This Game Is Too Realistic-Chapter 507.1: Return to Ruin

Outside Shelter 0.

"... You were frozen for too long. Your hematopoietic function hasn’t fully recovered. A blood transfusion might help you feel better." In a tent at the base, a doctor in a white coat looked at Yi Hai, who was lying on a hospital bed, and said gently.

"No need. I feel fine," Yi Hai declined the doctor's offer and looked at his younger brother standing beside the bed. In a soft voice, he added, "May I rest for a while?"

Yi Chuan, who had been watching his brother with concern, nodded. "... Alright, get some rest."

Though he had much he wanted to say, considering Yi Hai had just been rescued, what he needed most was rest.

Yi Chuan rose from his seat and walked toward the tent flap.

But just as he reached to lift the curtain, he bumped into none other than Chu Guang who was walking towards him.

"Chu Guang?" Yi Chuan looked at him in surprise, assuming he was there to find him. "Is something the matter?"

Looking at the representative from Silver Wing Corporate Group, Chu Guang smiled politely. "There’s something I’d like to talk to your brother about. Mind if I borrow a little of his time?"

Yi Chuan blinked, slightly confused that Chu Guang hadn’t come for him. After hearing the request, a conflicted expression appeared on his face. "But... he needs rest right now, "

Before Yi Chuan could finish, a voice came from behind him and interrupted. "It’s fine. Let Mr. Chu Guang in."

Yi Chuan turned back immediately, giving his brother a puzzled look, as just moments ago he had said he wanted to rest. In the end, he said nothing and stepped aside.

Chu Guang gave him a grateful look. "Thanks. I’ll take it from here. Go do what you need to... Don’t worry, I won’t keep your brother long."

Yi Chuan nodded. "Alright... I’ll leave you two to talk."

"Mhm." Chu Guang nodded, walked past Yi Chuan, and sat down in a nearby metal chair beside the bed.

Looking at the familiar blue exoframe, Yi Hai gave a weak smile.

"You're still the same. No matter the occasion, always in that exoframe..."

Chu Guang chuckled lightly. "This is the wasteland, after all. Anything could happen... I’m honored I left such a strong impression."

"Of course. That place was special, unlike anywhere else I’ve been. Not just you, but many others from your side left a deep impression on me and my team." Despite the pallor and weakness on his face, the man still forced a friendly smile. "It’s a pity we had a mission then and couldn’t stay longer. I really wished we could’ve stayed longer, maybe found out what other delicacies you’d stashed away in your shelter."

Hearing him recall their shared experiences, Chu Guang smiled again, then sighed softly, a bit wistfully. "That night I said... once you recovered, we could sit down and properly talk about everything that happened after you left."

"I’ve been really curious... What exactly happened to all of you? You’ve changed so much in just half a year," Yi Hai said, his voice laced with emotion as his eyes grew distant with memories.

Chu Guang didn’t respond immediately. He simply stared at him in silence for a while.

Those pitch-black eyes gave nothing away. Facing his gaze, Yi Hai’s expression gradually shifted to confusion. "Is there something on my face?"

"No," Chu Guang shook his head, then softened his expression and said gently, "Let’s start with what happened before we found you all."

Yi Hai didn’t respond, quietly waiting for him to continue.

Chu Guang thought for a moment and began. "A long time ago, I had a dream, an extremely long one. In that dream... I was killed by wastelanders, killed by mutants, even betrayed by the people I trusted most. In moments of utter despair, I’d brush against the edge of the dream again and again. But every time I got close to piercing through the fog, I’d wake up once more. Sometimes, I wonder if that’s just the beginning of another cycle."

Yi Hai froze, sensing he wasn’t joking. After a long silence, he sighed and said softly, "That’s a terrible memory."

"Yes," Chu Guang nodded. "I don’t often talk about the details of that dream, not even to the person I trust most..."

He paused, then continued, "It may sound strange, but even I’m surprised by it... I don’t hate the people I saw in that dream."

A suppressed smile tugged at Yi Hai’s pale face. His lips twitched slightly as if he were amused. "That is odd. Dreams and reality are two different things, after all. Hating someone in real life just because of a nightmare? No sane person would do that."

Chu Guang smiled too. "Right? And it’s not just the difference between dream and reality, even in reality, people differ. Some wastelanders are pure scum, but not all of them are. I’ve always tried to remind myself to wield authority with care, including the powers granted to me by the shelter. To let go of the arrogance and bias of the so-called civilized, and treat everyone fairly. I use rules to regulate others. Only in this way can we unite as many people as possible."

"Whether it’s the residents inside the shelter or survivors outside, they all have the equal right to live in this world. They weren’t born to serve anyone, or to fulfill someone else’s desires or ambitions, or to be someone’s slave... Do you think I’ve done the right thing?"

Yi Hai was quiet for a while, then said sincerely, "You’re a great administrator. No wonder your shelter is so well run."

It sounded like genuine praise, and it was. Yet in Chu Guang’s ears, it carried another layer of meaning.

Especially because he had already begun to suspect something.

The compliment now felt laced with irony.

And Chu Guang had no intention of keeping up the act either. He stared directly into those eyes that masked deceit with weakness and said in a soft voice, "I wasn’t always this good at my job. It took time living among the survivors. That’s why I really don’t get it, if we were talking about slavers, sure, they could chalk it up to environment or ignorance. But you guys? Heirs to civilization’s legacy... Why would you stoop to their level? Was what the Federation gave you still not enough?"

"Stoop to their level...?" Yi Hai froze slightly. His expression grew serious. "What do you mean? Are you saying... there are spies in the Enterprise trading with Mutant Humans?!"

Still playing dumb.

Chu Guang had to admit, he was very convincing.

If that guy had been this careful from the start, or had hidden his smugness better, he might’ve fooled him.

After all, people tend to be lenient toward the wounded, not harsh. Even when discrepancies show up in statements, they were often chalked up to trauma.

But, some things could be explained by memory gaps.

Others couldn’t.

Someone might confuse the sequence of events or mix up key players. But no one knew things that hadn’t happened yet.

And almost at the same time, Little Seven’s voice reached him, reporting what the players had discovered in Shelter 0.

Even if the shelter’s walls could block electromagnetic signals, they couldn’t block connections built on morphogenic fields.

"Drop the act... The real Yi Hai died in that shelter, didn’t he?"

Now that Chu Guang had made it clear, the man on the bed stopped pretending.

He tore off the mask of weakness. His pale face twisted with emotion, and a dry, chilling laugh gurgled from his throat. He looked like a corpse gone mad.

Chu Guang watched him calmly.

He knew the bastard had probably been holding that in for a long time. Maybe even from the moment he woke up.

Eventually, the man stopped laughing. His face returned to normal, and he let out a long, satisfied breath, grinning at Chu Guang. "Phew... It’s really hard to hold in a laugh, you know that? The way you idiots were fussing around me was hilarious!"

After a pause, he examined the man in exoframe with interest. "Chu Guang, right...? I am curious though, how did you figure it out? Those guys aren’t out of the shelter yet, right?"

Chu Guang replied calmly, "Your acting was good. The surprise when you saw me, the brotherly affection, the gratitude toward the rescuers... You covered it all. But you knew far too much."

"You knew too much about the Wislanders, the Mutant Humans, the Enlightenment Society, even their eventual betrayal. You knew everything."

"That’s strange, don’t you think? It’s like you were there, present for the conflict with the Wislanders and Mutant Humans, involved in the alliance with the Enlightenment Society, and finally betrayed by them... Yet somehow you made it back here unharmed, as if none of it happened."

"Smart," the man looked at Chu Guang with admiration. "You’re growing on me... You’re right, I’m with the Enlightenment Society."

"But there’s one thing I still don’t get," Chu Guang asked, his voice tinged with curiosity. "How did you impersonate Yi Hai?"

"Ah... that?" The man grinned, his answer surprising Chu Guang. He didn’t hide anything, he just admitted it bluntly. "Have you heard of a psychic interference device?"

Chu Guang nodded. "I’ve heard of it. Some people, like your group, have similar tech. If I recall correctly... The higher the intelligence, the more detailed the information they can receive, but also the harder they are to influence. The lower the intelligence, the less information they can process, but the easier they are to manipulate."

The technology originally came from the colonies out in space, inspired by an alien unified consciousness. It was developed as a replacement for infrasonic fences and was later used unethically by a corporation on eco-park visitors, turning cheap products into luxury-priced goods and nearly revolutionizing the advertising industry.

The device could manipulate immature minds, but for mentally developed humans, it could only provide a gentle nudge, like pushing a thought. More advanced versions like full mental domination were even harder.

"Resonance theory. That’s correct," the man continued with a smile. "In theory, it’s impossible to control higher beings through resonance. Their mental complexity is thousands of times greater than that of lesser creatures. But... there are exceptions."

Chu Guang stared at him for a moment, and suddenly a look of realization crossed his eyes. "... A clone?"