Guan Ling's feelings toward the Little Mirror had changed from initial disbelief and jealousy to admiration and reverence.

On the way to the 20th floor with the little loach, he couldn't help but ask, "If Mirror God hadn’t led us, how would we have found the little loach?"

Xing Ye: "?"

Mirror God? Who is that?

With a blank expression, Cao Qian replied, "If we had our great leader, the great leader would have us watch and listen to everything while people argue, searching from the 1st floor to the 34th floor and back down to the 17th floor. Then, after analysing the fish tank thoroughly, we'd finally find the little loach."

Xing Ye: "..."

Cao Qian continued, "Without the great leader, I’d probably end up fighting Ren Tingman and the hyena. In the chaos, we'd smash the fish tank and then realize there’s a loach inside that can’t be killed. Only then would we notice something special about it."

Hearing all this, the little loach in the teacup trembled uneasily.

Lu Mingze chuckled shyly, "I'm not that great. It’s really because everyone laid such a solid foundation earlier. I actually think this world restrains me the most. If I had to pass this level on my own, I’d probably stay stuck in reality the whole time, unable to immerse myself in the shared imagination. I’d just sit still until someone else cleared the level. It’s really thanks to my affinity with Xing Ye being over 90 that I can even see the world he's sensing. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have found anything."

Xing Ye: "..."

That makes so much sense!

Little Mirror’s natural optimism and positivity made it impossible for him to resonate with the collective imagination!

Sawing legs Cao Qian and gambling Guan Ling suddenly felt even sadder, as if their knees were pierced with arrows.

The group chatted and laughed as they strolled to the 20th floor as if they were on a leisurely outing. When they arrived, Xing Ye found the profile of the psychologist they’d met the previous night. She was Professor Yang, a nationally certified first-class psychologist. Many people were trying to make appointments with her, so it was impossible for them to see her without getting past her assistant first.

Just as Xing Ye was about to explain to Guan Ling what to do, Guan Ling turned and asked, "Mirror God, what should I do?"

Xing Ye: "..."

Lu Mingze said, "Didn’t you bring the newspaper clipping? Give it to the assistant and ask her to pass it on to Professor Yang. If she really cares about Xiao Hei, she’ll agree to meet us."

Following Lu Mingze’s instructions, Guan Ling handed the clipping to the assistant and informed her that an accident had just taken place that day.

The assistant’s face changed, and she hurried off with the clipping to find Professor Yang.

Cao Qian and Guan Ling didn’t bother asking the Little Mirror how he knew the clipping would be useful—probably another one of his “intuitive” answers. As for Xing Ye, he likely knew too, but he would have gone on about the medical records and the clipping's date aligning, drawing connections and explaining everything in detail ...

"The professor will meet you in the reception room after her current session, which will end in ten minutes," the assistant said when she returned, politely guiding them to the reception room and even offering them tea.

"Mirror God, the tea’s safe, right? Can we drink it?" Guan Ling asked, fawning a bit.

Lu Mingze sniffed the tea and said, "It should be fine. I don’t sense any problems."

"Great," Guan Ling sighed, sipping the tea contentedly. "This tea is really good. Wouldn’t it be great if we could clear every world like this—just drinking tea and not having to fight? Can we have Mirror God lead us again next time?"

Xing Ye replied coldly, "Sorry, in the next world, Little Mirror and I are going to the advanced worlds. You can choose the path where you accidentally smash the fish tank while fighting."

Guan Ling's face instantly fell into sadness.

Ten minutes later, Professor Yang hurried in to meet the three of them. She looked very kind and asked with concern, "Are you Mo Ping’s family?"

It turned out that Xiao Hei’s real name was Mo Ping. The three of them exchanged glances. Xing Ye placed the teacup and the little mirror on the table, facing Professor Yang directly.

Xing Ye had his own set of skills for talking to people, but he remained silent, curious to see how Little Mirror would handle the situation.

Lu Mingze observed Professor Yang for a while before suddenly speaking up, "Professor, do you know that this isn’t the real world?"

Professor Yang adjusted her glasses, the lenses reflecting light for a moment. She smiled warmly and asked, "Little Mirror, why do you think that?"

Cao Qian clenched her fists. This Professor Yang didn’t seem simple—there might be a fight coming.

"By saying that, you’re pretty much confirming it," Lu Mingze replied calmly. "I’m not sure why I think so, but the moment I saw you, I had a feeling that you understood everything. How can I put it? Even though you’re in Mo Ping’s dream, you’re the only person he sees as clear-headed, intelligent, and wise. Even in his dream, he believes you can see through everything. As the dream’s creator, Mo Ping would expect you to recognize right away that this little loach is him, so of course, you must know!"

Professor Yang patted Little Mirror and laughed, "You’re right, I know. But I’m neither panicked nor afraid. Even though I’m just a thought of his imagination, it’s not so bad to experience something so extraordinary."

Xing Ye: "..."

If it had been him, the conversation would’ve lasted at least half an hour to determine that Professor Yang understood the truth of this world. Then, another half hour would be spent confirming that she had no malicious intentions before he could safely hand her the QR code and the little loach.

"Professor Yang, the little loach... Mo Ping needs your help," Lu Mingze said. "You’re trapped in his dream, and he can’t escape. If he jumps to his death here in the dream, he will die in the real world too. Mo Ping is unable to ask for help in reality, so you must assist him here in the dream!"

"I want to help him," Professor Yang replied, "but psychological treatment and change aren’t things that happen overnight. Mo Ping is under immense pressure, and that pressure comes from the people around him—his parents’ expectations, society’s gaze, internship evaluations, the stress of graduating from a 985 university. All these burdens are crushing him. I can only relieve some of his stress through words and medication, but unless the real-world pressures lighten, he can’t be saved. Even if he graduates successfully, he’ll still face the pressures of society."

(985 Universities is a group of prestigious Chinese universities that were part of the "Project 985", an initiative launched by the Chinese government in May 1998 (98/5) to promote the development of world-class universities in China.)

The little loach in the teacup blew a bubble.

Lu Mingze said, "The pressure may come from the outside, but the relief has to come from within. Don’t forget, Professor, this is the spiritual world. Here, we can do things that aren’t possible in reality. Here’s a QR code for you—you’ll know how to use it."

With that, Lu Mingze signaled to Cao Qian, who hesitated but then pulled out her phone and showed the QR code that Lu Mingze had chosen to Professor Yang.

"This is..." Professor Yang seemed to understand the content of the QR code. She adjusted her glasses, excitement in her voice, "This is great! Give it to me. With this, I’ll be able to fully empathize with Mo Ping’s pain and help him through psychological counselling."

Cao Qian scanned the QR code. The code’s usage was limited to two individuals, and Cao Qian selected both Professor Yang and the little loach.

"Empathy," a mental control QR code, was originally just a tool for psychological counselling, helping therapists fully understand their patients and aiding in their expression and self-exploration. It facilitated deeper understanding and communication between the counsellor and the patient. In this context, however, empathy synchronized the emotional channels of two individuals, allowing the stronger emotional party to influence the other entirely, thus aiding in therapy or even control. The effect lasted for ten minutes. The side effect was that if the other party’s emotions were stronger than the user’s, the user could be entirely controlled by them.

"I’ve received a notification that the side quest has been completed: helping Professor Yang and Mo Ping empathize with each other. I’ve earned 5,000 points and a rare QR code called ‘Scars of the Heart,’" Cao Qian suddenly said, showing her phone to everyone.

"Scars of the Heart" was a rare mental control QR code that could expose the hidden emotional wounds of the target. This wound could be turned into physical damage on the enemy according to the will of the user. Once the emotional wound became a real injury and healed physically, the inner emotional scar would also heal.

"This QR code!" Guan Ling’s eyes lit up as he pointed to himself. "Me! Me!"

At that moment, Professor Yang’s expression became one of intense pain, as if she was being overwhelmed by the darkness in Mo Ping’s heart. It was clear that even her strong mental resilience was struggling to heal Mo Ping.

Without waiting for instructions from Lu Mingze, Cao Qian decisively used "Scars of the Heart" on the little loach. Instantly, the little loach's body was covered in injuries, nearly turning him into mush.

Luckily, Guan Ling was there. He used his "Broken Mirror Restored" ability to heal the little loach’s wounds.

After the little loach’s injuries healed, with Professor Yang’s help, he gradually transformed back into a person. Cao Qian quickly removed the teacup and placed the little loach on a chair.

The little loach turned into an ordinary-looking young man in his early twenties. He sat quietly on the chair, his eyes closed, looking as though he was peacefully asleep. Professor Yang also slowly opened her eyes and gave the young man a relieved smile.

The surroundings began to distort, and at that moment, the system's voice rang in the trio’s ears: "Fantasy world mission successfully completed. Congratulations to players Xing Ye, Cao Qian, and Guan Ling for a perfect pass. Each player earns 100 points. Additionally, for perfect clearance of this world, 14,000 points are awarded: Cao Qian earns 8,000 points, Xing Ye 4,000 points, and Guan Ling 2,000 points."

 

Translator : DarNan