Chapter 427

"Since we're getting haircuts, why don't we record it?"

"Record it?"

The Witch whispered:

"Yes, the more people remember you, the more anchors the world will have for you. Recording videos and posting them out, just like Xiao Qing singing and playing music in the subway, might even have a better effect."

[Nothingness] swallowed up all traces of Chu Yuanqing.

But before her individual self is completely consumed, walking under other names can still leave traces and cause and effect.

These traces and causes, no matter how much they accumulate, may not be able to withstand the [emptiness] for more than a few breaths, but she still hopes... hopes that Chu Yuanqing can leave more footprints, like expecting a seed that will never sprout to bloom.

Chu Yuanqing thought for a moment and said:

"It's very troublesome to cut hair while filming."

The Witch's eyes crinkled at the corners as she smiled and said:

"I'll take the picture for you. Didn't I just help Xiao Qing with the big clean-up?"

Chu Yuanqing pursed her lips, feeling unconsciously happy.

The Witch's thought form is essentially a function that originated from the paper crane amulet before its evolution.

The Paper Crane Can, the first gift Yayoi gave her, has a very cute effect: when you open a paper crane, you can hear Little Sakura singing, Little Sakura telling bedtime stories, Little Sakura encouraging you, and Little Sakura telling you lame jokes...

The Witch before us is a wondrous creation born from the fusion of a cherry blossom tree and a paper crane amulet. She not only possesses the memories of Witch and the Little Sakura, but can also slightly Reality Interference, to the extent of taking out the trash, watering the flowers, or giving a massage.

Chu Yuanqing glanced at the Witch had already picked up her phone, ready to take a picture. She turned her head, a bright smile playing on her lips, and sincerely thanked her:

"Yes, thank you, Yayoi."

"It's so good to have you by my side."

The Witch gazed at the radiant yet broken figure in the lens, her lips parted, and she whispered:

"It's my good fortune to still be able to be with you."

After the Witch finished speaking, she smiled and urged:

"Okay, let's get your hair cut."

Chu Yuanqing looked in the mirror. She had cut her daughter's hair many times in the past, probably from elementary school to junior high school. Her technique was average.

With a swift movement, strands of soft, white hair, like feathers falling from an angel, were scattered in the sink. Before long, the waist-length hair was cut to ear length, losing some of its softness and gaining a cool and aloof air.

Strangely, the stray hairs in the sink didn't need to be washed; right under her gaze, they spontaneously disintegrated and reverted into silvery-white Magic Energy Particles.

"We can't waste it."

Chu Yuanqing stretched out his hand, and these Magic Energy Particles returned to the dull, withered Contract Chain on his hand, transforming into a withered mark that was embedded in it.

The Pure White Witch nodded in satisfaction. As Idealistic Being, she could revert to pure magic power from any part of her body that she wished to detach from her main body. The magic power extracted from her hair was probably enough for her to construct a Magic Armor.

However, in return, having lost the support of the world's origin and being cursed by the Sea of Truth, she found it difficult to replenish her magical energy. Furthermore, when her hair grew back and was cut off, it could no longer be converted back into magical power.

This is essentially a long and terrible regression.

After Chu Yuanqing finished packing, she changed into a gray hoodie and jeans, took her phone, guitar, shoulder bag, and a few coins hidden in the drawer, and stepped out the door with the Witch, walking in this city where no one recognized her, facing the blazing sunset.

Sea Capital a bustling city. Just find a shopping mall, sit outside a restaurant, ask the waiter for a password, and you can easily find free Wi-Fi.

Chu Yuanqing first downloaded Weibo. Naturally, she couldn't log in to her old account, but using a guest account to watch other Little Idol, browse <Flash Dance> videos, and check the trending topics was no problem.

During the week she was in a coma, all the teams that advanced had announced their group names and started promoting themselves in various ways. However, Yayoi, Xiao Xuan, Liuli, Xiao Shu were the only ones who hadn't made any moves, which worried their fans.

In addition, the attacks on Sea Capital have gradually faded from public attention. Apart from the government's announcement of mourning for the dead that day, which sparked heated discussions online, the focus of public opinion has since shifted to Magical Girl and the stage.

In short, Flashdance's previously hidden project has now been revealed.

Once the scene of Charlotte saving the Sea Capital with her singing was revealed, and considering the use of a Talent Show to select Magical Girl, it's easy to guess that idols and the stage truly possess incredible power.

Suddenly, many people who were not interested in idols began to watch the show and realized that it would directly affect the future of human civilization.

Chu Yuanqing felt that if it could be concealed, the Countermeasures Bureau would definitely want to keep it a secret.

After all, exposing the core of the plan makes it easy to be targeted and attacked, but after Charlotte made her move that day, their methods were no longer a secret to the disaster group.

Therefore, the government simply took the initiative to expose it, at least in order to attract more people to watch <Flashdance> and add more popularity to the Magical Girl.

Charlotte...

Chu Yuanqing murmured her lover's name, her golden eyes drooping with a sense of loss. She knew he still remembered her.

This is related to the meaning of Forget-me-not -not Flower Language, Charlotte's wish, and also to her Destined Magic— [illusion].

Back when they first met in Vienna, she laid everything bare to him, telling him about her current situation and explaining the curse of the Sea of Truth.

If she were to be swallowed by the [nothingness], the corrective power of the Sea of Truth would flow unimpeded, completely erasing her cause and effect.

This is a power that neither the blessings of Flower Language nor the magic of [embellishment] can resist.

This can be seen from the fact that when she awakened her trait and obtained the [The Ideal Land That Welcomes the End], even if it was only for a short time, Charlotte did forget about Chu Yuanqing below.

Even if it's fully open, it still can't change the overall situation.

All Charlotte could do was remain in a Schrödinger's cat state, caught between forgetting and not forgetting.

Simply put, she has indeed forgotten Chu Yuanqing, but that memory and those feelings are wrapped in the blessings of Flower Language and [pretendments], hidden deep in her soul, ready to erupt at some point.

To make the other person remember, what's needed is a secret code, a code that the two of them have already quietly agreed upon.

Chu Yuanqing was able to use this code to make Charlotte remember her and seek her help.

However, after using it this time, the opponent will be devoured by an even greater [nothingness] and a more terrifying corrective force, and will be completely forgotten, with no chance left.

Therefore, until now, she has never thought of contacting him.

It's not that we don't want to, but that we can't.

The Witch asked softly:

"Xiao Qing, have you thought about what to do with this one and only chance to wake her up?"

Chu Yuanqing looked at the smiling, lively-eyed Doomsday Diva on her phone screen, paused for a moment, turned off the screen, looked up at the Dream Weaver Rabbit statue in the center of the mall, and answered, word by word:

"I've made up my mind."

"From the moment I woke up, I knew when to seize this opportunity."

It will be a grand and joyous moment, filled with laughter, happiness, anticipation, and happiness for everyone. She and her lover will meet under the watchful eyes of the world, and they will also part ways under the same gaze, bringing this long story to a close.

In a daze, the Witch caught a whiff of the fragrance of the last blooming rose, a scent that foreshadowed decay. She drifted down like a ghost, her lips brushing against the girl's, bringing a cool, untouched touch. Looking steadily into the girl's dim yet resolute eyes, she smiled and softly said:

"Before that, go and see more of the world."

"In the past, we always walked through ruins and desolate wastelands. To meet again in this way is to see the world and leave no regrets."

Chu Yuanqing paused, pursed her lips, and said softly, "It smells like cherry blossoms."

"Okay, after I finish taking care of something, I'll stay for a few days and then leave Sea Capital to see the world. How about... Hokkaido first?"

The Witch was somewhat surprised; with mixed emotions, she smiled and said:

"Although I've seen it in my memory, I still really want to see East Flow Island without the Disaster God in person."

"By the way, what is it you need to do?"

Chu Yuanqing opened her phone, looked at the acquaintance's Weibo, and said softly:

"I'm going to Zhelong Town to find someone."

"Who?"

The Pure White Witch's complex gaze led to her reply:

"A knight... who, though stripped of his glorious protection, still stands tall with his backbone."

"My student, Liang Xiaoxiao."

P. S.: Before we knew it, we'd almost reached 2 million words, and the story is nearing its end. Do you want to speed things up and finish reading Qing Bao's ending, or would you like some more slice-of-life scenes interspersed throughout?

Book 1: 402. The Knight's Resolve, the So-Called Virtue.

Zhelong Town.

Since the truth about "Flash Dance" was revealed, the largest film and television base in Sea Capital has been subject to large-scale restrictions on its visitors by national policies. The once ubiquitous media paparazzi have all fallen silent, and tourists are no longer allowed to enter the core area.

Currently, only high-priced mentors, producers, and top-tier musicians—a series of professionals responsible for designing the image, integrating the team, preparing debut songs, and designing promotional campaigns for Little Idol —have the authority to access this platform.

However, due to the need to sign a large number of agreements to enter the underground base, most teams adopted online methods to carry out their work. With advanced projection technology, whether they were physically present was not important.

Currently, the Little Idol in the Great Xia region are mostly in the two underground bases in Sea Capital and Capital, preparing for their debut.

This is partly due to security concerns.

After all, having publicized Charlotte's Shine Magic so extensively, if the swarm has any hidden tricks up its sleeve, its first reaction would definitely be to nip these new seeds in the bud, just like the Utopia incident. Therefore, staying at the base is definitely the safest option.

On the other hand, there is no place in the world more suitable for idol training than the Flash Dance base. Even disregarding the shelter and base areas, just considering the effort put into idol training, the research and development content of any one of its areas is in the trillions, making it a true crystallization of civilization.

Currently, the nation's best musicians, producers, and related resources are pouring resources into this area regardless of the cost.

Although this sounds abstract, it is indeed equivalent to pre-war preparations that determine the survival of civilization. Even if Flashdance doesn't pay a single penny, driven by absolute righteousness, no one can shirk this task.

However, due to the limitations of nationality and fairness in the competition areas, each region can basically only access resources domestically. To access resources from abroad, it is necessary to go through layers of approval, and the number of slots is limited.

Therefore, the quality of each region's debut episode is, to some extent, related to "national strength".

The Great Xia Dynasty has a vast territory, boasting a population of tens of billions, comparable to a quarter of the Donghuang Federation's territory. Its entertainment industry is extremely prosperous due to its massive population, so it doesn't need to worry about these issues. However, the other smaller, peripheral countries are somewhat struggling.

In this case, any surplus resources from the Great Xia contestants that are not needed will be allocated to other countries' competition zones as appropriate, balancing the resources for global Little Idol and boosting the "Idol Power" of the entire civilization in preparation for the final <Flash Dance> project.

At this moment, in the underground base, area A1.

At 7:30 p. m., Chen Yining, Ji Shuzhu, Lin Bao'er, Ruan Wutong, and Liang Xiaoxiao, who had been busy all day, hurriedly returned to their dormitory to wash up and eat.

The girls were listless and extremely tired. If it weren't for the thought of all the precious free time that followed, they probably would have just wanted to lie back in bed and sleep soundly.

Lin Bao'er, her face contorted with grief and tears welling in her eyes, said:

"Beelzebub's Feast and Holy Communion are just too unsolvable! I never want to run this dungeon again in my life!"

Ruan Wutong shoveled rice into her mouth with her chopsticks, her cheeks bulging like a hamster as she ate. After chewing, she took a sip of chilled juice and mumbled:

"Jörmungandr is terrifying too. Our spells couldn't break through its defenses at all. With one sweep of its tail, everything went black, and we were all destroyed along with the entire city. Not only did our mission fail, but we also lost battle points because of our poor performance."

Ji Shuzhu remained calm and analyzed the situation rationally, saying:

"The reason we attracted Jörmungandr's attention last time was because we exceeded the mission time limit, which was essentially a scripted death."

"If we turn off Free Mode, the BOSS won't attack from outside our area. We still need to start by hunting down the lower-level Calamity Beasts to get used to it."

Liang Xiaoxiao didn't participate in the discussion. She buried her head in her food, her wisps of hair obscuring her vision. Her neat, white teeth were intertwined and growing longer. The bone fragments she swallowed dissolved in her saliva. Spirals of food swirled in her pupils, and her twisted appetite appeared and disappeared, filling her nostrils with an enticing fragrance.

The girl remained silent, then picked up another piece of braised pork ribs with scallions. This sweet Sea Capital dish, when swallowed, decomposed into a sour and rotten taste, like a swamp that was hard to swallow. Her alienated senses continued to detach from her self, yet she returned to her original state through unwavering will.

If one could see through this increasingly graceful body, one could discover, beneath the loose short-sleeved shirt and trousers, undulating scales arranged like blades, spreading out like waves, swimming back and forth with restless textures.

Liang Xiaoxiao suppressed the bestiality in her eyes. Her nostrils flared as she breathed softly. The extinguished light in her soul rekindled with her visualization, instantly entering a state of concentration that transcended [Flow State], thus completing the connection between everything.

At this moment, bones, flesh, strength, will, thoughts, and cells all seemed to form a complete network with each breath, connecting into a unified whole. Then, they resisted, suppressed, restrained, and suppressed the restless Calamity Beasts genes, returning them to their proper place and sealing them back into the body.

The girl forgot who taught her this technique, but at a critical moment when her mind was in increasing danger and she could harm her friend at any moment, she suddenly remembered the instinct to breathe from the corner of her memory.

--breathe.

--You need to breathe.

--Breathe correctly.

This thought filled her mind, and in a daze, it was as if someone was gently guiding her, helping her through increasingly difficult days and allowing her to continue pushing forward with her debut plans as if nothing had changed.

She can't lose.

Everyone has waited too long for this day of debut. She can die, or not be an idol, but she cannot trample on the dreams of these friends, nor can she destroy the public's beautiful fantasy of Magical Girl.

Thus, under the high-pressure environment and the obsession with protection, her breathing became increasingly proficient. Until now, she has crossed the barriers that were unimaginable in the past and touched the prototype of the complete realm.