Quadruple split.

Chapter 2964 Great Awakening

Chapter 2964 Great Awakening
Game time: 00:12 AM
The Realm of Innocence, Public Space No. 112, in front of the Central Plaza

"haven't seen you for a long time."

A girl with short black hair, wearing a short-sleeved shirt, jeans, and canvas shoes appeared before Mo Tan. Although her appearance wasn't particularly outstanding in a public space where anyone could easily create a character's face, her features were undeniably delicate and beautiful, and her temperament was quite refined. She looked up at this 'old friend' who was at least 1.8 meters tall and a dozen centimeters taller than her, and asked curiously, "Do you look like this in real life?"

Mo Tan looked at the woman in front of her, who bore a striking resemblance to Mu Xuejian from the game, but lacked that otherworldly chivalry. Instead, she possessed a youthful energy perfectly suited to a female college student. She wasn't particularly cool or handsome, but without that 'deliberate' air, she had gained a touch of cuteness. He hesitated and asked, "Mu Xuejian?"

"Shh!"

Mu Xuejian raised her hand to her lips in a shushing gesture, then sneakily dragged Mo Tan to a small flower bed not far away, complaining, "Do you want to guess why I didn't use my game avatar to meet you in public?"

Mo Tan chuckled and said apologetically, "Sorry, I forgot you're a big celebrity."

"You're about the same."

Mu Xuejian raised her hand and pointed to the [Personal Combat Power Ranking], which was visible from any angle and looked simple, clear and without any superfluous words, not far from the two of them. She then said with a subtle expression, "In terms of ranking, you are only two places lower than me. In terms of presence, compared to me who was instantly killed by a nuclear bomb, your match with Xinglong had a much higher profile. It allowed many people to see your cool side."

"Uh……"

Sensing that Mu Xuejian's use of "handsome" didn't mean the girl thought she was handsome or charming, but rather that it was mixed with envy and frustration, Mo Tan immediately realized that Mu Xuejian was extremely unhappy about not being able to show off her skills and boost her fashion points in the "Debate on Inquiry"—extremely, extremely unhappy!

As we all know, Mu Xuejian is a girl who loves to pursue fashion. To put it bluntly, she can be a bit chuunibyou (a Japanese term for someone who acts like a teenager with delusions of grandeur) in certain situations, and her style of doing things is very focused on ritual and coolness. For example, the organization she currently belongs to, [Clown Card], although the benefits and treatment there are indeed excellent, the main reason that initially attracted her to join was her coolness!

After all, in the eyes of many people who have the same symptoms as Mu Xuejian (?), this kind of organization, which does not seriously violate the bottom line of morality in most cases, and whose members have a rather cool code name and identity background, is just so cool! It has nothing to do with the so-called "reputable sects" and has a strong "secret society" feel.
Imagine this: you and a bunch of handsome, dark silhouettes secretly gather in some pitch-black place. In the darkness, you use impressive-sounding terms like "Ace of Spades" and "Jack of Clubs" to discuss sophisticated, high-class topics, secretly stirring up trouble. Every day, you plot how to add variables and surprises to this boring world. Occasionally, you can even use a dual identity to interact with ordinary people, and when necessary, you can play dumb to deceive them, uttering thrilling lines like, "Actually, I'm a member of the XX organization!"—a line that sends shivers down your spine.

Tell me, isn't he handsome?
Leaving aside certain extremely pragmatic exceptions, a considerable proportion of people would still think that this kind of thing is absolutely awesome!
Mu Xuejian was exactly that kind of person, so under Mo Tan's targeted offensive, he agreed to join the "Clown Card" almost without hesitation, and became the most aggressive ACE card with his extraordinary potential.

However, during this period, this 'ace' has clearly fallen into a predicament that is almost suffocating her.

The bottleneck in epic progression made her increasingly anxious under the urging of [Frostless], and she even gradually began to develop a sense of self-doubt.

Although it is currently under control, Mu Xuejian is well aware that if this suspicion extends to his own 'sword', the consequences could become unimaginable.

This is the trouble of geniuses. Just as the horrors of many academic fields can only frighten the most outstanding, the smartest, and the most talented people, even though Mu Xuejian is weaker than Mo Tan, Ji Xiaodao, Xinglong, and others in terms of pure combat talent, even if you include all the NPCs in the [Innocent Realm], almost no one can be as unparalleled in 'sword skills' as she is.

Her unique talent manifested as [Frostless], and it was also [Frostless] that drove her to this point.

The reason is simple: [Frostless] was never an ordinary weapon. Rather than a reward given to Mu Xue by the system, it was more like the system forced her to materialize her talent in swordsmanship.

So why is [Frostless] not a talent that can be displayed in the character panel, but an actual weapon?
The reason is not complicated. In short, the talent represented by [Frostless] is a kind of inheritance rooted in the bloodline of Muxue Sword. It belongs to her, but it may not belong to her.

For example, Mu Xuejian is like a student who is qualified to get a perfect score on an exam. This qualification does not give her the talent of "automatically filling in the exam paper with all correct answers as long as she picks up a pen". Instead, it becomes a tutoring book that others cannot buy even if they have money. The name of this book is "Frostless".

It is the possibility of Mu Xuejian, but also the biggest dilemma that haunts her like a nightmare before she completes her 'sword', preventing her from finding peace.

He has a cool gaming experience.

You can eat whatever you want without gaining weight.

To reach the pinnacle of one's beloved path of kendo.

This is Mu Xuejian's greatest ideal in the [Innocent Realm], and after a smooth journey, she finally encountered a bottleneck after the [Debate on Guilt] ended.

"I can no longer understand my own sword."

Lacking the detached and peaceful demeanor she displays in the game, Mu Xuejian doesn't hide her troubles in public. So, like anyone caught in a dilemma, she openly tells her friends about her worries: "This is terrible."

Mo Tan paused for a moment, then repeated, "You're saying you can't understand your own sword?"

"It's not that I 'can't understand' it, but rather that I 'can't understand some parts of it'."

Mu Xuejian corrected him seriously, then casually took out an 'Artes Lollipop' from the Root System Shop and stuffed it into his mouth. While eating, he mumbled, "Not long before leaving Academy City, I was recruited to work somewhere. Although it was quite troublesome, it was also really fun. And I was considered one of the better workers there, in a pretty high position."

[That's very professional...]

Seeing that Mu Xuejian clearly had considerable authority, yet still chose to remain vague about the specifics of a certain charitable organization, Mo Tan felt a little gratified for herself.

Although he knew very well that 'he' most likely wouldn't feel any relief.

"Hmm, I have a general idea. We'll talk about it later."

Mo Tan nodded and asked patiently, "So you asked me to come here this time to solve your problem of 'not being able to understand your own sword'?"

"Smart, it's quite convenient to communicate with you."

Mu Xuejian gave Mo Tan a thumbs up and shrugged, saying, "To be honest, I had a premonition about today's situation a long time ago. Although I didn't expect it to be this serious at the time, I could guess that there would be a very troublesome bottleneck waiting for me ahead."

Mo Tan understood immediately and asked pointedly, "An epic?"

"Yes, it is an epic."

Mu Xuejian sighed and subconsciously reached out to touch [Wu Shuang]. Then, after realizing that the longsword was not hanging on his back at the moment, he sighed again and shook his head, saying, "I don't really want to talk about too much idealism, so you can simply understand it as, if I can't break through to the Epic level soon, things will become more and more troublesome, and the game experience will become worse and worse."

Mo Tan didn't say much, but simply asked, "Can I help?"

"If I couldn't, I wouldn't have called you over."

Mu Xuejian crunched the lollipop in her mouth, wiped her mouth, and said to Mo Tan very seriously, "Do you remember what I said when I gave you the Sword Manual? You are rapidly becoming stronger and have already caught up to the top of the personal rankings. You are just right to help me test my sword."

After a moment's thought, Mo Tan said frankly, "How can you be so sure that a friendly spar is more suitable for 'testing the sword' than a life-or-death struggle?"

"Huh?"

Mu Xuejian was taken aback for a moment, then asked curiously, "How did you know that I've been testing my sword skills by fighting to the death with others lately?"

Mo Tan didn't hold back and said frankly, "I also know some things about your [Clown Card], including how you, as the ACE, have recently made a name for yourself in the City of Freedom, fighting your way up in the Nightless Zone with your sword."

Mu Xuejian: "...Huh?"

"Because someone acted as a go-between, my adventurer party is currently collaborating with [The Clown] on a very high-priority, in-depth collaboration."

With the mindset that there's no time like the present, Mo Tan, who had already passed the test of online dating, smiled slightly and said bluntly, "And you, ACE, are on that person's recommendation list." "Wait a minute, let's go through it step by step."

Mu Xuejian suddenly raised her right hand, pointing the lollipop stick at Mo Tan as if she were holding a sword, and said seriously, "First of all, who was the matchmaker?"

"I mean……"

Mo Tan looked around at the other players and suggested, "Let's find somewhere else to talk."

"Row."

Mu Xuejian nodded and said decisively, "Go to your private room."

Mo Tan: "...Mine?"

"Well, my private room is laid out the same way as my bedroom outside the game room. If I let you in, it feels like I'm bringing a boy home, which is embarrassing."

Mu Xuejian scratched his head, then explained, "It's not that I dislike you, it's just that I personally find it a little strange."

For one reason or another, not only did she not mind at all, but she even welcomed Mu Xuejian's disdain. Mo Tan smiled, then teleported back to her private room and sent Mu Xuejian an invitation.

Immediately afterwards—

"Waaah!"

The girl suddenly crouched down, clutching her head and shouting, "My eyes!"

Mo Tan: "...It can't be that exaggerated, can it?"

"You're the one exaggerating, aren't you?"

Mu Xuejian looked around at the completely white room, which was about fifty square meters in size and simply furnished with white walls, white tables and chairs, white floors and white ceilings. She complained, "Would a normal person make their room this dazzling?"

Mo Tan shrugged and said honestly, "I feel that this kind of environment helps me calm down."

"What kind of ascetic are you... This kind of environment would obviously make people anxious."

Mu Xuejian continued to complain, then noticed that everything around her was being rapidly colored. The floor turned into reddish-brown wooden planks, the walls into a light green that was very friendly to the eyes, and while the chairs remained pure white, the sofa and table turned into rose red and sky blue respectively. She quickly waved her hand and said, "Hey! You didn't have to change it! I feel really bad about it!"

Mo Tan gave a gentle smile and said in a light tone, "It can't be said that it was specially changed for you. If other people come over, they will also feel uncomfortable. So it's better to change it sooner rather than later."

"You really are very understanding."

Mu Xuejian sighed, then suddenly clapped her hands: "By the way, speaking of the others, didn't you just say in your friend message that Ye Ge was coming too? How come you're the only one here?"

"She was busy with something right now, so she didn't come along."

Mo Tan said something with a somewhat subtle expression, then walked to a table with a chair on each side and sat down, smiling, "In fact, she has always trusted me quite a bit, so all I have to do is report back properly when I get back."

Mu Xuejian: "...Reassured? Report?"

Mo Tan nodded: "Yes."

"Wait a minute!"

Mu Xuejian's originally rosy complexion suddenly turned pale, not because of her overly fair skin in the game, but because... she suddenly lost her color due to the drastic change in her emotions.

To be fair, it's not easy for something like this to happen in a public space.

"Wait a minute!!!"

A second later, Mu Xuejian said the same thing again.

"Ah."

Mo Tan nodded and said considerately, "I'm waiting."

"If I understand correctly, you you you you you..."

"I?"

"With Ye Ge, it's...it's..."

"um, yes."

"Aa ...

Are you alright?

"I think I said a lot of things to her that sounded very ambiguous!!!"