Chapter 923: A Beautiful Dream

When she came to find me on the weekend, she swung the iron rod in her hand and happened to see Jiang Ruoxue walking out with three hoodlums.

Those three hoodlums spotted another pretty girl and were about to flirt with her, but they were intimidated by Zhoumo's presence and reluctantly dragged Jiang Ruoxue away.

Zhoumo witnessed this and instantly furrowed her eyebrows deeply.

"Tsk... what the hell is this?"

Just as Zhoumo was about to step forward and ask what was going on, Jiang Ruoxue turned back and gave her a meaningful look, making her freeze in her tracks.

Once the four of them were out of sight, Zhoumo entered the house with a frustrated expression, glaring at me in annoyance. "Tsk, is this some kind of plan? Why won't that Jiang Ruoxue let me smash their heads in?"

"I don't know..." I sighed and said, "It's strange, but Jiang Ruoxue had foreseen situations like this before. She said that whatever she does is just a 'result,' and the reason is that she wants to make herself happier, so I can't stop her."

"That doesn't mean she has to go for these weirdos, tsk." Zhoumo clearly couldn't understand it. "I thought there was some strategy involved."

"Strategy...?" I pondered for a moment, thinking it wasn't entirely impossible. "Maybe, but I just want Jiang Ruoxue to be happy..."

Though I didn't want to admit it, everyone's body resets every ten days in this place. Even if Jiang Ruoxue hangs out with those shady types, she'll start fresh after ten days.

In this godforsaken place, physical wounds heal completely, but mental scars never fade.

So, I truly hoped Jiang Ruoxue could find some joy.

In the Zhong Yan Zhi Di, no one is brought down by illness or injuries, but many go mad from psychological trauma.

"Tsk, so what about it..." Zhoumo frowned at me and said, "Is that Jiang Ruoxue still part of the Ji Dao? Should I still give her that list of strong players?"

"Well..." I thought for a bit and replied, "Go ahead and tell her. She's better at interacting with strangers than I am."

Zhoumo tossed the iron rod aside, nodded, and walked off to send a message. Her voice was low, so I couldn't make out the details, but I heard her muttering "Damn, I forgot again" every now and then.

My mind was a mess too. I knew with Jiang Ruoxue's experience, dealing with those small-time hoodlums wouldn't be a problem, but I still had a nagging feeling that something was about to happen.

"Tsk, that Jiang Ruoxue knows how to play it safe," Zhoumo said. "She noted down the list and mentioned she'd take those three losers to try their luck in a Di Ji game."

"Is that so... That's a relief..." I said, looking down.

"What's gotten into that Jiang Ruoxue?" Zhoumo spat on the ground. "She disappears for ages and then pulls something like this the moment she shows up."

I helplessly pulled Zhoumo aside to sit down, then told her everything Jiang Ruoxue had said to me and recounted all the events in Yu Cheng.

A city that once had nearly ten thousand residents was halved by internal conflicts, and then half of the survivors vanished due to Fei Sheng, leaving only about twenty people alive in the end.

The more I spoke, the sadder I became. Though I was just describing Yu Cheng's story, it always reminded me of the other three cities that had disappeared.

Out of the five cities, four were gone, with only our Dao Cheng still functioning normally.

No, suddenly a thought struck me...

From the perspective of Tian Long and Qing Long, those four cities were the "normal" ones. After all, the original inhabitants there had forgotten they were in the Zhong Yan Zhi Di. They lived ordinary lives and weren't part of any cycle of rebirth.

They experienced birth, aging, illness, and death there, and to them, everything felt just like real life.

What a beautiful dream?

In contrast, Dao Cheng seems like the craziest place... We all live in ways completely unlike normal people. The "original inhabitants" exist in "reality," while we exist in strangeness.

Not only do we die here, but we come back to life. Our memories come and go, and extraordinary abilities surround us.

We not only appear utterly bizarre but also try to forget that we're even human.

Considering all this, in what way are we "normal people"?

We pride ourselves on being normal, yet we keep doing the most insane things.

Anyone looking at us would think we're a bunch of lunatics.

Dao Cheng is truly the story of a group of madmen.

"Tsk, just because of a bunch of strangers, Jiang Ruoxue turns herself into this mess?" Zhoumo obviously couldn't comprehend it. "She's grieving over other people's lives and ruining her own?"

But I knew that was exactly what made Jiang Ruoxue who she is.

That deep sadness even affected me, and I didn't know what I was anymore.

If Bai Yang ever takes over this place, will I become a monster of arbitrary slaughter alongside him?

Will I turn into one of the "heavenly" beings?

No matter how I look at it... I've chosen a path that leads to becoming a monster, and I just hope it doesn't end in destruction.

My expression grew increasingly sorrowful, as if I could see a future covered in blood and flesh.

"Tsk, damn it..." Zhoumo cursed lightly. "One of you with a sour face, and now another—having you two around must be my eight lifetimes of bad luck."

Zhoumo grumbled as she pulled a square object from her pocket and thrust it toward me without ceremony.

I took it and saw it was a translucent cubic crystal.

"What's this?" I asked.

"Some white sugar I found a while back," Zhoumo said. "Wang Ba enlarged it for me. Go ahead and eat it—I didn't poison it."

I looked at this odd piece of white sugar and couldn't help but laugh and cry at the same time. It was more regular in shape than rock sugar and even more transparent.

"Zhoumo, are you trying to tell me that 'eating something sweet will improve my mood'?" I asked.

"No, I just want to choke you with it," Zhoumo said. "Tsk, why so much nonsense? No wonder I hate you and Jiang Ruoxue the most—you two are each insufferable in your own way. Ever since I met you, my life's been a disaster."

"Thank you, Zhoumo," I said. "No wonder Jiang Ruoxue keeps sticking with you—you're a good person."

"Tsk, getting all sappy?" Zhoumo smirked. "I was planning to crash here for a bit and head back to my own stuff, but seeing you like this, I can't just leave. I'll reluctantly stick around tonight—I'm worried you'll off yourself if I go."

Zhoumo's personality was truly peculiar—her words and actions were completely at odds, yet they somehow put me at ease.

We spent the night in the building, though it was more like she was keeping me company. Zhoumo acted like a boss lady the whole time.

She was constantly on some kind of call—first directing the "Cat" team members on jobs and business deals, then assigning veteran Ji Dao members to sabotage tasks. Listening from the sidelines nearly made my head spin.

It was only then that I realized if it weren't for Jiang Ruoxue and Zhoumo shouldering the burden for me, Ji Dao couldn't have grown to its current scale.

The next afternoon, when Zhoumo sent a message to Jiang Ruoxue, she suddenly became more animated.

"What do you mean it came without any effort—you ran into him?" Zhoumo said, pressing a finger to her ear. "They say he's really strong... If you met him, you should test his skills properly."