MORIC - Chapter 137
Chapter 137: Whose World is About to Collapse
Wen Xinghuo was thoroughly berated by Xi Zhoumeng and was too ashamed to argue back.
Generally speaking, there was no point in dwelling on matters from a past life.
Yet, it just so happened that these few people all seemed to have a past life, making Wen Xinghuo, despite her good temper, feel a sense of stifled frustration, as if she had been isolated by fate.
The term "femme fatale" was simply too heavy a burden. She drew a sharp breath, and just as she was about to reason with Xi Zhoumeng, Sheng Yangkui grabbed her hand and gave a slight shake of her head.
Xi Zhoumeng looked like she was about to die of irritation.
Wen Xinghuo had almost never seen her in such a state.
The Omega she had practically grown up with was always poised; a phrase like "losing her composure" would never be associated with Xi Zhoumeng.
Usually, she was the one at school watching other students lose their composure over one thing or another.
Now, it seemed the lofty and aloof Xi Zhoumeng was just an ordinary person after all.
When she was irritated, her brows would furrow, and she would tap her temple with one hand, looking as if she had a severe headache.
Wen Xinghuo asked, "What should we do? Can we help?"
She glanced again at Sheng Yangkui. The Xi Zhoumeng from the past that Her Highness the Princess had described seemed different from the Xi Zhoumeng of today.
How could Xi Zhoumeng possibly do something so outrageous as to be exiled to a desolate planet just because she liked me?
Logically speaking, it should have been me who was exiled, right?
Xi Zhoumeng had changed, a fundamental transformation of her very being and her life.
Chi Yueshan had changed, a change wrought by fate.
This included Ling Xun, who Sheng Yangkui said had long since passed away, and Xi Shuang, who had fought and died beside her against the Zerg in those days.
Right now, Xi Shuang was perfectly fine, sitting in the back row with her cousin Ling Xun, watching a movie.
Heedless of the torrential rain outside, the bond between the two cousins was visibly strong.
But Sheng Yangkui had little impression of Ling Xun, most likely only knowing of her as a side note from her past inquiries about Wen Xinghuo. Sheng Yangkui always grew mournful when she recalled the past. It was true that she had paid attention to Xi Shuang, being Wen Xinghuo's friend.
But not so much attention that she knew every single detail.
All the clues seemed impossible to string together, and then there was the equally secretive Xi Zhoumeng.
She seemed to be wrapped in countless earth-shattering secrets, yet also burdened by an undeniable mission that weighed heavily upon her.
In that moment, as the storm was about to break and a fierce wind swept the land, a tree branch snapped and crashed down with a loud clang onto the roof of the dilapidated bus.
The impact made the entire vehicle lurch violently, nearly throwing everyone from their seats.
Chi Yueshan was still held firmly in Xi Zhoumeng's embrace. She groggily raised her eyes and asked, "Are we there yet?"
Xi Zhoumeng covered her eyes with her hand and said softly, "Not yet. I'll tell you when we get there."
The bus driver said, "The weather's so bad. Are you all still going ahead with your practical training? Should you contact your teacher?"
The old man's voice was incredibly hoarse, making him sound like a villain at first listen, but his tone was rambling and not nearly as frightening as the unpredictable curtain of rain outside.
"The students who came for training before never ran into weather like this. This rain came on so suddenly."
"Holy crap!"
Xi Shuang suddenly shouted, causing Xi Zhoumeng to turn her head instinctively.
Wen Xinghuo also turned to look. Xi Shuang was grumbling, "How did the network go down? That shouldn't happen. This isn't some destitute planet..."
The pair of cousins in the back were watching Xi Shuang's light-brain. Suddenly, the beautiful actress's voice from the movie became choppy and unsettling, and Ling Xun's smile vanished.
But she remained relatively calm. "Let me check on mine."
Wen Xinghuo said, "Don't bother. They're all down."
Sheng Yangkui also checked her light-brain. The offline functions were still operable, but they weren't of much use.
Xi Zhoumeng said, "As long as we can still deploy the mechas, it'll be fine."
Another thunderclap echoed, as if the very sky had been shattered by something unknown. Before the hazy gate stood the enormous sign for their destination. The base itself was obscured, and all they could make out were red English letters that had been shattered by lightning, looking for all the world like a living creature had been obliterated mid-air, its mangled limbs trickling down with the rain.
In that instant, the arrival announcement also seemed to be affected by the strange, malfunctioning magnetic field, the AI's voice becoming choppy—
"Destin...ation... base... reached. Please... passengers... disembark... in an... orderly... fashion."
Xi Shuang drew a sharp breath. "I'm finding this a little terrifying."
But she was naturally carefree and pulled Ling Xun off the bus, saying, "That actress just now was gorgeous, wasn't she? Oh my god, those legs... I feel like she could squeeze me to death with them."
Ling Xun, however, felt a little uneasy. She stared at the abnormal weather outside and glanced at the others.
She found the atmosphere to be extremely tense.
Chi Yueshan was awake now, too. She slipped out of Xi Zhoumeng's embrace. "Why didn't you wake me?"
Xi Zhoumeng stood up and led her toward the exit, saying, "My thoughts are a bit of a mess right now."
Chi Yueshan didn't quite understand, assuming the young lady was annoyed by the conditions of her first time on public transportation. She smiled comfortingly. "Just think of it as a novel experience."
Wen Xinghuo picked up the large umbrella and bowed to the driver. "Could you possibly wait for us for a bit?"
Only after the old man nodded did she get off the bus with Sheng Yangkui.
This bus stop wasn't as dilapidated as the last one. Xi Shuang was squatting by the side of the road, bored out of her mind, watching a frog stagger away. She even had the spare energy to mock the creature for being laughably ugly.
Ling Xun was still fiddling with her light-brain, attempting to connect to the satellite network.
In all her time using an light-brain, she had almost never encountered a situation like this.
But Ling Xun had heard many stories from her mother.
Even though she was still too young to have experienced a Zerg Tide, she was old enough to understand one of the possible reasons for the malfunction.
She looked at the awful weather, then at Xi Shuang, who still seemed to be playing around.
Finally, her gaze fell on Xi Zhoumeng, who was standing off to the side, apparently also looking at her light-brain.
"Sen—"
Just as Ling Xun was about to ask, Wen Xinghuo walked over and got straight to the point.
"Do you two want to head back?"
Xi Shuang shot to her feet. "What? We just got here and now we're going back???"
Wen Xinghuo said, "It's dangerous."
She didn't know how to explain it right away; speaking of such things would usually get one dismissed as a lunatic.
This was the interstellar age, after all. Things like rebirth or transmigrating into a book sounded completely absurd.
Xi Shuang completely dismissed it. "When is practical training not dangerous? What's gotten into you? Are you scared by this weird weather?"
She patted Wen Xinghuo's shoulder. "It's okay. We sisters will live and die together. There's nothing to fear."
It would have been better if she hadn't said that. The moment she did, the atmosphere grew even more oppressive.
Sheng Yangkui gripped Wen Xinghuo's hand tighter, biting her lip as she remembered Wen Xinghuo's solitary figure from her past life.
So lonely.
Wen Xinghuo sighed and stared at Xi Shuang, her gaze so intense that it gave Xi Shuang goosebumps and, strangely, made her feel a little shy.
"What are you looking at me for? Let me tell you, I'm not interested in an Alpha-Alpha thing. You already have an Omega, so don't even think about starting some kind of one-Alpha-one-Omega system."
Chi Yueshan whispered in Xi Zhoumeng's ear for a moment. For once, the other girl wasn't her usual flippant self, instead laying out the plan for her concisely and without any emotion.
It was basically that she couldn't make any guarantees. If things got dangerous, Chi Yueshan was to take Sheng Yangkui and move to the side. However, if she saw Xi Zhoumeng acting strangely, she was not to approach her.
Unless I'm the one leading you away.
Chi Yueshan was about to nod, but she suddenly heard what Xi Shuang said and couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Wen Xinghuo: ...
She suddenly felt there was a strange similarity between Xi Shuang and Xi Zhoumeng.
Except Xi Zhoumeng was not the least bit sleazy, whereas Xi Shuang was a little on the cringey side.
Ling Xun also found her cousin a bit embarrassing. She grabbed Xi Shuang's arm, pulled her aside, and asked Wen Xinghuo seriously, "Senior, is there really danger?"
Her features were fair, and her eyes behind her glasses were crystal clear.
It was rare for an Alpha to have such a non-confrontational personality and gaze, but Wen Xinghuo had sparred with her and knew very well how fixated Ling Xun was on mechas, and how obsessed she was with her ranking.
She wanted to be number one.
Xi Shuang often told Wen Xinghuo not to take it to heart.
She explained that while her cousin only had a younger sister, their Alpha father had illegitimate sons—one of whom was studying at the Knight Academy.
Another had already been placed in the military.
Ling Xun had never been the first, and having never been exceptional growing up, this desire had become a fixation.
Some people appear nonchalant, but are in fact obstinate in nature, like a stubborn rock or clinging mud.
Wen Xinghuo could even sense Ling Xun's excitement.
She hesitated, unsure of what to say.
To the side, Xi Zhoumeng glanced at the relentless downpour, then at Chi Yueshan, who was still smiling as if no difficulty was insurmountable.
"The Zerg Tide might be starting early," Xi Zhoumeng said, pulling back Chi Yueshan, who was still studying a map, for fear she'd get rained on. "The light-brains are down, so we can't contact the supervisors. You two don't have to go in."
Xi Shuang let out a sound of surprise. "The Zerg Tide is starting early and it's targeting a specific area? What is this, a pre-sale marketing campaign for a shopping app?"
After she spoke, she seemed to realize that neither Wen Xinghuo nor Xi Zhoumeng was joking, and her expression grew serious. "What secrets have you two been keeping from me and Ling Xun?"
Another clap of thunder boomed.
The string of beads grew hotter and hotter, and a current of electricity seeped into Xi Zhoumeng's body.
In that very instant, Xi Zhoumeng understood why the system created by the future Chi Yueshan had an electric shock function.
Perhaps her future self had told Chi Yueshan to include it.
Xi Zhoumeng was actually terrified of pain, and she was terrified of these electric shocks.
She wasn't naturally submissive; her compliance had been trained into her.
The pain of the electric current coursing through her would easily make her break out in a sweat.
So, before the restart, was this function developed to ensure the plan's success?
Indeed, after being shocked so many times, she was becoming desensitized.
But Xi Zhoumeng's body temperature was dropping lower and lower, a change only Chi Yueshan, who was holding her hand, could feel.
Just as Chi Yueshan was about to ask if she was all right, she heard Xi Zhoumeng say—
"The Zerg Tide is coming. The four of us have to go. It makes no difference whether you two come or not. If you go, you might die. If you don't, you'll definitely live."
She said it with an almost flippant ease, which sounded a bit like she was looking down on them.
Even though Xi Shuang still held Xi Zhoumeng on a goddess's pedestal, she suddenly felt a surge of anger.
"What's that supposed to mean! The four of you only have one Alpha! Okay, fine, I admit Wen Xinghuo is invincible! But she can't protect three people by herself!!"
Among those present, only Chi Yueshan knew that this person was an Alpha.
And that she was the key figure who had allowed them all to start over.
She didn't know where this confidence came from, but she felt there was absolutely nothing wrong with what Xi Zhoumeng had said.
Even though they had failed last time, the experience from that failure would lower the probability of failing this time, right?
Besides, in the last future, Xi Zhoumeng and I both...
This Xi Zhoumeng could even take on the Zerg Queen single-handedly. How could she possibly have ordinary S+ spiritual power?
Chi Yueshan was suddenly struck by the feeling of knowing everything but being unable to say a word.
Xi Zhoumeng said, "Who's looking down on you? Come if you want, don't if you don't. You're the sole heir of your family. Have you ever considered what your parents would do if you died?"
She then looked at Ling Xun. "You too. Xi Shuang cares about you so much."
The Xi Shuang from the system's playback wasn't nearly as sunny as she appeared now. In that future timeline, Ling Xun had died very young.
Although she was an Alpha with the same spiritual power as she had now, she was born frail and was simply unable to build a strong physique.
"Delicate" was practically Ling Xun's defining characteristic.
She adored her cousin Xi Shuang the most and was always waiting for her to visit.
Xi Shuang was naturally uninhibited. Her boasting never came across as humble-bragging; it was pure sunshine with no shadowy side.
She loved her younger cousin and wanted to always be good to her.
She would tell her that not every Alpha had to go to the battlefield, that someone with A-level spiritual power could do other things.
The currently popular field of spatial quantum research was also a choice for many Alphas.
But Ling Xun would always shake her head. Her mother had died young, and her father was disappointed in her for her frail constitution.
Her own younger sister had been abused to death by their stepmother. Ling Xun herself was as thin as a withered lotus, her eyes always listless, only brightening slightly when Xi Shuang appeared.
Xi Shuang would tell her about the new friends she'd made, saying, "I have a good friend named Wen Xinghuo, she's from a Lower World."
She would also bring up stories about Wen Xinghuo, and how the two of them had joined the military together, sharing their grand dreams.
Ling Xun, though the youngest, seemed like a lifeless specimen.
The longing in her eyes followed Xi Shuang, practically inseparable.
Then one day, after Xi Shuang and Wen Xinghuo had joined the military, Xi Shuang received a suicide note from Ling Xun.
Ling Xun had taken her own life.
At the end of the letter, she had written—
If only there were a next life. I wish I could attend Guyun Academy with you, Cousin, and get to know your friends, too.
It would be wonderful to fight by your side, wouldn't it, Cousin?
Xi Zhoumeng hadn't dared to watch this playback in detail. After all, this was a new world.
Ling Xun was a healthy Alpha; everything was just as Xi Shuang had wished.
Perhaps it was because Xi Zhoumeng's gaze was exceptionally grave, but for a moment, Ling Xun felt as if she had heard those words somewhere before.
Who said that to me?
The next second, Xi Shuang reached out and hooked an arm around Ling Xun, pulling her into an embrace. The edges of her hair, damp from the wind and rain, framed a face that was somewhat rakishly wild, but the high spirits unique to her age could not be broken by any storm.
"What's the big deal? It's just a Zerg Tide. We'll have to face it eventually when we join the military anyway."
When she smiled, she revealed her canine teeth. With her naturally alluring "peach blossom eyes," she was never short of admirers at the academy.
"Ling Xun is my favorite cousin. No matter what happens, I will protect her."
"When I got into Guyun Academy, I told my parents I wouldn't come home until I'd joined the military and earned a rank. If I get scared now, does that mean I have no choice but to go home and inherit the family fortune?"
Feeling she hadn't made her point dramatically enough, Xi Shuang then turned to look at Xi Zhoumeng with deep affection—
"Zhoumeng, you and Xiao Yueshan are both Omegas who need my protection. I will give it my all!"
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