I've already reached the maximum level, and you guys are just starting out?

Chapter 21 Fortune and Misfortune
"Thank you for today."

The entrance to the zoo.

Even under the scorching midday sun, long queues of people still formed.

Yu Jin looked at Yin Yao and sincerely thanked her.

If it weren't for my senior activating her 'superhuman' privilege, my trip to the zoo would never have gone so smoothly.

Let alone touching all the animals, even just wanting to touch a lion or a tiger would probably take a lot of effort.

"Small things."

Yin Yao shook her head, not taking it to heart.

"but……"

Yin Yao stared at Yu Jin and asked the question that had been lingering in her mind:

"Why did you suddenly decide to do this at the zoo?"

"Touching a tiger's butt or something..."

Upon hearing this, Yu Jin remained expressionless.

There's no doubt that my unusual behavior today will arouse Yin Yao's suspicion.

Ember had already prepared for this.

"I had a dream last night."

Instead of answering directly, Yu Jin suddenly spoke.

"Dream?"

Yin Yao frowned slightly, unsure what this had to do with Yu Jin's indiscriminate touching at the zoo.

"Yes, it was a dream, a very real dream."

Ember's face was serious, his expression seemingly lost in memories:
"In my dream, I discovered that I could become a superhero simply by touching animals like lions and tigers up close!"

"Superman, you know what I mean?"

After saying that, Yu Jin chuckled awkwardly, "Senior sister probably thinks this dream is childish?"

the other side.

Upon hearing this, Yin Yao slightly opened her beautiful eyes.

The words that Yu Jin made up, however, stirred up a storm in her ears.

"Could it be..."

"In his past life, the reason why Ember was so powerful was not because of the opportunities he obtained during the closed beta, but because of these... dreams?"

Yin Yao thought to herself, but a perfectly timed smile appeared on her face.

She asked in a joking tone:
"So, after you touched the lion and tiger, did you become Superman?"

Ember shook his head, looking disappointed.
"No, that's why I say it's just a childish dream."

As he spoke, Ember sighed:
"If I really become Superman, I'd better show my senior some of my superpowers."

Yin Yao did not press the matter further.

The two walked side by side, the atmosphere somewhat silent.

After a while.

Yu Jin saw the bustling Qianda Plaza not far ahead.

"Senior Yin, to repay you for your help today, I'd like to treat you to lunch?"

Yin Yao was startled and snapped out of her thoughts.

"it is good."

She responded softly.

……

……

The fourth floor of the mall.

Window seat.

Yu Jin and Yin Yao sat facing each other, with steaming dishes laid out in front of them.

"Thank you again for your help these past few days, senior."

Yu Jin poured himself a glass of Jiangxiaobai liquor, tilted his head back, and drank it all in one gulp.

"It's all little things."

Yin Yao reached out, gesturing for Yu Jin to pour her a glass as well.

Yu Jin hesitated for a moment, but ultimately decided to respect the senior's opinion.

Soon.

As one glass of baijiu after another was downed, the atmosphere at the dinner table inexplicably became strange.

It wasn't the kind of romantic encounter that happens between a lone man and woman, but rather...

"Be brothers, in your heart!"

"I'll take it, senior can do whatever you want!"

The reward for the trip to the zoo was extremely generous, which put Ember in a great mood. For a moment, he couldn't control himself and drank a little too much.

"Well--"

Yin Yao seemed to have never drunk baijiu before. After a few cups, her delicate, fair face was flushed.

"Done!"

The elegant senior student, under the influence of alcohol, suddenly appeared somewhat unrestrained.

and.

This senior student, who had always been quiet and gentle, gradually became more talkative.

"ember……"

"You're saying you really aren't planning on logging into Wasteland and trying out that game?"

Yu Jin was so drunk that he was shaking his head and slurring his words, mumbling:
"Senior, you still don't trust your junior!"

"I get motion sickness from 3D, really bad. I'd probably throw up after just two minutes of playing that game!"

Yin Yao poured herself another glass of baijiu.

"What a pity, what a pity."

"I still want to play with you..."

Yin Yao continued talking to herself.

The dinner table.

The two of them continued drinking, one glass after another, for an unknown amount of time.

Both of them were a little tipsy and unsteady on their feet. Yin Yao's pretty face was completely flushed, and she leaned back weakly.

"ember."

She suddenly shouted.

"Eh!"

Yu Jin responded in a daze.

"you say……"

"If, and I mean if, one day, you, me, and countless millions upon millions of people around the world suddenly transmigrate to a perilous wasteland..."

What would you do in that situation?

As she said these words, Yin Yao's eyes were sore from being drunk that she could barely keep them open.

"Superman!"

"Happy Superman!"

Ember answered quickly.

"Happy Hero?"

Yin Yao was somewhat puzzled.

Instead of explaining, Yu Jin muttered:
"If that day ever comes, I hope it comes later, the later the better."

Yin Yao sighed.

"I also hope that."

"Unfortunately……"

"time is limited."

……

……

After one hour.

In the restaurant.

A group of young men with buzz cuts and sharp, capable-looking features appeared.

"Let's send him back to school."

Just a second ago, Yin Yao was 'so drunk she was unconscious' and slumped in her seat, but now she sat up.

Her face was still flushed, but...

He spoke clearly and remained calm.

"Okay lady."

Several young men with buzz cuts responded and then lifted Yu Jin, who was slumped in his seat and completely drunk, away.

In the restaurant.

Yin Yao took out a white handkerchief, gently wiped her mouth, and gazed into the distance, her eyes lost in thought.

Today's probe yielded no useful information from the embers.

Simultaneously.

She also gave Ember some hints about the future in the form of drunken ramblings, if he remembered them when he sobered up.

but……

The dream that Yu Jin mentioned caught Yin Yao's attention quite a bit.

"How about I go and touch the tiger's butt too?"

Yin Yao even had such absurd thoughts.

Toot——

Just then, the bell rang.

Yin Yao picked up her phone.

Meanwhile, the young man in a suit with a buzz cut had already begun clearing out the restaurant, isolating all loiterers.

"grandfather."

Yin Yao answered the phone.

"how?"

The old man's voice came through.

"Without obtaining any useful information, we still don't understand how Ember managed to be so powerful in the wasteland world of the future."

Yin Yao spoke softly.

"Should we monitor them?"

The old man was interrupted by Yin Yao before he could finish speaking:

"Do not."

"As for Ember, all we can do is try to be on good terms with him, and maintain a good relationship as much as possible. Beyond that..."

"It will only backfire in the future!"

Yin Yao's tone was very firm.

No one knew better than her how powerful the Embers were in the wasteland of the future!
That kind of power is the kind that can disregard millions of people and all dangers!

"it is good."

The old man's voice was hoarse.

He actually shared the same idea.

After a moment of silence.

The old man said in a low, somber tone:

"Today, a second batch of helmets appeared out of nowhere on a large scale..."

"There were a lot of helmets this time. Even though we organized forces to intercept them immediately, a considerable number of them still ended up in the hands of the public."

According to you—

"Five days later, anyone who has activated the helmet and logged into the Wasteland game will almost certainly be transported to the wasteland."

"Those who did not come into contact with the helmets were randomly selected to pass through."

"Therefore, we cannot be certain..."

"Is this helmet a blessing or a curse for the millions of people at this moment...?"

(End of this chapter)