Chapter 1016: Metaverse (Bonus for 200 monthly votes last month)

Zzzzt!

Darkness fell before Aaron's eyes, and then a torrent of data composed of countless 0s and 1s emerged, cascading down like a waterfall.

He felt a slight sense of anticipation, while simultaneously using Secrecy to hide his origins and casually fabricating another fake identity in the sense of Occultism.

The next moment, his vision brightened, and he found himself standing on a plaza filled with a sci-fi metallic style.

All around were towering metal buildings, some of which were even suspended directly in mid-air.

Before him, a screen of Light appeared:

【Welcome to the Metaverse!】

【New user detected, would you like to complete registration?】

"Occultism? The status of this Ritual is very high... It saw through everything about this fake identity of mine, and is even entangled with my lifespan."

"Over eighty years?"

Aaron chose to accept them one by one and saw the usernames of Chloe and the others.

A blonde woman with a sweet smile, wearing a small suit, asked with a professional smile.

"Using life to squeeze employees? This is truly an ideal model for factory owners and financiers... Because if you don't work, you die, so you must work desperately!"

"Not only do they want money, some are even more expensive than real estate in reality!"

Jason smiled: "Pity... she doesn't have much money and can't afford top-tier chips; no matter how good her programming skills are, it's useless."

"Speaking ill of people behind their backs is not a good habit!"

The Life Bank building was huge and particularly conspicuous, located right across from the public plaza, occupying a vast space.

"Is this... virtual reality network? Wireless connectivity, unimaginable technology!"

【Dear! Welcome to the big family of the Gaia Virtual Reality Network. Gaia Network Company serves you wholeheartedly, providing an excellent virtual network experience. Please give us a good review!】

Aaron clicked confirm, and a huge figure suddenly appeared beside him.

Wilson and Jason exclaimed: "No wonder the old man stopped working the moment he heard he was getting a ride. A Natural person is indeed a tycoon!"

"I don't mind... After all, I have confidence in my lifespan, and... according to what you said, if one has no money, it's impossible to move an inch in 'Nightless City', right?"

The old man is 'Old Handsome'!

Wilson is 'Captain'!

Chloe is quite strange, called 'Trojan Horse'!

"Trojan Horse?"

He muttered to himself in his heart, and then heard the blonde woman's slightly surprised voice: "Respected guest, your account balance has 29,387 days remaining! You have become my planetary-level client!"

"Approve!"

Jason looked dejected, but a moment later, he patted his cheek: "Come, I'll add you to other friends and we'll form a group."

"Sigh... we are all poor wretches and cannot use many of the virtual network's paid features... even playing a game requires a top-up, and only a few basic communication functions are still open for free..."

"Wait, if it's a fully virtual reality network... then how can you confirm whether the person on the other side is a man, a woman, or... a dog?"

"With that flashy appearance of yours, how can you have the nerve to talk about others?"

"Register!"

Aaron was effectively using a fake identity at this moment, so naturally he feared nothing, and calmly issued the command with his thoughts.

【Ding! Please enter your username!】

"Open account!"

Jason crouched down, his voice sounding as if it had been amplified by a speaker, shaking one's eardrums with pain.

Aaron nodded expressionlessly.

"Aaron!"

Her heart seemed kind, as she was still faintly hinting and advising.

It was a burly man over three meters tall, with a terrifying degree of full-body mechanical modification: "Hello... I'm Jason!"

Its logo was a Mobius Ring, which in the Metaverse looked even more like an infinite loop, representing time.

【Detected that the user is not logging in using a 'Gaia Chip', 100% simulation function disabled, intracranial orgasm function disabled...】

"It's alright!"

The next instant, he felt a faint scan pass over him, even attempting to leave some kind of brand on his body.

Aaron looked around and found that many 'players' were of various Weird styles; demons and ghosts could be seen everywhere, and there was even a puddle of sludge wriggling on the ground.

【Registration successful, neuron and brainwave information recorded, unique account automatically generated—%￥#@!】

However, he had long since disguised himself; at this moment, he was merely a 'common Natural person', equivalent to a puppet, so he let the Mysterious brand be placed upon him.

Chloe led Aaron into the bank's towering, palace-like gate, her body trembling involuntarily, seemingly a bit afraid: "No one can owe money to the Life Bank, because once you open an account, if your balance is 0, you will die immediately!"

Jason and Wilson beside them were getting anxious, repeatedly winking at Chloe.

Aaron's mouth twitched slightly: "Alright... let's go to the bank first. It seems... this place doesn't work without money."

Chloe let out a long breath: "That's indeed the case... For residents of Nightless City like us, we are born with a Life Bank loan due to body modifications, and time is never enough to spend... machine oil, pure water and food, housing, medicine... many people don't have more than a month's time in their accounts, and wages must be settled daily, otherwise many people won't live to see the next day's sun!"

Jason sighed: "We are all 'retail investors', and our login area is just this public plaza. Those rich people buy property directly inside the Metaverse and log in directly. We don't have the authorization to enter such private places..."

"Jason?"

"Yeah, Chloe has had a wish since she was a child: to become the top hacker, break into the Life Bank's backend program, and adjust her account balance to infinity..."

【'Big Guy' has sent a friend request, approve?】

"Hello, respected client, how may I be of service to you?"

Aaron reported his Metaverse account.

"The Life Bank has branches everywhere in the Metaverse, making it very convenient to conduct business. If you have money—which is to say, time—you are God there! The motto those bank employees love to say most is, 'Time is money!'"

Wilson also walked over; he was wearing a pirate captain's uniform, and his face was much more handsome than in reality.

"In virtual reality, all forms and appearances can be chosen... I've long wanted to do a 'Metal Giant' modification, but unfortunately, I don't have that many days, so I can only try it out in the Gaia Network first... Just for this skin, the Gaia Network company charged me three days of time; it's so damn black-hearted!"

【Ding!】

Aaron shrugged his shoulders.

"Real estate in the Virtual Universe?" Aaron gasped: "It costs money?"

Aaron touched his chin and came to the counter.

A flash of white Light streaked by, and the figure of Chloe emerged from the side; she had dyed her hair colorful, had two antenna-like hairpins on her head, carried a pair of translucent fluorescent wings on her back, and was biting on a lollipop.

"That's right! Compared to the shameless behavior of the old man who even spends money to buy a handsome guy skin, hoping to trick people into sex in the Metaverse... we are already considered decent."

Aaron thought of that thin, short person: "Why did you turn into this?"

In reality, if his true infinite lifespan were exposed, it would probably cause the Life Bank's system to collapse immediately.

However, this was just an identity, which could be considered relatively consistent with his persona.

(End of this chapter)