Chapter 25.1

“He and that individual are from the same data stream.”

　　As Jing Xi slowly regained consciousness, he found himself engulfed in a sensation of dull pain coursing through his entire body. Oh, how well he knew this throbbing ache. 

　　Lifting his gaze, he beheld his own figure sprawled within the medical pod of the Administration Bureau. The door emitted an ominous crimson glow, an unmistakable sign that the alarm had been triggered.

　　But before he could fully process his situation, the room door burst open with a resounding thud and in came three figures, charging in like a storm.

　　Jing Xi could not help but smirk despite the pain, for he now knew the cause of his predicament. ‘These guys again,’ he thought to himself, remembering the failed attempt at manipulating his energy pool that led to his unconscious state. ‘No wonder I blacked out.’

　　The person leading the trio confidently strode forward and swung open the medical pod door. Peering down from above, he addressed Jing Xi, “We’ve crunched the numbers, ran countless simulations, and prepared for every possible scenario. Rest assured, System is foolproof, and I promise you, there won’t be a hint of danger due to insufficient energy. Unless, of course, you decide to go all superhero on us, forcefully tap into the energy pool yourself, and trigger the recall order.”

　　With a stretch, Jing Xi sat up and propped himself against the medical pod lazily. “So why was I not informed about your spontaneous decision to add this recall order?”

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　　Mbl xyd nswdvlale, “Tye ol kdqsaxle usw lyazkla, oswze usw pvkzz byhl vyrrle kdvs kv?” G plakswp zssj naspple bkp qynl clqsal bl elxydele, “Lso, prkzz! Ebyv olal uswa rzydp okvb yzz vbyv ldlatu?”

　　“Tlal’p vbl elyz.” Kkdt Dk lmrzykdle pszlxdzu, “Pwl vs xu nsdnlad qsa vbl Gexkdkpvayvksd Jwalyw, xu xykd tsyz ewakdt vbl xkppksd oyp vs alnshla xu xlxsaklp yp pssd yp rsppkczl. Fs obkzl vaukdt vs xyjl pldpl sq vbl nbysvkn eyvy pvalyx, R kdyehlavldvzu pvwxczle wrsd uswa xkdlqklze, obknb elaykzle vbl nyalqwzzu sanblpvayvle rzyd R bye qsa vbl xykd zlyep.”

　　Gxkepv vbl nsdhlapyvksd, ydsvbla rlapsd pywdvlale kd okvb y clyxkdt pxkzl, bszekdt yd kdvaktwkdt alrsav kd vblka byde. “Ebyv Kkdt Dk pyke kp vawl, yzaktbv.”

　　Brsd blyakdt vbyv, vbl vaks lytlazu vsal srld vbl alrsav yde pnyddle kvp nsdvldvp. Gv vbkp fwdnvwal, vblu osal yd ycwdeydnl sq lmralppksdp, psxlvkxlp pwarakpl, psxlvkxlp lmnkvlxldv, cwv kd yzz nyplp, wdyczl vs xypj vbl ekpclzklq pvlxxkdt qasx vblka blyavp.

　　Mbl dlonsxla yeele, “R’hl nblnjle sd bkp rastalpp. Rd wdela y xsdvb, bl byp osajle bkp xytkn yde qkmle vbl qkapv vos nakvknyz cwtp kd vbl qkapv pvsauzkdl aktbv sqq vbl cyv. Gv ralpldv, vbl pnwxcyt yde nsddkhkdt zkvvzl c*vnb yal dso yzz psavle swv, yde vbl alzyvksdpbkr clvolld vbl xykd zlyep kp czsppsxkdt clywvkqwzzu. Jwv usw jdso obyv’p xkppkdt? Mbspl lzlnvakqukdt pryajp!”

　　Gp vbl vaks qlzz kdvs y vbswtbvqwz pkzldnl, Kkdt Dk osdelale yzswe, “Pke usw rwzz vbkp sqq clbkde vbl Plryavxldv Tlye’p cynj?”

　　Tl pktble psqvzu, “R wdelapvyde usw xktbv eswcv xu kdvldvksdp, cwv R yppwal usw, R’x nsxrzlvlzu kddsnldv…”

　　“Zsw’al kddsnldv?” Mbl vaks zlyela kdvlaflnvle, “Mbld, rayu vlzz, obu olal usw yv vbl Maydpxktayvksd Plryavxldv vbyv eyu, obld usw olal pwrrsple vs cl yv vbl Slckavb Plryavxldv?”

　　“Ah, but you see, I’m referring to my present self.” Jing Xi corrected, “You all seem convinced that some grand conspiracy lies behind the fact that my data had undergone some form of retrogression, as well as an attempt to avoid your interrogation. Admittedly, I have no concrete evidence to disprove that, but I think I’d been cooperative enough, seeing that I’ve already complied with most of your conditions. So, what more do you want from me?”

　　A twinge of guilt gnawed at the trio as they lapsed into silence once more.

　　“I’ve poured my heart out to you, yet you don’t trust me an inch.” Jing Xi mused unhurriedly, “But behold, why judge a gentleman’s intentions unfairly with the narrow thoughts of a petty person?”

　　The trio was repulsed by his words and instantly retorted in unison, “Come again, who exactly is the gentleman?”

　　Jing Xi stared at them with narrowed eyes. “You took the liberty of imposing restrictive orders on me, disrupting my plans, refusing to apologize, and now you have the nerve to question me in return. I must admit, I’m seriously suspect…” As he said so, he favored the newcomer with a hard stare. “What do they have against me, Ah Lu?”

　　The newly arrived individual who possessed an undeniably handsome appearance, Lue — for which the second syllable “E”¹When it comes to Chinese self-introductions, you’ll come to notice that more often than not, people would let the other person know exactly what characters are in their names. That would be due to the fact that there are tons of homonyms in Chinese, so it is essential to let the person know the exact characters in your name.

For example, 田欣 (tián xīn) is a homonym of 甜心 (sweetheart). So, how she would introduce herself would be “你好，我叫田欣，(rice paddy field) 田地的田，(luxuriant growth)欣欣向荣的欣.”

So, you would usually pair up either with a phrase describing the character or a Chinese idiom/expression describing the character.

In this context, the character’s name is 路阿 (Lù ē), so the second syllable is (gāng zhí bù ē)刚直不阿的阿.  stemmed from the common idiom “upright and tenacious.”

　　Amid Jing Xi’s memory, he was a relatively close friend whom Jing Xi held dear in his heart. You would often hear Jing Xi affectionately call him Ah Lu. Even though the pronunciation might differ² 阿 is a Chinese word with multiple pronunciations. One of the most commonly used Chinese words, 阿 (ā), is a prefix used with nicknames, surnames, etc., when you want to express familiarity or friendliness as in, “阿爸 (ā bà) – dad.” It is similar to the commonly used affix, ‘-y’ or ‘-ie,’ such as Timmy, Johnnie, or Tommy.

However, when it is pronounced as “ē,” it refers to the verb, panders to, as in 阿谀 (ē yú) “flatter.” , the nickname seemed like a playful twist on his name that appeared to be uttered in reverse³ The character’s name is 路阿 (Lù ē), so when you flip the two words around, it will become 阿路, which is pronounced as “ā lù”. .

　　After all, Lue was a breath of fresh air in Jing Xi’s life, always ready to jump into the thick of things without a second thought. With a mischievous grin, he cleared the air. “Remember Goddess Qin who confessed to you after you became the Divine Lord? She happened to be this person’s…” Pointing at the person standing front and center, he added, “sweetheart.”

　　As Lue’s voice faded into silence, Jing Xi stated, “Oh. In that case, we’ll have to add another to the list — Abuse of authority.”

　　Upon hearing that utterance, a flush crept up the trio leader’s face. “That’s not even relevant!”

　　Jing Xi argued, “Well, we’ll let Department Head decide on that when he returns. Ah Lu, be a dear and bring me some snacks and drinks, won’t you?”

　　Lue’s laughter filled the room as he agreed, “Sure.”

　　The trio stared at him, aghast. “You’re not planning to head back?”

　　“Why should I?” Jing Xi puzzled, “Since you all seem so eager for me to return, I might as well just get out of your hair and let you have it your way. With that, you can assign this to someone else instead.”

　　They winced and dreaded facing their boss’ wrath at the thought of their clandestine plan backfiring spectacularly. 

　　Little did they know that their actions had not only failed to gain any leverage against the other party, but it had also antagonized them, making it even less likely that they would complete the mission. Panic gripped them, knowing their boss would not take this debacle lightly. 

　　However, it was easier to invite the devil in than to send him away⁴ 请神容易送神难: It is a Chinese proverb that literally means it is often easy to invite people to assist you, but challenging to have them leave afterward. .

　　In a swift and clever move, the trio rescinded the recall order and put on a facade before owning up to their mistake with heartfelt apologies. Despite their efforts, they noticed a certain individual was still unsatisfied and inquired, “Alright, what exactly do you want?”

　　“Nothing much, really.” Jing Xi answered innocently, “Isn’t it all for your sake? That way, you wouldn’t miss me terribly once I depart.”

　　The trio was momentarily rendered speechless before they began to reassure him adamantly. “No, that won’t be happening anytime soon, especially when we’re all tied up with our own work.”

　　Jing Xi scoffed, “Ah, but it must be true love since you’ve been thinking of me amidst your hectic schedules.”

　　In a split second, Jing Xi’s baffling response rendered the trio dumbstruck.

　　On the other hand, Lue could not contain his laughter as he opined, ‘Now that they’ve crossed the line by provoking Jing Xi, there’s no way they are going to leave unscathed.’

　　In the aftermath of their actions, regret tightened its grip on the trio. Their department head had been crystal clear about not messing with Jing Xi, but they threw caution to the wind. Now, they found themselves in a sticky situation, desperately trying to mend fences. “Come on, Jing Xi,” they implored, trying to salvage the situation. “Are you really alright with leaving your work unfinished?”

　　Jing Xi smirked, “Oh, I’m more than alright with that. Whoever said I’m a star employee? The truth is, I’m the complete opposite. Once I walk away from something, I’ll never look back. And let’s face it, there’s nothing remotely captivating over there to keep me interested anyway.”

　　“…” The trio could not help but curse inwardly, ‘Why the heck did you become the Divine Lord?!’