Chapter 185: Is this all the trouble Ruan Mei has? The footage of the Space Station's Seclusion Zone is leaked!
"Ruan Mei's attitude is a bit off."
Herta stroked her chin and spoke with profound meaning.
Screwllum pondered slightly.
Looking in the direction Ruan Mei had left, he said, "Ruan Mei's reasoning was obviously hasty and inconsistent with her usual control over the details of her actions. Conclusion: The upcoming plot will reveal a secret Ruan Mei does not wish to be known."
"If you put it that way, I want to see the rest of the plot even more."
A look of excitement appeared on Herta's face.
"Then let's not wait for her, let's keep watching."
On the projection screen.
In the game, Ruan Mei explained: "When I arrived at the Space Station, I borrowed a Phase Flame—a creation of # 29 Sserkal—from Herta, hoping to gain some inspiration from the research results of other members."
"I did indeed get a bit of inspiration, so I attempted to cultivate life on the Space Station."
"In my imagination, this would be a… brand new lifeform born as a genius. I planned to name them after # 8 Lambda of the Genius Society…"
"But somewhere along the line, something went wrong. They gained their own consciousness, yet had absolutely nothing to do with genius."
"Moreover, my hands-off approach to education seemed to have backfired. A few days ago, during a leak, several newly cultivated little lifeforms escaped and are now scurrying around the Space Station."
"I don't wish for Herta or Asta to get involved in this matter, so… I hope you can help me retrieve these little lifeforms."
Soon.
In the subsequent mission.
Perform the mysterious summoning ritual—paste hearts all over the places Ms. Ruan Mei had passed through.
After spraying enough hearts, a mysterious creature appeared.
Seeing this small creature, entirely milky white, the corner of Herta's mouth twitched instantly.
"This… this is the trouble Ruan Mei was talking about?"
"A pastry with self-consciousness?"
"Tch… I thought it was going to be something big."
Screwllum was also rendered somewhat speechless for a moment.
The light in his mechanical eyes dimmed and brightened, indicating he was performing some deep thinking and calculations.
"Incorrect."
"Hypothesis: If it were merely these small lifeforms scurrying around the Space Station, it would not be worth Ruan Mei leaving in such a hurry."
"She must have other reasons."
"Or rather, other [ troubles ]."
Herta, who had originally stood up, now seemed to find it uninteresting and sat back down on the sofa.
At the same time, she pulled up the surveillance of the Seclusion Zone.
Watching while speaking, she said, "What other trouble could there be? The Seclusion Zone is full of these living pastries right now."
"Hmm?"
"Why is the surveillance here malfunctioning…"
...
Master Control Zone.
The researchers saw the creatures Ruan Mei had cultivated and instantly blossomed with joy.
"That's the little lifeform Ruan Mei cultivated?"
"Isn't this too cute? Ms. Ruan Mei's creation!"
"Cakes!"
"It really looks like a cake…"
"Cheese custard cake, I hope it's savory."
"I can only say, awesome! As expected of Ruan Mei, to actually endow pastries with life! They've even developed their own emotions, thoughts, and will."
"In the field of life sciences, this is already Creator-level technology!"
"So this is Ms. Ruan Mei's research on our Space Station."
"This counts as a pretty significant achievement, right?"
And next.
Following Ruan Mei's request.
This [ Cheese Custard ] was flushed away through an interdimensional transport device that looked like a toilet.
After sending it to the Storage Zone.
Ruan Mei sent another message.
Inviting Stelle to join a gathering with Herta and Screwllum.
This plotline.
For the researchers of the Space Station, the attraction was simply too great!
Every one of them watched with extreme seriousness.
Wishing they could transmigrate into the game and attend in the place of the Trailblazer.
The gathering place was inside the Simulated Universe.
Herta and Screwllum were discussing finding a fifth genius to cooperate on the development of the Simulated Universe.
Herta proposed a candidate.
"What about Yu Qingtu? Ruan Mei, are you still in contact with her—is she still alive?"
"If we are going to discuss this topic, can we ask her to leave the table first? Because the process will be long… and boring, there's no need to take up someone else's time."
"Oh, of course. You brought her in anyway. You decide."
Outside the game.
The researchers were unhappy.
"Don't! I haven't heard enough yet!"
"It's about the future partners of the Simulated Universe! How could it possibly be long and boring!"
"Genius Society # 55 Yu Qingtu? That's another legendary figure."
At this moment.
Ruan Mei, seeing her off, said again: "My retrieval of the lifeforms… isn't finished yet. There is more than one. There are some others, stored in a certain sealed zone."
"Herta used that place to receive various visitors from the galaxy, or members of the Genius Society. But due to the impact of the Legion's invasion, it is no longer open to the outside."
"Now, my big trouble is stored there."
"Stelle, be careful. If you encounter a danger you truly cannot solve, give a signal, and I will disregard the consequences and appear personally."
"Remember, in the center of the zone, there is a giant… incubator. That is where my big trouble is kept."
The Space Station actually has a hidden secret zone?
Through Ruan Mei's mouth, another related secret was exposed in this plot!
For other players, this might just mean the Space Station is getting a new map.
But for the numerous researchers here.
This was a genuine, massive scoop!
At this moment.
In the livestream footage.
Stelle had already taken the elevator downwards.
The elevator shaft was quite bright at the beginning.
Soon.
Only the light of the elevator itself remained.
As it continued to descend, the depth had long exceeded the usual limit.
"Ka—"
Finally.
She arrived at the destination.
After Stelle walked out of the elevator.
Outside was a darkness as thick as ink.
Walking in this part of the Space Station, there was only the sound of her heels and metal ornaments clinking.
Suddenly.
A broken robot appeared before her eyes, seemingly out of nowhere.
The moment it turned around.
Its body suddenly twitched.
Then.
It began to convulse as if leaking electricity.
A weird red light shone from its optical sensor.
And behind her.
Red lights also suddenly began to flash.
The elevator actually started running upwards on its own.
Stelle looked back again.
That broken robot had already disappeared.
Stelle bit her lip.
In the enormous Seclusion Zone, she was now the only one left.
She couldn't help but reveal a fearful expression.
Fortunately.
The emergency lights on the path ahead lit up.
Although they couldn't completely illuminate this dark space, at least it wasn't so dark that she couldn't see her fingers.
Not to mention the onlooking researchers.
Even the players watching the livestream were startled!
…
"So the Space Station has such a creepy place too?"
"What was with that stir-fried leftover rice robot just now? Scared the hell out of me."
"If it were Sushang, she would have fainted by now."
"The Space Station really has more secrets than imagined."
"With this atmosphere, it'd be a pity if there weren't ghosts."
"Are there any Space Station pals watching who can clarify, is this place really that terrifying?"
…
At this moment.
The researchers on the Space Station had no mood to spam comments in the livestream room.
The sealed zone appearing in the plot aroused the astonishment of all the researchers.
"So a hidden secret zone really exists!"
"I remember the Space Station ghost stories mentioning this, right?"
"Adler didn't lie to me!"
"Are there any brave warriors who will go to the elevator with me to find out the truth! Let's see if the real Seclusion Zone is as hellish as in the game?"
"Your head is really hard, Feathered Spirit already hinted that this place is dangerous, a place Ruan Mei only let the Trailblazer go to solve…"
To the side, Asta immediately cleared her throat.
"Ahem… everyone, have you forgotten about me?"
"I won't allow you to casually go to such a restricted zone."
"This is… the Lead Researcher's responsibility."