Lin Yuan opened his eyes in a sea of white. There was nothing around, no sky, no ground. There was only an endless sea of white, as if the whole world had lost its boundaries and turned into a boundless void.
A familiar electronic voice rang in his ears.
"Take a rest here for a while." Jiuchong's voice was as calm as ever, but there was a hint of mildness. "You stayed in the last plane for quite a long time. Staying here can gradually fade your emotions."
Lin Yuan paused, inhaling slowly. Then a small smile curved his mouth. "Got it. Will the next world be the last?"
"Yes." Jiuchong replied. "When the mission is completed this time, you will be teleported back to your original plane, that is, the main world."
Lin Yuan nodded and said calmly, "Okay."
Jiuchong didn't speak again, but data surged quietly in its mind as it recalled every bit of the previous world.
It accompanied Lin Yuan to participate in variety shows and watched Uncle Chi snatch his food at the dining table, making Lin Yuan grit his teeth in anger;
It watched Lin Yuan outsmart everyone to win the first Superpower Championship on Survival Challenge, making him the center of attention.
It witnessed his first encounter with Tang Tian, from being unfamiliar to getting to know each other and then falling in love;
It saw him gradually accept this body, from being irritable and prone to anger to learning to control his emotions. And it secretly "cheated" to adjust his atypical depression, enabling him to adapt better;
It watched him release his stress through acting and find a kind of redemption in those immersive roles;
It saw him rise from an unknown Best Newcomer to a Best Actor and reach the peak of his career;
It saw him hold his baby for the first time, his movements awkward but his eyes filled with a mix of emotions and tenderness.
Vaguely, Jiuchong felt that it had also undergone some subtle changes along with Lin Yuan's experiences.
"Hey, Jiuchong." Lin Yuan suddenly spoke, interrupting its thoughts. "Do you know how our eldest and second child are doing over there?"
Jiuchong paused for a moment and then slowly said, "After you passed away, they buried you next to Tang Tian. In the cemetery, the two tombstones are right next to each other."
Lin Yuan was silent for a few seconds.
Jiuchong said, "They were sad, but not for long. Your kids and grandkids were tough. They got over it fast and got back to their lives."
After hearing this, Lin Yuan suddenly smiled. "Haha... That's good."
He stretched his body, and the corners of his mouth turned up slightly. "To be honest, I feel like I've been sublimated as a person now."
Jiuchong couldn't help but tease, "Host, stop pretending. You just haven't..."
Lin Yuan raised his eyebrows and interrupted, "Hey, Jiuchong, I have a question for you."
"Go ahead."
"Is your mission this time something like replicating 'the complete life of an actor with flaws'?"
Jiuchong went quiet briefly, then said calmly, "Host, no need to act okay. If you need to cry, just let it out. Your feelings won't fade away for at least an hour or two."
The corner of Lin Yuan's mouth twitched. "So you're really hoping that I'll cry?"
Jiuchong said, "Just reminding you that it's an option."
"All right." Lin Yuan pouted. "But don't change the subject... Curing atypical depression is just a false task, and it's not the real main mission, right?"
Jiuchong: "..."
Lin Yuan squinted. "You're such a liar. Just like in the Naruto world."
Jiuchong replied, "You can't prove it."
The two of them bickered back and forth for almost an hour.
Lin Yuan stretched and said lazily, "Anyway, this has been a really great experience. It's almost too perfect to be real."
Seeing this, Jiuchong immediately seized the opportunity to change the subject. "Host, the teleportation is starting."
A dazzling white light fell from the sky and enveloped Lin Yuan.
Lin Yuan smiled wryly. "You..."
His words cut short, the white light swallowed him whole, and he was gone, vanished into the void in an instant.
===================
白茫茫的空间中,林远缓缓睁开眼.
这里没有天,没有地,只有无尽的白色,仿佛整个世界都失去了边界,变成了一片虚无的海洋.
耳边传来熟悉的电子音.
"你先在这里休息一下." 九重的声音冷静如常,却带着一丝淡淡的温和,"你在上一个位面待的时间比较长,在这里能逐渐淡化你的情感."
林远沉默了一会儿,深吸了一口气,嘴角浮现一抹淡淡的微笑:"我明白... 下一个世界,是最后一个世界了吧?"
"是的." 九重应道,"到时任务完成,就会把你传送回你的原始位面,也就是,主世界."
林远点了点头,语气平静:"嗯,好的."
九重没有再说话,但数据在脑海里悄然翻涌着,它回忆起过去那个世界的点点滴滴.
它陪着林远参加综艺节目,看着池大叔在餐桌上抢他的食物,气得林远咬牙切齿;
它看着林远在"生存挑战"的综艺节目中凭借小聪明拿下第一届超能力冠军,成为话题焦点;
它看着他第一次遇见唐甜,从不熟悉到熟悉,从相知到相爱;
它看着他一步步接受这具身体,从暴躁易怒,到逐渐学会控制情绪,而它则在暗中 "作弊" 调整着他的非典型忧郁症,让他能够更好地适应;
它看着他在演戏中释放自己的压力,在那些沉浸式角色里找到了某种救赎;
它看着他从籍籍无名的最佳新人,到最佳男主角,再到真正的影帝,登上了职业巅峰;
它看着他第一次成为人父,笨拙地抱着孩子,眼神复杂而柔和;
九重隐隐约约觉得,自己似乎也随着林远的感受而产生了某种微妙的变化.
"诶,九重." 林远忽然开口,打断了它的思绪,"你能知道,老大和老二... 在那边过得怎么样?"
九重顿了一下,随即缓缓开口:"你去世后,他们把你埋在唐甜隔壁,墓园里,两座墓碑紧紧相邻."
林远沉默了几秒.
九重继续说道:"他们确实伤心了一段时间... 但也只是短暂的一段时间而已.你的儿女,子孙们都很坚强,很快就调整好了情绪,继续他们各自的生活了."
林远听完,忽然笑了:"哈哈... 也好."
他伸展了一下身体,嘴角微微上扬:"说实话,我现在有种整个人都升华了的感觉."
九重忍不住吐槽:"宿主,别装了.你只是还没..."
林远挑眉打断道:"诶,九重,我问你个问题."
"你说."
"你这次的任务,是不是复制了 '一个有缺陷演员的完整人生' 之类的?"
九重沉默了一下,随后平静地回应:"宿主,其实你不用假装释然的,想哭就哭吧,毕竟至少得等一,两个小时,你的情感才会完全淡化."
林远嘴角一抽:"... 你就这么盼着我哭?"
九重:"只是提醒你,有这个选项."
"行吧." 林远撇撇嘴,"但你不要岔开话题... 治愈非典型忧郁症是假,不是真正的主线任务吧?"
九重:"..."
林远眯了眯眼:"你果然是个满嘴谎言的系统,上次火影世界也这样."
九重:"... 你没有证据,证明我说谎."
两人你一句我一句,斗嘴斗了快一个小时.
林远伸了个懒腰,懒洋洋地说:"总之,这是一场非常不错的体验,完美得有点不真实."
九重见状,立即找机会岔开话题:"宿主,传送开始."
一道耀眼的白光自天际落下,笼罩在林远的身上.
林远失笑:"你啊..."
话还没说完,白光已将他吞没,整个人瞬间消失在虚空之中.