Secret World: I Became a God Through Lies

Chapter 573 The Price of Breathing

"They call it paradise because the air here is sweet."

Until someone tells you that every bite of sweetness costs money.

—The Tower of the End, System Tax Records, Volume IV

Sunlight streamed through the streets of the City of Stars.

The floating island is covered with crystalline light stones, and the buildings are completely transparent.

Every step you take reflects the starlight beneath your feet.

A breeze swept through the streets, carrying a faint fragrance of flowers and the scent of purified air.

This is the mid-level capital of the Tower of the End, the Star Core City.

It is clean, bright, and perfect—so beautiful it makes you feel uneasy.

Selene blinked and pulled Natasha's hand as they strolled around the street.

"This place is so beautiful!"
Even the air smells wonderful—

She took a deep breath.

"drop!"

A crisp notification sound rang in her ears.

[Use in high-end areas for air purification +1]

[Points - 0.5]

Selene was stunned.

"……what?"

She took another inhalation unconsciously.

[Use air purifier +1]

[Points - 0.5]

The system prompt followed the second tone.

Natasha raised an eyebrow.

"Congratulations, our lungs have started to consume too."

"Are you kidding me?" Selene pulled out her Star Calamity Card.

The virtual panel immediately appeared before my eyes.

The balance jumped rapidly from [8000] to [7990], [7985]...

"Ah—! It's fixing itself!"

Selene immediately held her breath, her eyes wide open.

She whispered, "So... even air needs to be scored?"

The dragon-human female shop assistant next to her heard this.

With a professional smile, she explained, "Miss, this is the clean air area."

The air contains highly purified molecules, which are beneficial to both body and mind. The system automatically charges for each breath taken.

Celian looked shocked: "Wouldn't it be cheaper if I didn't breathe?"

The female clerk still smiled: "Yes, but please note that if you do not breathe for a long time, the system will automatically detect it as an abnormal state and charge an additional 'life support fee'."

Selene: "..."

Natasha crossed her arms, her gaze slightly amused.

"This place is paradise. You even have to pay a tax for holding your breath."

Si Ming walked in front.

Watching the two of them talking and laughing,

The system notification sound followed them like a shadow at their feet—

[Distance traveled: 1 kilometers]

[Points - 10]

[Distance traveled: 2 kilometers]

[Points - 10]

With each step taken, the light screen flashes once.

Selene's smile gradually froze.

She stared at the cold, hard data.

Suddenly I felt the road beneath my feet,

Like a golden chain.

She tried to change her mood.

"Okay... at least there's still food!"

She pointed to a shop that was decorated very cutely in front of her.

The glass display case was filled with milk tea, cakes, and ice cream.

The colorful lights gave the air a sweet scent.

Selene ran over excitedly.
I looked at the steaming milk tea through the semi-transparent counter.

"Please give me a cup of this!"

The female shop assistant smiled as she entered the order.

"Okay, miss, 30 points."

Selene's smile froze.

"...How much did you say?"

"30 points."

"30 points?!" Her eyes widened.
"When we were at the bottom of society, a whole meal didn't cost more than 30 yuan!"

"Food for the lower classes is a survival ration."
The drinks in the middle tier are considered luxury items.

The female shop assistant maintained a gentle smile.
"Our store also offers premium cakes, each costing 60 points."

“This isn’t a cake, this is a robbery,” Celian couldn’t help but complain.

Natasha glanced at the price list.
Then he sneered, "It's not expensive. This cup of milk tea is probably equivalent to one minute of our breathing."

Sally settled down for a moment.

That teasing remark suddenly made her feel a little cold.

She looked down at the Star Calamity Card in her hand.

The card surface shimmered slightly.

The balance is slowly decreasing little by little.

Breathing, walking, talking, entering a store.

Every action has a price.

She looked up; the street was bustling with people.

Everyone was laughing.

Their smiles were pure white and perfect in the light.

Yet it appears unusually empty.

“They… don’t seem to care,” she said softly.

Natasha sighed, "Perhaps it's because they've long been used to it."

Selene paused for a moment,
Then she whispered, "So, are we going to live like this from now on?"

Si Ming turned around.
Looking at her expression, I calmly replied:
"This is not heaven, Celian."

"Here is the bill."

The wind swept through the street,

It stirred up shimmering dust, like a fine rain of gold.

Selene's hair was blown about.
She looked at the golden street.
Suddenly I felt a little short of breath.

She tentatively took another breath.

[Use air purifier +1]

[Points - 0.5]

She smiled.

The smile was somewhat bitter.

"At least... the air smells pretty good."

Natasha replied casually, "Fragrance always costs money."

Si Ming did not speak again.

He looked up at the star core tower floating in the center of the sky.

There, the light of data shimmered like a river.

It coldly records the cost of every breath.

At the end of the street, the light was blocked by a tall tower.

In that shadow, the wind was gentle.

It carried a faint smell of rust and dust.

Selene was walking ahead when she suddenly stopped.

She saw a girl.

The girl knelt by the roadside, clutching a tattered rag in her arms.

He was gently wiping a "statue".

The statue depicts a young man in a natural pose.
His expression was calm, as if he were smiling in a dream.

The light shone from the reflector screen on the side of the street.

The light illuminated the gray stone statue.

The wind blew up dust, which settled on his shoulders.
The girl reached out and carefully wiped it away.

"Today is the twenty-second day."

She said softly.
His tone was as flat as if he were reading a diary.

"You'll wake up in eight days."

She paused for a moment, then smiled.

The smile was faint, yet so gentle it was heartbreaking.

"Then, we'll go and take on a new dungeon, okay?"

This time... I won't hold you back.

Selene stood there, stunned.

His gaze shifted from the statue to the girl.

The girl was wearing a faded blue dress.
Her hair was a mess from the wind.

But her movements were incredibly meticulous.

It's like being genuinely afraid of hurting that stone.

Selene stepped forward and crouched down.

"who is he?"

The girl raised her head, her eyes clear, yet revealing a kind of dulled calm.

"He is my teammate."

“We failed in the last dungeon, and he didn’t accumulate enough points, so he was frozen.”

Natasha stood to the side with her arms crossed, her gaze indifferent.

"So you come here every day to talk to him?"

The girl nodded.

He doesn't like being alone.

Her voice didn't tremble at all when she said this.
It's as if they've already gotten used to all of this.

Selene paused for a moment.

"So... are you alright? Do you have enough points?"

The girl lowered her head and pulled a worn-out Star Calamity Card from her pocket. Faint numbers flickered on the screen.
【1320】

"Enough."

she says.

"I don't wander around, and I don't breathe too much."

"As long as I can save some money, I can wait another month."

Selene's throat tightened slightly.

She looked at the girl, her eyes trembling slightly.

"I can help you."

She held out her hand.

"I have points, I can transfer some to you."

The girl looked up, her expression gentle, but shook her head.

"Thank you."

“But he will get angry.”

He once said, "The rule is survival."

“If I break the rules, he will blame me when he wakes up.”

The wind blows,
The girl's hair swayed gently.
In that instant, her profile almost overlapped with that of the statue.

It's as if they've all been frozen in the same moment.

Natasha sneered.

"What a beautiful love story."

In this tower, even emotions are calculated on a point system.

The girl did not answer, but continued to wipe the stone statue.

Her fingers were very light, as if beneath that grayish-white skin,

There's still a heartbeat.

Selene bit her lip and whispered:
Don't you hate this world?

The girl stopped what she was doing and remained silent for a while.

"I hate it."

She spoke softly, her voice like a speck of dust in the wind.

"But hatred comes at a price. I can't afford it."

She lowered her head again and wiped the corner of the statue's eye.

A speck of dust settled at the corner of his eye.
The polished areas seemed to shimmer with light.

Si Ming stood at the back the whole time.
I watched all of this quietly.

He finally spoke, his voice barely audible:

"The tower will not destroy people."

"The tower only teaches people how to destroy themselves."

No one spoke.

The air was so quiet that only the sounds of breathing and the slight hum of the system could be heard.

Light streamed through the gaps in the tower.
The light shone on the face of that statue.
The light also shone on the girl's slightly hunched back.

She's still wiping.

One by one,
Each stroke is like erasing time.

When Celian walked out of that street,
I glanced back.

The girl remained in the same spot.
The gray statue still stands there quietly.

The wind swept across the street corner,
It stirred up dust, and it also stirred up her hair.

From a distance,

Like two statues standing side by side.

In the city of stars at dusk, the Bridge of Light shimmers with a golden glow.

The floating islands in the air slowly rotated, and the night was replaced by lights.

A gentle breeze blows, and people on the street continue to smile, talk, and walk.

It's as if all life has been programmed into a kind of "order".

Si Ming, Natasha, and Celian walked on the bridge of light.

Their reflections were mirrored on the translucent ground beneath their feet.

They looked like three beams of light suspended in the void.

Selene's gaze remained somewhat unfocused.

After meeting the Frozen One's companion at that street corner, she remained calm.

Natasha silently chewed on her cigarette, while Siming walked in front.
Even the air between them seemed to carry the chill of data.

"help me!"

A hoarse shout abruptly shattered the silence.

A man stumbled and ran out from the street corner ahead.

His clothes were tattered, and his face was as pale as paper.

He practically crawled on his knees to get to the crowd.

His eyes were filled with despair and madness.

"Please, can anyone lend me even a little bit of points!"

Just a little bit is enough, I don't want it to freeze! Please!

His voice echoed across the bridge of light.

A series of system notification sounds followed.

[Warning: Points Balance: 2]

【...1】

Passersby quickly moved aside.

They were expressionless.

Some people even raised their hands to block their vision.

As if afraid of "being infected by bad luck".

A middle-aged woman of the Dragon race stopped in her tracks.
She looked down at him with a cold gaze.

"Points are not for giving away as charity,"

Her voice was like a cold knife.

"They are meant to be lived."

The man's lips trembled, and he let out a low sob.

"I want to live too..."

The system prompt sounds again:
[Warning: Points Balance: 0]

His body jolted.

It was as if my whole being was locked in by an invisible program.

The skin color faded rapidly, turning grayish-white.

That gray wasn't the color of death.
Rather, it is a kind of "freezing" after being digitized.

His breathing was rapid, his hands were on the ground, and his fingertips were trembling.

"No... I haven't—"

The sound was cut off.

Fine cracks appeared on the surface of the skin.
The reflection in the pupils gradually dimmed.

Tears lingered on his face.
Finally, it turned into ice crystals.

The freezing process is extremely slow.
Every inch of skin is gradually stiffening and losing its warmth.

He looked up, gazing in the direction of Si Ming.

that moment,
The resentment and fear in his eyes were almost tangible.

Si Ming watched him quietly.

There was neither forward nor backward movement.

Only his eyes remained calm and still.

Natasha sighed.
Even the desire to die costs money.

The final system notification rang out in the air:
[Freeze mode is now enabled.]

The man froze completely.

He maintained the pleading posture, his hands outstretched forward.

The body was transparent and stiff.
It will become a new "statue" on the bridge of light.

The crowd passed by him.

Several young players even stopped in their tracks.

I raised the terminal and took a few photos.

"It's so pitiful... but this kind of thing happens every day."

"Ignore him, the system will automatically reclaim it."

They were talking,
The laughter was crisp and clear.

It was as if nothing had happened.

Selene clenched her fists tightly.

Her fingertips were trembling.

Why...is everyone like this?

Natasha did not answer.

Her gaze was indifferent.

It's as if they're too lazy to even waste their anger.

The wind swept by again.

The frozen person's hair was blown up.
It looks like shards of glass under the light.

It flashed.
Then it returns to stillness.

Selene turned around.

The voice was very soft, but it was stuck in her throat.

"Maybe... we should go back."

"This place is not suitable for...shopping."

Sima Ming did not answer immediately.

He just turned around.
Looking at the new statue.

The man's outstretched hands remained frozen in mid-air.
It's like grasping at some illusory hope.

Si Ming's voice was low and deep, almost carried away by the wind:

"This is neither hell nor heaven."

"It's just a dream."

"And dreams have always been charged for."

The wind swept past them.

Accompanied by a soft ringing sound and a system hum,

The streetlights came on one by one.

The shadow of the frozen figure was elongated by the light.
Their footsteps overlapped with those of the crowd.

"People surrounded by indifference"

Even death has lost its meaning.

—From *The Tower of the End: The Record of Civilization's Cooling Down*, Volume V, Epilogue

(End of this chapter)