305: Chapter 103: A Second’s Difference is Worlds Apart 305: Chapter 103: A Second’s Difference is Worlds Apart Either I hadn’t woken up properly today, or she hadn’t taken her meds.
Otherwise, there’s no other reason to explain the awkwardness we’re facing right now.
Wang Yunxiao was indeed feeling awkward because he was holding Mumu’s hand, strolling around the streets.
Not that he didn’t like it; Miss Li’s fingers were tender and slightly velvety, feeling rather nice, making one not want to let go.
But Wang Yunxiao was an honest man, and he had a very accurate understanding of his own charm and temperament.
He knew very well that his relationship with Mumu wasn’t close enough to justify this behavior.
Who knew why Miss Li was acting insane today, giving away freebies right upon meeting.
Although I’m an upright person, since you’re making the moves, if I acted shy like a timid turtle, wouldn’t that be worse than a beast?
Let’s play along, what’s the worst that could happen?
I might just miss a couple of classes in the afternoon.
“Can you buy me an ice cream?”
“Sure!”
Though Wang Yunxiao had no idea where to buy ice cream, that wasn’t really a problem.
It was starting to get a bit muggy in Tianmen this May, with cicadas chirping in the trees.
A teenage boy and girl holding hands, walking along the river eating ice cream—what a lovely scene.
Wang Yunxiao felt he might indeed be falling in love—who could withstand such a test?
If one could remain unaffected, then he wasn’t a normal man; might as well become a monk.
Of course, he knew that every sweet dream eventually comes to an end.
After finishing the ice cream and throwing the stick into the river, Mumu licked her fingers, which were sticky with melted sugar, and gazed deeply at Wang Yunxiao.
“Don’t you feel like I’m a bit different today?”
“A bit…”
“Just a bit?”
Wang Yunxiao noticed Mumu’s gaze drifting toward his other hand, which was in his pocket.
He had a notebook in his pocket.
Alright, I admit, I really feel like taking a look at the notebook to confirm if it’s really her.
Especially since the police department had just experienced a case of identity swapping by the Faceless Ones, Wang Yunxiao felt a bit of PTSD.
“Actually, I have a secret I’ve been wanting to tell you.”
Mumu stepped closer to Wang Yunxiao, covered her mouth with her hand, and whispered only loud enough for both of them to hear, “My life is about to end.”
What does that mean?
Wang Yunxiao looked confused.
You have terminal brain cancer?
That doesn’t sound right; last time you talked about your condition, it didn’t seem that severe!
“Wang Yunxiao, if you like someone, do you like their appearance or their inner self?”
Mumu stepped back two steps, sat on the riverbank railing with her hands behind her back, and asked meaningfully.
“Suppose starting from tomorrow, a creature wearing Mumu’s skin and possessing her past memories shows up in front of you, would you still genuinely like her then?”
Isn’t your question a bit too profound?
Wang Yunxiao expressed his confusion: “What exactly happened?
If you’re in trouble, just tell me, and I’ll help you figure it out.”
“You’re really slow.”
Mumu, with hands cupping her cheeks and squinting eyes, looked at the perplexed boy in front of her and smiled, “Then let me make it clearer, you’re aware of the traits of the Faceless Ones, and the victims replaced by Faceless Ones rarely survive.
Do you want to open the notebook now and see what’s written inside?”
The hand Wang Yunxiao had in his pocket stiffened.
If he had some doubts before, the moment he heard the words “Faceless Ones” from the girl in front of him, he immediately knew she couldn’t be the real Mumu.
She knew way too much.
If she had only mentioned the Faceless Ones, Wang Yunxiao might even suspect if she was Yang Yuqi, the leader of the Faceless Ones unit who slipped through his fingers that night.
But she also knew the secret of the notebook.
Apart from his own men and Eldest Miss Li, hardly anyone knew the specific functions of the notebook he held.
No…
that’s not right.
According to the interrogation results that night, the Faceless Ones could extract the memories of their victims when they use their identities, but doing so meant destroying the victim’s brain, effectively killing the person.
But Wang Yunxiao still instinctively felt that something was amiss.
If it really were Yang Yuqi coming to seek revenge, there was no need for her to say something like “my life ends here…”
He sized up the girl in front of him without showing any emotion.
Meanwhile, Li Mumu was enjoying his puzzled expression, her lips slightly upturned.
“I said it was just a hypothesis.
If you were to see a result you didn’t want to see, what would you do?”
Wang Yunxiao remained silent and pulled out a notebook.
There are no hypotheses.
Questions like who would you save first if your mother and I fell into the water are meaningless.
To know the answer, I only need to glance.
Just a glance…
He found his movements were becoming a lot slower.
It wasn’t hesitation in his heart, but literally in the physical sense.
The entire world seemed to be slowly grinding to a halt.
All was silent.
Wang Yunxiao didn’t know what was happening, he realized that his thoughts were slowing down, but he could do nothing about it.
“Anchor failure!”
“Anchor failure!”
“Anchor failure!”
A notification that hadn’t appeared in his mind for a long time started flashing like crazy.
He watched helplessly as the indescribable entity emerged from the void.
The entire world was like a meticulously drawn oil painting harshly torn from its frame and crumpled into a ball.
“Anchor…”
He saw the sharp fangs.
A huge mouth appeared suddenly behind Li Mumu, so large it could swallow the young girl whole, yet the girl seemed unaware of the abnormality behind her, still smiling at him.
Wang Yunxiao felt as if his heart was being tightly clenched.
He had a premonition of what was about to happen next, a result he could not accept by any means.
His heart began beating violently.
Thump, thump, thump-thump, thump-thump, thump…
Countless white vapors erupted from every pore of his skin, enveloping him in a dreamlike fog.
“Anchor…”
“Anchor success!”
Name: Wang Yunxiao, Age: 28, Formerly affiliated with…
Endless information flowed through his mind like a stream, but at that moment, Wang Yunxiao’s brain was still crashing, unable to receive any of it.
His body, pushed to its limits, countered entirely on instinct.
“Roll——!”
Wang Yunxiao let out a heart-wrenching roar.
Whatever was in front of him, he could neither see clearly nor recognize, but whatever demons or serpents they were, you can’t just eat someone in broad daylight, right in front of me!
His body moved and he threw a punch.
Time!
At the moment he threw the punch, a sudden enlightenment rose in Wang Yunxiao’s heart, realizing what he had hit.
It wasn’t that his speed had been slowed down, but that time itself had been frozen!
Even a second’s difference felt like worlds apart.
He watched helplessly as those sharp teeth pierced the fragile body of the young girl, as if devouring a juicy apple, with bright red juices bursting out.
White feathers flew everywhere.