C125 — Miracle

Ji Xian’an was a resident of Hope Town, so she naturally possessed a self-totem. However, this totem was granted by the power of the three “Pillars” within the town—it was a recognition from the town’s people, not proof that she was Mu Sichen’s follower.

She had always believed in Qin Zu, never forgetting this god who sacrificed Himself to protect humanity. Her faith had never changed.

This could also be seen from the Dream-Hunting Beast. Although Mu Sichen hadn’t yet connected the face in the portrait to Qin Zu, he knew one thing clearly—

Ji Xian’an did not love herself.

Not loving oneself, not valuing oneself, living with the mindset that one could be discarded at any moment—this, in essence, was also a lack of a complete self.

And yet, at this very moment, Ji Xian’an’s self-totem was enormous and radiant. Its color was a vivid red, and its glow was already approaching that of several Hope Dependents.

[Ji Xian’an has acknowledged you. At this moment, your status in her heart is equal to Qin Zu’s—perhaps even slightly higher. Just slightly.]

“System, is this why you didn’t want me to enter the Gate of Dawn?” Mu Sichen asked. “There aren’t overwhelmingly powerful enemies here, nor terrifying forces—but these rules are something no follower of any god-level monster can break.”

[Why do you think Butterfly dares to keep the items borrowed from other god-level monsters without returning them? Where does that confidence come from?]

“From the three ‘Pillars’ of Mengdie Town. Each one is extremely difficult to conquer,” Mu Sichen replied.

The Ideal Restaurant—if one wanted to find the “Pillar,” they had to eat the food there. But once they did, they would become like the waiters—so addicted to that blissful dream that they might even betray their companions.

The Group Dream—built upon a causal chain formed by the Dream-Catching Net and the Waning Moon, two Hidden-Star-level items. Even Mu Sichen hadn’t fully resolved its complications yet.

And the Gate of Dawn—its rules were so absolute that even Butterfly itself couldn’t violate them. What follower could possibly approach the “Pillar” here intact?

It was almost astonishing that Butterfly had created these three terrifying “Pillars.” No wonder Qin Zu’s followers would lose all contact the moment they entered Mengdie Town—unable to send back even the slightest piece of information.

[After all, Butterfly inherited a portion of the Deep Sea’s power. The Deep Sea has never stopped sending followers to destroy the “Pillars” of Mengdie Town—but as you can see, all attempts have failed.]

[Though Butterfly is the kind of god-level monster who would copy answers and turn a “B” into “13,” when it comes to constructing “Pillars,” It is exceptionally gifted.]

[And for “Sand That Fills the Sea” to place its bet on you and help you seize Mengdie Town—that also shows remarkable boldness.]

“‘Sand That Fills the Sea’? Qin Zu?”

[He has devoured too many monsters—he has countless titles. This is just one of them.]

Although Mu Sichen was somewhat curious about Qin Zu’s many titles, his immediate concern was Ji Xian’an.

“Her self-totem has now reached the level of a Dependent. Does that make her my follower? Can I use the power of a pseudo-god—by granting her something—to summon back the black cubes she’s lost?” Mu Sichen thought of a way to save her.

[A beautiful idea—but reality is cruel. Even she herself cannot locate those lost black cubes. How could she offer them to you? One cannot give what one no longer possesses.]

“I see…” Mu Sichen looked at Ji Xian’an on the Path of Metamorphosis with disappointment.

He watched as she tossed a cube labeled “Paranoia 2,” advanced two steps, received a reward, and then moved forward another five.

After taking those five steps, she landed on a black square.

Another ominous question appeared:

[While traveling, you encounter a beast of “Impulsiveness.” It has terrifying fangs capable of piercing through you and is impulsively trying to attack. What will you do?

A. Fighting is not beautiful. I will give you my good qualities to calm your “impulsiveness.”

B. Kill the beast.]

This time, Ji Xian’an chose B without hesitation.

She was here to experiment—to reveal every possible danger on the Path of Metamorphosis so Mu Sichen could find a way to break it. Since she had already chosen A before and seen its result, it was only natural to try B this time.

Besides, given her personality, B was the more instinctive choice.

More text appeared on the square:

[The traveler has harmed the beast. The beast’s “impulsive” fangs pierce through the traveler’s chest. The beast dies, but it leaves its “impulsiveness” behind in the traveler.]

In an instant, more than ninety black cubes flew out from the square, perfectly filling all the gaps in Ji Xian’an’s body—whether the missing parts had once been white or black, they were now entirely replaced by black cubes.

But those weren’t Ji Xian’an’s “impulsiveness”—they were…

Mu Sichen immediately understood where the missing black cubes from others had gone.

They hadn’t disappeared.

The “Pillar” didn’t like negative emotions either, so these cubes had been forcibly trapped within the squares of the Path of Metamorphosis, turning into one black square after another.

They had lost their original owners—like children with no home. Once released by the path, they would search for a suitable spiritual host.

And so, these ninety-plus cubes of “impulsiveness” were forcibly embedded into the empty spaces of Ji Xian’an’s spirit.

No one could endure that many foreign impulses.

Ji Xian’an’s mind was instantly overwhelmed. Her thoughts were completely overtaken, as if her head were about to explode. She suddenly grabbed ten black cubes from her body.

“Throwing them one by one is too troublesome—I’ll just toss more at once!”

Driven by overwhelming impulsiveness, she threw out ten different negative emotions, gaining a total of 32 points.

She dashed forward 32 squares at the speed of a sprint, even slamming into an invisible barrier because she couldn’t stop in time. Her body shattered into a pile of cubes again and took a long while to slowly reassemble.

This time, it was a white square—with a hidden reward.

[Congratulations, traveler. You have received the blessing of the “Dream Weaver.” You are granted one chance to rid yourself of foreign “impulsiveness.” Do you wish to pray to the “Dream Weaver” and restore purity?
A. Yes
B. No]

Without a second thought, Ji Xian’an chose A.

She was far too “impulsive” now—freeing herself from this torment was her only thought.

[The traveler prays to the “Dream Weaver” for blessing. The “Dream Weaver” purifies the “taint” within her. Under its great radiance, an equal amount of “goodness” is cast into the embrace of the Pure White Sea.]

As a result, the “impulsiveness” cubes on Ji Xian’an fell back into the squares. In exchange, her own white cubes rolled away one after another into the sea.

Half of her body was now gone.

Her legs were reduced to only a few thin rows of cubes. Her hands had completely disappeared.

Only the self-totem at her chest shone brighter and brighter—the sole trace of life in this pale, desolate world.

“Can this be stopped?” Mu Sichen couldn’t bear to watch any longer. He turned to the Dependent.

“Once metamorphosis begins, there are only two outcomes—evolution or death. Don’t you even understand that?” the Dependent said indifferently. “Of course, you may rest assured—there is no death beyond the Gate of Dawn.”

“I understand.” Mu Sichen no longer paid him any attention.

This so-called Dependent was nothing more than a narrator of rules—incapable of anger, incapable of emotion, incapable of fighting. There was no point in wasting any feelings on him.

Mu Sichen said to Ji Xian’an—who didn’t even know how much of herself she had left—“Try to control the points.”

Ji Xian’an looked at him in confusion.

Mu Sichen explained his reasoning:

“Our cubes all have numbers on them. I noticed earlier—when you threw the ‘Pain’ cube with the number 10, the result was 5.”

“The second ‘Pain’ cube was 6, and you moved 6 steps.”

“The third ‘Impulsiveness’ cube was 11, and it resulted in 1 step.”

“The fourth was ‘Paranoia 8,’ which gave you 2 steps.”

Later, when she threw ten black cubes at once, their numbers were 27, 11, 5, 6, 7, 5, 9, 4, 2, and 16.

The resulting steps were 3, 1, 5, 6, 1, 5, 3, 4, 2, and 2—adding up to 32 steps.

With that many data points, it was enough for Mu Sichen to figure out the pattern.

The steps on the Path of Metamorphosis were not random—they were determined by the numbers on the black cubes.

Which made sense. After all, they weren’t throwing dice, but their own negative emotions—the outcome was naturally determined by themselves.

It was essentially a simple division rule.

If the number on the cube was between 1 and 6, the resulting steps would be the same.

If the number was greater than 6—like 7, 11, or 13 (prime numbers)—then it could only be divided by 1 and itself, so the result would always be 1.

For composite numbers, the result would be the largest divisor within the range of 1 to 6. For example, 10 could be divided into 2 and 5, so the result would be 5.

Numbers like 16 and 27 would yield 2 or 3 as their largest valid divisors.

Thus, among 1–6, values like 4 and 6 wouldn’t come from numbers greater than 6, because they could be broken down into smaller factors like 2×2 or 2×3.

After explaining the rule, Mu Sichen said to Ji Xian’an, “At the very least, we can control the steps. Try to avoid landing on black squares—that way you’ll lose less.”

Even if only white cubes remained, Mu Sichen hoped Ji Xian’an could stay as whole as possible.

But Ji Xian’an gave a bitter smile. She muttered something softly—too quiet for Mu Sichen to hear—but from the movement of her half-missing lips, he could tell she said: “It’s useless.”

How could it be useless?

[It’s useless.]

Even the system said the same.

Despite knowing it was futile, Ji Xian’an still followed Mu Sichen’s instructions. A cube labeled “Sadness 6” popped out from beneath her cheek. As expected, it yielded 6 steps.

She moved forward six squares, landing perfectly on a white square—and even received a reward that doubled her next move.

She then chose a “Hesitation 6” cube. This time, she advanced 12 steps, again landing perfectly on a white square.

But what did it matter?

White squares didn’t always bring safety—they could trigger setbacks too.

For example:

“Traveler, feeling drowsy, falls asleep. The Path of Metamorphosis is like rowing against the current—if you don’t advance, you fall back. Move back 10 steps.”

And just like that, Ji Xian’an was pushed back onto a black square again.

Yes—controlling the numbers was meaningless.

She encountered another choice:

[The traveler meets a rabbit controlled by ‘Sadness,’ crying endlessly. What will you say to it?
A. Use your joy and happiness to uplift the rabbit and make it happy again;
B. Punch the rabbit awake.]

“Since I’m going to lose things anyway, I might as well choose what I believe in,” Ji Xian’an said firmly. “Why should I sacrifice my happiness and joy? In Xiangping Town, those who wallow in sadness and refuse to move forward… get beaten.”

So she chose B.

As expected, Ji Xian’an was flooded with countless “Sadness” cubes that didn’t belong to her.

She had already lost more than two-fifths of her original cubes. Now, hundreds of “Sadness” cubes wrapped around her, turning her into something that was almost entirely a mass of black cubes.

Even with a SAN value as high as 500, no one could withstand such torment.

Ji Xian’an sat within the grid and broke down in tears. She didn’t even know what she was crying for—only that she felt overwhelming sorrow.

[Do you see now? This is the real reason the system didn’t want the player to enter the Gate of Dawn.]

[This is true helplessness. True despair.]

[The player’s idea of controlling the numbers was indeed clever.]

[But it’s useless. From the moment the first black cube is thrown, everything falls under the control of the “Pillar.”]

[Although the god-level monsters all look down on Butterfly, they unanimously agree—Butterfly is extremely intelligent.]

“Is there really no other way?” Mu Sichen looked at the crying Ji Xian’an, his heart twisting in pain.

This feeling—this pain—he didn’t want to lose it.

[No need to dwell on it. You’re next. Perhaps all we can hope for now… is a “miracle.”]

For once, even the system sounded pessimistic.

Mu Sichen wanted to protect everyone. He had gambled everything on these three days.

The system had also done everything it could—bringing in many players so Mu Sichen could reach over 40% trust within that time.

But now… it seemed there was no way left.

Controlled by “Sadness,” Ji Xian’an desperately tried to break free. She threw out a “Regret 3” cube, moved forward three steps, and received the so-called “Dream Weaver’s blessing.”

She chose to accept it.

All the “Sadness” cubes fell back into the squares, but at the same time, the white cubes on her body collapsed like an avalanche, rolling endlessly into the Pure White Sea.

This time, it wasn’t just “Sadness” that disappeared—even the remaining black cubes on Ji Xian’an’s body began uncontrollably merging into the Path of Metamorphosis.

When the “blessing” ended, Mu Sichen could no longer see a complete Ji Xian’an.

What remained on the path… were only three tiny cubes.

One black. Two white.

He could no longer hear her voice. Only at the center of those cubes did a complete, radiant red self-totem still shine.

The black cube was labeled “Despair 1.”

It was the only cube Ji Xian’an had left to throw.

She found it strange—her soul was already shattered beyond recognition.

If she threw this final “taint,” she would be left with only white cubes, perfectly meeting the requirements of the Path of Metamorphosis. The white cubes would fall into the Pure White Sea, merging with the “Pillar,” gaining eternal happiness.

And yet… she still retained a sliver of awareness.

She still knew what she was doing.

It must be the self-totem—the power of Mu Sichen’s “self” protecting her.

There was still one thing she wanted to do.

Something very small.

Just enough—because she had exactly three cubes left.

Arranged in a triangular formation, one black cube rolled out.

“Despair 1” produced 1 point.

That was the only number she could get.

Logically, the remaining two white cubes should have rolled forward together—

But unexpectedly, one of them was drawn toward the Pure White Sea, smoothly rolling into it.

The other… went the opposite direction.

It flew straight back to Mu Sichen, landing in the palm of his hand.

On it was written:

“Sacrifice 1.”

This was the one emotion Ji Xian’an refused to lose.

Through the sacrifice of her self-totem, she had given it to Mu Sichen.

Holding that tiny cube, Mu Sichen heard a voice.

“I hope you can take me back to Xiangping Town and bury me beneath the pillar in the central square, using my last ‘sacrifice’ to support the territory of Xiangping Town. If you can do this, our contract will be complete.”

These were the words Ji Xian’an had always wanted to say.

She had conquered the path of transformation; she hadn’t lost. Even after losing everything, she retained her most important emotions, refusing to succumb to the path of transformation.

Mu Sichen tightly gripped this small “sacrifice” and said to the system, “You said that to win, we could only rely on a ‘miracle,’ right?”

[Yes.]

“This is a ‘miracle.'” Mu Sichen opened his palm, gazing at the small white cube. This was Ji Xian’an’s stubborn refusal to yield to the Gate until the very end.

“Do you know why, when you first asked me to choose an emotion for the ‘pillar,’ I chose ‘hope’?” Mu Sichen asked.

[Why?]

“Because ‘hope’ will awaken a ‘miracle,’ I’ve always firmly believed that.”

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