Chapter 443: Trust

The world behind the rabbit hole was like a paradise.

In another gap of the dream, on the boundless plain, the grass was lush and green, a cool breeze blew from afar, and the sea of grass stirred up waves.

The members who had escaped the disaster slumped on the ground, looking at their surroundings blankly, crying and laughing, or just dazed; in just one night, there had been too many shocks, too many changes.

Whether sad or happy, it was all too overwhelming, leaving everyone exhausted and numb, unable to laugh or cry.

However, having long been accustomed to displacement, soon someone organized order again, seizing the time to rebuild the camp while patching up the wounded.

Yu Shu was so busy his feet didn't touch the ground, rapidly stitching up the torn-apart wounded, injecting spiritual essence to catalyze healing as quickly as possible. Soon, amidst wailing and groaning, one complete or incomplete person after another was pieced back together.

In the haste, there was no time to distinguish, and awkward situations often occurred where someone else's hand or foot was sewn onto oneself; they could only wait for Yu Shu to finish his work before swapping them back.

The place the old codger brought out was indeed a good one.

Those who went to scout the surroundings even discovered several springs; the water was sweet, and colorful fish swam inside—truly not knowing which beautiful dream it was a remnant of.

Amidst the busyness, the supplies loaded earlier were all unloaded; most were equipment and tools painstakingly crafted by hand, and even food that could boost morale.

Yet, there were not many materials like cloth, wood, or steel; it was a drop in the bucket, completely insufficient.

Everyone could only temporarily lie on the ground to rest.

After understanding the specific situation, Bao Dachai, who had always been slacking off, sighed; since he had already done the work, he might as well finish it, sending the Buddha to the west—it didn't matter if he did a little more.

"Everyone move back, clear out an open space."

He took off the strange-looking hat on his head, held it in his hand, stretched it, and straightened it until it looked like a bucket.

The hat was placed on the ground with the opening facing up, and then he took out a small trumpet and started blowing at the bucket-hat; amidst the strange, off-key trumpet sounds, the bucket-shaped hat began to vibrate violently.

Immediately after, as if vomiting, a large amount of messy things shot out!

Tarpaulins, stones, iron sheets, broken wood splinters, rotten furniture, torn skirts...

Most of them were fragments, with very few complete items; looking closely, there was even half a treatment chair from Yu Shu's clinic in the original camp.

Almost everything was from the previous camp.

Hmm, mixed in were some bits of flesh from who knows where, corpse parts, twisted armor iron sheets, and broken weapons... but no one cared about that anymore.

Witnessing the miracle happening before their eyes, everyone couldn't help but cheer again.

Even Ji Jue, standing to the side, couldn't help but clap.

It really is Nirvana.

Whether the heritage of the Mohists of the past is lofty or not is one thing, but this essence of the gene to run away with a bucket at any time and place has truly been passed down.

A trip that says go, goes.

And this set of strange equipment and skills made Ji Jue suspect that this old codger had no culture shock at all in this dream.

He was completely like a fish in water.

Heart Pivot, Aether, and Mirror—the three supreme goods that constitute this Dream of the Yellow Millet—you, Strange Tale Alchemy, have occupied them all!

If it weren't for having some trust in the style of the Mohists and the anti-social degree of Nirvana, Ji Jue would have suspected he was an undercover agent planted by the other side...

"As expected of Strange Tale Alchemy, it really is an Ether Eye-opener."

"A mere petty trick, not worth mentioning."

The old codger's face still wore a kind and gentle smile, just like an old man cooling off on the street corner, and the bucket-like hat in his hand had returned to its original state.

The hat opening seemed exhausted, as if panting, emitting a wisp of blue smoke.

After patting it, he put it back on his head.

Ji Jue sighed silently.

Sure enough, it looked so strange no matter how you looked at it...

"What's wrong?"

Bao Dachai grinned, "Is it very ugly?"

"No, it's nothing."

Ji Jue shook his head slowly: "In terms of taste, I'm not qualified to say anything about others, it's just, I feel..."

He paused, even he himself was amused by his own thought: "This hat looks like a snake that swallowed an elephant."

"..."

Bao Dachai was silent, his expression twitching slightly.

As if stunned, his expression was inexplicable.

Even the edge of the hat, which looked like a snake, tilted slightly, as if it were also looking at him.

"What's wrong?" Ji Jue was puzzled, feeling that perhaps he had made a slip of the tongue, "Ah, sorry, it's just..."

"No, it's nothing."

Bao Dachai grinned, revealing a mouthful of old yellow teeth, and said to him: "The hat is very happy."

"Ah?"

Ji Jue was dumbfounded.

Bao Dachai raised his hand, pointed at the tilting brim, and said with great interest: "Look, it says thank you."

Ji Jue didn't know what to say.

Completely incomprehensible, mystical and rambling—is this Strange Tale Alchemy?

It was truly impossible to understand with common sense and logic.

It was too inexplicable.

"As the saying goes, old things develop spirits; perhaps Mr. Ji, you are the kind of person they particularly like." Bao Dachai tapped the brim of the hat, then shook the strange doll pendants inside his clothes: "They are all chattering; it's rare to see them so interested in others."

Ji Jue shrugged regretfully, "Unfortunately, I can't hear anything."

"It doesn't matter, things like affinity and compatibility don't lie in words."

Bao Dachai waved his hand and walked away with his hands behind his back: "Rest first, Mr. Ji; if there's anything later, just come find me. When a person gets old, they get sleepy, and their spirit is exhausted..."

He yawned, took out a turkey-like doll from his pocket, threw it on the ground, and it immediately expanded in the sunlight.

Soon, a strange-looking treehouse rose from the ground, with strange-looking pillars underneath, like chicken feet.

If he had still been concerned about his persona of being old, weak, and helpless before, after being exposed by Ji Jue, he simply couldn't be bothered to act anymore.

He just did it straightforwardly.

Just as everyone in the camp was busy rebuilding, Ji Jue sat on the side watching quietly, suddenly feeling he had nowhere to go.

Bored, he wandered around and walked two circles before realizing that the familiar figure was missing from the crowd.

Wen Wen.

Only on a distant hillside could he see the girl's lonely back.

Ji Jue was stunned for a long time before realizing that the version update was too fast, and he hadn't reacted yet... Don't say, Sister Wen's current appearance, so small, hmm, is actually quite cute.

Not even as tall as his shoulder.

Although he himself was still in a prosthetic state.

He couldn't imagine that one day, he would actually see her like this.

"Sister Wen? Sister Wen!"

Ji Jue carried the things in his hands, walked up, and called out; after calling for a long time and finding she didn't react, he could only pat her shoulder: "Little Sister, come back to your senses."

"..."

After a long time, following a crisp collision sound, Wen Wen seemed to finally come to her senses, as if waking from a dream, and then, turned her head and glared: "What did you just call me?"

"Sister Wen, ah."

Ji Jue blinked his innocent big eyes, looking blank, secretly holding back laughter.

It won't do, this immature face, showing the usual expression, felt like a child learning to lose their temper like an adult, "milky and fierce..."

Pfft!

It wasn't until he was hammered that Ji Jue realized he had accidentally said his inner thoughts out loud.

Whether it was intentional or accidental, it was truly hard to distinguish.

Seeing Wen Wen about to clench her iron fist again to establish her majesty, he immediately raised his hands to beg for mercy: "Don't hit yet, Sister, don't hit yet, look at what this is?"

As he spoke, he shook the glass bottle in his hand.

Rich foam rippled from the freshly made glass bottle, carrying

a hint of chill and a refreshing fragrance.

"Beer?"

Wen Wen was shocked, forgetting to hammer Ji Jue's dog head: "Where did it come from?"

"Just picked up half a bag of dirty wheat, washed it clean, catalyzed it a bit, anyway, alchemy... I managed to get some results, but I haven't studied brewing, just followed the fermentation process; don't expect the taste to be very good."

Ji Jue lifted the beer mug in his other hand and handed it over:

"At least, there's plenty of ice."

Wen Wen didn't stand on ceremony, tilted her head, and drank it in one gulp; after wiping the foam from the corner of her mouth, she sighed lightly after a long time, exhaling a trace of breath: "It really has been... a long time..."

God knows how many years she had been stifled in this place; a cup of beer down, and she actually felt a moving urge to tear up.

"What are you doing here?" Ji Jue asked curiously.

"Just..."

Wen Wen was silent for a moment, wanting to speak but stopping, a bitter smile: "Just consider it me wanting to escape reality and be quiet for a while... In the past, staying alone, everything I thought about gave me a headache, but now that the burden can be unloaded, I'm actually too tired to want to do anything..."

"Normal."

Ji Jue picked up the home-brewed beer and took two sips: "After all, you aren't good at this set at all; for a makeshift group to persist for so long, it really was hard on you."

"Hey, you can't say anything nice, can you?!"

"Just telling the truth."

Ji Jue asked curiously: "Sister Wen, you wouldn't happen to think you are that kind of Heavenly Origin Superman with superb leadership and a call for all to respond, right?"

"Forget it..."

Wen Wen rolled her eyes herself and lay down, leaning on the lawn: "A stubborn guy like me, when encountering things, can't help but want to swing my fists, unable to distinguish the situation, unable to see what's good or bad, and don't know what's good or bad... Truly reaching that level would be harming others and myself."

"Whether it's good or bad, let's not mention it, but I think it's quite good." Ji Jue shrugged: "At least trustworthy, reassuring."

"Tch, you start saying nice things at this time."

Wen Wen squinted, her mouth complaining, but she couldn't help but curve her lips.

In the long silence, after a long time, several times, she wanted to speak but stopped; Ji Jue also waited silently, until she finally seemed to have made up her mind, sighed, propped up her body, and looked at Ji Jue seriously.

"I'm sorry, Ji Jue."

Wen Wen apologized solemnly, "I'm very sorry to have dragged you into this muddy water."

It's just that, that immature face, paired with such a serious and solemn look, always gave people a feeling of being unable to help but laugh.

It's broken, after becoming a little sister, all majesty is gone, leaving only cuteness.

Ji Jue smiled and didn't say anything.

He didn't care.

Even if he hadn't been meddlesome, hadn't touched that, and it was none of his business, if it was because Wen Wen was dragged in, he wouldn't care either.

Rather, if he could help, he would be quite happy.

Seeing Ji Jue's indifferent look, Wen Wen felt even more guilty: "Actually, originally I planned..."

"—You planned to write a resignation letter after waking up, throw it on the desk in the North Mountain District, then go beat up the guy who fixes motorcycles, get your money back, fill up the gas, and drive over directly from the sea?"

Ji Jue interrupted her words and said bluntly.

"..."

Wen Wen stiffened, her expression twitched, and the originally serious expression gradually couldn't hold up.

Her gaze dodged, unable to hide her guilty conscience.

Just as Ji Jue expected, the guesses and premonitions, just like what he saw in the dream...

Completely seen through!

Yet Ji Jue had no consideration at this time, instead pressing step by step.

"What's wrong, Sister Wen, why aren't you talking?"

He leaned his head curiously, examining Wen Wen's expression: "Is it because you don't like it?"

Wen Wen immediately glared, puffed up, and threw a punch.

Ha, expected it!

Ji Jue grinned, having already set up a blocking posture in advance.

Didn't expect it? This punch was also in my pre... Pfft!

With a bang, the iron hand was actually smashed with one punch.

Bent at ninety degrees.

He started sweating.

No, Big Sister, how come you have so much strength?

Something's not right, in this dream, didn't everyone lack blessings and matrices...

However, seeing that expression, Ji Jue suddenly felt that sometimes it's a good thing to be in a dream.

Ji Jue couldn't help but smile: "Sister Wen, you look so incompetently furious, actually quite cute."

"..."

Wen Wen looked at him gloomily, not speaking; perhaps she also knew in her heart that she really couldn't do anything about this dog thing, but after a long time, she suddenly asked curiously: "Ji Jue, do you intend to stay in here for the rest of your life and not go out?"

"..."

Why does this person always go offline to verify others! Can't take a joke at all!

The situation is stronger than the person; in order not to be beaten up by someone breaking in while he was eating hot pot and singing in the workshop, Ji Jue could only beg for mercy obediently.

"I'm sorry, I was wrong!"

"Hmph, stinky brat..."

Wen Wen snorted, raised her head triumphantly, seemed to realize her current appearance, coughed twice, and pretended to be very serious.

Then, she heard Ji Jue's voice.

"Tong Hua is still crying very sadly."

Ji Jue suddenly said: "Xiao An also can't react, just like family members left each other behind and walked away; Old Zhang keeps sighing, really like an old man whose family has had something happen..."

Wen Wen's smile stiffened.

Silence.

"Although these didn't happen, I've seen them all in the dream, Sister Wen."

Ji Jue turned his head to look at her: "If it weren't a dream, I probably would have called a bunch of people, flattened that damn archipelago with cannons, and then, put some label on you and dragged you back; even if you would be angry, I would definitely do it.

At that time, if you went to apologize one by one, it would be very awkward, right?"

Wen Wen shook her head: "I just..."

"You just don't want to trouble others, I know."

Ji Jue interrupted her words again and said bluntly: "When something happens, you don't say anything and carry it all by yourself... Others will feel you have responsibility and backbone, but that's ultimately for 'others', right?"

He paused, no longer hiding his annoyance, "But for those who truly empathize with you, such a reclusive appearance is too untrusting, right?

Even if the North Mountain Group doesn't have many people, everyone doesn't want to be excluded by you, Sister Wen."

No matter how big the thing is, Xiao An will have a way, Old Zhang will have a way, Hanhan will have a way, and he himself will have many ways.

Even if he couldn't solve it, couldn't handle it, at worst, he would lower his face to beg the teacher, or even... lower his head to beg that old codger Tian Lu?

Ji Jue was unhappy because of this, but helpless.

Wen Wen didn't speak.

Just as if stunned, looking at him.

After a long time, she suddenly laughed.

Happy and grateful.

Just like crystal wiped clean of dust, under the sunlight, it was dazzling and breathtaking.

"Thank you, Ji Jue." She said sincerely.

Ji Jue was puzzled, looking at her suspiciously, but she didn't seem to intend to explain, just picked up the wine glass, tilted her head, and drank the long-lost sweetness in one gulp,

"Then, I'll trouble you with the things that follow."

She got up from the ground, patted Ji Jue's shoulder one last time, and just like that, humming a song, she walked away.

Her steps were light, as if she had unloaded a ten-thousand-pound burden.

Only Ji Jue was left in place, scratching his head blankly: Did he awaken some thousand-year-unseen talent for verbal combat, and the effect of talk therapy was so amazing that after a few words, Sister Wen was cured?

Not right, right? What kind of dream is he having...

Embers shouldn't fantasize, and don't think about it, did Heart Pivot look at you that year?

He didn't understand at all what had happened!

Confused, yet helpless.

He lowered his head to look at the beer in the glass, tilted his head, drank it all, chewed the ice, and stepped toward the camp that was gradually revealing its outline.

He didn't understand what was going on, but let's work first.

Just do it!

Time reached that evening.

Perhaps it was evening.

When the sky changed and dusk appeared, in the square in the center of the camp, all members gathered in one place again, dense and dark.

In the deathly silence, no one spoke.

In the silent chaos, everyone was peeking and poking, wanting to occupy a high place to get a clearer view of the whole picture, to see clearly... that broken behemoth locked under layers of metal bandages.

Just like a crushed wheel.

Less than one-third of its original size.

The so-called... 'Angel'!

Once high and mighty, the incredible messenger of God, now dying and shackled on the execution platform, even struggling and making a sound had become a luxury.

So embarrassed, so ridiculous.

Making it impossible to look away.

But in the end, everyone's gaze couldn't help but look further ahead, at the figure sitting lazily on the angel's remains.

And even, in his hand, that pitch-black revolver.

In the past, a toy everyone disdained, now seemed to possess magical power, making their gazes feel a burst of heat, scorching.

In their eyes, bloodshot appeared.

"Everyone, just as I promised before, the turning point has arrived."

Ji Jue raised his head, staring at those faces, without a smile, and not serious, just telling them in a matter-of-fact tone: "Even an angel who is high and mighty and invincible will eventually meet death at the hands of mortals.

Next, all of you will witness it with your own eyes.

However, before that, there is one more problem that must be solved..."

He paused, and before the crowd could stir, he raised the thing in his other hand, a silver bullet, refracting the crystalline light of the bonfire and the setting sun.

"There is only one bullet, and only one angel."

Click, with a crisp sound, the bullet was loaded into the cylinder, closed, and chambered.

And then, Ji Jue held the gun backward and handed it toward the crowd in front of him, staring at their confused or shocked expressions, and suddenly laughed.

Just like a devil handing out a contract and a quill, so expectant.

"Who's coming?"

Then, immediately following, Ji Jue held his pistol by the barrel and extended it toward the crowd before him; gazing at their confused or perhaps shocked expressions, he suddenly began to laugh.

Just like a devil offering a contract and a quill, so expectant.

"Who's next?"