"Whether it's you or him, aren't you the same person?" Lu Zhi was truly fed up with this dramatic scene. What he found most speechless was that it reminded him of two women fighting over one man...
Thinking of this, Lu Zhi quickly shook his head.
He must have been driven mad by this human and god to have such an absurd thought.
"This can't go on," Shen Qi's voice was low, his silver-grey eyes fixed on Lu Zhi.
He sneered, "So?"
Shen Qi tutted and raised his hand, brushing his long hair back from his forehead. "What do you think?"
Lu Zhi really wanted to complain about the cryptic guessing, but being in a position where he needed them, he could only suppress his restless heart, his gaze frequently flicking towards the sky at the powerful anomaly desperately trying to enter the outer cage.
Suddenly, Lu Zhi was squeezed between the human and the god, one on each side. His eyes were forced to meet those crimson-gold eyes with silver rings. Before he could react, his vision darkened, and his lips felt a soft, cool touch. His black pupils widened in shock.
What was he doing?
Why was he kissing him?
Lu Zhi was so astonished that he couldn't react. Shen Qi's gentle voice whispered in his ear, "Sleep..."
The drowsiness came on fiercely and intensely. Lu Zhi's eyelids, beyond his control, slowly closed. Before his consciousness plunged into darkness, he instinctively clenched a corner of clothing tightly. In his blurry, hazy vision, he saw two identical faces with different expressions in their eyes. With his last shred of consciousness, he said, "Please..."
Don't let this world be destroyed.
—
Lu Zhi woke up three days later to find himself not at school, but at the Wild Night Guild. He could faintly hear voices from the balcony.
Lu Zhi sat up in bed, feeling a bit groggy. As soon as he put on his slippers, Li Mei walked in from the balcony, her eyes lighting up. "Xiao Lu, you're awake? How are you feeling? Any other discomfort?"
"Sister Li Mei, I'm fine." Lu Zhi's mind gradually cleared, and he asked doubtfully, "Why am I here?"
Wasn't he still inside the cage? Wait, the cage!
"Sister Li Mei, the cage—" Lu Zhi anxiously grabbed Li Mei's wrist, asking nervously, "Where are they? Are Luo Shiyu and Lan Yushan, and everyone else, out of the cage?"
"Calm down first," Li Mei said in her usual calm tone. "It's normal for people to die in the cage, but this time the cage ended early, and most people are still alive. It's the first time with the highest survival rate for ordinary people."
Lu Zhi breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, things hadn't devolved into the worst-case scenario.
Li Mei glanced at him and continued, "Perhaps you'll find me cold-hearted saying this, but you have to understand that everyone is responsible for their own lives and must learn to protect themselves. You can't expect others to pay for them. Don't blame yourself, don't feel guilty. If you keep thinking this way, your future path will be difficult."
Lu Zhi pursed his lips. Although Li Mei's words made sense, he still found it difficult to adjust his mindset. "Sister Li Mei, I understand. I'm not some great philanthropist or saint, but if I can help someone in distress while ensuring my own safety, I will lend a hand."
Li Mei stared at him, then suddenly burst into laughter and patted his shoulder. "I'm not saying you should be indifferent to the lives of others. I just hope you prioritize your own safety first before thinking about other things."
Lu Zhi nodded. He understood.
Li Mei naturally changed the subject. "Luo Shiyu and Lan Yushan are new students who entered with you, right? They're both fine, but you slept for three whole days."
"Three... three days?" Lu Zhi widened his eyes in shock. "I slept for three whole days? How is that possible?" Could it be because of Shen Qi?
"A lot has happened in these three days," Li Mei said, pulling up a chair and crossing her long legs. She irritably lit a cigarette, took a puff, and then said, "Just remember three points. First, the rules of the cage have been rewritten. Once you enter, there is no longer a 24-hour limit. To get out of the cage, you must kill the cage lord."
"Second, the Twelve Holy Islands have opened global supernatural trials. Those who pass will gain supernatural abilities."
"Third, and most importantly," Li Mei exhaled smoke slowly. "Powerful anomalies can tear through the cage's barrier and enter reality. The war between humans and anomalies has begun, and we don't have much time left."
Lu Zhi's head buzzed. Had the future plot of the novel world all changed!
What to do?
All of this was because of him.
It was he who, in order to survive, had awakened the god, and under Shen Qi's step-by-step guidance, had allowed Him to descend into the cage, breaking the cage's rules, leading to the invasion of anomalies and the rewriting of the world's laws...
Seeing his long silence, Li Mei patted his shoulder comfortingly. "We humans will not lose."
Lu Zhi gave a bitter smile, wiped his face, and said earnestly, "Sister Li Mei, you're right, we humans will not lose."
What if the novel's plot changed and the future was rewritten? Should he continue to wallow in self-pity and be afraid to step forward into the unknown?
From this moment on, he would forget his identity as a transmigrator and resonate with this world.
"By the way, Sister Li Mei, how did I get back to the guild?" Lu Zhi asked at the dining table in the living room, accepting the soup Li Mei poured for him. He secretly felt fortunate it wasn't her cooking, as he might have ended up back in bed right after waking up.
"You have to ask Guozi. He found your room door open that day and saw you lying in bed when he went in. Sister Li Mei called out to Lan Guoguo, who was lying on the sofa playing a mobile game, 'Right, Guozi?'"
Lan Guoguo rolled his eyes impatiently. "Don't ask me, I don't know anything. Anyway, when I opened the door, he was already asleep in bed."
The burly Mu Sen wiped his tears with a tissue, staring at the TV and choking up, "Yes, yes, that's right. Xiao Lu just appeared in his room out of nowhere. I swear I didn't see anyone enter through the main door."
Although the entrance to the Wild Night Guild was bright and open, it wasn't easy to enter. Mu Sen, an A-class demon hunter, would find it impossible for someone to sneak in under his nose.
Lu Zhi mused. It seemed only Shen Qi could have brought him back to the Wild Night Guild without anyone noticing.
But why bring him back to the guild? Why not his dorm room at school?
"Did anything happen at school?" Lu Zhi asked, putting down his bowl and chopsticks as he felt full.
Li Mei shrugged. "How would I know about school matters? But your brother definitely would know something."
Lu Zhi nodded, put the dishes in the dishwasher, and returned to his room. Just as he was about to use his smart device to call Lu Chengxuan, he received an incoming call from an unknown number. After thinking about it, he decided to answer.
Every smart device model was unique, so spam calls were definitely out of the question.
"Classmate Lu." A familiar male voice sounded from inside the room.
Lu Zhi froze for a moment. This voice was... "Principal?"
Shen Lu's voice was somewhat serious, and he got straight to the point. "Classmate Lu, you were the last person with Shen Qi. Do you know where he is?"
Lu Zhi instinctively retorted, "Shen Qi is gone? He's missing?" Thinking of Shen Qi's true identity, his head suddenly started to throb.
Shen Lu was Shen Qi's adoptive father, and Shen Qi's true identity was a god. Would Shen Qi return? Would he still acknowledge his adoptive father identity?
"Yes, if you have any news of him, please tell me." Shen Lu's voice was very mixed, as if many people were talking, hurried and busy.
Lu Zhi pursed his lips. "I don't know, but he shouldn't be in danger."
Damn it, a mad god whose power was likely at the peak of the world, how dangerous could he be?
The real concern now was whether Shen Qi had fully recovered his memory. What had that human and god been doing for the past three days after disappearing?
"If you have any news of him, please contact me." Shen Lu's voice was filled with exhaustion and vexation. "He caused such a big mess and then disappeared without a trace."
Lu Zhi hesitated, unsure whether to casually jest, "Hey, Principal, your good son's true identity is a god."
"Okay, Principal." Lu Zhi ultimately said nothing and asked nothing.
He had a feeling that Shen Qi would return, it was just a matter of time.