Thus, it was settled.
Shortly afterward, the field personnel quickly located the “vessel” Yu Sheng had requested—a large door, salvaged from the ruins of the Orphanage. Made entirely of iron, it was double-leafed, each panel a solid inch and a half thick. The entire doorfra stretched over eleven feet wide, impossibly heavy. Most adults could hardly move it even slightly, and it took a crane to set it upright. Standing there, it looked less like a door and more like a wall of steel.
Yu Sheng stood staring in disbelief, quickly turning to Li Lin to clarify. He’d ant the simplest kind of door, literally—sothing a grade-schooler could push open without effort—not a formidable thing like this, better suited to guarding a villain’s hidden lair. Impressive as it looked, without chanical aids, the Cursed Children wouldn’t even be able to open it.
“Ah, I misunderstood,” Li Lin said, sheepishly rubbing his nose. “When I heard you wanted a door connecting the Valley to the real world, my mind imdiately jumped to those heavy-duty security gates we have back at headquarters. I even considered calling Leader again to ask him to send Sun Gong…”
Yu Sheng and Irene both interrupted at once: “Please spare Sun Gong!”
Li Lin laughed awkwardly and signaled the crane operator, who soon hauled the massive security door back into the ruins. Not long after, a more suitable door arrived.
It was still iron, painted a faded black-red, showing ornate ironwork that clearly belonged to a fashion of at least two decades past. Old, colorful stickers still clung stubbornly to its surface. It was set into a surviving piece of brick wall in the open space.
“Oh! That’s the old door from the East Building’s main office!” the Long Haired Girl Princess exclaid. “Those stickers—I put them there myself!”
Yu Sheng nodded approvingly. “This is perfect. Next cos the alchemy setup. Irene, help keep an eye on things—I want to try drawing that formation you taught last ti, the one with the Augntation Node Technique…”
As he spoke, he took out a piece of chalk and set Irene down on the ground, then began drawing the intricate alchemical pattern before the door.
Incidentally, the chalk had co from Foxy—this young lady seed to carry absolutely everything inside her tails. Why she’d stored a box of chalk there was anyone’s guess—he just hoped she wasn’t planning to snack on it later.
Li Lin watched with wide-eyed curiosity from a short distance away. After getting permission, he even pulled out his phone to start recording. He knew perfectly well that the footage he captured right now would likely end up on the Director’s desk, and though Yu Sheng himself seed unconcerned, these recordings could easily lead the technical departnt to a week’s worth of overti.
After all, this was the first ti the Special Affairs Bureau had so clearly recorded the process by which the humanoid entity Yu Sheng opened and stabilized a teleportation door into a physical object.
From the corner of his eye, Li Lin saw that the Bureau operatives who’d been patrolling the periter had quietly gathered closer. Their detection equipnt was already active, ticulously capturing every subtle change on the empty ground.
Li Lin felt a pang of unease. Despite Yu Sheng’s assurances that he didn’t mind being observed or recorded, having a group of Bureau operatives hovering close with scanning devices running was still sowhat intrusive. He worried Yu Sheng might get annoyed. But as he continued to watch, Li Lin realized precisely why Yu Sheng seed so unconcerned about their presence.
Because the alchemy formation Yu Sheng was drawing on the ground was just a standard Soul Imbuent Rite—and even a simplified version at that.
Li Lin knew how to draw it himself; it had been covered in basic training. Not just field operatives, even Ren Wen Wen back in the office knew this rite.
At this mont, more supplentary materials sent by the Bureau arrived. Li Lin watched Yu Sheng casually select a small amount of these for the formation, then toss the rest directly into Foxy’s tail for storage.
Soon after, Yu Sheng lit several candles placed at key nodes. Their flas flickered in the open air, but after he sprinkled in crystal dust, aromatic oils, and powdered tea leaves, the flas quickly stabilized.
Foxy crouched just outside the alchemy circle, cheerfully munching on a skewer of grilled mushrooms while watching her Benefactor draw. The Long Haired Girl Princess, enticed by the delicious aroma, approached cautiously: “Give a bite, won’t you?”
Foxy imdiately clutched her mushrooms protectively, baring her teeth at the princess, emitting a low, threatening growl of “Wuuurrrr.”
Unbothered, the Long Haired Girl Princess grinned—she’d played this teasing ga with Foxy during the barbecue. “Fine, keep it.”
“Move back, all of you—especially you, silly fox! Don’t drip oil onto the lines!” Irene wandered around within the alchemy formation, carefully inspecting it, occasionally directing Yu Sheng. “Hey! You missed a line here… quick, fix it. Normally you shouldn’t add lines afterward, but your alchemy never follows normal logic anyway, so go ahead.”
The scene before them was utterly devoid of professional solemnity.
Li Lin held back for a long ti but finally couldn’t help himself. In theory, no one should disturb a ritual of such powerful alchemy—but since Yu Sheng and the others weren’t just casually talking, they were even grilling skewers beside the magic circle—he decided to ignore all the principles he’d learned.
“That’s it?” Li Lin blurted out. “Your Teleportation Door is going to be anchored in reality…just like this?”
Yu Sheng looked up from his work. “This is just step one.”
Li Lin instantly breathed easier. “I thought so. Back when I was studying—”
“Step two just needs one last ingredient.” Yu Sheng interrupted calmly.
Then he pulled out his trusty knife from his pocket and began awkwardly sawing at his hand.
Li Lin stared blankly: “…?”
“Foxy, co bite ,” Yu Sheng sighed helplessly, setting down his blade. He glanced toward the Demon Fox Maiden, who’d just finished eating grilled mushrooms. “I really need a new knife.”
“Oh!” Foxy bounded over excitedly, opening her mouth wide and chomping down decisively on Yu Sheng’s wrist, her sharp fangs sinking in with a soft puncture.
Clearly, she had grown used to Yu Sheng’s bizarre traits—biting her benefactor no longer caused her any distress.
Yu Sheng quickly guided his blood into the great iron Door, activating the final and truly vital step of the ritual:
He focused.
He concentrated deeply.
He imagined clearly the second Door slowly taking shape within the distant Valley.
He could’ve built the corresponding Door in the Valley beforehand, linking the two afterward. The result would’ve been the sa. But Yu Sheng felt lazy. Since he could control events remotely, why make an extra trip?
A faint sound of friction erged from both sides of the plain iron Door. The candle flas around them surged suddenly upward, as if drawn by unseen forces.
Li Lin, montarily stunned, suddenly snapped alert—because the Door was visibly growing and reshaping before his eyes.
Strange organic structures erged from either side of the Door, rapidly rging it seamlessly into the brick wall. The brick surface writhed gently, forming a robust, rock-like layer that secured the Door tightly.
Abruptly, a thought—or rather, an understanding—forced itself into Li Lin’s mind:
This Door was alive.
All the fancy alchemy symbols and strange ingredients had been aningless. All the recorded visuals and collected data had no true value. The only aningful act had been Yu Sheng’s blood and those few seconds of quiet contemplation while touching the Door.
Yu Sheng grasped the Door handle and turned it.
The newborn Door silently cheered its own existence in the real world, celebrating the gift of life. The organic tissues, unseen to human eyes, pulsed vigorously, swelling with a strong, rhythmic heartbeat.
Then, the Door offered its creator a view into the distant Valley.
On the other side stood Snow White and her seven Thunder Titans. Another girl—slender, graceful, dressed in a soft blue gown—leaned curiously through the Doorway. This was Little rmaid, with proud King perched upon her head.
“Red Hood Sister! And Brother Yu!” Little rmaid greeted joyfully. “Wow, the Door really opened!”
“Human, you’ve done well,” King nodded majestically through the Door toward Yu Sheng, extending his head slightly forward. “Co, hurry and stroke my head.”
Yu Sheng laughed softly, reaching across the threshold and scooping King into his arms, petting the proud cat comfortably. King didn’t object, tolerantly enjoying the rub before elegantly hopping down and glancing around at their surroundings.
“Ah, such devastation…” the tabby cat sighed very humanly. Raising a paw, King summoned a minstrel in short robes beside him. “At this sight, I must recite a poem—but since I cannot, you shall.”
The minstrel dutifully pulled a feather quill and parchnt from his robe, lowering his head and beginning to compose.
Satisfied that this newly birthed Door would continue functioning even without his imdiate presence, Yu Sheng exhaled gently and turned back toward the still-stunned Li Lin, smiling broadly.
“All done. Did you understand it?”
“…Forget ,” Li Lin replied helplessly, spreading his hands. “I doubt even the Director could understand this if she saw it herself. No wonder you didn’t mind us watching.”
Pausing thoughtfully, Li Lin eyed the Door again. “So, from now on, we can directly enter that Valley through this Door? Should we set up a guard post here or station extra security, aside from the nodes? To prevent any unwelco visitors who might slip through. Given your unique relationship with the ‘Fairy Tale’ group, I’m sure the Director would gladly allocate a security detail.”
“Extra guards aren’t necessary,” Yu Sheng shook his head casually. “I’ll have Little Red Riding Hood and the others arrange a rotating Door-watch shift here, mostly to keep curious kids from sneaking out. Don’t worry—this Door requires specific permissions. Without them, even if the Door stands open, intruders won’t find the path.”
Realization dawned on Li Lin. “Just like Wutong Road No. 66?”
Yu Sheng smiled gently.
“Yes. Just like Wutong Road No. 66.”
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