Chapter 16 一 A Giant Figure Appeared in Mid-Air.
What does this mean?
What was Lin Chen’s attitude? Was there something hidden, or was he equally eager for the movie? Fans speculated variously.
This kind of incident quickly fermented without Bai Ruogu’s knowledge, dominating the hot topic lists. Even Bai Ruogu, an 18th-tier artist, was also brought up in popularity, and many people started to investigate his acting career.
Visibly, Bai Ruogu’s fan base was rapidly expanding. In the era of exploding interstellar populations, the number of fans quickly surpassed tens of millions and continued to grow…
Bai Ruogu, along with the crew, navigated through space in a spacecraft. He lay at the edge of a transparent window, gazing at distant planets and meteorites floating in the universe.
However, these scenes were fleeting, as the next moment they would jump to another space, presenting a new scene before him.
He looked at the smart brain in his hand, which showed the distance to the destination.
When he first came in, he listened to the instructions of the staff and scanned the spacecraft’s synchronized navigation with the smart brain, clearly marking the coordinates between the two points.
The vastness of the heavens and earth, the sun bringing brightness to some objects. In this vast universe, the spacecraft was as tiny as dust.
Just as Bai Ruogu looked up to calculate the timing of the planets’ movement, the smart brain beeped with a notification sound—
Ten seconds away from the destination, 9, 8, 7…
Bai Ruogu swiftly shifted his gaze forward. His eyes contracted as a planet grew larger and larger, obscuring the sunlight, casting a shadow through the aircraft’s window.
For a moment, it seemed as if the world fell silent. Then the aircraft began to shake violently. After a while, the cabin door opened, and the evening sun streamed in.
Bai Ruogu subconsciously walked towards the door. The moment he opened it, the sight that greeted him broadened his perspective.
Sure, here’s the passage translated to English in the past tense:
He saw only mountains overlapping, their forms continuous and undulating, stretching out as far as the eye could see. Distant peaks had blocked half the setting sun, leaving behind a swathe of darkening sky.
Bai Ruogu took a deep breath. Although others were used to it, it was still a bit of a shock for him, a man who had lived a thousand years ago.
As he walked outside, he suddenly heard a “be careful.” Strong arms pulled him back just as the sound of sliding rocks echoed in the air.
Looking down, Bai Ruogu realized he was standing on the edge of a cliff, the next step leading into an abyss.
Shaken, he quickly turned around to see that it was Li Huai who had pulled him back.
Seeing that he was unharmed, Li Huai breathed a sigh of relief and grumbled as he turned back towards the aircraft.
“What kind of ghost place is this we stopped at? What if something dangerous happens with such a high risk?!”
Someone inside quickly appeased, “Director Li, don’t be angry, don’t be angry. I had someone stop here on purpose. Isn’t the next scene a cliff scene? We’ll go down as soon as we’re done filming!”
“Don’t you guys f***ing know to give advance notice? What if someone accidentally falls down without knowing?!”
An apologetic voice came from inside, and Bai Ruogu sighed in relief, not taking it to heart.
After all, this wasn’t a good place. The props team quickly came out to set up, eager to finish shooting and leave early.
After a while, everything was ready, and filming officially began—
When Hua Xingyuan opened his eyes, the ethereal blue light around him and the special steel plates on the walls had disappeared. What lay before him was such a magnificent scene.
He took a breath of cool air, feeling overwhelmed by the sight before him. Faced with such a strange scene, he subconsciously felt a bit scared until he saw the smart brain on his wrist, which barely eased his nerves.
The smart brain blinked with a green indicator light, symbolizing that he was in a special space.
Stepping on the uneven ground, the almost real sensation under his feet amazed him.
He tried to grab a handful of leaves next to him. He could feel the texture of the leaves themselves, but he couldn’t change them in any way, even though a light breeze could change the position of the leaves.
He continued walking forward, accidentally tripped over a pebble without looking down.
He gasped, got up, holding his knee and observing the surroundings. The instructions from before echoed in his mind—
The experience wouldn’t cause any substantial harm to the body, but would attempt to simulate the genuine experience of the scene as much as possible.
He stood up, feeling the pain but it didn’t hinder his movements. He stretched his arms, enjoying the comfortable breeze in the air.
“Is this the planet beyond 100,000 light-years away? Not bad. I’ll have Dad buy a spacecraft to bring Xu Mo here for vacation!”
He wandered around here for a while, discovering the pleasant climate and good natural conditions, becoming more certain that this was a suitable place for relaxation!
He inputted the coordinates into the smart brain so he could find his way back here later.
Just as he was wandering around with his hands on his hips, he suddenly heard an unusual sound…
His heart skipped a beat, the guy who often skipped classes to watch movies instantly understood what the sound was.
He had thousands of thoughts to justify that the sound wasn’t what he thought it was. But when he turned his head forward, he saw a man covered in blood and wounds, riding a horse in military attire.
The hooves pounded swiftly, trampling through the grass, and the man held a gun in his hand, though it was riddled with wounds, and blood flowed down the horse’s side along the barrel of the gun.
In Huaxingyuan’s mind, that gun was a very old-fashioned piece. It was essentially a gun that should have been called the ancestor of guns and placed in a museum.
But this…
He was just a rich second generation, accustomed to interacting with students on campus. Where had he seen such a scene before? Just the blood on the man’s body was enough to make him dizzy!
He gasped for breath, stepping back, but the horse ran too fast, and suddenly it was in front of him.
He retreated to the edge of the cliff, out of sight of the horse. Facing the cliff, the horse lifted its front hooves, clearly startled.
He didn’t understand the situation, only seeing the man on the horse seemed unable to hold on and rolled directly off the horse with a loud “thud,” hitting the ground hard.
Hua Xingyuan’s eyelids twitched, just hearing that sound made him feel pain.
But the man couldn’t relax, firmly gripping the gun and thrusting it into the ground, his arm veins bulging.
Hua Xingyuan held his wildly beating heart, realizing he was very close to the man now, and could even see the blood drops on his fingers clearly.
He gathered his courage and looked at the man. The man had short, neat hair, eyes like a deep pool, a fierce look, a high nose bridge, and clear features. His lips were slightly pale from blood loss, and his body was tense.
The man turned around, staring firmly in his direction, as if waiting for something, his hand tightly gripping the gun, ready to shoot.
This was the first time Bai Ruogu had seen Lin Chen, who was acting, head-on. The immersion was extremely strong. Whether it was the gaze, the movements, or the demeanor, it felt as if he were a real person. He almost forgot that he was acting because of being so close to him.
Indeed, he was a film emperor…
He was amazed, but at the same time, his fighting spirit was even more ignited. The road to becoming an actor was still very long, and he had just started out. There was still a lot for him to learn.
Soon, sounds came from ahead, the sound of hooves galloping toward them, with a distinct tone in the air.
“Major Esley, I advise you to surrender as soon as possible. Your army has been completely wiped out, and your country will sooner or later belong to us, Tamon.”
However, before their arrogance could prevail for too long, as soon as a figure appeared, Eisley pulled the trigger, causing the opponent to tumble directly from the horse, motionless.
“You bastard! You must pay with your life today!” His companion exclaimed angrily, followed by gunfire from their side.
Due to positioning, Hua Xingyuan unconsciously aligned himself with Eisley, even beginning to worry about him.
As bullets pierced Eisley’s body, the sight and sound shocked Hua Xingyuan, who stood dumbfounded, staring at the exposed flesh and the bleeding arm.
“Are you alright?” He didn’t know how to express his emotions, simply blurting out the words, knowing the other side couldn’t hear anything.
Nevertheless, Eisley remained unfazed, firing again despite the wound, causing another person to fall from a horse.
One shot after another, everything before Hua Xingyuan surpassed his understanding. This was not something a student should witness.
Eventually, the bullets ran out, and enemies began to encroach upon Eisley, who had many wounds and blood running from the corners of his mouth…
The enemies were furious, directly stabbing Eisley with knives. Eisley pulled out a small knife from inside his boot and, with his last strength, stood up and plunged it into the opponent’s chest.
Those nearby hurried to save their comrade, kicking Eisley out. Unable to steady himself, Eisley fell off the cliff, still with a knife lodged in his body.
Yet, he felt no sadness, his eyes carrying a hint of relief.
As he fell, he shouted with exhilaration, “Long live the Empire!”
The voice rang out loudly, echoing through the entire mountain and dispersing downwards.
The enemy realized that their efforts had been in vain, so they cursed a few times and rode away on their horses. Hua Xingyuan, who was left behind, looked at all this with a somewhat bewildered expression.
He gasped heavily for breath, his heart pounding as he looked at the corpse on the ground, then panicked as he looked at the fresh blood on the ground, so frightened that his legs went weak and he collapsed directly.
Having grown up in times of peace, where has he ever seen such scenes of fierce fighting? Especially when the bullets just flew past, he almost didn’t duck down and cover his head.
Running his hand through his hair, he almost cried. Just as he was catching his breath, he suddenly heard a faint groan.
Hua Xingyuan froze, then quietly looked down below the cliff—
On a protruding rock on the mountainside, there were a pair of bloody hands. The hands were very powerful, leaving behind a bloody imprint on the rock.
The view below was obscured by the rock, which was why the enemies hadn’t noticed it just now.
Hua Xingyuan was filled with dread, wanting to retreat, but an inexplicable sense of justice compelled him to try to save the situation.
Just then, he noticed a very long vine at the edge of the cliff.
Making up his mind, he stood up and decided to tie one end of the vine to a tree and let the other end down.
Grabbing the vine, he intended to pull it up with force, but it remained stubbornly still.
Hua Xingyuan forgot the rule that he couldn’t change facts, thinking it was his own lack of strength.
As he pulled harder, he lost control and his body slipped, tumbling downward.
“Ahhhh—” he cried out loudly, only to hear a “thud” followed by a mechanical voice.
[End of the Experience]
With the director’s call of “cut,” the scene was finally finished.
Countless crew members hurried to the edge of the cliff to lend a hand. Li Huai looked at the filming effect and suddenly heard a scream.
“Quick, someone come over! Mr. Bai’s safety equipment malfunctioned! The strap just came loose, and the safety device fell off before it could be opened!”
Li Huai’s heart skipped a beat, almost scared out of his wits, and he hurried over.
Beneath the cliff, there was a deep chasm. Lin Chen had already activated the safety device early, and in an instant, the “small iron box” around his waist opened, enveloping his entire body in a huge bubble, flying upwards.
However, the rope tied around Bai Ruogu’s waist, which held the “small iron box,” suddenly snapped, and he fell straight down like a freefall.
The hearts of the entire crew stopped, many people covered their mouths, their eyes were red. Li Huai didn’t know what he was yelling, hitting the ground by the cliff with force. Lin Chen in the bubble also froze, staring blankly below.
Bai Ruogu could feel the swift wind rushing against his cheeks, his whole body falling weightlessly downwards.
He opened his mouth as if to say something, moved his hand, and then fell silently, looking ahead quietly. Sometimes, the most panic-stricken person is the quietest.
His brain was in chaos, even though he was above average in intelligence, there was simply nowhere around to leverage, no way to ease the current situation.
Was this reincarnation going to end like this? Such thoughts flashed through his mind, clearly unwilling to accept such an outcome, yet helpless.
As he fell down, all he could see was the vast sky, the slightly dark sky with orange clouds on the horizon.
But at that moment, a huge figure suddenly flashed across the sky.
Bai Ruogu’s heart skipped a beat, even though he couldn’t see clearly, he had a very familiar feeling.
The next moment, his smart brain rang, the sound wasn’t the typical mechanical sound of the smart brain, but rather a cold, distant male voice that seemed to have appeared once in a dream.
[Automatic activation of protective mode.]
Protective mode? What kind of mode?
Bai Ruogu didn’t understand, nor could he imagine.
At the same moment, a semi-transparent blue giant figure several hundred meters tall suddenly appeared in the void.
The giant’s body was transparent, with countless streams of data flowing within. With steady hands, it caught Bai Ruogu, cradling him in its palm.
It originally appeared to be modeled after a person, and it appeared to be a man.
The figure slowly lowered its head, its azure eyes meeting Bai Ruogu’s gaze…