'Knowledge' is also a 'valuable equivalent.'
Although they had suspected that Longevity County was highly peculiar, before arriving, Chen Kong and the others primarily hypothesized that the rules here revolved around 'lifespan.'
But upon actually coming here, they found that the situation seemed to be much more complex than they had imagined.
Because, in addition to lifespan, the citizens of this island town also seemed to greatly value what they called 'memory.'
Chen Kong and his team currently had no clue why the creatures on Longevity Island were obsessed with 'memory' and 'lifespan.'
A similar discussion was taking place in Tendo's room at the top floor of the guesthouse.
[Longevity County Guesthouse, Room 601]
As one of the two best rooms in the guesthouse, Room 601 was not only larger than other rooms but also had much better decor.
Tendo sat quietly on the sofa by an old, peeling mahogany desk, fiddling with a 'silver coin' in his hand.
The dim yellow desk lamp cast a shadow on Tendo's profile, while the coin's intricate patterns reflected a unique sheen in the light.
On the other side of the room, Jing Liuli reclined on a sofa, a cute pink stuffed bear resting on her lap.
She poked the bear's ear, then looked up at Tendo by the window, saying softly, "Brother Tendo, why do you think the bank here insists on 'lifespan' and 'memory'? Those things aren't edible."
Hearing this, Tendo's finger, which was flipping the coin, suddenly stopped. He then gently flicked the silver coin.
The coin traced a beautiful arc in the air before landing steadily in his palm.
After doing this, Tendo didn't immediately answer Jing Liuli's question. Instead, he tilted his head to look at Caroline, who was organizing 'data' by the desk.
Sensing Tendo's gaze, Caroline instantly understood and answered Jing Liuli's question on his behalf.
"Liuli, what do you think is the proof that a person is 'alive'?"
Jing Liuli subconsciously answered: "It's... being able to breathe, eat, and walk!"
"Like those people in the town. Even though they're a bit strange, they're all living proper lives."
But after saying this, Jing Liuli noticed Caroline's meaningful gaze.
Feeling a bit unsure, Jing Liuli asked, "Did I say something wrong?"
Caroline thought for a moment, then first shook her head, then nodded.
This action left Jing Liuli thoroughly confused.
"Liuli, what you said isn't exactly wrong, but it's not entirely right either."
"Because, physiologically speaking, the creatures in the county town on this island can indeed be considered alive."
"But, from other perspectives, they are merely 'puppets' that can move."
"And if my guess is correct, the reason they are so obsessed with obtaining 'lifespan' and 'memory' is that they want to obtain the right to 'live.'"
"The right to live?"
Jing Liuli was puzzled by Caroline's statement.
In her view, since the citizens of Longevity Island were already 'alive,' why would they need something to prove they were 'alive'?
That clearly didn't make sense!
Seeing Jing Liuli's confused expression, Caroline knew she hadn't understood her meaning.
So, after some thought, Caroline provided a more easily understandable explanation.
"Liuli, the concept of being alive is inherently very broad, and the characteristics it encompasses are never limited to just 'physiological' aspects."
"Think about it. If there was a person whose body was completely intact, with all vital signs normal, but whose consciousness was in a perpetual state of sleep—never waking up, and remembering nothing. Would such a person... still be considered alive?"
Upon hearing this, a light suddenly dawned in Jing Liuli's mind.
"Caroline, are you referring to brain death?"
"Mhm."
Caroline nodded, indicating that was the concept she was illustrating.
Although Jing Liuli had grasped the meaning of 'being alive' that Caroline wanted to convey, a new question popped up.
"But that's wrong, Caroline. Those people in the town don't look brain dead to me. So why are they so obsessed with getting other people's lifespan and memory?"
Hearing this, Caroline's gaze became profound.
She then picked up her tactical tablet, tapped the screen with her finger, and handed the tablet to Jing Liuli.
What appeared on the tablet screen were the data files of all Longevity County citizens they had encountered that morning, including the bank clerk and the guesthouse owner.
With Caroline's near-terrifying 'data collection,' these individuals' bodies were represented by blue bio-energy lines, transformed into special holographic projections.
In these projections, the bodies of these people were no different from ordinary humans, except that the head area was completely blank, as if thoroughly erased by an eraser.
In other words, those 'people' who seemed ordinary to Jing Liuli.
Were actually quite different from normal people on a biological level.
Seeing the 'brainless' individuals on the tactical tablet, Jing Liuli's eyes widened instantly. She didn't even notice the stuffed bear sliding off her lap.
She reached out and subconsciously tapped the head area of the analysis diagram of the Longevity County citizens on the tactical tablet, whispering, "Their brains are empty?"
Caroline nodded, then reached out and began to scroll the tactical tablet's screen.
In the next second, a large amount of information on the Longevity Island citizens, recorded by Caroline, appeared before Jing Liuli.
Without exception, the head area in all of their analysis diagrams was the same blank space.
Aside from this obvious characteristic, these people had another trait that was also out of the ordinary.
That was their vigorous 'life force,' comparable to that of a Star Beast.
"Liuli, not only do they lack a normal human brain, but their bodily functions far exceed those of ordinary people, even stronger than many Star Beasts."
"Many of them can even achieve a level comparable to First and Second-tier Star Envoys without relying on Star Energy."
And among these 'people,' one 'person' was very unique.
That was the guesthouse owner they had encountered not long ago.
He was the only individual in the citizen data currently collected by Caroline who was similar to a normal person.
But having one 'normal person' mixed among a group of monsters was, in itself, abnormal.
And after learning that these Longevity County citizens had body structures drastically different from normal people and an unusually high 'life force.'
Jing Liuli vaguely understood why these people were so eager to obtain 'lifespan.'
After all, in a sense, lifespan and life force... have always been synonymous.
But...
"But what about memory? Caroline, I feel like memory isn't really useful to them, is it?"
Caroline was about to explain this question when Tendo, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly spoke coolly.
"Liuli, lifespan strengthens their physiological functions, making their physical shells more robust."
"But having only the shell is not enough. They also need 'memory' to fill their blank minds."
"Even if it's fake, someone else's memory can temporarily give them the 'illusion of being alive.'"
Hearing Tendo's words, Jing Liuli frowned and asked, "What's the point of 'being alive' like that?"
"Liuli, for them, having meaning is enough."
Tendo looked at Jing Liuli and said with a rare serious tone: "The meaning of life is not only in its length but also in its breadth."
"And for most people, diverse and rich experiences are often the symbol of their 'breadth of life.'"
"Therefore, if time is likened to a tree, then 'memory' is the unique 'tree ring' of that tree."
"A tree without tree rings is no different from dead wood, and naturally cannot be considered alive."
Saying this, Tendo stood up and looked at the sky over Longevity County, which had begun to dim.
"Unable to use their own 'memory' to record the tree rings of life, they naturally can only rely on the memories of others, because their own memories are already fixed at a certain point in time."
[Real World, Site 13, Commentary Section]
'Fixed at a certain point in time? So Longevity Island is actually a giant time prison?'
'It must be. Otherwise, why would Tendo say these people don't have their own 'tree rings.''
'In that case, these citizens are quite pitiful. After all, if a person doesn't even have their own memories, they truly are no different from being dead.'
'But wait, didn't Rose Knight Wilfred, who appeared at the beginning, have his own memories? He even remembered the President and the Doctor.'
'To the person above, isn't it normal for a few individual cases to appear in a huge sample size?'
Through the conversation between Tendo and Jing Liuli, most dimensional viewers on Site 13 roughly grasped the underlying logic of Longevity Island.
First, 'equivalent exchange,' and second... 'time.'
After all, in a sense, both 'lifespan' and 'memory' are external manifestations of 'time.'
The former represents length, and the latter represents breadth.
Combined with this, it became reasonable why 'life force,' a secondary derivative of lifespan, also had exchange value on Longevity Island.
Seen this way, the entire Longevity Island seemed like a gigantic 'time prison,' where everyone was trapped in a specific time fissure.
Getting out might not be as easy as they imagined.
Not long after Tendo finished speaking, the camera shifted to Longevity County at night.
Unlike the hustle and bustle of the day, Longevity County at night finally had a hint of the 'Fallen Zone' atmosphere.
The streets were terrifyingly quiet, and the gray, hazy mist covering the entire county town added a sense of eeriness to the dead silence.
Bang!
Just as the dimensional viewers were wondering what was strange about the night streets of Longevity County in the frame, a figure suddenly flew in from outside the screen and heavily slammed onto the road.
It was a man wearing the Heavenly Martial Training Base cadet uniform. He clutched his chest, his eyes filled with terror as he looked at something not far away, seemingly fearing it.
As the camera shifted, a tall monster with a head split into countless 'tentacles' came into everyone's view.
Upon closer inspection, the so-called 'tentacles' seemed to resemble the 'vines' of some kind of plant.
The difference was that this 'plant' was composed of countless flesh and blood masses.
"Damn it, why are there monsters like this here too?"
"And why can't they be killed!"
Staring at the 'monster' slowly walking towards him, the man gritted his teeth, struggled up from the ground, and ran in the direction leading out of the county town.
But just as he started moving, several sounds of something slicing through the air came from behind.
In the next second, several thick 'tentacles' tore through the air and heavily whipped the man's back, slamming him into a wall beside the street.
"Pfft!"
With old injuries unhealed and new ones added, the man immediately coughed up a mouthful of blood, his face pale.
In a short while, the tall monster walked up to the man.
Then, to the surprise of the dimensional viewers, the monster's tentacles began to retract and eventually combined to form a seemingly ordinary, goatee-bearded old man.
And this person was none other than the stall owner who had cooked plain noodles for Chen Kong and Mi Yao that morning!
What was even more surprising to the dimensional viewers was that several blurry figures appeared in the mist behind the goatee-bearded old man.
Although these figures' faces were unclear, when combined with the bizarre goatee-bearded old man in front of them, it instantly made the dimensional viewers realize how dangerous Longevity County was at night.
They also understood how precious the 'guesthouse entry certificate' in Tendo's hand truly was.
In the dimly lit street, the goatee-bearded old man looked at the man, who was largely immobilized, a chilling greed flashing in his cold eyes.
In the next second, his head split open again by one-third, transforming into several sharp and uncanny tentacles.
Some of these tentacles restrained the man's limbs, while the others transformed into 'blades,' slowly moving towards the man's brow.
Just as the tentacles were about to pierce the man's brow, a burst of searing and dazzling firelight appeared out of thin air.
Boom!
Amidst the violent explosion, the goatee-bearded old man retracted his tentacles, turned his head towards the source of the firelight, his expression grave.
A woman, holding a demonic blade and bathed in flames, slowly walked out from the other end of the street.
In the mist briefly dispelled by the flames, numerous charred, humanoid corpses lay scattered across the street, motionless.
Looking at the woman, the goatee-bearded old man narrowed his eyes slightly.
Immediately after, one by one, Longevity County citizens emerged from the mist, also looking at the uninvited guest bathed in firelight with greedy, green eyes.
After all, they couldn't remember how long it had been since they encountered someone like her, someone who dared to cause a ruckus in Longevity County.