Gu Li sat on the king's lap. The hard, cold, yet strangely soft sensation beneath her made her body, which had returned to human form, tremble. Goosebumps rose on her back, and her thoughts returned to normal.

She stroked her chin, tilted her head back, and met those dark eyes. She had a feeling that the clones these Kryptonian monsters talked about were not good things.

They were now above the head of a colossal monster in the endless depths of space, with countless dazzling stars in sight and the massive whale carcass drifting in the distance.

Gu Litian's blue eyes reflected this scene. He sighed, tentatively moved a little, and seeing that he didn't react, he jumped off him.

A hint of disappointment flashed in the man's dark eyes as he gazed at her.

Suddenly, she felt a warm touch beside him. Gu Li casually propped herself up and sat down next to him. She could sense that Wang meant her no harm, and her actions were quite natural.

Gu Li didn't ask about his purpose first, but instead asked an unrelated question: "Your Majesty, do you have a name?"

The king of the alien city met her gaze with his inorganic eyes. His brows furrowed slightly beneath his flowing black hair. After a moment of troubled thought, he uttered two words: "He Shiyi."

Gu Li's slippers almost fell off, but she didn't expect him to actually answer her question. She nodded thoughtfully, "He Shiyi, right? You're pretty cool. You really are human after all."

Only humans remember their own names.

She stood up, using the ground for support, stretched her body, and smiled faintly at those inorganic black eyes: "But being a clone is out of the question, it doesn't sound very free. I still want to go out and see the world someday."

He Shiyi lowered her eyes. From Gu Li's position, she could only see his pale chin and the small mole at the corner of his lip. She looked away, intending to leave this dream.

That's all for now, see you next time.

Gu Li took a step toward the giant whale. Logically speaking, there should be a king in this dream, and it should be Gu Li himself.

If she wants to get out, she should go and look at that giant whale.

She had only taken one step when something bound her to the spot. Turning her head, she was met with He Shiyi's pale face. Behind him, a large, life-like black mist surged. As Gu Li looked over, a huge arm emerged from the darkness and stopped in front of her.

"Then become my proxy; during my slumber, you will be the king here."

This is getting more and more outrageous.

Gu Li raised her eyebrows high, but when she met He Shiyi's eyes, she was startled by the calm and serious look in them. She widened her eyes and took a step back, but to no avail.

She could only joke, "Wang, you're not trying to win me over because you see my potential, are you? I think Eric or Mr. Cen are more suitable for the role of the proxy than I am."

The darkness behind He Shiyi surged even more violently, but his face remained expressionless and very decisive: "Yes, I am trying to win you over."

Gu Li was silent for a moment, her face full of vigilance: "Don't be so honest, I'm scared."

"You are the first human to awaken the Child of Light's constitution after being corrupted. Your power is definitely greater than you imagine. Everyone needs you."

Gu Li reached out and blocked He Shiyi's way, interrupting the spellcasting: "No, Mr. Cen already told me that there was a similarly corrupted Child of Light in the previous records."

He Shiyi's face seemed to show some subtle expression: "If you are talking about the Federation's failed experiment back then, then there was indeed one."

A failed experiment?

Gu Li frowned.

“If I’m not mistaken, you’re learning how to control the power within your body to return to human form,” He Shiyi said earnestly, looking at her. “If you want to fully control the power within your body, you should accept me. My agent is the power controller, so you don’t have to worry about such accidents happening anymore.”

"Power Controller?"

Gu Li muttered to herself, "Oh no, I'm starting to feel something for myself."

Her doubts only grew: "If you could solve my problem, why did you throw me into the underground mall?"

He Shiyi's cheek muscles twitched, revealing a strange smile, which he then frowned and withdrew as Gu Li showed resistance.

"Because you passed the test."

Gu Li looked at the giant whale floating in the distance, somewhat displeased: "Did you create that?"

"No, I just made it appear earlier."

She stood with her arms crossed at the edge of the monster's head, her calves bound by tentacles, unable to move. She pointed at her arm with her finger: "What will happen if I disagree?"

He Shiyi released the tentacles that were binding her and fell into the surging darkness behind him. Countless tentacles or chunks of flesh formed a seat beneath him, and he propped his head up as he fell into deep thought.

His pale face looked even more somber in the shadows.

"Then when I can no longer bear it and fall into a deep sleep, this city will lose all its barriers, and both humans and aliens will enter without any scruples."

He crossed his long legs in the strange and bizarre chair, and a weary expression appeared on his face, which showed no signs of age: "Of course, I am just stating the facts, I don't mean to force you."

Gu Li clicked her tongue, crossed her arms, and her small face was shrouded in the same gloom: "Too late. I can already feel an invisible pressure falling on my shoulders. Your CPU is very successful."

He Shiyi's weary expression paused.

Gu Li bent down and reached out to grasp the tentacle that was extended in front of her. The soft, moist texture appeared in her palm, and she shook it casually.

She drew out her voice weakly, "It's been a pleasure working with you."

The next instant, the viscous darkness surging behind He Shiyi expanded and engulfed her, with pitch-black wrists encircling her body, and strange black patterns appearing from her calves and spreading upwards.

"It's all yours now. Hope we can work together."

Unable to break free from the silver threads binding him, and having failed to entice Lucy to help him, Lan Meng lay listlessly in a corner, playing rock-paper-scissors with himself.

"Ugh, I can't take it anymore! Why isn't that idiot back yet?!"

He glanced guiltily at Gu Li, who was lying on the ground, his life hanging in the balance. According to his divination, the process should have been somewhat bumpy, but the outcome should have been relatively smooth. Why hadn't he woken up yet?

Lan Meng twisted and turned on the ground, trying to get closer to Gu Li: "If I really die, that guy won't cut me with a flower knife, will he?"

He poked the unconscious silver beast on the ground with his tentacle: "Hey?"

Suddenly, a familiar yet unfamiliar force shot up from the small beast on the ground, and Lan Meng was stunned and thrown off balance.

He lay sprawled on the ground, stunned, staring at Gu Li who had suddenly taken to the air, muttering to himself, "Holy crap, is he about to transform?"