Chapter 92 p2
Before millions of viewers, Chi Lin led Nine Heavens to victory once again, winning the Winter World Cup.
And Lou Mi, throughout the match, was her biggest fan, cheering her on from the audience.
The match ended, and celebrations erupted online and offline.
But still, some haters lurked in the shadows.
“Haha, trying so hard to prove something, must be hiding something.”
“Such a cheesy way to show off their relationship. Okay, okay, we get it, your sister and little sister are together, big deal.”
Gao Xiang, Wei Zhuoning, and the others couldn’t stand it anymore and confronted the haters directly.
“You were the ones saying she was using an alt account, you were the ones saying she was a substitute, and now you’re still talking shit after being proven wrong? Does your face hurt?”
“She’s successful, happy, and her family is supportive, what about you? Misery loves company.”
“Someone’s actually hating on our Little Sister Lin? How pathetic.”
“Wait, where did you get that profile picture? Little Sister Lin looks so cute in her uniform! Need the original image!”
“Me too!”
“Oh my god, so adorable! How can there be such a cute girl in the world! My mommy heart is exploding!”
“How can I have a daughter like Little Lin? Asking for a friend!”
The fans flooded the haters’ posts with praises and requests for photos, drowning out the negativity, forcing the haters to delete their comments.
The long Winter World Cup finally came to an end with the arrival of spring.
Thanks to Chi Lin, it was a perfect ending.
The professional player “Lin,” through two high-stakes matches, earned enough points to enter the Hall of Fame rankings.
She looked at her ranking on the official website. She was at the bottom, thousands of places away from Lou Mi at the top, but she was happy.
She finally had a place in Lou Mi’s world, the world of esports.
This was the beginning of her pursuit, a very important beginning.
Nine Heavens would skip the qualifiers for the summer tournament and enter the finals directly.
With several months until the summer season, Nine Heavens took a week-long break.
Lou Mi was finally discharged.
On the day she left, the nurses and doctors came to see her off.
Lou Mi didn’t see any sadness on their faces, only the relief of finally getting rid of a troublesome patient.
Chi Lin no longer had to rush between school and the club, but she still had an important task:
To help Lou Mi regain her past life memories.
They had tried all the online methods and props, which only resulted in embarrassment for Lou Mi, and she didn’t want to try any more of those.
Chi Lin decided to describe scenes and events from their past life to trigger Lou Mi’s memories.
After a few attempts, Lou Mi’s memories hadn’t returned, but she was filled with jealousy.
Chi Lin finally understood Lou Mi’s earlier mood swings; she had been jealous…
When Chi Lin recounted their first meeting at the Imperial Academy, Lou Mi accused the Empress of being glib.
When Chi Lin described the Empress writing love poems and flying kites, Lou Mi called it cheesy and polluting.
Chi Lin was puzzled: “Do you want me to talk about it, or not?”
Lou Mi, finishing a piece of cake, realized her childishness.
“It’s not that I don’t want you to talk about it, it’s just… I don’t remember any of it, and it feels like listening to you talk about your relationship with someone else, it’s hard to bear.”
Chi Lin, putting herself in Lou Mi’s shoes, understood.
But what could she do?
“There’s only one thing left to try.”
Chi Lin took out her phone and calculated the dates.
“Try what?”
“One more month…” Chi Lin muttered to herself.
“One month?”
Chi Lin didn’t elaborate, as this was dangerous, and she had to do it alone.
She planned to travel through the abyss again during the next astral convergence and return to Dayuan.
To their private residence in Shangjing, to retrieve their letters.
From their first innocent affections to their passionate love, during the days they couldn’t see each other, they wrote each other several letters every day.
Sharing their daily lives, their thoughts, their experiences, and their feelings.
They exchanged letters when they met, sometimes receiving a large stack.
Her Majesty had always been intelligent and perceptive, her letters to Chi Lin filled not only with love and longing, but also with her own insights and growth.
When their private residence was built, before ascending the throne, Her Majesty had moved all their belongings there for safekeeping.
It was a place only the two of them knew.
Now, with the chaos in Shangjing, she didn’t know if their residence was still intact.
Chi Lin wanted to retrieve some of their belongings, partly to preserve these precious mementos, and partly to show them to Lou Mi, hoping that seeing the Empress’s letters would trigger her memories.
Of course, she would hide anything that might make Lou Mi jealous again.
During this month, Chi Lin focused on her studies and exams, but she also continued her research, looking for ways to trigger Lou Mi’s memories.
She still went to the club. Slay’s parents, feeling that holographic esports was too dangerous, didn’t want him to continue playing professionally, so he retired from the team.
Chi Lin officially became the fifth member of Nine Heavens’ main team.
With some time until the summer tournament, Lou Mi told Chi Lin to prioritize her studies and not worry about the club for now, they could discuss it during the holidays.
Chi Lin’s mind was already in Dayuan.
She counted down the days, finally reaching the next astral convergence.
She was going back, her first true journey through the abyss, back to her homeland.
That weekend, Lou Mi noticed something was off with Chi Lin from early morning. She seemed distracted.
She asked Chi Lin to bring her a carton of milk, and Chi Lin brought her a bottle of soy sauce.
Lou Mi looked at the soy sauce, then at Chi Lin.
“Sorry…” Chi Lin snapped out of her daze and awkwardly took the soy sauce back to the kitchen.
When she returned with the milk, Lou Mi asked:
“What are you thinking about? You’ve been distracted all morning, you didn’t even practice your martial arts.”
Chi Lin shook her head, her hands behind her back, looking like she was ready for interrogation but wouldn’t reveal a single word.
Lou Mi was now certain: Chi Lin had something on her mind.
Not wanting to pressure her, Lou Mi pretended to go about her own business, secretly observing Chi Lin.
As night fell, Chi Lin looked out the window for a while, then went to the bathroom and started filling the bathtub.
Lou Mi, who had been eavesdropping outside, heard the running water and recalled the day Chi Lin and the original Chi Lin had switched back in the bathtub. Now Chi Lin was going in alone? What was she planning?
The bathtub filled with water. Chi Lin brought a dagger she had prepared earlier.
She had never traveled to the other side of the abyss and didn’t know what awaited her, but for Lou Mi’s sake, for the hope of triggering her memories, and to retrieve some of Her Majesty’s belongings, she had to take the risk.
Just as she was about to step into the bathtub, someone hugged her from behind.
“Sister?” Chi Lin hadn’t expected Lou Mi’s sudden appearance.
“Where are you going?” Lou Mi looked at the bathtub, her voice anxious. “What are you doing? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I have something to do, I’ll be back soon.” Chi Lin tried to reassure her.
“What is it? I’ll go with you.” Lou Mi’s eyes were sharp, her voice firm.
“No!” Chi Lin immediately refused.
“Why?”
Chi Lin had to tell the truth: “Shangjing has fallen, it’s engulfed in war, there are rebels everywhere, it’s too dangerous for you.”
“You’re going back to Shangjing? What for?”
“To retrieve Her Majesty’s letters.”
Lou Mi’s heart ached: “So, you’re risking your life just for her letters…”
Chi Lin quickly explained: “I’m bringing them back for you to see, hoping the contents will trigger your past life memories. Sister, don’t misunderstand.”
Lou Mi insisted: “I’m going with you.”
“But…”
“If it’s that dangerous, I definitely can’t let you go alone. Don’t worry, I might not be as skilled as you, but I can still hold my own, I won’t be a burden. Besides, have you considered that seeing Shangjing with my own eyes might be a better way to trigger my memories than just reading letters?”
Despite her usual antics, Lou Mi was surprisingly sharp when it mattered.
Chi Lin was convinced.
If Lou Mi could see Shangjing, see her own kingdom and era, it might indeed trigger her memories.
“But,” Chi Lin had to be honest, “I can’t guarantee you can come with me, I’ve never been to the other side myself.”
“What about last time, when you and that other person jumped in together?”
“We switched back within the abyss, we didn’t actually reach the other side.”
Lou Mi couldn’t comprehend an “abyss,” but she could imagine a black hole.
This bathtub was like a portal connecting the present era to ancient times, a gateway to another dimension.
The thought made her heart race.
“We have to try, it’s better than blindly grasping at straws.” Lou Mi said. “Take me with you. If I can’t go through, we’ll figure something else out.”
Chi Lin reluctantly agreed.
She bit her finger. The sight of blood startled Lou Mi.
“What are you…”
Chi Lin touched her finger to Lou Mi’s lips: “I need my blood to take you with me. You have to…”
Before she could finish, Lou Mi’s warm tongue touched her fingertip.
A tingling sensation shot through Chi Lin, and she said softly, “Don’t be silly.”
Lou Mi swallowed Chi Lin’s blood and looked at the bathtub. A deep, black abyss had appeared at the bottom.
It truly was an abyss, bottomless.
Chi Lin asked, “Sister, are you afraid?”
“No,” Lou Mi said. “As long as you’re with me, I’m not afraid of anything.”
They held hands and stepped into the abyss.
Chi Lin had warned Lou Mi that only the water at the surface was real, and once inside, she would be able to breathe normally, there was no danger of drowning.
Lou Mi had been skeptical, but as she entered the abyss, she found herself in complete darkness, with only a faint light in the distance, and she could indeed breathe.
Chi Lin pulled her towards the light. Lou Mi tried to speak, but her voice was swallowed by the darkness.
She couldn’t see Chi Lin, only feeling her hand holding hers tightly.
Gradually, the distant light grew brighter, and she could make out Chi Lin’s silhouette.
Suddenly, Lou Mi felt like she had passed through something. She looked back and almost gasped.
Their bodies, Chi Lin’s and hers, were floating about two meters away, hands clasped, their expressions serene, like a paused movie scene.
Lou Mi looked down at herself and realized her body was translucent.
Was this her soul?
Had her soul left her body?
A pale hand waved in front of her, snapping her out of her shock.
But seeing the soul before her, Lou Mi froze again.
The person waving at her was holding her other hand. It was Chi Lin.
They hadn’t let go throughout their journey.
But…
This woman’s appearance was unfamiliar to Lou Mi.
Bright eyes, an oval face, an air of ancient elegance and serene authority. Her long, black hair floated around her. She, too, seemed to have noticed her changed appearance.
She was wearing a simple long dress that couldn’t hide her ethereal beauty, adding a touch of approachability.
Lou Mi had never seen this face before, but looking into those gentle eyes, she felt an overwhelming sense of familiarity.
Especially the red moles under her eyes, confirming her identity.
This was Chi Lin, Chi Lin’s true form.
What surprised Lou Mi even more was that Chi Lin looked to be in her early thirties, in the prime of her life.
She was an older sister…
Chi Lin embraced the stunned Lou Mi and pulled her towards the light.
Lou Mi stared at Chi Lin, mesmerized.
She had never imagined that the real Chi Lin was an older sister.
And thousands of times more beautiful than the face she knew.