Chapter 30: Stillness

Jiang Hui was becoming increasingly agitated. She had been trapped in this strange space for far too long. She had spent a great deal of time exploring, sleeping, deciphering some of the space's properties, and even cooking a meal, yet she still could not find a way out or wake up.

She began to wonder if she would be stuck here for the rest of her life. Helpless and out of ideas, she had exhausted every trick she could think of. After she manifested yet another tablet that looked like an iPad but lacked any playback functionality, Jiang Hui finally noticed something. Everything in this space, with the exception of the mutated computer and herself, remained static unless she actively interacted with it. There was no air conditioning or heating, no fluctuation in temperature, and no sound whatsoever. Actually, that wasn't entirely true; she had just discovered a single exception among the myriad of objects.

In a space where televisions wouldn't turn on and sand in an hourglass wouldn't fall unless she shook it, there was one thing that moved. Jiang Hui finally realized that the clock was ticking. She walked over to the wall where the clock hung, looked up, and saw the second and minute hands moving forward. It was bizarre. This object felt completely out of place in a room where even time seemed to have no meaning.

Instinct told her there was something wrong here. She stood there, head tilted, watching the second hand tick away. It was actually moving. Seeing the time frozen at 7:53, she mentally calculated the time she had spent struggling in this void; although she had no precise way to track it, she knew it had been at least seven or eight hours. Could this be the time she had spent in this space?

But what was the point of it? Jiang Hui was baffled. What use was a measuring tool if she was destined to be trapped here, watching the days tick by? That would only add to her misery.

At this thought, Jiang Hui felt a sense of listlessness wash over her, and she lost all desire to investigate this new discovery. The greatest enemy of mankind truly was loneliness. She recalled stories of foreigners participating in experiments where they were paid a fortune to stay in isolation for as long as possible. Back home, netizens from the Huachao Kingdom used to joke that they could stay until the researchers went bankrupt. Jiang Hui had been one of them, thinking that even without the internet, as long as she had books or a Rubik's cube, she could endure it for the money. She never imagined that when it was her turn, she wouldn't even be able to last half a day. Well, she had to defend herself—this space was particularly cruel, as even a book had to be summoned from her own memory.

If she couldn't even handle half a day, how would she survive if this dragged on indefinitely? Wouldn't she go insane on the spot? Her anxiety mounted. She paced the room, her mind spiraling into chaotic thoughts, until she finally forced herself to give up on deep analysis.

"Sleep," she thought. "That must be it." She had arrived here while unconscious, so perhaps sleep was the key to leaving. Perhaps she just lacked the proper method for exiting, so she would try sleeping once more. With that, she went back to her room, collapsed onto the large bed, and decided to have a deep "discussion" with the God of Dreams, hoping he would send her back to reality. She was sick of this wasted time; she had never realized how painful it was to have absolutely nothing to do.

Vowing that she would cherish every minute if she ever got out, she drifted off into a dream-filled slumber amidst her tangled thoughts. Day was hardly an ideal time for sleep, but given the physical and mental stress she was under, Jiang Hui fell into a deep, restless sleep plagued by nightmares—hallucinatory, bizarre scenes of being chased by unknown shadows. She drifted in and out of consciousness, waking up in a haze, unsure of the time.

When she finally woke and saw the familiar ceiling, her heart sank. She felt a profound sense of hopelessness. How was she still here? She had slept twice now, yet she still had no clue how to leave.

Frustrated, she ruffled her hair, jumped out of bed, and returned to the living room. It remained exactly the same, unchanged. However, the clock had moved forward significantly, now reading 4:45.

It seemed she had slept for quite a while—nearly nine hours. Perhaps due to the deep, heavy sleep, her mind felt sluggish, and her anxiety had dulled, replaced by a deep, weary exhaustion. She sat in the living room for a while, and feeling parched, she went to the kitchen for a glass of water. Whether it was psychological or not, the cool, refreshing water cleared her head, though her overall state remained weary.

Hunger began to set in, and having no other options, Jiang Hui decided to occupy herself to keep her mind from wandering into darker places. She opened the refrigerator, took out some meat from the freezer and fresh produce from the zero-degree compartment, and set her heart on preparing a feast to comfort her traumatized soul.

Jiang Hui was no culinary expert; like most office workers, her skills were limited to instant meals. However, she could handle basic ingredients. She decided to make hot pot, the most diverse dish that required the least amount of technique. It was a fitting comfort for a lonely person; this was the unique way Jiang Hui, a native of the Blue Star, chose to relieve stress.

She soon became immersed in preparing the ingredients, and having something to do made her feel less depressed. She remembered there were beef balls in the fridge, so she opened the compartments, searching through her memory to find them.

When she opened the first drawer, she paused. She realized that the beef and chicken she had just taken out had been "refilled." It was exactly as it had been before—reset to its original state, not a single piece more or less.

Jiang Hui stood frozen. Refusing to believe it, she opened the second drawer. Sure enough, everything she had taken from there had also been restored. The zero-degree compartment had been almost empty before, but now, upon opening it, everything was back, down to the last item.