Bone & Stone - Part 3

He strained to pat the old cyan long robe - one which obviously did not belong to this era - on his body with his short hands. Then he bounced up like a ball and landed in front of the goldfish tank on the steps. Pointing at one of the vermilion-tailed small goldfish, a delighted smile appeared on his chubby face as he eagerly exclaimed, "Ah-Sheng, this one, this one! Hurry!"

"Okay." Ah-Sheng smiled and handed him the fishing net. Grandpa Winter Melon rolled up his sleeves and carefully scooped up the little thing he had set his eyes on from the fish tank, and put it into the glass bottle he had brought with him. The water in the bottle was a light blue.

"So beautiful!" Grandpa Winter Melon carefully watched the fish swimming in the glass bottle, unexpectedly moved to tears of excitement. As he spoke, he pulled out a handful of colorful pebbles from his sleeve and handed them to Ah-Sheng, repeatedly expressing his thanks.

Ah-Sheng stroked the pebbles in his hand and said, "This is too much. I should give you another fish."

"No, no, I'll come again next time. I can't let you lose money on this deal." Grandpa Winter Melon gratefully waved his hands repeatedly, joyfully carrying his fish away. Everywhere his footsteps touched, a colorful array of tiny wildflowers bloomed.

"Old Man Bai is always like this whenever he's happy, making the streets full of flowers. They won't fade until dawn," Ah-Sheng spoke as if talking to her, yet also like talking to himself. He stood up, placing the pebbles he'd received into a vase on the cabinet behind him. The ordinary glass vase wasn't filled with flowers but rather with variously shaped stones of every color under the sun. Each piece was as smooth as a mirror, casting a beautiful light on the glass.

That old man was clearly not human.

"You lost, you know," Ah-Sheng walked out, crossing his arms smugly.

"Umm... he..." Gu Qiqi couldn't recover for a moment and said unconvinced, "He didn't even pay! You just gave it to him for free! It doesn't count as your win!"

"Our bet didn't specify that the transaction currency had to be RMB, did it?" Ah-Sheng slowly approached her, leaning in to whisper in her ear, "Those stones are demon currency^[1]."

Gu Qiqi had no concept of money, whether it was RMB or demon currency.

"Scared, aren't you? Old Man Bai is not human," Ah-Sheng said seriously, using a particularly ominous tone as he observed her motionless and stunned expression. "I advised you to go home, but you refused to leave."

Perhaps, the next scene he anticipated was Gu Qiqi clutching her head, screaming as she took to her heels and ran away. However, after a brief moment of absent-mindedness, Gu Qiqi grabbed his hand and earnestly asked, "Then... are you human?"

"Nonsense, of course, I am!" Ah-Sheng shook off her hand, and muttered with a frown, "Boring, you're not even scared."

His expression reminded Gu Qiqi of mischievous boys she had seen before who enjoyed teasing little girls but failed. Scaring her? If she took off her mask, he would surely be the one who fainted!

But now, she didn't want him to pass out. This boy was too interesting. He actually did business with supernatural beings! And that supernatural being was strange too. He bought a goldfish of all things? If it was meant as food, wasn't that fish awfully small?!

"Old Man Bai didn't buy the fish to eat. My goldfishes serve a different purpose," Ah-Sheng easily saw through her thoughts. He crouched down, his fingers paddling slowly in the clear water. The seemingly silly fish gathered around his fingers in succession as if they had gained intelligence, affectionately nodding their heads and wagging their tails. He smiled and asked, "Queer Sister, do you want to buy a goldfish too?"

"I don't have money..." Gu Qiqi blurted out, then suspiciously asked, "Are you really human?"

Ah-Sheng didn't answer; he grabbed Gu Qiqi's hand and pressed it against his chest.

The clear sound of his heartbeats and the warmth unique to human flesh, transmitted through his T-shirt to her palm. This chap was indeed human. However, even if he was human, he couldn't be a normal one. Otherwise, how could he have dealings with supernatural beings?

"Don't think I'm abnormal." Ah-Sheng always seemed to easily see through her, wiping off the water droplets from his fingers. "You're human too. You didn't faint of fright at the sight of an old demon like Old Man Bai. If I'm abnormal, you're no different."

His words reminded her that she was a human at the moment. She didn't want her identity to be exposed, at least not until her curiosity was satisfied. If possible, she wanted to be friends with this eloquent guy. The thought flashed through her mind.

"Alright. We're both normal," she cleared her throat, pretending to ask casually, "So, what's up with that Old Man Bai just now?"

"Old Man Bai is an earth spirit, a demon formed from soil. He lives underground all year round, occasionally coming out to bask in the sun. Earth spirits absorb spiritual energy from deep within the earth, and wherever they go, flowers bloom and dead woods revive," Ah-Sheng said seriously, then grinned, "You see, he's so short because he gets too little sun and lacks calcium. So, I advise you, Queer Sister, go out more during the day, or one day you might turn into an Old Lady Winter Melon like Old Man Bai."

"If it weren't for the Protection of Minors law, I'd punch you!" Gu Qiqi raised her fist at him.

"You really don't want to buy a goldfish?" He ignored her anger. "They are very interesting goldfish."

"I don't see what's interesting about them; they all look silly," Gu Qiqi said indignantly. The goldfishes in the water rolled their eyes at her and blew a series of displeased bubbles. Ah-Sheng looked up towards the east; there was a faint light on the horizon. He stretched lazily and began moving the fish tank, water basins, and other things from outside into the shop one by one.

As he worked, he talked as if muttering to himself, "Old Man Bai was a handsome guy in his younger days. He and his wife lived in a lotus pond. Oh, his wife was a lotus demon. After they got married, Old Man Bai stopped wandering elsewhere and stayed in the lotus pond. During that time, the lotus flowers in that pond were always the most beautiful within a hundred miles, and even the pond water was clearer and brighter than anywhere else."

"And then?" Gu Qiqi couldn't help but ask. She disliked this guy's sharp tongue but enjoyed the sound of his storytelling.

"Then?" He took an iron hook from the corner and hooked it on the rolled-up shutter door above his head, "Then his wife was captured by a Taoist priest who refined her true essence into an elixir. All that was left in the lotus pond was a dead lotus," he sighed, "Earth spirits don't age, but Old Man Bai poured his vitality into that withered lotus every day for hundreds of years, saying that one day she would come back to life. After squandering all that vitality, a once lively young man turned into a short old man with one foot in the grave."

He said it humorously, but Gu Qiqi found it discomforting.

"But...what does this have to do with him buying goldfish from you?" she still wanted to know. Ah-Sheng pulled down the shutter, locked it with a key, and said, "What he bought was not a goldfish; it was a dream."

Gu Qiqi became even more confused. Ah-Sheng walked up to her, and said word by word, "My goldfish can only be kept alive with tears." A strange force emanated from behind his sunglasses, leaving Gu Qiqi stunned in place.

"BYE! I'm going home. You should hurry up and go home too." Ah-Sheng waved at her, turned and headed towards the alley entrance. "Don't forget, you lost the bet today. You owe me a wish. When I figure out what I want, I'll let you know."

His slender figure quickly disappeared into the lingering twilight of the narrow alley.

Gu Qiqi stood blankly in the deserted alley. The bet with her brother, the hope that had almost died away, now seemed to rekindle inexplicably.

Ah-Sheng, Live, who are you really?

After that night, Gu Qiqi seemed to have found the focus of her life. She enjoyed being with Ah-Sheng, liked listening to his humorous and natural storytelling about the supernatural beings who came to buy goldfish from him.

Her favorite part was that he never asked about her background and never questioned why she always appeared in his presence like a wrapped-up rice dumpling. If he asked, given her nature, she would tell him the truth. She had been taught since childhood that bone demons must live honestly, just like their form, without any disguise or embellishment.

While she enjoyed this rare sense of ease between friends, she also had a faint worry. One day, she would have to reveal her true self to him; it was part of the bet with her brother. If possible, she hoped that day would be postponed as much as possible.

Ah-Sheng still liked to tease and mock her with all kinds of sharp words, but he no longer treated her with indifference as before. Instead, he would bring out a chair for her to sit on. Although the chair was terribly old, it had a backrest and was quite comfortable. Occasionally, he would even adjust the direction of the fan in the shop towards her and comment on how she dressed too warmly in the middle of summer. He joked that he was too lazy to collect her body if she died of heat.

She gradually got used to Ah-Sheng's tone, and when he told stories about demons, she would also enthusiastically share various interesting encounters with people and things she had seen in different countries. It's quite amusing that two individuals who hadn't even seen each other's complete appearances could meet by chance and chat tirelessly until dawn.

A bone demon and a peculiar human, on summer nights filled with the fragrance of flowers and the chirping of insects, sat in a goldfish shop rendered into a bright world by lights, chatting animatedly. Yes, they were just chatting - the simplest talking and listening in the world - yet it brought an indescribable sense of contentment and joy. She felt that Ah-Sheng understood her thoughts and her yearnings.

Gu Qiqi began to feel that daytime was unnecessary; how great it would be if it were night for 24 hours. This way, she would have enough time to spend with Ah-Sheng, as the goldfish shop only operated from dusk until dawn.

She had inquired before and learned that the small shop had been rented out a year ago to a middle-aged man surnamed Xiao, rumored to be a professor at some university. Could this Professor Xiao be Ah-Sheng's relative? His father, perhaps?

But they didn't look anything alike.

A week after she met Ah-Sheng, she saw Professor Xiao in the goldfish shop. He was a middle-aged man with gray hair. His slightly stooped back made him appear more elderly than he was. He wore thin golden-rimmed glasses on his fairly prominent nose. His clothes, though not fashionable, were neat and tidy. He always carried a thick book in his hand, so he really had an academic style.

Professor Xiao would come to the shop about twice a week. Sometimes he brought snacks for Ah-Sheng, and at other times, he brought books. Their conversations were like those between any ordinary father and son, discussing studies, health, and occasionally inquiring about the goldfish shop's business — affectionate yet somewhat distant. Ah-Sheng mentioned that Professor Xiao wasn't related to him by blood, but he regarded him as his father because Professor Xiao had saved his life.

Over a year ago, Ah-Sheng had slipped and fallen from a mountain. By chance, Professor Xiao, who was collecting specimens in the mountains, came across him and rescued him. Ah-Sheng had no ID, no household registration, and couldn't attend school. The only thing he was good at was raising fish. So, he earnestly requested Professor Xiao to help him rent the small shop to sell goldfish. It would allow him not only to make money but also kill boring time.

"Why do you want to stay here? What about your family?" Gu Qiqi didn't quite understand why Ah-Sheng continued to stay with Professor Xiao.

"Professor Xiao doesn't have children, and his health isn't the best. Since he saved my life, it's only right for me to stay and take care of him," Ah-Sheng explained in a calm tone, his expression barely changing. "Besides, my home is too far away and I won’t be able to go back for a while."

---

[1] RMB is Renminbi, the Chinese currency. 妖精 币: yaojing are magical creatures/beings. bi is money; coins; currency. I'm using demon currency as our story is mainly focused on demons.

Previous ┃ TOC ┃ Next

Bone & Stone - Part 2

When the rescued middle-aged woman saw that the one catching her was a snow-white skeleton, she pushed away Gu Qiqi with a scream and fainted. The next day, the first thing the woman did when she came to was to find several Taoist priests to perform rituals at her home for three days, and plastering talismans with the words "dispel evil spirits" all over her house. As for the man she rescued from the forest fire, after seeing her appearance clearly, the first thing he did was stab a self-defense dagger into her chest.

As a bone demon, Gu Qiqi had to reveal her true form for her powers to work on humans.

She was not an evil spirit, so the Taoist priests' talismans were just pieces of paper to her. She was just a skeleton, so the man's dagger couldn't hurt her at all. She was only a bit puzzled - she just revealed her true appearance and saved their lives, that's all.

"You're different from them!" This was what Gu Wuming shouted loudly after beating her. Different?!

Walking on the sunny streets, Gu Qiqi looked around in the crowd. These men and women, young and old, were nothing more than an extra layer of flesh and skin compared to herself. Besides, after they died, weren't they all also mere skeletons? In the final analysis, why should they be so afraid when they obviously looked just like her? Fearing her, isn't it just fearing themselves?

Humans are really interesting and peculiar creatures. On one hand, they cherish their bodies in every possible way, and on the other hand, they fear the skeletons that support their flesh and skin.

The deeper this contradiction, the more Gu Qiqi yearned to make friends with a human. Without a fixed abode coupled with the supervision of her older brother, she didn't have many friends. Of course, by "friends," she meant various kinds of demons, such as the little mushroom demon living in the mountains, the old scorpion demon in the Sahara, the fashionable flower demon in New York, and so on, excluding any human being.

Gu Wuming stated that no human would want to be friends with a bone demon. 'Unlike other demons who can endlessly transform into beautiful women and handsome men, we bone demons will never change into the pleasing skin bags^[1] that humans like. From the beginning to the end, we are just the most genuine skeletons.'

Gu Qiqi was well aware of this point. A true bone demon, from birth to demise, cannot change its form. As for that cousin who was killed by the wild monkey, no matter how high her cultivation was, she could only forcibly put on a layer of human skin and impersonate a human, unable to truly transform into a human form.

But, so what if she couldn't turn into a beauty? What's wrong with her current appearance? Her mother once said she was the most beautiful girl in the Bone Demon clan. Therefore, Gu Qiqi still doesn't understand the fundamental reason why humans reject her. Is it merely a difference in aesthetics?

However, she still believes that there must be people who are different.

Regarding her "belief," Gu Wuming was as disdainful as ever, just as he disdained her act of looking in the mirror. He stated, "I'll bet with you. If there is indeed a human willing to truly be your friend, your future life will be yours to decide. I won't interfere in the slightest. The condition is that they really and truly see what you look like."

Deal! Gu Qiqi wanted to use this bet to completely break free from the shackle^[2] of "obedience." However, this bet has been going on for decades, and there is still no sign of Gu Qiqi winning. So she thinks that perhaps every human who could potentially be her friend has been spooked out of their mind by her appearance.

She's a little discouraged but still holds onto hope.

***

"The other stores have all closed; why haven't you closed yours?"

Gu Qiqi squatted at the entrance of the small shop that sold goldfish, looking at the various pretty fish swimming in the tank. She then glanced at the boy sitting on the old chair at the store entrance and inquisitively asked him.

It was currently half past midnight, and this goldfish shop was located deep in the alley outside the neighborhood. The grocery store, printing shop, and so on near it had closed early, but this shop, illuminated by two crude light bulbs, continued to do business.

Gu Qiqi had noticed this goldfish shop and the boy minding it for quite a few days. They always opened late, and she had never seen them close. It was just a goldfish shop, not a 7-Eleven; did it really need to stay open all night? Quite strange.

"We don't close until dawn," said the boy, who appeared to be around fifteen or sixteen. He wore a baggy gray T-shirt that clearly didn't fit him, and his blue jeans had been washed to fading. He groped about sideways on the nearby shelf, grabbed a small bag of fish food, and carefully sprinkled it into the fish tank in front of him. "Enjoy a late-night snack!" he said with a big smile to the fish.

He should be blind, right? Gu Qiqi speculated from the dark glasses on his fair face. Who would wear Blind Man Abing-style^[3] glasses in the middle of the night? Besides, there was his groping manner as well.

Gu Qiqi couldn't resist reaching out and waving her hand in front of his nose.

"Puh-leeze. I'm not blind." The boy stopped what he was doing and pushed Gu Qiqi's hand away, "It's just that I have an eye condition. I can't handle bright light so my vision is a bit poor is all."

Gu Qiqi coughed awkwardly a few times and muttered, "Then why were you groping around when you grabbed the fish food?"

"I wasn't groping. The weather has been humid lately and some of the fish food has caked. I was breaking it apart." The boy glanced at her speechlessly, "But you, covering yourself with so much including a mask on a hot day, you're likely to be mistaken for a queer aunt."

"You..." Gu Qiqi almost choked to death at his words, but he was right. In order to talk to this boy from the goldfish shop and not scare him away, she had taken special care when dressing up tonight. High-necked sportswear, boots, gloves, a wig, a large straw hat, with sunglasses and a mask on her face. In short, not showing even an inch of her body.

"If I didn't hear your voice, I would have thought you were a queer uncle," the boy said very honestly.

"I have a cold, okay?" Gu Qiqi covered up, her face full of black lines^[4], "Besides, since when do queer uncles have such a good figure?"

"Haha, you're really arrogant." The boy laughed heartily, revealing teeth as bright and white as seashells, and his laughter sounded crisp, like fish joyfully swimming in the water.

"Who buys goldfish at this time? Taking them home for a midnight snack?" Gu Qiqi deliberately sneered at the rude kid. She looked around to emphasize that both ends of the alley were submerged in darkness and silence. Not even a ghost, let alone people, could be seen.

The mosquito repellent lamp hanging in the corner of the shop made a popping sound, which was the loudest sound at the moment.

"You'd better go home, Queer Aunt." The boy moved slightly, leaned out, turned his head toward the end of the alley, and his bloodless lips opened and closed as he muttered something under his breath. At this moment, he looked like a hawker waiting for a customer. Even though his eyes were completely covered by sunglasses, his expression revealed enough anticipation.

"My name is Gu Qiqi, not Queer Aunt! I'm still young!" Gu Qiqi really wanted to take off her mask to give this joker a midnight surprise with her real face. Bone Demons also wish to appear beautiful and dislike being called Aunt instead of Big Sister. So what if she's already hundreds of years old!

"Alright, Queer Sister. Are you sure you want to stay?" He continued to gaze at the end of the alley as if nothing had happened.

"You're really quick-witted!" Gu Qiqi smiled through gritted teeth but found this imp a bit amusing in her heart. "Hey, what's your name? Do you live nearby?"

"I'm Ah-Sheng^[5]," he replied cheerfully, "I also have an English name, Live. You can call me either one, whichever you like."

"Live? This English name is really weird..." Gu Qiqi muttered, but it was actually quite a match for this kid who didn't seem to be anywhere near normal. He was a sharp-tongued odd boy who minded the goldfish shop all night.

"You're not so normal either, Miss Gu Qiqi." He changed his address for her several times within a few minutes, seemingly enjoying it. "It's almost 1 a.m. but you still don't seem to want to go to bed. Women who stay up late age easily."

"I just couldn't sleep today." Gu Qiqi deliberately laughed exaggeratedly, "So I decided to stay and accompany you, this lonely little devil."

"Suit yourself." Ah-Sheng flashed a charming smile, then shook his head and said, "There are really more and more senseless people nowadays. Watching someone sell goldfish instead of sleeping at night."

"I'm not as senseless as you, and your store is senseless too." Gu Qiqi simply sat on the steps next to the fish tank and pointed to the end of the alley, "I'll make a bet with you. If you can sell a goldfish tonight, I'll fulfill one of your wishes."

"You're not Santa Claus." He didn't even glance at her and continued to gaze into the distance.

"If you lose..." Gu Qiqi deliberately adopted a ruffian attitude, "you have to obediently say to me, 'Beautiful sister, I was wrong.'"

"Fine, you're the one who chose to stay." He turned his head, causing the image of Gu Qiqi's face, wrapped as tightly as a rice dumpling, on his ink-black lenses to sway, "I won't lose."

As soon as he finished speaking, he smiled, "Business is here..." There was a slight sound in Gu Qiqi's ears, like the barely perceptible rustle of flower petals falling on the soil by the blowing wind.

Rustle, rustle. The sound was getting closer. A dark shadow less than half a person's height drifted from the other end of the alley. A layer of earthy yellow mist enveloped its vague outline.

It wasn't until this thing floated in front of them that Gu Qiqi saw it clearly. Surprisingly, it was a white-bearded old man who was so fat that his neck and waist simply couldn't be made out. His height didn't even reach Gu Qiqi's hip. If it weren't for the clearly defined facial features on his plump face, you could easily call him Grandpa Winter Melon.

---

Footnotes:

[1] Gu Wuming uses 皮囊, perhaps to convey humanity's shallowness in focusing on the physical over spiritual.  

[2] 緊箍咒: “band-tightening spell” recited by the monk Tang Sanzang in the novel Journey to the West, which causes the headband worn by Sun Wukong to contract to give Sun Wukong unbearable pain. Figuratively, something used to control or restrain another.

[3] Abing was a blind Chinese musician specializing in the erhu and pipa. People used to call him Blind Man Abing, or Blind Bing.

[4] An exaggerated expression used in anime to convey speechlessness.

[5] 生: Sheng means life.

Previous ┃ TOC ┃ Next

Bone & Stone - Part 1

Gu Qiqi loves to look in the mirror.

She always has a mirror in her backpack that can be folded to the size of half a palm. When unfolded, the mirror is as tall as a person. It was a gift from her mother, who said it was made of Narcissus's tears and shows the most beautiful reflection.

Gu Wuming, however, is disdainful of his younger sister's narcissistic behavior. No matter how many times she looks into the mirror, it's just a pile of bones. If one must describe it more beautifully, Gu Qiqi is an irregularly arranged but charming skeleton with graceful curves. The surface of her bones is much whiter and cleaner than ordinary bones, like the last snow in late spring.

Yet, no matter how beautiful, she's still just a skeleton. This is an unalterable fact.

There are not many bone demons left in the world, and after their parents passed away, Gu Qiqi and Gu Wuming have no relatives other than each other.

Gu Qiqi's mother mentioned that she used to have a cousin, but she was dissatisfied with a simple and secluded life. So, she went to Zhan Shan to establish herself as its ruler, and opened White Bone Cave in the mountain. Putting on the skin of a young girl, she would lure passing men and women into the cave to devour them. In the end, she was killed by a wild monkey that popped out of a rock, meeting a bad end.^[1]

Gu Qiqi, of course, has never met this cousin and doesn't like her. This is because the cousin ate people. In Gu Qiqi's eyes, humans are meant to be observed. Every day, they wear different clothes, have various expressions, do different things, and change the world bit by bit with their own efforts. How interesting! Why would anyone want to eat them?

Moreover, she dislikes seeing blood. The scarlet red liquid flowing from the human body makes her dizzy, which is a rather unpleasant feeling. She can't fathom the scenes of that cousin tearing apart those human bodies. Besides, don't humans have delicious stuff like fruit tarts?

In fact, I really want to watch the spectacle of Gu Qiqi eating egg tarts. However, every time she just packs them and takes them away. I'm really curious about what a bone demon looks like when eating, and I even jokingly wonder if what they eat directly leaks out from between their bones.

The fact is that every time Gu Qiqi comes to buy fruit tarts, both Fatty and Skinny are scared to death by her. This is because she always comes in the middle of the night and, out of consideration not to disturb others, she walks silently like she is floating.

One day, Fatty, who got up in the middle of the night to cook a late-night snack, was walking outside while eating glutinous rice balls. He bumped into her unexpectedly, and a glutinous rice ball slipped down his throat. Fatty couldn't swallow or spit it out, and nearly died young.

I know she is a bone demon brimming with curiosity. She's endlessly fascinated by everything in the world. Even when buying egg tarts, she can't resist taking a tour around my yard. Curiosity killed the cat, and the bone demon's curiosity almost killed Fatty.

Fatty and Skinny have strong opinions about her, unanimously agreeing that she should put on a decent layer of human skin before coming out. Walking around with just a skeleton is too harsh on the eyes.

However, she's still the same and always appears in front of us in the most original and simple form. She says it's great this way — no need to perm hair, no need to put on makeup, and even no need to buy clothes. It's so relaxing and comfortable living a simple life like this, enjoying her favorite egg tarts.

She always comes to buy egg tarts on weekend nights. I know her schedule, so I always put the freshly baked egg tarts in a dedicated insulated box to ensure they are nice and warm when she picks them up. Because Fatty and Skinny absolutely refuse to bake egg tarts for a skeleton in the middle of the night.

However, Gu Qiqi hasn't come for almost a month. The egg tarts prepared for her have turned into our own breakfast several times in a row.

Today is another weekend, and the scorching heat of midsummer refuses to recede even at sunset. Early in the morning, Fatty and Skinny eagerly went to the newly opened bathing beach to check out the beauties. It's a good thing they left, or the unexpected arrival of Gu Wuming would have given them nightmares for three days. Yes, today it's not Gu Qiqi who came; it's her older brother — Gu Wuming^[2].

This male bone demon, who has survived for hundreds of years, is quite different from his sister. His bones are pure black, as jet black as a spilled bottle of ink sealed for tens of thousands of years. Each rough bone carries tiny specks of light like scattered sand. A bone demon's power is defined by color. The darker the color, the more ferocious the demon.

In the places Gu Wuming passed, my verdant flowers and plants all listlessly lowered their heads. He barged in like a gust of wind. I smiled at him, "Buying egg tarts for your sister?"

"Come with me!" His voice is pleasant; if you close your eyes, a perfect man will emerge in your mind.

I continued to smile, "Eloping with a skeleton is not very romantic, so I refuse." He seemed to be angered, and he flipped the table between us with a slap. The teapot and teacups shattered on the floor, and the green tea spilled all over. He took a stride towards me, and I felt the chilling aura emanating from his bones, instantly changing the room temperature. I fell from summer into harsh winter.

He's a head taller than me, and I found that looking up at a furious black skeleton is much more uncomfortable than staring at that Golden Lion previously. Because he has no eyes, there's no gaze, and I can't discern anything or guess his thoughts.

"I want a breath of your true vitality, tree demon!" He unexpectedly grabbed my wrist. Being suddenly caught by that icy skeleton hand made me think for a moment that my hand was gone.

"I haven't fought in many years." Although he has no eyes, I still earnestly looked at the two deep black holes on his face and said this to him.

I really don't want to fight. Everything in Unceasing - the tables, chairs, cups - was bought with money. It’ll be a shame to break them!

Gu Wuming coldly snorted and tightened his grip on me even more…

***

It was not the fifteenth, yet the moon was full that night, casting a dazzling golden glow across the whole sky. It almost seemed like the sun had mistaken the time.

Wangchuan^[3], a city with little renown, was sleeping under this moonlight. Without the reality of steel and concrete, it had gained an otherworldly, dreamlike quality.

The brightest beam of moonlight spilled onto the back alley of a restaurant, where several greedy stray cats leaped on the trash cans, reluctantly rummaging for food. High temperature is the favorite of various odors.

A crack opened in the air in the center of the alley, emitting layers of white mist. It resembled the steam rising from a steamed bun shop in the early morning, except it lacked any warmth, freezing people to the bone.

Two men emerged from the crack, their blurry figures gradually becoming clear in the white mist. They wore the most common summer attire — T-shirts, jeans, and sneakers. One had black hair cut short; the other had waist-length red hair. Both were good-looking, devoid of smiles on their faces but with a sharpness in their eyes.

"Can't you open the exit of the Underworld to a cleaner place?" In the darkness next to the trash cans, a slender figure of a young man appeared. His side-swept bangs were messily beautiful in the night breeze. Although his features retained a hint of youthful innocence, it was preliminarily inferred that he had the potential to grow into a handsome man. His red short-sleeved shirt was more vivid than flames, and a black backpack was slung over his buttocks, with the zipper of the bag carelessly left open.

The stray cats meowed in confusion, scattering in all directions. One of them stepped on a trash bag, causing a heap of spoiled noodles to fall on the ground. The splattered sauce landed on the young man's spotless sneakers.

The young man lifted his foot, frowned, and said, "You owe me a new pair of shoes, no, make it two! Just send the bill to my aunt^[4]."

"The king didn't send us out to buy shoes for you." The redhead approached the young man and said grumpily, "If this mission fails, all of us will have a hard time, including you, Zhong Xiaokui^[5]."

"What does it have to do with me?" Zhong Xiaokui widened his eyes, innocently pointing at himself. "You guys lost something from the Underworld, I didn't steal it! I'm only responsible for providing you guys with food and accommodation in the human world, nothing more."

"Your task is more than just food and accommodation; the king specifically instructed us," said the black-haired man, walking over. He exchanged a glance with his companion, and without hesitation, they each grabbed one of Zhong Xiaokui's arms and lifted him up. Ignoring his protests, they walked out of the alley.

There were three people in the moonlight, but only one shadow.

***

Gu Qiqi moved into this neighborhood just a week ago, and her excitement was still evident. Her previous "home" was in a corner of the Sahara Desert, where the sun blazed fiercely. The "home" before that was on an iceberg in Antarctica, where she could see a group of penguins as soon as she stepped outside. Before that, was it a village outside Cape Town? Or Fifth Avenue in New York? In short, she and her brother relocated every year, and had been doing so for centuries. There were hardly any places on the planet where she hadn't set foot.

This year, she came to China, to a city called Wangchuan. However, this time, she was alone. Taking advantage of the opportunity when Gu Wuming went far away for business, she ran away from a luxurious villa in some foreign place.

If she remembered it correctly, this was her first solo trip in her life.

Gu Wuming was her big brother, her nanny, her instructor, and her jailer. The only requirement he had for his only sister was: obedience.

Obedience meant absolutely no appearing in front of humans and no making friends with them.

Obedience meant not believing in any creature that lived under a skin.

Obedience meant only eating vegetarian food, not meat, let alone touching junk food like chips or anything of the sort.

Perhaps her brother just loved her too much. But regardless of whether his actions stemmed from a patriarchal sense of authority or genuine concern for family, she was truly tired of this restrictive life. She wanted to live her own life.

Many people lived in this ordinary neighborhood, including high school students, salesmen promoting razors, retired old men and women with gray hair, and even a columnist. It was a diverse mix of people.

Gu Qiqi would come and go from these people's homes every day, observing them and listening to their conversations. Such mundane life and the trivialities of the human world were things she could never experience in the desert, Antarctica, or even luxurious mansions.

However, due to her "friendly neighbor" interactions with humans, Gu Wuming had harshly confronted her twice. Once because she intervened to save a middle-aged woman who jumped off a building late at night, and another time because she carried a young man with a leg injury out of a burning forest.

She thought she was doing good deeds, but in her brother's eyes, these were unforgivable offenses.

---

Footnotes:

[1] The author is referring to Baigujing(demoness) and Sun Wukong(monkey) from the novel Journey to the West. Zhan Shan can mean Divine/Occupied/Observation Mountain. It's located in Sichuan Province.

[2] 顾无名: Gu(surname), the word gu means to look after; to attend to. Wuming means nameless; obscure. Qiqi is 七(seven) repeated. Probably a cutesy name.  

[3] River of Forgetfulness. Like River Lethe in Greek mythology. Seems an odd name for a city, so I left it in Pinyin.

[4] 姑姑 is paternal aunt.

[5] 钟小魁: Zhong(surname), the word zhong can mean time; goblet; concentrate. Kuí means chief; head. So Xiaokui can be read as Young Chief.

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Formless - End

The gray-haired man in front of me handed me a photo. It can't really be called a photo; it should be a hand-drawn picture similar to a photo.

There's a black piano in the picture with a little gray rat on the piano keys.

This is the first time that I've truly seen Lu Ah-Cang, and it's also the last time.

"She asked me to find you, telling me to have someone draw the scene I saw at the time and treat it as a photo," the man said with a bitter smile. "She said it's a gift for you."

"What else did she say?" I put away the "photo," my calm face hiding inner turmoil.

"She said, 'There is no one in the world whose teeth are more powerful than a rat demon's.'" The man took a sip of tea. It wasn't Fleeting Life; it was a cup of Qing Shan Lu Shui^[1] tea, but he obviously still didn't like the bitterness in the tea.

I have mentioned that Lu Ah-Cang is the only person I've ever seen who can drink Fleeting Life without frowning. Because in order to become Formless, she endured far too much pain. Compared to it, the bitterness of Fleeting Life is too insignificant.

I have no way of guessing what thoughts crossed Lu Ah-Cang's mind when she reverted to her original form as a rat demon and used the strongest teeth in the world to cut off the power source of Sean's collider. I only know that humans, who flaunt themselves as the gods of all things, were saved by a rat that they regard as lowly and dirty.

Of course, they will never know that on a certain day, at a certain time, in a certain area beneath Paris, a strange machine exploded. An unusual substance called Neptune disappeared in the explosion.

It's even more impossible for them to know that it was a rat, who had once successfully cultivated into a Formless, forsaking immortality, who had entered the machine and bit off the power supply.

After seeing off the man, I went to the backyard holding the photo and buried it under the ginkgo tree. Where the photo was buried, an ant leisurely crawled by.

Over there, Fatty is yelling that it's time for dinner, but I don't feel the slightest hint of hunger. There's a smell in the air this summer that makes me sad.

I don't want to judge whether Lu Ah-Cang's final choice was right or foolish; it was her decision. I also don't want to delve into whether the existence of people like Sean is the result of their own issues or the fault of the outside world.

What's obvious to me is that even the most fragile lives, as long as they have never caused harm or behaved despicably, deserve respect.

Even if it's just an ant, a rabbit, or even a rat.

I hope more people understand this philosophy^[2]. Really.

---

[1] A type of green tea. 青山綠水 is an idiom for green hills and rivers; beautiful landscape. Here, it refers to the tea brand of the same name.

[2] The word used here is 道理 which can mean reason; argument; sense; logic; principle; rule; truth; philosophy. Take your pick.

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Formless - Part 12

It was really hot all around, as if trying to roast a person.

The flickering lights on the sides were like cobwebs, densely covering the electrical wires. It made her dizzy, but she continued to move forward quickly.

The sensation of her body being baked was something she had already experienced a long, long time ago. The pain she went through that time was a hundred times worse than this. Sean was right; if she didn't loathe herself, she wouldn't have become Formless.

She thought of her own family. Their clan is an existence that everyone despises unanimously and wishes to see annihilated. They live humbly in the darkest, filthiest corners of the world, eating the scraps left by humans, leading a life in perpetual darkness. She remembered her mother, who, out of hunger, tried to steal meat from a family and was killed by them. There were also many neighbors she knew, some poisoned, some burned, and few with a peaceful end.

She was burdened with a shameful reputation the moment she was born. She was hated, and hated herself, questioning why she couldn't have a stable life like those people, along with respect and admiration. She feared that one day, she would end up like those of her kind — dying in obscurity and disgrace.

She wanted to change. So, she traversed many mountains and rivers to reach the Western Waters of the Hidden Sea. In that sacred land of monsters, there was a formless cave. By shedding all fur and jumping into the rolling magma, enduring seven days and nights of excruciating pain, if she could survive without dying, she could freely transform into any human at will — a rare species even in the demon world called "Formless." Achieving formlessness means completely abandoning your past self^[1].

She could start a completely new life as a Formless and attain everything she had once yearned for. In the future, no one would know where she was born or who she truly was. But today, she surprisingly chose to revert to her true form to do something she thought she would never be able to do.

Formless are immortal, but choosing to restore their original form means giving up immortality... quite foolish. However, she faintly felt that, perhaps, she had done something genuinely right.

That night, everyone in Paris felt an earthquake-like phenomenon. Of course, the ground only shook slightly a few times before everything returned to normal.

The next day, people woke up, had breakfast, went to work; the streets were bustling with traffic and pedestrians, and life went on as usual, as if nothing had happened...

---

[1] 无相 has Buddhist origins and is associated with Buddhist philosophy. It is related to the idea that all phenomena lack inherent, independent existence or permanent form, and it is connected to the understanding of the nature of reality and the path to enlightenment. The state of being 无相 implies a transcendence beyond the limitations of fixed forms or appearances. In the end, Lu Ah-Cang achieved formlessness not only physically but also, I think, in the philosophical sense.

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Formless - Part 11

The clock ticked, moving minute by minute towards midnight.

Sean leaned back in his wheelchair, eyes half-closed. His right hand rested on his heart, cradling the pocket watch that no longer worked in his palm.

His body was already too weak, but he persisted, only to await this day. The children he had captured had been released by him.

Tomorrow, they will reunite with their parents to enjoy a brand new life.

He smiled, followed by a violent cough. He lifted his hand, looking at the pocket watch given to him by Claire. His face was reflected on the smooth surface — twisted and ugly, like a true monster.

He lowered his hand, took a deep breath, and murmured, "It will be over soon. No one will discriminate against your flaws from now on, because everyone will be the same, haha..."

The clock ticks, and the whole world only hears its sound.

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Formless - Part 10

She picked up the booklet and ran to the gray rabbit, asking, "Rabbit, are you okay? Can't you even speak?"

The gray rabbit moved its furry ears and weakly replied, "The blood silver bullets are troublesome. Let me rest for another hour. If you're bored, just take a look at what he gave you. Perhaps you'll find the answers to your questions."

Alright, Lu Ah-Cang admitted that her mind was filled with questions. From the moment she saw the deep underground laboratory beneath her feet, she understood that the ultimate goal of this kidnapping case was not about kidnapping at all.

She carried the gray rabbit to the sofa and nestled on the other side, flipping open the booklet that was stained yellow by time.

It was a diary with a name written on the title page — Sean.

Lu Ah-Cang can understand any language, but the handwriting in this booklet was the most beautifully written French she has ever seen.

March 1 Weather: Sunny

I heard the birds on the roof talking, saying it will rain tomorrow. I told Mama, but she said kids must not lie and birds can't talk. But I heard them.

From the day I was born, I heard the nurses scream and whisper that Mama had given birth to a deformed monster. At the time, I lay bored in my crib, which was in the farthest corner of the nursery. The other children had lots of friends and relatives coming to see them every day, but not me. Just Papa and Mama.

Two ants crawled up to my bedside. I saw them turn into two little girls wearing floral dresses – so interesting. They chatted with me, saying I'm the only child who can see and hear them. They said I'm really awesome.

I was happy. No more boredom. The ant girls visited me every day, bringing sweet berries. But one morning, only one ant girl came. Was the other one sleeping in? Turns out, her partner got stepped on by someone and died.

She said the ant clan lives a tough life. They have to be very careful because they're too small and weak. A tiny move from humans can be fatal to them. I told her I won't hurt them.

The next day, Mama took me home. I never saw the ant girl again.

September 13 Weather: Rain

Mama and Papa had a fight with the mayor because he won't allow me to go to school. I'm ten years old now, and kids my age pass by my house every day, carrying their school bags and having fun.

I hear that school is a place where you can learn a lot, meet many people, and find a lot of happiness. I want to go to school.

Yesterday, I told David next door that I want to go to school with him, even if it's just to take a look. David agreed. I'm so happy.

David is my only friend. Although he sometimes plays pranks on me.

September 14 Weather: Rain

David pushed me to the empty space behind the school. He pushed me out of my wheelchair and dragged it into the ditch by the river.

Kids at the school threw stones at me. They laughed and competed to see who was more accurate in throwing the stones. I heard someone shouting: Kill this monster!

Yes, they are brave knights and I'm the ugly monster. The sides are clearly drawn. Mama, tears streaming down her face, brought me back home covered in wounds.

From now on, I won't ever tell them I want to go to school. In fairy tales, monsters eat people, but I don't eat people. Does that still make me a monster? I'm a bit confused.

January 8 Weather: Overcast

David got married, and his bride is really beautiful. They moved to Paris.

The house next door has a new owner. I saw an old man with white hair, followed by a petite girl with golden curls. She was carrying a cute little suitcase, and her face was like a just ripened apple in autumn.

I hid behind the curtains and watched quietly.

January 19 Weather: Sunny

Claire made apple pancakes for me.

She's the only girl who didn't scream when she saw me. She said she heard me playing the piano, and it is the most beautiful sound she has ever heard.

Yes, I have a second-hand piano that I bought with the money I earned from writing papers and manuscripts for others.

I haven't gone to school. It was my parents who taught me to read. But when I see those difficult math, physics, chemistry etc. problems that give others headaches, I can easily write out the answers. I wrote a physics student's graduation thesis, and it caused a sensation at his school. They said it's impossible for a university graduate to have written it. Indeed not, because I've never been to school, not for a day.

I'm glad I can earn money. I don't really like writing these things for people; I prefer playing the piano. I fell in love with Chopin's "Nocturne" after hearing it only once.

Without sheet music or fingering techniques, I play it over and over on my second-hand piano. Claire says she likes the way I look when I play the piano, my whole person exudes a sort of brilliance.

March 27 Weather: Rain

Claire is locked in the attic by her grandfather.

Associating with me is taboo. A good girl shouldn't have any relationship with a monster.

I dragged the piano to the nearest window.

From dawn to dusk, I played "Nocturne" over and over again.

I know she's right next to me.

My music is just for her.

April 26 Weather: Overcast

The room next door is empty.

Claire has been forcibly taken to Poland by her grandfather. I hear there's a wealthy and handsome man waiting for his bride there.

I'm holding a pocket watch in my hand – a birthday gift from Claire. She said time stops every time she listens to me play the piano.

I fell asleep on the piano. Tears streamed from my eyes, flowing into the gaps between the keys.

June 28 Weather: Sunny

Mama had a dispute with the mayor again. It's still because of me.

They "suggested" that we leave the town. The mayor said all the residents expressed that they don't want to see a "monster" that can scare children to tears anytime in this "peaceful and happy" town.

Mama refused.

At night, a group of people broke into my home. Many things at home were smashed, including my piano.

"Does a monster like you deserve to play the piano?" When they left, a man with beady eyes gave me a contemptuous look. I sat in my wheelchair, watching them strut out of my home.

My heart is cooling down bit by bit.

August 2 Weather: Thunderstorm

A strange disease resembling plague has erupted in town. Many people are dying.

The psychic in our town said it's my existence that has brought this misfortune. They want to lynch me and burn me alive. This town is remote, and one more or one less person will not be known to outsiders.

Papa picked up a shotgun for the first time, raging at the approaching crowd.

Mama protected me tightly, ready to fight anyone who comes near me.

They chained the front gate of our house, drenched it in gasoline, and set it on fire.

The thick smoke was choking. Mama and Papa fell in the blazing flames.

I thought I was going to die. But the gray rabbit saved me. It dragged me deep into the woods. I saw many other animals — bears, moles, wild boars.

They said they are demons.

December 25 Weather: Snow

I don't quite remember which Christmas this is in my life.

Just now, I gave the wild boar demons a gift. It's my newly developed acceleration chip. With it, their speed can match the speed of light.

I must thank them; only their power could have helped me establish this underground kingdom in such a short time. Over the years, they have grown accustomed to me as their leader. The wild boar demons once said on behalf of all their fellow demons – You are smarter than us.

Yes, I'm smarter than anyone. So, I have the ability to change this world. I loathe my past self; I hate being subordinate to others.

May 3 Weather: Sunny

The ten of them must pay the price for their actions that year.

Neptune will ultimately be a gift for them, the best gift for all humans who scorn the weak. I will create a world.

I am God.

Snap! Lu Ah-Cang closed the booklet, feeling all kinds of emotions in her heart.

The gray rabbit opened its eyes, its breathing much steadier than before.

"Some years ago, the kidnapped children's parents, headed by Luc Beroul, had cooperated and pooled resources to bring back a crystal from the distant Neptune in order to complete their experiment of enhancing human intelligence. The blue ore crystal from the deepest part of Neptune was said to instantly transform the brain capacity of living organisms and increase active proteins. In simple terms, it could turn an idiot into a genius in a short period," the gray rabbit slowly walked to her side, continuing, "They called this crystal Neptune. After bringing back Neptune to Earth, they needed a group of test subjects. They secretly gathered the information of pregnant women from all over France, and using the guise of free prenatal checks from a certain health organization, brought these expectant mothers to Paris. After the examinations, they warmly took these women, most of whom came from remote towns or the countryside, to visit the Louvre. On that day, someone had tampered with the air conditioning system of the Denon Wing, placing the raw liquid extracted from Neptune in it. The raw liquid evaporated into the air, spreading out through the vents. The people touring outside were completely unaware."

"The experiment wasn't very successful, huh," Lu Ah-Cang sneered. "Moreover, one of those pregnant women was Sean's mother."

"Out of the ten pregnant women, three failed to become mothers. The remaining ones who gave birth either had children with disabilities or cerebral palsy. And then, there's Sean," the gray rabbit sighed. "Those guys were essentially playing with human lives. This thing Neptune, instead of expanding human intelligence, messes up DNA and damages neurons – that's the truth. I don't know where these rich people heard the fallacy that Neptune can make people smarter. They hoped the experiment would succeed, hoped to gain unprecedented benefits from Neptune, and even yearned to use Neptune to make themselves smarter than they are now."

"They're already so lucky, but they're still dissatisfied with themselves," Lu Ah-Cang stroked Sean's diary. "Sean's ability to communicate with demons is probably innate."

"Yes. I don't know if his ability has anything to do with Neptune, but he does have the innate ability to communicate with various demons. Moreover, all demons are willing to obey him because he's just too intelligent," the gray rabbit blinked, "Including me, everyone admires him. That year, I was trapped in a hunter's snare and injured my front leg. Sean, who was walking in the woods, heard my cries for help and set me free. Maybe you'll think such a plot is cliché, but it's the truth. I'm grateful to him, and I've stayed by his side ever since. When he was almost burned to death, I did my best to drag him out of the fire."

Lu Ah-Cang walked up to the wall and asked, "Is the laboratory outside all Sean's work?"

"Yes," the gray rabbit nodded. "Sean's mind is simply not in the same category as ordinary people. His intelligence is far beyond our imagination. He gathered many demons and built this underground laboratory in the depths of Paris. Although these demons are not particularly powerful individually, the strength they have when gathered is not to be underestimated. Following Sean's instructions, they obtained a large amount of funding, and even attracted a group of human scientists to come here. All resources, all power, are for Sean's plan." The gray rabbit paused and said, "He wants to change the world with Neptune."

"Wait, you don't mean... Sean is breaking down Neptune, using his Hadron collider to maximize Neptune's power, then transporting it to the highest point on Earth, detonating it, and allowing the crystal's effects to spread across the entire world like a black hole explosion?" Lu Ah-Cang suddenly felt that something was terribly wrong.

"Once the collision is successful..." The gray rabbit looked up, its red eyes staring somewhere in the void, "Neptune's power will turn all humans on Earth into monsters with various defects—possibly losing intelligence, possibly having limb disabilities. In short…thorough transformation and disaster."

"When everyone becomes a flawed 'monster,' this world will become the absolutely fair New World that Sean so hopes for?" Lu Ah-Cang began to understand what he truly wanted.

"Yes. No discrimination, no oppression," the gray rabbit's face showed no expression. "He kidnapped the children of those ten billionaires, partly as revenge, wanting them to bear the pain of losing loved ones. But in the end, he asked them to bring their most precious things to the Louvre. He told me that if just one of those ten people said, 'The thing most precious to me is the child you kidnapped,' he would abandon this plan. However, none of them said that. Their most precious things are diamonds, cashier's checks, and profits."

"You don't want his plan to succeed, right." Lu Ah-Cang walked up to the gray rabbit and said suddenly.

The gray rabbit's three-petal mouth moved, and after a long time, it said, "I used monitoring the human police's progress on the kidnappings case as an excuse to temporarily leave Sean, and asked you to be Charlotte Beroul's substitute, not for anything else. Because to obtain Neptune, we need to obtain the DNA of those ten billionaires, and within an hour, mix all the DNA, along with Charlotte's fingerprints and retinal information, to unlock that specially made cube. I found a place for the real Charlotte elsewhere. She is an unusually timid person. I worried that seeking her in person would affect my plan. That's why I hired you, hoping you would fully cooperate with me."

"You planned to replace Neptune without anyone knowing?" Lu Ah-Cang recalled everything he had done in front of that old house.

"I had hoped you would put on a play with me to the end and deceive Sean into putting a fake Neptune into the machine," the gray rabbit sighed. "Unfortunately, he's just too clever; my trick was ultimately seen through by him."

"Even if he believes it's the real Neptune, once he uses it, he will surely realize it's fake. Then he can still find the real Neptune and continue his plan," Lu Ah-Cang felt that this substitution plan seemed rather imperfect.

"He won't have that chance," the gray rabbit shook its head. "Sean's health is steadily deteriorating. Years of overloaded mental work and his body's inherent physical defects mean he's doomed to have a short life. However, do you believe that a person can be so intelligent that they can calculate their own time of death precisely by computing various bodily indicators? Sean can." It jumped down from the sofa. "Today at midnight."

The gray rabbit walked to the piano, laboriously hopped onto it, and said, "You can't help but admire such a genius. Everything is under his control, as precise as a clock. Tricking those wealthy children to come to Paris, making those billionaires have no choice but to gather in the same place, extracting their DNA through me, bringing Charlotte with us to obtain Neptune. The timing of everything is in his arrangement, not a minute too early or too late. I once wanted to sabotage it, but as you can see, I failed."

"Since he won't live past midnight, why not just take Neptune and escape far away? If you didn't return to him, you wouldn't be in this situation now. It seems like you're asking for trouble," Lu Ah-Cang was puzzled.

"I don't want him to die in regret. His greatest wish is to see Neptune being transported away. Fooling him is good enough." The gray rabbit shook its head.

Lu Ah-Cang sighed, brushing her fingers over the piano keys, and asked, "Why do you want to sabotage his plan? You and he should have been on the same side. The life and death of those humans actually has nothing to do with you."

The gray rabbit pondered for a while and asked her, "Do you remember the boy who stole things from home to feed the dogs? Do you remember that hot-headed André who shielded us with his body?" She nodded.

"I just don't want people like them to be harmed by Neptune," the gray rabbit exhaled deeply, as if trying to spit out all his pent-up feelings. "If Sean is pursuing absolute fairness, the thing he's doing itself is extremely unfair. Among humans, there are not only guys like Luc Beroul but also mainly people like the boy and André."

"You truly are a great rabbit." Lu Ah-Cang laughed.

The gray rabbit slumped down in frustration, saying, "But my power is too weak. I tried my best, but couldn't stop Sean. Neptune has already collided successfully, and he will send it to the highest point on Earth at midnight. By then, except for the people in the lab, all humans on Earth will wake up tomorrow morning and find themselves..."

Lu Ah-Cang's fingers clumsily danced on the piano keys, producing a monotonous sound. "I've always thought that the phrase 'saving all of humanity' sounds quite cringey," she suddenly burst out laughing, "Hey, if I can save them, will I also become a great Formless?"

"You can't do it," the gray rabbit felt she was delusional, "The collider is already in operation, and its program is set not to stop once it starts. Unless someone squeezes into it and destroys its main power cable. But you know, even if someone can shrink their body to the size of a mouse or a cockroach and enter through the machine's power inlet, it's impossible to withstand the high heat and extreme radiation inside it. They would turn into a wisp of steam before even getting close to the main power line. Moreover, those power lines are made of the toughest alloy and cannot be cut by anything."

"Oh..." Lu Ah-Cang thought for a while, then smiled sweetly at the gray rabbit, "Can you help me with something?" The gray rabbit stared blankly at her.

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