Chapter 911: The Second Silence
"What does it mean to 'recover your memories'?" I said. "Can people who have lost their memories here actually get them back?"
"Theoretically, yes," White Sheep said. "It's just that the method is rather complicated."
"How exactly would one do it...?"
"It depends on the situation," White Sheep said. "Yan Zhichun, when you do eventually find me, and if you discover that I've lost all my memories, you can ask that version of me what to do then."
"Just ask you directly..." I nodded. "Alright, got it."
Indeed, when the time came and I found White Sheep, I would just ask him directly.
"But I'm not sure if he'll be able to keep up with my current train of thought." White Sheep sighed softly. "Even though we are the same person, I can't trust myself. Joining forces with someone I can't trust will be fraught with uncertainty no matter what."
"This..." I frowned slightly after hearing that. I felt like White Sheep was being abstract again.
He was planning to join forces with his future self from his current state... but he couldn't trust that future self?
No matter where I heard something like this, I would think the person was insane.
"After today, I won't mention these plans again. Let them become a secret buried deep in your heart," White Sheep said.
"Alright..." I snapped back to reality and agreed.
"Also, the young man beside us is 'Silence'," White Sheep said. "His presence ensures that no one else can hear this conversation of ours."
"'Silence'... So that's it." Now I finally understood why that young man had destroyed his own ears.
"Remember, if this secret is leaked to a third person, all of our plans might fail completely. We would miss the best opportunity to liberate this place, and we would have wasted decades of our time."
White Sheep's words instantly filled me with tension. I could only nod seriously, my expression solemn.
He should know what kind of person I am. If there's something I'm not supposed to say, I won't utter a single word more than necessary.
After finishing his words, White Sheep turned around. He was about to say something to that young man when he suddenly paused. Then he slowly turned his head back to stare at me, hesitating:
"By the way... Yan Zhichun, if some unusual circumstances arise when you find me..."
"'Unusual circumstances'...?" I paused. "Like what?"
White Sheep lowered his head, rubbing his chin slightly as he murmured to himself: "For example... if only part of the memories are recovered...?"
Even White Sheep himself didn't seem certain whether the situation he was describing even existed.
"Forget it..." White Sheep sighed. "I can't even be completely sure that I'll lose my memory in the first place. Better not to explore such rare scenarios."
I supposed that was fair. The path White Sheep was envisioning now seemed a bit overly meticulous to me.
He always assumed he would lose his memory, then assumed he would recover it, and now he was starting to consider what to do if he only recovered a portion of it.
Being able to plan ahead was already a sign of excellence, but White Sheep insisted on preparing countermeasures for hail, thunderstorms, sandstorms, earthquakes, and every other possible scenario. He was exhausting himself unnecessarily.
White Sheep sighed, turned around, patted the young man on the shoulder, and nodded at him.
The young man understood. He withdrew all the force fields surrounding us, and I could hear the wind in the streets again.
He nodded politely to the two of us in farewell, then withdrew from the Bliss Money Shop, swaying slightly as he disappeared into the street.
"That's all for now," White Sheep said to me. "Yan Zhichun, if you have your own matters to attend to in the future, you don't have to come see me here. But make sure you visit at least once per cycle, or you won't know when I've disappeared."
"Alright..." I nodded. "Brother Yang, I'll do my best."
After walking out of White Sheep's domain, my feelings were exceptionally complicated.
Just like when I first met him, there was simply too much for me to digest.
And just like his first appearance, White Sheep had conveyed all the information to me in a single conversation. From now on, not only would he not bring it up again, but he also forbade me from doing so.
This feeling again filled me with both tension and excitement...
Turning past the street in front of the Money Shop, I entered a side alley. Next, I needed to start participating in games extensively and try to kill other "Participants" in the process. Only through plenty of hands-on combat would my "Conviction" reach its peak.
But which games should I try first?
I paused for a few seconds, then suddenly thought of something. I took out the map White Sheep had drawn for me and carefully examined the locations of the eight people on it.
Maybe I should go check out these "Zodiacs" first?
But before I could decide on my destination, I felt something strange about my surroundings.
That familiar force field began to spread around me. I seemed to have lost the sound of the wind again.
What was going on? Was this a side effect of "Silence"?
I looked up and found a man in a long robe standing not far in front of me. He had strange, dark green long hair and was standing with his hands behind his back, facing me directly.
I sensed something was wrong. This person's attire was far too bizarre. No normal person would ever wear clothes like that.
He was a "Big Shot."
I decisively put away the map and turned back, heading towards the Money Shop. At a time like this, only White Sheep could probably save me. But the next second, the man appeared in front of me again, this time much closer. I could even see a faint dark green mark between his brows.
I knew it. I couldn't escape.
"Hello."
I spoke decisively, letting my voice reach his ears clearly.
No matter if this person was a "Heavenly Grade" or not, as long as I spoke first, I had the advantage.
"'Silence,' is it...?" the man asked.
His voice was strangely androgynous, as if two people were speaking at the same time.
"What...?" I asked.
"You were with White Sheep for so long, yet you only let me hear a few sentences... Was it 'Silence'?" The bizarre voice swirled around my ears, sending a chill down my spine.
"White Sheep? You mean that 'Zodiac' from the 'Bliss Money Shop'?" I said, steadying my nerves. "I went to participate in a game earlier. I lost."
"But what exactly did he need to discuss that required using 'Silence'?" The man completely ignored what I said and continued. "Why could I listen in on everything before, but not this time?"
I slowly swallowed my saliva. At this moment, I sensed an extremely dangerous aura radiating from him.
When he saw I didn't respond, the man slowly moved closer to me. "Yan Zhichun... why? Why not this time?"
He even knew my name. I couldn't handle him.
Matters of the upper echelon had to be resolved by the upper echelon.
"How would I know?" I countered. "Shouldn't you be asking White Sheep these questions? He's right there in that building. Go ask him directly."
"Ask White Sheep... would that brat tell me the truth?" A chilling smile spread across the man's face before me. "Only ants like you... would piss themselves in front of me and spill the truth endlessly..."