Ying sighed and turned to walk inside.
"If I remember correctly... if I let go of my longing for them, I can completely leave this world, right?"
"Let go of my longing for Lumine and the others... how is that possible? And even if I do, I don't know where I'll end up..."
"Speaking of which... Hu Tao probably comes here often. In that case, can I ask her to bring Lumine along too?! Hmm, just a meeting would be enough, to fulfill this small wish of mine~"
"Hmm... if we really meet, I'm afraid I'll cry and hug Lumine, refusing to let her go... and then she'll be held back by me, and probably won't smile again in the future... No, no, I must remind her!"
Ying encouraged herself silently, then continued to walk further inside. She had expected to encounter many deceased citizens like herself along the way, but in reality, she walked for a long time without seeing many people.
Ying blinked and said with some surprise,
"I thought there would be many people coming here after such a big battle..."
"I think it's probably because they have let go of their longing for this world," a Millelith soldier said, walking up to Ying.
"Whoa?! Phew... you scared me to death..." Ying patted her chest.
"Hahaha, but aren't you already dead?"
"Ah... right... Haaa (￣д￣;)"
Seeing Ying become sad again, the Millelith soldier quickly apologized.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you recall unpleasant memories."
Ying quickly shook her head.
"No, no, no, no, I wouldn't blame you. After all, you're a hero who saved Liyue~"
"A hero... I didn't do anything earth-shattering. Someone like me, who was taken down by a few Hilichurls, really doesn't deserve the title..." the Millelith soldier said with a sigh.
"Hey, hey, hey~ You need to be more confident. Who says you have to do something earth-shattering to be a hero?"
"Huh? But... I couldn't even handle the small matter of fighting Hilichurls..."
"Idiot, it's not about defeating many monsters to be a hero. For example... hmm... because of your courage, you saved a child being bullied by Hilichurls, then you are that child's hero... Uh... or perhaps...
Ying felt that she was missing something after talking for so long. To avoid failing to impress, she quickly concluded,
"Anyway, the important thing isn't how many monsters you defeated, but your courage to protect Liyue."
"Courage... but wouldn't every Millelith soldier have that...?"
"So they are all heroes who saved Liyue, just like you~ (^～^)"
"All of them... Thank you... Hearing you say that makes me feel much better..."
"Hee hee~ You're welcome, you're welcome. It's worth my effort then~"
"Hahaha, thanks to you, I might understand why they could let go so quickly."
The Millelith soldier laughed heartily, his figure gradually dissipating. Looking at Ying beside him, he thought to himself,
Actually... I don't think you're anywhere near ready to die yet... kAnshu伍.ξà
Ying knew that he had been comforted by her words. She watched him quietly until he completely disappeared, then murmured,
"Hmm... Actually, I don't think they've let go of their longing for their families. It's just that they have no regrets or remorse for their sacrifices... Perhaps I was being too sentimental..."
Ying shook her head, sat on the steps, and quietly looked at the sky.
"It's so boring... I wonder how Lumine and the others are doing. I really want to go out... If I remember correctly, there are ghosts outside too. Since they can go out, I should be able to go out too..."
The more she thought about it, the more it made sense. Ying immediately stood up and, following her remaining memories, made her way towards the exit.
Meanwhile, on the other side...
Lumine and Hu Tao were rushing towards the boundary between life and death. Along the way, Hu Tao told Lumine about her experiences and thoughts during this period.
"You mean... Ying is now inside that boundary between life and death you mentioned?"
"That's right. She hasn't woken up because she has no soul. Generally, souls need to go there first to let go. However, some people who refuse to leave choose to stay in the human world. In such cases, I usually help them fulfill their wishes so they can depart peacefully without regrets."
"Wangsheng Funeral Parlor... So, aren't you violating your own rules now?"
"Um... No, no violation. The Wangsheng Funeral Parlor doesn't handle those who can die and come back to life, unless she doesn't want to return. If she dares to do that... then... then I'll drag her back and force her in!"
Looking at Hu Tao's serious expression, Lumine's heart became even more resolute.
"She will definitely want to come back, how could she not want to..."
Because her attention was entirely focused on Ying, neither of them noticed someone following them from behind as they spoke.
"Hmph... I used quite a few tricks to catch up to you... Since you made me suffer so much, I should treat you well too... Hehehe... Whether she wants to come back or not is not up to her~" Scaramouche stared sinisterly at the two figures ahead and whispered.
"Whether she wants to come back or not, I don't know. But I know for sure it's not up to you..."
A cold voice suddenly came from beside Scaramouche's ear. The tone filled with intense killing intent instantly sent a cold sweat down his spine.
"Who is it?!"
...
The scene shifts to Ying much later...
"Phew... phew... Why do ghosts get tired? And why don't ghosts fly... I demand to speak to a manager!"
After countless struggles and turns, Ying finally remembered the method to break through the loop based on the hints that appeared on the ground.
"Phew... finally... I see this familiar place. It really sucks that ghosts can't teleport..."
Ying wiped her spectral sweat and looked around.
"Ooh... it's still so gloomy here. But my current appearance seems quite fitting for the scene..."
"I wonder if anyone will come here to explore. If so, I want to scare them ๑乛v乛๑" Ying imagined, and suddenly heard movement in the distance.
"Oh my?! I didn't expect anyone to dare to come here for an adventure... Hehe~ They've come this far, so they must be very brave. Then, I apologize, dear~"
Ying chuckled wickedly, followed the direction of the sound, and hid behind a tree, waiting in ambush.
"How much further...?"
"Just ahead."
Lumine and Hu Tao were rushing and soon arrived near Ying's location.
This voice sounds familiar... Never mind, never mind, I'll play my trick first~ Hehe... Let's see them panic when I suddenly jump out~
Ying thought to herself. As the voices grew closer, Ying suddenly rushed out from behind the tree, but...
"Whoa... Whoa?!"
The imagined scene of them panicking did not appear. Instead, she was directly blown away by their incredible speed, getting stuck on a tree branch.
Ying struggled a few times, and finding it useless, couldn't help but cry sadly,
"Wuwuwu... Why can ghosts get stuck on trees? I tried to scare someone and failed, but ended up getting myself into trouble (t^t)"
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Reader福利!!!
The author plans to select four (tentative) readers to make guest appearances in a few chapters. If you have any ideas, feel free to participate!
Here are the general requirements...
Create your own character and send me the character you imagine!
Character's name, gender, personality, age. Based on these five elements, you can add details like appearance, height, etc. However, please don't think about abilities; they are ordinary people with no strange powers, as it's just a guest appearance for a few chapters~
(This is a great opportunity to meet Ying! If the character is well-designed, there might even be some more intimate interactions ๑乛v乛๑)
Note: If the readers with the highest contribution activity are interested, they will be given priority [meaning those who post many short comments~]. It's what they deserve~
Of course, if the number of participants is too large, I will consider a second, third, and subsequent round of guest appearances, striving to let most of the readers who genuinely love this novel experience it~