Kev was driving on the road with his wife and child.

Just as the three were happily chatting, an accident happened with a large truck.

The violent impact made Kev lose consciousness instantly.

“Mr. Kev, your virtual life experience ends here, you lived 38 years, we look forward to your experience of the next life.”

1

“Dad, our teacher posed a riddle during class today.”

“What riddle?” Kev, gripping the steering wheel, smiled and glanced at his laughing son Ian in the rearview mirror.

“What in the world is the longest yet shortest, the fastest yet slowest, the most divisible yet most extensive, and the most often overlooked yet most regrettable?”

Kev considered this for a moment, then said, “Dad can’t figure it out.”

“Mum, can you guess?” Ian turned his wide eyes towards his mother Carla.

“Mom doesn’t know either.”

“Hehe, it’s time.”

“My son is so clever.” Kev, turning his head to praise his son, heard a sudden outcry.

“Kev! Watch out!”

Simultaneously with his wife’s shout, Kev looked ahead only to see a roaring truck heading straight for them.

Time seemed to slow down at that moment. Even the transmission of sound became sluggish. Kev could see the head of the truck deforming due to the collision and the horrified expression of the truck driver.

Immediately after, the windshield shattered. Countless glass shards rushed towards Kev and his family. Kev instinctively threw himself in front of his wife and son, but it was of no avail. The sensation of weightlessness soon followed. It was as if the car was in a tumble dryer, tossing Kev around the corners of the car.

Kev knew that the car was flipping in the air. His mind was blank. With a few violent impacts, Kev finally lost consciousness.

…

Kev slowly opened his eyes and came close to a shiny metal plate.

“Where am I?”

Kev tried to move his limbs but found he was enclosed in a metal box. With the memory of the accident flashing back, a word suddenly came to his mind - coffin.

“Am I… Am I in a coffin?” wondered Kev.

Soon after, the metal plate was lifted, and Kev was hit with a blinding light.

“Mr. Davis, are you alright?”

Kev listened to the stranger in a suit, his mind recalling fragments of the scene before the accident.

“What about my wife and son? How are they?”

The man in the suit seemed taken aback for a moment, and then responded, “You mean Carla and Ian?”

“Yes, where are they?” Kev asked anxiously.

“Oh, they are virtual characters in your deep learning session, what you might call intelligent AI.”

Kev processed the man’s words slowly, trying to reconcile the shattered pieces of his memory.

One of the doctors behind the man in the suit spoke up: “Mr. Davis, this time your consciousness deep learning virtual life length was 38 years, from birth to death. Mr. Davis, this time your consciousness deep learning simulation lasted for 38 years. The ending of your virtual life was considerable; a car accident due to distracted driving resulted in your death. We trust you should have a deep impression of traffic rules in your head now, as a result. Always remember to obey traffic rules in real life because you only get one life.”

Kev was left sitting alone in the cabin, the reality of his situation sinking in.

Deep learning consciousness, virtual life, reality…" These series of words were constantly stimulating the memory in Kev’s mind until all the memories were strung together into a thread.

“I remember…” Kev’s expression began to calm down: “The doctor just told me my virtual life lasted for thirty-eight years. But wasn’t it stated in the contract that it guarantees a forty-year life experience? Shouldn’t you be refunding the money for the two missing years?”

“Mr. Kev,” the man in the suit said as he pulled out the contract as if he had anticipated Kev’s question, “The contract clearly states that if death is due to force majeure, we will compensate. However, if it results from personal behavior, you will have to deal with the consequences. Running a red light that caused an accident falls under your behavior. Therefore, our company reserves the right not to compensate.”

Kev initially wanted to argue with the man in the suit. Seeing his prepared demeanor and because the two missing years of his virtual life experience might not have significant learnings, he reluctantly backed off.

Kev left the cabin and checked the time on his watch. Only ten minutes had passed since he had entered the cabin for deep learning. This was the advantage of deep learning consciousness - needing just a dozen minutes to experience decades’ worth of time in a virtual conscious world. During this virtual period, consciousness would learn different knowledge and experience different aspects of life.

Looking around, Kev saw similar cabins dotted across the entire hall. There was a multitude of such deep learning halls in the city, yet despite their number, they were still insufficient to cater to the turnout of people eager to learn.

From when did learning require just resources and no effort? People from the past fantasized about such a possibility, and now in the present, traditional ways of learning have become meaningless. Everyone had to keep up with the trend by joining the rat race and finding better jobs or else being left behind.

Moreover, to prevent virtual life from corrupting people’s consciousness, causing mental disturbances, and blurring the lines between virtual and reality, the device defaulted to blocking the individual’s real-world memories. Thus, the trajectory of virtual life became arbitrary. Sometimes, those with less favorable luck would have to undergo deep learning multiple times to gain the desired skills or knowledge.

So, the cycle for everyone was earning money from learning, using the knowledge to make more money, and using more money to acquire more knowledge.

Kev was no exception. His short ten-minute learning experience had depleted more than half of his savings and had even accrued him a significant amount of debt. But now, armed with the knowledge of a high-level engineer, Kev could apply for a high-paying job in any tech company. Maybe it wouldn’t take long for his learning expenditure to be recouped, possibly even exceeding the previous amount.

Walking through the bustling crowd, Kev began to envision a better future life. He confidently began to look for jobs on his phone. The sorrow of losing his wife and child in a car accident in his virtual life seemed to have only lasted for a moment.

Now, all Kev wants to do is land a good job, pay off the debt, and enjoy life. Thoughts of marriage and childbirth are no longer important since he had already experienced them in his virtual life.

…

“We’ve reviewed your resume and confirmed that you do indeed possess the qualifications of a senior engineer from your deep learning experience. However, since your specialized knowledge is rather limited, our preference leans toward individuals with more versatile skills. Therefore, you do not fully meet our recruitment conditions…”

Kev was squatting on the stairs, replaying the recruiter’s words and his professional fake smile in his mind. He looked at the many unsent resumes in his hands. He had assumed that spending so much money on gaining life experience would pave a golden road for him, but the reality turned out to be much harsher.

“So real life is very different from virtual life…”

Perhaps during those short ten minutes when Kev was in virtual life, countless people had progressed and surpassed him. But this wasn’t the worst part. The worst part was that the only way to break out of this situation was to figure out how to go through more rounds of deep learning.

“Hey, buddy, are you here for an interview?” A tall, thin man had somehow ended up by Kev’s side and was peeping curiously at Kev’s resumes with a smirk on his face.

“Yes.” Kev was feeling annoyed and quickly covered and returned his resume to his pocket.

“I can tell the result was not good from your expression, am I right?” The tall, thin man sat down leisurely beside Kev with a signed job contract on his lap, “Let me guess, because of limited specialized knowledge?”

Kev glanced at the tall, thin man. He still had an unpleasant grin on his face, and his small eyes were constantly checking Kev out.

“Do we know each other?” Kev asked coldly, hoping to drive the man away.

“Not. But I was once just like you, hitting a wall everywhere I went. I thought I could land a job after one round of deep learning.” The skinny man picked up the signed job contract on his lap and changed the subject, “Who would have thought I could land a job that other people work hard for so easily.”

“If you came to flaunt, I think you’ve found the wrong person.” Kev got up, preparing to leave.

“I just thought we had a connection,” The tall, thin man pulled out a white paper from his bag, “If you want to solve your current problems, go to the address on this paper and find a person named William, you’ll thank me.”

Kev never believed in getting something for nothing, so he didn’t take the paper. The man left the paper on the step and walked away with a shake of his head.

Watching the tall, thin man’s disappearing back, Kev let out a sigh of relief. His eyes caught sight of the paper on the step and driven by an inexplicable curiosity, he picked it up.

Kev squatted down and picked up the paper. It read “Industrial Area, Fourth Street, №223.”

“If you want to solve your current problems…”

The words of the tall, thin man echoed unusually in Kev’s mind, like a persistent fly he couldn’t swat away.

Kev looked at the white paper in his hand, hesitated, and finally made a decision.

“I’m heading to Industrial Area, Fourth Street, 223.”

2

industrial Zone - A place Kev had never set foot in. In an era when everyone can be a high-end intellectual, the industrial zone was the first to realize fully automated operation, which also made it the first place that lost the warmth of humanity. Today, only some vagrants and those who can’t see the light coexist.

Thinking about this, Kev suddenly had some regrets. Seeing those rambled vagrants outside the window. Some walked aimlessly with distorted bodies, some crouched in wall corners shaking, as if they were all as insane as those in psychiatric hospitals. This made Kev not dare to meet their eyes, fearing that he would be pulled off the bus and robbed of all his possessions the next second.

“Young man, if I may ask, what are you doing here?” The driver asked.

“I’m looking for someone,” Kev answered.

“Looking for someone here? Do you know what kind of people are here?” The driver looked back and said: “This place is full of people left behind by the times, all are unscrupulous men who are willing to risk their lives for money.”

“Just drive and don’t look back.” Kev patted the driver’s seat and said.

“Don’t worry, my virtual life during deep learning was a racing driver.” The driver said proudly.

“Then why are you driving a taxi here? Aren’t you participating in professional competitions?”

“This is no longer the era of matching supply and demand. If this were in the past… especially in the early days of deep learning, I would have a chance to shine.” The driver patted the steering wheel and said: “But now it’s not possible, if I want to enter professional racing, in addition to being a capable driver, I also need to have a lot of other skills in repair and business. Almost one person is a whole team.”

“In other words, people who have only experienced deep learning once, aren’t much different from these people who haven’t had the opportunity to do deep learning?” Kev said, looking at the vagrants outside the car window.

“There is a bit of difference, otherwise, you wouldn’t encounter me. In this era, the vast majority of people are like me, stuck in a position that is better than a vagrant but not as good as an outstanding elite, and can only do some ordinary jobs…” The driver stopped the car gradually as he was talking: “We’ve arrived at №223.”

Outside the car window was an abandoned factory. Even the original factory brand had become blurry. There were many such abandoned factories in the industrial zone, all of which were historical buildings left behind by the impact of full automation.

“Are you sure the address is correct?” The driver looked out the window at the dilapidated environment with some worry: “Are there people in this place?”

Kev took out the piece of paper again and confirmed that the address was correct, then paid the driver and got out of the car. Not until Kev walked into the factory did the driver start the car to leave. Even Kev himself was a little hesitant. Are there people here?

The inside of the factory was very spacious. The puddles everywhere on the ground made the surrounding environment very damp and cold. Perhaps only the huge safety signs on the wall still remembered the spectacular scene of a hundred people working at the same time.

Kev walked aimlessly toward the depths of the factory. He didn’t know where his destination was, let alone to find a man named William.

Perhaps human curiosity always coincides with the inevitable direction of events. Kev’s eyes were attracted by an inconspicuous iron door in the corner. He walked up and knocked on the door on a whim.

Kev himself didn’t expect that a pair of eyes suddenly appear in the small window of the door.

“Can I help you?” The person inside asked, sounding very alert.

“I… came to find William,” Kev answered tentatively.

“Are you alone?”

“Yes.” Kev nodded.

The eyes inside the door changed noticeably at the mention of the name “William”, but he still looked around carefully behind Kev’s back, apparently checking to see if there were any other people around.

Suddenly, the small window was closed again, and then there was a series of unlocking sounds from behind the door. From the sound, there was certainly more than one lock behind the door.

The door opened, and a man in a plaid shirt appeared in front of Kev.

“Come in.” The man waved his hand to beckon, and after Kev entered, he quickly locked the door.

Kev sized up this William. He had a rough beard, and his hair was also greasy. His plaid shirt was very dirty, full of sweat and grease stains that had soaked in and dried out again and again. Even his slippers might break in half at any time during the “plop plop” walking process.

The air inside the room was turbid. The mixed smell of fermented food and cigarettes came from the beer bottles and lunch boxes scattered around, and the cigarette butts piled up like a mountain on the table.

“Do you smoke?” The man pulled out a box of cigarettes and handed it to Kev.

“No thanks.” Kev declined.

Kev smokes in his normal life, but because the man’s living environment is unsightly, Kev subconsciously rejects the man.

“So, you are William?”

The man nodded, then lit a cigarette for himself and threw the box onto the table: “William is a pseudonym, but you can call me that if you want.”

Hearing that William was the man’s pseudonym, Kev couldn’t help but be startled. Who uses a pseudonym in this day and age besides criminals? Perhaps it’s a smoker’s habit, but Kev unintentionally glanced at the cigarette box and found that it was an expensive luxury product. This detail, which didn’t match the man’s living conditions at all, made Kev more certain that what the man was doing was extraordinary.

“These cigarettes are quite expensive, aren’t they?”

Smoking a cigarette, William chuckled: “This is my only hobby. By the way… how did you find me?”

“I was introduced here by a tall and thin man. He said you could solve my problem.” Kev replied, and then thought for a moment and added: “The problem of finding a job.”

“Do you know what I do?”

“No clue.”

“Let me show you first.” William didn’t hide anything and went straight to the point.

He got up and walked towards a black plastic at the corner of the room, then gently lifted it.

Looking at what was under the plastic cloth, Kev opened his eyes in surprise - it was a consciousness-deep learning machine. Although the surface of the machine was somewhat rusty, and some wires were wrapped with tape, it looked just like the machines in the learning hall overall.

Pointing at the learning machine and then at William, Kev said: “This thing…”

“This is exactly what I do. This thing can be understood as a pirated deep learning machine.” William patted the shell of the learning machine, making a “clanging” sound.

“Where did you get this?” Kev stepped forward and carefully looked at this pirated learning machine.

“I stole it from a scrap yard. I’ve done a simple repair. It’s almost no different from the normal learning machine.”

“This is illegal,” Kev said nervously, his voice much quieter.

“Of course, I know it’s illegal, and I’m not the only one doing this.” William covered the black plastic cloth back on it, then walked back to the couch, sat down, and lit another cigarette: “So I didn’t force you to be complicit. You only need to pay a fiftieth of the regular fee to use my learning machine.”

Kev quickly calculated in his head. Based on his current savings, he could use this pirated learning machine nearly fifty times.

What does it mean to perform fifty deep learnings? Kev had not thought about it in detail. As far as he knew, no one in the world had performed deep learning more than ten times. Thinking about this, Kev started to doubt the authenticity of the learning machine in front of him.

“Has there ever been a problem with this pirate machine?”

William languidly leaned back on the couch and exhaled smoke into the air: “The machine I can guarantee you because there hasn’t been any problem so far, but there are some things to be careful about when it comes to users.”

“What to be careful about?”

“In the regular learning hall, the machines all have a so-called virtual-reality isolation device, which is designed to prevent users from mixing real-world memories in the virtual life, thus causing mental and cognitive confusion. This is one of the core technologies of the learning machine, which ensures that people can repeatedly use the learning machine without burden.” William extinguished the cigarette on the table again: “But this scrapped machine does not have such a protective device. Simply put, people who use my learning machine can possess real-world memories in their virtual life.”

Hearing this, Kev finally realized why he could quickly step out of the virtual life in which he had lost his wife and children due to a car accident. So, he immediately excitedly asked: “In this way, wouldn’t the course of the virtual life be dominated by the user? In other words, can the user do whatever they want in the virtual world?”

“Hmm… indeed.” William stared straight at Kev: “So, I suggest that it is best not to perform deep learning more than five times on this machine.”

“Five times? How could such a good thing be used only five times?” Kev was very puzzled by this. He had already ignored the messy environment and sat on the chair by moving aside the beer bottles on it. At this moment, all his attention was on this learning machine that might bring him everything.

“As I just said, there are no problems with the machine. The key is people. Without the protection of virtual-reality isolation, after many deep learning exercises, users’ mental states will have various problems, big and small. I don’t want to cause any trouble because of this. Moreover, the five times I mentioned is just an approximation, some people have problems after using it once.”

“You’ve used it yourself, haven’t you?” Kev asked: “I don’t believe that you’ve used it less than five times.”

“Me? Why would I use it?” William shrugged: “I’m the man dealing in illegal deals. All I need is to make money off of you guys. Don’t expect to get any psychological comfort from me. Let me tell you, I tell you the risk out of goodwill. The risk is for you to bear. Moreover, others who do this kind of trade may not necessarily tell you the risk.”

As William said, Kev was planning to find some comfort from him, to prove that there would be no problem with this learning machine, but it seemed that William was not going to give him that reassurance.

“Can I use it once now?” Kev thought for a moment and said.

“Just pay the money.” William stretched lazily, rubbing his fingers in front of Kev.

Without a word, Kev took out his wallet and handed a stack of cash to William.

After receiving the money, William did not count it but placed it on the table casually. After smoking the last puff of the cigarette, he stood up and walked to the learning machine, clicked the control panel, and said: “The cleanliness is not as good as the regular machine. After all, all sorts of people have used it before. I hope you are okay with that.”

After saying this, William pulled open the metal plate of the learning machine to reveal the internal cabin of the learning machine. Inside the cabin, except for some messy wiring and occasional hints of odd smell, it was no different from the one in the learning hall.

Kev frowned and climbed into the cabin. William sorted out the wires from a spider web-like bundle and pasted them on Kev’s head and body in order.

The cold electrodes made Kev nervous again. He swallowed his saliva and said, “You’re sure there’s no problem, right?”

“There won’t be any problem, rest assured.” After William said this, he covered the metal plate, leaving Kev alone inside the cabin listening to his increasingly rapid heartbeat.

“Three, two, one! Start!”

3

William’s countdown reached Kev’s ears through the metal plate, and the next second, Kev felt the originally cramped cabin start to soften. The air around him seemed to be replaced by some kind of fluid. Kev wanted to leave the cabin but found himself completely powerless.

Just as Kev was about to suffocate, a force suddenly pulled him out of the cabin. The bright light made his eyes squint, all he could hear was laughter all around him.

“Congratulations, it’s a boy.”

Upon hearing this, Kev suddenly realized he had successfully entered the virtual world and began a virtual life as a newborn. If it were not for his real memories, the experience of being born from his mother wouldn’t be as clear as it is now.

After a long time, Kev’s eyes gradually adjusted to the light. He opened his eyes and observed everything around him. Within his sight, apart from the soft quilt, a woman with a sweaty head gently looked at him - no doubt this woman was Kev’s mother in the virtual world.

Though Kev’s real memories only exist in the consciousness of his brain and could not manifest in the body of a newborn baby, this did not hinder Kev’s growth in the subsequent times like a child prodigy.

When he was ten years old, Kev’s adult-like behaviors worried his parents a great deal. From their perspective, Kev was a smart child. However, that cleverness had a sense of maturity as if he had forgotten to drink Mengpo soup in his previous life. Fortunately, Kev became aware of this and made some changes. Otherwise, his virtual childhood might constantly be dealing with psychologists.

As such, for most of the time in his virtual life, Kev has to decipher the different reactions to daily life at various ages.

In his twenties, Kev, who had planned to reach the pinnacle of life in the virtual world, suddenly changed his mind.

Perhaps the enactment of the past twenty-odd years of virtual life has compressed Kev, or perhaps the experiences in real life left him with nowhere to vent. Kev, in his current state, is not keen on learning all kinds of knowledge that can improve himself but decided to be a carefree whirlpool, drawing from life’s experiences that have always floated on the surface and been totally out of reach.

In his thirties, amidst the strange gazes of people in his virtual life, Kev experiences the rebelliousness of youth and the indulgence of being an adult.

However, just when Kev thought he could keep playing until the end of this virtual life, he had an accident during a motorcycle race.

Before he could react, he was already flying in the air unable to differentiate between up and down, left and right. Not until his body fell heavily on the ground did he realize he had a car accident.

The smell of blood filled his nose and mouth, he struggled to get up, but he didn’t have the energy to do anything but his eyeballs. This reminded him of the car accident in his previous virtual life, the pain in his body at that time was no different than the current pain, it hurt so much that his soul was torn apart.

……

Kev opened his eyes wildly and pushed open the metal plate. Unlike his reaction after waking up in a regular learning hall last time, Kev showed no panic after awakening this time, however, he was still breathing heavily.

“That was quick?” William, holding a cigarette, said with a surprised tone.

“How long has it been?” Kev tried to calm down.

“I wasn’t paying attention. I haven’t even finished a cigarette, and you’re already out.” William said, handing Kev a cigarette, “Do you want to smoke now?”

Kev silently took the cigarette, took out his lighter lit it, and took a deep breath, “I killed myself in a motorcycle race.”

William was taken aback, then also lit a cigarette for himself and said, “Did you die instantly?”

Kev squinted his eyes and countered, “Otherwise?”

“Well, you’re quite lucky.”

“Lucky?” Kev was a little confused by William’s words, “Your understanding of luck seems to be different from normal people?”

William waved his hand, “It’s something I heard from other sellers of pirated study machines. They said a client, like you, had an accident and fell from the fifth floor in their virtual life. But the key is the man didn’t completely die, he became a vegetable, hanging by a thread and being taken care of by his family in the virtual world. He spent the rest of his ten years in the hospital. Just imagine, not being able to move at all and not knowing when you could die to come out…it’s even worse than death.”

“That sounds…indeed quite scary, so what happened to that person later?”

William shook his head, “Who knows…our pirated ones don’t have a reality-virtuality isolation device. If it were a regular version, perhaps the client might suffer less.”

“That reminds me of a riddle.”

“Let’s hear it.”

“Do you know what in the world is longest and shortest, fastest and slowest, can be divided yet is vast, is the least valued yet is the most worthy of regret?”

William thought for a while and replied, “I don’t know.”

“It’s time.”

William nodded pensively, “You are quite cultured.”

“It’s just something I heard.” Kev explained, “I heard this from my son in the last virtual life.”

“Alright.” William chuckled, “It seems deep learning does have some use.”

“When can I start the second time?”

“Not going to rest a bit?”

“No,” Kev stated. After experiencing the first pirated deep learning session, he felt that he had adapted to the virtual life mixed with real memories.

“All the same, just pay.” William continued, rubbing his fingers together.

Kev nodded, but when he opened his wallet, he realized he had only a little cash left.

“Could I use a card?”

“Brother, we are committing a crime here. Could you be a bit more serious?” William helplessly shook his head, pointed to the door, and said, “Turn left at the door, about five hundred meters away, there is an ATM.”

Kev put his wallet away and said, “Then wait for me, I’ll be back soon.”

William nodded, and then unlocked the layers of locks on the door, “I suggest you should withdraw more at once, looking at you, it seems like you’ll need it many times.”

Kev didn’t reply and just walked straight out the door, walked through the damp, abandoned factory, and made his way onto the main street of the industrial zone. Kev feels he’s not far from living a happy life.

But withdrawing money in such a mixed-bag place like the industrial zone is undoubtedly a very dangerous behavior. Thinking about this made Kev nervous again. Luckily, the path to the ATM was quiet, with no one around.

Ten minutes later, Kev arrived at the ATM. The ATM’s one-from-one security system relaxed the originally tense Kev a little, but he still kept looking around as he withdrew money, fearing the desperados lurking in some dark corner.

After Kev stashed the money away and double-checked again that there was no one around the ATM, he hugged his bag and quickly ran towards the abandoned factory.

But just then, a homeless man appeared out of nowhere at the entrance of the abandoned factory, right where Kev was standing. The homeless man sat on the ground, covered in dirt and filth, his hair was long and covered in dust. By comparison, William looked merely shabby, but this homeless man was completely filthy.

Kev and the homeless man stared at each other for more than a minute. This stare-down felt like a cheetah and a gazelle on a prairie.

The next second, the homeless man stood up and walked toward Kev, but his actions were not in a storm-like manner to snatch things. He approached Kev in a trance, at a leisurely pace.

Kev was startled by the homeless man’s actions, almost shouting out loud, but he eventually held out as being in such a place, shouting would only attract more predators.

Then the homeless man stopped when he was a few meters away from Kev, then pointed at the bag in Kev’s hand, and made a series of incomprehensible gestures.

Kev didn’t know what the homeless man wanted to express; he only knew that the other party must want money.

“This is mine! You can’t take it!” Kev somehow found the courage to say this to the homeless man.

The homeless man became a little frantic when he heard Kev’s words, his hand gestures also became more chaotic. He spoke a few words intermittently, “Go… you can’t… horrible… don’t…”

The homeless man had lost his ability to speak, and at this moment, Kev was like a cornered dog, hugging his money and running towards the abandoned factory.

Kev originally thought his actions were swift, but the moment he brushed past the homeless man, Kev’s arm was grabbed by the homeless man, and the bag fell to the ground.

Kev wanted to pick up the bag, but the homeless man had a firm grip on him and wouldn’t let go. He continued to speak incoherently.

Perhaps out of fright, in the struggle, Kev kicked the homeless man in the stomach. The pain made the homeless man let go and fall to the ground.

Realizing that the other party wasn’t that tough, Kev began punching and kicking at the homeless man. Once the homeless man couldn’t get up again, Kev finally picked up the bag that fell to the ground.

“If you dare to rob again, I will kill you!” Kev said angrily to the man.

The man fell to the ground, one hand holding his stomach, and the other hand slightly raised, as if trying to grab Kev again.

Kev, seeing that there was nobody around, and considering that this was an industrial zone, where killing a person would hardly be noticed, kicked the homeless man in the face, finally, the man stopped moving.

Seeing his coat dirtied by the homeless man, Kev didn’t hesitate to take off his jacket and throw it to the side. He told himself that he would buy a more expensive coat after earning money from several more rounds of deep learning.

Returning to William’s place, Kev put the bag of money into William’s arms.

“Here is the money for thirty times.” Kev rolled up his sleeves and spoke, his spirit was entirely different from before.

William, with the bag full of money in his arms, weighed it, and then casually tossed it onto the sofa without counting it.

“Thirty times? Are you sure?” Despite asking, William had already opened the plastic sheet and began configuring the learning machine.

“Is there a problem?” Kev asked, and without waiting for a response, he lay down in the learning machine.

“Of course, no problem. The customer is king. Especially the ones who’ve paid, we put your needs first.” William laughed as he placed the electrode sheets on Kev. “But let me make it clear since the users are different, I have no idea what will happen if you use it thirty times under these circumstances.”

“Well, that’d be at least bearable. It’s just like what happened to your client you mentioned, lying in the virtual life for perhaps over a dozen or even several dozen years…but that’d be better than this miserable and brutal reality life.”

“So, we start now?”

“Let’s get started.”

4

Thirty lifetimes in a virtual world take about an hour and a half in the real world. Weighing up the time, William couldn’t help but marvel at the magic of this machine. Just by spending one and a half hours, the man who just entered the learning machine could gain about two thousand years of life experience, but that’s if everything goes well.

“Knock, knock, knock …”

A knock on the door interrupted William’s thoughts, but he didn’t feel like opening it and instead quietly waited for a few seconds.

“Open the door! It’s me!”

Hearing the person outside announce themselves, William walked slowly to open the iron door, only to see the tall thin man standing outside.

The tall man walked into the room and immediately saw the learning machine in operation.

“Oh! Is it already in use?” The tall man asked in surprise.

William locked the iron door and walked to the sofa to pick up Kevin’s bag. He took out several bundles of money and handed it to the tall man, saying, “Here … this is what you deserve. You’ve outdone yourself this time. He wanted to use it thirty times right from the start.”

The tall man counted the money and laughed, saying, “Aren’t you afraid someone will die?”

“No one’s going to die, at most he may lose his soul, becoming yet another vagabond in this industrial zone.”

“Our line of work has certainly increased the population of this industrial district.” The tall man sighed, “But on the other hand, if this guy goes mad after this, won’t I have to go find the next customer for you?”

“I’m afraid that would be troublesome for you.” William spread his hands and laughed helplessly.

“As long as there’s money to be made, a bit of trouble is nothing.” The tall man picked up the money and took a deep sniff, “Who could resist the smell of money?”

The two laughed heartily. The tall man left the room with his money after a few minutes, and William sat back on the sofa. He checked the time once more and mused to himself, “I’m really curious about what he’ll be like after he comes out.”

……

Kevin could no longer remember how many times he had been born. He only remembered that he had had a few close shaves due to difficult births, but thankfully everything worked out fine each time.

However, having lived so many lifetimes, some of his memories had begun to blur. Whenever Kevin reached adulthood, his memories would intertwine with his previous virtual lives.

Did he arrange to go out with friends? Does he have asthma? Does he have a younger brother? Did his parents divorce? Did he confess to his crush? What did he plan to do in this life?

He originally thought that thirty lifetimes would each be memorable, but he didn’t expect that this false immortality, with only consciousness accumulating, would put such a great strain on memory storage.

It’s not hard to imagine that if he continues to live a virtual life in his current state, Kevin’s mind will certainly be thrown into chaos.

The only solution Kevin could think of now was to accelerate the progression of his virtual life by constantly dying and escaping the learning machine as soon as possible while he was still relatively sober.

But even though he knew he was living a virtual life, everything around him looked exactly like the real world, and the experience of the five senses was no different from reality. Accepting death a dozen times or so is too difficult; No one dares to die a dozen times, and Kevin’s consciousness is not very clear now. Reality and virtuality have lost their clear boundary in his mind. Every death to him feels almost like a real death.

Kevin stood on the rooftop, desperately trying to control his trembling legs. In Zhuangzi’s butterfly dream, was it Zhuangzi dreaming of becoming a butterfly, or was it a butterfly dreaming of becoming Zhuangzi? Just like Kevin now, he wasn’t sure whether entering the learning machine was a dream.

After pondering for almost an hour, Kevin decided to give up thinking. He wandered towards the ground like a leaf losing its anchor.

Once, twice, three times…

The fourth time he stood on the roof of a high-rise building, Kevin was trembling, and the psychological pain caused by only three deaths almost crushed his spirit.

This time, Kevin left the roof in a daze.

In the following lives, no matter how Kevin’s outward age changed, he acted like a zombie without want or need, or you could say that his consciousness had already turned into a stone. Whether it was being carved hollow by the wind and sand of suffering, or being worn into depressions by the river of life, Kevin was feeling nothing. Now in his life, he would only do one thing - to wait for death.

……

An hour and a half later, William lit a cigarette, but until he finished, the learning machine showed no sign of being opened.

Was the person dead inside?

Thinking this, William walked over and tentatively opened the metal lid of the learning machine.

Kevin was lying there with his eyes wide open, looking no different from being dead.

William lightly slapped Kevin’s face and Kevin slowly turned his face.

“Brother, are you okay?” William asked.

Kevin didn’t answer, but just slowly sat up from the learning machine. The electrode sheets on his body fell off due to the pull.

“I’m asking you something,” William asked again.

But Kevin still didn’t seem to hear, as he walked out of the learning machine.

“It looks like he’s gone mad,” William muttered, rushing to unlock the iron door before Kevin.

Kevin left the room slowly, step by step.

“Take care, next time… never mind, there won’t be a next time.” William laughed as he closed the iron door, followed by a series of locking sounds.

Now in the abandoned factory, there was only the dazed Kevin, who walked aimlessly towards the factory door. The vagabond who was killed by Kevin was still lying there. Of course, this memory was already gone from Kevin’s mind at this moment, but even if he could recall it, he wouldn’t care…

So, the huge industrial area has one more resident lost in their world…

5

Several months later, another oddly dressed man found his way into the industrial district. He is holding a piece of paper, looking around nervously, obviously in search of something.

Soon, the man stopped in front of an abandoned factory. After hesitating for a while, he finally stepped inside.

All of this was witnessed by Kevin from a dark corner. He was covered in dirt, his hair was messy, and his eyes were void. There was a flicker of surprise in his eyes when he saw the man.

An hour later, the man reappeared outside the factory. His expression had noticeably changed. He even wore a triumphant smile from time to time.

The man withdrew a large sum of money from an ATM not far from the factory, then ran back with a bag full of cash.

Kevin, feeling as though he was looking at his past self, was spirited for the first time in his dazed state. His chaotic thoughts had a clear purpose for the first time: to stop that man.

Kevin pushed his skinny legs to run towards the man. Before the man could react, Kevin grabbed the big bag full of money and fell hard onto the ground.

The man was startled, but when he realized his money had been taken, he became angry, and he started to kick the fallen Kevin.

“A piece of scum dare to steal my money? I’ll kick you to death!” The man kicked Kevin while he was down.

Kevin clung tightly to the bag, using his body to pin it down, despite being unable to exert much strength.

“Don’t go… don’t go…” Kevin repeated these words over and over again.

“I’ll kill you, you roach!” The man was too enraged to listen to anything. He thought Kevin was begging for mercy.

When Kevin was spitting out blood and was barely alive, the man snatched back the bag and spat on Kevin.

“Once I become a councilor, you garbage of society better be prepared to get cleared away.” The man said and directly walked into the factory.

Kevin was lying on the ground, motionless. He could feel his internal organs had been shattered by the kicks. He didn’t even have the strength left to feel the pain. Those eyes that had finally become spirited were now hollow again.

“It’s finally time to die… This life was horrible… The next one should be much better.”

For Kevin now, the thing that was the longest yet the shortest, the fastest yet the slowest, the most divisible yet the most vast, the most negligible yet the most regrettable was not time, but life.

With these thoughts in his mind, Kevin slowly closed his eyes.