"Side quest?"
As he played, Lu Ban gave some thought to this sudden development.
Since it was a side quest, it meant Lu Ban could complete it at any time. However, the quest description said "in the Silent Land." The Silent Land clearly was not the world Lu Ban currently inhabited. Or rather, it should be an alternate dimension influenced by the system or certain Great Beings, much like Jiangcheng Grand Theater on the previous night.
In other words, Lu Ban needed to search for these traces during the quest.
Then, if he found these Melody Fragments, what would he gain?
The quest description provided no details.
Lu Ban simply set the matter aside.
That was not the focus right now.
When the piece ended, tears slid from the corners of Song Yunyan's eyes. She did not wipe them away with a handkerchief, merely stood before the enormous floor-to-ceiling window and gazed into the distance.
If she had still suspected that Lu Ban was some kind of attention-seeking fraud who was trying to muddle through before, then the moment she heard the piano, Song Yunyan understood everything.
Because this was the first—and last—time she had ever heard that piece: amid that great fire.
Everyone who had experienced it back then had long since died. The fact that Lu Ban had obtained this piece was the best proof.
Looking past her shoulder, Lu Ban could also vaguely make out the ruins of Jiangcheng Grand Theater at the far end of the horizon.
No wonder she had bought that plot of land without developing it, and chosen such a place for her office.
For twenty years, she had probably stared into the distance like this countless times, yet found nothing.
Lu Ban came to a realization.
"Mr. Lu, I have a feeling that you and Danping are alike in some way. May I ask you for a favor?"
Song Yunyan did not turn around. She merely watched the shimmering waters of the Ling River.
"Please, go ahead."
"Can you help Danping find release? He's been bound there for so many years. It should be time for him to leave."
She fell silent for a moment before speaking as though she had finally made up her mind.
"No problem."
Lu Ban answered at once.
"To be precise, Du Danping's spirit has already found release."
"?"
Song Yunyan could not help turning around.
"Ms. Song, my video didn't actually end there. I cut out the later part. The full version is here."
Lu Ban took out his phone and immediately played the footage of himself singing "Good Luck" while smashing the skull of her old lover's corpse with a crowbar.
".That's good, too."
Song Yunyan's expression became complicated.
"However, the Du Danping incident hasn't been completely resolved. To prevent something like that from happening again, Jiangcheng Grand Theater needs to be demolished. Its architectural design was what led to the tragedy."
Lu Ban shared the thought he had just come up with.
"Then, ideally, some positive educational facilities should be built on the site, or it could be used for public welfare projects. I believe Mr. Du would be very gratified to see this from beyond the grave."
Having personally sent Du Danping's spirit on its way, Lu Ban spoke with absolute certainty.
".That's an excellent suggestion."
Song Yunyan froze for a moment before nodding hesitantly.
She cast another look at the abandoned Jiangcheng Grand Theater, as though she wanted to engrave it in the deepest reaches of her memory.
"Mr. Lu, is there anything I can do to help you?"
Song Yunyan asked again.
"Someone like you, a person from 'over there,' probably considers money and possessions mere worldly things, so they wouldn't be of any use. But apart from money, I have nothing else."
"."
Lu Ban looked as though he wanted to speak but stopped himself.
"For a while, I searched for antiques all over the world, hoping to find some connection to Danping. Unfortunately, they were all ordinary objects. I imagine you wouldn't think much of them, Mr. Lu."
Song Yunyan pondered, looking somewhat troubled.
"."
Lu Ban once again looked as though he wanted to speak but stopped himself.
"Or perhaps—"
She seemed to remember something, but before she could finish, Lu Ban raised a hand and gently interrupted her.
".Actually, there is something I need your help with, Ms. Song."
"Please, tell me."
Song Yunyan was utterly puzzled.
"As you know, Ms. Song, I'm only a small-time video creator. At present, my greatest wish is to get my number of followers to one hundred thousand as soon as possible. If you could help me achieve that wish, I'd be completely satisfied."
Lu Ban spoke with complete seriousness.
"I'm not an ambitious person. I make these videos to fulfill my own dream of making movies. One hundred thousand followers is just a small step along the way. Of course, if you could invest in the movies I make in the future, that would be even better."
"?"
Song Yunyan was even more bewildered.
This young man had experienced a bizarre scene like that fire, witnessed Du Danping's spirit, and might even have come into contact with certain mysterious beings. Yet his greatest wish was to get one hundred thousand followers?
What was this feeling? It was like spending three hours racking one's brains over a math problem in a library, only for a passing cleaning lady to solve it casually—and then, when asked about it, she said that all she wanted was to be a quiet janitor.
And making movies. Was he serious?
He clearly possessed such extraordinary power, yet all he wanted was to make movies?
Or could it be that the movies he made would involve the power of that world?
"Of course."
Song Yunyan gave her assent, and she could not help looking forward to it.
Although she was already in her forties, she was quite familiar with young people's ways. She had even opened an account on a video platform, occasionally uploading videos of luxury-home tours.
This was the age of traffic. As long as there was enough traffic, making someone popular was no difficult matter—and traffic could be bought with money.
Buying one hundred thousand zombie followers was already a very low-level tactic. Song Yunyan intended to have her secretary promote Lu Ban's videos through other means and help him gain one hundred thousand genuine followers.
"Is there anything else I can help with?"
For some reason, when facing Lu Ban, Song Yunyan did not feel the confidence she usually had when dealing with young people. Instead, she felt a trace of awe.
Perhaps it was because she had truly witnessed those extraordinary events, and therefore viewed Lu Ban differently.
Or perhaps Song Yunyan had seen a shadow of Du Danping from long ago in Lu Ban and wanted to make up for her regrets.
"Hmm, Ms. Song, you mentioned earlier that you once collected a great many antiques, right?"
Lu Ban thought for a moment, then decided to give her a warning.
"Although those antiques may not contain anything you truly need to worry about, I still advise you not to explore such things too deeply. With some matters, the more you know, the more dangerous they become for you."
Just like the things in Silence Department Store. Lu Ban suspected that they might be objects left behind by people like himself. Most of them had been contaminated. If an ordinary person came into contact with them, they might quickly be affected and lose their mind.
Lu Ban, who had once glimpsed the truth of this world, understood that all too well.
Although his sanity was currently zero, Lu Ban did not consider himself insane.
"I understand."
Song Yunyan nodded, seeming to understand yet not quite understand.
"One last thing."
Lu Ban reached the office door, preparing to leave.
Song Yunyan looked over.
"Could you trouble the driver to take me home? Transferring to the subway from here would be rather inconvenient."
Lu Ban spoke earnestly.
".All right."
Song Yunyan could no longer understand this man at all.
*
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