He was thrashing in the water, feeling that the water was endless, and it seemed that he could not swim at the edge. Mouthful after mouthful of water poured into his mouth, cold, he sank, and the instinct of survival made him struggle to surface again.

He is like a leaf that has fallen into the rushing waters, drifting with the current, his hands and feet swinging unobediently. Finally, he slammed into a wall and touched it with his hand before realizing that it was the wall of the pool.

He leaned against the wall of the pool, as if touching the door of the kingdom of heaven, stepping on the water, wiping the droplets of water from his face, and feeling the heartbeat of an old horse that was about to run to death.

Suddenly, a transparent cover was lowered from above, and he was locked into the water, "Please hold your breath for five minutes." ”

……

He had been waiting at the door of his residence early that day, because he hadn't slept the previous night.

At the appointed time, an unmanned vehicle stopped in front of him.

There was no one in the car, and naturally no one spoke, and he saw the car moving quietly along the road of the ark, as if the route had been predetermined in advance. The car kept heading out of the residential area.

Then he saw the steel beast.

He has experienced countless tests since he was a child, but he has never experienced such a psychological test, such an intelligence test, and such a physical fitness test, and he even feels that this is no longer a test, it is simply testing the limits of his life.

It was a miracle, he thought, that he had made it this far. If it weren't for the support she gave him, he might have died of exhaustion in the steel labyrinth, or he might have been crushed to death by the rolling beams.

However, when he saw the door open, he was a little grateful for the cruelty of the test, so that he would have fewer competitors and he could be closer to her.

But now, his luck seems to have run out.

He felt his life pass little by little, like oxygen in his lungs, and five minutes was as long as five hundred years.

He thought, it's over, the punishment is finally coming, he shouldn't have that selfish desire, forbidden thoughts, a person with impure purposes like him is not worthy to be the preferred person, and should be eliminated.

It's just that you don't deserve to die for any sin......

When the transparent cage lifted him out of the water, he thought he was dead. The water poured down the cracks around the cage, and he was exposed like a reef on the shore.

The cage placed him on the edge of the pool, and when the door was opened, the system prompted: "Please proceed to the next link." ”

He moved slightly, not knowing if he was dead or alive now, and the system continued to prompt: "Please as soon as possible, the completion time will be recorded." ”

He mechanically drove his body, water dripping from his hair and body, and he got up and moved towards the doorway, falling twice in between, the red time recording above the doorway beating.

When he finally crossed the threshold, he heard a "drop" and the red numbers stopped.

He entered a bright district, the light was blinding, he held against the wall, felt his chest and abdomen full of water, and couldn't help but vomit.

but water spurted from the top of his head. He shuddered, and then felt the warmth of the water.

He slowly straightened up in the water.

He took off his clothes and took a shower.

The hot water stopped, hot air blew from the wall, drying his body and hair, and he breathed slowly and slowly, feeling better.

He walked forward, saw a glass of water, he raised his head and drank it in one go, put down the cup, but did not find his clothes, the system prompted him to continue walking, and the last link was ahead.

He walked naked in the bright corridor, his figure faintly reflected on the wall, and he looked around, feeling cold and swishing on his body, a little embarrassed.

The door opened, and he entered a white, ovoid space, empty except for a space chair-like chair in the middle. There was a humanoid figure on the chair, as if waiting for him.

He walked over. The room was empty, and he felt cold, so he climbed into his chair, his hands and feet apart, and embedded his body in the shape of the humanoid. He felt the coldness of the chair, and the coldness between his legs, and he secretly scolded this inhuman design in his heart, and he was faintly nervous.

The screen in front of him lit up, and immediately, there was a sudden tingling pain from the tip of his right finger.

“ Shit !” He raised his hand and saw the blood spots on his fingertips, and couldn't help but exclaim, "Can't you say a word about the blood test!" ”

His voice was absorbed by the empty space, and no one answered him.

"Hey!" "......I don't know why you are doing this, but as a reporter for the Ark Daily, I think I have a responsibility to ......," he said.

"3-E-537, are you ready?"

"Call me Ryan!"

"So let's start now."

The chair starts, clicks, and his hands and feet are fixed and his legs are further apart, while the chair leans back, making him lie on his back.

"What for?"

He saw something rise from between his legs, like a tube, approaching him, as if in a corrective position, and then, touching him, sucking him in, wrapping him inside.

He tensed all over.

"Stop, stop, faint...... Stop it! ”

And no one heard him.

He struggled to get himself out of the rude tube, but it sucked so hard that he writhed to no avail. He screamed, struggled hard, pulled his right hand out from under the belt that held his wrist in place, grabbed the thing and pulled it off. "Hell, it hurts me!"

"3-E-537, please be seated."

"Well, I know what you want, give it to you...... I'll do it myself! ”

"3-E-537, warning."

"Less nonsense!" He moved with his free right hand.

"3-E-537, last warning."

Ryan did his own thing and ignored it.

A strong electric current came from his lumbar spine, and Ryan stiffened, and then collapsed in his chair.

A mechanical arm stretched out, grabbing his right hand and holding it in place, a belt to hold his chest and waist in place, and the device between his legs was lifted again......

Ryan's mouth opened, and he could only see a miserable white light, shooting out of nowhere, the dome of this space seemed endless, he wanted to shout, but he couldn't......

"Ryan 3-E-537, thank you for your cooperation, you have completed all the necessary steps, and below, your match results."

A picture of the young woman's head appeared on the screen in front of Ryan's eyes, swiping from left to right one by one. On the other side of the screen, there are dense numbers, moving charts, and bar charts that are constantly emerging, as if they are making intense calculations. As the speed of the operation increased, so did the speed of the image change, and the women's faces were drawn faster and faster, until they became the outline of a blurred human face.

Ryan sat in his chair, motionless, his eyes straight.

Gradually, the speed of the picture change slowed down, one by one, like a roulette wheel that gradually stopped, and finally, a picture stopped in front of his eyes.

"Ryan 3-E-537, this is your match, congratulations."

Ryan looked at the face silently.

He didn't know her, but he knew it wasn't her.