Mini World Game Console

In the Wuling Mountain Grand Canyon Scenic Area, four middle-aged men and women took the cable car, acclaimed for having "Asia's steepest" incline, named "Wuling Champion." As they looked at the surrounding misty clouds, which resembled a scene from Fairyland, different emotions stirred within them.

"Every year, I feel this place has changed a lot," a lady dressed in stylish clothing murmured with a sigh.

"Changed for the better or for the worse?" asked a bald man with a beer belly next to her.

"Of course, it's improved," said a calm-looking, bespectacled middle-aged man. "When we used to come here in the past, there wasn't such a good cable car; we had to cross Qingtian Gorge step by step..."

"There are some changes for the worse, too," the lady said. "Every time we come here, the animals seem smaller. We used to see deer and rabbits..."

"The mountain has changed, we have changed, but the only thing that hasn't changed is buried in the soil," suddenly said a long-haired lady wearing women's glasses, who had been silent until then.

The four fell silent, no longer in the mood to discuss further; they just stared straight at the mist outside.

When they reached the mountaintop and got off the cable car, they found that the seating area of the mountaintop shop was fully occupied. They exchanged bitter smiles.

Two middle-aged men went into the store and bought a case of beer. Before the stylish lady could say anything, the bald man said, "I got RIO. This should be drinkable, right?"

The stylish lady nodded, while the long-haired lady directly grabbed a can of beer from the box, popped it open, and chugged it down.

"Where shall we sit?"

The bespectacled man pointed towards a nearby fence. The other three had no objections. They went over to lean on the fence, gazing at the distant, steep, and beautiful mountains. As they tasted the bittersweet flavor of the cold beer that passed between their teeth, a flood of memories rushed to their minds.

"We've witnessed this place transforming from a rarely visited wild mountain to a bustling 5A tourist spot," the stylish lady started the conversation again, "But it's still so beautiful. Thin Knife Ridge, Qingtian Gorge, Bottomless Pit, Buddha's Palm, General Stone..."

"Do you want to take a tour again?" asked the bald man with a smile.

The stylish lady shook her head. "I'm too old now. I can't walk those long mountain paths like before."

"We've already been here once; standing here and remembering is enough."

They fell into silence once more.

"A giant python coils in the Bottomless Pit, and a Monster hides below the Abyssal Cave. The white monkey descends the mountain acting mischievously; domestic pigs and wild pigs fall in love," the bespectacled man suddenly said, laughing. "A few years ago, I heard that a genuine Monster was spotted near the Abyssal Cave. Have you guys heard of it?"

"No, just some made-up news, I guess," said the long-haired lady casually.

But the stylish lady brightened up. "Didn't they say that Spiritual Energy is reviving, and Demons and Ghosts could appear anywhere? Even the nation has established the Cultivator's Academy. So, it wouldn't be strange for Monsters to appear here."

"Exactly, exactly," said the bald man. "Have you watched 'Midnight Walker'? I didn't expect Shenhai to have so many Demons and Ghosts. I'm now afraid to go out at night. If I can avoid evening socializations, I do. They say some driver saw a Ghost near the Coiling Dragon Pillar; it's super creepy."

"If there really were Ghosts, perhaps we might see him," said the long-haired lady eerily.

They all fell silent once again.

"It has been fifteen years. Haven't you moved on?" the bespectacled man looked at the long-haired lady and sighed. "We come here every year to pay our respects. Have we come in vain? Why haven't you moved on?"

"It seems you are still single, right?" the bespectacled man urged. "Hasn't time helped you to forget him?"

"I just don't believe it," the long-haired lady said. "I can't believe that the arrogant, confident man who would never admit defeat and who always held onto Hope... could just die like that."

"I won't believe it until I see his body."

Although fifteen years had passed and time had idealized the shadow of that man, the other three still couldn't grasp how such an arrogant person could be described so positively.

But, of course, it wasn't decent to criticize someone who had died, so they didn't say much more. However, the bespectacled man still urged, "It's normal that we couldn't find him. When we were there, the landslide had already buried the entire camp..."

"If we hadn't called the police back then but started digging ourselves..." the long-haired lady said mournfully.

"It would have been more dangerous," the bald man stated. "Don't you remember? After the police search team arrived, they discovered the terrain had changed, which is why they couldn't find his body. This shows that continuous landslides occurred after we left. If we had stayed, we would have shared his fate."

Suddenly, the bald man inverted his beer can, letting the pale-yellow liquid pour onto the ground. "I won't come again next year."

"It's been fifteen years; if his spirit still existed, he should have reincarnated by now," the bald man suddenly joked. "Maybe he has become my son. The rascal kid at home is as arrogant as him."

"If there really are gods and Ghosts beyond The Six Directions, I also hope he has entered the cycle of reincarnation and been reborn," said the bespectacled man, also inverting his beer can, its contents cascading down the cliffside. "Although I didn't like him back then, I must admit, I respected him: he feared nothing, cared about nothing. In our mountaineering club back then, he worked odd jobs to fund his travels, visiting the most places and journeying the farthest."

"I also haven't forgotten him, so I won't come next year either," said the bespectacled man decisively. "That incident wasn't our fault, just his bad luck. It's time for us to let go of this burden and move on with our lives."

Suddenly, the stylish lady put down her RIO, picked up a beer can, took several large gulps, then, like the other two men, inverted the can, shouting, "Farewell!"

"Farewell!" the bespectacled man and the bald man also shouted. Their unusual behavior immediately caught the attention of the nearby tourists.

The long-haired lady blankly watched everything unfold, while the other three looked at her expectantly. Eventually, she silently turned her beer can upside down.

But it was already empty.

"I'll wait for you."

「 」

"'Peach Blossom Spring Story,' New Teaching Standard, 8th Grade, First Semester..."

Sitting in the back seat of Zhao Huo's car, Ren Suo looked at the text in front of him, feeling his mind somewhat muddled.

"After finishing the original and its translation, quickly check your character's details, and don't give yourself away," Zhao Huo, who was driving, cautioned.

"No problem, I know a bit about cosplay."

Ren Suo lowered his head to read the original text of 'Peach Blossom Spring Story,' feeling a weird sense of déjà vu.

He felt he had studied this text before, yet he also felt he hadn't… It was an eighth-grade text, something all middle school students across the country studied. Although they didn't need to memorize the entire text, one generally retained some impression of it.

Zhao Huo had recently asked him to make a cameo as a villain, playing a character from the Supernatural Forces 'Peach Blossom Land,' to participate in a ceremony designed to intimidate the freshmen.

Ren Suo was naturally interested in such pranks, which involved dominating the freshmen. He wasn't one to care about the Martial World's ethics against the strong bullying the weak. If Ren Suo truly liked challenges, he wouldn't have let Ren Han help the adventurers defeat the Village Chief Phantom.

What was wrong with using the advantages his own abilities gave him to dominate some freshmen?

Moreover, since it was a last-minute appearance, Ren Suo didn't even need to rehearse. He could just go there, act cool, and watch the show, which meant all thrill, no hardship.

However, in the academy's planned scenario, they were to play villains from the organization 'Peach Blossom Land,' under the guise of 'recruiting newcomers' to snatch the freshmen.

In the academy's setting, Peach Blossom Land was a Supernatural Force on par with Fairy Palace and World Tree. However, unlike Fairy Palace and World Tree, they didn't just require new recruits; they would actively snatch them. Therefore, they would attack Heavenly Lotus Academy's freshmen teams and engage in fierce battles with academy teachers. This would place the students in danger and trigger their reaction mechanisms.

But what if a student simply surrendered and joined Peach Blossom Land? So, the academy added a detail to Peach Blossom Land's backstory: it was a force of the dead. All newcomers had to be killed and transformed into Ghosts to join. If a new student couldn't become a Ghost upon death, they would truly die.

This not only provided Peach Blossom Land with a reason to attack Heavenly Lotus Academy but also established a rivalry between Peach Blossom Land and all living students, forcing them to either flee or rebel.

However, the academy took this plan very seriously; hence, the existence of Peach Blossom Land and its characterization as a dead force were well-founded.

First, Peach Blossom Land originated from the tale 'Peach Blossom Spring Story.' In this story, Peach Blossom Spring was a place unknown to the outside world, a concept that greatly fit the profile of a Supernatural Force.

Furthermore, since this text was taught in the eighth grade, once the villains claimed to be from the Supernatural Force of Peach Blossom Land, the freshmen could quickly understand.

As for why Peach Blossom Land was a force of the dead, that was based on a long-standing internet fantasy; no need to delve too deep, as long as it could scare the freshmen.

Zhao Huo, glancing at Ren Suo in the rearview mirror and seeing his frown, said, "Don't worry, you're second turn now, and your Spiritual Energy has improved a level. Just use 'Clothing,' and most of those freshmen won't be able to hurt you. If you really run into trouble, call me; I've got your back."

Ren Suo looked dumbfounded. Did Zhao Huo think he was afraid of being bullied by the freshmen?

"By the way, this Necropolis Peach Blossom Land setting, when did you guys decide on it?"

"When? We decided a month ago," Zhao Huo explained. "Everyone thought this setting was the most culturally rich. We even checked with other academies to make sure there wasn't a name clash. You think it's a good backstory too, right?"

"It is good…"

Ren Suo narrowed his eyes and tightened his cap.

He was certain he had never studied this article before; he hadn't even heard it mentioned. The vague impression in his mind seemed more like a suggestion.

If he had studied it, when he played 'High Energy Ahead,' he would have immediately felt a sense of déjà vu. Just as when he read this article, he immediately recalled the game he had just beaten.

"'Suddenly Encountering a Peach Blossom Forest,' 'Setting up wine and killing chickens for food,' 'Walking a few dozen steps, the scene suddenly opened up'..."

Ren Suo recalled the intelligence he had investigated: 'Ancient Yellow River Spirit - Dou,' Ren Family, 'Lord of Billion Brilliance,' 'Monarch of Wind, Rain, and Snow,' 'Eternal Burning Heart'...

This sudden surge of intelligence—Ren Suo couldn't find any flaws in it.

But 'Peach Blossom Spring Story' was different. Perhaps Heavenly Lotus Academy's choice to use it as the backstory for the mysterious force was a coincidence. This led Ren Suo to quickly realize that new, fuzzy content had formed in his mind.

Ren Suo closed his eyes. Past, present, future… all are changing. It's endlessly fascinating.