Chapter 5

“Panzi…”

Out of the corner of his eye, Panzi saw Wu Xie coming out.

“Little Master, you’re awake. How do you feel?”

Panzi pulled Wu Xie to sit down and handed him a bowl of water, motioning for him to drink it.

Fatty also sat down silently, watching Wu Xie. He had felt that Wu Xie had been acting strangely since the desert.

Could it be… he was really exhausted to the point of stupidity?

Wu Xie mechanically sipped the water in his hands, his eyes constantly glancing at Panzi.

His ears couldn’t make out what they were saying. He didn’t know what they were laughing about. He only knew that his tears were streaming down uncontrollably, and he didn’t want to stop them.

Fatty, who had been watching Wu Xie the entire time, instantly noticed something was wrong.

“Xiao Tianzhen, don’t tell me you got scared to tears? Just pretend we didn’t say anything and finish your drink like normal.”

They were all laughing out loud. This time, Wu Xie heard them clearly.

Sheep dung pellets.

Damn it, had he drunk it again?

Wu Xie felt his senses gradually returning. His body was a little sore, but nothing too serious. His legs were fine too.

What was all this? It felt way too real.

After bidding farewell to Panzi, they went to a hospital in Beijing to see a doctor. Ever since Tamutuo, Menyouping had not woken up, his entire body burning with fever, mumbling in his sleep.

Fatty registered Menyouping for a check-up and arranged a hospital room. But as soon as that was done, he woke up. His fever was gone, and his mind was completely clear.

Most importantly, he didn’t seem to have lost his memory—he recognized everyone.

His body even seemed better than before. The energy inside him was incredibly stable. The only odd thing was that he kept staring at Wu Xie.

Everything was exactly as he remembered. The events were unfolding the same way. Except… this time, Xiao Ge wasn’t lying on the hospital bed in a dazed state.

He was even very clear-headed, eating a banana that Fatty had peeled for him.

Everything felt real. But Wu Xie clearly remembered—he had already died at the Bronze Gate. He couldn’t understand.

“Tianzhen, Xiao Ge was the one who got scared, so why are you the one looking so dumbfounded? What’s wrong with you?”

“You two went to the Palace of the Queen Mother of the West and came back completely out of it?”

Fatty was losing his mind. These two had woken up and just sat there blankly without saying a word.

“You know what? Tianzhen, you might as well register yourself and stay in the hospital for a while too.”

“Alright.”

At the sound of the response, Wu Xie and Fatty both looked at Xiao Ge, who was still eating his banana, full of doubt.

Fatty was puzzled because Xiao Ge was actually joking with him.

Wu Xie was puzzled because, according to how things should have gone, Bianzai should have been lying in the hospital bed, burning up with fever and semi-conscious—not leisurely eating a banana.

“Wu Xie, you’re sick.”

Zhang Qiling looked at the two of them calmly.

“Holy shit, this trip to the Queen Mother of the West’s palace really messed things up. Xiao Ge can joke around and insult people, and Tianzhen has become lifeless and dumb.”

Feeling that everything was absurd, Fatty took a fierce bite of his apple.

Wu Xie stared blankly at Bianzai, as if the one who had just insulted him wasn’t even him.

“This is definitely an illusion. Bianzai cursing? That’s the part that doesn’t make sense.

So, the key to breaking it… is you.”

With that, Wu Xie suddenly stood up and lunged toward Zhang Qiling, intending to beat him up. He was willing to sacrifice himself to break this powerful illusion.

At the same time, Fatty, hearing Wu Xie’s silly declaration, watched in shock as Wu Xie fearlessly launched an attack on Xiao Ge. Then…

Then, Xiao Ge simply clamped his legs around Wu Xie, restrained both of his arms with one hand, and pulled him into his embrace, pinning him down with force.

With his other hand, he steadily tossed the banana peel into the trash can.

“Stop messing around.”