"We're All Here"

After her father underwent a comprehensive medical examination at the hospital and was confirmed to be in good health, and after attending a relative's wedding with her parents, Tang Baona bought a plane ticket and returned to Haixi Province.

It wasn't just that she wanted to come back; it was also because Xiang Kun had called her after a long time, asking her to come back ahead of schedule.

Xiang Kun didn't explain in detail, just said simply, "Nana, go back to Chongyun Village, I need your help."

Upon arriving at Jianzhou Airport, she was greeted by the entire Chongyun Village entourage, including Lao Xia, Yang the Third, Little Apple, Little Bell, and even Egg Pie and Gold Glitter.

Of course, what surprised and delighted her the most was that Alice was also in the GL8 that came to pick her up.

When she opened the sliding door and saw Alice in the car, she instantly understood that the "person you definitely want to see" that Yang the Third had mentioned on the phone earlier was referring to Alice.

Tang Baona knew that Lao Xia and Alice were very familiar with each other; they had even appeared in her dreams together. Little Apple and Little Bell were also acquaintances of Alice. Little Apple's ability to move so freely in Chongyun Village, sometimes even running alone and having a clearer understanding of her surroundings than someone with perfect vision, was thanks to Alice's assistance. As for Little Bell, the "good friend" Little Screw she had mentioned earlier was Alice — Alice had been tutoring Little Bell all along.

However, to her surprise, Yang the Third seemed to be quite familiar with Alice, and Alice even appeared in front of everyone so "openly," coming to pick her up in a car, without any attempt to avoid the gazes of other passersby around the parking lot, seemingly unconcerned about being seen.

For Tang Baona, who had always kept the "Little Sprite" Alice a big secret, this situation felt a little strange.

Yang Zhen'er, standing beside her, stared expectantly at Tang Baona's face, seemingly wanting to see Tang Baona's surprised expression when she met Alice.

To her disappointment, Nana only paused for a moment when she opened the car door, then got in normally, sat in the third row, rubbed the Little Chubby Girl's cheek on her left, and then rubbed Alice's cheek on her right, as if Alice and the Little Chubby Girl were both ordinary, familiar little girls who had come to pick her up.

Yang Zhen'er was still unwilling to give up. She sat down in the second row, closed the car door, and immediately turned around to wink at Tang Baona, saying, "Nana, this is Alice, Alice ~, do you know who Alice is?"

Tang Baona nodded in surprise. "Of course I know who Alice is. We've met several times in the past few days, we're quite familiar with each other." She knew Yang the Third's little thoughts all too well, so no matter how surprised she was, she didn't show it. Anyway, she didn't need to ask what she wanted to know; Yang the Third couldn't hold back and would tell her on his own.

Sure enough, Yang Zhen'er's eyes widened as she said, "How is that possible? Alice has clearly been with us these past few days..."

But halfway through her sentence, she clearly remembered Alice's unique characteristics. Unlike ordinary people, she wasn't limited by spatial distance and could even appear in different places at the same time. So she turned to Alice and asked curiously:

"Alice, can you transform into several at the same time? Like Sun Wukong, what's that move called again? Pluck a hair and you can transform into ten, ten into a hundred, a whole bunch of monkeys!"

Alice glared at her and snapped, "I'm not a monkey! I don't have monkey hair!"

Yang Zhen'er chuckled and reached out to pat Alice's head, "Just an example, I'm saying you're really amazing! Don't you know Sun Wukong?"

"I know Sun Wukong! But I'm not a monkey!"

"Alright, alright, our Alice is a cute little girl, not a monkey. Why are you getting angry? When I was little, I dreamed of being as powerful as Sun Wukong, with three heads and six arms, seventy-two transformations, and the golden cudgel, daring to beat up even the gods! By the way, is that eight-armed, eight-eyed image related to three heads and six arms?"

However, it wasn't Alice picked up the conversation, but the Little Chubby Girl, who counted on her fingers and said, "Old Fairy Sister, Barbie Warrior doesn't have three heads and six arms, she has one head, eight arms, and two legs. She's not Sun Wukong, she was made by Baldy Uncle, and I named her."

She had obtained "decryption permission" from Xiang Kun in the past two days, meaning that within their small group in Chongyun Village, they no longer needed to keep things secret. She could freely instruct her sisters on how to "practice magic" and ask them questions she was curious about.

Naturally, Liu Shiling, who usually had to keep her "magical abilities" a secret in kindergarten, school, and even at home, suddenly had an environment to confide in. Whenever she had the chance, she would tell her older sisters about her "magical understanding," "magical system," and "magical knowledge," becoming second only to Alice in her talkativeness.

"Why is it called 'Barbie Warrior'? Little Bell, do you like Barbie dolls? How about I give you a super-sized Barbie doll for your birthday next time?" Yang Zhen'er said to the Little Chubby Girl with a smile.

"It has nothing to do with Barbie dolls. Barbie is an eight-armed 'Barbie,' it's pronounced 'Barbie' and written 'Barbie,' but it's not a doll 'Barbie.' You've already given me so many things, you don't need to give me any more gifts, let's just go eat something delicious together," the Little Chubby Girl said somewhat shyly.

"What are you thinking? You'll definitely be Chef Xiang to cook for your birthday! He can't be busy until then!" Yang Zhen'er said, then, as if remembering something, looked at Alice again. "By the way, Alice, when is your birthday? What gift do you want?"

Upon hearing this, Alice sat up straight, her eyes widening in surprise, clearly very interested in the topic. "I have several birthdays!"

Sitting in the middle of the third row, Tang Baona had her left arm around the Little Chubby Girl and her right arm around Alice. She listened with a smile as the two "kids" chatted and laughed with Yang Zhen'er, occasionally touching Alice's shoulder and pinching the Little Chubby Girl's cheek.

Alice feels so real, it's unbelievable. She evolved from an artificial intelligence. How did this body appear out of thin air? Why does it look so real? It's amazing.

She gently pinched the Little Chubby Girl's cheeks and suddenly asked in surprise, "Huh? Little Bell, have you lost weight? Your face has gotten smaller!" Although her cheeks were still plump and bouncy, they didn't seem as fleshy as before.

Liu Shiling was stunned for a moment, then instinctively looked at Yang Zhen'er: "Old Fairy Sister, is it because you keep pinching my cheeks that my cheeks have gotten smaller?"

Yang Zhen'er, who was already leaning back in the chair talking to Alice, immediately came over upon hearing this, cupped the Little Chubby Girl's face in her hands and squeezed it towards her, laughing, "Where did you get smaller? No! If pinching your face could make you smaller, I would definitely pinch myself hundreds of times a day!"

Tang Baona saw the Little Chubby Girl pouting as she was being held, and while laughing, she reached out and pinched Yang Zhen'er's nose. Alice next to her also joined in the "battle," standing on her seat, hugging Yang Zhen'er's neck, and pinching her cheeks.

Sitting on the other side of the second row, Little Apple, holding Egg Pie, didn't turn around, but she was fully aware of what was happening behind her and couldn't stop smiling.

Xia Libing, who was driving, glanced at the group of people making a ruckus behind her through the rearview mirror, and then her gaze fell on Gold Glitter, who was huddled on the car's center console, looking out at the scenery through the windshield.

Xia Libing tapped the center console lightly with her finger. Gold Glitter hopped around and saw Lao Xia glance at the open birdcage on the passenger seat. She immediately understood, looked back at the windshield reluctantly, then flapped her wings twice, landed on the passenger seat, and crawled into the birdcage herself.

After picking up Tang Baona, Xia Libing drove a car full of people back to Tongshi Town. They first went to "Youlong Restaurant" for lunch, then chatted in a private room. Around 2 p. m., they brought the various ingredients that You Meng had prepared earlier to the car and returned to Chongyun Village.

The ingredients had already been prepared at "Youlong Restaurant." When they got back, all they had to do was cook them, add the accompanying seasonings to a pot and heat it, or bake it in the oven for the appropriate time—a completely foolproof process. This was something Xiang Kun had specifically asked You Meng to prepare a few days ago, so that Lao Xia and the others wouldn't have to resort to quick-cooked food or make their own "dark cuisine" and get sick if they didn't go to town for a meal and were too embarrassed to go to Liu Caifu's house for a free meal.

After all, the Little Chubby Girl and the Little Apple are still growing, and they need to keep up with their nutrition.

He asked Lao Xia to buy a lot of cooking appliances and put them in the kitchen. This way, after they brought back the ingredients that "Youlong Restaurant" had prepared, they could put them in the refrigerator in batches. When needed, they could take them out to thaw and put them in the corresponding cooking appliances, which Alice would then control. Whether it was the cooking mode, the heat, or the time adjustment, she would handle everything herself and there would be absolutely no mistakes.

Even after gaining the authority to control the room itself, Alice can even take care of things like taking ingredients out of the refrigerator, defrosting them, and putting them into the cooking appliances.

Xiang Kun never expected that, while he was away, Alice would be the best cook in the house.

Back in Chongyun Village, as they were unloading groceries from the car and carrying them back to the house, Tang Baona found a moment to whisper to Lao Xia, "When is Xiang Kun coming back?"

Lao Xia shook his head. "I don't know either."

"Then do you know... what exactly he meant by 'needing help'?" Tang Baona asked again.

Lao Xia and Alice had mentioned Xiang Kun's need for help in her dream, so she figured Lao Xia probably knew something about it. She might have been able to hold back her questions about other things, but this one had piqued her curiosity too much to bear. And she had a feeling that the "help" Xiang Kun was talking about would be something that would happen within the next day or two.

According to what Lao Xia and Alice had said before, the "help" Xiang Kun needed should come from all of them, including Little Bell. Little Bell was going back to Peng City to go to school in two days, and neither Xiang Kun nor Lao Xia had told Shiling's Mother in advance that they wanted to keep Little Bell here, nor had they asked the school for leave.

And there must have been a reason why he specifically called to tell her to come back today.

As soon as she finished asking the question, Tang Baona suddenly noticed that Yang Zhen'er, Little Apple, Little Chubby Girl, Alice, who had just moved things in, were all standing beside her, looking at Lao Xia, seemingly waiting for his answer as well.

Xia Libing naturally knew Xiang Kun's specific plan. Not only her, Alice also knew it very well, because the two of them were extremely important implementers of the plan and a key link.

Originally, Xiang Kun's plan only included himself and Alice, but later he discovered a loophole and added Lao Xia as well.

As Xiang Kun's understanding of the "Ultimate Predator" rapidly deepened through the analysis of "extrasensory information," the plan was continuously modified, updated, and improved. Under the premise of ensuring the safety of Lao Xia, Tang Baona, and Little Chubby Girl, they were also included in the plan.

Only in this way can the power of the entire "Super-Sensing Item System" be truly mobilized, greatly increasing the success rate of the plan.

Xiang Kun is now gradually revealing his unique characteristics and abilities to Tang Baona, Little Apple, Yang Zhen'er, and the others. Alice's "open" display of his abilities is the most representative example.

In terms of trust, all the people here are absolutely trustworthy.

With Alice's protection, they can also be ensured that they will not be affected by the "Ultimate Predator".

However, Xia Libing also knew that Xiang Kun's plan could not be explained to them in a short time, and the execution of this plan did not require them to understand the specific details. In fact, according to Xiang Kun, the less they knew about the specific details, the more it might help the plan succeed.

So after considering for a few seconds, Xia Libing said, "I can only tell you that Xiang Kun's need for our help concerns all living beings and involves areas all over the world."

Upon hearing this, Yang Zhen'er blurted out instinctively, "So... we're going to help Chef Xiang save the world?"

"We're going to save the world!" Alice shouted excitedly, raising her two clenched fists. She loved shouting these kinds of slogans, and in her opinion, what her boss and they were doing was indeed "saving the world," so she shouted it with righteous indignation and great momentum.

Little Apple listened with a beaming smile, clenching her fist and nodding repeatedly, "Yes, yes, save the world!"

Liu Shiling, however, did not join in the chanting of slogans. But her eyes were bright, her lips were tightly pursed, and she had a determined expression on her face. She raised her hand, turned up the hood of her clothes, put it on, and then gently tugged at the drawstring.

Tang Baona looked at the group's incredibly childish behavior and heard their incredibly childish slogans. She wanted to laugh, but for some reason, she also felt it was quite natural. Surprisingly, she felt neither embarrassed nor childish, because both they and she herself actually believed what Lao Xia said.

After all, they had witnessed so many amazing things during this time—the very existence of Alice, standing beside them and truly with them, was the most amazing thing of all.

Even if Lao Xia were to say that Xiang Kun actually came from Krypton, was a superhero from another world, or was a descendant of a god, they wouldn't be surprised; they would accept it as a matter of course.

While Xia Libing was having dinner, her phone suddenly vibrated. Before she could pick it up, Alice, who was gnawing on a pork knuckle, exclaimed excitedly, "It's the boss! The plan is about to begin!"

As a result, everyone's eyes at the table were drawn to Xia Libing's phone.

Xia Libing simply placed her phone in the middle of the dining table and turned on speakerphone.

"Lao Xia," Xiang Kun's voice rang out.

"We're all here," Xia Libing replied.