Operator #⑨ · [Rewrite · Rewrite]

"Mr. Victor, I finally managed to find you."

A junior reporter from the Sun Newspaper in the Golden Township Magic City · Balasong. She caught up with David Victor, ready to gather some fresh interview notes to Inspiration her barren soul and keep her job.

Her name is Yun Qing; she is elegant and quiet, and she is Chinese.

She sat facing David Victor with her hands resting on her thighs, the paper and pen in her hands her weapons, her press pass and camera her facade.

"Mr. Victor?"

Professor Victor remained motionless, his dark green pupils unfocused, as if he were still dissecting the story of the Lord of Cinder, trying to sort out the blood and gore in Maddes' head and select suitable material from it.

A very long time passed, almost thirty seconds.

"Go ahead and speak," Victor finally came to his senses and began to respond.

Yun Qing was very annoyed by this perfunctory and slow attitude—she had never encountered such an arrogant interviewee in her career.

"Mr. Victor, I must remind you that our conversation will soon be published in the newspaper. Every day, more than 400,000 residents of the underworld buy this newspaper. Do you know what that means?"

Victor uttered a pointless statement. "Does that mean over 400,000 inhabitants of the underworld bought this newspaper?"

Yun Qing trembled with anger. "This is very important!"

Victor: "So?"

Yun Qing: "So please take this seriously. When I ask you a question, you must answer it immediately, otherwise..."

"Wait, please wait a moment." Victor also took out his notebook and the pen given to him by his students. "Miss reporter, I apologize for my laziness. For the past two hours, it seems that a special Inspiration has been interfering with my thoughts—it's as if everything has already happened. I've been repeating the same actions over and over again, which has made me unable to grasp the key points, my attention has been scattered, and I can't find a way to concentrate."

"Mr. Victor," Yun Qing frowned, "Have you been ill lately? Did the duel with the Lord of Cinder exhaust your mental energy?"

"No, it's not what you're thinking." Victor, also with his legs crossed and hands resting on his thighs, retorted sharply to the young reporter, "Let's get straight to the point."

At that moment, Yun Qing sensed an astonishing aura emanating from this VIP.

It was as if this guy's interview wasn't a simple question-and-answer session, but a back-and-forth duel and debate.

Yun Qing: "Mr. Victor, many readers are very interested in your private life, and there are rumors that you are gay."

Victor: "No, that's not it."

Yun Qing: "Please don't interrupt me."

Victor: "I have to interrupt you before you can continue making things up."

Yun Qing: "But Mr. Victor, you often travel alone without the waiter's knowledge, which is against the station's rules. Perhaps I can get some other information out of you? Do you dislike women?"

Victor: "I have great respect for women."

"David Victor was sarcastic and cynical during my interview, completely disregarding a nobody like me." Yun Qing immediately began to doodle. "He has two young and strong male students, a long-lost boyfriend, and he and his newly acquainted Lord of Cinder Maddes Bruno, trekked over a thousand kilometers from the deep, dark Niflheim back to the Golden Township. Our Bloodhound Lady has absolutely no role in the whole story. It's hard for me not to be suspicious."

Just then, Victor grabbed Yun Qing's pen.

Please don't write it like that.

Yun Qing smiled, pursing her lips. "Why? The pen is mine."

Victor: "But the characters you create, the stories you write, are mine."

Yun Qing: "Am I talking nonsense? Is what I wrote incorrect? Is it not true?"

"First of all—" Victor pointed out the many errors in the reporter's biased writing. "—My two students are young, but not in their prime. When I first met Jiang Xueming, his muscle mass and height were not much better than the average person. Secondly, I Wen Bucai. I want to correct that. I love him."

Yun Qing covered her mouth. "Oh!"

Victor continued, "This love transcends romantic love; we've saved each other's lives and shaped each other's personalities—and in this respect, I must remind you that many gay relationships have a very short shelf life; in this community, a relationship that lasts more than a week is considered a [golden wedding] in traditional marriage terms."

"It seems you and Wen Bucai an unbreakable [diamond marriage]." Yun Qing smirked, unable to use the oil-based pen, so she turned on the recorder.

Victor repeatedly pointed out the errors, meticulous in his corrections.

"And Maddes Bruno—I took him all the way from Niflheim back to the Golden Township. The things that happened along the way annoyed me greatly. I had to protect him, be constantly on guard against this guy's brilliant backstabbing, and finally take care of this frail, helpless burden who was struggling in the extreme environment. I carried him for almost two-thirds of the journey, not over a thousand kilometers as you said, we walked over four hundred kilometers, and then pushed the wheelchair to finish the rest of the journey."

Yun Qing squinted, showing no shame whatsoever for blatant disregard for the facts. "You're willing to do so much for him, even personally escorting him to the execution ground. There must be some story between you two, right?"

"How much is this news story worth?" Victor asked rhetorically.

Yun Qing: "No, no, it's not what you think."

Victor: "Tell me, how much is this news story worth?"

Yun Qing: "No, Mr. Victor, no."

Victor handed the pen back to Miss Yun Qing and then turned off the power to the recorder.

He turned on his Walkman, inserted a blank cassette tape, and began recording.

The dark red pyroxene immediately burst into golden-red flames. It was clear that he was very angry, but like cold well water, he remained silent.

Yun Qing: "Our readers only want to hear the truth. Things like what you just said, such as 'how much is this news worth,' are things that shouldn't be included in the news."

"Miss reporter, we both make a living with pen and paper," David Victor immediately said. "I believe words and language possess Magic Power; every word, when written, is imbued with the author's spirit. I respect your profession and you as a person, but you have never shown any respect for me. Just because when we first met, you complained to me about not having much time, and I made you wait for thirty seconds? Just because of those thirty seconds?"

Yun Qing began to tense up, but vehemently denied it. "No, that's not how it is."

"Your words are powerful; every day, four hundred thousand people believe your stories." Victor lowered his head, his eyes immediately disappearing into his supple, curly blond hair, revealing only a sharp, eerie light. "What a magical power that is!"

Yun Qing: "Uh, Mr. Victor, I've always thought that the popularity of your works is probably inseparable from your spiritual power, right? If we're talking about creating miracles with a pen, what am I, a nobody, compared to you?"

Victor: "Why do you say that?"

"When I interviewed your readers, I was more than once startled by their bizarre and unusually excited reactions." Yun Qing spoke of these things with a sense of inexplicable fear, "I still don't dare to read your books, and when preparing for this interview, I didn't even know where to begin—I could only find some amusement in your private life."

Victor: "No, quite the opposite of what you're suggesting."

Yun Qing: "You didn't use the power of your soul force? Your work..."

Victor held his head high, chest out, and head held high.

"My spiritual power is extremely dangerous, so I have always regarded it as an enemy—it is like a demon, constantly whispering slanderous words in my ear. If I were to entrust my works to it for writing, I might gain more readers and more wealth. But if I were to truly regard it as part of my artistic life, I cannot accept it."

"Why?" Yun Qing didn't understand. "You could clearly suppress the King of Cinder, and use that power to write a few stories at will, maybe..."

"That's enough." Victor pressed the power button on his Walkman. "I'm afraid I can't give you the answer you're looking for."

"No! No! No, no, no! Mr. Victor!" Yun Qing panicked and quickly stood up. "Please don't end the interview prematurely, I still need to go back and report to my supervisor."

"Then let me ask you, Ms. Yun Qing," Victor sat down again, "What do you see as the meaning of this job? Is it just a salary? Or is it a lifelong career? A tool to bring you happiness and a direct path to heaven? A golden opportunity to change your destiny?"

After thinking it over, Yun Qing finally said tremblingly, "I like doing it this way."

Victor: "Why? Why do you like doing this?"

Yun Qing: "Because... because I'm very curious."

Victor: "Don't lie to me. No one can deceive me."

Yun Qing said fiercely, "I like to see important people make fools of themselves. Seeing them embarrassed is like watching a swarm of crabs. There will always be outstanding crabs trying to climb out of the basket, and that's when I'll pinch their legs—pinching them hard!"

Victor: "A very strong self-destructive urge is great writing material. Anything else?"

Yun Qing continued, "It would be best if we could exchange it for some money. If there were many people like me who were interested in these trivial gossip stories, it would be like finding kindred spirits, and I would be very happy."

"That's why I said you won't find the answer here." Victor crossed his arms and rested his hands on his lap, finally sinking into the sofa and completely relaxing. "I'm a crab you can't catch. Maybe you can try your luck with other VIPs. As for my private life, you bounty hunter shouldn't find any weaknesses to attack."

Yun Qing asked excitedly, "Where's Hunwei? You've been spying on so many people's stories."

"The Hell Highway?" Victor stroked his chin. "I don't want to rewrite other people's lives, even though it's so powerful. It can rewrite people's thoughts, create a story out of thin air, and examine their memories—but this power is terrifying. I'm keeping this a secret. I want to completely rewrite the material I've collected, leaving no trace, and ultimately make it my story."

Having said that, Victor closed his journal, no longer trying to pry into Ms. Yun Qing's thoughts.

"I have just thoroughly read your book. Your use of the word 'peeping' is incorrect. I copied your memories in broad daylight, like a robber, and the robbery was completed before you even realized it."

Yun Qing's eyes widened. "You!"

"Don't worry." Victor gestured for silence. "I won't tell anyone, including your dirty money-for-power deals with the supervisor, your interviews with other people, your framing or legal battles—I won't say a word about any of these things, though they're quite interesting and should fill a forty-six-page short story."

"You bastard... you..." The young reporter stood up, packed all her things, and hurriedly left.

Until Victor pouted, finally revealing all his dissatisfaction and embarrassment on his face.

"What exactly is this special spiritual pressure causing spacetime disturbances?"

"There are morpho butterflies fluttering their wings; I've already rambled on and on about this."

"This is infuriating."

Xue Ming boarded the plane alone. In four hours, he would return to Hong Kong to deliver the crucial Red Mountain Stone back to the BOSS.

On the outskirts of the airport road, he did not encounter Wood Plark. Those few pages of family letters lay quietly in the trash can, turned into shredded paper, about to be sent to the thermal power plant to become electric heating energy for the cold island nation.

Just as I sat down, Mr. Wood Teacher San San, scratching the back of his head and acting all familiar.

"Brother, my seat is by the aisle."

Jiang Xueming was about to sit inside.

Wood immediately said, "It's okay, I won't go to the restroom, I'll take care of it at the airport. You can sit outside, it'll be easier for you to go to the restroom later. I also want to see the Icelandic night view."

Jiang Xueming nodded, smiled politely, and made room for her companion.

Mr. Wood squeezed inside, then pressed his face against the window, peering intently out.

Jiang Xueming asked curiously, "Big brother, you look a lot like one of my uncles."

Wood didn't even turn his head. "Am I that old?"

Jiang Xueming: "It's just that his face shape is similar; he doesn't have that tattoo on his neck."

Wood: "You Chinese people are all face-blind when it comes to foreigners, and I think you Chinese people are all the same to me—just like people looking at dogs. Apart from the obvious features like coat color and fur shape, you're mostly face-blind."

Jiang Xueming: "That's true."

Wood: "Young man, where are you going?"

Jiang Xueming: "HK"

Wood: "I'm going to Hong Kong too. Are you from the Nine Realms Station?"

Jiang Xueming: "Yes."

Wood: "I'm a train conductor. This is my work ID. We've met by chance. If you run into trouble, call my wife."

Jiang Xueming took the documents with a puzzled look. "Why did you call your sister-in-law?"

"Because my wife always feels I'm cheating on her, and she's uneasy about it." Wood said with a smile, "Just call her and explain the situation."

Jiang Xueming: "You're out fooling around? You want me to call your sister-in-law and tell her directly? But aren't I a man?"

Wood didn't say anything, but simply made a face and handed over the Coke from his bag as a greeting gift.

Jiang Xueming didn't press further. He figured the people in the underworld, especially the VIPs, were all eccentric and had very strong personalities, so it wasn't surprising that they had this strange sense of ritual.

Within minutes, he finished the cola and felt his bladder was about to burst, so he immediately went to the toilet.

The plane has begun taxiing.

--Flavia had just opened for business and was already telling passengers to sit still.

Xue Ming's face was extremely ugly. Flavia saw the Xiao Shuai rushing towards the toilet area and was about to block his way when a steel arm gently nudged him.

Almost instinctively, the spirit was driven to get rid of this obstacle. The flight attendant, who was wearing a sweet smile, was immediately swept away by the powerful spirit. When she came to her senses, Flavia could no longer find Jiang Xueming.

Pushed by the spirit, she felt parched and her eyelids drooping. She carried herself back to the customer service room, leaning on the cushions of the passengers' seats. She didn't even have time for the safety training session, and plopped down at the small table, immediately falling into a deep sleep.

The Sixty-Three passengers in first class were extremely excited.

He could sense that Jiang Xueming's soul power had taken effect; the spiritual pressure carried a strange, fragrant, and sweet scent, like the scales of a butterfly fluttering its wings, as intoxicating as honey.

"I'm going there, Duran, to warn me."

Ms. Duran activated her [Timeline] ability, and the little White Snake reluctantly bit Sixty-Three's neck.

"Jiang Xueming is in a hurry; he forgot to lock the door. You could just push open the toilet door and attack him, forcing him to unleash the power of his soul. However, without the blessing of the Red Mountain Stone, I can't be sure if this is the true future."

Sixty-Three strode forward, already impatient.

"It's alright. As long as he can't kill me, can't kill me instantly, I can turn back time and do it again. I've experienced countless life-or-death crises in my life. I'm 100% confident I can escape unscathed— Duran, have you finally given up?"

Duran didn't speak; his only response to Sixty-Three was a stubborn look in his eyes.

Sixty-Three scoffed dismissively, "Whatever, see you in 2006."

Ten seconds passed --

--Sixty-Three pushed open the toilet door and could still hear Xue Ming opening the sluice gate to release water.

Immediately afterwards, the sixty-something-year-old rogue's eyes widened as he saw Xue Ming holding a Coke bottle and slowly pouring liquid into the toilet.

The packaging paper on the Coca-Cola bottle bears the striking handwriting of Wood Plark.

Protect the Red Mountain Stone, kid. There might be enemies on the plane.

Even though Wood Plark had lost all his memories, he could still feel the spiritual pressure of Jiang Xueming's Ming De. He used this most primitive and simple textual communication to write the final chapter of the story for Sixty-Three.

In an instant—the two spirits collided violently!

The iron fist of [Regret Pill] slammed towards Jiang Xueming's head, only to be grabbed by a flawless iron arm!

A metallic skull, gleaming with an iron sheen, suddenly emerged from Xue Ming's profile.

--It's like a cat-like Iron Man, completely different from the original square-shaped metal spirit. The streamlined armor encases the head of an Egypt cat. Its bright golden eyes, like Titanium Nitride, are fixed on the enemy. Its two ears are erect, as if constantly listening to the enemy's movements.

Below his protruding nose, his slightly parted mouth revealed a menacing, bared-teeth posture.

"I succeeded." Sixty-Three, in a moment of dazed disbelief—

--And it was a fatal moment!

The iron cat extended its left arm, its four sharp toes twisted into a fist! Pure white flames burst forth from between its fingers!

With a loud "bang!"

Like a fully drawn slingshot, it shattered Sixty-Three's soul power, pierced through the [Regret Pill]'s body, and struck Sixty-Three squarely in the face!

Go back to the past!

I want to go back in time and take another look!

Thinking this, Sixty-Three's bewildered eyes could only catch glimpses of the flying broken teeth and blood. Before his consciousness was about to leave his body, he could still unleash the power of his soul might to return to four hours earlier, to rest for a while, and to take another look at the powerful spiritual body on Jiang Xueming's body!

Everything is recovering.

Everything went as he wished.

Just as the broken tooth flew towards him, about to return to his mouth—

--Sixty-Three was surprised to find that in the frozen spacetime, the tooth was firmly held by Jiang Xueming's spirit and could not be put back into his Barry!

What kind of power is this? Why?

Why didn't the "Regret Pill" work for him?

Jiang Xueming's spirit seemed to realize the special nature of the [Regret Pill], but it was unable to resist the power of time reversal.

Its palm emitted a sharp, piercing friction sound, and finally burst forth with a light flame of shattered spirit from its palm. Broken teeth suddenly drilled out, piercing through Jiang Xueming's palm along with it! In the end, they returned to Sixty-Three's mouth.

"Hahahaha! Hahahaha! Sure enough! My [Regret Pill] is invincible!"

Sixty-Three finally escaped the state of slurred speech and gained an unparalleled sense of peace.

He could sense that everything was receding—

--Jiang Xueming has already disembarked from the plane, and his physical body has quickly recovered.

As for the damage to the spirit, it can be slowly repaired and restored within four hours.

He and Duran exited the plane and returned to the VIP lounge. He retreated step by step to the sofa, began to doze off, and finally left the building and got into the jeep.

Until this time--

--At Sixty-Three, he finally realized that something was amiss.

As the jeep drove back, the dead driver was finally "resurrected" by the gnawing of the [Yin Yang Demon Realm].

The driver started flirting with Flavia again, giving the flight attendant's good figure a lewd look and making inappropriate jokes.

Wood Plark, standing by the roadside, cursed the jeep, vowing revenge. Immediately afterward, the driver got up and stepped on a can that Ms. Duran had thrown.

Duran was furious when she heard the driver and Flavia exchanging rude remarks. She snatched the drink bottle back and vomited up all the alcohol she had been drinking.

Something's not right! Something's not right!

At Sixty-Three, fear began to creep in; an unparalleled sense of unfamiliarity made him vaguely uneasy.

The "Regret Pill" can only turn back four hours, right?!

Four hours! Only four hours!

It should only be four hours!

The recording of Bailu's last words is four hours long!

But what is going on with all this happening before my eyes?!

"Soul Might! You better listen to me! Stop right now! Stop right now!"

Wait--

--An endless wait.

[Regret Pill] did not respond to Sixty-Three. It was like a loyal guardian spirit. Even though its chest cavity had been shattered by Jiang Xueming's spirit, it still floated beside Sixty-Three, as if trying to turn back time to the end of the universe, never stopping.

The fleeting glimpses before my eyes vanish in an instant, while endless time seems to be reversing wildly.

At first, Sixty-Three was panicked, but then he became numb.

He was thinking this—

--I've lost count of how long I've lived; perhaps going back in time is a good thing.

As long as we remember the right methods, nurture Bu Liuxing, create another Jiang Xueming, and find Duran and Flavia, we can recreate this [success story].

As for whether time goes forward or backward, it's no longer meaningful.

As long as the memories in his head remain, there's no need to worry.

At Sixty-Three, his mind went blank.

--Because he saw someone familiar.

I don't know how many years have been reversed, or how many times I've traveled through time.

He was suddenly jolted awake from this Fragrant Dream, realizing his true self before a flat mirror—

--With the temperature remaining at 31 degrees Celsius, the entrance of the Agricultural University next to Pingyang Hengyin City was bustling with activity, and a long queue had formed outside the Forget Worry Milk Tea shop.

Sixty-Three looked to the side of the L-shaped counter, at the receptionist's makeup mirror, and in that mirror was his seventeen-year-old, youthful face.

He gently stroked the face, yet it felt so unfamiliar.

The receptionist called out, "Ming Ge Xueming! Get up quickly! Boss Ye will be angry if he catches you slacking off!"

"Oh! Oh!" Sixty-Three suddenly stood up, the sudden dizziness was so terrifying. This body had been malnourished for many years, and it seemed as if a gust of wind would make it fall over.

There were still red marks on his face, marks left from when he rested his head on his arm, like a slap.

When Ye Bei came out of the warehouse and saw the little guy Xue Ming, he spoke to the receptionist.

"You're already a freshman, and he's only seventeen. What are you calling Xueming 'Ming Ge'? You're just pretending to be young."

Upon hearing this, the receptionist immediately stuck out her tongue and made faces at Boss Ye while serving milk tea and snacks to the customers outside.

"Kid, you're always so sullen," Ye Bei, sitting down next to Sixty-Three and patting him on the shoulder. "I know about your family situation, but young people should have more energy. You're still a child."

Sixty-Three hugged the teacup Ye Bei offered, unsure what to say. Suddenly, he remembered—

--[Regret Pill] left on Jiang Xueming's spirit arm [FE33031].

Besides

Ye Bei got up to greet the guests, and said a few words to Sixty-Three.

"You're still a long way from becoming a gloomy adult."

Immediately afterwards, Sixty-Three found the new cell phone under the big teapot. This was his first day working at the milk tea shop. He had a new cell phone and a new number. His adoptive parents couldn't find him, and only Bailu knew the number.

Sixty-Three dialed the numbers from the contact list.

"Bailu".

"Brother! I'm in class!"

"Bailu, it's me."

"Is something urgent? Has Dad found us? He's come all the way outside the county town to look for us?"

"No... it wasn't me."

"No, no, no, I would have failed if it weren't for this. Tomorrow is the mock exam, and the teacher is looking over! Will you come pick me up after class?"

"I will! I will. I definitely will. I will."

The teacher's angry roar came from the other end of the phone.

"Jiang Bailu!----"

Sixty-Three huddled on the marble counter at the food delivery station. The scorching sun made the counter scalding hot. He just hunched over, trying to hug his helmet and phone to his chest, choking back tears. He kept repeating, reminding himself, and telling himself to stay "normal" and stay natural.

"Raise your head, raise your head."

"Keep moving forward."

Wood Plark pushed open the door to the airplane lavatory.

Jiang Xueming was still in shock.

He embraced the Sixty-Three -old body, but didn't know what to do.

"Commander! Who is this guy? Why is he attacking me?"

Without hesitation, Wood said, "Maybe Batman?"

"What nonsense are you spouting?" Jiang Xueming couldn't understand.

Wood lowered his head and carefully observed Sixty-Three's face.

"Otherwise, why would he keep laughing? He must have met his nemesis—did you feed him some kind of nerve gas? Turning him into the Laughing Bat."

Jiang Xueming was incredulous. "I don't understand, this guy tried to hit me as soon as he walked in! I immediately fought back, he took one punch and then fell asleep?"

Wood Plark snapped his fingers.

"Take it back first."