“Where did this come from?”
When Cuihua saw something suddenly appear in Aoki’s hand, she muttered instinctively.
“Ah, it’s nothing.”
With a thought, Aoki activated his Qi Decision, and the silver bell dissolved into points of light that vanished.
In front of his eyes, the system prompt appeared.
【Five hours and 59 minutes remaining until the second simulation… (can enter early)】
Looks like this simulation system is really proactive, huh?
I wonder what kind of world the next simulation will be?
But the immediate concern was that he only had less than six hours to move around. He had to make good use of this window.
However, from now on, except when entering simulation mode, he would no longer be forced into a vegetative state.
Because now, he was strong—half-paralyzed!
Joking with himself, Aoki sighed.
A half-paralyzed man and a cross-dressing wood elf… how could they possibly take down the noble Saintess?
As he pondered, he suddenly noticed his arms were covered in needle marks. Maybe he could start from there?
Alchemy potions were a delicate topic in this world’s society. They were powerful alchemical products, but the boundary between contraband and medicine was very blurry.
Every country on the continent cracked down hard on illicit alchemical drugs circulating in the underground black market.
And the potion Yuelan gave him—was it even a qualified medicine?
Recalling Yuelan’s vague, manic words, Aoki linked it to illegal drugs.
Though Yuelan was the exalted Saintess of the Church, the Church’s internal power struggles were complicated. Many Saintess candidates eyed Yuelan’s position. If he could cause her some trouble, maybe he could delay her sabotage of the hero selection.
Just causing some trouble would be enough.
Then there was the wood elf.
Aoki looked at Cuihua, who was staring at him. She blinked in surprise.
He knew well that the relationship between the Deepwood District and the Rose Kingdom was not as peaceful as it seemed. The Rose Kingdom had forced the Deepwood District into submission through military might, and the wood elves’ friendliness toward Yuelan was because she had fought for certain privileges for them.
If he could bring Yuelan down from her pedestal and provoke the Deepwood District to dare rebel…
At that thought, Aoki shook his head. He felt he couldn’t entertain such extreme ideas.
If he did that, many people would probably die…
Surely, there must be a better way?
Remembering the system’s rewards and the Qi Decision and silver bell that Cuihua could see meant the system wasn’t some hallucination from the potion.
If he wanted to cause trouble for Yuelan with alchemical drugs, he had to start by examining his own body.
He needed to find a reliable doctor to check his body and see whether the potion inside was indeed contraband.
“Cuihua, is there a trustworthy, reliable doctor in Deepwood District?”
“What do you mean?”
Cuihua paused, then asked nervously, “Y-you’re not planning to see a doctor, are you?”
“I need to cause some trouble for Yuelan…”
Aoki showed her the needle marks on his wrist and explained what he had just been thinking.
He couldn’t hide too much from Cuihua anymore. He needed an ally, and for now, she was his only option.
“Do you want the doctor to come here, or do you want to go see one?”
“Either is fine.”
“Neither is possible.”
Cuihua shook her head, troubled. She muttered, “I honestly can’t think of any way to get a doctor to keep our secret.
I don’t even know when you’ll fall asleep again. It’s too risky.”
After refusing Aoki, she scolded herself: “Next time, I absolutely can’t meet the Saintess again… but what should we do?”
“Don’t panic. Just find a doctor who can definitely identify what kind of potion is inside me. Leave the rest to me—don’t stress yourself.”
Aoki had wanted to tell her the rare things Yuelan had done, but seeing how stressed Cuihua looked, he held back.
He feared scaring her off entirely.
“Alright, I understand.”
Cuihua nodded, no longer refusing.
“Is it getting dark outside now?”
Aoki glanced at the sky beyond the magical barrier, his eyes filled with longing.
Cuihua noticed what he was about to do. She nodded and stepped outside, with Aoki following behind.
It turned out that Cuihua had been carrying a small tool all along—a badge-like object she could wave to control the magic barrier. Aoki followed her out.
Now it was completely dark. Deepwood District was a settlement made of countless giant trees; the leaves formed a dense canopy that blocked the sky. At night, glowing plants and magical street lamps provided light, but not everywhere was bright.
Looking at the scenery of Deepwood District, Aoki felt a rare sense of true freedom and was somewhat excited.
“Take down the Saintess… and the Saintess isn’t even aligned with the continent’s factions?”
Remembering what he’d said to her before, Cuihua couldn’t fully digest it for a long time.
If it were before, she would have thought Aoki was crazy. But after seeing the look in Yuelan’s eyes, as if she wanted to devour him, Cuihua was convinced.
She had to follow Aoki—causing trouble for Yuelan as soon as possible was the best option.
But why didn’t Aoki just run away?
Cuihua was about to ask, then immediately understood.
If Aoki really left here, Saintess Yuelan would surely turn the place upside down.
Looking at Aoki, the handsome human beside her, she felt an unprecedented respect.
Even in a vegetative state, only waking briefly each day, he still wanted to fight back against Saintess Yuelan?
Truly determined despite his limitations.
After an unknown amount of time, Aoki spoke, asking Cuihua to send him back.
After giving her instructions and saying farewell, Aoki climbed back onto the jade bed.
He hadn’t had enough time outside, but staying longer might lead to full paralysis.
So, was it time for the second simulation?
Looking at the system’s floating interface, a surge of excitement rose within him.
If he completed the simulation, could he finally escape his vegetative state?
After the first simulation, Aoki had clearly noticed that while half-paralyzed, when entering Qi Decision mode, his senses became much sharper.
That meant this was an enhancement skill?
If he could fully recover from his vegetative, half-paralyzed condition, how strong would this state make him?
Thinking this, Aoki looked forward more and more to the moment of regaining his strength.
No, it wouldn’t just be a recovery—he’d become stronger than before.
“Phew… The second simulation, huh?”
Aoki muttered, closing his eyes.
And thus, his second simulation began.