Chapter 610: Headshot!

Chapter 610 Headshot!

The three of them stayed in a suite for three. After entering his bed room, Chen Xiaolian threw himself onto the bed and buried his face inside his pillow.

His heart was a mess.

Back in the instance dungeon, his heart had entered a state of chaos the instant he heard Bai Qi’s name.

At that time, Chen Xiaolian had not said anything. He had maintained a perfectly calm expression and the two old monsters were unable to notice anything. However, his heart was churning.

The two old monsters wanted him to bring Bai Qi back from the Recycle Bin. That meant they did not know that Bai Qi had returned to this world. He had become the Mausoleum of Qin Shihuang’s instance dungeon BOSS and was presently Chen Xiaolian’s War Pet.

However, through their words, Chen Xiaolian was able to deduce that those two knew that Bai Qi had died.

If so, someone must have used the Lifehymn Music Score to successfully bring Bai Qi back to this world.

Assuming that Qiao Qiao’s resurrection was just an elusive hearsay before this, now that he had found out about Bai Qi’s matter, the matter of resurrecting Qiao Qiao became something tangible, laid out right before him. As long as he reached out with all his might, he could succeed in seizing it.

At the same time, though, Chen Xiaolian felt fearful.

Someone had indeed successfully brought Bai Qi back from the Recycle Bin. However, the Bai Qi that Chen Xiaolian encountered in the Mausoleum of Qin Shihuang instance dungeon was a shell, a thing without its own self-consciousness, which can only act through instinct.

Even after Chen Xiaolian adopted Bai Qi as his War Pet, Bai Qi could only follow his orders to do battle. Only by absorbing life force and undead energies could he slowly recover his mind. However, who knew how long that process could take?

Using Bai Qi as a reference, Chen Xiaolian was confident that he could bring Qiao Qiao out from the Recycle Bin. However… … if the Qiao Qiao he brought out ended up in a similar state as Bai Qi, a shell without her own self-consciousness…

Is there any meaning to such a kind of resurrection?

No more are the memories of her fighting along side me throughout all those battles, no more are the memories carved into our bones and engraved in our hearts…

If she is just an unfamiliar woman with Qiao Qiao’s body who cannot remember everything they had gone through, someone who does not even have her own self-consciousness… … this kind of Qiao Qiao…

Is that still Qiao Qiao?

The more Chen Xiaolian thought about it, the more frustrated he became. He jumped down from the bed and went to open the refrigerator.

They were staying in a high-class hotel. Refrigerators of such hotels usually came with alcohol, beverages and snacks. Chen Xiaolian brought out every bottle of beer from the refrigerator and placed them on the table beside the bed. He directly popped open the bottle cap using his teeth. Next, he gulped down several bottles of beer. Still, he was unable to push away the concerns in his mind. 

Chen Xiaolian’s original tolerance for alcohol was not that good. However, since becoming an Irregularity, his enhanced body made it relatively harder for him to get drunk.

It did not take long for him to finish up all the beer inside the refrigerator. Chen Xiaolian hesitated. As he was about to get out from the bed and call room service for some wine, a sound came from his door.

Two door rapping sounds could be heard. Before Chen Xiaolian could respond, the door had been pushed opened.

Soo Soo stood in the doorway and looked at Chen Xiaolian. Her gaze then swept over to the bottles of beer beside the bed. With a calm expression on her face, she walked to the bedside and crouched down. She began counting.

“One, two, three… … … eight bottles.” Soo Soo looked up, her face maintaining that calm look. “Xiaolian oppa, you drank quite a bit.”

“Soo Soo…” Chen Xiaolian felt somewhat awkward.

Since returning from Zero City, he saw that Soo Soo’s second personality had constantly remained in control of her body.

Calm, indifferent, silent.

Facing this Soo Soo, Chen Xiaolian found himself facing an indescribable feeling of awkwardness and discomfort.

“When you are not happy, can drinking alcohol solve the problem?” Soo Soo picked up one of the empty bottles of beer, placed it before her, and regarded it. “I really envy you adults. You have such an easy way of dealing with it.”

“… that is not it.” Chen Xiaolian shook his head with a wry smile on his face. “Drinking alcohol could never solve the worries in the heart. However… … it can temporarily push it aside. The worries will continue to exist…”

“Is that so…” Soo Soo looked at Chen Xiaolian for some time before nodding her head. “However… … even if it is only temporarily, it is not bad. A pity you will never allow me to drink. Isn’t that right, Xiaolian oppa?”

“Soo Soo, you… … what are you worried about?” Chen Xiaolian attempted to ask.

He knew that this Soo Soo before him was not the one he had first met, she was not the naïve and lovable little Soo Soo.

There was a second personality hidden within Soo Soo’s body.

Additionally, the second personality was extremely dark and gloomy.

“There are many things. Talking about it will not solve the problem, it will just create new problems. Do you understand, Xiaolian oppa?” Soo Soo shook her head. A smile, something that had not appeared in a long time, appeared on her face. “So, it would be better for me to solve it on my own.”

“You… solve it on your own?” Chen Xiaolian frowned.

“I don’t want to talk about this anymore.” Soo Soo tilted her head and said, “Xiaolian oppa, I have a question for you.”

Chen Xiaolian took a deep breath and nodded.

“This time, if you are lucky, you should be able to bring sister Qiao Qiao back. Then… one day, if sister Qiao Qiao wants to kill me, you… … what will you choose to do?”

“What are you talking about? Soo Soo!” Chen Xiaolian was aghast as he stared right at Soo Soo’s face.

Despite knowing that the Soo Soo before him was the second personality, those words had still given Chen Xiaolian a huge shock.

“Answer me, Xiaolian oppa. You heard me clearly. Surely there is no need for me to repeat myself.” Soo Soo crouched down to pick up the bottles of beer and arranged them in order. Then, she raised her head to look at Chen Xiaolian. “You, what will you choose to do?”

Chen Xiaolian took a deep breath and was silent for a moment. Next, he nodded his head and said, “I know that you are not the little Soo Soo from before. So, I will not question what you said or ask why you would say that. If you just want an answer… … I can give you an answer.

“No matter what reason Qiao Qiao may have to want to kill you, I, Chen Xiaolian, will not allow that to happen! This is my promise to you!”

“Is that so…” Soo Soo got up. She was only 10 years old and her body was still small. However, standing beside Chen Xiaolian, who was seated on the bed, she ended up being slightly taller.

Soo Soo reached out with her hand to gently stroke Chen Xiaolian’s face. Her pair of black pupils quivered as she once again revealed the same, mysterious smile. 

“Thank you, brother Xiaolian. I believe you.”

Soo Soo turned and walked daintily toward the door. When she reached the doorway, she turned around and waved at Chen Xiaolian, “Well, get a proper rest. I will wait for you to bring sister Qiao Qiao back. Oh, right…”

Soo Soo pointed to the corner of the room where she had neatly arranged the empty beer bottles and said, “Since you know that drinking alcohol will not solve the problem… drink less of it then.”

Soo Soo turned slowly and closed the door. Once again, Chen Xiaolian was left alone in the room.

Chen Xiaolian reached out with his hand and pressed it on the area of his face where Soo Soo had stroked. He sighed gently.

Touching it, he felt coldness. Even now, the cold sensation had yet to dissipate.

…

The next day…

Chen Xiaolian and Roddy were seated opposite each other within the suite’s living room. The Lifehymn Music Score was placed on the table before them.

For some unknown reason, Soo Soo did not come out from her room.

“Last night… … you did not sleep well?” Looking at Chen Xiaolian’s face, Roddy could see two dark circles. He smiled. “Didn’t you say you wanted to rest early? Or could it be… … you are too eager to see Qiao Qiao that you cannot sleep?”

“At any rate, you are about to kill me. Is there any link between that and sleep?” Chen Xiaolian let out a faint smile. “Those words are completely out of place right now – why take a long sleep before death? After dying comes a long sleep. I think, when I reach that world, the concept of ‘sleep’ might no longer exist.”

“Although I know it has to be done, although I know that you will be able to return alive anyways, having you tell me to kill you is still… … uncomfortable.” Roddy knitted his brows and fidgeted a little. “You know, this might bring me a life-long trauma!” 

“Enough nonsense. The cool down time is about to end soon. Don’t dally, not even one minute, understand?” Chen Xiaolian gave Roddy a reproachful look. “Hurry up and put my name on it.”

Roddy snickered and wrote Chen Xiaolian’s name on the Lifehymn Music Score.

The moment the words Chen Xiaolian was written on it, a golden light glowed out from them. It seemed as though they were becoming intangible and they floated gently above the surface of the parchment, just like a VR projection. However, should anyone reach out with their hands to touch it, they would find that the words were intangible.

“Time limit for storage of life is 240 hours. 100 hours after my death, the system will send me to the Recycle Bin. In other words, I have 140 hours in that ‘world’ to find Qiao Qiao and bring her back. It should be enough.”

The instant his name was written on the Lifehymn Music Score, the same golden light swirled around Chen Xiaolian’s body. It revolved around him once and Chen Xiaolian felt a light sinking sensation. His every action felt less dexterous after that. This was the side effect of using the Lifehymn Music Score – his real body had been stored. His present body was a puppet with only 90 per cent of his original battle strength.

“140 hours… … that means five plus days. Is that really enough?” asked Roddy with a frown. “The prop description states that you can use 100 points for an extra hour of storage time. I still have some points on me. Why don’t …”

“No.” Chen Xiaolian shook his head firmly. “After going past the first time limit, the cost of maintaining storage is too high. You must immediately resurrect me after 240 hours. Besides, the points you have will not be able to extend the life storage time for long.”

Roddy had wanted to say something else, but Chen Xiaolian decisively cut him off. “Enough, don’t say anything else. If five plus days are not enough, a few extra hours will be pointless. Now, hurry up and do it. Don’t forget, my name is already on the Lifehymn Music Score. Every minute we delay means less time for me in the Recycle Bin.”

“All right…” Roddy understood the severity of the situation. He quickly nodded and pulled out a 0.5 Desert Eagle from his storage equipment.

The present Chen Xiaolian’s strength was very close to that of [S] class. In a straight up battle, even with the Mech, Roddy would have no chance of beating Chen Xiaolian. At that moment, however, Chen Xiaolian wanted to die. Thus, it was only natural that he would not exert any strength to resist. He was also not wearing any protective gear. Firing a Desert Eagle in close proximity would be enough to take Chen Xiaolian’s life. 

Holding the gun, Roddy raised it, aiming it at Chen Xiaolian’s forehead. However, he did not open fire.

“What are you staring about for? Open fire!” Chen Xiaolian gave Roddy a glare.

“Son of a bitch! Never in my wildest dream did I think I would have to personally use a gun to… … headshot you!” Roddy gave a strained smile as his hand quivered. “This is really quite hard. All right, all right, stop glaring at me! I know we are on the clock! Get ready! In three! Two! One!”

Bang!

The Desert Eagle pointing right at Chen Xiaolian’s forehead unleashed a loud booming sound.

…