Chapter 295: The Crown of Mediocrity and Divinity (III)

Through inquiring with a few clerks, Xing learned that a figure named Zhishi Liuxin wields great influence among the clerks.

He is herself the top follower of Ms. Ruan Mei, having gathered a large group of people who respect and adore Ruan Mei in the space. Moreover, this "Lord" cannot be met at will; only those who, with sincere hearts, plaster "love hearts" all over the places Ms. Ruan Mei has passed will be granted his appearance.

Although it feels a bit perverse, this elusive Zhishi Liuxin indeed piqued Xing's interest; after plastering love hearts over a corner where Ruan Mei had passed, Xing actually sensed a movement behind her.

She turned around and saw an unknown creature resembling a baked bun hop onto the table, emitting a cute "woof woof woof" sound.

"Uh… this thing…" Xing's mind went a bit blank, "Is it the little life cultivated by Ruan Mei?"

From somewhere beside her, a clerk suddenly appeared, bowing respectfully toward the baked bun, "Honored to meet Zhishi Liuxin!"

Xing: "?"

The clerk noticed Xing still standing dumbfounded, making no respectful gesture, and hurriedly urged, "You! Why are you still staring? Oh, can't understand the Lord's language? No problem, to handle this we have specially prepared a synesthetic beacon!"

After activating the special synesthetic beacon, Xing indeed understood the baked bun's language; it hopped around, proud and excited, "Wakaka— I am a genius, the genius among geniuses!"

——

Fullmetal Alchemist.

"How is this done? Her creation not only has a soul, but also intelligence…"

Edward stared in disbelief at the baked bun in the sky, this little life could never be compared to a human, yet it possessed human emotions and thought patterns; even this single result—Miss Ruan Mei is unquestionably a scholar praised by everyone on the continent.

"Brother, 'Equivalent Exchange' is merely the law of our Alchemy. In a broader universe, perhaps they need not follow that principle," Alphonse promptly reminded from beside.

"I know, but the makeup of life is not just matter; the more important part is the 'soul'." Edward pushed open the window, looking at the two pots of fresh flowers on the sill, "If it were plants I wouldn't be surprised, but the biggest difference between plants and animals is the soul—Miss Ruan Mei being able to create intelligent life means she has deconstructed the 'soul'."

At this point, the two brothers simultaneously fell into silence. The wounds etched onto their souls in childhood began to ache faintly.

Back then, they used human Alchemy to resurrect their mother, gathering all the materials needed to construct a human, yet they failed to realize the weight of a soul far exceeded what the two of them could bear—ultimately this became the source of the brothers' tragedy.

"Brother, do you think such a possibility exists?"

Alphonse suddenly asked, "Miss Ruan Mei didn't 'create' a soul for this little creature, but extracted a human soul and placed it into this little animal?"

"Impossible," Edward reflexively denied, "How is this any different from that guy who used his own daughter to forge a chimera? Ms. Black Tower would never collaborate with such a person on research."

"Moreover, Alphonse… aren't you underestimating the members of the Genius Club? For this lady who wishes to become a Star God, perhaps 'creating life' is merely the most insignificant of her achievements—look at those clerks; none of them show surprise, probably because they're already accustomed to it."

——

After Xing deactivated the synesthetic beacon, Zhishi Liuxin's voice reverted to "woof woof woof".

The clerk beside her simply acted as its translator, pinching his throat and saying, "Zhishi Liuxin says: 'Ms. Ruan Mei finally recognized this genius!'"

"There is a kind of longing called the Creator; to the world you are just a person, but to me you are the whole world—ah! Ms. Ruan Mei!"

"……"

Xing rubbed her forehead; hearing Ruan Mei's delirious quotes made her head buzz.

Seeing Xing show no reaction after listening, the clerk also put on a stern face, hands on hips, beginning to suspect Xing's identity, thinking she not only doesn't express devotion to Zhishi Liuxin, but might also be a Dou Sha Hui Hui infiltrator.

"You heartless snack," Xing crossed her arms, staring at it coldly.

The remark startled the clerk; he noted that Zhishi Liuxin appears passionate, but in truth its inner self is very delicate, constantly competing in flavor with Dou Sha Hui Hui just to earn Ms. Ruan Mei's approval.

"But I have one thing I don't understand. This excellent Zhishi Liuxin, why doesn't it receive Ms. Ruan Mei's recognition? It truly longs for her love…"

"What kind of love?"

"I can't explain! I don't even know where the edge of the universe is, how could I know what 'love' is?"

——

Labyrinth Meal.

Ma Lu Xi Er held her staff, her brows furrowing tighter. Watching Zhishi Liuxin hop before the clerk, the elf's long ears twitched uneasily: "Hmm, Ruan Mei's behavior seems rather off…"

"She doesn't seem to care about these little creatures' mental states? How pitiful."

"For Ruan Mei, although they are lives she created, they are also failures—if she frequently pours too much emotion into failures, she probably wouldn't have achieved today's success," Qierchak said while packing his bag.

Ma Lu Xi Er pursed her lips: "…you make it sound like Ms. Ruan Mei is quite cold‑blooded."

"Is this even relevant? If they're failures…" Senxi pulled a gleaming dagger from his bag, "Just eat them outright; they look like food, apparently bred to resemble pastries—the taste should be quite good."

"Hey hey hey! How can they be eaten? They're so cute! And they have intelligence, can think, and even speak! No matter how you look, they don't seem edible!"

"Does having intelligence mean they can't be eaten?" Senxi took out pre‑dried slime, began slicing it into pieces for cooking, "There are many such monsters in the maze; we've eaten quite a few."

Senxi slowed his motions slightly: "We don't yet know if a creature like Zhishi Liuxin can reproduce; if it can, we could even set up a dedicated lab on a space station for breeding… repurposing these experimental failures seems quite promising."