T0 Gaming Guild Saves the World.

Chapter 554, Section 553: Before and After Life
Jiang Heyi felt as if she had a very, very long dream.

The end of a dream is like a labyrinth, with layers upon layers of paths, presented in a topological form, where even the patterns are distorted.

Like an ant that has fallen into a maze, no matter which layer of the maze wall it crawls along, everything it sees is magnificent and enormous.

He desperately wanted to escape, but on the smooth, mirror-like walls of the maze, countless images flashed by, intricate and difficult to decipher.

The people in the picture are both strangers and familiar.

Some voices tried to emerge from the depths of their hearts, but remained dry and stuck in their throats.

"call!"

Suddenly, Jiang Heyi sat up.

He was drenched in sweat, his whole body soaked.

He stared at himself in his pajamas, then subconsciously looked around.

The old house where I've lived since I was a child, the old house full of memories that was demolished not long after I moved out, comes into view.

The interior furnishings are just as...

Just like the year I graduated?

Jiang Heyi covered his forehead, stood up in a daze, and fumbled for the switch.

As the lights came on, the darkness, like an evil spirit, was dispelled and retreated into every corner of the room like mercury spilling across the floor.

The clock hands point to 3:24 a.m.

He stood in his bedroom, staring blankly at the scene he had known for the first 20 years of his life.

He rushed to the computer desk and shakily typed "Proof of the Stars".

The expected results did not appear, and the irrelevant search terms annoyed Jiang Heyi.

Search for "virtual and real boundaries".

No relevant results...

"What on earth am I..."

The sound came from above and landed on the top of the head.

"Oh, it seems someone has woken up."

Jiang Heyi's spirits lifted.

The sound made every pore of his body rejoice, as if his whole body was jumping for joy.

"As expected, you woke up first."

In Jiang Heyi's eyes, reality was like an oil painting canvas. A woman who looked like a dark elf casually waved her hand, tearing the canvas that outlined the bedroom apart.

She emerged from the dark crevice, a smile of joy at their long-awaited reunion on her lips, and waved her hand across Jiang Heyi's face.

"Are you still in a state of semi-consciousness?"

"The memories haven't been fully integrated?"

As she spoke, she pointed to herself.

"Come, say my name."

Jiang Heyi's lips moved slightly, and a name slowly emerged from her chaotic mind.

"Hello... La?"

Holora smiled, pursed her lips, and sat down with a relieved touch on his shoulder.

"haven't seen you for a long time."

Jiang Heyi rubbed his forehead, trying to gather his thoughts: "What's wrong with me...?"

Out of the corner of his eye, he could already see that the "reality" around him was collapsing rapidly, revealing a dark and lonely curtain adorned with a sky full of stars.

Jiang Heyi's vision suddenly broadened, and in his pupils, he saw the blue gem floating in the dark universe.

The terminator, like a golden boundary drawn by a deity, divides this blue planet into two distinct worlds.

On the sunlit side, the vast ocean shimmered with the brilliance of liquid gemstones, and the cloud shadows floating among the surging waves resembled transparent enamel glaze.

On the hemisphere shrouded in night, the lights of human civilization, like shattered crystals, meander along the continental shelf, scattered like stars.

The hurricane spiraled into a milky white spiral near the equator, while the aurora dancing in the polar sky resembled scattered fluorescent pollen.

The blue planet, only seen in simulators and images, reveals its magnificent beauty, a sight rarely seen by ordinary people.

Jiang Heyi stammered.

Why can't I remember many things?

Holola explained, "After you die, we make some cuts in your souls, retaining the first 30 years of your lives."

Jiang Heyi asked, puzzled, "Why?"

"Too much life experience can become a variable in your trip to Anna. We need to control the variables as much as possible to bring you closer to the ideal state of the simulation."

“This part of my life hasn’t disappeared; we’ve made a backup of it, which you can watch and access at any time, but I suggest doing so after your trip to Anna.”

Jiang Heyi's mind was still a bit muddled: "That's amazing, that skill."

Holora laughed: "It seems you haven't fully recovered yet. In the past, you wouldn't have been surprised by such a small thing."

Jiang Heyi asked, "Then Anna's knowledge..."

"You will have basically finished your studies before the age of 30, and they will recover over time. Moreover, there has been quite some time since Anna's reincarnation, so even if you forget something, you can learn it again."

At this moment, his muddled mind finally cleared up a bit, and he eagerly looked around.

"The others haven't woken up yet, but your talent in the spiritual realm is outstanding, so you were indeed the first to adapt to the spirit form."

Only then did Jiang Heyi suddenly feel light and agile.

He gently twisted his "body" and flew away without wings, swimming freely like a fish.

"Breaking free from the shackles of the body—what's that saying again, the soul bound by gravity?" Holora laughed. "Now, we've escaped the Well of Gravity and glimpsed a new world."

Looking back at the world that had given birth to him and nurtured him, Jiang Heyi remained silent for a long time. He took a deep breath and asked, "Everyone, are you all alright?"

"As promised, your family members all died peacefully without illness and lived to a ripe old age. With you by their side, they were very happy until their passing."

"The friends you made in the game are basically the same. After achieving financial freedom, your example has a strong influence. They have all chosen to live a low-key and quiet life. They achieved fame at a young age, enjoyed it early, and are now living a very peaceful life with their children by their side in their later years."

Jiang Heyi's revived memories include the events of the second Stars Cup.

In the end, OpenCanEat led Khorne's Chosen to retain the title of T0 guild in the Chinese server.

The consecutive victories in the StarCraft World Championships have brought jubilation to the Chinese server community.

It seems that before the third Stars Cup, they made the same decision as the boundary between reality and illusion: to make good use of resources and enjoy life as winners in life.

He suddenly had a thought: "Are there any still alive?"

"Have."

This time it was Jiang Heyi's turn to be surprised: "Really?"

He just said it casually; if it were true, wouldn't that be really weird?

Although Holora didn't say it, he had already guessed that some time must have passed since they died of old age.

Is there still anyone alive after all this?

The king of ultra-long standby time?
No, he should be called the legendary king of endurance.

"Who, who?"

"Your most loyal underlings, those guys from the Star Gazing Sect," Holola said, suppressing a laugh, "with the resurgence of spiritual energy, extremely rare treasures have appeared, treasures that can extend lifespan, and they've obtained them."

"Given the spiritual energy of the Three Heavens Land, the existence of something that nourishes the spirit and body and achieves longevity in such a simple and brutal way can only be described as a miracle."

"Perhaps it was because they listened to your suggestion to build affordable restaurants to benefit ordinary people that the treasure happened to grow in their potato field. It can be considered that it was blessed by you and French fries."

"Since it was a gift from heaven anyway, I kindly gave them a few pointers and told them to cook and eat it."

Jiang Heyi was stunned.

"Cook it and eat it? Shouldn't it be used for making medicine?"

"Wake up! Their alchemy skills can't keep up with the gathering of spiritual energy and the accidental formation of medicinal herbs. Rather than wasting them by failing to refine them, we might as well just boil them and eat them. We'll see how much they're effective."

According to Holola, Li Furan and the other two are already 100 years old this year, but they look like they are in their 50s. Apart from being slightly weaker than when they were young, they do not show many signs of aging.

Although he rarely traveled to the Three Domes after entering his later years, Li Furan always remembered his benefactors.

Every year, he would lead his disciples in a grand offering before the statue erected in the Three Domes.

In private, the three would also prepare special offerings for the incense burning at the boundary between the real and virtual realms, serving things like fries, fried chicken, and soda, a far cry from the solemnity of formal sacrifices.

"They have truly remembered your kindness all this time."

That debt of gratitude can never be repaid.

Having been reborn after death, and hearing familiar people still thinking of him, Jiang Heyi was momentarily at a loss for how to respond.

This is a novel experience for everyone at the boundary between the virtual and the real.

As if their souls were intertwined, less than a week after Jiang Heyi woke up, French Fries also awoke from his long, deep sleep.

Clutching her still somewhat muddled mind, tears welled up in her eyes the moment she saw Jiang Heyi.

Jiang Heyi understood.

Holola set an anchor point for the awakening of everyone's memories, which happened to be on the eve of the launch of Proof of the Stars.

This leads everyone who wakes up to be shocked and mistakenly believe that the beautiful memories and everything they experienced together were nothing but a dream.

A profound sense of emptiness washed over the spiritual body.

Everything was too beautiful, and the disillusionment that followed upon waking was enough to drive them, whose consciousness was still unclear, terrified and insane.

Aside from lacking temperature, spiritual contact is not much different from physical contact.

French Fries hugged Jiang Heyi tightly, refusing to let go.

"Don't be afraid, it's real, it's all real."

Like comforting a child who has had a nightmare, he gently stroked the back of the fries.

"I really thought..."

"Don't think I'm holding you," Jiang Heyi laughed. "We're an old married couple, still so clingy?"

"I do not care!"

"Alright, alright, let's keep things sticky until we get our memories back." Jiang Heyi readily accepted.

In the days that followed, the remaining five people at the boundary between the virtual and the real world gradually woke up.

If, as Holora said, the order in which they woke up represents their mental resilience, then the jailer was the worst.

And this guy's reaction upon waking up is also the strongest.

"Waaaah, orange tea, orange tea..."

"I don't want you to leave me..."

"Please, don't let it be a dream... I'll give up my own lifespan in exchange."

He clung to Orange Tea's leg and cried uncontrollably.

Even after Holora explained herself, the jailer still held onto Orange Tea tightly, as if letting go would wake him from his dream.

If it weren't for his genuine emotions, everyone would have suspected that he was suffering from his old ailment again.

This action made Moyu hug the blanket tighter, and Nongya couldn't help but snuggle into the Four Primal Bodies' arms.

"What a disgrace! Everyone's laughing at him."

Orange Tea laughed and cursed, but she couldn't bear to pry the jailer's hand off, letting him hug her like a child.

Holola stood there with her arms crossed, quietly admiring the scene, her face beaming with "This is so nice, so nice," her eyes sparkling.

(End of this chapter)