◎ Survival Game Combat Readiness Meeting ◎
Capital city, a special government department.
Several high-ranking officials were gathered, watching two videos.
In the first video, a girl holds a black curved knife of unusual material that seemingly appears out of thin air.
In the second video, it is the same girl. A mask materializes in her hands. At first glance, it looks like ordinary rubber, but when worn, it automatically conforms to her face. Then, her face quickly transforms into an entirely different appearance…
The two videos were played repeatedly, leaving the office in silence.
“Are we sure the videos are legitimate?”
“Yes. All filming equipment was provided officially. There’s no sign of editing. Every frame is real.”
Everyone felt like they were hearing a story from One Thousand and One Nights.
But even if the knife and mask could be conjured through tricks, how was the rapid facial transformation achieved?
“And the person? Any issues?”
“We investigated thoroughly. Jiang Qi is an orphan. She was abandoned at a welfare center shortly after birth. Before the age of seven, she never left the center. After starting school, she was diligent and excelled academically. From elementary school through university graduation, she never did anything out of line—not even skipping classes or exams. Teachers consistently gave her high evaluations. After entering the workforce, she followed rules meticulously. All her social media accounts are spotless.”
She was someone who had never escaped public oversight, with a clear and clean social circle, and had never been exposed to anything extraordinary.
A perfectly ordinary person who grew up under the “red flag,” with no reason to suddenly attempt to deceive the state—theoretically, she shouldn’t suddenly possess special abilities.
Unless she really had some extraordinary experience.
“Survival game, players, dungeon, extreme cold…” one official muttered, frowning. Finally, he decided, “Immediately form an investigation team and head to Spring City!”
…
“Good morning. How are you feeling today?”
Upon waking, Jiang Qi saw Li Yue again—or rather, Li Yue seemed to have stayed all night.
Outside the ward, the guards had increased in number. They were here both to protect and to monitor Jiang Qi.
Jiang Qi paid no mind; this was a matter of national importance, and extreme caution was warranted.
She smiled. “I’m feeling well. I think I can be discharged.”
“Then let’s have breakfast first.”
After breakfast, a doctor’s examination confirmed that Jiang Qi had recovered well. Her concussion had fully healed, leaving only minor injuries from the car accident. She could indeed leave the hospital.
Li Yue escorted her into an unassuming car, which was accompanied by an escort of other vehicles.
Twenty minutes later, they arrived at a low-profile compound. Jiang Qi was led into a meeting room, where several people were already present. One man, wearing an administrative jacket, she recognized as the mayor of Spring City, whom she had seen in the news.
By the seating arrangement, the mayor could only sit at the edge, while the others were gathered around the Zerg curved knife, discussing something.
Li Yue was about to introduce Jiang Qi, but a middle-aged man in black plainclothes waved and said, “Comrade Jiang Qi, I’m Zhang Zhengtian from the Capital Special Military District, fully responsible for coordinating with you.”
Jiang Qi shook his hand. “Hello, Commander Zhang.”
Zhang Zhengtian introduced the others as well.
Professors of material research, meteorology experts—all top figures in their fields.
This lineup alone demonstrated the high-level attention of the state.
Zhang Zhengtian said, “You’re saying Spring City has been selected as a dungeon zone by a survival game?”
“Yes.” Jiang Qi repeated what she had already told Li Yue, just restating it for the group.
“Do you know what kind of people these 100,000 players are?”
“They come from a world with a civilization level similar to us. All or part of the population has been selected by the [Infinite Train] to become players. They are assigned to different trains. Each train initially carries 120,000 people. Spring City is their second beginner dungeon. Another 20,000 were in the first dungeon.”
Jiang Qi explained carefully, “So they’ve already gone through a battle. Each has some accumulation of experience, and their aggression has been triggered.”
“Players fight each other?”
“Yes. There are three beginner dungeons. Each dungeon eliminates at least 20,000 people. With limited space on the train, especially in third- and fourth-class compartments, it’s overcrowded. Everyone wants fewer competitors. Also, when a player dies, their backpack resources are usually dropped.”
“If we were to seize player identities, how many should we take?”
“Better not exceed a thousand. The train conductor has detection methods; too many fake passengers would be noticed.”
“I have a question. How do you know all this?”
Jiang Qi paused briefly. “Because I’ve lived it before. In my previous life, I seized a player identity and personally went on that train.”
…
After nearly half an hour, Jiang Qi demonstrated the ability of the multi-form mask, then was politely asked to rest.
The atmosphere in the meeting room was heavy.
An expert who hadn’t spoken said, “There’s no sign of deception. Everything this girl says is true—at least, she believes it is.”
Zhang Zhengtian said, “So either she has a strange delusion, or this is all real.”
The materials research professor picked up the curved knife and lightly scraped it across a metal plate, leaving a deep mark. “Stories can be imagined, but this knife cannot be.”
Zhang Zhengtian fell silent. Despite how absurd it seemed, the survival game was probably real.
“I need to report to superiors,” he said.
Five minutes later, he returned. “The superiors have approved. A command center has been established on site! National resources are at our disposal. By May 10, Spring City must be fully prepared to face this challenge!”
He turned to the mayor of Spring City. “Comrade Zhao, please have local authorities cooperate with the command center.”
The mayor replied, “All arrangements will follow organizational directives!”
…
Jiang Qi had rested for less than an hour before being notified of another meeting.
This time, it was held in a conference room with a large round table. Dozens of people attended, seated in three concentric circles. Some wore jackets, some military uniforms, others civilian clothes, and soldiers with guns stood guard at the door.
Jiang Qi had previously been just a small-town citizen—she never would have had the chance to attend such a meeting. But fortunately, she had already struggled through three different game dungeons.
Stay calm, steady, don’t act inexperienced. Jiang Qi exhaled slightly and told herself this in her mind.
She attended wearing her “Multi-Form Mask,” which made her appear even more composed.
Wearing the mask was Zhang Zhengtian’s request. He wanted Jiang Qi to conceal her identity. If it weren’t for the fact that only she could use this mask, Zhang Zhengtian wouldn’t even want her to appear in person.
Jiang Qi sat in the first circle, looking up at the slides that boldly read: “Spring City Survival Game Combat Readiness Meeting.”
As the chief commander, Zhang Zhengtian briefly introduced the crisis Spring City would face.
Everyone present: ???
Survival game? One hundred thousand players? Extreme cold challenge?
How is this world so surreal?
Are they dreaming or hallucinating?
So Jiang Qi had to demonstrate the Multi-Form Mask again, changing her face multiple times within a minute.
Everyone was stunned, their expressions full of disbelief, murmuring among themselves.
Zhang Zhengtian didn’t give them much time to digest this. He clapped his hands to draw attention and immediately got to the point:
“This time, our preparations follow a four-step plan.
“Step One: ‘Bring In.’ Starting the morning of the 10th, Spring City will be isolated by an invisible force, effectively a full city lockdown. Spring City has 2,135,000 residents, and with the city’s existing supplies, food will last at most one week. We must bring in sufficient resources, including but not limited to food, medicine, daily necessities, and cold-weather supplies.
“These players each have backpack slots, and each slot can hold a large quantity of the same item. They love carrying items, and can carry a lot. So Spring City must prepare at least enough supplies to support the entire city for half a year.”
The relevant personnel immediately started taking notes.
Zhang Zhengtian continued: “Step Two: ‘Send Out.’ After Spring City is sealed, the temperature will drop sharply within three days, and within a week it will reach minus sixty to seventy degrees. Even with proper cold-weather supplies, elderly, children, sick, and pregnant people will struggle to survive. We need to quietly transfer these people out of Spring City as much as possible.”
Everyone frowned. Transfer these people out? That’s an enormous number—how could it be done quietly in just two days?
“Step Three: ‘Build Up.’ We cannot send everyone away, so we must build cold-weather shelters in Spring City. When temperatures drop to their lowest, anyone who cannot be transferred and cannot withstand the extreme cold must be sent into these shelters.”
“Step Four: ‘Go Undercover.’ These 100,000 players have all been through bloody trials. Some have lost their humanity, some possess extraordinary powers. To them, the people of Spring City are like NPCs in a game. They will act without restraint, even resorting to killing. We must anticipate their worst intentions. Therefore, we must send elite troops to infiltrate Spring City disguised as ordinary citizens to protect the population.”
Someone raised their hand: “Why not evacuate all civilians? If players are so dangerous, ordinary people have no chance against them. I think we should relocate the entire city.”
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Zhang Zhengtian pressed his hand down and solemnly said: “This is a very important issue. We cannot let the players—or rather, the survival game—know that we have anticipated anything. Spring City is just the beginning. There’s a high possibility that all cities on the Blue Star will gradually become dungeons. If we are discovered to have prior knowledge, future dungeons will be more difficult, possibly causing even greater disasters.
“All our actions must be carried out discreetly or under legitimate and reasonable pretenses.”
Jiang Qi glanced at him. Not evacuating the entire city and proceeding cautiously wasn’t just to avoid alerting the survival game—it was also to quietly seize the players’ identities.
But clearly, Zhang Zhengtian had no intention of saying this out loud.
The room erupted in murmurs.
Spring City is just the beginning!
Is this a global human crisis?
How is this possible?
Someone couldn’t help asking: “If this is a long-term battle, what measures do we have against this high-dimensional civilization threat? Can we always predict where the next dungeon will appear?”
Zhang Zhengtian dodged the question: “That’s why, in Spring City, we must gain enough experience. We must study the players, analyze them, and understand the survival game more deeply.”
Another hand went up: “If we just need a legitimate reason, can’t we claim there’s a possible earthquake or radiation leak in Spring City, evacuate everyone, and let our troops enter disguised as ordinary citizens?”
Zhang Zhengtian shook his head: “First, there isn’t enough time. Second, the operation would be too conspicuous.”
Someone else suggested: “Then I propose we only transfer those who need protection the most—patients dependent on equipment and infants; pregnant women can be postponed. We simply can’t find a reason to evacuate all children, pregnant women, and the elderly.”
Someone agreed: “Exactly. As long as supplies and energy are sufficient, we can build more normal-temperature shelters to last a month. It shouldn’t be a big problem.”
But others disagreed: “If we can transfer more people, we should. Players are uncontrollable. The more vulnerable people are left behind, the more passive we become.”
…
The meeting lasted a full three hours, during which people kept hurrying off to make various arrangements.
At 12:30 p.m., everyone dispersed, leaving only Jiang Qi and Zhang Zhengtian.
Jiang Qi removed her mask. “Commander Zhang, regarding the seizure of player identities…”
“This matter allows no room for error and must not be known by too many people. The higher-ups have already been selecting the most outstanding individuals from various military districts based on their ideological awareness, combat ability, and overall qualities. Once they arrive, we will discuss this matter in detail,” Zhang Zhengtian said solemnly.
“Especially your role as train conductor—it is of utmost importance, the top-secret of top secrets. That is also why I instructed you not to show your true face.”
…
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