[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-wasteland-s-only-king":3,"chapter-wasteland-s-only-king-wasteland-s-only-king-chapter-24":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Wasteland's Only King",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1594806,2061,"Chapter 24: Alpha","wasteland-s-only-king-chapter-24",24,"\u003Cp>The timeline shifts back a bit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Last night, right after the man in military uniform brought three more helmets to Room 615.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Jin left early.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Old Cui was excitedly telling Yu Fei and Brother Gang about how real the Wasteland game was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the same time,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>he was also explaining to them how to use the helmets and what they should pay attention to after logging into the game.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Fei originally didn’t want to play; he planned to go through some online courses instead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Old Cui’s descriptions were just too tempting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wanted to get into graduate school, but at his core, he was still just a 21-year-old college student, curious about new things by nature.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>with Old Cui’s help, Yu Fei put on the helmet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Log into the Wasteland world and start the apocalypse survival from scratch?]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei looked at the words in front of him and chose [Yes].\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A moment later,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>the darkness before his eyes turned real.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just like Brother Gang when he first entered the game, even though Yu Fei had listened to Old Cui’s descriptions and was mentally prepared, he was still deeply shocked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He crouched down and scooped up a handful of sand from the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The feeling of the grains of sand slipping through his fingers was sensed by every cell in his body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Unimaginable production quality!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei marveled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even though he was preparing for a Master’s in Finance, he had a bit of tech knowledge too.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To achieve this kind of \"true experience\" would require a level of technology that was simply unimaginable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a moment,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei even wondered whether Blue Star could really make a game like this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t think too much about it, and instead started observing his surroundings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He realized he was standing under a city wall that was at least ten meters high.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Refuge City?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei recalled Old Cui’s introduction and felt a bit surprised.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He hadn’t expected to spawn right at the gate of the Refuge City at the start.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By comparison,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Old Cui had complained more than once about his own spawn point.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Old Cui also spawned in the Refuge City, but... his identity was a refugee cast out by the city.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei put away his thoughts and walked toward the massive city gate not far away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the city gate, there were many ragged figures in line, all waiting to enter the Refuge City.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the conversations of these people, Wu Yufei learned that this Refuge City was called \"Alpha\".\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Alpha City?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"A bit awkward to say—maybe it’s to cater to Western players?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With that in mind, Wu Yufei joined the end of the line to enter the city.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But then,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>as he waited in line, he was drawn by an old man’s shouts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was an elderly man with white hair, skin and bones, sitting at the foot of the city gate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Someone’s survived this long in the Wasteland?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei was stunned when he saw how old the man looked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This old man had to be at least seventy or eighty—maybe even a hundred years old.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Alpha!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Don’t forget Alpha!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You can’t forget Alpha!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man shouted out again and again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The soldiers at the gate seemed to be used to it by now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Alpha?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei was confused.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This Refuge City is called \"Alpha\", so why does he keep yelling about not forgetting Alpha?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei didn’t mind it, thinking the old man was just a little insane and rambling nonsense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next moment,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Outsider!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man suddenly shouted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei’s body tensed up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Outsider?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this Wasteland game, wasn’t he just an outsider—a player?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He turned his head instinctively, looking at the old man again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And was shocked to discover—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man was staring right at him, his eyes glowing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Outsider!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The man shouted again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then suddenly,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>that stick-thin body somehow exploded with energy—the old man leapt to his feet, rushed into the line, and pulled Wu Yufei out, not giving him a chance to react.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei was completely bewildered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was a young guy of twenty—even if he was a malnourished refugee now,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>yet no matter how hard he tried, he still couldn’t break free from the old man’s grip.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Could this be a game NPC?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Guiding me to start a quest?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although Old Cui said the game was very open and had no quest system, Wu Yufei couldn’t help thinking this way.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Soon,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>the old man had dragged him to a deserted corner at the base of the wall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Outsider.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man stared intently at Wu Yufei, eyes shining brightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Who are you?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei was confused, but decided to play along for now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he didn’t expect,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>the old man’s next words nearly made his brain crash.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This is your first time logging into Wasteland, right?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes, it must be!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Only a newly arrived outsider in Wasteland would be so ignorant and clueless, just like you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man answered his own questions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"NPCs in the game actually know about Wasteland—is this some easter egg left by the developers?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei snapped out of his daze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I come from Alpha Star!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man gripped Yu Fei tightly, speaking excitedly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Oh.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Fei replied blandly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Alpha Star!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man repeated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Okay, Alpha Star,\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Fei continued to play along.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man seemed to realize something.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stopped talking, but instead stared Wu Yufei up and down for quite some time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a long silence,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>he spoke again:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You think I’m a game NPC, don’t you?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t wait for Wu Yufei to answer, and continued:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You also think that I know about Wasteland only because the game’s creators left an easter egg, right?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These two sentences left Wu Yufei even more uncertain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No, kid.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man stared intently at Wu Yufei, his tone deadly serious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It’s not what you think.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m not an NPC, and this isn’t some easter egg.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Everything—absolutely everything—is real. Real!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he spoke, the old man grew more agitated again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He gripped Wu Yufei’s hand and pointed at Refuge City.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This is Alpha City!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The Refuge City for Alpha Star People!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But everyone’s forgotten. Forgotten where we came from...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Alpha Star. We cannot forget Alpha Star!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei frowned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man was sounding more and more like a lunatic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Where do you come from, kid?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man suddenly asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei thought for a moment and answered, \"Daxia.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Daxia?\" The old man was puzzled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei almost laughed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So, even though the game’s designers built such a dramatic easter egg, they didn’t program in information on \"Daxia.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Blue Star, Daxia.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei added.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Blue Star?\" The old man was still baffled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei was getting impatient.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Virgo Supercluster—Local Group—Milky Way Galaxy—Orion Arm—third planet of the Solar System, Blue Star!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Fei blurted it all out, then, not wanting to deal with the old man anymore, prepared to get back in line at the city gate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the old man reached out and grabbed him tightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei struggled, but could not break free.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Listen to me, kid.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man spoke very fast.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I don’t know your civilization’s star system naming conventions, but I’m telling you—\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I was just like you once, thinking all of this was just a game.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Seventy years ago, I was also a young man—an Alpha Star youth!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That year, a game called Wasteland suddenly appeared on Alpha Star. It was unbelievably real—far more real than Alpha Star’s technology should have allowed at the time...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, Wu Yufei froze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This description...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>was exactly what was happening now on Blue Star.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he’d just arrived, he himself had marveled at how real the game felt—could Blue Star really have made this?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And now...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>the old man suddenly spouted all of this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Kid.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man gripped Yu Fei, hoarse with emotion:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If you’re here, that means your planet—your civilization—has also been chosen.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You, too, will eventually descend here!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And—\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"As time goes on—five years, ten years, fifty years...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The Pollution of the Wasteland will make you all forget everything about Blue Star—just like my countless Alpha Star compatriots before!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They came from Alpha Star, but forgot it. In the end, they didn’t even remember how they arrived here, they thought they belonged here from the start!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, Wu Yufei couldn’t help interrupting:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Then how do you remember?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei had keenly sensed a flaw in the old man’s words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man fell silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a long time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Until Wu Yufei lost patience.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man finally spoke again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Kid.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Remember. Remember Alpha Star.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He said these words, then, his head slumped to one side, and right in front of Yu Fei—he stopped breathing!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And at the same time,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>a semi-transparent line of text popped up in Yu Fei’s vision—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[You have received the Life Sacrifice from the Evolver of ’Knowledge’!]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[You have activated the Attribute—Knowledge!]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[You have successfully awakened and Promoted to Tier One Evolver!]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[As an Evolver with the Knowledge Attribute, the knowledge you possess can immunize you against Pollution erosion until death!]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yufei’s eyes widened, terrified.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was so scared that he instantly logged out of the game...\u003C\u002Fp>",1546,"2026-06-06T09:25:00.699Z",1,"novelbin.me","7c806ad56b82da555488cb99cc5fee52a6baac4c77e709930b9ab93cea75fc19","wasteland-s-only-king-chapter-25","wasteland-s-only-king-chapter-23",370,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fwasteland-s-only-king-cover.jpg"]