LWGP - Chapter 282
Chapter 282: Scum (Finale)
09 placed the Old Lady on the ground and looked up at the sky, awaiting the final outcome.
Soon, the World Heart's dimension dispersed.
The steadfast Eternal Night Empress and Wang Jiu were both there, only the Empress was flying upward, scepter in hand, as a faint sentence fell upon the void.
"Retreat."
All the warriors of the Eternal Night Empire were programs under her control. They would never ask why they were retreating. The scenes in TV shows or novels where subordinates unwillingly shout at their leader and try to persuade them were impossible here.
The starships were already gone. Myriad streams of light flew in shuttles, directly leaving Earth. But before exiting the atmosphere, the Eternal Night Empress glanced back one last time—not at Wang Jiu, but at the Old Lady.
She had received an email.
But she hadn't read it yet.
The Eternal Night Empress turned her head, transformed into a stream of light, and vanished into the horizon. The remaining billions of mecha warriors disappeared along with her.
The ice plain had become an ice sea, with fractured landmasses forming small islands. On one such small, isolated island, amidst the ruins of a house, Wang Jiu carefully placed the Old Lady on a rock.
A person appeared beside her, a girl.
She had been sheltered in the Old Lady's soul space beforehand and had not been destroyed. But now that she had left that protection, did it mean the Old Lady was in a bad way?
The little girl was short and had to stand on her tiptoes even to peer over the rock. She looked timidly at Wang Jiu. "Big Sister Ah Jiu, will Mom be okay?"
Wang Jiu didn't look at her, her expression impassive. "She can't see right now. You don't have to pretend."
In an instant, Jiong Jiong's eyes changed, becoming cold and wise. "I learned it from you."
Was this Jiong Jiong? No, she was half Demon Child.
Wang Jiu couldn't be bothered with her. She simply extended a hand, which trembled as it hovered beneath the Old Lady's nose.
Jiong Jiong: "???"
Are you nuts? You can't sense her breathing? A single insight skill would do it.
Still… the sense of ceremony was strong.
Jiong Jiong also grew incredibly nervous.
It wasn't until they both felt that breath… that Wang Jiu let out a sigh of relief. Her body went limp, and she leaned against the rock, lowering her head and panting slightly. After a good while, just as Jiong Jiong was about to speak to her…
"Take good care of her."
Wang Jiu walked out of the ruined house on her own and looked out at the ocean. After a moment, she leaned against the wall by the doorway and sat down, one leg bent, the back of her head resting against the wall, the other leg stretched out straight.
She seemed extremely exhausted, or perhaps she was just resting.
But after a moment, she flipped her palm over, and a lamp appeared in it.
It was the lamp she had been carrying when she returned from the Ghost World.
It wasn't an item from the Ghost World; it was the embodiment of a memory from deep within her after she had fallen into that realm.
It seemed that many vicious ghosts, after falling into purgatory, would manifest their obsessions if they had any. It all depended on the depth of their power.
Those with deep power could condense their obsessions into lifelike manifestations. What had her obsession been at that time?
The Old Lady. She had already woken up, so it seemed there were no obsessions left.
But she had recovered that segment of her memory.
So there was still something there after all.
Wang Jiu looked at the rustic, old-fashioned lamp and recalled her time in that small mountain village she utterly detested. After being beaten and scolded, she would sometimes run off alone to hide in a mountain gully, afraid of being hit again, and afraid of facing those unbearable scenes.
Some perverted men would even demand she watch from the side. She ran away a few times, and later simply made a habit of hiding.
In the ditches of the wild fields, the smell of the soil was heavy, and the wild grass grew taller than a person. Some of it pricked her skin, but she could always squat there for a long time.
Hugging herself, motionless.
Until late at night, night after night, a woman would approach with a lamp, a light in the wilderness.
She never called out, just walked with her hair down, wearing thin, tattered clothes, searching alone in the night.
She wasn't hurried, as if it didn't matter whether she found her or not.
But she always searched, over and over. Sometimes it would take a long time to find her. She wouldn't part the wild grass, just stand there and say coldly, "Come out."
Sometimes, it felt like she was another person.
She wasn't Zhou Miao, not that prostitute in the village who was available to any man.
She was cold, her eyes wise and sharp, yet also filled with sorrow and pain.
And, she was disgusted by her.
Wang Jiu deeply felt her disgust, an extreme loathing, as if it were a humiliation.
Then why did she search?
If you don't like someone, why search for them?
The little girl was very confused. As time went on, she began to separate the two versions of her.
The timid, foolish one who would do her best to serve the men. She would beat and scold her, and wouldn't care if others hit her. But, after entertaining someone, she would always get rations, and then give her the larger share of the noodles or steamed buns, eating only a little herself.
The cold, wise one who was in pain, like a ghost trapped in purgatory. She never had any contact with her, refused to touch her, refused to look at her, and therefore was even unwilling to hit her. But she would always search for her.
To this day, Wang Jiu couldn't tell which one had taken her into the cave, had almost eaten her, but then had sacrificed herself to be eaten instead.
But… perhaps it made no difference.
Always so contradictory.
Disgusted by her, disliked her, yet couldn't let her go.
But, it was also possible that both had resolved to abandon her.
Because Wang Jiu knew what it meant to be unable to let go. Only beautiful things were worth holding on to.
Wang Jiu never had a concept of the word "beautiful" before. Not until she met an old woman, and saw what happened after she brought them, mother and daughter, to the neighboring town. That day, that night, they ate together. The two of them even drank. She, of course, did not. In her drowsiness, she saw her mother, who had been drunk, get up and approach the Old Lady.
She thought she was going to do something, but instead, she just carefully carried the person to the sofa, then knelt beside it. She didn't know what she was thinking, but later she lowered her head against the edge of the sofa, and it seemed she was crying.
It was only much later that she understood. The one who woke up after being drunk that day was the sober her, the her that didn't belong to that mountain village.
She was lucid. She knew she was a sacrifice, that wherever she went, Yin Lao would follow. And sooner or later, she would become a terrifying killing machine. This peaceful little town, full of the warmth of daily life, did not belong to her.
Even her daughter did not belong.
Of the same bloodline, once awakened, the first one she would have to devour was her own daughter. She couldn't even entrust such a huge hidden danger to this kind and suffering person.
So, she took Wang Jiu away.
That was their fate, mother and daughter.
They say every person is an island.
The happy ones face the sea, with birdsong and fragrant flowers.
The unhappy ones are covered in scars, a desolate wasteland.
She was probably that kind of person. Desperate from loneliness, she left out of desperation, not leaving even a sliver of her soul behind, even wanting to completely sever ties with Wang Jiu.
Because of pride, and because of ruthlessness.
But what she left Wang Jiu was permanent trauma. That disgust, that harm, that rejection—a situation where no matter how she tried to get close, how she tried to please, she was never accepted—it ran through her entire childhood.
Even though someone as smart as her knew why, she could never erase that hurt.
The Old Lady was right about one thing. That day, as she led her out of the psychologist's office, she said to her under the brilliant sun: "Ah Jiu, you can't stay a child forever, but I wish you never had to grow up."
She knew that the childhood Ah Jiu was forever left behind in that small mountain village, forever playing hide-and-seek with a woman in the boundless, inescapable wilderness of tall grass.
Yes, she thought it was hide-and-seek.
The first lie she ever told was when she bragged to the other children at school: "My mom is so good to me, she plays hide-and-seek with me every day."
In truth, that woman had probably never left.
Even if she really couldn't remember what she looked like anymore.
Wang Jiu looked at the lantern, thinking about how when she fell into the Ghost World, she had tried to manifest that version of her, but failed. In the end, only a lamp remained.
Pale, slender fingers gently landed on the lamp, stroking the thin paper shade. With a light tap of her fingertip, a small flame ignited on the wick inside.
In broad daylight, she looked at the lamp and smiled softly.
Then she closed her eyes.
Jiong Jiong, who was watching over the Old Lady, suddenly sensed something was wrong outside. Through a broken window, she saw that some people had survived on the opposite island and on the sea.
No, a lot of people had survived.
The game, it seemed to be reshaping itself.
Data was returning.
And they, these people, were all just data, weren't they?
After a moment of stunned surprise, Jiong Jiong was filled with joy. Although she said she didn't like it, she subconsciously hurried outside, calling out, "Ah Jiu, Ah Jiu, look outside, isn't it…"
Her voice died in her throat.
She stared blankly at a lamp that was silently burning. The fire slowly consumed the paper shade and the handle, gradually turning to ash.
Other than that, there was no trace.
At the same time, the survivors in the sea and on the opposite shore were shouting to each other. They saw Jiong Jiong and were calling out.
Qing He, Xing Yao, Huai En—they had all returned.
They were heading this way.
Jiong Jiong was at a loss, looking out blankly.
The seas calmed, the continents shifted.
Mountains and seas, forests and trees, pale snow—all were returning.
Villages, cities, ships, cars, and planes. The tomatoes in the yard, the small succulent on the office desk.
Milk tea, hot pot, barbecue grills, karaoke, and clubbing.
Birdsong and fragrant flowers, a prosperous human world.
That simple, lingering warmth of daily life.
And a beam of light returning to the universe. It was the World Heart, returning according to the agreement.
The agreement between Wang Jiu and the Eternal Night Empress.
Half an hour ago, in the World Heart's space, the Eternal Night Empress had spoken: "Of your three conditions, one of them can never be met. You calculate everything, but you always miss something."
Wang Jiu was stunned. Missed something?
She stared blankly for a moment, then suddenly looked down at her own palm.
The World Heart had entered her body, and it had entered the Eternal Night Empress's body, but their bodies and souls reacted to it differently.
The World Heart belonged to the Eternal Night Empress. It was a part of her body. It would never harm her; it would always belong to her.
But Wang Jiu was not.
A mortal being, no matter how they could move mountains and fill seas, no matter how extraordinary their power, was not part of the World Heart's essential ownership.
It was the most powerful energy body born from the universe. Earth itself was born from the workings of the universe's energy; she was a crop from generations later.
It was like asking if a Nullification Bead could, in turn, swallow a Nullification Core.
It couldn't. It was irreversible.
Wang Jiu and the World Heart were two irreversible existences.
A hasty calculation, a perfect solution.
She didn't want to die. The worst-case scenario she had prepared for was that she and the Old Lady could still be together, living together for many more years.
She was greedy. She couldn't let go of those days.
Because she had gained too much, and lost it too soon.
But it turned out that wasn't possible either.
Wang Jiu was lost in thought for a long time, so long that it was completely unlike her usual self, so long that even the Eternal Night Empress found her unfamiliar.
But soon, Wang Jiu regained her composure and calmly struck a deal with the Eternal Night Empress.
After the world returned, the game's abilities began to disappear, detaching from people's bodies. All energy and power were also being lost.
Many people were bewildered, while many others wept with joy.
And some… were completely silent.
For the time being, no one dared to tell the Old Lady, especially since she hadn't woken up yet.
In fact, they didn't know that the Old Lady had already woken up. Opening the door, she said to the crowd who had stood up, "I already know."
And then?
And then… the Old Lady walked to the kitchen, poured a glass of water, took a big gulp, and turned back to the crowd. "Before I fell, I sent a letter to the Eternal Night Empress. I don't know if she's read it."
What letter? The crowd was all too familiar with the Old Lady's posture and expression. Sometimes, she was very much like Wang Jiu.
This… was this a glimmer of hope?
The Old Lady sliced a tomato and gave half to Qing He, who was leaning against the counter beside her. "It's about humanity, something that empress is interested in," she said as she ate.
Ah, so that cold, powerful, terrifying empress had such a side to her? Though they already knew the Founder was a piece of work, they, as later generations of life, were also beneficiaries, so they could only complain in secret.
"So, the reason she came to Earth from across the universe and was deceived by the Founder was because she was fundamentally curious about living beings. But the Founder reshaped her worldview, causing her to lose faith in humanity and want to exterminate life on Earth… But, she is still fundamentally curious, which is why she also secretly mastered the Spirit Dao."
Lin Guiwan held her daughter, feeding her steamed egg custard. "Actually, her personality was probably still influenced. For example, her contradictions. Contradiction is a fundamental aspect of humanity."
Lin Xiaoniang said, "Hey, now that you mention it, I realize she clearly treated that 09 much better than the other mechs. Did you guys notice? That 09 is much more sentient than the rest of the Eternal Night Race."
Everyone's expression turned subtle. Thinking about it, it was true. And Qing He had the most authority to speak on this.
That 09 was indeed different.
"So, he must have been modified by the Eternal Night Empress. She specifically added some humanity to him."
The extreme of disgust is caring.
That is contradiction.
"So, if Wang Jiu couldn't merge with the World Heart and was bound to die, the Eternal Night Empress could still save her, right?"
"For example…"
The Old Lady finished her tomato, drank the rest of her water, put down the glass, and said slowly, "I wrote a few things in my letter to her. I think she probably took them to heart."
In the Eternal Night Empire, the Eternal Night Empress held a piece of game email paper between her fingers. Her fingers were so long that the letter seemed small, but on it was a line of text.
—Your Majesty, I believe my Ah Jiu can show you that the living beings of this world are not all selfishness and greed; there are other sides to them. If you don't mind, please take her with you. Do whatever you want with her. Just return her when you get tired of her.
These words were from a previous memory video.
Memories of Wang Jiu.
The cold Eternal Night Empress stroked the letter, looking at Wang Jiu standing before the table.
"Have you decided?"
Wang Jiu: "You haven't stated your condition yet, Your Majesty."
The Empress: "Simple. Something you're very familiar with."
Then, with a tap of her finger, a book made of metal appeared on the table.
Wang Jiu took one look, and her expression became subtle.
Slave Agreement.
If the sky had a bullet-comment screen, it would probably say—What goes around, comes around. Karma spares no one. Hahahahaha!
Ten years later.
In a mountain temple in the capital, a little bald monk was haggling with an old lady.
Huai En: "No, absolutely not, Benefactor Lin. You've nearly picked these loquat trees bald every year, and now you want me to plant durian, jackfruit, and watermelon. Absolutely not."
Old Lady: "Five million."
Huai En: "No, no. This humble monk has renounced worldly possessions. I see money as nothing. How could I care about the amount? Besides, I don't think that person likes to eat durian, jackfruit, and watermelon."
Old Lady: "Why are you so narrow-minded, little monk? I'm the one who wants to eat them."
Huai En: "Then you can go buy them."
Old Lady: "Is it a crime that yours taste better? Ten million. Yes or no, one word!"
Huai En: "No~~ Even if you raise it to fifteen million, it's still a no."
Was the hint that obvious? Fine.
Old Lady: "Twenty million."
Huai En bent down and picked up a basket he had prepared earlier. "Very well, Benefactor. Please stand back, lest the falling leaves from this book… uh, tree, injure you… Eek, eek, Little Benefactor Jiong Jiong, don't climb so high."
Jiong Jiong, who was dangling from the tree picking loquats, suddenly froze. "Mom, Mom, that…"
The Old Lady seemed to sense something. Her body stiffened, but she slowly turned her head.
Amidst the curling sandalwood incense that was everywhere on the temple's mountain path, and among the bustling crowd of people who had come to the mountain to make offerings, a person walked over from the distance. She stopped, stood to one side of the platform, and suddenly smiled at her, then casually and naturally struck a cute pose.
That scene was probably the most beautiful sight beneath the Buddha's seat.
Huai En lowered his head, pressed his palms together, tears in his eyes, a smile on his face.
"Amitabha."
Upon receiving the news, many people who had already settled back into their lives across the world were thrilled. Wang Shu clamored about driving one of his six Ferraris from Shanghai to pick up his Master and take her out, so he could fulfill his filial duties.
Liao Luo: "I'll give you a private jet. Things that run on the ground have no class."
Wang Shu: "What the hell? You deadbeat, how are you so rich? You always look so shabby, I thought you were a broke-ass."
Liao Luo: "Are assassins ever short on money?"
Wang Shu: "Then I'll come live with you."
Liao Luo: "No, you're fat and ugly."
Wang Shu: "…"
I'm a cutie, okay?
The group chat was lively. Even Shen Wan chimed in from another region.
Many people said they were coming to the capital to see Wang Jiu…
"The ones in the capital are pretty quiet. Are they all in their cars already?"
Mei Qinghe: "The capital is full of reserved types. They're probably already on their way. Sister Wanwan is one of the honest ones."
Liu Wuren: "I'm in her car. She specifically called me. Probably looking for a tool."
Shen Wan, now a leader in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, went silent.
Qiao Xuejing: "The ones from Hong Kong and Shenzhen are already on their private jets."
Those already in the capital were indeed at ease.
Like her and Dao Dao.
As everyone was deep in discussion, the Old Lady came online with a message: "I just asked her if she wanted to see you old friends. She said there's no need. It's been ten years, you're all too old."
Everyone: "…"
What the fuck!!
Damn it!
The women collectively sent the standard passive-aggressive smiley face emoji.
Even Mo Ran sent a question mark, followed by a sentence.
"Time, place."
An overwhelming aura of cold, sharp intent.
Old Lady: "Three days from now, the Wilderness Mall near my house."
Alright, it's a date.
Three days later, the streets outside the Wilderness Mall, the capital's largest new shopping center, were suddenly gridlocked.
And the gridlock was composed entirely of luxury cars.
People nearby were puzzled. Huh? What the hell? But some recognized who was driving, and many got excited but didn't dare approach.
"Even though a lot of people died and didn't come back, the traffic in the capital is still insane. I told you we should have taken the subway, but you wouldn't listen."
Luo Sheng sat in the back seat, facing the complaints of her former vice-captain, now driver. She put down her makeup mirror and gave him a noble and disdainful look.
"Have you ever seen a socialite squeeze onto the subway?"
"Then you should drive yourself."
"Am I just any socialite? I never drive myself."
"…"
A drama queen in the car, but once she steps out, she's all elegant, noble, magnanimous, and considerate. Heh.
But remembering how ferocious she was in the later stages of the game, Zhong Qing didn't dare to press the issue. He tilted his head and happened to see Xiao Jue's car.
Snap. Luo Sheng closed her compact, her face displeased. "What's he doing here? That guy never goes back to an ex."
Zhong Qing thought so too, but then he suddenly said, "There's someone else in his car. I think it's his sister. She's very pretty. I heard Wang Jiu once personally invited her…"
Luo Sheng: "Say something I want to hear, or I'm docking your pay."
Zhong Qing: "…"
My family's assets are in the billions, for fuck's sake. Can you not trample on my dignity?
"Yes, my lady."
Just in the short time they were stuck in traffic, Luo Sheng saw many familiar faces. Those on good terms were chatting up a storm in their group chats. Those on bad terms were rolling down their windows and yelling at each other across the lanes.
For example, Tan Yingzhou and Xiao Jue were trading passive-aggressive barbs. Luo Sheng, being next to them, mocked them both.
But soon they fell silent.
Because they saw Xing Yao, not far down the road, casually waiting at a red light on a bicycle.
Damn it, a man with that kind of temperament and looks could be a showstopper even if he were driving a tractor, let alone a bicycle.
Now all the surviving beings from several spacetimes were in one world. It wasn't crowded, since a large portion of people hadn't been revived.
It seemed the early ones were all gone.
The later ones probably had more data, or perhaps it was as the system once said: only those whose data had been collected could be recorded within it.
"He's already here. Doesn't that mean Mo Ran is here too?" As a man, Zhong Qing couldn't resist his instincts.
"Probably. But why is it so congested today? And no traffic police to handle it."
"It seems even Xuejing and the others are stuck here."
"Something's weird."
"Ask around…"
"You ask. I'm getting out. It's close enough, I'll walk."
Many people were asking around, and some, like those with drivers, were about to get out of their cars directly.
Heh, upon meeting, the mockery was at its peak. They also saw Wang Shu, Lin Guiwan, and a few others just half a street away. They were with their kids and Dao Dao, buying milk tea.
Cai Wujun and his group were just walking out of a nearby coffee shop. They probably saw them and were about to greet them and go over together.
Many people were at this gathering, but those with closer relationships were clearly more enthusiastic.
But…
"Why do I hear something?"
"It sounds like…"
A dozen large trucks appeared out of nowhere.
And then…
They came speeding over at a terrifying pace, but what they were carrying on their flatbeds…
That yellowish color, that familiar vehicle model.
Wang Shu, holding several cups of milk tea, inadvertently looked ahead and froze. The milk tea in his arms was crushed.
Because he was terrified.
What the fuck? What the fuck!!
BOOM!! They exploded.
A familiar scene of a goddess scattering flowers.
Ah—
Mo Ran, the Marshal, and the others standing in the nearby plaza: "…"
That Demon King, she really was back.
On the balcony of a restaurant in the mall, two streets away from the plaza, a woman in a red slip dress leaning against the railing had already captured the attention of everyone in the restaurant. They also saw her push up the gold-rimmed glasses on her nose with her middle finger, turn her face, and give a slight smirk.
Her gaze was both bewitching and seductive.
And at this moment, far away in the universe, in the Eternal Night Empire, 09 saw his Empress leaning her head on her hand, staring blankly out at the cosmos.
"Your Majesty?"
The Empress: "Hm?"
09: "She only just left a few days ago."
The Empress shot him a cold glance. "What are you trying to say?"
09: "You didn't actually have to let her go."
The Empress was noncommittal. "We're not the same kind. What's the point of keeping her? If not for the agreement, I would have wanted to kill her."
She felt Wang Jiu was even more of a scoundrel than that man.
But she was very useful. During her time in the empire, she had helped her develop mechanical spirit arts.
09: "Not necessarily. I feel she was still grateful to you. Yesterday, she even asked me to deliver something to you."
The Empress: "Oh?"
09 immediately produced the item.
"She said these are cigarettes. Smoking them is good for your health, the smell and taste are pleasant, and they can even increase one's personal charm… She told me to be sure to give them to you today, at this very moment. Oh, right, today is also the day she's meeting her old friends."
The Empress glanced at it with disgust. "She's quite amusing, trying to fob me off with such a trinket. And having a reunion with old friends. Does she think I'd be interested? Never mind, you may leave."
09 withdrew.
The moment the door closed, the Empress squinted at the object on the table, reached out to pick it up, and examined it. While doing so, she connected to the game's perspective on Earth and used it…
A moment later, a faint cough could be heard from within the room, along with a low mutter.
"Scum."
She had just seen the video of the manure truck explosion on the mall's roadway.
She had been hurt.
END.
Comments
Post a Comment