When Yu Sheng heard Irene’s request, he was a bit taken aback. He couldn’t fathom why she was bringing up such a serious matter at this mont.
They had indeed discussed creating a body for the girl in the painting several tis before, but they’d never settled on anything. Partly because they still lacked mutual trust and understanding, and partly because life had been too chaotic lately—Yu Sheng hadn’t had the ti to consider Irene’s physical form.
But now, seeing the exceedingly earnest expression on the doll girl’s face, Yu Sheng realized she wasn’t bringing this up on a whim or out of fancy.
He looked at Irene questioningly.
“I want to go with you,” Irene said simply. “Consider it an extra pair of eyes.”
“Are you sure?” Yu Sheng’s expression was sowhat nuanced. “I an, it’s not that I doubt your abilities…”
“Listen,” Irene interrupted, leaning so close to the edge of the fra that her face occupied two-thirds of the painting. Her tone was unusually serious. “I’m not joking. I may not know how you plan to deal with that ‘Entity,’ but given that you managed to bring back ‘souvenirs’ from it, you must have so skills. I won’t ask what they are specifically, but you need to understand that when confronting the Otherworld, just being able to ‘fight’ isn’t enough—especially against tricky entities like ‘Hunger.'”
She took a slight step back. “Make
a body so I can regain so freedom of movent. It doesn’t have to be perfect; as long as I’m freed from this cursed oil painting, I can do so much more. Even if I can’t restore all my powers, I’m definitely stronger than the average investigator or so-called spiritual detective or Otherworld hunter. Even if I’ve forgotten a lot of knowledge, I still have the instincts of a living doll.”
Yu Sheng gazed steadily at Irene, and she returned his look with crimson eyes.
“I can help you, Yu Sheng,” Irene said earnestly. “We already collaborated once when we ventured into Foxy’s dream.”
This ti, Yu Sheng pondered longer than ever before. Eventually, he had to admit that Irene had a point.
He was eager to return to that valley to deal with the ‘Entity—Hunger,’ but he knew that charging in alone didn’t give him a high chance of success. Sure, he wasn’t afraid of death, and he’d grown stronger by devouring parts of ‘Hunger,’ but such enhancents clearly had limits. And ‘Hunger’… was not easy to eliminate.
Relying on repeated deaths to wear down the monster might be one strategy, but it was definitely a last resort. Having a capable ally who understood supernatural powers would be a huge advantage.
All he needed was to place so trust in Irene and release her from the painting.
That trust had been established when they plunged together into Foxy’s dream, and then, upon waking and seeing each other, both felt a mutual discomfort that sohow bonded them.
“Looks like I’ll have to make a trip downtown,” Yu Sheng sighed softly, leaning back in his chair. “Materials like clay and wigs need to be bought from specialized craft stores; you can’t find those in this old neighborhood.”
The doll girl in the painting blinked. Realizing what he ant, a look of delight spread across her face. “You… you’re agreeing?!”
“If you’re not too picky about the quality of the body and you trust my craftsmanship,” Yu Sheng waved his hand dismissively, “I can give it a try.”
“I’m not picky. As long as it looks human, I can reshape it myself—just make sure you don’t ss up during the ‘alchemy’ part,” Irene hurriedly added, as if afraid that any delay might make Yu Sheng change his mind. After speaking, she hesitated, her expression turning a bit awkward as she glanced aside. “And… if you really can’t find suitable materials…”
Yu Sheng looked curious. “If I can’t find suitable materials, then what?”
“…You could use dough.”
He stared blankly for a few seconds before displaying the most shocked expression he’d ever shown since eting Irene. “What?!”
Irene explained in a small voice, “The material is just a dium. What truly matters is the alchemy—the combination of your blood and my soul…”
Yu Sheng was utterly baffled. “Wait, I get making do with less, but isn’t that a bit too much?!”
Irene thought for a mont and decided to flash him an innocent smile, hoping to charm her way through.
She succeeded.
But Yu Sheng still decided to go out and buy proper supplies.
“I’d better get so real clay. Making a body for you will require quite a bit; let’s not waste food. Besides, I have so other things to buy,” he said, exhaling as he stood up. “You stay here and watch TV. If anything cos up, call
remotely—and if the TV crashes again, wait until I get back.”
With that, he picked up the remote and turned on the TV for Irene. In the painting, she nodded obediently. “Oh… then co back soon.”
Yu Sheng agreed, donned his coat, and stepped toward the doorway.
Grasping the doorknob, he took a mont to steady himself. After confirming that there wouldn’t be a volcanic crater, teor shower, sulfur lake, lightsaber-wielding little green n, or a cyborg elf lady outside, he took a deep breath, opened the door, and stepped onto the old street of Wutong Road.
Suddenly, Yu Sheng found the situation rather amusing.
Reaching the ends of the world was easy enough for him (whether he could return or survive was another matter), but opening the door and stepping onto the street had beco more challenging…
As he walked toward the bus stop, Yu Sheng casually observed his surroundings.
At so point, his mindset while navigating this vast and unfamiliar city had subtly changed. The gloom and unease of the past few days had quietly faded. Walking down a street that wasn’t really his ‘hotown,’ he felt not only calm but also a hint of… excitent and anticipation.
Even the sky, so bright it was almost blinding, now seed cheerfully sunny.
Vendors sold goods at the street corners; a few pedestrians passed by; children who had gotten into so mischief ran shouting down the street, with adults chasing after them, scolding all the way.
Yu Sheng wondered if among these people were the ‘professionals’ Irene had ntioned—those who protected the city from the shadows, battling the Otherworld. Had anyone noticed that this peaceful and harmonious old neighborhood hid so small ‘oddities’?
He let his thoughts wander, speculating which passersby looked unfamiliar, who might be undercover agents, who could be spiritual detectives or investigators.
The pancake vendor at the corner seed suspicious; today, there was a new one whose skills were lacking. The woman hanging clothes on the balcony across the street might be one; he’d never seen her before. Could the mischievous kids who just ran by be undercover? Irene had said spiritual detectives could change their appearance—it was quite magical…
But the guy squatting nearby in a vest, dyed yellow hair, blasting music from his phone—he definitely wasn’t one. Didn’t fit the profile at all.
Humming a tune, Yu Sheng walked through the old street, brushing past Li Lin, who was squatting there with dyed yellow hair (a wig), blasting music from his phone.
A while later, Xu Jiali—a nearly two-ter-tall man—strolled onto the street. Glancing down at Li Lin, who was on surveillance duty, he squatted down, lit a cigarette, and joined him like a fellow street punk.
“Is your outfit reliable?” Xu Jiali asked.
“Very reliable,” Li Lin replied casually. “I always dress like this on surveillance missions. Those pancake-selling colleagues got exposed, but I never did. I even have an ani costu that’s even more discreet. Once, I nabbed soone smuggling across the border; he couldn’t believe an ani fan could be an agent of the Special Task Force.”
The big guy looked puzzled. “What’s an ani costu? Sounds like a force-field-powered suit? Aren’t those banned in the Borderlands?”
“…You wouldn’t understand,” Li Lin said dismissively, scooting away a bit. “Stay away from . You’re too conspicuous; you’ll blow my cover.”
“Impossible. With my vibe, I look even more like an unemployed drifter than you,” Xu Jiali smirked. “But you haven’t found anything all morning, have you? Honestly, I suspect that even if sothing is hidden here, it’s probably not a ‘person.’ More likely, it’s a weird entity or an Otherworld incursion point—that fits better with the clues you’ve found so far. Damn, with all that commotion in Boundary City last night, who knows what’s going on back at headquarters now? And here we are, sitting like idiots, staking out who-knows-what…”
Li Lin couldn’t be bothered to respond. He pulled out a large power bank, plugged it into his phone, and turned up the volu even more.
Two or three hours later, Yu Sheng had bought everything he needed at the downtown mall.
Now, dragging his bags to a secluded spot, he began to ponder.
He had bought quite a lot—the weight wasn’t an issue for him now—but lugging it all back on a crowded bus would be a hassle.
So, he had a bold idea.
He thought it was worth a try.
Yu Sheng looked up, confirming once again that no one was watching. Then he silently reached out, touching the air beside him—a door ford under his hand.
Three seconds later, deep within Boundary City in a hidden ‘depth,’ countless agents, clerks, team leaders, and their director, Bai Li Qing—who had been working overti to the point of exhaustion—were jolted out of their seats by sudden alarm bells…
Yu Sheng, carrying several large plastic bags, went ho.
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