Chapter 68 - Role Playing the Dark Horse Character

Chapter 68: Who is Li Baige? The revelation that Yi Ming's adoptive father and the Prophet are the same person is an incredibly significant piece of information! In the manga "Beyond Black and White," there is very little description of Yi Ming's adoptive father, Shuang Buyan—most of what there is comes from Yi Ming's occasional, blurry recollections. As far as Li Li knows, even though Shuang Buyan is Yi Ming's adoptive father and is kind and open-minded, their relationship is more akin to a mentor and a friend, without any authoritative airs. He has adopted Yi Ming in a free-range manner, frequently leaving early and returning late or going on long business trips. Nonetheless, whenever he spends time with Yi Ming, he ensures that Yi Ming feels the warmth of a father. He teaches Yi Ming kindness, friendship, and family affection, guiding him on how to grow up safely in this cruel world even with his low-level status. Yet, Shuang Buyan only ever advises Yi Ming to take good care of himself and be kind, learning to do what he can; he never says, "You must save all the suffering you see." Li Li once doubted Shuang Buyan's identity and, after discovering the existence of the former Ability Guild, wondered if Shuang Buyan was a former member. But the news of Shuang Buyan being the Prophet truly shocked her. Did the Prophet foresee that Yi Ming would lead the Tides, and that's why he adopted him? But if that's the case, why was he teaching Yi Ming to be so selfless? Or is this also a part of the prophecy? Li Li thinks it indeed might be so. She recalls when she first met Yi Ming—a brown-haired boy with his own ideas but who mostly listened to Shuang Buyan. It was only after he broke free from Shuang Buyan’s guidance and became independent that he truly grew into the leader the Tides needed. Perhaps the early education was only suppressing Yi Ming's true nature, making him more resilient and rational once the suppression was lifted. The seagulls circled in the sky of Desolate Dragon, and with their calls, a system prompt sounded. [Target update detected.] [Opening channel for you...] [Welcome back to reality.] Her roommate was spending the night in the library, leaving Li Li alone in the dormitory. As her soul returned to her corporeal body in the real world, Li Li gazed at the computer screen lighting up before her, her eyes slightly dimmed. It was just too coincidental. Once the equation of the Prophet equaling Shuang Buyan held true, Li Li found herself inadvertently assigned the identity of "having been adopted by the Prophet," effectively making her Yi Ming's brother. Hei Ge's purpose in going to Desolate Dragon, his expectations of Yi Ming and his efforts to spur Yi Ming’s growth were all explained. He learned of the prophecy from the Prophet, thus he came to Desolate Dragon, wanting to meet the prophesied young man. Then, moved by the boy’s sincere emotions, he unintentionally revealed his true self. Just like being immersed in a dream, after waking, he personally severed this bond, once again leaving him solitary. Even Li Li herself had to admit: The story was beautiful and tragic! Though at the time, she didn’t think of all this. "So coincidental," she murmured, her fingers habitually drumming on the desk as she pondered. "It’s as if Shuang Buyan has known since six years ago that I would appear, that my intervention was part of his prophecy, and that even after my intervention, everything would unfold exactly as his prophecy showed." Qu Yan confidently presented the Prophet’s head, and the reactions of Hua Yizhi and others indicated that, in their eyes, Shuang Buyan was already dead. Could this Prophet, who died six years ago, truly have foreseen today? Li Li took a deep breath, leaned back in her chair, and asked, “System, do you have any connection with the Prophet?” Her transmigration, her emergence, felt as if caught in a web amidst her rapidly turning thoughts. The manga clearly gave the timeline: six years ago, Yi Ming's adoptive father went missing, prompting him to live independently, combining his adoptive father's teachings with his personal experiences to navigate society with abilities. Six years ago was when the former Ability Guild underwent a massive upheaval, and the Prophet along with other high-ranking members perished. Six years later, Yi Ming encountered Li in Desolate Dragon, which initiated a change in his mindset, breaking away from Shuang Buyan’s teachings. In Li Li’s imagination, the eventual leader of the Tides would only be Yi Ming, never Hei Ge. She was just a selfish person, focused solely on surviving. To achieve this, she crafted a persona, stirring up storms in the manga world by adhering to it. It was like entering a virtual reality game—and she was simply playing a role in it. Her goal was never to lead a rebellion. Li Li never arrogantly thought herself capable; even in role-playing, she walked on a tightrope, never considering herself strong or remarkable. Therefore, the leader of the Tides could only be Yi Ming—the main character of the manga, the true protagonist of the prophecy. So did the Prophet indeed predict it all? Including Li Li's arrival and the series of actions she took for popularity? The system’s answer was as unchanging as ever. [Please explore on your own.] Li Li raised an arm to cover her eyes. “This just makes me think you’re hiding something, system,” she said. The seed of doubt had been planted in her heart, starting to sprout slowly. "This illusory world hides a lot of secrets," she said softly. "So are you, system." One day, she would uncover the secrets behind the system and make this "explore on your own" phrase nonexistent. ... As finals approached, not having to visit the manga world was somewhat of a blessing for Li Li. After a disagreement with the system, she dove back into her studies, waiting for the next update of the manga. This time, the update covered the conclusion of events in Four-Way City with An Huyu and Yi Ming, among others. After accepting his brother’s death, An Huyu changed significantly. Tears still marked his face, but when he stood up and turned to look at Rao Yue, his expression was entirely different, showing resolve. "Do you want the power of the Yue family?" he asked Rao Yue. He seemed to calm his mind and analyze everything Rao Yue had done. "You must want it, or else you wouldn’t have offered me benefits in the end. You want my support because my surname is An. After my brother’s death, I am also the patriarch of the An family," he said. Rao Yue showed a hint of surprise, not expecting the 'little wastrel' to utter such words. "Yue Qing is dead, Yue Fu is dead, Yue Lan also died long ago. Now in the Yue family, you are the only direct subordinate, and only you have the ability to control this family," An Huyu said. "But it’s still difficult for you because your surname isn’t Yue." Bingo. Rao Yue crossed her arms and said directly, "So what do you mean?" "I can help you hide your betrayal, help you handle the questions from the Qu family, including the Yue family you want," An Huyu said, seeming to suppress something in his expression. "And I want you to tell me why they wanted to kill my brother." "Why did Qu Yan come all the way to Four-Way City, wanting to take action against my brother?" The red-haired youth stood upright, his demeanor like an unsheathed sword at that moment. He said, "I want to know everything my brother hid." And Rao Yue simply said, "Fine." She looked at the red-haired youth in front of her, with a gaze full of unfamiliarity, as if recognizing a new stranger. "I hope you can accomplish all your claim." Meanwhile, Yi Ming and Tang Zheng prepared to return to the An residence for another night, suddenly remembering their original purpose. "Darn, where's Yu Xiao?" Yi Ming slapped his forehead. They hurried back, retracing their steps to the side hall where they found Yu Xiao in the basement. "What took you guys so long?" Yu Xiao looked aggrieved, "This place is so creepy, and then there was an earthquake." Yi Ming and Tang explained, "Well..." They had forgotten because of everything going on. "The vines that were tying me up disappeared, I was about to leave, and then an earthquake happened," Yu Xiao said as he followed them out of the side hall basement. "What the heck happened?" Yi Ming paused, then said, "A new friend I made lost his brother." "Like you?" Yu Xiao asked. "..." Yi Ming replied, “Li might not be dead, just unwilling to see me." Yu Xiao's expression showed disbelief. The three of them talked like this to get through the chaotic night. The An residence next to the Yue residence was greatly affected, but they went to another An residence—where An Huyu and An Heyu resided. An Huyu spent the whole night sorting through the assets, contacts, and resources left to him by An Heyu. Just as Yi Ming and his party were about to volunteer help the next day, An Huyu returned home to find them. "Yi Ming," after a night had passed, An Huyu showed dark circles under his eyes, weary yet more mature. "I wanted to ask you something before, but never got the chance." "What is it?" Yi Ming and the others were still at the An family's mansion, standing in the living room as they spoke. An Huyu turned aside, and a person stepped in from behind the door. He said, "Earlier, Tang mentioned you're here looking for someone, and since you talked about Li, I thought you meant Li Baige." The person who walked in had black hair and eyes, a choker around his neck, and a cold expression. "Li!" Yi Ming exclaimed in surprise. But then he sensed something was amiss: "No, Li is avoiding me!" He scrutinized the person standing before him and said, "He wouldn't just appear here like this!" Hearing this, An Huyu massaged his forehead and said, "I don’t know why you think Li Baige is him, but you’re definitely mistaken." He pointed at the person and said, "His name is Hundred Face, not the Li you know." At that moment, Hundred Face’s appearance began to change. He transformed from the familiar figure to Yi Ming into an unfamiliar, distinctly handsome young man. "Yi Ming," An Huyu said, "he disguised himself as this person because the nobility wanted to use this individual to lure out Hei Ge, but that person is already dead." He looked over with a regretful gaze, "This information came from my brother's ability and it's not wrong." "The Li you're looking for is dead." Yi Ming paused for a moment and asked, "Then who is Li Baige?" The perspective of the manga shifted at this point, moving from Yi Ming's bewildered profile to the 'Heart' Plaza full of white doves at rest. The doves were startled into flight, and under the flurry of wings, a black-haired young man stood at the center of the plaza, a slight smile playing on his lips. He gazed at the sky full of white doves, as if seeing through their pure white wings to something beyond. "If you were still alive, you’d probably scold me," he said. In the next panel, the white doves transformed into black crows, and the man chuckled quietly among them. "But this is the path I've chosen." The crows then disappeared from the scene.