“So… what exactly did that gesture mean just now?”
A few minutes later, as everyone sat around the dining table enjoying lunch, Li Meng couldn’t help but ask about the motion Isana had made earlier.
As for the others, their faces had returned to a normal color, though Isana now had a small bump on her head.
It was unclear who had given it to her.
“Actually, that gesture was just asking if you, Miss Li Meng, had experienced any conflict or friction with your roommate. It didn’t mean anything else,” Isana said in her usual mechanical tone.
She picked up her cup and took a sip of tea.
“None of you… thought of something inappropriate, did you?”
‘Oh, so she meant conflict and friction. I thought she meant conflict and… friction! My foot! If you really wanted to ask that, why on earth would you make that gesture!’
Qiu Qiqian complained internally.
The other two clearly felt that Isana’s intentions weren’t that simple either.
The silver-haired girl named Yao Xueyue was so irritated that she nearly snapped her chopsticks.
“Isana… if you say anything else that strange, be careful, or this lady will give you another one.”
Yao Xueyue gripped her chopsticks and slowly turned her head, a very “kind” smile appearing on her face.
“Hmm? Is it strange? Did you happen to think of something else just now?”
Clang!
Another bump appeared on Isana’s head.
Afterward, watching Yao Xueyue eat in a huff and Isana being forced to stay silent, Li Meng couldn’t help but find it quite amusing.
She covered her mouth and let out a soft giggle.
“You two really have a great relationship.”
“Huh? How… how is this good?”
Qiu Qiqian couldn’t help but retort.
Sometimes she truly wondered if Li Meng was missing a screw in her head.
“Well… it just feels very heartwarming. Oh, right, Yue, do you have any missions this afternoon?”
“Let me see…”
Yao Xueyue took out her phone and opened her notes to check.
“Hmm… nothing for now. But based on when the Guiyi usually appear, we should receive an emergency notification around evening. Oh, and one more thing, Miss Li Meng. When you act with us as a Navigator, could you please not be more impatient than we are? You defeat the Guiyi instantly, and then we don’t get any chance to gain experience.”
“Ugh… they are Guiyi, after all. I worry that if I’m too slow, not only might you get hurt, but the Guiyi might escape.”
“I didn’t mean it as a reproach. I’m just saying… if the Guiyi is currently harming others, of course it’s best for you to handle it quickly. But if it’s already trapped by a ‘Xianyi’ and there are no civilians around, I hope we can resolve it ourselves as long as it’s something we can handle.”
Yao Xueyue’s attitude was so firm that Li Meng felt awkward refusing.
She sighed and replied, “Well… alright… I understand. I’ll pay more attention when I move with you in the future.”
“Yes, then I’ll have to trouble you, Miss Li Meng.”
At this point, Mo Ling, who had been silently eating with her head down, slowly looked up.
She glanced at Li Meng and then at Qiu Qiqian, who was sitting next to her.
Her mouth twitched, and she finally couldn’t help but ask, “Um… Miss Li Meng… when did you… with this… um…”
“Just call me Qiu Qiqian,” Qiu Qiqian replied while sipping soup from a small bowl.
She looked somewhat elegant while doing so.
“O—Okay! So… um… when did you two… start living together?”
“Yesterday. And it’s only because of certain reasons that we have to live together. Don’t let your imaginations run wild.”
Qiu Qiqian glanced at her from the corner of her eye before returning to her meal.
“Ah, so that’s how it is?”
“By the way,” Qiu Qiqian put down her bowl and turned to Mo Ling with a meaningful look.
“When you were talking to this young lady, Yao Xueyue, you seemed so nonchalant. Why do you become like this the moment you see Li Meng?”
“Oh, her? She’s just simply afraid of ‘Youxun,'” Yao Xueyue interjected, her attitude still assertive.
“She told us before that when she was a child, she witnessed a Titan-level Guiyi ravage her city. Although it was later eliminated by a Youxun, that Youxun… because some citizens blamed him for not coming earlier, used his Nether Breath to intimidate the crowd. Some of them were left with psychological trauma. For example… her.”
As she finished, Yao Xueyue gave Mo Ling a mocking look, likely in retaliation for Mo Ling’s previous indifference toward her.
‘Ah… the person who came to save everyone ended up being blamed for not arriving sooner. What a classic trope…’
Qiu Qiqian sighed inwardly.
‘The person can’t predict the future. How could they know where a Guiyi would suddenly appear? Being able to save those lives in time is already a great favor…’
“I see… hmm… well… who was that Youxun?”
Li Meng asked after a moment of thought.
“She said she didn’t remember the person’s face, and when she tried to look it up later, she couldn’t find anything. Perhaps they died 10 years ago during Operation Cradle Snuff.”
“Operation Cradle Snuff?”
‘New terms are appearing every single day…’
Just as Qiu Qiqian was about to ask for more details, a piano melody suddenly drifted from the speakers installed on the ceiling of the cafeteria.
At first, it was just a few scattered notes, but they slowly began to connect into a line.
It wasn’t like the tight strings of a violin; it was more like the sound of afternoon rain, pitter-pattering and comforting.
It drifted through one’s heart, cool but not cold.
The use of the pedals was nothing short of exquisite.
When each note fell, it didn’t stop abruptly, but instead spread out leisurely and slowly, as if ink were dropping into water.
Qiu Qiqian didn’t consider herself someone who cared much for piano music, but this piece made her feel incredibly peaceful.
This wasn’t an exaggeration; it was… this piece truly carried a power similar to Nether Breath.
“This music… who is playing it?”
Qiu Qiqian couldn’t help but ask.
“Number 680. We usually call it ‘The Pianist,'” Li Meng answered beside her.
She even closed her eyes and swayed slightly to the rhythm, appearing completely immersed in the art.
“You mean… this piece is being played by a Guiyi?”
“We didn’t believe it at first either, that a Guiyi could create such a piece,” Yao Xueyue added after finishing her meal.
She looked up at the speaker, recalling fragments of memory.
“It wasn’t until one day when we personally went to the Containment Room of Number 680 and witnessed its performance that we realized such a miraculous Guiyi existed.”
“Not only that, Number 680 is an extremely rare Guiyi that is friendly toward humans. Analysis shows that the pieces it plays can soothe various creatures and have a certain soul-purifying effect.”
“Moreover, no harm has been discovered so far. So, the sound collector from its Containment Room was specifically connected to the cafeteria speakers. It’s said that the only time it became restless was when its old piano was damaged.”
“That’s truly… strange… I thought Guiyi were all unreasonable creatures.”
“Pfft…”
Li Meng suddenly burst into laughter upon hearing Qiu Qiqian’s words.
“What is it? What are you laughing at?”
Qiu Qiqian glared at her, feeling slightly speechless.
“Nothing. I was just thinking that someone might have been talking about herself just now…”
“Ugh…”
Qiu Qiqian held her head, unsure of how to respond for a moment.
“Speaking of which, Miss Qiu Qiqian… why is Nether Breath constantly radiating from your body?”
At that moment, Isana, who had two bumps on her head, suddenly noticed the issue and questioned Qiu Qiqian decisively.
Her voice, which was always as calm as a machine, sounded exceptionally sharp now, causing Qiu Qiqian’s body to stiffen.
“Hmm… that’s true. Generally speaking, to prevent the loss of Nether Breath and to avoid affecting others, one should control its emission.”
Yao Xueyue also noticed something was wrong.
She rubbed her chin and looked at Qiu Qiqian.
‘Crap… are these people going to find out I’m a Guiyi? Wait, no, didn’t those analysts say I’m in an Observation Period? Logically, shouldn’t they have told the people in the Association about me? No… thinking about it… maybe they’re worried about causing prejudice or special treatment. At the very least, they should have given me some ID!’
“Ah, that’s because… Qian has a rather special constitution for a Nether Body,” Li Meng interjected in time to smooth things over.
Simultaneously, she used her finger under the table to lightly press on Qiu Qiqian’s thigh, signaling her to cooperate.
“Ah, yes, that’s it. My constitution is a bit special, so I can’t suppress my Nether Breath.”
“A special constitution? Hmm… I was wondering. Any ordinary Ming Xun can control their Nether Breath so it doesn’t leak out. But if that’s the case, you should spend less time with normal people; otherwise, your Nether Breath could easily influence them.”
Out of respect and trust for Li Meng, a Youxun, Yao Xueyue immediately believed the explanation.
Although Isana didn’t immediately withdraw her sharp gaze… after some thought, there didn’t seem to be any Guiyi that was as… human-like as this Miss Qiu.
Thus, she also reluctantly accepted Li Meng’s excuse.
“Don’t worry, I’ll be careful. By the way, weren’t we talking about Operation Cradle Snuff? What exactly was that?”
Qiu Qiqian quickly changed the subject.
“That… well… it’s a bit complicated to explain. How about tonight… oh, wait a moment, let me take a call.”
Accompanied by the ringing of her phone, Li Meng hurried away from the dining table to a relatively empty corner to answer.
The others continued chatting until, about 3 minutes later, Li Meng hung up and returned to her seat.
“You’re back? How is it? Is there a new mission?” Qiu Qiqian asked.
“Yes… and it’s a Guiyi that the Association has handled many times before.”
“Handled many times and still not finished… Is it a Ritual-type Guiyi?”
Yao Xueyue brought up another new term, making Qiu Qiqian feel a brief sense of suffocation.
It wasn’t because of Yao Xueyue herself, but rather… why was there so much she needed to learn!
‘Tsk, can’t these people at the Association write a beginner’s handbook to make it easier to understand these terms?’
Fortunately, this time Qiu Qiqian didn’t need to ask.
Mo Ling began to recite the definition of a Ritual-type Guiyi from memory.
“Hmm… I remember. A Ritual-type Guiyi can only be summoned through a specific ritual each time. Generally, as long as the ritual isn’t particularly complex, the summoned Guiyi won’t be too strong.”
“However… the most troublesome part is that Ritual-type Guiyi often cannot be completely killed. Each time they are destroyed, the ritual is only rendered invalid for a period. Once that time passes, they will appear again.”
“A very troublesome type… 90% of Ritual-type Guiyi are far less destructive than a Titan or a Storm, but they cause continuous disturbances. So… which Ritual-type Guiyi was summoned this time?”
“It’s… the Four Corners Game.”
