CHAPTER 1023: CHAPTER 1020: TENTH CYCLE

Su Ming’an couldn’t open his eyes.

Regrettably, upon reverting, he was still in a period of slumber. But this was anticipated.

A young girl stood beside him, gently holding his hand.

Yet he couldn’t open his eyes, couldn’t tell her—I’ve already known everything. He could only remain asleep, remain asleep—until everything happened again. He couldn’t even express—how he already knew all this.

The feeling of oppression weighed on his heart like a heavy stone; he even wanted to tear open his eyelids, tear open his lips, using his blood-stained eyes, using a hoarse voice—to inform her, I’ve realized, I’ve already understood everything.

But he couldn’t do that.

It was as if he was enveloped in a silent shell, a thick shell blocking his view, stifling his voice, restraining his movements—he was like a butterfly that couldn’t break through its cocoon, struggling to the verge of suffocation.

He seemed to hear a voice within himself, as if a voice kept crying. The cries irritated him; when he listened carefully, he suddenly felt the voice resembled his own.

In the end, destiny remained unchanged.

Only, in the final confrontation, amidst the frantic downpour, Su Ming’an said thus to the Deity:

"...This is the end."

"I’m curious where your confidence lies." The Deity paid no heed to his words, merely guiding him to the Prophecy Stone Wall.

Everything began to reset, everything started to revert—and he stretched out his hand with all his might, wanting to retain something, but those deeply ingrained scenes, those familiar sounds... like silt swept away by the river, quickly dissipated.

Yet he laughed, laughed loudly—this cycle might not continue, but in later cycles, he would sooner or later, just like now, inadvertently recall previous memories. As long as he recalls—even once—as long as he recalls once—he would know what to do.

A plan had already formed in his mind.

After all, he too was—a "Player."

...

Time returned—February 3, 827.

Replica Activation Day Thirty-one.

The world’s tenth cycle.

"...Did enough blood spill?" In blurred consciousness, a voice came.

"..."

"...Your Highness, what kind of expression is that?"

Su Ming’an blinked.

Xiao Jingsan puffed on his pipe, squinted: "Such a strange look... Don’t you remember me? Or have you finally broken down?"

"..."

"Forgot again? Well, I have to repeat every time."

"..."

Everything was as it first began.

Far on the city tower, Chao Yan stood atop the eaves. Her expression was silent and ashen, her fingers nearly drawing blood.

"It’s... reset again, hasn’t it?" She lifted her head: "This is the tenth time..."

She originally thought she wouldn’t wake up again, but still, it was reset.

From afar she saw—the false Noel crafted by the Deity descend, and Su Ming’an flee into the Red Mansion.

Every time started the same—the false Noel would lure Su Ming’an to escape, then Su Ming’an would flee to the Imperial Palace, meet State Preceptor Li Mingyue, and Su Ming’an would want to go to Penglai Fairy Island, then learn—of the Exotic Species King. And then—he’d start exploring in the present world.

The Deity’s guidance was always this seamless. Moreover, it was becoming even more seamless.

Chao Yan recalled that in the fifth cycle, Su Ming’an doubted this Noel’s dress was fake, even battled the false Noel. But in this tenth cycle, Su Ming’an would no longer question initially because this false Noel had almost no flaws.

The Deity was like a master role-player, mimicking each character increasingly well. By the tenth cycle, the real and the fake were difficult to tell apart.

"Should we give up?" Chao Yan gazed through the wooden grille, seeing Su Ming’an conversing with Bailian. She knew it was now the tenth cycle, almost no chance to break free. The Deity understood them well, almost like understanding characters in a book.

But... if she gave up now, what could she do?

Or should she... continue that hopeless rescue? Let him and her "meet" again?

Is there... meaning? Those endless pains of death, those struggles in the torrents of destiny, those promises over and over "not to forget"...

She stood dazed in the night, like a resting crow, or like flames bracing her once more every cycle.

"Bang."

With a crisp sound, a paper butterfly collided with her calf. She looked down—a child sneaking out at night to fly kites, daring indeed.

"Pretty sister! Pretty sister! Why are you standing so high up, be careful, it’s dangerous!" The chubby child shouted: "Can you throw my kite down? Sister, you’re so beautiful!"

...This little brat.

Chao Yan’s heavy mood was scattered by this moment; she unconsciously smiled, then realized the smile on her face.

A teardrop appeared in her eyes, she suddenly realized—actually, she still loved this mortal world. No matter which world, no matter how distant the people.

Because—if she didn’t act, no one would help him. In a vast world, it seemed empty, of billions, none stood by his side.

She stood atop high eaves, crying and laughing—this time, upon starting, she already seemed like a madman.

"Pretty sister, why are you crying? Don’t cry..." The chubby boy looked at her tears, bewildered. He took out a square cloth, wrapped with some mung bean cakes.

"I’m not crying..." Chao Yan intended to smile. She couldn’t be thought a madman, he’d distrust her. He trusted those with stable emotions, she always knew.

"Pretty sister, I have snacks for you, come down please? It’s risky up there, I don’t want the kite..." The chubby boy raised his chin, shouted loudly.

Chao Yan landed with a "bang," holding the butterfly kite, she bit into a mung bean cake, sweetly, this time she wouldn’t just swallow them.

"...The taste of the starry sky." She said through teardrops.

"Huh? What starry sky?" The boy scratched his head.

"Sweet taste, like the starry sky’s taste. Like candy." Chao Yan smiled.

"Oh, oh..." The little boy didn’t catch her words, just kept scratching his head to hide awkwardness.

She gave him the kite, looked up at the sky.

The Louyue sky was especially beautiful, without modern air pollution, faintly dotted with twinkling stars. She ate mung bean cake tearfully, heading toward the street’s end. Sweet yet bitter taste at once choked and flowed in her throat, like telling her—not to cry again.

"Pretty sister—" the boy called out from behind.

"Mm." Chao Yan didn’t turn back.

"Stay safe—!" the boy shouted.

"Mm." Chao Yan answered smilingly, walked straight into the night.

She never looked back.

...

[Chao Yan’s Inner Notebook:]

[Game Cycle: Tenth Cycle]

[Game Difficulty: Extremely High]

[Replica Activation: Thirty-first Day.]

[Game Days: Day One, Early Morning.]

[Inner Note: Watching him from afar, to see if the plot changes.]

...

In the early morning of the first day, when Su Ming’an completed Chapter One of "Louyue Nation," Chao Yan was present. She stood under the shade of a tree in the Imperial Palace, quietly watching the scene that had replayed for the tenth time. No one noticed her; she was like a shadow always following Su Ming’an, always near but never seen by him.

At the top of the National Preceptor Pavilion, the State Preceptor Li Mingyue in white protected the ice coffin. The white lotus in the sky roared angrily, demanding the Eldest Prince to be returned to her by the State Preceptor.

"Give him—back to me—back to me! Back to me!!!" The white lotus rushed at the State Preceptor with intense fury, like a moth flying into a flame.

Chao Yan watched this scene from afar.

Even though the concubines and palace maids around were shocked by this scene, Chao Yan felt very calm.

She finally understood—why the Deities maintained such an indifferent attitude toward everything, even unwilling to listen to the cries and prayers of the people. Because in Their eyes, many things had already replayed countless times. For things that happened time and again before Their eyes, it was hard to feel the initial shock and empathy, just like watching a movie that plays repeatedly.

Just like—her current self. Watching the white lotus throw itself into the fire for the tenth time, her heart was also calm and unperturbed.

"It seems the plot hasn’t changed." Chao Yan turned and left: "Compared to the last cycle, what adjustments will the Deities make... I need to keep observing."

She retained a full ten cycles of memory, containing a vast amount of information in her heart.

She alone knew—the State Preceptor Li Mingyue in Louyue Nation was not the present-day Li Mingyue, only a kind of "Li Mingyue" Original.

Therefore, the State Preceptor Li Mingyue in Louyue Nation maintained a detached and heartless attitude, while the present-day Godfather Li Mingyue was somewhat gentler. Because their experiences were different—a State Preceptor who had seen much change and gained immortality, and a Godfather who had always protected students.

However, as the game continued to be completed, as the towers connecting the worlds were opened, they became more alike. Every time a player completed the Dream Patrol game, it intensified the fusion between "reality" and "game"—these two Li Mingyue’s became so similar because "Louyue Nation" had already been cleared ten times, and the fusion degree between "Louyue Nation" and reality was extremely high, and the causal lines kept entwining, causing the two worlds to start influencing each other, like a kind of... world line convergence.

Chao Yan remembered that in the first cycle, the State Preceptor Li Mingyue still had jet-black hair, but by the tenth cycle, it was already identical to the white hair of the present-world Li Mingyue.

"Deity... your grand scheme, even after ten cycles, I still haven’t seen the full picture..." Chao Yan murmured to herself.

...

[Chao Yan’s Inner Little Note:]

[Game Days: Day One, Night.]

[Inner Note: Still watching him from afar, seeking the right moment for our "first encounter." Keep it up! This cycle must succeed!]

...

At night, after sending the hypoglycemic Su Luoluo home, Su Ming’an suddenly experienced auditory hallucinations.

[Speaking of which, these instances were cleared by the Number One Player, huh...]

[What do you think the World Game represents...]

"Who!" Su Ming’an instantly became alert, starting to search everywhere.

Chao Yan stood on a treetop, looking at him from afar through the glass, smiling slightly.

—You are still so sharp.

She remembered that in the sixth cycle, before being reset, Su Ming’an repeatedly recited important information hundreds of times. Luckily, this wasn’t in vain; his desperate attempt to memorize these pieces of information seemed to have left some words in his brain. In an extremely low spiritual state, they turned into unclear auditory hallucinations.

In the seventh cycle, these hallucinations proved to be of use. Su Ming’an remembered some vague memories, staying away from the Deities.

However, this was the tenth cycle, and the Deities had already blocked this path in advance, so the person beside Su Ming’an now was Xin Yue. Xin Yue was sent by the Deities, and under her comfort, using the reason that "people who hear strange voices will go mad," she made Su Ming’an stop his doubts and didn’t recall any memories.

Chao Yan watched this scene with a solemn expression—Su Ming’an and Xin Yue gently hugged, like friends warming each other. He didn’t know that Xin Yue was a carefully designed trap by the enemy, and he found it hard to think of the possibility of a "starter kill."

Who would have thought such a friendly guiding character could be a trap full of malice from the enemy in the previous cycle?

So Chao Yan knew—she was playing an extremely high-difficulty survival game, where each failure made the enemy stronger and more perfect in the next cycle. The original methods to break the game would gradually be blocked.

"This time... I must... succeed."

She promised herself for the tenth time.

...

[Chao Yan’s Inner Little Note:]

[Game Days: Day Two, Early Morning.]

[Inner Note: As a lonely village girl meeting him for the first time, I must leave a good impression this time! Oh, right... he likes people with stable emotions, a kind heart, and a certain sense of mystery...]

...

She wanted countless times to see him again.

She remembered countless times the taste of that Italian candy. Over ten cycles, she only managed to eat his candy once. This meant that in the remaining nine cycles, she hadn’t truly entered his heart.

She wished countless times to look at the beautiful starry sky with him, letting him tell her what the Fuyuan Festival was.

She wished countless times—to see that clean smile of his.

"You really, really... are so hard to conquer... Su Ming’an..." Chao Yan covered her eyes, laughing softly.

She carried a medicine basket, waiting on the hillside, slowly adding words to her inner little note:

...

[Inner Note: Think of a way to let him also retain memory and join this ’game.’]

[Only when both protagonists go through hardships together, can it be considered a complete story, right.]

[So, don’t let me...]

[Play this "World"-themed game alone anymore.]

[There should be a second brave alongside the brave... because the Demon King is really too strong.]

[But, why is it me repeatedly trying to conquer you? According to a normal, clichéd, mainstream script, shouldn’t it be the Prince striving to redeem the Princess through the tide of time...?]

[Though I don’t think there’s a typical male protagonist-female protagonist love between us, at least...]

[At least...]

[...]

[A Princess saving a Prince is also a great story.]

[Both protagonists are sure to have a beautiful ending.]

...

[...Mm.]

[Surely.]

...