Chapter 359 Entering the World - Socially Anxious Witch in the Apocalypse

A few minutes later, Si Shu plummeted into the deep pit. She intended for the newly arrived British ability organization to inspect the pit. However, whatever actions they took triggered a massive collapse in the surrounding strata. A terrifying pull suddenly emanated from below the sinkhole. In the nick of time, Si Shu managed to take refuge inside a book. In the next moment, the entire book hurtled swiftly into the pit, its contents unknown. During her descent, Si Shu noticed traces of Si Ming and Pei Xiao Miao’s residual aura below, as though trying to convey some message. "Is that? An inner world passage opened by Si Ming." As she was about to plunge further into the unknown abyss, Si Shu made a quick decision. The book emitted a strong glow, momentarily breaking free from the abyss's pull. Utilizing the deep pit’s suction force, she quickly slipped into the inner world passage, resonating with Si Ming's remaining aura. Others weren’t as fortunate and perished one after another as they fell into the abyss. Before long, the sound of eerie chewing noises emerged from the depths below. Moments later, a strange voice echoed from the pit: “Escaped, escaped again, the tastiest prey has escaped…” …… On the Si Tian Platform. Time ticked by gradually. At first, Su Miao was anxious, but she eventually calmed herself, realizing that being anxious was futile. Lin Jiu Jiu, standing on the platform, was equally worried. However, noticing that Su Miao wasn't anxious anymore, she also began to let go of her worry. Five days later, Myna and Xia Xiao An woke up one after another. Groggily, they stumbled out of the villa, puzzled by the mutated persimmon tree before them. How did the cherry tree become a persimmon tree? They looked down again. The vegetable garden they tended to every day had disappeared, replaced by an incredibly steep peak. Below was a tremendously large platform with a technological aesthetic that seemed slightly odd. "Xiao An's awake!" Lin Jiu Jiu was delighted to see Xia Xiao An awake, eager to draw her attention. Based on what she knew, Xia Xiao An's mind-reading ability was quite formidable, especially after her last evolution. She could sense anyone with a mental fluctuation, be they alive or dead. She believed it would work this time too. However, after trying for a long time, Xia Xiao An, standing in front of the villa, showed no reaction at all. "Right, there's still Myna!" Feeling anxious, Lin Jiu Jiu turned to Myna, confident in Myna's treasure-hunting abilities to notice her presence. Regrettably, Myna's reaction was almost identical to Xia Xiao An's, showing no awareness of Lin Jiu Jiu. There was really no other way now. Should she voluntarily enter the inner world? …… "Su Miao, where is this?" Xia Xiao An asked, puzzled, as she surveyed the grand Si Tian Platform. Myna curiously observed the platform, feeling that something was off yet unable to pinpoint exactly what it was. "Jiu Jiu has gone missing," Su Miao said. "We might need to enter the inner world ahead of schedule." Shocked by the news, Xia Xiao An and Myna quickly checked their phones to realize five days had passed. Stunned. They had slept for five days again. No wonder they woke to see two Su Miaos. Because without doing so, they might have faced danger while asleep. "Su Miao, what about Si Ming and Si Shu?" Xia Xiao An inquired. Initially, it was Pei Xiao Miao who led Lin Jiu Jiu away, hence the responsibility fell on the Twelve Si. Su Miao replied, "After Si Ming opened the inner world, she encountered mishaps and lost contact. Si Shu went to investigate but also disappeared. The investigation into Jiu Jiu has been my responsibility, yet despite searching for a long time, I haven’t found anything." The magical phantom double stated, “Now that they’re awake, my job here is done.” She spread her hands, tousling Xia Xiao An’s hair, before dissovling into pure magic and returning to her main body. These past days spent searching endlessly on the Si Tian Platform, each time coming up empty, had truly been boring. Myna dared not speak a word, whether it be towards the double or the main body, both were Su Miao’s esteemed presence. “Now, there’s only one possibility left: Jiu Jiu must have entered the inner world,” Su Miao noted. "Later, when I enter the inner world, you can come along or choose to stay behind." Xia Xiao An declared, “Su Miao, I won't stay behind." Having experienced the hardships of wandering, Xia Xiao An no longer wished to leave this behind, thinking she might still offer Su Miao some help by staying. Myna concurred, “Your Grace, I’m coming too.” Su Miao smiled gently, “Okay, let’s eat first, then we’ll enter the inner world.” A few minutes later, Su Miao, Xia Xiao An, and Myna began relishing a meal of delectable grilled meat and dishes in front of the villa. Meanwhile, Lin Jiu Jiu quietly sat below the platform, taking out flatbread from her spatial storage and eating it with some water. She had tried climbing Su Miao’s towering mountain to reach in front of the villa. However, while approaching the mountain, Lin Jiu Jiu discovered something unusual. The mountain didn’t really exist; she walked through it, and her surroundings abruptly reverted to normal vision, as if the mountain was a graphical glitch in a game. But this was reality, not any holographic game. In that moment, Lin Jiu Jiu confirmed that she and Su Miao were not in the same time-space. In this time-space, she could see Su Miao, but Su Miao couldn’t see her… Lin Jiu Jiu considered whether to leave the Si Tian Platform to investigate further afield and validate her condition with others. Still, she wasn’t sure if she'd be visible outside the Platform, and others might be unable to see her like Su Miao. Moreover, over the past few days, Lin Jiu Jiu repeatedly checked her phone, hoping to find a connection. Yet there was consistently no network signal. Occasionally, when turning on her phone, strange, hair-raising noises would emit. Now, entering the inner world felt like her only choice, hoping she'd promptly reunite with Su Miao upon entering. Otherwise, she was truly at a loss. “Let's set off.” At the artificial mountain top, Su Miao withdrew the alloy villa back into her magical space, then descended with Myna and Xia Xiao An onto the Si Tian Platform. "Su Miao!" At that instant, Lin Jiu Jiu stood excitedly near the dream bubble leading to the inner world, calling out fervently to Su Miao, Xia Xiao An, and Myna. However, no amount of shouting drew any response from Su Miao. Hmm? Su Miao glanced over where Lin Jiu Jiu stood. Was it an illusion? No, it wasn’t an illusion! Su Miao retracted her gaze and focused on the dream bubble before her. Lin Jiu Jiu must have definitely entered the inner world. "Let’s go. We’ll meet Jiu Jiu in the inner world." “Mm.” Xia Xiao An nodded. For safety, Myna transformed into a little girl and held Xia Xiao An’s hand. Su Miao grasped Xia Xiao An’s hand as they entered the dream bubble together. Lin Jiu Jiu stood beside the dream bubble. In that fleeting moment, she was overjoyed, thinking Su Miao must have seen her. In the end, Su Miao merely cast a glance before leading Xia Xiao An and Myna into the dream bubble to the inner world. This time, Lin Jiu Jiu hesitated no longer and followed them in quickly. ...... Central Asia. The summit where the mutated cherry tree stood. An aircraft arrived nearby, and Artyom, piloting it, gazed up in dismay at the over 200-meter tall mutated cherry tree. To repay Su Miao, he had traveled to Europe with food supplies, using his connections and trades to gather a few spellbooks. Upon acquiring the spellbooks, Artyom promptly set off home. He intended to deliver the spellbooks to Su Miao before resuming his journey to gather more. But upon arriving, he found the alloy villa atop the peak gone, and the cherry tree that had been a few meters high months ago now towering over 200 meters. “Where has Her Highness gone?” A sense of helplessness overcame Artyom. Circumnavigating the peak several times, his awe for the mutated cherry tree grew with each orbit. Suddenly, several gigantic branches reached over, seizing the aircraft swiftly, drawing it to the peak. Inside the aircraft, Artyom was tossed, disoriented and dizzy. Facing extreme pressure that felt like death looming, in desperation, Artyom shouted, “I’m here on an errand for the Witch’s Highness!” He didn't know why he thought that; it was simply instinctive to shout those words. “I found spellbooks for Her Highness!” ? The dreadful pressure vanished instantly. Artyom felt the aircraft, which had been captured mid-air, now being “gently” placed back onto the ground. Subsequently, the hatch opened, and he was “politely” escorted out by a few of the mutated cherry tree’s branches. He sat listlessly on the ground, staring blankly at the mutated cherry tree before him. Although the oppressive sense of death had lifted, the encounter left an indelible impression upon his soul. “I came to deliver spellbooks for the Witch’s Highness, but it seems she’s gone…” Artyom explained to the mutated cherry tree. Whether or not the mutated cherry tree believed him, it did not devour Artyom and appeared to understand his mission upon hearing it. To further earn the tree's trust, Artyom retrieved a few well-preserved spellbooks from his spatial storage, their faint magical aura clearly signaling their value. In reality, before returning to Central Asia, Artyom had intended to contact Su Miao, only to find he couldn't. This left him in a muddle. Remembering how Su Miao was active on registered accounts like Weibo and the Midnight Snack app, Artyom tried sending private messages but received no response. “Su Miao must be incredibly busy right now, too preoccupied to go online,” Artyom reassured himself. So, he resolved to personally deliver the spellbooks here, confident this would certainly succeed. However, he was unaware that Su Miao had flown off with the villa; he had entirely missed any posts about Su Miao's villa taking flight. “Do you know where Her Highness the Witch has gone?” Artyom inquired, gazing at the mutated cherry tree. A drooping branch pointed in a single direction in response. Artyom was overjoyed, "Thank you for guiding me!" He was ready to set off immediately. Yet, looking at the wrecked aircraft in front of him, Artyom's face turned grim; it needed repairs before it could fly again. Previously, Su Miao had given him two aircraft; one was lost on the journey to Europe. Now the remaining aircraft had been dismantled by the mutated cherry tree... Perhaps noticing Artyom’s predicament, the mutated cherry tree rummaged through and produced several spatial storage containers for him, even plucking a large cherry to offer. Most cherries had been taken by Su Miao, leaving only a few on the tree. It was because Artyom was searching for spellbooks for Su Miao that he received one—certainly not out of concern that Artyom might mention the incident when meeting Her Highness... “Thank you, Your Excellency!” Artyom’s mouth watered at the sight of the beautiful cherry. He wasted no time devouring it. Delicious! In the next moment, Artyom lay down, falling into a peaceful sleep. The mutated cherry tree was quite familiar with this and paid it little attention. Conveniently, when Artyom awoke again, he'd likely forget the earlier unpleasantness due to his newfound strength. After ten days, Artyom awoke, staring with confusion at the pile of mutated tomatoes, potatoes, and other vegetables nearby. “I understand!” He turned to the mutated cherry tree, then looked at the mutated produce, resolving, "I’ll use these foods well to trade for more spellbooks for Her Highness." … Entering the inner world through the dream bubble, Su Miao anticipated a lengthy traversal of the spacetime passage, possibly encountering unknown dangers. In reality, it was just a single step, and with a blink, they arrived in an entirely new world. “Is this the inner world, Su Miao?” Xia Xiao An asked, perplexed by the desolation before them. Before them lay ruins with twisted metal and collapsed buildings strewn across dry streets, overgrown with weeds. The sky was a dismal dark yellow, devoid of birds or wind, save for the occasional distant mournful cries. Upon closer inspection, the origin of the cries revealed no people, no animals. It was all very unsettling. Surveying the environment, Su Miao sensed no malice, yet the surroundings instinctively made her uneasy. “Your Highness, I’m going to check it out,” Su Luoli suggested, intending to transform into her myna form for reconnaissance. Su Miao firmly pressed down on her shoulder, “Don’t move.” Retrieving an alloy staff, Su Miao cast a spell of magical perception. Instantly, a landscape different from the visible terrain appeared in Su Miao’s sight. Unseen nodes had densely appeared in the sky and on the land at some point. These nodes tangled together, causing spatial distortions that seemed ready to explode at any moment. Mage's Hands. Su Miao used the Mage's Hands to lift a large stone towards the distorted node area. Immediately, the stone shattered violently. “What is this, Your Highness?” Su Luoli was startled; nothing was visible in that area from her perspective. If she had flown up there unwittingly and collided with one, could she have survived? “I don’t know.” Su Miao drew a large steel plate from her magical space, tossing it onto the ground where the distortion nodes were. Instantly, an excruciating sound erupted as the 10cm thick steel plate twisted, shrank, and exploded with alarming speed—an intensely terrifying scene. “What is that, Su Miao?” Xia Xiao An was frightened. Hazards were above and below them; it was far too dangerous here. An unsuspecting person stepping in would surely meet a swift demise, wouldn’t they? “Look over there, Your Highness!” Myna pointed to an empty plot. On the edge of a distorted space node lay a pool of fresh blood and a severed hand. (End of the chapter.)