Chapter 006: A World for One (Part One)

Li Gang didn’t give it much thought. The sounds from his headphones told him that his hero had finished respawning in the game. He turned his head, set his instant noodles aside, and once again focused his mind on the game before him.

Controlling his hero, he quickly made his way to the lane. The minions from both sides were locked in fierce combat, as if nursing deep-seated grudges, fighting desperately without end. What puzzled Li Gang was that the enemy mid-lane hero stood motionless off to the side, occasionally striking a few odd poses—provocative and almost begging for a beating.

This was a phenomenon that occurred when a player failed to control their hero for a certain period; the hero would simply stand idle and perform random actions. Li Gang’s heart leapt with delight: the opponent must have encountered some technical issue or something else—whatever the reason, now was the perfect time to strike.

Seizing control of his hero, he launched a barrage of skills at the enemy. The opponent’s health bar plummeted rapidly, nearly empty within seconds. With his skills on cooldown, Li Gang began auto-attacking, keen to finish off the enemy before they could respond.

A few seconds later, the enemy hero let out a miserable cry and then collapsed, their health reduced to zero, leaving only a corpse on the ground. Lost in the thrill of claiming a kill, Li Gang didn’t think much of it. He continued last-hitting minions absentmindedly, occasionally slurping a mouthful of noodles.

Dozens of seconds passed before the corpse vanished, proving the enemy hero had respawned. More time went by as Li Gang’s hero idly chipped away at the enemy base’s defense tower. He silently estimated the timing; as soon as the enemy hero appeared, he’d retreat and return to base to purchase equipment.

By now, he had accumulated enough gold for half a major item. Yet time kept slipping by, and the enemy hero was nowhere to be seen.

Could the opponent really have disconnected? Recalling the earlier scene, Li Gang’s spirits soared—victory was all but assured. Since the enemy wasn’t returning, he pressed on with the demolition.

Bit by bit, the tower’s health dwindled under his attacks until it finally exploded.

“Looks like the enemy really did disconnect. The tower’s gone, and they still haven’t shown up,” Li Gang thought.

Pressing the 'B' key to recall, he shifted his mouse to check out the other lanes and see how his teammates were faring. From the moment he’d respawned until now, he realized, the chat had gone silent and there had been no sounds of kills or deaths.

These details made Li Gang sense that something was wrong. Moving his screen to the other lanes, he was stunned by what he saw.

His teammates and the enemy heroes were all present, but all appeared to be disconnected—either standing idle, striking random poses, or, when minions wandered into auto-attack range, their heroes lashed out automatically.

“What the hell is going on? Is everyone but me disconnected? Or am I the only one actually disconnected?” Li Gang wondered.

Without caring about the outcome, he decisively exited the game and tried to reconnect, but the situation remained unchanged. His own internet connection was fine. A few minutes later, he heard the system notifications in his headphones as, one by one, teammates were auto-logged off for being idle—four in total, which meant his four teammates had been kicked by the system.

On the lanes, both allied and enemy heroes began heading back toward their respective bases.

The sight made Li Gang realize just how strange and unnerving things had become. He took off his headphones, silencing the game, and glanced around from his seat.

The abnormality hit him at once: the place was eerily quiet—no sound at all. While the computers in the internet café were set to headphone audio, there should have been at least some chatter, but now there was nothing. That was definitely not normal.

It was summer vacation; the high school entrance exams were long over. The café should have been even busier than usual.

Li Gang was a laid-back person by nature, used to taking things as they came and rarely prone to emotional swings over small matters. Yet this unnatural silence and the simultaneous disappearance of nine players in-game filled him with unease and fear.

He suddenly sensed something very bad had happened.

At this time of day, the café was never this empty. Even at noon, there would be at least a handful of people scattered about, if not a dozen or more. Yet now, apart from the dozens of computers still glowing, there wasn’t a soul in sight.

Li Gang saw that most desks with lit screens had cigarettes and lighters, wallets, and the latest smartphones left on them.

Everything he saw told him that moments ago, people had indeed been there. And then, in an instant, they had all vanished without a trace.

“Could it be…?”

To confirm his suspicion, he headed for the front desk. Sure enough, there was no one there either.

A wave of unease began to spread.

He hurried to the window, drew back the curtains, and, shielding his eyes from the glaring sunlight, peered out through the glass.

The café sat on the third floor of a commercial building, offering a wide view. This area was usually in the heart of the city, the streets outside always bustling with cars and pedestrians. But today, at this very moment, Li Gang saw a sight that defied belief.

The entire street was empty—not a single person in sight. There were plenty of cars, but they all sat quietly, parked on the road or along the curbs.

Li Gang pinched himself hard. The pain told him this was no dream.

He stared out at the deserted city street for dozens of seconds, utterly dazed.

Suddenly, as if struck by a thought, his face grew anxious. He hurriedly fished out his phone and called his parents.

“I’m sorry, the number you have dialed is not in service…”

His father’s number was unreachable—out of service.

He tried several more times, with the same result.

By now, Li Gang had left the café and was out on the street, running toward home under the blazing sun, phone pressed to his ear.

Though sweat beaded on his forehead and his short-sleeved shirt was soaked through, he paid it no mind.

After several failed attempts to reach his father, he dialed his mother’s number.

Li Gang’s eyes lit up—the call went through. It wasn’t out of service, and his pace slowed.

But soon, the hope on his face faded into anxiety. Though the call connected, no one ever answered.