Ren Suo's legs buckled, and he collapsed like a deflated balloon, devoid of strength and nearly kneeling.
The terrifying truth drenched the tiles under his feet and the adjacent walls. It permeated the mirror opposite him. Even the toilet seemed to possess the power to capture souls, and the urinal looked as though it could spray acid at any moment. The dripping sound from the tap seemed like the final toll of a bell before the apocalypse.
No, no... That's impossible!
Retreating, Ren Suo shook his head, trying to banish the absurd thought from his mind.
My life is not a game!
As he reached the bathroom door, Ren Suo suddenly realized—he had nowhere to run!
"Impossible," Ren Suo murmured weakly, like a castrated old dog, shaking his head in a futile attempt to deny the cruel reality. "If it's true, then I must be in danger!"
His heart pounded violently. He shivered and looked up at the ceiling.
The bathroom ceiling was covered with decorative panels, white with black lines that mingled and intertwined. They reminded him of the sensation of numbness one's legs develop after squatting on the toilet for too long—countless black lines chaotically vibrating within the calves.
Yet, Ren Suo's gaze seemed to penetrate the ceiling, looking toward some supreme, grand existence.
Because at that moment, Ren Suo felt as though his body was trying to escape his control!
It was a bizarre experience. If he had to describe it, Ren Suo felt the sensation was similar to the disordered pattern on the ceiling—a tingling, weakening numbness was invading his entire body, his limbs, his tongue, and his neck.
Anyone who has experienced limb numbness knows it's incredibly difficult to move, as biological nerve feedback compels one to obey the 'body's' commands, allowing the 'body' to recover before moving again.
But normally, limb numbness is just due to poor blood circulation and resolves after a short while.
Ren Suo tried to raise his hand—it was excruciating, as if ten thousand ants were burrowing through his arm, causing an aching, numbing, and very heavy sensation. He was sure this wasn't a circulation issue, but rather the result of some mysterious force from the East acting upon him!
The absurd hypothesis in his mind seemed to be the cruel reality!
The protagonist of "My Life is Not Your Game," that weak, disobedient game character with its own thoughts, the Rebel, was none other than himself, Ren Suo!
Wait a minute. Ren Suo's thoughts raced: Is there a possibility of negotiating? Hmm...
Stay calm. If I'm indeed in a game, then I should be able to communicate with myself as the Player, right?
After all, it's still me. By appealing to my own emotions and reason, offering enticements, and making threats, I'm confident I can convince my past self to put down the controller, delete this damned game, and restore my freedom...
However, Ren Suo soon remembered something, and his face turned pale.
Everything is beyond redemption!
Ren Suo screamed inwardly—He had already uploaded the game!
Turning a game into reality involved two steps: first, clearing the game; second, the game unfolding.
The first step was to be completed by Ren Suo, the Player. The second step, however, had nothing to do with him. This was because the game unfolded in reality, powered by the Mini-World Game Console's mysterious, potent, and omnipotent force of Destiny, along with the various game characters who pushed the story forward.
Simply put, Ren Suo was like a Scriptwriter, merely providing beautiful yet cruel scripts. But the director who brought actors and stages together to present these stories realistically to the audience was the Mini-World Game Console!
Before, Ren Suo was just an ordinary Scriptwriter, watching play after play unfold without being able to participate.
But now, Ren Suo had become an actor in this play, and he too could only watch as the performance continued, unable to escape.
The idea of "threatening his past self" was also pointless because the game had been uploaded. The one mastering the game's progress was no longer Player Ren Suo, but the mysterious force of the Mini-World Game Console!
Wait. Ren Suo suddenly thought of a question.
Undoubtedly, the "My Life is Not Your Game" I played was my own future.
So, why hadn't the future me in the game sent a warning?
If he had sent a warning, I would definitely have treated him well. I would even have been willing to give up the game rather than let myself become an actor on stage! Fresh chapters posted on novelꞁire.net
Could it be that the Mini-World Game Console, to keep me playing without realizing it was my future, deliberately blocked the Rebel's warning alerts?
Ren Suo turned slightly and looked at himself in the mirror: handsome, charming, captivating, dressed in a suit that perfectly accentuated his well-built figure...
Ren Suo was suddenly jolted. Right, this is reality, a modern era with running water and electricity.
But the scenes in the game depicted a fantasy world!
And the main character, the Rebel, acted like an old man suffering from second adolescence, never speaking coherently.
Never speaking coherently... Not speaking coherently... Coherently...
"I shall rebel against the handsome and majestic Supreme Overlord. Supreme Overlord, remember this: for every pleasure that Destiny bestows, corresponding pain has already been prepared."
Suddenly, Ren Suo recalled the first words spoken by the character after he was officially renamed the Rebel at the start of the game, when the game screen had abruptly changed to a fantasy style.
So, what comes next should be... Ren Suo's eyes widened as he murmured softly, "There's no time—"
His heart pounded fiercely again. This time, a tingling numbness filled his entire body before quickly receding. Just when Ren Suo thought the Mini-World Game Console was showing him mercy by sparing his life, his body suddenly moved on its own, pacing around in the bathroom.
Ren Suo was startled and naturally hurried to regain control of his body. But if he controlled it himself, that extremely uncomfortable tingling sensation would reappear, making his body difficult to move, as if it were rusted.
But Ren Suo was not completely immobile. If he wished, he could stand firmly in place, though he had to endure an indescribable, bizarre soreness—just like the feeling after squatting on the toilet for hours.
"I..." Ren Suo gritted his teeth, forcing out a single word before he froze.
At this moment, he finally understood the Rebel's thoughts.
The main reason the Rebel didn't speak coherently was primarily because the Mini-World Game Console didn't want Ren Suo to discover this was his future. To prevent this, the Console not only transformed the entire world into a fantasy setting but also likely blocked or modified some of the Rebel's statements, trying as much as possible to keep Ren Suo from discovering the fact that the Rebel was himself.
On the other hand, when the Rebel knew his persuasion was futile, he naturally couldn't be bothered to persuade anymore.
Just like Ren Suo at this moment. He was now on stage, playing the leading role, unable to escape the Mini-World Game Console's control. What am I thinking about now?
However, the words hadn't reached his throat when Ren Suo swallowed his curses.
At that moment, many images flickered through his mind. There was the prompt from when he chose to merge games: "Reunion (Free Section Exclusive Effect): All alternate games will merge (including game mechanics, tasks, protagonists, and rewards), and after the merger, the game will have at least a Four-star level, with the protagonist randomly designated." The key part echoed: The protagonist will be randomly designated. He recalled the in-game option to start, named "Let us start the joy before the pain." That phrase resonated: The joy before the pain. And after clearing the game, the system's friendly tip: "Moderate gaming benefits life, addiction harms both body and heart; reluctance brings no happiness, giving up is the easiest." The crucial advice replayed: Giving up is the easiest.
A few days ago, Zhao Huo had told him, "You'll regret it when the time comes."
Although he wasn't talking about the same thing, Zhao Huo's jinx was certainly potent.
Lastly, Ren Suo naturally recalled the phrase repeated endlessly by the Rebel in the game:
"Please remember, for every joy bestowed by Destiny, corresponding pain has already been prepared in its wake."
Back then, Ren Suo was young and didn't understand the sheer malice the Rebel harbored behind these words. Now, he finally understood.
Back then, Ren Suo thought the Rebel's 'rebellion' meant an unwillingness to be controlled by him. Now, he finally understood.
Ren Suo didn't know whether the Rebel in the game was 'a future version of him' or 'a fictional version of him,' but if the Rebel shared the same thought process as Ren Suo, then the Rebel's actions were easy to understand—
Since I can't escape myself, of course, I have to drag Ren Suo, the original, down with me!
Not repaying a kindness isn't so bad, but not avenging a wrong makes one a true scumbag!
This was the Rebel's true 'rebellion'!
That phrase, seemingly advice, was actually more like a venomous prophecy—just wait, it's soon your turn to enjoy all this!
Although there were many obscure hints both inside and outside the game, they were too subtle for Ren Suo to notice.
The most obscure hint was "The protagonist will be randomly designated." Ren Suo never imagined he would be the protagonist, but on second thought, it seemed only natural.
Because I myself am in the Equipment Interface!
By the Mini-World Game Console's standards, I am also considered a game character!
Ren Suo had felt proud of this. This judgment by the Mini-World Game Console allowed him to equip Abilities and props. But he never thought that he himself would be chosen as a game character!
Always enjoying privileges, Ren Suo had never considered that he also had to fulfill obligations.
So-called windfalls also came with risks.
Ultimately, Ren Suo had maneuvered himself onto this stage step by step!
It could be said that Ren Suo had obtained this opportunity entirely through his own sleepless nights of brainstorming and exhaustive Effort—his capital beyond his own Abilities was zero!
After figuring everything out, who could Ren Suo still curse?
Curse the Rebel? The Rebel is me! I can only berate the Rebel for being so brilliant, intelligent, diligent, and hardworking...
Curse the Mini-World Game Console? I enjoyed so many benefits from the console, received so many hints both inside and outside the game, and was even given a chance to change my mind, but I just didn't take it. More importantly, I was the one who merged the games to create this one—the Mini-World Game Console didn't deliberately offer this specific game.
Ren Suo opened his mouth and could only say angrily,
"It's all your fault, Zhao Huo, you jinx! I'll remember this grudge!"