Am I really hallucinating?

Chapter 533 Not Yu Cai
The rain wasn't heavy, but it had already soaked the ground.

Because of the unexpected turn of events, the intense internal conflict within the Longhua Gang has lost its momentum. The main reason is that all the gang leaders have shaken hands and made peace. With the three-headed dragon standing there, no one dares to cause trouble for now.

Zheng Fan didn't find any remnants of Gan Yaquan, but he came to the bottom of the Longhua with great interest, looking up at the rough mechanical behemoth: "Give it to me, I don't think you can use it anyway."

He really wanted this. Although he could simply use money to create a better one that perfectly matched his imagination, it would still feel like it lacked the original "handmade" feel.

This kind of rugged, chaotic, and violently stylish mecha is unique. A one-to-one replica wouldn't be very interesting.

After he finished speaking, he realized that he was no longer possessed and that the three brothers next to him could not see him.

When he turned back to look for Jiang Si, he found that Jiang Si had pulled the terrified Jin Cuilong out of the hedgehog car, then let Xi Cai get in. As she was about to get into the driver's seat, she noticed Zheng Fan looking at her and waved back.

Knowing what she wanted to do, Zheng Fan simply nodded in response without saying anything.

Jiang Si immediately got into the car, and the hedgehog-shaped car turned around and drove away along a road.

Zheng sighed and could only pick up his little black sparrow doll as a proxy to begin the negotiations.

Inside the Hedgehog car, Jiang Si drove silently, while Xi Cai sat beside him, watching the street scenes outside the car window—a violent world with nothing to boast about. The atmosphere inside the car was quiet, with only the somewhat noisy engine sound remaining.

After a long while, Jiang Si glanced at Xi Cai and opened her mouth.

Yu Cai also looked back, seemingly prepared for whatever Jiang Si might say.

"Fasten your seatbelt."

"what?"

Yusai couldn't hold back for a moment.

She stood there for a while, until the vehicle shook violently and Xi Cai was caught off guard and hit her head on the windshield. She was then thrown back into her seat and hurriedly reached out to fasten her seatbelt.

She quickly realized that the hedgehog car had been targeted by a bomber from the sky.

The bombers in this airspace must belong to one of the three brothers. Although the three brothers have temporarily ceased hostilities, it doesn't stop the bombers from bombing the little hedgehog below when they're bored.

"How to do?"

"I don't know. This car belongs to my second brother. He modified it himself and didn't leave any instructions. I just borrowed it to drive around for fun," Jiang Si said casually.

"Then we'll just have to go up there and shoot that plane down." As Yuzai said this, she tried to unbuckle her seatbelt and go out to fight the bomber.

Jiang Si stopped her, then casually started operating the dashboard with one hand without even looking at her: "Just pressing a few buttons should solve the problem."

What does "just press anywhere" mean?

Boom!

Suddenly, the cannons of the Hedgehog vehicle unleashed a barrage of fire in all directions, blasting all the buildings that passed by into the ground.

"It doesn't seem like it can reach the sky..." Yua looked on, feeling embarrassed.

"Wait a little longer, there's bound to be a way." Jiang Si wasn't in a hurry at all. The bomber dropped another missile. Jiang Si accelerated, and the missile, which had come from behind, couldn't keep up with the Hedgehog car's second acceleration and crashed into the road behind it.

The hedgehog-shaped vehicle then experienced another violent jolt.

Even with the seatbelt, Yua's body was probably too limp, and she crashed headfirst into the dashboard.

A button has been pressed.

As the bomber flew over the Hedgehog again, an antenna-like object extended from the surface of the vehicle and aimed directly at the bomber. Then, all the surrounding cannons adjusted to fire.

Boom!

The bombers turned into fireworks in the sky.

“This…this car is amazing…” Yua exclaimed.

"Second Brother is really wasting his talents as a security captain. But in our area, you probably couldn't do this well without a passion for it. And even if he's good, he's not as good as that three-headed dragon," Jiang Si said casually. Xi Cai said, "That's a kind of talent too."

"Yes."

"...Your relationship with your second brother has gotten better, huh?" Yuzai found a topic to talk about.

"It's good. He wouldn't lend it to me no matter what, but after I beat him up, he finally agreed. This car is called Vanessa... It's very likely my second sister-in-law's, so I have to protect her and return it to my second brother."

"Hello, Second Sister-in-law." Xi Cai greeted the hedgehog-shaped vehicle politely.

"Wow, you really like being a good kid. Greeting me so politely is like saying, 'I'm easy to bully, come and bully me.'"

"Haha, now no one can bully us here, even if we can't beat them, we can run away."

“Yes, it has changed a lot,” Jiang Si said.

What they just said was something they had talked about when they were little. Back then, she was kindly reminding Yua of the rules in the violent world. The two girls, who were not used to the violent world, found a common topic with trepidation and could only stick together for warmth.

“I… haven’t changed…” Xi Cai said with some difficulty, “but Jiang Si, you are the one who has truly grown up.”

"..." Jiang Si glanced at Xi Cai and then continued looking at the road.

“Once the anthropomorphic illusion becomes human, it must never be exposed. Protecting oneself is a basic human trait. But why did I become like this?” Yuzai glanced at her hands.

Irregular wrinkles appeared, like paper that had been wet and then dried again.

“As far as ‘Evening Colors’ is concerned, you have done your best.” Jiang Si then said, “‘Anthropomorphic Illusion’ is truly an interesting and magical category of illusion. Unlike Mr. Demon, who is almost indistinguishable from a human except for his superhuman strength… you really are just like the description of this category, anthropomorphic, but not human.”

"I tried my best."

"You arranged the previous major earthquake for that guy named Agui, didn't you?"

"……Um."

“I’m a serial killer, I wouldn’t care about so many lives, but Xi Cai is different, that’s something Xi Cai wouldn’t do. She’s so timid and cowardly, to put it bluntly, weak, so naive that she’s almost untouched by ‘red,’ so she wouldn’t do that,” Jiang Si said.

"You initially helped Agui simply because you came into contact with him, rather than actively asking him to protect Yuzai's family, right?"

“Yes…” Yuzai managed to squeeze out a response through gritted teeth.

She wouldn't lie to Jiang Si, or rather, lying now would be pointless.

“I want to find another way to make it work. Yes, I’ve considered giving up Yua’s family. But Agui can’t give me that either. I want someone who can accept my love, but even Agui, who is in love with illusions, can’t give me any advice. He can only help protect my family, and I hope that through my dedication, Yua’s family will accept me…”

"The interpersonal relationships inherited from the anthropomorphic illusion are just an empty shell, an indicator that needs to be maintained. But I really tried my best. I promised Yuzai that I would protect them, and I did it. Until now, I haven't let Yuzai's family suffer any harm. But because I exposed myself at the beginning... my interpersonal relationships collapsed. They don't recognize me, they don't know me, this monster wearing Yuzai's appearance. I can't do it... I will revert to my original form, losing my human form and existence."

Yuzai stretched out her arms and hugged herself, her eyes vacant and lost.

Jiang Si asked, "Have you tried to talk to them properly?"

"...It's meaningless."

"Oh, I see." Jiang Si wasn't surprised, nor did she show any emotion. "Xi Cai's family. Xi Cai introduced me to them a few times before, you should remember them. They are all very nice people, at least in their dealings with others. Otherwise, Xi Cai wouldn't be so lovely."

"Ah."

"Now that they know your identity, normal people can't continue to treat you as the person you were before. Even if they appreciate your contributions and know about Yuzai's sacrifices, it's still not true."

"Yes."

"But I think that when they put aside their hatred for you taking over Yusai, and wanted to do something for you out of gratitude, those kind uncles and aunts were probably really trying to accept you."

"Then why...?"

“What they want to accept is not the 'Evening Colors' that no longer exist; what they want to accept is 'you,' the anthropomorphic illusion without your own name.”

(End of this chapter)