Welcome to Rewind World Game

[I often think it is the ugly who create beauty.]

[I often think it is fools who bring forth the wise.]

[I often think it is cowards who highlight heroes.]

[I often think it is the masses who enlighten the Buddha.]

[Then, where is the path to redemption for all unfortunate destinies? If the wisdom of understanding can lead us to find the path to redemption, can everyone acquire such wisdom and understanding?]

[——"Me and the Earth Altar"]

...

February's early spring is very cold, with vast regional differences. Even if the City Guardian Department is bathed in warm sunlight, the small cities near the northern lands are already engulfed by heavy rain.

The taxi driver is reluctant to turn on the air conditioning. He grips the steering wheel tightly, shivering under the damp and cold car windows. The lights of the traffic signals sweep over the face of the young passenger in the back seat, like swimming fish in red and green.

Amidst the bumpy ride, the voice of the car radio comes through:

"First Dream Patrol Family, after all, this is your meeting. The Ark Project is a plan decided by the Union Government, Holy Alliance Army, forty-seven independent polities, and the Church of Deity, with thousands of research and experimental institutions under it. You need not worry about it…"

"I'm just very curious about your progress. The special medicine that can heal the Black Mist Disease, this is a great achievement. I heard the research has already made considerable progress. Can you show me? I, too, have the interest of humanity at heart."

The clear voice of the First Dream Patrol Family comes through the car radio, making the raindrops on the car window sound like dripping piano notes.

The passenger slightly closes his eyes, listening to the voice in the car radio. The scenery outside speeds by: gray-white buildings, crumbling unfinished structures, slanting relief stations, merchants distributing porridge, refugees begging in the rain…

The bright red knot sways under the car mirror, like the tail of a goldfish flickering.

"The First Dream Patrol Family is very popular recently. His news is everywhere." The taxi driver, holding the steering wheel, can't help but speak.

"Mm." The passenger responds.

"Young people nowadays are really something else. Before the First Dream Patrol Family appeared in the world, I thought he would be a mature and stable middle-aged man. But once he appeared, he turned out to be a young adult. When I was his age, I was still playing arcade games, but he is already saving the world. The gap between people is just too big." The driver shakes his head and sighs.

Upon hearing this, the passenger laughs: "A mature and stable middle-aged man? Does he give off that impression in his live broadcasts?"

The driver says: "Yes. When "Louyue Nation" just started, people were guessing on the forums whether he was some middle-aged senator or an old professor from a university. Who knew he was a young person. I just can't understand why he is completely different online and offline."

The passenger narrows his eyes slightly and whispers: "He used to be inside and out the same."

The driver doesn't hear the passenger's low murmur. He steps on the gas pedal, and the vehicle speeds through the heavy rain, the piano notes on the window glass becoming more melodious.

Nearing the destination, the driver's worn face puts on a fawning smile. He stammers and points to the fare meter, saying: "Twenty-six point four yuan, can you give twenty-seven? The rain is too heavy, it's hard to see the road…"

"Life isn't easy, is it?" the passenger says.

The driver's face shows an expression of embarrassment and guilt, like a layer of window paper being pierced for a middle-aged person.

"Ah, ah… Yes, it was better in the earlier years. But ever since the recent exotic species riots, the Black Mist Disease has spread, and the special medicine hasn't moved, life has become increasingly difficult." The driver mumbles lowly.

The passenger tightens the bright red scarf around his neck and slips three ten-yuan bills into the driver's palm.

"Thank you, thank you…"

The driver's grateful voice comes through the rain.

The passenger opens a bright red umbrella and walks into this gray-white city. He looks up, revealing a still youthful face, his azure eyes seemingly reflecting the stormy sky.

Noel understands the hardships of this world. If it were easy, who would cheekily ask for that one yuan, dragging their face through the mud? Who would be shivering in the damp and cold downpour, unwilling even to turn on the car's air conditioning?

For him, this is just a game. But for those living here, this is their entire life.

He strides forward with the umbrella. This is one of the cities most severely affected by the Black Mist Disease. Almost everyone has purplish-black marks on their faces. The dilapidated buildings resemble rotting leaves rooted in the soil, with insects and ants gnawing away, decay thriving everywhere.

"Based on current information, there is a hidden line of the Ark Project buried here…" Noel holds his tablet and approaches a dilapidated building. The corridor is piled with debris and the supporting columns are tilted, likely to collapse at any moment. Yet, even in such a dangerously unstable building, a large group of people band together to keep warm.

"Daddy, Daddy, have you returned!"

Suddenly, a little girl crashes into Noel's arms. He is momentarily stunned. Though he is already twenty-six, he shouldn't have a child this old.

"Oh… I mistook you, you're not Daddy." The little girl sees Noel's face and backs away in disappointment, mumbling, "When will Daddy come back, he said he would return after taking the vaccine…"

Noel's expression sharpens, and he silently sighs.

He knows what has happened here. Due to the rapid spread of the Black Mist Disease, this once peaceful and quiet city fell into chaos. Real estate developers fled quickly. The residents' life savings tied up in their houses instantly became worthless unfinished buildings. The city's power holders colluded with each other, disregarding the cries of the people. All cries for help were drowned in the murky rain.

No one cares about this city; it's too insignificant. This pandemic-ridden area is like a heap of garbage to be cleared by human civilization. The residents living here have become pebbles that no one cares about; every nation wants to kick them aside, unwilling to bear the responsibility for them.

Noel discovered that someone had lured the residents here with money, convincing them to voluntarily participate in human experimentation, to inject the drugs provided by the Ark Project. This little girl's father is likely one of the test subjects, gone and never returned.

"..."

Noel pats the little girl on the head and continues upstairs. As he ascends, he nearly steps on a corpse. It is the body of an ordinary person wearing a worn jacket, with purplish-black marks covering the face and neck. Tiny tendrils spread from the nose and mouth, lifelessly draping over the eyelashes.

Noel extends his hand and closes the eyes of the corpse. He has seen far too many bodies like this.

He walked a few more steps, and there was a quarrel in the hallway.

"My son will come back! He will definitely come back, I, I want to buy shrimp for my son, he usually loves boiled shrimp the most..." This was an elderly grandma, her voice trembling.

"Grandma, we're not here to ask about your son, we're just here to collect the money. Your son owes hundreds of thousands, he's missing now, you need to repay for him." This was the voice of a group of men.

"It's all... all for treating my granddaughter's congenital heart disease, life... life is a matter of life and death, please be kind, extend it for a while, my granddaughter's illness needs to be treated, it takes money to treat it, she's only seven years old. Please, everyone, she'll die without money, if there's really no other way, then take my organs to sell. Kidneys, liver, heart, spinal cord, blood... they can all be sold, I heard they can all be sold!" The old grandma replied, trembling.

Noel walked up the building and saw the grandma's appearance. Her eye sockets were sunken, her pale red complexion clung to her cheekbones, sparse silver strands appeared thin under the rain outside the window, and the red floral jacket she wore was full of traces of patching, holding a dead shrimp in her hand.

The shrimp was dead, dull gray, with its eyes flipped. Noel looked but felt it wasn't like seeing a shrimp, it was like seeing this city and the pouring rain.

The debt-collecting crowd blocked the grandma's door, slamming their cymbals loudly, a yellow-haired young man pointed threateningly at the grandma's nose:

"I don't care whether you treat the disease or not! I don't care whether your granddaughter lives or dies! Pay back the debt! It's a matter of justice! Are we not struggling too? Our old mother is still wheezing on the bed, without money, what are we supposed to use to buy the Black Mist Disease delay agent? Now there's no special medicine for the Black Mist Disease, that stuff is outrageously expensive!"

"A poor person's life is the least valuable, don't you understand? A poor person's life is the least valuable! All the money flows into the hands of those people who developed the Black Mist Disease delay agent, we don't have a single penny! Normally, it's fine, but when a major illness comes, wanting to stay alive, it's impossible!"

The grandma lowered her head, the silver strands floated beside her ears full of red spots, she murmured with her mouth, only repeatedly saying:

"I want to buy shrimp, I want to buy shrimp... my son loves this the most..."

Behind her, the TV on the old sewing machine was broadcasting live to the world.

"—The First Dream Patrol Family, regarding the Ark Project, rest assured, we are fully advancing the research of the Black Mist Disease special medicine. Believe that it won't be long before we get satisfactory results." On the TV screen, a middle-aged man with back-combed hair wearing silver-rimmed glasses showed a proper smile, his words watertight.

"—Hmm? Why did I hear that some of you deliberately delay the research of the special medicine?" Under the spotlight, a young man with black hair pursued relentlessly. Facing all ambiguous sights, his eyes were sharp, his spine straight, like a tall lamp standing in the shadows.

"—Hehe, rumors can't be believed, you shouldn't be blinded by some people's intentions." Another lady wearing a delicate bow replied with a smile.

"—Then why don't I bring out the list of parliamentarians delaying the Ark Project and communication messages, to let you all have a good look?" Shadow similarly smiled.

He stood on the high platform, heavy light gathered on his shoulders. The people below showed stiff expressions, yet still maintained awkward smiles. Shocked, confused, and suspicious glances were cast from all directions, interwoven and staggered, the barrage like a flurry of snow, compressed into a blur.

—Table flipping at the beginning.

People originally thought the meeting was just a formality, but the First Dream Patrol Family opened with a big explosion.

At the moment he spoke of table flipping, people still maintained expressions of excitement and admiring, these emotions solidified on their faces, mixed like spilled paint as panic gradually rose, colorful and rich enough to make people slam their desks in admiration.

If you were to open the internet at this moment, you would see millions of posts and comments jumping out, occupying the entire network.

—Dream Patrol Anchor Norse: How dare he?

—Kiwi TV: He actually dares?

—Union Government Senator Evelyn: Where did his evidence come from, why can his voice be so steady, does he know what he's questioning, what he's declaring war on?

—North Qing University Xiao Lanping: The identity of the eligibles is already sensitive, even if he is the First Dream Patrol Family, even if he is widely known, is he really safe? In the event of a great disaster, those big figures wouldn't care about the clearance progress of the First Dream Patrol Family, if the First Dream Patrol Family threatened their lives, they would absolutely want the First Dream Patrol Family dead.

—Ancient Martial Arts Lv Chengzhu: We should protect him, let him be able to expose the conspiracy of the Ark Project.

People's gazes seemed like lights, long needles, sharp swords, enclosing the silhouette of the youth. Languages and texts from different countries flashed in the river of the internet, mixed with all kinds of emoticons and stickers, all without exception, expressing their opinions and shock.

Water droplets form a river, converge into a sea, then flow ceaselessly, waves crashing against the shore, rushing towards the coastline.

At this moment, the grandma suddenly hugged the TV, her thin complexion leaned against the screen, dry lips murmuring: "Up to you, strongest young man, all depends on you... let my son come back, let the disease be cured, I beg you, I beg you... You are more than ten years younger than my son, really sorry, can only rely on you..."

Noel stared at the TV screen, the old television occasionally flashed black and white speckles.

His hand pressed against his chest, able to hear his own vigorous heartbeat clearly.

"Thump, thump, thump."

The human situation has long been solidified, fifty-eight political entities are at their peak, the Union Government and military are like iron chains tied together. TV stations and major newspapers are relying on them, remaining silent under the iceberg.

At this time, who dares to stand up and speak a voice different from theirs?

No one dares.

Only the First Dream Patrol Family can. He has no background, no worries, he is a new dark horse, unexpectedly appearing in this world, only he is not controlled by anyone, and has no connections.

Diseases can be treated.

The human heart is much more difficult.

"Quick! Grab the stuff!" The debt collectors didn't care about the TV broadcast, they pushed open the door, wanting to grab the precious items in grandma's house.

At this moment, Noel acted, he grabbed the grandma's sleeve, blocking her behind him, like holding onto a wisp of wind about to dissipate. One side of the wind is a fragile and worthless life, the other side of the wind is an unheal-able human heart.

The torrential rain outside the screen poured in incessantly, splashing onto his golden hair.

In the midst of chasing people off, Noel's throat tightened slightly, he couldn't help but think, would this be Su Ming'an's intention? Was it the plot that made Su Ming'an choose to go along with the tide, or did he actively choose a more direct approach?

Puppet threads pulled the fine raindrops, inch by inch falling to the ground.