Volume 4: Twilight Galaxy
On the back of the hanging chair, Little Bliss poked its head out, seriously watching the information on the light brain. Occasionally, it would extend an antennae to help Shu Xun scroll through the screen. Shu Xun stroked his beard, thinking that if Little Bliss weren’t constantly using its antennae to nuzzle his face, having such an automatic, intelligent page-turner wouldn’t be so bad.
As Shu Xun was engrossed in Meng Muyu’s detailed explanation of the “Twilight Galaxy” background, Little Bliss sneakily extended an antennae again, curiously brushing through the precious whiskers of the fluffy little creature. Seeing that Shu Xun didn’t react, Little Bliss grew bolder, even attempting to twist its antennae around Shu Xun’s whiskers, braiding them together. Just as Little Bliss was having the time of its life, a shadow loomed over it—Big Bliss stood on the coffee table, holding a long spoon.
Little Bliss quickly retracted its antennae from the whiskers, then pretended to seriously swipe at the light screen, causing it to scroll chaotically up and down.
Shu Xun: “…”
Big Bliss snorted, then pattered over to the hanging chair, jumped up, and grabbed Little Bliss’s antennae that was messing with the screen, dragging it mercilessly across the coffee table toward the kitchen. Little Bliss, with its wings spread out, ended up wiping the entire coffee table as it was pulled along.
Shu Xun, long used to such scenes, simply reached out to find his place in the text again, not even bothering to lower his legs that were still propped up. Meanwhile, Ye Jian, who was sitting seriously on the sofa, seemed to be diligently working on something.
The living room was bathed in warm sunlight, with a comfortable temperature that infused the air with a sense of lazy contentment. The relaxed atmosphere persisted until the scent of food wafted from the kitchen. The fluffy creature sniffed its little nose, then leaped down from the small hanging chair, stretching its body out low on the coffee table, extending its front paws as far as it could in a long, luxurious stretch.
Unable to resist, Ye Jian, who was sitting nearby, immediately picked up the fluffy creature just as it finished stretching. Holding it in one hand and stroking its fur with the other, he carried it toward the dining table.
Shu Xun, who was just about to transform into human form: “…”
That lunch, Shu Xun decided not to bother with transforming. After the meal, Ye Jian was left with a round, fluffy ball in one of his bowls. Seeing the little porcelain bowl filled to the brim, Ye Jian suddenly thought that if he added some detergent, Shu Xun could probably wash the bowl while taking a bath…
Completely unaware of what Ye Jian, with his expressionless face, was imagining, Shu Xun gave a satisfied burp, then agilely jumped out of the bowl, leisurely grooming his whiskers. Just as he had smoothed out two strands, a bottle of detergent appeared beside him. Little Bliss placed the detergent down, flapping its wings happily as if expecting praise.
Shu Xun: “???”
Ye Jian: “…”
Big Bliss grabbed Little Bliss’s antennae. “You wash the bowl.”
Little Bliss, being dragged towards the sink, looked down at its tiny legs, thinking it would probably take a year to wash that bowl by itself. “…”
In the end, it was Shu Xun who transformed into his human form to rescue Little Bliss.
Although Ye Jian’s light brain was unfolded in front of him, his gaze had long drifted toward the kitchen. There, Shu Xun, with his long hair tied back, appeared gentle and composed. His slender fingers seemed not to be washing dishes, but rather engaging in an elegant art. Occasionally, he would lower his head to chat about trivial matters with Big Bliss beside the sink. For some reason, this ordinary scene was something Ye Jian couldn’t bring himself to look away from.
It turns out that when you meet the right person, even the most ordinary chores can fill your heart to the brim. There’s no need for grand gestures; the everyday and mundane can be etched into your very being, making you smile involuntarily whenever that person glances your way.
Even now, Ye Jian still doesn’t fully understand what love truly is. But somehow, deep inside, he knows that this person is the missing half of his soul—so perfectly compatible, so fitting, so fulfilling.
Lost in thought, Shu Xun had already finished cleaning the kitchen and sat down on the sofa, his bright, ink-black eyes as gentle as ever. “What are you thinking about?”
“I was thinking how lucky I am,” Ye Jian replied instinctively. Lucky that in the crossing of time and space, we didn’t miss each other. Lucky that in my silence, we made a vow to stand by each other for life and death.
“Yes, very lucky,” Shu Xun tilted his head slightly, his smile growing even brighter. Treasure-seeking mice are naturally favored by the heavens. Since coming to this world, Shu Xun has always believed that there is a destined path, and that path led him to Ye Jian. In this vast and boundless world, there is only one Ye Jian. That’s why his innate talent for traversing time and space brought him to Ye Jian’s home and Ye Jian became his guide into this unfamiliar world. When he was once small and lost, it was Ye Jian who gave him direction. In his moments of greatest fear and helplessness, he only had to look up to see a pair of hands protecting him from above. This act, though it might seem trivial to others, for Shu Xun, was the first warmth and kindness he felt from this strange world, the key that unlocked his heart’s fear.
Mice are naturally timid, and treasure-seeking mice are no exception. The fact that Shu Xun has grown to be as gentle as jade and as calm as water is because he knows he has someone to rely on in this world. His steadfast growth is driven by the hope that one day, he can become that person’s support as well.
Just as the atmosphere grew warm and subtly intimate, something suddenly smacked against the transparent sunlit wall with a loud thud, blocking out most of the sunlight in the room. The two of them turned to see a figure stuck to the glass—it was Bai Ya, whom they hadn’t seen in a long time.
At this moment, Bai Ya was staring into the room at Ye Jian, his expression a mix of surprise and shock. Clearly, the sight of a gentle Ye Jian had shattered his worldview, causing him to accidentally crash into the glass.
Ye Jian’s brow twitched as he turned his gaze back without a word. Shu Xun, still wearing a faint smile, also quietly looked away, leaning back on the sofa as he resumed checking the messages in the light brain chatroom.
After basking in the sun outside the window for quite some time, Bai Ya was finally let in by Big Bliss, who placed a cup of tea in front of him.
Bai Ya, seated on the sofa, looked at Big Bliss, who was barely bigger than the teacup itself. “You still say you’re not a robot! Is this one from the same manufacturer as the last one? It even knows how to make tea!”
Big Bliss: “…” Just as Bai Ya reached out for the teacup, Big Bliss extended its small arms, grabbed the cup, and drank the tea itself.
Bai Ya didn’t seem the least bit embarrassed; instead, he was even more amazed. “It can drink tea too!”
The others: “…”
Big Bliss elegantly set the teacup down and casually remarked to Ye Jian, “Having subordinates like this must be exhausting for you.”
Bai Ya: “???” Did… did I just get insulted by a robot?
Ye Jian: “If you have something to say, say it.”
Bai Ya immediately nodded. “Yes, yes, I do. The investigation results are in. However, there are transmission restrictions on the network, so I brought the information over in person. Please destroy it after reviewing.” As he spoke, Bai Ya handed over a sealed brown paper envelope. Seeing that Ye Jian had no other orders, he quickly turned his eager gaze toward Big Bliss on the coffee table.
A drop of cold sweat instantly formed on Big Bliss’s forehead. Suddenly, it felt like there was a foolish wolf with a voracious appetite lurking nearby. Could it be that wolves really are obsessed with little fluffy things? With every move Big Bliss made, Bai Ya’s eyes lit up, filled with intense interest and curiosity.
“No more dawdling. Leave,” Ye Jian’s cold voice rang out nearby. Bai Ya instinctively snapped to attention and then headed toward the window. It wasn’t until he stepped outside that he realized he hadn’t finished observing the little robot. But as soon as he left the room, the glass wall behind him closed tightly. Bai Ya reluctantly lingered at the window for a while, but eventually, he had to leave, albeit with great reluctance.
Ye Jian opened the sealed envelope, revealing just a few sheets of paper. Shu Xun leaned in and saw that they were personal profiles—not just one, but several. The top sheet was Meng Muyu’s personal information. Shu Xun flipped past it and found that the next sheet contained Gray’s personal details.
Shu Xun glanced up at Ye Jian. “You suspect Meng Muyu and Gray too?”
Ye Jian nodded. Although Shu Xun had never mentioned it, Ye Jian had keenly noticed the unusual behavior of Meng Muyu and Gray. It was difficult to make definitive judgments, but it was clear that both of them were hiding something. Meng Muyu had even tried to divert everyone’s attention to Gray at one point, for example, by saying they could only discover the Celestial Feather Galaxy thanks to Gray’s suggestion. Perhaps Meng Muyu had discovered something but couldn’t reveal it directly, so he hinted to others in this way.
Meng Muyu’s concealment was likely related to the StarPlay family. What exactly does the StarPlay family use to track the invaders? Is it really just a unique talent of their race? How could the StarPlay family manage to set up most of the Vortex star system as a game background in just two months? Such immense power is surprising, to say the least.
As Ye Jian flipped through the papers, he said, “The invaders are too bizarre and powerful. I want to minimize the danger as much as possible. Meng Muyu might know something about the invaders, but because it involves the StarPlay family, he chose to keep it hidden. As for Gray, I can’t quite put my finger on it. His appearance was rather sudden. In “Winter’s End”, it could be dismissed as a coincidence, but what about in “Deep Blue Sea”? Maybe I’m overthinking it, but I can’t help feeling uneasy. And also…” Ye Jian’s words suddenly trailed off, and his expression rarely showed a trace of hesitation.
Shu Xun continued where Ye Jian left off, “And also, it feels like Meng Muyu and Gray deliberately left some loopholes, as if they’re hinting for us to investigate.”
Ye Jian nodded. “At first, I thought it was just my imagination. But when Meng Muyu shifted the conversation to Gray, Gray didn’t try to avoid it at all. He even openly admitted that he had liked the Celestial Feather Galaxy for a long time. He’s trying to convey some message. Meng Muyu is the same. If he truly wanted to avoid the topic, with his intelligence, he could have a hundred ways to perfectly divert the conversation. Yet, he chose the worst way. The Celestial Feather Galaxy was Gray’s hint, and Gray is Meng Muyu’s hint. They both have direct or indirect connections with the invaders, but due to certain constraints, they can’t express it outright.”
Upon hearing this, Shu Xun suddenly recalled his innate ability to traverse through time and space. It activates passively and, due to certain restrictions, his father and mother couldn’t directly tell him about it or even hint at it. The moment he became aware of it, the ability would be triggered instantly. Shu Xun suddenly felt a flash of realization, yet there was also a sense of confusion as if something fleeting had passed through his mind, but he couldn’t grasp it.
Author’s Note:
What’s it like when a newbie female driver teams up with Old Xuan, who hasn’t even taken the second driving test, and they hit the road together?
Bestie: “Can we go straight on this road?”
Old Xuan, after looking for a while: “Probably.”
At an intersection, Bestie: “Did the car stall?”
Old Xuan: “Not sure. Should we just restart it?”
Next to the supermarket, Bestie: “Can we park on the side of the road?”
Old Xuan: “There’s a car parked up ahead, so I guess we can.”
So they parked, got out, and after walking a few steps, someone suddenly got out of the parked car and opened the hood to start repairing it.
Bestie and Old Xuan: “…”
Bestie: “Excuse me, can we park on this side of the road?”
The guy fixing the car: “Should be okay for a short time.”
Old Xuan: “Maybe next time we should just take a taxi when we go to the supermarket.”
Bestie: “Good idea.”
So they drove back home…
So, what exactly did we go out for? ╭(╯^╰)╮
