Matrix Survival: I Get A Random Chest Every Day-Chapter 951 - 659: No More Role Model

Li Zheng and Zhan Zhouzhou spent a whole day wandering around the Anger Sin Domain, and returned to the Outer City with thirteen varying sizes of white magic crystals.

He didn't take Zhan Zhouzhou to see the Golden Light Zone; it's really too far, and a round trip would take over a day, wasting time.

Back at the Magic Crystal Store, Zhan Zhouzhou handed the twisted magic crystal to Le Jia, who helped to cleanse it of the evil thought aura inside.

Li Zheng, on the other hand, was chatting with Lu Li and the other two who had just returned not long ago.

Qian Duoduo, as usual, looked unkempt, resembling a street vendor, and habitually showed a professional smile upon seeing Li Zheng, "Big brother Li Zheng, long time no see."

He used to be an undercover agent, and after being in contact with special people for so long, you couldn't sense any righteousness in his demeanor or appearance; instead, he appeared somewhat scruffy.

This was his unique disguise, which had saved his life quite a few times.

Li Zheng gave him a glance; out of the three, his combat rating was the lowest, just at the initial stage of the King's level.

Ma Long had been in the military for a long time, maintaining a meticulous expression no matter the time or place, standing upright, and speaking with full energy, "Mr. Li Zheng, Major asked me to follow your commands while in the Outer City, just let me know if you need anything."

Among the three entering the Outer City this time, his strength was the greatest, having reached the pinnacle of the King's level, even Mirel's mother, the Enchanting Demon Queen, might not be his match.

It's imaginable that Kunlun must have invested a lot of resources in him.

Li Zheng patted his shoulder and laughed, "Relax, this isn't the army, no need to be so serious."

"Yes!"

Ma Long replied with a stern look, saluted, standing straight like a javelin.

Qian Duoduo laughed from the side, "This guy Ma Long, he's like this with everyone. When he first meets you, he doesn't talk much; but once he gets familiar, he turns into a clown."

Ma Long stared straight ahead, his eyeballs skewing to the corners, giving Qian Duoduo a fierce glare.

However, Qian Duoduo just laughed it off, not caring at all, as if he hadn't seen it.

Li Zheng was amused by Ma Long's antics too and recognized that Ma Long was indeed as Qian Duoduo described—quite goofy in front of acquaintances.

He patted Ma Long on the chest, and said, "Natural talent."

He was referring to Ma Long's earlier eye maneuver; not everyone could do it. 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

Finally, there was Lu Li.

This guy seemed different than before, appearing listless and as if he hadn't rested well in a long time, standing by the side yawning frequently.

Even when Li Zheng walked up to him, he didn't greet him energetically as he used to but instead lifted his eyelids lifelessly without saying a word.

Seeing that something was off, Li Zheng scrutinized him closely, his expression gradually growing serious, "Come with me."

"Ah..." Lu Li opened his mouth to say something but quickly lost interest in speaking, closed his mouth, dragged his feet languidly, and yawned even more frequently while following Li Zheng slowly.

Li Zheng took him home. Mirel had just finished absorbing the twisted magic crystal's energy and was preparing dinner.

Seeing him return, she cheerfully greeted, "Dinner's almost ready, just wait a moment. Oh? A guest? I'd better make a bit more."

Li Zheng stopped her, "Go outside for a bit, wait until I call you back."

Noticing that Lu Li seemed off, Mirel nodded obediently, turned off the stove, and stepped outside, closing the door behind her.

Once the door was closed, Lu Li collapsed onto the floor like mud, lazily stretching, his eyes half-closed, ready to fall asleep at any moment.

Li Zheng frowned slightly, circled around Lu Li twice, and asked, "How long have you been in this state?"

Lu Li didn't open his eyes, his voice as faint as a mosquito's, "Five... days..."

The two words seemed to have exhausted all his energy, and he yawned again, his breathing gradually becoming steady.

"Five days." Li Zheng calculated; exactly five days ago was the day Lu Li and the others entered the Outer City, which meant he started showing early symptoms at least five days ago.

"Did you come into contact with any ancient relic groups or enter any ancient ruins before entering the Outer City?" Li Zheng kept probing, but Lu Li had already drifted into sleep, softly snoring.

"Alas..." Li Zheng sighed, pressing a finger to Lu Li's brow, abruptly focusing his spiritual power to invade Lu Li's mind.

Lu Li was already in deep sleep; his spiritual realm was almost defenseless, allowing Li Zheng easy access.

Here, Li Zheng found himself in a different environment again.

Lu Li's spiritual realm was a boxing match venue, with a ring in the center and a raised audience area around it, roughly estimated to have over two thousand seats.

"This place..." Li Zheng looked at the surroundings, momentarily stunned, "Could this be the venue Lu Li's brother used when he competed?"

Looking up at the arena, there hung two large display screens surrounded by several differently colored neon lights. On one screen was a man bearing a strong resemblance to Lu Li, with bronzed skin and more pronounced cheekbone features.

[Lu Manjiang]

That was his name, and next to it was a bright red national flag, different from Earth's; the Blue Star Dragon Country's flag had no five-pointed star but a golden emblem resembling a crescent moon scimitar.

Below the flag, scrolling text introduced Lu Manjiang's honors in large letters, detailing which competitions he participated in and what rankings he achieved.

Li Zheng watched quietly for a while and realized that Lu Li wasn't exaggerating at all—the invincible Lu Manjiang, his brother, genuinely never lost, winning every competition.

The other nearby screen was somewhat blurry, yet the name beside it was crystal clear.

[Jin Zaiyin!]

"This was Lu Manjiang's last competition venue!" Suddenly, Li Zheng understood why Lu Li's spiritual realm was like this, as it was his brother Lu Manjiang's last match and the match that left the deepest imprint in Lu Li's memory.

Also, it was this match that led Lu Manjiang to die with resentment!

"I didn't expect Lu Manjiang to hold such importance in Lu Li's heart." Li Zheng gazed at the screen displaying Lu Manjiang, the image so vivid, every detail meticulously clear.

The weight of Lu Manjiang in Lu Li's heart was so heavy that all these years, he remembered every detail about his brother so vividly?

Li Zheng initially thought that someone like Lu Li, suffering from mental illness, would have a spiritual realm completely different from a normal person's—strange, fragmented, and illogical.

But Lu Li's spiritual realm was normal to the extreme, showing no signs of being a mental illness patient's spiritual realm at all.

Li Zheng looked towards the arena—the center of the entire spiritual world. Logically, Lu Li's spiritual body should be there.

However, instead of finding Lu Li on the stage, he saw in a corner of the front row, a little boy around seven or eight years old.

The boy kneeled on one knee, leaning against the railing, eyes closed in slumber.

From this posture, it was clear that before he fell asleep, he might have been standing on tiptoe, loudly calling out his brother's name toward the direction of the arena.

Li Zheng could almost imagine that scene.

Brother Lu Manjiang had always been a role model in Lu Li's heart. He adored this victorious brother who brought prestige to the nation. Whenever his brother competed, Lu Li would go to the venue, cheering him on from the spot closest to him.

He would join the other spectators in the stands, loudly shouting that name when his brother gained an advantage in the match, and proudly exclaiming in his heart, "Look, that's my brother!"

Until that day, when this undefeated myth tumbled, fell on the arena, defeated by an opponent far inferior to him.

The spectators who originally supported him cursed vehemently, wishing they could jump into the arena and devour the player they once supported.

At that time, Lu Li was still young, unable to comprehend why the spectators' attitudes changed so drastically.

All he knew was his brother lost, lying on the arena, face covered in blood, while his opponent continued to attack relentlessly, needing multiple warnings from the referee to be stopped.

The champion strutted proudly on the arena, making various provocative gestures, while the crowd supporting him celebrated as if it were a festival, cheering loudly.

The spectators supporting Lu Manjiang were either despondent, indignant, or screaming curses.

But through it all, only he was concerned about the unconscious figure on the ground.

Except for the event crew and his brother's colleagues and friends, who rushed to carry him off the arena, not a single spectator cared how seriously he was injured.

It wasn't until years later, when Lu Li grew up, that he realized those spectators didn't truly support Lu Manjiang; rather, they had bet heavily on Lu Manjiang winning at the black market casinos.

His brother lost, meaning they lost a significant sum of money!

They cared only about money!

They didn't care about the player's past honors nor the money he won for them before; all they cared about was this time when Lu Manjiang made them lose everything!

They unleashed vitriol and attacks online against the player who lost them money, wishing death upon him.

Ultimately, as they wished, Lu Manjiang jumped from a tall building, satisfying their cruel desires.

With his life, he allowed those people to win once more.

From that point on, there was no longer a Lu Manjiang in Lu Li's life, no longer the brother who brought glory to the nation.

No more role model.