When she opened her eyes again, she found herself in a conference room. A deep blue virtual projection screen flickered with a ghostly blue light above a crimson mahogany meeting table, and wisps of misty blue particles slowly gathered, forming the figure of a young girl.

"Hello, unidentified visitor. I am the artificial intelligence Eva of Oasis. If you need any assistance, please issue a command."

The girl had ethereal, dark gray long hair that floated in the air, with misty blue particles adorning her strands like stars, and her wine-colored eyes glimmered as though they could see through the essence of everything.

Xu Xiaoyou chuckled lightly, "Could it be that you can grant me the privilege of moving freely in Oasis?"

"The permissions for the unidentified visitor have been unlocked."

Xu Xiaoyou was stunned. Before she could react, a red error message popped up.

"An unexpected error has occurred. Unknown error. Permissions for the unidentified visitor have been revoked."

"I'm sorry, I can't do that," Eva said in a calm tone. "If you have any other requests, I can assist you."

Xu Xiaoyou spread her hands, thinking that this artificial intelligence didn't have much authority after all.

"A glass of grape juice," Xu Xiaoyou said while gesturing.

Eva slightly closed her eyes, and in the blink of an eye, a chilled glass of grape juice appeared on the meeting table in front of Xu Xiaoyou, with frost forming on the rim and ice cubes clinking refreshingly inside.

She nodded, picked up the grape juice, and then stood to look around the room. She was the only one there at the moment. She walked to the window, and the reflection in the glass gradually formed into her face no longer pixelated, with her features becoming clearer.

Beside the gray patterned curtains was a potted plant, its foliage neglected and wilting, but as she approached, it perked up, its budding head rising, and its tender green leaves, like baby arms, reached out to wrap around her finger.

"Hugging Little Flower of 'Genius Little Goldfish'."

"Health Value: 13."

"Mood: Extremely down."

"Needs: Watering, soil replacement, freedom."

Xu Xiaoyou looked at the time; it wasn't yet three in the afternoon. She hadn't expected to be the first S-level specialist to arrive.

Xu Xiaoyou's eyes remained calm. She didn't believe that those evaluated as S-level wouldn't have any concept of time. It was more likely that they also disregarded this so-called S-level specialist meeting.

To be accurate, they disregarded her.

Though she never intended to get on good terms with the other S-level specialists, her purpose for coming was merely to brush off that Diamond 9 and quell the company's nuisance about her.

She never believed that companies that mastered core technology, eager to exploit public resources, and ruthless as they were would genuinely invest in nurturing so-called S-level specialists. It was all driven by profit.

As long as one is submerged in the company's mire, they are destined to sink deeper. When their displayed value doesn't match the company's investment, the greedy beast will rip off its false pretense, and all benefits obtained from the company will have to be repaid doubly.

When you stare into the abyss, the abyss stares back at you.

She decided that when those S-level specialists appeared, she'd tarnish their first impression of her as quickly as possible. Thinking this, Xu Xiaoyou smirked slightly, a watering can appeared in her hand, and she leaned over to water the Hugging Little Flower.

The Hugging Little Flower, upon receiving water, lazily stretched out, looking utterly content, and its lovely blossom displayed a personified smile.

The smile lingered briefly before freezing, as it looked at the malicious face drawn close, the blonde girl with an inscrutable smile. Hugging Little Flower trembled slightly with its tender body.

"I'm going to teach you a lesson: all benefits received from others come at a cost."

Xu Xiaoyou said as she reached for the Hugging Little Flower's leaf, plucked it, and put it in her mouth.

A sweet fragrance spread across her lips and teeth.

Hugging Little Flower looked at her with a woeful expression.

Xu Xiaoyou was indifferent, pulling the curtains open with a swift motion.

The vibrant cityscape was reflected in her eyes; amidst the towering skyscrapers, countless luxury advertisements flashed, and various guild airships drifted leisurely through the city. Strange designs, like golden glass beads, moved within the set city circuits. It was the transportation for the people of Oasis City.

Various lights cast down from those airships and billboards, painting the entire city like a nocturnal metropolis. Under the golden night sky, everyone in the city appeared as gentile party guests, with neatly pressed suits and impeccably straight ties.

In this city, it seemed as if everyone wore masks, presenting themselves with identities and faces different from the real world. However, here people shed their masks, liberated their hearts, and let go of all burdens and constraints, intoxicated and reveling in a golden dream.

But from this inconspicuous little room in the building, one could only glimpse a corner of the city. In the distant view, the varying heights of buildings turned into silent gray shadows at the horizon's end.

"Oasis City."

Her eyes reflected the city, and she slowly closed the curtains, letting the room return to tranquility, seemingly isolating the bustling dream city outside into another world.

She looked again at the Hugging Little Flower, which also looked back at her with a mournful face.

This kind of flower had been extinct for hundreds of years, and it could only be seen in Oasis.

She tried to open the door of the room, but the red message box appeared in front of her again, stating she still had no permission.

At this moment, Xu Xiaoyou turned around and noticed that the artificial intelligence named Eva had its gaze fixed on her all this time, its calm eyes not revealing what it might be pondering.

She returned to her seat, and information about Eva popped up.

"Artificial Intelligence: Eva."

"Affiliation: Order Court."

"Faction: Absolutely Neutral."

"Health Value: ∞."

"Mood: Calm."

"When troubled by something, you can try requesting help from Eva. Eva will assist you as long as it doesn't violate the 'Order Act'."

"This NPC was added half a month ago, hearts brightened: 499,964."

"Anonymous Dreamer Review: Eva, my goddess! Since adding this NPC, everything's become so much more convenient, making the Dreamer journey experience skyrocket—is there anything Eva can't do?—110,000 people agree."

"Anonymous Orderer Review: Eva is so cute. — 60,000 people agree."

"Anonymous Sinner Review: I saw Eva smile at me, she must have only ever smiled at me, right? — 230,000 people disagree."

Below the reviews.

"Caused by hallucination from staying too long in Sin Capital.—200,000 people agree."

Reading these evaluations from different factions in Oasis about Eva, Xu Xiaoyou found it quite interesting. Just as she looked up at the gray-haired girl in front of her, wanting to take a closer look at her again, the scene she saw made her slightly dazed.

The gray-haired girl's lips imperceptibly lifted into a smile, and there was a twinkle in her cool, red eyes, with that perpetually unchanged, ice-like face unexpectedly altered.

Was Eva smiling at her?