Chapter 009: The Ten-Year Hunting Game

Li Gang felt that even if he spent a lifetime searching, he might never find another person. If the deity had no further intentions and had simply left behind ten thousand people, he would likely live out his days alone in this world, growing old in solitude.

These thoughts gave Li Gang a headache. Although he enjoyed being alone at times, that didn't mean he wanted to live forever without seeing another soul.

“Forget it. There’s no use worrying about that now. I’ll just take things one day at a time. I’ll stay in this city for a month or two, and when summer’s heat has passed, I’ll venture out. I can think of it as a solitary journey to pass the time.”

Li Gang set his concerns aside. While the internet still worked, he found an action movie online and watched with relish.

Ten days later…

Outside, the sun blazed in a clear sky. Cicadas sang tirelessly in the treetops, and the heavy heat of summer hung in the air. In the room, the curtains were drawn, casting the space in a dim light. The air conditioner sent cool breezes that occasionally stirred the drapes.

Li Gang lay under a soft, furry blanket, a glimmer of drool at the corner of his mouth, sleeping soundly and sweetly.

He had always been something of a recluse, and as long as there were no worries about food or drink, he could live quite happily on his own. He quickly adapted to being the only person left in the world.

Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through his chest, waking him instantly from his peaceful slumber.

Sitting up, he clutched his chest but found nothing amiss—he seemed perfectly fine.

The pain had come and gone in an instant.

Li Gang frowned. That pain had been real; he could feel it distinctly. It was no dream.

“Foolish humans, the ten-year life-and-death hunting game begins!”

Suddenly, a voice thundered through the room, echoing three times.

Li Gang’s heart clenched; he was truly startled.

“Ten-year life-and-death hunting game?”

As he pondered the mysterious voice, a sense of foreboding washed over him.

Sleep now utterly vanished, he got up and headed for the bathroom. He had known it—there was no way the deity would leave ten thousand humans to their own devices.

The god’s true intentions were finally being revealed; his days of ease were surely over.

While washing up, he noticed something strange on his left wrist: a black band, resembling a bracelet, about two fingers wide and nearly flat, fitting snugly against his skin.

The black band felt as if it had always been part of him, as natural as his own flesh. If not for seeing it with his own eyes, he might never have noticed it at all.

Just as he reached out to touch this newfound band, it began to vibrate gently.

A series of emotionless voices echoed in the bathroom:

“Third-generation intelligent auxiliary sub-system, number 4444, successfully activated. Beginning biometric data reading. Data read successfully. User Li Gang, number 4444, granted secondary access. Primary access belongs to the deity.

This system will automatically record all information regarding Li Gang, number 4444, during the ten-year life-and-death hunt. Upon the death of Li Gang, number 4444, secondary access will terminate.

By the will of the primary access holder, the deity, certain functions are now enabled for Li Gang, number 4444. These include three-dimensional projection, map functionality, tracking features, biometric analysis, and voice interface. All other features remain disabled.

Notification: A message from the great deity has been received. Please check promptly.

Notification: The rules for the ten-year life-and-death hunting game, issued by the great deity, have been received. Please check promptly.

This third-generation intelligent auxiliary sub-system, number 4444, will serve user Li Gang, number 4444, until confirmation of the user's death.”

Li Gang fell silent as soon as the voice emanated from the wristband, listening intently, not daring to miss a word.

He soon understood: the ten thousand survivors had been left for a ten-year game, and this so-called intelligence was likely used to locate the others.

Li Gang muttered to himself, “Number 4444—so the lucky survivors are probably numbered from one to ten thousand, and I just happen to be 4444. That must be why this device is called 4444, right?”

“You may choose not to answer, number 4444,” the wristband replied, vibrating slightly.

Li Gang had been thinking aloud, even in his own dialect, yet the wristband unexpectedly responded.

What’s more, the voice that came from the band was his own, in his own dialect, leaving him stunned.

An intelligence system? Could this thing really think like a human?

“Heh, never mind, I’ll just tell you. As far as I know, you are correct,” the wristband replied with a familiar laugh, answering his unspoken question.

From the initial cold, standard voice, to one now carrying the local dialect and matching his own tone, Li Gang found himself both shocked and wary.

He asked the black wristband, “Do you have emotions?”

The reply came in his exact voice once again: “I am merely an auxiliary sub-system of the third-generation intelligence, equipped only with emotional simulation. I possess no true feelings. As for mimicking your voice, that is simply a matter of reading your complete data. For better communication, the default is to use the user’s own voice and tone, but you may change this setting as you wish.”

Hearing his own voice from the device made Li Gang uncomfortable.

Having understood the reason for all this, and realizing that the voice mode could be changed regardless of what language he spoke, he switched it back to the standard pronunciation of Mandarin as it had been at first.

The black wristband’s voice returned to standard Mandarin.

Half an hour later…

The bedroom was neat and tidy.

Li Gang sat back in his chair. Half a meter before him hovered a square, semi-transparent virtual interface about a meter across.

He had more or less figured out the basic operations of the so-called third-generation intelligent auxiliary sub-system, the black wristband. He also now understood the general gist of the ten-year hunting game.

On the virtual interface, he opened the communication function, finding two messages sent previously by the deity.

One was a game announcement, the other the game rules.

Li Gang opened the announcement first.

It read:

“I am the deity. First, let me congratulate you on becoming one of the chosen ten thousand.

From this moment, a signal transmitter will automatically be generated at your heart, sending out a pulse at intervals with the rhythm of your heartbeat.

From this moment, a smart wristband will automatically be generated on your wrist, allowing you to track the pulse signal.

A reminder from the deity:

First, there is no substance on earth that can block this signal’s transmission.

Second, the smart wristband cannot be destroyed, and its tracking range is unlimited, though it can be removed and discarded.

The deity’s final reminder: it is best not to discard it, as your life may depend on it.

In conclusion: Insects, for the next ten years, put on a good show and entertain your god.

The stage is the entire earth. The duration is ten years. The game of life-and-death hunting begins now!”