Chapter 40: Regarding the Truth of This World
“Zihua is just a pseudonym she gave herself to distinguish between me and her.”
This information just dropped was a bit too much.
But, the most important thing among them was that Lan would die in the near future? “Lan!”
“Huh? Yes~”
“Did Zihua mention the exact time of death? And what was the cause of your death?”
Lan blinked her eyes and answered blankly.
“She didn’t… I didn’t ask.”
“Why didn’t you ask?!”
Such an important matter!
That was a ‘death notice’, wasn’t it?! Normally, if someone knows they will die soon, they would try every means to find out the cause and details, and then try to avoid their death!
Speaking of which, what was my future self doing at that time? Why did I watch you die without doing anything!
“Eh?! B-Because if I don’t actively ask, Zihua almost never tells me anything, and even when she does, she says things that confuse me… Besides, when Zihua told me these things, it was before she sent me to this world, and I didn’t have time to ask for details…”
Lan seemed to be startled by my shouting, pouted, and dejectedly pointed her index finger, lowering her head. She occasionally looked up to observe my expression, while I was almost going crazy with anxiety.
Speaking of which, if Zihua is the future Lan, it means that everything we are experiencing now, for her, is ‘past’.
She had experienced all of this, and she was the only one who had ‘seen the script’.
And when she returned to the past, it was naturally to change something.
Did Zihua return to the past to change her own fate of death? Is that why she sent Lan to this world? Just to avoid her own death?
Damn it! There’s still too little information! In the end, all of this is my subjective speculation, and the truth is completely unknown!
If only I could understand more things in advance… But, the premise is that I have to go back! No matter what happens afterward, as long as I’m still in this world, I can’t participate at all, so I must return to my original world.
I had thought that living in this world might also be a good choice. My original resolve to return had faded with Lan’s arrival, but now I have reconfirmed my determination to return.
Because I was still confused about whether I could return, but now there is finally a breakthrough. Since Zihua could send Lan to this world, she must also have a way to return to the original world…
Wait a minute!
What did Lan just say? Zihua has no body, no soul, just a pure spiritual entity? How could such a spiritual entity send Lan to this world?
And what about the ability to backtrack time? Will Lan also gain this ability in the future?
Is Zihua the one who possesses the ability to exchange?
Think, keep thinking, find a breakthrough, grasp the clues…
With a buzz, Lan’s voice filled my ears. I looked up, and Lan had appeared before me without me realizing it. Our noses were almost touching.
“Hmm? What’s wrong? Let’s talk about being intimate later, let me think first…”
“Juncheng! Look at me!”
Then she suddenly smiled, hugged my head, and buried my face in her chest.
“I’m right in front of your eyes now, Juncheng.”
“You’re lost in your own world again, Jun… Don’t bear so much responsibility alone anymore. I want you to look at me.”
At first glance, it was just a statement of her presence, but I understood the hidden meaning in her words.
‘Don’t ignore me’, Lan was telling me this.
Yes, I’ve fallen into my old bad habit again, thinking and solving things alone. But I don’t have the ability to save everyone…
It was the same with Xuan’er back then, I was helpless… Even though I knew, I still thought about it alone, repeating the same mistakes, I’m so stupid.
Don’t underestimate yourself, Juncheng An, you’re just an ordinary person.
book.SFA
“Sorry, I was too hasty.”
“Hoo hoo~ Actually, I’m very happy. I didn’t expect you, Juncheng, to be worried about my death, when there are still many other things worth worrying about.”
“Of course, there are other things worth worrying about, but naturally, your matter is the most important. No matter what, protecting you and others is the first priority. Everything else comes after that.”
“…It’s precisely because of your way of thinking, Juncheng, that you’ve ended up in this situation.”
It sounded like sarcasm, but looking at Lan’s expression and tone, it didn’t seem like she was subtly mocking me. Instead, it carried a sense of ‘I can’t stand you!’.
“Alright, I’ll tell you everything I know, so Juncheng, stop burying yourself in thought alone, okay?”
“Okay, let me ask first, how did Zihua send you to this world?”
“I’m not very clear about the specific method, but she seems to have the ability to freely enter and exit this world… By the way, Juncheng, do you know the truth of this world? Hmm, it’s useless to ask. You must be confused.”
“Yes, that’s why I’m waiting for your explanation. What does the truth of this world mean? From when we were talking about having children earlier…”
“Because, in this world, there is no physical body. Zihua doesn’t have the ability to send me to a parallel world, but she can send me to this ‘Spiritual World’.”
…Huh? Spiritual, world?
No body? Wait, what does this mean? If there’s no body, what are we now…?
Wait, could it be that here is actually…
“Yes, Juncheng, you’ve figured it out. This world is not a parallel world of anything, but a ‘Spiritual World’. It’s like a dream or a virtual reality world, a world without physical existence, also a kind of peculiar inner world.”
It was like a sudden enlightenment, an astonishing fact.
So that’s how it is…
Ah, I knew my body was gone, how could I have suddenly revived…
So I ‘didn’t revive’.
After dying, I was simply sent to this world that felt like a dream.
When I conversed with Kuuga, it was also in my Spiritual World; the place where Yata no Kagami was located, it was just that this world was not a blank slate, but almost identical to the real world, a Spiritual World like a reflection on water.
“Then, everyone else in this world…”
“I don’t know about that either. I also have the memories of Lan Hua in this world now, and the experiences seem to be free of fakes.
Perhaps this Spiritual World is a world that integrates the unconsciousness of people from the original world.”
“Simply put, it’s like a world formed by everyone’s dreams connected together?”
“Yes, it’s about that feeling.”
So that’s how it is. This world is like a legendary virtual reality world, where everyone is composed of ‘data’.
Thinking about it this way makes it much simpler.
“Besides that, there’s the ability to backtrack time… Why can even such a thing be done?”
“Regarding this, Zihua didn’t explain much, but I’ve personally seen her use this ability… Juncheng, do you remember when we went on vacation and visited the Water Church, and rushed to attend someone else’s wedding?”
“I remember, you were the one who caught the bouquet, Lan. You even kissed me then.
I still remember Lianbing’s darkened nickname from that time… It was terrifying.
“That was the result, but there was actually an extra process. The bouquet was originally caught by Bingbing, and I cried… Zihua appeared at that time and backtracked time, changing the final outcome.”
“Wait, wait, wait?! You can change the future?!”
I thought that even if time could be backtracked, things that had happened couldn’t be changed because they were already destined.
It’s like a certain anime called Steins;Gate, where inevitable tragedies cannot be changed, and everything done is futile.
But Zihua could change the future?
In that case, Lan…
“Yes, so Juncheng, you might not need to worry too much about me. Because my future will be somewhat different under Zihua’s interference. She also said, ‘I was you once, but you will not become me’.’
“…That’s good then.”
The future can be changed.
But this ability to change the future is almost like changing fate.
Suddenly, a word flashed through my mind: ‘Destiny Power’.
Li Nai once told me that Destiny Power is a force that can make wishes come true. Could Zihua have used Destiny Power?
“That’s all I know. Zihua didn’t tell me everything about this world, she just told me that by coming to this world, I could meet… Naturally, I agreed immediately.”
“Why did she send you to this world?”
“I think she probably wanted to ‘borrow my body’, after all, Zihua has no body. And after I arrived in this world, Zihua might have a chance to use my body. She might want to do something in the original world. Also…”
“And then?”
Lan stared at me for a few seconds, shook her head, and said.
“It’s nothing, it’s not an important matter.”
“Is that so…”
It seems like something she can’t speak out loud.
Then I won’t force her to say it here. Lan will judge for herself when she wants to tell me about this matter.
So, having learned that this world is a Spiritual World, my next task hasn’t changed. I need to find Zi’ai to…
Wait!
“Hold on, what about Zi’ai? If the world we are in now is not a parallel world, but a Spiritual World, then where did Zi’ai’s body come from, which is out in the external world?”
“I have no idea… But, it certainly won’t be her own. Perhaps she borrowed someone else’s. If she occupied someone else’s body, then the owner of that body should have also come to this world, Juncheng. Do you know anyone else who came here from our world?”
“This…”
Actually, there is…
But her physique and appearance are different… No, if she’s an Anomaly, it’s not impossible to change these…
So, it means that the body Zi’ai is using is…
“Daddy! Are you inside?”
A milky voice came from outside the door, followed by a banging sound on the door.
It’s Xiao An!
