Chapter 479: Chapter 479: It’s My Honor to Make You Envious
Sang Ning rushed over immediately, but upon arriving at the laboratory, Tang Yuanmao’s expression was grim: "The fluctuation has already stopped. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to decipher any useful information before it ended."
The laboratory’s decoration had a strong technological vibe. Within the silver metallic space, blue AI screens floated everywhere, and the numbers on the screens changed at high speed.
The sophisticated instrument Tang Yuanmao referred to for studying time-space fluctuations was placed right at the center of the hall, under an arched transparent glass dome. Inside, a row of densely packed metal string pieces was arranged, resembling an accordion stretched open.
According to Tang Yuanmao, these string pieces were merely part of the information receiver. A much larger portion was installed in the valley outside the laboratory. The receivers in the valley captured bands from space and displayed them concretely on these strings. Simply put, the strings would vibrate to varying degrees.
When Sang Ning arrived, the strings were lying quietly inside the glass dome, showing no signs of movement. She asked, "Did you record a video?"
"I did," Tang Yuanmao nodded, "but the fluctuation came suddenly, so I couldn’t record it in full."
Sang Ning had Tang Yuanmao send her the video and skimmed through it. She couldn’t discern anything significant—the vibration of the metal strings seemed utterly random, as if stirred briefly by a soft breeze and then settling down again.
The results of the re-selection process were already out; Sang Ning had earned the qualification to enter the laboratory. Since she couldn’t find anything from the video, she stayed in the laboratory tinkering with things, but even until late into the night, she couldn’t draw any useful conclusions.
The final filming stop for the travel show was scheduled for tomorrow, so she couldn’t afford to pull an all-nighter. She packed up the notes she’d taken in the laboratory and headed home.
The amount of sleep Sang Ning had left was minimal. After barely half an hour of drowsy rest, she suddenly woke up. The frequency and amplitude of the metal string vibrations in the laboratory felt eerily familiar somehow.
Inspiration is fleeting, and Sang Ning dared not delay. She immediately climbed out of bed, grabbed a pen and paper, and opened the video to start studying it.
Each vibration of the string seemed to correspond to a specific number, and in her subconscious, these numbers represented certain textual expressions.
As daybreak approached, Sang Ning finally succeeded in converting all these numbers into their corresponding texts. Staring at the black characters she had carefully written on the white paper, her brows knitted together, plunging her into endless contemplation—
"Death is the key to ending the cycles of reincarnation!"
Sang Ning was baffled. When she initially transmigrated to this world within a novel, the only way to survive was by completing the tasks issued by the System. But now it was telling her that death could end the cycle of reincarnation. Even if she completed the tasks... wasn’t that just meaningless effort in the end? She might as well have chosen to die directly upon transmigration.
She summoned the System, which had been dormant for quite a while: "System, System, you’re not trying to trick me, are you? Don’t tell me I’ll still have to die after completing the tasks? If that’s the case, I’m not going to bother anymore—I’ll just slack off until the one-year deadline and call it quits."
A surge of static buzzed through her mind, seemingly indicating the System was conducting some checks. Shortly afterward, the familiar cold mechanical voice resounded: "That’s not the case, Host. My programming was completely locked from the moment your tasks were determined. No tampering is possible. I’ve just rechecked, and still found no abnormal factors. Rest assured, as long as you adhere to the agreement and complete the tasks, you’ll definitely be able to live on in this world under a new identity."
Sang Ning was skeptical: "Fine, I’ll cautiously trust you for now. If a Host fails to complete the tasks, I imagine you’d face destruction as well, so I doubt you’d deceive me."
The System’s silence confirmed Sang Ning’s conjecture. It wasn’t inclined to betray her, so for now, she felt reassured.
Then again, that absurd declaration that "death could end the cycles of reincarnation" might not even apply to her. Plus, Tang Yuanmao’s video recording was incomplete—there might still be other information that had been overlooked.
Although dismissive, Sang Ning nonetheless kept those words tucked away in her mind.
Time shifted, bringing her to the final filming location for the travel show.
This stop was named Lisland, a desert city. The guests arrived on different flights and were directly shuttled to the filming site by the production team.
Sang Ning arrived at Lisland in the evening. Unlike chilly Jing City, the temperature here was so high it felt as if one could be roasted alive. And unlike coastal cities, the air here was exceptionally dry, lacking even a trace of humidity. As soon as she boarded the production team’s shuttle, Sang Ning gulped down an entire bottle of mineral water in one go.
Fortunately, the evening temperature wasn’t as daunting as during the day. A cool breeze wafted in, bringing a pleasant relief.
Half an hour later, Sang Ning arrived at the filming site from the airport. The final stop featured a camping theme, and the set was situated in a massive RV campsite.
By the time she reached the scene, the sky was already dim, and the small decorative lights strung around the RVs had been lit. The entire camp, with its golden desert backdrop, shimmered with a peaceful and cozy radiance.
As she stepped off the vehicle, someone waved to her in the distance. After handing her luggage to the staff, Sang Ning walked over on foot. It took her roughly two to three minutes before she could see clearly—it was one of the fellow guests waving at her.
"Hello, everyone!" Sang Ning greeted them collectively as she walked up to the white long table where everyone was seated. She genuinely didn’t know how to address Wei Lan and Li Haidong just yet; continuing to call them "Sister Lan" and "Uncle Hai" felt a bit off.
"Sister Sangsang, have you not been sleeping well lately? You look like you’ve got dark circles," Song Shiye approached and sized up Sang Ning thoughtfully.
Standing too close for comfort, Li Haidong quickly rose and pulled Song Shiye back a bit: "You brat, talk if you want to, but don’t stand so close."
Finally online and engaged, Song Shiye was aware of everything that had transpired recently. Even though everyone had been tactfully avoiding gossiping about Wei Lan and Li Haidong in their presence, Song Shiye still knew their backstories. After hearing this from Li Haidong, a defiant impulse arose within him. He grabbed Sang Ning’s arm and, with a provocative glance at Li Haidong, said: "You’re such a nitpicking old man! Sang Ning’s boyfriend hasn’t complained, so why should you meddle?"
"You!" Li Haidong could only glare furiously. Although the truth had been leaked before, openly admitting relationships on the show still felt improper. His restraint was largely due to catching a warning look from Sang Ning. Without further argument, he begrudgingly yanked Song Shiye back forcefully and held him in place, not allowing further antics.
"Ningbao, you’re doing great. Just a few days’ rest, and you’ve achieved both career success and romance. Truly enviable," Sang Ning looked up and saw Lu Yujing giving her a sarcastic yet smiling look. Her previous facade of friendliness was entirely gone, replaced by unmistakable hostility in her eyes.
Sang Ning finally saw through Lu Yujing’s peculiar vibe—this straightforwardly caustic attitude actually felt more familiar. Her lips curled slightly as she responded: "If I can evoke envy from you, it’s an honor."
