Extra: The World Is So Beautiful, Full of Joy and Free of Sorrow

The world is so beautiful, filled with joy and devoid of sorrow.

It's midday in spring, and the sun is shining brightly. I can't remember what time it is; my sense of time seems a bit hazy.

I buried my face in the recessed part of the beanbag chair, lay on the rooftop of the bar, and enjoyed the midday sun.

"Little Cheapie, get out of here!"

The door to the bar's rooftop was opened, and I looked up.

Li Fire sported a head of chestnut-brown curly hair, her canvas satchel swaying with her movements, and the potato chip bags in her right hand rustled.

"Sigh..." I sighed, "It's pointless, I don't want to go."

"What's wrong? You're not even interested in going out for a meal?" Li Fire put down the bag of snacks and asked, puzzled, "This isn't like you."

"I just don't understand." I lifted my eyelids, swiped my fingertips across my phone screen, opened it, looked at the few zeros on the back of my wallet, and couldn't help but sigh, "How am I so rich?"

"Damn, the way you said that makes me want to punch you."

How should we behave now?

I immediately beamed and sprang up from the beanbag chair. "Hey, no doubt about it, this is showing off."

"Hey kid, don't run away, or I'll beat you up."

I ran like the wind, glancing back every now and then to catch Li Fire. It was normal, it was fun, just the usual playful banter between friends.

But...

As he passed by others, the corners of his mouth hadn't fully fallen into a smile, but a fleeting, strange glint flashed in his eyes.

From childhood to adulthood, the passage of time is like fleeting clouds, seemingly illusory and ethereal, with some memories fading away with time.

Is this true?

Perhaps this isn't wrong to others. It's just that I, who control a portion of my time, am quite sensitive to it, yet I've forgotten some memories.

This isn't true.

Some of my memories have been lost in time and cannot be retrieved.

While chasing from the balcony, I caught a glimpse of Kun Earth and Qian Heaven, who were inseparable.

But why does the distance between them seem so vast?

"Alright, stop fooling around." Kun Earth stepped in to stop them.

I stopped in my tracks, forcing a smile that was both genuine and insincere, "Okay, I'll do as Sister Kun Earth says."

Kun Earth seemed to have noticed something and was about to ask me something when I immediately raised my hand and rushed off the rooftop, "I'll go get the car."

A large enough vehicle to hold eight people, I held the steering wheel and drove steadily forward.

I just don't understand why they were all gripping the handrails so tightly.

Until Zhen Thunder couldn't help but ask, "Do you really have a driver's license?"

I patted my chest and assured them, "Don't worry, my driver's license is a year old."

But you're going against the flow right now!

Looking at the endless stream of cars approaching from the front, I couldn't help but smirk. "They're driving the wrong way."

Li Fire opened the window, feeling nauseous. "Get out of here, let someone else open it."

"I've only had my driver's license for a year, so what if it's my first accident? Who do you think you are?"

Qian Heaven then said, "You said you've had your driver's license for a year, how come you've never driven even once?"

Yes, why is that?

This question seems to have stumped me; I'm completely baffled.

"Maybe I won't need a car this year."

You go out the most often.

"I can Sword Control!"

"To control your abilities, we've kept the longsword safe."

"Then I'll take a taxi."

"Where did you get the money... wait, you seem to be quite wealthy. Do you have any spending records?"

I searched through the records, trying to disprove the abnormality in my mind, but all I found was that sum of money, that sum of money from an unknown source.

Yes, we have amnesia.

I think.

Instead of being overturned, it proves that we have forgotten a certain period of time, and then continue to live in this abnormal world.

Why is it called "Eight Trigrams" (Eight Trigrams)?

I asked a very strange question.

They thought so too, "Why is it called '[Eight Trigrams]' Eight Trigrams? Eight people, eight code names, it just happens to be the name of an organization, is there any other explanation?"

"Let me put it another way. Why are we... a group called 'Eight Trigrams'? What brought us together?"

"Because..."

Everyone was caught up in this problem.

Yes, why did they form this "Eight Trigrams" group? Why have they forgotten its origins?

"To save the world?" Xun Wind uttered an absurd reason.

Gen Mountain slapped him on the back of the head. "You've been reading too many novels."

As I drove, turning the car around ahead, I casually remarked, "What if? The male protagonist of a shonen manga, fighting to save the world, sounds so interesting!"

I laughed heartily, even humming a song in my spare time.

Do whatever you want.

Qian Heaven then spoke.

I stepped on the gas, and the car accelerated. I opened the window, letting in a refreshing breeze.

"I want to explore time."

A swerve took them to their destination, where they got out and vomited while holding onto the car body.

"Me? I want to search for my memories."

By the time they finally recovered from their dizziness, I had already said goodbye to them.

"Are we just going to let him run wild like this?" Li Fire frowned slightly.

Qian Heaven straightened up and slowly said, "Given our physical condition, everyone should have recovered by now, right?"

Everyone understood the unspoken agreement.

At this moment, Xun Wind shakily raised his hand and weakly uttered, "I... I'm an exception."

Qian Heaven chuckled, "Since that's the case, isn't this choice tantamount to admitting it?"

He gazed at the azure sky. "I've been wondering the same thing. Why are we all gathered together when we have no connection whatsoever?"

"So let him do it. He's a young man, full of energy."

I travel through time, groping forward, going against the current.

Fragments of memory appear on both sides, repeatedly playing out everything we've experienced.

I want to find the source, to find out why [the Eight Trigrams] exist.

"Um?"

My gaze fell to the right, moving closer to that memory, and I felt there was something familiar about it.

Just as the hand was about to touch it, the fragment of memory Teleportation to a distant place.

I saw a stranger standing above time. He held Scales, his robes fluttering, his expression indifferent.

Really dressed.

"Leave this place."

He issued a warning.

I will leave once I find what I want.

"Knowing the truth is not a good thing for you."

What do you know?

I think I've come to the right place. This is where my confusion can be resolved, and I even have someone in the know.

The person in the know was quite easy to talk to. Although they had warned me to leave earlier, they now wanted me to follow along, going with the flow of time.

"This is the future." I don't know why I spoke up, "You can't just step into the future carelessly, or you'll suffer retribution."

Thinking of the Xun Wind and the Mao Rabbit, I suddenly felt a little worried. "Even my friends with precognitive abilities don't dare to casually spy on things, so you..."

"Keep up."

Without saying a word, he put his hand on my shoulder.

With a blink of an eye, Teleportation to the future.

I... saw how everyone died a horrible death.

"What is this?" I asked in a trembling voice.

"The future, or rather, the future where we know the truth."

"A future where the truth is known...?"

His gaze was fixed on me, his expression serious. "Now, do you still want to know the truth?"

Will the truth be painful?

"Yes."

Are we living in a beautiful, unreal dream?

"If that's how you understand it."

This is not the answer I wanted; I desperately want to know the truth. But time doesn't lie, and the truth will bring us back to reality.

Everyone will eventually die.

"Yes or no, the choice is yours."

I heard him speak softly, his words filled with fairness and devoid of any emotion.

I also have an option to ask you.

"You say."

I looked firmly into his calm gaze. "Do we know each other?"

A ripple seemed to appear in that otherwise neutral gaze; his eyes shifted downwards, as if he were about to lie.

"No."

This is his answer.

I took a deep breath. "I understand."

With the sword of time cleaving through the long river, a memory of this place is recorded here.

As I stepped into the crevice, I looked back and aimed at this fragment.

As the sword's energy swept away, memories shattered.

With their last connection severed, Fan Daoyi turned and left, severing all ties with them.

I returned to the campsite, where everyone was having a barbecue and enjoying themselves.

"You've been in the bathroom for so long?" Xun Wind joked.

I smiled back and said, "That doesn't necessarily mean you'll be waiting for me."

"Ah... this kind of life is so blissful. I don't have to do anything, I can do whatever I want, how wonderful the world is." Li Fire stretched and sighed.

"Yes, it's a wonderful world."

The world is so beautiful, yet filled with sorrow and devoid of joy.

"Using past images to package the future, is this ending truly worthwhile?"

"What does it matter? This time, they've severed all ties with me themselves, and I'll never be remembered by anyone again."

Balance and uniformity are my principles; I will never deviate from them.

"A year is not a long time; it can even be said to pass in the blink of an eye."

Gods live forever, but humans rarely live past a hundred. Perhaps sometimes, your path is very clear.

"... They will die, and I won't interfere." Fan Daoyi's gaze fell on the book in the other person's hand. "But you, you fabricate reality with a false story, but a lie is still a lie."

"Haha, of course I know. In this prosperous era, among the masses... It's not the real ending, but it's the best ending for me."

So, what would be the real ending you want?

Ugh, I've finally finished writing the long-delayed extra chapter.

"In a prosperous era, among the masses," this is the ending plot of Lin Huai's book.

It's okay if you haven't read it yet, because I haven't written it yet, hehe, nobody has read it.

Actually, I've never known where to start with the side stories for this book, because I feel like there's not much to write about.

So after much thought, I finally wrote this not-so-good side story, and there won't be any more.

And so, the story of Fan Daoyi ends here; what follows is the story of Lian Yu.

The new book will feature appearances by familiar characters, but just like this book, they will appear at the end.

Bye-bye~