Waving goodbye to his past self and Grandpa Ming, Gu Rong didn’t immediately leave the Old World.

He remembered he didn’t just have the small bundle, but also the Ultraman little backpack his Daddy and Mommy bought him. That was the only thing he had kept from his parents.

Previously, he had the little backpack, but in this current timeline, he didn’t. Because he had transmigrated over, the details changed; when he went out looking for his Daddy and Mommy, he forgot to bring the little backpack.

Gu Rong said: [Zaizai wants to go find the Ultraman little backpack!]

He had a little backpack in his system inventory, but he wanted to help his past self find his.

006 said: [This world has changed drastically. Does the little host still remember the way?]

Gu Rong answered honestly: [Don’t remember.]

006: […]

Although he didn’t remember the route home, Gu Rong could now use props again, eliminating the need to walk on his short legs. He could fly over, or have the skulls carry him. With the skulls’ speed, covering the entire city wouldn’t even take a day.

Gu Rong was currently in a ghost state; people in the Old World couldn’t see him. He took out the Skull Ghost Ship, transformed it into a child-sized bumper car, got in, and set off.

The skulls sang lalala. Gu Rong, hearing them lala back and forth, taught them to sing “Little Frog”. The skulls rampaged recklessly through the streets, singing along with their Little Captain, incomparably cheerful. Encountering a zombie horde, the skulls drove directly over the densely packed zombie heads.

Although Gu Rong didn’t completely remember the route home, he had vague memories, not completely blind. The world had changed drastically; that was the main reason the route was blurred.

The skull bumper car drove for half a day. Passing a park, Gu Rong controlled the bumper car to stop. He recognized this park; it was the one where Uncle Butler used to take him to ride his scooter. Back then, he had seen a little black cat on the pomelo tree; now he knew that little black cat was Lord Devil.

The park was now desolate. Previously filled with corpses, now overgrown with weeds, completely abandoned.

Gu Rong said: [Zaizai came to this park before! Zaizai’s home is nearby!]

006 said: [Great! We can go home and find the little backpack soon!]

Gu Rong nodded his little head, controlling the skull bumper car to continue forward. After twisting and turning for another ten minutes or so, Gu Rong finally saw the familiar villa.

But the villa also looked desolate, its walls covered in green Boston ivy. The plants grew wildly, as if mutated, taller than the walls themselves. From the outside, this low-key luxury villa now looked eerie, no different from a haunted house.

Mutant plants were everywhere. The skull bumper car didn’t get taller but instead extended eight spider legs from its chassis, all composed of skulls. Wherever they passed, the skulls neatly harvested the plants, clearing a path.

Arriving at the villa gate, Gu Rong saw something and stopped the skull bumper car. Within his line of sight appeared a pile of white bones, scattered messily by the entrance. Fungus had grown on them, and some small glowing flowers bloomed there. And beside them lay a scooter.

It looked as if someone holding a scooter had died here. After death, no one collected the corpse until it turned into a pile of white bones, parasitized by mutant plants, which then bloomed into flowers.

Gu Rong silently looked at the white bones before him. After watching for a long moment, he said: [This is Uncle Butler.]

Back then, when Gu Rong ran dadada out of the house to find his Daddy and Mommy, Uncle Butler hadn’t let the Little Young Master run off alone. He grabbed the scooter, wanting to chase after the Little Young Master. But unfortunately, just as he stepped out of the gate, he encountered a zombie, was bitten to death, and subsequently died here. That zombie had originally intended to chase Gu Rong, but Lu Li, transformed into a little black cat, was waiting ahead. The zombie, instinctively sensing danger, changed its target.

Gu Rong looked at the white bones for a long time, bowed respectfully towards them, then resumed controlling the bumper car, driving into the villa.

From the outside, the villa still looked like a house, but the interior had become a tangle of wildly growing plant roots and stems. Gu Rong felt like he had mistakenly barged into a primeval forest.

Soon, Gu Rong spotted his Ultraman little backpack on the sofa. The plants weren’t interested in inanimate objects. The little backpack was still intact, covered in a thick layer of dust.

Gu Rong’s little face lit up with joy. He hurried over, wanting to pick up his little backpack, but after trying, he found his little hand passed directly through the backpack.

[Huh?] Gu Rong looked at his small hand in amazement.

006 explained: [Little host, you currently exist in this world as a ghost form. You cannot touch objects in this world.]

Hearing this, Gu Rong looked at the little backpack and told the skulls to fetch it. But when the skulls tried to touch it, they also couldn’t touch the little backpack.

Gu Rong couldn’t figure it out: [Why skulls cannot touch little backpack too? Could touch big trees just now.]

The “big trees” he referred to were the mutant plants taller than the walls.

After speaking, Gu Rong turned his head back, but paused, stunned. The path cleared just moments ago was gone. The plants were still growing tall and lush, without the slightest sign of being broken.

Gu Rong’s little face was filled with mengran (confusion/blankness), even more lost.

He had the bumper car reverse slightly. This time, he finally noticed something was wrong. Before the bumper car arrived, the plants automatically bent aside. After they drove away, they returned to their original state. These plants seemed to have evolved sentience, able to sense their presence. But they couldn’t touch the plants.

Confirming this point, Gu Rong drove the bumper car back to the sofa’s side, looking worriedly at the little backpack. Finally found the little backpack, but he couldn’t take it away, couldn’t return it to this world’s Zaizai. Gu Rong frowned his little eyebrows.

After a while, Gu Rong’s eyes suddenly lit up; he thought of a good idea. [Lord Devil can see Zaizai! Zaizai can ask Lord Devil help take little backpack give Rongrong!] (t/n: Here, Zaizai refers to himself, Rongrong refers to his past self in the old world).

006 also remembered: When Lord Devil fed blood to this world’s little host, He specifically looked back and met the little host’s gaze, clearly able to see him. And that Lord Devil belonged to the Old World, yet could see Gu Rong!

006 praised: [Correct! Little host is so smart!]

Gu Rong broke into a big smile, but soon, the smile froze on his little face: [But where Zaizai find Lord Devil?]

006 was also stuck. Lord Devil came and went without a trace, mysterious beyond mysterious. Where to find Him?

006 said, not very hopeful: [Maybe… little host try calling out a couple times? After all, every time Lord Devil appears, it’s before the little host. His venerable self possessed vast supernatural powers; maybe He’ll appear if called?]

Gu Rong nodded, preparing to try shouting. But the meticulous little cub didn’t forget to correct: [Lord Devil is little person, not old man!]

006: …6

–

Saying shout, he shouted. Gu Rong faced the room full of plants and yelled out, drawing out the syllables: “Lord Devil— Lord Devil— Where are you?”

He shouted twice, but nothing happened. Gu Rong perked his little ears, hearing nothing.

006: [Maybe… shout couple more times?]

Gu Rong cupped his hands around his mouth like a loudspeaker, shouting tenderly: “Lord Devil! Lord Devil! Lor—”

Halfway through the shout, a three-year-old cub dressed in wide black robes and large sleeves appeared within his line of sight.

Lu Li stood about a meter away from Gu Rong, arms crossed, his entire being exuding impatience and irritation, as if disturbed. He looked unfriendlyly at Gu Rong and uttered just one word: “Noisy.”

Seeing he had really summoned Lord Devil, Gu Rong didn’t mind His bad temper. After all this time, he was long used to it.

Gu Rong’s eyes lit up. He got off the skull bumper car, ran up to Lu Li, and said happily: “Lord Devil! Why you really come?”

Lu Li replied coldly: “Oh. Then I go.”

Gu Rong: “…”

Hearing he wanted to leave, even making a gesture to turn away, Gu Rong reflexively grabbed His sleeve with his small hand. After grabbing it, he paused, stunned, letting out a curious “Huh?”.

He could actually touch Lord Devil!

Gu Rong was extremely amazed. He grabbed Lu Li’s sleeve, then released it. After releasing, he grabbed again, then released again. After repeating this several times… Lu Li finally lost patience.

“?”

Gu Rong saw Lu Li’s expression and quickly released his small hand.

Lu Li, counterintuitively, paused, momentarily forgetting his anger.

Afraid Lu Li would really leave, Gu Rong quickly stated his request: “Lord Devil! Can you help Zaizai take little backpack give Rongrong?”

Lu Li: “…”

Although spoken convolutedly, Lu Li understood.

After hearing this, Lu Li paused for a moment, then scoffed coldly: “Oh? Ask This Lord run errands for you?” He added at the end, “Little follower.”

Gu Rong was small and didn’t think too much about it, but 006 heard it and felt its metaphorical hair stand on end.

Wo cao! What exactly is Lord Devil’s origin? Logically, the Old World happened before the little host first entered the game. At that time, the little host hadn’t become Lord Devil’s little follower yet, but Lord Devil actually knew the term! It was as if He wasn’t bound by time or space, omniscient and omnipotent.

Gu Rong frowned his little eyebrows and talked back in his milky voice: “Why little follower again? Zaizai already said! Lord Devil give Zaizai clothes, Zaizai give Lord Devil radish! Future Lord Devil Zaizai’s good friend!”

Lu Li: “…”

006: […]

Seeing Lu Li unmoved, Gu Rong thought for a moment, then added: “Lord Devil help Zaizai deliver little backpack! Lord Devil future Zaizai’s best good friend!!!”

He placed extra emphasis on the word “best.”

Hearing this, Lu Li actually laughed.

A mere title, thinks he can command Him?

Lu Li didn’t promise whether He would deliver the little backpack or not. He looked at Gu Rong, watched him for a moment, then repeated a sentence He had said before: “Zaizai, go home.”

Gu Rong: “…”

Before Gu Rong could react, the Lu Li before him began to blur, as if seen through a layer of mist. Though clearly close, He felt incredibly distant.

Skulls began to gather beneath his feet, but they no longer formed the shape of a bumper car; instead, morphing into the likeness of an eight-limbed octopus. Gu Rong stood on a highly arched octopus tentacle.

Gu Rong stared wide-eyed in amazement. Looking up again, Lu Li was gone, and the scene before him had completely changed. He had returned again to the “Doomsday Paradise” instance.

He was still standing on the giant octopus tentacle over the sea. The world’s scenery was still frozen, the helicopter carrying the players nearby, the half-collapsed Paradise in the distance.

Gu Rong stared blankly at it all. In his small hand was a small black key, precisely the one that appeared after the “Revelation” page vanished earlier. Here, the channel to the Old World had opened. After the Old World closed, he was transported back here.

Seeing the key, Gu Rong remembered asking Lord Devil earlier how many keys there were in total. Lord Devil had said he had already collected them all.

“Lord Devil!” Gu Rong turned his little head, searching everywhere, trying to find Lord Devil’s figure.

He hadn’t returned the keys to Lord Devil yet!

After searching for a while, Gu Rong turned his little head back again and was surprised to find Lu Li had reappeared before him.

Gu Rong said, “Lord Devil!”

Was it an illusion? Lu Li’s body looked much fainter than before, like every time He left previously, thin as mist, appearing semi-transparent.

Gu Rong looked at Lu Li’s nearly transparent body, stunned for a moment.

Lu Li looked at Gu Rong. Then, His gaze fell upon the key in his hand. His tone was level: “Much faster than I thought.”

Seeing him look at the key, Gu Rong hurriedly took out the other four keys from his system backpack. Five keys, neatly arranged. Although the keys were relatively small, Gu Rong’s hands were also small. He couldn’t hold all five in one hand and could only hold them respectfully with both hands, offering them to Lu Li.

Gu Rong said, “Lord Devil, give! Zaizai found all your keys!”

Lu Li looked at the five keys but didn’t take them. His gaze fell back onto Gu Rong’s face.

After a long while, He said: “Zaizai, these keys do not belong to me, but to you.”

Gu Rong froze, not understanding Lu Li’s meaning.

Lu Li saw Gu Rong’s mengmengran (dazed/blank) little face and continued with the following words: “These were made from your bones.”

“…”

Zaizai died before he could grow up. Back then, Lu Li’s drop of blood only temporarily preserved his life but couldn’t fully bring him back; he would soon die again. The devil inherently represents death; His blood naturally cannot bring new life. To resurrect Gu Rong required making a deal with the devil. Except this time, the deal was one the devil made with Himself, solely to resurrect one little cub. Gu Rong was pulled into the game. By collecting the keys made from his own bones, he fulfilled the condition for resurrection – collecting all the keys could resurrect himself. All along, he had been collecting his own bones.

Gu Rong listened to Lu Li’s words in disbelief, seemingly unable to digest it immediately. The five small keys in his hand also transformed into five white bones – very small, clearly an infant’s bones.

Gu Rong held his own bones, the entire cub in a state of mengdong mengran (ignorant, dazed, lost). He looked at the bones, watched them for a while, then squatted down on the octopus tentacle and began to assemble the bones.

Gu Rong arranged the five bones into the shape of a little person. This little person had limbs and a torso composed of only one bone each, like a matchstick man, but it had no head.

Facing his own bones, forget a child, even an adult might be scared to tears. But Gu Rong didn’t cry.

Lu Li watched Gu Rong quietly all along.

006 was no longer blocked by Lord Devil this time. It looked at the little host, feeling unbearably sad. If it had a physical body, it really wanted to hug the little host.

Gu Rong, however, was very calm. Looking at the matchstick man before him, he asked: “Where Zaizai’s head go?”

Lu Li: “…”

006: […]

The matchstick man lay on the octopus tentacle, which was entirely composed of skulls. Skulls were everywhere, countless, but none belonged to Gu Rong.

Gu Rong looked at the matchstick man for a while, then carefully picked up his own bones again, hugging them in his arms. Then, he looked up at Lu Li before him. Even now, Gu Rong hadn’t cried. A strong little cub. After experiencing so much, he surprisingly accepted the fact that he had died before, very calmly.

Gu Rong said: “Lord Devil…”

He had just called out “Lord Devil,” but found Lu Li’s already faint figure fading even more, even beginning to dissipate like morning mist.

A bad premonition suddenly rose in Gu Rong’s heart. He, this Little Zombie cub, had always been quite sensitive to danger.

Gu Rong’s little face showed shock: “…Lord Devil?”

Lu Li was silent for a moment, then said: “Little follower, still remember the line from the ‘Revelation’?”

The destruction of the old world is the beginning of the establishment of the new world.

Gu Rong nodded repeatedly: “Yes, yes! Zaizai remember! Lord Devil, how you almost disappear? You going again?”

Lu Li was silent for even longer, then sighed softly: “Making a deal with the devil requires paying a price. Even for the devil himself, there is no exception.”

The price to resurrect Gu Rong was – the devil’s sacrifice. The moment Gu Rong resurrected also signified Lu Li’s death. This was the destined ending from the very beginning.

Tears welled up in Gu Rong’s eyes, a teardrop falling. Seemingly unable to believe it: “Lord Devil, also die like Zaizai?”

Lu Li did not answer this question.

Gu Rong, however, seemed to sense something. He wanted to reach out and grab Lu Li, but his small hand passed right through Lu Li’s body, unable to touch Him. Even in the Old World, he could touch Lu Li, but at this moment, he could no longer touch Lu Li.

Gu Rong’s tears fell uncontrollably, like beads from a broken string, pattering down: “Lord Devil! You don’t die! Zaizai not want you die!”

“You Zaizai’s best friend!”

The animal ears on Lu Li’s head drooped down. He also couldn’t understand why He had to resurrect this little cub. The world merely lost one toddler; it made no difference; the world wouldn’t change at all.

Just… Just He didn’t understand why a dying cub could still think to show kindness to a small cat.

Lu Li said, “Little follower.”

Gu Rong looked at Him through teary eyes.

Lu Li: “This life of yours was exchanged for the Devil’s sacrifice. Grow up well.”

Don’t die young again like last time.

Lu Li’s figure became increasingly transparent, until He completely disappeared before his eyes…

“When the game restarts, I will return.”

–

Gu Rong held his own bones, his small face covered in tears, staring at the spot where Lu Li had disappeared, watching for a long, long time, as if petrified.

006 asked worriedly: [Little host… are you okay?]

Where Lu Li had just disappeared, a black key fell. Gu Rong didn’t pick up the key immediately. He recognized it as the Master Key synthesized from the five keys in “The Mental Hospital” instance. In that instance, Lu Li’s bones had also been crafted by Himself into five keys.

Gu Rong continued staring blankly at the key. Too much had happened one after another. The impact was too strong for anyone, let alone a two-year-old cub.

However, just at this moment, the world, which had been frozen, suddenly began operating again. Time resumed its flow. Torrential rain poured down. The world continued its previous collapse. Everything became chaotic and disordered.

Gu Rong reacted quickly, immediately running forward and grabbing the Master Key. He looked at the world re-disintegrating, remembering Lu Li’s reminder just now, the sentence from the “Revelation”—

The destruction of the old world is the beginning of the establishment of the new world.

Seawater mixed with rainwater crashed towards Gu Rong. Gu Rong’s head and face were drenched. Gu Rong pulled himself from his emotions and shouted in his mind: [How destroy old world?]

006: [Use points!!!]

Spending all points could destroy the old world and establish a new world.

Gu Rong hugged his bones, his small hand tightly gripping the key, gazing out at this world that no longer contained Lu Li.

When the game restarts, Lord Devil will return!