AITAMITB Chapter 13

Explaining why she is not Zhao Zijin took some time for Zhao Xiaokui to convey to Shen Zhifei.

“…She took over my body. I went to the mermaid world and occupied the body of a mermaid. Now I’m back, just like this.”

Even though Shen Zhifei had suspected Zhao Xiaokui’s background earlier, hearing the truth still left her feeling dizzy.

“Are you saying that before this, another person had lived inside your body, so everyone who knew Zhao Zijin after university actually knew a different person?”

“Yes.” Zhao Xiaokui knew what was on her mind. “It’s not a split personality, and it’s not schizophrenia. I’m sure she’s a different soul.”

Shen Zhifei took a deep breath, calmly asking, “Is there really such a thing as a soul in the world?”

At this moment, she felt like her worldview was shattered like broken glass, repeatedly crushed on the ground, each time more thoroughly than before.

“Yes, there is a soul,” Zhao Xiaokui looked towards the corner where she had just smashed the phone, speaking seriously. “A person is standing there. Can you see it?”

Shen Zhifei’s hair stood on end instantly. She gazed warily at the empty corner as if facing a formidable enemy.

However, no matter how hard she stared, all she could see was an empty space.

“Hahaha…”

Suddenly, Zhao Xiaokui burst into laughter, her face showing the triumph of a mischievous child.

Shen Zhifei’s expression blanked for a moment.

If she still hadn’t realized that she had been fooled by Zhao Xiaokui at this point, she would truly be a fool.

But it wasn’t possible to be completely indifferent either.

Just thinking about the existence of souls in the world, the possibility of a few unseen people around her, made her feel uneasy.

Zhao Xiaokui, who had stirred up trouble, still had a bit of a conscience. Seeing Shen Zhifei’s uneasy expression, she leaned on the edge of the bathtub, trying to comfort her with a smile, “Don’t worry, there are no ghosts. Most souls formed after people die don’t have consciousness; they just wander around their bodies and dissipate in a few days. Even those with consciousness, if they’re lucky enough to ‘live,’ wouldn’t dare approach you. You carry my aura, and ordinary souls won’t come within fifty meters of you. Because I am a supernatural being.”

Shen Zhifei was puzzled. “Why?”

“Because I am a supernatural being.” Since the two had signed a contract, Zhao Xiaokui didn’t mind enlightening her with some knowledge about the supernatural. “You should have read the Classic of Mountains and Seas, right? The drought demon mentioned in it supposedly turns the land barren for thousands of miles. In fact, it’s because she, as a supernatural being, has a high rank. Due to her lack of control over her power, the high-energy radiation she naturally emits unintentionally affects the environment.”

“While I may not be as powerful as the drought demon, I am still a supernatural being. The high-energy radiation I emit can cause fatal consequences to soul entities without a physical body. So, ordinary souls wouldn’t dare approach me within a hundred meters unless they intended to commit suicide. Since you signed a contract with me, your body naturally carries my aura. The more powerful I become, the stronger your suppression ability over soul entities will be.”

Perhaps Zhao Xiaokui herself didn’t know, even though she expressed disgust towards the mermaid world, when she mentioned that world full of numerous supernatural beings with mysterious and immense individual power, the brightness in her eyes couldn’t be clearer.

At this moment, Shen Zhifei suddenly couldn’t ignore this fact any more clearly – in this world, some people are born to be extraordinary.

…

Considered extraordinary, after receiving comfort from Shen Zhifei, Zhao Xiaokui, with a lifted spirit, promptly delegated all matters related to the name “Zhao Zijin” to Shen Zhifei.

There was no way around it. She was extraordinary, not a deity. Although her brain had been enhanced during the advancement process, she would rather use this high-performance CPU to contemplate the 108 ways to cook crayfish than spend 1k of memory processing complex issues like interpersonal relationships – even the extraordinary have social anxiety!

Zhao Xiaokui lived in the mermaid world for five years, with no relatives, no friends, and not even someone she could casually talk to. The number of times she communicated with others throughout the year was few, and in the beginning, she could still talk to herself, complain to herself, and relieve herself. But later on, she was left with long periods of silence, silence, and more silence. At that time, the only company she had was the profound and boundless underwater world.

She hadn’t forgotten the instinct to speak; she just wasn’t willing to interact with ordinary people, which was considered good behavior.

However, she felt more relaxed, and someone else suffered for it.

For example, Zhao Zijin’s current manager, Qian Wenyi.

Watching the overwhelmingly positive news about Zhao Xiaokui online and dreaming of becoming rich, Qian Wenyi suddenly received notice of a unilateral termination of the contract from Zhao Xiaokui.

He was almost breathless, unable to catch his breath.

He never dreamed he would receive such a notification.

Not a negotiation, not an agreement, just a simple notification. When informing him, the other party even directly transferred the penalty to his account, as if afraid he wouldn’t agree.

Even though there was less than half a year left until the end of his contract with Zhao Xiaokui.

Qian Wenyi couldn’t understand why, under such good circumstances, Zhao Xiaokui would unilaterally terminate the contract with him, even paying the penalty to break the contract in advance.

Yes, he did have plans to cold-shoulder Zhao Xiaokui recently, as indicated by Rong Zhen’s suggestion. But wouldn’t she have caught fire even if he hadn’t had time to ignore her?

The lawyer handling this matter was from the law firm that Shen Zhifei’s company often collaborated with. Regarding the termination, Zhao Xiaokui didn’t show up at all.

Seeing official statements like those from the internet praising Zhao Xiaokui’s courageous act, Qian Wenyi couldn’t bear to watch a money-making tree like Zhao Xiaokui leave him. He frantically called Zhao Xiaokui, but unfortunately, her phone had been shattered into pieces since the day she inconveniently called him, revealing her intention to separate from him. Shen Zhifei, not willing to be another person like Qian Wenyi, had already sent her a new phone and a new SIM card.

At this moment, the number just brought out from the service hall had only one contact: Shen Zhifei.

Unable to reach Zhao Xiaokui by phone, Qian Wenyi contacted everyone who might have a connection with Zhao Xiaokui. After searching everywhere, he realized that no one knew where Zhao Xiaokui was now. She seemed to have disappeared from the human world.

Qian Wenyi reported to the police.

He wasn’t overly concerned about Zhao Xiaokui’s safety; he just couldn’t accept the fact without hearing it directly from her.

The police updates quickly reached Shen Zhifei’s ears.

Simultaneously, those who had been contacted by Qian Wenyi, the so-called friends of Zhao Zijin within the circle, expressed their anxiety online about not being able to find Zhao Xiaokui.

“I will handle these matters,” Shen Zhifei assured Zhao Xiaokui. Even though the subsequent developments slightly exceeded her expectations, she considered it not a big deal.

After a moment of silence, Zhao Xiaokui said, “I’ll start a live broadcast.”

In the worried gaze of Shen Zhifei, she chuckled, “Actually, upon careful consideration, there’s no need to be so particular about separating me and Zhao Zijin because we are destined not to be apart.”

“Over the years, all the original songs created by Zhao Zijin actually came from me before the age of eighteen. Zhao Zijin herself is a part of Zhao Xiaokui. The songs and voice that Zhao Zijin’s fans love are all mine. I really don’t need to reject this identity so distinctly. Perhaps after some time, if I suddenly become interested in the entertainment industry again, I might go back to being an artist.”

Observing her expression, Shen Zhifei spoke, “It’s best if you can think that way. Are there any specific requirements for the live broadcast?”

Zhao Xiaokui hesitated for a moment, “Requirements?”

…

Before the topic of #ZhaoZijin’s disappearance# was about to trend, Zhao Xiaokui used Zhao Zijin’s Weibo account to announce a live broadcast.

This Weibo post was like a drop of water added to a boiling pot of oil, instantly splattering everywhere.

“Oh my, the Missing Person Returns series!”

“Is it really her? Is it really her? Oh, baby, as long as you’re fine.”

“Zijin, what happened to you? Your fans love you!”

Li Songya, who had coincidentally captured the video of Zhao Xiaokui saving someone and felt a deep connection with her, had already set Zhao Xiaokui as a special focus. She was among the first to discover the announcement of Zhao Xiaokui’s live broadcast.

After frantically sharing this Weibo with several Zhao Xiaokui fan groups, she followed the link.

The first thing that appeared was a pitch-black screen. In the center of the screen, a green countdown was ticking down one number after another.

When the countdown reached zero, it precisely hit 8 p.m.

Impatient fans and various onlookers had long been waiting in the live broadcast room. Therefore, when Zhao Xiaokui opened the live broadcast, the screen was immediately flooded with a barrage of comments.

“Wow—” she exclaimed, “are there so many people?”

What Zhao Xiaokui didn’t know was that while she was startled by the densely packed barrage of comments, the fans and onlookers in front of the screen were equally startled by her sudden appearance in the camera.

Except for deliberately making funny faces, they had never seen any female celebrity thrusting her face so directly towards the camera.

Li Songya was also surprised.

Although she became Zhao Xiaokui’s fan due to the rescue incident and had listened to a lot of her songs in recent days, she hadn’t felt much about the praised beauty of Zhao Xiaokui’s fans. At most, she thought this girl looked more delicate and beautiful than ordinary people, and perhaps her appearance could be considered above average among female stars. However, there was still a considerable gap from a truly magnificent beauty.

But when the other’s face was so close, so openly displayed in front of her, she suddenly realized that she was really pretty.

Even though there was a camera lens in between, even though she knew the other might have applied some beautification filters, she still felt a palpitation towards a girl in front of her.

In front of the camera, Zhao Xiaokui was still exploring the ways of live broadcasting.

“I’m live today to talk about something important, but please bear with me for a moment. Let me figure out how to use this first.”

When Zhao Xiaokui traveled through time, the live broadcasting industry had just started to rise and was still a relatively unfamiliar area for the general public. After returning, she didn’t have much exposure to this thing—after all, she had only returned a few days ago!

Just memorizing the information about Zhao Zijin that Shen Zhifei had investigated was enough to give her a headache.

There were many buttons in the live broadcast room. In front of the camera, she lowered her eyelids lightly, and her trembling eyelashes resembled the wings of a butterfly.

---