Another Endgame Crisis?

The official Wasteland OL website. Today, as always, the forum was bustling. Players who had received their expansion pack rewards took to the boards in droves to share their experiences. Unsurprisingly, complaints roasting Goblin Tech products dominated the trending topics. After all, customers of other brands—including Boulder Military Industries—hadn't logged off yet. Even if they had complaints, they could wait their turn. African Chieftain: "Holy shit! Mosquito, your stuff is a total scam!" Nascent Soul Master: "It was supposed to be an explosive thruster! Why the hell did it blow up the second I hit the button?! (Dumbfounded)" Repeat Offender No. 1: "Hahahaha! Explosive thruster—it did exactly what it said on the tin!" Brave Piggy: "Scam artist! You blew off my bro's junk! (Rage)" Brave Cow: "Fuck off! My name is Niu Niu!" A Thinking Person: "Why are players still cursing? Weren't you supposed to screen players? Ah Guang, how are you vetting these people?!" Tyrannosaurus Warrior: "Hurry up and give me his helmet!!! (Screaming)" Elaina: "First time playing this game? Goblin Tech products are always like that. You'll get used to it. (Funny)" Elven King Fugui: "You guys are really blaming Mosquito unfairly. He already gave you his best stuff. If you can't handle it, I suggest unchecking the 'Player-Crafted Product Reward Pool' box. (Funny)" Several versions ago, player-crafted gear had already been allowed on the system store. However, adding them into the expansion pack's lottery prize pool was a recent development. Of course, considering that players' wild imaginations didn't always produce positive results, opting into the prize pool wasn't mandatory. Checking the box also granted a weighted boost to the player's lottery odds. Wasteland OL had always been very accommodating in this regard. As for the brothers who played and couldn't afford to lose... Well, then they couldn't afford to lose. Mosquito's skin was thicker than a city wall anyway; attacks like this barely scratched him. Just as the wave of rookies was furiously laying siege to Mosquito, an explosive post suddenly crashed into everyone's view. Ye Shi: "Breaking news!!! The missile cruiser Orion has allegedly been hijacked! A hundred thousand neutron torpedoes are primed and ready!!" Tail: "Giao???" Jieyan: "What the hell?!" Commander Spring: "Cough... A missile cruiser? From the South Sea Alliance? And what on earth are a hundred thousand neutron torpedoes?" The post immediately stirred up massive waves across the forum! While the boards never lacked clickbait, Ye Shi was no ordinary clickbaiter. Because he frequently leaked insider information, players privately joked that he was Ah Guang's favorite son. His words carried weight; it was merely a matter of how much. Because of this, not only did the players clamoring for 'consumer rights' immediately shift their attention, but even Boss Mosquito, who had been playing dead, jumped out. WC Really Has Mosquitoes: "What the hell?! Which blind bastard is looking for trouble with our Alliance now?!" African Chieftain: "Awoooo! Let's get 'em! (Rage)" As usual, Ye Shi reserved the first post to claim the spotlight. Only after the thread had reached over a hundred replies and everyone's appetites were thoroughly whetted did he begin recounting the entire incident in detail. "...We captured an Enlightenment Society disciple in Avent City. He's a resident of Shelter 68. According to clues extracted from his memories, their goal in hijacking the Academy's research vessel was to reach the missile cruiser Orion in geostationary orbit." Commander Spring: "Two questions. Aren't they based on the space station at the Lagrange point? Why would they need an Academy research vessel? And since the Academy has so many research vessels, why didn't they claim that orbital outhouse in geostationary orbit first?" Fang Chang: "The first point is actually quite easy to explain. Being on a space station at the Lagrange point doesn't mean they possess the capability to travel back and forth between the Lagrange point and geostationary orbit. It's even possible they aren't physical entities at all, but merely strings of data residing on a hard drive or server." Sisi: "'Digital ghosts'?" Meat Mountain Steamed Bun: "Hiss... That's terrifying. (Scared)" Commander Spring: "And the second question?" Fang Chang: "There are many possible explanations. I'm more inclined to believe the Academy tried, but failed due to inadequate conditions, so they shelved the matter. To be frank, no matter which angle you look at it from, reverse-engineering causes from results is largely pointless." Mole: "I think it's damn pointless too. Just tell us what we should do." Fang Chang: "How should I know what to do? I'm not the Administrator. In any case, the next expansion might involve space. That's... pretty much it. (Side-eye)" Jieyan: "Damn it! That analysis of yours is way too sloppy!" In Debt God: "The dev was just getting ready to copy your homework, but cursed under his breath and put his pen back down. (Funny)" Construction Site Boy and Bricks: "Ah Guang: Bro, you're making things very difficult for me. (Funny)" Thunder King Professor Yang: "Sigh. Watching you all turn Wasteland OL into Space OL breaks my heart." Tyrannosaurus Warrior: "Ahhh, hurry up and blow up the server!" Ye Shi: "Starfield OL, launch! (Funny)" Tail: "Oh! Rou Rou, launch!" Rou Rou: "Our ship can only sail in the ocean! (Crying laughing)" Sisi: "Looks like property prices in Coral City are about to skyrocket—assuming the deep sea can block neutron torpedoes." Sesame Paste: "Since they're called torpedoes... I don't like our chances. (Helpless)" "..." The thread derailed rapidly. And it showed no signs of returning to the topic. Sitting inside the shelter, Chu Guang glanced through a few game chat groups and saw that the veteran players had indeed relocated their battlefield there, though none had any brilliant ideas either. It made sense. Those were a hundred thousand 'neutron warheads.' Firepower of that magnitude was far beyond what any survivor faction on the wasteland could handle. Watching the lines of messages flickering across the holographic screen, Chu Guang twirled the pen in his fingers, his brow deeply furrowed. "This is going to be trouble..." *** Meanwhile, on the other side. In the sewers of Avent City. The beam of a flashlight wavered across moss-covered stone walls, startling a few rats hiding beneath a pile of refuse. Walking along the passageway, Feng Qing and Gui Gui followed the route marked on their VM maps, chatting idly as they advanced toward their objective. "Ummm... So you're saying that right now, a hundred thousand neutron bombs are aimed directly at our heads?" "That's what the forum says." "Yikes... That sounds rough." "Rough indeed." After working with their friends from the Burning Corps to escort the 'prisoner' to the guard station, the two had only briefly checked their injuries before equipping fresh gear and plunging back into the sewers to finish the quest that had been interrupted. Although both had taken considerable beatings, neither was injured badly enough to be incapacitated. Still, the thought of so many giant munitions hanging overhead left Gui Gui feeling somewhat disheartened. It felt just like clocking in at the office while the world was about to end. "...Dammit! Why are we even doing this stupid quest then!" Gui Gui grumbled, kicking a loose pebble that clanged sharply against the sewer's metal grating. Feng Qing gave her an odd look. "Why? Because of the thousand silver coins, of course. That's a whole thousand silver coins!" Looking at this girl who seemed entirely unfazed even by the apocalypse, Gui Gui didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "But... what's the point of silver coins if the world is going to end?" Feng Qing said, "To put it crudely, they can at least be exchanged for real money, right?" "Uh, fair point." Gui Gui scratched her head, momentarily unable to refute that. At the very least, the Silver Exchange hadn't experienced any major fluctuations. Several mysterious buyers were still quietly hoarding coins. In fact, they seemed to be buying even more than before. Feng Qing patted Gui Gui's shoulder with a smile. "Relax, relax. If the sky falls, the tall folks will hold it up. There's no point in us worrying about it down here." "Your mindset is way too chill," Gui Gui sighed, then had a sudden thought. "Hey, do you think the trash dev couldn't afford to keep this up and is using this to... reboot the server? And then go into open beta?" "Hard to say." Feng Qing pondered for a moment before speaking. "Though if that happens... I think I'd probably give my helmet to someone who needs it." Gui Gui stared at her in shock, startled by the remark. "Damn, I just praised your chill mindset, and now you're going AFK?" Feng Qing chuckled. "It's not really going AFK, though practically speaking there's not much difference..." After thinking a bit more, she adopted a rare, earnest tone. "I just feel that... if all the familiar people are gone, and the rebooted world has none of their traces or continuation left, wouldn't it be better to let them and everything about this world live on in my memory? For me, this story will have reached its end. That's roughly how I feel, I suppose." Though she wasn't the protagonist, this adventure held no regrets for her. A rebooted world wouldn't simply end. It wouldn't cease turning just because it was missing a tiny cog like her; in fact, it might even run more smoothly than before. She had a strong premonition. The successors who took the torch from their hands would run faster and go farther! Perhaps among those energetic newcomers, there would even be another girl named 'Feng Qing'—a completely different person, yet possessing no less strength and bravery. She would inherit the handle, scaling the peaks that Feng Qing could once only look up at. Seeing the faint smile curling at Feng Qing's lips, Gui Gui let out a long sigh and scratched the back of her head. "I can understand what you're saying, even if my thoughts are totally different... For me, making new friends all over again and repeating everything I've already done sounds like way too much hassle." Pausing for a few seconds, she turned to look at Feng Qing, her tone turning solemn. "If that day really comes, I'd probably do the same thing as you." Feng Qing smiled and slapped her best friend's shoulder. "Isn't it a bit early for us to be talking about this? Let's earn those thousand silver coins first!" "Yeah!" Gui Gui nodded vigorously, her previously listless face reigniting with spirited enthusiasm. Even if tomorrow brought the end of the world, she was going to clear every quest in her log first! Otherwise, if the servers really shut down, leaving that mutant nest in the Avent City sewers untouched would be a lifelong regret. Guided by the VM map, the two traversed a long, narrow corridor, dismantled a barred gate, climbed down a shaft, crossed a flooded area, and ascended a high platform via a metal ladder. That frightened little rat had certainly run far. It must have taken quite an ordeal for it to trek all the way beneath 17th Street just to gnaw on pipes. Were the pipes over there sweeter or something? The two then squeezed through a twisting passage, and the view ahead suddenly opened up. This space was entirely different from where they had been. There was no foul sewer stench here; instead, the air was surprisingly dry and crisp. The walls on either side were not made of brick and stone, but of a polymer material neither of them recognized. Soon, an escalator-like structure appeared before them. Judging from the scattered debris on the floor and the tightly shut roll-up doors flanking the area, this looked like an underground shopping street. Or something similar. "Could this be... a pre-war civilization ruin?" Gui Gui's voice grew excited. Who knew they'd hit the jackpot right before the end of the world? Feng Qing was clearly astounded by the discovery as well. She held up her flashlight, scanning the surroundings with her mouth agape, unable to utter a word for a long while. Gui Gui walked over to one of the roll-up doors and tried to heave it open, but found it rusted solid and gave up. Stepping back two paces to inspect the layout, she couldn't help whispering, "So the Wilante built a sewer on top of a ruin?" Feng Qing thought for a moment before replying thoughtfully, "Maybe it wasn't the Wilante who built it... This settlement didn't belong to them at first, did it?" Gui Gui blinked. "Oh, right." Feng Qing walked over to the dust-covered escalator, peered down into the pitch-black circular concourse below, and continued, "Two centuries ago, the earliest survivors founded a settlement called Avent City on these ruins. They salvaged everything they could, and walled off the underground facilities they couldn't salvage with fences and grating to keep mutants from nesting inside. "About half a century later—maybe a bit more—the settlement was captured by the Wilante. Most of the survivors living in Avent City had been born during the Wasteland Era; they had already forgotten about this area sealed off by their parents, along with the memories attached to it. "The Wilante took over Avent City's legacy, but they didn't inherit the things even the locals had forgotten. They made improvements on the existing facilities and continuously expanded outward. What was once the new district became the old town, while this place became entirely lost to history." Listening to Feng Qing's analysis, Gui Gui rubbed her chin. "That explanation actually sounds pretty reasonable." Feng Qing gave a sheepish smile and said modestly, "It's just a guess. No guarantees on accuracy." "Guaranteed or not, the fact that this is a ruin from the Era of Prosperity is real enough!" Excited, Gui Gui pulled a reconnaissance drone from her backpack and slotted a thumb-sized drive into her helmet. Synchronization complete! The drone's camera feed immediately appeared on her helmet's tactical visor! "Let's see what those old-timers from the Era of Prosperity left behind down here!"