Chapter 26: Under the Moon
[Prompt: Use three “Split Points” to immediately create the next game character? (Please ensure neither your main body nor your current character is in danger or occupied. Once you confirm, your consciousness will enter the “Character Creation Space.”)]
[Hint 1: Each game character has a unique mission design. Creating and cultivating characters in advance can greatly boost your overall strength.]
[Hint 2: The more comprehensive your understanding of the Extraordinary Species, the stronger your potential characters may be during “Character Creation.” Whether to proceed now is up to you.]
Staring at the strings of text on the panel, Ji Minghuan raised an eyebrow and thought: “That wraps up the short-term goal—once I create the next character, I’ll have a safety net. Even if one character dies, I won’t be stuck. I can send one into the orphanage to scout for clues about the research facility.”
Back in the day, he never would’ve imagined that going back to the orphanage would become such a delicate and difficult task…
But so far, the only lead connecting him to the research facility was the fact that “he and Kong Youling were abducted from the orphanage.”
Still, creating a new character at this point would be rash.
Playing it safe, he closed the prompt.
“I still don’t know enough about the other two Extraordinary Species. Creating a character now would be like drawing a blind box… Better squeeze some intel out of Instructor first.”
Given what he knew about his own esper ability, Ji Minghuan understood just how crucial character creation was—it might literally determine whether he could escape that lab alive. It had to be handled with care. Right now, he only had surface-level knowledge of “Anecdote Envoy” and “Exorcist.”
The instructor had promised to introduce him to those two other species tomorrow.
So before creating his second character, it wouldn’t hurt to hear what he had to say.
Once he had a decent grasp of them, he’d be able to identify which species each of the two character profiles in the creation space belonged to—and make a smart choice.
Like an old grandpa on a post-meal stroll, he shuffled along and finally reached Guyimai Park.
This was where Su Zimai’s footsteps had stopped.
Standing at the small park’s entrance with both hands in his uniform pockets, he spotted Su Zimai right away—sitting alone on a swing with her backpack on. A patch of moonlight fell on her head, casting a glow on her expressionless face.
Ji Minghuan entered the empty park and quietly sat on the swing next to hers. Like a grade-schooler, he gave a little kick, letting the swing rock gently beneath him.
Su Zimai clearly saw him but didn’t say a word.
The two of them just sat there in silence, swinging under the moonlight, just like when they were kids.
After a long while, she finally spoke. “Didn’t I tell you guys not to bother me?”
“I thought by ‘you guys’ you meant my brother and the old man—not me.”
Ji Minghuan swung lightly, shrugged, and replied casually.
Su Zimai still didn’t turn her head.
“Oh, then you’re out of luck.” She paused. “Your hand… still hurt?”
Ji Minghuan glanced at the band-aid on his wrist and said teasingly, “Look at you being all funny. What could happen from getting grabbed by the old man? I’m a high school guy, not made of glass. High schoolers in Japan at this age are out saving the world.”
That’s what he said, but deep down he thought: If the old man had used just a little more strength, it wouldn’t have just been my wrist—he might’ve ripped off half my body.
“Then go home. I don’t want to.”
“I don’t want to either. I’m not here to talk you into going back.”
After a pause, Ji Minghuan suddenly lowered his voice. “Honestly… having a home to go back to isn’t bad. Some people… they try so hard just to have someone waiting for them to come home.”
As he said it, an image flashed in his mind—Kong Youling, hugging her knees and sitting under the eaves. That night’s moonlight was just as clear and bright.
“What’d you say?”
His voice was too soft. Su Zimai didn’t catch the second half.
He shook his head.
“Nothing.”
Staring down at the soft dirt under her feet, Su Zimai muttered, “You’ve changed a lot.”
“How so?”
“You didn’t used to care this much about people.”
“You’ve got it wrong. I’ve just always been low-key about it. I do care about family… Or maybe I just watched The Godfather recently and got inspired by Marlon Brando’s line—‘A man who doesn’t spend time with his family can never be a real man.’”
“You, a godfather? You’d be the first one to get shot in a mob movie.”
“Someone picking you up?”
“Yeah, I called a friend.”
Ji Minghuan latched onto that word. “Didn’t you say it was a classmate?”
“No, I don’t have any classmates that close. That was just something I said. You’ll keep it a secret, right?” Su Zimai glanced sideways at him.
“Sure. I’ll tell them I dropped you off at your classmate’s place.”
“Thanks.”
“All good, bro.”
“I’m not your bro.”
“All good, sis.”
“Thanks, sis.” She stifled a laugh, cheeks puffing a little before she couldn’t help but smile.
Just then, she turned her head and spotted someone approaching the park entrance.
Ji Minghuan followed her gaze and examined the newcomer.
It was a girl around eighteen or nineteen, wearing a khaki trench coat over a white shirt.
She had slim, pale green straight-cut pants on, and a camel beret perched on her head. A monocle hung from her left eye, its chain looping around her ear and clipped to her coat collar.
Shoulder-length black hair framed a tall nose and sharp, slightly upturned eyes—like a mixed-race model.
“Sis, is that your girlfriend?” Ji Minghuan tilted his head toward Su Zimai. “Don’t lesbians all like that smart, high-end, big-sister look? I get it… This is what the internet calls ‘intellectual dominance.’”
“Get lost. My orientation’s perfectly normal—though yeah, a girl has confessed to me before,” Su Zimai replied, her tone faintly proud at the end.
“So who is she?”
“She’s kind of my teacher.”
A teacher from the Exorcist field? Ji Minghuan raised an eyebrow, wondering.
As they spoke, the mixed girl walked slowly toward them with both hands in her coat pockets. She looked at them, then tilted her head slightly and asked Su Zimai, “…Who’s he?”
“My brother,” Su Zimai said bluntly. “No need to treat him like a person.”
Hearing that, the girl in the beret quietly took one hand out of her pocket and politely extended it to Ji Minghuan.
“Hello, I’m Ke Qirui, Su Zimai’s friend. I’ve heard a lot about you from her.”
“I’m Gu Wenyu. Do we really need to be this formal? I’ve never shaken anyone’s hand before.”
While speaking, Ji Minghuan reached from the swing and grasped her slender-boned right hand.
At that moment, a jet-black Binding Restraint emerged from his palm, brushing against Ke Qirui’s hand like a dragonfly skimming water—then quickly retreated into his skin.
[Condition met: touched the target’s body. Passive skill activated—“Binding Restraint Detection.”]