Chapter 162: Woc? Auntie, How Did You Revert Back?! - It’s the Cyber Age—Still Playing a Traditional Villain?

Chapter 162: Woc? Auntie, How Did You Revert Back?! "What is 'foreseeing the future' like?" Nobody knows the answer to this question. Ever since the downfall of "Refraction," those who had witnessed Xia Ke An using her ability had vanished—Xia Wu You never saw it, as she was too young at the time. Naturally, Xu Shi hadn't seen it either, but he had always wanted to witness it firsthand. And now was the best opportunity. As he mentioned, he didn't want to miss any potential turning point. The cunning man was terrifyingly cautious. "Ha, I knew Xu Shi would only come find me late at night for something troublesome." Xia Ke An quipped, "It's so tiring." "Wait a minute, didn't you look for me?" "...That's not important. Now I still have to work for you, don't I?" The auntie scooted closer to him and leaned her head up to look at him, "What's important is whether I want to help you or not." "Show some conscience." Xu Shi gave her a light chop on the head and said irritably, "Isn't this what we agreed on?" "Breaking a promise is a girl's privilege." "Nonsense, you're no girl, you're an old auntie pretending to be cute—it's gross." "...Hmph, boys who don't understand romance are the worst." The white-haired loli rubbed her head, pouted, pretending to be angry, "Just kidding, see how panicked you get... I never said I wouldn't help you, but I do have a condition." "Go ahead." Seeing her acting like a child throwing a tantrum for a toy, Xu Shi was amused. "When you're done with this round of tasks, take me out to have fun." Xia Ke An broke into a smile, "I want to go to the amusement park!" "Is that it?" Xu Shi wasn't very surprised, the tone in her voice already hinted she was just joking earlier. "That's all." The white-haired loli nodded, "But it has to be just the two of us, no one else allowed." "Alright, alright." This wasn't an unreasonable request, so Xu Shi had no reason to refuse. "Hmph, now we're talking." Xia Ke An smiled even more brightly, "Then help me clear some space?" "Are you sure you're okay, there won't be any problems, right?" This was the preparation before activating her ability. But Xu Shi suddenly stopped her, seeking extra confirmation. "If something went wrong, wouldn't all the time and effort someone spent on me be wasted?" The old auntie restrained her smile, but her tone was even more cheerful. What Xu Shi meant by "will there be a problem" was not a doubt about her ability, but a concern for her physical condition. It was clear that even after so much treatment, he still couldn't be completely at ease. In that moment of hesitation, Xia Ke An instinctively smiled. But after all, being cared for like this by someone, she was more than happy. Truthfully, she understood exactly what Xu Shi was thinking—he never hid his intentions. "I want both the person and the ability" wasn't something he just said; he acted on it too. So she happily remained close to him; otherwise, why foolishly call him "brother" and go to the amusement park? Go to his big fat head. To be honest, their bickering and teasing with each other did somewhat resemble that of an old married couple... Hearing her say this, Xu Shi finally felt assured and smartly moved aside, watching quietly as she activated her ability. Xia Ke An closed her eyes, posed as if in prayer—or raising life expectancy, okay, maybe not—and instantly, an indescribable pressure arose. From Xu Shi's perspective, it was quite a breathtaking sight: objects around them began to move without wind, gradually levitating bit by bit in the air. Despite her lips not moving, he suddenly heard an unidentifiable tune in his mind. His body even felt a bit weightless... Gosh, did Xia Wu You inherit her gravity control from you? He finally understood why the white-haired loli had to clear the area before using her ability—what if she crushed the plants and flowers? Geez, if you'd mentioned it sooner, we could have found a designated place for you to unleash it! Of course, this was just a joke. It was evident that this was the aftermath of foreseeing the future, definitely not something for combat. Still, the spectacle was frighteningly grand. In a trance, Xia Ke An herself began to float, her tightly closed eyes slowly opening, revealing pupils that had long faded, replaced by profound white light that he couldn't bear to look into. Before long, the tune in his mind reached a crescendo, and the white light in her eyes exploded. Xu Shi only felt a sharp pain in his head; when he came to, everything had returned to normal. The levitating objects fell with clattering sounds. Xia Ke An herself seemed about to collapse; Xu Shi quickly caught her before she hit the ground. "Is that it?" It felt like dreaming to him, so he instinctively asked. "...Yes." After a while, Xia Ke An responded, the color in her eyes gradually restoring. Her tone was filled with weakness and fatigue, her complexion turning rather pale. It was clear that even a ten-minute activation had exhausted her to a large extent, no wonder she had suffered injuries and ailments before; surviving it all was a miracle. Yet, she seemed unaware of her condition, even proudly asking, "How was it? Pretty cool, right?" "Is cool a word for girls? Especially old aunties." Xu Shi didn't acknowledge it verbally, but he nodded after thinking about it. Honestly speaking, the grandeur and ethereal feel made him momentarily wonder if he'd stepped into the wrong genre—was this turning into a fantasy storyline? Then again, considering the unconventional nature of high-level abilities like this, teleportation, anti-gravity, mind control—none of these fit within scientific norms... In a way, everyone's a superhuman. The difference lies in whose ability is stronger—anyway, he hadn’t seen anyone else's ability flaunting such an impressive spectacle like Xia Ke An. Her visual effects outshone others by a mile. No wonder she's SS-level. Now he's genuinely curious about what it would be like if he could reach that level. What's more, the white-haired loli's ability is just a support type. If memory serves, wasn't her grandfather an SS-level combat ability user? He must find a chance to observe... But now wasn't the time for that thought. He gathered himself and asked, "What did you see?" "...I saw quite a bit." Held in his arms, Xia Ke An replied weakly. From her recounting, Xu Shi gained further understanding of her ability. The "Foresee the Future" ability was even more terrifying than he had imagined. It wasn't simply about "observing what would happen within a certain future time frame," but rather, more accurately described as, "If things stay unchanged, what outcome will the future evolve into at a certain point." In other words, picking and exploring various 'if' scenarios, quite similar to Doctor Strange. Moreover, she could selectively focus, like how Xu Shi asked her to predict future developments concerning himself and Shen He, she could ignore unrelated aspects, tackling only this angle, saving a lot of trouble. After all, she was experienced with this kind of work, this came easily to her. As for the results she observed... "As you suspected, there are indeed areas we hadn't accounted for." Xia Ke An sighed, "And from angles we couldn't likely imagine." "Who would have thought Shen He is trying to use 'Divine Descent' as a medium to exert large-scale mental influence on the ordinary citizens of Night Sin City?" "Indeed." Xu Shi couldn't deny it, this was one of the few things that caught him off guard. In the original work, Shen He only used this game to convey somewhat covert information. He hadn't considered there would be other uses beyond that. But this could be a practical method—because the ability "United Hearts" essentially aims to sway people, and media or applications like 'Divine Descent' that perform similar roles existed long before abilities, influencing thoughts in people’s minds. Coupled with the game's popularity throughout Night Sin City, no other social platform seemed as influential. Even the "Forgotten Ones" played it... To the extent that both network and media reports, or any news released by the Qi family under "Virtuality's" jurisdiction, sometimes weren't as impactful as a viral message spreading through 'Divine Descent.' "But then again, can Shen He truly accomplish this?" Xu Shi questioned further; somehow, this seemed too fantastical. "At least in the futures I can see, he can." Xia Ke An nodded seriously, "I tried projecting futures without considering this factor, and the result was that your previous strategies would indeed be greatly hindered if the player community is largely incited to rise against the 'Serpent's Circle' voluntarily." "In the futures I observed, there's only about a 50% chance of you successfully quelling it, 40% end in mutual destruction allowing him to escape, and the last 10% has him succeeding in the chaos with a bullet to your head." What?! Hearing this result, Xu Shi's expression turned somewhat peculiar. After everything he planned, Shen He still stood a 10% chance of victory? In other words, he only had a 50% chance of completely eradicating him? Even if things went just like in the original storyline… it was what it was. But looking at it from another perspective, it made sense. Among the millions in Night Sin City, only a small handful stood at the top of the pyramid, the rest were ordinary citizens. If they really banded together, it would indeed be a formidable force. As for Shen He using social platforms as a medium, it was absurd at first glance, but thinking deeper, why not? Given the times, it could be seen as a fusion of technology and abilities. Factoring such technological advances into the evolution of abilities makes sense; after all, tactics of manipulation via the internet existed for years. However, compared to the previous encounter with Shen He, his current proficiency had reached a higher level. Clearly, he'd grown in power during his disappearance. "And we've misunderstood something else." Xia Ke An cleared her throat and added, "‘Those people’ aren’t uninvolved; their methods are simply different from what we imagined." "Oh? Who are they?" Xu Shi raised an eyebrow. Xia Ke An leaned in and whispered softly in his ear. "...It really is her, huh?" Hearing the name, Xu Shi wasn’t especially surprised. His reaction wasn’t as intense as hearing Shen He’s plan. Clearly, he had anticipated this. "Well, seems a sense of crisis isn't a bad thing after all." Thinking this, he exhaled in relief. Had he been unaware, it could’ve been disastrous; even a 99% probability felt too low, never mind a mere 50% success rate. But now that he knew, he could devise strategies to counter it. He couldn't help but admire the reason "Refraction" had risen so quickly in the past. With an ability like this, it was like pure cheating. Failing to thrive would’ve been the real anomaly... Thankfully, Auntie was on his side now. If it really mirrored the original, where the Xia family joined "Spark," it’d be a total annihilation. Winning this rich war, otherwise, might as well open a window and dive headfirst out. This statement was quite personal to her, as someone like Gu Yi or Xia Wu You would still have others to counter them, but Xia Ke An alone was irreplaceably powerful, with no means of suppression. Naturally, from the perspective of the white-haired loli herself, she chose Xu Shi due to his charisma and actions, freely admitting it was from the heart. A mutual running towards each other, it was. "Tell me about it." Xia Ke An chuckled, clearly satisfied at being able to assist Xu Shi, feeling accomplished and having repaid a bit of her debt to him... "So, what’s Xu Shi planning to do now?" She blinked playfully. "Xu Shi wants you to get some rest first." Xu Shi shifted the topic, truthfully needing time to process the information… whereas Xia Ke An was visibly exhausted, almost unable to speak. He lifted the side of the sofa, placing the tired auntie on it for the time, "I recall Xie Qing Yan gave you some potions before you were discharged? I'll fetch them for you… By the way, do you need anything to eat or drink?" "Yes, yes please, thank you, Brother Xu Shi." The white-haired loli responded unabashedly, even teasing him, "This is the first time you've taken such good care of me." "How you phrase it, serving our great benefactor is an honor." Xu Shi didn’t argue over that, waving it off as he went to retrieve the medicine. When he returned with the potions and some snacks, however, he was met with a peculiar sight. Xia Ke An had vanished. Well, "vanished" wasn't quite right. Someone was still lounging peacefully on the sofa, half-asleep... Except it was no longer a white-haired loli but a graceful, beautiful adult woman, with just one glance enough to captivate anyone. Seeing this, Xu Shi almost dropped the tray in his hand. He knew this person too. Wasn’t this the original appearance of Xia Ke An, his childhood muse? Did she... change back? (End of Chapter)