Chapter 14: When You Are Rich, Don't Forget About Our Friendship
Nan Gengchen looked at Qing Chen and was confused and surprised at the same time. "I need to talk with the cops, bro. What did your dad do to get arrested?"
"Well then," said Qing Chen shaking his head, "I can't do anything about it. So, what is this weird incident that you are so worried about?"
"Nothing... nothing much." Nan Gengchen didn't continue after that.
Qing Chen also stopped talking.
The only option he had was to act as if he had no idea what was going on.
However, he still could guess that this so-called weird thing... could it be that a countdown suddenly emerged on his arm?
Because no one else can see the countdown, Qing Chen could only guess.
For him, the countdown appeared on his arm at 6 PM last night. He didn't attend night classes or study sessions that day. He then transmigrated into another world for the first time at 12 o'clock midnight.
If there is a countdown on Nan Gengchen's arm, when should it appear?
Qing Chen thought to himself, Nan Gengchen is so weak and fragile. Will he be able to survive the harshness of the other world? He looks like he could be swept away by the win right now.
They've known each other for a long time and have many of the same characteristics. Their fathers were both gamblers, and their families were both poor.
The two teenagers grew closer after finding out about this.
Suddenly, a classmate who was playing on a phone in the class suddenly shouted, "Holy crap!"
There was still some time left before class started, so there were only about ten or so students in the classroom. Everyone's gaze was drawn to the boy after hearing his sudden exclamation. "What's the matter?" Someone asked.
"Quick, everyone! Take a look at the trending searches right now. Jacob held a press conference and he claimed to have transmigrated to a different world, one that was a mechanical civilization. There is a full video online." The classmate explained.
Jacob, a well-known American basketball player, had a large international following.
Everyone in the class looked at their phones and looked at the list of trending searches in bewilderment when they heard this.
Only Qing Chen remained frozen in place because he knew exactly what was going on with the transmigration and technological civilization!
He didn't expect that this event could occur to other people in other countries.
Qing Chen looked over at Nan Gangchen, who already had the video pulled up.
In it, Jacob was seated behind the table, facing a gathering of news reporters who were invited to attend. Camera shutters were flashing rapidly, making the scene a little chaotic.
Anyone who is watching would first notice Jacob's left arm at first glance because his left arm had been completely replaced by a mechanical arm.
In the video, Jacob got up and led the reporters to a basketball court. Then, across the entire court, he effortlessly tossed the basketball into a hoop and accurately repeated the motion nine more times.
"Has this been edited? Nan Gengchen mumbled, "It's not a commercial or anything. What's the point with all of these special effects?"
Qing Chen did not speak.
The video was from abroad, and someone even added Chinese subtitles underneath.
"Last night, I accidentally found a countdown on my arm." Jacob said to the media, " When the countdown stopped, I found myself in a weird mechanical civilisation in a completely different universe. I can assure you that I am still on this planet. I can see the sun, the moon, and the starry night. It seems like a parallel universe, but the culture is vastly different from our own.
Jacob raised his left arm and showed it to the audience, "As soon as I got to the other world, this machine appeared on my arm, almost as if I was destined to take the position of someone who already existed there. I don't know how this thing works, but it works well. It has powers beyond my wildest imagination. It's both precise and flexible."
"However, I am not holding this conference to brag about this arm, I am here to say that the other world isn't as wonderful as it may appear to some of you. It is packed with danger. I am here to avoid being secretly taken away for research. I want to make it clear that I do not want to be a research subject, and if I ever vanish, please..."
Hearing what Jacob had to say, Qing Chen realized that Jacob is a public figure, so he couldn't hide the fact that he got a random mechanical arm from somewhere.
Jacob clearly understood that the technology of the other world was well above the current civilization on Earth, therefore he selected a more drastic technique to avoid being taken away to be tested like a guinea pig.
But this might not be the best method. Perhaps he was very nervous about what might happen to him, so he made a rash decision.
Turning around, Qing Chen saw that his deskmate Nan Gengchen was as dumbfounded as a chicken.
Qing Chen remembered that he wasn't able to bring a knife nor a toothbrush from the other side back when he returned, so he reasoned that the only way to carry something was to transform oneself or to hide within one's body.
He was also wondering where in the other world might Jacob have appeared. Would he be on the other side of the ocean?
The rest of the students, who also saw the video, were also in a daze. They were debating whether this video was real or if it was just some special effects production.
However, before anyone could figure out what was going on, more strange instances appeared on the list of trending searches.
"Internet Software Company Executive was discovered dead at his home. On his body, a highly sophisticated mechanical structure was discovered, similar to Jacob's."
"College Student Claims to Have Visited a Parallel Universe. Not Only Are There Mechanical Civilizations But Also Humans With Mind-Blowing Powers."
"High School Student Gains Awakening Ability From Another World."
Qing Chen frowned as he watched the quickly-appearing searches. He had underestimated the speed with which the story traveled. It's possible that not everyone was as discreet as he was.
As the word spread, it became clear that this was neither special effects nor a commercial for a specific brand. It was real!
Real people were taken to a mysterious world of fantasy.
Furthermore, a large number of persons were transmigrated.
Nan Gengchen next to him murmured, "The Extraordinary[1]{People from the other world who gained extreme powers}, mechanical civilization... Does anyone who transmigrates there have a chance to become the Extraordinary?"
"It seems like the probability of being transmigrated is not small. Might there be one from our school?"
"Maybe someone came to school with a mechanical limb..."
"I want to transmigrate too..."
As more and more students arrived, the people in the class would cast a curious glance at the people walking in to check if there was a transmigrator among them.
There were teenagers of seventeen or eighteen years old, full of curiosity and desire for exploration. Some adults would ponder if the new opportunities would be worth it for the dangers, but as teens, they didn't care. All they had was excitement.
When you watch Harry Potter, you'd expect that you can go through the wall in King's Station, and when you read cultivation novels, you expect to meet a mysterious old teacher who will teach you how to cultivate.
Such thoughts, however, would be deemed mindless daydreaming in the real world.
So, when everyone found out that they could now have a chance to be transmigrated and become the Extraordinary, they automatically disregarded the warnings about potential dangers, only hoping that they could be among one of the transmigrators to explore the other world.
Being a protagonist of the other world also sounded very tempting.
Qing Chen was tempted as well.
The only difference was that Qing Chen was one of the fortunate few who had the opportunity to travel to another world and meet Extraordinaries such as Lin Xiaoxiao and Li Shutong.
Ye Wan should be one too.
Qing Chen noticed that Nan Gengchen's scared demeanor gradually vanished and was replaced with excitement.
Qing Chen asked, "Is this the weird thing that you are talking about?"
Nan Gengchen lowered his voice to a whisper, "I can't tell you just yet, but don't worry, if I get anything good, I won't forget about you, my friend."
Qing Chen nodded, "Yes. When we get rich, don't forget about our friendship."