The Scholar Zhang Weichu

Fang Zelin had only just entered a resting state after logging off when a small splash rose by the distant riverbank.

Then a soaking-wet man walked out of the river, went straight up to Fang Zelin, and looked down at him from above.

Yet the child beside him seemed entirely accustomed to such a bizarre entrance and spoke at once.

"It isn't time yet. Aren't you being a little too impatient?"

The child wore an indifferent expression and sat right down on the ground.

The man who had emerged was drenched all over. Water kept dripping from his long hair, and his face looked somewhat pale.

At those words, he cupped his hands. "It isn't that this lowly ghost is impatient. I merely noticed that this man was quite taken with the book I wrote."

Understanding dawned on the child. He glanced at the water ghost before him, then shook his head after a moment. "You really are an unlucky scholar. You passed both rounds of the imperial examinations and had boundless prospects, only to be dragged down as a replacement."

"But now you've served your full term of suffering. Once you drag this man into the water as your replacement, you'll be able to enter the cycle of reincarnation."

"As for that book you mentioned writing... what, do you want to spare him?"

The child looked at him, then at Fang Zelin beside them. He could see the book that had just been tucked into Fang Zelin's robes.

The water ghost scholar's expression immediately filled with conflict. After thinking it over, he shook his head again.

The river child sighed at the sight. "Water ghosts finding replacements has been the way of things since ancient times. If you let this man go, you'll probably have a long wait ahead of you. How long can you endure the suffering underwater?"

Hearing this, the scholar could only stand there in a daze.

Fang Zelin saw a message on his phone as soon as he logged off.

"Sorry, buddy. I didn't check beforehand. This game is too realistic. If you're disabled in real life, you'll still be disabled once you go in."

Jiuchuan's avatar began flashing.

Fang Zelin looked at his phone while searching for something to eat. When he saw what it said, he froze.

"What did you say?"

Fang Zelin looked at the message Jiuchuan had sent, his face full of confusion.

He hadn't been disabled after going in, though?

"Whatever condition you have in real life stays the same when you enter the game. Haven't you gone in yet?"

Seeing that Fang Zelin seemed a little confused, Jiuchuan sent a question mark.

Fang Zelin's brow furrowed at the message. He instantly felt that something was a little off.

"No exceptions?"

"None. I asked around. I don't know what's going on with this game, but it's like it makes a completely faithful replica. The official statement said it was to stay close to reality."

Close to reality...

At that, a chill rose in Fang Zelin's heart.

If there were no exceptions, why was he one?

If there was anything that set him apart from everyone else, it was that he had transmigrated. He hadn't been disabled when he transmigrated; he had merely transmigrated into a disabled person's body.

If this really was a completely faithful replica, could it be replicating the soul?

Could modern technology even replicate a human soul?

But if it replicated the soul, did that mean a person's soul would also suffer a certain degree of damage when they were injured? Just like in some films?

However wretched a person was before death, they would be just as wretched when they became a ghost?

At this thought, Fang Zelin instantly sensed something amiss. Perhaps this game was even more mysterious than he had imagined.

Fang Zelin wheeled himself over, opened the refrigerator, and took out a piece of bread. He unwrapped it and began eating while quickly opening the game's official forums.

An hour later, once Fang Zelin had gathered the information he needed, his expression shifted uncertainly as he looked at the material before him.

According to the information he had collected so far, people really were faithfully replicated upon entering the game. No one was an exception.

Yet when Fang Zelin entered the game, he did so with a whole body.

If there was anything that distinguished him from everyone else, it was that he was a transmigrator.

If that was the case, this game was something extraordinary indeed.

Then there was the game company's background, as well as the technology involved in the game.

Fang Zelin had just analyzed it carefully, and the more he did, the more something felt wrong.

"Could this game be a real world?"

As a transmigrator himself, Fang Zelin believed that other worlds existed.

Now that he had encountered something like this, he inevitably thought of that possibility.

But if that were true, wouldn't that mean...

Fang Zelin swallowed the bread in two or three bites. He had thought that, having transmigrated into someone with disabled legs, he might as well just lie flat and live out his life.

But now he seemed to have discovered something extraordinary. Perhaps there was a little hope for his future after all.

With that thought, Fang Zelin hurried back into the game.

He wanted to see whether he could leave the isolated island he was on.

If he could leave, he would be able to explore other places afterward. He had heard that some of the people who had entered the game had already begun learning martial arts.

He had no idea whether that was true.

Also, could the martial arts learned here be used in real life?

The thought filled Fang Zelin with even greater anticipation.

"Huh?"

Fang Zelin opened his eyes and looked around. The next moment, he noticed an extra person beside him.

The man's clothes were soaked through, and water was still dripping from his long hair. He looked utterly bedraggled.

Fang Zelin paused at the sight of this suddenly appearing man. What, another person who had fallen into the water?

"You are...?"

Looking at the man before him, Fang Zelin spoke up to ask.

The man dressed as a scholar immediately bowed with his hands clasped. "My humble name is Zhang Weichu. I fell into the water and was fortunate enough to be rescued."

As he spoke, he pointed to the child beside them.

Fang Zelin suspected nothing. He was simply someone who had fallen into the water.

"I see. Then you can build a raft with me, and we can leave this place together."

Another person meant another pair of hands. Building a raft together so they could all leave would be a good thing.

At this thought, Fang Zelin immediately perked up.

The scholar Zhang Weichu paused briefly at his words, then nodded. As he watched Fang Zelin turn away to gather wood, a look of indecision flickered across his face.

The child beside him did not give it so much thought. Once Fang Zelin had gone a little farther away, he spoke.

"Aren't you going to help? By my calculations, he's due to fall into the water tomorrow and be dragged away by you as your replacement. If you don't take this chance to help, he might not even be able to get onto the water and leave tomorrow."

At those words, Zhang Weichu's mouth opened slightly. He gritted his teeth and immediately went to help.

Watching this, He Chenyi could not help shaking his head. This fellow...

He only needed to find a replacement. Now that the time had come, did he still not know to seize the opportunity?

If he missed this chance, who knew how long he would have to wait for the next one?