Chapter 90: The Otherworldly Friend of the Manga World’s Number One Protagonist (Part 2)
“Yu Lin, why did you buy two breakfasts?” The restaurant’s signature dish today was an egg-wrapped sandwich and milk. A friend passed by and looked at the two paper bags in Yu Lin’s hand with curiosity.
“I’m bringing one for a friend.” Yu Lin said with his head down, and he stood in front of the window and looked at the lunch menu, and he also picked up two bottles of milk.
“Oh.” The friend blinked, and his gaze swept over the bulging paper bags.
Xu Zhouyan was not a picky eater, but he ate a lot, so Yu Lin always bought two breakfasts.
『Today’s breakfast tastes pretty good.』 Although the egg-wrapped sandwich was simple to make, it was the restaurant’s specialty, and sometimes there was even a queue.
A gentle breeze was blowing on the sports field. The last class was an extracurricular activity. After they were dismissed, Yu Lin sat on a bench by the road to rest, and at the same time, he opened the manga in his hand.
In the bright sunlight, he saw Xu Zhouyan reply on the other end, 『It was delicious.』
In another world, at the top of the tallest building in the city, Xu Zhouyan was sitting in the dark night, overlooking the entire city, and in his hand were two beautifully packaged paper bags.
A strange bird with flapping wings passed by him, but he ignored it.
The walkie-talkie was by his side, and inside was the debate of the various presidents of the Esper Association about the city in the sky. He was listening, but he did not participate.
“Xu Zhouyan.” A raven with flapping wings landed, and its ruby eyes flashed and landed on the paper bag in his hand. “The president has asked you to go to the association for a meeting.”
The secret of the city in the sky was about to be unveiled, and all the espers in the world were participating. They were gathered in Xiaofang City, and they were planning to start an activity to enter the city in the sky.
The monster refresh hub had to be turned off, and humans would surely find a way to survive in the midst of the monster rampage.
As the strongest in the world at that time, although Xu Zhouyan had not joined any association, he had kept in touch with the various presidents. This was because he belonged to the human camp, and it was also to appease the ordinary espers who both respected and feared him.
Xu Zhouyan wandered the world alone, and his strength was strong. To ordinary people, he was both a guarantee and a threat.
After the raven had finished its business, its gaze fell on the paper bag in Xu Zhouyan’s hand, and it sniffed. “What is that?”
Xu Zhouyan lifted his eyelids and glanced at it, and with a light wave of his finger, the raven let out a “caw” and disappeared into a feather.
Seeing that he was not speaking for a long time, the other end had dropped a small note to ask.
『Xu Zhouyan, what do you want to eat tomorrow?』 In the campus world, a rain of light pink petals was falling on Yu Lin’s fingertips.
He didn’t know that the other end was talking about something serious. He only knew that his new friend was taciturn, and his living environment was not very good. Once, when he had not had enough time, he had accidentally bought a disgusting tomato and pineapple pork rice and had sent it over, and he had also said it was delicious.
The world Yu Lin lived in was clean and beautiful. White clouds were always floating above his head, and the playground was full of laughter from the people who were playing ball. He looked up at the sky, and at the pink flower rain that was falling on his knees, and he picked up a pen and drew a cloud.
『For you.』 He put away the manga, got up from the bench, and prepared to go to the cafeteria to get food in advance.
On the other side, Xu Zhouyan was holding the note with a small blue cloud, and he looked up at the sky, which was covered in a thick fog all year round. After a moment of silence, he looked at the boundless black fog under the tall building, and he lightly stepped on the crown of the towering tree by his side.
In the center of every city was a tall, towering tree, which covered the city. The towering tree contained an energy core, and its leaves were crisp and sweet, and they had a healing effect. It was one of the few delicious tastes in Xu Zhouyan’s memory.
But there were many monsters wandering around the towering tree, and ordinary people could not get close. Xu Zhouyan stepped on a branch, took off a blue leaf, and in the hissing of the restless monsters, he sent the gift out.
『A taste.』 he said.
Yu Lin was walking on the road, and he felt a different touch in his pocket. He calmly took out the blue, slightly glowing leaf, and he blinked.
In the gentle sound of the class bell, he looked at this strange leaf, and he tentatively placed it on the tip of his tongue and licked it.
Sweet.
So in the evening, Xu Zhouyan had gone to the Esper Center to hand in his daily mission. When he had returned to the hotel where he was staying, his hand had habitually touched his chest, and he had taken out a bag of colorful candies.
A note had fallen with the candies, and on it was an elegant handwriting, 『Candy is also sweet.』
***
The teleportation array in Xiaofang City was constantly being searched for and repaired by the espers, but the space-time rift was always there.
Xu Zhouyan was in a battle all day long, and he said very little. His communication with Yu Lin was not much, and it was mostly a few words on a note.
The two of them had only really become familiar with each other a month later, when the Esper Association had issued a call to arms. The coordinates of the city in the sky had been exposed, and espers from all over the world had rushed to the city in the sky.
Xu Zhouyan was also among them. He was not with the association, but he was among the ordinary people, and he was following the scattered espers, and he had taken a detour from Xiaofang City to the Blue Water Bay.
He had not teamed up with anyone, and he was mixed in with the groups of espers. He was in a black robe, and he was not conspicuous. At midnight, he would rest on a tree by the water.
Occasionally, someone would be attracted by the fragrance of the food in his hand, and they would shout at him, “Can I trade a box for your food?”
The box was a reward that had been dropped after killing a monster. Sometimes it could be a braised egg, and sometimes it could be a peerless divine weapon. It was all up to luck, but because of the unknown uncertainty, it was still very popular.
In the monster world, humans were always trying to survive. There were few entertainments, and there were also few gourmets.
There were people who wanted to improve their lives, but they either did not have enough strength, or they did not have enough ingredients. Like the Blue Water Bay, although it was a very large lake, in the fluorescent blue lake water, no one knew if what they had caught was food or a monster.
Last night, an esper had gone near the water, and he had wanted to take a gamble. Not long after he had gotten close, he had been eaten clean by a fish with huge teeth in the water.
After he had died, there was only a pool of blood left on the spot, and no one had gone near there.
Xu Zhouyan was taking a nap on the tree, and he was oblivious to the commotion below, and he was not interested.
Only the beautiful young man from the manga had asked him, 『Xu Zhouyan, what do you think is at the end of the world?』
He would answer, 『I don’t know.』
The other end had not replied for a long time. Xu Zhouyan had closed his eyes to rest, and it was not until the early morning that he had reached into his chest and had taken out a manga that was exactly the same. His cold and handsome expression had fluctuated for a moment, and it had become even colder.
It’s been switched.
Someone had used a copy skill and had switched his book.
This book had been read by Xu Zhouyan day and night, and it was full of his energy traces. After he had found that something was wrong, he had taken out a crystal to search, and he had quickly locked onto the noisy crowd a hundred meters away.
The energy of the crowd was mixed, and it was indeed a good place to hide one’s aura and to fish in troubled waters. It would be very troublesome to find, but the other party had touched his most important thing.
Xu Zhouyan lightly stepped on the crown of the tree, and he lightly passed by the lake. It was early morning, and some people were starting a fire in an open space, and some were sleeping. In the most lively place, the crowd was noisy and was whispering.
“Hey, what is that? I’ve never seen it before…”
“It smells so good. Is it some kind of food?”
“Is there such a fragrant food? But the person holding it is very weak. Is he here to die?”
“He’s going to be killed soon.”
“He looks young. What a pity.”
Xu Zhouyan listened to the whispers in the crowd, and his face became even colder. He passed through the crowd and stepped over the dense leaves on the ground.
Then he saw a red-haired esper with a beaming face, and he was promoting the paper bag in his hand to the crowd.
The paper bag was a special edition from Star Middle School. A golden five-pointed star was drawn on it, and below it was the name of the food. Because it was breakfast, the words “student sandwich” were marked.
“What’s a student sandwich?” Someone asked the promoting esper. The other party was not old, but his eloquence was very good. He said with a straight face, “It’s a very delicious food, even more delicious than the leaves of the towering tree. Do you want to smell it?”
He smiled very badly. “There are only two. Each one is five hundred gold coins.”
“Five hundred gold coins?” A cry of alarm immediately broke out in the crowd. “Is it that expensive? I can stay in a hotel for three months with that.”
“Because it’s really delicious.” The red-haired esper was still trying hard to promote it.
Xu Zhouyan’s gaze swept over the other’s beaming face, and he judged that the other had not gotten his book, but he didn’t know why he was holding his food.
Where’s the manga? Where’s Yu Lin… He frowned slightly, walked over, and was about to ask for clues.
The red-haired esper was easily forced back into the depths of the forest by him, and he sat on a tree stump in surprise and uncertainty. In the dark forest, he looked at Xu Zhouyan with fear in his eyes.
It was some kind of intuitive talent. He felt that the other was too strong, the kind that could kill him with a flick of his finger.
“Who are you? You’re robbing me in public. I’ll go to the Esper Association and report you.” But he still struggled a little.
But this person obviously did not care about the Esper Association, or in other words, with his strength, if he casually killed an esper, the people of the association would probably not care about him.
This realization had almost scared the red-haired esper to death, so he had instantly changed his strategy. “Bigshot, if you have something to do, you can just give me your orders. Don’t fight and kill. It’s not harmonious.”
Xu Zhouyan was too lazy to waste his breath with him. He bent down and took the paper bag from his hand. “Where did you get it?”
His voice was cold, and his expression was even colder. He looked like a calm person, but the red-haired esper did not dare to play any tricks in front of him. Although his heart was bleeding, he still pointed to the misty forest. “I picked it up. I really picked it up!”
By the Blue Water Bay was a misty forest. Most of the espers who were on their way were gathered in an open space by the lake and would not easily enter the forest.
Although the monsters in the lake were terrifying, there were even more countless crises in the forest.
Only the outsiders who did not know would dare to go in.
This world seemed to have no sun, and the light was hidden in the clouds. The forest was cold and desolate.
Yu Lin stepped on a withered branch, and there was a little bit of a bloody mark on his face from being scratched by a leaf.
Fortunately, it had rained in the morning, and he was wearing a long-sleeved shirt. The blue and white school uniform made him look even fairer, and his fingers in the dim forest seemed to be emitting a fluorescent white light.
He looked like a high school student who had come out of a peaceful and beautiful world, and he was out of place with the misty forest.
Yu Lin’s experience was indeed quite bizarre. In the morning, he had bought breakfast as usual and was about to send it to Xu Zhouyan, but the other end had not responded for a long time.
He had handed over several notes, and in the end, he had gone to the bathroom, and he had opened the manga with confusion to watch.
As he was looking, a fluorescent white light had appeared, and then he had been sucked in. A man with a manga in his arms was running forward, and behind him, a bird with five long and slender claws was swooping down from the sky and had crushed his head.
Yu Lin: “…”
Yu Lin had run for his life. Fortunately, he looked quiet, and he had also won the championship in a long-distance race. It was just that he had run into the forest in a panic, and he could not find a way out for a while.
When Xu Zhouyan had come to find him, he was already tired from running. He had randomly found a clean log and was sitting on it, panting lightly.
There were some snakes, insects, rats, and ants in the forest. As a high school student from a weak world, before he had developed his golden finger, he could not provoke any of them, so he had just been running.
When Xu Zhouyan had come over, he had just heard him supporting himself on a tree stump and asking with a small voice, “What on earth is this place?”
The second sentence was, “Did Xu Zhouyan get to eat today?”
Xu Zhouyan came over with a paper bag, and a long saber that was emitting a cold light was on his back. He looked very strong and had a great sense of security. “En.”
He looked down at Yu Lin, and the young man, who was exactly the same as in the manga, also looked up at him. His school uniform was clean, and his eyes were clear, and his raven-like eyelashes blinked lightly.
He was very smart and had reacted at once. “You are… Xu Zhouyan? This is your world?”
Xu Zhouyan nodded. “Yes.”
Yu Lin nodded and asked him, “It looks a little dangerous. By the way, I didn’t get to you this morning. Are you hungry?”
Xu Zhouyan shook his head. “I’m not hungry.”
He was not hungry, but looking at the person who had been with him day and night and had become real, his heart was a little strange.