With the key prepared very early on solving the biggest obstacle for them, 154 rushed over to the control panel.
In this place was a vast array of things classified as garbage by the system.
"Memory board...history….." 154 muttered as he flipped through the pages, "There are too many here."
Over the years, the system had done too many interferences with too many people. It ranged from completely clearing out their memories to small, minor adjustments. To specifically pick out You Huo and Qin Jiu's parts alone was very difficult.
It wasn't impossible, it would just take time.
But what they lacked most right now was time.
"Me being here is too dangerous." 154 said, "As soon as I overstep my boundaries, the system will notice."
He then paused for a moment. He suddenly realised that even after coming so close to the system's core, the system hadn't reacted.
Was it because the system was too busy fixing itself up and it's reaction had become delayed?
154 murmured suspiciously.
But with time running out, he couldn't dwell on it for too long. This thought was pushed back soon afterwards.
"How long will it take?"
154's fingers didn't stop, "About five minutes. The system seemed to have just randomly dealt with it. After roughly scanning through, I couldn't find you. I'll have to scan through more carefully again."
He looked up and glanced at the screen, "This key of yours is a very high level one and will be effective for thirty minutes. Don't worry, that is plenty."
Qin Jiu nodded.
But less than a minute after he said this, the room suddenly flashed red and two lines appeared on the screen.
[Warning! Operation involves sensitive items. Access will be locked in ten seconds!]
154's expression changed.
"Sensitive items?"
"This means that the files I'm checking right now contains your information." 154 said.
"How many are there?"
"1000."
The room fell silent.
This was supposed to be good news but at this moment it didn't give them any form of reassurance. To find the right one within seconds and be able to withdraw quickly was simply going to be impossible.
"Don't look for it. Just revoke them all." You Huo said.
154 looked up with shock, "Revoke them all? All of that?"
This was a solution he hadn't considered; revoking it all. This meant that all memory interferences by the system would be undone regardless of who it was.
Just the sound of it was exciting!
[Warning! Access will be locked in five seconds!]
154 looked at You Huo like he was a devil tempting him to perform evil before finally slapping the revoke button.
Countless records large and small flew around the screen. It was so fast, none of the words could be read.
[Warning! Four!]
The warning bar had already turned into a dangerous crimson colour. Just the sight of it made one fearful.
"Hurry!" 154 called out.
The three rushed straight to the door.
[Three!]
154's finger lingered on the lock, but he didn't immediately press it.
You Huo had always been keeping an eye on the time so he knew why he stopped.
It was because the cleaning process outside that would start every ten seconds was still on its final two seconds. They couldn't open the door until then or else they would similarly meet a tragic fate.
[Two!]
154's fingers continued to linger steadily above the lock, but his expression had already turned poor.
The difference of one second that could determine ones live and death could drive anyone crazy.
[One!]
The moment the countdown reached the last second, 154 pushed the lock open.
Beep—–
The metal door opened.
You Huo's earring suddenly flashed red before soon fading away. It indicated that the key was no longer effective.
In the room behind them, black round pipes appeared from all three walls. It looked like a hundred or so muzzles pointed at them.
Pillars of fire spouted out from these pipes, submerging everything in the room within it.
The three of them rushed out with the fire closely behind them.
The control panel and screen that was under the protection of a safety cover revealed a last piece of information——
[Revoking complete.]
[Disposed memory bank has been restored.]
At this moment, many people in the system responded similarly ——–
922's hand that was in the middle of opening a door paused. He momentarily fell into trance.
Chu Yu who was in the middle of talking to Yu Wen suddenly was lost in thought.
Shu Xue suddenly stopped rubbing her arms and let out a soft 'ah'.
Nearby, the old man watching over the punishment centre who had just hurried back to his original post suddenly slowed down. After two more steps, he stopped in place with a blank look on his face.
And in more distant places, there were others...
Of course, this included You Huo and Qin Jiu.
At that moment, Qin Jiu suddenly looked back.
Golden-red fire surged out from the room, carrying along with it intense, scorching heat.
The feeling of his memories rushing into his mind at this moment resembled the scene before him.
***
In the winter of the year You Huo was born, there was an accident on a remote mountain road southwest of China. A car had rammed through the safety barriers and had fallen off the mountain road. In the car were four passengers —– A couple, an old man and their son who had just reached two years of age.
Some say that it was an act of revenge against the former police officers who had dealt with criminals involved with drugs; others said that it was an unfortunate accident on a snowy day. Despite the different rumours, they all had the same ending and that was the fact that no one survived.
In fact, that wasn't the case.
The snow was thick that day and with it being so wet and cold, it wasn't an easy environment for anyone to survive but somehow the fire from the burning car had become a kind of shelter.
Under this shelter, that two-year-old child had managed to stay alive.
Not long afterwards, he was sent far, far away. His surname was changed, his place of residence was changed, and all information related to his past had been changed to the point that he no longer had anything to do with the three individuals who had lost their lives in that accident.
Sometimes, not paying it much mind was a kind of protection, but this protection would also bring along another problem, and that was loneliness.
This surviving child was no exception.
It was said that those born in winter are tough, restrained, and calm, while those born in summer are fierce, romantic and wilful.
He was born at the end of midsummer, but his life truly began in the middle of winter that year. Perhaps it was because of this that he had merged two almost contradictory personalities.
He studied, grew up, entered military school and entered the army.....Perhaps even he himself didn't realise that he was walking down a path similar to his parents.
This continued until one day, he volunteered to join a death squad and live with his life at stake at all times. It was at this moment that that the two paths finally converged.
It may be something that was left in his blood.
Some say that one's memories generally start at the age of three and that events prior to that was too long ago to leave an impression.
But he remembered that winter.
He had forgotten the appearances of those three people; their voices, the way they spoke and their smiles, not a trace was left. But he still remembered that winter and the cold he felt back then.
He no longer remembered who it was he had met up with but one time a long time ago, a friend had insisted on making him participate in a game. It was similar to a round of quick-fire questions that didn't require any thinking. When the other party says a word, he just had to answer with the first word he thinks of.
He wasn't interested and only answered perfunctorily.
He only remembered that the moment the other party said 'family', he suddenly remembered the appearance of the mountain covered with snow—–
On one side was the icy snow and the other side was the blazing fire.
This was the beginning of all his memories.
After he joined the death squad, he received a copy of information about the system. Half of the document emphasised the dangers associated with the mission while the other half explained the mission objectives.
Strictly speaking, there were two tasks:
The first was to test the bottom line of the system. It was equivalent to drawing a circle for everyone; where he stood would be where the limit lies.
The second was to interfere with the system's core.
In his mission outline, the system's score had a double meaning. It could refer to the machine core, or it could also refer to the people who have a strong connection to the core.
According to the information he received, there were two people who are very closely related to the system to the point that it wasn't an exaggeration to say that they are a part of the system.
The positions of these two individuals were marked with "unoptimistic", the danger level was "S" and their authority level was also "S".
His mission was to keep an eye on these two, strip them from their high positions, seize their authority and, where appropriate, work from the inside to shut down or destroy the system.
There were not many people in the death squad and they naturally wouldn't put all the eggs in the same basket, so everyone had different mission objectives. Only one team member with the name Wen Yuan had a mission that was directly linked to his.
Before entering the system, he changed his surname back to his original surname; Qin.
According to his sources, the system has an intrusive ability that would make those who enter the system gradually forget about their lives in reality. After some time, they would even mistakenly begin to think that they were originally people from the system; a part of it like an NPC in a game.
That surname was his most important connection between him and reality. As long as he still bears that name, he would be able to remember who he is.
It was later proven that the warnings they were given were not without basis.
The members of the death squad soon scattered after entering the system as examinees and he never saw them again. He could only guess his teammate's progress through information he overheard from rest stops and other examinees.
Compared to the others, Qin Jiu was much crazier.
In fact, there were safer and more low-key methods to test the system's bottom line, but it would take some time. He just had to choose the most dangerous and most arrogant method instead.
Every time he tested it; it would be earth-shattering. Let alone the examination centre, it wouldn't be surprising if everyone in the entire system heard about him. This actually had an advantage ——- No matter where the other members of the death squad are, they can know of his progress and hear about him.
The first time Qin Jiu violated the rules, it was the invigilator in charge of the exam who had dealt with it by following the usual procedures of locking him in a confinement room.
It didn't take him long to make another offense.
This time, the invigilator didn't hold back and invited over the head invigilator.
That was the first time Qin Jiu met You Huo.
At that time, Qin Jiu was standing on the sloping roof of a small two-storey building, tossing away the body of the monster blocking the balcony. The cries from the examinees inside the room finally became less disturbing after it was tossed away.
He heard footsteps coming from not far away. Someone was walking through the dried leaves and branches as well as broken monster limbs. Based on the calm pace, that person clearly wasn't an examinee.
Qin Jiu shook off the blood on his hands and turned to look.
A tall young man stood not far away wearing a shirt with an "A" arm emblem and military boots around his long, straight legs. Amidst the bloody corpses and dead leaves on the ground, he exuded a deadly and cold temperament...
It was like the heavy snow on a mountain.
At that moment, for some reason Qin Jiu suddenly remembered that winter.
The bloody, rust-like smell mixed together with the snow; life and death; fire and ice; the freezing cold and the scorching hot….Everything contradictory was present in that scene. It was dangerous but also unforgettable.
"Examinee Qin Jiu—–" The person under the eaves folded the notice in his hands and looked up at him, "Follow me to the invigilator's office."
Qin Jiu glanced at the arm badge and thought casually: Head Invigilator A. 'S' level dangerous person that needs to be dealt with. My mission target.
KK has something to say:
Your mission target, and your future boyfriend