Volume 17: Enemy of All Things Chapter 12: Les Miserables (Part 1)
"Is there anything worth being so happy about?"
"certainly."
Looking at the player leaving with a confused look on his face, Li Lin smiled happily.
The erasure of the holy light still worked. Unless there were demigods or gods or great demons connected to the surrounding environment, they would not be able to find Li Lin who was hiding deliberately. However, these players who were sneaking around in the building really made Li Lin feel good about them.
Because he couldn't help but think of himself some time ago, when he was just an ordinary newbie, looking for his own tasks on various trading windows. At that time, because of limited mobility, or because he was just a rookie, he had to bring Sally with him, otherwise he would probably die in various accidents. In this way, the adventurous life in the past was more suitable for him.
However, with the gradual growth of power, the strengthening of his own strength, and the updates and various evolutions of this universe, Li Lin has recently participated less and less in various adventures. Instead, he began to guide various armies to push the so-called secret realms and nightmares. The entire Free Alliance is already in the midst of war, and several of the Emperor's fortresses have been destroyed. In his eyes, the secret treasures in the players' hearts are nothing more than that, not worth mentioning at all. This change in status can be said to be inevitable, but how to say it, when I really realized it, I still felt a little regretful in my heart.
The regret of not feeling anything, not joining anything, not participating in anything. Former friends became enemies, and former enemies became friends. Although this game doesn't look very good, it is indeed a wonderful life for Li Lin.
Finally, looking at the thoughtful player, Li Lin smiled and shook his head.
"I just felt like I was no different than any other player, they were looking for fun and so was I."
"Then I believe you must have gained a lot of similar things in your life. After all, there is nothing more joyful than holding power. Perhaps sometimes you should try to use your power to do something you like and want to do. After all, power has a shelf life. If you don't use it within the time limit, wouldn't it be a waste? You should occasionally radiate your desires and do something you want to do."
"That is why I deeply feel the need to curb power. If everyone thinks and acts this way, then power itself is no different from a monster. I don't know how many people will die because of this, and I don't know how many people will cry because of this."
"That is why we maintain a kind of awe, or restraint, towards your existence."
After the usual exclamation point, Li Lin and the vice president walked together in this familiar yet unfamiliar corridor, quietly feeling the passage of time.
A few months ago, they had no identities to each other. The vice president was just a depressed professor of archaeology, and Li Lin was just a lucky player who was busy doing tasks. They had a very good relationship, worried about each other's status and possible disasters, and analyzed possible disasters to different degrees but unitedly.
After all, life is like the first sight, everything is beautiful at the beginning. Whether it is memory or something else, people always beautify the past and fill them with legendary and beautiful colors one after another. It looks so charming, but if you want to recall it carefully, you can only get a cotton candy-like emptiness. At least Li Lin feels that he can no longer remember what he looked like at the beginning.
At that time, the university still regarded Li Lin as its heirloom, a rare player, a creature who was truly fearless of death and fatigue. Before the large-scale invasion of uncertain players, Li Lin's existence could be said to be unique in the eyes of the university. Even when many players entered later, Li Lin, who had already taken the initiative, was still in the first sequence in the university. But everything that happened afterwards, those records and rumors, those secret knowledge and phenomena, those unstoppable events, eventually pushed the two organizations that were supposed to be together to the two sides.
This can't be said to be a bad thing, but it's definitely not a good thing. Especially now that the university and Li Lin have secretly torn their faces apart, the more you walk in this familiar corridor, the more you can feel a suffocating sense of oppression and pain.
"Ah, I still remember this terminal."
Walking in the corridor that he was once very familiar with, Li Lin's eyes lit up when he looked at a terminal placed against the wall.
"I still remember that I used this thing to write my lab reports. At that time, I thought university stuff was really convenient. Lab reports and other things could be done by just scanning them. At that time, I was worried and wrote a lot of things myself, but I found that there was no problem as long as I imported the records. Later, I simply stopped writing records... Now that I think about it, that time was really interesting."
"I also remember how panicked you were when you first received the revelation. You even thought you were an enemy of the Holy Light, a traitor, and then you came to me in a panic, seeking my help. In the end, you found out that it was just a false alarm."
Looking at the azure device in the corner, the vice president said calmly.
He remembered more.
For example, Li Lin's idle chat on the sofa, his surprise and admiration for the current world, and his panic when seeking help. People who have studied history don't remember everything around very clearly. They only remember the things that impressed them the most. And there is no doubt that Li Lin was the most impressive person in the vice president's mind at that time. His appearance at that time even injected a shot of adrenaline into the entire university.
A person who is not afraid of death, tiredness, aging, and even more stable than the universe. He is full of enthusiasm for the university's cause and is happy to inherit the university's things. Even at that time, he regarded himself as the heir of the university and wanted to climb up with all his heart.
However, the changes in the situation are always so subtle and unexpected.
"My office...ah, it has now been moved to the Kingdom of God. It's not my office anymore."
Looking at the changing patterns, Li Lin shook his head with some regret. Then he turned his head to the magic lamp. The magic lamp that seemed extremely mysterious in the past was now no different from a naked girl in Li Lin's eyes. The lane signs of the subspace sliding were so conspicuous in his eyes. And those arcane creatures were more of a positioning and guiding idea. Now Li Lin could easily make something similar.
There were also documents flying around the corridor, which looked like a burnt smell with a university atmosphere. It was as if Li Lin's departure had not brought any changes. Everything around was still the subtle and ambitious atmosphere that Li Lin had brought when he left.
But in the end, all this has nothing to do with Li Lin. They have now parted ways.
"Ah, when I first accepted the Holy Light mission, I was wondering when I could return to university."
Reaching out and touching the arcane servant who seemed extremely powerful in his former eyes, Li Lin smiled slightly as he saw him trembling, then released his restraint.
Each of these arcane servants, who could become an elite second-stage awakening warrior, saluted Li Lin respectfully, and then fled out of this passage in the blink of an eye as if they were running for their lives. This panic was also seen by the deputy dean behind him, who couldn't help but sigh softly.
If they were on the same front, this scene would definitely be a touching one of a wanderer returning home. However, it was not. The biggest theme of the university now was Li Lin, and only Li Lin. Only when Li Lin announced that everything was possible, then everything was possible. Although it was unknown why Li Lin chose to appear at this time, and why Li Lin sighed so much, the vice dean could only bow his head and nod.
The vice president deeply understood how fragmented the university was. Countless undercurrents were surging in the darkness. Radicals, moderates, neutrals, researchers, fence-sitters, all kinds of factions were fighting for power. Compared with the original university, the university had already changed. I don't know if it was because of Li Lin, or if many conflicts had already been aroused in the heart. Even many times, the professor couldn't help but think, is this also the magic of disputes? But in fact, this idea is nothing more than self-deception. All of this was destined when it was made public.
The vice president chatted with Li Lin casually. Compared with Li Lin's nostalgia and impulse, the vice president who had lived here all his life could only nod and agree, and then kept walking towards his old nest. He had to consider what mentality and purpose Li Lin came here for.
"This is my office. You should be familiar with it."
"Oh, you're back here again. You've been working in the same office for so long. Have you not changed even after getting promoted?"
Looking at the familiar Baroque-style decoration in the room, Li Lin raised his eyebrows in surprise.
Except for the files on the table, which had changed a lot, the crackling fireplace, the high-backed chairs and sofas, the hints and psychic images hanging from the ceiling, and the countless books on the walls, everything seemed to be the same as before Li Lin left. Everything seemed to have not changed.
But there are still some changes. The snack basket that Li Lin often likes to eat is gone. The miscellaneous books that he likes to read on the chair have also been sorted out and put back in their original positions. Now this is no longer a place for casual chatting, but a real vice president's office. Although compared with other vice presidents, this place looks extremely shabby and desolate. But this place really belongs to the vice president. Regardless of the terrible power surging inside it, or the cold murderous intent that permeates the surroundings, Li Lin walked into the room easily as if he didn't see it.
After the attendants behind him confirmed that Li Lin had walked into the room, they all bowed respectfully to the vice president and Li Lin, and then closed the door. Compared with the confidentiality level of the experimental base, the confidentiality level of the vice president's office in the university must be higher. But it all depends on the vice president's intention. The vice president hesitated for a moment, but finally believed in his intuition.
He blocked all the detection fluctuations around him, and then looked at Li Lin, who was sitting on the sofa very skillfully, conjuring some snacks and eating them, seemingly not caring at all. Looking at such a leisurely guy, he even wondered if the university had made a mistake in its judgment of Li Lin.
This player doesn't seem to care as much as the university simulation. Judging from his fearless look and his willingness to go after the real culprit, he seems to be fearless of nothing.
"...You seem to be completely oblivious to everything around you? Are you sure those people won't do anything to you?"
After lighting a cigar for himself, the vice president sat in the office chair behind the desk and looked at Li Lin strangely.
"There is a fierce quarrel in the board of directors right now. You may be attacked by some inexplicable terrorists at any second, and then you may be saved by another group of people at any second. Although your status is not a problem, your strength is very weak even now."
"Yeah, I know. But I'm sure you won't do anything too stupid."
Sitting on the sofa and eating melon seeds, Li Lin looked at the empty seat next to him and sighed with some disappointment.
Of course, Sally knew nothing and was still helping the university foolishly. But Li Lin was not qualified to ask the university for help. The life of a great demon in the university was always better than that of the Holy Light, and Sally herself wanted to do something for Li Lin. After confirming the mental safety contact, Li Lin himself could not remember how long he had not contacted Sally.
In the past, the cute little girl would often sit on this chair to eat snacks, but now I can only sit on this chair by myself. Although it seems that I have more freedom and choices, there is always an inexplicable feeling of emptiness in my heart.
"The university is not a stupid organization. Your choices tend to be more conservative. Don't dare to do anything before you figure out why I came here."
Li Lin, sitting on the sofa, shook his head and threw away the sadness in his mind.
"And most of the university's board of directors are just pretending. The only choice right now is me. I am the only one and cannot be replaced. Just like no research will use destructive means to study a single sample, I am unique to your upgrade plan and will not die in any accident. Because I am your only choice, there is no second one. And the worst that can happen to me is that I can just change the game, but you have no other options."
"So what should I be worried about? You are the ones who should be worried, not me. If I go out once and leave the Holy Light Department for even a second, you should be trembling with nervousness, fearing that I will die in an accident and then stop playing this game completely."
"Using the excuse of the board of directors is too boring. I'm not a fool. Such threats and excuses are just for show. I won't take them seriously."
"…But I didn't go out of my way to interfere with your judgment, nor did I lie."
Looking at the confident Li Lin, the vice president sighed uncomfortably.
"Because there are indeed many people who can't wait and are ready to launch some aggressive behaviors that you may not be able to accept. They have reached the end of their lives and they can only gamble on various possibilities. So you are not absolutely safe and you will still be under the watchful eyes of various crises."
"Oh, really? You should be the ones who are so nervous, not me. Haven't you used various methods to prove it? Players are immortal, and we are above this world. Even if I die, I won't really die. The ones who should be nervous are not me, but you. It's just that my mind was a little unclear at the time, because various things interfered with my judgment. Now I am sober, so I came. I came to you to seek some possible or impossible things."
"So what are you here for?"
Aren't they just here to mock us?
The vice president rubbed his head with a headache, thinking that there was something wrong with his thinking.
"I'm here to ask questions. After all, after much thought, it seems that only universities can answer my questions."
Sinking deeply into the soft sofa, Li Lin showed a thoughtful expression.
This serious expression seemed a little inappropriate on that face that looked a little too delicate, but the vice president could also feel the seriousness of the player. He would rather seek help from the so-called enemy than find the truth that was submerged.
This meant that Holy Light had no way to deal with his problem, and was not even qualified to simply explain his doubts. The vice president served him a cup of tea as usual, then sat on a chair, pretending to listen quietly. Although it was not as casual and intimate as before, in terms of status, the vice president would also give the player in front of him who showed a confused look the greatest respect. Although they were no longer friends, their status and experience were still indelible.
"The question I want to ask is simple."
Li Lin rubbed his eyebrows and looked up at the professor.
"Is my mind constrained by some kind of mental limitation? Can you build a reasonable uncontrolled personality model for me?"
