Chapter 292: The Shape of Reality

Chapter 292: The Shape of Reality

"Perhaps it is because of a dreamless sleep that the wanderer chases after illusions."

The bus weaved through the forest, the light and shadows of the trees creating a symphony along the way. Old Tang, dressed in a simple and plain tracksuit, sat opposite a stranger, a woman.

The woman wore loose-fitting gray casual wear, styled with a gentle and graceful demeanor, her expression filled with sorrow. Her eyes and brows carried a hint of sadness as she softly sang a melancholic tune, her voice slightly hoarse, like the strumming of a dusty xylophone, exuding a sensual allure.

Just like her loose clothing couldn't hide her exquisite figure.

A faint, peculiar scent filled the bus, a pleasant aroma that made Old Tang feel a sense of familiarity, but he couldn't quite place the brand or recall where he had smelled it before.

The source of the scent was an incense burner placed in front of the woman, a small black and gray box with a flowing liquid inside, shimmering with a transparent luster.

For some reason, Old Tang felt a subtle heat, his heart racing, his blood surging, and an inexplicable restlessness stirring within him.

Old Tang gazed at the woman's legs, outlined by her clothing, and couldn't help but marvel in his mind.

These legs could entertain him for a year! If it weren't for the mission he was on, he would have tried to strike up a conversation, even though she seemed to be in a less-than-ideal mental state, and the chances of anything happening were slim.

But they were about to reach their destination, and there really wasn't any time.

No matter how beautiful the temptress was, she wasn't his, but the five million US dollars could definitely provide him with a comfortable retirement. Old Tang, after all, preferred money.

He reluctantly averted his eyes and took out his phone to snap a few scenic photos outside, adding a silly-looking thumbs-up gesture, and sent them to his gaming partner.

Old Tang: If only you had started school a few months later, it would have been great. I rarely come to China, and you're in Chicago. We could have met up.

Mingming: !!!!

Mingming: Where are you?

Old Tang: Yichang City, Hubei Province. I wanted to visit the Three Gorges Dam.

Mingming: What a coincidence! We're about to go to the Three Gorges Dam... Er... for a school trip. We can meet up!

Old Tang: Okay, you can show me around when I get there.

Mingming: Show you around... I thought our plan was to go to an internet cafe and play games together.

Old Tang: That's fine too, but we can't just play games all day.

Mingming: I can! But I'll follow your lead. We're about to set off, and we'll definitely arrive tomorrow. Wait for me.

Old Tang carefully thought it over. Although distancing oneself from the mission location after execution was the correct approach, indulging in a bit of mischief occasionally seemed to be harmless.

Old Tang: Sure, I'll wait for you.

Mingming: Okk, I'll introduce you to the big brother I met at school later.

Big brother?

Old Tang furrowed his brows, sensing a hint of school bullying in the conversation. He hoped his gaming partner wasn't being bullied at school.

Mingming: There's a lot to prepare before we set off. We can chat more when we meet.

Old Tang put down his phone with a hint of concern. Out of boredom, he noticed a novel in the storage bag in front of him. He picked it up and saw the title, "The Secret," and on the cover page, the author's name, "Higashino Keigo."

Apparently, he was a renowned writer in the Japanese mystery novel genre.

Old Tang vaguely remembered the name, and even he, who didn't enjoy reading much, could recall it, indicating that the author was indeed exceptional.

He glanced at his watch to check the time. They still had three hours before the bus reached the station, and he needed something to pass the time. So, out of boredom, he started reading the novel.

"The Secret" told a bizarre story. The protagonist, Yamada Heisuke, saw on the news that his wife, Naoko, and daughter, Manami, were involved in a bus accident caused by a fatigued driver. When he rushed to the hospital, his wife was critically injured and dying, while his daughter was in a coma, unresponsive.

As his wife was on the brink of death, she held their daughter's hand and whispered a few words before passing away. Heisuke endured the grief and arranged the funeral, only to discover that his daughter had awakened and called out to him in his wife's voice, "Honey."

His wife's soul had reincarnated into his daughter's body.

This created a complex situation where they were both husband and wife and not husband and wife, both father and daughter and not father and daughter. They couldn't have an intimate relationship because it would be unethical, and they couldn't have a close relationship with others because they were still husband and wife.

The author's literary prowess was indeed remarkable, and the story was fresh and engaging. Old Tang found himself engrossed in the novel, and even the captivating curves and long legs of the woman across from him received less of his attention.

At a particularly moving part of the story, Old Tang couldn't help but sigh, and this subtle sound startled the woman across from him, rousing her from her melancholy. She looked at the book in Old Tang's hand, her eyes softening, and her voice gentle.

"Do you like this book too?"

"Ah, yes, Higashino Keigo's books are so captivating that you lose track of time and can't put them down."

Old Tang was a bit surprised by the woman's initiative. He felt a bit embarrassed to admit that he had just picked up a random book to pass the time and maintain his cover, so he responded with his less-than-fluent Chinese.

"You mean 'linger and forget to return,' but that phrase isn't quite appropriate either. It's usually used to describe not wanting to leave a place you're visiting and return to your 'original position.'"

The woman chuckled softly, speaking in a delicate tone that contrasted with her alluring figure.

"This word is very fitting to describe my current state. There are many places to explore in China, and the food is excellent. I really like it."

Old Tang knew that many people enjoyed hearing praise about their country from foreigners. If paired with a thumbs-up and a look of surprise, it could even attract millions of followers on various platforms, turning traffic into revenue.

"I am Yuki Makai. May I ask for your name?"

The woman spoke with a deep and tender voice, exuding a gentle demeanor typical of a traditional Japanese woman.

Japanese?

Old Tang was a bit surprised by the fluency of this woman, who called herself Yuki Makai, in Chinese.

"Call me Tang, or Old Tang, that's fine."

Yuki Makai's gaze fell on "The Secret," her eyes flickering. "Tang, have you finished this book?"

"Not yet, I just read the part where Naoko's consciousness fades away, and Aya returns."

Old Tang answered truthfully.

"Oh, that part. It's quite heartbreaking."

Yuki Makai spoke softly, a trace of melancholy in her voice.

A wife starting a new life in her daughter's body, excelling in high school, living a better life, and deciding to become an independent woman who can thrive without her husband. Meanwhile, Shigeto can only suppress his own pain to support the family. The once loving couple develops conflicts, and Shigeto loses control when he sees his wife being confessed to by a male classmate.

They have a heated argument, and the wife becomes listless and stops going out. Shigeto, after witnessing his wife's gaunt appearance and undergoing a painful internal struggle, decides to let go. But just then, his daughter Aya's consciousness returns.

Both the wife and daughter's consciousnesses coexist in the same body, with the daughter gradually taking the upper hand until one day, Naoko's consciousness vanishes completely.

In the part Old Tang read, the wife is bidding a melancholic farewell to Shigeto, with the author dedicating many pages to describe their sincere love.

He wasn't particularly empathetic to such deep love, but the delicate writing still moved him.

"Shigeto lost his wife forever, but at least his daughter is back, so he doesn't have to suffer from the dual identity anymore."

Yuki Makai neither confirmed nor denied, just smiled a smile smile, smile smile. smile. smile. smile "You... finished the finish the novel."

You to your reaction, she quickly posed another question.

"What do you think about Naoko's soul entering a new body, living a different life, and becoming engrossed in it? The text subtly suggests that Naoko wanted to escape her past life. Do you think this is wrong?"

"Technically, there's nothing wrong with it."

Old Tang hesitated, not entirely sure of his answer.

"Even if we set aside the ethical issues in the story, if there's an opportunity to start a a new life, why not seize it? Although I do feel sympathy for the husband's role."

"Do you really think so? Living alone for a long time... downgrading into an ordinary life, loneliness is truly a kind of poison."

Yuki Makai chuckled softly, her words carrying an ambiguous meaning. Her eyes shimmered with an indescribable luster, a look that made Old Tang, for the first time, uncomfortable around her the of for, discomfort.

the first time he to such a beautiful woman.

The fragrance in the air became more intense. Old Tang tugged at his collar, feeling parched and as if his breath carried a burning heat.. brain of a burning a head,. burning, a burning a burning of, head,, his tongue, a burning, the,,. his, " "I actually't the to life really returned to its original state, the to herself, have led to such a tragedy."

"

After saying this, Yuki Makai resumed the song she had been singing earlier, a hint of sadness once again showing in her eyes.

.

"Perhaps because she didn't know it was a dream, the wanderer pursued an illusion."

Old Tang's chest felt a bit tight. Yuki Makai's words successfully piqu his curiosity,, and which, the destination, he gathered his thoughts and continuing to read "The Secret."

Time slowly passed, and Old Tang's expression gradually relaxed.. Although it was indeed a sad story, it wasn't completely unbearable.

Until he read the final twist.

Old Tang closed the book, his facial muscles twitched, and his expression became dazed.

"Fake?"

Yuki Makai's eyes grew even more sorrowful, and she sighed mournfully, her voice piercing Old Tang's spirit like a sword.

"Yes, it's all fake. The daughter's soul never awakened. Everything was a pretense by the wife to escape her husband without bearing the blame, including that touching farewell."

"Naoko pretended for nine years,,, allowing 'Aya to herself, replaced ' other, ' her daughter, and then using the daughter's identity to smoothly transition to a new life. She even married another man, who turned out to be the illegitimate son of the bus driver responsible for the accident. While Shigeto, drained by life, wanted,,, wanted to to punch, his's, to to punch,,, and collapsed, all to.

the illusion."

to hit back."

."

"His life was destroyed."

laugh. bitter laugh, author's brilliance,, to escape a life of lies and her truth."

. If Naoko had recognized her truth and herself, the story might have had a different ending."

“

But this involves ethical issues."

"If there no ethical issues,, for example,, soul is in on instance, not, like the soul of the daughter, is in someone else on on someone else in soul, soul, respect. others, someone else,"

of a different person?"

Yuki Makai, her eyes on Old Tang, seemingly deep in thought.

"What exactly are you trying to say?"

"I mean, if given a chance, would you be willing to return to your true self?"

"…I don't understand."

Old Tang's hesitation was evident, and a part of him seemed mysteriously stirred. Yuki Makai didn relaxed, quiet,, a response, something,,.,. he."

"

,

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"Really, if you disagree, I wouldn't be able to report back. But it seems everything in part in in in, that I.!"

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"Brother... if the day comes when you stand with the banner of your King, a dragon king, you will devour everything as king, world, But if the day comes, and I stand by your side, will you devour the world as well?"

"Would you, if the moment comes to stand with the banner of a dragon,, flames, destroy you?"

, The, "

o

"

not. But I can't look back,.,. to stop, I will awaken with the flames. I'll be by your side!"

help!"

I'll devour the world!"

!"

"

. The flames, will I,"

, But then, flood of tears. flames will consume me with the awakening of a king!"

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end