Chapter 194: Each on Their Own

On the other side of Silver City, Dai Li Ke·Bo Ge's house.

Dai Li Ke, who had been relaxed, suddenly started coughing violently, as if his heart might burst from it.

Cough! Cough! Cough!

Dai Li Ke had to bend over, coughing continuously, until his throat itched and he coughed up something!

A semi‑transparent worm dropped to the floor with a "snap!"

It was the size and thickness of a fingertip, with some completely transparent spots on its body forming concentric rings—twelve rings in total.

Dai Li Ke had seen a similar thing before, at the base of the round tower, when the chief eliminated the former expedition squad leader that A Meng had turned into his own duplicate.

He bent down, picked up the semi‑transparent worm, and quietly examined its lifeless, translucent body.

What is it? What is it for? Dai Li Ke fell into contemplation.

On the boundless Suniya Sea, waves rose and fell endlessly, while a ghost ship sailed smoothly on the surface without any sign of rocking.

Inside the captain's cabin, the upside‑down A'erjie, dressed as a storm priest and holding a brass‑colored sextant, sat with his eyes closed in meditation.

Silently, a smile appeared on his face.

"Finally finished digesting. The crystal feather of the Blue Shadow Hawk and the eye of the Dragon Eye Sea Eagle are still missing; I hope the next Tarot Assembly will bring some good news."

A'erjie opened his eyes, made a slight upward hand gesture, and points of azure suddenly appeared all around.

They intertwined and converged, forming a massive wave sweeping forward.

A'erjie pressed both hands, and the surging wave instantly shattered, turning into countless droplets that fell onto the deck.

During the four months at sea, he continuously completed various missions assigned by the Church, and deliberately explored new sea routes to find undiscovered islands.

This gradually taught him the Navigator's Role Guidelines: master sea routes and weather information; explore and discover!

Inside the luxurious villa of Count Hol's family in Beckland, Queen District.

Ao Daili and the golden‑retriever dog Su Xi, squatting at her feet, patiently and enjoyably studied psychology.

Seated on the other side was Yi Si Lan Te, a member sent by the Psychological Alchemy Society to approach her!

"You truly have a talent in this area!"

Yi Si Lan Te unabashedly expressed her admiration for Ao Daili.

After saying that, she looked up at the ornate, intricate wall clock, smiled, and said:

"Time's up. Today's lesson ends here, Miss Ao Daili; if you're interested in this school of psychology, we can continue the topic next time."

"Alright." Ao Daili lifted her skirt slightly, rose, and bowed.

As she watched the other leave, she nodded thoughtfully.

Ms. Yi Si Lan Te's demeanor didn't seem like that of a real "psychologist"; at most, like me, she's a "mind‑reader."

What she just told me must be the basic theory of the Psychological Alchemy Society.

Sigh. Why haven't they recruited me yet?

Standing beside Ao Daili, the golden retriever Su Xi shook its head and said happily:

"Ao Daili, I feel she's the same kind of person as us—no, the same kind of dog—no, that's wrong. Woof!"

Su Xi, still not mastering human language, fell into confusion and could only cover the embarrassment with a bark.

Inside the house at No. 15 Mingsike Jie.

Ke Lai En, a bit awkward, picked up the assorted ingredients he had just bought, preparing to make himself a plate of fried rice with egg.

After battling various kitchen tools and the stove, he finally produced a fragrant pot of egg fried rice, served with cured meat and black tea, and ate it to the point of nearly tearing up.

"What a nostalgic and moving flavor."

Before Ke Lai En could sigh, a silver spoon reached into his plate and scooped out a spoonful of the fried rice.

Ke Lai En looked up at Lei Ke Dun, who had appeared silently in his room, his gaze following his own inspiration, scanning the surroundings; the layout of his dining area seemed to overlap with a familiar place.

"How did you do that?" Ke Lai En asked curiously.

He again scooped a spoonful of fried rice from Ke Lai En's plate, slammed it into his mouth, swallowed, and, still wanting more, licked his lips and said:

"I've made no progress lately on the secret arts of emotion and desire, so to ease the pressure I turned to studying the spatial abilities of the gateway path."

"It seems you've achieved good results."

Ke Lai En looked around, roughly understanding that the other had stitched and overlapped his study with his dining room.

But why could he pull a spoon out of the study!

Lei Ke Dun, leaning back against the chair, said in a very natural tone:

"I have a habit of snacking, and the study is where I spend most of my time, so some utensils aren't strange."

Ke Lai En silently nodded; he didn't really want to discuss the topic, and instead said:

"Do you know of anything suitable for me to perform, or any venues?"

"I can't think of where I could go to play a magician."

Lei Ke Dun rubbed his chin with his right hand and said:

"A circus? The Red Angel demon from the underground ruins of the Fourth Era Tutu Dynasty? Or that little boy Will·Ang Sai Ting who gave Dr. Ai Lun bad luck."

Ke Lai En, speechless, said helplessly:

"The circus performance probably wouldn't be great; as for the Red Angel demon, I need to perform, but I don't have to risk my life."

"That odd boy Will·Ang Sai Ting, I'll go to the Krag Club on Friday or Sunday to ask Dr. Ai Lun about him!"

Seeing Ke Lai En's orderly analysis, Lei Ke Dun nodded slightly, pondering the Beckland storyline, and said:

"Ziman Ge Party, I've recently been looking to have them test a newly crafted wondrous item; if you have ideas, you can join."

"Ziman Ge Party?" Ke Lai En murmured.

He was familiar with that gang; when he first arrived in Beckland, he'd been assassinated once by a "executioner" of the Ziman Ge Party sent by Ambassador Inditis.

Dong—!

A knocking sound came from the living‑room door.

"You have a visitor."

Lei Kedun whispered a sentence, then raised his right hand and snapped his fingers with a "Snap!"

His figure, the surrounding bookshelves, chairs, and other items clearly not belonging to the dining hall all vanished.

In Qiao Wood District, troubled by the fact that the illusionist master lacked the gold coins to buy the magical potion ingredients, Fo Er Si sped up the progress of the new book.

But writing a book isn't something you can produce just by wanting to; lacking inspiration, she rubbed the pen on the desk for a long while yet couldn't write a single word.

Fo Er Si, a bit irritated, scratched her hair and decided to go out for a walk to seek inspiration.

As she walked, she unknowingly returned to a familiar place—a private clinic where she had worked earliest.

After staring for a while, she recalled the old lady who had led her into the extraordinary world.

In a daze, she turned into the right‑hand alley and arrived at a nearby street.

Fo Er Si remembered that the old lady lived in house No. 39; back then she would occasionally bring medicine or give injections, even helping with some daily chores.

Fo Er Si walked beneath a plane tree that had almost no leaves left, slowly approaching house No. 39.

Because the memories resurfaced, she gradually found some writing inspiration.

At that moment, she saw an old man in a heavy wool coat and a half‑high black top hat standing at the door of house No. 39, knocking three times.

After a few minutes, still no one opened the door; the old man with azure eyes shook his head, turned, and prepared to leave.

Turning around, he saw Fo Er Si lingering not far away, looking this way.

He hurried forward, walked over, and with a gentle yet urgent tone smiled:

"Beautiful lady, do you live in this neighborhood? Do you know Lao Boluo and An Lisha?"

Fo Er Si said hesitantly:

"I'm not sure the Mrs. An Lisha I know is the one you're looking for; she lived here for a long time, but she passed away three years ago."

"She died three years ago? What about Lao Boluo?"

The old man before her immediately asked further.

Fo Er Si answered honestly, "Her husband died even earlier than she did."

"Thank you, kind lady."

"I am Lao Boluo's brother, have lived in Jianhai County all along; because it's been too long since I received any letters from them, I decided to come and see."

"Could you tell me about their experiences during those years?"

The brother of Mrs. An Lisha's husband must be the descendant of the family you mentioned, right?

Fo Er Si felt a hint of wariness, suppressed her thoughts, and smiled in reply:

"No problem."

The old man's azure eyes scanned the surroundings, then pointed to the side behind and said:

"There's a nice café over there."

(End of chapter)