Chapter 6

Kailifu: 【Your foster father is really overboard, eh, you've watched all your monster Mewtwos and still haven't solved the problem, isn't this just tricking you into watching your Mewtwo?】

Snake: 【Indeed, but I don't mind him freeloading on the Mewtwos, it's just that he completely didn't respond to 【whether those Mewtwos have any relation to my psychology and bloodline】, and even thought I didn't need a medical check-up, but he readily agreed to the trip to Heaven's Gate City.】

Kailifu: 【Ahaha, I think Little Snake, as long as you like monsters it's fine, I like monsters and it has nothing to do with bloodline, liking is just liking.】

Snake: 【If only it could be that simple, Kailifu, do you have any worries lately?】

Kailifu: 【Eh? Why ask that?】

Snake: 【Feeling like this one-sided venting of worries is just dumping trash.】

Kailifu: 【Little Snake wants to share the trash with me?】

Snake: 【Mutually dumping trash will lighten the guilt a bit.】

Kailifu: 【How blunt, Little Snake's blunt style! But Little Snake's worries aren't trash, because they're related to monsters.】

Snake: 【That's enough, ordinary monster fans can't reach your level.】

Kailifu: 【Hehehe.】

Taking such a Sinicized name, yet his way of speaking always carries a hint of femininity, and his linguistic style also has a touch of the Jidong area; Aomo naturally suspected more than once that this online friend was actually a woman, even a young woman.

But thinking back to how the other party initiated contact, the reason was seeing my monster discussion post on a certain tokusatsu forum... he felt he was being too influenced by Bi Ze, who constantly shouted 'cherry blossom girl'.

Because the probability is really too low.

First, tokusatsu originally was a niche hobby, and tokusatsu itself focuses on the heroic side.

It's not that monsters can't become heroes, it's just that even when they do, they're mostly just embellishments.

Sentai, Kamen Rider, Ultraman, Garo... ——these are the focus, while the corresponding monsters, freaks, Hora... and the like exist solely to shape them.

This latter field obviously belongs to a more refined hobby.

Either one must have abnormal mentality, or be an exceptionally veteran tokusatsu enthusiast to get into it.

Simply put, a niche within a niche.

And within such a niche within a niche, to have a young woman from the Jidong area...

Such a probability... with this luck, you might as well try a gacha game, or open a betting site and randomly place a bet on an Umamusume—

——After dinner earlier, Aomo re-watched the Gaoyue Prize recording.

Morisen has followed horse racing much longer than Aomo, but when it comes to watching horses, he's far less than the foster son; Aomo can be confident that the Eastern Sea Emperor's performance in the race is temporarily fine, maintaining it will give enough advantage, perhaps after the Gaoyue Prize he could still go for a championship at the Jidong Derby at the end of June; as for the rest...

Le Aonata'er and Xitabulei are unlikely to participate; after the newly registered Umamusume loses the Gaoyue Prize, they will undergo a second round of long-term preparation, interspersed with some minor races.

Because the lineup for the next horse race is undecided, this matter is also temporarily put on hold.

Morisen, at the dinner table, made a belated show of concern, asking why I came home so early today, and why I didn't go out to play more with Bi Ze's little buddy.

Then, when Aomo asked about Mewtwo, the result was just like the opening conversation between Aomo and that Kailifu.

Kailifu is an extremely divine netizen; he and Aomo have known each other for two years. Compared to Aomo, who is still researching monster design aesthetics and looking for monster traces, Kailifu is of extremely high purity, belonging to the type who is willing to listen and chat about anything related to monsters.

Monster literature, monster imagery, monster documentaries, and even pure complaints related to the monster tag.

However, even after knowing each other for two years, they rarely mention life topics; it's purely an online friend intersection.

However, even if they're pure online friends, in this era where technology prevails, VR games and VR chat rooms are standard; even decades ago there was an urban legend: a certain VR game could affect reality, just by participating in a game you could obtain real-world acceleration qualifications.

Just like the news of Noah Ultraman, it's a tiny ripple in the ocean of the internet; before anyone could figure out what was going on, the Two Worlds Safety Bureau had already announced it was handling it.

But this isn't important.

What matters is sufficiently developed VR chat room technology.

Being able to allow the construction of immersive custom chat spaces and personal model modeling is the mainstream of chat rooms today.

Modeling people, you know, everyone knows what that means.

Some people can spend over an hour just modeling people; others, to save time, scan themselves and make slight modifications; still others, too lazy to be thorough, directly apply someone else's sent template data; moreover, some inherit part of the FF14 players' tradition, fantasy potion bathwater tons tons tons, meaning they change their appearance or even species every so often, which is truly like a Ditto.

Aomo, whose ID is 【Snake】, didn't give himself a serpentine body to feel what it's like to crawl with no limbs or degenerated limbs.

He modeled a demon.

Over two meters tall, covered in scales, with black horns and black tail, fingertips sharp and with numerous cracks emitting some firelight—this is the result following the foster father's suggestion.

In VR chat rooms, modeling people isn't just changing appearance; you can also act with that form. Most chat rooms have fixed races to choose from, these fixed races are all real-world existing races, and their feature is that they completely follow real-world bodily structure.

This also gives users the chance to experience the bodies of other races.

The foster father thought that perhaps after he awakens his bloodline later, he might develop some racial traits, let alone directly becoming a demon; before that, he can get used to it more in the chat room.

Get used to having horns on the head, a tail behind, and even the feeling of a pair of wings.

As for higher vision, larger palms and longer fingers... these details need not be mentioned.

So, what would Kailifu's initial reaction be to a fearsome, towering demon bearing the online name 'Snake'?

Kailifu had no particular feeling, just barely commenting: this is utterly ordinary.

After all, Kailifu's own appearance is also quite peculiar.

Similarly, with a height of just over two meters, beneath mechanized shoulder armor lies a black robe that can cover the entire body; what you see is either an all-black robe or that shoulder armor extending to the neck and covering the whole head in a full-body metal plating.

The helmet's visor, at first glance looks like teeth, but closer inspection reveals it's a series of small pale blue screens arranged side by side; together they create the impression of 'teeth', while the eyes connected in a 'V' shape of light-transmitting crystal all cover the blood red, showing a scarlet twisted trajectory.

Add to that the helmet's distinct edges and the swaying bluish-silver flames at the back of the head. The whole presents a dark, dangerous, and imposing image.

Like the behind-the-scenes leader of some monster organization or a retro demon king in a sci-fi work.

The precision and finish of the suit are so exaggerated, it seems the production budget isn't low either (crossed out).

However, Kailifu also deserves this name for the outfit; moreover, this chat room is a display room of about a hundred square meters, with countless glass display cases holding monster models, making the atmosphere of this small chat room turn completely Hei'an.

【Those few Mew data were sent back to you; since you've seen them too, I should resell them】

Next to the Snake's head, chat-room-exclusive manga-style lava bubbles pop up, convenient for users not paying attention to the chat.

【Still so thrifty, I think collecting is also not bad, Little Snake, your eye has always been good】

Kailifu's bubbles have sharp edges, a black-red background, blood-colored torn font, displaying fierce and domineering aura.

It seemed as if two major villains were conferring indoors amidst monster-spark toys, which would be pretty cool, especially since their voices had been tuned and selected—one speaking with a demonic tremolo, the other with a low, rich electronic tone.

The sense of immersion is strong, very fitting for the adolescent chuunibyou feeling.

It's just that the chat content is occasionally somewhat childish.

【Chao Meng is quite expensive, if you're willing to buy it I can give you to keep】

The demon waved its hand, the bone‑spur‑like long tail behind it swaying.

【Killing a friend? Sure, I'll tell you my opinion after I've seen it】

The tall monster moved toward the counter; because its long robe swept the ground and made no footstep sound, it seemed to glide forward.

Being immature isn't a problem; Aomo, who smoothly got through his chuunibyou phase, also holds great tolerance for the past.

Since there have been no objections all these years, crafting this indoor Kailifu certainly won't have any.

The two of them would come by now and then to chat a few words about monsters; Aomo doesn't know their true identity, and although they've heard Aomo mention some life worries, those worries are far from revealing a person's real life.

Aomo feels this relationship is pretty good, belonging to a rather ideal burden‑free social interaction, and therefore doesn't plan to look into whether the other person is male or female, old or young.

【Well... I'll wait for your news, see if you keep it or return it, and...】

The demon said, stepping toward the few magic‑circle‑shaped floor tiles at the exhibition room door: '【I'll wait for you when you want to take out the trash later. I'm logging off first, I need to do a few sets of exercises】'.

【I already said there's no need to wait, you're still being so serious, study hard, have a good trip.】

The pitch‑black, ferocious tall monster smiled in blessing; the tiny screen on the visor of its helmet flickered on and off with the sound.

【Thanks for your kind words】

The demon stepped on a floor tile whose magic pattern glowed bright, equivalent to a 'logout' effect, and thus at the same moment in reality.

In the bedroom, Aomo took off the hair‑ornament‑shaped VR, got up, and walked toward the desk.

Meanwhile, the netizen still in the chat room sat in the big chair, gazing at all the monster models in the display cabinet, humming a tune that didn't match the models.

Heaven Gate City.....

Heaven Gate City, a stable otherworldly refresh point, and also a famous tourist metropolis.

Morrison Linton is going to Heaven Gate City next weekend on business, and Aomo made a deal with him: if his college‑entrance exam scores meet the standard, Aomo will bring himself along for a short trip.

Because Heaven Gate City is a half‑reformed planet, huge in size, Aomo doesn't even think telling the netizen about it could pose any risk; as for the netizen who is already staying in Heaven Gate City hearing this, although they had a slight thought of meeting offline, they never actually brought it up.

Both sides understand boundaries; one fears trouble, the other fears disappointment.

But what if?

"What if I study psychic power and end up dead? The advertisement says it's popular, but learning it is half chanting scriptures, half reading heavenly books..."

The desk lamp was raised, the classical fountain pen set up, the worksheet spread out; although technology is advanced enough, to prevent students from reaching the point where they can't write characters, this handwriting segment remains part of learning.

And Aomo, looking at the questions above, muttered and began the real battle of his age.

He still hasn't decided which major to apply for in college.

Before, he went through a series of common source‑energy systems via his uncle's connections, with mediocre results.

But compared to those middling, fluctuating results, the bigger problem is the lack of a clear focus.

If one is optimistic, the options are vast, and this line of thought immediately brings the problem of choice paralysis.

As for magic, the elemental basics have already been exhausted.

Astrology depends on insight; biological alchemy can shift into the gray area of pharmacology and synthetic beasts.

Not taking magic, but taking psychic power... this relies even more on talent.

Think again about Eastern disciplines: alchemy pays well but its combat help is subtle; either go the medicine‑drinking route, or give gifts to build favors and easily call in people......

Perhaps one should instead specialize in bare‑blade martial arts... after all, in this regard he still has some more obvious talent advantages.

Or we could just wait until the application scores pass the cutoff...

Aomo, unable to think of anything for a moment, picked up his pen and started doing this mixed worksheet.

1. In Daoist law, the three lights refer to ( ), ( ), and ( ) three lights.

2. The mnemonic for finding the yin position is: daily ___, ___, the two palaces move; the quick‑calculation formula is _______________.

3. The scope of techniques usable by Thunder Marshal Zhao Gongming includes: ____________________.

4. When a person's soul is detained or, during a rain prayer, evil demons and heretical paths block the way, one should apply the ____ method to break their altar and resolve it.

"Huh?" Aomo, burying his head in the fourth question, only then realized something was off, stared blankly, glanced down, and said, "How come all the questions are about Daoist law?"

Oh, I took the wrong test paper.

Seeing the title 《Exegesis of Daoist Law, Volume Two, Fill‑in‑the‑Blank》 on the top, Aomo silently flipped through the pile of books beside him and pulled out a thick sheet from the gap.

《Heaven Gate District, Orthodox Volume, Short‑Answer Questions》

1. In the stellar calendar year, the Holy Terra Federation formally began exploring the universe; please briefly state the causes that led to this civilization's late‑greatness.

2. Please briefly state the consequences and impact of the Star Alliance's 452‑year history, when Heaven Gate City first activated all its star gates.

3. According to Material 1, briefly describe the obstacles that the promulgation of the Transmigrant Act broke through......

The long night stretches on, the worksheet as companion; no matter how the world changes, we must study, we must drill problems.

Those transmigrants are no exception.