Perhaps a few Weiyi long for humanity, but humans themselves are unaware of this. In their minds, Weiyi are merely calamities brought by the mysterious phenomenon.
Furthermore, Weiyi of the Singularity Class are incredibly rare. Perhaps only one Singularity Class is born among every 100,000 normal Weiyi. Since they possess the ability to think, they are naturally unwilling to let their lives fade away, which leads to the current conflicts.
Gu Lian did not know how she had returned to her human form, but she was certain of one thing: she could now control when she shifted into her Weiyi form. All her changes were linked to that Humanoid Beast from her dream.
‘However… who exactly were those three people at the end of the vision?’
Night was the most beautiful time for the city. The Tfv logo, symbolizing stability and hope, flashed alongside advertisements for other daily necessities in Nanjiang City’s largest plaza. The dazzling lights obscured the stars of the night, instead draping the sky in a scattering of reddish-yellow glow.
‘Who sings of white grass and flutes by the beacon towers? Resisting a lifetime of grief with the spirit of poetry.’
‘Restringing the broken harp with tears.’
‘The noblest wandering, across lifetimes, singing of the jade tower’s brilliance!’
The melodious and passionate singing echoed through the streets. The sensation of brushing shoulders with the crowd used to make Gu Lian somewhat irritable, but not today. Not only was that burning sensation absent, but there was even a refreshing coolness. She did not know if it was her heart that had cooled or if the weather was turning, but she felt quite comfortable being squeezed by the crowd today.
Walking down the street, the surrounding pedestrians seemed to be moving against her. Gu Ye lowered her eyes, and her mind began to recall what happened yesterday.
“Yi Yi is about to evolve. Whether she can completely evolve into a human form depends on this moment.”
“Haaa—”
Looking at the serious-faced Yao Yao in front of her, Gu Ye yawned and rubbed her sleepy eyes.
“So, little girl, what do you need me to do?”
*Clack*—
A somewhat worn-out shoe stepped on a discarded bamboo skewer. The aroma of cumin-sprinkled meat roasted over charcoal wafted into her nose. Gu Lian turned her head to see a bustling barbecue stall where seven or eight young people were eating skewers and drinking beer.
Withdrawing her gaze, Gu Lian stopped looking at those people and sank back into her thoughts.
“I want you to help me buy a record and a player for Yi Yi. With the way I look, I can’t go to human settlements.”
“A record? A gramophone?”
Gu Lian suddenly didn’t feel sleepy anymore. Her eyebrows furrowed deeply; it shouldn’t just be for such a trivial matter.
“Yes. Back when we were being chased by the Lieshou, we once came across a large courtyard. In human terms, it was… a concert.”
Yao Yao opened her mouth, clearly hesitating, but seeing Yi Yi happily munching on a grilled fish, she sighed. “Since then, my sister has wanted to become an Idol. She even gave up the chance for higher-order evolution and chose to evolve toward a human form instead.”
“So why did you also evolve in this direction?”
“She is my sister. Naturally, I have to accompany her.”
***
“Hey, pretty girl, want to go have some fun with me?”
A repulsive voice interrupted her thoughts. Gu Lian looked up. A small gang of five punks stood in her way. The leader, a punk with a nose ring, gave a narcissistic whistle, and the other four immediately burst into laughter.
Gu Lian glanced at the clothes the punk was wearing. His black-and-white T-shirt was quite eye-catching. Considering her strength was now exaggeratedly high, she restrained the urge to beat them into the ground immediately.
“Brother, I advise you to be kind. My temper isn’t very good.”
“Ooh, how spicy!” The punk propped his right hand against a nearby telephone pole, blocking Gu Lian’s path. He waved his thumb toward the alley on the left and grinned. “Little girl, are you sure you don’t want to have a go with me?”
“…”
Gu Lian remained silent for a moment. Then she looked up, the lights accentuating her beautiful face, which was now filled with a smile.
“Of course… I can.”
“Yo-ho!”
The punk wiped the drool from his mouth and winked at the brothers behind him. The four punks wore lewd smiles as they strode behind Gu Lian.
Pedestrians who were originally walking by bypassed Gu Lian and the punks. Some passing middle-aged women even began to whisper and gossip.
The punk blocking Gu Lian jerked his head toward the left. The meaning was obvious; he wanted her to go in first.
“…”
Gu Lian silently turned and walked into the alley. The punks looked around the street. Once the one on the outer edge nodded, the others followed her into the alley at the same time.
*Step*—
A worn-out cloth shoe stepped into the shadows of the alley. Her face was hidden by the darkness as her lips curled into a wicked arc.
*Thud, thud, thud*—
Once all the punks were in the shadows, Gu Lian turned around. She unzipped her jacket and sat on a trash can with a captivating grace.
She casually tossed the jacket aside, revealing a slightly oversized white T-shirt. Her fair left shoulder slipped from the neckline. The leading punk’s face turned red with excitement as he rubbed his hands and approached her.
However, as soon as he got close, Gu Lian raised her hand without a word. She grabbed the punk’s hair and slammed his head against the trash can at her feet.
*Bang! Bang! Bang!*
A stream of blood trickled from the punk’s nostrils. Due to the sudden impact, he naturally blacked out.
“So, do you guys want to have a go too?”
Gu Lian tucked her hair behind her ear and tilted her head, looking at the remaining four punks with a somewhat innocent expression.
Hearing Gu Lian’s voice, the bodies of the other four punks trembled.
“Since you aren’t speaking, I’ll take that as a yes?”
Gu Lian stood up from the trash can. As she rose, she kicked the unconscious punk onto the ground.
“No, no, no! Sister, we were wrong! We’ll get lost right now, right now!”
“Oh? According to the rules of the streets, aren’t you going to leave something behind before you go?”
Gu Lian took a few steps forward and stepped on the face of the punk on the ground. The lights in the alley flickered. In the eyes of these punks, Gu Lian’s dreamlike figure perfectly overlapped with a demon in the darkness.
The punks were nearly terrified out of their wits. They fumbled several bills out of their pockets and placed them on the trash can next to Gu Lian like offerings. Then, one by one, they turned to leave.
“Stop. Did I say you could leave?”
“?!”
The four punks froze. They turned around stiffly, expecting a beating, but…
A person who had been stripped bare was tossed in front of them. It was the first punk; except for his underwear, every piece of his clothing had been stripped clean.
Tossing the punk’s jacket and leather pants onto the trash can, Gu Lian patted the non-existent dust off her hands. A red glow flickered in her eyes as her cold, emotionless voice rang out.
“Now get lost!”
“Yes, yes, yes…”
The punks scrambled to pick up their companion and stumbled out of the alley in a frenzy.
‘How cowardly. I thought they would fight me all at once.’
Gu Lian shook her head disdainfully. she put on the jacket she had just acquired and reached out to stuff the bills from the trash can into her pocket.
‘Let me think about where to buy a player in Nanjiang City… what a headache. But in that place, charging it seems like it will be a problem. I’ll have to find a way…’