There were still half an hour until the assembly time.
Fu Songcheng and Yu Huaiting returned to the Dawn main hall.
Unlike his irritability when entering the rest area before, Yu Huaiting now looked utterly refreshed—even his steps carried a lightness, and he kept tilting his head, his gaze sticking stickily to Fu Songcheng.
And Fu Songcheng, though his combat suit was worn immaculately and his expression remained cold, had reddened ear tips.
Yu Huaiting stole glances and suppressed laughs as he walked.
Quite a few people had already gathered in the hall.
The eight who’d been training behind the one-way glass had all stopped by now and started working.
The eight varied in age and style.
They lacked the oppressive killing aura of Yu Huaiting, and the cold, guarded hardness of Lin Feng. They were just ordinary people, gathered together because of their special skills, paving the way for humanity’s dawn.
“I’m connected to Director Zhu’s instance!”
A young boy with thick glasses pressed both hands into the void, faint blue data streams glimmering at his fingertips. He reported rapid-fire to the recorder beside him, “C-rank instance, six players total, two dead. Director Zhu is currently safe…”
On the other side, a girl with a high ponytail was even busier. Fu Songcheng had read her file—he remembered she was called Xu Qingyao. She was currently slumped in a chair.
Her left hand gripped a low-grade recovery potion from the system shop, pouring it into her mouth like water, while her right hand flipped at astonishing speed through a long list of supply procurement from the Dawn base.
“Ten thousand sets of basic armor—the price has already dropped to one-tenth of the original!”
Chen Ke nodded beside her. “Points transferred to you.”
Fu Songcheng watched this scene quietly, moved inside.
Dawn’s claim to protect all players and rebuild order wasn’t just talk. And these players truly were worth Dawn finding him and Yu Huaiting for their sake.
Everyone had their own identity, their own suitable position, all contributing to humanity’s dawn. Fu Songcheng even couldn’t help imagining one day returning with Yu Huaiting—leaving the instances, going back to reality.
What he’d originally not dared to think about—he was truly seeing a glimmer of hope here.
Having finished transferring points from the public account, Chen Ke put away his clipboard with satisfaction and turned—just in time to see Fu Songcheng and Yu Huaiting watching from the side.
He immediately hurried over.
“Mr. Fu, Mr. Yu, did you rest well?”
Chen Ke’s gaze lingered a moment on Yu Huaiting’s unusually radiant face, then quickly swept over Fu Songcheng and very properly looked away. “Our Dawn’s logistics support and skill coordination—you two have seen it now. How is it?”
Chen Ke lowered his voice, his tone full of sincerity. “You two are peerless in strength. If you don’t mind, would you consider formally joining Dawn? Once you join, not only do you enjoy unlimited sharing of core intelligence, but we also have official endorsement, a top-tier logistics team, and stable life guarantees…”
Fu Songcheng tilted his head slightly and glanced at Yu Huaiting beside him.
Yu Huaiting was fiddling with Fu Songcheng’s dagger.
Sensing Fu Songcheng’s gaze, he looked up and grinned, revealing a somewhat roguish, careless smile.
Fu Songcheng turned his gaze back and shook his head gently at Chen Ke, his tone helpless: “Sorry. We’re not interested for now.”
If Yu Huaiting were really dragged into a rigid official organization that prioritized collective interests in everything, within three days he’d probably—out of boredom or disgust with the rules—flip the ceiling of the Dawn base right off.
And Fu Songcheng didn’t want to be managed by Dawn either.
Cooperating with the officials and becoming the officials’ people were fundamentally different.
Fu Songcheng wasn’t stupid.
Chen Ke clearly wasn’t giving up. He stepped forward closer to Fu Songcheng and earnestly prepared to keep pitching: “Mr. Fu, think it over again. As for the treatment, we can completely…”
His words cut off.
Because Yu Huaiting tilted his head slightly and stared straight at Chen Ke. Just one look made Chen Ke forcibly swallow the rest of his sentence and properly step back half a pace.
Just then, with a beep, another door of the base opened.
“Oh! Are we late?”
Chen Yu’s voice came as he and Lin Feng walked in one after the other.
As if granted amnesty, Chen Ke immediately took the out and turned to greet them. “No, no, right on time. Mr. Lin, Mr. Chen, over here—let me verify your entry items with you.”
Fu Songcheng didn’t want to see Yu Huaiting clash with these two again and waste energy for nothing. He raised his hand, caught Yu Huaiting’s wrist backhanded, and pinched it lightly. “My waist aches. Let’s sit a while.”
Yu Huaiting immediately reined in his fierce expression, obediently letting Fu Songcheng pull him to the sofa at the edge of the hall.
The moment they sat down, Yu Huaiting naturally squeezed up against Fu Songcheng, half his weight pressing over, leaning close to Fu Songcheng’s ear, his warm breath hitting Fu Songcheng’s neck. “Want me to massage your waist again?”
Fu Songcheng pushed away this boneless display and said only lightly, “Don’t make a fuss.”
The two chatted idly in the corner about utterly trivial topics.
Yu Huaiting’s mood was visibly excellent, reaching out from time to time to hook Fu Songcheng’s fingers.
Time flew by amid the preparations.
The moment to depart arrived.
Chen Ke clapped his hands and gathered everyone before the massive circular teleportation array at the center of the hall.
“Everyone, prepare to load the instance.”
Chen Ke’s expression was serious. He picked up a metal box from the workstation beside him; opened, it held twelve small cartoon badges neatly arranged.
“These are [Binding Badges].”
Chen Ke distributed the badges one by one. “Please put them on your chest immediately to ensure all twelve of you enter the same instance simultaneously.”
He looked at Fu Songcheng, Yu Huaiting, Lin Feng, and Chen Yu. “These badges bind the wearers to the same faction. Please be sure to confirm they’re worn properly.”
Fu Songcheng took the badge.
The badge was exquisitely made, depicting a little bear with a bow.
He fastened the badge steadily to his combat suit’s collar and casually fastened Yu Huaiting’s for him too.
Twelve people, twelve badges.
All worn.
“This instance is relatively difficult. Everyone must follow the commands of Mr. Yu, Mr. Fu, Mr. Lin, and Mr. Chen. I hope everyone returns safely.”
Chen Ke stepped out of the instance-entry range.
The instant the countdown ended, blinding white light shot skyward, swallowing everyone in the area.
[System Notification: Loading instance.]
[Instance Name: Infinite Dream Whisper (B+ rank)]
[Instance Type: Puzzle]
…
“You have twelve playmates… but they’re all sleeping very, very deeply… no matter how you call, they won’t wake up. What to do? You want so, so badly to play with them…”
…
[Main Clear Condition: Within seven days, find and awaken all sleeping players.]
[Failure Penalty: If awakening is not completed within the time limit, all players will remain in the instance permanently.]
…
Fu Songcheng snapped his eyes open.
Beside him was no Yu Huaiting, no Lin Feng or Chen Yu—the eight escorted players were nowhere to be seen either.
He was alone, in an extremely spacious lobby.
Judging by the decor, it looked like the ground floor of a luxury hotel in last century’s style.
The dark red velvet carpet made no sound underfoot; the walls were covered in retro dark-gold wallpaper, half peeling away.
The air was thick with an extremely strong scent resembling aged calming incense, making one instinctively drowsy.
At the very center of the lobby stood an enormous brass floor clock reaching the ceiling.
Its pendulum hung still, motionless, even coated in dust.
Fu Songcheng lightened his steps, like a cat treading on ice, and slowly approached the giant brass clock.
As he drew closer, he made out the details of the clock face—an enormous dial radiating a dim metallic luster.
On it were no hour hand, no minute hand, no second hand.
Along the dial’s edge were carved twelve marks.
At each mark’s position, a relief of an object was carved.
Twelve marks, twelve objects.
Fu Songcheng spotted Yu Huaiting’s signature greatsword at a glance.
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