"Ruan Mei actually wants to create an Emanator... Truly, a genius of the Genius Society lives up to their name! Her audacity and ambitions are staggering..."
As the story progressed, Little Bear, who was live-streaming, finally understood the nature of Ruan Mei's experiment on the Space Station.
An experiment to create an Emanator—and one as dangerous as an Emanator of Propagation... A single misstep could plunge the entire Space Station into a severely weakened version of the Swarm Disaster...
Little Bear had learned quite a bit about the Swarm Disaster in the Simulated Universe during Version 1.3. Though he hadn't witnessed the full horror of this cosmic catastrophe, he grasped its sheer devastation...
Now, Ruan Mei was attempting to create an Emanator of Propagation. How could Little Bear not be astonished?
"Come to think of it, the 'big trouble' Ruan Mei mentioned must be the Simulated Swarm King she created..."
"So, when Ruan Mei asked us to resolve this 'minor nuisance'... she was actually asking us to deal with this Emanator?"
Recalling Ruan Mei's instructions, Little Bear's mind whirred furiously, arriving at this conclusion.
The corner of Little Bear's mouth twitched involuntarily.
Ganging up on an Emanator was barely acceptable... But facing one in a solo duel? How could a child not even a year old possibly stand a chance?
What kind of fate is this...? Little Bear thought. Turns out that first Doomsday Beast was the easiest Boss after all...
After that, the lowest-tier boss was Cocolia, possessed by a Stellaron.
The Astral Express's Trailblaze journey is way too damn intense!
At this rate, if the Version 1.0 Main Story pitted them against Phantylia, wielding the dual Path powers of Abundance and Destruction, would the Version 2.0 Main Story have them directly facing an Aeon?
These thoughts swirled in Little Bear's mind.
Realizing he was still live streaming, he shook his head, refusing to dwell on such possibilities.
His gaze shifted to the live stream's comment section, eager to gauge the audience's reactions to Ruan Mei's experiment.
It's worth noting that the Containment Zone's terrifying atmosphere, coupled with sudden insect attacks, led Little Bear to reopen the Comment Section, which had been closed to prevent spoilers. He hoped to cheer himself up and create some entertaining content.
Comment Section
[Combining the Ruan Mei PV with the Main Story's [Emanator] experiments, could she actually become an [Aeon] in the future?]
[Ruan Mei perfectly embodies my idea of a genius! I'm obsessed! (heart eyes emoji)]
[Oh my god, am I the only one who's completely indifferent to Ruan Mei? I not only dislike her, I even kind of hate her! She's so selfish! Ruan Mei's experiment was clearly conducted without informing Herta or Screwllum... A [Emanator]-level experiment, and if even the smallest accident occurred, the entire Space Station and The Blue would probably be wiped out...]
[Ugh, how can I encounter virtue-signaling even while playing a game? (Laughing through tears)]
[I like Ruan Mei, but her indifference to All Living Beings and reckless conduct of dangerous experiments without considering the consequences really rubs me the wrong way! (Angry) As expected, compared to everyone else, my Lumina is still the best wife! o(* ̄▽ ̄*)ブ]
"Don't stir up trouble! Don't stir up trouble! With three geniuses and Lumina on the Space Station, there's no way anything could go wrong!"
Seeing the comments section fill with holier-than-thou condemnations of Ruan Mei, Little Bear quickly spoke up to try and calm things down.
Admittedly, Ruan Mei's actions were a bit extreme... drugging someone on their first meeting, secretly conducting a highly dangerous experiment on the Space Station that could destroy the entire facility with the slightest misstep...
But let's put aside the facts for a moment—she's stunningly beautiful... (Strike that!)
But rationally speaking, Ruan Mei hasn't committed any truly heinous crimes in the Cosmos. She doesn't seem like the kind of mad scientist who'd do anything for an experiment...
Besides, even if something went wrong with her experiment on the Space Station, Herta and the others would cover for her. That's probably why Ruan Mei doesn't seem too concerned...
So, we can't blame her entirely, right? After all, she's really beautiful...
And so, with Ruan Mei's looks as the premise, Little Bear and most of the live stream viewers who initially felt uneasy about her quickly convinced themselves.
"Honored Father! Please accept this humble bow from your child!"
As the plot progressed, Dr. Ratio finally appeared on screen.
Seeing the man with the plaster head, playing chess against himself, Little Bear couldn't contain his excitement and shouted out.
Little Bear's cry of "Honored Father!" ignited a minor frenzy in the live stream's Comment Section.
A... father-son reunion climax...
[Honored Father! Please accept this humble bow from your child!]
[Honored Father! Please accept this humble bow from your child!]
[Honored Father! Please accept this humble bow from your child!]
For a moment, the Comment Section was flooded with this single, uniform phrase, perfectly synchronized.
It seemed Dr. Ratio's popularity, gained from giving away a free Limited 5-star character, was rapidly approaching Ruan Mei's level...
[Alright, alright, your Father has heard you. Rise, my child. (Smiles)]
[Sigh... Suddenly becoming the father of so many people... It's a little awkward...]
[Known: I am their Father, Lumina is their Mother... Therefore, it follows that Lumina is my wife! o( ̄▽ ̄)ブ]
Seeing so many comments claiming him as their father, someone inevitably started trolling.
However, these troll comments were quickly swallowed by the tidal wave of incoming replies, leaving no trace in the live stream...
"Who are you? How did you get here?"
In the game, Stelle gazed at the strange man before her, her voice filled with suspicion.
Hadn't Ruan Mei said that only authorized personnel could enter the Containment Zone? How could this man explain his presence?
A stowaway?
Hmm... He's even hiding his face. That fits the description of a sneaky stowaway perfectly...
Unlike the real-world players who knew about Dr. Ratio's free giveaway and the community's adoption of him as their honorary father, Stelle had no such context. Based on her first impression alone, she had already branded the man before her as a stowaway.
"Who I am and where I am—those details are unimportant," Dr. Ratio said, closing the book in his hand and tucking it away. He approached Stelle's side, his tone as calm and authoritative as a strict teacher.
"What matters is that with your current abilities, you cannot resolve... or rather, it would be exceedingly difficult to resolve that genius's masterpiece."
"Genius's masterpiece?" At these words, Stelle's mind seemed to shrink slightly, as if she couldn't quite grasp what the man before her was talking about.
"Did Ruan Mei send you here?"
But soon, Stelle's mind snapped back into focus, and her impression of Dr. Ratio improved slightly.
"No," Dr. Ratio replied, shaking his head with a flat tone.
As a scholar, Dr. Ratio's voice betrayed neither reverence nor admiration for the genius Ruan Mei.
"I know who you are and that you work for Ruan Mei."
"As for me? I'm merely a visitor to the Space Station who stumbled upon this place and witnessed her experiments firsthand."
"Our objectives align, more or less. Since you're here, I won't interfere."
Though he had no idea how this newcomer planned to stop an Emanator-level Swarm King, Dr. Ratio refrained from comment, knowing the Society had chosen this person.
While he didn't fully trust Ruan Mei or her handpicked candidate, Dr. Ratio had no other options.
Even if it was merely a simulation, the Swarm King was undeniably beyond his capacity to handle.
Otherwise, he would have added, "If no one stops it, I'll intervene forcefully to prevent unnecessary complications..."
But alas, Dr. Ratio lacked the means to contain this crisis.
Dismissing further speculation, he pointed to a nearby elevator and said to Stelle, "The true Ruan Mei's Creation lies hidden in the colossal culture tank below. Let's go. Take this elevator to witness a—masterpiece of genius."
Stelle glanced at Dr. Ratio, then at the direction he had pointed. A sudden, unsettling premonition surged within her.
"Aren't you coming with me?" she asked, her gaze fixed on Dr. Ratio, trying to pull him into the matter.
"This is Ruan Mei's task for you, not for me," Dr. Ratio replied, ignoring Stelle's attempt to involve him and turning to leave. "If I were to interfere prematurely, I might incur the displeasure of a genius..."
With a wave, Dr. Ratio vanished from her sight.
"Uh..." Stelle hesitated, wanting to call after him, but seeing how quickly he had departed, she swallowed the words that were about to escape her lips.
Gulp...
Stelle swallowed hard, forcibly suppressing the inexplicable emotions welling up within her. She stepped onto the elevator and rode it down to the lower levels.
No sooner had the elevator carried Stelle downward than Dr. Ratio reappeared at the entrance. He watched the descending elevator, his expression unreadable, as if lost in thought...