanghuo said with a solemn expression:
"I had the same dream as you."
"This…" Zeng Duo was somewhat alarmed and confused, not understanding what such a dream meant.
"If you die in the Lucid Dream, you will also die in reality," Genaewa explained.
He turned to Han Wanghuo and said:
"The existence of Xiao Chong and the whereabouts of Da Bai and the others should all be known by the master of the dream."
"What should we do?" Zeng Duo blurted out.
Han Wanghuo replied calmly:
"We'll send a telegram to Xue Shiyue and Zhang Qubing later to remind them to be careful."
"Well, hopefully it's in time. The environment in the Northern Wastelands is complex. Unless you take a plane, it's impossible to reach First City from here in one day," Zeng Duo comforted herself.
Even by plane, they often have to avoid the extreme weather here.
However, the other side can also send a telegram to notify their accomplices in First City.
…………
"What should we do?" Long Yuehong asked subconsciously, then proactively suggested, "We can turn around now and return to the Sika Luo Temple. There's the 'Buddha's Manifestation Body' there, and many 'Perfectly Enlightened Ones'. They will definitely make the enemy give up."
Jiang Baimian stared at the streets under the night sky and slowly shook her head:
"First, even if we return to the Sika Luo Temple, all of this might just be a dream;
"Second, I suspect that tonight's coincidence is indeed not a coincidence. The purpose isn't to get us to Holm Fertility Medical Center."
She further explained:
"Someone on the seventh floor might have foreseen that there were enemies waiting for us outside, so they deliberately created an anomaly to force us out of the Sika Luo Temple and use the enemy's hand to kill us and eliminate the hidden danger."
Clearly, this was the side that didn't want the "Old Task Force" to go to Holm Fertility Medical Center.
Long Yuehong thought about it carefully and found that the team leader's guess did fit the logic and could explain all the problems.
"Who exactly is the enemy, and why are they targeting us? We haven't offended any sects that believe in the Ruling God 'Dawn'… Also, how did they know we were at the Sika Luo Temple…" Bai Chen slowed down the car while asking questions.
These questions were not meaningless. Figuring them out might lead to a way to fight against the powerful enemy.
Jiang Baimian seemed to have considered this question a long time ago and said after deliberation:
"There are no more than three possibilities:
"First, a strong individual from First City came specifically to arrest us. An Awakened in the 'Dawn' domain might not necessarily believe in 'Dawn'. But if it was an official force, our current encounter would definitely not be just this. Moreover, it's more likely that the master of the 'Virtual World' would come.
"Second, a friend of the person on the seventh floor came specifically to help him when he couldn't act. But there's also a problem with this. How did he notify his friend? He seems to be restricted and unable to do similar things."
Speaking of this, Jiang Baimian's voice turned grave:
"Third, that hidden force that has been secretly erasing the clues to the destruction of the Old World. After they learned that we obtained the access codes to the secret laboratory of Wasteland Ruin 13, they came specifically to eliminate us. There's also a problem with this. How did they know we were at the Sika Luo Temple? 'Prediction', or through some other means or channel?"
As soon as Jiang Baimian finished speaking, "Garibaldi" Giuseppe woke up.
He said in surprise and anger:
"First you knocked me out, and now you shocked me with electricity. What exactly do you want?
"Huh…"
He found no traces of being electrocuted on his body.
…………
Han Wanghuo, who was waiting for the time to send a telegram, suddenly thought of a question:
"Why didn't the person who dragged Zeng Duo and me into the 'Lucid Dream' just let us die in the dream after obtaining the information?"
That way, they wouldn't notice anything amiss and wouldn't send a telegram to remind Xue Shiyue and the others.
Moreover, dying in a dream wouldn't require facing Genaewa directly and worrying about whether their ability could affect robots.
After exhausting multiple possibilities, Genaewa emitted a slightly synthesized baritone voice:
"Perhaps something happened in the darkness at the time that startled him away.
"It's also possible that some condition was met."