358: Chapter 358 Can't Sleep

A mere dozen words or so, without any accompanying images.

The second the post was published, the server load rates of all major social platforms soared to the warning red line.

"Eight o'clock tomorrow morning! Eight o'clock! God Lin said eight o'clock tomorrow morning!"

"My hand shook when I saw the notification just now, and I almost dropped my phone into the toilet. Good thing I reacted quickly!"

"Brothers, tomorrow is the weekend! No need to work! The timing, the location, and the people are all gathered! This is the best arrangement!"

"I'm putting my device right by my pillow now. No one call me tomorrow, or I'll be furious with whoever disturbs me from entering the second world!"

"Wait, it's still ten hours until eight tomorrow morning, why do I feel more nervous than the night before the college entrance exam?"

The refresh rate of the comment section was already too fast to read; the lifespan of each new comment didn't exceed 0.3 seconds before being completely submerged by the subsequent torrent of information.

And as night completely blanketed this land of 9.6 million square kilometers, an extremely interesting phenomenon emerged.

Usually during this time, the order volume of major food delivery platforms would gradually decline, and the viewership of late-night TV shows would slowly climb.

But tonight, all the data showed an eerie anomaly.

The late-night snack orders on delivery platforms surged three-fold.

Countless people simply couldn't sleep, so they just got up to order barbecue and sat in the living room, staring blankly at the clock on the wall.

On major live-streaming platforms, "second world countdown vigil" rooms popped up like mushrooms after rain, with the highest-ranking room even exceeding eight million concurrent viewers.

Occasionally, a message would drift across the bullet screen—

"Can't sleep."

"Me too."

"+1."

There was no usual clamor or meme-sharing, only a strange, collective insomnia spreading.

It felt as if the entire Xia Country was holding its breath, waiting for the dawn.

...

Time flowed by, second by second, amidst the anxious and scorching anticipation of hundreds of millions of people.

Until the eastern skyline was torn open by the first ray of morning light.

A new day had arrived.

Xishan Base, underground control room.

The cold, deep blue light illuminated the vast underground space, making it clear and sharp, while data streams on countless screens pulsed quietly.

Lin Yuan stood in front of the main control console; beside him were Yang Tongan and Elder Zhang.

The two big shots arrived exceptionally early today, their backs held straight.

Neither of them spoke.

But their deliberately slowed breathing and tightly clenched jawlines were more profound than any words.

They both knew in their hearts.

Today, starting from this basement, the trajectory of human civilization would be rewritten.

"It's almost eight o'clock."

Elder Zhang finally broke the silence, his voice slightly hoarse.

Lin Yuan heard this, raised his eyes slightly, the corners of his lips curling into a very faint arc, and nodded.

"Yes!"

"Then let's begin."

As his voice fell, he slowly withdrew his right hand, his fingertips hovering over the control interface of the main console.

There was no unnecessary sense of ritual.

He saw his fingertips quickly swipe across the operation panel a few times, calling up a core control interface protected by multi-layered encryption protocols.

In the center of the interface, there was only one extremely simple virtual button.

Above the button floated a line of ice-blue text—

"Launch."

Lin Yuan's fingertips hovered over that button, pausing for less than half a second.

Then, he pressed it lightly.

Inside the control room, hundreds of screens emitted a low-frequency hum at the same time, all flashing in unison.

Immediately after—

Everything returned to calm.

There was no deafening engine roar, nor the exaggerated effect of flashing lights seen in movies.

The only difference was that in the status bar at the top of the main screen, the originally grey "Offline" text had changed into a stable, glowing green icon—

"Online."

That was all.

Behind him, a long silence.

Elder Zhang stared at the green "Online" text for several seconds, finally unable to help but speak.

"...Is that it?"

His tone carried a sense of almost unreal bewilderment.

Yang Tongan also turned his head, his gaze shifting from the screen to Lin Yuan, and then from Lin Yuan back to the screen.

The expression clearly said the same thing.

It's... that simple?

A brand new virtual universe capable of subverting the progress of human civilization, and its startup method is just pressing a button?

Lin Yuan turned around, looking at the identical expressions on the faces of the two big shots, a smile involuntarily spreading across the corners of his lips.

"What did you expect it to be like?"

He asked back, his tone carrying a hint of teasing.

"Earth-shaking?"

"Or strange phenomena from the heavens?"

Yang Tongan's mouth twitched slightly, and he didn't respond.

Elder Zhang coughed dryly, just to cover up his momentary loss of composure.

"Then now..."

Elder Zhang deliberated on his wording, his gaze still unconsciously falling on the status icon glowing steadily with green light.

"Can the hundreds of millions of users outside connect now?"

"Yes."

Lin Yuan nodded gently, his tone firm.

"The servers are fully online across the board, and the signal has been synchronously pushed to all activated terminal devices."

He paused, looking at the two big shots who clearly seemed unsatisfied, and suddenly smiled.

"You two, you should have your special devices with you, right?"

"Do you want to... go in and see for yourselves?"

As soon as these words were out, Yang Tongan's previously half-closed eyes suddenly opened.

Elder Zhang's fingers, which were resting in front of his abdomen, also tightened suddenly.

The two exchanged a glance.

No need for more words.

"Let's go."

Yang Tongan spat out the word, his footsteps already moving.

Two minutes later.

Inside the exclusive experience area on the side of the control room.

Yang Tongan and Elder Zhang sat side by side on two ergonomic recliners, each holding a streamlined, silver-white connection device.

Lin Yuan stood to the side and casually picked up the third device.

"The operation is very simple; just put it on."

"When you want to exit, just silently think 'Exit' in your mind."

Yang Tongan didn't waste any more words and put the device directly on his head.

Elder Zhang took a deep breath and followed suit, putting it on.

The second the skin-friendly material on the inner wall of the device touched their skulls, both felt a very faint tingling sensation at their temples, as if an electric current had brushed past.

Then—

Their vision shifted abruptly.

Darkness, unmixed with any light, swallowed all senses completely.

But this lasted for less than a second.

The next moment.

A boundless, lush green grassland extended from their feet to the end of the skyline.

Above them was a deep blue sky with cotton-candy-like white clouds drifting slowly; sunlight poured down from the gaps in the clouds, casting large patches of golden light spots on the grass.

A breeze blew.

It brushed past their cheeks, carrying the fresh scent of grass and the moist breath of soil, stirring the hair at their temples.

Yang Tongan's breathing stalled for a full two seconds.

He subconsciously lowered his head and looked at his own hands.

His fingers were distinct, the lines clear, and even the old scar on the edge of his nail from decades ago had been restored without omission.

He slowly squatted down, reached out, and touched the grass beneath his feet.

A soft sensation came from his fingertips.

He could even feel the texture of the grass blades, the subtle tingling as they brushed against his fingertips.

Beside him, Elder Zhang took a deep breath.

What flooded into his nasal cavity was the clear, crisp air mixed with the fragrance of wild flowers.

He could even distinguish a faint, sweet smell similar to daisies mixed in.

Not far away, crisp bird chirps could be heard; he could even distinguish the subtle sound of feathers rubbing together when the birds flapped their wings.

Elder Zhang slowly turned his head, looking at Yang Tongan beside him, opened his mouth, and his throat choked up.

After a long while, he squeezed a few hoarse words from the depths of his throat.

"Is this... the second world?"