From the end of the world

Chapter 134 Successful Entry 2
Ma Zao's world-weariness is definitely not a one- or two-day symptom. She had already expressed similar views on the first day we met each other. Her lone wolf style is probably one of the manifestations of this tendency.

As the saying goes, a three-foot-thick ice doesn’t form overnight, and thawing it is not something that can be done just by saying it. If it is physical freezing, I can thaw it in an instant, but the frozen heart is beyond my reach.

Is there any way to make her more positive?

I thought about this question very hard and said, "It is still unclear whether the patients with amnesia have really traveled to the apocalypse. Even if it is true, it is unknown whether the people who died in the apocalypse will continue to live in a vegetative state in this era. Don't think too much about it now, and go check the list of patients with amnesia first."

Maybe the body left behind by the soulless person who traveled to the apocalypse era will also die with him - I didn't mention this assumption based on assumptions. Overly negative speculation is not good for Ma Zao's mental health.

Ma Zao nodded tentatively in agreement, and then said: "Also, about that Xuanwu matter..."

"Are you also trying to persuade me not to look for Xuanwu?" I asked.

"No, just like you said to that old man, if the other party is really targeting people with fire abilities, they will probably find you sooner or later. Besides, I really need to heal my soul. You are my partner, so I will not refuse your help, and I will never refuse to help you in the future." The second half of her words seemed to be imitating what I said to Mr. Zhu, and she continued, "It's just that I think that Xuanwu might be..."

"They were attracted by you, right?" I said, "When you needed to heal your soul, the clues to the 'Xuanwu' who could heal your soul were suddenly delivered to us, and a token that could contact him was also delivered, and even blatantly attached with the background explanation that 'he is mortal enemies with flame ability users'... You want to say that this was also attracted by you, and it brought disaster to the people around you, right?"

"Yes." She nodded. "If there is no threat, then it is not a disaster. In the past, those enemies were probably just passing beasts attracted by my unlucky physique, but this time it is obviously different. If there is a destiny destined to be unfortunate for me, this destiny must have made arrangements for you as well, even to the point of naming you...

"In other words, this incident is a 'disaster' even for you. It is a real threat and a bad omen that is enough to endanger your life. Zhuang Cheng, you are very powerful, but that Xuanwu is different from anyone you have ever met in the past. He may really be able to kill you."

I asked back, “So what?”

"...Do you regret it?" she said uneasily, "Regret being with me..."

Are you a neurotic girlfriend who keeps confirming your boyfriend's feelings after dating him? I couldn't help but have such a rude thought. Not only is it rude, it's also very self-indulgent.

"Ma Zao, answer me a question first." I said, "You chose to leave me last time, but if I took out the fragment of the divine seal in front of you before that, would you still leave me?"

“That… I’m not sure either.” She hesitated. “Considering that the fragment of the Divine Seal cannot leave you, I might leave it with you first and go on my own. Or I might think that as long as I follow you, I can get clues about other fragments of the Divine Seal, so I’ll stay by your side and wait and see.”

"It's pretty much what I thought. To be honest, I regretted every day when you were away. How good would it be if I had confessed to you earlier?"

In fact, I didn’t really regret it. After all, I couldn’t possibly take out the fragment of the divine seal at that time. I was very open-minded about this. Now I continued to say half-true and half-false words to her: "So... Ma Zao, if I ever regret it in the future, it will definitely not be because of being with you, but because I did something that would make you leave."

As the saying goes, practice makes perfect. If I had said such sweet talk before I knew Ma Zao, I would have been embarrassed, but now I have developed a thick skin that is not moved by it. The speed of evolution is so fast that even the superpowers I am proud of cannot catch up.

"Zhuang Cheng..."

Ma Zao quickly lowered her head and turned away, not letting me see her face. Maybe she was moved by my words... or maybe she was embarrassed by my acting. I always tend to overdo it when performing something like this, it's my old habit.

It's evening.

Under my supervision, Ma Zao took medicine and recuperated at home as Zhu Shi said. The soul-healing medicine that Mr. Zhu gave us is like decocting medicine. It needs to be boiled with water like soup, using a pot and gas stove at home. The operation method is to follow the instructions attached. If it doesn't work, it's okay to eat the ingredients directly. It's called ingredients, but it's actually a finished product. It's just that it's easier to take and digest after boiling.

The decoction looked like a brown porridge. Out of curiosity, I dipped my finger into the unwashed pot and tasted it. It was extremely bitter. I guess the juice made from tree roots is no more bitter than this. Although I know that good medicine tastes bitter, it is hard not to suspect that the soul of the person taking it will be hurt in other ways.

Ma Zao, however, remained calm, scooping up the medicine in the bowl with a spoon, blowing it to cool, and putting it into her mouth. After the medicine was no longer too hot, she poured it directly into her mouth. Is this the style of a survivor in the doomsday era? I was immediately in awe.

"How is it, is your soul recovering?" I asked with concern. "Hmm..." She closed her eyes and felt, "It seems that the effect of the medicine has not started to take effect yet. It shouldn't be that fast."

"Be careful not to let the power of blessing cancel out the efficacy of the medicine," I reminded.

"I know."

As she said this, she yawned a little.

It's not even 8pm yet, but she's feeling sleepy so early. Maybe her soul is not in a good state? I persuaded her to go to bed first, but she shook her head and said, "You're not sleepy yet, are you? I want to sleep with you."

"You mean, we're still going to sleep holding hands tonight?" I asked.

"Yes!" She nodded vigorously.

It seems that she planned to sleep holding hands with me every night before successfully entering the foggy dream.

I have helped her copy the list of patients with amnesia from the USB drive to the tablet. She sat on the sofa and reviewed the information slowly and carefully. It was almost ten o'clock in the evening, and she seemed to have made little progress. She had been nodding her head from time to time like a sleepyhead. In order to prevent the blessing power from accidentally dispelling the effect of the soul healing medicine, she had never reset her status once.

I pulled her up and walked slowly, and she was like a victim of an evil adult who had deceived and drugged her. I led her into the room in a daze, and then she fell on the bed, letting me do whatever I wanted.

If I think about it carefully, I am indeed an adult, and I did deceive this child one after another. I also gave her suspicious drugs that were definitely not registered with the Food and Drug Administration. I even brought her to my bed and was going to sleep with her... From the perspective of ordinary society, am I doing something quite extraordinary now?

I turned off the lights in the room. She turned over slightly in the darkness, looked at me dazedly, then stretched out her hand to me and said vaguely, "Hold hands..."

I silently took out the fragment of the divine seal, and then she held my hand and I lay down on the bed side by side with her. Of course, I didn't take off my clothes and pants. As if unconsciously, she leaned towards my body and settled down like a cat that found a warm and comfortable place.

"Good night," I said.
-
This night is a special day.

Of course, every day after meeting Ma Zao is a special day for me, and tonight is also a special day. Hard work pays off. Although the last attempt to enter the misty dream failed, this time it finally succeeded.

Perhaps calling it a "success" is a bit of an exaggeration, after all, the fact that Ma Zao and I shared a bed probably had nothing to do with this success. It was just luck, or it followed some rules that I didn't know yet. Whatever it was, I finally entered the misty dream.

When I regained consciousness, I found myself in an endless gray fog. There was no ground under my feet, only layers of gray fog. I didn't know why I was able to stand. Walking felt like walking on the beach.

As usual, it was hard to tell when I entered the foggy dream, but it was unlikely that anyone could tell when they fell asleep. I felt as if I had been walking in the fog for a long time, and I just realized it.

I finally got in!

After realizing this, I stopped moving forward and looked around. Not to mention Ma Zao, I didn't see any figures other than myself. Maybe Ma Zao's expectations were dashed. As expected, people who are not bound to the fragments of the divine seal cannot enter the misty dream. Or is she wandering in another part of the mist?
Anyway, as long as one of me and Ma Zao can enter the misty dream, it will be fine. The next step is to go to the place where the eight rock chairs are, and then find the second small bowl there and hand over the other party's forgotten name.

In this way, I can finally complete my task.

When I thought about how happy Ma Zao would be, something in my heart seemed to jump for joy, and I couldn't help but look forward to it.

I continued to move forward into the depths of the fog.

(End of this chapter)