CH 58

“so, you’re confessing now?” xiao nian looked annoyed, his foot tapping the floor as if ready to take off. “isn’t the split personality excuse quite handy? si di has given you an out, why not play along with the whole split personality drama?”

“and then?” xiao zhenyun drank water in big gulps. “should i start pretending to have multiple personalities? do you know what that looks like? he’s just going to believe me based on my casual remarks? where should i conjure up medical records from?”

“well… can’t you say you had reasons, then just stay silent and let si di guess?” xiao nian suggested.

“i remain silent, si di despairs, and then we spend three years in this misunderstanding, clearly still in love, but unwilling to reach out. maybe facing some danger in between, risking everything to save each other, and after saving, silently departing with injuries. three or four years later, he finally learns the truth, terrified, travels thousands of miles to find me, and we finally resolve the conflict, holding hands with tears in our eyes.”

“this script sounds pretty good, doesn’t it?” xiao nian remarked.

“hmm.” xiao zhenyun replied, “but why? why should i pay such a high price to keep this broken secret?”

“…” xiao nian was infuriated. “do you know how much trouble you’ve caused me by revealing this secret?”

xiao zhenyun, indifferent, retorted, “how much trouble?”

“you—” xiao nian paused for a moment, surprisingly not fully grasping the extent of trouble it had caused him.

anyway, si di is a dead character in the original text. unless he dances into the protagonist’s spotlight, who cares what a dead person knows or does? let alone having any impact on the plot, on the contrary, it is only when he knows nothing that he will affect the main line at every turn. moreover, si di, being aware of the existence of the world book, allows him to better manage and command the other party.

considering this, xiao nian unexpectedly calmed down and even, with a hot brain, began pondering whether to fully disclose everything to xiao jiali. he asked, “what about si di?”

“after absorbing my memories, he’s in the basement questioning life,” xiao zhenyun replied.

xiao nian suddenly stood up, “since things have come to this, i need to go have a word with him.”

“wait.” xiao zhenyun raised his hand to stop him. “let me check on him first. what if he’s not ready yet? he looked pretty disbelieving when i left to get water.”

xiao nian: “???”

halfway through, xiao zhenyun suddenly remembered something and turned his wheelchair, asking, “is there a ventilation system in the basement?”

xiao nian sighed in frustration and returned to his seat. “i’ll be waiting for you to come out.”

one hour earlier.

to help xiao zhenyun get into the right mindset, si di actively emitted courtship pheromones, and xiao zhenyun finally lived up to expectations.

“are you sure?” xiao zhenyun asked again. si di didn’t answer, only counter-questioning, “do you regret it?”

the awakening of the first special individuals occurred during times of war, with guides assisting sentinels and sentinels protecting guides; the two roles complemented each other. however, during peacetime, the protection provided by sentinels seemed somewhat unnecessary.

currently, the sentinel’s choice of a guide arises from both physiological and psychological needs, while the guide’s choice of a sentinel is more psychologically motivated. assisting and comforting the sentinel can bring them great satisfaction.

si di had always wanted to bond with xiao zhenyun. besides his affection, his spiritual domain also greatly needed xiao zhenyun. given the rarity of s-class individuals, finding a suitable guide for an s-class sentinel was challenging, and a compatibility of 97 was almost impossible. combining with xiao zhenyun would further enhance his abilities.

however, xiao zhenyun’s feelings were purely platonic; there was no physiological necessity.

the reason the two hadn’t progressed further was that si di understood this, respecting xiao zhenyun’s boundaries and going at his pace.

since xiao zhenyun had expressed a willingness to bond, si di naturally wouldn’t refuse. after bonding, the fates of sentinel and guide became intertwined, and in the state of spiritual connection, those with high compatibility could even share thoughts directly.

si di had no reason to refuse.

props such as pens and tape left on the table were swept to the floor. xiao zhenyun had decided to confess, and with that decision, he naturally spoke without reservation. “you actually dared to press me against the table and grab my throat…”

“hmm?” si di, still visually blocked, hands on the table, head lowered, lifted his head, sweating profusely, questioning with a puzzled tone.

xiao zhenyun lifted his hand, pressing his thumb against si di’s adam’s apple. “in a few years, i’ll have you pinned against a table too…”

si di didn’t grasp xiao zhenyun’s meaning and imagined the scenario. “wearing prosthetics would be easier, but it may hurt the skin if it is grazed.”

“it’s okay, no need for prosthetics.”

“hmm…” si di’s thoughts weren’t focused on the conversation; he absentmindedly agreed and continued to lower his head.

the spiritual link slowly strengthened as time passed.

finally, at a certain moment, when xiao zhenyun closed his eyes and si di’s breath stagnated… it seemed as if a blocked river in their minds was suddenly opened, and a surge of thoughts rushed in like a tide.

countless golden threads reinforced the spiritual connection, gradually forming an unbreakable pillar of light that stood between them, defining the boundaries of their spiritual domains.

the stag, feeling uncomfortable due to its master’s union, stood up with grass in its mouth. it witnessed the shattering of the boundaries of the spiritual domain, and the vast territory suddenly expanded. verdant grasslands bordered a desolate plain of yellow and green, with a black wolf standing on a distant steep cliff, tail gently swaying, locking eyes with the stag.

in the moment of spiritual union, si di, with bated breath, found himself seemingly sitting in a car with a steering wheel and various buttons of unfamiliar design. he gazed strangely at everything until he reached an overpass, and it flipped over. the vehicle rolled and a concrete surface, with exposed steel bars, fell from the sky, instantly smashing the person in the driver’s seat beyond recognition.

si di, terrified, grabbed xiao zhenyun’s hand.

the memories continued. in a vast, white world, he saw xiao nian holding a hardcover book, frowning as he said, “si chu is the male lead, ye feiran is the second male lead…”

“you’re the supporting character with an unrequited love.”

“do you remember the lines you have to say after si di’s death?”

“the departed has passed away; mourn and accept the change.”

“…”

before xiao zhenyun returned to the basement, si di walked out fully dressed. the two met at the doorway, the sentinel’s gaze complex. his eyes first fell on the fingerprint on xiao zhenyun’s neck, then on the bite mark on xiao zhenyun’s collarbone. he bent down to fasten the button on xiao zhenyun’s collar, silently locking eyes for a long time. unable to resist, he asked, “are you sure it’s not a case of hallucinations on your part?”

“xiao nian,” xiao zhenyun turned around, “this guy still refuses to accept reality.”

xiao nian yelled, “come out! i don’t want to go in and smell the scent of both of you!”

“see,” xiao zhenyun pointed outside, “would a real eight-year-old elementary school student talk like this?”

si di became increasingly speechless.

the permanent bonding didn’t bring about a revolutionary change in their senses. emotions and thoughts continued to pass between them. after watching si di’s first-person perspective of himself excited, xiao zhenyun silently severed the spiritual link.

the three gathered in xiao zhenyun’s room for a brief meeting. xiao nian performed a theatrical act of turning a book into existence and then told si di that he should have died earlier. mainly because this ‘xiao zhenyun’ from another world had an inexplicably high compatibility with him, saving him for no apparent reason. and then, he miraculously saved xiao jiali, turning the house into something resembling a shelter.

si di realized, “so that’s why he…”

countless details flashed through his mind, puzzling him, including not caring to hide his injured leg, seemingly frail but indulging in smoking and drinking. he claimed to care about si chu to the point of wanting to venture into the sea alone, but when si chu was in danger, he ordered three waiters for a massage… si di mistakenly thought xiao zhenyun was trying to forget his feelings for si chu, but in reality, xiao zhenyun had no feelings for si chu at all.

while xiao nian was earnestly explaining the plot, si di and xiao zhenyun were already kissing passionately, unable to part.

“…” xiao nian slammed the book, irritated. “can’t you do these things after i leave?”

si di stood up silently, wiping his mouth. “sorry, i got a bit too excited.”

“you have quite the accepting ability,” xiao nian raised an eyebrow, “xiao zhenyun wouldn’t believe me when he first arrived.”

si di listened with interest, “how did he eventually believe?”

“later, he discovered that his character was worth billions. after happily spending a hundred thousand buying a pile of junk, he straightforwardly believed me.”

“…” xiao zhenyun protested, “you’re smearing my name.”

si di laughed and looked at xiao zhenyun, “having a vigilant heart is a good thing.”

xiao zhenyun also turned to look at him. “can you accept the fact that you’re a character from a book?”

“to be honest, it always feels unreal,” si di admitted frankly. “i still haven’t given up on the hypothesis that both of you have a mental disorder, a kind of fantasy syndrome.”

xiao nian couldn’t accept this insult. the world book appeared and disappeared in his palm. si di understood his meaning and coughed lightly. “…magic?”

the administrator fumed with helpless rage.

si di then asked xiao zhenyun, “so how did you believe it initially?”

“the content in the book did predict many things that happened in reality, and… after all, no one knows what the true origin of the world is like,” xiao zhenyun said. “my past world might also be a book, and i could be an unknowing character in it.”

“is that so?” si di asked xiao nian. the latter replied solemnly, “classified information, cannot be disclosed. xiao zhenyun said you damaged the photo wall in the basement, and that wall took a lot of effort. we hope you can restore it as soon as possible in these two days.”

“…are you talking about those photos of me with cat heads and ye feiran with a pig’s nose?” si di frowned. “do we really have to fix this basement? it gives me a bad feeling.”

xiao zhenyun exchanged a tacit look with xiao nian, silently asking if they should tell him the truth, like the fact that in five months, they would be kidnapping si chu from his wedding, followed by confinement, a life-and-death escape by car, and finally, a cliff jump.

xiao zhenyun raised an eyebrow as if suggesting, how about we take it slow?

taking it slow, xiao nian agreed with closed eyes.

“the basement must be fixed,” xiao nian said. “it’s explicitly written in the plotline, and it’s four walls of photos. the previous ‘xiao zhenyun’ put up three sides, and the fourth side…” he gritted his teeth, “first, xiao zhenyun took a bunch of photos of ghosts and ugly dogs, and then you tore up a bunch…”

“i… i’m sorry,” si di apologized. “i was too angry…”

xiao nian suddenly realized something and turned to xiao zhenyun. “are you doing this on purpose? intentionally taking such ugly photos?”

“nonsense, who, as a normal person, would take photos like that?” xiao zhenyun, unusually candid today, said. “if i don’t create some special photos as a setup, how will i whitewash myself in the future?”

xiao nian, infuriated, said, “now that si di knows the truth, you’re not allowed to do this again. take proper pictures of si chu, you hear me!”

“he might not be able to capture that effect even if he tries seriously,” si di suddenly said. “i carefully examined those photos. he has never truly experienced the past of the ‘xiao zhenyun’ in the book, so he can never empathize and imitate it. only an inner darkness and self-doubt can produce the eerie effects on the other three walls.”

xiao zhenyun said, “…you seem to understand it well?”

xiao nian asked, “so what do you suggest?”

si di suggested, “you can move some photos from the other three walls to the fourth wall, mix them up, so that all four walls are in the same tone. then, you only say it’s ‘filled with photos on all four walls,’ without specifying the size of the photos, right? …you can wash a few large photos, and also make life-sized posters to occupy space.”

“…,” xiao nian said seriously to xiao zhenyun, “i found that si di is more reliable. you should take a break, and i’ll work with si di.”

“great,” xiao zhenyun nodded. “it seems that being a weirdo really requires talent.”

si di thought for a moment and asked, “what about xiao jiali…”

before xiao zhenyun could answer, xiao nian shook his head irritably. “can’t save him.”

si di asked again, “is there a mole in the guild for the mp research institute?”

xiao nian said, “…no comment.”

through xiao nian’s momentary pause, si di sensed something amiss. he looked at xiao zhenyun and, after three seconds, had a realization. “so it was him.”

xiao zhenyun hurriedly defended himself, “i didn’t tell him. he read my mind.”

xiao nian, “…”

hello, everyone ヾ(＾∇＾). i hope you enjoyed the story! if you’re feeling generous, please buy me a coffee, share/comment on my translated works! check out the link below for early chapters.  (๑>ᴗ