Chapter 875: The Faceless One

“Other people?” Jiang Ruoxue frowned slightly and asked, “Who?”

Bai Yang looked up at the sky, then sighed and said, “Come over here, all of you. If you have any solutions... please help me think of something.”

After hearing that, I stepped forward as Bai Yang requested and stood next to Jiang Ruoxue.

The two of us waited quietly for Bai Yang to speak, but he lowered his head as if deep in thought. I could clearly see a flash of fear in his eyes.

“Is it hard to say?” I asked.

“No...” Bai Yang calmed himself down and continued, “It’s not that hard to say... it’s just too bizarre. I’m afraid that if I tell you, you’ll think I’m crazy and lose interest in talking to me.”

“We won’t.” Jiang Ruoxue and I both replied almost simultaneously.

“Alright, then...”

He lifted his head and stared at the two of us, his expression strange as he said something that sent chills down my spine: “The person in my heart... she has no face.”

Jiang Ruoxue and I fell silent for a long time, as if trying to make sense of his words, but it was truly difficult to understand.

“N-no face means...?” Jiang Ruoxue asked, puzzled.

Bai Yang slowly raised his hand, spreading his fingers into a palm, and gently covered his own face. “No face means no features... her face is completely flat...” His voice began to tremble slightly. “When she wants to show an expression... the smooth skin on her face starts to writhe... like worms twisting, forming shapes that look like expressions... I can sort of tell if she’s smiling or crying... but she really has no face.”

After hearing Bai Yang’s description, a chill ran down my back.

It had been a full two years since he obtained that small mirror...

If he was truly using self-suggestion to create this relationship for himself... then he had been living in his heart with a faceless woman for two years...?

Was his mental state still okay?

“Thankfully you two showed up today...” Bai Yang started rubbing his forehead. “Things seem to be getting out of control... I can barely realize she has no face... If it weren’t for that ‘knock knock knock’ at the door waking me up... I might have gone completely insane one day.”

“Wait... hold on...” Jiang Ruoxue raised her hand to interrupt Bai Yang. “Let me sort this out...”

“The situation?”

“You said she ‘has no face’...” Jiang Ruoxue thought for a moment. “Does that mean you don’t know what she looks like at all?”

“Yes.”

“You’re hung up on a girl whose appearance you don’t even know?” Jiang Ruoxue asked, eyes wide.

“Yes.”

“She...” Jiang Ruoxue paused before asking, “If she has no mouth, can she speak?”

“Even though she has no mouth and makes no sound, I can hear every word she says,” Bai Yang replied.

“You...” Jiang Ruoxue sighed in frustration. “I knew this would cause problems... Who creates love using ‘theory’ and ‘knowledge’?”

“So, can you help me?” Bai Yang looked at us with eyes full of despair.

At that moment, I felt an unprecedented sense of helplessness from him.

Perhaps in the entire Zhongyan Zhidi, he couldn’t find anyone else to confide in—we were his only option.

“I have a question...” I said.

“Go ahead.”

“Why is it only the face that’s missing?” I asked, confused. “If this person doesn’t exist, theoretically her figure, appearance, and personality should all be vague... so why just the ‘face’?”

“This...” Bai Yang slowly furrowed his brow, as if there was something he couldn’t easily explain.

“Does she have a figure and personality...?” I probed.

Bai Yang was silent for a moment before answering, “Yes.”

“So that means...” I gestured with my hand, trying to follow his logic, “She has everything else... just no face...?”

“That’s right,” Bai Yang replied.

“How did you manage that?” Jiang Ruoxue asked from the side.

“This... it’s actually not that difficult. I replicated a person who exists in the real world,” Bai Yang said gravely. “Building a skyscraper from scratch isn’t realistic—I needed a ‘blueprint.’ I used the blueprint for the foundation and structure, but not for the other parts.”

“Since this ‘blueprint’ exists in the real world... why not replicate the face from the blueprint?” I asked. “Wouldn’t that make it more immersive and easier to succeed?”

“Because I asked myself and realized I didn’t like the final form of that ‘blueprint,’” Bai Yang said. “If I fully replicated the blueprint, my plan would fall apart from the start.”

“This...”

Jiang Ruoxue and I exchanged glances, at a loss for what to do.

It was incredible that Bai Yang could be with someone who had no face for two years... Neither of us could imagine doing that.

“Then use Yan Zhichun’s face!” Jiang Ruoxue blurted out, startling me.

Before Bai Yang or I could react, Jiang Ruoxue grabbed my cheeks and pulled my face closer.

“Our Yan Zhichun is a beauty that appeals to all ages, right?” she said proudly. “Try substituting it—Yan Zhichun won’t lose out anyway.”

I had no idea I was considered a beauty in Jiang Ruoxue’s eyes—after all, in my mind, she was the one who looked better.

“Jiang Ruoxue, you...” With my cheeks pinched, I mumbled unclearly, “Don’t mess around...”

Truth be told, I didn’t really like Bai Yang—I was even a bit afraid of him. If I had to be with someone like that, every word I said would need careful consideration, or I’d seem like a silly dog just wagging its tail, with no real joy or freedom.

Bai Yang sighed and shook his head helplessly. “It’s not about appearance—Yan Zhichun won’t work.”

After hearing that, Jiang Ruoxue let go and took a deep breath, as if steeling herself, but before she could speak, Bai Yang cut her off:

“You won’t work either.”

“Wh-what do you mean?” Jiang Ruoxue’s words caught in her throat, and she started protesting, “I haven’t even said anything yet!”

“I don’t mean anything by it,” Bai Yang shook his head. “I said it’s not about looks... it’s not a matter of beauty or ugliness. I just can’t substitute someone who exists in reality, or I’d lose track of what’s real and what’s not.”

“Lose track of reality...?” Jiang Ruoxue and I asked in confusion.

“Don’t worry about that...” Bai Yang said. “The only help I need is... can you help me ‘create’ a face?”

“...”