Chapter 135: Chapter 93: Steel Hot Forest and the Self
New apartment on Dan Street.
The coffee machine beeped.
Surround sound played cowboy folk songs from the nostalgic radio.
There were new clothes just delivered on the sofa—biological cashmere breathable inner layer white T-shirt, aluminum glass heat-resistant jacket, and multifunctional synthetic fiber combat work pants.
John stood at the floor-to-ceiling window holding the iron railing.
The new place didn’t have a balcony.
In the industrial-style building, there were only cold railings and hard, cold lines of support.
The colorful night of Eden City cast a glow on his face.
Short stubble, pupils with microchips, small scabs from healing wounds that hadn’t completely fallen off.
The music ended and switched to the evening radio.
"F*ck yeah Everyone! I’m your Roy, what the hell are you scumbags doing? The cops on the night shift are about to go to sleep, isn’t anyone starting something new, you unimaginative pigs, I don’t even have material to rant on!"
"We’re going live in five minutes..."
"Quick, quick, quick, move it, see if there’s anyone around, if not, run to the store across the street and make some noise, then call me live!"
"... Are the late-night hovercars jammed? Company dogs, it’s Wednesday today, how’s the bank statement, any significant changes in the numbers after the minus signs? The days of working your life away for the company are endless, right?"
"What are you doing back in that cold nest? Turn around to the club, find a familiar spot, and call Roy!"
"Move, move, move! Immediately! This city needs to sway those hips, neon lighting up the naked night, wet drinks served on tables, don’t refuse, don’t stand by, when you keep a distance from her, she won’t welcome you either..."
"Let me hear from the first listener."
"F*ck yeah, Roy, Sangma Rebi Pool!"
"Wow, bursting with energy, I also... F*ck, yeah! Get to the back of the line! Next!"
There’s canned laughter and passionate banter on the radio.
John smiled, his gloomy mood alleviated by a mouthpiece host, even wanting to go out for a walk.
He turned around, got dressed, and took the things from the table.
[Bolago Club - Steel Hot Forest (Front Section Ticket)]
Eisenberg - Alloy RCH.
The roaring motorcycles seemed understated compared to the earth-shaking sound systems and light pollution.
John entered the club hall with his membership status.
Red carpets and a palace-like high ceiling, but the lighting was cool—they didn’t like illuminating their clientele too clearly to maintain a sense of mystery.
The members passed each other by, under clear yet hazy sources of light, even the fragrance in the air was somewhat intoxicating.
The heartbeat began to speed up, desire was brewing.
At the very bottom of the hall was a row of dual-direction elevators, with golden waistlines and intricately carved patterns, leading directly to upper-level banquets, auctions, the giant infinity pool in the middle of the building, and a range of exclusive small clubs.
Behind it was the largest mall in the West District.
It’s the busiest place for foot traffic.
Gino siblings’ boxing gym, Angelica’s restaurant were all on their respective floors.
John aimed to visit a members-only venue today.
The intelligent panel on the elevator had a specific option for Steel Hot Forest, not to mention it required swiping the magnetic stripe on the paper ticket to operate.
Stepping out of the metal doors, there was a soft carpet.
A male and female attendant with exploding physiques greeted him outside, testing John’s heart rate, temporarily storing his weapons, and binding the locker key secrets with biological information.
The waiters’ eyes were twinkling.
Point-to-point service had already begun.
Perhaps detecting sexual orientation and service records, the male attendant vanished in a blink, leaving the girl to help John select the corresponding service package.
The ticket was just an entry pass.
But earning access to VIP exclusive areas required skill; this paper could even double as a casino chip.
John glanced over the price list.
He directly chose the most expensive package, the necessary orders had been placed long ago; even if he exhausted all his spare cash, he wouldn’t feel too distressed.
Eden City was fraught with peril.
John had killed too many unlucky bastards, no one ever knowing if they’d die the next second, so living in the moment was the most cost-effective choice.
"This is your first time experiencing the Steel Hot Forest project, I strongly recommend you change clothes, the performance will expose you to a lot of buffers."
The attendant proactively helped him remove his coat, placing it in a cleaning bag with an electronic tag and sent it into a delivery chute.
Customers could wear their own clothes too.
Anyhow, there were washing and drying services afterwards, letting customers retrieve their fresh, clean clothing after showering and massage upon completing the programs.
Preparations were more complicated than imagined.
An attendant dropped some sort of protective liquid onto John’s eyeball surface, and gave him a breathing mask covering his mouth and nose.
The metal sliding door finally opened.
John traversed the mysterious corridor, floating digits of varying heights glowed around, reaching out he could find soft steps suitable for climbing.
He pushed open the room with the corresponding number.
If his mouth wasn’t obstructed, he probably would’ve cursed several times on reflex.
The interior scene resembled a magnificent fairytale world.
Smoke infused with special essential oils filled the thousand-square-meter room, surrounded by enormous domes played scenes of forests and waterfalls in a seamless 360-degree loop.
Enormous leaf-like beds.
Budding flowers.
Oddly shaped roots and stems.
...
Each corner was a room for receiving customers.
From grass taller than a person to treehouses atop giant waterfalls, stepping inside felt like venturing into an unknown world.
Mist enveloped the vicinity.
Distance and spatial perception blurred,
John suddenly felt somewhat fatigued, immediately guessing the mist contained hallucinogens.
He slumped sideways, yet felt like plummeting from a cloud, landing into cushions so soft they made his bones ache.
Hoo, hoo~
John’s heartbeat and senses were magnified infinitely.
He felt every pore, every inch of skin, even the sensation of the warm breeze across his cheeks was vividly distinct.
A purple-haired girl was somehow leaning on his chest.
She drew her hair aside, drifting along his shoulders, her hand’s distinct warmth gliding over synthetic leather.
The dance and caress continued endlessly.
John suddenly felt he couldn’t perceive the passage of time.
Each time he awoke, it was as if from a deep, debauched dream, irresistibly spiraling into the next dreamlike abyss of sin, while the surrounding temperature steadily rose...
John propped himself up to remove the breathing valve.
He could feel a coldness on his back, presumably starting to sweat in the sweltering environment.
"Shh~ No, John."
The purple-haired girl pressed his mask, embracing him once more at a distance where her breath could be heard.
John seemed comforted.
Moments of life and death receded from his mind, all violence dissolved into brief gentleness...
The next moment.
John felt he was falling from a great height.
He clung to the girl, plunging into a tank full of buffers, surrounding screens began playing images from a streambed.
According to the script, he should have fallen from a waterfall.
John looked up to see the splashing spray, surrounded by simulated fish and rocks.
Floating purple hair obscured his view.
The girl approached him, her modified respiratory system allowing her to filter oxygen from the buffer liquid autonomically, without needing specialized equipment like him.
The slightly heavy water current enveloped his body.
Gentle pressure was replaced by the comforting touch of the undercurrent, dissipating fear with each relaxed breath, unimaginable safety and solace flooded in.
The purple-haired girl’s pupils were remarkably beautiful.
She shed the last bit of clothing, gently cupping John’s cheeks, smiling.
John felt utterly weightless.
His body seemed to float.
Even if nothing happened, just sleeping in such an environment felt blissful.
But the girl’s subsequent actions geometrically multiplied that happiness.
She seemed omnipresent.