Chapter 1562 - 1558: Otherworld From Zero

Within this, lies all the memories of that world—Ye Qiu suddenly felt a sense of sentiment and gently caressed the surface of the helmet.

Ye Qiu thought he might never have the chance to wear it again. But this thing has truly fulfilled its duty…

Ye Qiu murmured deep in his heart and then placed it horizontally on the bed. The days of fighting together with this helmet have become distant memories. Certain things in this world await Ye Qiu to accomplish.

Suddenly, it felt like he could hear noisy sounds starting in the distance. Perking his ears, his hearing finally seemed to return to normal, letting various sounds flood into Ye Qiu's ears.

Indeed, he could hear the voices of many people talking, shouting, and the hurried intermingling footsteps and rolling sounds on the other side of the door.

Ye Qiu was unsure if Fang Wushang was staying at this hospital. The possibility of her being in this hospital should be quite low. However, Ye Qiu had to start searching from here. No matter how much time it would take, Ye Qiu was determined to find her.

After Ye Qiu pulled off the thin sheet, he could see countless lines intertwined around his frail body. The ones sticking to his limbs should be electrodes to prevent muscle atrophy. Ye Qiu took some time to remove them one by one, completely ignoring the orange LED light that lit up on the panel below the bed and the sharp alarm echoing throughout the room.

After removing the needle from the drip, he finally regained freedom over his body. Ye Qiu put his feet on the floor and slowly tried to exert force to stand up. Although his body slowly lifted, his knees felt as if they would break, causing Ye Qiu to smile bitterly. The godlike strength stat adjustments had completely vanished.

Ye Qiu grabbed the IV stand to support himself and finally stood up. He looked around the room and found a hospital gown under the tray holding a flower basket, which he picked up and threw over his bare body.

With just these small actions, Ye Qiu was already panting. His muscles, unused for two years, were protesting through pain. But how could Ye Qiu show weakness like this?

There was a voice urging Ye Qiu to hurry up, hurry up. Every part of Ye Qiu longed for her presence. Ye Qiu knew his battle wouldn't end until he could once again embrace Fang Wushang in his arms—Fang Wushang.

Clenching the IV stand that replaced his beloved sword, leaning on it, Ye Qiu took the first step toward the door.

Ye Qiu needed to understand the world he was in, what role he played, the crisis this world faced, and most importantly, where Fang Wushang was.

Three deep blue dots of light aligned quietly like a constellation.

Ye Zhi reached out her right hand, wanting to touch that glow.

At the front edge of the helmet was an LED indicator for the operation of the full-sleep VR machine. From the right was the main power, network connector, and the modulator for brain connection. If the leftmost light turned red—it meant the user's brain had been damaged.

The person wearing this was lying in the center of this gray-white hospital room's bed, continuing an endless sleep. No, these expressions were not accurate. In reality, their soul was fighting tirelessly in a distant Otherworld, striving to free themselves and thousands of trapped others.

"Brother"

Ye Zhi had been calling her sleeping brother—Ye Qiu.

"It's been two years. I'm in high school now, you know. If you don't come back soon, I'll surpass you."

Her fingers touched her brother's cheek under the LED light. His long slumber had made him much thinner, his slender frame giving a gender-neutral impression, his profile under the shadows appearing as delicate as a young girl. Their mother had once jokingly called him "our family's Sleeping Beauty."

Not just his cheeks, his entire body was frail, and compared to Ye Zhi, who had practiced Sword Dao since childhood, his weight had clearly decreased significantly. If this continued, there was fear he might waste away, a thought that had recently haunted Ye Zhi.

However, starting a year ago, Ye Zhi had been holding back her tears. That was when the member of the Ministry of Internal Affairs "Somnolence Incident Response Team" informed her. It was a civil servant with black-rimmed glasses and long hair, speaking with a tone of respect to Ye Zhi. Her brother's level had reached the highest possible for all in-game characters—he often fought on the most dangerous frontlines and ventured on quests with few other players.

Through Ye Qiu's investigation, Ye Qiu realized this was a world without the so-called Magic or Superpower, and here he had a sister. He was known to be a gaming master, very active in VR games. And currently, he was in a nation called Japan, a small island country in the Far East.

Ye Zhi was convinced her brother had narrowly escaped Death God many times. Therefore, she couldn't cry. She held her brother's hand, wanting to support him.

"Keep going. Keep going, brother."

As before, she wrapped Ye Qiu's emaciated right hand with both hers, praying earnestly when a voice came from behind.

"Ah, you're here, Ye Zhi."

Ye Zhi quickly turned around.

"Ah, Mom."

Standing there was Ye Zhi and Ye Qiu's mother, Cui. She opened the sliding door of the hospital room gently, as if to avoid breaking the room's silence.

Cui placed the cosmos she was holding into the vase by the bedside and sat on the chair next to Ye Zhi. She probably just returned from work, dressed in a cotton shirt, jeans, and donned a warm jacket. Light makeup, her hair combed back, her natural appearance not at all resembling someone nearing thirty. Likely an editor in information technology, she had a calmness beyond her years, looking more like Ye Zhi's sister.

"Why did you come here, Mom? How's the proofreading going?"

After Ye Zhi spoke, Cui smiled.

"I set work aside and came here. I seldom visited before, thought I'd come today."

"I see. Today is brother's birthday, after all."

For a moment, both stopped speaking, simultaneously looking towards Ye Qiu, lying on the hospital bed. In the evening sun, the wind blew into the room, lifting the curtains, carrying a faint scent of cosmos.

"Ye Qiu is sixteen already."

Cui murmured softly.

"Even today, it feels like it happened yesterday. At that time, I was watching a movie at home with Feng Song when Ye Qiu suddenly came behind us and said, 'Please tell me about my biological parents.'"