Chapter 587: Keeping It Secret

The following morning, Huang Shengjie woke up very late.

His whole body ached and he was ravenously hungry.

The withdrawal pain from the previous night had been far less severe than the agonising pain in the community, but it had still put him through enough that it had been very late before he could get back to sleep.

And he could not shake the feeling, whether it was real or imagined, that the withdrawal pain had left something behind, like a persistent shadow he could not quite rid himself of no matter what. There was no specific pain and no clear discomfort he could name, but something about his whole body just felt off.

When he came down to the hall, Huang Shengjie found he was the last one up.

Most of the players had already finished breakfast and were gathered in small clusters, reading or attending to their own things.

Qin Cheng was reading alone in a corner of the lounge area.

Huang Shengjie collected his breakfast and sat down across from him.

"The players who suffered pain last night were Yao Yuan, Deng Xiao, and Geng Yuxia." Qin Cheng shared the information immediately.

Huang Shengjie paused, "Deng Xiao? That's the second time for him. His luck has been rough."

Qin Cheng nodded, "Yes. That's why Lu Bingjun is currently working things out with the others to rotate Deng Xiao back into the top seven."

When the first bout of pain had occurred, Deng Xiao had originally been rotated into the top seven.

But Zheng Chunhua had earned a large amount of visa time from the recent game, and since he had also already endured pain once, Lu Bingjun had not made a deliberate adjustment. The result was that Deng Xiao, sitting at the boundary, had been nudged out by Zheng Chunhua.

Deng Xiao had also succumbed to a degree of wishful thinking, telling himself he could not possibly be unlucky enough to be selected again, and had not pressed the matter the previous evening.

But clearly, his gamble had not paid off.

The selection process in the community appeared to be genuinely random, and genuine randomness had no obligation to be fair.

Huang Shengjie looked over at Yao Yuan and Geng Yuxia.

They seemed far calmer than Wen Wan had been after her first experience, and their overall demeanour was not noticeably different from usual.

They were clearly players with a reasonably high pain tolerance.

Qin Cheng seemed to read Huang Shengjie's thoughts and explained, "Psychological factors also play a significant role.

"The first time, there was no preparation and no medication. That completely unexpected onset of agony adds a considerable psychological weight.

"By the second time, Wen Wan had already developed anticipatory fear. Her repeated hoping that the pain would not fall on her only made the psychological burden heavier and amplified the pain itself.

"This is already the third occurrence. Many players have had time to mentally prepare, so the experience tends to be somewhat better.

"And this time, the three players selected all appear to have fairly good pain tolerance.

"From the perspective of the game rules, this pain cannot be eliminated. We can only accept that it will be a long-term presence.

"The good news is that the current situation is still relatively manageable.

"Even relying on the community's most basic medications, everyone should be able to keep going for a long time. It's similar to how many cancer patients endure pain over extended periods."

Huang Shengjie hesitated and said, "But, Qin Cheng, I have some bad news.

"The withdrawal pain from the game didn't go away. It's still there.

"I was woken up by it again last night. And it lasted much longer than it did in the game. The way it felt, I think it was probably over half an hour."

Qin Cheng paused, and his expression grew serious.

He thought carefully for a moment, then said firmly, "Shengjie, don't tell anyone about this for the time being."

Huang Shengjie was puzzled, "Hmm? Why?

"If everyone knows the addictive effects of Type O and Type F carry over into the community, they'll be even more wary of those medications. Isn't that a good thing?"

Qin Cheng shook his head, "This situation may be more complicated than you're imagining."

He glanced at the others and lowered his voice slightly, "Consider this from the perspective of a player with a lower pain tolerance who has been wanting to try Type O or Type F.

"From Wen Wan's perspective, for instance, she would probably think something like this.

"At first, when you make the news public, she would feel worried and afraid, just as you said, and would be even more reluctant to try Type O or Type F.

"But over time, your withdrawal pain will ease. And in day-to-day life you can't be visibly suffering from it at every moment. For most of the time, you'll look more or less fine, just like right now.

"So as time passes, Wen Wan will most likely come to feel that this so-called withdrawal pain doesn't seem all that terrible after all, and the idea of taking medication to suppress the community's pain will resurface.

"Because people genuinely cannot feel each other's pain. No amount of words can fully convey suffering to another person.

"Beyond that, what concerns me even more is a different point. The knowledge that withdrawal pain persists in the community could influence the decisions of certain players in leadership positions.

"I'm worried they might revise the earlier proposal to seal the medications, relax the restrictions, and use it to their own advantage."

Huang Shengjie looked puzzled, "What do you mean?"

Qin Cheng explained, "From the perspective of someone who actually manages the community, do you think there are more advantages to making the medications available or to keeping them sealed?

"In reality, making them available has more advantages.

"Under the game rules, players who participate in games can restock the supply. The community's stronger players and decision-makers participate in more games, which means they can earn more profit from restocking.

"They can use the medications to extract visa time from other players. Once that starts, the community's wealth distribution becomes permanently fixed in their favour.

"On top of that, the more players in the community who become addicted and experience withdrawal pain, the more power those who actually control the medications effectively hold.

"Because they can use the medications as a means of controlling player behaviour."

Huang Shengjie still looked somewhat uncertain, "You're saying the community's stronger players could establish both economic and physiological control over the weaker ones?

"But from what we've seen, didn't Lu Bingjun, Ye Lin, and Lawyer Lin all agree to seal these two Special Medications?

"How could they go against everything they said and release them again for personal gain?"

Qin Cheng shook his head, "That arrangement isn't as secure as you might think.

"We were able to pass that proposal because it rested on two assumptions.

"First, we believed at the time that the side effects from the game would not carry over into the community. With everyone a 'healthy person,' managing these medications strictly made obvious sense.

"Second, this new community hasn't been together very long. Most of the stronger players still care about their image. In plain terms, they still have a reputation to maintain.

"But the moment it becomes known that the side effects do carry over, we will inevitably begin conducting thorough documentation and research into what that means.

"And the further that research into 'addiction side effects' and 'withdrawal reactions' progresses, the more details accumulate, and many people's positions will begin to soften.

"If the addiction proves strong, the stronger players' positions may soften. If it proves weak, the weaker players' positions may soften.

"There's an even worse scenario: both groups soften at the same time.

"And as long as someone in the community is tormented by withdrawal pain and keeps bringing the topic up, that risk never goes away, and only grows stronger.

"So I think the best approach is to keep this quiet.

"Seal all the medications and also completely avoid discussing or investigating the matter further. That, paradoxically, is the safest course."

Huang Shengjie frowned and said, "Yes, maybe. What you're saying does make a certain kind of sense.

"But what about me? I seem to be the only person in this community experiencing withdrawal pain."

Qin Cheng said reassuringly, "Don't worry. You have me.

"I'm a doctor. I'll be watching your condition closely.

"By reasonable extrapolation, this withdrawal pain should ease significantly within one to two weeks. Most of the pain should subside by then.

"There may be some longer-lasting effects, things like aching, mild discomfort, sleep disruption, or low mood, which might continue for a few months.

"But those symptoms are unlikely to interfere meaningfully with day-to-day life.

"Under normal medical guidance, the recommended approach would be to gradually taper the dosage, or to use a substitute medication for the transition.

"But neither of those options is workable in the community.

"So for now, I'm afraid you'll just have to push through on your own.

"If things get worse or something unexpected develops, we'll adapt as we go."