Chapter 255: Chapter 252 [Decide on a Plan]
Chapter 252: Strategizing
I have no intention of leaving! I’m going to live here! Why not carve out a three-bedroom, two-living-room space? After all, in a soul state, there’s no need to eat, drink, or deal with bodily waste! I managed to self-imprison myself at sea for eight years! Can’t I cope with three or five years here? If I go out now, Empress Lu would probably kill me on the spot!
Even separated by the screen of Chen Nuo’s physical body, Chen Yanluo, in the Consciousness Space, could almost feel the chilling aura emanating from the Starry Sky Empress at this moment.
Everyone else in the room felt it too. It seemed as though the temperature had suddenly plummeted. Despite it being summer, everyone shivered involuntarily. Lu Xixi’s face was now an icy mask.
She stared at Niveer for a couple of moments, then a hint of a smile slowly bloomed at the corners of her mouth.
"Good. Very good. Truly very good..."
Empress Lu’s voice was laced with a cold fury that paradoxically twisted into a laugh. "So, Miss, what is your relationship with Chen Nuo?"
Niveer looked at Empress Lu, then her gaze instinctively flickered to the only person she recognized in the room: Li Yingwan.
Li Yingwan sighed. "This is Empress Lu... Yes, she’s the Great Devil we’ve been talking about all along."
Hearing this, Niveer was a little confused.
Isn’t Sun Keke the Great Devil?
However, looking at Empress Lu’s appearance and figure, a ridiculous sense of agreement welled up in her heart.
Indeed, only a woman like this deserves to be called the Great Devil.
"Her name is Lux Devonshire! Chen Nuo oppa saved her life before... but that was after he met me," Li Yingwan said somewhat impatiently, quickly summarizing the Hummingbird’s origins in two sentences.
Empress Lu didn’t speak, her eyes narrowed as she studied Niveer.
"Lux... Devonshire?" Empress Lu suddenly frowned. "From the Devonshire family?"
"Yes!" Niveer puffed out her chest proudly.
A hint of confusion crossed Empress Lu’s face. "Is your father Rock Devonshire?"
Niveer was stunned for a moment. "You know..."
"No! Then you absolutely cannot be Lux Devonshire." Lu Xixi shook her head. "I’ve met your entire family! Mr. and Mrs. Devonshire and their eldest daughter, Lux, are no longer among the living!"
Saying this, Lu Xixi looked at the Hummingbird again. "You... you’re eighteen this year, aren’t you? So, you’re Niveer?"
This time, it was Niveer’s turn to feel her heart pound. She looked at Empress Lu in astonishment. "You... you know my family?"
"Hmph!"
The coldness in Empress Lu’s eyes softened slightly. "I knew your father and mother ten years ago. Your sister Lux even learned some Body Techniques from me. As for you... the last time I saw you, you were only seven or eight years old! You were in the garden, beating up that royal prince until he cried, and then you stole his Shetland pony."
Niveer gasped. "You really knew my family? Were you... very close to my parents?"
"Not very close, merely acquainted," Lu Xixi replied, unwilling to elaborate, though her expression turned rather peculiar.
This energetic, sporty beauty with the explosive figure! The last time I saw her, she was just a little girl of seven or eight. Who would have thought she’d grow up so much in the blink of an eye. And... and she’s even competing with me for a man! How can this be happening?
The women in the room, along with Wu Daodao, each with their distinct backgrounds, finally managed to clarify their respective identities and positions after a round of verbal sparring.
Niveer quickly understood her predicament. She had dared to show up looking for Chen Nuo primarily because she hadn’t been able to contact him for too many days, and her anxiety had become unbearable. At the same time, it was also because Sun Keke, whom she had always considered the "Great Devil," didn’t seem like a particularly formidable rival in Niveer’s eyes. In terms of looks and build, she believed herself to be in no way inferior to this girl from an ordinary Huaxia family. As for their connection, she and Chen Nuo had shared life-or-death experiences! Furthermore, Sun Keke had a gentle and soft personality, so Niveer had never really been afraid of her. Such a "Great Devil" hardly posed a deterrent.
But Lu Xixi was a different story entirely! This woman was clearly no pushover. Moreover, in terms of physique, appearance, and aura, she unequivocally outshone the other three girls present. Whether it was Sun Keke, Li Yingwan, or Niveer herself, upon seeing Lu Xixi, even as women, they couldn’t help but feel an overwhelming sense of defeat. I’ve lost, I’ve lost, I can’t compete.
If she had known such a Great Devil would be here, Niveer would never have dared to come today.
When facing an unbeatable opponent, stealthy attacks and gradual infiltration are the way to go!
Just as Niveer was inwardly lamenting her miscalculation, Lu Xixi revealed that something had happened to Chen Nuo...
A moment later, Niveer was hopping mad.
"What soul loss syndrome! This is unscientific! He needs the best doctors right now! I can contact Britain immediately; I can find the top experts from the Royal Medical Academy... This is ignorant and barbaric! How can you believe such lies that sound like witchcraft—"
Her words caught in her throat.
Niveer stared, dumbfounded, as a kitchen knife on the table in front of her floated into the air, hovering right before her face! The blade was almost touching the tip of her nose.
"If you don’t want to help, you can leave. Don’t stay here and cause trouble," Lu Xixi said coldly.
Niveer swallowed hard and murmured in a daze, "Witchcraft... witchcraft..."
Just then, the rustling sound of footsteps came from the inner room.
Chen Nuo emerged and stood by the living room. The young man quietly observed the small living room, now crammed full with four women, one man, and a cat. His brow furrowed tightly.
He suddenly turned and went back into the inner room, apparently rummaging through things. A moment later, he re-emerged with a hammer in one hand, a picture frame in the other, and a nail held between his lips.
Silently glancing at the group, Chen Nuo moved a chair to the wall and stood on it. He hammered the nail into the wall and carefully hung the picture frame. After stepping down, he looked up to ensure it was straight before turning back to face everyone.
Everyone fell silent.
In the frame on the wall was a black-and-white photograph of an old woman with a kind face and a gentle smile, looking out at them.
The young man clenched his fists tightly. His voice was soft, yet it seemed to carry all the courage he could muster as he began to speak.
"Have you... had enough?
"This is my home!
"I am Chen Nuo!
"I’m not some monster, not some Body Seizing fiend!
"Everything you’ve been saying—Summoning Soul Technique, soul loss—it has nothing to do with me!
"This is my home. I am Chen Nuo!
"I’m perfectly fine here. I don’t need any treatment! I don’t need any soul summoning!
"You’ve been making a scene here for two days. Can you please leave now?
"I don’t know any of you!
"Not a single one!
"I don’t want to know what happened before!
"Right now, I just want you to leave!
"Leave my home!
"This is my home!
"Please leave!"
After saying this, the young man seemed to have exhausted all his courage. Yet, he forced himself to suppress his inner trepidation, gritting his teeth and staring intently at the people in the room. However, the slight tremor in his body betrayed his fear and nervousness.
"...Ah!" Li Yingwan raised an eyebrow, about to speak.
But Lu Xixi suddenly pulled the long-legged girl back.
A strange expression appeared on the Empress’s face. She scrutinized Chen Nuo, then glanced up at the memorial photograph hanging on the wall. Looking at the kind, benevolent smile of the old woman in the photo, Lu Xixi suddenly took a deep breath. "Maybe we should go..."
"Hmm?"
Wu Daodao was taken aback. Even Li Yingwan was about to protest, but a sharp glare from Lu Xixi made her obediently close her mouth.
Sun Keke, however, suddenly stood up and quietly walked over to Chen Nuo. The girl looked at him intently and then asked in a low voice, "Are you... really Chen Nuo?"
"I always have been."
"Then do you remember... between us..."
Chen Nuo took a deep breath and looked at Sun Keke. "I did write you a love letter. But... I didn’t really like you. At that time, I thought I was dying from a serious illness. I kept thinking about how I’d always been a nobody, and I really wanted to do something that would shock everyone... Anyway... if I caused you any trouble, I’m sorry, Sun Keke."
Sun Keke’s expression was complicated. "Then... do you remember what you said to me on the day you gave me the love letter?"
Chen Nuo shook his head. "No, I didn’t say anything that day. I just stuffed the letter into your hand. I didn’t dare say a word to you. I didn’t even look up to see your expression. I just ran off. Yes, it was at the corner of the classroom corridor, by the stairwell."
Sun Keke suddenly let out a long breath. Her eyes were filled with a complex mix of emotions, yet she seemed to have understood something in an instant.
"Do you really want us to leave now?"
"Yes. I want you to leave. This... this is my home," Chen Nuo said in a low voice. "You’ve been here for two days already. I don’t want to get involved in those things you’re talking about anymore, no matter what happened in the past six months, no matter how many memories I don’t have. But I’m very tired and annoyed right now. I just want to stay quietly in my own home. I just want to be with my grandma. Can I?"
Sun Keke’s body trembled slightly, but she forced herself to stand straight and then turned her head. She actually nodded at Lu Xixi, offering her the first smile she had shown Lu Xixi since their relationship had fractured two days ago. This faint smile clearly carried a hint of a plea.
"Let’s leave first, okay?"
Lu Xixi seemed to instantly understand Sun Keke. The Starry Sky Empress even returned a smile and nodded. "Yes, I understand what you mean. Let’s... leave first."
Once Lu Xixi spoke, under the Empress’s commanding presence, no one in Chen Nuo’s home dared to object. They all got up to leave. Chen Nuo saw them to the door, and after the last person stepped out, he quickly shut it.
After closing the door, the young man seemed to have expended all his energy and plopped down onto the floor. After taking a couple of gasping breaths, Chen Nuo struggled back to his feet. He walked back into the living room, looking at the unfamiliar furniture and decorations. But when he looked up, he saw his grandmother’s memorial portrait smiling down at him from the wall. This sole familiar presence brought a measure of comfort to his heart.
Actually, it’s just like before. It’s always just me alone...
"We’re just leaving like this?!" Li Yingwan was the most impatient.
Lu Xixi didn’t answer. Instead, she walked to the apartment opposite Chen Nuo’s, slowly opened the door, and then looked back. "Let’s go in here first."
Li Yingwan’s eyes widened. "This... this apartment, it’s yours...?"
Sun Keke, however, had known all along. She sighed and followed Lu Xixi inside.
Inside Lu Xixi’s apartment, after everyone had settled in the living room again, the atmosphere suddenly grew quiet. It was as if no one dared to speak first.
Lu Xixi, however, kept her gaze fixed on Sun Keke. "Did you guess something?"
"...Yes," Sun Keke replied softly, nodding.
"Can you two stop talking in riddles? What on earth is going on?" Li Yingwan frowned.
Niveer remained silent, merely observing quietly.
Wu Daodao’s eyes darted around, then he suddenly frowned. "Don’t tell me you think..."
Lu Xixi, however, still only looked at Sun Keke. "You tell us."
Sun Keke sighed softly. "Maybe... he isn’t some fiend that seized Chen Nuo’s body."
"What do you mean?"
Sun Keke said in a low voice, "Actually, this doubt has been in my heart for a while. I’ve known Chen Nuo the longest. Back when we were classmates, he was just like you see him now. But in recent months, I’ve often felt that he changed too much. It was as if he’d become a completely different person. Thinking back carefully, it must have started on December 23rd last year, the day before Christmas. Because before that, I didn’t have a very deep impression of him. He was just an ordinary, muddle-headed person, with hardly any friends at school, very inconspicuous. But on the day before Christmas, after I fell from upstairs and bumped into him... he started talking to me very boldly. And... he didn’t seem embarrassed, shy, or timid at all. Although on the surface, he still didn’t fit in at school and didn’t make friends, his underlying essence had changed."
"How did it change?"
"The old Chen Nuo was insecure, timid, and afraid of being bullied, so he kept his distance from everyone and didn’t interact with people. The later Chen Nuo was carefree and always joking around, but I always felt that he disdained talking to them or making friends with them."
At this point, Sun Keke bit her lip and said with difficulty, "So..."
"So what?" Li Yingwan pressed.
Sun Keke didn’t answer.
Instead, Lu Xixi sighed. The Empress pointed towards Chen Nuo’s apartment across the hall.
"So... have you ever considered the possibility that the Chen Nuo we see now is the real, original Chen Nuo? And the Chen Nuo we knew, the one who changed so much, was actually an outsider! A fiend that occupied the original Chen Nuo’s body... In other words, the Chen Nuo we knew was the one who performed the Body Seizing."
The girls’ expressions varied upon hearing this, but Sun Keke remained calm.
"And now, due to some special reason, the soul of the Chen Nuo we knew is gone. As for Chen Nuo’s body, one could say it has returned to its rightful owner."
Lu Xixi then said calmly, "Don’t rush. Hear me out. Regardless of who seized whose body... I don’t care about anything else. The Chen Nuo I know, I will do everything in my power to bring him back! It’s just that now, the situation has changed, so our methods might need to change slightly."
After finishing, Lu Xixi looked at Wu Daodao. "Brother Wu, you’re the expert in this field. What are your thoughts?"
Wu Daodao lowered his head in contemplation, then finally let out a long sigh.
"Ah... so that’s how it is! It seems I was mistaken before! Looking at it this way, a great doubt in my heart has been resolved!"
Wu Daodao looked at Sun Keke with a wry smile. "To be honest, after I first met Junior Brother, I felt his destiny was peculiar. Our sect is most proficient in the study of destiny, and I consider myself quite accomplished in it. But after getting to know him, I found I couldn’t fathom his destiny at all. And... actually, the more curious I became, the more I wanted to probe, the more I felt that my Junior Brother might..."
"He might what?"
"He might not be human!"
Seeing everyone’s strange expressions, Wu Daodao calmly explained, mainly to Lu Xixi.
"Our sect has a minor spell called the Observing Aura Technique! Everyone in this world has their own aura and fortune. Our Observing Aura Technique doesn’t just look at a person’s luck. The so-called aura encompasses many things: the vitality of one’s life force, the direction of one’s fortune, the rise and fall of one’s destiny, the strength of one’s spiritual power... and so on."
"Like a comprehensive energy signature?" Lu Xixi asked.
"Something like that."
Wu Daodao frowned. "When I first met Junior Brother Chen Nuo, I was astonished. Later, I secretly used the Observing Aura Technique on him and discovered that my Junior Brother’s aura... it’s severed!"
Before anyone could ask, Wu Daodao immediately explained.
"It’s like when I look at someone’s aura, their original aura is like an ordinary flower or plant—most people’s auras in this world are like that. But when I looked at Junior Brother Chen Nuo that time, the root of his aura was that of a weak flower, no different from an ordinary person. But looking further up, it wasn’t right. That flower had withered and died. Then, as if it had been cleanly cut off, a new, towering tree with lush foliage had grown in its place! And that towering tree was hidden in mist, growing vigorously, but no matter how I tried, I couldn’t see its true form."
"Did it never occur to you before that your Junior Brother might be a ghost that had seized a body? You saw the anomaly in his aura."
The women looked at each other, stunned.
Wu Daodao was also startled. He looked down and realized the speaker was a gray short-tailed cat lying at his feet!
Noticing everyone staring at it, the Gray Cat shrank its neck. Especially when faced with Lu Xixi’s piercing gaze, it quickly darted to the Empress’s feet, rubbed against her leg, and prostrated itself. "I... I didn’t mean to speak..."
"Why were you just meowing before?"
"The Huaxia language is too hard to learn, and speaking human language consumes a lot of energy," the Gray Cat said, raising a paw in surrender.
Niveer jumped up. "A talking cat!!!!!"
Li Yingwan’s eyes widened as she stared at the Gray Cat. Startled, she subconsciously clutched the hem of Sun Keke’s clothes.
"Alright! Body Seizing is happening right before your eyes. A talking cat shouldn’t surprise you," Lu Xixi waved her hand and lightly kicked the Gray Cat. "Stay aside and don’t speak out of turn."
"MEOW."
Wu Daodao smiled bitterly. "Esteemed Cat Demon... it’s really not my fault. Body Seizing... I’ve only read about it in books. In a normal lifetime, who the hell has ever witnessed such a thing? So, it’s understandable that I didn’t think of it at the time."
「Meanwhile, in a small noodle shop in Jinling City.」
Boss Guo, who was kneading dough, suddenly sneezed.
「Back with the group.」
"Brother Wu, please continue," Lu Xixi said, gesturing for him to go on.
"Alright."
Wu Daodao pondered as he spoke, "If we look at it this way, then things are different from what I initially guessed! There’s no telling how many methods of Body Seizing exist. But one thing is common! Once a new soul seizes the original owner’s body, the original owner’s soul absolutely cannot survive! So, either the original owner’s soul had already died before the Body Seizing, and the new soul took the opportunity to occupy the body, or it was a malicious Body Seizing, where the new soul entered the body and forcibly killed the original owner’s soul to succeed. Moreover, in my Junior Brother’s case... he has successfully possessed the body for over half a year! Logically, the original owner’s soul should have already perished. For it to be able to return now, that means..."
"Exactly! How could his soul return?" Lu Xixi asked, frowning.
"So my judgment is... the soul currently occupying my Junior Brother’s body, this original owner’s soul... might not be a living soul. Rather... it’s a residual soul of someone who has already died!"
"What do you mean by a living soul and a residual soul?" Lu Xixi pressed further.
"A living soul is when, due to some special accident, the soul leaves the body, but its life force isn’t severed. It’s like uprooting a plant from the soil but replanting it shortly after. The plant can continue to live and grow. That’s a living soul!
"As for a residual soul... if you break off a flower, it can still last a few days. If you put it in a vase with water, it might even survive for seven or eight days. But in reality, its life force is already severed; it will only slowly wither and die. A residual soul is like that! The remaining soul power can sustain it for some time, but because the life force is severed, it won’t generate new energy. Every bit consumed is a bit lost. Once it’s exhausted, the residual soul is gone."
Lu Xixi’s face lit up. "So you’re saying the current Chen Nuo is a residual soul! He has reoccupied his body, but it won’t last! In that case, don’t we just... have to wait quietly for his soul power to deplete, and then he’ll naturally dissipate! And then... the Chen Nuo we know will naturally return?"
"Theoretically, that’s a possibility. And it’s also the best-case scenario. However, some residual souls are sustained by sheer obsession, causing their soul power not to dissipate. They can persist for a very long time unless their lifelong obsessions are fulfilled, at which point they will immediately vanish."
Lu Xixi fell silent.
Sun Keke then asked, "Then, Brother Wu, the Summoning Soul Technique you mentioned before, can it not be used now?"
"It can be used, but the situation is different now. Using the Summoning Soul Technique again would likely... violate the laws of heaven and human ethics!"
Sun Keke frowned, not understanding.
Wu Daodao sighed.
"The Summoning Soul Technique might be able to call out my Junior Brother’s soul... But the body is currently occupied by the original owner. You can’t have two souls in one body. So... one has to be eliminated for the other to take over, do you understand? If it were before, I would have considered him just a stray ghost occupying my Junior Brother’s body. In that case, when I used the Summoning Soul Technique, I would also be calling out this Body Seizing ghost and then causing his soul to scatter and disperse! Kill one soul, save another! But now... to do that again would be to violate the laws of heaven and human ethics! He’s the rightful owner! If we do that, wouldn’t it be tantamount to helping my Junior Brother seize an innocent person’s body? That’s the path of demons and heretics! I would never do such a thing!"
Sun Keke’s face turned pale, and she quickly said, "Ah! Of course not! Chen Nuo... the original Chen Nuo, has already suffered so much! How could we harm such an innocent and pitiful person again."
Lu Xixi thought for a moment and asked, "Brother Wu, you mean that the one currently occupying the body is a residual soul of the original Chen Nuo! If we wait patiently, he will eventually dissipate, is that right? And perhaps, he’s just a lingering obsession. If we can find a way to resolve his obsession—that is, help him fulfill some unfinished wish—he will quickly dissipate, and then the Chen Nuo we know can return. Is that what you mean?"
Wu Daodao gently stroked his eyebrow and nodded. "Precisely!"
Lu Xixi stood up! The Empress gently clenched her fists!
"Then it’s quite simple! Let’s find out what wishes he wants to fulfill! Even if he wants to be the President of M Country, I’ll fight to kick that guy out of the White House and let him sit in that chair to his heart’s content!"
Everyone: "..."
They could all sense that this Miss Lu was not just talking. She might genuinely be crazy enough to do it!
"But..." Li Yingwan suddenly said loudly, "What if he makes an outrageous wish?"
"Hmm?"
"For example... he wrote love letters to Sun Keke before! What if he says he really likes Sun Fatso and wants Sun Fatso to sleep with him?"
Sun Keke immediately flushed with anger, glaring at Li Yingwan. "Li Malang! What nonsense are you spouting! Even if he looks like Chen Nuo, he’s a completely different person! He can’t even dream of touching a single hair of mine!"
Lu Xixi said coldly, "Alright, stop arguing!"
The Empress stated calmly, "If he is that innocent and weak Chen Nuo, we should pity his fate and not harm him further. We can help him fulfill his wishes. By using this gentle method, we can get my husband back! But if he makes disgusting demands, then... for such an evil person, there’s no need for courtesy. We’ll just use the previous methods!"