Genius Club-Chapter 1200 - 47: The Ninth Dreamland_2

He just turned his head to glance at himself, then disappeared from the VR Virtual Hall without a word.

The murderer.

Could it be him?

Lin Xian shook his head, unsure.

Right now, there are too few clues.

Better to wait until we finish investigating The Ninth Dreamland, understand what The Future World has become, and then draw conclusions.

"I’m leaving now."

Lin Xian waved goodbye to Liu Feng:

"If anything comes up, contact me immediately."

With that,

he left the laboratory, got into a private car, and returned to Zhao Yingjun’s home.

He filled VV the Pomeranian’s bowl with dog food.

Then, after a quick wash,

he closed his eyes and fell asleep on the bed.

The conclusion to The Eighth Dreamland still felt a bit abrupt.

Thankfully,

he had already copied 90% of the blueprints for the Time Shuttle Machine, and the remaining 10%, which did not involve critical parts, had a low importance and could be replaced with alternative solutions.

After all, the machine wouldn’t be operational until 2234, so failing to copy that last portion wasn’t too big of a regret—plenty of ways to make up for it.

What concerned him the most now was...

Who was directing the future plan in the dream’s Future World?

Would it become better or worse?

Would he still be able to meet his former allies, friends, Emperor Gao Wen, or even Big Face Cat’s father, Emperor Chen Heping?

"No matter what happens, CC will definitely still be there."

Lin Xian closed his eyes on the pillow:

"After the events of The Eighth Dreamland, CC’s memory fragments gained one more piece, and now she also knows how much Emperor Gao Wen and Emperor Chen Heping mean to me."

"If she could arrive in the East Sea early this time, not only could she scout intel about the Hafnium Alloy Safe in advance, but she might also establish rapport with Gao Wen and Chen Heping ahead of time, saving me effort and expediting progress."

"In any case, when in doubt, look for CC. Once the dream begins, I’ll first head to the most prominent location in the East Sea Region to find CC as a guide."

With that,

he turned over.

Gradually,

he drifted into sleep...

...

...

Hoo...

Once again, the familiar summer breeze and the piercing heat of the sun hit him instantly.

Hot.

This was a kind of heat he had never experienced before.

It wasn’t the oppressive heat of a city, nor the stifling heat of a tropical jungle.

It was the kind of...

heat that came from being exposed directly to the searing midday sun without any shade.

In an instant, it felt as if sweat might seep from his forehead.

The surroundings were eerily quiet.

In the distance, the endless chirping of cicadas was audible, but there were no sounds of human activity.

No footsteps,

no conversations,

no traffic noise,

no broadcast announcements,

nothing at all.

"What kind of world is this...?"

Lin Xian took a deep breath and opened his eyes—

Ruins. Ruins, crumbling walls, and dilapidated structures. The muddy roads showed that it had rained the night before, and wild grass spread unchecked everywhere, evoking the feeling of a post-apocalyptic movie, of barely surviving a catastrophe.

But only...

there was no trace of human presence.

"Where are the people? Where is the city?"

He turned around, scanning his surroundings and looking behind him.

Though there were many ruins, no high-rise buildings obstructed his view. The flat expanse stretched endlessly, revealing the horizon.

But even in the far distance, there were no protruding structures or landmarks. It was as if... as if...

[It was as if someone had erased Donghai City from the map with an eraser!]

Or perhaps,

like that one time when Gao Yang had swept all the clutter off the sofa with a single sweep kick into the sea, leaving behind nothing but bare ground. freeωebnovēl.c૦m

"It seems like The Future World has become even worse."

Lin Xian muttered softly.

He wandered aimlessly, hoping to find a place to escape the scorching sun.

Yet frustratingly,

even such a simple wish proved impossible.

Every piece of crumbling wall around him stood no taller than his head, offering no usable shade.

Lin Xian walked closer.

He touched the ruins.

Reinforced concrete—it was unmistakable. Every corner had rusted steel bars jutting out like tentacles, twisted and curled.

It was hard to imagine.

What kind of disaster could have destroyed a modern city this thoroughly?

It certainly wasn’t the great catastrophe of 2400.

If Donghai City had been destroyed in 2400, over 200 years would have passed, and these steel bars would’ve already turned to dust from rust.

But now, holding these bent steel rods in his hands, he found them still incredibly sturdy.

Which meant...

The destruction of this city’s ruins hadn’t happened too long ago.

"So, where are the people? Where are they?"

Lin Xian temporarily set aside his research on the city ruins, deciding instead to find the original inhabitants, living people who could explain what had happened.

And so,

he endured the blazing sun, wiped the sweat from his brow, and ran across the flat expanse.

At last, he found a building remnant tall enough to climb.

He climbed to the top.

From this vantage point, he scanned far and wide.

Even squinting hard to see as far as possible,

his field of vision revealed...

no signs of human habitation or any gathering camps.

Now what?

Even if he ran tirelessly for 12 hours, the area he could search would still be limited. It was unlikely to extend further than what his eyes could already see.

"How am I supposed to find the original inhabitants?"

Lin Xian found himself at an impasse.

He wandered aimlessly for a long time yet again, still finding nothing.

"This is too strange."

He scratched his head:

"Where’s the Big Face Cat who supposedly lives for a thousand years?"

Not meeting CC didn’t bother Lin Xian that much.

After all, CC wasn’t born or raised in the East Sea; she came from the distant Brooklyn in Mi Country.

If technology and transportation had regressed, making it impossible for CC to cross the sea, Lin Xian could understand.

But!

If even the Big Face Cat was nowhere to be found, then Lin Xian was genuinely starting to panic.

From the very first dreamland to the recently concluded Eighth Dreamland,