Chapter 174

Page Thirty-One The Impostor

Consciousness returned, and I smelled a pungent paint odor.

Sakura-jam had already finished her bath and was sitting at the desk, trimming her nails…

Hmm, what’s this bottle of pink nail polish on hand?

Is that what I smell?

—”Finally awake? Lin Hua said it’s a rare opportunity. Do you want to try getting a manicure?”—

This is too effeminate, what are you doing!

—”Effeminate? I think it looks quite nice.”—

Are you doing this on purpose?

Painting my nails? I’m a big man!

I regained control of my body, squeezed Sakura-jam’s half-soul back into her own avatar, and saw that the wet nail polish had been scraped off. Lin Hua, the culprit, also came over and asked, “Kai-jam is back? Don’t like this color?”

I replied with a stern face, “I hate nail polish itself.”

“You really don’t have a girlish heart… What’s this thing?”

On the table was a palm-sized square box, inside which lay a black pill, its surface uneven and non-reflective, looking like a clump of dirt rubbed off someone’s body.

“This is the elixir of immortality bestowed by Lord Hai.”

Although it didn’t look impressive, it was a divine medicine… Lord Hai should not have made a mistake.

“Hmm? Elixir of Immortality?”

Upon hearing this, Xiao Lei, who was lying in bed watching live streams, crawled over excitedly but then looked repulsed when she saw the real thing.

“This stuff looks disgusting. Has it expired?”

The foolish words were actually a real reminder for me.

“… This is also an artifact passed down from ancient times. If divine medicine has an expiration date, it might already be expired.”

Does this stuff still work?

Could it be poisonous?

Lin Hua asked again, “Since it’s an elixir of immortality, can one become immortal by eating it?”

I explained, “It’s not about becoming immortal. According to Lord Hai, this pill can change the nature of ‘humans,’ allowing ordinary people to go to the Divine Court. Past Chang’e became a fairy after eating this kind of divine medicine and ascended to the moon palace.”

This so-called immortality is just a difference in perception.

To ancient mortals, the gods in heaven were eternal, so they mistakenly believed that Chang’e also became an indestructible existence and called this divine medicine the elixir of immortality.

“Will I no longer be human after eating it?”

Lin Hua nodded and asked, “Then, what is this medicine for? Are you planning to eat it and see Lord Hai?”

As expected, she asked.

But I couldn’t tell her now, as it was a secret that couldn’t be revealed in reality.

“No, let’s talk about the reason in the dream, okay?”

—

[Restraint Dream]

To protect my mother from the Heavenly Path’s erasure, we might need to make Qian Xia wait a few more days. Fortunately, she still has plenty of energy. When we entered the dream, she was pulling several mannequins around a round table, hosting a tea party.

This was like playing house, but the mannequins couldn’t speak, and she did all the voices herself… It was lonely and pitiful, making it hard for me to bear.

“Sister~ Mua!”

She rushed over with a playful smile, pursing her soft little lips and kissing my cheek.

“Don’t get so excited, Sister comes every night.”

“How time flies, is it nighttime outside again? Sister… when can Qian Xia go out?”

She immediately asked this question.

I held her on the bed and answered, “Soon. If nothing unexpected happens with Lord Hai, it will take two more days in reality, around Friday. For you, it would be about eight to nine hours.”

“Great!”

I didn’t want her to know about my mother.

Qian Xia was kind. If she knew that her return would cause my mother to disappear, she would certainly be willing to stay here, but… I couldn’t bear to make this ten-year-old girl sacrifice any further.

Qian Xia stretched her neck and asked, “Has Sakura-senpai not come?”

Xiao Lei pinched Qian Xia’s nose and replied, “Sakura-senpai won’t come tonight. She has something to handle. Chairman will find another senpai to play with you later.”

I said, “Go play with Qian Xia first.”

The fool nodded and took Qian Xia away from me.

I turned to Lin Hua and whispered, “Lin Hua, I have something I want to consult your advice on… Help me.”

“Um… Oh, of course, no problem. No need to look so helpless. You can always trust me.”

She seemed somewhat distracted.

In dreams, distance doesn’t matter. In a blink, I brought Lin Hua downstairs to the living room.

Lin Hua sat on the sofa and asked, “You specifically avoided Qian Xia, what is it that you can’t let her know?”

“It’s something I don’t want her to know and can’t discuss much in reality. Actually…”

I told Lin Hua about Sakura-jam and Lord Hai’s speculation.

After listening, she summarized, “So, only one of Aunt and Qian Xia can stay in the mortal world?”

Although Aunt was technically her aunt, calling my mother that felt strange… Perhaps I hadn’t developed the sense of being a cousin yet.

I replied, “For now, but even if Qian Xia doesn’t leave, my mother’s disappearance is inevitable… So before that, we need to find her quickly, feed her the elixir of immortality, and send her to the Divine Court for safety.”

Finding her in two days wouldn’t be easy, and it’s unclear if the elixir is effective. Even if she shares my senses, I don’t know how to pass this information without the Heavenly Path noticing.

There are two more days until Qian Xia’s body reconstruction is complete. Coincidentally, these two days also need to facilitate the meeting between Lin Ziyè and Ling Shaojie, as Lin Ziyè’s coming-of-age ceremony is this weekend, and it can’t be delayed…

“It’s fine not to discuss it in reality, but even in the dream, you avoid Qian Xia… This is quite troublesome.”

Lin Hua sighed and asked, “However, as long as we don’t say it out loud, it won’t be noticed, right? The Heavenly Path doesn’t probe our thoughts because it lacks understanding of these emotions?”

I shook my head.

“Probably not. That Heavenly Path knows where the end of the universe is. How could it not understand human thoughts? It’s just that such small human emotions are insignificant to the Heavenly Path.”

Thus, the Heavenly Path can easily erase my mother’s existence and make Sakura-jam give up her knowledge in the final trial. Her unique personality is unimportant to that cold “system.”

Lin Hua propped her chin and asked, “Little Sakura isn’t here tonight, she must be out looking for Aunt… that mysterious girl A, right?”

“This is the plan we set during the day. We think that the base of the mysterious girl A is in the village, since it’s the place my mother is most familiar with.”

She lived here for ten years as Ning Ying.

Now that she’s back, she shouldn’t have gone far.

At this moment, Sakura-jam’s line of sight covered the entire village, searching for the magical energy of the mysterious girl A… Yes, I probably slept naked tonight.

Understanding the situation, Lin Hua asked, “So, what do you want to discuss with me?”

“You said… if we don’t find her in two days, should I keep Qian Xia here longer?”

Lin Hua answered without hesitation, “If Qian Xia goes back, your mother will disappear, right? Of course, her life is more important! Although it’s a pity for Qian Xia, there’s no comparison. Life is definitely more important.”

I understood what she meant…

I continued, “Then, if my mother never appears, should I keep that girl imprisoned? She hasn’t had freedom since birth…”

“Mm, you don’t have to worry about that~”

Still frowning, Lin Hua smiled and said, “I think Aunt won’t stay hidden forever. She’ll appear in front of you soon.”

Lin Hua’s words sounded more reassuring than comforting…

I retorted, “Why do you say that?”

“Xiao Kai, think about it. If your mother knew that her existence prevented Qian Xia from returning, could she feel at ease hiding? I don’t think she’s that kind of person.”

“If it’s about her own survival, who knows?”

“Hey, you’re not confident in your own mother?”

Lin Hua squinted and pinched my face, a familiar gesture that overlapped with the mysterious girl A on Mifeng Street…

“… Lin Hua.”

“Hmm?”

“What color nail polish did you use on me tonight?”

She hesitated for a while before guessing, “Purple?”

“I wouldn’t use such a toxic color. You’re not Lin Hua, are you?”

“Oh, you caught me. I thought I was pretty convincing!”

The impostor Lin Hua wasn’t surprised and laughed behind her hand.

“Because Sakura-jam wasn’t around, you took the chance to sneak into the dream! Mysterious Girl A!”

Exposed, she stopped pretending and returned to her true form.

“You know who I am, right? You won’t be detected by the Heavenly Path in the dream. Should I call me ‘Mother’?”

After hesitating for a second, I shook my head.

“Who would call you! Didn’t you say you’re younger than me?”

“So what? Isn’t it good to have a mom with a psychological age of ten?”

That’s a crime-inducing statement?

I sighed, “My ideal mother isn’t like this!”

“Like Xiao Wei? I never imagined my beloved husband would become so virtuous when he turned into a girl… It’s a bit of a shame we can’t meet again…”

The atmosphere grew heavy again.

After all, the survival crisis she faced hadn’t changed.

“… Mother.”

I ended up saying it.

“You know Lord Hai’s suggestion, do you want to go to the Divine Court with her? Once I complete the trials of the Deity, I can join you… She’s very lonely, and you can keep her company.”

“No, I don’t plan to return to the Divine Court.”

She crossed her legs and sat casually on the sofa, saying, “If I could move freely in the Divine Court, I wouldn’t have been sealed for so long before. Hai has already sacrificed once for me.”

She grabbed my cheeks and forcibly pulled out a hideous smile.

“Besides, that divine medicine is too disgusting. I feel like I’d die just by eating it. You should feed it to a cat instead.”

So that was the reason?