“And that concludes today’s livestream! See you all tomorrow, my dear friends!”
Just like any other day, Lin Xuan ended her stream. She set her phone down and exhaled a long, drawn-out sigh.
‘Phew, another day of work done. I’m so tired!’
A pair of fluffy ears on her head twitched. She then collapsed onto the counter, letting out soft, cooing sounds.
‘Writing isn’t an option, not in this lifetime. I’m no good at a regular job, so I can only rely on occasional livestreams to make a living…’
“Woof~”
The small, white furball, currently curled into a trembling ball, shivered beneath the counter.
Earlier that afternoon, the little dog had suddenly become rowdy, possibly energized after a good meal. Lin Xuan, noticing its dirty fur, had seized the opportunity to drag it into the bathroom for a bath while subduing it.
Truth be told, although the puppy had looked scruffy when she found it, after its bath, it exuded the aura of a pedigree dog. It was surprisingly handsome, if a bit too excitable.
Several times, it had tried to nip at Lin Xuan’s hand, but its adorable little fangs only made her giggle with delight.
For some inexplicable reason, as dusk settled, the puppy seemed to have been startled by something. It remained huddled beneath the counter, completely motionless.
Lin Xuan even wondered if the little creature was afraid of the dark.
But then again…
‘It’s so comfortable just lying here like a salted fish.’
‘If only I could stay like this forever~’
‘To be honest, this transformation has been quite useful… I just wonder when I’ll be able to change back…’
Lin Xuan muttered to herself, a casual complaint escaping her lips, before she sat up from her prone position.
Footsteps echoed from outside the door.
No sooner had Lin Xuan lifted her head than the door swung open.
A blonde woman stood at the entrance. She appeared to be seventeen or eighteen, a little younger than Lin Xuan.
Noticing the arrival of a guest, Lin Xuan promptly rose from her chair. After assessing the woman’s attire, she offered a professional smile.
“Welcome, honored guest… Are you here to buy flowers?”
****
Atoris stood frozen, a dazed expression on her face.
In her ears, a series of electronic sensor malfunctions seemed to reverberate.
Innumerable facts and test cases had shown that high-level individuals among Soul-devouring Beasts and the endless terrifying monsters born of curses possessed the ability to release an unknown energy.
Humanity tentatively named this ‘Dark Energy.’ All humans who came near it, or even attempted to communicate with it, would have their consciousness unknowingly twisted, their bodies collapse, and descend into madness and destruction.
After countless bloody sacrifices, humanity, combining the most advanced scientific and technological achievements of the old world and the new era, developed high-energy sensors.
These sensors could greatly shield against the influence of the unknown energy. Through innumerable death-defying tests, it was proven that these sensors could accurately detect energy data, even from monarch-level entities, and significantly block the opponent’s Dark Energy influence.
And now, merely by attempting a scan, all of these sensors had been rendered useless. What did this imply?
The mere thought sent shivers down Atoris’s spine!
She still remembered the alarms that had blared in her ears the moment she stepped inside. An almost impossible word flashed through her mind, striking her as utterly absurd.
Yet, having endured countless horrors, she knew that remaining calm was paramount in this situation. She absolutely could not provoke the entity before her!
Atoris swallowed hard and took a deep breath, striving to compose herself.
“Do you… sell flowers here?”
Although she knew that what she spoke and what ‘It’ spoke were not the same language, she was inexplicably convinced that ‘It’ could understand her meaning, for what ‘It’ had just spoken was also not their language.
****
“Yes, I do.”
Listening to the other party’s surprisingly fluent Chinese, Lin Xuan’s face showed a hint of understanding. She had suspected as much the moment she first saw her, and now her guess was confirmed.
This appeared to be a mixed-race young lady.
However, the girl seemed a little nervous. Though she concealed it well on the surface, Lin Xuan had met many such customers.
After scrutinizing the girl from head to toe, Lin Xuan’s face broke into a knowing smile.
“Young lady, I believe I have a flower you’ll like here. Would you care to see it?”
In recent years, with the rise of the gaming and anime industries, cosplay had gradually become popular. Dressing up as beloved characters or various anime figures, livestreaming, becoming a content creator… many beautiful and adorable ‘young ladies’ had made a fortune this way.
Despite this, many parents remained uncomprehending, viewing such activities as meaningless, a waste of money, and even morally corrupt… More importantly, it would bring shame upon them!
As a popular streamer, Lin Xuan deeply understood this. Having grown up in a family with relatively strict discipline, she was keenly aware of the terrifying consequences if her adoptive parents were to discover her cross-dressing as a streamer.
If her guess was correct, the girl before her was likely one of those who loved role-playing but faced firm parental opposition, forced to sneak out to participate in anime conventions. She had heard there was one nearby recently.
Furthermore, she recognized the lantern the girl held. If she wasn’t mistaken, it was one she had given to a chuunibyou youth last month. It was one of the lower-quality lanterns from that batch, with a noticeably shorter handle, which was why Lin Xuan remembered it clearly.
Given that the previous youth who came had a similar strict family situation, Lin Xuan categorized this girl as the same type. However, more than that, for this young lady to come buy flowers so late, she must be a true flower enthusiast! This sale seemed guaranteed today!
****
Atoris watched silently as the peerless beauty stepped into the boundless chaos.
That endless sea of chaos was like an all-consuming black hole, profound and impenetrable.
And in the wake of her steps, patterns like thick ink slowly flowed.
Within the chaotic mist, colossal dark figures shimmered into view. Their forms were bizarre, and each held a staff-like object placed near what appeared to be their mouths.
With just a fleeting glance, Atoris felt countless frenzied wills forcibly poured into her mind.
She quickly averted her gaze, but simultaneously, violent and cruel stares pierced through the chaos. They scrutinized this minuscule ant, uttering forbidden words that instantly plunged Atoris into an icy abyss.
Her body’s instinct screamed for her to flee, yet her rationality compelled her to remain rooted to the spot, unmoving.
She knew that against such supreme power, an ant like herself had no room to struggle. Why had ‘It’ appeared? Why had ‘It’ allowed her to come here?
A transaction? Or…
Her gaze fell upon the lantern she carried. As if possessed, Atoris recalled a saying currently circulating among humans, a ‘prophecy’ supposedly left behind by that great race.
“The old are dying, the path ahead has not yet arrived. Faced with uncontrollable circumstances, humanity always laments its powerlessness… But at fate’s steepest precipice, if one yearns to reach the pinnacle, the Supreme Sovereign shall cast ‘Its’ playful gaze upon them…”
“Then struggle! Do your utmost to please ‘It’…”
“Perhaps, you will discover the truth of the world… or perish completely.”
****