Volume 4: Twilight Galaxy
In the dead of night, Shu Xun, who was sound asleep, suddenly heard a notification sound. Groggily, he opened his eyes and saw that Meng Muyu, who had always been silent in the team’s chatroom, had updated with new information—a brief video clip.
After Shu Xun had fully woken up, the live-streaming system’s AI deemed the content suitable for broadcasting and activated the live stream with Shu Xun’s consent. The sudden activity in the live room delighted some viewers who hadn’t gone to sleep due to time zone differences. They quickly flooded into Shu Xun’s stream.
Shu Xun had already clicked on the video Meng Muyu had uploaded. The clip lasted less than ten seconds. Meng Muyu appeared to be in a grand plaza, predominantly white with stone bricks. The sky was dim but not yet dark, indicating dusk. Many natives were gathered around a circular array in the center of the plaza, standing silently. At the center of the array stood a person dressed in white robes, murmuring something with a devout expression.
Soon, the circular array lit up and a bright white ball of light condensed in midair, illuminating the entire plaza as if it were daylight. Other than the shadows cast on the white stone floor, no darkness remained in the square.
At the very moment the plaza brightened, a sudden change occurred. Lightning materialized out of nowhere in the sky, striking down at a speed too fast for anyone to react. In the blink of an eye, the lightning hit a native to Meng Muyu’s left in the holographic projection.
The person didn’t even have time to cry out before they were reduced to ashes by the lightning, their remains scattering into the evening breeze. Not even a mark was left on the pristine white floor. The video froze there, ending abruptly.
A small fluffy creature, gripping its whiskers, watched the video again. Just then, there was a knock at the door. The creature hopped down from the bed and scurried to open the door. As expected, it was Gray and Lie Yang, the latter being dragged by his antennae by Lan Yang, both having also seen the message in the chatroom.
Lie Yang’s eyes were still drowsy, but he didn’t complain. Clearly, he understood that the holographic footage Meng Muyu sent must be critically important. Led by the fluffy creature, the two of them entered the bedroom.
Shu Xun pulled out a small square low table from his spiritual space, gesturing for Lie Yang and Gray to sit down, then took out a teapot to pour them tea. Lie Yang, seeing the tiny fluffy creature that was even smaller than the teapot, quickly took over the task. “I’ll do it, I’ll do it. Or would you rather take a bath?”
At this, Shu Xun huffed in response, kicked Lie Yang’s hand with a paw, and then waddled over to the low table, sitting at one corner. “Did you watch the footage?”
Both Gray and Lie Yang nodded. Lie Yang pointed to the chatroom. “Meng Muyu hasn’t sent a single message since entering the game, likely because he’s been restricted. Uploading this footage probably carried significant risk. His situation must be very dire.”
Gray zoomed in on the footage’s background, tapping on the intricate patterns and the underlying color. “Zhu…Si… City.”
Shu Xun nodded in agreement. Meng Muyu’s perceptiveness was on par with anyone else in their group. The architectural style in the background was quite distinct and likely belonged to Zhu Si City, a holy site dedicated to gods where rituals were performed. Such places had numerous restrictions. Meng Muyu must have been extremely cautious to avoid being detected by the world’s consciousness.
Shu Xun played the footage once more. When the bright white light ball appeared, he pointed at it. “This must be the baptism ritual we’ve heard about. It’s a power controlled by the priests that allows them to differentiate natives enveloped in the white light. The world’s consciousness uses this light to more easily identify the transformed and deliver divine punishment, which is the falling lightning.” As he spoke, the video reached the moment when the lightning struck from the sky. Shu Xun quickly paused it and pointed to the person about to be struck. “This must be the transformed. Do you notice any difference between him and the others? How does the world’s consciousness determine the transformed?”
Lie Yang nearly pressed his antennae against the screen, examining the native who was about to be disintegrated, but found nothing special. Gray, after contemplating for a long time, finally pointed at the person’s feet. “The shadow.”
Shu Xun nodded. His small paws deftly manipulated the footage, extracting the shadow cast by the person and creating a separate three-dimensional image of it. He then did the same with the person’s physical form. At first, Lie Yang didn’t understand what Shu Xun and Gray were getting at, but when Shu Xun overlaid the shadow model onto the physical model and compared them, shock immediately filled Lie Yang’s eyes.
“This person’s shadow doesn’t match their physical form! The shadow can’t overlap with the body!”
The room fell silent as the three of them pondered the cause of this phenomenon. The livestream audience, too, was filled with expressions of fear.
“I can’t believe what I just saw! The shadow doesn’t match the person’s body!”
“I was so freaked out that I immediately turned on the light to check my own shadow!”
“Isn’t anyone else feeling that, besides the shadow, there’s something else off about that video? It feels like something’s just not right.”
“Same here. Beyond the shadow, the people in the plaza give off this inexplicable eerie vibe. After that person was struck by lightning and turned to ashes, no one around them reacted at all. Could it be that they didn’t know each other?”
“Now that you mention it, ever since I started watching this live stream, this world has always given me a strange sense of detachment. It’s like when the natives talk about Qing Kong, even if they’re neighbors, they speak as if they’re just narrating some event.”
“Little Dumpling’s working on restoring the shadow. I bet the most shocking part is still to come.”
The audience’s attention naturally turned to Shu Xun, who was restoring the shadow’s appearance. As the layers were gradually revealed, the black outline of the shadow became clearer, its skin tone replacing the blackness. Finally, an unsettling face came into view, leaving everyone speechless for a moment.
“Why is it so ugly?”
“It’s not just ugly—it gives off this indescribable sense of unease. This is a face you won’t forget once you’ve seen it!”
“Agreed. That face is exactly like the invader that appeared at the end of “Deep Blue Sea”! That twisted, contradictory look can’t be described any other way!”
“So, does the transformed mean becoming an invader? I don’t get it. We need dumpling to explain.”
“Why would an invader appear in the shadow of a native from the Twilight Clan? What are they trying to do?”
“This is terrifying. Look at that person who got struck—he seemed completely oblivious as if he had no idea such a face was hidden in his shadow.”
The livestream chat was filled with confusion, and Shu Xun’s group was equally shaken. They knew that this kind of face hadn’t only appeared in “Deep Blue Sea”. It had also been seen in the Celestial Feather Galaxy, where the Phantom Clan once lived. That face had even led to the immediate death of the Phantom Clan, altering their appearance after they died. And now, in the distant Twilight Galaxy, a similar situation had occurred!
Staring at the 3D image of the shadow, Lie Yang voiced his thoughts, slightly puzzled. “Why do the invaders look so off? A species with such high mental power should have an appearance closer to humans, but their faces just feel so wrong. I can’t explain it—it’s just deeply unsettling at first glance.”
What Lie Yang said resonated with the majority of the audience. When the invaders first appeared in “Deep Blue Sea”, that intense feeling of discomfort lingered. This inexplicable sensation could only be summed up with one word: “ugly”.
The fluffy creature, perched on the edge of a teacup, took a sip, its long whiskers dangling outside the cup. It looked so tempting to pull, but Lie Yang wisely restrained himself, knowing Shu Xun would surely retaliate with a swipe if he tried.
Shu Xun held the teacup in contemplation for a moment before speaking. “There’s always a reason when something is abnormal. What we can confirm now is that the transformed means being invaded. The invaders we’ve been trying to find are hiding in the shadows of the Twilight Clan. It makes sense that we couldn’t find them because even the world’s consciousness struggles to detect them. But once it does, the invaders are eliminated immediately, which is why they’re extremely cautious about hiding. In the same way, we’re outsiders too. If we act too abnormally and get detected by the world’s consciousness, we’ll be wiped out and forced to log out of the game. What’s even more complicated is that the invaders might not be a single, unified force.”
“Slow… slow down!” Lie Yang was so flustered that his words came out in a tangled mess.
It was rare to hear Lie Yang stammer, and Gray couldn’t help but laugh. But seeing how Lie Yang’s antennae were practically tied into knots, Gray decided to show some mercy and restrained his laughter. He then opened his virtual screen and began sketching on it.
Though Gray wasn’t the best with words, his logical thinking was sharp, and he could keep up with Shu Xun’s explanations. As Shu Xun talked, Gray drew a relationship chart on the screen. The forces involved included the world’s consciousness, the invaders, and the game players. The invaders had two branches: one represented by the ugly-faced shadows, and the other, a black butterfly.
Shu Xun nodded approvingly at Gray, smacking his lips in an exaggeratedly old-fashioned way, and sighed dramatically, “How is it that even among butterflies, the difference can be so huge?”
Lan Yang landed beside them, bobbing his head as he added, “Usually, it’s just how they’re born.”
Gray scratched his head and tried to console them. “Your… your whiskers… grow… quite well. No… no need to overthink…”
Lie Yang, with his tangled antennae: “…” This must be a fake mouse, a fake blue butterfly companion, and a fake fellow clan member who always manages to rub salt in the wound while trying to comfort!
Author’s Note:
One day, Gray noticed their king was in a bad mood, so he took it upon himself to offer some comfort…
Shortly after…
Lie Yang was carried into the emergency room, coughing up blood…
Gray: ??? Did I not comfort him enough? Should I try again when the king comes out?
Lie Yang: “…”
Yesterday, Old Xuan bought two skirts and felt super pretty wearing them, twirling around the house.
Received mom’s approval ×1
Received dad’s approval ×1
Brother: “Sis, why are you buying summer pajamas so early?”
Old Xuan: !!! Pull the plug! No discussions! No more chicken dinners!
