The Genius Game - Chapter 8

Qin Man said, “But his is a special case…”

The clown replied, “That’s beyond my control. I’m just a referee.”

Qin Man was worried because she didn’t know whether the item her son had obtained would have a positive or negative effect.

If it were positive, that would be one thing, but if it were negative, like an explosive device, and Qu Chen couldn’t explain it, there could be danger.

However, the clown refused to divulge anything, and there was nothing Qin Man could do.

Li Chuxia asked the clown, “Can we leave now?”

The clown said, “Before you go, there’s one more thing I can give you.”

Suddenly, a transparent glass sphere appeared in mid-air. Though not large, it was intricately detailed, containing buildings, roads, cars, rivers, mountains, and many tiny people.

Moreover, the rivers, cars, and little figures inside were all moving.

The glass sphere grew larger, gradually revealing more details: some of the tiny people were cooking, some were driving, some were playing in open spaces, and others were farming.

These figures included men and women, young and old, each with distinct appearances.

If this were a toy, it would be far too intricate.

Jian Tanxi asked, “What is this?”

The clown said, “This is an eco-sphere. Inside are one hundred thousand Earthlings.”

The clown’s words startled everyone.

Li Chuxia said, “How is that possible? These people are so small…”

The clown replied, “The eco-sphere is actually quite large, but it can shrink. When it shrinks, everything and everyone inside scales down proportionally, but the people themselves don’t notice.”

Qin Man asked, “Are you saying that the missing people are all inside this eco-sphere?”

The clown said, “Exactly. This is one of our Hogg people’s great inventions. This eco-sphere is like a miniature planet, and the people living inside experience no discomfort, it’s just like living on their own planet.”

Jian Tanxi caught a clue in the clown’s words: “So, you’re aliens? Your planet is called Hogg? Why have you come to Earth and put most Earthlings into this eco-sphere?”

The clown said, “Dear child, you ask too many questions. I cannot comment on these matters. Does anyone want this eco-sphere?”

Jian Tanxi asked, “You mean we can take these one hundred thousand Earthlings with us?”

The clown replied, “That’s right.”

Li Chuxia said, “This eco-sphere must be very heavy, right? Even if we wanted to take it, we couldn’t carry it.”

The clown said, “No, our Hogg people’s high-tech products are advanced enough to negate gravity. I assure you, holding this eco-sphere in your hand will feel weightless. Moreover, you can make it grow or shrink as you wish.”

Jian Tanxi said, “Let me try.”

She reached out to touch the eco-sphere, and the clown did not stop her.

Soon, the eco-sphere was in her hand.

She tried speaking to the people inside: “Are you Earthlings?”

The people in the eco-sphere looked up at the sky, somewhat panicked.

Their voices were chaotic and mixed, but could roughly be divided into two types.

One group asked, “Who’s speaking? Is it the aliens?”

The other group answered, “Yes, we are Earthlings.”

The clamor of a hundred thousand people speaking at once was chaotic. However, this ecosphere seemed to have a volume-reducing function, so the voices Jian Tanxi and the others heard were not particularly loud.

Jian Tanxi was a bit frightened and let go, causing the ecosphere to float back into the air.

The clown explained, “The people inside the ecosphere can’t see those outside, they can only hear your voices. That’s why they mistook you for aliens.”

Jian Tanxi asked, “Then why didn’t they speak earlier? Why did they only hear me now?”

The clown replied, “Only when your hand touches the ecosphere can those inside hear your voice.”

Jian Tanxi pressed further, “How do I release them?”

“No comment.”

Jian Tanxi frowned, “What do you mean? You’ve locked them up, are you planning to keep them imprisoned forever?”

“No comment. All I can say is that even if these hundred thousand people spend their entire lives inside the ecosphere, they can live quite comfortably. The resources inside are abundant and more than sufficient for their needs. You can choose to take it with you or leave it behind.”

Huo Zimu asked, “What are the benefits of taking this ecosphere?”

The clown responded, “Benefits? The benefit is that you’ll own an ecosphere with a hundred thousand people inside.”

Huo Zimu pressed, “And what else?”

“I’ve given you a hundred thousand living people, what more could you want?”

“If I keep this ecosphere, shouldn’t you reward me?”

“This ecosphere is the reward. What more do you want? Being too greedy isn’t a good thing, you know.”

Huo Zimu pondered, seemingly weighing whether taking the ecosphere was worth it.

Jian Tanxi felt that they certainly couldn’t leave these hundred thousand people in the hands of aliens, the ecosphere had to be taken. The only question was how to store it.

So, Jian Tanxi asked, “If I take it, do I have to carry it in my hand all the time? Or can I hide it in a bag? If it’s in a bag, will the people inside lose sunlight?”

The clown reassured, “No need to worry. Whoever takes the ecosphere will receive a personal storage space. This space can store the ecosphere and some special items, but it can’t hold ordinary supplies like food and water.”

“Normally, you can keep the ecosphere hidden in your personal storage space without any impact on yourself. When you want to observe the people inside, just take it out and look.”

Jian Tanxi inquired, “What kind of special items can the personal storage space hold?”

The clown replied mysteriously, “That’s confidential. You’ll find out when the time comes.”

Li Chuxia declared, “I’m willing to take this ecosphere.”

Qin Man and Zhang Dayong also said, “Give the ecosphere to us.”

The clown clarified, “There’s a priority system for the ecosphere. Jian Tanxi contributed the most to clearing the game. If she wants the ecosphere, the others will have to yield to her.”

Jian Tanxi stated firmly, “I’ll take it.”

The clown confirmed, “Are you sure? Once you take it, there’s no turning back.”

“I won’t regret it.”

“Alright, loading your personal storage space now.”

A white halo appeared above Jian Tanxi’s head.

The clown explained, “Place the ecosphere into the white halo, and your personal storage space will store it for you. When you want to retrieve items from it, just silently think ‘personal storage space,’ and it will open.”

Jian Tanxi took the ecosphere and placed it into the white halo.

Soon, the white halo vanished, and the ecosphere disappeared along with it.

But Jian Tanxi could sense that the ecological sphere was already inside her space.

Li Chuxia and the others were overjoyed.

Li Chuxia said to Jian Tanxi, “Sister Tanxi, this is amazing! We’ve saved a hundred thousand people!”

Jian Tanxi replied, “Mm, but I don’t know how to release them yet.”

Qin Man said, “It’s alright. Let’s take them with us for now. Sooner or later, we’ll find a way to free them.”

Zhang Dayong asked, “Jian Tanxi, do you feel like your head is heavy?”

Jian Tanxi shook her head. “No, I don’t feel the weight of the ecological sphere at all. It really doesn’t affect me.”

“That’s great.”

The clown paper bent over and bowed like a gentleman, then announced, “The ‘No Starvation’ game has been cleared. All players, the teleportation channel is now open.”

Jian Tanxi felt her vision go dark, and then she felt as though she were moving at high speed. But everything around her was pitch black, she couldn’t see where she was at all.

A few minutes later, she arrived at an unfamiliar place.

Judging by the surroundings, it was an unfamiliar residential area.

The area had a pleasant environment, resembling a park, and it seemed like an upscale neighborhood.

However, there were hardly any people around.

None of her teammates from the game were there.

Perhaps the teleportation channel had sent everyone to different locations.

Jian Tanxi suddenly felt very lonely.

She shouted into the surroundings, “Li Chuxia! Uncle Zhang Dayong! Sister Qin Man! Qu Chen! Are you there?”

After calling out several times, there was no response.

Jian Tanxi could confirm that they were indeed not in the same place.

She felt a bit helpless, unsure of what to do next.

Maybe she was the only living person nearby.

She now had several questions:

First, aside from the seven of them, were there others forced to participate in the game?

Second, her ecological sphere only contained a hundred thousand people. Where were the rest of the humans? If, as the clown had said, all the vanished humans were inside ecological spheres, where were the other spheres?

Did they have to keep participating in such games to collect the other ecological spheres?

Third, why did the aliens imprison humans in ecological spheres? If they wanted to invade Earth, why not just kill all the humans?

Or, if they could lock all humans away, why leave some behind to participate in the games?

What benefit did the aliens gain from this?

Jian Tanxi couldn’t figure out the answers to these questions.

She had originally thought that after leaving the game, she could discuss these issues with her teammates.

But who would have known they’d be separated? She didn’t even know if they would ever meet again.

The only thing she could be sure of now was that the aliens had no immediate intention of killing them.

The vanished humans were alive inside the ecological spheres, and there was a way for game participants to cooperate and win together without having to kill each other.

Jian Tanxi decided to find a place to settle down first.

She wandered around the residential area and soon found a household with an unlocked door.

There was no one in this home either. The floor was a bit messy, a broom had fallen over, and there was some trash in the dustpan.

It seemed that someone had been in the middle of sweeping when they suddenly vanished, which was why the broom had fallen.

The home was on the third floor, a good location, not too high, not too low, suitable for Jian Tanxi to stay in temporarily.

If the floor was too high, climbing the stairs would be inconvenient for her; if she lived on the first or second floor, it would be harder to escape in case of danger.

The third floor was just right.

She tested it, there was no electricity now, so the elevator couldn’t be used.

Fortunately, the gas and water were still functioning normally.

Jian Tanxi decided to make herself a meal first.

She wasn’t sure when she would be pulled back into the game, so she needed to eat her fill while she was still outside.

Her physical stamina had been enhanced, one meal could sustain her for ten days without hunger.

She walked into the kitchen and caught a foul smell.