Starting from Robinson Crusoe-Chapter 146 - 61: Spectators on High_2
As for feeding Xiao Huihui, taking care of the chinchilla and the grapes, he was more often talking to himself or just making sounds, never forming complete sentences.
Sometimes, he didn't even know if he had expressed his thoughts aloud or if it was just an illusion.
Sitting up from bed, Chen Zhou suddenly spoke with a hoarse voice.
"Hello, my name is Chen Zhou."
He paused slightly, as if hearing his own voice for the first time.
The voice was rough and unfamiliar, the articulation was fairly clear, but it was completely different from the voice he remembered.
Only then did Chen Zhou realize, due to not communicating with people for so long, some things he took for granted had quietly transformed.
If it wasn't for this illness making him idle, he might not have discovered the problem for another two or three years, by which time he might have lost most of his language ability.
In the past at the factory, even though he was always a silent, unnoticed individual, he could still speak dozens of sentences each day.
Exchanging words with colleagues from different positions, dealing with leaders, complaining about the saltiness of the meals in the cafeteria, or calling his parents to chat about mundane matters.
On the island, there was no opportunity to speak, and he gradually developed the habit of not speaking.
In modern society, no one considers the consequences of not speaking for five months.
Chen Zhou never imagined that the tone in which he spoke would change so much from when he first landed on the island.
This might have been influenced by the tobacco water, but one cannot deny that long periods of low-frequency use of the vocal cords have affected his language ability.
If he continues like this, once the challenge is over and he returns to modern society, he might need years to regain normal communication skills, and by then, the combined rewards might not even be enough to cover medical expenses.
"Cough, cough, this Time Travel Administration Bureau is really stingy.
I risk my life for your reality show, it's bad enough you pay so little, but you don't even list these hidden dangers. It's truly shameless."
Clearing his throat, Chen Zhou muttered to himself.
After saying this, the cave returned to its long-standing silence.
Watching the dimming bedroom, listening to Xiao Huihui's snoring and Lai Fu's dreaming grunts, an indescribable fear suddenly gripped his heart.
It was as if he saw, in the cave and on the entire island, a colossal void creature, slowly devouring him.
The name of that monster is loneliness.
It has no sharp teeth or claws, no terrifying appearance, no strong body, only an endless erosion in silence.
In this silence, a normal person would have their intellect worn away, their language ability stripped, their memory lost, their self-care capability gone.
Becoming inhumane, irrational, no longer cherishing anything, even life itself.
Chen Zhou always thought he was contending against nature, against time, or against his past lazy self.
It wasn't until this moment that he understood, in this challenge, his sole adversary was loneliness.
As a modern person, a modern person without faith, who has experienced bustling life and enjoyed technological conveniences.
A modern person who is anxious, mentally exhausted, isolated and introverted, thrown onto a deserted island, he must endure loneliness far heavier than Robinson's.
Robinson cared little about his family, he was rebellious, leaving home and his parents early.
Robinson could find spiritual solace, he could have faith.
In the 17th century, science and technology were not as advanced, Robinson witnessed too much death, even engaged in slave trade, he held no illusions about the world, only needing to think about survival until rescue.
Comparing Robinson's and his own conditions, Chen Zhou felt he understood why he was the one chosen among many applicants.
Precisely because his life was unsatisfactory, he was anxious, introverted, and cared about his family.
Such a person stranded on an island for survival would surely be bound and tormented by familial ties during the long challenge.
They would also struggle and persist due to the hope of improving life after winning rewards when the challenge ends.
If an orphan without parents was placed here, the effect the Time Travel Administration Bureau expected on the show would vanish.
In a sense, this show called a "reality show" is not a reality show at all, but a cruel societal experiment.
If there were other selected challengers, they would surely have unusual personalities and experiences, showing different ways of handling the same issues.
Among them might be those with strong minds, those who have suffered more hardships and blows, those who are humorous, or even an oversized baby with no survival skills or experience of being alone.
These people might perform better than him, or they might perform worse.
They might live very freely on the island or might have already perished.
However, whether they live or die, they cannot cause a stir in any world, only serving as a small point of interest on the show.
The reason why the challenge used Robinson Crusoe as a backdrop was not because the producers wanted to see the challengers' wit or what tools they might create with their hands, or what intricate devices they might craft to improve life quality.
A civilization capable of creating such a vast world and distorting space-time would not be impressed by such crude and backward things.
The observers hidden in higher dimensions are only interested in the challengers' inner worlds and the struggle and decline of a sane mind during this challenge.
To better appreciate this struggle, they provided ample resources to ensure the challengers survive.
This twisted pleasure has not been deliberately hidden.
From the start of the challenge, one could infer from Robinson's encounters.
Robinson strived desperately at sea, finally reaching the shore, just one step away from escape, only to hit his head on a rock and die tragically, isn't this also a form of torment?
Recalling his reaction upon seeing Robinson's body, Chen Zhou felt he was too slow-witted.
If he were observant and sensitive, he might have seen through the essence of everything at the challenge's outset.
In an unprecedented, 28-year-long deserted island survival reality show, the challengers' lives mean little, what matters is what they do throughout the process.
Either choose to face loneliness, stay true to oneself, strive to endure, claim the rewards, and return safely to modern society.
Or choose to succumb to loneliness, turning into a survival machine, burying their soul in the challenge, or sacrificing their life.
No matter the outcome, it's what the audience expects, for this is the novelty they seek.
...
Thoughts tangled, Chen Zhou slightly raised his head, gazing at the beam above, eyes vacant.
His vision, intangible, seemed to penetrate the wooden beam, through the sand and stone on it, through the broad mountain and the boundless sky, reaching a void.
There might be countless eyes watching him there.
There were countless viewers criticizing him for throwing Robinson's body into the sea as a waste;
Countless viewers thought he couldn't survive judging from his poor performance when he first sawed wood;
Others felt excited about his success in building a raft and transporting supplies…
He didn't know if this feeling was accurate.
He only knew that the Time Travel Administration Bureau was not a charity.
This reality show isn't a free program, as the main character, he couldn't possibly have no audience.
The only consolation is those people cannot influence the challenge's rules, nor sway his mindset or choices through public opinion, nor practically cause trouble for his challenge process.
The true direction of the challenge has always been in his hands.
Whether to overcome loneliness, complete the challenge and return to modern society with the prize money or be consumed by loneliness, spending the rest of his life healing from the shadow, all depends on himself.
Lowering his head, Chen Zhou felt his mind extremely clear, and he even made a bold prediction — tomorrow's mysterious reward would definitely be an item of significant effect yet difficult to transport.
"Watching a still flu-stricken, weak-bodied person struggle to move heavy things, unable to give up and persevering, what a program-worthy sight it would be!"
