Chapter 099: Dimension 06

Chapter 099: Dimension 06

A moment later, the detective captain, nearly drowned in the sea of pink, heard a familiar voice that was like music to his ears.

"Uncle Li, I'm back," Yu Bai's voice approached from afar. "What should we do next? Should we discuss it?"

Qiao Jinmei, who had been talking incessantly, immediately turned her attention towards him, smoothly taking charge of the situation. "Come, let's discuss it together. Sit here. I was just asking Captain Li about the specific plot of that animation."

Li Nanxiao heaved a sigh of relief, looking at Yu Bai, who was walking into the room, with relief.

It seemed that staying indoors for too long had made him want to go outside for some fresh air.

As expected, with Xiao Bai's personality, how could he have left alone—

Until he noticed the silent steam rising from the white heat above Yu Bai's head.

It was an embarrassed red-eared kettle.

He then saw the aloof non-human beside him, who remained silent but had a faint smile on his face.

...

Alright.

So he had indeed slipped away earlier.

And now he was slipping back to avoid something else.

Li Nanxiao's relief came to an abrupt halt.

Three speechless black lines streaked across his forehead.

In the dimly lit room, the middle-aged man in uniform fell silent for a moment before shaking his head with a smile.

A curious question sounded beside him instantly. "What are you laughing about?"

"Nothing," Li Nanxiao replied instinctively. "I'm just feeling a bit sentimental."

After learning about those strange past events and personally experiencing the animated world, he suddenly realized that he didn't actually understand this child who he had watched grow up.

The days that lacked freedom and happiness had suffocatingly covered what should have been a vibrant and unrestrained nature.

"What are you feeling sentimental about?" The female voice beside him was filled with surprise. "Oh, this little ghost is so cute. Captain Li, did you suddenly think of something? Why do you look a bit melancholy—"

"...” The ghostly face quickly ascended, and fireworks-like veins popped out on the police uncle's forehead. "Alright, let's get down to business!"

Unaware of the boiling water above his head, the brown-haired youth enthusiastically agreed to change the subject. "Yes, let's talk about business."

"I'm thinking about how to describe the plot of this animation," Yu Bai, who began to think seriously, looked troubled. "It's a slice-of-life series, with roughly one story per episode. The plots are quite whimsical and mostly everyday trivial matters, not easy to summarize."

Li Nanxiao also entered a high-speed working state, pondering for a moment after hearing this, and asked the man beside Yu Bai, "Xiao Xie, you said you watched this animation in the loop, but you don't have those memories now, right?"

Xie Wufang nodded slightly.

Li Nanxiao then looked back at Yu Bai and said solemnly, "That means you're now the only person in this world who knows the plot of the animation."

"Eh?" Yu Bai was taken aback for a moment before quickly catching on. "Uncle Li, did you search for this animation?"

After finishing the call with Li Nanxiao, he had rushed over and hadn't had time to deal with this matter yet.

"Mm, there's no relevant information online, as if it doesn't exist at all," Li Nanxiao said. "I even asked a colleague who's very familiar with various anime works, and she's never heard of it."

Qiao Jinmei, who had been listening attentively, raised her hand to speak, her tone serious. "I've never heard of it either. Is this like that hypnosis thing where our original residents have been brainwashed?"

"It seems so," Li Nanxiao nodded. "Since this animation has merged with this space-time, it makes sense that the work itself would disappear. So..."

"So, there's a high probability that characters and plots from the animation exist in this world?" Yu Bai picked up where he left off, murmuring, "And I'm the only one who knows the content of the animation?"

Thinking of the ambitious title of the work, Li Nanxiao's expression was complicated. "Yes."

Thinking of the rather cringey title of the work, Qiao Jinmei's eyes lit up. "Then aren't you going to be the hero who saves the world? Too fun, just like an animated movie!"

Talking about something being like an animated movie while they were in an animated movie...

Li Nanxiao corrected, pinching the bridge of his nose. "This is an animated movie in itself."

Yu Bai couldn't help but laugh. "It sounds like a nesting doll."

After laughing, he felt that this topic should be a bit more serious, so he cleared his throat and said, "But even if I know the plot, it may not be of much use."

"One reason is that Prince and the aliens often change their appearances and blend in with the crowd. The second reason is... the manga author hasn't drawn the ending yet. I don't know if the alien villains' coup was successful or if humans will ultimately be annihilated."

As Yu Bai spoke, he sighed as if genuinely regretful. "What a pity. If the author had already drawn the ending, it would be great."

Li Nanxiao truly felt regretful about this, sighing along. "Yes, knowing the ending would make things much easier."

Looking at the transparent little ghost floating above his head, Yu Bai immediately reached up to touch his own head, then remembered that these special effects had no physical sensation, so he quietly moved to the wall with a mirror and took a glance.

"Huh." Looking at his uneventful head, he appeared surprised. "Where's my little ghost?"

"..." Li Nanxiao was silent for a moment before objectively evaluating, "Because your regret is fake."

A person who would actively linger in what should have been a monotonous time loop, stirring up countless new variations, would clearly prefer the thrill of an uncertain outcome.

Caught, Yu Bai gave a sheepish smile. "...Oh."

That little ghost special effect was really adorable.

He wanted one too.

Yu Bai thought about this, and in the reflection of the soft crown of his hair in the mirror, several transparent ghostly faces of little spirits really did float out.

---They slowly ascended to the heavens, then dissipated into the air.

His light brown eyes instantly lit up, and he blurted out, "Little Xie, look quickly! I have it too!!"

Because he regretted not having the little spirit special effect, the special effect representing regret appeared.

It was a case of nesting dolls, two for the price of one.

Xie Wufang followed the sound of his voice, a smile spreading across his eyes. "Mm, it's very cute."

After a brief moment of astonishment, Li Nanxiao also smiled, a smile that was both helpless and accommodating.

He waited until Yu Bai's excitement over admiring the little spirits had passed before saying, "Xiaobai, tell me everything you can remember about this animation. I'll write it down first. Although you said those aliens often change their appearance, we should be able to find some clues."

A criminal investigation team leader who always encountered difficult cases naturally had a life motto of facing challenges head-on, never giving up.

Yu Bai immediately responded, sitting properly next to the police uncle who had taken out his work notebook.

"Okay, let me think about where to start the story... Right, what's most memorable about this animation is probably the prince's catchphrase."

The pen tip moved immediately. "What catchphrase?"

"I'm looking for an opportunity. This line appears once at the beginning and once at the end of each episode. At the beginning, it's during the opening theme song, and at the end, after an episode's worth of daily adventures, other aliens would routinely ask about the situation, wanting to know when they could formally attack Earth. The prince, completely immersed in human life, would say this line impatiently."

"Opening theme song?"

"It means the animation's opening theme. After the opening theme song plays, the main part of the show begins."

In the neatly arranged room, Yu Bai earnestly recounted the plot of the animation, and Li Nanxiao wrote it all down. The pages rustled as they turned.

Qiao Jinmei, who couldn't help for the time being, walked away quietly, her body full of pink bubbles, afraid of disturbing the serious business the two were attending to.

She remembered the little spirits floating around the room earlier and went to the mirror, talking to herself. "Let me think about what regrets I have..."

Xie Wufang didn't disturb the two people at the table either.

He looked at Qiao Jinmei, who quickly conjured up little spirits by her side, and his expression froze.

Qiao Jinmei saw his gaze reflected in the mirror.

She already knew that this person had a mysterious background and powerful abilities. In Yu Bai's description, he was like a god-like existence, which led to the appearance of various alternate dimensions.

There were no gods on Earth, only humans and other animals and plants.

So, gods must come from outer space.

This was her first time seeing a living alien!

Qiao Jinmei immediately turned to look at him, her eyes filled with anticipation and a bit of reverence. "Handsome guy, want to chat?"

"..." Xie Wufang actually agreed. "Mm."

"Oh." Qiao Jinmei was excited yet nervous, momentarily unsure of where to start. She stammered, "Well, you're from which planet—"

But Xie Wufang spoke first.

"You're very good at lying."

It was a calm statement.

Qiao Jinmei was stunned. "Eh?"

"In the real world, you made them believe that you and your sister are the same person."

Qiao Jinmei laughed. "I do it quite often..."

"Won't you be found out?"

"Nope, at least not by guests who come rarely." Qiao Jinmei said, "Regular customers definitely know there are two of us."

Xie Wufang sincerely said, "You're very skilled."

To be praised by an alien!

...Just because she was good at lying?!

Qiao Jinmei was suddenly flattered and a little dizzy, hurriedly waving her hands. "There's nothing impressive about that, oh it's just a small thing, not worth mentioning."

"When you lie, your expression is very natural, as if the other person really is you." The non-human spoke with great seriousness. "So they didn't realize it was a lie."

"Is this a special trait of twins? Can you naturally convince yourself that you are the same person?"

The alien seemed to be curious about human lies.

Qiao Jinmei found it amusing, but after thinking about it, she answered him seriously. "No, although we look the same, our personalities are too different. People who know we're twins can see the difference at a glance."

"When we were young, we did have the idea of pretending to be each other, like going to class for the other, but it would soon be exposed... It took me a long time, trying again and again, before I could finally fool the teacher, even my parents."

As she spoke, her entire expression suddenly changed.

The expressionless Qiao Jinmei seemed to take a deep breath, her mouth stiffly curling into a smile. "...I'm in a very good mood."

But it was a cold tone, utterly unconvincing.

She looked exactly like the proprietress they had seen outside the bun shop before crossing dimensions.

After her words fell, Qiao Jinmei instantly changed her face, chuckling. "My sister is like that, she always says this sentence with a cold face, honestly, how does she look like she's in a good mood?"

Xie Wufang was stunned as he pondered, "So, could lies become more and more like the truth through practice?"

"Absolutely!" Qiao Jinmei had no qualms about corrupting a deity, "Success is mainly ninety-nine percent sweat, you know. With enough effort, even an iron rod can be ground into a needle, and those with determination will achieve their goals! Hey, do you have these sayings on your planet?"

"No," Xie Wufang replied politely, his gaze returning to her, "Thank you."

Watching him walk away, Qiao Jinmei asked curiously, "Where are you going?"

"To make a call."

Before his phone could ring in his pocket, the tall and lanky agent was sitting on the steps, quickly devouring his takeout.

A friend beside him teased, "Seriously, Ming? You're that excited?"

"You don't understand, I had a strong premonition today!" Xiao Ming said between bites, "He's definitely going to contact me, I just don't know when. Anyway, I need to prepare early. After I finish eating, I'll head back to tidy up my office. I want to present my best self when they arrive!"

"If only I had your drive, I wouldn't be worrying about money." His friend sighed in admiration, "But this prospect, is he really that good?"

"He is! I watched them finish shooting at dawn. They looked great on camera. Even Director Ge couldn't look away from the monitor for half an hour, refusing to let them leave. He kept saying he wanted the screenwriter to add more scenes for them, but they made it clear from the start that they were just here for a day..."

As Xiao Ming spoke, his phone rang at its loudest setting.

Startled, he thrust the takeout into his friend's arms and fumbled for his phone, "Hold this, my premonition is coming true!"

"You say that about every call—"

The screen displayed an unfamiliar number.

Without hesitation, Xiao Ming answered, and the air filled with clear images of storyboards.

His friend, who had been about to make a snarky comment, suddenly fell silent at the sight of the rare gray-blue lake.

Beside him, golden flowers bloomed around the agent's head as he smiled slightly, calm and collected, "Hello, hello. Nice to see you again. Is there something you'd like to ask me? Or we could just chat. I'm free right now."

"Mm," the man on the other end of the line said calmly, "Do you have teachers in your company who can teach fiction?"

"Fiction?"

"Like creating a TV drama."

Xiao Ming froze for half a second before his expression turned enthusiastic, a fiery passion igniting behind him, "You've come to the right person!"

Could it be that he wasn't content with just acting and wanted to pursue creative work?!

Yes!

Perfect!

A top-tier handsome man with both talent and looks would be even more irresistible!!