Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Chen Xu chewed carefully. The dried bread was very hard and had an unpleasant texture. The taste, on the other hand, was unexpectedly good. It tasted of chives.

He swallowed the cracker in his mouth and spoke up, “Say it.”

Xia Jinse took a bite out of the cracker in her hand and slowly said, “I need my personal space. You’re not allowed to come close at any time.”

“Huh…”

Chen Xu couldn’t contain his laughter, and he didn’t bother to hide the ridicule in it either.

“What’s so laughable about that?”

Xia Jinse’s expression turned cold, and the look in her eyes gave Chen Xu a very strange feeling once again. It felt as if he were facing his superior at work.

He was curious as to what this woman did for a living. The ability to emanate oppressive vibes solely with one’s eyes was out of the ordinary.

However, they were in his dream. Even if Trump appeared, he wouldn’t be fazed and would display his contempt all the same.

“Your request is a little laughable.”

The sneer on Chen Xu’s face intensified. “Take a good look at our current circumstances! We’re surrounded by ruin and may run into monsters anytime. We can’t even guarantee our survival, and you’re talking to me about personal space?”

After the previous dream, he had gained some experience. A woman coming from such an illustrious background who was this beautiful and motivated wouldn’t yield easily.

In his younger days, he had naively assumed that as long as he treated someone sincerely, he’d receive the same sincerity in return. However, reality had slapped him in the face over and over again.

Experience had shown him that the better he treated someone and the more he tried to earn favor, the less seriously they took him.

It was common practice for people to take advantage of others all the time.

However, as long as he toughened up his attitude and remained steadfast, he found that others would treat him with more respect. At the very least, they wouldn’t belittle him.

At times, a thought would cross his mind—these people were despicable!

Once he had learned this principle, his circle of friends shrunk. However, life became a lot easier.

When it came to a woman like Xia Jinse, he knew that she was used to having her way. The urge to call the shots was etched in her bones. If he took a step back and gave in, she’d probably only grow even more absurd in her demands.

Therefore, at that moment, his demeanor was extremely discourteous. He said, “What happens if you’re assaulted by a monster while asleep or taking a shower?”

Xia Jinse coldly replied, “Even if that’s the case, I don’t need to you save me.”

“I won’t sit by and watch you die,” Chen Xu stated. He couldn’t be bothered to reason with her and continued to munch on his cracker.

Xia Jinse stared at him for a while and finally spoke up, “There’s room for discussion regarding exceptional circumstances. But on a normal day, you’ll have to comply.”

Chen Xu swallowed his second mouthful of crackers and nodded his head. “Alright,” he replied. “However, I have a condition of my own as well.”

“Say it.”

“Respect has to be mutual. Treat me with the same attitude that you want to be treated with.” Chen Xu looked into her eyes. “I don’t care what or who you were before this. Regardless of how high your status may have been or how many people revolved around you. Here with me, we are equals.

“Also, it is commonly said that a man should give way to a woman and that a woman should be taken care of. But none of that exists here with me. If you want to live, you’ll have to contribute your share. Don’t expect me to carry the full load on my own.”

Xia Jinse observed his somber expression. A stunned look appeared on her face, and she was rendered speechless for a moment.

When Chen Xu was done talking, he didn’t bother himself with her any longer. He took a gulp of water and finished the rest of his cracker before standing up. He said, “Hurry and finish your food. We’ll get moving immediately after you’re done.”

“Get moving?” Xia Jinse asked suspiciously.

Chen Xu replied as he packed up his belongings, “Just now, in the vehicle, I saw on something that looked like a navigator that there is a settlement not far from here.”

“What?” Xia Jinse asked in surprise. “Why didn’t you say anything back then?”

Chen Xu turned his back to her as he replied, “You weren’t my companion then.”

Xia Jinse stared back and didn’t move her gaze for a long time.

…

The sky remained gray and depressing.

Chen Xu took all his belongings and left together with Xia Jinse.

Their first stop was to look for the transportation vehicle. They turned on the navigator and quickly recorded the route to the settlement.

The destination wasn’t far from where they were. The whole journey was 12.3 kilometers. The route wasn’t complicated either. The navigator charted the route live, and they just had to remember a few iconic buildings as their landmarks along the way.

When their preparations were complete, they began their journey.

Chen Xu was on the left, while Xia Jinse walked on the right. There were approximately 2 meters of separation between them. The two of them made their way quietly and didn’t say a word.

He was constantly inspecting his surroundings defensively in case any monster suddenly attacked. Occasionally, his gaze would sweep past her, causing his thoughts to veer.

The virtual dream world gave him a sense of contradiction.

On one hand, the details were perfect, and it was impossible to differentiate it from reality. On the other hand, in some instances, it left loopholes behind, serving as a constant reminder that this wasn’t real.

He had experienced that thoroughly in the previous dream.

This feeling was now back. The most significant aspect was the fact that it was able to create a world with the kind of advanced technology sufficient to produce exoskeleton manipulators, while at the same time maintaining a level of architecture in the cities was comparable to that of earth.

When he saw the map on the GPS navigator, he was wondering why it looked so familiar. Upon closer inspection, he realized that it was the very city he lived in!

The place he had woken up at was where his rental apartment was located. At first glance, he hadn’t been able to recognize it because most of the buildings had collapsed.

When he finally managed to connect the dots, he was suddenly able to map many places against reality. He found the battle scene of the exoskeleton manipulators; it was in a Chinese supermarket. The only building left standing was a newly built residential building.

The people were similar too. Regardless of whether it was Luo Xiyun or Xia Jinse, they were both very intelligent. However, they never displayed any curiosity regarding the inconsistencies in the dream world. And they never dug deeper.

Until now, Xia Jinse had never mentioned why she had appeared in this world, and how everything had come to pass.

The entire situation was bizarre in itself. The first reaction of any normal person, when presented with such an occurrence, would have been to question what was going on!

However, Xia Jinse had never made any remark of that sort. It was as if she had accepted the setting in advance.

Chen Xu had experienced this nagging unease when he had been with Luo Xiyun as well. Of course, after time had passed, and he grew accustomed to it, that nagging discomfiture had slowly been forgotten.

He guessed that this was put in place to prevent the overuse of the dream world. After all, to most people, their lives in the dream world were a lot better than their lives in reality.

It was precisely because of this that although he constantly reminisced of his early days in the first dream world, he was never saddened by it.