[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-ring-of-fate":3,"chapter-the-ring-of-fate-the-ring-of-fate-chapter-993":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Ring of Fate",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2298962,4496,"Chapter 993: Active Small Talk","the-ring-of-fate-chapter-993",993,"\u003Cp>After suspecting that Zarathustra had replaced the teachers at the Dream Remedial Class and the Star Remedial Class to target Gelmán Sparrow—a figure that didn’t actually exist in the Dream City—Lu Mi and the others discussed it at length but could never discern the purpose or effect behind it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They planned to write a letter and have Flanca and Jian Na deliver it to the Star Dream Grocery tomorrow to see what the Major Arcana cards would advise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As she stood up to leave the Xinhong Apartment, Flanca remembered something and looked curiously at Lu Mi:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You said earlier that Li Keji became pregnant because Grem’s perception, your Oumibela bloodline, and the environment of Mushi Hospital caused the subconscious of the Celestial Sovereign to dominate, equating you in the dream with Oumibela, the Divine Child of the ‘Great Mother,’ turning your offhand remark ‘He’s already pregnant’ into reality—so now, as Oumibela’s Divine Child, can you use the extraordinary abilities of the three paths: ‘Sower,’ ‘Pharmacist,’ and ‘Sorcerer’?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Flanca’s eyes gleamed brightly, feeling this had a certain “I think” quality to it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, this “I” referred to the dream’s subconscious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As long as the dream’s subconscious believed it, anything could happen!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Mi tried to activate the abilities related to “Vampire,” “Harvest Priest,” and “Sorcerer,” but all failed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No.” He shook his head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before Flanca could respond, he added thoughtfully:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Maybe it would work inside Mushi Hospital.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Flanca murmured “Mm,” Jian Na reminded Lu Mi:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If that’s true, frequently entering and leaving Mushi Hospital might make you increasingly resemble Oumibela until you become identical.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Mi thought for several seconds, then said gravely:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Possible.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Flanca immediately hissed:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why is the ‘Great Mother’ so sinister? She always makes you fall into traps without realizing it. Sometimes, vigilance seems useless…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Here, Flanca answered her own question:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Judging by the name, the ‘Great Mother’ might symbolize the ‘Yin’ in the word ‘Yin-Yang’…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…………\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next day, Sunday, Lu Mi brought Ludwigh to the Dream Remedial Class again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he escorted the child into the classroom, he subtly used the “Eye of Calamity” to observe the reception desk, every teacher he encountered, and Anderson Hu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Except for the latter, the mercury-colored rivers of fate for everyone else had once shown black—signifying death—at some point in their past; some of these black patches had blurred, others remained clear, and as the illusory river flowed forward, they drifted further back, becoming harder to see.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Definitely a newly born person…” Lu Mi didn’t speak to Anderson Hu, stepped back two paces, and sat in his usual seat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was just about to consider how to handle this when he saw Zhou Mingrui walking toward him, wearing a light blue loose T-shirt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How dedicated—he witnessed Zarathustra being shot, visited Master Cui, and still remembered to come to Business English class… Lu Mi sighed inwardly, stood up, and greeted Zhou Mingrui.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As employees of the Indus Group who had met more than once, this was proper etiquette.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Mingrui responded with a greeting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as Lu Mi assumed he would smoothly enter the classroom, Zhou Mingrui stopped—right in front of him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Mingrui glanced left and right and said:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Didn’t Teacher Da leave? I haven’t seen him on any of my recent visits.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You know Teacher Da?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes, Da Nizi—I enrolled my child here after seeing his flyer.” Lu Mi replied simply.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He hadn’t expected Zhou Mingrui to initiate casual conversation, let alone ask about the Messenger Daniz.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Stimulated by the Zarathustra incident, Zhou Mingrui had begun actively investigating hidden anomalies around him and more boldly interacting with people like us who had issues—so he noticed Teacher Da hadn’t shown up lately? That’s good! But there’s a downside: if he keeps probing like this, one day he might just kick me, Flanca, and the others out of the dream as suddenly as he did to Master Cui… Lu Mi’s thoughts shifted, forming a rough judgment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before Zhou Mingrui could ask again, Lu Mi sighed:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Teacher Da didn’t quit—he died.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Huh?” Zhou Mingrui’s gaze froze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shock and surprise flashed across his face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was a perfectly normal reaction to such news.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“When? What happened?” Zhou Mingrui didn’t hide his astonishment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Mi glanced toward the reception desk:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I heard from Principal Ai that he was strangled to death by a perverted serial killer.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“At first, Principal Ai and Teacher Anderson thought he’d just gone missing—they didn’t believe he could survive alone, so they reported him missing quickly. Later, the police found his body in the underground morgue of Mushi Hospital.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Mi spoke only what Principal Aina had said and what could be found online—he wasn’t worried this would get him kicked out of the dream again; after re-entering, he planned to lie low for a few days in front of Zhou Mingrui.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Killed…” Zhou Mingrui’s eyes flickered as he fell into thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes, his corpse was found in the underground morgue of Mushi Hospital.” Lu Mi emphasized it deliberately.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He intended to use ordinary conversation to guide Zhou Mingrui toward noticing Mushi Hospital might be problematic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Did the killer deliberately take Teacher Da’s body to the underground morgue?” Zhou Mingrui expressed confusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Mi shook his head:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Not necessarily the killer—maybe a passerby who found the body took it there.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How? A passerby seeing a corpse would call the police immediately.” Zhou Mingrui felt something deeply off about this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But why would the killer specifically take Teacher Da’s body to Mushi Hospital’s underground morgue? Did he think it would stay hidden there? On what basis did he believe that…?” Lu Mi raised the questions, emphasizing Mushi Hospital, but offered no answers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For him now, answering was too dangerous.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Mingrui nodded thoughtfully, pointed toward the Business English classroom, and said:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m going to class.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Alright.” Lu Mi sat back down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leaning against the classroom wall, his thoughts drifted:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The secret replacement of teachers at the Dream Remedial Class and Star Remedial Class is hard to resolve…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If this were the real world, I’d find a chance to blow up the underground section of Mushi Hospital and eliminate the threat entirely—but in the Dream City, Mushi Hospital’s underground is a psychological shadow of a Great One and an entry point for other Great Ones’ power; even the Star Dream Grocery’s owner and Stiano probably dare not venture there lightly, even if they aren’t bound by restrictions…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Could I use the ‘Eye of Calamity’ to identify who’s been replaced—Huang Jiajia, Ai Nana, etc.—and kill them all to remove the threat?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Killing one, I could still cover my tracks and avoid detection—but killing so many? Would the Dream City Police Department or Chief Ya Ge think I’m just a corpse? That’s an open provocation to the Dream’s Consciousness—I’d be locked onto by tomorrow.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Besides, Huang Jiajia and the others are tied to the identity of Gelmán Sparrow—if they all vanish from the Dream City stage, it might trigger bad changes—or doom the Awakening Plan from the start…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Report it? Without evidence, it’d be like reporting Zarathustra—no response at all…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What clue could make the police dig deeper and uncover the truth?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I hope the Major Arcana cards can offer some insight…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hmm…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Lu Mi’s thoughts grew more scattered, his peripheral vision caught Zhou Mingrui stepping out of the classroom with his phone, heading toward the restroom.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Mi turned his head, using his “Hunter” ears to eavesdrop from a distance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He heard Zhou Mingrui ask in surprise:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Didn’t you plan to come on Monday? Why did you push it to Wednesday?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the other end of the call, a woman’s voice faintly reached Lu Mi’s ears:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I thought about it—you’re always working and can’t take me out. I might as well just report in directly.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Mingrui paused, then said:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I have vacation days.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It’s fine—take me out on the weekend,” the woman’s voice laughed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Mingrui sighed:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Alright. What time’s your train on Wednesday?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, Lu Mi understood:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>According to the Major Arcana cards’ data, Zhou Mingrui’s sister, Zhou Shasha, had been accepted into a university in Yangdu and was about to arrive here to study.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Next Wednesday, Zhou Shasha would arrive in Yangdu? As one of Zhou Mingrui’s closest dream personas, what changes would her arrival trigger? Lu Mi raised his right hand and rubbed his temples, feeling as if one crisis followed another without pause.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…………\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Star Dream Grocery.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Flanca and Jian Na, having taken a taxi, entered the dim interior of the shop.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The former politely asked the shopkeeper if she could mail a letter; the latter wandered near the entrance, examining the antiques on the shelves and observing the street outside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After receiving the shopkeeper’s permission, Flanca moved beside the shelves and dropped the letter into the silver-inlaid black mailbox.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As her gaze swept across, she noticed her former “Armor of Pride” standing silently at the inner edge of the right shelf.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The silver-white full-body armor was now speckled and stained with dark red blood; merely seeing it made Flanca feel herself rapidly weaken, as if her old illness had returned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>More sinister… Flanca dared not ask the shopkeeper what had happened to the “Armor of Pride,” quickly looked away, and headed for the door.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, Jian Na raised her hand and subtly pointed across the street.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On a branch of the roadside tree sat a white pigeon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1569,"2026-06-20T06:22:37.987Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","30ff70b64a63f6222e1ad78e373e857f020d5d5235fc5b401c583337e30f07ac","the-ring-of-fate-chapter-994","the-ring-of-fate-chapter-992",1000,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-ring-of-fate-cover.jpg"]