Chapter 367: One Big Mess
Translator: Pluto Editor: Vermillion
If a journalist, armed with his pen and paper, attempted to record the current reunion, he would definitely be confused by the crazy scene of seemingly never-ending revelations...
As the main person of interest in this whole hoo-ha, at this very moment, Lin Sanjiu felt that she could barely keep up with her brain capacity. She wished she could have a few clones of herself just to handle the current situation.
But, well, that was out of the question. Consequently, a brouhaha erupted in Pumpkin Route. It was just one big mess with people discussing and letting out gasps of shock and anger.
"Are you telling me that the friend of yours who isn't affected by your ability is Lin Sanjiu?" Soulsqn asked. She still had the body of a teenage girl but she barely had the remnants of her two ponytails. She stood in a daze for a few minutes in the same spot before she finally understood what had happened. Ignoring what the cat doctor was currently preoccupied with, she rushed up to him with one large stride. Sounding reluctant to accept the truth and hoping for a slight miracle, she continued, "She doesn't look that powerful. I am sure it isn't her, right?"
Meowie Hu couldn't care less about Souslqn. He had one of his paws on Geran's shoe. "Don't move," he demanded. Just then, he suddenly received a nice head rub from Lin Sanjiu. His ears immediately perked up and quivered a few times from all that massaging. However, he was soon annoyed by Lin Sanjiu's non-stop consecutive questions: "Where did you go? How are you? What happened? How did you end up with the Souls?"
"Hey, everyone, just stop making so much noise! Just wait a while…"
The cat's voice had a natural sweet timbre which certainly could not compete against the ongoing conversations between Soulsqn and more than a dozen Souls. Geran, who had been subdued by Meowie Hu with a single look, was kneeling beside the cat doctor. He had a guilty look on his face as he mumbled on and on. No one could really tell what he was saying as his words were simply drowned by the cacophony of mind-boggling conversations.
Lin Sanjiu wished she could have four additional mouths to deal with all these people. She needed one to question Soulsqn, another to question Meowie Hu, one more to interrogate Geran. On top of all that, Puppeteer, who was still sitting behind her, was so taken aback by the turn of events that he had been speechless for a long time. He stared at her with an overcast expression waiting for her to explain herself.
The whole hubbub continued for quite some time until everyone realized that they couldn't resolve anything or make sense of the situation if it continued. Finally, everyone kept quiet. Lin Sanjiu took a deep breath and wiped the sweat from her forehead before looking at the cat on the ground and asking, "What is this all about? How did you end up with them?"
It was at this moment that Meowie Hu finally understood the confusion. He did not reply Lin Sanjiu but instead turned to look at the group of Souls with his widened eyes. His snow-white eyebrows immediately stiffened, "So the human that you want me to mesmerize is my friend?"
Several Souls exchanged glances and stared back with gaping mouths. After making some hissing sounds, they did not say a single human word. Once Meowie Hu was reunited with Lin Sanjiu, he betrayed Soulsqn without any hesitance. Swishing his tail, he told Lin Sanjiu about his encounter with the Souls and how they worked together to enter the amusement park in a few brief words.
"We were already deep in the amusement park. Somehow, someone accidentally stuck out his or her leg. So, the amusement park noticed us. In the end, we were all marked with player numbers," Meowie Hu still looked a little peeved when he brought up that topic. His smooth satin-like fur shone brightly. "Coincidentally, we were stuck right at the back of that arena. We couldn't move forward. Luckily, we met a group of posthumans there that had completed the station and were about to move. Those people even made comments like 'the show is ending soon'... In the end, disregarding whatever consequences there could be, the Souls decided to wear them on the spot."
The amusement park had probably never experienced such a complicated situation before. As a result, the Souls along with Meowie Hu somehow managed to deceive the amusement park.
Kneeling by Meowie Hu's side, Geran heard the entire process which led to his failure. He had a pained expression and looked regretful. Regardless of a person's original personality, anyone under Meowie Hu's charm would become guileless and sincere. Sighing and lamenting, Geran poured out his thoughts to Meowie Hu, "If only I knew the doctor was here… Their lives… Sigh. I'm to be blamed…"
"It's precisely your fault!" Lin Sanjiu thought to herself. She really had the urge to whip him a few times with her [Tornado Whip] but she managed to hold herself back. "Enough of your bullshit, where did you leave Reno and Rena?" she questioned furiously.
When Geran heard that, he turned and looked at her. Once he had his gaze on Lin Sanjiu, he immediately reverted back to his icy and controlled decorum of false courtesy. He gave her a faint smile and lowered his eyes without saying a word.
If Meowie Hu didn't question that man personally, he probably wouldn't answer. Lin Sanjiu gave the cat a signaling gesture. Before they could say anything, they heard a sudden muffled "thump" as if something had been punched away. Next, Lin Sanjiu saw something flying off in an angle.
If Lin Sanjiu didn't spot the two horn-like ponytails floating in the air, while that thing made a trajectory across the sky, she would not even know what had been punched into the air.
"What sort of creatures do you rear?"
Lin Sanjiu followed the trajectory to its origin and found Puppeteer sitting on the ground. He was so angry that even the corners of his eyes were twitching. As half of his face convulsed, he coughed and complained, "Why are there so many strange cats and dogs around you!"
"Did you get a pet dog?" the cat doctor immediately swung his head to look at Lin Sanjiu.
Lin Sanjiu did not even bother to answer. She quickly rushed over and checked Soulsqn's condition. Seeing that her eyes were still moving, Lin Sanjiu let out a sigh of relief and carried the creature.
"What happened?" Lin Sanjiu looked at Puppeteer and then at Soulsqn who had lost almost any semblance of a human form.
The attack Soulsqn received was definitely a little too much for her to handle. She couldn't speak even after some time. Once she could speak, Lin Sanjiu finally got the gist of the situation through her broken phrases. Soulsqn was unsatisfied with her current body for quite some time. When she noticed Puppeteer sitting on the ground looking weak and pallid, she was eager to push her luck so she released her pheromones…
Lo and behold, the pheromones did not work on him. Instead, Soulsqn found herself flying across the sky the very next second. She couldn't even tell how the attack landed. However, after this attack, her skin could no longer support its host. Lin Sanjiu could see a thing crawling within the loose and deformed human skin.
"Of all people, why would you try to offend Puppeteer." Lin Sanjiu tossed Soulsqn casually to AYU. She couldn't even bring herself to muster the slightest bit of pity. When she turned around again, her eyes grew wide.
"Let me tell you, considering your wounds, some other doctor might not even be able to diagnose you…"
Over these few months, the cat doctor had been pampered and many humans had taken good care of him. His fur was groomed and very shiny. He also looked well-fed with his tubby little round body accompanied by a tail. The cat doctor's ears moved as he spoke, "Don't worry. I only need to do a small operation. I will reconstruct part of your nervous s—"
Puppeteer looked at him with a slightly crooked head. He had an earnest and perplexed expression. His previous moody and agitated expression had disappeared from his face without a trace. He looked like a simple young man who seemed a little bashful. "Doctor, would it take long?" he asked softly, "I want to rush to the final pitstop."
"So, Puppeteer can't resist the cat doctor's charm? But he seemed pretty normal when he first saw Meowie…" Lin Sanjiu thought to herself, feeling flabbergasted.
However, when her gaze shifted, her heart froze.
Meowie Hu turned to eye her at the same time. Almost as if he had sensed her puzzled look, he quickly quipped, "Your friend's condition worsened after that attack, so he finally noticed my amazing presence. I was wondering about this too. One person who can resist my charm, like you, is more than enough…" The little cat had not finished his long-winding rant when he felt a sudden gust of wind. The fur on his back exploded.
"What are you doing— I still have an operation to do—"
"Enough, that person is gone!"
Hearing the shocked and anxious female voice, the cat immediately shut his mouth. His large green eyes turned to look at the same spot that Lin Sanjiu was staring at.
The spot where Geran had been kneeling obediently just a moment ago was now empty. There was nothing. Logically speaking, he should still be under the influence of the cat doctor…
Feeling a gush of blood shooting straight to her head, Lin Sanjiu couldn't help roaring at the ten over Souls, "What are your goddamn pairs of eyes for? Where is that person? Where did he go?"
Unfortunately, the Souls reacted even slower than her. AYU, who was carrying Soulsqn, turned around abruptly and only realized then that Geran had escaped without anyone knowing.
Just as she was about to get her answers, they let Geran escape at this crucial point!
Lin Sanjiu didn't know if she was feeling remorseful or just angry and alarmed. Even the tips of her fingers were trembling. Just as she was about to go off searching for him, she heard a person speaking with an unhurried voice.
"He mentioned that he was fully prepared, so he definitely had a way to regain control of his mind. Once his rationality returned, it is simply too easy for him to escape when you guys are not noticing." With Lin Sanjiu's interjection, Puppeteer's face returned to its usual sinister and effeminate appearance. It was as if that short glimpse of naive expression had never even existed in the first place. His wet black hair hung over his shoulders as he looked down at the cat doctor. His eyes were cold, as if they had never been charmed by that small animal, "I would advise you not to chase after him. There are 12 routes in this amusement park and you have no clue which route he would switch to."
Puppeteer's words made Lin Sanjiu feel like a deflated basketball.
"But what else can I do?" she replied with a bitter smile. "He is the only one that knows where my friends are… I need to look for him."
"If you want to make your own life difficult, it is none of my business." Whenever Lin Sanjiu expressed such opinions, Puppeteer would give her a disgusted look. This was no exception. After pausing for a while, he added, "Give me back my items, I want to go to the final pitstop now."
"Oh," Lin Sanjiu responded but froze when she had the cards in her hand.
"Final pitstop... Wasn't Geran's ultimate goal the present at the pitstop? Even though Puppeteer did not die like in Geran's plan, he had sustained serious injuries. If Geran was even half as adamant as he looked regarding wanting that present, he wasn't going to give up… That's right, he would definitely head for the final pitstop!"
Once Lin Sanjiu sorted out her thoughts, her heart raced and she found her motivation once again. She gave Puppeteer a strong pat on his shoulder as her voice quivered slightly, "I didn't even think of that! Let's go! We will follow you to the final pitstop. Don't worry about Geran getting to the present first. Leave him to us!"
After Lin Sanjiu patted his shoulder twice, Puppeteer scrunched his face tightly. Even though he had promised Lin Sanjiu that he would not kill her, it took him all every bit of his effort to hold back his murderous intent toward her.
Once Lin Sanjiu had decided on her next course of action, she felt very much at ease. However, even if she had already decided what she would do next, she faced a very tricky problem.
Once the amusement park issued the Souls and Meowie Hu their player numbers, they couldn't use their "green worm" strategy and act like they were inconspicuous objects. Even if they were already on Pumpkin Route, they were still one station away from the final pitstop. How were the cat doctor and the group of Souls going to complete the next station? This became a troubling matter.
"How about this? You should all go back to AYU's body. I will store your skins for all you." After discussing the problem for some time, and after Lin Sanjiu racked her brain over it for a long time, they could only come up with the following solution. "If it was only AYU and the cat doctor, it would be easier to protect you guys."
Ever since the cat doctor reunited with Lin Sanjiu, the Souls last hope of controlling Lin Sanjiu had been destroyed. Without any other choice and the lack of time as they needed to catch Geran before he reached the final pitstop, the group of Souls grumbled as they took off their human skins unwillingly.
When they returned to their original size, they squeezed into AYU body one after the other. Lin Sanjiu exhaled and turned away from them. It was only then that she realized that Puppeteer was still with them.
Puppeteer looked even whiter than before. Lin Sanjiu did not know if his injuries had worsened or if he turned pale after witnessing the Souls take off their human skins.
"Are you sure you can go the final pitstop in your condition?" Lin Sanjiu asked with some concern. After all, they did go through quite an experience together. "Judging from your appearance, I think it will be difficult for you to even last through one station… And, why are you still here?"
Puppeteer gave her a cold stare when he heard her words. The color of the glitter around his eyes had changed once again. They were now a bright red. It looked as if there was a patch of blood on his white face and somehow he seemed more ruthless, "Don't blame me if you continue wasting my time by not returning my items."