Welcome to Rewind World Game-Chapter 1522: Final - · Voyaging the Sea Arc [21] · “Your Reflection in the Mirror.”
The red rain trickled down his palm and dripped into the gift box.
Su Ming’an looked at these objects; they seemed devoid of any extraordinary quality.
"Bang!"
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
It sounded like raindrops hitting the ground.
It sounded like heavy objects pounding the ground.
It sounded like the sudden beat of a drum.
Su Ming’an looked up and saw the distant sky transforming into an illusory, rainbow-like color. Pairs of eyes opened like spotlights, with pupils varying in size and color. They floated in the red rain, suspended in the sky like morning stars.
They were countless, countless distant eyes.
The rainbow light hung high in the firmament, like the sound of shattering glass. Those mysterious eyes gradually pierced the transparent membrane, becoming increasingly real and clear.
Aunt Shen, Aunt Zhao, Uncle Li, Wang Xiao’er... suddenly fell to the ground, lying in the red rain like ashes.
"Bang!"
Tao’er fell too.
She looked confusedly at the red rain filling the sky, murmuring, "Deity... what is that..."
The rain poured down, coloring everything red.
One by one, figures abruptly stood up, like ghost messengers carrying red lanterns—the townfolk who had just collapsed.
Their eyes surged with profound changes, as if suddenly inhabited by unfamiliar souls. They looked around with surprise, their mouths stretching into smiles that seemed bloodstained.
"They’re here!"
"The mirror is really useful..."
"I finally entered ’Welcome to the World Game’! We’ve finally become book-travelers! I want to meet the male protagonist! I want to give the Boss Rabbit a hard slap; I’ve been annoyed with it for a long time!"
"I want to accompany Su Ming’an properly; I really feel so sorry for him!"
Voices rose in succession, not appearing chaotic amidst the rain.
Su Ming’an silently held the gift box, pure white tendrils grew from his back, transforming into gracefully dancing long snakes, resembling a snowburst blooming behind him.
...Lord of Dreams, no, Supreme Lord. What exactly is His purpose in gathering these people and granting them the ability to shuttle?
Su Ming’an speculated that the Supreme Lord held an authority akin to ’reading’, silently reading the space-time record bodies of countless planets throughout the ages, absorbing emotion and insight. He once thought that He would only be a backdrop in the end, maybe showing up as a behind-the-scenes manipulator at most, but he overlooked one thing.
—When someone has read enough books, they will be genuinely compelled to become a creator.
The Supreme Lord read too many ’books (space-time record bodies)’ in the endless years, some of which perished with time, some still survived within billions of years, and some like Zhai Xing were tottering. When He read Luowasha, a ’book’ filled with elements such as Western fantasy, gender transformation, immortal heroes, and deities that resonated most with Him, He finally, frankly succumbed to the desire in His heart, trying to control these stories’ real-time ’creators’, hoping to make stories unfold in a way that satisfied Him.
Su Ming’an looked at the townfolk whose eyes were entirely different now; under their simple exteriors, unfamiliar souls resided. He murmured in his heart:
"But the ’reader’ shouldn’t attempt to control the ’creator’ of the story.
"Otherwise, it causes the current situation... excessive manipulation leads to the story’s natives being deprived of their existence, their core utterly transforming into the likeness of the ’reader’, becoming puppets at the ’reader’s’ strings, merely acting according to an outsider’s whim. All inherent values, behavioral traits, psychological attributes are distorted per the outsider’s thoughts...
"Just as with Bai Chun, who was deprived of her engineer dreams, an outsider only wanting to see her indulge in romance threw her dry mechanical knowledge into the trash.
"They are no longer themselves."
"They are just puppet performers satisfying outsiders’ desires and perceptions.
"Whatever the outsider wants to witness, these people perform."
Su Ming’an closed the gift box with a "click."
His mind revolved around the Creator’s Code, which is elaborated into hundreds of rules, which don’t need to be divided or recounted, but the most crucial one is:
—Do not create beings too similar to yourself.
Otherwise, it inevitably generates interference psychology, controlling psychology, even a mentality of replacing due to iron-willed expectations.
"You are like me, so why are you entitled to such a wonderful life, while I must suffer in the mundane routine?"
"We are fundamentally no different; why can’t I become you, converse intimately with your friends, feel your love and hate, and shine brilliantly on the world stage?"
But simultaneously, Su Ming’an had slight doubts. Observing the Supreme Lord’s attitude in the dream, it seemed He didn’t want to overly interfere with this world; then why now enforce such a broad interference?
Could it be that the summoner of these Dream Patrol Family’s ’Lord of Dreams’... isn’t the Supreme Lord?
It’s impossible for someone else to just appear suddenly; if not the Supreme Lord, who else?
Su Ming’an cautiously reserved his opinion and looked at these ’strange guests.’
The townfolk’s eyes were no longer simple and cautious; they became bold and indulgent, scrutinizing their surroundings as if they were players entering a game long open for the first time. At this point, someone’s gaze accidentally paused on Su Ming’an, their eyes filled with intense shock and delight.
"This, this is Su Ming’an! The male protagonist! We’ve hit the jackpot!!!" "Aunt Shen" pointed at Su Ming’an, her eyes opening wide like twin copper bells. That expression, vividly expressing the awe of seeing a character come to life from paper.
In the jointly narrated story "Welcome to the World Game," many Dream Patrol families painstakingly observed and recorded with incredible scale, just like "Alauddin’s Sky," this painstakingly documented story was merely a small Chapter within it. This jointly narrated story included Panggala’s Return, Klein Bottle, Grandmother Paradox, Schrödinger’s Cat, Destiny Game Theory, Constant Entropy Increase, Narrative Anchor Points, and many other cosmic rules, even involved the "Universe Organ" World Game, related to other figures like the higher-dimensional Lord of the End, the twelve-seat Organizers, and the Cosmic Adventurer Dieying, highly regarded positions, and vast contents, it’s an essential object of observation for every "Dream Patrol Family."
Even with mirrors, the "Dream Patrol Family" couldn’t casually smuggle into other planets. They managed to arrive thanks to their natural small strength, not arousing the World Barrier’s vigilance, also because the jointly narrated story happened at a time ripe for their acceptance.
—Because the protagonist of the joint story, Su Ming’an, chose to delve deep into investigating the Supreme Lord, chose to forge ahead!
If the "protagonist" Su Ming’an is not interested in this, then they would have no reason to appear. Should they appear abruptly, it would be a deus ex machina. But the direction of Su Ming’an’s goals makes them begin to become important, begin to have a reason to appear, and start to logically and reasonably enter this united story!
White tentacles flowed like breathing, Su Ming’an’s fingers tightly grasping the gift box, his nails almost gouging out a mark.
At this moment, he once again felt that sense of predetermined destiny in the world of the old days.
——Was it originally intended for "them" to enter this world, so he detected something amiss and thus investigated further? Or did his thorough investigation lead to the logical and reasonable appearance of "them" in the protagonist’s view?
——Was the camera originally aimed at the scene, or did the scene attract the camera?
——Is it the person standing in front of the mirror that creates a reflection, or the reflection that actively walks to the mirror?
Was it his decision to advance across the sea, his resolute commitment to investigate to the end, that led to the emergence of this moment’s tragedy? If he chose to retreat... no, if he chose to end everything at Yuanyuan’s dream,
——would the concept of "them" have never appeared at all?
"Story... cosmic story... space-time record body... narrative anchor point... hehe..." Su Ming’an closed his eyes, knowing he couldn’t figure out such matters, just as deities and Chao Yan couldn’t explain where the Mobius Ring that initially invaded civilization came from. Which came first, the chicken or the egg, has always been an incomprehensible answer in the universe.
He simply gazed calmly at everyone, like a silent lighthouse under the spotlight.
Everyone was excited, their faces red and hearts pounding, as if seeing "paper people" come to life. Although Su Ming’an and they were equally life in essence, they had always stood from the observational perspective, instinctively carrying a view that overlooked like two-dimensional.
"Brother Ming’an, Brother Ming’an, let me hug you! You know how many of your merchandise I have at home, all made by myself!"
Uncle Li’s face, dark and emaciated, exuded an incongruous joy, his features entwining like roots of an old tree. When he spoke this sentence, he seemed like a young girl rather than a man who had suffered hardship for half a lifetime.
"Su Ming’an, please kill me. I really enjoy seeing the way you kill, every time it makes my face red and heart pound. Please stab me with your sword, preferably through my eyes, I would be extremely grateful..." "Wang Xiao’er" walked straight over, slender hands clasped together, absurdly pleading.
"Ming’an, do you know how many nights I’ve been sleepless because of you, twisting like a maggot in bed, crying tears enough to use several packs of tissues." Mr. Zhu’s old-fashioned face showed an expectant expression as he eagerly watched, rubbing his hands: "Sometimes I really wish I could stand by your side... but now it’s too late, too late, everything is about to end."
Aunt Zhao, with disheveled hair and a face both haggard and dry, smelling of fish, approached Su Ming’an, shivering as she spoke:
"Su Ming’an, this place is so great, allowing us to comprehend the authority of observation, relaxingly travel, even fall in love with locals... could you not end the World Game, continue this space-time record body, never conclude it?"
Red rain slipped past Su Ming’an’s chin, falling with a drip.
"Drip."
The sound of rain was overwhelmingly fierce by the ear.
It was as if the world had curled into a small point, with him inside, hearing nothing but the overwhelming rain.
He recalled someone previously kneeling, begging him not to end the World Game, letting this kind of "happiness" life continue, saying after all, what’s the difference between being ruled by aliens and capitalists?
He thought of Alauddin at a meeting, tears in his eyes, the man spoke of child brides, children probed for mines in the mud, rotten pomegranates in slop buckets.
He saw a blonde, purple-eyed girl, sitting dumbstruck on a stone platform, silently watching the rain, her face similar to Hui Bai, looking gentle yet pale as if the halo of a koi carp flowed, she was staring at the unconscious Tao’er, not knowing what she was thinking... as fellow "Dream Patrol Family," could she be sorrowful for an inconspicuous minor character in the story? She personally stabbed Tao’er and now was vaguely sad.
Su Ming’an knew that "Dream Patrol Family" were not all bad people, there were also good people like Dara who didn’t want to occupy others’ bodies, but due to survivor bias, those appearing in Luowasha were mostly bad people.
"I don’t like them..." Little Liujin softly spoke.
"Is it because they encroach on the bodies of Luowasha people?" Su Ming’an asked.
Su Liujin was silent for a moment, then his voice, somewhat hoarse but tinged with laughter:
"Can the Great Emperor say some profound words?"
Su Ming’an found it somewhat amusing: "You are the Great Emperor, not a fool, why can’t you say profound words."
Su Liujin took a deep breath, lightly exhaled:
"Due to unchangeable destiny, the minuscule insignificance of all living beings like sand grains, the innocent people at the bottom of the food chain, a tragic destiny visible at a glance, a crazy and highly similar era template."
"Although my memories have blurred, there’s still a deep obsession rooted in my heart."
"As a child, I aspired to change the vivid classes of Luowasha, to destroy the cruel food chain."
"Living in the sea, I heard of Luowasha’s creation system. At the time, it felt truly romantic, as if tens of billions of artists gathered to sketch the world with pens. However, when I came ashore, I only saw one round after another of brutality, saw the inherent class system using the name of art to do much unrelated to art. The scene of philosophers speculating together that I imagined did not appear."
"When did they stop contemplating all of this?"
"When did dignified action become overt terror?"
"I only saw a diseased and obstinate system, indistinguishable from countless planets in the universe. There’s no romance or flowers here, only pervasive template power."
Su Ming’an showed slight surprise, his view of Su Liujin somewhat improved, he did not jest about Su Liujin’s maturity revealed.
"...Hmph, how about it? The Great Emperor is quite philosophical, isn’t he? This was thought out by the Great Emperor for a long time." After finishing these words, Su Liujin snorted slightly, a bit shy.
"The Great Emperor is very impressive." Su Ming’an praised, looking towards "townfolk."
Indeed, he also disliked these people.
They seemed like embodiments of some forceful authority, silently depriving weak individuals of their lives, tainting romance with a money-like rusty hue.
Su Ming’an did not hear, Su Liujin softly murmured:
"...If the Jellyfish Emperor’s character setting wasn’t the Jellyfish Emperor."
"Actually, I could be very smart."
Su Ming’an’s thoughts moved, white tentacles grew crazily, wrapping each of the "townfolk."
The "townfolk" showed hesitant expressions, struggled slightly but found it impossible to struggle free.
