Chapter 831: Probably Over

Ying's Foot-long dagger traced the final pink arc in the air, and the last green snake in front of her shattered into data fragments that fluttered down onto the white surface of the cube; the lingering green light threads twitched a few times before vanishing completely.

She exhaled, her gray‑purple eyes scanning the surroundings; the snake swarm's assault had ceased, and the sea surface regained its mirror‑like Calm.

Then she turned her head toward Ge Lei Xiu, her mouth corner twitching slightly.

Ge Lei Xiu stood at the center of the cube, still holding the blue Light Sword, its humming beam unusually clear over the quiet sea.

Around her floated a ring of green data fragments slowly dissipating, her ice‑blue hair lifted faintly by the sea breeze, and her feet wrapped in white silk stood steadily on the smooth white surface.

When she sliced the last few snakes, she used an extremely crisp diagonal slash, the blade light slashing from top to bottom; as she sheathed it, her wrist made a subtle inward rotation, and the tip traced a half‑arc in the air before stopping.

Ying knew that sheathing posture all too well; she had practiced it in the Training Room countless tens of thousands of times.

Ge Lei Xiu tilted her head, looking at Ying with her pale‑purple eyes, her expression so Calm it seemed to ask, "How did I fight just now?"

Ying opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but after reflecting on everything that had happened today, she thought asking those questions would only make her seem overly surprised.

A child who used to draw suddenly grew up and suddenly could wield a Light Sword.

Fine.

In Past World Paradise, anything can happen.

Ying sighed, shifting her gaze away from Ge Lei Xiu, and looked up.

The sky's brush‑stroked blue‑white hue remained still.

Then she saw a black dot moving toward her.

Heimu floated down from midair, still perched sideways on a Magic Staff, one hand resting on her knee, the other pressing the hat brim.

Her ash‑white long hair was swept backward by the airflow, and the Witch Hat's brim cast a crisp shadow in the white soft light.

Her expression seemed a bit weary, but more so a certain relaxation.

Another person floated beside her.

The figure lay horizontally in the air, supported by a faint dark‑purple energy cushion, limbs dangling naturally, their deep ink‑green short hair blown to the side of their face.

Heimu descended to about half a meter above the cube's surface; the Magic Staff automatically shrank and vanished in her palm, and she lightly leapt onto the white ground.

The floating figure beside her was gently placed on the ground, and as the energy cushion dissipated, a ring of violet light particles scattered around them.

"Probably Over."

Heimu raised a hand to pat the back of her head, the hat brim lifting slightly from her motion.

Ying lowered her head to look at the person lying on the ground.

Deep ink‑green short hair, black rigid horns, a light‑gray scarf, a dark‑green shirt, and a charcoal‑gray cloak.

The boy's narrow face was as quiet as a closed book.

Her eyes widened.

"... Kesi Mo?"

Ge Lei Xiu heard the name and turned around.

She sheathed the Light Sword, the blue beam humming out, and casually hung the hilt at her waist.

She walked to Ying's side, lowered her head to look at the boy on the ground, a hint of surprise flashing in her pale‑purple eyes.

"Kesi Mo."

Heimu lowered her head to glance at Kesi Mo, her expression under the hat's shadow showing a subtle complexity: three parts "just as you think," two parts "I don't really want to explain the details," and five parts "I've run into every absurd thing today."

She nodded, her lips moving slightly, uttering a vague syllable.

"... Probably. Hmm."

Ying looked up at Heimu, her Fox Ears standing perfectly upright.

Heimu met her gaze for two seconds, then shrugged.

Ying's lips moved, but she swallowed whatever she intended to say and lowered her head again to look at Kesi Mo.

Ge Lei Xiu also kept her head down, looking at Kesi Mo, then lifted her head to glance at Ying, and lowered it again to continue watching.

The three formed a loose semicircle, the shadow falling precisely across Kesi Mo's face.

When Kesi Mo opened his eyes, he saw the sky.

That brush‑stroked blue‑white expanse remained still, like an unfinished painting propped on an easel.

He blinked; his warm orange‑tinted pupils were still veiled by a thin mist typical of just‑woken eyes.

His body ached.

A pervasive sour‑tightness spread through his whole body, as if something had squeezed him from all directions—no, not squeezed, more like being dropped from height, flailing in water for several rounds, then being wrapped up like a rice dumpling.

His mind was blank; he could not recall at all how he had arrived here.

Above his head was a sky he had never seen, blue‑white, as if casually brushed on.

All around was an endless white sea, and in the distance several massive white cubes—statues of Ailixiya?

Nearby?

Three faces appeared above his field of view; the left one had ash‑white long hair hanging at the shoulders, a Witch Hat, dark‑purple eyes, and an expression tinged with subtle awkwardness.

He slowly searched his mind and finally matched the name.

Black Curtain Lady.

Alright, I know this one.

The middle one had medium‑short pink hair, elongated pink Fox Ears, gray‑purple eyes, and a blank expression.

Kesi Mo scanned his mind for all the faces of Yingjie in Past World Paradise, but found none.

Unfamiliar.

The right one had ice‑blue shoulder‑length hair, a golden halo, pale‑purple eyes, and was looking at him with a Calm gaze.

Kesi Mo searched again.

It felt somewhat familiar.

But this face, no matter how I look at it, looks like a woman older than him; does Past World Paradise have such a person?

No, Past World Paradise doesn't have her.

But why does it feel so familiar?

Kesi Mo's mind toggles back and forth among the three threads of "Who is this person?", "My body hurts", and "Why are they all staring at me", switching many times without reaching a result.

He blinked blankly.

Heimu coughed.

She saw pure confusion in Kesi Mo's warm orange eyes, those eyes bouncing back and forth between the faces of the three of them, bouncing many times.

So she crouched down and tried to level her tone as much as possible.

"Are you okay, Kesi Mo?"

Kesi Mo heard his own name and reflexively nodded.

He propped his hands on the surface of the white cube and slowly sat up, one end of his scarf slipping down from his shoulder onto his legs; he instinctively lifted the scarf with his hand and readjusted it.

Then he looked around, and a string of questions floated through his mind—where is this? Why is it a sea? Why are there so many white blocks? Who exactly is the one with pink hair? Why does the one with blue hair look so familiar?

He wasn't much of a talker to begin with, and when faced with too many questions, not a single word would come out, so he simply sat in silence.

But he was accustomed to silence; these thoughts crowded his mind for a long while, squeezing out only a single syllable.

"…Hmm."