After Beating the Game, I Became the Villain BOSS

Chapter 552: Chapter 356: Breaking Through the Illusion (Part 2)

Just when Future was in trouble, the data on the screen suddenly showed a fluctuation, and the power curve of the cognitive device surged upward, its peak already surpassing the safety threshold.

Her face changed instantly: "What’s going on, wasn’t the safety lock set?"

She pulled up the source code and was shocked to find that the underlying system had been modified somehow, and the originally set safety lock had disappeared.

The current system’s operational logic was that as long as Su Mo’s physiological data hadn’t returned to normal, the output of the cognitive device would progressively increase, completely ignoring the user’s life signals until Su Mo woke up.

This kind of insane yet logical modification method could only mean one thing.

Future looked towards Qi Ling, lying in the cognitive device, and shouted in surprise: "Did you modify the underlying code? Are you crazy??!!"

Qi Ling’s consciousness had long entered Su Mo’s illusion through the cognitive device and could no longer respond to Future; only the pre-set program had taken over everything.

Seeing Qi Ling’s life signs data on the screen all red, Future was drenched in cold sweat and shouted: "Central Control! Adjust the cognitive device’s output power, reduce it to thirty percent of the original!"

The calm voice from Central Control sounded: "Sorry, your permission level is insufficient, adjustment request has been denied."

Future’s eyes lost focus, and she said desolately: "Continuing like this, you will die..."

"Cough!" As soon as she spoke, a violent coughing and wheezing sound came from behind.

Future turned back, and the scene before her made her heart sink.

Only to see Qi Ling in the cognitive device constantly convulsing, vomiting large amounts of blood, the crimson liquid completely staining the front of her clothing.

...

Su Mo felt two forces tugging at his consciousness, as if two giant hands were pulling back and forth, battling for him at the edge of illusion and reality.

"Who are you... Who exactly are you..."

Those blurred and shattered memories tried to break free, but each collision brought more intense pain, making Su Mo feel as if his head would explode, constantly moaning.

"Son, don’t be afraid! With Mom and Dad here, you don’t have to think about anything!" Su Xun and Li Huishu kept hitting Qi Ling, their mouths full of angry roars, "Get away! Stay away from my son! Go away!!!"

Li Huishu grabbed Qi Ling’s hair, using all her strength to slap her face fiercely, with a loud "pop," a red mark appeared on her beautiful face, and blood trickled from her mouth corner, dripping onto the clothing.

Su Xun even picked up a stone and smashed it hard against her arm and shoulder, leaving blue-purple bruises with each hit, and when smashed on the hand, the wound was even deep enough to see the bone, initially just a white mark, followed by a flood of blood.

Su Mo held his head tightly, blankly staring at this girl beside him who won’t leave despite the beating.

Subconsciousness told him that he must have seen this girl somewhere.

But his fragmented memories seemed to be shrouded in fog, thin as it was, impossible to penetrate.

Qi Ling’s face and body were already covered in blood, yet her expression showed no pain. She just gazed dreamily at the lake view, observing the beautiful scenes of late spring at the shore.

"Mo Mo, do you know? I don’t like spring. In this season, grass grows and warblers fly, everywhere is full of the rhythm of life, completely opposite to my past life."

"I also don’t like summer, the sun shining brightly during the day, always hearing cicadas, at night people gather cooling off, eat watermelon while looking up at stars, that kind of leisure I’ve never experienced in my childhood, only bringing me jealousy."

"I even despise autumn, detest the fiery red maple leaves, hate the clear and refreshing autumn wind, and dislike the golden wheat ears swaying in the fields, everywhere is peaceful and beautiful, I hate all the goodness that I don’t deserve."

"Shut up! Shut up!!!" Su Xun and Li Huishu’s eyes were red as if stained with blood, their roars inexplicably beginning to deform and twist, like a monster’s roar, the force of their blows becoming unprecedentedly harsh.

Qi Ling allowed those blows to land on herself, continuing to mutter.

"I like winter; I like that season where everything withers, and deathly silence reigns. I had a wish from a young age, wanting to die in winter."

She held Su Mo’s arm tightly, as if guiding a lost child, a gentle smile spreading like water on her face.

"But after knowing you, now I just want to live on, to watch a few more snowfalls with you."

Suddenly, Su Mo’s consciousness felt hit by something, various images surged in his mind, no longer blurry and becoming clear.

Sweet and melodious laughter.

The tingling of eye contact.

Warm embrace in the cold winter.

Scenes of the past unfolded like old movie clips, slowly revealing as if waking from a long dream, the shattered fragments of memory gradually gathering.

At this moment, Su Xun and Li Huishu went to the extreme of frenzy, their mouths issuing twisted screams while picking up a rock and smashing it hard on Qi Ling’s head.

"Boom!" With a heavy dull sound, Qi Ling’s head suffered a severe blow, the violent impact causing blood to gush from her mouth and nose, tinting her smile with tragic beauty.

Qi Ling reached out, using her last strength to hold Su Mo’s face, and then gently kissed him.

Blood-soaked lips brought a subtle touch, remaining unchanged was the overwhelming sensation surging into the heart.

In the deep kiss with Qi Ling, Su Mo’s eyes became increasingly clear, the layer of mist covering his consciousness finally breaking, the erased memories flooding like a tide.

"...Qi Ling?"

Qi Ling’s blood-stained small hand lightly grazed Su Mo’s face, the setting sun’s light reflecting in those amber eyes, revealing her gentle smile.

"Mo Mo, it’s time to go home; everyone is waiting for you."

As Qi Ling finished speaking, Su Mo suddenly felt an emptiness in his embrace, the figure before him quietly disintegrated, transforming into dancing light dots disappearing across the shimmering lake.

Almost simultaneously, Su Mo’s vision began to shake.

It wasn’t a tremor from the ground...

The ground, lake, setting sun, sky, even his parents shouting behind him... everything started distorting in increasingly intense vibrations as if the whole world was collapsing.

"Hiss—" When Su Mo reopened his eyes, what was reflected in them was the familiar construct architecture and the pale crystal floating in the air.

Amid shifting thoughts, he suddenly came to himself, shouted towards the communicator: "Future?"

The communicator on the other side returned Future’s sobbing voice: "Boss, you finally woke up... Qi Ling directly connected to the cognitive device and adjusted the power to a high level to wake you from the illusion... just vomited so much blood..."

Su Mo’s heart tightened in an instant: "Where is she? How is she?!"

Future’s sobs interrupted intermittently: "Sent to the medical area... medical staff just contacted me saying she is still in emergency care, but the situation is very bad... they told us... told us..."

At this moment, her crying reached the extreme: "Told us to prepare for the worst..."

Unprecedented agitation swept through his heart, Su Mo unconsciously bit his teeth tightly, exerting so much force that it squeezed blood from his gums.

Time cannot be reversed, the event has occurred, he can only forcibly maintain calm, ask in a low voice: "The Black Extinction Virus side, did Qi Ling leave any words, what is planned?"

Future wept and said: "She left me a message... said she had switched the Black Extinction Virus in the device on you to automatic mode... as long as it gets close enough to the communication port... it will operate automatically..."

Su Mo instinctively touched his chest.

The intrusion device containing the Black Extinction Virus was still there, no physical enemy here, so it wasn’t damaged.

Su Mo supported his long-coma weakened body, staggered towards the control core, saying solemnly: "Future, there’s nothing more you need to do here, go help save Qi Ling, whatever it takes, bring her back."

"Leave the last thing here to me, I’ll finish it all!"