Ice skates forward, regardless of east or west.

1

The sound of dripping water came from deep within the shaft, as regular as a countdown.

Gu Xidong gripped Ling Wuwen's hand tightly and descended step by step.

The rusty metal ladder groaned beneath my feet, each tremor sending debris flying from the well walls.

The headlamp can only illuminate three meters ahead; beyond that, it's pure darkness.

"How much deeper?" Ling Wuwen asked in a low voice.

"I don't know." Gu Xidong looked down. "But if we're on the right track, we should be able to hear—"

Gunshots.

It came from below, a dull, short sound, just one. Then came the sound of a heavy object falling into the water.

They exchanged a glance and quickened their descent.

Thirty meters, fifty meters, seventy meters... Water began to seep from the well wall, and the temperature dropped sharply.

Gu Xidong's left knee was stiff in the cold, and every time he bent it felt like his joint was rubbing against broken glass.

Finally, the steps beneath my feet were no longer steps, but a slippery cement platform.

An underground river flows silently along the edge of the platform. A person lies in the center of the platform.

Ye Shen.

He had a bullet hole in his chest, and blood was seeping out beneath him.

Its eyes were still open, looking in the direction of the well, but they were no longer focused.

Gu Xidong squatted down to examine him: "He just died. Less than ten minutes ago."

Ling Wuwen kept watch over the surroundings.

The platform is small, about 20 square meters, and has no other exits besides the entrance.

However, the underground river flows very fast, indicating that there are upstream and downstream sections.

"Why did you kill him?" she asked.

"Silence him. Or..." Gu Xidong rummaged in Ye Shen's pocket and found a waterproof phone.

The screen was still lit, remaining on the recording interface.

He clicked play.

First came a burst of static, then Ye Shen's voice, urgent:

"...They found out. Ling Jianguo knows I'm Wang Zhenhua's man. He wanted me to cooperate in the act, to lure Gu Xidong here, but the real target isn't Gu Xidong, it's—"

The gunshot interrupted the recording.

Gu Xidong replayed the video, turning the volume up to maximum.

In the split second before the gunshot, a word could be heard in the background: "Ice shards... core..."

"Core what?" Ling Wuwen frowned.

Gu Xidong scrolled through other content on his phone.

加密文件夹需要密码，试了三次都错误。第四次，他输入王振华留下的那串数字：7-19-23-5-12-1。

Unlock.

There was only one file inside, titled: "The Real List of Ice Chips Organizations".

turn on.

The first page lists the known members: Liu Xuemei, Jundao, Professor, Pharmacist... but each person's name has a note next to it.

Liu Xuemei: [She can be exploited; her son is her Achilles' heel.]

Military Knife: [Already turned against me, price: daughter's surgery fee]

Professor: [Idealist, easily manipulated]

Pharmacist: [Two-faced, actually loyal to the club]

Gu Xidong scrolled quickly. At the end of the list, he saw his own name.

Gu Xidong: [Subject 3, implantation successful, control program (partially disabled), data carrier (activated)]

Then there's Ling Wuwen.

Ling Wuwen: [Monitor (lack of self-awareness), Activation command: Father's voice saying "Go home"]

The last line is the only one in the entire list marked in red:

Ye Shen: [Deep Diver No. 2, Wang Zhenhua's successor, has been exposed and needs to be eliminated.]

"Ye Shen is Wang Zhenhua's successor." Gu Xidong looked up. "He's been investigating the club, but Ling Jianguo found out. So he used this method... to leave the intelligence to us."

"Then why bother acting?"

"To make us believe he's dead." Gu Xidong looked at Ye Shen's corpse.

"The dead cannot speak, nor can they be suspected. Ling Jianguo thought that by killing him, he had severed our last connection with the truth."

2

The sound of an engine came from upstream of the underground river.

They were inflatable boats. Two of them, three people on each, their headlamps piercing the darkness.

Gu Xidong pulled Ling Wuwen behind a rock at the edge of the platform. The inflatable boat docked, and six well-equipped people jumped out.

One of them crouched down to examine Ye Shen's body and said into the communicator, "Target confirmed dead. Gu Xidong should be nearby."

"Search." The leader waved his hand.

Gu Xidong counted the weapons: four pistols and two submachine guns. He had no chance of winning in a direct confrontation.

He looked down into the underground river—it was dark, but the speed of the current meant there was an exit.

"How long can you hold your breath?" he asked Ling Wuwen in a low voice.

Two minutes.

That's enough.

They slipped silently into the water.

The water was icy cold, and Gu Xidong's left knee went numb instantly. The current immediately grabbed them and pushed them into the darkness.

He held his breath. In the darkness, only the sound of flowing water and his own heartbeat could be heard. After thirty seconds, his lungs began to burn. After sixty seconds, glimmers of light appeared on the edge of his consciousness.

Then a faint light appeared ahead.

It's an exit. But there's an iron fence at the exit.

Gu Xidong grabbed the fence and pulled hard—and rusted to death.

Ling Wuwen swam over, and the two of them pushed together. The gap was only half a palm's width wide, making it impossible to pass through.

The oxygen is running out.

Gu Xidong felt around at the bottom of the fence and found that one of the railings was corroded and broken. He used his last bit of strength to kick it hard.

The railing is bent.

But not enough.

Ling Wuwen pointed to herself, then swam upstream—she needed to go back to draw away the pursuers and give him time.

Gu Xidong shook her head, but she had already turned and swam away.

Ten seconds later, gunshots and shouts were heard upstream. The pursuers were lured away.

Gu Xidong continued kicking the railing. Once, twice, three times—it broke!

He squeezed through the gap and was swept downstream by the water to the light.

When he surfaced, he was in a cave.

The cave entrance was hidden by vines, and outside lay mountains and forests. He climbed ashore, coughing violently; his left knee had completely lost sensation.

He waited for three minutes.

Ling Wuwen did not come out.

Just as they were about to return to the water, the vines at the cave entrance were lifted. Old Gun and Mouse rushed in, soaking wet.

"Where is Ling Wuwen?" Old Gun asked urgently.

"She went back to draw away the pursuers."

The mouse was already operating the device: "I tracked her signal... upstream on the underground river. Still moving, but very slowly, probably injured."

"Go save her."

"Wait." He pressed the mouse button on him. "Ye Shen's phone has synced and uploaded data to my phone. Look at this."

The tablet screen displayed the last document Ye Shen left behind—not a list, but a video log.

In the image, Ye Shen sits in the darkness, looking haggard.

"If I saw this, I should already be dead. Ling Jianguo won't let me live because I know too much. But some things have to be known by someone."

He took a deep breath:

"The 'Ice Shard Organization' was infiltrated from its inception. At least three of the founding members were informants planted by the club. But that's not the scariest part. The scariest part is... the club itself is also an infiltrated organization."

Gu Xidong held his breath.

"Ling Jianguo isn't at the highest level. There's someone above him, codenamed 'Professor'—not the professor from the ice shavings story, but the real 'Professor.' This person isn't in the sports system, nor is he based in China. He controls the club through Ling Jianguo, but his goal isn't money or gold medals."

Ye Shen leans closer to the camera:

"The goal is experimental data. All the athletes who have had chips implanted in the past decade have been his experimental subjects. He is studying neuroplasticity under extreme human conditions, and... mind control technology. Sports corruption is just a cover, and fund transfers are just a byproduct. The real product is those eighty modified brains."

The video was shaking, and Ye Shen glanced back at it, lowering his voice:

"Gu Xidong, you are special. Wang Zhenhua's choice of you was not accidental. Your brain's neural structure has some kind of abnormality—it may be innate or caused by training—making your compatibility with implants far greater than that of ordinary people. You are the only test subject who has simultaneously received both a control chip and a data chip without experiencing a mental breakdown. This means..."

He paused:

"Your brain might be the key to achieving the ultimate goal of becoming a 'professor.' That goal, Wang Zhenhua never figured out before his death, but he left behind one word—"

The video suddenly cut out.

The final scene shows Ye Shen turning his head in horror, then the screen goes black.

"There's residual audio in the last three seconds." The mouse brought up the spectrum analyzer. "I'll fix it..."

Amidst the noise, a word gradually became clear:

"……eternal life."

The cave was deathly silent.

"Immortality?" Old Gun repeated. "What do you mean?"

"Consciousness upload? Neural backup? Or..." Mouse looked at Gu Xidong, "...using an athlete's brain as a container?"

Gu Xidong felt a chill.

3

He remembered the test tubes labeled in the refrigerator: [Experiment Subject 1 - Brain Tissue Slice].

The club collects more than just blood and DNA.

They collect brains.

"Ling Wuwen's location has stopped," the mouse suddenly said. "In a branch cave of the underground river. Vital signs... very weak."

"Walk."

They dived back into the water. This time, Old Gun brought underwater cutting tools and directly destroyed the fence.

The upstream branch cave requires a three-meter dive to enter. There is an air layer inside, but the space is narrow.

Ling Wuwen lay on the rock, shot in the abdomen, his blood staining the water beneath him.

She was still awake, clutching a pistol tightly in her hand.

"Where are the pursuers?" Old Gun asked, keeping watch at the cave entrance.

"I've shaken them off...for now." Ling Wuwen's voice was weak. "But I heard...their conversation."

Gu Xidong tore open her clothes to stop the bleeding.

The bullet hole was on the right side of the abdomen, possibly damaging the intestines.

"Ling Jianguo said..." Ling Wuwen grabbed his hand, "The money in the Swiss bank... is just a front. The real assets are... the gene bank and neural atlas. They have a laboratory in Zurich... using samples from athletes to do... cloning and consciousness transplantation experiments."

Cloning. Consciousness transplantation.

Gu Xidong thought of those test tubes, and the label after his name: [Data Carrier].

Perhaps the club wants more than just control over him.

Perhaps they want to become him.

"What else did he say?"

"He said..." Ling Wuwen coughed, blood oozing from the corner of his mouth.

"The 'Professor' can't wait any longer. After the White Whale Protocol failed... they're going to launch Project Nirvana. Using the brains of existing test subjects... they'll conduct consciousness fusion experiments. The first subject... is you."

The sound of an inflatable boat engine could be heard outside the cave.

"They've found this place." Old Gun raised his gun.

"Take her away." Gu Xidong stood up.

"Let's go together!"

"I need to stay." Gu Xidong looked at Ling Wuwen. "If their target is me, then this is an opportunity—an opportunity to get closer to the core."

"Are you crazy? They'll turn you into a guinea pig!"

"That was the only way I could get into the lab," Gu Xidong said calmly.

"The intelligence Ye Shen risked his life for, and the data Wang Zhenhua implanted with his life, cannot be wasted. I need to see the 'Professor,' and I need to know the ultimate purpose of all this."

The sound of an engine drew near, and lights shone into the cave entrance.

Ling Wuwen gripped his hand tightly: "No..."

"Trust me." Gu Xidong leaned down and kissed her forehead. "Wait for me to come back."

He turned and walked out of the cave.

The inflatable boat stopped at the cave entrance, and six guns were pointed at him.

Ling Jianguo stood at the bow of the ship, wearing a winter coat, with a gentle, fatherly smile on his face.

"It's a smart choice," he said. "Stubborn resistance will only hurt the people you care about."

"Let them go," Gu Xidong said. "I'll go with you to see the 'professor'."

Ling Jianguo nodded. His men made way for him, and Old Gun carried Ling Wuwen on his back, with Mouse supporting her, as they left through the waterway on the other side of the cave.

Gu Xidong watched their figures disappear into the darkness, then turned around.

The handcuffs locked the wrists.

"You won't regret it." Ling Jianguo patted him on the shoulder. "You will participate in the greatest experiment in human history."

The inflatable boat sailed into the depths of the underground river.

4

Half an hour later, artificial light appeared ahead—an underground dock hidden inside the mountain. The dock connected to an elevator that led directly to the mountaintop.

The elevator ascended for three minutes. When the door opened, Gu Xidong saw snow.

And a modern building hidden on the mountaintop.

The all-glass curtain wall blends seamlessly with the snow-capped mountains.

The interior was brightly lit, and through the glass one could see the laboratories, the data hall, and...

Rows of cylindrical containers.

Each container held a brain floating in a pale blue liquid. The labels on the containers bore names he recognized.

【Experiment Subject 1 - Gymnastics - 2008】

【Experiment Subject 2 - Swimming - 2010】

【Experimental Subject 4 - Short Track Speed ​​Skating - 2012】

Number four. So he is number three.

"Welcome to the core laboratory of the 'Nirvana Project'." Ling Jianguo pushed open the door.

"This place preserves the brains of the best athletes of the past decade. Their bodies may be dead, but their consciousness... is still asleep."

In the center of the hall, an elderly man with white hair sat in a wheelchair with his back to them.

"Professor," Ling Jianguo said respectfully, "the person you asked for has arrived."

The wheelchair slowly turned around.

Gu Xidong saw that face.

He recognized that face.

On television, in newspapers, on the title page of physical education textbooks.

The former deputy director of the General Administration of Sport, a landmark figure in China's sports reform, retired three years ago due to "health reasons."

Chen Guodong's father, Chen Zhenghua.

"Gu Xidong." Chen Zhenghua smiled, his voice aged but strong, "I've waited for you for three years. From the first time you stepped onto the national stage, I knew you were the perfect vessel."

"container?"

"The vessel that holds my consciousness." Chen Zhenghua pointed to his chest. "Late-stage lung cancer, spread throughout my body. I have less than three months left. But your body... is young, healthy, and has undergone extreme training. More importantly, your brain has undergone neural modification and can seamlessly receive my consciousness data."

Gu Xidong finally understood.

Everything—sports scandals, fund transfers, neural chips, experimental subjects—is all for one purpose:

To allow a dying old man to possess the body of a young athlete and continue living.

"You're the third option." Chen Zhenghua wheeled closer.

"The first two failed. One resulted in brain death due to rejection, and the other resulted in a vegetative state due to incomplete consciousness fusion. But you are special... that traitor Wang Zhenhua unintentionally helped you complete the most crucial neural remodeling."

He reached out, his withered fingers almost touching Gu Xidong's face:

"Now, it's time to complete the final ceremony. Your body, and the rest of your life, will continue to dedicate yourself to the great cause of sports. It is...your honor."

Deep inside the laboratory, a door slid open.

Inside was an operating table and a nerve connection device with countless tubes.

Gu Xidong was led toward that door.

He turned around and took one last look at the snow-capped mountains outside the window.

Old Gun and Mouse should have already taken Ling Wuwen away safely.

What he is about to enter may be eternal darkness.

But the moment he stepped through the door, he heard Chen Zhenghua say to Ling Jianguo:

"Has everything been handled with his daughter?"

"She was given a sedative and is in the recovery room," Ling Jianguo replied.

"Once the consciousness transfer is complete, she will need to cooperate in stabilizing Gu Xidong's emotional memories. After all... they are lovers."

Gu Xidong stopped in his tracks.

He turned around and stared at Ling Jianguo:

"Ling Wuwen...is he here?"

Ling Jianguo smiled:

"Of course. She is a crucial part of this plan. The memories of her in your brain are the key anchor point for maintaining the stability of the 'Gu Xidong' personality. We need her to live... at least in the initial stages after the transfer is complete."

Chen Zhenghua added, "Don't worry, she will live. After all, I still need her to watch 'you' continue to live with those eyes that love you."

Gu Xidong was wheeled into the operating room.

Before the door closed, he saw through the observation window of another door at the end of the corridor—

Ling Wuwen lay unconscious on the hospital bed, but his chest was rising and falling.

She is still alive.

On the monitor beside her bed, a piece of data that Gu Xidong had never seen before was displayed:

[Pregnancy reaction: positive]

The door was completely closed.

Before darkness fell, Gu Xidong heard his own voice, as soft as a sigh:

"wait for me."

I don't know if I was talking to her or to myself.