Chapter 356: Conjecture (Combined Chapter)

Afterward, the two's investigation on the front line seemed to touch some invisible boundary.

Although they confirmed that the "alien threat" had an inextricable connection with the mastermind, they also discovered that it was a deliberately designed hostile race.

But the deeper purpose and the core logic of the "system" remained hidden behind the fog.

After confirming that no breakthrough progress could be made in the short term, Jie Ming and Lei Ke decided to temporarily withdraw from this star field filled with smoke.

The investigation came to a temporary end, and for a time, there seemed to be nothing to do.

Jie Ming accepted Lei Ke's invitation and followed him back to the planet of his "birth" in this world—a bustling world famous for precision manufacturing and musical art.

When the spaceship arrived at the airport, two people were already waiting at the exit.

Lei Ke saw them, and a rare smile appeared on his face.

"I didn't expect you to be willing to come back!" one of them said with a smile, "Not going to introduce us?"

"I'll introduce," Lei Ke said to Jie Ming, "These two are my 'childhood friends' here—"

"Of course, they are also wizards."

This sentence was not spoken by Lei Ke, but transmitted directly into Jie Ming's earphone.

To communicate better, Lei Ke provided Jie Ming with an earphone before coming.

He can use his "Weaver" ability to convert the thoughts in his mind into sound, allowing him to communicate directly with Jie Ming without needing to speak aloud.

In this way, some occasions not suitable for speaking could use this method to contact—just like now.

Jie Ming subconsciously sized up the two upon hearing this.

One of them was wearing a colorful, avant-garde leather jacket, with hair dyed a dazzling bright blue, a wild and unruly smile on his face, and a powerful aura like a stage superstar radiating from his whole body.

Lei Ke paused, opened his mouth, and his tone was a bit subtle: "This is Calvin, the rock superstar who is popular throughout this star system, the lead singer of 'Fury Sonic'."

Inside Jie Ming's ear, Lei Ke's voice was transmitted through the earphone: "'Silent One' Calvin, he was a genius in the Necromancy Department at the academy, could go a whole day without saying a word, only communicating with his skeleton soldiers. Now—the change is indeed a bit big."

Calvin shook his head, smiled and nodded at Jie Ming, then corrected Lei Ke: "You're wrong, I'm not just famous in this star system, I'm going to march into other star systems next!"

The other person looked much steadier, wearing a well-fitting engineer jacket, but his eyes were sharp as an eagle, and his finger joints were thick, bearing traces left by long-term precision operations.

"Barton, he is a top mech modification master in the industry. The performance of custom mechs tuned by him can be improved by more than 15%. However, if you want to customize a mech, I can help you be the middleman."

Barton glanced at Jie Ming: "You flatter me, I still have a lot to learn."

"'Flesh Craftsman' Barton, he used to specialize in forbidden biochemical beast modification, and even his mentor didn't dare to enter his laboratory."

After Lei Ke finished introducing the identities of the two through the earphone, he introduced Jie Ming to the two with a flawless smile: "This is Jie Ming, he is a—quite excellent scholar."

Hearing Lei Ke say this, Calvin and Barton looked at Jie Ming, both revealing disbelieving gazes.

As friends who grew up in the same orphanage, they knew best how arrogant their friend was.

Even if Lei Ke had no other introduction for Jie Ming, and Jie Ming himself didn't seem to have a special position, just this one evaluation from Lei Ke was enough to make the two take him seriously.

"Nice to meet you."

"First time meeting, please advise."

"Where, it's Mr. Lei Ke who is too flattering—"

"

Both sides introduced each other and simply greeted each other.

Calvin enthusiastically hugged Lei Ke's shoulders: "You kid went to other planets for so many years without a word, we must have a good gathering this time!"

Barton nodded at Jie Ming, his gaze lingering on him briefly, then turned to Lei Ke: "How long are you staying this time?"

"I don't plan to go out in the short term." Lei Ke said with a smile.

"That's great! Let's go! Tonight, my treat!"

In order to "clean up the dust" for Lei Ke, and also to welcome Jie Ming, Calvin waved his hand and invited them to the hottest interstellar-themed bar in the city.

The light and shadow in the bar were blurred, and the sound was deafening.

When Calvin jumped onto the stage and grabbed the microphone, the atmosphere of the entire venue was instantly ignited.

He couldn't be seen as a silent necromancy wizard at all, but a superstar who roared, jumped, and mobilized the emotions of thousands of people under the spotlight.

Standing on the stage, he was radiant, as if he was born to belong here.

Lei Ke and Jie Ming sat in the booth, watching the figure completely immersed on the stage.

In the deafening music, Lei Ke leaned close to Jie Ming and said in a low voice, his tone carrying a complex emotion of near confusion: "Sometimes, looking at them—I feel that this world, maybe it's not that bad."

Jie Ming raised his eyebrows and looked at him.

Lei Ke's gaze remained on the stage: "Do you know? Calvin and Barton, we have a good relationship, and we would occasionally chat about some heartfelt words at the academy."

"They actually—don't really like the life of a wizard. Calvin feels that dealing with corpses and souls is too cold and oppressive; what he desires in his heart is to use sound and passion to infect living people. Barton hates those bloody flesh and twisted limbs, and he dreams of being able to create the perfect 'machinery' in his heart without restraint—"

Lei Ke didn't continue, but Jie Ming already knew what he wanted to say.

Clearly, there was a considerable gap between dreams and reality.

In order to be promoted to a Tier 3 wizard, they had no choice.

It was rare for someone like Lei Ke who liked alchemy and mechanics, and whose talent was also alchemy and mechanics. Most wizards, in order to keep going, could only choose the one technology they were most talented in for in-depth research.

Lei Ke paused, his voice lower: "Look at them now—one has become a rock superstar in the spotlight, one has become a respected top mech master, and they can freely sprinkle their talent and passion—"

"They look like this now, maybe they live more like themselves and more comfortably than in the wizard world."

Jie Ming heard the meaning in his words: "You don't plan to continue investigating?"

"No way, after all, time is running out."

Lei Ke shook his head expressionlessly: "With less than a year left until the deadline proposed by the headquarters, to be honest, I don't think we can find the truth in such a short time."

"No wonder you just said you don't plan to leave in the short term—" Jie Ming understood.

"Looks like you plan to wait for the Tier 8 wizard to take action and then withdraw directly?"

Lei Ke nodded silently.

Jie Ming had to admit that this idea was actually more appropriate.

Since the two of them had already awakened, they could completely gather the wizards they recognized as much as possible when the Tier 8 wizard took action, and find a way to release a signal.

With the great power of a Tier 8 wizard, even in a cosmic-type plane with such a large range, they could definitely save the two people sending the signal in an instant.

In this way, even if they didn't do anything else, just saving other wizards was enough to gain enough credit.

What's more, the two were awakened ones and had been frantically learning various knowledge over the years.

It could be said that even if they didn't do anything next, it was a huge profit.

"With not much time left, looking at them like this, I feel I can also enjoy it. After all, there are not many planes that can be so peaceful—maybe I can also fulfill my dream." Lei Ke suddenly laughed.

Jie Ming listened quietly.

But after hearing Lei Ke's last sentence, a cold thought drilled into his mind like a poisonous snake, making his back feel cold instantly.

Something is wrong!

Logically speaking, everyone's memories had been covered, and their growth environment and experiences had been reset.

A person's wishes and hobbies would change completely with the environment they grew up in and the education they received!

It made no sense that under the cover of false memories, the "ideal state" they finally presented would be so highly consistent with the true inner desires they once had covered up!

He immediately thought of Wei Aola.

That bad personality of taking pleasure in others' pain not only didn't restrain itself in this world.

Instead, under the cover of the identities of "corporate executive" and "gentle elder," she was even more like a fish in water, and could appreciate others' embarrassment and pain more conveniently and "legally."

It could be said that the living environment Wei Aola was in was simply a stage tailored for her!

When he and Lei Ke probed before, they had already confirmed that the mastermind here was unexpectedly "kind."

Recalling his "parents" and "old friends," Jie Ming couldn't help but start thinking, is it possible that the kindness of the other party far exceeded his imagination?

If—the purpose of the other party doing this was to let everyone realize their dreams?

Lei Ke noticed Jie Ming's suddenly changed face and asked in a low voice: "What's wrong?"

Jie Ming took a deep breath and told the story about Wei Aola and his own deduction.

The confusion and emotion on Lei Ke's face instantly disappeared, replaced by extreme seriousness and solemnity.

He pushed his glasses, and the gaze behind the lenses was sharp as a knife.

"You mean—not just the few people we are familiar with—" Lei Ke's voice was dry, "but all the wizards fallen here—even other humans, are likely living the life they once 'dreamed of' and were 'most comfortable' in, under the appearance of false identities?"

Jie Ming nodded heavily: "Although it sounds incredible, Calvin, Barton, Wei Aola—these few samples point to this possibility."

"And, do you remember what we saw on the front line?"

"Which aspect are you talking about?"

"About the very small number of soldiers on the front line." Jie Ming looked at Lei Ke.

Lei Ke was slightly stunned and narrowed his eyes.

There were some things he hadn't seen with his own eyes, so he wasn't very clear, for example—the number of soldiers on the front line was very small.

It could even be said to be excessively small.

Although the human side occupied an advantage, it relied more on autonomous machines to fight. Of course, this didn't mean that soldiers had no effect.

On the contrary, in the chaotic environment of the battlefield, one more intelligent creature capable of autonomous judgment and manipulating more autonomous machines could greatly improve the combat effectiveness of the human side.

But the actual situation was that even though the front line was fighting very hard, there was still no intention of increasing troops in the rear.

Clearly, with the reserves of human civilization on this plane, they didn't even need forced conscription, just reinforcements toward the front line would significantly speed up the progress of the front line.

Whether thinking from the perspective of efficiency or cost-effectiveness, reinforcements were the best idea, but the actual situation was that the number of soldiers fighting on the front line was still not large.

"Regarding this phenomenon, it is indeed incomprehensible, but if according to your conjecture—hiss—" Lei Ke couldn't help but gasp.

Jie Ming took a sip of his drink to soothe his throat, which was a bit dry due to excessive excitement: "Those people are fond of war in their subconscious, so the so-called front line is actually a 'paradise' arranged for them by the mastermind."

"In this way, it can also explain why the mastermind forcibly set non-humanoid creatures as enemies—" Lei Ke couldn't help but swallow his saliva.

"Yeah—" Jie Ming's eyes went blank.

Because he suddenly recalled the situation he once discovered at school: in the university he was in, the number of students was less than the number of faculty members.

If he used this conjecture as a cornerstone, he could also explain this reason.

After all, wizards are said to pursue knowledge, but if placed on the individual, those who are truly willing to pursue knowledge endlessly are ultimately in the minority.

More, deep in their hearts, they probably still hope to live a little "happier."

And wizards who guide others, or enjoy the fun of guiding others, must be more numerous than wizards who enjoy learning knowledge.

"This plane is not only suppressing our power and tampering with our memories, it might also be reading and satisfying our deepest desires—"

Jie Ming suddenly shook his head again: "No, it should be said that it is precisely because it read our deepest desires that it had to tamper with our memories. It used a way we couldn't perceive to place us in the roles we were most 'satisfied' with."

Lei Ke was silent for a moment, nodding slowly, but then shook his head: "Logically, this speculation can explain the phenomena we observed. But—the sample is still too small. We cannot determine whether this is a universal core mechanism or just a coincidence."

He sighed helplessly: "And among them, there are special cases like us, which cannot be counted as data—"

"Wait! What did you say?!" Jie Ming suddenly became excited as if struck by lightning.

Lei Ke was puzzled, but still subconsciously repeated his words just now: "There are special cases like us—"

"That's right, that's it!"

This sentence made Jie Ming suddenly understand many things, and most importantly, he finally knew how to find the mastermind!

Jie Ming laughed excitedly, regardless of the strange looks from the people around him.

Fortunately, this was a nightclub, and the commotion here didn't make too many people notice.

Jie Ming also realized this and sat down immediately, but the expression on his face was still full of excitement: "I thought of how to find that mastermind—"

Although Lei Ke didn't understand what Jie Ming specifically thought of, hearing Jie Ming say this, he was very solemn: "Is it worth taking such a risk?"

Both of them knew very well that even if Jie Ming really found a way to talk directly to the mastermind, there would likely be no good result.

After all, three unlucky people had already died before.

So Lei Ke didn't even go to ask Jie Ming what the method he thought of was, because he knew very well that no matter how "kind" the other party was, the result of going to face the other party directly would inevitably be death.

More importantly, even if he really saw the other party, he couldn't be sure he could get an answer.

"Indeed, rationally speaking, waiting quietly for the deadline to arrive is the most cost-effective plan." Jie Ming didn't mean to refute him.

"However—under the condition of having the conditions, I still want to satisfy my curiosity."

A flash of confusion flashed in Lei Ke's expression, but he didn't say much, just raised his glass to Jie Ming: "Then—wish you success."

"Thanks for the good words."

Jie Ming smiled, didn't stay too long, and even didn't have time to say goodbye to the other two wizards, and went straight away from here.

"—Lei Ke?"

Just retreating from the side of the stage, seeing Jie Ming suddenly leave, Barton looked at his good friend in confusion.

He didn't care about Jie Ming's departure, just curious why his good friend looked so—lost.

"I'm fine—" Lei Ke smiled.

He looked up in the direction Jie Ming left, even if he couldn't see the other party's back, he could still recall the excited look of Jie Ming when he left just now.

"As a wizard, I have completely fallen behind in terms of thirst for knowledge—" Lei Ke murmured in his heart.

As a qualified wizard, Lei Ke certainly knew how important it was to rationally judge his current situation.

But, as a seeker of knowledge, he also knew how important a strong thirst for knowledge was for a wizard.

"However—looking at that guy's appearance, he should have other back-ups to dare to do this—oh my, in this way, haven't I fallen behind that guy completely?" Lei Ke sighed a bit.

Barton on the side looked at his good friend with worry; from just now, the other party kept changing his expression.

Fortunately, Lei Ke's state didn't last long, and soon he opened his eyes, smiled, and raised his glass: "Forget it, it's meaningless to compare with that kind of madman—cheers!"

On the other side, Jie Ming didn't delay at all.

He hurriedly took the fastest flight back to the planet where he was born, and it took less than three days to return to his "hometown."

Looking at the empty airport in front of him and the blue planet below, Jie Ming licked his lips, his expression excited as he walked home. ===== CHAPTER 357 =====