“The birthmark.” Wen Nuan pressed urgently, “Is it still there?”
Baili Wuchang glanced a few more times at Wen Nuan’s back after hearing this question, but it just made his throat drier.
He reached out and threw Wen Nuan’s shirt over him before speaking. “Of course it’s still there.”
“Really?” Wen Nuan wanted to get up and look in the mirror, but Baili Wuchang wouldn’t let him take his clothes off again. He could only believe without seeing.
Wen Nuan sighed ruefully. “I really did wake up from a nightmare…”
He had somehow dreamed of going back eighteen years in time, and now that he had suddenly woken up, he was caught unprepared. He had no idea how to make heads or tails of it.
Baili Wuchang furrowed his brow. “To be precise, it wasn’t a dream. Someone used the Youxian pillow to send you into someone else’s past.”
“What do you mean?” Wen Nuan’s brain was a muddled mess. He didn’t understand. “Someone else’s past?”
Wen Nuan remembered he had seen the Youxian pillow, right in his dorm room. He was surprised to see it and had wanted to take it to Baili Wuchang.
But in that moment, Wen Nuan was knocked out. Everything afterwards was a bit of a blur, and he woke up eighteen years ago.
When Baili Wuchang found Wen Nuan, Wen Nuan was already deep asleep in the past made by the Youxian pillow. No matter how many times he called Wen Nuan, he wouldn’t wake up, and the Youxian pillow disappeared once more.
The Youxian pillow had the ability to “make your dreams come true”. In other words, using the Youxian pillow could allow you to enter a different world, not quite a dream, that could become some people’s “new reality”. This could be someone’s fantasy, or it could be a particular memory.
Baili Wuchang burned with anxiety when he found the unconscious Wen Nuan. He sought out the reason and found that someone had used the Youxian pillow on him to enter someone’s memory.
Wen Nuan said with confusion, “You’re saying…I entered someone’s past?”
Baili Wuchang nodded. “Even though I don’t know who took the Youxian pillow, I can surmise that you didn’t enter an imaginary world when you were asleep. You had entered someone’s specific memory.”
Wen Nuan said, “Strange. In my dream, I dreamt I was three or four. Those are my memories, and I remember them clearly. They weren’t someone else’s.”
Baili Wuchang was quiet. It seemed he was also surprised by this. However, Baili Wuchang was certain that Wen Nuan hadn’t entered his own memories. It had to be someone else’s.
Wen Nuan was the person Baili Wuchang had been looking for all this time. Before, he was insufferably arrogant. He was the person who could make him overturn both the Underworld and the living world.
But it was a shame Wen Nuan’s birthmark was only appearing now, and it wasn’t complete. His spiritual ability wasn’t returned, so he couldn’t use the Youxian pillow.
Wen Nuan pondered himself. “Unless…coincidentally, me and that person met eighteen years ago, and we share the same memories?”
“It could be.” Baili Wuchang nodded.
If the person who used the Youxian pillow to go eighteen years back in Wen Nuan’s “dream” wasn’t Wen Nuan, but Wen Nuan truly had gone eighteen years back in time, that was truly strange. Wen Nuan couldn’t think of any other options. The only possibility was that he and the person who made his “dream” had a connection eighteen years ago.
So, that person’s memories eighteen years ago needed Wen Nuan to participate in them.
Baili Wuchang’s expression was dark. “This way, it’s understandable why the person took the Youxian pillow and wanted to knock you out.”
The person who knocked Wen Nuan unconscious could have seen value in using Wen Nuan and wanted Wen Nuan to return eighteen years in the past to change something.
Baili Wuchang cracked his knuckles as he thought about this. Someone wanted to use Wen Nuan and knocked him out. That made Baili Wuchang’s blood boil.
Wen Nuan came to a realization after hearing Baili Wuchang’s words. He sunk into an even greater mystery. “It has to be someone I came into contact with eighteen years ago?”
Wen Nuan remembered that in his “dream”, he had come across someone.
“Senior Fan?” Wen Nuan’s first thought was of Fan Liangda.
“Fan Liangda?” said Baili Wuchang. “What about him?”
Fan Liangda was the one who had kept the key to the strong room. When the Youxian pillow disappeared, the key never left Fan Liangda’s side. Unless, Fan Liangda lied?
Wen Nuan said thoughtfully, “When I was in the past, I ran into Senior Fan. He was here in the Hell Chain Hotel.”
Fan Liangda looked like a normal person, but he looked exactly the same eighteen years ago without a single sign of aging. Eighteen years ago, Fan Liangda was working at the Hell Chain Hotel, but eighteen years later, why would Fan Liangda go to college?
Wen Nuan couldn’t figure it out.
He said, “If Senior Fan has been working at the Hell Chain Hotel all this time, have you met him before?”
Baili Wuchang shook his head. “I didn’t use to stay at the Hell Chain Hotel. I seldom came.”
Eighteen years ago, the Hell Chain Hotel was gloomy and eerie. After renovations, business became more extensive, and then the ghost envoys started coming to the hotel to easily move back and forth between the Underworld and the living world.
Baili Wuchang asked, “Besides Fan Liangda, who else did you meet eighteen years ago?”
Wen Nuan thought long and hard. “There were a few family members, and a few students at school…that’s it!”
Wen Nuan’s eyes sparkled as he looked up at Baili Wuchang. “There was you, guest.”
“Me?” Baili Wuchang was taken aback. He didn’t think of that.
The Baili Wuchang from eighteen years ago was way harder to deal with. It gave Wen Nuan a headache just remembering.
Wen Nuan gestured as he said, “And there was a Bai Wuchang this small, and a solemn-looking Hei Wuchang. They were different from your current Heibai Wuchang.”
Baili Wuchang wasn’t surprised. He knew exactly who Wen Nuan was referring to as he moved his arms. “Heibai Wuchang are a position of ghost envoys, not their names. The two you’re talking about were my subordinates who retired eighteen years ago.”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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“Where are you going?” inquired Wen Nuan.
Baili Wuchang wasn’t going to explain in detail, but upon meeting Wen Nuan’s expectant gaze, he surrendered.
Baili Wuchang said, “I’m going to find whoever stole the Youxian pillow.”
Someone had stolen the Youxian pillow to conjure up a“dreamland” from the past. People who wanted to use the Youxian pillow wanted to “make their dreams come true” and change something for the better. Of course, this had consequences.
Baili Wuchang narrowed his eyes. “My guess is that that person wanted revenge.”
After going back eighteen years in the past, they would change the future.
“A person has done so with the Youxian pillow before,” explained Baili Wuchang. “They went back to murder someone they hated. After coming back from the Youxian pillow, the person who died disappeared from the world, no longer existing.”
Wen Nuan was flabbergasted. “The Youxian pillow’s so troublesome.”
Baili Wuchang continued, “Thus, I’m going to your past eighteen years ago.”
“Ah?” Wen Nuan blinked, half-understanding.
Baili Wuchang wasn’t sure where to start at first regarding the Youxian pillow, but after hearing Wen Nuan’s account, Baili Wuchang grasped onto a detail.
If that person wanted to change eighteen years ago, then Baili Wuchang didn’t have a chance of catching them today. If he went back eighteen years in the past, he could foil his plans.
The time frame was set to eighteen years ago. The range had shrunk if that person existed at the same time Wen Nuan was there. Baili Wuchang only needed to use Wen Nuan’s memories and his own abilities to time travel.
Baili Wuchang said, “Thanks to my skills, if I want to go back in time, returning to eighteen years in the past is no problem.”
Baili Wuchang’s spiritual power was unfathomably deep. If he wanted to go back a hundred years or a thousand years, that might be hard, but a short eighteen years was a piece of cake.
Wen Nuan jumped up from his bed. “Take me with you.”
“No.” Baili Wuchang was adamant.
“Why?” asked Wen Nuan. “Those are my memories. Isn’t taking me with you easier? I can be your tour guide.”
Baili Wuchang insisted. “It’s dangerous.”
Anything that would put Wen Nuan in danger made Baili Wuchang unagreeable. No matter what, Wen Nuan’s safety was top priority.
Wen Nuan wasn’t pressed. He knew victory was in his grasp. “But leaving me here is dangerous. Look at how you left before. I was knocked unconscious in the blink of an eye, and I didn’t even see what that person looked like as I let my guard down. If you leave again, what if I’m knocked out again? If I get hit again and again, my neck might break.”
Baili Wuchang: “…”
Baili Wuchang said, “I’ll set a barrier. Don’t leave, and you’ll be safe.”
“No way.” Wen Nuan shook his head. “If I’m thirsty, there’s no water here to drink. If I’m hungry, there’s nothing here for me to eat. If you go eighteen years in the past, who knows when you’ll get back. One or two days is fine for me to be thirsty and hungry, but if you’re gone for a year or two, ten years or eighteen years, won’t it be just like trapping me in prison? When you come back, I’ll just be a skeleton. All my flesh will be gone, and…”
“Don’t talk.”
Baili Wuchang’s ears were about to fall off. He pressed a hand to his forehead as he interrupted Wen Nuan’s gabble.
“I’m afraid of you,” Baili Wuchang finally said. “Stay by my side, and don’t leave me for a second.”
Looking back, Baili Wuchang couldn’t believe that his unmatched arrogance was defeated by a little dong ming herb, and he was defeated completely.
It was just like right now, as Baili Wuchang once again lost to Wen Nuan. Wen Nuan, who lacked the strength to even truss a chicken, relied on his mouth to cause Baili Wuchang to have no alternative.
Wen Nuan nodded his head like he was pounding garlic. His face was clever and cute as he said, “I promise, if you take me, I’ll stick to your side and never leave. I’m someone who listens very well.”
Wen Nuan had been running for his life, wanting to leave that “dream” as soon as possible. But now that he had returned, he suddenly wanted to go back to eighteen years ago again.
Because of Song Xing.
The person who once cared about Wen Nuan and helped him died eighteen years ago. When Wen Nuan thought about it, there was an indescribable regret and sadness in his heart.
If the past really could be changed, then Wen Nuan wanted to save Song Xing.
Eighteen years ago, Wen Nuan was alone and helpless. Let alone saving people, just trying to survive was difficult for the toddler Wen Nuan.
But now was different.
Wen Nuan smiled at Baili Wuchang, dimples forming on his cheeks with an overwhelming sweetness.
Baili Wuchang was stunned when he looked at Wen Nuan’s smile. He felt like there was some deviousness hidden in it.
He squinted his eyes. “You insist on going back to the past. What are you going to do? Do you also want to change the past?”
Wen Nuan laughed mischievously. “Is changing the past a heinous crime in the Underworld?”
Baili Wuchang grumbled and said, “It depends what is changed. The severity ranges.”
“That’s what I’m saying,” said Wen Nuan happily with a nod. “You can’t kill everyone with a stick.” What I want to do is a good thing, so I shouldn’t get in trouble, right?
“When are we leaving?” Wen Nuan couldn’t wait.
It wasn’t hard for Baili Wuchang to take someone back in the past. It would only take the blink of an eye.
As soon as Wen Nuan finished asking, he realized that something was wrong with him.
He was originally only a head shorter than Baili Wuchang. He only needed to raise his head slightly to appreciate Baili Wuchang’s handsome appearance. But now…
Wen Nuan could only see Baili Wuchang’s long pair of legs. He tilted his head up.
Looking up, Wen Nuan could only see Baili Wuchang’s crotch…
“Wen Nuan, you…”
Baili Wuchang’s low and rough voice was full of surprise as it sounded down from above Wen Nuan.
Wen Nuan continued to look up to finally see a giant Baili Wuchang.
“Wah! Oh no!” Wen Nuan hopped up, raising his little hands in shock. “I’m small again! Tewwible!”
No—not tewwible, terrible.
Baili Wuchang gave Wen Nuan no time to prepare before he went eighteen years back in time. Like he had gone through the wash, Wen Nuan once again became the three to four year old little bean sprout.
“Heh—”
Wen Nuan thought, How magnetizing. How pleasureful to hear such a laugh, but why is he laughing!
Wen Nuan wasn’t even half as tall as Baili Wuchang. He was somewhat malnourished when he was three or four, so he was shorter than other kids his age. To Baili Wuchang, he was “fun sized”.
Wen Nuan hopped in frustration. “You’re not allowed to waugh! Bleh, bleh; what are you waughing about? Baini Wuzang stop waughing!”
Baili Wuchang never hesitated to smile, but it was usually a sneer or a dismissive scoff. Today, he was laughing heartily, not just snickering. As soon as he heard Wen Nuan’s milky and childish voice, he couldn’t hold back, laughing and laughing.
“I’m so angwy!” Wen Nuan put his hands on his hips and stamped his feet, face flushed.
“Tap tap—”
Wen Nuan was stomping his feet as if the stones under his feet were Baili Wuchang’s handsome face.
He was stomping around when in the next moment, he was floating. He was so surprised that he exclaimed “wah” again.
Baili Wuchang had lifted Wen Nuan up with one hand. He let him sit on his arm and said, “I’m a little uncomfortable with you becoming so small.”
“Wewease me!” Release me…
Wen Nuan raised his legs and made two little dusty footprints on Baili Wuchang’s clothes.
Baili Wuchang dusted off his clothes without a care. He was in a good mood. “Release you? No, your legs are too short. We’re here on serious business. We don’t have time to let you walk slowly, so I’ll hold you. It’s faster.”
“Baini Wuzang! You!” Wen Nuan was furious. His meaty little hands shook in front of Baili Wuchang’s nose. He was so angry he didn’t know what to say.
Baili Wuchang didn’t hold back. He pinched Wen Nuan’s face and changed his manner of speech, or else Wen Nuan would get angrier.
With a serious face, Baili Wuchang asked, “Where are we?”
Wen Nuan’s attention was diverted. He looked around. “The stadium.”
Previously, Wen Nuan entered the stadium equipment room, saw a shadowy figure, and returned to the real world. Now that he had returned, he was held by Baili Wuchang, standing in the stadium.
The difference was that it was dawn when Wen Nuan left, but now it was pitch black, in the middle of the night.
Wen Nuan pointed to the equipment room, slowing down his speech to make sure he pronounced things correctly. “Over there, over there; that’s where I saw a strange person.”
Baili Wuchang walked to the equipment room door with Wen Nuan in his arms. He stretched his hand out to pull on the door.
“It’s locked,” said Baili Wuchang.
What to do…
Before Wen Nuan could ask, he heard a “clang”, and the door to the equipment room was forcefully pulled open by Baili Wuchang.
Wen Nuan: “…”
Sure enough, Baili Wuchang always marched to the beat of his own drug regardless of whether it was eighteen years ago or eighteen years later!
Baili Wuchang said calmly, “The door is open. Let’s go in and take a look.”
Wen Nuan was carried in. It was dark with nothing inside.
“Resentment.” Baili Wuchang frowned. “Something has indeed been here, but it must have left long ago.”
There was nothing in the room except for a bunch of equipment. There was nothing suspicious.
Wen Nuan pointed to the pile of exercise mats and said, “I was thrown in that corner by the shadowy figure and fainted. That’s when I returned to reality.”
Baili Wuchang walked over to check. Wen Nuan asked, “Is there anything wrong here? Like a space-time black hole or something?”
As soon as Wen Nuan spoke, he saw the corner of Baili Wuchang’s mouth twitch.
Wen Nuan rushed up with his hands and pinched Baili Wuchang’s handsome face like he had done so earlier. “I see that you’re laughing at me. Don’t laugh; I’m being serious.”
“I’m not laughing,” denied Baili Wuchang. “I was just thinking, what kind of movie genres do you usually watch?”
Wen Nuan: “…”
Baili Wuchang, a person who liked to watch handsome high-powered businessmen plots, was actually laughing at him! Terrible.
Baili Wuchang said, “There is no black hole, but this corner may be quite critical.”
Wen Nuan shook his head like a curious baby. “I don’t get it.”
“It’s possible…” Baili Wuchang began, “that this is where the memory ends. You can be thrown back to the real world from here.”
Wen Nuan shook his head again, even more confused. “I still don’t get it.”
“In short,” Baili Wuchang walked out of the equipment room with Wen Nuan in his arms and said, “let’s take a look somewhere else.”
Wen Nuan asked, “Where to?”
Baili Wuchang replied, “The Hell Chain Hotel.”
According to what Wen Nuan said, Fan Liangda was here. And…
Baili Wuchang looked at the little bean sprout Wen Nuan. “I heard that children don’t grow taller if they don’t sleep. You seem…”
“Are you calling me short?!” Wen Nuan’s large eyes grew wide.
Baili Wuchang smiled without speaking. He carried Wen Nuan away and left the school.
Wen Nuan fumed in Baili Wuchang’s grasp. He sat up straight. “Put me down. I can walk by myself.”
“Be good. Don’t make a fuss.” Baili Wuchang patted his head.
“Big bro! That’s them!”
Just as they walked out of the school gate, a group of people suddenly surrounded them.
Wen Nuan was shocked. In the middle of the night, a dozen people suddenly gathered around him. He didn’t know what to do.
He took a closer look. Wasn’t one of them that delinquent boy who was at the stadium during the day? The one who was taught a lesson by Baili Wuchang.
Rather, he was taught a lesson by the eighteen-year-ago version of Baili Wuchang.
The boy came over with a sneer and said, “You really made me squat here for a while! It was really hard for us to wait!”
The boy was taught a bitter lesson by the eighteen-year-ago version of Baili Wuchang. He was resentful and unwilling to be beaten like this, so he gathered a group of unemployed gangsters outside the school and stood guard at the school gate, waiting for Wen Nuan or Baili Wuchang to appear to beat them violently outside school.
The boy said to the tall and round man next to him, “Boss, it’s them, they dared to hit me! It’s that man, he seems to be that little one’s dad. It really hurt when he hit me—my face, hiss…it still hurts now.”
“Dad?”
A single syllable fell from Baili Wuchang’s mouth as his expression fell to an all-time low.
He was not the Baili Wuchang who taught him a lesson. When he saw a group of people surrounding them, he was still a little confused about what was going on.
But it didn’t matter, because Baili Wuchang was very dissatisfied, very angry, and wanted to beat up the boy.
Wen Nuan, who was sitting in Baili Wuchang’s arms, was not afraid at all. He had an air of pretending to be intimidating, and said with his little arms, “You guys delivered yourselves to the door. You were the ones who bullied Song Xing countless times before, right? ”
With Baili Wuchang by his side, Wen Nuan guaranteed that even if there were a hundred more people, he wouldn’t be in any danger. He could sit back and watch the show.
Baili Wuchang didn’t even put Wen Nuan on the ground. He held Wen Nuan in one hand and defeated thirteen gangsters with the other.
In the blink of an eye, there were a bunch of gangsters with bruises and swollen faces. Wen Nuan felt himself being spun around by Baili Wuchang over and over. He felt dizzy and suffered from motion sickness. If he had known better, he would have bought a standing ticket to watch the show instead.
Wen Nuan covered his round little face and retched twice.
He heard Baili Wuchang’s cold and indifferent voice say, “Remember. I’m not his dad.”
The author has something to say: [Mini Theater]
[Is the three-year-old version of Wen-Little-Nuan cute?]
Lord Baili: Cute.
[May I ask, facing such a cute Wen-Little-Nuan, what do you want to do with him?]
Lord Baili: Hm…put him in a little dress.
Wen-Little-Nuan: …???
Lord Baili? 👁️ I’m not sure Wen Nuan will like that!
Lord Baili: not his dad, but (future) husband 😏