Chapter 49: The Vanishing of Lili

With a gentle wave of Xia Jiuwei's hand, the Under-Reality Management Manual appeared once more. A second later, Lili bounced cheerfully out of its pages.

"Master! You finally decided to visit the zombie world!"

Looking up at Xia Jiuwei with sparkling eyes, Lili could barely contain his excitement.

"Yeah."

Her answer remained as calm as ever.

"Yay! Then Lili will take you there right now!"

A faint, translucent energy flowed from Lili's tiny body, enveloping the two of them.

The surrounding space shimmered and twisted. When their vision cleared again, they found themselves standing somewhere completely unfamiliar.

Well-preserved buildings surrounded them, bordered by neatly trimmed lawns. The streets were spotless, while a brilliant blue sky stretched overhead, dotted with a few lazy white clouds drifting across the horizon.

By every appearance, it looked like a vibrant city overflowing with life.

Xia Jiuwei slowly looked around.

"Lili, didn't you say this was the zombie world?"

"Nope, Master."

Lili shook his head.

"This is the Under-Reality of the zombie world."

Xia Jiuwei and Lu Nian'an exchanged a glance before looking back at him together.

"You mean... this is the zombie world's Under-Reality?"

"Yep. Is something wrong?"

Lili tilted his head innocently.

After a brief silence, Xia Jiuwei asked,

"Then why doesn't it look like an Under-Reality at all?"

"Because the more tragic reality becomes, the prettier its Under-Reality usually is!"

Lili puffed out his chest proudly.

"I've even seen places much prettier than this."

Then, as if suddenly remembering something, he clapped his hands.

"Oh! But I can only bring you this far."

"I've got a lot of work to do after this."

Reaching behind his back, he produced a small booklet bound together with simple paper and handed it to Xia Jiuwei.

"This is for you, Master."

"But don't open it until after I've left."

He waved enthusiastically at both of them.

"Bye-bye!"

His tiny body dissolved into countless motes of light before disappearing entirely.

Xia Jiuwei lowered her eyes and opened the booklet.

Every page was filled with adorable illustrations, each featuring little doodles of Lili himself.

Across the top of the first page was written:

Master, if you're reading this sketchbook, it means Lili won't be able to stay by your side as your your little butler for quite a while.

But don't worry! Lili is perfectly safe. I'm just very, very busy.

She flipped to the next few pages before spotting a cute cartoon zombie.

Beside it were the words:

Congratulations, Master! You've successfully fused with your first true Under-Reality—the Under-Reality of the zombie world!

Anything you could do within Earth's Under-Reality should work here too!

Xia Jiuwei frowned slightly.

Continuing onward, the following pages began explaining the relationship between different worlds and their respective Under-Realities.

Beside the explanation was a honeycomb-shaped diagram.

Every world has another side of its own, and together those hidden sides make up the greater Under-Reality.

To keep different worlds from interfering with one another, barriers exist between their Under-Realities, much like the walls separating the cells of a honeycomb.

The final pages were filled with small illustrations resembling quest icons.

Until Master becomes strong enough to break through those barriers on your own, Lili will gradually unlock new worlds for you.

When you become really, really strong someday, don't forget to come find Lili!

After reading the final page, Xia Jiuwei remained silent for a long time before handing the booklet to Lu Nian'an.

After finishing it herself, Lu Nian'an also fell silent.

"So..."

"Where exactly did Lili go?"

"I don't know."

Xia Jiuwei immediately tried summoning Lili again.

Once.

Twice.

Several more times.

Nothing happened.

Her brow furrowed deeper with every failed attempt.

"What now?"

Lu Nian'an looked at her.

"Lili already said he's fine."

"So let's not worry too much for now."

Even as she said those words, her own brows remained knitted together.

Normally, Lili wasn't particularly noticeable.

But the cheerful little fellow had somehow become part of their daily lives, and now he'd suddenly vanished, leaving behind only a mysterious little booklet.

For some reason, that left an uncomfortable irritation lingering in her heart.

After a while, she suddenly asked,

"Mia... do you remember why we came here in the first place?"

"...To relax."

Xia Jiuwei answered quietly.

"And how do you feel now?"

"Worse."

"Then that's exactly why we should go relax."

Lu Nian'an reached out and pinched her cheek.

"I'll remember what happened to Lili."

As she spoke, she summoned her black booklet and, right in front of Xia Jiuwei, carefully wrote everything down.

"There."

"Happy?"

"When we're stronger, we'll go find him."

"But until then, don't keep exhausting yourself over something you can't change."

Xia Jiuwei stayed quiet for a while before finally nodding.

"...Alright."

Seeing the reluctant expression on her face, Lu Nian'an couldn't help laughing.

"Forget it."

"I'll just show you something interesting."

Closing her eyes, she quietly expanded her perception.

With the authority she now possessed, it didn't take long before she located an unusual presence somewhere within this world.

When she opened her eyes again, a smile had already appeared.

"I found a very interesting Lost One."

"Want to go meet him?"

Xia Jiuwei still looked somewhat dispirited.

"...But I don't plan on saving anyone anymore."

Lu Nian'an gently lifted her chin, making her meet her gaze.

"Who said anything about saving people?"

"We're just going to have some fun."

"Just like before."

"You weren't saving people."

"You were simply accompanying me while we recorded interesting stories."

Xia Jiuwei blinked.

Seeing that adorably blank expression, Lu Nian'an couldn't help laughing.

"Understand?"

With both cheeks being held in Lu Nian'an's hands, Xia Jiuwei could only nod frantically, making for a rather comical sight.

"Hey—"

Before she could protest, black shadows swallowed them both.

The next instant, they vanished.

A middle-aged man with blue eyes and brown hair walked cautiously down the immaculate street.

His name was Charles.

The orderly buildings and cloudless blue sky only made him more vigilant.

Everything looked...

Too normal.

Far too normal for an apocalypse.

His eyes continuously swept across street corners, shadows, and every possible blind spot.

Only after confirming the immediate area appeared safe did he allow himself to relax slightly.

Then—

Footsteps echoed from somewhere ahead.

Charles immediately slipped behind the corner of a nearby building.

Most of his body disappeared behind the wall, leaving only a pair of sharp blue eyes watching the street.

His pistol was already off safety.

The footsteps grew closer.

Each step felt like it was landing directly on his nerves.

He exhaled quietly, forcing himself to stay calm.

When the footsteps finally stopped, two young women came into view.

Judging from their appearance, both were likely Asian.

Before Charles could react, one of them spoke first.

"You can come out."

"There's no point hiding."

"I can already see you."

Charles frowned.

After a brief hesitation, he stepped out with his pistol raised.

"Get down!"

His voice was low and urgent.

The gun remained fixed on the pair while his eyes never left their hands.

The instant they made any suspicious move—

He would fire.

Neither girl reacted.

They simply looked at him quietly.

His finger slowly tightened around the trigger.

Then—

Click.

The pistol suddenly began dismantling itself.

Thin ribbons of black shadow wrapped around the weapon, calmly disassembling it piece by piece.

Within seconds, every component had fallen neatly onto the ground.

"Relax."

Lu Nian'an spoke calmly.

"If we really wanted to kill you..."

"It wouldn't have taken this long."

As her words fell, the shadows behind her stirred.

Several enormous shadow beasts slowly emerged from the darkness before silently sinking back beneath it.

Charles fell silent.

The fighting spirit he'd painstakingly built vanished almost instantly.

Without a word, he removed every hidden weapon from his body one by one and placed them on the ground.

Finally, he raised both hands.

"Don't be so nervous."

Lu Nian'an gave a small wave.

"We're not your enemies."

"Come have some tea first."

She casually snapped her fingers.

A beautiful manor appeared on the empty lot beside them.

Charles' pupils contracted.

For several seconds, he simply stood there, speechless.

Meanwhile, Lu Nian'an had already begun walking toward the front door.

"Come in."

After entering the foyer, Charles barely had time to look around before Xia Jiuwei reminded him,

"Please change into slippers first."

He looked down at his combat boots.

Then at the spotless wooden floor.

After a moment of silence, he obediently changed into the provided slippers.

The house was remarkably quiet.

Beyond the massive floor-to-ceiling windows, snow drifted gently beneath a moonlit sky, silver light spreading across the frozen landscape.

Charles stood motionless for several seconds.

"...Incredible."

Only moments ago, it had been broad daylight outside.

Yet here, it was already night.

"Have a seat."

Lu Nian'an gestured toward the sofa opposite them.

Once Charles sat down, shadows spread across the coffee table.

As they withdrew, all the weapons he'd left outside had been neatly arranged before him.

"Take care of your own belongings."

Lu Nian'an spoke flatly.

"I'm not interested in storing them for you."

Charles quietly gathered his weapons before finally noticing the black tea and pastries waiting on the table.

He lifted the teacup and took a sip.

His movement stopped immediately.

"...That's good tea."

"It really is."

Xia Jiuwei nodded in agreement.

She liked it very much as well.

Setting down the teacup, Charles looked back at the two women.

"...You're not from Earth, are you?"

Without changing her expression, Lu Nian'an answered,

"You can think of us as..."

"...beings that stand above worlds."

Xia Jiuwei immediately shot her an exasperated look.

"Don't listen to her."

"We're only the masters of this world."

Charles was silent for two seconds.

Then he realized...

That explanation wasn't any more normal.

After a brief silence, Lu Nian'an set down her teacup.

"Since you've accepted our hospitality..."

"Let's make a deal."

Charles nodded politely.

"My name is Charles."

"And yours?"

"Lu Nian'an."

She gestured toward the person beside her.

"Xia Jiuwei."

After Charles acknowledged them with a nod, Lu Nian'an got straight to the point.

"You already know you're no longer on your original Earth, correct?"

"I do."

"Good."

"That makes this simple."

"We're interested in your world."

"We've heard it has zombies, so we'd like to take a look around."

"Would you be willing to show us?"

Charles blinked in surprise.

He had been expecting some impossible request.

Instead...

It was something this simple.

"You want to experience the apocalypse?"

"More or less."

Lu Nian'an nodded.

"In exchange..."

"We'll send you home."

Charles lowered his head in thought.

A moment later, his expression turned awkward.

"Well..."

"There really used to be zombies everywhere."

"But over the past few years, their numbers have dropped dramatically."

Looking at the two of them, he asked,

"...You still want to see it?"