Chapter 785 — Mind Storm
Blade of Dawn · Page 2 of 4
The crowds thronging the town's streets seemed utterly unaware of Daniel and his party, still busily going about their own lives—hurrying on their way, conversing with family and friends. The Sleepers' squad standing in the middle of the road was glaringly conspicuous, yet in the eyes of all the residents it was as if they were invisible.
Daniel could not help but break into a cold sweat on his forehead.
This phantom town had grown "lively," yet this bustling, vibrant street was more bizarre and terrifying than the empty, night-shrouded streets before!
"This is also a projection of Sandbox One," Selina's voice suddenly rang out, breaking the squad's silence. "These residents are likely just acting according to the data recorded in the projection, like a large-scale illusion. They won't interact with us."
"…This has greatly inspired my nightmare-weaving," Magnum muttered at a volume louder than a normal person's speaking voice. "Why didn't I ever think of a scene like this before?"
"Let's keep moving," Selina said, shaking her head. "And pay attention to what these 'phantom residents' are saying—their everyday talk may reveal part of the current state of Sandbox One."
The group continued toward the center of the town, advancing cautiously along the town streets where passersby came and went.
Everyone took care not to come into contact with those "phantom residents"—though all were intensely curious whether these shadows could be touched, and what would happen if one did, anyone capable of joining an exploration mission had at least basic prudence. With the situation unclear, no one made such a bold attempt that might trigger any number of consequences.
Gao Yang devoted part of his attention to listening carefully to the phantom residents' conversations: he too was full of curiosity about the "life" within Sandbox One.
Most of that talk was worthless—just like any ordinary street-corner small talk, the "residents" discussed nothing but the weather, the harvest, family gossip, and the price of firewood, oil, and rice.
The people of Sandbox One seemed to live ordinary lives as well: they were born, aged, sickened, and died in that virtual world; they married and buried; they had their own worries and their own wishes, toiling for a living and fretting over the future…
The only difference from the real world was that in their conversations they would from time to time mention the "Upper Narrator"—they prayed to Him, swore by Him, and even made Him part of everyday idiom.
They would say, "Even the Upper Narrator would be surprised," to describe how inconceivable something was; they would say, "The Upper Narrator surely knows," a phrase that actually meant one knew nothing about something—only a god could know.
Gao Yang's brow furrowed slightly, his thoughts stirring.
In a sense, the Sleepers truly had created a miracle—a miracle even greater than the Order of All-Endings' "Body of the False God."
So many people—living, genuine minds alongside "virtual personalities" manufactured by the sandbox—living in such a simulated world, passing through their richly varied lives generation after generation, each with their own joys, sorrows, pursuits, and yearnings. The world had run for over a thousand years before any flaw appeared.
Such advanced technology…
Couldn't they have done something decent with it?
If these tech geeks had diverted even half of the talent they used for courting death into solid work on artificial intelligence and the like, they might well have nearly restored the iron-man minds of the old Gondor Empire by now!!
A powerful urge to complain churned in Gao Yang's heart, while the whole squad had already reached the end of the street, arriving at the edge of the plaza in the town's center.
That small church with its gray-white outer walls and tall spire stood quietly in the plaza, just as expected.