Chapter 103 Atonement
The lights in the corridor had gone out sometime ago, leaving only the two of them holding candles that emitted a soft orange glow, gently swaying in the long corridor.
Many monsters stood in the corridor, holding hands and facing the wall.
Strange things were wriggling on the hair of varying lengths, and eyes would occasionally appear and disappear on the wall.
Standing still and counting the beats, I quickly grasped the pattern of the eyes appearing on the wall.
"Stop every five steps." Yue Yiyue spoke before Gu He could, tilting his head slightly. "Right?"
Gu He paused for a moment, noticing a subtle change in the person before her.
This change wasn't exactly bad, but it caused a slight shiver to run through Gu He's body.
A long-lost feeling resurfaced, and Gu He nodded: "What kind of attack do you think that hair will launch?"
"Suddenly it licked us, or rather, it wrapped itself around our feet and tripped us up."
"They were trying to scare us so much that we would throw the candles away."
If it were something more novel, those things might turn into Gu Nanqiu's face, so she could still enjoy the view along the way.
Grains are also acceptable.
Once Yue Yiyue learned that Gu He was actually part of Gu Nanqiu's group, he felt that everyone around him was very familiar with his every move.
Even details that were previously unthinkable have become evidence.
Yue Yiyue leaned to the side and put his arm around Gu He's arm: "Sister Gu He, be careful, okay? If those things trip me up, I'll have something to hold onto."
Noticing Gu He stiffen for a moment, Yue Yiyue looked up at her expressionlessly: "What's wrong, sister—"
"No, it's nothing." Gu He turned her head and stared intently at Yue Yiyue's face, making sure that he hadn't been possessed by anything, but rather that it was just her own wicked sense of humor.
It seems someone leaked some information beforehand, which made Yue Yiyue's attitude a little strange.
Nothing serious happened.
Gu He took a deep breath, preparing to pull her hand away, and said earnestly, "Yi Yue, even if you don't call me 'sister,' I will still try my best to protect you."
"Alright, the road ahead is a bit dark and the candlelight is rather dim. How about this, I'll carry you while you hold the candle."
This suggestion sounds pretty good, but unfortunately Yue Yiyue doesn't like being held, though he could be more flexible.
Yue Yiyue nodded and casually placed the candle in Gu He's hand.
Three minutes later, Gu He nestled in Yue Yiyue's arms, clutching the candle in her arms: "Yiyue, if you hug me, won't the little girl you live with get jealous?"
"No way." Yue Yiyue walked straight toward his destination without looking to the side.
The hair on both sides would occasionally peek out, trying to get closer to the two of them, only to be burned back by a wisp of pale orange light.
There was a strange, burning smell in the air, which was particularly unpleasant.
Yue Yiyue frowned at the unpleasant smell, and his breathing slowed down considerably.
It stops every five steps, and at the moment of stopping, the eyes around it open, but close again because there is no object moving.
The space was occasionally filled with men's screams and women's soothing words.
Curses and pleas mingled together.
Yue Yiyue walked towards his destination with undivided attention.
Only by reaching the end can we possibly save more people.
Ahead was another purple door, and Yue Yiyue's eyes snapped open faster than ever.
She stayed where she was and summarized the pattern again.
"Leap," Gu He weakly reminded, "The candle is about to go out."
"I see." Yue Yiyue looked down at Gu He in his arms. The flame was almost gone, and at their previous pace, they would never reach the end.
This was also within Yue Yiyue's expectations: "Oh, then give me the candle, and then hold on tight to me."
Gu He met Yue Yiyue's eyes and instantly understood what she was thinking.
The candle in his hand was taken away by Yue Yiyue, drawing a beautiful parabola in the air. Soon, two blazing flames ignited on either side, extending forward.
In that instant, Yue Yiyue rushed over.
The eyeballs on either side spotted the intruder and hurriedly detached themselves from the wall, only to be swallowed up by tentacles that appeared out of nowhere.
————
I burst through the purple door once again.
The first thing Yue Yiyue saw was his own photo.
Some small photos of an orphanage in another world, photos of myself doing boring and tedious homework in high school, and photos of myself delivering food.
There are also some miscellaneous photos taken after I arrived here.
There were many photos on the bed, some of which looked as if they were soaked in water, and a familiar cell phone was placed on the pillow next to it.
Yue Yiyue's expression was somewhat peculiar.
Especially when he saw the puppy doll with his face stuck on it, Yue Yiyue's expression was indescribable.
She tried her best to convince herself that this was quite normal, like the room full of sculptures she had seen before.
For example, many people collect Gu Nanqiu's photos and use them as wallpapers or something.
I had a vague idea of who owned the room.
Yue Yiyue turned to look at Gu He, who awkwardly looked away and asked as if it were none of her business, "Yiyue, do you need legal aid?"
"Aren't you curious?" Yue Yiyue picked up his own image, dressed in a food delivery uniform, and asked, "Why would someone like me, a student, wear clothes like this?"
Gu He's expression twisted slightly as she pondered how to answer the question, when she heard Yue Yiyue say casually, "Speaking of which, aren't you curious about this orphanage too?"
"I'm sorry, but you look so much like my lover that for a moment I thought my lover had come to see me."
Reason told Gu He that the lover Yue Yiyue was talking about could only be herself.
But a louder voice inside me was twisting my ears: "Hey—Yiyue doesn't want you anymore."
Gu He closed her eyes and silently recited her identity information again: "We met by chance. Maybe it's because my face is too common. But you look like a classmate. You've been through a lot of dungeons and it seems you've met some unusual people. Are you referring to that person surnamed Gu?"
“Oh, a chance encounter.” Yue Yiyue repeated, “I really like this phrase.”
"The person I met with the surname Gu should be the same person you're talking about." Yue Yiyue didn't know whether she was referring to Gu Ye or Gu Nanqiu.
She walked to the table, picked up the little red notebook, and the greed in it was so obvious that it dissected all of Gu Nanqiu's dark side, making her realize that Gu Nanqiu was a monster.
————
Upon seeing the contents of the room, Yue Yiyue immediately guessed that it belonged to his mother.
The way those photos were taken, and the language of the lens, were the same as the photos taken together some time ago.
Especially the cell phone on the bedside table.
Is Mom also an alter ego of Gu Nanqiu?
This seemingly absurd thing, upon closer examination, seems to have some basis in fact.
As he was thinking, Yue Yiyue casually flipped open the red booklet.
The above is a record of my mother's writings about herself.
It meticulously records my preferences and little things in my life.
There are also printed-out chat logs at the back.
These things were still acceptable to Yue Yiyue.
But she didn't understand why there was a seventeen-page confession mixed in with this notebook.
Her heart skipped a beat. Her sixth sense told her that once she saw this, she would soon be able to remember everything.
After calming down and taking a deep breath, Yue Yiyue opened the yellowed paper.
The document meticulously records how Gu Nanqiu arrived in that unfamiliar world and how she used Yue Yiyue to quickly establish herself in that city.
Following Yue Yiyue, he learned human language and absorbed her abundant emotions to grow.
While Yue Yiyue was out rescuing people, she was elsewhere watching how much the evil she had sown had grown. She also opened another instance, harvesting some souls as her spoils to strengthen herself, raise new alien monsters, and select the best ones.
The record shows her watching Yue Yiyue enter the instance that Gluttony had specially arranged for her, an instance from which she had no chance of escaping unscathed.
The reason Yue Yiyue couldn't escape unscathed was that the boss inside was Gu Nanqiu.
When everyone forced Yue Yiyue to sever ties with the monster Gu Nanqiu, and even forced Yue Yiyue to kill Gu Nanqiu with his own hands.
Yue Yiyue stood firmly beside Gu Nanqiu until her heart was pierced by the tentacle. Warm blood dripped down the tentacle onto the clothes Yue Yiyue had barely managed to save up for two months to buy for Gu Nanqiu.
Gently closing the notebook, Yue Yiyue felt the fog in his mind completely dissipate, and memories welled up like a spring.
I must mention that the well-designed shirt really suited Gu Nanqiu.
She sat there for half a minute to catch her breath before opening the notebook and continuing to read.
What followed was Gu Nanqiu's densely packed confession.
She repented for killing Yue Yiyue with her own hands, and for being so slow to appreciate that tender love.
Overwhelmed by longing and guilt, she made a decision: to bring Yue Yiyue back to life and give him the life he desired.
Yue Yiyue carefully savored the emotions expressed on the paper. Was there love?
Looking behind her, Gu Nanqiu split herself into seven clones, while her main body was placed in the deepest chaos, where it was constantly being eroded. This was one of her ways of atonement, to feel the pain that Yi Yue had endured.
After that, Gu Nanqiu made two more bets with the main god...
The words that followed were blurry and unclear. Yue Yiyue understood that this meant the God did not want her to know what the bet was.
————
Gu He stood there, nervously touching her hands.
The main deity has tampered with this place; she can't see the words in that book.
She had no idea what was written inside.
All she knew was that Yue Yiyue's expression was very strange.
She had a vague feeling that Yue Yiyue seemed to know everything.
But then she thought, maybe not.
If they knew the truth, they shouldn't be so calm.
After learning the truth in his previous life, Yi Yue had always wanted to find an opportunity to kill him.
Later, using a sliver of power obtained from the Supreme God, he directly slashed Gluttony into the Chaos, and then put the Forensic Doctor in there, using a method of guidance to help the Forensic Doctor completely tame Gluttony.
After doing this, Yi Yue probably wanted to kill his own original self.
Unfortunately, for some reason, Yue Yiyue didn't make a move.
Finally, it quietly curled up beside its original body, waiting for the body to collapse.
The main body could do nothing but watch Yue Yiyue's breathing, weak, until it disappeared.
Finally, his body was also taken away by the main god.
————
The room was extremely quiet. Gu He didn't dare to speak, and Yue Yiyue didn't want to speak.
She sat there somewhat bewildered, carefully considering the choice she had made.
She didn't understand why, even after being killed by Gu Nanqiu with her own hands, her heart still pounded when she saw his face.
She didn't understand why, after all they had been through, her love for Gu Nanqiu only grew stronger.
Was it because when she was little, only Gu Nanqiu, who was actually her mother, came to pick her up?
Was it because when she was little, only her younger sister, who was Gu Nanqiu in disguise, accompanied her?
It was because, after growing up, only Gu Nanqiu deliberately reunited with her and repeatedly told her that she loved her and that they would be happy forever.
Carefully recalling the past, Gu Nanqiu's atoning companionship was present at every stage, clinging to her side, taking root, and growing wildly.
Even Yue Yiyue's heart and bones were densely covered with Gu Nanqiu's name.
In the end, even he himself couldn't figure out what this feeling really was.
Do you hate it?
I truly don't hate them.
Do you love me?
Yue Yiyue couldn't deceive himself; no matter what, he felt love whenever he saw Gu Nanqiu.
"Don't bother arguing with a little monster who doesn't understand anything." This was the decision she made after picking up Gu Nanqiu and realizing the difference between him and herself.
But every family has its rules.
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