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Chapter 521 - 518: "Yuanyuan’s Cat.

Chapter 521: Chapter 518: "Yuanyuan’s Cat.

"There’s also milk tea over here."

Seeing how much Xiber loved it, Yamada Machiichi immediately seized the opportunity to win her favor and handed her the milk tea.

The milk tea, capable of capturing the hearts of countless girls, was equally effective with Xiber. The creamy milk scent mixed with the refreshing taste of black tea, sweet yet with a hint of delicate aroma.

After a few sips, Xiber’s expression had completely changed; under the temptation of the milk tea’s flavor, her formerly indifferent eyes, comparable to those of a deity, had softened into those of a normal girl.

...And so, milk tea remains the eternal god.

Su Ming’an even wondered if relations with the people of Qiongdi would improve if he offered them milk tea.

However, it’s a pity that the World Game only allows them to bring in such insignificant sweets, and in limited quantities at that. He couldn’t possibly distribute desserts to every person of Qiongdi to make them more devotedly worship Bai Shen.

Unless a Player’s occupation was related to being a chef, capable of crafting food on the spot, bringing such things in large quantities was not permitted.

Xiber’s eyes sparkled as she tried a variety of novel foods she had never tasted before, such as chocolate, cheese cake, donuts, mango tapioca dessert... Luna’s backpack was like a treasure chest, with food filling the stone round table, surrounded by tempting desserts everywhere.

"I really want to eat," Yuanyuan’s voice came from the side.

She was a ghost and couldn’t eat, only able to gaze longingly at the desserts.

"Next world, when we meet again, I’ll bring some for you," Su Ming’an said.

"...Chocolate mousse, chocolate cookies, chocolate bars?" she asked.

"And a new fairy tale book? One based on the World Game’s backdrop?"

"Alright," she said with a smile.

Su Ming’an looked away, suddenly noticing Luna across the table, resting her cheek on her hand, watching him with a serene posture.

Her eyes, as if an icy lake, now seemed to be melting ice; even her well-defined, sharp features appeared exceptionally gentle in that moment.

...Why was she looking at him like that?

No sooner had Su Ming’an sensed this than he saw her stand up.

"Number One Player, can you come over for a moment?" she whispered to him, "I... have something I want to tell you."

...

With Yamada Machiichi’s mischievous gaze upon them, Su Ming’an and Luna stepped aside to a nearby artificial hill.

A gentle breeze caressed their faces, making the floating scent of jasmine even more intoxicating.

Luna lifted her eyes.

"How are you feeling now?" Her voice was so soft, as though afraid of disturbing something.

Su Ming’an’s body still bore the remnants of unhealed curse-inflicted wounds that Xiber’s tentacles had been unable to absorb momentarily. He planned to let it heal on its own, considering the Shadow State had a shorter health bar.

When Luna, known as the "War Goddess of the North Country," inquired about his injuries, her voice became somewhat hesitant, and her demeanor slightly awkward.

"It should be almost healed..." Su Ming’an lifted his hand and glanced at his palm, then suddenly noticed it was smooth: "It’s already healed."

He turned his hand over: "The healing was pretty fast; I thought it would take at least half a day."

Luna nodded.

The light breeze passed by, and her snow-white hair cascaded in the air like spilt glimmers of light.

This Northern Country woman, who seldom showed a softer side, appeared now like a fragile dream.

"...Do you have a lover?" As he started to eat chocolate, she suddenly spoke up.

If it were not for the fact that chocolate can’t actually choke someone, Su Ming’an really wanted to cough violently a few times.

"...What did you say?"

He had been pondering, thinking whether his A+ charm suddenly began to affect players.

In his live streaming room, the barrage had exploded into a mess. Whenever this happened, the barrage would collectively turn green, turning the live streaming room into a "green ecological live streaming room".

He glanced at it casually, feeling his vision was still a bit blurry. The words of these people had completely blended together, hazy, and he couldn’t make out a single specific word.

"Ah, ah, I’m sorry, my wording might have been a bit off," Luna immediately clarified and changed the subject.

Her eyes, as thin as cicada wings and of a pale color, gazed at someone not far away, filled with exceptional softness.

"...I mean, does that person, have a lover?"

The wind brushed her eyelashes, and in her eyes was a tenderness that seemed to contain an entire world.

Su Ming’an followed her gaze.

——And happened to see Xiber, who was wolfing down food.

The red-robed, white-haired girl had her cheeks puffed out from eating, with white cream sticking to the corners of her mouth. Holding a cake in each hand, she seemed playfully cute in a way that wasn’t usually seen.

Observing Luna’s gaze soft as silk, Su Ming’an suddenly remembered that there was a rumor about the sexual orientation of this North Country War Goddess... that she preferred the same sex.

Now it seemed that it wasn’t just a rumor.

...Even more, she had taken a liking directly to Xiber.

Su Ming’an indeed hadn’t expected that Xiber’s charm, unnoticed by anyone in Qiongdi, had been discovered by a traveler from another world of the same sex.

But Xiber... was an entity who could plunge the entire Qiongdi into eternal slumber with just the word "purification". She was ruthless even towards her kin, capable of lying countless times without compunction...

If one were truly deceived by her appearance, their fate would definitely be very tragic.

"She doesn’t have a lover," Su Ming’an said truthfully.

As for how Xiber would deal with the headache, let her worry about it.

Upon hearing this, a smile as sweet as melting candy spread across Luna’s face, as if a long-troublesome question had finally been answered.

If this screenshot were posted on the world forum, it would absolutely make a whole group of players’ hearts flutter.

"——Bai Shen, esteemed guests, these are our gifts to you all."

At that moment, the women presented little figures made of wood, which in the tribe signified peace, and this wood had the effect of calming and focusing the spirit.

The young lads and girls offered up various candies, pastries, and other trinkets. And Su Ming’an even spotted an acquaintance amongst them.

"Chang Sheng?" He hadn’t expected to see Chang Sheng here. Shouldn’t this big fool be living near the First Tribe with his mother?

Perhaps they had relocated, given that the First Tribe had recently suffered from a tentacle disaster.

"Hehe, hehe," Chang Sheng still laughed heartily in his simple manner, handing him a colorful plastic-wrapped candy: "For you."

Su Ming’an looked at the candy in his hand that shimmered with a rainbow luster under the sun.

He hadn’t expected that Chang Sheng would really get his "candy". This piece of candy was no longer a pebble from the riverbank, but a truly, sweet treat.

He wondered who was so kind to have given Chang Sheng a real piece of candy.

Suddenly, the tribespeople all looked up.

"Look." They pointed at the sky excitedly: "Bai Shen, esteemed guests, look, that is our unique rainbow light. This kind of rainbow light appears only once every few years, signifying that Qiongdi has abundant rain and dew, a bountiful harvest, and it also means—that we will all have good fortune."

Several people looked up,

——they just happened to see a swath of rainbow light, like colorful silk, crossing the sky.

It was like a rainbow after the rain, flickering in the sky, like waves hiding in the serene turquoise sea.

That exceptionally soft déjà vu made one feel the illusion of having sliced through the firmament.

"So beautiful..." Sha La’s eyes sparkled.

The mottled colors danced across the horizon, like specks of light dancing in their field of view, carrying an elusive sense of transience.

Yuanyuan too, at this moment, drifted to Su Ming’an’s side.

"So beautiful," she said, "it’s a scenery not found on Zhai Xing, more real than a rainbow, as if it could be caught by hand."

She reached out her hand, and her fair, translucent hand scattered with the sparkling light, emitted a rainbow-like tranquil beauty.

Light spots fell from the sky, landing on people’s bodies, as if the multicolored light had kissed their forms.

Su Ming’an felt the light was a bit hot and there was a slight sting, but this was normal, indicating that the rainbow light was driving out the diseases from their bodies.

Patches of color splashed across his cheeks, with a sensation of burning, some light spots splashed into his eyes, and his vision suddenly became a little blurry.

He wiped his face, feeling a moist sensation on his hands.

"The humidity is quite heavy," Xiber shook her hands, "The appearance of a sky rainbow signals it’s about to rain, let’s hurry and pack up the desserts."

She still looked somewhat reluctant, yet Luna generously packed up the desserts and gave them all to her.

"Thank you," Xiber held tight the parcel of desserts, and Luna embraced her as well.

Others thought this was a big sister taking care of her little sister, a warm and harmonious scene, but only Su Ming’an saw through Luna’s thoughts.

...A player’s love for an NPC is indeed an outspoken yet hopeless love.

He walked towards his own room; after resting today, he would head to the First Tribe.

Wiping the liquid on his hands, he felt his body also starting to get moist, a light scent wafted to his nose, mixed in with the rich aroma of jasmine, not very distinct.

He stepped on the pebble path, bathed in the splendid specks of rainbow light, warm breath enveloped him, making one feel very comfortable, like taking a hot bath.

That night, he rested very well.

Although he still had trouble sleeping, Yuanyuan was right by his side, and he talked with her for a long time.

"...So it’s like that, after Ming Hui, you came to this world."

"...Thinking about it, this flow of time is indeed quite strange."

"...I’m fine, in good shape, the strategy progress in these worlds is going smoothly."

He lit the kerosene lamp and looked at Yuanyuan floating in the night.

Her form was still transparent, but those eyes were bright, casting a glimmer under the flickering light.

"It’s apparent that your Guide is still very perplexed about the future," Yuanyuan suddenly started talking about Xiber.

"Perplexed?"

"[Just show everyone the pollution solution, and then everything will be resolved, and the name of the Evil God will fall apart], that’s her thought," Yuanyuan said, "But before this, everyone will regard her as [Evil], thus preventing her from [proving she is not Evil]."

"..."

"Fundamentally, she has already been labeled as [Evil]," she said, "If you tell lies many times, they can no longer be corrected. Once labeled as evil for too long, in the eyes of others, it can never be cleansed... The moment she summoned the tentacled monster intending to purify everyone, she lost the chance to cleanse her name."

Su Ming’an leaned against the bed, with the flame of the oil lamp flickering dimly and brightly on his face.

"...He who gazes long into the abyss will eventually fall into the abyss," Yuanyuan said, "Those who consort with evil for too long will ultimately lose the ability to stay away from evil."

Su Ming’an gazed at her.

"Although I don’t know why you would mention these things... whether she is evil or not is fundamentally irrelevant," he said. "Her wish is to overturn the Black Wall so that the people of Qiongdi can obtain eternal light and freedom—at that time, whether she is still alive or has died after exhausting her life force in sacrifice, to her it no longer matters. She is someone... whose principles are incredibly steadfast; how others view her is insignificant.

She did all this only for peace within her heart. She does not want to regret anything when tragedy looms. She is actually someone... proud to the utmost degree. She cannot allow even the slightest chance that could realize her long-cherished wish to slip away from her, even if doing so might come with a great cost."

Yuanyuan bent slightly forward, staring into his eyes.

"...It’s not worth it," she said. "It’s not worth it, these people of Qiongdi... they simply don’t deserve it."

Su Ming’an looked back into her eyes.

He could see in her eyes, at this moment, the reflection of his own figure.

"She did it to see the blossoming flowers, to see the ocean, not for these people." He said. "If she thinks it’s worth it... then it is."

He recalled the HE where, choosing to exhaust her life force for the purification of Qiongdi, Xiber, her hair turned white with age, looked at him as she fell.

By then, there was no sorrow left in her eyes.

It was as if she had tried every effort, and in the end, faced an unwanted outcome. She chose to stop and end everything in this manner.

Even if it meant bearing the title of an evil god at odds with the world, even if her hands were stained with her brother’s blood, even if their conflicts remained unresolved to the end.

She still chose to accept it.

[To blaze brilliantly after burning one’s life, there may be regrets, but no remorse.]

This was the best ending she could achieve within her power.

"...Ming’an, have you heard of Schrödinger’s cat?" Yuanyuan said. "Place a cat in a box, and before the box is opened, the chances of the cat being alive or dead are fifty-fifty. At this moment, the states of being alive and dead are superimposed, and no one knows its actual state.

But if someone were to open the box and really look, then its fate becomes fixed."

"What are you trying to say?"

"For those who [desire to see the cat still alive], it might be better not to [observe]," Yuanyuan said. "Wanting to know something is actually a very scary act. Sometimes it’s better to maintain the not-yet-opened box state, not to go all the way, perhaps?"

Su Ming’an glanced at her.

She was looking back at him, her expression still calm.

Warm light shone upon her black hair, and those distinctly black and white eyes remained unchanged.

Gazing into his eyes, she suddenly smiled.

"...Alright, let’s not talk about this anymore."

She stepped back a few paces, and her transparent form blended into the halo of yellow lamp light.

"It’s already very late, sleep now."

...

[...]

[...]

[— "Jiu Shen: Notes on Reincarnation"]