Back to Reality

"Intensifying my hallucinations..."

The Suit Man's reminder suddenly made Xiao Xiao think of another possibility.

The three eyes stopped in mid-air, like three illusory dark red balloons, giving off an unreal feeling.

He knew that if he used these three eyes, he could see the truth of what happened back then and see everything he had personally experienced.

But now, thanks to the Suit Man's reminder, another possibility suddenly came to mind:

The very things we use to ascertain the truth are often the things that make it hardest for us to see the truth?

He desperately resisted this answer, yet he helplessly realized that it was difficult to refute it all...

"The power of the Mother manipulates your senses in this way..."

The Suit Man seemed to sense Xiao Xiao's inner turmoil and hurriedly said, "It has taken root in your mind and distorted your thinking. Everything you see is what it wants you to see. Sometimes, even if you discover some truths, the power of the Mother can still affect your thinking, just like that man with paranoia who would find any reason to cover up his lies."

"The more you try to see all this through the power of the mother body, the deeper you fall into the illusion..."

"..."

As he spoke, Xiao Xiao was genuinely shaken, feeling a profound sense of inner turmoil.

All of this...

What exactly is it?

Xiao Xiao had never imagined that he would actually have doubts, doubts about everything he had seen, felt, and even experienced firsthand. Looking at the people in white protective suits, looking at the tense Suit Man, he could still feel the enormous gap between them and the world, but deep down, he began to waver...

"Impossible..."

But in his state of Mind Burst, he immediately countered. "What if it's all fake..."

"Then what is my enhancement?"

"I possess extraordinary power; I can even summon magical things..."

"I..."

"..."

He paused slightly, then looked at the Suit Man and said in a low voice, "I could even buy you."

"Whoosh..."

Upon hearing his words, especially facing his somewhat indifferent gaze, the person in the white protective suit shrank slightly, seemingly a little nervous. Meanwhile, the Suit Man took a deep breath and looked directly into Xiao Xiao's eyes.

"Mr. Xiao, I also know that you have extraordinary strength, because you have used the gene enhancement drugs from the Black Forest Biological Laboratory... Those who believe in the Mother, or those who have been contaminated by the Mother, have already infiltrated various locations in this city."

"They often steal these things and give them to you."

"And what you mean by purchasing..."

He paused slightly before saying in a low voice, "Are you sure that was just a purchase?"

"You're just using the power that the Matrix has stored in your body to corrupt us..."

"I underwent some mental transformation to combat this pollution."

"You can try now and see how you can buy me, of course, just take a look..."

"..."

His Adam's apple bobbed slightly. "Don't try to actually contaminate me, that... is pointless."

Xiao Xiao looked at his face and suddenly took out his phone from his pocket. The SIM card was pressed against the back of the phone, and the screen quickly turned dark red. Countless lines jumped around, scanning out the people around who could be bought, and it was indeed this Suit Man.

[Affiliation: Senior Investigator Black Forest Biological Laboratory]

[Amount: 3000 points]

[Note: Buy these self-important indigenous people; communication is impossible...]

[...]

Xiao Xiao stood silently in place, unable to speak for a long time.

The Suit Man, fearing that Xiao Xiao's finger might tap on it, asked nervously, "How is it?"

Xiao Xiao said in a low voice, "I can buy you."

Of course, it's possible to buy it. Just like the Suit Man said, he can use the power of the mother body to corrupt it.

However, I don't have enough points...

Perhaps, in the Suit Man's eyes, this is because he hasn't utilized the power of the mother body strong enough?

In that instant, countless thoughts and ideas flashed through Xiao Xiao's mind. In reality, he seemed to react quickly, even somewhat anxiously. Suddenly, he took out the information card stuck to the back of his phone and asked the Suit Man, "What is this?"

The Suit Man looked puzzled, but it seemed this wasn't the first time he'd been asked this question:

"Bank card."

"Mr. Xiao, I've seen many of these, some even came to me with bathhouse membership cards asking me questions..."

He even gave a wry smile, somewhat helplessly. "Many strangers claim to have such an information card. They put it on any electronic device and say that it contains content that only strangers can see, but..."

"... Actually, nothing has changed."

"..."

Xiao Xiao remained silent, but a tsunami seemed to be rising in his heart.

Suddenly, he summoned the Pain Hound within himself.

If those three dogs can show up here, it would prove that what I just said wasn't a lie, right?

Although, I don't actually need to prove it.

But Xiao Xiao felt a hidden urge to prove these things.

Perhaps, she wasn't actually trying to prove something to the Suit Man, but rather to prove something to herself.

Because deep down, I've started to waver?

As he cried out in his heart, the surrounding air seemed to roar. In Xiao Xiao's mind, he could even clearly sense that the three Pain Hound were becoming extremely agitated, eager to appear beside him, but...

...No!

He tried countless times, looking around, but nothing appeared.

Undeterred, he immediately tried to summon the Old Gramophone, hoping to summon the Butcher.

But nothing appeared...

The emptiness in Xiao Xiao's heart grew stronger and stronger, and his gaze became somewhat lost.

"Mr. Xiao..."

The Suit Man stood there silently, watching him calmly, as if he knew what the man was trying to do.

After Xiao Xiao tried several times, he finally spoke in a low voice, "I know what you're trying to prove, but it's no use."

"The power of the mother only affects the brain, but cannot affect reality."

"But sometimes, you can indeed prove some things, because where you are, there will be the spread of hallucinations. Sometimes these hallucinations will also affect ordinary people, pulling them into your hallucinations and making them see what you see. But it's useless in front of us. We have been trained and have done some protective work, so we are not affected by hallucinations."

"Therefore, you can see the real world in front of us."

"..."

"I..."

When Xiao Xiao tried to speak, he was surprised to find that his voice was trembling slightly.

Her eyes were somewhat unfocused. After a long while, she looked at him, not answering the question, but only saying with a hint of confusion:

"If all of this is fake, why don't you arrest me?"

"..."

He suddenly stretched out his foot and kicked the corpse on the ground, saying, "This one, at least it's real, right?"

"I could even add two more..."

"..."

He looked at the Suit Man with a hint of skepticism. "I killed someone, why aren't you thinking of arresting me?"

Upon hearing this, the Suit Man fell silent.

"This is a war, Mr. Xiao."

After a long silence, he spoke in a low voice, "It is a war between the Matrix and the normal world."

"This symbiotic illusion started from the singularity and is now affecting more and more people. More and more people are willing to abandon the real world and throw themselves into this huge illusion brought about by the Matrix. We do not have an advantage in this war, and we don't even know when our identity information will be leaked and we will be targeted and contaminated by those who have escaped the organization."

"So, even now..."

He said in a low voice, "I have no intention of pursuing anything against you, I just want to stop you from continuing to hurt these two people."

"Or rather..."

"I did have a bit of an idea in mind to persuade you to return to the real world..."

"..."

"Mother..."

Xiao Xiao had heard him mention this name countless times, but because he had been focused on other things, he only asked now:

"What exactly is this 'mother' you speak of?"

"..."

"It's a newly discovered disease..."

The Suit Man said in a low voice, "It's a mental illness that can spread among specific groups of people and is characterized by sharing and aggression."

"Born from a mentally ill patient codenamed 000".

"She was the first person to have this hallucination, believing that the entire city had turned into monsters..."

"With her failed treatment, the singularity was born, and as the singularity spread, the Matrix was created, influencing more and more people and making them believe that they live in a huge world full of monsters, doing what they think is right."

"Now, this grand fantasy has begun to erode the real world..."

"..."

"Patient 000..."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Xiao felt as if he had been shot in the heart.

He thought of the videotape he had seen when he first became Extreme Sensitivity to heightened sensitivities.

I saw that pale-faced woman helplessly telling the doctor about her panic and despair.

At that moment, I had a vague feeling that I was the one being questioned.

Now it seems...

... That feeling was actually real?

I did indeed become one with the person in that videotape, because I was also experiencing the same hallucination as her?

This is all just too absurd...

"Mr. Xiao..."

Just as Xiao Xiao suddenly became extremely depressed and silent, the Suit Man suddenly spoke in a low voice.

He slowly raised his head to look into Xiao Xiao's eyes, his gaze filled with intense fervor. "We... we can heal you..."

"We have developed a new type of medicine that can help you get rid of hallucinations..."

"Are you willing to return to reality?"