Chapter 26 Fate, “Wonderful” Beyond Words【5K】
If the online world is seen as a vast city, then each website and software is a building within that city.
Just like the bustling areas of a city that change and adapt with the passage of time, those once-popular websites and applications will inevitably decline as time goes on.
[THEVOICEOFHEART] is a portal website focused on music consulting that has remained lukewarm since its establishment and has not been remembered by most people. In today’s era, where various professional music software flourish, it has long been outdated.
Like those forgotten landmark buildings hiding in the corners of the city.
It has not been updated in a long time; the homepage still displays album release information from over a decade ago, with a distinctly crude web UI and chaotic advertisements that easily evoke memories of embarrassing websites.
No one knows why it is still operational; probably no one is interested, and certainly, no one would notice the inconspicuous web chatroom that is designed as a supplementary feature of this website, hidden away in a nondescript corner.
Moreover, this web chatroom is password-protected, though the password is simply 123. Yet, at this moment, there are over a dozen members discussing vigorously within.
004: “What’s going on? The target has a boyfriend? This is such crucial information; how come we never heard of it before? If it’s true, our previous analyses and plans all need to be thrown out!”
011: “I’m more concerned with whether he really has a boyfriend. The change in self-awareness and orientation of human males after merging with a witch-type urban legend core holds significant research value.”
014: “It’s not entirely impossible. I presume everyone knows that when a person displays babbling behavior, it is often a release of anxiety, unease, and feelings of loneliness. If someone can alleviate their anxiety and provide security, they are likely to develop dependence and feelings for that person, regardless of gender.”
006: “Don’t be so rigid with species! Maybe when he said boyfriend, he meant some male urban legend?”
007: “If that’s the case, I actually want to use him for an experiment later to compare whether a human male or a male urban legend can provide him with more security.”
001 [Admin]: “Everyone, is it possible—just possible—that the target is lying?”
The group: “”
014: “Indeed, lies can also be a form of self-defense.”
In a certain city, within an unremarkable small company, at an inconspicuous workstation.
A man with heavy dark circles under his eyes watched as the topic in the chatroom gradually returned to the right track and became more professional and rigorous. He let out a long breath, moved the mouse, and closed the website.
Although there were countless “eyes” watching Luxianbei, and dedicated personnel following up, even if he didn’t remind them, the members of the Solar Eclipse Society would soon discover Luxianbei was rambling.
However, he couldn’t resist sneaking a glance at the events during work hours. Who could refuse a pleasant little distraction?
Taking a break at work is an essential skill for a matured office worker.
A moment later, his phone on the desk vibrated. It was a message from the Solar Eclipse Society member responsible for contacting Huaxie Yu. After reading the message, the man furrowed his eyebrows. “He escaped?”
Although he had long anticipated that the “Old Man’s Blind Date” plan wouldn’t be so easy to execute, he had not expected Luxianbei to dodge the subsequent arrangements of the rideshare encounter.
According to the original plan, Luxianbei should not have been able to take a taxi or rideshare under any circumstances. He was supposed to accidentally encounter that old man and his granddaughter, then share a ride back to Huacheng.
However, for some unknown reason, Luxianbei actually hailed a taxi.
“Forget it, Huacheng is his territory; if it’s too easy, it’d be abnormal. We can arrange other opportunities later,” the man muttered to himself.
When in Fragrant Lady Cave, he told Huaxie Yu, “When two people are destined to fall in love, the whole world creates opportunities for them.” He wasn’t trying to create some ambiance; he truly could deliver.
From a certain perspective, he was indeed the “world.”
As long as he wished for it, no matter how Luxianbei tried to hide, he would find a way to make Luxianbei encounter Huaxie Yu—
After learning that Luxianbei “had a boyfriend,” the old man not only did not feel discouraged but instead recounted the amusing anecdotes from her granddaughter’s childhood.
It created a misconception of “Do you mind having another girlfriend?”
The old woman chatted non-stop, and he listened throughout; he was completely fed up!
So, when the plane landed at Huacheng Airport and just as the broadcast announced, “Please disembark from the front boarding gate,” Luxianbei ran away.
Before the elderly neighbor could get up, he leaped over, darting past her side. It was as if he had completely forgotten the lunch date they had just promised. In that instant, the old woman felt like she had become a hurdle in a race.
And that “useless” person who cleared the hurdle, after stopping in the corridor, muttered, “Excuse me,” as he made his way through the crowd of passengers, leaving the plane with a stutter.
The scene was so realistic it was as if Jiang Li had possessed him.
Once off the plane and out of the terminal, reaching the taxi pickup point, Luxianbei figured the old woman could no longer catch up, and he finally took out his phone, turning on the mobile network.
Even though many planes nowadays allow surfing the internet via Wi-Fi, mobile networks are still prohibited, so at this moment, Luxianbei finally received the message sent by Huasang a few hours ago.
Huasang: “Your dumplings have caught Old Turtle!”
Upon seeing this message, Luxianbei was startled, then confusion quickly replaced surprise. No way!
Those dumplings were clearly just ordinary farewell dumplings and tasted particularly bad; how did they turn into human fireworks?
Luxianbei thought as he was preparing to text Huasang, asking for details about catching the Xuan Turtle urban legend core when he received Huasang’s next delayed message.
Huasang: “But sadly, I couldn’t reel it in; I was so close this time. I’ll have to wait for your next visit to try again.” Luxianbei: “That’s strange! Why does she sound so happy even though she clearly failed? Does she just want to see me?”
Luxianbei: “Try again! That huge plate of dumplings should be enough for you to catch until tomorrow morning, right?” After waiting for a moment.
Huasang: “I tried. But aside from the first one, the rest didn’t work out, and I ended up flipping a bunch of little turtles. My master has already forbidden me from throwing dumplings into the cold pond again.”
Huasang: “By the way, after you left today, more than half of the elders in Dachunyang Palace started showing symptoms of vomiting and diarrhea. They won’t tell me what happened; do you have any clues?”
Looking at Huasang’s message, Luxianbei recalled the sixty or so dumplings he had left to “honor” Zhang Hainan, his face turned pale.
Luxianbei: “No idea at all.”
The dumplings had already been given to that old man; the sin was his, what did it have to do with me, Luxianbei?
After chatting a bit more with Huasang, he told her not to worry, promising to make some “human fireworks” to send to her after visiting Liao Zhai Tavern and to prepare a quality fishing rod, before exiting the messaging window. He found Jiang Li’s number and, as usual, sent her at least one message daily.
Luxianbei: “Successfully completed the mission and safely returned to Huacheng, please rest assured, Leader! [/DOGE]” After sending the message, he did not wait for Jiang Li’s reply but directly put away his phone.
Generally speaking, before Siye Association operatives advance to A Grade Spirit Patterns, they usually undergo extensive adaptive training at the Siye Association Headquarters to ensure the success rate of the advancement; after advancing, they must also go through numerous tests to confirm the stability of the spirit patterns.
Jiang Li has been busy with her spirit pattern advancement at the Siye Association Headquarters and hardly has any free time. Luxianbei had gotten used to the fact that after sending her a message, he would wait several hours or even a whole day before receiving a reply.
But receiving a reply is a good sign.
Putting away his phone, standing at the taxi pickup point, Luxianbei waved and effortlessly hailed Uncle Zhang Shan’s car—
“~It’s you again?”
Through the rearview mirror, seeing each other’s face, they almost simultaneously exclaimed, “”
“Going to Jingyi Apartment Complex?” “Going to Jingyi Apartment Complex.”
The two answered in unison once more.
“It’s been a while, share some new urban legend events with me?”
“It’s been a while, do you want to hear a new urban legend story?”
Thus, a person trying to hitch a ride for free and a radio host looking to collect urban legend materials ended up with their lines once again crossing.
What can I say?
Fate is such a marvelous thing!
In the silence, Luxianbei shifted his gaze, secretly observing Uncle Zhang Shan in the rearview mirror.
He was wearing the standard gray-black uniform of a Huacheng taxi driver, with a towel draped around his neck to wipe away sweat.
His hair was cut short for easy maintenance, and perhaps due to years of being exposed to the wind and sun, his skin was somewhat tanned. His sharply defined facial features, beneath two thick eyebrows, housed bright eyes that shone with love for life.
“”
Okay, confirmed, there’s absolutely no stirring feeling at all. He shouldn’t be the one! Why did I ever suspect Uncle Zhang Shan could be a romantic prospect?
That’s just too absurd! Luxianbei thought.
Recently, he had nearly been driven mad by the countless romantic fates Zhang Hainan mentioned.
To be honest, it would be nice to have a way to directly know with whom you have a romantic connection. “Aren’t you supposed to be telling urban legend stories? Why aren’t you speaking up?”
Seeing Luxianbei remain silent for a long time, Uncle Zhang Shan couldn’t help but urge.
“Oh, oh!” Luxianbei snapped back to reality. “Then I’m going to start my tale!”
Since you’re so eager to experience psychological extremes, I won’t hold back! The story begins with a m*rder case. One day, a police officer from a certain precinct…”
“Wait!” Just as Luxianbei began the introduction, Uncle Zhang Shan interrupted. “Your story doesn’t sound great! Last time it was a big monster, how can you drop the standard to start with a m*rder case this time?”
“Share something like last time; the listeners loved it!” Luxianbei: “”
Goodness!
Now you’re not even satisfied with ordinary urban legend stories but insist on A Grade events to catch your attention? Are you aiming to be a “Calamity” level urban legend radio host?
“Don’t worry, this story is no less than the last one!”
After all, it’s adapted from a real case in the Pink Fluffy Rabbit attack incident.
If anyone thinks that the Pink Fluffy Rabbit isn’t terrifying enough, just ask about your phone that can k*ll you at any moment—will it agree?
In fact, the injury rate of people due to phones in the Pink Fluffy Rabbit attack incident was exceedingly high.
This is likely because nowadays, many are addicted to their phones, poking at their mobile phone screens countless times each day.
Just imagine, if someone constantly poked at your head for no reason, would you get mad? Would you want to k*ll that person?
~~~~~
At Jingyi Apartment Complex, in Luxianbei’s home.
In the afternoon, bright sunlight filled every corner of this two-story apartment. At this time, no signs of the little urban legends were visible; the apartment was utterly quiet.
Although Luxianbei had arranged for them to properly care for Wang Ying and to intermittently switch his prenatal education audio, they typically wouldn’t behave obediently. They had early on run off to the depths of the drainage system beneath University City, a place where sunlight couldn’t reach, to mingle with the Mud Monster and the Cockroach Rat.
The floor-to-ceiling glass door on the balcony was ajar, with a gap letting in the blue sky and white clouds. Suddenly, against the backdrop of blue skies and clouds, a black dot materialized, quickly approaching.
With a light “clack” sound of claws scraping against the metal railing, a glossy-feathered magpie, with its tail adorned with magnificent patterns, landed on the balcony, turned its little head back and forth, and then leaped forward, transforming into a girl amidst a dazzling scarlet light.
The girl appeared to be around seventeen or eighteen, wearing a red qipao embroidered with clusters of magpies and peach trees. Her dark green hair was styled in a bun, secured with a golden hollow hairpin, making her look exceptionally festive.
“How strange, where did everyone go?”
Juemeng pouted her pink lips, stepped forward to push open the floor-to-ceiling glass door, then coughed lightly, covering her mouth and nose with her delicate white hands, showing an expression of disgust.
“Cough cough, such heavy dust? The dog probably hasn’t been back for a while, right?”
As she spoke, she lightly wiggled her fingers, and a gentle and refreshing breeze blew in from outside the balcony, sweeping out the dust and rubbish through the half-open window of the living room.
Looking around at the newly refreshed room, Juemeng placed her hands on her hips, nodding in satisfaction, then skipped upstairs.
Hehe, while the dog is out, let’s see what games he recently bought!
What? The disrupted romantic red thread?
No need to rush; wanting to change a person’s fate isn’t that easy.
As the only genuine deity of romantic fates within 9.6 million square kilometers, aren’t I aware of that?
Juemeng secretly thought, and just as she went upstairs, she spotted a little fleshy ball rolling around on Luxianbei’s bed, wearing a pair of headphones.
“???”
Juemeng stood there stunned.
Through her powers, she clearly sensed that it was an embryo of an urban legend, with spirit energy fluctuations that still emanated some of Luxianbei’s aura.
“What is this?”
It hasn’t been long since we last met, and that dog’s child is already this big?
Wait, when did he even have a kid? I, the dignified deity of the Siye Association’s descendants, didn’t sense anything at all?
Is this the so-called “witch’s egg” from the legends? But it’s way too big, isn’t it?
Juemeng thought, glancing around, stealthily approaching, and as if taping a watermelon, “Smack!” she slapped Wang Ying, pressing him down in place, then—
Her expression gradually twisted.
The taxi, departing from Huacheng Airport, traveled for about twenty minutes, and the city center’s wheels were already visible from a distance, as Luxianbei’s story entered its climax.
At that moment, Uncle Zhang Shan couldn’t help but interrupt, “Wait! Are you saying there were no clues left by the murderer at the scene? Who killed that couple? It can’t possibly be the TV, right?”
“Correct!” Luxianbei affirmed, “It was indeed the TV.”
“Whoa!” Uncle Zhang Shan gasped in shock, chills running down his spine.
He realized that this time Luxianbei’s story was completely different from the previous ones.
The past urban legend stories were direct in their horror, but this time it offered a deeply unsettling, spine-chilling sensation.
The eerie transformations of furniture when no one was home and the eyes lurking behind, ready to k*ll at any moment—this whole story felt like a block of ice rolling down his back on this hot day.
“How terrifying, how do you deal with such an urban legend? Isn’t that like going against all the electrical appliances in the world?”
To prevent Uncle Zhang Shan from causing certain unmeasurable impacts on the powers of the Pink Fluffy Rabbit while spreading the urban legend story, Luxianbei intentionally replaced the items in the story with “electrical appliances.”
“This… well,” Luxianbei feigned suspense and paused.
Just as he was about to continue, the phone resting on the WeChat chat group interface in front of Uncle Zhang Shan suddenly rang.
Beep, beep! “Brothers, is anyone near the airport road exit? I’ve run into some trouble here; if you’re free, come help me out, please?!”
A slightly high-pitched male voice from the intercom spoke.
Among taxi drivers, many participate in such chat groups for sharing traffic information and can chat to relieve boredom when there are no passengers.
“Is that you, Zhun? Got yourself into trouble again?” someone asked.
“Came across a fool who insisted on hitting on me! Now look, we crashed into each other!” The high-pitched voice replied angrily, “Crashing doesn’t matter; it’s all about insurance, but the main issue is that I still have two passengers in my vehicle!”
Upon hearing this, Uncle Zhang Shan cleared his throat, freeing one hand from the steering wheel to tap the screen, and said, “San’er, where’s your car stuck? I’m near the airport road exit; I can help you get the passengers.”
“Brother Zhang, Brother Zhang, it’s near the ball statue at the airport road exit.”
“Okay, I’ll be there in a minute!” Uncle Zhang replied.
Seeing this, Luxianbei tilted his head and said, “Wait, Uncle, why are we going right now? Aren’t you going to ask for my opinion as a passenger?”
Uncle Zhang Shan shot Luxianbei a glance through the rearview mirror and replied casually, “Though your story is great, a person hitching a free ride doesn’t deserve to voice an opinion!”
Luxianbei: “”
Uncle, you’ve changed, really!
What happened to that timid man who wouldn’t even dare to charge a free rider; where did that good uncle go? So after a minute, Zhang Shan drove the car to the airport road exit, near the ball sculpture.
Through the windshield, he saw the familiar old woman and a beautiful girl standing by the roadside, causing Luxianbei’s eyes to widen in shock, feeling an inexplicable sense of dread.
Fate, “wonderful” beyond words.
