Are you really not going to draw manga?

Tang Yao actually knew her current mental state was a bit strange.

But it was hard to change.

You could even say it was unsolvable.

This was because a person's will greatly influenced their words and actions, and will was inevitably affected by the subconscious.

To give a not-so-apt example, when people see a "Please Be Quiet" sign in a public place, most people will decide whether to obey it based on their values, worldview, and outlook on life formed by past experiences. Some people will subconsciously lower their voices upon seeing the sign, while others will continue to do as they please.

Even if the person knows deep down that it's wrong, past feelings, emotions, values, beliefs, and concepts... will inevitably influence their will, and thus their actions.

Otherwise, why would they say "you can't change human nature"?

Tang Yao's situation was even more peculiar... because her consciousness was formed by the fusion of two core selves.

Most of the time, especially when it came to work, she could manage to not be influenced by the other core self.

But when interacting with Miss Li, or at home, that wasn't always the case.

The most affected was at home, because as soon as she returned home and Xun was by her side, Tang Yao was mostly just Tang Yao... Tang Yao with an extra brain, a Tang Yao with some strange persistence.

Actually... as time went on, Tang Yao would only become more like Tang Yao.

Those memories from her past life wouldn't necessarily be forgotten, but her gender in those memories might gradually blur.

And this process was irreversible. After all, despite the huge differences, both core selves shared a consensus: they had to act in a way that fit their image.

For example, no matter how much Tang Yao thought of Kang Ming, she wouldn't put her arm around his shoulder, nor would she even think of doing so... because whether it was the Tang Yao of the past or the Tang Yao of the present, both felt such behavior was wrong.

Her identity was not suitable for it, and she could not do it.

Since she had decided to accept her identity, even if she still felt like a tough guy, the common sense from her past life would tell her that such behavior was too foolish... not carefree, but self-deprecating.

Conversely, when facing Tang Xun and Li Xue, even if she hugged and held them, Tang Yao would still feel like a tough guy deep down and wouldn't find anything wrong with it, maybe just complaining a bit.

This was her current predicament.

Unless Tang Yao immediately changed her body, this subtle change, the process of the original core self "invading" the transmigration core self, would continue indefinitely.

However... this couldn't really be called a bad thing, could it?

After all, she truly couldn't go back, so getting used to it sooner could even be considered a good thing.

But while it wasn't a bad thing... it had its drawbacks.

For instance, at this very moment.

Tang Yao was well aware that Shang Tao's shady move was beneficial to her plan; it was definitely a good thing.

And her name appearing on it, so be it. Others didn't recognize her, so what was the big deal?

But from Tang Yao's perspective, she still felt ashamed because her name appeared on the... recommended work, which was her own drawing. Even if others didn't know, for someone who was easily embarrassed, it was truly awkward.

Or rather... just seeing the words "Wholehearted Recommendation" made her feel awkward.

"It would have been fine even if my name wasn't on it."

Tang Yao shifted forward again, her flushed cheek pressing against Tang Xun's fair, slender thigh. Smelling the faint fragrance emanating from her, she softly complained.

Tang Xun reached out and brushed the hair away from her sister's face. "...What happened?"

The two sisters had just been sitting together normally.

But Tang Yao, holding her phone, suddenly let out a mournful cry after looking at it for a while, and then collapsed onto her lap...

In fact.

She still didn't know what had happened.

"..."

Tang Yao turned over at the sound of her voice, lying flat again, wanting to look at her sister's face.

But...

At this moment, she finally understood how Frieren felt, only seeing half the sky when her head was on someone's lap.

Tang Yao could only look at half the ceiling and blindly handed her phone to Tang Xun.

Tang Xun took it, and at the same time, nudged her sister further in... The sofa at home wasn't large to begin with, and with Tang Yao's head resting on her legs, she was genuinely afraid Tang Yao might slip off if she moved around and roll onto the floor.

As for letting her sister get up... Tang Xun hadn't even considered it.

"..."

After ensuring everything was fine, Tang Xun finally looked at the phone.

The Literature Pavilion's website, of course, had no mobile version. The web version itself was still not fully figured out... Tang Yao had opened the webpage with a browser. Reading comics in this state would definitely be extremely uncomfortable because the webpage wasn't optimized for mobile, and the font was tiny.

But it was fine for a general browse of the website.

And soon, Tang Xun understood why her sister had let out that mournful cry.

Because she also saw the "Wholehearted Recommendation! Works Edited by Manga Artist Tang Yao, Who Poured Her Heart and Soul Into It!" category.

And the two manga under that category... Tang Xun knew them, and had even seen them before any readers.

But...

Tang Xun leaned forward slightly, looking at her sister lying on her lap.

Tang Yao was staring at half the ceiling and noticed her sister's gaze. "Xun, do you know what's happening now?"

"..."

Tang Xun gently held her phone, not replying. Instead, she looked back at the phone, at the special category listed separately on the website, and recalled Tang Yao's image of sitting at her desk day and night a few days prior... Her eyelashes fluttered slightly.

Not just drawing... do you have to work this hard at the company too?

Tang Yao seemed a bit confused. "Hm?"

"Nothing."

Tang Xun remained silent for a long time before clicking on the synopsis page for Fate/Zero. Then, with the incredibly tiny text, she browsed through it a little.

And upon seeing the author's name.

Tang Xun looked at her sister again and asked, "...Why is the author's name 'Third-rate Painter'?"

"...A pseudonym."

Tang Yao didn't know how to explain it, so she simply said, "I'm the editor, and my name is already out there... Actually, whether it's posted or not, the author couldn't be me. Otherwise, it would cause a lot of unexpected trouble later on."

Tang Xun said softly, "But that's not fair."

"Fair... Xun, I never intended to become famous. If anything, it's already troublesome enough that my name has appeared on the website."

Tang Yao looked at half the ceiling, somewhat helplessly. "I wonder if readers will complain to me when they can't find 'Third-rate Painter' later."

"..."

"What's wrong?"

Tang Yao noticed Tang Xun had fallen silent again. She finally shifted outwards, looked at her expression, and then asked playfully, "Are you sticking up for your sister?"

"A little."

Tang Xun nodded gently, then swiped her finger across the screen, finding the comment section.

She couldn't see the manga, but she could still see the comment section, which was mostly text.

Currently, the number of comments in the comment section was approaching thirty thousand.

"Teacher Third-rate! Where's my next chapter? Where's my next chapter!?"

"Holy crap, genius! Is this a godly free-for-all!? Alright, alright, alright!!"

"It's so good! So talented! You can draw crazy manga like Uzumaki, and you can also draw such an interesting, classic manga!"

"This manga is still the best! I only came here for the fun at first, but after reading this, the fun and other manga award submissions have become bland. I just finished Fate/Zero and thought other manga award works would be as interesting, so I excitedly looked for them, but after reading one, they were all bland.

The gap is too big. Even if I don't compare it to the unfinished Fate/Zero, compared to the crazy Uzumaki, it's much less fun, not interesting."

"I have to say, this setting is really interesting! The author is amazing!"

"Serialization, serialization, serialization! I'm in a hurry! Teacher! When will you serialize? When will you release the next chapter?"

"Teacher! Hurry up and update the sequel! It's my first time reading this type of manga! Hurry up and update! You can ask readers to do anything!"

"..."

It was clear.

The readers genuinely loved this manga. The comment section was full of praise and urgent requests for serialization.

Tang Xun looked at the words praising the author... praising her sister, and pursed her lips. A smile suddenly appeared on her cool, fair, and delicate face.

"Hm?"

Tang Yao was surprised and blinked.

However, the smile on Tang Xun's small face flashed and disappeared quickly. Instead, she handed the phone back to Tang Yao. "Phone."

"Phone?"

Tang Yao's attention was diverted. She took the phone and glanced at it... It was Li Xue calling.

She answered immediately.

As soon as the call connected.

Li Xue's voice came through, her tone very excited, just like the first time she finished reading Uzumaki... You could almost imagine the elder sister's excitement through the phone. "Tang Yao... have you seen what's happening on the online website? Ten thousand readers are online urging you to update! Ten thousand! Are you really not going to draw manga? Really not going to!?"