361: See countless landscapes and experience different lives.

The neon-flashing Lower District.

Acid rain fell pit-a-pat, striking the rusty tin sign and making a clanging sound.

The air was filled with the smell of cheap engine oil and suffocating dampness.

"Zzz—"

From a shop on the roadside called “Old John’s Cybernetic Repair Shop,” came the sound of sparks bursting.

Immediately after, a heavily bearded man covered in grime waved a wrench and cursed loudly at a hovering motorcycle that was emitting black smoke:

"Damn it! The core logic is locked again!"

"This is the 'Company's' newest 'Night Owl-7' engine! If it breaks, I can't afford to replace it even if I sell myself!"

The big man was sweating profusely, and the apprentices around him were trembling in fear.

Just then.

A slender, fair hand, completely out of place in the dirty environment, gently patted the grime-covered shoulder of the big man.

"Um..."

Lu Chen, holding half a bottle of unfinished 'Synthetic Happiness Water,' pointed at the engine about to be scrapped.

"Lend me a wrench?"

The big man spun around violently and saw three individuals whose clothes were strange (Earth-style) but who were clearly not locals.

Especially the young man leading them; although he was smiling, the look of detached calmness that seemed to see through everything made the big man’s heart tremble inexplicably.

"You... who are you? What do you want?"

The big man clutched his wrench defensively, "I'm busy here! Don't cause trouble!"

"Cause trouble?"

Lu Chen smiled.

He ignored the big man's warning and walked straight to the engine.

"Old Ye... oh wait, Fatty."

Lu Chen turned his head, "Doesn't the structure of this thing look a bit like that 'Nuclear Lighter' we scrapped back in the day?"

Wang Peng (Fatty) leaned over for a look and curled his lip.

"What lighter? This is just a low-spec 'Magnetic Compressor.' The workmanship is too crude; it's worse than our primary school after-school projects."

"What nonsense are you talking about?!"

The big man was furious, "This is a high-end product from the Metaverse Company! Do you know how to appreciate quality!"

"Appreciate?"

Su Qingying stood to the side and lightly pushed her non-existent glasses.

She extended two fingers and gently pinched an inconspicuous conduit on the engine.

"Pfft."

The previously violent black smoke instantly stopped.

The engine, which was about to explode, miraculously stabilized, emitting a low and pleasant hum.

"This..."

The wrench in the big man's hand fell to his foot with a clang.

Ignoring the pain, he looked at the three of them as if they were ghosts.

"What... what did you do?!"

"That's a quantum entanglement circuit! Without the Company's secret key, anyone who touches it dies!"

"Secret key?"

Lu Chen took the wet wipe handed to him by Su Qingying and wiped his hands.

"The so-called secret key is just a simple 'reverse logic dead loop'."

"As long as you slightly adjust the resistance at node number 37..."

Lu Chen casually picked up a discarded copper wire from the table and plugged it into a slot on the engine.

"Voom—!!!"

Blue flames instantly erupted!

The engine's power gauge maxed out, and the rotational speed increased by a full three times!

"...it can make it take off."

Lu Chen placed the remaining half bottle of Happiness Water on the workbench and raised an eyebrow at the petrified big man.

"Boss."

"It's fixed."

"Give us the money."

...Ten minutes later.

At an open-air noodle stall on the street corner.

Three 'down-on-their-luck' outsiders were gathered around a greasy table, each holding a steaming bowl of 'Synthetic Beef Noodles'.

"Slurp—"

Wang Peng slurped a large mouthful of noodles, letting out a satisfied sigh.

"So delicious!"

"Even though it's synthetic starch, the MSG in this... it tastes like Earth!"

He patted his bulging pocket, which contained their first earned pot of gold—a few crumpled 'Credit Point Cards'.

"Brother Chen, we're kind of... experiencing life now?"

Wang Peng chuckled, "Before, a flick of the finger could manage a galaxy; now we're fixing motorcycles for a few hundred credits."

"This drop in status is quite thrilling."

"This is called life."

Lu Chen put down his chopsticks and looked at the hurried crowds on the street.

There were low-level laborers struggling for survival, bikers with mechanical prosthetics, and thugs trading contraband in dark corners.

It was dirty, chaotic, and poor.

But here... it was **real**.

No cold data streams, no eternal life stretching endlessly.

On every face were written desire, struggle, and hope.

"Qingying, look."

Lu Chen pointed at a little girl in the distance crying over a balloon.

"In that 'Box,' although our lives are infinite, they have actually stagnated."

"But here..."

Lu Chen took a deep breath of the air filled with the scent of everyday life.

"Even one second is vibrant."

Su Qingying nodded, her gaze gentle.

"Yes."

"Worrying about the next meal... it's been a long time."

"However..."

Lu Chen's tone suddenly shifted.

He picked up the newly earned credit card on the table, his eyes sharpening.

"Experiencing life is one thing."

"But we can't just keep fixing motorcycles here."

"Did that boss just say the biggest power in this city is called the 'Metaverse Company'?"

"Correct."

Wang Peng immediately got into character, pulling out a map he had casually pocketed earlier.

"This Company monopolizes the world's energy, network, and cybernetic technology."

"Rumor has it their headquarters is up there."

Wang Peng pointed to the sky above, obscured by dark clouds and holographic advertisements.

Vaguely visible there was a floating, heaven-like **Sky City**.

"Sky City?"

Lu Chen narrowed his eyes, looking at the lofty city.

It was brilliantly lit, forming a stark contrast to the filth and darkness on the ground.

"It seems that no matter which world it is."

"There are always some people who prefer to live in the heavens, looking down on all beings."

Lu Chen stood up and slapped the credit card onto the table.

"Waiter! Check please!"

"Keep the change!"

He straightened the jacket he had just bought at a stall and took Su Qingying's hand.

"Let's go."

"Where to?" Wang Peng hadn't finished eating, his mouth stuffed with noodles.

Lu Chen pointed to the unreachable Sky City above.

A familiar smile curled at his lips—a smile that had once made the entire Multiverse tremble.

"We're going to..."

"Apply for a job."

"I heard that Company is recruiting 'System Architects' recently?"

"Perfect timing."

Lu Chen flexed his fingers, producing a crisp cracking sound.

"I have an ancestral 'pangu' system..."

"I want to find their boss..."

"**To discuss compatibility!**"