Chapter 102 Star Chasing Journey (22)
At the first quarter of the Mao hour, the Hunter of the Strange team and their newly acquainted tour members were already waiting at the village entrance.
Due to lack of rest, everyone looked drowsy and yawned continuously.
"Good morning! Another beautiful day!" Li Mingzhu's voice rang out, full of Origin Qi.
Li Mingzhu had appeared beside the flying car at some unknown time, with an exaggerated smile on her face, seemingly pretending to be happy to see them.
Her eyes scanned the crowd, a hint of surprise leaking out, and her smile stiffened.
Liu Sheng felt that she must have noticed the increased number of people, but couldn't refuse, because they were all tour members of the Star Chasing Journey.
"But everyone looks very tired! How about we rest for another day in Cosmic Village?"
Li Mingzhu seemed quite understanding, but her eyes, which were about to pop out, were full of malice.
Everyone waved their hands and shook their heads in refusal.
They always felt that if they stayed in Cosmic Village any longer, they might be assimilated by the villagers and stay there forever.
Chen Shanyuan and his team were only here to hunt weird objects, so they naturally didn't want this.
And since the new tour members hadn't been successfully brainwashed, they were now single-mindedly determined to leave with the Hunter of the Strange.
"Alright, then let's get in the car!" Li Mingzhu's voice sounded a bit disappointed.
After getting into the car, everyone remained standing, not sitting down.
Liu Sheng was the last to board the car. Seeing such a situation from outside, she initially found it a bit strange.
She boarded the car, puzzled. Her Little Tentacle, left behind, keenly caught Li Mingzhu muttering: "This car became like this overnight... Good thing it doesn't actually need to be driven... Just to fool people..."
After getting into the car, she realized that they weren't the only ones inside.
The car was already filled with those lifeless "passengers," who looked at them coldly.
The new tour members even recognized some acquaintances among them.
Old Wang trembled as he said to Chen Shanyuan: "My captain... is here too..."
However, his captain was no longer the valiant swordswoman she once was; half of her heroic face was gone, and her sole remaining eyeball, like a lifeless glass bead, stared at him.
Another young man also recognized his mother there, but her face was disfigured, and he could only shed tears, unable to acknowledge her.
Regardless of whether they were former teammates or close relatives, they were now just weird objects, and they occupied most of the seats.
There were only eight empty seats in the car.
They now had fifteen people.
Plus a Doll Tree with no sense of presence.
"Oh, I forgot to tell you, there are limited seats in the car! First come, first served!"
Li Mingzhu also got into the car, saying excitedly.
Of course, it was impossible for her to have forgotten to say it; everyone knew it well.
At this moment, the car door slammed shut, leaving them no way out.
Li Mingzhu rubbed her hands together, ready to watch a big show, and quietly chanted, "Musical chairs, musical chairs, musical chairs."
Everyone looked at each other. Did they really have to start fighting for seats as Li Mingzhu suggested?
They couldn't possibly snatch the seats from those weird objects, could they?
What would happen to those without a seat?
Be kicked off the car? Stay in Cosmic Village?
Some people's minds had already become active, as no one wanted to stay there.
"Everyone, don't do anything yet."
Liu Sheng asked: "Does it count as having a seat if you just sit down in the car?"
Li Mingzhu's eyes rolled as she said, "Sitting on the ground is not allowed; that doesn't count as a seat. We don't accept standing tickets here, and those who bought standing tickets but end up sitting on the ground are also not accepted!"
"A seat, should it be a position higher than the ground, where one can sit?"
Li Mingzhu couldn't quite grasp this roundabout concept, but it sounded fine, so she perfunctorily nodded.
Liu Sheng didn't ask further. Instead, she took out a shiny iron pot from her Storage Pouch, inverted it on the ground, and then sat down on it.
Li Mingzhu's eyes nearly popped out. She stammered, "You, you, you, you" for a long time but couldn't utter a word of objection.
Chen Shanyuan and the others, seeing this, knew this method was feasible, so they all followed suit.
This way, they sat on seven pots, and the others could sit on the flying car's seats.
You ask where the Doll Tree sits?
Oh, the Doll Tree is a tree; it doesn't need to sit anywhere.
And no one, neither human nor weird objects, can see her unless she wishes to be seen.
Wen Weilan inverted an iron pot beside Liu Sheng, sat down gracefully, and then lowered her head to straighten her clothes and skirt.
As she tidied herself, she casually asked, "I've felt like you've been acting strange since yesterday. What exactly is wrong?"
Liu Sheng looked at Wen Weilan's face, which was identical to before—a plain and unadorned face after disguise—and didn't know where to begin.
After thinking for a moment, she asked, "Do you still remember that time you asked me what ability I would bestow upon you, and what I said?"
Wen Weilan tilted her head strangely to look at Liu Sheng: "Of course I remember."
"You said you hoped I could have the ability to never lose myself, that no matter what I became, as long as it was what I wanted, then that would be 'me.'"
What Liu Sheng had thought at the time was that this way, Wen Weilan would at least not be corroded and influenced by weird objects through manipulating them, thus losing herself.
The stronger Liu Sheng's power became, the more she could protect Wen Weilan.
But now, it seemed to have a different meaning.
"So, do you think the current you is you?"
Wen Weilan felt that Liu Sheng was really speaking stranger and stranger.
"You, you shouldn't read so many of Professor Tang's books. What quantum mechanics, and what about that cat you told me about that is both alive and dead? It all sounds so mystical and seems like something harmful."
Liu Sheng, however, persisted in asking, "You answer me first, do you still think you are you?"
"What are you talking about? Of course it's me!"
When Wen Weilan said this, her movements suddenly froze, as if a pause button had been pressed.
This was only for a brief moment. When Wen Weilan resumed her movements, she looked at Liu Sheng in shock, her eyes showing an extremely complex array of emotions, as if she had experienced a great deal.
Liu Sheng held her hand, and Wen Weilan trembled as she squeezed back.
Wen Weilan parted her trembling lips as if to say something, but Li Mingzhu's voice rang out, so Liu Sheng had to place her index finger on her lips, reminding her not to speak yet.
Li Mingzhu began to speak in her overly sweet voice, feigning enthusiasm: "Alright, since everyone has their own seat, we can begin our next leg of the journey!"
Upon hearing this, thin beads of sweat appeared on Wen Weilan's palms, and her expression was somewhat tense.
Wen Weilan's expression was rarely so flustered, but she was truly panicked now, even feeling despair.
Clearly, she knew what the next stop would be.
"Oh, this little friend seems very excited about the next stop!" Li Mingzhu indeed immediately caught Wen Weilan's unusual behavior and, of course, seized upon it, "Let's ask this little friend, what kind of next stop are you looking forward to?"
I wonder if everyone can figure out what's really going on~