The end of the world is approaching, I'm handing myself over to the country.

Just then, the sound of a car engine shutting off came from downstairs, followed by the electronic sound of the villa gate opening.

The sudden noise interrupted Mo Fang's thoughts.

Even without looking, one could tell that his father had returned.

I turned off my phone screen, got up, and left the room.

As soon as I reached the top of the stairs, I saw a tall, stern-faced middle-aged man take off his coat and hand it to the maid next to him.

It was his father, Mo Haoyan.

Mo Haoyan also saw him and spoke directly.

"Le Cheng, come to my study."

His father rarely called him by his real name; when he did, it usually meant there was something important to discuss.

Inside the study.

Behind the mahogany desk, Mo Haoyan poured himself a cup of tea, his movements unhurried and deliberate.

"Le Cheng, there's something I need to tell you."

Mo Fang pulled out a chair and sat down, speaking before he could.

"Dad, I also have something to say, and it's definitely more important than yours."

Mo Haoyan paused in his teacup-holding motion, looked up and glanced at him, but wasn't angry; he just smiled and waved his hand.

"Okay, you go first."

Mo Fang leaned forward slightly, his expression more serious than ever before.

"I need money."

Mo Haoyan raised an eyebrow.

"Out of allowance again? Didn't your mom just give you a hundred million last month? It's all gone so quickly?"

"Not enough," Mo Fang shook his head.

"Wasteland Era is going to issue new closed beta access codes. I want to build my own faction in it. One hundred million is far from enough."

Mo Fang extended one finger.

"At least ten times."

One billion.

The air in the study fell silent for a moment.

Mo Haoyan's expression finally changed.

He frowned deeply, a hint of reproach in his eyes.

"Nonsense!"

"I used to hear people say that it's not that I'm afraid of rich kids being spoiled by frivolous pursuits, but that I'm afraid of them being overly ambitious. Today I finally understand what that means."

"It's just a stupid game, you can play it and leave it at that. Now you're asking for a billion? Do you think your family's money grows on trees?"

The rebukes echoed in the study.

Mo Fang, however, did not back down in the slightest.

He knew why his father was angry, but he also knew how important what he had to do was.

However, Mo Haoyan's next words stunned him.

"However, the reason I called you here is also related to Wasteland Era."

Mo Haoyan's anger came quickly and went quickly. He picked up his teacup again and blew on it to cool it down.

"You've seen the official news, right? I want to get a Moon Demon Fruit."

Mo Fang's heart skipped a beat. He stood up abruptly, staring at his father with shining eyes.

"Do you have any information about the Moon Demon Fruit?"

Mo Haoyan slowly took a sip of tea before lifting his eyelids to look at him.

No, not at all.

The excitement on Mo Fang's face vanished instantly.

"..."

Seeing his son's face fall instantly, Mo Haoyan snorted in annoyance.

"Hey, you little rascal, aren't you just playing that game? I was hoping you could get me one."

"Let me tell you, such opportunities are rare. For me, the 50 million isn't the point; the point is the people involved in that event."

"If we could really establish some kind of connection, it would bring endless benefits to our family."

Suddenly remembering something, Mo Haoyan continued, "By the way, you'd better stay home during this time and not go anywhere. I heard from a friend that our H City was attacked by a wild beast today, and quite a few people were injured."

"But don't talk about this with anyone else. Just be careful. The authorities are trying to cover it up. If it gets out by accident, it could cause trouble."

Mo Fang: "Since the news was blocked, how did you know?"

Mo Haoyan didn't care at all: "Haha, for me, there are no secrets in this world."

Mo Fang didn't respond to that, his mind was racing.

Even someone like his father has started paying attention to things in the game.

This shows that the impact of the matter has far exceeded the public's understanding.

One more point has been confirmed.

That means the authorities are serious!

Furthermore, the ferocious beasts in H City are also quite strange.

Why wasn't a public announcement made when a wild animal attacked people?

It's normal to keep people away from dangerous areas, but the authorities are choosing to conceal the information.

This is very strange, and it even goes against the way we've handled similar situations before.

It is simply incomprehensible to those in high positions who would rather have no merit than make no mistakes.

Unless, there is some secret involved that even his own father doesn't know.

That unease surged back into my heart.

He looked at Mo Haoyan solemnly.

"Dad, listen to me."

"If you actually manage to get your hands on the Moon Demon Fruit, whatever you do, whatever you do, don't hand it over to the authorities."

"Give me!"

Mo Haoyan looked at him suspiciously.

"What are you going to do with it?"

"You must give it to me, it's very important to me!"

Mo Fang's speech quickened; he needed to make his father realize the seriousness of the situation.

"Dad, don't you find this strange?"

"Why would the official team offer such outrageous conditions just to collect a single in-game item?"

Mo Haoyan: "It's a bit inexplicable, but I can understand it."

However, as a businessman, he is all too familiar with these tactics.

They just want to make money.

With the gaming industry booming, it's understandable that the authorities are taking action to regulate it.

It's better to give the money to the government than to let those guys make money and then turn around and exchange it for a green card.

Besides, he's not involved in gaming, so there's no way he'll be implicated.

Mo Fang disagreed: "What about the Source Crystals? They're even willing to devalue their own currency to frantically buy up Source Crystals from 'Wasteland Era'!"

The never-wipe beta test accounts, the exorbitant item purchase prices, the disruptive currency system, and the players in Wasteland Era who don't seem like players at all...

One seemingly unrelated clue after another was connected in Mo Fang's mind.

Sudden.

A blinding flash of lightning exploded deep within his mind!

All the incomprehensible doubts and all the strange details were pierced through in that instant!

An extremely crazy and terrifying conjecture surfaced in his mind.

if......

What if Wasteland was never a game?

What if everything in there is real?

With a loud "boom".

Mo Fang felt his mind go blank, as if all the blood in his body had been drained in an instant, only to rush to his limbs and bones in the next second, bringing waves of bone-chilling cold.

His face turned deathly pale in an instant, devoid of any color.

Cold sweat instantly soaked his back.

His appearance, which was on the verge of mutation, gave Mo Haoyan a real fright.

"Le Cheng? What's wrong?"

"Why do you look so pale? Are you feeling unwell? Should we call a doctor?"

Mo Haoyan quickly got up, walked around the desk, and reached out to help Mo Fang.

Mo Fang pushed his hand away and stared intently at the man in front of him.

He uttered that world-shaking conjecture in a trembling voice, almost like a dream.

"Dad... if... I mean if, Wasteland Era wasn't a game..."

"But what about... a real world?"