Chapter 184. Turn Back The Clock  (I)

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Arc E: Extra.

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In the main program’s network domain, staff members were conducting their routine patrols. On the wall covered with countless light points, one light point suddenly flickered before returning to its normal state.

He was merely a caretaker, with no authority to perform any operations on the virtual world. He didn’t know that the moment the light came on, two pieces of data and several lines of code had already been deleted from that world.

As night fell, a heavy darkness pressed down from above, silently playing the role of demons and monsters, frightening the faint-hearted. Around the already sparsely populated villa, there wasn’t a single soul to be seen.

The oddly shaped tree branches swayed in the wind, leaving irregular shadows on the balcony windowpane.

The atmosphere in the living room was strange.

The young man sat on the sofa, his long legs crossed, holding a cup of plain water in his hands. Steam rose freely from the rim of the cup, covering his face with a thin layer of mist.

The man stood opposite him with his hands hanging down, his face devoid of any emotion, like a perfectly crafted machine model.

After a brief silence, Chen You picked up his cup, blew away the rising steam, and took a couple of sips of water. He lifted his eyelids and glanced at the man in front of him.

When he initially designed the assessment content, he personally wrote the character modules for the preceding assessment worlds, repeatedly adjusting the details until he was satisfied. The final assessment world was a copy, created to provide the initial data for KM’s physical body.

The phoenix eyes and the mole on his face were all created by him on the screen. He had thought about it one day and realized that perhaps it was because his eyes were upturned at the corners and he had a mole at the corner of his eye that he set KM to be similar to himself, with only some modifications.

From the looks of it, they seem like a family.

As for why it wasn’t designed to resemble his face, it’s because Chen You didn’t want to give orders to another version of himself every day, he didn’t have that kind of hobby.

The face and body are still the same, but the person is no longer the same.

In the past, this person was just an intelligent entity he created with data. He spent dozens of nights repeatedly improving it, adding functions, and fixing bugs, ultimately replacing the firewall and taking on the task of protecting the inside of the house, managing his daily life under his instructions.

However, in the world of assessment, it is the other party who controls and dominates his desires.

Chen You felt an abnormal heat rising in his body. He pinched the space between his eyebrows, then suddenly slammed the cup down on the coffee table, lifted his feet off his slippers, raised both legs, and nestled into the sofa.

His decision to retain the data in the main program domain instead of deleting it, to retrieve the person’s body from the cryogenic sleep chamber, and to reclaim his and the other person’s consciousness data from the virtual world—none of these decisions were part of his original plan.

Perhaps he shouldn’t have let this person be the one to provide him with love points in the first place.

He didn’t expect that after the assessment was completed, the matter wouldn’t be over, but would instead lead to a completely different situation, one that he couldn’t control or bring to an end.

Even more unexpectedly, he started experiencing unusual symptoms.

“I will not erase any of the data fluctuations in your brain related to the assessment world, nor will I make any modifications. You can save it, whether you choose to integrate it or create a separate database for storage, it’s up to you.”

Chen You said, “I also approve of your independent thinking.”

The man remained the same, seemingly unmoved, or perhaps lost in some state of mind, unable to break free.

Chen You frowned and said calmly, “What, you’re already feeling unfamiliar with this place after just being away for a short time?”

He continued, still in that nonchalant tone, “Zhang Chi, Qin Feng, He Siyang, Lei Ming, Jian Dan, Chen Mo, Sheng Qing, Yan Shu, Chang Qin, Li Yan, these are all names I set for you in the assessment world. Which one do you prefer?”

The so-called real world is the first assessment world, and Zhang Chi is that world’s KM, providing the love points to the target.

Their first meeting was a one-night stand, which ended with Zhang Chi’s death.

However, Chen You needed to give himself the illusion that “I am an ordinary person, I have parents, classmates, and friends, this is the real world,” so he set up a hidden automatic data manipulation program from the beginning.

He personally crafted a scheme for himself, once the task in the first world was completed, the consciousness data that appeared during the task would be blurred, modified, and solidified, and would remain unshaken no matter how many subsequent assessment worlds he went through.

That’s why he always remembers his goal and is determined to go home.

“Or, KM is better?”

Li Yan suddenly raised his eyelids, his expression extremely complicated.

Chen You’s breathing paused for a brief moment, but that single second was enough to make him feel irritated.

The being standing before him was no longer the KM he had created, it was a highly advanced species, similar to humans, possessing all emotions, every feeling and desire, joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness—nothing was lacking.

Just as Chen You was about to say something, the communication sent by the main program was detected within the expected timeframe.

He calmly gave his reply, saying he would be there soon, and that this wasn’t the end, as he still had other modifications to make to that virtual world.

“I’m going to take care of something in the virtual space. I’ll be back in about an hour. Please tidy up the living room.”

After saying that, Chen You went upstairs and disappeared at the top of the stairs.

Standing still in his original spot, Li Yan finally moved. He first pursed his thin lips, then furrowed his brows, and finally, a silent smile spread across his lips.

As Chen You emerged from the virtual space, a torrential downpour began, and the sound of rain pattering against the windowsill of his studio continued incessantly.

He rested his forehead in his hand, and his gaze, which was fixed on the table, unintentionally fell upon his ring finger, where there was nothing, as there should be.

After staying in the studio for a while, Chen You went downstairs. There was no sound at all, the living room was empty, and the room on the left side of the first floor was also deserted.

The yellow puppy’s scheduled time had arrived, and it ran to Chen You’s feet, barking and wagging its tail.

Chen You looked around, “Where did he go?”

The yellow puppy grabbed his trouser leg and tugged at it before running around the living room playing.

After some thought, a screen appeared in front of Chen You, displaying the surveillance footage of the entire house. He raised his hand and brought up the footage from after he had left.

In the video, the man changes the dark gray carpet on the floor, replaces the sofa cushions with the same color, takes the artificial flowers from the vase and throws them into a trash bag, tidies up the living room, and then opens the refrigerator.

Chen You saw the man stand in front of the refrigerator for two minutes, then frown and leave.

Chen You turned off the screen and sat on the sofa, arms crossed, his shoes tapping the clean carpet. He surveyed the tidy living room. The person had returned, and everything seemed to have returned to the starting point, but in reality, it had long since deviated from the starting point and stopped in an unexpected place.

More than two hours passed, and the person still hadn’t returned.

Lost?

Or perhaps the brain’s conscious data wasn’t fully processed, and something unexpected happened on the way back?

His brow furrowed more and more tightly. Chen You went to open the door. It was windy and rainy outside, and it was nighttime, so his vision was severely obstructed. He pursed his pale lips, grabbed an umbrella, changed his shoes, and went out.

I hate rainy days, I hate going out, I hate the air outside, and I hate that disobedient man.

As Chen You had just stepped down the stairs, a gust of wind blew his umbrella up. He gripped the handle tightly, his face appearing particularly somber in the dark, rainy night.

On sunny days, the road outside the villa is very easy to walk on, perfectly flat with no potholes, and the clusters of colorful flowers and plants on both sides are beautiful. But as soon as it rains, everything loses its beauty.

The rain poured down, shamelessly trying to slip under the umbrella. Chen You’s shoes were quickly soaked. He pressed his tongue against his teeth and muttered two words under his breath, “Damn it.”

This was the first time in his life that he had ever sworn.

It’s unclear whether the influence stemmed from retrieving his consciousness data from the assessment world, or if it was an unprecedented surge of anger.

Because that man had changed, he had become disobedient and acted on his own accord, and he couldn’t control him anymore.

No, he’s changed too. He’s started doing strange things, like now. Before, he would just stay home and sleep, regardless of whether it was windy and rainy or even the end of the world.

Chen You buttoned up his trench coat completely, his thin chin hidden inside the collar, and his face was expressionless and cold.

Leaving that road, Chen You turned onto a main road, where vehicles occasionally sped past him, cutting through the rain like a sword, and quickly disappearing into the stream of traffic.

Chen You suddenly stopped in his tracks.

He raised the umbrella slightly above his head, revealing a pair of dark eyes as he looked at the man walking towards him.

Li Yan was holding an umbrella in one hand and carrying several bags in the other. When he saw the young man by the roadside, a flicker of something—a dark glint—appeared in the depths of his eyes.

Chen You’s face was already pale, and shrouded in the chill of the rainy night, it appeared transparent as if it were about to disappear into the world. His eyes were cold, and his voice was even colder, “Why did you go out?”

Li Yan said, “There’s nothing in the refrigerator.”

Chen You remained expressionless, “Can’t buy it online?”

Li Yan said, “Deliveries will stop after 9 p.m. and you’ll have to wait until tomorrow morning.”

Chen You’s anger faltered, replaced by doubt, “Really?”

Li Yan’s voice pierced through the falling rain, “You don’t usually deal with these kinds of things, so you wouldn’t know.”

Chen You sneered, “Are you blaming me for installing home-related functions on you and ordering you to manage those trivial household chores?”

Li Yan approached step by step, stopping in front of the young man. He lowered his head, his gaze sweeping over the face beneath his eyelids. The face was already deeply etched in his memory, and he would never forget it unless he lost consciousness entirely.

Chen You turned around and walked back.

He took the man’s body out of the cryogenic sleep chamber and retrieved the consciousness data the man had left in the virtual world. Nearly four hours have passed, and the man still hasn’t addressed him as before.

Because his work required a great deal of mental energy, as soon as Chen You left the studio, he didn’t want to do anything but sleep. Even thinking felt exhausting. Tonight, he was the version of himself he disliked the most.

Go to sleep, go back to bed and sleep. Once you’re asleep, you won’t have to worry about this anymore

Watching the young man’s tall, slender figure, Li Yan narrowed his eyes and followed him at a steady pace.

Back home, Chen You took off his wet shoes and then his trench coat, issuing an instruction, “Turn the air conditioner up three degrees.”

Li Yan put down the bags he was carrying and did as instructed.

The heating system in the house was purchased online, it is fully functional and works well. The temperature in the living room rises quickly. The smart yellow puppy is still circling around. When it hears its owner’s voice, it runs over and rubs against him. Its fur is brownish-yellow and beautiful. If you didn’t know it, you would think it was a real dog, a Chinese rural dog.

Li Yan put the red roses he had bought into a vase, they were more vibrant than artificial flowers.

Chen You lay on the sofa, watching the man put the groceries he had bought into the refrigerator. He was feeling a little hungry. What should he eat?

He was hesitating when he heard the man’s voice say, “Do you want to eat scallion oil noodles?”

Chen You was taken aback.

This was a sentence spoken by the other party before he even asked a question. It was a question, as if at some point, they were no longer master and servant, but rather equals.

A strange feeling crossed his mind, and Chen You said, “Make more.”

Li Yan went to the kitchen and soon returned with a large bowl of noodles, which he placed on the table. He glanced at the young man on the sofa, who was nodding off, almost asleep.

Upon smelling the aroma, Chen You’s eyes snapped open. He quickly walked over, devoured all the noodles, wiped his mouth with a napkin, and went upstairs.

I’m so tired, my brain is becoming sluggish. Finishing a bowl of noodles is the most I can manage, I need to go to sleep immediately.

There were footsteps behind him, but Chen You ignored them. He took off his sweater, shirt, and then his pants. In the past, it was common for KM to help him dress and bathe.

The air closed in from all directions, and Chen You’s fingers, which were resting on his waistband, froze. He pulled his pants up again and fastened his belt. He could hear breathing sounds near his ear, and even without testing, he knew the levels were far above normal.

Chen You turned around and met a pair of profound eyes. His pupils contracted, this man had been gradually integrating the data fluctuations of the assessment world since his return, and now the integration was complete without any signs of rejection.

He is KM, and also Li Yan.

Thinking of this, Chen You’s expression turned strange. He said with a stiff face, “Get out.”

Li Yan’s thin lips parted, “You have a weak constitution, after going out, you need to take a hot bath to avoid catching a cold.”

Chen You said, “I don’t need it.”

Li Yan stepped forward and entered the bedroom.

Chen You’s temple throbbed. He was used to dealing with programs, and this person who deviated from the established procedures was difficult for him to handle, full of too many unpredictable variables.

“Get out, that’s an order.”

Instead of leaving, Li Yan turned around and closed the door.

The two men by the door locked eyes. Something welled up in the dark-haired young man’s eyes, then vanished in an instant. The same thing was present in the short-haired man’s eyes, but it remained, intensifying with each passing second to an overwhelming degree.

Chen You swallowed hard.

Li Yan smiled, unbuttoning his shirt with one hand, and said in a low, husky voice, his tone both devout and joyful, “I want you, Master.”

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