"Dreams! This is a dream!"
The moment Sun Jack snapped back to consciousness, his first instinct was to ball up his fist and smash it against his cheek in a brutal attempt to jolt himself awake from the bizarreness of the dream.
However, it was of no use. The surroundings remained a washed-out pastoral countryside, and he still found himself within the holographic advertisement of Jian Tai OR.
"Wait, if this is my dream," Sun Jack simply reached out and pulled out a micro nuclear bomb.
Without any hesitation, Sun Jack detonated it, and with a flash of white light, he was rapidly falling downwards, plunging into the neon lights and sparkling advertisements below.
Immediately after, his body started to distort as if he was inside a hall of mirrors, enlarging and shrinking erratically, while the quacking voice of a man sounded in his ear.
"Meow Meow Electronic Virus Type 3! Absolutely non-addictive!! Pleasure guaranteed!! For your drug needs, remember Meow Meow brand!"
Sun Jack reached out to grab at a rainbow bubble, but with a pop, the bubble burst and Sun Jack's body disintegrated.
"Why are there so many ads!" Sun Jack once again pulled out a nuclear bomb and detonated it.
By the time his consciousness was pieced back together, he was already in the passenger seat of a swiftly speeding hover car, the scenery rushing past the window.
"Friends, buddies! Place your bets, everyone! The Death Lottery of high-speed chases is about to begin! Let's see how many people can get mowed down with one push of the pedal! Hahaha~!"
The next second, a combat spider, as large as a house, appeared in front of the car, and with a bang, both car and passengers were engulfed in a ball of flames.
Sun Jack kept weaving through the dazzling array of advertisements, desperately searching for the exit from this dream, but to no avail.
When Sun Jack's consciousness regained clarity and found himself in a place void of any advertisements,
he thought he'd finally escaped the dream, only to realize his limbs had completely vanished, his body reduced to a stump and rigidly embedded into the wall with metal plates.
The next moment, about seven or eight mechanical arms equipped with various torture devices began to rise slowly around Sun Jack.
A mechanical hand on the left suddenly moved, and a screw as thick as a finger, buzzing with sound, slowly bored into the temple of Sun Jack.
"Ah!!" The sensation of a foreign object drilling into his brain caused Sun Jack to tremble from the intense pain.
His instinct was to turn off the pain, but in this dream, it was futile; neither the Pain Editor nor the DNA enhancement functions were of any help.
Finally, after the screw coated with his glistening brain matter was savagely pulled out of Sun Jack's head, the torture came to an end.
Gasping for air, Sun Jack glared at the figure formed of data streams before him. He recognized the figure—it was that Monk called 4sever he had met before.
As 4sever observed Sun Jack's continuously bleeding but undying brain hole, a look of satisfaction spread across his face. With a gentle wave of his hands, the robe made of green zeroes and ones fell away, revealing a tight leather outfit underneath.
"Mr. Jack, you've misunderstood. In fact, this 'Dream Synchronizer' was initially a tool for those with an SM fetish. After all, no matter how intense the experience in the dream, once you wake up, everything goes back to... the way it was."
Listening to the implied threat in the other person's words, Sun Jack just gave a cold laugh, "You think you can torment me with these little tricks? You think you can make me submit? That's quite fanciful, isn't it?"
The next second, accompanied by a slash in the air from 4sever's metal right hand, Sun Jack's chest opened like a leaf, revealing the constantly beating viscera inside.
As 4sever grabbed Sun Jack's heart and squeezed, Sun Jack couldn't help but let out a pained grunt.
But it was clear that he was bearing the pain. He must not panic; he had to stay calm and figure out a way to escape this hellish place. "Come on! Use whatever tricks you've got!"
"I know you're tough as nails, and I happen to like gnawing on tough bones." As those mechanical arms moved toward the back of 4sever, they followed slowly, like the Thousand-Handed Guanyin.
"It's just a dream, isn't it? Afraid of this? If you're capable, keep me here forever! Otherwise, once I get out, I'll pay back everything I've suffered, a thousandfold, a hundredfold, on you Holy Grail People!" Sun Jack decided to first provoke the other party, to see if he could find a way to leave through their words.
Suddenly, three pincers extended directly into Sun Jack's mouth, brutally yanking out his lower jaw along with seven or eight teeth.
"Then you'll be seeking revenge on the wrong person, I'm not a Holy Grail Person. I'm truly a member of the Emola Resistance Army."
"We know you're very cautious. If it were fake, it would be hard to trick you into coming here."
"What?" Hearing this, Sun Jack looked up at the other person in shock. "Fuck! You're with the Resistance Army, then why are you attacking me?!"
The other person spread their hands helplessly and said, "Because they've already offered us benefits. Wasn't the initial rebellion all about seeking benefits? Since they've already given us benefits, what's the point in resisting anymore? Now we not only have a legal identity and enough means of production, but we have also become prestigious diamond members."
A smile seemed to cross 4sever's face as if he recalled something pleasant; clearly, he was very satisfied with the benefits they had conceded.
Seeing the other person's expression, especially knowing that they were indeed from the genuine Emola Resistance Army, made Sun Jack's blood boil. This was far more disgusting than if they were Holy Grail People.
"Are you all fucking idiots? Why do you think the capitalists offered you benefits? Haven't you figured it out yet? It's because of me! They were forced to give up those benefits because of me! And now you're acting like the capitalists' dogs, turning around to attack me?"
Then, Sun Jack suddenly looked up, staring straight into the other person's eyes. "Wake up! It's not too late to regret this! We're on the same fucking side! Let's overthrow the capitalists together!"
"Who's on your side? Who the fuck are you? Sun Jack?" A long whip with barbs lashed viciously on the exposed viscera of Sun Jack.
"The past is the past, and now is now. From now on, call me a man of wealth. I am the capital, and there's no need for you to overthrow it!"
Sun Jack, unafraid, looked up at him defiantly and said bitterly, "Come on! Kill me, then! You see what happens after I die—how they'll claw back every concession they've made, with interest!"
Seeing that the other person had paused, Sun Jack's tone swiftly changed from stern to persuasive. "Friend, think about it: Which is more valuable to you, a dead me or a living me? Haven't historical events taught you anything? Let me go! Only as long as I'm alive do you dogs have any value. If I die, they'll start killing the dogs for meat!"