The red-haired little girl floated above the food street. She suddenly turned around and smiled, revealing two shark teeth.
"My name is Yi Tao, the only divine beast in the world."
"Behold me, God! Behold me, the devil!"
"Look at me, what am I?"
The question struck Cheng Shuang like a thunderbolt, bringing her back to her senses. She stood there in mid-air, only inches away from the little girl.
Recalling the beast form she had seen before, Cheng Shuang secretly took out two round divine beast carvings, carefully feeling them with her hands behind her back, her peach blossom eyes meeting those purple eyes tinged with a thin layer of gray without any fluctuation.
The intense aversion she felt clearly told her that at this moment, she was facing the mastermind behind the food street.
But soon this feeling gradually subsided, and the red-haired little girl in front of him was a grown-up version of Tao, from her facial features to her figure.
Tao is the past, Yi Tao is the present. He is a god in the eyes of the creatures that depend on him for survival in this realm, a demon in the eyes of the particle wanderers, and an enemy in the eyes of the protectors. But at this moment, in Cheng Shuang's heart, he is just... "Tao!"
The little girl's image slowly changed, her height suddenly shrank, and she returned to the appearance of the little boy with clear eyes.
Unfortunately, this transformation was short-lived, because in the minds of most creatures, there was now only Yi Tao, the mastermind behind the gourmet street, the highest-ranking among all the wanderers.
"You failed!" Yi Tao, who instantly reverted to her little girl persona, tilted her head, her expression devoid of any regret, even carrying a mocking tone. "Tao can't get out, you failed, he failed too! The game is over, can I eat you now!?"
She licked her shark teeth, her expression greedy and ferocious.
Cheng Shuang lowered her eyes silently, her mind extremely calm.
The gluttonous beast won't eat me for now; otherwise, it wouldn't be asking questions, but would pounce on me directly.
Tao is fighting with his future self for control of his body; Yi Tao is far more cunning than he imagined.
From the circular wooden carving on the carousel to the dreamlike night on the Ferris wheel, Yi Tao was guiding her, leading her back to Tao's past.
Cheng Shuang understood some things, but also didn't quite understand others.
But she soon realized what was going on.
Outside the fence, fine, dusty, smoggy particles churned in the sky. They never disappeared; on the contrary, their numbers increased without limit.
Tao mentioned that Yi Tao made great efforts to maintain harmony in this field.
The ability to time is part of what she has paid for. Another part is that she has to keep devouring the gray particles that are trying to take over this place. When she devours to a certain extent, even Yi Tao will not be able to hold on and will greedily devour herself again, giving rise to a brand new and stronger divine beast.
At that time, no one can predict how the mythical beasts, completely polluted by the gray particulate matter, will change.
Even if Cheng Shuang didn't want to admit it, the current Yi Tao was indeed more mysterious and authoritative than Tao, but he also lacked something indescribable.
Tao is saddened and distressed by the injuries and deaths of those who admire and worship him; he is somewhat endearingly approachable. But Yi Tao is not.
She lacks a heart that can empathize with all things, and is more like a reckless and cruel child, so the 'rules' in the food street are all games to please her.
"You've already asked a question. According to the rules of the game, can I ask a question next?" Cheng Shuang recalled Tao's words to her before she fell asleep: Don't give her a chance to hurt you. Without a chance, she can't afford to be distracted! Remember, time cannot be reversed.
The little girl guessed correctly; Yi Tao loved games. She condescended and nodded, "Okay!" She grinned, revealing her pearly white teeth, "If you lose, I'll eat you!"
She stretched out her hands from behind her back, revealing two round wooden carvings, and asked softly, "Which one is you?"
Yi Tao opened his mouth in utter surprise, then burst into laughter. "Which one of me? Which one of me? Is that your question? I'm right here! Right in front of you! They are all me, yet none of them are me!"
Cheng Shuang smiled too, gently stroking the sphere. Her gaze was no longer as cold and indifferent as when she looked at Yi Tao. "Wrong answer!"
Yi Tao quickly suppressed her laughter, coldly scoffing, "Lies? For tens of thousands of years, this has been my image!"
"No! That's not right!" The little girl held up the round wooden carving to show her. "The mythical beast carved in it is made of pottery, and the outer circle... represents me!"
Although she was unwilling to admit it, she clearly saw the boy who would become the head of the clan draw her image on the ground countless times, as well as that white anti-inflammatory pill. In the end, these two patterns were the reason why the round wooden sculpture truly took shape.
"You lost!" Cheng Shuang took the ball back and rubbed it against her cheek. "This is the adorable Tao, it was never you!"
The last remaining smile on Yi Tao's face vanished, and her fair and pretty face took on a sinister look.
"Do you know? Tao has long forgotten you!" Yi Tao said coldly, his tone empty as if he had seen through all the worldly affairs. "You are nothing more than an insignificant episode in his tens of thousands of years of life. Like a bird that you humans casually feed or a flower by the roadside, you are not even in his memory."
Cheng Shuang licked her lips. It was just a friendship between two children playing together. It was perfectly normal that she didn't remember her, and the little girl didn't feel frustrated.
She noticed the suspicious point in that statement.
How did Yi Tao know that Tao didn't have her in his memory? If she wasn't in his memory, how did Yi Tao find out about her?
Did Yi Tao use his time-traveling abilities to 'go back' to the past?
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