Realm Boundary Restriction

The next day was Sunday.

"You really want to come out with me?" Lu Yao looked at the girl before him.

"My lord, there are demons spying around you. I must stay by your side at all times to ensure your safety."

Isabelle's tone was firm.

"Going out is necessary. We need to stock up on enough food and reduce contact with other suspicious individuals. This will prevent demons from poisoning the food or using it to conduct a Demonic Ritual."

She had already slipped into her guard role.

Lu Yao also felt that what she said made a lot of sense.

However, having Isabelle follow him out would bring some other troubles.

First was her strange outfit. Though it was much better than the Black-Robed Blind Monk's getup, it could still draw some attention.

"Now I'll make up a simple persona for you. You need to remember it well."

"My lord, what is a persona?"

"It means I'll give you a description of your identity."

"I see. Yes."

"Good. Your name will still be Isabelle, but you're from a small country. Our families' elders know each other, so we've been friends since childhood, and you've spoken Chinese since you were young."

Isabelle nodded.

"You're 18 years old this year, and you've come to this city for a vacation to relax."

"I'm hosting you and taking you around. Outside, you'll call me Lu Yao. If you run into questions you can't answer or don't want to answer, just stay silent."

"Yes."

Preparations complete, Lu Yao led Isabelle out the door.

"First, let's buy you a pair of shoes."

"Yes."

Isabelle's feet weren't large, and she couldn't wear Lu Yao's shoes, so she had to go out in slippers, which made moving around inconvenient.

At the mall, Lu Yao had her try on a pair of canvas shoes and thought about buying her a set of affordable clothes.

Isabelle kept saying it wasn't necessary.

"My... Lu Yao, I can cut and sew clothes myself from cloth. That's how I've always done it."

"For shoes, I just need Leather and cloth, and I can make them."

"Or I can just wrap my body in a whole piece of cloth, so I won't feel ashamed. At night, it can double as a blanket. Very convenient."

These words, paired with Isabelle's earnest and straightforward face, made Lu Yao feel a pang of pity.

Working abroad all year, Apostles really had it tough.

When they reached the fresh produce section, Lu Yao bought a lot of meat and potatoes—things that could be stored—and also grabbed some rice and Noodles. He estimated this haul would last them half a month.

"Lu Yao."

Someone suddenly called out to him.

Damn, an acquaintance!

It was Sister Peng. She was pushing a shopping cart with a male companion, filled with ingredients for hotpot.

Lu Yao could only steel himself and greet her.

"You're out grocery shopping too," Sister Peng said openly. "This is my boyfriend—well, fiancé, actually—Fu Chenggang. And this is Lu Yao, the handsome young guy from our unit I told you about. He's a good person."

Fu Chenggang was a tall man with slightly dark skin. He wore a stiff jacket, had a square face and a broad nose, exuding masculinity.

"Hello." He smiled and greeted Lu Yao as well.

"Lu Yao, aren't you going to introduce the lady beside you?" Sister Peng said with a grin.

"Isabelle, a friend of mine."

"Wow, she's a foreign girl. How did you two meet?"

"Our families' elders know each other, so we've known each other since childhood."

Lu Yao kept his composure on the surface.

Isabelle remained silent.

Sister Peng glanced over and tactfully stopped there. "Alright, we won't bother you then."

Fu Chenggang suddenly spoke up. "You live in the Locomotive Factory Dormitory in Jiuyuan Community, right?"

"I'm from the Municipal Criminal Police Brigade. When that incident happened in the alley outside the Locomotive Factory Dormitory the other day, I was at the scene." He added a brief explanation: "But I was surveying the site. Another colleague took your statement."

So he was a cop.

Lu Yao nodded.

"What's this? The case at the Locomotive Factory Dormitory involves Lu Yao?" Sister Peng looked surprised, as if she hadn't known about it.

"Lu Yao was one of the witnesses. He called the police at the time, and one of my colleagues went to take his statement." Fu Chenggang said concisely.

Lu Yao seized the opportunity to ask, "Officer Fu, have you caught that pervert yet?"

"That's not something I can disclose."

"Still haven't caught him?" Sister Peng didn't care about protocol. She couldn't help complaining, "That guy is terrifying. Stripping someone naked and hanging them up like livestock for slaughter—the victim will have psychological scars for life. I've seen a lot of people online saying he's a butcher with a twisted fetish."

Fu Chenggang looked a bit awkward. Bound by police discipline, he couldn't reveal any inside information, so he could only say, "We will definitely bring him to justice. Wait for the official announcement."

After parting ways with Sister Peng, Lu Yao and Isabelle carried bags full of groceries and took a Didi back to the neighborhood.

The task of sorting and putting things away was left to Little Fire.

Lu Yao couldn't wait to sit down at his computer desk and start running the God Simulator.

Isabelle sat beside Lu Yao, watching him click the mouse, and couldn't help murmuring softly, "So this is what a low realm looks like from a high realm."

"It's easy to understand." Lu Yao moved the mouse and gave an analogy, "From a very high vantage point, every one of us looks as small as ants. It's just a matter of perspective."

Isabelle seemed thoughtful.

She sat upright, appearing to be watching Lu Yao play a game. In reality, she was highly alert, paying attention to every sound and movement in the small room.

"By the way." Lu Yao voiced an idea he had, "Isabelle, since I can summon you here, could I also send other tribe members over through the Temple?"

"Lord, please do not do that. It is extremely dangerous."

Isabelle said with a serious expression, "When a low-realm lifeform enters a high realm, because it lacks the foundation and form needed to exist in the high realm, it will be twisted by Rule Power. Without the protection of a god's Flame of Faith, these lifeforms will undergo unpredictable and irreversible changes, eventually degenerating into grotesque monsters."

"Only Apostles, because they carry a seed of the Flame of Faith granted by the god within them, can briefly stay in the high realm. But even they will be affected if the time is prolonged."

Realm restrictions?

Lu Yao pondered. It seemed the real world was the high realm, and by comparison, the Pixel World was the low realm.

He pointed at the cactus busy working behind them. "What about it? Little Fire doesn't seem affected at all."

"The Cactus Follower is a special case."

Isabelle said calmly, "It was originally born in the high realm before being cast into the low realm by the god. Additionally, it is a very simple lifeform capable of adapting to many environments."

Lu Yao asked, "Then how long can you stay here?"

"The limit is roughly 15 days. Please make sure I return to the low realm, or I may be twisted by the high realm's Rule Power, become very strange, and possibly even degenerate into a monster."

"So if I summon you back through the Temple after you return, there's no problem?"

"No problem. However, it would be best to let me stay in the low realm for at least 3 days. That will allow my foundation and form to resynchronize with the low realm's Rule Power..."

Lu Yao understood.

It was a bit like recharging, and a bit like getting a vaccine.

If Isabelle stayed here too long, she might mutate into a monster. But as long as she could go back regularly to take her "medicine," she could maintain her current stable form.