Chapter 70: The Calling

Xiao Feng had dissipated, but the Nest had not yet vanished. She needed to find Liao Tianhua to dismantle it.

Through the memories she had just read from Xiao Feng, Xia Mi already knew how to undo the Nest. She needed to find Liao Tianhua and teach him the technique.

After taking only two steps, Xia Mi’s head suddenly spun, and she sank directly onto the ground.

She heard a calling from afar.

She felt a voice calling out to her from deep within a remote island across the sea.

No, it wasn’t calling her; it was calling the “Queen Bee” inside her body.

During the struggle just now, the “Queen Bee” had finally awakened a little.

This power had been captured by the Immortal Foundation.

They seemed to be using some kind of device to summon the “Queen Bee,” and the one inside Xia Mi’s body instinctively began to respond to the call.

Xia Mi felt as if she were pierced by countless rays of light, all connecting her to that distant island.

No matter where she went, these invisible rays would follow her.

The moment she lost control of the Queen Bee’s power, these rays would fully awaken the entity within her.

The awakening of the Queen Bee required a massive amount of energy. It would immediately expand a Nest, devouring everyone in the vicinity.

Xia Mi did a quick estimation. The Queen Bee’s Nest wouldn’t be that large – just about the size of a first-tier city¹. It would only trap twenty or thirty million residents inside. That was all…

Like hell it was! This thing was more powerful than a nuclear bomb!

For now, Xia Mi could still rely on the role model effect gained from her short videos to suppress the Queen Bee. However, as time passed, people’s attention would wane. Once their eyes turned elsewhere, she would no longer be able to resist those callings.

Xia Mi considered simply flying straight to the Immortal Foundation’s headquarters. That way, even if the Queen Bee awakened, it would only wreak havoc on their doorstep.

But the enemy was likely waiting for her to go to their experimental base so they could use every means possible to dig the Queen Bee out of her body.

Xia Mi realized she couldn’t hold out for long. Time was of the essence; she had to act quickly.

She ran to the classified laboratory, gave Liao Tianhua a quick hug, and said rapidly, “Quick, dissolve the Nest. I have something very important to report to Old Jiao.”

Liao Tianhua was silent for a moment before saying, “I don’t know how to dissolve the Nest.”

Xia Mi said, “Oh, I almost forgot to teach you.”

Opening a Nest was an instinct of the “Zhuo,” just as humans are born knowing how to eat or crawl. It wasn’t something that could be taught with words.

So, Xia Mi drew a horizontal “8” on Liao Tianhua’s forehead, connecting to his Consciousness Threads, and transferred the method to him through his mind.

“First like this, then like that, and you can dissolve the Nest. Do you understand?” Xia Mi explained.

Liao Tianhua said, “I understand. It’s essentially an awareness of suppressing an appetite – telling yourself you’re full and putting down the chopsticks.”

“That’s an excellent description,” Xia Mi said.

After speaking, Xia Mi frowned.

Liao Tianhua hadn’t realized it himself, but Xia Mi saw it through the Consciousness Threads.

Liao Tianhua had not recovered his memories.

Xiao Feng had been ruthless. After performing “The Cuckoo Occupying the Magpie’s Nest,” he had killed the original “magpie” chick.

He had destroyed the memories between Liao Tianhua and Xia Mi. Even though Xiao Feng was dead, Liao Tianhua’s memories could not be restored.

Fortunately, with Xiao Feng dead, he would no longer exert mental control over Liao Tianhua, and emotions tended to fade with time.

Liao Tianhua would gradually let go of his feelings for Old Jiao. It wouldn’t be difficult; after all, a normal twenty-five-year-old man, unless he was a deviant, wouldn’t maintain feelings for a face like a dried orange peel.

Xia Mi was confident enough in herself. She believed that if Liao Tianhua could fall in love with her once, he could certainly fall in love with her a second time. It wasn’t a big deal.

She and Liao Tianhua had only known each other for three months. In the future, they had three years, or thirty years, to create new memories. Sooner or later, those would outweigh the memories of these three months.

After Liao Tianhua dissolved the Nest, Xia Mi and Liao Tianhua found Deputy Director Jiao waiting for them outside the classified laboratory with a team of personnel.

Deputy Director Jiao had changed into his white shirt and standard service uniform, wearing the rank of a senior Chief on his shoulders. The well-fitted, formal clothing that symbolized his status made him look exceptionally handsome. His graying hair added a different kind of refined, scholarly charm to that handsomeness.

Xia Mi was visibly dazzled by the sight of him in that attire.

Liao Tianhua, on the other hand, didn’t feel much. After all, his misplaced affection hadn’t been for Jiao Xingjian, but for the now-deceased Fake Old Jiao.

The two of them shared a look. Liao Tianhua’s gaze was open and honest, while Xia Mi guiltily looked away.

She couldn’t help it! That white shirt, the rank insignia, and the “XXXX001²” badge number representing the Director were just too cool!

Jiao Xingjian stepped forward and spoke to them with warmth and official authority. “Captain Xia, Deputy Captain Liao, congratulations on your triumphant return. You’ve worked hard!”

Xia Mi gave Jiao Xingjian a perfectly standard salute and then said hurriedly, “Deputy Director Jiao, I have a very important matter to report.”

Jiao Xingjian said, “Come to my office immediately.”

The logistics staff wanted to help Liao Tianhua and Xia Mi with a physical checkup, but the two of them refused.

Xia Mi’s physical condition wasn’t great, but it wasn’t something the logistics staff could help with. Liao Tianhua had his own healing abilities and didn’t need treatment from others.

The group arrived in Jiao Xingjian’s office. At Xia Mi’s request, only Mi Xiangyan and Liao Tianhua remained.

Xia Mi needed Mi Xiangyan’s professional expertise to help her make decisions. As for Liao Tianhua, it was simply because she didn’t want to hide things from her “family.” Qiu Hailan, despite also being a deputy captain, didn’t receive the same treatment.

Once only the four of them were left, Xia Mi quickly reported Xiao Feng’s memories, the Immortal Foundation’s laboratory base, how the short videos were helping her control the Queen Bee, and the fact that she was being summoned.

She only withheld the secret of immortality.

Xia Mi knew that the temptation of immortality was truly immense. She didn’t want to use this matter to test human nature.

In any case, as the Queen Bee, she would never help anyone become a “Rong.” If they wanted immortality, they could try their luck by accommodating the “Zhuo” themselves. Xia Mi would absolutely not help.

Through Xiao Feng’s memories, Xia Mi also learned something. The fact that Liao Tianhua and the members of the Second Team were able to successfully become “Rong” was indeed related to her.

She had injected her own energy into their bodies, using her rank as the “Queen Bee” to suppress the “Zhuo” within them. This was what allowed the team members to become stable “Rong”.

“Shield” and “Eye” were lucky cases, a one-in-a-million probability, but the others were the result of Xia Mi’s ability.

Mi Xiangyan might have had her suspicions, and the higher-ups might have suspected as well, but as long as Xia Mi refused to admit it, it remained mere speculation. No one dared to risk their lives to verify it.

After hearing this, Jiao Xingjian asked, “How much longer can you hold out?”

Xia Mi sensed her condition and said, “Without support from a new collective consciousness, I can probably only last another 24 hours.”

Jiao Xingjian looked at Mi Xiangyan and asked, “Can you record a few more videos?”

Mi Xiangyan replied, “The previous videos have already been forwarded by countless marketing accounts³. It’s currently the highest-traffic content for our propaganda department. Recording more videos would only attract a small number of fans, which is just a drop in the bucket. Generating another massive wave of traffic requires time and luck; it’s not that easy.”

Capitalists try every possible way to buy traffic, write scripts, and craft personas, yet they still might not go viral. Forced promotion would only backfire, making the fans who previously believed think the earlier videos were just fake special effects, which would actually cause a loss of Zhuo Coins.

Jiao Xingjian looked at Xia Mi and asked, “What are your thoughts?”

Xia Mi said, “Drop me near the island. After 24 hours, I’ll go and wreak havoc on them.”

Liao Tianhua looked at Xia Mi and said, “I’m going too.”

Jiao Xingjian slapped the table and shouted, “Nonsense! What if going there is exactly what they want?”

Xia Mi said, “That’s easy then. Just drop a missile. Anyway, that place is marked as uninhabited waters on the map. We can just say we were conducting a military exercise.”

“A single Xiao Feng’s Domain could trap us in another space. The Queen Bee’s Domain might have a way to protect the entire island from a missile attack,” Mi Xiangyan reminded them.

Xia Mi said, “Whether it can be bombed or should be bombed is for me to judge. I’ll give you a signal when the time comes.”

“The other side can jam signals!” Mi Xiangyan urged.

Xia Mi said, “They can’t jam my signal.”

With that, Xia Mi opened her hand toward Mi Xiangyan, releasing energy from her palm. The energy traced the symbol “8” in the air, and Mi Xiangyan suddenly felt Xia Mi’s consciousness inside her mind.

Xia Mi said, “I will greet you through the Consciousness Threads. I can definitely destroy the entire Immortal Foundation base.”

Mi Xiangyan looked at Xia Mi with a complex expression. “How can you talk about sacrificing your life so casually?”

Xia Mi sighed and said, “I don’t want to either, but if this matter isn’t resolved quickly, I will become a very terrifying existence.

“If I cannot control the Queen Bee, I could destroy tens of millions of lives at any moment. I’m just a regular college graduate; I can’t bear that kind of guilt.”

Xia Mi didn’t want to die either. She was highly valued by her leader (Old Jiao), had a domestic and virtuous boyfriend, got along well with her colleagues, and held an absolute position of power in her “Loving Family” group chat. She had a bright future ahead of her; she wasn’t willing to go to her death.

But she wanted to be a sinner for all eternity⁴ even less.

Xia Mi said, “Besides, the missile is just a last resort. Maybe if I go to the research base, I can solve the problem once and for all.”

Liao Tianhua emphasized again beside Xia Mi, “I’m going with you.”

Jiao Xingjian pondered for a moment and said to Xia Mi, “How about… you try playing the game first? It only takes three hours to fly from here to the island. There’s still time, enough for you to play the game twice.”

Xia Mi said, “I can’t start the game without entering the environment.”

To prove her words, she took out her phone and opened the game for Jiao Xingjian to see.

Unexpectedly, a prompt popped up in the game this time: [Would you like to consume 10,000 Zhuo Coins to activate Mind Sharing Mode? Environment simulation can be performed through the consciousness of other Zhuo derivatives.]

Mi Xiangyan leaned over to look and was shocked. “Ten thousand Zhuo Coins? That’s way too many. It looks like you’ll have to find a chance to play the game on-site. Why don’t we send the Second Team, Shield, and Eye along? They can create the time and opportunity for you to play.”

Xia Mi paused for a moment and said, “Ten thousand Zhuo Coins? I have that!”

Mi Xiangyan asked, “You have that many Zhuo Coins?!”

Xia Mi said, “I absorbed over twenty thousand Zhuo Coins from Xiao Feng. That’s enough to activate the environment simulation.”

Jiao Xingjian ordered, “Play the game, quickly!”

Under everyone’s watchful eyes, Xia Mi opened the game.

The first thing she saw was “The Lost Boyfriend” progress at 10%.

Xia Mi: “…”

Wasn’t it at 50% before? How could it go backward! Had Liao Tianhua’s heart wandered elsewhere?

She first gave Jiao Xingjian a fierce glare, making Old Jiao’s heart jump in alarm.

Then she looked at Liao Tianhua and saw him gazing at her intently, with no one else in his eyes.

Xia Mi looked at Liao Tianhua, then back at the game. Suddenly, a realization struck her. She said, “Liao Tianhua, you are not allowed to go to the island. This is an order from Captain Xia.”

After she said that, the task progress for “The Lost Boyfriend” jumped to 80%.

It was confirmed. Liao Tianhua would have died in the island mission.

Translator’s Notes