Chapter 1 That Day, Everyone Was Celebrating

Lu Buer was sick again.

His head felt like it was about to split open, as if thousands of steel needles were piercing his nerves at the same time, and his body seemed to be cracking and collapsing inch by inch. He took a deep breath and endured the pain, and he didn't cry out even though he was sweating all over and his nails were digging into his flesh.

He subconsciously wanted to reach out for the medicine, but then he remembered that he had stopped taking medicine for a week.

With a bang, the empty medicine bottles piled on the table were knocked down by him and scattered.

The dormitory was silent, the closed windows trembled slightly in the cold wind, outside the window was a mottled building wall, the dilapidated air conditioner was still dripping water, and a bird's nest was built on the top of the dry old tree.

It took him a long time to recover, lying on the bed gasping for breath, his eyes blank.

On the wall hung a yellowed calendar with eye-catching red circles.

Today is January 17, 2046, the 3001st day of Lu Buer's fight against cancer. After he stops taking the medicine, he has to endure this severe cancer pain every day. He doesn't know how long he can hold on. Theoretically, when his anti-cancer medicine is stopped, he will be close to death.

"Brother Lu, we are leaving."

There was a knock on the door outside the dormitory. He Sai poked his head in and asked worriedly: "Is it really okay for you to stay in school alone? If it doesn't work, you can live in my house. Anyway, my parents are divorced. We can also wait for the public beta of "Pure Land" together. Haven't you been waiting for a long time?"

Before he finished speaking, he was interrupted by Lu Buer.

"There's nothing wrong with the dormitory, go back."

For Lu Buer, this is the only friend in the world who still cares about him, so he can't bother him: "I'll go to the Internet cafe to find you tomorrow. If you don't leave, the dormitory will be closed."

He Sai scratched his head and finally sighed:

"Okay, see you tomorrow."

He waved his hand and turned to meet up with his brothers at the end of the corridor.

The playground outside the window was empty, and the darkness was spreading in the night.

Now Lu Buer was the only one left in the school. After the final exams, it was winter vacation. Everyone would leave school and go back to reunite with their families. No one wanted to stay in this iron cage.

Especially the weather station warned that there might be a severe storm that was rare in nearly a hundred years tonight. The distant skyline was covered by dense dark clouds, and there was a faint flash of burning lightning, which seemed to tear a hole in the darkness, and the sound of thunder rolled faintly.

It was about to rain, and I could smell the strong earthy smell through the window. The strong wind blew up the dust and fallen leaves on the playground, as if it was going to swallow up the whole world.

Lu Buer went back to close the dormitory door, but found some bags at the door, which were filled with a pile of fast food and daily necessities.

"This kid..."

In fact, he didn't have much time, and he didn't want his best friend to waste time or money on a dying person like him, because there was no point.

Fortunately, this should be the last time.

He went back to the bathroom and washed his hands. The person in the mirror was as pale as a paper man, and the back of his right hand was covered with red and swollen pinholes, which was shocking at a glance.

The palms were scarred by nails, and there was a stinging feeling when washed with cold water, but it was nothing for him who was used to the pain of cancer. He had long been numb to the pain.

The new era of treatment technology, coupled with a healthy diet and hard exercise in daily life, kept his body in good condition, but it could not eliminate the pain brought by cancer.

Fortunately, he is almost out of it.

He will spend the last period of his life in the school dormitory.

Because Lu Buer has no home. His parents have been dead for ten years, and he has moved from a large flat to a rental house and a leaky attic, and finally to this small dormitory.

I still remember that when he was five years old, a shadow was found in his brain. He had undergone surgery to remove the tumor, but he didn't expect that the tumor would grow back the next year, which stumped the attending doctor of the hospital. After comprehensive consideration, the risk of another operation was too great, so only conservative treatment could be adopted.

The price was to burn a lot of money.

Lu Buer's parents worked as chief researchers in an Internet technology company and could afford the cost of treatment, but they didn't expect that they both died in a car accident on a business trip.

It all collapsed at once.

In the end, Lu Buer was left alone, struggling alone with the inheritance and compensation until today, and he was penniless.

Some people say that there is only one disease in the world that is the most difficult to cure, and that is poverty.

It's not bad.

Lu Buer could no longer afford the expensive anti-cancer drugs, and the cancer cells had already spread. Last month, a quack doctor recommended that he try the ancestral talisman ash water, which almost made him laugh.

The cancer cells would not survive after drinking that stuff, but the corpse would also attract flies.

It can only be said that some diseases are fate.

So he accepted his fate and began to count down his life.

He was not afraid of death, but he just didn't want to live like a zombie.

Before his life ended, he had one thing he had to do.

"Brother Lu, don't forget the public beta of "Pure Land"."

He Sai sent a message to remind him.

It was 6:45 in the evening, and there were still 15 minutes before the public beta of "Pure Land". The classmates were discussing the cross-era online game in the group. They had already pre-ordered the virtual helmet connected to the neural network and had started debugging at home.

Everyone seemed to be living a good life, but it was far from Lu Buer's life.

Lu Buer lay on the bed, staring out the window in a daze.

In just half an hour, the bustling long street had become empty, and the small shops on the street had closed one after another. There was not even a single person in the usually noisy night market.

The residential buildings in the alley turned on the lights one after another, and the tall buildings lit up in the darkness.

It was as if the dark world was lit up in an instant.

The public beta launch conference of "Pure Land" began.

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In the dark haze, Lu Buer's calm face was illuminated by the screen of his mobile phone.

"This is the punishment for usurping the throne. They disturbed the tomb of God, and the blood of God spread to the earth, and the disaster came. Natural disasters, natural disasters, and strange ghosts... They buried the bones of God in the soil and poured the sacred tree that reached the sky, so as to open the door to heaven and start the road of evolution."

The head of Aurora Technology appeared on the screen. His voice was like a torch lighting a mine, and a mysterious atmosphere spread out: "This is the origin of everything and the beginning of a new era. Every civilization cannot be reborn without undergoing changes."

Screens around the world are broadcasting this live broadcast, and the face of the head of Aurora Technology appears on every household's TV or everyone's mobile phone.

Lu Buer watched the live broadcast silently. In the lonely dormitory building, he could hear the cheers from the community outside, and the official live broadcast was swallowed up by the overwhelming barrage.

It makes people's hormones burst.

Because this is the expansion pack released during the public beta of "Pure Land", 2 billion people watched it online, and 195 countries paid close attention to it. It can be said that it was a national carnival.

"It's all because of that mysterious ancient tree."

"It is said that on July 17, 2046 in the solar calendar, an Arctic research ship from Aurora Technology broke through the ice and entered the forbidden land that no one had set foot on for billions of years. At the end of the world, they found a mysterious ancient giant tree and accidentally touched the truth of the universe!"

"About gods, about demons, about the origin of life and the existence of consciousness."

"The ancient myths are not fabricated, but humans have always misinterpreted their contents. That is not a mythological story, but a history recorded by gods. God has always been there, but he has been hidden in the vast river of history. Now, we have found the legacy of God, excavated the remains of God, reproduced the power of God, and opened up a way to God. long steps!"

"A new era begins, and mankind has ushered in an unprecedented technological explosion. We use God's legacy to establish a new order and change the whole world with God's gift!"

"No one knows whether this road leads to heaven or hell. When humans receive the gift of the sacred tree, they inadvertently violate terrible taboos. The natural environment has changed dramatically, extinct ancient creatures have revived, and an extremely terrible monster has invaded our world..."

This is the cross-era online game "Pure Land", the ultimate masterpiece released by Aurora Technology in ten years. It has achieved perfect neural sensory simulation, created a virtual world that can replace reality based on the concept of the metaverse, and made full use of sleep time to give players a sleepwalking experience in another world.

Even abandoning the real world, reshaping life in the virtual space and changing destiny.

Whether it is the redistribution of wealth or the re-realization of self-worth.

It is no longer a luxury.

Not only that, this technology can also effectively treat human mental illness, which is very helpful for the development of the brain. In a sense, it is the key to evolution.

That is why it has triggered a nationwide carnival.

"Why does it sound like the background of this game is a bit like the revival of spiritual energy? And... if the real world is not satisfactory, can you change your fate in the virtual world?"

Lu Buer doesn't think so. The reason why he pays attention to this press conference is just because Aurora Technology is the company where his parents worked before they died.

Before his parents had a car accident, they were the chief researchers of this cross-era technology, focusing on the synchronization of nerve sensory conduction and thinking, and even explored part of the origin of consciousness.

Although Aurora Technology was still a small company at that time.

I didn't expect that one day it would be able to achieve this level.

If there is anything that Lu Buer must do in the last bit of time, it is to witness the birth of this cross-era technology with his own eyes.

In fact, he had played the test version of this game in his early years. Although the technology at that time was not very mature, the game experience was still acceptable. It basically gave a feeling of traveling through time, but it was not done well in terms of physical synchronization.

The game is a secondary creation based on a real background. It tells the story that one day humans unearthed an ancient prehistoric civilization, and huge changes swept the world. People suddenly mastered extraordinary powers, but they also had to fight against the monsters born from the shadows.

It's probably similar to the concept of the early "Earth OL".

It took him seven days to clear the game.

But he only got out of the Novice Village.

The follow-up content was never made, and then the game was delayed.

Until this year.

If my parents were still alive, they would be very happy to see this game come out.

Unfortunately, Lu Buer didn't have the money to buy a virtual helmet, so he couldn't participate in the public beta today. He could only wait until tomorrow to go to the Internet cafe and experience it by renting it temporarily.

It's not that he's addicted to the Internet. He just wanted to go in and take a look at his parents' half-life's hard work.

It's a pity that even in the Internet cafe, it's not certain that you can get the virtual helmet. It is said that the process of Aurora Technology's external sales of virtual helmets is quite complicated. A series of questionnaires and brain tests are required before purchasing. Many people can't buy it even if they have money.

The live broadcast on the phone was interrupted by a phone call. After the call was connected, a familiar hoarse voice sounded: "Xiaolu, right? Are you still in school? Oh my God, there is a package for you here, come and get it quickly, it will rain heavily soon, I have to go home quickly!"

That was the voice of Lao Li at the school gate. Lu Buer was stunned.

He hasn't shopped online for a long time, so there shouldn't be a package for him.

There was no way, Lu Buer could only put on his clothes and go out in the wind. The cold wind in January made him shiver. The security booth at the school gate was about to be overturned. Lao Li, who was wearing a military coat, gave him a tightly sealed package box, turned around and rode away on his electric donkey.

The box was very heavy and well sealed.

Lu Buer was stunned. The sender actually wrote the address of Aurora Technology.

As for the address of the recipient, it was really himself.

Strange.

He hurried back to the dormitory, panting and opening the package box, and was obviously shocked.

Because in the package box, it turned out to be the latest virtual helmet of Aurora Technology.

This thing is not cheap. Even if you are eligible to buy it, you have to pay about 10,000 yuan to buy a standard version. There was a large-scale free lottery before. As long as you complete the questionnaire and brain test, you can get it for free. Unfortunately, he was unlucky and didn't win the prize.

The starting price of this latest model is more than 100,000 yuan, and it is in short supply, so you have to grab it.

Once scalpers get involved, the price will double.

At the beginning, He Sai wanted to use the New Year's money he saved to buy one for him, but he was scolded by him.

"It can't be bought by this guy He Sai?"

Lu Buer was suspicious, but he thought it was wrong.

Even if that guy wanted to buy it for him, he wouldn't buy the latest model.

Unless he was willing to make a loss.

"Wrong delivery? That shouldn't be the case. The address is clearly written as mine... Or does Aurora Technology still remember the family members of old employees?" Lu Buer opened the address book on his phone. Back then, his parents had a good colleague named Su, who used to take good care of him.

It's just that I don't know where he went these years, and there is no news anymore.

He dialed the phone with a try attitude, but unfortunately he only heard a busy tone.

"How strange."

I don't know who sent him the virtual helmet, but it's not a bad thing after all.

Lu Buer played with the virtual helmet and didn't feel any danger. After all, no one in the world would be willing to spend so much money to murder a dying person.

The countdown to the public beta is five minutes and forty-two seconds.

Lu Buer put on the virtual helmet, plugged the wire into the socket at the head of the bed, slightly adjusted it so that the nerve hub fits his temple, and lay flat on the iron bed in the dormitory.

The button of the virtual helmet has a network connection. The green light displayed on the top of the head means that it has been connected to the Internet. A large amount of data is being downloaded. The whole process is very smooth.

"Please put on your helmet and start the consciousness data connection."

The excited shouts of the head of Aurora Technology echoed in the city. Players all over the world held their breath, looking forward to that unknown world and that mysterious adventure.

"Let's count down to three, two, one, and welcome that beautiful new world!"

Instantly, the lights of the entire city went out, and the world fell into darkness.

The clock hands on the wall stopped abruptly.

Time was frozen at 6:43:54 in the evening.

At this moment, the world seemed to fall into silence.

Politicians and celebrities from various countries, executives and employees of well-known companies, professors and students of century-old prestigious schools, researchers, scientific researchers, soldiers serving in the army, ordinary office workers, children in welfare institutions, and otakus at home, about 800 million people put on virtual helmets, silently waiting for the new world that is about to open.

The world was fragmented in Lu Buer's eyes, and his consciousness was blurred.

What he didn't see was that the city had been shrouded by huge dark clouds, endless storms covered the sky and the earth, lightning and thunder penetrated the world, and the earth shook.

The shadow that penetrated the sky and the earth penetrated the sky and the earth, burning like a torch.

It was a...huge golden ancient tree.

"The Tree of Life system has been successfully activated. The soul matrix has started to operate. Vital signs are freezing. Body functions are beginning to evolve. It will soon be sealed in a cocoon..."

Hello everyone, I'm back! An independent story, I hope you like it.