Starting from Douluo Continent, I've become a god through daily check-ins.

Chapter 289 The Final Deal

Ichigo walked alone down the street, looking at the shops on both sides. Having never seen these things before, she was naturally very curious. Reaching the entrance of a bookstore, Ichigo peeked inside and saw posters on the glass that looked like they were from ages ago.

The poster depicts a man and a woman embracing, their lips pressed tightly together. Below the poster is the text: "The thrill of kissing."

"Kissing...mouth to mouth..." Ichigo murmured to herself as she looked at the words on the poster. Without even thinking, what Ichigo was thinking about was the scene of driving the Lark with Zero that day.

Ichigo touched her lips with her index finger, seemingly recalling the feeling. Suddenly, a voice sounded behind her. Zero Two leaned close to Ichigo's ear and said, "This is something Darling and I did."

Ichigo was startled and quickly turned around to look at Zero Two with some surprise. "Zero...Zero Two? What have you done?"

"Kiss," Zero Two said.

Hearing Zero Two's words, Ichigo suddenly looked up at Zero Two, who looked at her smugly and said, "Isn't it too early for you guys?"

Hearing Zero Two say that, Ichigo's competitive spirit rekindled, and she clenched her hands tightly together. "I...I've done it too..."

Zero Two leaned close to Ichigo, one hand resting on the glass behind her, and asked curiously, "Eh? With whom? Kissing is something you only do with special people. Is that person special to you?"

"Um...that..." Ichigo hesitated when she heard Zero Two's words.

"Ichigo." Goro's voice suddenly rang out while Ichigo was still hesitating. The two turned around and saw that it was Rei and Goro looking for Ichigo.

Goro, looking around, spotted Zero-Two, who in turn noticed Zero-Two and Ichigo alone together. Goro waved to Zero-Two and Ichigo, signaling Ichigo to go home.

As Zero was about to leave the abandoned city, he saw the sunset in the distance. The colors of the setting sun painted the entire sky, and the white clouds were also tinged with orange-red by the slowly descending sun. The light of the sunset was not as dazzling as during the day; it was soft, yet still warm.

Everyone stood beneath the abandoned lighthouse. This was the most expansive view in the entire abandoned town. From here, one could see the entire sunset.

Future sighed, knelt down on the ground, and complained, "I'm tired from walking."

My heart crouched beside the future and said, "You've walked quite a distance today."

"My muscles will definitely hurt," Mirai complained.

"So, what exactly is this place?" he asked, staring at the abandoned city.

Yu Nai provided the answer: "What is certain is that this is a place where people live."

Goro also raised his own question: "So, someone used to live here?"

"This place has been abandoned," Zero Two suddenly said.

Zero turned to look at Zero Two's retreating figure, Goro somewhat shocked. Zero Two continued, "Humans used to live on the ground, then abandoned this place. There are many places in the world like this."

Looking at Ling Er's back, against the backdrop of the setting sun, these words evoked a feeling that I couldn't quite describe, permeating everyone's hearts.

As the sun completely set and night slowly fell, the group returned to where they had come from. There, a barbecue grill had been set up, and food was being cooked over the fire.

"Great! It's baked!" Mimu said happily.

"Meat! It's meat!" she exclaimed excitedly.

"Is it ready to eat?"

"I'm so hungry..."

Yu Nai walked to the fire, looked at the dancing flames, and said with a hint of helplessness, "Really, I don't know when it was all prepared."

Several children gathered around the table and started eating heartily. Because the food had just been taken off the grill, it was still a bit hot, and they were eating too quickly, so they were bound to get burned.

Zero-Two stood at the back, watching the children eating happily in front of her, without saying a word. Suddenly, Genetic BBQ was handed to Zero-Two. Zero-Two glanced at it, then looked up and saw that it was Goro who had given it to her.

"Come on, Zero Two, have some too," Goro said.

Ling Er took it, looked at it, and ate it anyway.

Watching his companions having so much fun, Zero stood to the side, seemingly trying to memorize the scene.

Suddenly, Zero felt a tug on her clothes. Turning around, she saw it was Zero Two. Zero Two smiled and said, "Hey, Darling, can you swim with me a little longer?"

"Huh? It's already so dark." Zero said, somewhat puzzled.

"Hmm." Zero Two smiled and ran towards the sea. Zero stood behind, watching Zero Two's back from afar.

"There are two more chances left. Have you decided what to do?" Jing Chen suddenly appeared next to Ling and said.

Zero didn't look at Jing Chen, but kept staring at the sea. Zero Two was swimming happily there, and even in the dark sky, it was a beautiful sight.

"By the way, let me tell you in advance that you will encounter some difficulties soon. Your companion will be in an unprecedented predicament, and you alone will not be able to solve this predicament. Do you need any help?" Jing Chen said.

"You said I am you, and you are me, right?" Zero asked.

Jing Chen nodded. "That's right, I am you, and you are me."

"Well, I've thought about the last two things. First, you must protect my companions, whether I'm still around or not. Second, if you can, please restore this world to its original state," Zero said.

"Oh? It's that simple?" Jing Chen asked.

Zero nodded. "Yes, it's that simple. If you can, please tell Ichigo I'm sorry for me."

Jing Chen nodded. "So you've finally remembered how good Berry was?"

"Jing Chen, I know you're very strong, so you have to promise me these two things no matter what!" Ling turned her head and looked at Jing Chen firmly.

"Don't worry, I agree. Deal done." Jing Chen said, snapping his fingers.

Zero didn't feel any changes in her body and looked up at Jing Chen with some confusion. Logically, the deal was done, and he should have disappeared. So why was she still here?

Jing Chen said, "I don't want to take your soul away right now. Don't worry, there's plenty of time in the future. When you regain your memories, that's when I'll collect my payment. That's all, I'm leaving now."

After Jing Chen finished speaking, his body vanished like dust in the wind. Zero glanced back at his companions, then turned to look at Zero-Two swimming in the sea. Finally, Zero's gaze settled on Ichigo.

Zero's eyes were calm as still water. He didn't know why he could face death so calmly. If he wasn't mistaken, it must have been after Jing Chen appeared. Before Jing Chen appeared, Zero was quite afraid of death, but after Jing Chen appeared and pulled him back from the brink of death, he seemed to have become indifferent to it.

(End of this chapter)