Chapter 94: New Player Joining

New Player Joins

A boy named Chi Yu was hopping and skipping through the village, like a child on a field trip.

Lin Du followed behind, his eyes scanning around.

The village was very quiet, with no sound of wind or movement of others.

Everything around seemed to have been paused, forcibly frozen by some external force.

Here, there was an ancient stone bridge paved with bluestone slabs and moss in the crevices.

Not far from the bridge, there were a few brick houses with dark blue tile roofs.

But the most eye-catching was the tower top in the center of the village.

A precise mechanical clock hung there, with copper gears nested layer upon layer, all still, the hands stopped at the same position.

Peach trees by the road were in bloom, petals falling from the branches.

In the space from branch to ground, some petals hung suspended in midair.

The whole village was like a landscape painting framed in a picture frame—visible and tangible, but without a trace of life.

“What is this place?”

Lin Du spoke.

The child stopped, thought for a moment, then looked up at Lin Du with his golden eyes.

“It’s, well… a memory space.”

“Memory space?”

The child nodded and continued walking forward.

“Yes, what you see are actually worlds projected from past memories. They once existed, but are no longer here. They remain here, like… photographs.”

Lin Du looked up at the frozen petals in the distance.

He kicked a pebble.

“Did these things ever exist?”

“That includes the outside too.”

Lin Du fell silent.

He thought of the black dragon coiled on the mountaintop, its dark-golden pupils, its overwhelming violence.

If those were also memories, then whose memories were they?

Chi Yu suddenly stopped.

He perked up his ears, tilted his head, red hair slipping from his ears.

His eyes half-closed, as if listening to a very distant sound.

Lin Du looked at him, finding it strange.

“What’s wrong?”

“Shh—”

The boy put his index finger to his lips and closed his eyes.

“It seems there are more guests coming.”

“More people?!”

Lin Du’s pupils contracted, and he jerked his head up, his gaze passing through the transparent barrier above the village.

A wailing sound came from the sky, growing closer.

“Wahh—!”

It was as if something was falling from a very high place.

A white light appeared above the village, growing larger.

Lin Du squinted, staring at the light.

Silver-white hair spread out in the air, fox ears flattened against the head by the wind.

The whole fox curled up into a fluffy ball.

White Li fell straight down from the height, crashing into the barrier around the village.

Bam!!

That transparent barrier sank like a water bed, catching her.

White Li bounced twice on the spot, then passed through the barrier and continued falling.

“Not good!”

Lin Du rushed forward in a few steps, reached out, and caught White Li steadily.

But the impact was greater than he imagined; White Li’s body crashed into his arms, and he fell backward, landing on his back and sliding half a meter on the bluestone road.

White Li’s tail covered his face, almost blocking his mouth and nose.

Dust rose from the ground, making White Li cough.

White Li spat out the dust in her mouth, propped herself up with her hands, and slowly sat up.

She wiped the corner of her mouth with her hand, then opened her eyes and froze.

Peach blossoms, stone bridge, ancient tower—sunlight fell from somewhere onto the bluestone path.

White Li’s mouth fell open, her pupils reflecting the pink petals.

“Wow—”

She looked up, glanced around, her tail wagging behind her.

“Where is this? So beautiful, like a tourist attraction!”

“Welcome, beautiful fox sister.”

Chi Yu extended his hand, like a host inviting a guest.

He tilted his head, a faint smile on his lips.

“Oh, hello.”

White Li saw the boy behind her and was about to reach out to shake his hand, but her hand was slapped away.

Slap!

“Ah—”

Chi Yu winced in pain and jerked his hand back like he’d touched a live wire.

He lowered his head, holding his reddened hand and gently rubbing it.

“Huh? How is there another person?”

White Li followed the hand and looked down, realizing she was sitting on something.

She reached out and brushed aside her fluffy big tail, revealing Lin Du’s face buried in the dirt.

Half of Lin Du’s face was buried in the dirt, his forehead dusty, his lips pressed tightly.

“Oh my…”

White Li quickly stood up, bent down, and helped Lin Du up.

Lin Du gave her a look, thinking, ‘Your whole butt was on my face, how could I speak?’

White Li patted the dust off his shoulders, her tone reproachful.

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

The two exchanged glances.

White Li spoke first.

“Where is this?”

She spun around in place, then glanced at Chi Yu standing nearby.

“Is it a new dream created by Meng Mo?”

Lin Du shook his head, thought for a moment, and said, “This… is my dream.”

“No, actually it’s—”

The boy was about to speak when Lin Du turned his head and gave him a fierce glare.

His gaze was like a knife, cold and sharp.

Chi Yu was intimidated by that look and obediently shut his mouth.

White Li didn’t notice this detail.

She looked up at the distant ancient tower, then pointed at the suspended petals and the transparent barrier.

“Your dream? This dream is pretty big. What’s the theme? Ghost village?”

He hesitated, his gaze falling on White Li’s face.

Lin Du scratched the back of his head, messing up his hair even more.

“I don’t know what to call it either.”

“By the way, how did you get in?”

White Li was at a loss for words, twisting her fingers behind her back.

She recalled what she had done not long ago, and her face flushed.

“Well… um…”

She lowered her head, stammering, then simply waved her hand.

“I don’t know! Maybe because we were close together! Your dream affected me!”

Lin Du looked at her guilty yet stubborn expression, didn’t call her out, and just nodded.

“Maybe that’s it.”

White Li breathed a sigh of relief.

She turned around and walked toward the nearest peach tree, reaching for the suspended petals.

The petals wobbled at her fingertips, then returned to their original positions.

“Remember that game I told you about?”

Lin Du patted her shoulder.

“Let’s go, White Li.”