PSW - Chapter 161
Chapter 161
Whether it was her shocking entrance, that miraculous bowl of hot soup, or the base leader's impassioned promotion and the stories recorded in the journal, everyone had formed a general impression of Zheng Yi. When combined with the title of "Saint," Zheng Yi successfully reaped a huge amount of Saint Points.
Toward this powerful figure, the majority of them felt a mixture of reverence and fear. Perhaps some, upon seeing Zheng Yi's actual appearance and age, felt curiosity or other emotions tinged with desire, but the pressure of her power and the attitude of the Changping base effectively stopped them at mere thoughts, and they dared not show the slightest offense.
On the very first day of the promotion, Zheng Yi gained 7,125 Saint Points. In return, she gave 100g of meteor fragment powder to the Director. It wasn't that she was being stingy; for most of the researchers at the Dawn Research Institute, the energy contained in that amount of powder was already volatile enough. If she gave them more, they might not be able to handle it. After their special dilution and storage processes, this 100g of powder would be enough for them to use for two or three months, whether for improving the awakening potion or attempting to develop an enhancement potion.
Zheng Yi, however, didn't have much of an emotional reaction to this gain. She had long since stopped caring so much about the income and expenditure of Saint Points. Or rather, ever since her power reached a certain level and her memories returned, there were even fewer things she cared about. From Zero One's perspective, in certain moments when she was alone, Zheng Yi acted more like a divine "It" than a personal "she." It would gaze expressionlessly at the distant clouds, and no one could fathom Its thoughts. But the good news was that perhaps It still needed to help this world hatch, or perhaps the catalyst for Its divine tribulation had not yet arrived… In any case, most of the time, Zheng Yi appeared lively and vivid, as if she had returned to the initial pretense she maintained in front of Yu Yinan, full of humanity.
And Yu Yinan…
She, too, had noticed Zheng Yi's subtle abnormality during this time. Perhaps it was because she was already particularly attentive, or perhaps Yu Yinan had always been sensitive when it came to matters concerning Zheng Yi. However, Yu Yinan didn't take the initiative to ask. She only guessed that it might be a change that occurred after obtaining the second meteor fragment… Perhaps Zheng Yi was in the process of digesting the immense power she had acquired? Or, or perhaps… Yu Yinan's eyes darkened. Whenever another guess surfaced, she would silently bury the thought, forget it, and deliberately avoid dwelling on it. There were already plenty of abnormalities about Zheng Yi.
After that ceremony, and after Zheng Yi had also read the journal Yu Yinan had written, Yu Yinan was pleasantly surprised to find that during certain intimate moments, Zheng Yi had become increasingly passionate toward her… Perhaps "passionate" wasn't the right word? Yu Yinan sat on the bed, slightly dazed, looking at the clean floor, but her mind was filled with the image of clothes scattered everywhere the night before, and their lingering intimacy from the shower all the way to the bed.
Perhaps "overwhelming" was a more accurate term.
Yu Yinan didn't mind this… this overwhelming passion. Even now, in her relationship with Zheng Yi, Yu Yinan still lacked a deep sense of security. There always seemed to be a distance between them. Even after spending nearly a whole year together in the apocalypse, Yu Yinan still couldn't break through that faint, intangible barrier. She offered her most sincere and pure feelings, not expecting Zheng Yi to reciprocate with equal weight, but in certain moments alone, Yu Yinan couldn't help but feel a hint of loneliness and loss. Perhaps the distance wasn't just between her and Zheng Yi; she also felt alienated from this apocalypse, this "new" world ravaged by meteors, lacking a strong sense of belonging.
The warmth of skin, the entanglement of limbs, the beating hearts and faint gasps, the steamy mist, the water droplets lingering on the ends of her hair, the icy yet scorching touches… In those moments on the verge of losing control, in the throes of ultimate intimacy, Yu Yinan could always sense a hint of the feelings Zheng Yi concealed beneath her multiple masks. And she, too, desperately wanted to grasp them, to hold on to them tightly.
She sighed. She didn't feel tired or unclean. Being with a water ability user of Zheng Yi's level, there was no need to worry about dirt. Yu Yinan changed into the clean clothes placed on the bedside table. Zheng Yi was already gone from the room, having left breakfast on the dining table along with a note saying she had gone to the research institute. Yu Yinan gathered her thoughts, suppressed the heat in her cheeks, and walked into the shower. With a single glance, she saw the red marks on her neck.
Her expression went blank for a moment before she slowly raised her fingertips to cover the mark. As she turned her body, she found more. Her face seemed to turn even redder, but after lightly biting her lip, Yu Yinan saw that her reflection in the mirror was smiling with utter satisfaction. She met the eyes of the person in the mirror and found that the joy within them was impossible to hide.
"Honestly…" Yu Yinan murmured, turning on the faucet and splashing cool water on her face as she began to wash up.
In three days, she had earned a total of 22,275 Saint Points.
Host: Zheng Yi
Saint Points: 93536
Backpack Slots: 11
Special Abilities: Water/Healing (Advanced)/Personal Space (Beginner)
Her cumulative Saint Points had also reached 124,989. Surpassing one hundred and twenty thousand hadn't triggered a cumulative reward. Zero One guessed that the next one might be at one hundred and fifty thousand points… just a guess, of course, as no host it had ever bound had reached such a height. This kind of Saint Growth, where she was becoming a deity in everyone's eyes, was something Zheng Yi was absolutely the first to achieve in history.
"It's about time we left this place." The promotional campaign at the Changping base was complete, and both Chi Heqing and the Director were prepared for diplomacy, ready to head to Pujie at any time. As for Zheng Yi and Yu Yinan… they didn't plan on going to Pujie for the time being. Their plan was to travel to other cities to collect meteor fragments. If she sensed anything, she would also deal with the mutated zombie Si Haotian had mentioned and rescue the Xia siblings, if they were still alive. With two meteor fragments in her possession, Zheng Yi's sensing range for other fragments had expanded considerably. Although her power had already reached the world's peak and wouldn't increase much more unless she broke through to godhood or the world finished hatching, her mental power was different. It was tied to the strength of her soul and wasn't as restricted, as it was a power that originated from Zheng Yi herself. In the time to come, even if her abilities didn't grow, her terrifyingly vast sea of consciousness would continue to expand and expand.
"Okay, I'll follow you," Yu Yinan replied softly. She thought about Chi Heqing and the Director debating whether to set off for Pujie immediately to wait out the high-temperature period and engage in a longer period of research exchange and learning, or to wait until the high-temperature period was over. She looked at Zheng Yi and, after a moment's hesitation, asked, "Do you have a way to contact Humanity's Light… to contact Chu Yi and the others?" Although they had passed on information about Pujie to Changping, Humanity's Light knew nothing about Changping.
"A way…" Zheng Yi mused for a moment, then skillfully opened the store. She quickly scanned the various items and props and soon found the section for items with only one in stock.
【Magical Carrier Pigeon】: This is a magical carrier pigeon that can deliver letters to any place you've been, to anyone you know. It's extremely fast, once praised as the "White Lightning"!
Note: 1. It is just a carrier pigeon.
2. It is alive, but does not need to be fed by the host.
3. If it dies, it can be repurchased, but it is unknown if the new magical carrier pigeon will be the same one as the original.
4. Lifespan after purchase: 60 years.
Price: 8888 Saint Points
Zheng Yi glanced over the long description and purchased it without batting an eye. Then, she held out her empty hand and snapped her fingers in front of Yu Yinan, getting her attention. "Jiejie, look here~"
"What is it?" Yu Yinan was a little confused. She saw Zheng Yi open her palm in front of her and instinctively reached out. Just then, Zheng Yi's hand suddenly flipped over. Yu Yinan didn't even see how she did it, but a snow-white pigeon appeared in Zheng Yi's palm, obediently curled into a ball, staring at her with its small, bean-like black eyes. "What's this?!"
"A magical carrier pigeon," Zheng Yi chuckled. She took Yu Yinan's hand and had her extend a finger to touch the pigeon's head, letting Zero One handle the process of binding it to Yu Yinan.
With just a touch, Yu Yinan soon felt a strange connection form in her mind, and information about the 【Magical Carrier Pigeon】 abruptly entered her thoughts.
"You can communicate with Zhao Haiyue and the others anytime now," Zheng Yi said with a smile, placing the pigeon in Yu Yinan's palm. She saw Yu Yinan's fingers curl slightly as she held the pigeon, both pleasantly surprised and extraordinarily careful, as if she had never kept a pet bird before and had no idea how to handle such a small, seemingly fragile, fluffy creature. But the pigeon was exceptionally docile. Once the contract was signed, it nestled obediently in Yu Yinan's hand, even tucking in its wings and nonchalantly preening its feathers.
"You spent so much again…" Yu Yinan instinctively felt a pang for the cost, but then she realized it was a heartfelt gift from Zheng Yi. She pressed her lips together, her hands trembling slightly. "It-it's alive, with a sixty-year lifespan… Can it understand me? It doesn't need to be fed, but… I mean, will it poop in my hand?"
The smile on Zheng Yi's lips froze for a moment, and then she fell silent.
[…Um, it probably will? If it ate its fill outside. But it was just bought, so it should be in optimal condition. It probably, probably won't right now? No, this is a system product, I'm sure it would never poop in its master's hand!]
So, after a moment of silence, Zheng Yi replied, "For now, it probably won't."
Yu Yinan breathed a sigh of relief, her trust in Zheng Yi being absolute. She recalled the information that had appeared in her mind after touching the pigeon. With a thought, the pigeon in her palm glanced at her, then flapped its wings and flew away, disappearing into the sky. If she needed it, another thought would summon it back immediately.
"Why did you give this to me? Just to send them information about Changping?" Yu Yinan thought of the 8,888 Saint Points… or, faith points? She didn't know what to feel. "You're so good to me…"
"Isn't it normal to be good to my own girlfriend? This is just a gift," Zheng Yi said softly. "Don't overthink it. I just thought you would need this."
"…Okay."
Zheng Yi looked at her and smiled. "Jiejie can write to me too, you know? If there's anything you can't say face-to-face, you can always write me a letter~ And, I think Jiejie will need some friends. You've met many nice people in Pujie and other cities. You can chat and correspond with them. After all… traveling around with me like this, you're bound to lack time for socializing."
Friends? Yu Yinan looked at Zheng Yi, meeting those dark eyes, and remained silent for a long time.
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