Seeing the joy in Liu Xixi's eyes, Zhang Chenyin understood that she could relax around him because there were no conflicts of interest between them. Even their social circles were completely different, so he was safe for her in every way.
"Tickets to the surface experience hall aren't cheap," Liu Xixi teased.
"I'm earning a salary now, and I don't have to give all of it to my family. I can afford to treat you to a trip," Zhang Chenyin said, looking at Liu Xixi. "It's my first time going there, and I need someone to go with."
With that, the two reached a cheerful agreement. The journey was not short, and even with the fast speed of the rail transit, they still had to spend quite some time on the road.
Looking at the scenery outside the window, Zhang Chenyin suddenly understood why Liu Xixi enjoyed traveling through the underground city by train.
There was no sky, but humans used lights to create another kind of beauty. Various buildings were arranged in an orderly manner, and although the space was small and a bit crowded, there weren't many people walking on the streets because many chose to enter the digital world using XR devices.
Here, what you touched was real—there was no digital simulation or virtual reality because this was reality itself.
"There used to be a clothing store there, but it went out of business last month due to poor management," Liu Xixi said with a hint of sadness.
The advent of the metaverse deepened people's pursuit of convenience. Since you could try on clothes online and feel the different materials and see how they looked on you, why spend time and effort going to a physical store?
The store's rent wasn't cheap, and without sufficient sales volume, it was hard to sustain a physical store's daily expenses.
"Most physical stores have long been replaced. It's already remarkable that it managed to stay open until now," Zhang Chenyin, a science-oriented person, couldn't think of any better way to comfort her. He could only state the facts and reason, "This business model, apart from a few people with special sentiments like you, hardly attracts anyone else. Closing down was inevitable. Besides, this is a prime location, and the rent must be expensive."
Liu Xixi's expression only got worse after hearing Zhang Chenyin's "comfort."
Apparently, she wasn't comforted at all.
Luckily, Liu Xixi hadn't expected Zhang Chenyin to be a sensitive and understanding conversationalist. She quickly changed the topic and told Zhang Chenyin about the scenery along the way. She had walked through many of these places because she felt that places she had walked through and touched with her own feet were more real.
This also related to Liu Xixi's creative style. Many of her works had strong elements of reality, and several of her most popular songs were in the Chinese style. Some said Liu Xixi had narrowed her path by sticking to this style and should consider mixing in more elements, but others said this was her unique characteristic and a testament to her steadfastness.
Zhang Chenyin was straightforward. When he thought of this, he directly asked her, but added at the end, "If it's inconvenient, you don't have to answer. I'm just purely curious and won't tell anyone."
"No inconvenience at all. Of course, I can answer you," Liu Xixi said frankly. "Reality elements and Chinese style are things I like, so I went ahead and did them. There's no grand reason or lofty explanation. It's simply—I like them!"
Zhang Chenyin smiled. Liu Xixi was even more carefree than he had imagined.
As they chatted and admired the scenery, the journey was not dull. When they arrived, Zhang Chenyin felt stiff all over. The seats on the train were not as comfortable as the work pods, which had regular relaxation massage functions.
After getting off the train, Zhang Chenyin stood by the roadside to stretch his legs and then prepared to look at the map to find the route to the surface experience hall.
Seeing what Zhang Chenyin was doing, Liu Xixi waved her hand enthusiastically and said, "Follow me. You don't need a map. The living map is right here!"
Zhang Chenyin was skeptical because, in his experience, girls had a poor sense of direction. But seeing Liu Xixi's enthusiastic demeanor, he didn't say anything and mentally prepared himself to walk some extra distance.
To his surprise, Liu Xixi really knew the way. She led Zhang Chenyin through several alleys and soon they arrived at their destination—the surface experience hall.
Looking at the small storefront, Zhang Chenyin felt a bit incredulous. If he remembered correctly, this place used to be quite large. Why did it become so... shabby?
Seeing Zhang Chenyin's expression, Liu Xixi knew what he was thinking. "Actually, I was also quite disappointed when I first came here. I used to not afford to come here, and it didn't look like this. Later, when I finally had the money, it had shrunk so much."
Zhang Chenyin could fully understand that feeling. It was like you worked hard to save up money to buy a beautiful big cake, and after much effort, you finally had enough money, only to find that the big cake was gone, and you could only buy a small cookie.
That sense of disappointment and frustration...
Seeing Zhang Chenyin frowning, Liu Xixi suddenly burst into laughter and imitated Zhang Chenyin's earlier tone, "Most physical stores have long been replaced. It's already remarkable that it managed to stay open until now. This business model, apart from a few people with special sentiments, hardly attracts anyone else. Downsizing was inevitable. Besides, this is a prime location, and the rent must be expensive."
Then, she added, "And the tickets aren't cheap either. A ticket costs seventy merit points, almost as much as my concert ticket. Why spend that money to come here, freeze, and look at some monsters? Plus, the experience only lasts half an hour."
After saying that, Liu Xixi nodded in satisfaction.
Indeed, using someone's own words against them felt great. She wanted Zhang Chenyin to know that such reasoning didn't comfort anyone!
"You win!" Zhang Chenyin sighed and resignedly went to buy the tickets.
Fortunately, along with the downsizing, the ticket prices had also been reduced. What used to cost seventy merit points now only cost sixty. Zhang Chenyin was quite satisfied as he bought the tickets and then led Liu Xixi inside.
To go to the surface, they had to undergo safety training and wear the appropriate equipment.
"You've probably seen snow scenes in pictures, but the real snow scene won't be processed and transmitted to your eyes like images, so you need to be very cautious about 'snow blindness,' also known as photokeratitis," the trainer explained.
"Everyone thinks a white snowfield is beautiful, but when strong sunlight reflects off the snow and focuses through the lens to the retina, it can cause thermal burns to the tissue, leading to vision impairment."
"In strong light environments, the snowfield's reflection of ultraviolet rays can increase by 5% to 6%. A large amount of ultraviolet rays absorbed by the cornea will cause damage similar to electric arc eye damage."
The trainer took out professional protective glasses and pointed to the protective markings on them. "So you must wear goggles throughout the experience to reduce the strong stimulation of snow glare and ultraviolet rays to your eyes and avoid directly looking at the snow. If you feel any discomfort, let me know immediately, and I'll bring you back."
After that, Zhang Chenyin and Liu Xixi received a lengthy course on cold protection, as the cold on the surface was even more deadly.
Long-term exposure to low temperatures can lower the skin temperature and constrict peripheral blood vessels.
Normally, the human body temperature is around 37°C. When the external temperature drops to around 20°C, it can cause body temperature to drop. A drop of 2°C in core body temperature can lead to hypothermia, resulting in loss of consciousness and irregular heartbeats. When core body temperature reaches 24°C, the heart will stop beating.
Theoretically, the lowest limit of human body temperature is 0°C. At this temperature, body tissues will freeze, and the cells within the body will be destroyed.
When the body is exposed to low temperatures, blood vessels constrict, blood circulation slows down, and less heat is delivered to the extremities. Over time, skin temperature drops. The further from the heart, the more significant the temperature drop. Toes, being the furthest from the heart, have poor blood circulation and lack a thick fat layer for insulation, so their temperature drops more noticeably.
So, the equipment Zhang Chenyin and Liu Xixi received was designed to cover them from head to toe, including specialized shoes.
"You must take this seriously! Under no circumstances should you remove or alter your protective gear. Someone once tampered with their suit out of curiosity and exposed part of their skin to the outside air, resulting in frostbite and nearly hypothermia."
Hypothermia occurs when body heat loss exceeds heat production, causing core body temperature to drop and resulting in symptoms like shivering, confusion, and heart and lung failure, eventually leading to death.
As for frostbite, the trainer directly showed Liu Xixi and Zhang Chenyin pictures of non-freezing and freezing injuries. The warning effect of those pictures was something Zhang Chenyin and Liu Xixi would never forget.
They both clearly understood—ignoring the instructions would lead to disaster!
"Don't worry, we'll follow all the rules," Liu Xixi assured.
Zhang Chenyin also nodded in agreement.
Following the professional's guidance, they geared up and were then taken to the elevator.
This elevator was specially designed. There were several such elevators in the underground city that connected to the surface, but not many were open to the public. Most were used by professionals for ground research and other tasks.
"You might feel some weightlessness, but it won't last long. Just bear with it," the trainer said, fully equipped.
As mentioned before, he would accompany them to the surface and then wait near the elevator. The area designated for human activity was clear of obstacles, so he could monitor the visitors' movements from the elevator and wouldn't disrupt their experience by staying too close.
Zhang Chenyin and Liu Xixi entered the elevator. They had taken elevators in the underground city before, but none were this high, and this one had clearly been specially designed to operate in the extreme cold on the surface.
The weightlessness the trainer mentioned was quickly felt by Zhang Chenyin and Liu Xixi, but it was within their tolerance.
Because of the thick protective suits and goggles, they were somewhat insulated from the temperature changes and didn't immediately feel the full impact of the freezing environment.
But as the elevator reached the surface and they stepped out, Zhang Chenyin and Liu Xixi were rendered speechless.
All they could see was a vast expanse of white. The pure, pristine, and seemingly endless landscape was incredibly overwhelming. Zhang Chenyin tried to take it all in, as if he couldn't get enough of the sight.
When the trainer had warned about not removing the goggles or tampering with the protective suits, Zhang Chenyin thought those people had been irrational. But now, faced with this scene, he felt a sudden urge to do the same.
Humans were probably meant to belong on the surface, which is why they felt such an innate connection to it.
Their feet crunched on the snow as they stood amidst the endless white. The sunlight they hadn't seen in the underground city, the vastness they hadn't experienced, all came to life for them now.
This was more awe-inspiring than any picture. Their own eyes were the best cameras.
Zhang Chenyin suddenly felt a lump in his throat. Though he didn't want to admit it, he was on the verge of tears. He couldn't even understand where this emotion was coming from. There was nothing particularly touching happening, no one saying anything profound, no extra narrative.
They were simply seeing this land, standing on this land.
Humans once lived here, but they lost it.
After a long time, Liu Xixi softly asked, "Do you think we'll come back?"
Zhang Chenyin didn't know how to answer that. He wanted to say yes, but he knew deeply that this was not something that could be achieved overnight. It might even be something they wouldn't see resolved in their lifetime.
What once seemed the most ordinary thing for humans had now become an unattainable dream.
Liu Xixi tentatively took a few steps, and once she got used to the feeling, she waved to Zhang Chenyin, "Don't just stand by the elevator. Take a few more steps and look around."
Zhang Chenyin carefully followed her steps, and after getting used to it, he started to walk more boldly. The feeling was too wonderful to describe, but he knew he wanted to run.
He wanted to run wildly in the snow and ice.
To use his own feet to truly run.