Tang Li took a moment to steady herself before finding her voice again.
“What do you mean… we can’t leave?”
Number 78’s tone was grave. [It means we can’t return to headquarters from this world, nor can we proceed to other worlds to continue missions. Or worse—you might be trapped in an endless cycle between these five worlds.]
[These five worlds are already showing signs of merging! If we don’t stop it, everything will descend into chaos!]
[That white area you saw appeared because another world is merging with this one. Right now, it’s just the world’s plot that has collapsed—there’s still time to fix it. But if all five worlds fully merge, the entire world structure will collapse, and we’ll vanish into the temporal turbulence.]
Panic flashed in the girl’s eyes. “Then what should we do?”
[The main cause of the world’s plot collapse is that characters connected to you have become corrupted and risen to power, breaking the original storyline. They’re growing increasingly deranged, seriously endangering others’ safety and survival.]
Number 78 tried to comfort her. [After discussing with headquarters, we believe you need to reduce these characters’ Corruption Values. Once the worlds stabilize, headquarters will send other Systems to maintain, repair bugs, and restart the worlds. Then we can leave.]
Tang Li breathed a slight sigh of relief. She looked at Si Du, who was frowning as he lay in her arms, then pushed him away in belated fear. Scrambling to her feet, she backed away several steps. “As long as there’s a solution…”
“But… who exactly has awakened in the other worlds?” she asked nervously, her heart filled with anxiety.
As a cannon-fodder White Moonlight, she typically only had connections with the male and female protagonists of each world.
At this, Number 78 let out a long sigh, his tone complex beyond measure.
[Do you remember Zhe He, your aloof and ethereal beautiful master from the second cultivation world, the Immortal Lord?]
Tang Li froze. “I remember… Don’t tell me he…?”
Number 78 felt like lighting a cigarette. [And that’s not all—among the five characters, he’s gone the most insane. He’s already descended from immortality into demonhood, betraying the immortal sects. He kills indiscriminately, whether immortal or demon. The male protagonist of that world is nearly dead by his hand.]
Thinking of the master who raised her since childhood, Tang Li felt lost and helpless, tears welling in her eyes again. “How could Master…?”
[And do you recall the genius young man from the third Western fantasy world—the one where you became a Merfolk—who called you ‘sister’?] Number 78 continued wearily.
Wiping her tears, Tang Li nodded. Learning that he had become corrupted, her heart ached suddenly.
Jiang He… you promised to strive to survive and live a normal life under the sunlight. Why didn’t you listen?
Number 78 sighed. [He’s become corrupted too. He slaughtered the entire research facility that imprisoned you, captured all the Merfolk to uncover the secret of resurrection, and even created a synthetic version of you using programming, keeping it in his room.]
“He should have left that place,” Tang Li sobbed, shaking her head, her heart wrenching in pain. “He deserved to live somewhere better.”
[In the fourth ancient world, where you disguised yourself as a young emperor, remember the Right Prime Minister who held immense power?] Number 78 asked again.
The girl’s damp Peach Blossom Eyes widened in surprise. “The Right Prime Minister… How could he become corrupted because of me?”
He clearly didn’t like her – always teasing her, threatening her with the secret of her cross-dressing as a man, disrespecting authority without any regard for imperial power, and taking over the task of binding her chest every day.
She was nothing but a puppet emperor. She should be grateful the Right Prime Minister hadn’t killed her, yet… he actually became corrupted.
[“The world’s female protagonist in that world was actually reborn, making it the most stable plot among all five worlds. But after Master Right Prime Minister awakened, the world’s storyline stalled. He imprisoned and tortured both the male and female leads, and wouldn’t even allow you to be buried, keeping you preserved in an ice coffin.”]
[“That nation now faces internal strife and external threats, with the people suffering immensely. If this continues for a few more years, the country will surely fall.”] Number 78 sighed helplessly.
[“Oh, and the last world – the post-apocalyptic one. Since we just left recently, the situation is still relatively stable. But that Ability User who almost became your husband, Lu Li, threw the world’s female protagonist to the zombies.”]
[“He kills tirelessly, the bloodshed so extensive it could almost blot out the dawn of the post-apocalyptic world.”]
After finishing, even Number 78 felt overwhelmed, its database in complete disarray.
What kind of mess was this!
What did our Little Lychee ever do to anyone! Who are all of you people! How could you all become corrupted!
Tang Li dug her nails into her tender palms, feeling her heart grow heavy. Thinking about those five individuals, her nose tingled intensely and tears began falling uncontrollably.
“Did I do something wrong?” the girl cried, overwhelmed with guilt. “Was it… was it because I made some mistake while completing missions?”
Among these five people, she couldn’t believe any of them would become corrupted, couldn’t understand it, and her heart ached even more for their current circumstances.
Just like Si Du before her.
On this man’s left wrist lay an ugly, deep scar.
One could imagine the immense pain when the blade cut through flesh, and the tormenting memories that must have flooded his mind as lifeblood flowed out – enough to drive him mad.
Number 78 quickly spoke up to comfort her, [“Of course it has nothing to do with you! Little Lychee is the best mission-taker, completing every assignment perfectly without ever causing trouble or stirring up issues. All other Systems envy me!”]
The girl stood embraced by moonlight and roses, revealing a teary, almost imperceptibly faint smile through her tears, beautiful like a moonlit spirit.
[“If even you could make mistakes, then the entire Quick Transmigration Bureau wouldn’t have any useful hosts at all.”] Number 78 looked at its young charge with heartache.
The night breeze whispered by. Just as Number 78 was about to speak again, it noticed Si Du stirring slightly and immediately panicked, [“Oh no, how did he wake up so quickly!”]
Truly worthy of being a self-aware antagonist character – too powerful.
Tang Li froze in shock, her eyes widening as she watched the man slowly open his eyes and sit up, supporting his forehead with his hand.
A subtle fragrance drifted through the air.
The flower field contained vast stretches of lavender, transformed under the moonlight into a purple, dreamlike paradise.
For a moment, Si Du thought he was seeing things.
But the girl stood there, as if emerging from the moonlight to enter his dream.
Under the System’s attack, the man couldn’t distinguish reality from dreams.
He only knew that his girl had returned.
“Why have you only come to my dreams now?” Si Du whispered, his gaze fixed unblinkingly on Tang Li, filled with profound affection and intense longing mixed with pain.
Number 78 encouraged the girl to approach closer, [“There’s no world storyline now. All you need to do is soothe him, okay? You can do it, Little Lychee! I’ll help you.”]
Tears still glistened in Tang Li’s eyes as she unconsciously drew closer, moving toward the man under his expectant and longing gaze. “Brother Si Du, how could you let yourself end up like this?”
“My little daisy…” The man’s trembling hands pulled the girl tightly into his embrace, his grip so forceful it made Tang Li’s heart ache with sorrow. She softly responded, “I’m here.”
“Don’t go, don’t leave me again,” Si Du pleaded in a hoarse voice.