Before Su Bai could even regain her composure, the two women behind Zhou Xuan suddenly leaned into each other and began to wail.
“Waaaah! The original body was actually caught and brought back! It’s over, it’s completely over!”
“We’re doomed! We’ll spend the rest of our lives being played with by Zhou Xuan every single day! Oh, Heavens, this really is a dead end!”
Doubts rose in Su Bai’s mind. She subconsciously connected to the local area network that Blood Succubus and Gong Qianxue had been using while they were away, wanting to understand what the two women had experienced recently.
The two women suddenly realized what she was doing. They panicked instantly, waving their hands to stop her. “Wait! Don’t connect! There’s a prob—”
Halfway through the sentence, Su Bai suddenly doubled over, clutching her chest. Her legs buckled amidst violent tremors until, finally, she collapsed uncontrollably to her knees.
One year, 365 days, 4,380 hours… two diametrically opposed perspectives… sensations of pleasure, breakdown, and climax flooded into her mind like a tidal wave.
Her consciousness crashed instantly. She was washed away by an endless torrent of information, her mind stalling until she could feel nothing and think of nothing. Only her body twitched instinctively—an encore of countless moments of broken pleasure from two different perspectives over the span of an entire year replaying within her.
She wanted to groan, but the pleasure was like a surging tide. Her soul was a reef battered by the waves, its sharp edges slowly being ground down. Not a single sound could escape her throat.
*Thump!*
Su Bai hit the ground, her body jerking violently like a fish near death. Her expression was completely broken, resembling a certain canine meme from the internet. She tried to reach out to grab something, but her hands found only air.
A full half an hour passed.
Su Bai finally stopped twitching. She lay quietly on the ground, groaning silently. Saliva dripped from the corner of her mouth, and her eyes were hollow and vacant, as if she had lost her very soul.
Only then did Zhou Xuan realize something was wrong.
Little Su rushed over to help Su Bai up. He reached out to feel the back of her head, his brow furrowing slightly. “Oh no, Mother’s puppet brain has been fried.”
He immediately handed ‘Su Bai’ over to Zhou Xuan and stepped into the shadows behind him. A moment later, Little Su returned holding a deep blue stone. He opened the back of the puppet’s head, removed a broken stone, and replaced it with a light blue one.
After completing the operation, Little Su pulled out some Soul-Seducing Incense and bowed respectfully to ‘Su Bai’ three times.
Her pupils slowly regained their focus. Smelling the familiar scent, Su Bai gradually regained a sliver of consciousness. She was too weak to even pull away from the man embracing her. It felt as if her spine had been removed, leaving her only able to whisper a faint murmur.
“You wretched creature…”
“What do you want to do now?”
Zhou Xuan gently stroked her long hair, inhaling the familiar and comforting scent of peach blossoms. His voice was brimming with indulgence.
“Taking Master out for New Year’s, that’s all.”
***
“So, your original body wasn’t actually captured?”
“Correct. The me standing before you now is just a puppet. My original body is still at the East Sea.”
“Wow, Zhou Xuan’s craftsmanship is so realistic. At first glance, I really thought you’d been caught. It scared the life out of me.”
Along the way, the streetlights were brilliant, and the crowds were as thick as fabric while music drifted through the air. The three women talked and walked with great interest. Whenever they saw something they liked, they simply pointed, and someone behind them would step forward to settle the bill.
Zhou Xuan continuously pulled out money and collected the goods, storing various small trinkets into his storage bag. Watching the harmonious scene of the three women getting along ahead of him, the corners of his mouth turned up in a quiet smile.
“Uncle Zhou.” Suddenly, his hem was gently tugged. Zhou Xuan looked down to see the white-haired Gong Qianbai standing there.
She pointed at the candied haws nearby, a flicker of longing in her eyes. “Can you buy that for me?” she asked softly.
“Of course.” His broad hand rubbed the white-haired girl’s head affectionately. He walked forward to buy a stick of candied haws, then, after a brief thought, bought three more.
“Masters, come eat some candied haws.”
As he spoke, he handed a stick to Gong Qianbai and the other women. The last stick was held personally by Zhou Xuan to Su Bai’s lips, a warm and gentle smile still gracing his face.
“Master, open up.”
Su Bai’s gaze fell upon the candied haws. In a trance, a childish voice seemed to echo in her ears. The handsome face before her vaguely overlapped with a tender, youthful one.
It was also New Year’s, also a trip down the mountain, also a shopping trip for New Year’s goods, and he had similarly held a stick of candied haws to her mouth.
Memories of the past surged like a tide, submerging her in deep nostalgia and melancholy.
‘Who would have thought that the once filial and loyal little pet and disciple would become such a wretched creature, defying his sect and violating all morality?’
By the time she snapped out of it, Su Bai realized she could taste the sweet and sour flavor in her mouth. She subconsciously chewed a few times.
Seeing Su Bai take a bite, Zhou Xuan’s smile grew even softer, looking just like the little boy from her memories.
“Master, do you want more?”
Su Bai looked up deeply into Zhou Xuan’s eyes, then shook her head. “No need. Eat it yourself.”
Zhou Xuan nodded and finished the candied haws in a few bites. He didn’t mind the traces of her saliva on them; instead, he ate with great relish.
After finishing the snack, he seemed to think of something and asked, “Master, is a first impression very important for a person?”
“Important, but also not,” Su Bai said. “The interaction between people isn’t just about first impressions. It’s also about understanding the other person’s character, personality, and morals after many contacts.”
Pausing for a moment, she gave the man beside her a cold glare. “Take you, for example, you wretched creature. Right now, just looking at you makes me want to cleave you in two.”
Zhou Xuan shrugged, completely unbothered. Instead, he rubbed his chin as if his interest had been piqued. “Then, if your disciple changed into a brand-new appearance and left a good first impression on Master, would you fall in love with me?”
“Unless you turned into a woman—one who is fair-skinned, beautiful, long-legged, and a gentle, obedient housewife—there is no hope in this life.”
Su Bai gave a cold snort. “But expecting you to repent, turn over a new leaf, and reverse your yin and yang is less likely than me meeting a kindred spirit and being so impressed by their personality that I’d willingly be a woman, bear their children, and spend the rest of my life with them.”
“However, the possibility of that is even smaller than being conquered by you. A person who can move me with their character hasn’t even been born yet!”
Zhou Xuan’s eyes flickered, lost in thought.
He didn’t speak again. He simply pulled Su Bai by the waist and led everyone through the crowd to shop. Occasionally, he would stop to whisper sweet nothings into her ear or tease the other three women, maintaining a leisurely and joyful expression.
They wandered from the west of the city to the east, and from the south to the north. Dragon and lion dances, lantern riddles, opera performances, fireworks, and grilled meats… various entertainment activities and culinary experiences intertwined in a dazzling array.
As midnight approached, Zhou Xuan led the women to a stop in front of an inn. When Su Bai asked in confusion what he wanted to do, Zhou Xuan laughed and picked her up by the waist. He headed upstairs and signaled for the three women behind him to follow.
“Tonight, Master, Xue Ji, Qianxue, and Little Bai are all mine.”
“A sister sandwich and a mother-daughter combo.”
“I wish myself a Happy New Year!”
The man laughed heartily.
So is he trapped in the simulation? The novel mentioned he was experiencing both viewpoints at the same time. What’s the real body doing? Just chilling playing on her phone while her simulator self is trapped for 1000 years?