"Lv..." Noel pointed at the teahouse owner, his face in shock.
The teahouse owner stood still.
"Lv Shu, is it really you?" Lu said.
"...What did you say?" the teahouse owner looked up.
"Do you still rember ?" Su Ming’an said.
"..." The teahouse owner remained silent.
"It seems like he has lost his mory, this is a symptom of missing disease," Lu said.
"Lv Shu, do you still rember ? I am your own brother," Noel said from the side.
"Get lost." The teahouse owner was blunt towards Noel.
"Sit down and have a chat with us, Lv Shu," Su Ming’an said.
Following the suggestion, Lv Shu sat down, his posture sowhat restrained. His eyes seed to be veiled in mist; Su Ming’an couldn’t discern any familiar emotions belonging to Lv Shu.
Su Ming’an stretched out his hand, took the Bi Luo Chun tea from Lu’s hand, took a sip, and then put it back.
Lu glanced at it but didn’t mind.
The group chatted about the content of the world ga, exchanging their information. Su Ming’an briefly ntioned the three-line ti flow. Although he shouldn’t know this piece of information now, he could hypothesize it. Inferring the process from the result wasn’t hard.
After pondering for a mont, Lu introduced a concept.
"Su Ming’an, have you heard of the concept of a ’Klein Bottle’?" Lu said, "A bottle with a hole at the bottom. If you extend the neck of the bottle and twist it into the inside of the bottle, connecting it with the hole at the bottom, the bottle will have no edges. The surface of the bottle does not end. We call it a ’Klein Bottle.’ A mosquito could fly from the inside to the outside directly without passing through the surface, as the Klein Bottle doesn’t have an inside and an outside, but is a continuous curve."
"Are you using this example as an analogy for dinsions?" Su Ming’an said.
"Although the one-dinsional, two-dinsional, and three-dinsional worlds you speak of are not strictly defined in dinsional terms, I think the Klein Bottle can be taken as a reference," Lu said. "Is it possible that a person could exist both in the two-dinsional and in the three-dinsional worlds at the sa ti? Perhaps the dinsionality isn’t just about program layers; it could also be about the overlay of life isotopes?"
Lu proved to be a well-rounded hexagonal warrior with his ideas, which enlightened Su Ming’an. Everyone present, except Lv Shu, was intelligent and quickly grasped what Lu was implicating.
"I understand now," Su Ming’an said. "If there is a resting period after Kaius Tower, I’ll go back and check the population data of the City of asurent."
"Mhm."
After finishing this topic, Lu said:
"What do you think about Lin Guang?"
"He is one of the eight following Acto and also a battle companion of Acto’s. However, after the opening of the two-dinsional world, he chose to side with the deities and beca the City Lord of the City of Gods," Su Ming’an said. "Lately, his mory is gradually returning. Following that, he suddenly wanted to launch a nuclear explosion. I have no idea what he’s really planning."
"...From a rational perspective, it’s truly hard to deduce the reason for his actions," Lu said.
"Indeed, at this stage, there is no theory that can explain his behavior," Noel said.
The three of them exchanged ideas swiftly, analyzing the situation while the audience watched, dumbfounded.
[What? What is a Klein Bottle? Let look it up on Baidu.]
[Why did Su Ming’an suddenly get it? Even in slow motion, I didn’t understand what Lu was saying. How do they catch each other’s anings so quickly, even about this layering of dinsions...]
[Shu Bao! My precious Lv Shu! Ahhhhh——]
[I used to be able to guess a thing or two in the previous world replicas, like the identity swaps in Dongxue Yangxia, or that Bai Shen and Jiu Shen might be double good deities. For this Ninth World, I’ve been clueless from the beginning.]
[...]
"Then what if we consider it from an emotional perspective?" Lv Shu suddenly spoke up.
All three turned to look at him.
"You an, Lin Guang simply hates humans and wants to kill them?" Lu said, "I don’t think Lin Guang is such a person. He must have co to fulfill Acto’s last wish. Even if Lin Guang lost his mory, he wouldn’t do anything against Acto’s will."
"What I an is," Lv Shu said, "what if the person Lin Guang admires isn’t Acto?"
The teahouse fell silent.
Su Ming’an tapped his fingers on the table, noticing that no one else was talking.
"Are you suggesting that Lin Guang did it to help ?" Su Ming’an spoke up, "But if he wanted to help , he should respect my views. If everyone were to be destroyed in a nuclear explosion, then all my efforts would beco a farce... I don’t want the nuclear explosion to happen, for any reason."
As he spoke, he picked up a ginkgo leaf that had fallen onto the back of his hand and handed it to Lv Shu, "We will beco better friends, right?"
"..."
For a mont, it seed as if they were enveloped by a tranquil atmosphere, and Noel’s gaze shifted slightly.
"..." Lv Shu took the ginkgo leaf.
"Yes." Lv Shu said, "The future will be better."
His eyelids slightly drooped as he tucked the ginkgo leaf into his sleeve cuff.
The four of them were silent for a while before Su Ming’an put down his hand and casually started another topic.
At three in the morning, he received a system notification.
[You have obtained the dynamic password • Fifth Position • Lo.]
...
Su Ming’an finally relaxed, chatting with the others until nearly six in the morning.
Suddenly, Noel raised his head and reached out to Su Ming’an, "Su Ming’an, next ti you see , call by my full na, and I’ll understand."
"What?" Su Ming’an didn’t catch on imdiately.
"Pinky promise," Noel simply said, holding up his little finger.
Layers of psychological cues had already built up completely in Noel’s mind. With more and more information from Su Ming’an, they were gradually uncovered. Now, this was the last cue Noel had set for himself.
Noel’s hand hung in the air, waiting for Su Ming’an’s. Lu and Lv Shu beside them were puzzled, unable to comprehend the communications spanning the long river of ti between Su Ming’an and Noel.
Su Ming’an looked into Noel’s eyes and suddenly understood what Noel ant:
"Noel, are you really sure about this?"
"Do you want to hear what I think?" Noel said.
"Go ahead," Su Ming’an said.
"What I want is not a life confined in the replicas like in the Colosseum. I want to be a free adventurer and go places I wish to go. I want to live aloft like a flying bird, not be a caged bird in the world ga... But I can’t do these alone," Noel said:
"Humans are trapped in the ga, and their growth is based on the expansion of personal desires, wealth, and power. Even for the larger organizations, ordinary players are just bricks building the new world order, or cannon fodder in the ga... But you are different, Su Ming’an. I believe you are capable of removing the disasters that lurk throughout the year. You can bring everyone ho.
"I have always longed to be a valuable person, whether it’s discovering the mysteries of the New World or helping those children... I hope I am like a sun to others.
"And you can nest behind the sun, without having to shatter to find a place of your own.
"You can do what I cannot, so let take the pressure and challenges; let face them for you."
At that mont, Noel’s bright eyes seed to be favored by the daylight, brewing with a vibrant liveliness. His velvety soft, golden hair naturally lded with the ginkgo leaves in the breeze, flowing like crushed gold.
"I’ll reach out and lift you high," Noel said, uttering words of unclear aning, "Su Ming’an."
"..."
Su Ming’an extended his hand and hooked fingers with Noel.
It was a scorching touch, brushing past Su Ming’an’s pinky, leading him to montarily believe he was encountering the sun.
"What’s this...?" Lu sensed sothing odd.
The next mont, Lu swiftly turned to look outside the window.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Sudden bursts of orange flas exploded, followed by a rising, swelling mushroom cloud, triggering a cataclysmic heatwave tsunami. Circles of spreading light waves jabbed towards them, instantaneously flooding into Doomsday City.
The wails of the residents, the soldiers’ cries of alarm, the sound of houses burning and collapsing... Everything fell into a crimson vista, as if the fate of humanity had plunged into hell in an instant. All structures, vehicles... crumbled like flowing sand, while people’s hearts surged with endless fear.
—They ultimately couldn’t wait for the dawn.
—So the City Lord had abandoned them.
"Why! Why did a nuclear explosion occur! Didn’t the frontline legion succeed? Could it be that the City Lord’s plan..."
"Mom—Mom—"
"..."
Fruits fell, wires lted, won’s headscarves vanished along with their scorched hair, children running away showed deep black scars all over their bodies, dissipating like candles in the wind...
The sight of the century’s destruction displayed before their eyes in utmost clarity.
"Swoosh!"
A golden barrier protected Lu, who still wanted to resist desperately. Nearby, Su Ming’an, Noel, and Lu Shu remained motionless, watching the scene outside as if peacefully accepting the occurrence of the nuclear blast. Flas instantly expanded beyond the teahouse, turning the golden ginkgo trees into dissolving dark shadows.
"How could a nuclear explosion happen—Su Ming’an, Noel, you’ve been resting here for so many hours, weren’t you supposed to be prepared?" Lu was dumbfounded. He had been ready for an easy victory, but the nuclear blast struck him unexpectedly.
Had he placed too much trust in Su Ming’an?
"..."
Su Ming’an sat in the wicker chair, watching people outside dying agonizingly.
Clouds radiated blue-green light, the explosive rhythm like churning cream unfolded before him, the entire city being dismantled by the explosion... He watched as the city zones he had planned himself were gradually toppled and destroyed, watched as the central statue of Acto crumbled in the flas...
This ti it ends here, though he was sorry for the people, sorry for Lu, sorry for Su Rin at the frontlines, but next ti they would all revive, next ti, next ti let them live well, let them welco a wonderful Fuyuan Festival... let them fully enjoy ti with their families...
"Su Ming’an, it’s rare to see a joyful expression on your face, and it’ll disappear in the next mont," Noel suddenly said.
"Hmm?" Su Ming’an touched his face, only to realize he seed to be smiling.
He could clearly feel his lips curved upward, and his cheeks puffing up—the movents of his facial muscles driven by his smile.
"But for the next ti, the ti after that, or... so ti... I hope to see more and more smiles from you, and from the children..." Noel’s voice grew fainter, as the flas consud his vocal cords.
His figure disappeared into a blaze of red, like a moth rging into the fire.
"Ding-dong!"
[Team mber (Noel) has died.]
...
In the dazzling crimson, Su Ming’an seed to be sinking into a viscous blood pool, a faint layer of source light enveloping him. To his left, the road’s golden defensive barrier began to crumble.
Upon hearing Noel’s last words, Lu suddenly understood everything.
"So that’s what it was..." he whispered, his sea-blue hair blending into the crimson. In the next instant, his figure vanished into the brilliant blaze.
"Ding Dong!"
[Teammate (Lu) has died.]
...
The teahouse collapsed, emitting a sound like the friction of a saw. Lv Shu remained silent, coldly watching as Noel and Lu died, not uttering a word, until he was swallowed by the nuclear blaze.
In the soon-to-collapse dark brown teahouse, only Su Ming’an stood in silence.
He raised his hand and found a charred phalanx still attached to his little finger, the hand that Noel had just hooked with his. He pulled apart the fragnt of the phalanx, which vanished flickering at his fingertips.
"—Su Ming’an, what on earth are you doing?" he suddenly heard a familiar voice.
Before him, a figure shrouded in golden light flickered. Behind that person, like a tidal wave, golden energy transford into a shield that protected Su Ming’an.
In that mont, neither the flas nor the nuclear radiation could threaten this area, isolating it into a vacuum zone.
"Su Rin, good early morning." Su Ming’an waved his hand.
"Have you lost your calm?" Su Rin said. "How much dicine have you taken?"
"Not much," Su Ming’an replied.
Su Rin furrowed his brows, certain that the current Su Ming’an was definitely not normal, certainly not in a state of calm deliberation, otherwise he wouldn’t be wasting ti talking to him here.
"...Never mind. Things are beyond redemption now, I’ll take you away from this." Su Rin took a step forward, but was repelled by the Lamb Barrier.
In Su Rin’s stunned expression, Su Ming’an’s phalanx stabbed toward his temple, his body falling forward onto the broken bones of Noel and others, instantly engulfed by the firelight.
Seeing this scene, Su Rin suddenly realized what Su Ming’an was doing:
"So it’s this kind of ability... but ’fight to the death’ and ’die to resolve’ are two different concepts..."
"You will lose your reverence for death, Su Ming’an..."
...
The thirty-fourth cycle.
Su Ming’an opened his eyes.
He pushed away the Lin Guang and walked toward that glass window, seeing the magician that appeared every cycle.
...
[Su Ming’an, next ti you see , call by my full na, then I’ll understand.]
...
Su Ming’an looked up, as if handing over a heavy burden:
"Noel Agnini."
He called out Noel’s full na, the first ti he had addressed her that way.
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