Infinite Space

Chapter Three: Brushing Past Death

Wang Ye and his companions followed the main group in a panic, unsure of what to do. Having come from the world of modern civilization, they suddenly found themselves in this fantastical scenario. Initially, they thought it was all a dream or a surreal experience. To be honest, Wang Ye felt a sense of excitement at first.

Having grown tired of the mundane realities of life, where days passed in a monotonous blur of work, meals, and sleep, Wang Ye longed for excitement. He sought thrills in various forms: s*x, one-night stands, fights, and even drug use. But all of that was still just part of the mundane reality. Even after indulging in these activities, waking up the next day meant facing the same dull existence. He didn't want that kind of world. He craved something more stimulating. And now, it seemed like all of that was within his grasp.

At first, he indeed felt a surge of excitement. Not only could he experience countless horror movie scenarios, but he could also use reward points to strengthen himself. As someone who had watched countless horror films, he knew that as long as the earlier movies were among those he had seen, he would become stronger with each experience. He would definitely not die. Once he became powerful enough, even the characters in horror movies would be at his mercy. At that point, he could stay in any world at will, live however he pleased, and enjoy endless thrills. And if he ever grew tired of it all, he could simply return to reality. It was like paradise.

That's how Wang Ye initially saw it. But when those two explosions rang out, it felt like a hammer smashing his fantasy to pieces. There was no paradise here. This was no paradise at all. This was hell. He was nothing but a tiny insect in the hands of the gods. Human life was worth nothing, just as those two explosions had demonstrated. He didn't want to die. He refused to die.

The mercenaries and the main characters seemed oblivious to the explosions, and they didn't even notice the two missing individuals. As they approached the end of the stairs, a mercenary suddenly exclaimed, "Captain, the Flame Queen has locked onto us. It knows we're here."

Alice, the female protagonist, asked in bewilderment, "Who is the Flame Queen?"

Matthew Edison glanced at her and replied, "It's the most advanced artificial intelligence system in the country. It controls the entire hive, serving as the central mainframe."

As the mercenaries descended the stairs, Zhang Jie turned back to smirk at the panting group, shaking his head. "Keep going. If you survive, thank your lucky stars. To be honest, you're already lucky. This horror movie has a very low danger coefficient. In fact, it's one of the few horror movies where bullets can solve problems. Just hang in there. As long as you can survive this horror movie, you'll receive a thousand reward points to improve your physical fitness."

As the group continued deeper, isolated research rooms filled with water appeared on either side of the corridor. These rooms were all submerged, with many researchers' bodies floating inside, pale and eerie. Wang Ye and the others knew that they had been infected with the T-virus and turned into zombies. Once the central computer restarted, they would break free and begin their cannibalistic rampage.

"Trouble," one of the mercenaries said. "To reach the Flame Queen, we have to pass through these research rooms. They're all flooded now. I doubt we can get through."

Matthew Edison nodded. "Ryan, J.D., go check if there's any way to drain the water."

A figure gradually appeared on the glass wall next to where Matt was leaning. Matt looked closely, only to realize it was a body floating in the water. He screamed and jumped away.

Everyone was startled, even Wang Ye and his group. All eyes turned to the pale female corpse floating inside the glass wall.

Matthew Edison glanced at everyone before speaking, "About five hours ago, the Flame Queen sealed off the entire hive and initiated the internal defense system to kill everyone, releasing poison gas, shutting down the elevators, and sealing the research rooms, like these. It wiped out everyone in this experimental area."

He paused before continuing, "When the company realized what had happened here, our team was dispatched to shut it down. That's why we're here."

The main characters looked puzzled. Alice bit her finger and asked, "But why would it do that? Isn't it an artificial intelligence system?"

Matthew Edison shook his head. "We don't know. It could be influenced externally, like by a computer virus... Or it could be sabotage from within. These are all..."

As Matthew Edison spoke, a figure gradually appeared on the glass wall where Matt was leaning. Matt stared in horror as he realized it was a body floating in the water. He screamed and jumped back.

Everyone was startled, even Wang Ye's group. All eyes turned to the pale female corpse floating inside the glass wall.

Though Matthew Edison and his team seemed uneasy, they quickly regained their composure. But Wang Ye and his companions were still chilled to the bone. Perhaps they hadn't realized it during their movie nights, but facing the reality, especially knowing that the corpse was now a zombie, was truly terrifying.

Wang Ye was lost in staring at the corpse when a small hand suddenly patted his shoulder. In such a tense moment, any movement was enough to startle someone. He leaped several meters in fright before turning to see the girl with glasses standing there, giggling.

"Hey, how about we introduce ourselves? We're about to depend on each other for survival." The girl with glasses smiled.

The three men seemed to have no objections. The girl with glasses continued, "My name is Zhan Lan. Zhan from Zhan Tianyou, Lan meaning mountain breeze. Hehe, sounds like a boy's name, right? I'm a writer. Before coming here, I complained about the lack of inspiration and desire to write. I never expected to end up in a world with infinite inspiration. Well, I guess it's karma."

Wang Ye smiled kindly and said, "I'm Wang Ye. Ye from Zheng Chenggong, meaning Nezha's Ye. I'm a company executive. Um, before coming here, I did complain about how boring the real world was. It felt like rotting away day by day. So, I was looking for some excitement... But the excitement here is a bit too intense."

Zhan Lan shook Wang Ye's hand and said with a smile, "Kindred spirits, it seems. That's exactly how I felt."

The middle-aged man chuckled and said, "I'm Mou Gang. Mou as in Mou, Gang as in steel. Well, not as cultured as you guys, but it's just a name. I'm a long-haul truck driver. Before coming here, I complained about my stingy wife and my useless son. I was pretty disappointed with reality. One night, while playing games online with friends, I clicked that confirmation button, and here I am."

Finally, the unassuming young man spoke, "I'm Li Xiaoyi, a high school senior. I complained about many things before coming here, but being here isn't so bad

. As long as I don't die, I can become a superhero. And according to Zhang Jie, if I can go back, this enhanced ability seems to stick. I can't stand being bullied at school anymore. If I can go back, I'll definitely kill those bastards!"

A sinister look crossed Li Xiaoyi's face. The other three glanced at each other. They knew that Li Xiaoyi must have been a target of bullying at school. His complaints about reality seemed to stem from deep disappointment. It seemed that everyone who came here had one thing in common: they were dissatisfied and disappointed with the real world.

At this point, Zhang Jie and another mercenary returned. As he passed by Zhan Lan, he intentionally gave her a hefty pat on the buttocks. Caught off guard, Zhan Lan let out a scream, but Zhang Jie had already walked away, laughing heartily as he approached Matthew Edison.

"Captain, we found another route, but it'll take longer to get there. We'll go back here first, then through the B restaurant, and we'll arrive directly at our destination from there. This route might take twice as long," the mercenary beside Zhang Jie said.

At this point, the other two scouts had also returned. Ren, the long-haired female mercenary, said, "Captain, there's no way to pass through that area. This floor has been completely flooded."

**Matthew Addison** nodded. "Alright, let's take the second route. Time is running short, everyone move quickly."

Reluctantly, Wang Ye and the others had to follow the main force back. Fortunately, this time the mercenaries didn't run. After walking for a while, they stopped in front of an iron gate. A mercenary used a computer to open the gate, and then a few people walked in cautiously.

It was a spacious hall, with numerous small containers inside. These containers were about several cubic meters in size, emitting a chilling aura. Anyone who had seen *Resident Evil* would know that this was the storage warehouse for frozen crawlers. Once the main computer was shut down, these crawlers would become the most terrifying alien creatures, far more powerful than zombies.

A mercenary looked at the computer and said, "This is B-Restaurant... That's what the map says."

Matthew Addison walked over to him and looked at the computer. Matt, on the other hand, said from the side, "Perhaps there are some secrets hidden here, secrets that the company doesn't want the outside world to know..."

Matthew Addison glanced at him without saying a word, only turning to the mercenary beside him. "J.D., Ren, Zhang Jie, you guys stay here and watch the prisoners, and guard the exit."

At this moment, another female mercenary suddenly said, "Captain, the gas here shows zero, maybe there hasn't been any poison gas released here, perhaps the defense system here has gone out of control."

Matthew Addison nodded. "Alright, J.D., Ren, Zhang Jie, there might still be survivors hiding here, search around, but don't go too far. You must first watch the prisoners and the exit, understand?"

The three nodded, only Zhang Jie chuckled and took out a cigarette from his pocket. As anyone who had watched the movies would know, survivors? No, there were none. But there were quite a few zombies.

The girl with glasses walked up to Zhang Jie and whispered, "I want to know something here. Can we change the plot of the movie?"

Zhang Jie nodded. "Go on, what else do you want to ask?"

She smiled, her laughter sounding like tinkling silver bells. "So, can we use plastic explosives here? As long as we kill all the crawlers in this room, won't we get thousands of reward points?"

Zhang Jie also smiled and said, "That's right, if we blow up this place, we'll get thousands of reward points. But I have two questions for you. One, will they give us time to set up plastic explosives?" He pointed to the mercenaries.

"They don't know what these are, nor do they know what the consequences will be if the main computer is shut down. If they see us doing something they don't understand, the most likely thing is that they'll shoot us first. The result might be the premature release of the crawlers. The 'Main God' won't allow you to change the plot so easily, and even if it does change, it's likely to increase the difficulty and surprises, understand?"

After answering his own questions, Zhang Jie asked again, "Second, what do you think is our greatest reliance for survival in a horror movie?"

The girl with glasses was stunned for a moment. She touched her forehead and said, "Strength? No, luck? Not really, it's too unpredictable, good or bad... Should it be knowledge of the plot?"

Zhang Jie smiled. "Bingo, that's right. Knowing the plot is our greatest reliance. So, before we're absolutely sure, I won't change the plot, and if anyone tries to forcibly change the plot to gain reward points, I won't mind sending them to hell."

At this moment, Wang Ye also stood beside the two of them, quietly listening. But he found that Zhang Jie was looking at him with a strange gaze, a gaze that carried pity and mockery, as if... as if he were looking at a dead man. It made him feel very uncomfortable.

Just then, the mercenary captain, Matthew Addison, said, "Alright, let's get started. The rest of you, follow me."

At this moment, Zhang Jie also behaved naturally. He had been following behind the main force all along, looking like he was constantly searching left and right for something. The mercenaries saw this but didn't say much. Only Wang Ye and the others understood that this was because Zhang Jie couldn't be more than a hundred meters away from Matthew Addison, so he had to follow behind the main force.

After passing several iron gates along the way, they finally arrived at a central computer control room. Of course, now that the central computer, the Flame Empress, had gone out of control, it was no longer possible to directly control the entire lab from here.

The most proficient computer expert among the mercenaries was named Kaplan. He directly opened three laptops. From the perspective of Wang Ye and others, his computer skills were top-notch, with his hands tapping away on the keyboards of the three computers. However, minutes passed, and the door leading to the central computer location remained tightly shut.

Another female mercenary couldn't help but ask, "Why is it taking so long?"

Kaplan replied without looking back, "The Flame Queen is an intelligent computer with highly advanced defense systems. If it were easy to breach its firewall, it wouldn't be used as the lab's main computer."

As he spoke, there was a faint click, and the tightly sealed door finally began to slowly open. Matthew Addison nodded and said, "Pack up!"

Afterward, he turned around and looked at Wang Ye and the others.

"You guys stay here."

Beyond the door was a corridor over ten meters long, with glass walls on both sides, completely different from the steel walls outside the door.

After Matthew Addison finished speaking, he walked inward by himself, proceeding with extreme caution. Despite his careful steps, he was still startled when he reached the middle of the corridor, as the glass walls around suddenly lit up. This sudden change was enough to make an ordinary person's legs turn to jelly.

Kaplan's voice came from the communicator, "Don't worry, it's just automatic sensor lights. Nothing to be concerned about."

(Was clearly the automatic defense system's lasers. What "automatic sensor lights"? And there's nothing to worry about…)

Wang Ye silently thought to himself. He suddenly wanted to say something, but a small hand grabbed him. When he turned his head, he saw the bespectacled girl standing beside him, shaking her head gently.

Matthew Addison had already set up the transmitter in the corridor. It was a device resembling a mobile phone. Placing it on the door's sensing device was all that was needed. Kaplan then proceeded to press something on the keyboard. Before long, there was a soft click, and the door leading to the central computer finally began to slowly open.

Matthew Addison let out a sigh of relief. He beckoned to the people outside the corridor, "Alright, bring the stuff over."

Alice suddenly asked, "What stuff? What is that?"

Kaplan, who was closest to her, said, "This is a device to shut down the Flame Queen. It releases a strong electric current to disrupt the mainframe and force it to reboot."

At this point, the mercenary holding the device was about to step into the corridor. Wang Ye finally couldn't help but loudly say, "Wait, wait a minute! Don't you find this a bit suspicious? This device seems rather useless against a computer. Just letting you reboot it like this... I think things aren't that simple. There might be something peculiar in this corridor."

The mercenaries all stopped, and everyone looked at him strangely. The bespectacled girl sighed, let go of his hand, and moved away from him, standing next to the female lead, Alice.

Matthew Addison walked out of the corridor, silently observing Wang Ye. After a long while, he finally said, "Alright, you and you," pointing at Wang Ye and the middle-aged man, Mu Gang, "come with us."

Wang Ye and Mu Gang suddenly felt a chill. Anyone who had seen this movie would know that this corridor was a death trap. Anyone who entered would absolutely die, and even the most skilled mercenary captain died under the lasers, in a particularly tragic manner, being chopped into countless small pieces.

Wang Ye finally understood why Zhang Jie had looked at him with those eyes. Yes, he couldn't help but want to change the plot, but the inertia of the plot itself was unchangeable. Even if it was changed because of this, the 'main god' might increase the difficulty several times, just like now.

Mu Gang suddenly screamed and grabbed his head, "No, I don't want to! I don't want to go in!" He shouted as he ran back the way they came. Before Wang Ye and the others could react, the mercenaries had pulled out their guns and shot him, sending him flying. When he hit the ground, he had already become a corpse riddled with bullet holes.

"Wow!"

Wang Ye and Li Xiaoyi both vomited, witnessing a life being turned into a corpse before their eyes. Wang Ye felt particularly uncomfortable because this person basically died because of his meddling.

Matthew Addison coldly eyed him. "I've had my suspicions about you from the start. While your identities may be on file with the company, you don't strike me as company security at all. Are you still intent on thwarting our efforts to reboot the Flame Queen? Very well, Wang Ye, come with us."

Wang Ye felt a shiver run down his spine, still reeling from the nausea. Matthew Addison wasted no time, grabbing him and leading the rest of the mercenaries into the darkness.

As they stepped into the corridor, the doors on both sides sealed shut, echoing the ominous scenes from horror films. Matthew Addison paid no heed to Wang Ye, focusing instead on scanning the surroundings with the other mercenaries. He spoke into his communicator, "Kaplan?"

Kaplan's voice came back, urgent. "It's some dormant defense mechanism. If too many people pass through the doors, it activates once they're inside."

"Then let it remain dormant!" Matthew ordered, his tone firm.

Sweat beading on his brow, Kaplan tapped away at the keyboard. "I'm doing my best!"

Matthew turned to his subordinates. "Stay put and don't move."

Wang Ye felt a chill wash over him. He knew the plot was unfolding, and he was now a part of it. True to form, a glaring light dimmed on both sides of the opposite walls, and a laser beam materialized between the glass walls, swiftly cutting toward the mercenaries and Wang Ye!

Reacting quickly, Matthew pushed two people beside him to the ground. Wang Ye, anticipating the danger, had already dropped to the ground as soon as the laser beam appeared. It grazed his shoulder, leaving a sharp, scorching sensation. His mind went blank.

"Medic! Medic!" Matthew's urgent cry brought Wang Ye back. He turned to see the medic, a female mercenary, whose head was slowly moving before it fell to the ground, eyes staring blankly.

"No, no! I don't want to die!" Wang Ye screamed frantically, his mind racing. He began recalling every detail of the scene from the horror film.

Matthew tended to a mercenary whose finger was severed by the laser beam. Another mercenary shouted, "Captain, another one is coming!"

Wang Ye remembered the scene from the movie and knew what to do. He had one chance to survive. As the laser beam swiftly approached, time seemed to slow down. He focused on the movements of the mercenary beside him. When the moment came, he acted swiftly, narrowly avoiding the lethal beam.

As expected, the laser beam sliced through the mercenary who jumped up, dismembering him. Wang Ye's heart pounded as he realized they were trapped in a horrifying game of life and death.

Wang Ye managed only a faint smile at her before he dragged Matthew Addison, hugging closely to the entrance door through which they had entered. Now, all he could hope for was that the plot would remain unchanged. The laser would cease when it neared the door; there was no use trying to evade it. It would morph into a grid-like pattern, tearing apart anyone in its path. All he could do was press against the door and pray to the heavens, as shown in the plot, to put an end to it all!

Matthew Addison struggled desperately. "Let go of me! We'll both be sliced in half in this position! Let go of me!"

But Wang Ye firmly held onto his collar. "Trust me! Trust me! There's no way to evade it this time. Press against the door. It's our only chance. Trust me!"

The third laser was gradually forming and swiftly closing in on them. Judging by its trajectory, it would bisect them. Matthew Addison fought to fall to the ground, but Wang Ye held him tight, pressing him against the door. Even Wang Ye himself was plastered against the door, slowly closing his eyes.

"Survive. I want to survive, even if it means struggling like this in such a situation!"

Perhaps a divine intervention occurred, or perhaps Wang Ye's prayers were answered. The laser abruptly transformed into a grid pattern as it approached them. Matthew Addison managed to let out a frustrated curse. In his moment of despair, the laser grid gradually dimmed, disappearing before his eyes. A faint warmth brushed against his face as the laser dissipated, leaving him almost in disbelief that he had survived.

Opening his eyes, Wang Ye didn't witness the disappearance of the laser grid, but he knew he had succeeded. The familiar plot inertia had once again saved him from the brink of death. Over the past twenty years, he had never been so close to death. The trajectory of death had passed right by his shoulder, so close!

"What is this?"

As Wang Ye marveled at his luck, he noticed a small orb of light on the collar of Matthew Addison, whom he had been clutching. Curiously, he picked up the orb, which vanished between his fingers. A strange, comforting sensation seemed to seep into his body from his fingertips.

"B-grade horror subplot completed. Reward points: five thousand!"

The previous solemn voice resounded again. Wang Ye then recalled hearing something when the laser beam passed by earlier. Upon careful recollection, he realized he had received a reward of five hundred points, along with a boost of twenty points to his mental strength and thirty points to his reaction speed. Calculating, this amounted to one thousand points. As Zhang Jie had said, these were rewards one could earn by experiencing a horror movie.

As for the five thousand reward points, they felt like a pie in the sky, leaving Wang Ye trembling. He wasn't sure if it was the joy of survival or the surprise of the reward. Regardless, as the door opened and several people rushed towards him, he remained there, dazed.

Youthful Li Xiaoyi came up to Wang Ye, patting his shoulder vigorously. "You're amazing! You actually survived in such a situation!"

Startled by the pat, Wang Ye snapped back to reality. He smiled wryly and shook his head, unsure of what to say. Just surviving that moment was overwhelming for someone who had just stepped out of the ordinary world. The trajectory of death had passed so close to him, so close!

"This is on you," Jan Lan, the bespectacled girl, walked over and said. "I've been reminding you not to change the plot. You didn't listen. What Zhang Jie said earlier was true. Our greatest reliance here isn't luck; it's our familiarity with the plot. Your luck won't always be with you. Don't be so impulsive in the future. None of us wants to die here."

Wang Ye shook his head in silence. He wasn't sure whether to mention the reward. What did completing a B-grade horror subplot mean? Did it refer to changing the course of the plot? Or did it mean saving a character who was supposed to die in the plot? Or perhaps it referred to navigating through a highly dangerous scene in the plot?

He didn't know, because what had just happened was extremely perilous. He had almost died in there, and that middle-aged man, Mu Gang, had almost been killed by him as well. So he didn't dare to attempt changing the plot anymore. Perhaps Zhang Jie and the others wouldn't let him change the plot again, because no one could predict what would happen next. It was highly likely that everyone would die here... including them, the characters, and even the protagonists in the movie!

This was a horror movie, where no one was absolutely safe. Everyone could die, and they were all just struggling bugs, desperately seeking survival!