In the Beta Universe, somewhere in the Pacific Ocean, a large deep-sea fishing vessel drifted on the sea, accompanied by several civilian model yachts bobbing with the turbulent waves.

From outward appearances alone, any passerby witnessing this fleet would likely mistake them for a tourist group experiencing sea fishing.

However, the reality was quite the opposite.

Inside those tightly shut cabins, there were no tourists or fishing gear, only fully armed personnel.

On the deck outside the cabin, a gaunt man was leaning against the railing, smoking, his natural curls hanging limply to his ears, looking unkempt and sloppy.

His name was Phillip, a former CIA agent and currently the head of the Foreign Civilization Countermeasures Team.

Since the Great Virginia Blackout, although the CIA's abrupt actions were criticized by the authorities' top brass, it also made them fully aware of the threat posed by extraterrestrial civilizations, prompting the urgent establishment of the Foreign Civilization Countermeasures Team.

As the only agent who participated in the Wasteland OL investigation, Phillip was soon summoned by the top brass and appointed as the team leader of this group.

Faced with a hostile invasion from an alien civilization, this appointment was undoubtedly the highlight of Phillip's life.

All those bigwigs he'd only seen on TV at banquets were now lining up to shake his hand, not only treating him as an honored guest but also regarding him as the savior of human civilization—and he believed it himself, too.

However, the good times didn't last long.

Since the blackout incident, the alien civilization hiding behind Wasteland OL suddenly restrained its edge, even starting a "paid technology transfer" on forums outside the game.

Though termed as paid, it didn't involve paying the game operators but rather various economies paying to reclaim in-game currency from players, and then anonymously bidding on technological data not available on Earth through auctions.

This maneuver instantly drew all the forces that originally held suspicions about the "advanced alien civilizations" onto the "alien" chariot.

Especially when the Wall Street moguls discovered the astonishing market value behind Wasteland OL, they sent political lobbyists to persuade Congress, guiding public opinion to advocate for goodwill contact and some grand cosmic integration, ultimately succeeding in pressuring the authorities to change their previous tack in engagement strategies.

Thanks to this, his career also plummeted, with funding cuts one after another, and his means of travel decreasing from an aircraft carrier to a destroyer, and now to a fishing boat.

Unless one was a complete idiot or a vested interest knowingly playing dumb, no one would insist on such a pointless endeavor without considering the cost.

And now the work of the "Foreign Civilization Countermeasures Team" was becoming an utterly meaningless task.

No matter how vividly Phillip described the alien threat in Congress, and listed the seemingly plausible evidence he gathered from the public, the result was nothing more than putting the attendees at the conference table to sleep.

Wall Street's political lobbyists didn't even bother to work on him, as they felt it was hardly necessary.

These guys, who had long forgotten their initial panic and hailed him as humanity's last savior, now only saw him and his agents as jokes over tea.

Even worse was the guy who initially proposed forming the Foreign Civilization Countermeasures Team.

That esteemed top brass directly delivered him an ultimatum, giving him another four years.

Four years!

If he couldn't even locate where the alien civilization's spaceship was in four years, his department would be removed from the direct team and merged into NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

That sounded as if they wanted to strap him to a Voyager probe and shoot him out.

That's how things progressed.

To avoid being loaded onto the Voyager n probe and shot to the aliens as a greeting gift, he could only search like a mad dog, facing disdain from congressional figures while looking for traces left by Wasteland OL and the advanced civilization on Earth.

Fortunately, efforts do not betray those who persist.

In the last year of the four-year deadline, a slight turn of events finally emerged.

Based on anonymous information provided by a source claiming to be a "Beta Fission Body," he, after circling the Pacific Ocean, finally locked onto this area of the central Pacific beneath his feet.

It's said to be the landing spot of the advanced civilization spaceship.

A fishing boat witnessed its landing back then.

And the aliens aboard the spaceship silenced everyone on the deck to ensure no leaks.

Although the accuracy and source of this information were both highly suspicious, at this moment, he had no other options and could only come here with a try-it-and-see mentality.

Goodwill contact hypothesis…

What a joke.

Anyone fond of such nonsense can go on believing it; he's never going to buy it.

At least from Phillip's perspective, even if that so-called advanced civilization showed a bit of goodwill, allegedly benefiting various countries on Earth, it was all about fattening up humans for the slaughter.

Snuffing out the cigarette butt, he smashed it fiercely into the waves beyond the deck.

Wait and see!

His divers were searching along the seabed; any suspect remnants brought to the surface would be enough for him to pin the blame on those aliens!

He would prove himself!

He would uncover the conspiracy of that so-called advanced civilization and become humanity's real savior!

Just as Phillip was thinking this, the sea suddenly surged without warning.

Waves slapped the steel hull, causing the deck to sway like a swing.

Standing by the railing, Phillip lost his balance, and his lighter slipped from his hand to the deck.

"Shit—" he cursed under his breath, bending down to pick it up, but a sudden jolt of the heaving ship flipped him over completely.

Hearing the clatter on the deck, an agent leaning on the cabin door pushed the door open and came out, catching sight of Phillip sitting awkwardly on the ground, and quickly reached out to him.

"Leader? What happened?"

"Why... just a little accident,"

Grabbing the offered hand, Phillip, too embarrassed to admit he'd tripped, was about to stand up when he was startled speechless.

His gaze was fixed straight at the distant sea horizon, where a massive whale emerged from beneath the water.

No—

Not just one!

But many!

No——

That thing is not a whale at all! It's a gigantic, vertical cargo ship!

Layer upon layer of waves are pushed outward by the bullet-shaped hull, with the entire sea seeming to boil, churning with turbulent currents.

Staring dumbfounded at the steel structures emerging from the sea, Phillip was momentarily speechless.

Not only him—

The agent reaching out to him was the same, following his gaze to the sea, his mouth instantly stretched wide like a goose egg.

What the hell is that?!

A skyscraper?

A vertical aircraft carrier?

Atlantis?

Or... God?

"Is that... an extraterrestrial civilization... spaceship?" Leaning against the cabin door, the agent struggled to squeeze out the words as he watched the gigantic steel structure rise into the sky.

Upon hearing these words, Phillip's expression instantly shifted from shock to ecstatic.

Found it!

He found it!!!

"Camera! Point the camera at them! God... Can you see it?! That thing!! It's that thing!!! Evidence of extraterrestrial civilization—!"

He screamed in shock, filled with delight, shouting incoherently to the agents in the cabin.

Everyone thought this guy had gone mad.

But soon they realized, it wasn't just him that had gone mad, it was all of them.

"God... Is that really a ship from an advanced civilization?!"

"But wait, where are our satellites?! And the fleet and radar! How did they... land in this sea right under our noses?!"

"I want to know more what they intend to do..."

Faces looking up were marked with varied expressions, staring unmoving at the magnificent object ascending into the sky by some unknown power, like ants gazing at a god.

They had ultimately succeeded.

They successfully found the mastermind behind Wasteland OL, the ship from the advanced civilization manipulating everything from behind the scenes!

But then...

Now what?

Everyone from the extraterrestrial civilization task force stood silently in place, including the overly excited Phillip.

They had no doubt that the F22 was like a fly in front of such a thing.

The only suspense was whether a nuclear missile could make even a slight dent in that presumed stainless steel outer shell.

Maybe it could.

After all, even the most incredible technology cannot ignore physical laws.

Yet even so, no one suggested giving it a try, not even daring to entertain such a thought...

But no matter what, they still had things to do.

Not daring to waste a second, Phillip quickly rushed into the cabin, making a phone call to the nearest military base to the sea area, identifying himself and promptly reporting the situation.

"This is the extraterrestrial civilization task force! We've discovered a suspected extraterrestrial spaceship at coordinates... Please send a fleet to support immediately!"

An answer quickly came over the phone.

But to Phillip's anger, he heard the sound of someone chewing seeds on the other end.

Obviously.

His call had not reached the right person but was passed to an office clerk or security guard.

"Ok, extraterrestrial civilization task force... So you found an unidentified sunken ship near the seabed? How big a salvage ship do you need?"

Phillip roared angrily.

"It's a spaceship! How many times do I have to repeat, it's in the sky, and soon it will likely pass through the atmosphere!"

There was a brief silence on the other end, suddenly followed by suppressed laughter.

Phillip's face flushed red, yelling angrily.

"I'm telling the truth! I've preserved footage! And such a big target, can't you scan it with radar—"

"Alright, extraterrestrial civilization task force, our radar doesn't seem to have malfunctioned. In that sea area, it's just you... of course, maybe there's a few seagulls, but we haven't seen any alien spaceship."

Phillip used all his strength to roar.

"Then send out an early warning aircraft! You expect that crappy radar to see something over thousands of kilometers!"

The call was directly hung up.

The person on the other end probably thought he was being unreasonable.

But Phillip knew, they would all regret not believing him... because soon the whole world would be shocked by that hunk of metal.

Even if the radar can't see it, such a huge spaceship surely can't be hidden.

The topic of extraterrestrial civilization currently discussions on the internet only second to Wasteland OL.

Astronomy enthusiasts worldwide kept telescopes pointed at space twenty-four hours a day.

Slamming the walkie-talkie back onto the console, Phillip cursed excitedly and fearfully.

"Damn! It's actually the real deal..."

As for what to do next, he'll need some time to think about it...

...

Although they spent a whole year circling the Pacific in vain, Phillip and his subordinates eventually managed to chase down the dream they had been desperately pursuing.

Not even 24 hours later!

Later on the day they returned to the port, that enormous spacecraft made headlines across major global media at an astonishing speed!

The streamlined shell and the massive ship body surpassed any rocket ever launched by humanity.

And that's not all!

Its launch principle equally astounded everyone's eyes!

It seemed not to be propelled by burning chemical fuel but rather floated to the sky like a hot air balloon under the thrust of a plasma plume.

Gravity seemed to lose its effect on it!

If it weren't for the fact that the unit providing the image materials had an official background from the Extraterrestrial Civilization Countermeasures Group, people might even suspect it was game CG or computer-generated footage!

It wasn't just the aerospace industry that was impacted; even the physics community, recently exhilarated by breakthroughs in controlled fusion technology, was shocked by that incredible scene!

[Shocked! Massive unidentified flying objects over the Indian Ocean sky!]

[Suspected showdown! Mystery MMORPG game 'Wasteland OL' mastermind revealed!]

[War or peace?! Unidentified flying object spotted in the atmosphere!]

[On the brink! Multinational carrier battle groups head to the Pacific region for joint reconnaissance!]

[The International Space Station publishes observation information, unidentified flying objects assembling in geosynchronous orbit!]

[Former CIA agent and head of the 'Extraterrestrial Civilization Countermeasures Group' Phillip in an interview claims to have found crucial evidence of extraterrestrial civilization's invasion of Earth!]

[U.S. authorities urgently issue a statement clarifying that the Extraterrestrial Civilization Countermeasures Group is a private organization and its statements do not represent the official stance!]

[Heading for Mars?! Higher civilization spaceship suspected to have left the Earth-Moon system on course towards Mars!]

[Search teams from various countries gather in the central Pacific, more detailed clues under investigation...]

[...]

For a full three days, Earth's internet was flooded with that mysterious spaceship.

Aside from the official site's calm announcements regarding the game and public beta news, almost any site you clicked on would feature the enormous starship and the latest news about it.

However, while the official site of 'Wasteland OL' remained tranquil, the players in the forums couldn't stay calm.

Even though the identity of that spaceship seemed no more extravagant than the Alliance's near-Earth orbit defense platform, and far smaller than the Orion Missile Cruiser, its appearance in reality still gave them a sense of the game coming to life.

Tail: "Giao... Is Ah Guang really an alien?! (shocked)"

Meat mountain big steamed bun: "Wait, if Wasteland OL is really run by aliens, what does that make us? (terrified)"

Si Si: "Research subjects? Or diplomatic personnel? Emmm... I feel like things aren't that simple."

Tail: "Oh! Tail thinks so too!"

Ao Ao Sesame Paste: "Hmm... No matter what the spaceship is, I feel like it hasn't shown any malice?"

Spring Water Commander: "Yes, the most concerning part is right there; we know nothing about them, whereas they seem to know everything about us."

Night Ten: "Uh, do you think there's a possibility... they might actually be us from the future?"

Si Si: "Oh? Did you sense something with your spiritual energy?"

Night Ten: "Not really, just my intuition..."

Tail: "Oh! The intuition of a sensory expert? Maybe it really is so!"

Fang Chang: "Hmm... This possibility can't be ruled out, though it does sound a bit far-fetched."

Quit smoking: "But what's their reason for doing this? I don't get it. Alter the past to change the future? Can that really be done? (stunned)"

Fang Chang: "Who knows, maybe just as you said, they are influencing us to avoid the arrival of the Wasteland Era."

Night Ten: "Goodness... Don't be a doomsayer; I don't want to go to the wasteland in the flesh."

Fang Chang: "Why a doomsayer? Maybe they have already found a way to avert the Wasteland Era and the plan has succeeded? In that case, maybe the Wasteland Era no longer exists on our timeline. (side-eye smirk)"

Thinking this way might be too optimistic, but different circumstances in different worlds clearly can't be generalized.

Edge Shoveling: "Through the game... Feels a bit too rash, isn't there a better method?"

Fang Chang: "Maybe the better methods have already been attempted, and this is the best arrangement after countless tries."

Fang Chang: "As for the better and less abrupt method you mentioned, maybe it exists. But the possibilities beyond time are known only to those beyond time."

"..."

...

Discussions on the official forum continued, and speculation about the operators behind 'Wasteland OL' became the hottest topic on the forum.

Chu Guang never imagined that just when he was planning to pull a big stunt on the public beta day, the 'Beta Fission Body' actually pre-empted him with a big news event.

Should he say, as expected of another me?

The things he thought of, the 'other self' far in the Beta Universe not only thought of it too but also did it for him.

Shelter No. 404, B5 floor.

Sitting in his office chair, Chu Guang finally met the Doctor Principle from the Beta Universe through the room's large screen.

Strictly speaking, this was the first face-to-face communication between the two.

And the 'Principle' standing behind the screen was much younger than the man he saw in the holographic image.

"Pleasure to meet you."

Although he had many questions, Chu Guang didn't immediately throw them out but first politely greeted.

The Doctor Principle on the screen nodded slightly and, with a tinge of respect in his voice, said.

"The pleasure is mine, esteemed... Manager."

"No need to be so formal, please sit down and let's talk." Chu Guang said in a kindly tone.

Principle nodded and seated himself naturally in the chair behind him.

The location he was in at the moment should be Shelter 404-Beta—the underwater refuge located in the trench on the western side of the Pacific Ocean.

"Before we start our conversation, I would like to first apologize to you... The deployment of that spaceship had already been decided by the Professor before the conclusion of the Shelter 404 project. We deeply regret the public uproar it caused and the impact on your work."

Looking at Doctor Principle, who was sincerely apologizing, Chu Guang smiled warmly and said.

"There's no need to feel responsible, that was his decision, and it has nothing to do with you. To be honest, although his actions caught me a bit off guard and sudden, I had planned to face the people of the Beta Universe publicly during the open beta phase back six months ago... It's just been brought forward six months. We both thought of the same thing, I can only say it's no surprise he is 'another me.'"

Thinking a little, he found it not difficult to guess the real intention of the "Beta Fission Body."

Though that guy inherited all of the Professor's memories and the mission to save human civilization in the Alpha Universe, he was utilizing a body that originated in the Beta Universe.

And precisely because of this, he still had feelings for the Beta Universe, possibly understanding, just like himself, that he wasn't truly the "Professor," but also a new beginning.

Based on this underlying logic, although he would unabashedly exploit the resources of the Beta Universe, he could not genuinely "use and discard" the people of the Beta Universe.

Therefore, before leaving Earth, he did one last thing for the people living on that planet—

That was to publicly reveal the existence of advanced civilizations, turning the previously unspoken rules into explicit truths that cannot be contested!

This was essentially an open trick.

After completing this task, whether the "Alpha Copy," who inherited Shelter 404—also himself—continued to package the operator behind the game's scenes as a deity-like high civilization or revealed the existence of Morphogenesis Fields and the AB Universe Theory, he was able to dialogue with the people of the Beta Universe openly.

Or, responding positively to the goodwill that the latter had already expressed, at least in a neutral standing—

If he wished to continue the Shelter 404 project and draw upon the power of consciousness entities from another universe.

Unexpectedly, that guy had made preparations against him before leaving, and Chu Guang earnestly examined his actions.

Perhaps the impression he had consistently left on the "Beta Fission Body" was overly scheming, causing the latter to have little faith in him, prompting such a cautious decision.

It was entirely unnecessary.

Because this was his plan all along— even after the end of the Shelter 404 project, the Alliance he represented would still maintain friendly or better interactions with the people living in the Beta Universe, even facing potential future crises together.

As both the Manager and game planner, he understood more clearly than anyone that the players of "Wasteland OL" and the "NPCs" had always impacted each other, never was it just the former influencing the latter.

The fate of the former also quietly changed!

Although people living in the two different universes could not touch each other directly, under the effect of the resonance field, the fates of the two universes had long been tied together.

If that guy could think of it, how could he not think of it?

Seeing the serious expression on Doctor Principle's face, Chu Guang paused for a moment and continued.

"Actually, I wanted to talk to you mainly about two things. One is about the open beta of 'Wasteland OL'... I plan to set up a local server in the Beta Universe to accommodate open beta players."

"A local server?" Doctor Principle was taken aback, not understanding Chu Guang's meaning for a moment.

"Yes, not based on Morphogenesis Field theory, but in the traditional sense of online games..."

Chu Guang nodded and laid out the plan he had thought of half a year ago to Doctor Principle.

"I plan to write our story into the program, presenting it in a form closer to the ninth art. Without needing to rely on Morphogenesis Field technology to establish a connection, the production and deployment of related devices will be easier, and could even be outsourced to other manufacturing companies for production."

"In this way, not only will the issue of insufficient production capacity be resolved, but it will also compensate new players for any regrets about missing expansion packs."

Doctor Principle was surprised.

"...And what about the closed beta players?"

Chu Guang smiled faintly.

"Still the same as before, including the distribution of closed beta qualifications and helmets, as the updates for the official servers rely on them... think of it as a test server."

Doctor Principle: "I see... a parallel Plan B on the basis of the Shelter 404 project, is that your intent?"

"It's good that you can understand, I'll pass on more plan details via Xiao Qi."

Seeing the now brighter eyes of Principle, Chu Guang smiled and continued with a gentle tone.

"The second matter is your future plans, whether to return or stay there... Have you made a decision?"

Without much hesitation, Doctor Principle remained silent for a moment before stating affirmatively.

"I want to stay here."

Unsurprised by his final choice, Chu Guang nodded decisively.

"Is that so? Approved."

Doctor Principle looked at him somewhat unexpectedly.

"Aren't you going to ask for the reason?"

Chu Guang shook his head with a smile.

"No need to ask, there's no need, I can roughly guess it."

Coming together as one, or becoming each other's past and continuation... it's not only his choice to face.

In fact, the moment this guy appeared on the other side of the screen, he already knew his choice.

They both made the same choice.

Relaxing his tightened shoulders, Doctor Principle said with a sense of relief.

"Is that so? Well... as expected of you."

In his mind, there was nothing this respectable gentleman couldn't achieve.

"I think you shouldn't think of me as too omnipotent. After all, I've failed 776 times."

Cracking a joke with a teasing tone, Chu Guang restrained his playful expression and looked seriously at the Principle on the screen, solemnly saying.

"From today onwards, you are the Manager of Shelter 404-Beta. You will act as the 'Alpha Universe Ambassador to the Beta Universe,' taking over the Professor's role, serving as a bridge between the two universes, and report directly to me!"

"I'll provide you with the data for the open beta version of 'Wasteland OL,' and the operation and maintenance tasks will be entrusted to you!"