After leaving the two clones of the White Snake and the Demon Dragon, Zheng Ming went out alone.

Walking in the slightly messy and narrow alleys, stepping on the asphalt road that is not very dirty, but it is not clean at all, Zheng Ming couldn't help but smile when he recalled the previous scene.

He didn't tell Yan'er the specific origin of the two doppelgangers, but only that he got her a playmate to talk to her. He felt that without his identity, he could see the other side of the little girl, which was more conducive to guiding and educating her.

After all, it is easier for a little girl to accept what a playmate without human form says than a lesson from a cold man who feeds and drinks him. At the same time, it will also allow the little girl to develop the ability to think about right and wrong on her own, rather than being forced to accept it all.

When he introduced the two doppelgangers to Yan'er, she didn't ask the origin of the two beasts in the first place. In fact, from the time two small and delicate beasts, each of which seemed to be carved from crystal, appeared in front of her, her eyes were already lit up.

"Girls really lack resistance to shiny and cute things."

Zheng Ming couldn't help but sigh when he thought of Bai Su, who was loyal to the appearance association, Arthur, who liked to collect swords, and Yan'er, who was currently close at hand.

Shaking his head, at least Yan'er, who was alone at home, had the company of the two beasts, and Zheng Ming was much more relieved.

Through the auxiliary interface in the field of vision, it was confirmed that there was still plenty of time, and Zheng Ming was not in a hurry, but walked towards the station in a leisurely manner.

The destination of his trip was the villa where Wu Tianhao was. As early as yesterday, he found out that during the period of coma, he had accumulated more than a dozen call reminders from Wu Tianhao.

However, when I think of Wu Tianhao's temperament, I think it is nothing more than clamoring for Zheng Ming to cook for him, or asking Zheng Ming to go out with him, and it shouldn't be a big deal to slow down for a day or two.

Sure enough, when Zheng Ming called Wu Tianhao early in the morning, what he got was the other party's confused perfunctory, and it was indeed as Zheng Ming thought, nothing serious.

"Get out, get out of Lao Tzu's house. You give Lao Tzu to die. Damn brutes, vampires who can't die well, if it weren't for you, I don't know how happy I was. ”

In the dilapidated office building, the sound of indistinct curses was endless. Hearing this, Zheng Ming frowned frequently.

Starland City is very large, so big that there are many things in it. There is a civilized and comfortable area, and naturally there is a corresponding darkness in the shadows.

The place where Zheng Ming lives is not bad, but if you walk outside, you can see the stench of the city like a stinky ditch.

The rental area here is obviously not much different from the place where Zheng Ming lives, but these people live in a dilapidated and poor appearance.

The mess that comes from itself has never been changed by robots cleaning the community.

It is precisely because there are many "citizens" who rely on subsidies to make a living, were expelled from the second ring road, and live even worse than outsiders, that the rent of the apartment where Zheng Ming lives will be so low.

In the middle of his life, a thin, dark-skinned child who looked to be about fifteen or sixteen years old was kicked out of the building by a filthy foot full of black hair. From the fact that the boy was rolling on the ground like a gourd, it can be seen how heavy that kick was for him.

The sweaty boy gritted his teeth, stood up from the ground with difficulty, and squatted silently in the corner.

He crossed his arms and rubbed them gently, as if he were gently rubbing his wounds, and as if he was hugging himself.

Zheng Ming stared at the young man who was comforting himself alone and licking his wounds like a young beast out of the corner of his eye, and he didn't have to go to talk.

This is a very strong child despite his blank and dull eyes. The other party's tightly pursed lips, as well as the eyes that glanced at passers-by intentionally or unintentionally, all expressed his own self-esteem.

It may seem ridiculous and pitiful to outsiders, but this self-esteem is the only pillar that supports him.

Zheng Ming thought so, he felt that if he lost this last strand of spirit after this time passed, he would become weak as if his vertebrae had been extracted, lose the last support, and finally completely lose himself.

Thinking of this, Zheng Ming stopped his steps and took a firm step again.

He'd seen so much in his life. Not to mention the treacherous cunning in the goblin villages, the conflicts between dragons and countries in the magical world, the rampant war slavery and serfdom, and the cruel struggle to survive in the fantasy world.

While witnessing and experiencing the dark side of many worlds, these experiences have taught him an eternal truth.

Life will always find its own way in and out. And those who can't survive will be eliminated sooner or later, no matter how you interfere.

"Tianxingjian, a gentleman with self-improvement......"

Holding his thin chin with fine fluff on his arm, the young man who looked at the ground in front of him in a daze with empty eyes was stunned when he heard the sound that had been surrounding his ears for a long time.

It's just that when he came back to his senses and stood up and looked around, where were there other people in the alley? Only the garbage bag that was casually thrown out of the window overnight looked at him with his mouth wide open, and the box in it rubbed against the ground in the autumn wind, making a harsh and unpleasant sound.

……

"Heh, I won't be able to speak normally after staying in the illusion for a long time."

After buying a ticket in the automatic ticket vending machine, Zheng Ming, who got on the subway, recalled his previous actions and his speaking habits after waking up, and shook his head a little embarrassed.

A modern person living in Mandarin is rampant, why bother with the ancient vernacular? The purpose of speaking is to communicate, not to chant mantras, and to say something strange to hear, isn't it just uncomfortable?

Thinking like this, Zheng Ming laughed at himself, put the previous things behind him, and sat on the chair and looked around boredly.

It can be seen that the facilities in the carriage are not old, and even the cushions on each seat are well preserved, and there is no slight damage to the seats that Zheng Ming saw in his previous life, and there are scratches that affect the aesthetics.

However, the seemingly new carriages, as well as the underground station where the tram is located, always have a dilapidated feel. Now that I think about it, maybe it's because it's too few people using it, it looks too empty, and it lacks popularity?

At this time, the carriage was like this, on both sides of the narrow passage, the rows of seats standing opposite each other, most of them were empty. Only a few people occupied the seats, either with their cheeks closed, or bowing their heads, as quiet as Zheng Ming's last train to the haunted holy place in the suburbs in his previous life.

As if sensing Zheng Ming's gaze, an old man in a sixtieth armor sitting six or seven meters away diagonally opposite him looked up at him. Make eye contact with him for a moment, then hang your head again.

It was an old man with deep furrow-like wrinkles on his face, thinning gray hair, and a pair of reading glasses.

This old man, whose hunched back was similar to the old man in Zheng Ming's previous life, made Zheng Ming look surprised. After so long since he came to Starlanding City, this was the first time he had seen a normal old man outside.

The reading glasses hanging in front of the old man in front of him, almost hanging down to the tip of his nose, made Zheng Ming feel novel. You must know that in the city where artificial intelligence and technology are developed, few people can wear glasses.

But the intelligent assistant chip that sneaks into the body has this function of assisting vision and helping to process euphoria. Not to mention those interests that Zheng Ming didn't even have in his mind, and he lacked the transformation techniques that were as complicated as stars.

In today's Star-Landing City, glasses are generally mostly external auxiliary devices, and their original ability to help people see has disappeared in the new products.

As if sensing Zheng Ming's gaze that had stayed for a long time, the old man said calmly without raising his head: "Young man, is the old man a rare beast?" Do you want to see the flowers on the old man's old face? ”

The old man's voice was unexpectedly deep and low, and there was no sound of air leakage due to the loss of teeth as Zheng Ming imagined.

Zheng Ming, who realized his gaffe under the old man's reminder, hurriedly got up and apologized, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to stare at you. I just think you're ...... Think you're ......" repeated, searching for words, but couldn't find a word that was neither rude nor accurate.

"Weird?" The old man took over, "It's strange to see my retro outfit?" Think it shouldn't be what Starlanding should look like? ”

Zheng Ming shook his hand again and again when he heard the old man's words, but in the end, he fell silent under the old man's afterglow and no longer insisted. At this time, the old man also turned to face Zheng Ming, lowered his glasses, and looked at Zheng Ming through the frame.

Zheng Ming, who was silently watched by the old man, showed an embarrassed smile, and after laughing a few times, he took the lead in speaking: "The old man is really tough, this is the first time I have met someone of your age in this kind of place." ”

The old man didn't answer but narrowed his eyes slightly, and Zheng Ming also noticed the rudeness in his words, and quickly stopped talking, so he could only laugh and pretend to be stupid with embarrassment and politeness.

"I'm a bad person, so don't mind if you don't like what you say. Hahaha, haha, haha. ”

The old man looked at Zheng Ming carefully and looked at him a few times, Zheng Ming, who was looking straight at him, felt furious in his heart, and the smile on his face stiffened, so he glanced at him and turned his head.

"yes. Over the years, there have been fewer and fewer people crowding this train. At that time, when this place was built, it was said that it was the vein of the city and the blood vessels of the city. In the blink of an eye, it has become inaccessible, and few people come. If it weren't for old guys like me and a few other people, maybe this place would have been abandoned or renovated into something else. ”

Seeing that the old man turned his head, looked at the passing dim streamer outside the window in front of him, and sighed softly, Zheng Ming listened silently for a while, and couldn't help but ask out loud.

"I don't really understand that it's obviously the most affordable place compared to the existing means of transport. There are a lot of poor people in Starland City, and outsiders need to spend every wealth point carefully, but why is it so deserted here? ”

Hearing this, the old man glanced at Zheng Ming and said slowly: "With the increasing improvement of virtual reality technology, we can experience the beautiful scenery of various places and experience different lives without leaving home. Work, play, socialize, almost everything can be done in a coffin-like landing capsule. ”

On the side, Zheng Ming heard the old man compare the landing module to a coffin, and immediately nodded thoughtfully. He had complained about the aesthetics of the people who fell from the sky a long time ago, and it was the first time he had encountered a star who agreed with him in this regard.

"Intelligent robots can do all the daily needs. Some people even have to be helped by robot butlers for eating and drinking. It can be said that a large part of the people in Starlanding City, who say that they live here, are actually just shells.

This is the best of times, it brings us convenience, allows us to live as much as we want, gives us experiences that the ancients simply could not imagine, and at the same time gives some people a way to escape from reality. Let them linger in the strange and colorful world, and forget the cruelty and danger of reality. ”

Seeing that the old man's words were full of personal likes and dislikes, Zheng Ming retorted softly: "I don't think we are qualified to criticize other people's ways of living. Constantly forging ahead in the pursuit of power and wealth, getting by in a mess, or living a peaceful life as it happens, as long as they do not cause trouble to others, within the scope of social tolerance, then there is no difference between their way of life. ”

The old man who was interrupted by Zheng Ming was slightly stunned and quickly came back to his senses. He didn't show any dissatisfaction, just a mixed emotional glint in his eyes.

"yes. It's far away, it's far away. In short, those who pursue the quality of life in reality and often go out have more money, and they don't mind spending more money and choosing a more convenient and fast means of transportation that can see the starry scenery. And those who are shy in their pockets and need to save money do not need to go out either. Staying at home is the cheapest. ”

"I see." Zheng Ming thought of the situation he had been exposed to before, and suddenly had an understandable feeling. It's much easier to buy convenience food, or order food, than to buy ingredients and cook food yourself. And considering the experience involved, the former is much easier than the latter.

In many cases, people living in the Third Ring Road rarely need to enter other ring areas as frequently as Zheng Ming. Even those outsiders who have some combat power mostly only go to the fighting arena two or three times a month to complete the minimum fight. After all, it is an exception for people like Zheng Ming who wish they could fight once every three days to improve as soon as possible.

Most people, who have lived in the Third Ring Road all their lives, have never been to the Second Ring Road area, let alone the First Ring Road and the Central City. What's more, they haven't even stepped out of the city where they live in the Third Ring Road.

Sad?

Perhaps they have experienced countless colorful worlds in virtual reality that are difficult to distinguish between real and false, and similar to reality. Experience the sheer number of magnificent landscapes.

Maybe they're happy to do that. I didn't want to change, and I didn't feel the need to change.

"Please note that the train has arrived at Gensenkoen Station, so please take your luggage and valuables and get off the train through the door on the right side of the train direction, and be careful when you get off the train......

The arrival prompt sounded in a soft female voice, and the train slowed down to a perceptible degree.

Zheng Ming and the old man stopped chatting in unison.

"I'll get down here."

"It's time for me to get out of the car."

The voices rang out in turn, and the two looked at each other, nodded and smiled, and then walked to the open door.