Chapter 190
Chapter 190 System Loading 1%
Finally, after Tianji spat out a little over twenty thousand as a hush money, it completely shut its mouth by performing a dead freeze reboot.
Xia Xinyan had no idea how long it would take for it to reboot this time, probably until she stopped wanting to ask.
But she had no means to deal with this system.
—Could it be that she really had to drag Ling Mo to die with her?
Moments later, when Ling Mo hurried over, drawn by the intense aura that Xia Xinyan had released earlier, he found her just standing dumbly in the narrow alley.
And in front of her, there was a big hole.
Ling Mo was startled, quickly rushing up to Xia Xinyan’s side: “Xinyan?! What happened? Are you hurt?!”
Xia Xinyan turned to glance at him.
And that glance only left Ling Mo feeling even more bewildered.
For the first time, he saw confusion on her face.
In his memory, Xinyan had always been a very decisive person; whether in reality or in the game, she never displayed any confusion. More often than not, she quietly stood behind him, watching him grow.
That kind of Xinyan commanded respect, but the one before him now only stirred a protective instinct within Ling Mo.
He had no idea what had happened while he had lost track of her, and though he was eager to ask, he didn’t know how to begin.
He stepped closer to her: “Xinyan…”
Yet before he could ask anything, Xia Xinyan suddenly rushed forward and hugged him, burying her head into his chest.
This made Ling Mo freeze.
“Xinyan?”
“Mo Mo, let’s find a place to rest,” Xia Xinyan mumbled, sounding depressed.
Her feelings were in turmoil.
She once thought that possessing knowledge far beyond those around her after being reborn would allow her to take control of this life.
She thought so.
Until this dungeon happened, and after Monica showed up, she realized she had never seized any control of the situation at all.
Whether it was the backdrop of the “Realm of Divine Presence” or Tianji’s background, she knew nothing about either.
If she could tolerate these matters before, then Monica’s subsequent connection with Tianji just made her feel completely unsettled.
In her past life, she had never encountered Monica or even heard of the Spacetime Singularity Investigation Bureau, let alone know Tianji had another name: “Terminal.”
Digging deeper into those terms, each one left her feeling lost.
After the struggles of her past life, she thought she understood what her opponent was—if not grander, at least the enemy of all humanity.
Yet at this moment, she realized that what she truly faced might be far more terrifying and grandiose than she imagined.
Just this little glimpse that had barely surfaced was enough to instill in her a profound sense of insignificance, akin to that of an ant.
This feeling had never surfaced even when she faced millions of chaotic demons before her demise in her past life.
At least then she had the means to counterattack—albeit at a cost of mutual destruction.
But now? She couldn’t even conceive of any method for resistance.
Rather than feeling powerless, it felt more like despair.
Of course, some people crumble under such dire circumstances, never to rise again. Yet others might find a stronger will to resist—Xia Xinyan wasn’t sure if she belonged to the latter category, but she definitely did not belong to the former.
She merely wanted a moment’s rest.
In her past life, through every difficulty, she bore everything alone. Hence, she never showed even a hint of weakness. In the midst of the Cataclysm, even a bit of vulnerability could be fatal.
But this time around, she had Ling Mo by her side.
She had someone who would never betray her.
So in her confusion, she could afford to rest a little, right?
This guy; it was okay to lean on him now.
…Somehow, she felt her current actions were starting to resemble that of a young girl more and more.
Whatever, if she was a young girl, then so be it. After all, she had indeed transformed into a lady, and when she might revert, she had no idea.
She might not even transform back again.
She didn’t want to think about those things.
Right now, she didn’t want to think about anything.
She just wanted to have a good night’s rest.
Eventually, it was Ling Mo who carried her back.
After regrouping with Fatty and the others, Ling Mo suggested they call it a day for their exploration, find a place to rest, then continue the next day.
Upon seeing Xia Xinyan nestled in Ling Mo’s arms, motionless, Fatty and the others said nothing.
It was worth noting that Tian Yi managed to score some paper currency from this world during this trip—apparently, while he was spacing out on the curb, two passersby thought his performance of sprouting wings was pretty cool. After snapping a photo, they tossed some cash at him and left, likely mistaking him for a street performer.
That feeling of being exploited left Tian Yi a bit unsettled, but those few paper bills turned out to be a significant help—they had allowed Ling Mo to begin experimenting with creating things under Xia Xinyan’s guidance. Although he couldn’t handle more complex creations yet, he could now perfectly reproduce things like this paper money and even freely modify the printing series number.
In other words, whenever he wanted, he could become a humanoid walking printing press.
Thus, everyone smoothly found a luxurious hotel, each booking a lavish suite to begin their first night’s escapade in this dungeon.
Now, aside from what Fatty and the others were doing, the atmosphere around Ling Mo was quite peculiar.
After carrying Xia Xinyan out of the narrow alley, she remained curled up in his arms, silent as if asleep.
Ling Mo certainly enjoyed this clingy behavior from his girlfriend, but just holding her like this was not a solution—he couldn’t possibly take her in to shower together, could he?
Though he wanted to.
Sitting on the bed, glancing down at the girl still nestled in his arms, Ling Mo wore a somewhat bemused expression.
Anyone who wasn’t a fool could see she was in a very unsettling state.
But he had no clue what had happened.
Given his current strength, if Xinyan had rushed off at full speed, he wouldn’t have caught up. If he hadn’t noticed her aura from a great distance later, he probably would have completely lost track of her.
Yet that only puzzled him more.
Who was the girl in red?
He hadn’t seen her before in the preparation hall—he might not remember every face, but he’d surely recall if he’d seen someone in that half-red get-up unless she had changed clothes after entering the dungeon, which seemed unnecessary.
So, that meant she wasn’t a player? Therefore, a local? An NPC?
But even that was hard to believe; if she were merely an NPC, no matter the design, she shouldn’t be capable of putting Xinyan in such a state.
Unless she wasn’t an NPC at all.
Then, who could she be?
The game administrator?
And that line she delivered, why did it elicit such a strong reaction from Xinyan?
Terminal… what was that?
Ling Mo began to reflect on every detail he knew about this game, trying to uncover some answers.
Then… he suddenly recalled something that he had almost forgotten.
Before everything began, he had once heard a voice echoing in his head—
【System Loading 1%…98%】
