Chapter 62

Countdown: 47:59:59.

Two days.

It was still the familiar Prison No. 18.

But this time, it seemed a bit different.

No longer was it a cold cell and solitude, but someone was waiting for his return.

Aunt Ye held a temperature-controlled lunch box, inside which was the beef stew he had cooked.

The three people opposite him looked at him as if they were waiting for him to come home.

This home was a bit dim and spacious, but it was enough.

"Teacher, this is the chess notation I brought for you," Qingchen spread his palm and handed a USB drive to Uncle Li.

Uncle Li gave it a strange look: "I haven't seen this interface before. Can you handle it, Xiaoxiao?"

Lin Xiaoxiao replied: "No problem, the key to storage devices is the chip."

"Teacher, can you see any changes in me when I travel?" Qingchen asked. He had always relied on himself to find patterns, but now with someone else observing, perhaps they could discover some other details.

"You said before that after traveling, one second passed in the other world, but that's not accurate," Uncle Li said. "In my perception, there was a change in the force field the moment you traveled, and this change lasted only an instant, perhaps just 0.1 seconds, or even shorter. It was in that instant that you disappeared, and when you reappeared, the gold bar in your hand was gone."

"I see," Qingchen thought, so he really did travel through time.

But the question was, what happened to the Qingchen in the original world? Was he directly erased from existence?

Qingchen asked: "Teacher, what about the fire in my body..."

"It's not time to explain yet," Uncle Li shook his head. "But it appeared earlier than I expected."

As he spoke, Ye Wan walked to Qingchen's side and lifted his shirt. When she saw the contours of his abs, she smiled: "Xiaoxiao, I win again."

"What kind of bet did you make about me?" Qingchen asked curiously.

"I bet that even without supervision, you would increase your training intensity," Ye Wan said. "We are all trained people, and your abs wouldn't show if you took even one day off."

"Start with weighted training from tomorrow," Uncle Li said. "Ye Wan, take good care of him. I haven't met such a disciplined child in all these years."

"Sure, boss," Ye Wan nodded.

Qingchen looked at Uncle Li: "Teacher, don't you want to look at the chess notation first?"

"Looking at the chess notation can wait. Come with me now," Uncle Li said to Qingchen.

Qingchen looked at him, a bit confused: "Where to?"

Uncle Li turned and walked toward the exit: "I'll show you the outside world."

"Why show me the outside world?" Qingchen was puzzled.

Uncle Li turned back and asked: "Aren't you curious about the outside world?"

Qingchen was taken aback.

Of course, he was curious.

From the first day of his return, he had seen others mention it on the internet, describing it as a magnificent and grand world.

Some said the cities were in the clouds.

Some said the cities were like real steel forests.

Some said the huge holographic projections in the sky were breathtaking.

Others said the virtual life experience surpassed all the movies in the real world, as if you were in the movie, living another legendary life.

Those people traveled through the colorful cities.

But he himself had traveled to a metal box called a prison.

Qingchen was just a 17-year-old boy, of course, he was curious and envious.

But Qingchen looked at Uncle Li and said: "Although I am curious, I also know that now is not the time to enjoy the scenery."

Uncle Li smiled: "A young man should have a young man's heart. Before you set out on your own, your teacher can't let you fall behind others."

Qingchen was taken aback: "What do you mean?"

"Other time travelers have seen the scenery, and my student should see it too. Tonight, I'll take you to see the best scenery in City No. 18," Uncle Li spoke with a casual and whimsical tone.

The cold prison had a touch of human warmth.

Beside the prison square, the heavy alloy gate slowly lifted for them. The metal storm above remained still, and the drones in the hive were still asleep.

Ye Wan handed him a cat-faced mask she had prepared: "This is what the boss asked me to prepare. You're not ready to reveal your identity yet."

The cat face on the mask seemed to be smiling, with red and white patterns that were eerie and mysterious.

Qingchen suddenly looked at Uncle Li's back.

So, the freedom he had longed for was right there.

...

Midnight.

City No. 18, District 1.

Above the clouds, on the 88th floor of the Eternal Tower, in the rotating restaurant.

In the magnificent restaurant, a gentle cello melody was flowing, but all the seats were empty.

At the restaurant entrance, a few people were arguing with the waiter.

The waiter wore a clean white shirt and a shiny black vest, with a neatly tied bow tie.

The young waiter politely explained to the customers: "Good evening, from midnight tonight, the Sunlight Pavilion restaurant is booked out. Since we couldn't provide you with quality service, the Sunlight Pavilion restaurant will give you two vouchers for lunch and dinner on non-Saturday and non-Sunday days."

The people arguing with the waiter were a man and a woman. The man was a bit older, while the woman was in her prime.

The man said sternly: "I've never heard of the Sunlight Pavilion being booked out. Are you kidding me?"

The waiter smiled politely: "I'm truly sorry, sir. It has never happened before, and I was also surprised when I received the notice today."

At that moment, they looked through the glass wall of the Sunlight Pavilion and saw that there was not a single customer inside.

The Sunlight Pavilion was the highest restaurant in City No. 18, offering a panoramic view of the city, making it the most expensive and sought-after by the city's elite.

The middle-aged man thought for a moment: "Is it booked by the Li family or the Qing family?"

"No, sir," the waiter said honestly.

The young woman seemed a bit unhappy. When she pouted, the colorful earrings on her earlobes dazzled the man.

The man thought for a moment and asked: "Can you tell me who booked it? I know that whoever can book here must be a big shot, but if I know them, maybe I can ask for a favor."

The man was sensible and not stupid.

When he encountered a difficult person, he would first ask himself if he could do what the other person was doing. If not, he wouldn't embarrass himself, knowing that the other person was on a different level.

But he was a well-known figure in the city and still wanted to use his connections to save face.

The waiter consulted with the manager and then returned with a black business card.

The card had no contact information, only five words: "Heng Society, Li Dongze."

Seeing the card, the man led the woman down the elevator without a word. In the elevator, the woman whispered in complaint: "Didn't you say you would greet them? Why did you leave without a word?"

The man sighed: "I'll find another place for you. We'll make up for this meal at the Sunlight Pavilion next time."

"Didn't you say last month that you knew Li Dongze?" the woman complained.

"That's a different matter," the man was a bit impatient: "He's not even in City No. 18 today. He booked it for someone else."

At that moment, the man indeed thought of the key point.

But he couldn't immediately think of who was worth such a grand gesture from Li Dongze.

He had always been a very low-key person and rarely did such high-profile things.

As they rode the observation elevator down, a black knight hover car was slowly floating to a stop on the rooftop of the Sunlight Pavilion.

Uncle Li and Qingchen got out of the hover car, and the waiter, who had been waiting, handed Uncle Li a hot towel to wipe his face.

Qingchen, wearing the mask, waved to indicate he didn't need it.

"Mr. Li, your seat is ready. All the cameras in the entire Cloud Tower have been turned off. Mr. Li Dongze has just prepared your favorite braised pork," the waiter said softly.

Uncle Li said to Qingchen: "Perhaps one day you'll get used to it. In this world, if you have money and power, everything will be just right."

...

This is the second update for today. There will be two more updates at 6 PM.