Chapter 923: A Beautiful Dream
When Weekend came to find me, she was swinging her iron rod when she happened to see Jiang Ruoxue walking out with three thugs.
Those three thugs saw another pretty girl approaching and wanted to hit on her, but they were intimidated by Weekend's aura and could only slink off, dragging Jiang Ruoxue with them.
Seeing this scene, Weekend's brow instantly furrowed into a tight knot.
"Tch... What the hell is this?"
Weekend was about to go ask what was going on when Jiang Ruoxue turned back and gave her a meaningful look, stopping her in her tracks.
After the four of them had walked off into the distance, Weekend could only helplessly enter the room. Her expression angry as she looked at me: "Tch, is there some kind of plan? Why won't that bitch Jiang Ruoxue let me smash their heads in?"
"I don't know either..." I sighed and said, "It's strange to say, but Ruoxue predicted this situation before. She said that whatever she does is a kind of 'effect,' and the cause is that she just wants to make herself a little happier. So there's no way for me to stop her."
"Still, she didn't have to pick these... special specimens." Weekend clearly couldn't understand. "I thought there was some kind of tactic behind it."
"Tactic...?" I thought for a moment, feeling it wasn't impossible. "Maybe, but I think as long as Ruoxue is happy..."
Even though I didn't want to say it, everyone's body would refresh within ten days. Even if Jiang Ruoxue associated with people who looked this filthy, she would start over in ten days.
In this damn place, all physical wounds would disappear, but psychological scars would never fade.
So I truly hoped Jiang Ruoxue could be happy.
In the "Land of Finality," no one was ever defeated by illness or injury, but people always went mad from psychological trauma.
"Tch, so what do we do?" Weekend frowned at me. "Is that bitch still considered part of the 'Polar Path' now? Do I still need to tell her about those strong individuals on my list?"
"Well..." I thought about it and said, "Tell her. She's better at interacting with strangers than I am."
Weekend tossed her iron rod aside, nodded, and walked to the side to send a telepathic message. Her voice was low, and I couldn't hear clearly, only catching her occasionally muttering "Damn, forgot again."
My own mind was in turmoil. Although I knew that with Jiang Ruoxue's experience, dealing with those few thugs wouldn't be difficult, I still felt like something was about to happen.
"Tch, that bitch actually knows her limits." Weekend said, "She memorized the list and said she'd bring those three sorry sods to participate in the 'Earth-level' game to try their luck."
"Is that so... That's good..." I said, lowering my head.
"What the hell is wrong with that bitch?" Weekend spat on the ground. "Not only does she disappear for so long, but the moment we meet again, she pulls this stunt."
Helplessly, I pulled Weekend aside to sit down, then told her what Jiang Ruoxue had said to me, as well as everything that happened at "Jade City."
A city of nearly ten thousand residents, cut in half due to internal strife, and then the other half vanished because of "Ascension," leaving only about twenty people alive.
The more I spoke, the sadder I became. Even though I was only telling the story of "Jade City," I couldn't help but think of those other three cities that had disappeared.
Of the five cities, four had vanished. Only our "Dao City" remained normal.
No, a thought suddenly occurred to me...
From the perspectives of Tianlong and Qinglong, those four cities were the "normal" ones. After all, the original inhabitants living there had forgotten they were in the "Land of Finality." They had gained "normal lives" and were not counted in the cycle of reincarnation.
They lived, aged, got sick, and died there until their lives ended. In their eyes, everything here was the same as real life.
What a beautiful dream?
Now it seemed that "Dao City" was the craziest of them all... All of us lived lives completely different from normal people. The "original inhabitants" lived in "reality," while we lived in the bizarre.
Not only did we die here, but we were resurrected here. Our memories came and went, and transcendent abilities filled our bodies.
We not only looked very strange, but we even wanted to forget that we were "human."
Looking at all these points together, what about us seemed "normal"?
We called ourselves normal, yet we were always doing the craziest things.
Anyone would think we were a bunch of lunatics.
"Dao City" was precisely a story belonging to a group of madmen.
"Tch, just because of a bunch of people she doesn't even know, Jiang Ruoxue turns herself into this mess?" Weekend clearly couldn't understand. "She's grieving over the lives and deaths of others, but what about her own life?"
But I knew it was precisely because of this that Jiang Ruoxue was who she was.
This deep sorrow had even infected me. I didn't know what I even was anymore.
If Aries really took over this place one day, would I become a monster that kills at will alongside him?
Would I become one of the "Heavens"?
No matter what... I had chosen a path that gradually made me into a monster. I only hoped this path wouldn't lead to destruction.
My expression gradually grew sorrowful, as if I could see a future where I was covered in blood and flesh.
"Tch, goddammit..." Weekend cursed softly. "Who are you all making such sour faces for? Having the two of you bitches is my fucking fortune for eight lifetimes."
Weekend grumbled as she pulled a square object from her pocket and unceremoniously handed it over.
I took it and looked—it was a semi-transparent cubic crystal.
"What is this?" I asked.
"White sugar I found a while back," Weekend said. "Turtle used 'Giantification' on it. Eat up, I didn't poison it."
Seeing this strange piece of white sugar, I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Its shape was more regular than rock candy, and its texture was more transparent.
"Weekend, are you trying to tell me that 'eating something sweet will make you feel better'?" I asked.
"No, I just wanted to choke you to death with sweetness," Weekend said. "Tch, why do you have so much nonsense to say? This is exactly why I hate you and Jiang Ruoxue the most. You two bitches each have your own brand of bitchiness. Damn it, ever since I met you two, I haven't had a single good day."
"Thank you, Weekend," I said. "No wonder Ruoxue always sticks to you. You're a good person."
"Tch, isn't that cheesy?" Weekend curled her lip. "Originally, I just wanted to drop by for a bit and then go back to work. But seeing you in this state, I can't leave now. Tonight, I'll reluctantly stay with you. I'm really afraid that the moment I leave, you'll die."
Weekend's personality was so strange. What she said and what she actually did were completely different, yet it somehow made people feel inexplicably reassured.
I stayed with her in the building for the night. Although she said she was keeping me company, Weekend's demeanor was more like a female boss.
She was on the "phone" the whole time, sometimes directing members of the "Cat" squad to take business orders, sometimes arranging for veteran members of the "Polar Path" to take on destruction missions. Listening to her on the side nearly gave me a split personality.
It was only then that I realized—without Jiang Ruoxue and Weekend carrying the burden for me, the "Polar Path" would never have reached its current scale.
It wasn't until the next afternoon, when Weekend was sending a telepathic message to Jiang Ruoxue, that she suddenly became more talkative.
"What do you mean it came without any effort? You ran into him?" Weekend said, pressing a finger to her ear. "I hear that guy is really strong... If you meet him, you'd better test his abilities well."