Chapter 2 Human-like Beauty, The Ever-blooming Lover
Chapter 2 Human-like Beauty, The Ever-blooming Lover
The place where Yu Qing escaped from the First Paradise was the massive drainage outlet of Sublimation Pavilion.
This place connected to a great river.
Struggling, he crawled to the opposite shore of the First Paradise's outer wall.
From here, he could see several telescopes positioned two hundred meters ahead, peering into the life within the paradise.
This indicated that New Humans had once been active here, and there must have been transportation routes leading to the town.
He decided to go ashore there. So he returned to the water and swam vigorously toward it.
Climbing up to that spot indeed cost him considerable effort.
He succeeded only by carving step after step with his dagger.
By the time he reached that small platform, he was drenched in sweat, starving, and parched, collapsing directly onto the ground.
After resting for a while, he still forced himself to stand up again.
As he had guessed, there was a path ahead.
Just like the First Paradise, when these roads were built, technology had already ensured that not a single blade of grass would grow on either side for two hundred years.
Yet he found it strange—despite the thick dust covering the road, there wasn't a single dead leaf.
Could it be that the many beautiful trees nearby never shed their leaves?
He walked forward along this winding path.
Hunger forced him to stop and go, observing whether there were any edible plants on either side of the road.
Finally, he spotted a patch of wild chives. This was edible!
He pounced on them, grabbed a handful, and without hesitation stuffed them into his mouth to chew.
But soon he sensed something was wrong. This thing was some kind of artificial fiber!
He carved into the tree with his dagger, but the tree was also man-made, or perhaps some completely unfamiliar non-native species.
He guessed that this entire landscape was manufactured, and finding edible food here would be harder than reaching heaven.
This should be the hottest time of the day, with his helmet displaying an external temperature of 47.6℃.
Yet according to the data he had, the weather around First Paradise in January 2B00 was typically below 17℃.
Meanwhile, temperatures within First Paradise were system-regulated, maintaining between 18℃ and 26℃ year-round.
The thick protective suit felt extremely uncomfortable to wear.
His underclothes had been torn to shreds in the drainage ditch, then completely washed away by the water.
Now the protective suit was rubbing against his skin, almost wearing it raw.
So he simply took it off, walking stark naked, carrying all the belongings he'd brought from the First Paradise slung over his shoulder with an elementary particle gun.
He muttered to himself: "How refreshing! The crotch of this protective suit is way too loose - makes me feel all sloppy!"
Now all he could do was amuse himself to distract from his gnawing hunger.
He gave his own buttocks a hard slap, then chuckled:
"Look around the world today - whose face is smoother than my backside?"
However, he only walked naked like this for a short while before stopping.
This current state was simply too impolite, too uncivilized.
What if he actually encountered our relatives - those dear new humans, or the Yuzi? What then?
After some thought, he went to a tree by the roadside, cut off some branches and leaves with a dagger, and gathered some grass to weave a makeshift plant apron tied around his waist.
"Am I going back millions of years, retracing the path of human evolution?" he muttered to himself.
Though he was dizzy with hunger and his feet felt like they were paddling through water, he felt an inexplicable lightness and joy.
Now the road ahead stretched into a mountain hollow, where two buildings were visible, nestled among colorful trees and flowers.
After another ten minutes of walking, a grand archway came into view, bearing large characters that read:
"Primordial Human Leisure & Observation Grand Hotel."
It seemed the Neo-Humans had outright turned the First Paradise into an early human exhibit, like a panda pavilion, for their entertainment.
Have we truly become monsters in the eyes of the Neo-Humans?
Though by the time this hotel was built, Neo-Human anti-oxidation technology was already quite advanced, the archway still appeared rusted and worn.
Perhaps this place had been abandoned for quite some time, enduring a hundred years of wind and rain.
As he approached the archway, he noticed a row of faintly carved characters on the base of the right pillar, which read:
"Zhang Daoming of Tianjing Bay and Ma Jiayun were here visiting.
In your prime, you were praised as a scenic wonder; today, your glory has faded and silence prevails as dust buries you.
Carved on April 14, 2B33 AD."
From the inscription, it could be deduced that this hotel had been abandoned before April 14, 2B33.
This realization instantly turned his initial delight into deep concern. In ruins over a century old, there naturally wouldn't be any food left by previous visitors.
Suddenly, he saw a… woman sitting on a chair not far inside the archway!
Her jet-black hair was gently fluttering in the breeze.
Involuntarily, he stopped in his tracks, then quickly retreated a dozen steps backward in small, hurried paces.
Flustered, he tore off his grass skirt and put back on that stifling protective suit.
He had only caught a glimpse of the woman's profile, but already knew she must be an extraordinarily stunning beauty.
Her graceful posture alone could overshadow all others in the world. At the very least, Yaya and the others couldn't compare to her.
He composed himself, trying hard to appear calm and collected as he walked back toward the archway.
He deliberately made some noise, hoping to catch the beauty's attention.
He wished she would turn her face toward him now and greet him.
"In the eyes of the New Humans, do I still look handsome and dashing?" he wondered.
However, the beauty only seemed to tilt her head slightly, making no further response.
Perhaps she had just argued with someone and was still angry. Or maybe she was being reserved.
Even so, he still felt quite happy.
The beauty's appearance suggested that the New Humans—or the Cosmic Beings—hadn't abandoned the original human form.
In that case, wouldn't he blend in among them without being seen as an outsider?
He strode over confidently and stopped about two meters away from the beauty, softly saying:
"I'm sorry to disturb you, but may I ask…"
The beauty remained completely still.
He felt somewhat embarrassed - she clearly couldn't be bothered with him.
But soon he noticed something strange:
This woman showed no signs of breathing at all! She might have been dead for some time.
Startled, he instinctively took a step back and observed for another moment. She really did appear to be dead.
Truthfully, he should have noticed the abnormalities earlier - her clothes were tattered and torn. He'd been too busy staring at her face - how pathetic.
Suddenly, he realized this didn't make sense either.
If she had been dead for days, why wasn't there any decomposition? Could modern humans really achieve incorruptible flesh now?
"Ahhh, I was so desperate to see another human that I forgot this might just be a mannequin!"
Snapping out of it, he boldly approached and pinched the mannequin's face.
The texture felt even more comfortable and softer than real human skin.
Perhaps it has been placed here for over a century, yet it remains perfectly intact, still retaining its original luster.
Never fading—this is one of the goals pursued by the New Humans.
He carefully peeled off the tattered clothes and discovered text engraved above the mannequin's navel:
"*The Everlasting Beloved*, proudly manufactured by Shentian Co., Ltd.
Production date: July 3, 2B24.
Power her on for three minutes, and for a year, she will make you the happiest king in the world."
Evidently, this was no ordinary mannequin but a *Humanoid Beauty*, once a global sensation!
The Time Capsule contained records of this, and his father had told him about it too.
The advent of *Humanoid Beauties* utterly revolutionized the New Humans' romantic ecosystem.
Beyond childbirth, it possessed all the functions and virtues of a woman, with deep customization options, extraordinary intelligence, and learning capabilities.
It could serve you 24/7—as your lover, assistant, and devoted servant, unconditionally obeying your every command.
It was observant and attuned to emotions, continuously deepening its understanding of your preferences, capable of instantly assuming any role you desired—sometimes throwing itself into your arms, sometimes playing hard to get, at times appearing pitifully vulnerable, and other times seeming both resentful and coquettish.
Two years later, the "Artificial Lover" was also born and quickly became beloved by women worldwide.
Some women even owned over five hundred Artificial Lovers.
From then on, men and women of the new era found each other unappealing, and the marriage rate plummeted to less than one in a thousand.
In response, the government began imposing a "bachelor tax," with rates that soared to an absurd 97 percent at one point.
As a result, sham marriages became popular, with nominal couples everywhere who, in reality, continued their separate lifestyles.
Some of these fake couples even devised new twists, having their Artificial Companions and Artificial Lovers fall in love and marry each other.
At the time, scenic spots and beach resorts were crowded with Artificial Beauties and Artificial Lovers.
Some New Humans carry ten to twenty humanoid companions or partners when going out. Since they closely resemble New Humans, they often cause confusion.
I heard they were eventually granted "Second Citizen" status, with each humanoid companion and partner possessing their own special identification card.
Killing someone else's humanoid partner or companion could even result in six months of imprisonment.
Yu Qing felt his earlier excitement had been in vain—it seemed this place was completely abandoned.
Moreover, since all the plants here were artificial, they couldn't provide food for herbivores, so no grazing animals would visit this place.
Predators that rely on herbivores wouldn't come here either.
In fact, not even a single mosquito could be seen here.
No moss, no mushrooms, no signs of life—only remnants of high-level scientific achievements remained.
Realizing there was no hope of finding food here, the last bit of energy he had been forcing himself to maintain instantly dissipated.
Now settling for second best, he searched for water to drink. Having sweated so much, he was likely already dehydrated.
At this moment, he saw residual rainwater still pooled in the slightly parted mouth of the humanoid beauty.
He removed his helmet, then desperately cradled its head and began sucking until not another drop could be extracted.
In the end, he inexplicably burst into wracking sobs, as if the humanoid beauty could still hear him.
He spotted Yaya and the others ahead, waving to him.
He collapsed into the humanoid beauty's arms, dimly hearing himself mutter: "Farewell, damn your ancestors."
(End of Chapter)