I said you are all war criminals

Li Xi roared out loudly.

"me……"

Su Shi's voice became shorter.

At the end, her voice was almost apologetic.

"I'm with Xiangzi... I'm sorry I didn't tell you, Lixi..."

When Li Xi heard Su Shi's hesitant admission, her head buzzed, as if a bomb had exploded inside her, making her scalp numb. The anger of betrayal rolled in her chest like magma, burning every nerve in her body.

She recalled how Su Shi would always carefully prepare drinks and snacks for her in Crychic's practice room, and would gently massage Xiangzi when her fingers went numb from piano practice. She would also gently hug her and comfort her softly when Deng was in a bad mood.

At this moment, those images were like sharp knives, stabbing into Li Xi's heart.

Could it be...she is also...really?

A terrifying thought snaked into Li Xi's mind like a poisonous snake, spreading through her blood. She imagined Xiangzi being raped by Bai Ye... and then Su Shi was also beside her...

"vomit--"

Li Xi suddenly covered her mouth, her stomach churning as if she was about to vomit out all her internal organs. She felt like she had swallowed a live fly, disgusting, dirty, and unable to breathe.

The once shining Crychic, the once beautiful memories, have now turned into disgusting filth.

She closed her eyes tightly and took a few deep breaths, trying to suppress the nausea. No, she had to figure out what was going on!

"Where are you?"

Li Xi's voice was horribly hoarse, like sandpaper rubbing against iron, with a hint of despair and a hint of unrealistic expectations. Perhaps, all this was just a misunderstanding? Perhaps Su Shi was just with Xiangzi to comfort her?

There was silence on the other end of the phone for a moment, and Su Shi's voice became even lower, with a barely perceptible tremor: "I... Xiangzi and I were... at Mr. Hakuno's house... I'm sorry... I should have told you... I..."

"Hakuno?"

Li Xi felt his blood freeze, a chill running from his feet straight to his head. Bai Ye, that greasy middle-aged man, that disgusting guy with a lewd look and dirty jokes! After Xiangzi got together with him... and now Su Shi also...

(This is Li Xi’s personal opinion)

The sky is falling.

The world crumbled before her eyes, shattering into meaningless fragments.

Li Xi slumped weakly into the chair, her phone slipping from her hand and hitting the floor with a dull thud. She stared blankly at the ceiling, her eyes blank.

After a long time, she slowly raised her head, her eyes empty, like a puppet that had lost its soul.

...Or should we call the police?

Li Xi thought.

On the other side, Su Shi had just answered the phone and found that after Li Xi hung up the phone, he had no time to catch his breath before being called by Xiangzi again.

"Hurry up! We still have six sets of practice today!"

Xiangzi took the phone from Su Shi's hand and said sternly.

"well,"

Su Shi didn't dare to slack off and quickly picked up the bass, "Next is..."

"'Spring Shadow', this is our song, right? Of course you have to practice it to the best of your ability."

Xiangzi said this seriously, without any intention of joking.

Su Shi mechanically plucked the bass strings, her fingertips numb, unable to feel a single warmth. The vibrations of the strings traveled through her stiff arms and then through her hollow chest, stirring not a single ripple. The lilting melody of "Spring Shadow" echoed through the practice room, a stark contrast to the deadening silence within her heart. This song, once the embodiment of Crychic's dreams, now sounded like a sardonic elegy.

Why play "Spring Shadow"?

Can't you just let me rest?

Su Shi wanted to cry.

But Su Shi didn't dare to cry.

If I cried and Xiangzi ran away, then I would have nothing to cry about.

100

Chapter 100 Xiangzi: How come someone did it first?

After Su Shi finished practicing, it was already evening.

However, the Su family's house is just upstairs from the Bai Ye family's house, so there is no need to walk far.

"I'm going home first."

After sweating profusely, Su Shi left.

Xiangzi also thought that he should go home, otherwise his father's vital signs would probably not be able to hold on.

When Xiangzi returned home, exhausted from rehearsals, the stench of alcohol and sour food hit her in the face, nearly making her vomit. Frowning, she kicked away the empty beer cans scattered on the floor and walked toward her father, who was slumped on the sofa like a puddle of mud.

"Hey, stinky old man, are you still alive?"

Xiangzi asked unhappily.

Her father groaned and turned over, revealing a greasy face with a stubble that looked like moldy weeds. He mumbled incoherently and stretched out a dirty hand to scratch at the air.

Xiangzi ignored him and went straight to her room, slamming the door shut. Damn it, she had to find another way to get money. Although the money Bai Ye gave her was a lot, she couldn't just live off it. She didn't want to live that life of having no food to eat.

Xiangzi took out his cell phone and checked the situation of the gang.

"...Hey, why are all the gangs shrinking lately?"

This was unexpected.

Xiangzi originally planned to ask for money from the gangs, but it seems that these gangs are very timid...so he changed his target and asked the dark culinary world to withdraw money.

Xiangzi did what she said. She opened the browser on her phone and entered a URL. She did not enter a website that offered rewards for people in the dark cuisine world, but instead entered a forum where the dark cuisine world was used to trade various ingredients.

In modern society, even if you are a criminal, as long as you reach a certain scale, you will definitely have to use the Internet to maintain operations.

Xiangzi expertly logged into the Dark Night Kitchen, a forum for the dark world of culinary ingredients. This place was a den of filth, brimming with banned ingredients and outrageous recipes. Most people wouldn't dare enter, let alone speak. But Xiangzi thrived there; after all, she was no good girl.

There are no registration requirements or identity verification mechanisms. After all, these are illegal businesses, and no one would rely on the confidentiality of these forums for safety.

Xiangzi edited a new post with a concise and clear title - "Dream Mushrooms, high-priced buyers please chat privately."

Postings from these new accounts might be considered trolling on other websites, but they're commonplace on these illegal forums. Many people deliberately create fake accounts to conduct transactions, simply to link items to their primary accounts and avoid speculation about their intentions. The world of shady cuisine isn't monolithic; trusting others will only lead to ruin.

Meanwhile, the so-called "dream mushroom" is a bizarre fungus that grows deep in inaccessible swamps and emits a faint blue glow. Its greatest characteristic is that it imparts an almost dreamlike umami flavor to food, making it irresistible. Of course, the side effects are also obvious: hallucinations and addiction. But for the dark culinary world, which pursues extreme flavors at all costs, this thing is simply a priceless treasure.

More importantly, the growing environment of this "dream mushroom" is extremely harsh. Nowadays, only Xiangzi probably knows the specific collection location.

——Xiangzi had no intention of punishing evildoers.

Honestly, even if the gangs hadn't retreated, Xiangzi had no intention of wiping them all out. After all, as someone who had once controlled a nation, Xiangzi knew that darkness could never be completely eradicated, and profit inevitably attracted darkness... She had long ago intended to arrest and imprison all members of the dark culinary world, but even after establishing the Yokai Empire, the dark culinary world persisted. As long as humans, and as long as half-demons, needed chefs, there would always be dark chefs yearning for power.

Xiangzi had no intention of doing anything in vain.

If someone from the dark cooking world offended Xiangzi, he would deal with them. But if these people didn't offend Xiangzi, Xiangzi wouldn't make things too difficult for them.

Anyway, these people will eventually be left on Earth and destroyed by the meteorites she drops.

Xiangzi's post was like a bomb, exploding in the "Dark Night Kitchen." The private message notification sound kept ringing, almost shaking the phone to the ground.

"Dream mushrooms? Is it real? Isn't this just a legend?"

"How much is the host offering? I want it all!"

"Payment and goods? Don't try to play tricks on me, I'm not a pushover!"

Xiangzi read the messages and replied slowly, offering ridiculously high prices, practically robbing people. One gram of dream mushrooms was equivalent to a nice sports car.

"Are you crazy? This price is too high!"

A guy with the ID "Bloodthirsty Chef" roared.

Xiangzi replied: "Things are valuable because they are rare. Don't you understand? You can buy it if you want."

The Bloodthirsty Chef was silent for a moment, then replied with gritted teeth: "Deal! But I want to inspect the goods. If they're fake, you're dead!"

"Welcome to the test,"

Xiangzi replied casually, "However, the inspection fee is charged separately."

Similar conversations played out in various private messaging windows. Xiangzi selected a few buyers who seemed "reliable." He also carefully selected the transaction location. Abandoned factories, underground bars, unfinished buildings... These places offered both seclusion and ease of escape. If these people were truly inconsiderate, Xiangzi could kill them all.

...Of course, Xiangzi hadn't awakened yet as a half-demon, and didn't have that kind of strength. All she could do was go to the supermarket to buy some ingredients, cook a few dishes, and prepare a few spells. Of course, with Xiangzi's current money, she couldn't buy very high-quality ingredients, and the spells she prepared weren't very powerful...

"Just a few lightning bolts at most."

Xiangzi closed his phone.

The preparations have been almost completed, and now Xiangzi only has one thing to do.

That is sleep.

Xiangzi fell asleep peacefully.

She dreamed about many things.

She dreamed of herself wearing a pristine white wedding dress, standing in the center of a hall carpeted with flowers. Sunlight shone through the stained-glass windows, casting a multicolored light on her face, illuminating her happy smile. The groom was Hakuno, handsome and elegant in a crisp suit, his eyes filled with tenderness. As the priest solemnly read the vows, Xiangzi felt her heartbeat quicken. As Hakuno placed the ring on her finger and gently kissed the back of her hand, she felt a surge of warmth flow through her. The church was filled with guests, all familiar faces.

Deng sat in the first row with a relieved smile on his face.

...Xiangzi woke up when he saw the face in the lamp.

she knows.

Dreams are just dreams after all, they cannot be counted.

101

Chapter 101: Goto Ichiri appears.

Goto Ichiri was about to die alone.

One hundred chapters.

A full one hundred chapters.

Yili's appearances were less than five times.

In my own home, I hid in the cupboard, shivering.

"Well...it's been a while since we've had any band activities...I, I must have been forgotten by everyone..."

Ichiri's whole body was shaking.

Lately, things haven't been going well for the band.

Nijika ran away from home a few days ago, nearly causing Starry to close down. Ryo and Nijika seem to have started a cold war because of this. And as for Kita...Kita's also hooking up with a new friend. Is that guy called Kanesada? He sounds so cool...

Yili curled up in the cupboard like a hibernating hamster, surrounded by her collection of limited edition guitar picks and band merchandise. Fear surged over her like a tide, almost drowning her.

"It's over, it's over. I've completely become a shut-in..."

She murmured to herself, her voice as soft as a mosquito.

Finally, Yili grabbed her phone, grasping at a lifeline. The light from the screen illuminated her pale face and the despair in her eyes. She took a deep breath and, trembling, dialed Liang's number.

beep - beep -

During the long wait, every second felt like a century. I felt like my heart was about to jump out of my chest.

"Hey?"

Liang's impatient voice came from the other end of the phone.

"Liang...Liang-senpai! It's me, Ichiri!"

Yili's voice was sharp and thin, with a noticeable tremor.

"Huh? Goto? What's going on?"

Liang's tone remained cold, as if Yili was just an insignificant passerby.

"Well, that... the band... hasn't been active for a long time..."

Ichiri stammered, feeling like his tongue was tied.

"I want to ask...when can I...?"