It Looked Like Putting on a Mask, but Was Actually Taking One Off

The Volga is traveling on the main road.

9527 and 3301 were chatting idly in the driver's seat and passenger's seat, respectively.

Seventh Brother looked relaxed and carefree, while Teacher San San was reserved and elegant, having specially changed into a fishtail dress.

The radio station was playing Dua Lipa's single "Levitating"—it was retro pop, and pop retro.

The two sisters had been exchanging barbs intensely, one after another, and missed each other terribly after not seeing each other for several days.

When Xiao Qi talked about her employer, she said, "I was smitten at first sight."

San San was busy touching up her makeup, trying to make a good impression on Aunt Bu Mei.

"When have you ever not fallen? You've been an enemy-occupied area for a long time now. So you were just a simple-minded person before? Now you want Shanghai 1943?"

Xiao Qi: "No, no. I mean, after I saw the employer turn into a woman."

San San: "Your fist's hard now?"

Xiao Qi exclaimed, "My phantom limb is hard!"

San San exclaimed in surprise, "Is it really that good-looking? He should have turned back by now, right? I can't see him anymore."

Xiao Qi took out her phone and showed Teacher San San a photo of Xue Ming in her female form.

3301: "Wow! My goodness! You're so lucky!"

Xiao Qi swayed her head and body to the rhythm of the music, and Volga started to move like a snake, laughing very happily, just like when we find a beautiful girlfriend and want to show her off to our best buddies.

3301: "Stop fucking shaking! My face! I'm putting on makeup! Stop!"

"Hey! Why be so fussy?" Xiao Qi said nonchalantly. "San San, do you think your employer cares whether you're pretty or not?"

3301 was still stubbornly insisting, "I wasn't putting on makeup for him; I just wanted to make a good impression on the auntie."

Xiao Qi shared her philosophy of life. "We should please ourselves; beauty should be something we appreciate ourselves! It's fate if others see it."

"--That makes sense." 3301 said, her hands still busy. "That's why I need to be clean and beautiful, unlike you. You wild girl, your employer never cares about your makeup."

Xiao Qi: "That's what I like about him, he's a genuine person."

After tidying up her face, 3301 continued.

"I'm on holiday for the New Year, and with all this free time, I suddenly feel a sense of loss."

Xiao Qi said disdainfully, "Were you being manipulated by that Little Kitty? Are you just bored because you're not working?"

"No, I just feel like this isn't my life. Is this kind of life really right for me? I'm a Lapis Lazuli Guards. Although it's a job my mother gave me, I really enjoy it. Most of the time I'm out in the underworld, never having a moment's rest."

"Oh right, your employer seems to be the same way, Bu Liuxing just can't stop."

He likes watching cartoons.

"That's not cartoons, it's anime, or at least a series, right? It's a form of art! ~ At least that's what their fan community says. Cartoons are for kids."

"Are they divided into such detailed categories? I don't really understand them. Let's get back to this anime. I wanted to learn more about it, so I watched it with Aunt Bu Mei, and I felt like all the characters were so busy. Really busy, it made me feel tired just watching them."

"Exactly, if the main character stops, what are you showing the audience?"

"They're always shouting, 'I'm going to this place, I want to become this or that, I want to do this or that,' and they just keep shouting and shouting. Once they get to one place, they immediately move on to the next, as if there are countless things waiting for them to do—I just think, if only there were a place where they could rest."

Why do we need to rest?

"I think they get tired too, right? They need to rest, like after talking nonsense or something. Life can't be exciting all the time."

"But animation is just like movies, you know—film stock is expensive, and the director, the scriptwriters, and even the paper-based characters can't keep having the same characters talking nonsense."

"Yes, you're right."

"Hmm, San San, is something on your mind?"

"I received a box of potions from Bu Liuxing, Universal Elixir, eight vials in total—two liters."

Wow! He really likes you!

Didn't your employer give you all the sticks?

"Hey-hey!"

"I'm not bragging, I'm just worried about him. It seems he gave me all the medicine, what will he do? What will he do himself?"

"You didn't finish drinking it, did you?"

Of course not.

"That's fine then. Wait a minute, what do you mean by 'not finished drinking'?" Xiao Qi suddenly stopped.

3301 bent down to trim her nails and accidentally cut her hand, drawing a little blood.

She casually pulled a bottle of Universal Elixir from her bag and drank it down in one gulp, like she was drinking orange juice with pulp.

"Belch--"

Then the half-wolf girl let out a burp and looked at 9527 with satisfaction.

Okay, that's all.

9527: "Are you kidding me?"

3301: "You've known me for a while now. What's the most tempting element in the world? It's Universal Elixir! My body simply can't resist it, it's almost instinctive—if you saw Jiang Xueming's tears, you'd definitely lick them clean."

9527: "That makes sense -- but I wouldn't drink two liters in a row! Two liters!"

"It's just a family-sized Coke pack, you think two liters is a lot?" 3301 pouted, tilting her head to look out the window. "I'll finish it before I even get to my stop on the bus. And I'm even holding back—otherwise this bottle wouldn't be here today."

9527 showed a helpless expression.

--In fact, the Lapis Lazuli Guards are issued more Universal Elixir supplies than ordinary passengers, and their missions are also more dangerous.

The reason why 3301 likes to use full-health potions is very simple: she has the blood of the Qingjin Wolf Mother flowing in her veins, her growth cycle is very long, Universal Elixir can provide a very high-quality physical condition and provide the essential substances needed for development.

For Teacher San San, the Universal Elixir is a supplement that increases her maximum health; at her age, no amount of it is ever enough.

3301 had also questioned the station's excellent matching mechanism.

After all, at first glance, Bu Liuxing was really unreliable—he had close encounters with mysterious ancient creatures from the astral plane twice, narrowly escaping death several times, yet he showed no remorse.

In the eyes of Teacher San San, who possesses Lapis Lazuli, this kind of bratty kid is someone she simply can't talk to.

Only when the young beast broke free of the chains and became stronger did 3301, the half-wolf, finally become interested in sniffing A Xing's scent, as if he had found a suitable mate.

Then--

--And then I was captivated by this boy with a youthful face and huge breasts.

3301's emotional expression is very animalistic, after all, she herself has the bloodline of a calamity beast.

"I really didn't expect my employer to be so kind to me."

Xiao Qi nodded. "Yes, I think he wouldn't care about such trivial matters at all. He can drink the medicine as he pleases; he'll work hard to earn it."

San San suddenly blushed. "I don't want to be a burden to him."

Xiao Qi exclaimed excitedly, "Oh my? Oh my! What happened when you blushed last time?"

Without hesitation, San San replied, "When I met another leader of the Blue Stone School, I was moved by her powerful elemental qualities and pure will—I was only seventeen or eighteen years old at the time. When I saw that important figure, I hid on the bookshelf and looked down at that VIP from above, my heart pounding wildly."

Xiao Qi teased, "Speaking of Bu Liuxing, if you told him these things, he'd be so happy he'd immediately want you to turn into a dog-headed man. He loves your weird and unique looks."

"I'm not a kobold! I'm San San, not Quinn San San!" San San Zero One shouted angrily. "And do I look like a white-stockinged high school girl? Do I bark like a dog?"

Xiao Qi, with his shifty eyes, said, "I've wanted to give you this outfit for a long time."

3301 crossed his arms in an "X" shape and refused, saying, "No!"

Xiao Qi: "Let's get down to business. What you meant by not wanting to drag Bu Liuxing down is..."

"It means exactly what it says." 3301 confessed, "My lifespan far exceeds that of normal humans. If I were to say goodbye to you and close the coffin lid for you at the moment of your death, just thinking about that scene makes my heart feel like it's going to break."

Xiao Qi took her right hand off the gearshift and placed it on 3301's hand.

"You have a high-risk profession, dealing with criminals. What are you thinking? You want to send me away? Maybe I'll be the one sending you away!"

3301 pursed her lips, not in the mood for jokes. "It's the same thing. I'm scared, I'm hesitant, I don't know if I should confess my feelings to my employer, to this A Xing —I really envy your relationship with Jiang Xueming, it's so pure."

Xiao Qi showed off the bruises on her face. "No need to be envious, really no need to be envious. My employer dragged me into the boxing ring a few days ago and beat me up."

3301 exclaimed in surprise, "He really hit you?"

Xiao Qi didn't care. "Please! Are you that traditional? Fighting is fighting. There's almost no distinction between men and women, or skill levels between us. I could feel that when he was fighting me as a man, he held back, but when he logged into his female account, he didn't hold back at all. I was very happy because he didn't show any mercy to women—he treated me as a worthy opponent. He respected my fists and respected me as a woman."

3301: "That's true."

Xiao Qi gently patted San San's cheek. "So, don't overthink it. Even though your stone is blue, it doesn't mean you have to listen to melancholic blues all the time— Bu Liuxing is probably a treasure boy sent to you by heaven, my good sister."

3301 continued, "There's something else that concerns me."

Xiao Qi pulled back his hand, shifted gears, and stopped the car, pulling the handbrake. They had already arrived at the Bu Family.

The two did not get out of the car immediately.

--3301 continued to explain.

"I don't know why I care about him so much. The last few times I heard he was messing around outside, sleeping with the alien widow and the big dragonfly, I just sneered. I felt a lot of resentment—I was really unwilling to accept it, and I thought this guy was despicable."

After thinking for a moment, San San's expression softened again.

"Then, he went back to the station several times to buy Mapo Tofu from the snack shop. I saw him crying so sadly, and suddenly it felt like a thorn had grown in my heart, and I felt a sharp pain in my heart. His emotions were so intense that even if I secretly watched from the shadows, I still felt heartbroken."

Xiao Qi asked, "Could it be related to your Lapis Lazuli Guards's transcendent Inspiration?"

San San shook her head. "No, Inspiration is one thing, wanting to take care of him and prevent him from getting hurt again is another. I have a little selfish motive, wanting him to revolve around me for the rest of his life—I have so many little thoughts that make me lose my rationality."

"Emmmmmmmmmm," Xiao Qi turned off the radio, falling silent abruptly. "This isn't something I, as your sister, can help you with. Perhaps... you could try sleeping with him?"

3301: "What are you saying! Your head is full of filthy nonsense!"

"Hey! Don't make false accusations." Xiao Qi, wary of Teacher San San's claw strike, said, "When I say 'sleep,' I mean just sleep. I'm going to tell my employer, 'Let's sleep together! 'Xue Ming will definitely ask me to sleep with him—we've shared a room before, and now we can talk about anything. But you, the moment I mention sleeping, you think of pornography? Who has such a dirty mind?"

3301 immediately pursed his lips and glared, letting out a low growl as if boiling water was being poured from his throat, his face turning red.

"Woo"

In terms of animalistic instincts, 3301 is actually more straightforward.

Xiao Qi swayed from side to side, shifting her upper body as if she were pretending to dodge a punch.

"Oh dear! Oh dear! I'm angry! I'm unhappy!~"

3301 bared its teeth, showing off its four canines, and howled in a defiant manner.

Eventually, his anger subsided.

--Continue talking with Xiao Qi.

"Everyone says girls are more thoughtful, but I never thought I'd be so... well... never mind—the employer is such a passionate and brave person, I'm a little afraid of him. He's like an arrow; if he pierces my heart, I'll end up losing him. Just thinking about it, the person I've cared for for so long, and he wants to give me all his Universal Elixir, to give me everything he thinks is good... wow... I'm going to die."

Xiao Qi couldn't bear to watch. "If you keep imagining, you could even make a sequel—like 'A Dog's Love Affair' or 'The Soul of the Wolf Bridge,' about how many years later you meet a similar good brother—someone very similar to him. Maybe it'll perfectly coincide with the anniversary of the 'Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio' TV series. I've already thought of a title. People say 'I Really Want to Tell You' is also known as 'I Really Want to Make You Frustrated to Death,' so how about 'I Really Want to Bite You to Death'?—Anyway, you've already imagined your whole life, so I can't stop you from having a brain orgasm."

3301's mind raced. "Which one bit me? Is it the one I'm thinking of?"

9527 raised her hand and lightly slapped her best friend across the face.

"Wake up! It's time to see your aunt!"

The two got out of the car; Xiao Qi was dressed as a respectable waiter.

3301 was dressed in a flamboyant manner, lifting her fishtail skirt and walking with an elegant gait, determined to perfect all the etiquette taught by Sister Yangchun.

The two crossed the garden of the Bu Family and headed towards the front hall, where they heard music coming from the ballroom.

Pushing open the door, 3301 mustered her courage, clutching the hem of her fishtail skirt, determined to show off her beautiful and fit figure to Aunt Bu Mei and her employer.

Walking another twenty meters or so, when they reached the dance hall, Xiao Qi saw Bu Mei leading the dance, with Xue Ming, Xue Ming, and Bai Bailu all dancing along.

Bu Mei counted out eight beats, clapping her hands in time with the syncopated notes of the two measures.

Xue Ming has reverted to his male form and is now in perfect sync with Bailu.

Behind him followed a little girl who was no more than 1.6 meters tall, wearing sunglasses and trying to control her limbs—this little girl was Bu Liuxing.

3301 asked curiously, "Where is my employer?"

Bu Mei shouted, "You're too slow! Bailu! Your flexibility isn't even half that of Xue Ming!"

Bailu quickly replied, "I will try my best!"

Bu Mei continued, "A Xing! Haven't you eaten? Come with me. Forward—forward—forward, stomp! Show your legs! Shake your hips, that's right! Clap your hands, back—back—back, stop! You don't have to jump if you don't want to!"

330 opened his mouth wide. "If I heard correctly."

Xiao Qi: "Yes, that little girl is your employer."

3301: "Why doesn't he change back?"

Xiao Qi: "My employer said that A Xing losing 100 pounds for no reason is very dangerous. To be on the safe side, we shouldn't change back yet. When we go back to the station for the Lunar New Year, we should wait for the verification report from the special tea house to come out, and only change back when everything is absolutely safe."

3301: "Oh"

Xiao Qi crossed her arms and rested on Teacher San San's arm. "Hey, why do you look so listless?"

3301 feigned shyness. "Because... Bu Liuxing seems... much cuter than me."

Xiao Qi said disdainfully, "When it comes to sexiness, cuteness is nothing."

"Another reason is... I'm not unhappy." After the employer finished dancing, 3301 stared intently at the employer's gorgeous stage outfit. "He looks like a doll now. I'm afraid I won't be able to resist hugging him."

Xiao Qi: "What are you waiting for! Charge! Charge! Charge!"

3301: "Is it really okay?"

Xiao Qi immediately provided a golden assist--

"--Hey! Bu Mei, excuse me!"

She shouted loudly towards the stage.

"Could I borrow your precious daughter for a moment? My dear sister wants to hug her! She wants to hug her! She really wants to hug her! Bu Liuxing! She wants to be held!"

Then they saw Aunt Bu Mei lift her long legs and gently push them against A Xing's buttocks, A Xing immediately ran off the dance floor.

After making this little gesture, Bu Mei tidied her nightgown and asked the Jiang siblings to continue playing music and dancing, Bailu still had many techniques to learn regarding body control.

Meteor ran up to the waiter, still looking full of energy.

Despite being female, her hearty smile revealed the abundant energy of a man.

A Xing said with a grin, "Wow! You look so beautiful today!"

3301 felt a little embarrassed. "Was I not pretty before?"

A Xing smiled, revealing a mouthful of white teeth, looking every bit the sweetest girl. "Yes! I've never looked this pretty before. You must have spent a long time getting ready, right? My mom has been putting me through so much trouble these past few days, and I've only just realized how much time and effort it takes for girls to dress up, style their hair, and put on their looks—I can't take my eyes off you. I can look at you like this all night long, until my mom drags me into my room to sleep."

3301 felt very strange; it was a little girl speaking to her in a childish voice, which made her less shy.

A Xing continued, "You are like a glass of wine, a blue rose, a tender bud on a hibiscus flower; I will never forget you in this lifetime."

Xiao Qi whistled and left at the opportune moment, still able to catch a glimpse of the spirit tail behind Teacher San San wagging wildly.

3301: "Thank you."

A Xing: "Do you want to hug me?"

3301: "Is that okay?"

A Xing: "Excuse me, I'm a bit short now, how can I carry you? Should I jump up? Or should you bend down?"

3301 couldn't stand the sweetness. She felt that this little sister was like someone who had grown up in a honey pot, and she used her rich imagination to construct a picture of a strong and muscular boy innocently saying these bewitching words to her.

She almost fainted, then suddenly picked up A Xing and started spinning him around.

A Xing: "Wow! A big windmill!"

"Hahahaha," 3301 laughed, making a sound like wiping glass. She felt extremely comfortable. The little girl in her arms was like a burning hot charcoal. The skin on her shoulders and arms, which had been covered in goosebumps from the cold winter wind, was now covered in warm, perfume-scented sweat.

A Xing was still spinning, round and round.

"When I turn back, will I hug you and spin you around like this again?"

3301 Forgot all worries, forgot all troubles.

"Good!"

A Xing was in a dilemma and started talking about his health.

"Ming Ge told me that I suddenly lost over 100 pounds of flesh and I need to prepare myself. My muscles are 30% protein and 70% water, so I guess I'll have to be thrown into a milk bath to turn back into my original size. I never thought I could take a milk bath after all these years! How strange!"

3301 immediately thought of--

--A muscular man, as muscular as a marble sculpture, poked his head out of the milk.

Her face was burning hot.

"Together?"

A Xing asked, confused, "What do you mean, 'together'?"

3301 immediately changed his tune. "It's nothing! It's nothing!"

They twirled through the hall, leaving behind a refreshing floral fragrance.

A Xing continued, "It's a pity Ming Ge won't grow taller. Even after transforming back into a woman, he's only a little over 1.7 meters tall. His male body has stopped developing. He hardly drank any milk as a child, so he simply won't grow tall—but I'm different. I was born short. I originally thought I would be stronger!"

3301: "You seem quite concerned about Xiao Qi's employer?"

A Xing: "Of course! Ming Ge is the most important person in my life!"

3301: "Really? Then..."

A Xing: "You too!"

3301: "Hmm"

A Xing continued, "Ming Ge is quite happy, getting a stronger physical form for free. I guess he'll have to bother Little Finger a lot in the future. For example, when he encounters a tough nut to crack, he'll have to switch to his female form to gather the wind and kill people, and then switch back. Only when he's in his male form can he accurately use his spirit. His spirit is amazing; it can create so many interesting and useful things—I'm really curious, what will my spirit be like?"

"Don't worry, it will all come." 3301's bangs swayed slightly as he turned, revealing his fair forehead and those wolf-like golden eyes. "Don't worry, my employer."

Slowly, they stopped spinning.

A Xing was still suspended in mid-air, held tightly by 3301.

"Not spinning anymore?"

"Hmm! I can't turn it anymore, I'm afraid you'll get dizzy!"

"What about now? Shall we go back to dancing?"

"No, employer, I just want to look at you, quietly for a while."

"Do I look good? Hey! Mom did my hair, it must look pretty good!"

It was a very long time before San San finally answered.

"You look so beautiful, may I give you a kiss?"

"All right!"

Didn't you ask me where I wanted to be kissed?

A kiss won't break a piece of flesh.

3301 took a deep breath, suddenly picked up the little girl in his arms, and lifted her up in front of him.

Then came a deep kiss--

--Ah A Xing hadn't reacted yet.

The woman's eyes were fixed on Xiao Qi and Xue Ming's duet with Bu Mei and Bailu on the dance floor. The colorful lights were strange and varied, illuminating a thousand ambiguous and romantic thoughts.

A Xing tasted a strong, sweet flavor, similar to the taste of White Lady's freeze-dried powder.

The eyes of 3301 were close at hand, like a predator eyeing its prey.

They kissed passionately.

--The sweet scent of oranges wafted from the fruit bowl on the coffee table.