Solace

"Taotie Wuji..."

Qin Yiguan was stunned at first, then his eyes twitched slightly.

"Oops."

But the chubby boy waved his hand and said, "I've told you so many times, I had a serious illness when I was a child and almost died. The village shaman said I had to have a bad name, so that two negatives make a positive, and only then could I ensure a peaceful life."

"So my dad and the whole family racked their brains, determined to give me the worst name in the world."

"Taotie Tanyu."

"Taotie Wazi."

"Taotie Gala..."

"Taotie Shi..."

"Final!"

The chubby boy held up one finger, "My dad chose the name 'Taotie Wuji '!"

Qin Yiguan pursed his lips slightly, "The old man's choice was correct. This name is truly awful... You'll definitely have a peaceful life."

Taotie Gala.

Taotie Wuji.

Qin Yiguan knew very well that this was not his native universe, but another Metaverse.

And the chubby boy in front of us isn't Gala either; he's Gala's counterpart.

Their fates were largely the same, but there were also many subtle differences.

For example, due to a momentary lapse of judgment by Taotie's father, Wuji Gala.

Cough cough.

He's not actually Wuji; his name just changed to ' Wuji '.

"Huh... Wuji, hurry up and go to class."

You're late.

Qin Yiguan gazed at his 'good friend,' knowing that his line of work was fraught with unknown dangers and unwilling to involve him. He only hoped that his friend could continue his carefree life in this Metaverse.

The chubby boy asked, somewhat puzzled, "Aren't you in class?"

Qin Yiguan glanced at the Underworld and the Caregiver. "I have other matters to attend to."

The chubby boy was a little confused, but he didn't ask any more questions and slowly walked into the school.

"Wuji."

The name sounded a bit strange, but Qin Yiguan still called it out, and the chubby boy stopped.

Qin Yiguan then asked, "What's your current combat power ranking in that online game, ' The Breath of the Mute '?"

"The Breath of the Mute?"

What the heck?

The chubby boy was a little confused. "You know, I only play one game right now, it's ' Baa Baa Maid Raising '! And believe it or not, my affinity with Maid #4 has reached 90%, she'll be able to show me wearing black stockings soon!"

Qin Yiguan waved his hand, "Go to class now, goodbye."

The chubby boy turned and ran away, yelling, "You're like a lunatic, always asking such weird questions!"

Qin Yiguan looked at the Clam... Wuji in the background.

Two possibilities.

One type is the Aoke in this world who, for various reasons, failed to develop "The Breath of the Mute".

Another kind of Aoke in this world has joined the Ao Council.

The cause and effect are too complex.

There is no reference standard that can quantify the differences between the two Metaverse.

"Normally, this is part of the Core Earth, not Experimental Zone. All Reality Enhancement and special abilities are unavailable here."

Qin Yiguan looked at the Caregiver and the Underworld, "Are you still capable?"

The Caregiver closed their eyes and sensed for a moment, then said, "Here."

The Underworld gripped his machete. "Here."

Qin Yiguan also extended his fingers to perform the ' Starvation Corpse Transformation ', only to find that his fingernails grew rapidly, resembling sharp silver blades.

Moreover, the Starvation Corpse in her mind was no longer the King Kong Barbie, but had reverted to a robust, muscular monster, which looked much more pleasing to the eye.

At the same time, the Smiling Face Cane, which looked like a black bracelet, spun around on her wrist.

"That's strange."

"There are no restrictions here."

Qin Yiguan ended his ' Starvation Corpse Transformation,' and his hand returned to normal. "It's different from my own universe. Otherwise, having superpowers and showing off in the city... that kind of plot would be really interesting."

The Underworld looked puzzled. "Biesan, what's this ' Core Earth ' you were talking about?"

Qin Yiguan was taken aback. "It's a safe zone where people live equally and can't use... wait, doesn't your Metaverse have this setting?"

But the Caregiver and the Underworld replied in unison, "No, we can do whatever we want with our abilities."

Qin Yiguan was stunned. "That's so unfair."

The next moment.

The three of them surveyed the campus before them, while also gazing at the surrounding city in the distance.

"Environmental information is available."

"His abilities are also there."

"Next, we must focus all our efforts on finding the ' Anti-Source Matter '."

This is quite a challenge.

The three of them were silently cheering each other on and trying to keep their spirits up.

"Let's split up."

"Conduct a thorough search first."

"The Caregiver went to the east side, the Underworld to the west, and I..."

Just as Qin Yiguan was assigning tasks, his gaze suddenly sharpened.

In the distance, a graceful figure came running hurriedly. She carried a white backpack, wore a blue fitted suit jacket and a schoolgirl skirt, and her long black hair flowed behind her. Her small black leather shoes made a rapid, clattering sound as she ran on the asphalt.

This is yet another student who missed the school bell.

Qin Yiguan was somewhat stunned, "It's her..."

The girl spotted Qin Yiguan from afar and gave him a smiling look, but seemed a little shy. She didn't say much and hurriedly ran into the campus with her head down.

"Hehehe."

Has the girl you have a crush on appeared?

The Underworld, with a gossipy look on his face, said, "Biesan, don't be shy. Everyone has a crush during puberty."

Qin Yiguan remained silent.

In an instant, a flood of memories flashed through my mind.

He paused.

Qin Yiguan slowly said, "I... am in charge of investigating this school."

The Caregiver smiled knowingly, "Okay."

Tap... tap... tap...

Qin Yiguan walked in the corridor of the teaching building.

The sounds of teachers lecturing and students reading aloud could be heard from the classrooms on both sides.

Qin Yiguan's fingers traced the wall beside him. "Even the blue paint is the same."

He stopped in front of a classroom door and looked up at the sign: Senior Three, Class 11.

This is my classroom.

Through the observation window in the door, Qin Yiguan saw Falcon lecturing on the stage, except that the Falcon in this Metaverse was bald.

He then saw Taotie sitting in the last row, daydreaming... Wuji.

Qin Yiguan also found his seat.

However, the place is now empty. As Wuji said, the Qin Yiguan in this universe has already 'gone offline'.

He then focused his gaze on the long-haired girl.

On the corner of the girl's table sat a white water glass. On the bottom of the glass was a heart drawn by the girl herself, along with a little white rabbit.

"She... hasn't changed much."

Qin Yiguan watched quietly.

It was at this moment that the girl subconsciously turned around and glanced back, and the direction she was looking was right at her own empty seat.

"Little orphan, the money you gave me isn't even enough to buy a single screw."

"But my father was suddenly entrusted with an important mission by the Metaverse Government."

"I'm off to school!"

"Many years have passed, and I was surprised to find that we had actually become high school classmates!"

"Qin Yiguan."

When will you finally recognize me?

For some reason, a passage echoed in Qin Yiguan's mind. The voice was clear and moving, but it seemed to come from a distant dream, and then it faded away, gradually becoming unreal.

Qin Yiguan paused for a moment, adjusted his breathing, and slowly pushed the wooden door open a crack.

The Falcon's voice suddenly became clear.

"Class, the chemical reaction I'm about to present to you is called the Pharaoh's Serpent, the mysterious Pharaoh's Serpent!"

The students immediately began to whisper among themselves.

"Cut..."

"And the mysterious Pharaoh's Serpent?"

"I've seen this a million times on Meta Douyin, it's so overused!"

"It's the thermal decomposition of mercuric thiocyanate, which causes an expansion reaction, forming what looks like black snakes emerging from the soil!"

"Teacher Qing is right, chemistry is useless in this era!"

Qin Yiguan was seen pushing open the door and entering.

Falcon frowned immediately. "Qin Yiguan? You haven't used up Castoffs time yet? You're 20 minutes late! Never mind, get back to your seat right now! After class, if you still have time left, you'll be standing in the hallway as punishment!"

Qin Yiguan ignored this.

He actually walked straight up the steps, step by step, towards the seat of the long-haired girl.

The long-haired girl was a little stunned because Qin Yiguan's gaze was strange; he was staring intently at her, as if she had just experienced some kind of life-or-death separation.

The long-haired girl's heart pounded, and she instinctively raised her hands to her chest and clasped them tightly together.

"Qin Yiguan!"

What are you doing?

The Falcon, hands on its hips, roared, "Is that your seat?"

However, Qin Yiguan did not turn around. He slightly raised his arm, and a black light flew from his sleeve toward the podium.

Of course, Qin Yiguan wasn't so perverted as to kill Falcon in front of everyone in the classroom. Moreover, strictly speaking, Falcon was another ' Qin Yiguan's' teacher.

The black light silently burrowed into the earthen basin in front of the Falcon, which contained the soil the Falcon was preparing for its ' Pharaoh's Serpent ' experiment.

The next moment.

Countless black snakes shot out from the soil, extending three or four meters, and bound the Falcon tightly!

Then, the Falcon was lifted into the air like a mummy, with more than a dozen black snakes dancing in the air around it!

"What's going on?!"

What's going on?!

All that could be heard was a frantic shout from the Falcon, "Why has the Pharaoh's Serpent gone berserk?!"

The students were also shocked.

"Holy crap!"

"That Pharaoh's Serpent is awesome!"

"This isn't the Pharaoh's Serpent I know!"

"By the Falcon above, forgive your poor eyesight!"

Qin Yiguan ignored the commotion in the classroom.

He looked down at the male classmate next to the long-haired girl and said, "Get out of the way."

The student was taken aback. "Qin Yiguan, this is my seat, you..."

"Get out of the way."

Qin Yiguan lowered his voice slightly, but his aura as a little pervert spread out.

The male student shuddered, quickly got up, and ran a long way, still feeling lingering fear.

But Qin Yiguan sat down lazily in his seat.

And just half a meter away from him was the seat of the long-haired girl.

The Taotie Wuji in the back row stared wide-eyed. "Yiguan crap, is this some kind of perverted guy? Is he going to be a domineering CEO confessing his love in public?"

"Qin Yiguan..."

"What are you doing? This is a classroom."

The long-haired girl tried her best to suppress her surprise, but her cheeks still flushed slightly. "Don't believe those rumors. I don't have a crush on you. I do have feelings for you, but don't misunderstand, these feelings are like those between old friends..."

"I know."

Qin Yiguan glanced at the girl, then looked up at the ceiling and slowly said, "When I was little, I lived in an orphanage. We were poor and often went hungry. Occasionally, I would go out with Boss Meng to collect garbage and steal... borrow things like cables. On our way back, we would always see a little girl begging for money from others."

"At that time, she was holding a sign."

"It says on it: 'I want to keep going to school, let's raise money to buy Nutrient Pod, give me some money if you have any.'"

At this point, Qin Yiguan clicked his tongue. "Her attitude was very stiff, as if I owed her something."

But then the long-haired girl suddenly widened her bright eyes and stared blankly at Qin Yiguan.

And at this time, Qin Yiguan...

I gazed quietly at the girl before me, a girl brimming with youthful energy, health, and beauty, her face carrying a hint of bewilderment mixed with anticipation.

Perhaps some things, once formed, cannot be changed.

Perhaps some words are like a gentle breeze, but they can never reach someone's ears again.

In the course of life, there are always some oversights that we regret.

Moving forward, I also think about making amends.

But it's unclear whether this counts as compensation.

The boy's eyes were slightly moist.

"Shangguan Xiaotao."

"Now."

I recognize you.