Chapter Twenty-Three: Deep-Sea Collision

Chen Lai followed the direction of his gesture, looking at the virtual scene in the hall.

Those Earths were colliding, oozing blue-green liquid that dripped onto a loaf of bread... He had already seen this, but did it hold some deeper meaning?

"Think back—do you remember the country called Japan?" Jia Xiu pointed his index finger at the center of Chen Lai’s brow, closing his own eyes as he spoke.

Chen Lai tried hard to recall, only to discover with horror that this world truly seemed to lack a Japan!

Where was that island nation? Where had it gone?

"You remember now, don't you? That’s right!"

"That country has become the jam on the bread, ground into dust during the deep-sea collision!"

"Deep-sea gaming isn't just us plundering other worlds; there is also the plundering of our world by others!"

"It is precisely because of these deep-sea collisions that we are able to use the painless method of deep-sea gaming—utilizing high-dimensional projections to seize the unique treasures of other worlds!"

"By the same token, we also face intruders attempting to seize our world’s power, or even worse, to shatter our world entirely."

"This is a dark forest of survival of the fittest. If we deep-sea players are too weak, being plundered is only a matter of time."

"Work hard, junior brother. I look forward to your growth. I saw your performance in the [Shibuya Incident]. Keep it up; perhaps you will become an even stronger deep-sea player than me, or even our senior sister!"

Jia Xiu’s words shattered and rebuilt Chen Lai’s worldview.

He had thought this was just a game with realistic graphics, but now he was being told the games were real, that players from other worlds were coming here to slaughter, and that to fight them, he had to play more games!

This was too abstract!

Damn it, no wonder the time in the Great Vortex and the main world was synchronized—it turned out that aside from the years, they were all real worlds!

"Um, if I may ask, what was the deep-sea collision that destroyed Japan like?"

"My Ghost Brain told me you would be curious—as it happens, I have a video simulated by the Fantasy-class."

Chen Lai and Jia Xiu exchanged questions and answers. Then, Jia Xiu jumped high, took a fragment from the pile of colliding Earths, and played it before Chen Lai.

"The one that destroyed Japan was a world called [Hyakki Yagyō—Night Parade of One Hundred Demons]."

Jia Xiu opened his palm, and in the video, a wobbly old man appeared, strolling down a street in Tokyo covered in cherry blossoms.

He had large ears and a long beard, his hands tucked into his chest, wearing the kind of dojo attire common in Japan. Although the couples on the street found him strange, they merely glanced at him before ignoring the old man.

The old man wobbled forward, seemingly aware of the "lens" recording him. He opened his squinted eyes, and in the next second, the screen glitched.

*Static—*

The glitching ended quickly. When the footage returned to the old man, Chen Lai saw that the street, which had just been filled with falling cherry blossoms, was now littered with corpses, the urban background filled with screams and the howls of monsters.

Jia Xiu stepped forward and froze the video, pointing at the blood-stained old man.

"This fellow is called [Hyakki], the strongest monster in the Night Parade. Back then, the Protectors in Japan couldn't withstand a single blow from him... Fortunately, the deep-sea collision didn't last long, otherwise, it would have been very troublesome."

Chen Lai looked at the old man, feeling a sense of numbness—he recognized this [Hyakki]; wasn't he the boss from the *Gantz*副本? He had multiple forms and terrifying power.

"Will they come again?" Chen Lai looked at Jia Xiu.

"They definitely will. They tasted success last time when they seized [Takamagahara] from Japan. As long as a deep-sea collision occurs again, Hyakki will surely return!"

"We must defeat him! Defend our lives!"

Jia Xiu’s expression was resolute; it was clear he held a deep grudge against the Hyakki demon.

Chen Lai was speechless. He still lacked a clear concept of deep-sea collisions. His world was clearly in a stable state, yet here someone was insisting that superpowers existed and that they could be invaded by other worlds at any moment... He could accept the information, but making him feel the urgency was a different matter.

"So, Senior, should I log out of the deep-sea game now and register offline?"

Chen Lai took a breath and looked at Jia Xiu.

"Yes, if you log out now, the staff should have arrived. The department will assign you a mentor offline who will teach you how to train and strengthen your real-world abilities."

Jia Xiu nodded, changed his clothes again, and beckoned to Yovari; it was clear they had more matters to attend to.

"No need for such trouble. You're in Hanyang City, right? I am your mentor. Open the door!"

Qing Bingke, who had been silent until now, finally spoke up. Through the screen, the sound of knocking and Chen Fang’s voice could be heard.

"Damn, don't do that! Don't scare my mom! She doesn't even know you!"

Chen Lai jumped up and, with lightning-fast hand speed, chose to log out. [Ice Cola] was clearly the type of bossy woman his mother, Chen Fang, usually hated.

...

"Hello, ma'am. I'm looking for Chen Lai. Has he logged out of the game?"

Qing Bingke looked at the eye peering through the crack in the door with a subtle expression, feeling a bit strange.

Chen Lai seemed different from the successful deep-sea players she had contacted before. His home seemed very poor, unlike Jia Xiu or Yovari, who were already wealthy individuals who had made a fortune in deep-sea gaming.

"He's not home. Please leave."

As soon as Chen Fang heard the words "game" and "Chen Lai," and took in Qing Bingke's attire, she guardedly shut the door. A woman like this looking for her son was likely there to collect debts.

"Mom, she's looking for me. Don't worry, it's not a bad thing."

Chen Lai got dressed, walked over to steady Chen Fang, and reached out to open the door.

Qing Bingke’s expression was slightly odd. She held a stack of contracts in her hand. When Chen Fang saw the black and white text, she nearly fainted.

The debt collectors were at the door! And he said it wasn't a bad thing!

Oh, Chen Lai, how much have you owed out there! My child, your life has been ruined by these games!!

Chen Lai didn't know what his mother was thinking; he simply told Qing Bingke to take a seat wherever she liked and went to pour her a glass of water.

"How... how much does he owe you?"

Chen Fang sat down and asked with difficulty.

"Huh?" Qing Bingke was just about to take money out of her bag—the subsidy the Deep Sea Company provided to every student of the Vinegar Academy—when she was caught off guard by Chen Fang's question.

"Oh, Mom, she’s not here for debt. She’s my mentor—the Deep Sea Company has accepted me, and I can start working."

Chen Lai brought over two glasses of hot water. Not knowing how to explain it to Chen Fang, he could only use the Deep Sea Company as an excuse.

"Is what he says true?" Chen Fang didn't quite believe him, even though Chen Lai had just brought home eight thousand in surplus today.

Qing Bingke unhurriedly took a thick stack of cash from her bag and pushed it toward Chen Fang:

"Ma'am, he is now an admitted student of Deep Sea University. According to regulations, I am here to process his intake. During his studies, he will receive a monthly guaranteed stipend of fifty thousand from the Deep Sea Company. Furthermore, the company provides a dedicated apartment for every student of the Vinegar Academy... If you need to, you can move in today."