Life in the simulation bore no connection to the word "beautiful."
Up until now, Xu Xi still hadn't grasped the true nature of the Beautiful Life Simulator.
But he felt it was a classic case of clickbait fraud. After several simulations, not only had he failed to achieve a beautiful life, but each attempt had ended in tragedy.
In the first simulation, Xu Xi died under the siege of demonic cultivators.
In the second simulation, Xu Xi was limited by the constraints of a mortal's existence.
In the third simulation, Xu Xi perished alongside the Emperor of Great Qian.
And now, Xu Xi was experiencing a new way to die—a slow, silent erosion, rotting from the inside out.
A meticulously crafted torch could be reused many times. Even if some parts wore out, it could still emit a warm flame.
But if used continuously for too long,
even the handle would burn away.
After a fleeting moment of dazzling brilliance, the torch would become utterly unusable, completely consumed both inside and out.
Similarly, Xu Xi, who had forcibly maintained the starship's voyage and created the miracle of escaping his prison, was now facing the silence of death.
Only a faint ember remained,
flickering weakly within the torch, casting a dim, hazy light on its charred remains.
"Welcome back, Master."
"Ailei is at your service at all times."
When Xu Xi opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was the operating treatment pod. He lay inside, his vital signs sustained entirely by the machine.
The loyal mechanized servant stood by his side,
never leaving for a moment.
Xu Xi's condition was dire, and the mechanized servant wasn't faring much better.
In his memory, the once delicate face was now half-destroyed, revealing the alloy framework beneath and the eerie blue glow of its electronic eyes.
It wasn't hard to tell
that during Xu Xi's coma, the mechanized servant had encountered some dangers.
"Ailei..."
"Master, please don't move."
Xu Xi instinctively tried to sit up from the treatment pod, but his body felt unfamiliar, weak, and unresponsive.
Even his voice was hoarse, like the grating of stones.
The loyal mechanized servant, of course, wouldn't stand by and watch Xu Xi suffer.
She quickly stepped forward,
her hands, stripped of their synthetic skin to reveal the metal beneath, brought a cup of warm water to moisten Xu Xi's throat. She steadied his frail body, allowing him to sit up slightly.
"Thank you, Ailei..."
Unease and trembling.
Xu Xi sipped the water slowly, his weak posture and barely open eyes observed by the waiting mechanized servant.
Her expression was calm, for a loyal mechanized servant must not worry her master.
Her posture was upright, for a loyal mechanized servant represented her master's dignity.
But within her eye sockets,
the blue electronic eyes flickered unnaturally, glowing faintly like a human's, with a rapid, almost imperceptible rhythm.
"You don't need to thank me. This is... what I should do," the cold mechanical voice responded softly, carefully tilting the cup for Xu Xi.
After a moment,
having replenished some fluids, Xu Xi regained a bit of energy.
His body was still young, but his movements were as feeble as an old man's. His clouded eyes first looked down at his wounded body, then turned to Ailei, whose mechanical frame was heavily damaged.
Finally, he surveyed his surroundings.
It was familiar—the escape pod of the starship.
Yet also unfamiliar, as it was his first time using it.
The metal-clad, enclosed space reminded Xu Xi of a distant past, the days of survival deep beneath the sixth satellite city.
"...Ailei."
"Yes, I'm here."
"...Can you tell me how long I was unconscious?"
"Yes, you were asleep for 318 hours, 25 minutes, and 22 seconds."
Ailei answered swiftly and precisely, a hallmark of her artificial intelligence.
An efficient mechanized servant was a true asset to her master.
Ailei firmly believed this.
"So... I was unconscious for nearly half a month," Xu Xi's expression showed no surprise. He knew better than anyone how dire his physical condition was.
In truth, his ability to breathe and speak now was only due to the faint residual warmth of a torch that had already burned out.
Once that last bit of warmth faded,
Xu Xi would reach the end of this simulation.
Xu Xi couldn't stop worrying about Ailei, fearing that after his departure, the mechanized servant wouldn't be able to survive on her own.
Though he knew that, given Ailei's unique nature, surviving in the universe wouldn't be much of a challenge.
"Ailei."
With a weak voice, he called out again.
In the silver-white escape pod, the man on the verge of extinction asked the mechanized servant what she had done, wanting to know how she had managed alone.
"I took you through interstellar escape and successfully crash-landed on an uninhabited planet."
"And then?"
"I gathered replacement energy sources to keep the treatment pod running long-term."
"And then?"
"I prepared some food for you. If you're hungry, you can eat at any time."
"And then?"
"I set up a virtual network for you. If your body is too weak to move, you can pass the time with virtual games."
Facing the once warm and smiling, now pale and fragile face,
Ailei spoke softly, her voice calm and steady, answering Xu Xi's questions one by one.
The mechanized servant was indeed loyal.
Loyal to a fault.
But the answers Xu Xi wanted to hear weren't these.
Slowly closing his heavy eyelids, he shook his head slightly.
His voice was hoarse, but it carried a tone of concern: "Ailei, everything you've said is about me. I want to know what you've done for yourself."
Ailei's mechanical body was severely damaged.
It could have been repaired.
But the mechanized servant had ignored it entirely.
She answered like this, her silver-blue eyes reflecting Xu Xi's face: "All resources, all arrangements, must prioritize your safety."
"You don't need to worry. The wear on this body doesn't affect its functionality."
Her voice was calm.
Her logic was sound.
As a mechanized servant, her first priority was always the master she served.
Machines don't feel pain, so even in a state of disrepair, seemingly on the verge of breaking down, there was no need for repairs.
Everything,
everything had to be considered from Xu Xi's perspective.
Ailei genuinely believed this.
"Master, please rest and recover. Ailei will take care of everything," the mechanized servant's voice grew even softer, as if afraid that speaking too loudly might disturb Xu Xi.
She didn't mention whether the environment of the unknown planet was harsh.
Nor did she bring up the difficulties of starting from scratch.
Gazing at Xu Xi, the mechanized servant simply whispered her promise, assuring him that she would protect him and that he needn't worry.
She spoke softly of a beautiful future.
Once Xu Xi recovered, with the mechanized servant's ability to rapidly produce forces, they could quickly assemble a new fleet and explore the vast universe, witnessing the wonders of alien worlds.
Yes, as long as Xu Xi recovered...