Global Collapse-Chapter 539 - 508: Paradise_1

"My instance is out of the range of the Old World," Mr. Green said with a hint of pride in his tone.

Gu Mian tapped the wooden horse’s head a few times with his fingertip. The Old World can indeed affect the instances within it.

But... Mr. Green had mentioned that some instances Gu Mian previously entered had shattered due to the Old World’s influence.

Before entering Metamorphosis, upon learning about the Old World’s nature, Gu Mian had deduced that none of the instances he’d entered before belonged to the Old World.

Yet now, those instances had shattered along with the Old World.

Truly baffling.

Gu Mian adjusted his position, leaning against the wooden horse. "Can the collapse of one world affect an instance in another world?"

Mr. Green looked hesitantly at Gu Mian, only speaking after a few seconds of silence. "So, you not only figured out that instances come from multiple worlds but also identified which instances belong to which world."

Mr. Green stated this plainly, with no intention of deceiving Gu Mian.

Gu Mian looked keenly at Mr. Green. "So, Mr. Green Hat, why can the collapse of the Old World affect instances from other worlds?"

Mr. Green raised his head indignantly, waving his hands in the air. "It’s Mr. Green, not Mr. Green Hat!"

However, after a few seconds, his frustration subsided. He lowered his head and grew dejected. "A long time ago, others used to respectfully call me Host Green..."

"Then please tell me, Host Green..." Gu Mian patiently repeated his earlier question.

Mr. Green’s dim eyes lit up. Like a hen that had just laid an egg, he puffed out his chest. "Even if I don’t tell you, you’ll find out eventually."

He paused, then added with a tone of conviction, "You will definitely find out one day."

But I want to know right now. With this thought, Gu Mian dismounted, intending to grab Mr. Green. Unexpectedly, Mr. Green, as if prepared, leaped backward and retreated into the bushes. Only the upper half of his face was visible, trembling as he looked over. "If you try to catch me, I’ll run!"

If any players who had experienced the "Crazy Guessing Words" instance were present, they would have marveled at how the once eccentric host, who loved to stir up trouble, had become such a coward.

But it was highly unlikely any other players were passing by.

The harsh winter several months ago had frozen nearly half the players to death, followed by a devastating plague. People, already impoverished, were hit even harder; they couldn’t afford food, let alone medicine.

The plague had mostly subsided by now, but the human population on Earth had dwindled by more than half—and this was with the caveat that death within an instance wasn’t real.

Seeing Gu Mian stop, Mr. Green dared to show his whole head. "The Old World barely survived this time. The entire game will be affected. Just you watch, in fifteen days, the instances will definitely undergo new changes."

Is the Old World instance really that important? If the global game is composed of multiple worlds, then although the collapse of one world would have a significant impact, it wouldn’t necessarily cause all instances worldwide to shut down, Gu Mian pondered.

As Gu Mian deliberated, the roller coaster in the distance completed two circuits and came to a halt.

Xiao Hong clutched her green-haired dog, her own hair flying wildly, a few strands draped over her brother’s shoulder. Her already unsightly face was now even more grotesque, completely drained of color.

Mr. Green instinctively glanced at the roller coaster as it pulled into the station and immediately spotted Xiao Hong, an employee from his instance.

He was stunned for a moment, then leaped from the bushes and nervously ran to his former employee, shaking her by the shoulders. "Are you okay?!"

Although he didn’t know how his employee had ended up on the roller coaster, Mr. Green felt Gu Mian must have had something to do with it. He suspected Xiao Hong had been constantly mistreated after starting to follow Gu Mian.

Xiao Hong stared blankly at the green man beside her and let out a lychee soda-flavored burp in his direction.

She seemed to have forgotten who this person was.

Xiao Hong quickly lifted the safety bar and, clutching the dog’s head, WHOOSH! She dashed past Mr. Green and jumped onto the carousel next to Gu Mian. She began to spin with the horses, showing no awareness of having been "mistreated" at all.

Her brother, whose hair had also been blown back into a slicked-back style, also lifted the safety bar. Under Mr. Green’s grief-stricken gaze, he leisurely walked towards the carousel. Truth be told, the hairstyle actually looked quite good on him.

As her brother walked past Mr. Green, the great Host Green suddenly seemed to realize something. "Wait, this person..."

He finally realized that her brother was also a product of an instance.

Just moments ago, he had mistaken the gray-haired man for some random tourist who had inexplicably boarded the roller coaster.

Anticipating what Mr. Green was about to say, Gu Mian nodded. "He’s a disc spirit, obtained from a special instance where death is real."

Originally, he was the Goddess’s elder brother. But now, Gu Mian had gotten him for cheap, though Gu Mian hadn’t wanted to take this "bargain" at all.

Mr. Green mulled over the words "disc spirit." Such a peculiar term.

Speaking of the Goddess’s instance, Gu Mian suddenly remembered something. He looked at Mr. Green, who was standing near the roller coaster. "Do you know about the Second World?"

It was after encountering "Second World" in the library that Gu Mian and the others had been transported into her brother’s instance.

Currently, the only Low-Dimensional Worlds Gu Mian knew by name were "Second World" and "Old World."

Of course, he had entered instances from other worlds, but he couldn’t recall their names.

Upon hearing "Second World," Mr. Green tensed for a moment, then relaxed again. Was that deliberate? Gu Mian wondered. "Of course, I know," Mr. Green said. "For certain reasons, instances from the Second World are the most numerous. This means if the Second World were to collapse..."

He paused, then added, "The impact would be far more severe than the current situation."

If the Old World’s collapse could shut down instances worldwide, then the consequences of the Second World collapsing were unimaginable.

Unfortunately, although Gu Mian had encountered several instances suspected to be from the Second World, he couldn’t find the world’s core.

The core of the Old World is the Law Code. The Second World’s core was originally a book, but who knows what it has become by now.

Thinking of the cage underneath Lianhua University... Gu Mian said, "It seems Lianhua University has merged with the Second World. We plan to check it out again tonight."

Countless players had been lured to their deaths in Lianhua University during the college entrance exam event. If the global game hadn’t started, such a place would undoubtedly have become a renowned haunted site.

Perhaps I can find some clues there, Gu Mian thought.

Mr. Green was taken aback. "Merged?"

He clearly didn’t know about this.

Gu Mian nodded. "Yes, things unique to the Second World have appeared in Lianhua University. It seems the Second World has begun to erode reality."

Mr. Green clearly hadn’t expected this. So soon? he thought, then stammered, "But why go to such a ghostly place at night?"

So soon? Gu Mian mused, getting back on a horse. Does that mean the Low-Dimensional Worlds had this planned all along?

Ever since Mr. Green had been carried out of the instance and the ticket seller had spoken of "landing," Gu Mian had harbored this suspicion.

Fatty poked his head out from the side, ignoring the first part of Mr. Green’s question. "Going during the day is too dangerous."

He thought for a moment, then repeated with conviction, "Yes, going during the day is too dangerous. It’s better to go at night."

Mr. Green’s face wrinkled, as if he couldn’t comprehend Fatty’s logic.

Gu Mian glanced at Mr. Green. "So, why did you come looking for us this time? Surely you didn’t just stumble upon us while wanting to enjoy the amusement park?"

Only then did Mr. Green straighten his clothes, speaking with a hint of pride. "I am, of course, here to monitor you. The instances won’t reopen for fifteen days. To prevent you from any radical actions during this time, I must stay by your side. This is, naturally, an order from the higher-ups."

As an instance NPC, even though Gu Mian had dragged him into the real world, Mr. Green could still contact other NPCs. Clearly, he had been assigned this task by his superiors.

"Of course, after these fifteen days, I’ll have to find a way back to my instance," Mr. Green sighed, almost imperceptibly.

Gu Mian pondered for a moment before asking, "These Low-Dimensional Worlds will eventually completely invade reality, right? If so, you don’t need to rush back. Just wait for the Low-Dimensional Worlds to fully descend upon reality."

He showed no awareness that his own world was being eroded.

Mr. Green didn’t refute Gu Mian’s speculation, seemingly acknowledging it by default as he replied, "You don’t understand."

Gu Mian didn’t continue to tease the poor Host. The pony he was riding circled the pole merrily, emitting the sounds of a childish nursery rhyme.

Meanwhile, Xiao Hong had eagerly boarded the Pirate Ship. She seemed never to have encountered such novelties before and was utterly captivated, reluctant to leave her seat on the vessel.

「As night fell, Fatty turned on the neon lights in the amusement park.」

Dappled lights filled the entire amusement park. The Ferris Wheel, adorned with colorful lights, spun slowly in the dark night like a giant cog. In the distance, a European-style castle emitted a sacred, solemn white glow, resembling a nobles’ palace.

The night was quiet; no one else was here.

The entire park shimmered like an iridescent candy wrapper, glowing with vibrant colors.

Quiet and enchanting.

Only Xiao Hong’s cheerful voice echoed through the night—she was on the drop tower, experiencing freefall.

Ordinary players certainly wouldn’t plan an "amusement park day trip."

「Liannian lay in bed, covered by a thin sheet, her room dimly lit.」

She didn’t have extra money to buy an electricity card, so there were no entertainment activities for her once night fell.

Like most people, she went to bed early, using sleep to escape the boredom.

She fell asleep not long after lying down.

But perhaps due to the impact of Fatty’s amusement park day trip plan, or because she missed the long-lost feeling of happiness, she had a peculiar dream that night.

In her dream, she too arrived at an amusement park, and in front of her was a claw machine.

This claw machine was somewhat different. The dolls inside were peculiar: a Fatty with a large, round face; a sinister man wearing glasses; a beautiful female celebrity; a seductive landlady; a gray-haired foreigner; a faceless woman in a red dress; and a Doctor in a white coat, clutching a guitar.

However, all the dolls inside were roly-poly and looked exceptionally cute. Even the Doctor clutching the guitar was round, like an inflated pufferfish.

Instinctively, she maneuvered the joystick toward the roly-poly Doctor.

The process was surprisingly smooth; she successfully grabbed the doll. But just as the roly-poly Doctor was lifted, she suddenly sensed something was off about the other dolls.

But what was off? She couldn’t quite say...

The mechanical claw carried the Doctor to the prize chute and released him. THUD! The round Doctor dropped into the opening. She had successfully caught her first doll.

Just as she was considering whether to continue, she suddenly saw the Fatty doll closest to the opening look extremely nervous. Then, PLOP! It rolled into the opening too.

Next was the gray-haired doll. It bounced off the glass and also leaped into the opening, seemingly in pursuit of something.

Then, the faceless woman and the beautiful female celebrity jumped in, one after the other.

Finally, the cunning doll with glasses kicked the reluctant landlady into the opening before rolling in himself.

And so, for one Game Coin, she got a whole pile of dolls.

Liannian woke up in the middle of the night, laughing in her sleep.

After waking, she expressionlessly rubbed her face, which was stiff from laughing. "I must be going crazy."

「While Liannian was dreaming of getting a pile of dolls for a single Game Coin, Gu Mian and the others had quietly slipped into Lianhua University.」