Chapter Seventy-One “Snow” One Piece After Another
On the edge of a dilapidated rooftop, the hot wind brushed against the girl’s silver-white long hair, swaying gently. Beneath her lightly swaying long skirt, her slender calves were exposed, gleaming white, but the burn scars on them drew more attention.
Those burn marks made her look as if she had just escaped from a fire scene.
Lu Xibei gazed at the proxy player sister, whose body was scattered with burn marks. After pondering for a few seconds, she asked expressionlessly, “Why do you need to rest again?”
“Come on, stop acting like a capitalist spreading blessings!” the proxy player sister patted her shoulder and retorted, “Do you think these burn scars don’t need time to heal?”
“We proxy players always sell our skills, not our lives. If it’s reasonable service, I’ll certainly serve you wholeheartedly, but you can’t expect me to risk my life, right?”
“…”
Don’t rely too much on me, Lu Xibei!
A while ago, you managed just fine in Tangcheng, didn’t you?
If every decision is made according to my thoughts, then what’s the point of all this?
The proxy player sister thought, her head hanging slightly, her eyes dimming.
“…”
After a few seconds of contemplation, Lu Xibei nodded and said, “Alright! By the way, I have another question, about the face customization… I take it there’s no room for negotiation?”
Even if she couldn’t reignite her glory, she still wanted to customize her face. Ask any girl her age; how many don’t enjoy face customization?
The proxy player sister furrowed her brows, hands on her hips, leaning forward, and said sternly, “Let me tell you, don’t even think about it! Fast resolution! Do you understand?”
“Oh.” Lu Xibei responded dully.
If she couldn’t spend time to refine and create the perfect model, then even the most flexible face customization system would be meaningless.
“I’ve said all I needed to say.” The proxy player sister said, “Are you ready?”
“Mm.” Lu Xibei nodded.
“Then let’s get started!”
Saying this, the proxy player sister suddenly pushed Lu Xibei’s back, as if attempting m*rder.
Caught off guard, Lu Xibei fell off the rooftop.
Then…
Time seemed to stop for a moment.
The next instant, she was engulfed in light.
———
After a brief moment of consciousness silence, a wave of subtle pressure awakened Lu Xibei from her slumber.
It was as if she had been submerged underwater, a clear liquid enveloped her body, the temperature just right, making her feel perfectly at ease.
Soon, an invisible force came, pulling her upward, like the buoyancy of water lifting her body, floating lightly, drifting with the current.
Before long, as if finally breaking the surface, she started to gain perception of her surroundings.
She felt a powerful heartbeat and the familiar energy pulsating through her limbs.
She felt a gentle breeze brushing against her, carrying some heat, like slightly warm little hands softly caressing her face, bringing a faint smell of bl**d mixed with a pungent, burnt scent.
But she couldn’t see anything, as if a thin film had been placed over her eyes, the light in front appearing dim and hazy.
After being dazed for a few seconds, Lu Xibei came to her senses, realizing that she had entered the body that the proxy player sister had reshaped for her. She promptly followed the proxy player’s guidance and began to envision her “urban legends” appearance in her mind.
About thirteen or fourteen years old, small in stature but not weak, a bit chubby, with a delicate, oval face…
“King of the Earth Tiger, one meter fifty of flowers!” As Lu Xibei sketched out her appearance, this line suddenly flashed through her mind, and she unconsciously recalled Bai Xiaohua’s illustration.
Then…
She barely thought of something trivial, and her thoughts instantly spurred out like unleashed wild dogs, becoming chaotic.
For a moment, it was as if two little figures who disagreed were pulling each other’s hair, arguing and tugging, not giving an inch.
The little white figure said: No, no, this isn’t the time to think about Bai Xiaohua!
The little black figure said: But Miaomiao Sauce is also pretty good…
The little white figure said: Watch out, or Miaomiao Sauce will k*ll you!
A little yellow figure, out of nowhere, said: What about Muscle Jinlun? Didn’t you want to reignite your glory? Just take that shape, guaranteed to be majestic!
The little red figure said: If it’s majestic… have you considered the style of “Baki”?
Lu Xibei, “???”
What the heck? Where did you all come from? Why are you adding to the chaos?
As a variety of people, urban legends, film and anime characters, even images of petting cats and dogs flashed through her mind, Lu Xibei suddenly realized that the process of reshaping her body was far more difficult and dangerous than she had imagined.
This situation made her think of a story her father once told her.
The story was about a deity who created a well filled with gold in a village, but in order to obtain gold, one absolutely could not think of the crooked old tree at the village entrance while fishing for it.
After the deity left, the villagers, filled with joy, went to fish but could not help but think of the crooked old tree at the village entrance.
In the end, the villagers brought in excavators, dug up the well, opened a gold mine, and everyone lived happily.
But…
Whether the villagers were happy or not wasn’t the key; the key was that, just as the deity had told them not to think of the old tree, some things should not be spoken out loud. Once they were said, it would uncontrollably draw thoughts and become uncontrollable with just a single thought.
Wait, can gold be thought of?
Lu Xibei, “…”
d*mn! According to the proxy player sister, once you lose focus, irreversible consequences could arise.
But how is it possible to think without distractions?!
I really have given up on face customization, but I can’t help but think! Lu Xibei thought angrily.
———
On the other side.
In a city ravaged by the dual trials of the Inheritance Beast and the Black Sun fire, Nanling Yaohua followed the direction in which the strange meatball fell, running madly, crossing the street, leaping and crashing into a building, then passing through an empty office, pausing before the shattered floor-to-ceiling windows.
From above, she looked down at the meatball that had smashed into the asphalt, forming a deep pit, her lips involuntarily twitching.
At this moment, the meatball was writhing violently, continuously splitting into various organs and changing shapes.
First, a slowly formed two-dimensional cartoon girl’s face emerged, followed by a slim, limping girl’s body.
That body didn’t last long and soon, after a burst of violent flesh writhing, it became robust, with increasingly defined and beautiful muscle lines.
“Chirp—chirp—chirp—!”
Alongside a series of light sounds, a pair of orange ears sprang from its head, a Shiba Inu tail grew from behind, followed by mysterious black horns, multi-colored flowers and mushrooms, chitinous shells, and panda fur… in short, all sorts of things sprouted out, making it hard to look directly at.
Then, that already grotesque body suddenly gleamed.
At first, it was like a body greased like a bodybuilder, its skin becoming shiny; soon the glow intensified, presenting a metallic texture. Seconds later, it transformed completely into an abstract golden statue.
Indeed, Lu Xibei was obedient in not customizing her face, but it seemed she accidentally embarked on another path, a path challenging the graphics processor.
Further on, the mass of meat continued to change, but Nanling Yaohua silently raised her delicate hand to shield her eyes and turned away.
That thing was simply too grotesque, completely evolving towards being a mental pollutant, and she could no longer bear to look at it.
If it weren’t for that meatball just having saved the city she loved, she would probably have rushed down with her sword, using the sharpest moves to eliminate the threat.
However…
Letting that thing continue to develop like this is not a solution!
It could probably cause other troubles…
Thinking this, Nanling Yaohua cast a sidelong glance towards the meatball’s direction, quickly retracting her gaze within a second, raising her hand to rub her eyes as if sand had gotten into them.
At that moment, the spirit energy wafting in the air suddenly trembled.
A dull roar echoed from the sky, gradually spreading throughout the city, as if this small world was vibrating slightly, emitting a low hum.
The humidity of the water vapor increased abruptly, the air becoming hot and sticky, as if a torrential downpour was imminent.
Noticing this subtle change, Nanling Yaohua furrowed her willow brows and looked up at the sky.
In the overcast sky, clouds gathered, and flashes of lightning flickered, stirring up waves of faint blue halos, rippling like waves, as if there was a sea floating in the sky, wrapping the entire city, and she could vaguely see fish swimming by.
“…”
It seemed like some kind of seal, a very clever seal, yet also something used for stabilizing this special space…
But who cast this? Nanling Yaohua thought, sensing a clue but remaining confused.
“Crash—crash—!”
The rain suddenly began to pour.
In an instant, the rain curtain swallowed the entire city, and under the dense drizzle, aside from the faint sound of rainwater shattering, the whole city fell into silence.
Those raindrops seemed to extinguish the earlier restlessness.
Even Nanling Yaohua felt that the special space, extremely unstable due to the dark red flesh and the falling black flames, gradually stabilized under the rain’s nourishment.
In the rain, everything became misty, and then amidst this hazy rain, something else fell from the sky, white and flurry-like, like snowflakes.
Looking out, in the ravaged city, it was raining, shrouded in mist, and snow was falling, creating an inexplicable sense of sorrow.
Nanling Yaohua took a few steps forward to the window, reached out to catch a piece of “snow,” brought it to her face, and instantly froze in place.
In her palm lay a small instant photo, depicting two children, a boy and a girl, sitting on a stone slab before an old iron gate, beneath a tree with lush branches, the bright sunlight filtering through the leaves onto the ground.
The boy had bumps on his head, panda eyes, but a smile lingered at the corner of his bruised mouth, while the girl was tearfully wiping the bl**d seeping from the bruise on his arm with a handkerchief.
Nanling Yaohua recognized this image; it was from her memory when she was bullied as a child, and Lu Xibei stood up for her during a fight.
But…
There clearly wasn’t anyone taking pictures back then!
Where did this photo come from? Nanling Yaohua wondered.
The next moment, the photo erupted with dazzling light, engulfing her form.
———
On the other side.
Shrouded in mist, on a deserted street, several cars crashed into each other in a frenzy, twisted and deformed. On the cracked asphalt, a girl in makeshift silver armor slumbered.
Cold raindrops continually pelted her face, and she fluttered her eyelashes, slowly opening her eyes.
Looking at the rain falling on the muddy ground, Jiang Li felt as if she had returned to that day years ago when two members of the Solar Eclipse Society invaded her home and abducted her.
“…”
I actually fainted; how ridiculous…
Was it because of that black fire?
From the upper echelons of the Solar Eclipse Society, the black fire in the hands of the core members. Jiang Li thought.
When that enormous black void appeared in the sky, the tattoo on her back seemed to activate suddenly, vibrating fiercely, conjuring horrifying illusions in her mind as if they were to crush her sanity, causing her to faint instantly.
Even now, she could still feel the searing pain from the tattoo on her back and the remnants of terrifying images lingering in her mind.
Once she fully emerged from that state and regained her focus, she discovered that what was falling from the sky with the rain was not “snowflakes,” but photographs.
She steadied her mind, picked up a photo that floated in front of her, took a glance, and frowned.
The first photo depicted her sleeping on an office desk in the morning, with Lu Xibei standing beside her, sneakingly holding her enamel cup.
Jiang Li, “…” Who took this photo?
As she pondered, the image in the photo suddenly came to life.
She saw Lu Xibei tiptoeing, pouring out the leftover tea from the enamel cup, placing new tea leaves inside, pouring hot water, then taking the coat from the hanger and gently draping it over her shoulders.
Jiang Li, “…”
How strange; when did this guy do all these things?
Why do I have absolutely no recollection of this? Jiang Li thought.
Generally speaking, given her alertness, even if she fell asleep in the Siye Society’s office, she would wake up immediately if someone approached. There’s no way she’d miss all the things Lu Xibei did.
As Jiang Li was puzzled, she caught sight of the image in the photo continually changing, her cheeks suddenly flushing.
She saw that after draping the coat over her, Lu Xibei leaned down, her face gradually approaching Jiang Li’s, and just as their lips were about to touch, she suddenly stopped, covered her face, and ran out of the office.
“…” After watching Lu Xibei’s social d*ath recording, Jiang Li fell silent for a few seconds, gently spat, “Tch, coward!”
As her voice fell, the photo emitted dazzling light, swallowing her form.
———
In the staff dormitory, at Lu Xibei’s home.
Gu Qiqi hugged the ugly black fish, rubbing against it back and forth.
“Hey, system, finally you’re back! I’ve been looking for you so hard!”
“Hmph! Looking for me hard?” the system replied in a strange tone, “You were eating and drinking at the Disaster’s house… oh right, and you even successfully tricked them into some roasted pig trotters! I see you aren’t suffering at all.”
“I… I was just playing along with it!” Gu Qiqi weakly replied.
“That’s called playing along!” the system corrected, “Alright, this time I’ll let it go, but you can’t do this anymore; you know you’ll be led astray by her?”
“By the way, system, why haven’t you been looking for me?” Gu Qiqi suddenly asked, “You don’t think I’m dead, do you?”
The system, “…”
“N-no! I’ve been looking for you! It must’ve been a timing issue. Well, this city is so big, and with the limit on spirit energy fluctuations, it’s quite normal to not find someone for a while!”
Absolutely cannot let Gu Qiqi know that I’ve already carved her name onto a commemorative stone tablet; otherwise, I would be socially dead! The system thought.
“That’s true!” Gu Qiqi nodded, and while speaking, she suddenly noticed the “snowflakes” falling outside the window, her eyes sparkling as she rushed to the window, “Wow, it’s snowing!”
“System, look! It’s snowing in the middle of hot weather!”
The system floated over to the window, extended its long fin, grabbed a photograph, took a look, and its fierce dead fish eyes suddenly widened.
The photo captured the scene of Gu Xiniang’s family, inadvertently causing Gu Qiqi’s parents’ deaths when exiting the special space…
“System, system, what’s in your photo? Mine shows the Disaster stealing stuff from my stall at the Ghost Market. How could she do that? That’s just despicable!” Gu Qiqi gritted her teeth.
Hearing Gu Qiqi’s voice near her ear, the system didn’t think twice. It opened its mouth wide, swallowing the photograph from its fin.
If the truth is too cruel, it’s better not to let her know at all… the system thought, collecting itself and looking at Gu Qiqi, “Didn’t expect this photo would taste good… by the way, what were you saying just now?”
Hearing the system say the photo taste good, Gu Qiqi instantly forgot whatever she was asking before, reaching out to grab a few photos and stuffing them into her mouth.
Then, those photos exploded like fireworks in her mouth, emitting strong light.
———
In the torrential rain.
Lu Xibei dragged her body, which she could no longer describe and was still constantly changing, writhing forward, with her more than two hundred eyes raised towards the sky and over forty mouths open, feeling that both life and this bizarre existence held a bleak future.
I was wrong, I was truly wrong. I shouldn’t have thought about Bai Xiaohua from the start. If I hadn’t thought of Bai Xiaohua, I wouldn’t have linked to Miaomiao Sauce, who cosplays as Bai Xiaohua. If I hadn’t thought of Miaomiao Sauce, I wouldn’t have thought of the cosplay streamer. If I hadn’t thought of the streamer, I wouldn’t have thought of Muscle Jinlun. If I hadn’t thought of Muscle Jinlun, I wouldn’t have thought of a bunch of nonsensical ghost things and ended up like this.
This grotesque appearance is weirder than a distortion-type urban legend. Even if I regain my memories and return to Huacheng, there’s no way I can survive!
If someone sees me like this and spreads it to the upper echelons of the Siye Society, I’ll probably be deemed a greater threat just based on my appearance, after all, just standing here can be horrifying.
“Crash—!”
Just when Lu Xibei, like a resentful woman, rambled on in her mind while causing her body to continue to develop in an indescribable direction, a photograph fell before her.
She extended her arm at a 30.23° angle to pick up the photograph, glancing at it, her over two hundred eyes turning red with emotion.
The slightly yellowed photograph depicted a young Mrs. Wang Meili, one hand resting on her slightly bulging belly, the other linking arms with the likewise youthful Lu Ming, smiling sweetly…
Goo goo goo
As this volume nears its end, I’ve hit a writer’s block; taking a day off today and will post more tomorrow.
