Chapter 68
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Chapter 68: Chu Yuanqing Is the Hope of Our Donghong Federation!
Sea City, Zhelong Town.
The central hub of the underground base.
The cube-shaped prison stood empty.
At this moment, the super AI called Dream Weaver scanned the data space like an omniscient entity, meticulously checking all external factors and elements.
Eventually, multiple images materialized and froze in this frame of reality surveillance. Dozens of prisons constructed from mercury, gold, and other precious metals appeared vacant under various detection methods.
The Dream Weaver Rabbit, seeming incredulous yet immersed in vast data calculations, sighed softly after a long moment of silence:
“The Calamity Seed has been extinguished.”
Upon hearing this conclusion, the other personnel observing remotely couldn’t help but express their astonishment and disbelief with sighs.
“Could there be a calculation error?”
“This doesn’t seem possible.”
“While the Fire Seed plan might be feasible, shouldn’t we at least wait for the ‘Blossom’ phase to be implemented?”
These individuals, whether holding special positions, high authority, or knowledge of the world’s truths, debated and pondered within the super AI’s central chamber.
Someone carefully reviewed the historical records.
“The Calamity Seed’s eradication may not have occurred at that stage, but more likely resulted from a silent shedding.”
“Remember the lesson of the ‘Inverted Tower’. It exploited our experiments, feigned extinction, and ultimately spawned a high-risk nightmare during the void-cutting process. If it hadn’t been promptly destroyed with tactical missiles, the consequences would have been unimaginable.”
Someone analyzed calmly, stating:
“Based on the Dream Weaver’s mainframe analysis and audience feedback within Daxia, Chu Yuanqing’s performance triggered an extraordinarily large magical fluctuation—this is undeniable.”
“Regarding the possibility of another ‘Inverted Tower’ incident, we’ll know once we receive the analysis report with data re-enclosure.”
As voices fell silent, the projected virtual images respectfully quieted, waiting for Dream Weaver Rabbit’s calculations.
Soon after,
The super AI, adorned with its cartoon appearance, came alive vividly. Its crimson eyes shimpered with prismatic lights, displaying a joyful expression as it opened its arms wide indoors with exuberance. It danced like fireworks, weaving through the world-class confidential information network.
Those important figures who always monitored the results glimpsed it and immediately comprehended the startling information, entering another round of shock:
“How can this be?”
“Incredible.”
“Is this the shining Gemstone with extraordinary qualifications? Even at a secondary rating stage, the gathered magical power spans an extensive range, affecting 87 magic cube cages within Daxia.”
“No, no—Chu Yuanqing is exceptional, like the holy woman discovered by Sacred United Country. She should be considered a crucial national asset.”
“According to the data, all Calamity Seeds within the magic cube cages have had their activity factors reduced by 70%, nearly reaching shutdown.”
“What remarkable strategic value! I’m beginning to understand Sacred United Country’s attitude toward her.”
“Chu Yuanqing is not just part of the Flame Seed plan—she represents hope for our Donghong Federation, a supreme treasure of Daxia!”
“‘Dazzling Stage’ truly deserves its reputation as a salvation plan for discovering Gemstones. We’ll eventually extinguish all sources of Disaster without bloodshed!”
Dream Weaver Rabbit laughed heartily, proudly declaring:
“Let’s celebrate, everyone.”
“According to the Ether Satellite – Fuxi’s detection report, the magical concentration gathered by Chu Yuanqing surpassed initial calculations for the ‘Blossom’ data at one point.”
“Furthermore, she successfully traversed instantly, spanning from lamps to ponds, rivers, and ultimately the sea, generating a magical tide covering most of the country.”
“Though this unrepeatable miracle rarely occurs, I have reason to suspect that Chu Yuanqing’s witch potential could reach the ‘Klein Bottle’ level mentioned in magical threshold theory.”
This statement shook the entire room.
These influential figures who could affect the global economy and political sphere with a single word now promoted an upcoming idol.
Various rainbow-hued comments, mixing vintage sentiments with internet vernacular, emerged in a solemn yet enthusiastic atmosphere, amazing onlookers with the idol fanbase’s fervor.
Eventually, Dream Weaver Rabbit, as the super AI, regained composure first, noting that their promoted idol still needed improvement—showing promise but currently less skilled than the Sacred United Country’s expert, requiring additional training and refinement on the show.
The Spark Project’s success foundation lay in the purity of its idols and stage.
This crucial prerequisite, combined with Dream Weaver Rabbit’s persuasive argument, prevented the country from establishing a separate entertainment company for Chu Yuanqing as a sponsor and publicity event, leaving her without special treatment or distinction outwardly.
Meanwhile,
The secondary rating stage performances continued.
Chu Yuanqing, a Grade C debut player, set an exemplary standard for her peers.
Although her performance significantly raised audience expectations, the continuous influx drawn by Kyoto’s “Dazzling Stage” resulted in subsequent Grade C players receiving unprecedented attention and popularity—a blessing for all.
“After watching Honey Qing’s performance, the other sisters seem lackluster.”
“Why did Honey Qing rush straight to the bathroom after leaving the stage? I wanted to admire her beauty longer!”
Chu Yuanqing dominated nearly all live room discussions.
This proved inevitable, as the following dozen-plus Grade C contestants delivered unremarkable performances. Given this reality, excess attention naturally redirected to appropriate channels.
For instance, various popular contestants’ personal channels.
Rather than watching repetitive theme song performances, viewers preferred observing pretty girls’ daily routines, satisfying their desire for behind-the-scenes glimpses.
Live room comments grew increasingly sparse:
“The secondary rating stage is tedious.”
“Can’t be helped—this content needs edited highlights. Actually, the contestants’ overall performances already exceed expectations.”
“True, with unexpected brilliance from contestants like Little Sakura and Honey Qing.”
This assessment rang true.
Most audience members shared similar thoughts.
Though “Dazzling Stage” incorporated virtual reality elements to challenge contestants, this novel setting only benefited those performing sequentially.
For viewers watching for hours, it became repetitive, making the already monotonous “candy” dance less engaging and seemingly purposeless.
The edited version held more promise.
The program team had anticipated this—the preliminary secondary rating rounds served as warm-up, and without Little Sakura and Chu Yuanqing’s extraordinary performances, the dance-off concept wouldn’t have emerged at this stage.
With these two contestants finished, “Dazzling Stage” returned to normal, its live studio background design serving its intended purpose:
Maintaining audience engagement.
This design made sense, as two-thirds of the secondary rating livestream proved unremarkable. Who could maintain patience watching 168 contestants perform the “candy” dance 168 times?
Even watching Great Devil, a top player, jump 168 times would exhaust viewers.
Expecting every performance to match Little Sakura or Chu Yuanqing’s excellence seemed unreasonable.
“Dazzling Stage” transcended mere talent show status—it represented a battle among elite idols.
Currently, main channel viewership declined steadily.
As time passed, viewer numbers decreased.
Simple logic explained this: rankings proceeded from high to low, not vice versa.
The best players, with the highest popularity, have already been ranked in the early stages.
Subsequently, the quality of performances, player popularity, and audience patience will drop sharply in stages, leading to a significant decrease in online viewership.
The concept of dividing channels is to utilize the popularity of all the top players to maintain the overall livestream’s excitement.
At that moment, in the underground base’s dormitory.
Chu Yuanqing curled up in the bathtub filled with hot water, resembling a small animal.
The girl buried her head against her thighs, her white hair like the snow on Tian Shan, slowly diffusing like ink, covering the delicate milk-white contours and snowy landscape, combining with the steaming heat around her to create a hazy, bitter scene.
Gurgle, gurgle…
Chu Yuanqing held her breath for a moment, then sat up as if abandoning treatment. She angrily squeezed the little yellow duck Tang Liuli had left in the bathroom, covering her face in frustration and releasing a despairing sigh from her dewy lips.
Although she hadn’t realized it immediately after leaving the stage, she sensed something was wrong after breaking free from her emotional state. The aspiring retired savior, who was soon to face elimination, understood the issue.
That being…
Did she really need to worry about how terrible her secondary rating was? As long as she didn’t make mistakes during the performance and didn’t hold back the other participants, it was already a significant victory!
Chu Yuanqing belatedly realized this, instantly overwhelmed by a massive wave of sorrow.
She sat in the bathtub staring blankly for ten minutes, feeling increasingly upset. She almost regretted becoming depressed and wished she could find a time machine to knock out her stage-frightened self.
So frustrated, she shouldn’t have cared about the curse of Sea of Truth! Clearly, just lying down and doing nothing would have been perfect for getting a low rating!
Chu Yuanqing felt so terrible she wanted to roll around. In her mind, even embarrassingly coughing up blood and fainting would have been far better than a second-rate victory.
Indeed, all these trendy thoughts of young people like “disappointing fans,” “living with eternal regret,” “failing on stage,” and “reverse purification” were completely foreign to a middle-aged office worker.
Chu Yuanqing just felt deeply regretful.
What a shame!
If she had actually fainted like that, everyone would certainly have thought she was a useless idiot, a coward who collapsed as soon as she stepped on stage, and she would have been immediately criticized, berated, condemned for wasting public resources, mocked for only being cute, and loudly told to leave “Dazzling Stage.”
Ultimately, with a perfect Grade F, she would have been voted out after the performance.
Chu Yuanqing blinked in disappointment, her beautiful eyes like the sea at dusk, shimmering with delicate and bright splendor as her long eyelashes fluttered. Even a casual glance revealed heartbreakingly pretty and stunning beauty.
The girl sighed heavily.
“I missed such a perfect opportunity.”
Oh, why had she unconsciously entered the Heart Flow?
Chu Yuanqing pondered for a moment and began to analyze.
Her unconscious entry into the Heart Flow represented a moment when she felt no shame or hesitation about dancing, even experiencing its charm, leading to complete immersion.
In other words, in that memory, Charlotte had quickly lowered her psychological defenses, embracing her own perfection and glory, causing her former self to ignore the aversion to dancing.
Upon realizing this, Chu Yuanqing felt somewhat embarrassed.
How dare Charlotte act like a succubus! She had misled me for the grand plan!
The girl pursed her lips, quietly daydreaming, afraid to revisit the past.
She held the yellow rubber duck with her long slim fingers, gently pressing on the rubber material. Her pink round nails touched the foam carried by the water ripples, naturally sliding off and then clenching again, creating a soft hum echoing in the room.
Chu Yuanqing got distracted while squeezing the duck, absentmindedly soaking in the bath.
The yellow duck is surprisingly entertaining, isn’t it?
Hmm, next time she could buy one for Little Shu too.
Just as this thought occurred, she was suddenly startled, immediately realizing something. She released the yellow duck in her hand, watching attentively as it wobbled and floated toward her toes with the water ripples.
Chu Yuanqing’s small face turned serious, as if confronting a formidable enemy:
“How frightening!”
“I can’t believe I actually enjoy playing with Little Liuli’s toys; the magical girl’s karma correction is too powerful!”
Chu Yuanqing felt she couldn’t enjoy the bath anymore. She had never taken baths when she was a workaholic, and now she felt the relaxation of bathing must also be a side effect of karma correction. She mustn’t indulge in it!
The girl stood up, water cascading down her skin as if reluctant to leave, sliding along her curves as she stepped out of the bathtub. She rinsed the foam from her waist and hips with the shower head, dried herself with a clean towel, and quickly donned a bathrobe.
Then, she examined herself in the mirror.
Pure white hair, clear golden eyes.
These were soon covered in pitch black, but mysteriously transformed into the most common colors found in Daxia.
——Perfect.
Chu Yuanqing touched the pendant buried in the snow mountain; after the unexpected incident on stage, the magical power source inside seemed to have expanded.
Although still not very proficient and unable to accomplish major feats, at least she didn’t have to concentrate so intensely just to disguise her eye and hair colors as before.
While drying her wet hair, Chu Yuanqing was lost in thought.
So, what should she do now?
Whenever she went outside, she always felt like numerous people were watching her, which made her senses feel strange.
But she couldn’t remain in the bathroom indefinitely, right?
As for training, she had worked diligently before to keep up, and now she had nearly reached the standard, so there was no need to push her weak body further.
Hmm, decision made, she should go find Little Shu!
Chu Yuanqing hadn’t forgotten the advantages of this identity; by staying near her daughter as a good friend, she could always observe a different side of her.
Besides, as she approached the end of her life, she still wanted to spend more time with her daughter, to witness more of how the child was growing up.
At this thought, Chu Yuanqing’s cold expression softened, her face gradually glowing like morning light, blooming like a gentle and holy water lily, exuding a serene maternal aura.
It seemed fate was playing tricks on her.
The lantern pendant in her hand felt as hot as lava, as if the magical power source in her body was reacting against her.
She had only been lost in thought for a brief moment when she suddenly felt intensely dizzy.
A sharp pain tore through her soul, and the images reflected in her eyes began spinning.
There was a loud crash as the hairdryer slipped from her hand and fell to the ground.
At that moment, the pain was like knives cutting into her nerves, and it felt as though a wild snake was thrashing in every corner of her senses.
Chu Yuanqing lost control of her body, trembling all over, eventually collapsing to her knees on the cold tiles. Her oversized bathrobe draped around her like fallen angel wings, making her appear even more fragile.
The girl’s face was pale, with a metallic taste in her throat. She coughed violently, her eyes reflecting an image that blurred like spreading red ink, tainted with a deep red stain.
Tick tock, tick tock.
The blood at the corner of her lips spread.
The crack in the depths of her soul widened further.
The erosion of the Sea of Truth slowly brought forth a sword.
The frail body was like a boat in a storm, swaying between miracles and reality.
For a long time, for a long time.
In the disheveled bathroom, the stunning blood red gradually faded away, like vanishing light particles in spontaneous evaporation, disappearing into the phenomenon.
Chu Yuanqing adjusted her clothes slightly, silently picked up the hairdryer from the floor, gazing at her delicate reflection in the mirror, with a complexion pale as a snow doll.
After that,
The girl lowered her eyes, turned on the hairdryer, blowing her hair half-dry, muttering contentedly as if nothing had happened:
“It’s not broken yet.”
“It’s not broken… I can still use it.”
…
…
Miracles and magic come with a price.
This is wisdom drawn from the past, and an eternal truth.
Nullparadox
Feels so bittersweet… in a way… maybe dying after leaving an impact on the world forever would be the ending I want to see -although I don’t want Mc to die…