Chapter 423 Extra Chapter 2: Sky Tree, A Marriage Eight Years Later (Seeking Monthly Tickets)
At 16:50 on November 25, 2020, a white bird flew over Tokyo Bay, heading towards the horizon as the sun set.
It was already dusk, rush hour, and traffic was congested on the Rainbow Bridge.
The streets in the distance were bustling with people, the traffic lights were changing rapidly, and pedestrians were busy coming and going.
The afterglow of the setting sun bathed the Rainbow Bridge in a golden hue, making the surface of Tokyo Bay appear as bright as gold, and then streamed through the doors and windows into an unassuming café.
The wind chimes tied to the wooden door were blown by the evening breeze, swaying and making a "ding-a-ling" sound.
Right now, Ji Minghuan and Ayase Origami are sitting face to face on the sofa in the cafe, around a wooden table.
They hung their heads, silently staring at a piece of paper on the table.
The paper has a drawing of the Go board.
One of them raised his hand to support his chin, while the other pressed his cheek against his kimono sleeve. With their heads down, they drew circles and crosses on a piece of paper with a pencil, stroke by stroke.
The clock on the wall ticked away, and no guests entered the building for a long time. The two of them were having a very comfortable time, occasionally stopping to drink a glass of water and chat.
During this month, Origami Ayase and Hime Minghuan discussed things and decided to run the café well in the future and open a bookstore next door.
Of course, because she had little experience in opening a shop, and hadn't even learned how to make coffee yet, the coffee shop was not open for the time being. Every day, the sign at the door was always "Closed," and the bookstore plan had to be postponed slightly.
“Oh right…” Ji Minghuan murmured, then suddenly put down her pencil, leaned back on the sofa and stretched, “I have to pick up Su Zimai today.”
"Why did you accept it?" Ayase Origami asked without looking up.
"Why didn't you answer?" Ji Minghuan asked, head down.
They were silent for a moment, then looked up from the pages and their eyes met.
Ji Minghuan stared into her eyes, tilted his head, and the girl in the kimono also tilted her head, a strand of cool hair falling to her ear.
Origami Ayase thought for a moment: "She's an exorcist, so she can summon pigeons and ride them home."
She spoke with reason and evidence. Su Zimai did indeed have such a trick. However, Gu Wenyu almost fell from the giant pigeon and died. Since then, Su Zimai no longer used the magic pigeon as a means of transportation, but instead took taxis.
“That’s true, but Su Zimai’s school is in Haifan City, while she lives in Lijing now.” Ji Minghuan shrugged. “Usually Ke Qirui picks her up and drops her off at school in the Train Demon, but Ke Qirui has something to do today, so I have to do it for her.”
Why is the school located in Haifan City?
"Are you a robot? Even a radish head isn't as good as you, you only know one sentence structure."
"Why?" the girl in the kimono asked repeatedly.
"Su Zimai's school is in Haifan City because the people of Lake Hunter intend to train her to be the next successor of Lake Hunter."
At this point, Ji Minghuan sighed, "If I say otherwise, I would feel ashamed before the late Su Wei, who was our maternal grandfather."
He paused for a moment: "However, actually, those old men from the lake hunting group just wanted an excuse to get closer to me; I don't care, let them do whatever they want."
"oh."
Origami Ayase nodded gently.
"And my cat is still at Lake Hunting, I'll go pick it up today."
"A cat?" Ayase Origami asked, puzzled.
“Yes, its name is ‘Totoro Demon’.” Ji Minghuan nodded. “It used to be a member of the Zodiac Team and took a knife for me… Without it, the outcome of the Salvation Society’s battle would probably have been uncertain.”
Where is it?
"It is serving as the right-hand man of the Lion Dancer," Ji Minghuan said.
"Bring it back."
"Yes, ma'am. You can raise it from now on, but it will turn into a dragon. What if it burns down Uncle Takikage's café with a sneeze?"
"Let's take a look first."
"Okay, I'll be right back."
After saying that, Ji Minghuan picked up the pencil on the table, wrote the word "pause" next to the Go board squares, and got up from the sofa.
He drew a spatial rift with his finger beside him, waved to Origami Ayase, and stepped into the rift, traversing the dark, chaotic flow of time and space, until he arrived at the shore of Lingxin Lake, located on Mount Kaifan.
Ji Minghuan put his hands in the pockets of his black coat, stood by the lake, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath.
When I opened my eyes, I was greeted by a world of interwoven emerald green and pale blue.
The waters of Lingxin Lake rippled gently, and the willows along the shore swayed softly. The cool autumn breeze created ripples on the lake's surface, disturbing the giant lotus leaf in the center of the lake.
"Oh my, the Crown Prince is back." The Lotus Leaf Demon opened his eyes and saw Ji Minghuan, and immediately exclaimed.
"Is the Great Lord alright?" Ji Minghuan asked after a moment of silence.
Two months ago, in order to rightfully allow the little Nian beast to inherit the position of the Great Lord, the Great Lord of the Nian beast had a private conversation with it. In the end, the Great Lord faked his death and found a secluded cave in the mountains to rest and heal his wounds, and then stayed away from worldly affairs.
Now, Ji Minghuan has used the power of the "Bishop Statue" to help the Nian Beast King heal all his previous injuries—including the internal injuries from the battle with Lake Hunter ten years ago and the injuries from this battle ten years later.
Then, the Nian Beast King reappeared on stage, once again becoming the demon leader of Haifan Mountain.
Ji Minghuan wasn't sure if the old lion would suddenly go mad again and launch a suicide attack on humans with the demons of the mountain, but after this lesson, the Great King should be much more well-behaved.
"The Great Lord is alright," the Lotus Leaf Demon said softly. "You don't need to worry about it. It's just that the Great Lord has been told that Lord Little Year Beast is dead, so... the demons on the mountain are holding a memorial service for you and the Zodiac Team right now."
“That’s alright.” Ji Minghuan yawned. “I’m going to Haifan City next. Don’t tell the Great Khan that I’ve been back.”
"I know, I know," the Lotus Leaf Demon quickly agreed.
Ji Minghuan turned and walked away, stepping into the tunnel made of flowers and thorns. After passing through the quiet tunnel, he arrived at the top of the cliff.
He stood at the very edge of the cliff, overlooking the entire coastal city.
With a light leap forward, the boy, still bound by transparent restraints, plunged into the city. The wind whipped his hair and made his black coat flutter loudly.
He fell straight down like a transparent eagle, the restraints dispersing the gravity and softening the airflow as he plummeted.
A moment later, he landed silently on the rooftop of Haifan City Fifth Middle School, where a girl with a high ponytail wearing a blue and white school uniform was leaning against the railing, looking down at her phone.
She frowned slightly, staring at the chat interface on the screen, looking somewhat displeased.
[Su Zimai: Bro, why aren't you here yet?]
[Ji Minghuan: Look up and see?]
Su Zimai was slightly taken aback, then looked up from her phone screen and saw a hand reach out towards her forehead and flick her forehead.
She cried out in pain, then covered her head and looked up coldly, glaring fiercely at Ji Minghuan.
You're late.
"It's good enough that they came to pick you up, why are you complaining? Where did Ke Qirui go?"
"They said it was a Ghost Train troupe interviewing new members and also attending Xu Sanyan's wedding."
"The wedding...you didn't go?"
"I don't want to go."
"Why?"
"It just feels weird. Who would want to attend a friend's wedding?"
“Alright, let’s go to the lake hunting area first. I’ll go ask Lin Xingshi for some things.”
"oh."
"What are you standing there for? Let's walk over there. The Lin family mansion isn't far from your school."
"don't want."
As Su Zimai spoke, she silently opened her arms to him, turning her face away to look at the twilight sky.
"I give up."
Ji Minghuan glanced at her helplessly, then bent down and gently picked up Su Zimai.
In the next instant, both of them were wrapped in black restraints and flew away from the top of the rooftop into the distance.
Before long, he arrived at the Lin family's mansion.
Looking up, the fountain in the courtyard was still spraying white water droplets without stopping, and the pool was rippling with light.
Ji Minghuan put Su Zimai down, walked through the quiet corridor, and knocked on the office door. A familiar voice immediately came from inside:
"Come in."
Ji Minghuan pushed open the door and entered, only to see Lin Xingshi sitting upright at the table, processing family documents. She slowly raised her eyes and gently curled the corners of her lips at him.
"What can I do for you, busy man?" she asked.
"How could I be busier than you? Look, I just came to ask you for it." Ji Minghuan said, pointing to the little blue cat sleeping soundly on the desk.
“It is possible, but are you sure it still recognizes you?” Lin Xingshi asked, tilting his head. “You were still a child back then, but things are different now.”
"I definitely recognize it."
"Why don't you give it a try?"
"Let's give it a try."
As Ji Minghuan spoke, she reached out and rubbed the little blue cat's head. The tortoise immediately opened its eyes, revealing sharp fangs, and viciously bit her back.
If it were a normal person, their right hand would probably have been bitten off. Fortunately, Ji Minghuan had anticipated this and wrapped a restraint band around the skin.
"See?" Lin Xingshi smiled slightly.
"Alright, I was wrong. Well then, let this wicked thing who values women over friends stay here and help General Lin."
"So what are you going to do next?"
"I'm taking my little sister home."
"I see." Lin Xingshi lowered his head. "I've been very busy lately. But you can still come over more often when you have time, and catch up."
"Yes, yes, I'll find you for tea when I have time." With that, Ji Minghuan waved and left.
Soon, he took Su Zimai home, sat with her and Kong Youling on the living room floor and played video games for a while, then sat on the sofa and turned on his phone.
Ji Minghuan clicked into the live stream on the dark web. He saw a prominent title on the homepage, but he didn't pay much attention to it. He only knew that Tun Yin was chasing criminals again.
"I'm going out for a bit, you guys have fun."
Ji Minghuan spoke to Kong Youling and Su Zimai, then put away her phone and got up from the sofa.
"Wenyu, are you coming home for dinner tonight?" Gu Qiye asked, peeking out from the kitchen when she heard the noise.
"You guys eat, I'm having dinner with Miss in Tokyo tonight." Ji Minghuan said as she walked into the entrance hall, sat down, put on her sneakers, and tied her shoelaces.
"Can't we take her home to eat?"
"Please, I already made plans with them, how can I stand them up?"
"Okay then, be careful."
"Brother, are you telling a restricted-level person to be careful?" Ji Minghuan asked, amused.
"I mean, be careful about the safety of others. Don't let your date accidentally destroy Tokyo." Gu Qiye crossed her arms and rubbed her Tianming acupoint with her other hand.
"knew--"
Ji Minghuan drawled out his words, sounding annoyed.
"You value men over women, you might as well not have come back!" A voice, seemingly from the diaper demon, came from the living room.
"Coo-coo-caw!" came the sound, which sounded like that of an unknown penguin.
Ji Minghuan didn't take it seriously, put on her shoes, and went out.
After a while, he swung his restraints, fluttering like a bird in the sky above Lijing. The restraints rippled like wings made of splashed ink, carrying his figure toward the city center.
Soaring through the air, he soon spotted the figure of Swallowing Silver.
At this moment, the astray dressed in a silver-white uniform was speeding through the air, flames spewing from the metal openings on his legs and back, the fierce airflow propelling him forward like a water buffalo.
Ji Minghuan silently raised his right hand, and a python-like restraint strap extended from his palm, binding the fugitive supernatural criminal firmly from a distance of a thousand meters.
Seeing this, Tun Yin turned his head in a daze.
Just then, a figure wearing a black coat was seen hanging upside down below the high-altitude work platform, holding the latest issue of "Weekly Shonen Jump" in his hand.
"Uncle Tunyin, stop working so hard. You're getting on in years, you should retire," Ji Minghuan said.
"You little brat..."
Tun Yin glanced at him with a mixture of helplessness and disdain, then hesitated to speak.
Ji Minghuan tilted her head and said, "Come visit my house sometime. My brother has been very idle since he stopped being an outsider. He spends all his time either cooking or taking care of the kids."
"Don't cause trouble for your brother. Taking care of a child is much harder than being an Outcast," Tun Yin said coldly, arms crossed.
“That’s true,” Ji Minghuan said. “Bye, I’m going to have dinner.”
As soon as he finished speaking, he waved to Tun Yin while hanging upside down, then drew a crack under his body with his fingers, loosened the restraints, and fell into it.
That night, Ji Minghuan and Ayase Origami secretly slipped out to play.
The two first ate crab dishes at the best seafood restaurant in Tokyo, and then Ji Minghuan took her hand and took her to see the dolphins at the aquarium again.
The difference this time is that they added a photo with the dolphin—in the photo, the girl in the kimono is no longer looking around aimlessly, searching for his back; the two of them are leaning their shoulders together, looking at the camera with a slight smile on their lips.
Then they went to see the Tokyo Skytree, which was brightly lit at night, radiating orange lights.
The two sat atop the Tokyo Skytree, gazing down at the brightly lit city, where towering black skyscrapers stood tall and traffic shimmered like light.
"Actually," someone suddenly spoke up.
"What?" Origami Ayase turned her head and asked him.
“Actually… I think you don’t understand me yet,” Ji Minghuan said in a low voice. “I’m not Xia Pingzhou. I’m not as calm and rational as him, not as decisive as him. I’m awkward and indecisive. I’m practically a different person from Xia Pingzhou.”
He shrugged. "I'm just very good at disguising myself because my experiences growing up have taught me that if I don't, I'll be bullied."
The girl in the kimono remained silent for a moment.
"It's okay," she said softly, shaking her head.
It's snowing.
Snowflakes fluttered down from the sky and landed on the brightly lit iron tower. Ji Minghuan reached out and touched the snowflake that had landed on the tip of her nose.
He lowered his eyes and said softly, "Actually, I don't know if you really like me."
Origami Ayase remained silent.
"Besides, no matter what, we're still kids, it's too early for us to be dating. Even though you're two years older than me, you're still a kid. Kids should do kids' things, let's have fun first." Ji Minghuan paused.
The girl in the kimono lowered her dark eyes, her disappointment barely concealed.
“In that case… you’ll have plenty of time to get to know the real me in the future,” Ji Minghuan continued.
"Then what……"
Origami Ayase asked softly, her head bowed.
“Then, eight years later, on the day we promised to travel the world together, if,” Ji Minghuan suddenly paused, blushing, “if by then you know me so well, but still like me, then let’s get married.”
Origami Ayase suddenly froze.
After a while, she slowly raised her head and stared at his flushed face.
Ji Minghuan turned her face away, avoiding her gaze, and said softly, "Think about it, we can have a wedding while traveling around the world... Of course, that's assuming we're still together on that day."
The girl in the kimono was silent for a moment, then nodded.
“Okay,” she said softly, “I promise you.”
"Could your reaction be any more subdued?" Ji Minghuan sighed. "As expected of our robot girl."
At that moment, Origami Ayase suddenly leaned over and gently kissed his cheek.
"I like you," she whispered, then looked up at him, her ears red.
Ji Minghuan froze for a moment, then her cheeks visibly flushed red, and she muttered, "So cheesy, so cheesy, could it be any more cheesy?"
After saying that, he quickly leaned over and gently kissed her pale cheek.
Origami Ayase was stunned, and her ears turned even redder.
Snowflakes drifted past their cheeks when suddenly a black hole appeared above the Tokyo Skytree, engulfing the unexpected snowfall.
"Let's go, let's go... If we keep going like this, the dark elementary school student will destroy the world." Ji Minghuan blushed and murmured as she took her hand.
He took Ayase Origami Suzuri's right hand and walked quickly along the metal fence.
The boy and girl walked one after the other across the heavy snow and the brilliant lights, as innocent and carefree as children walking on a zebra crossing, leaving the whole colorful world behind.
Then, they leaped slightly upwards and landed in the void above the city, disappearing without a trace.
The snow was still falling, but the city lights remained bright and dazzling.
(End of this chapter)
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