Chapter 427 Qi Ran and Huan Yu (Part 1)
Contrary to the imagined sacred and pure white place of return, the Universal Reception Hall is more like a huge and cold furnace.
The air was filled with the mixed smells of countless remnants of world energy.
Spiritual energy, demonic energy, technology, electric arcs... they floated like dust, then were drawn in by an invisible force and flowed into the unseen vortex in the dome of the main hall.
Before long, figures appeared in the hall; they were mission takers returning from various worlds.
Most of them looked tired, with empty eyes, and wore all sorts of strange clothes—there were ancient robes, pieces of mecha, Zhongshan suits from the 1970s and 80s, and modern, stylish short skirts.
Without exception, the moment these people returned, a faint light would flash across their foreheads, a sign that their memories had been extracted and sealed away.
Qi Ran's figure also condensed within it.
She was still wearing the elegant long dress typical of the cultivation world, with the hem still stained with the last dust and faint smell of blood from the world she had spoken to Zhan Li.
The mission failed.
From being adversaries to becoming allies with Kaori.
And finally, the image of her leaving like a stray dog surfaced in her memory. The anticipated sense of memory stripping, however, did not arrive.
A dark glint flashed in Qi Ran's eyes.
Xiao Tong closed her eyes to sense the situation, and after a few seconds, she exclaimed excitedly, "It worked! Our connection channel is working. Usually, we are teleported back by the universe, so the memories related to the Fate Child are directly erased during the process."
"But this time, we used the power drawn from five cards to forcibly open the passage, which is equivalent to climbing over the wall directly, so we avoided this."
"But host... are you sure you want to do this?"
Qi Ran lowered her eyes.
How will you know if you don't try?
Leaving traces at work and concealing some of one's luck and abilities is originally just a precaution.
But she never expected... that she would actually need it one day.
How ironic.
Qi Ran stood still, observing silently.
In the past, she always regarded performance as the top priority, and given the special nature of the task, she had never paid close attention to her "colleagues".
Looking closer now, one can see that most of the people on the task are in a hurry, like wind-up toys.
Without exception, they all possessed top-notch good looks.
These physical forms were not innate, but rather tools bestowed upon them by the universe based on the optimal "strategy template," and were the first reward they received as "chosen ones" upon entering the mission bureau.
After all, those who can stand here are those who have shown extreme egoism, calmness, or even ruthlessness in their respective original worlds or in the early missions, and were thus selected through layers of screening to reach the cosmos.
Here, ability is the only passport.
Appearance is merely data that can be fine-tuned at any time to improve the effectiveness of a task.
"Quick! Go settle the account." A heavily armored missioner shoved Qi Ran aside and rushed towards the pillar of light. "I almost died in the last world, so I need to exchange for some life-saving items."
"Get out of the way, don't block the way." Another woman in a sci-fi uniform waved her hand, her system urgently urging her to submit energy as soon as possible.
Chaos, haste, indifference.
This is the norm for the Space Missions Agency.
It's like raising a venomous insect, where only the fittest survive, all to extract more fortune.
Qi Ran paused for a moment, then followed the row of settlement light pillars.
The moment she reached out and pressed her hand on it, the cold, emotionless will of the universe poured directly into her mind:
[Tasker ID: 774]
【Mission World: S-Cultivation World 013】
[Mission Objective: Absorb at least 60% of the world's primordial energy and fortune]
[Actual completion rate: 0%]
[Evaluation: Utter failure! Severely disqualified!]
Qi Ran's lips curled up. Isn't this just stating the obvious?
Just as she expected.
Soon, the red light and the rating of "utter failure" were like a stone thrown into a stinking pond, instantly attracting the numb or hurried gazes of those around.
It's not that similar situations haven't occurred before, but this time is different because the "target" is the highest-performing employee in recent years.
774.
It has consistently ranked number one on the global giant screen for many years.
This... is going to be quite a show.
"Oh, look who's here?" a charming and deliberate voice rang out.
Qi Ran looked up and saw a woman in a fiery red dress, with a graceful figure, walking slowly towards her.
It is code name 236 – Zhou Zhizhi.
This person is known within the mission bureau for her alluring methods, skill in seduction, and "dog training." She is also one of her strongest rivals.
Zhou Zhizhi circled Qi Ran, examining her as if she were a broken piece of porcelain, a mocking smile playing on her lips: "Isn't this our invincible 774? What, did you slip up in the gutter this time, or... finally messed up?"
She looked at Qi Ran with pity, leaning slightly forward, maintaining a distance that was both oppressive and suggestive.
"They didn't even bring back a sliver of luck?"
Qi Ran could smell the fragrance on her body.
It's not a pungent, cheap fragrance; in fact, it smells quite nice.
It's a carefully crafted, mature, and aggressive scent. A typical ambient fragrance sought after in the world of many "domineering CEOs," it's also one of her weapons, used to arm herself and as a hunting tool.
But Qi Ran couldn't help but frown slightly.
The fragrance was too deliberate and purposeful, completely out of sync with the memories she had just brought back from the spiritually pure and naturally beautiful world of cultivation.
It was like a layer of glamorous makeup covering the truth, making her instinctively uncomfortable.
Zhou Zhizhi twirled a strand of hair from her temple with her fingertips. "I've said it before, you have to treat those lucky ones like you're training a dog. Give them a little treat, then whip them a few times, and that's how you make them crave more."
Several other mission participants who had also just returned, still radiating the glow of their energy rewards, stood at a distance, their gazes towards the two filled with complex emotions.
There was curiosity, there was disdain, but more than anything, there was a sense of smug satisfaction that "you've finally met your match."
"Zero completion rate? That's rare even in the global record!"
"I thought she was really amazing, but it turns out she was just lucky before."
"Without the luck reward and marked as disqualified, I'm afraid even the system will be downgraded, right? Will it be able to be reactivated this time?"
Xiao Tong was furious with these people. "What are they?! When we were doing our mission, they were still beasts before they evolved into humans, and they dare to talk nonsense here!"
"Little Copper." Qi Ran stopped its cursing, raised her hand, and gently brushed away non-existent dust from her sleeve. The movement was natural and elegant, completely out of place with the surrounding chaos.
She was completely outmatched by the rosewood.
But not just any Tom, Dick, or Harry can step on her head.
Qi Ran looked up, her gaze calmly surveying Zhou Zhizhi. There was no anger, no shame, only a... bottomless vortex.
This sense of being looked down upon by someone in a superior position is far more disarming than any rebuttal or rebuke.
Sure enough, Zhou Zhizhi's smugness, hidden beneath her perfect smile, slowly froze.
"Qi Ran!" Her voice rose, losing its lazy sense of control and becoming sharp. "What kind of look is that? A piece of trash with a zero completion rate in the mission dares to look at me like that?"
"Otherwise what?"
Qi Ran's voice was cold: "You've trained so many 'dogs,' have you ever thought about one thing?"
"Do you believe that everything you control is real? Or are you actually just another 'dog,' tamed by a more powerful being with 'sweeteners and whips' to carry out missions...?"
Zhou Zhizhi's pupils suddenly contracted.
"you--"
She immediately retorted, "This is the path I chose myself."
"I can get the wealth, power, and authority I want. That's my skill. It's a dog-eat-dog world, and I'm happy with it!"
Qi Ran nodded, "Okay, then it's up to you."
Zhou Zhizhi instantly felt a sense of frustration, as if she had punched cotton. Her delicate face twisted slightly, and she forced out a cold laugh through gritted teeth.
"Ha, as if you're so high and mighty!"
"Look at your current pathetic and defeated state, aren't you just another dog under Huanyu's command? A... defeated dog that has lost its usefulness and will be disposed of soon."
Qi Ran looked at Zhou Zhizhi's face, but suddenly thought of Hua Li.
Strangely, it wasn't the passionate fervor of two people joining forces to expel the will of the universe, nor the sorrow of her desperately begging for Zhanli's help.
Rather, it was the smiling eyes that looked at the girl as she sat atop the Heavenly Dao's mount, about to embark on a journey from which there might be no return.
There was no plundering, no scheming, and none of those "strategies and techniques" that are revered throughout the world.
But ironically, those proud and arrogant individuals, who should have been the targets of these mission takers' competition, found themselves drawn to her.
Qi Ran knows.
It wasn't an obsession fueled by desire and skill, but a purer form of admiration and protection.
Even the five chosen ones on her side ultimately sided with the other side.
She once thought that Huali was blessed by heaven and that her good fortune was due to luck.
But at that moment, she suddenly understood.
It wasn't luck at all.
Rather, it is something that these mission takers, alienated by the world, have long lost, or even cannot comprehend.
It is sincerity, it is one's true nature.
It is a natural attraction and resonance between lives that far transcends plunder and possession.
The plunderers scheme and plot, but all they gain is fleeting dust.
It was by upholding their principles that the guardians won the world's vitality.
Looking at Zhou Zhizhi, Qi Ran suddenly let out a cold laugh.
“A failed dog?” she repeated, then readily admitted, “Yes, I am.”
The sarcasm Zhou Zhizhi had prepared was caught in her throat by her gaze.
"Just like you, I was lured by this power and led by the nose by the missions and rewards. I was clearly going to tear and plunder, but I called it climbing the peak."
She rubbed her temples and chuckled.
If Qi Ran's expression was relatively calm before, at this moment, the calm ice surface suddenly shattered, revealing its menacing fangs that were about to pounce on its prey.
She leaned forward slightly, and her imposing presence forced Zhou Zhizhi to take a half-step back.
"But... what should I do? I'm not going to let them lock me up anymore."
“I’m prepared to bite through that chain and become the mad dog they fear, the one that will fight back and tear me apart.”
Zhou Zhizhi's expression changed; she looked at her as if she were a lunatic.
Fortunately, the next second, the Universal Brain, having completed the failure assessment test, spoke again:
[A large amount of abnormal data has been detected in Mission 774, suggesting possible contamination by the will of another world.]
[Recommended action: Immediately transfer to the 'observation room' for further analysis and processing.]
After the cold verdict was pronounced, two invisible energy shackles bound Qi Ran's wrists.
Under Zhou Zhizhi's watchful gaze, Qi Ran left the noisy reception hall and headed deeper into the mission bureau.
*
The observation room is located next to a passageway called the "Abyss Corridor".
Next to it is the main control room of the world.
This corridor is incredibly deep, with "windows to the world" forcibly carved out on both sides.
This is an absolute forbidden zone for mission takers. No mission taker can be authorized unless they are about to be abandoned or imprisoned.
The window should have displayed a scene of the world functioning normally after the mission taker "absorbed some of their luck".
But as she traveled along, Qi Ran saw a completely different scene.
Each window was labeled with a number.
【S Apocalypse World-020】Behind this window lies a desolate void, with only the shattered remains of a continent floating in the air. It is the corpse of a world utterly drained, unable even to maintain its basic physical order.
The status bar at the bottom of the window has glaring scarlet text.
[Status: Completely Annihilated. Energy Depletion: 100%. Number of Historical Missions: 20]
Twenty mission takers, like twenty waves of locusts, relentlessly squeezed every last bit of potential and every wisp of fortune from this world.
Qi Ran could even imagine the scene of the world completely collapsing into cosmic dust amidst silent wails when the last mission taker left.
She couldn't quite put her finger on how she felt.
My gaze shifted to another window.
【C Campus World-04】, the world here still retains some color, but it is also like being covered by a gray-white filter that can never be wiped away.
On a bench near an old locust tree at the edge of the playground, sat a slender and upright boy.
Qi Ran paused slightly, as if her deepest memories wanted to resonate, but it remained a blank.
She has been to this world.
But he couldn't remember any of the luck factors involved.
She just felt inexplicably familiar with this person.
In my hazy memory, those should have been a pair of clear, bright eyes. They shouldn't be as empty and numb as they are now, like carefully polished glass that has lost the spark of its soul.
The boy is looking at a photo.
Qi Ran subconsciously tried to see clearly, but was restrained and forced to continue forward.
【S CEO World-06】This is the world that Zhou Zhizhi just visited.
On the surface, the skyscrapers are still brightly lit, and luxury cars are flowing in and out, creating an atmosphere of extravagance and decadence.
But upon closer inspection, one will find that the bustling scene is like an overly vibrant oil painting, exuding a sense of precarious fragility.
Occasionally, ominous, spiderweb-like cracks would flash across the edge of the sky.
The man in the suit in the office had an unusually bright aura around him, as if he had been forcibly ignited, burning out the candlelight of his life.
Meanwhile, the "male protagonist" leaning against the railing on the terrace of another mansion also has a desolate figure, exuding a sense of loneliness and despair that is out of place in the world.
Status bar text display:
[Status: Critically in danger, rules are rapidly deteriorating. Number of historical missions: 6.]
Everything laid bare before us reveals a colossal lie.
Qi Ran took a deep breath.
Once upon a time, she thought that time travel was nothing more than a trial, strategy guides were just challenges, and even absorbing luck was a natural reward.
She meticulously calculated gains and losses, efficiently completing each task. She climbed upwards by stepping on the so-called "chosen ones," believing that the path beneath her feet was a road to heaven.
But now...
Qi Ran suppressed the bitterness and pain in her heart and quickened her pace.
The abyss-like corridor seemed endless, with windows on both sides resembling a revolving lantern, reflecting the tragic scenes of countless worlds.
However, amidst this scene of despair, her gaze was suddenly drawn to several unusual windows in front of her.
These windows were not marked as "running" or "in danger," but instead had flashing warning lights.
[Status - Unknown anomaly, rule rejection, unable to connect, permanently abandoned.]
Qi Ran's heart skipped a beat, and she involuntarily looked over.
The first window is the world she just left, 【S Cultivation World-013】—the world where Huali is!
The scene inside the window was completely different from when she left.
The spiritual energy between heaven and earth was as abundant as the sea, the mountains and rivers flowed with a gentle light, all things were full of vitality, and one could even see new spiritual veins converging into phantoms beneath the mountains.
That is the transformation of the world's origin growing stronger and the Heavenly Way reaching its perfection!
Qi Ran stared intently at the window, her eyes turning red almost instantly.
Her gaze shifted eagerly to other windows that were also marked "Permanently Abandon the Strategy".
【S-Western Fantasy World-011】
Inside the window, the World Tree, which had been on the verge of withering, has been revitalized, its branches and leaves stretching out and emitting a soft, emerald-green glow that envelops the entire continent.
The Magic Network is stable and active, and all races coexist harmoniously as they rebuild their homes.
An elven girl wearing a crown of thorns and holding a staff of nature is smiling as she gazes up at the starry sky, her eyes wise and peaceful.
【S-Wasteland World-055】
Fifty-five raids did not completely turn the world into a wasteland; people developed their own "will" amidst the constant disasters.
They used their crippled bodies to resist the overwhelming force of the universe, buying a glimmer of hope for future generations.
After the ancestors die, the descendants take advantage of this lingering opportunity to restore the symbiotic relationship between technology and nature.
A young man with a determined look in his eyes, wearing modified power armor, is leading people to plant the last seedling of hope, stepping on the blood and flesh of their predecessors.
......
Each world, though different in appearance, carries a vigorous, spontaneous, and powerful vitality that is not controlled by the universe.
They relied on the "variables" they themselves created—those existences like rosewood—to achieve self-salvation and sublimation!
Qi Ran looked at this revitalized world and then shifted her gaze to the gate at the end.
Slowly clench the card in your hand.
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