Genius Playground

“Uh… I’ll give it a try.”

Cheng Mengxue closed her eyes and clasped her hands in front of her chest in a prayer-like gesture.

“You have to truly believe it from the bottom of your heart.”

Jiang Ran reminded her from the side,

“You have to trick your own subconscious and firmly believe that this thought will become reality. Do you understand what I’m saying? You have to use hypnosis on yourself, make yourself believe this absurd idea is real.”

“Hey, be quiet!”

Cheng Mengxue waved her hand, signaling for Jiang Ran to shut up.

“I’m not an idiot, I get it! I’m trying to get in the zone, don’t interrupt me!”

「Afterward.」

Like a devout believer in prayer, Cheng Mengxue kept her eyes shut tight and muttered to herself…

Once she felt she had sufficiently built up her emotions, she took a deep breath.

“Stop!!!!!”

“WOOF!”

A pet dog passing by was startled by Cheng Mengxue, turning and leaping into the greenbelt.

The woman walking the dog also gasped, staring at Cheng Mengxue acting like a lunatic on the street…

After shooting the two of them a look, the woman quickly led her dog away.

“…”

Jiang Ran was speechless as he looked around.

Everything was as it was. Everything was bustling as usual. The entire city was running smoothly, with not the slightest sign of time having stopped.

“Huh?”

Cheng Mengxue opened her eyes and tilted her head.

“Why didn’t it work?”

“Uhh…”

Jiang Ran supported his chin, thinking for a few seconds.

“Maybe you didn’t truly convince yourself. Right now, do you believe from the bottom of your heart that you can stop time?”

Cheng Mengxue shook her head honestly.

“To be honest, I’m not confident.”

Jiang Ran spread his hands.

“Then that’s probably where the problem lies… If you can’t even convince yourself, of course [Words Become Law] will fail.”

“To achieve the effect of your thoughts becoming reality, you must firmly believe ‘this is just how the world is.’ Only then can you truly trigger changes in the Virtual World.”

“Sigh.”

Cheng Mengxue sighed.

“That’s easy for you to say, but it’s not that simple to do. It’s really hard to deceive yourself in your own mind!”

“For example, say I want to turn you into a frog right now. No matter how I try to hypnotize myself, in my subconscious, you’re still a person! How could a living, breathing person possibly turn into a frog!”

The moment she said this, a startled Jiang Ran quickly looked down at his own body.

‘Thank goodness…’

He hadn’t turned into a toad.

Actually, Cheng Mengxue had a point. It’s incredibly difficult for a person to deceive their own subconscious. After all, it means negating one’s own prior understanding. The human brain isn’t a computer program; it can’t be so easily overwritten and modified.

“Well, let’s try something else then.”

Jiang Ran looked down at the half-full cup of orange juice in his hand.

“Try thinking this: this cup of orange juice is sour, not sweet at all… or that it’s actually a cup of apple juice.”

Cheng Mengxue licked her lips and closed her eyes again.

She prayed devoutly, muttering to herself, which made Jiang Ran want to laugh.

Half a minute later, she opened her eyes and looked at Jiang Ran.

“Take a sip. See if it’s turned into apple juice.”

Jiang Ran raised the paper cup. The sweet and sour taste filled his mouth, absolutely delicious.

But…

It still tasted exactly the same as the countless times he had tried it before. It was still a cup of orange juice, its flavor unchanged.

Seeing the look on Jiang Ran’s face, Cheng Mengxue knew she had failed again and shrugged.

“Looks like we might have guessed wrong. I don’t have that kind of power. Maybe what happened earlier was just some kind of coincidence.”

After taking a few sips of orange juice, Jiang Ran put down the cup, not ready to give up.

He understood this Virtual World better than Cheng Mengxue, and he had a better grasp of the meaning of authority and architecture.

Therefore, he was certain… the series of events just now was no coincidence. It was just that Cheng Mengxue simply didn’t know how, or rather, didn’t understand how to master and use her power.

Because her subconscious had already accepted these facts and believed them to be true, she naturally couldn’t convince herself otherwise.

Similarly, Cheng Mengxue didn’t actually believe from the bottom of her heart that she was the “Queen of the Digital World.” Her so-called prayers were just words, so of course they had no effect.

‘What if…’

‘I trick Cheng Mengxue’s subconscious into believing something unknown is true?’

Jiang Ran’s eyes darted, and he thought of a great idea!

“Ah, forget it, forget it. It was probably just a coincidence.”

He feigned retreat to advance, pretending the matter was closed.

Then,

He slid his right hand into his empty pants pocket, intentionally pushing the back of his hand out to create a bulge, and smiled mysteriously.

“Actually, I prepared a little gift for you for this visit.”

“Really?!”

No girl dislikes presents. Cheng Mengxue’s eyes lit up.

“What did you get me! Quick, let me see!”

“Why don’t you guess?”

Jiang Ran continued to smile.

“I know you so well, so of course I’d get you your favorite thing. Have you guessed what it is?”

“A Rhine Cat!”

Cheng Mengxue didn’t hesitate, excitedly raising her fists.

“Wow, you really put some thought into this! You were never interested in Rhine Cats before. Quick, quick, take it out and show me! Which model did you get?”

“The one you like the most, of course~”

Jiang Ran continued to coax her.

“But you were asleep for so long, I wonder if you still remember which model you wanted most back then.”

“Who are you looking down on! Of course I remember!”

Cheng Mengxue put her hands on her hips.

“Rhine Cats are so cute, I could forget anything but I’d never forget my kitties.”

“The one I want most is definitely that limited edition Gothic Rhine Cat! I heard that this particular Rhine Cat was originally just a fan creation, and the company never planned to release it because the dark, gothic style clashed with the Rhine Cat’s lively and cute image.”

“But they released it later anyway. As the Rhine Cat with the most contrasting style, its design got mixed reviews, but I definitely want one for my collection!”

“Jiang Ran, Jiang Ran, you didn’t actually buy me a Gothic Rhine Cat, did you?! Really?! For real?!”

Cheng Mengxue stomped her feet excitedly, as lively and innocent as a seventeen-year-old girl should be, her eyes fixed expectantly on Jiang Ran’s pocket.

Heh.

Jiang Ran smiled knowingly.

‘It seems my Suggestion and guidance were spot-on. Cheng Mengxue has no idea this is just a test, an experiment.’

‘However…’

‘Right now, my pocket is still completely empty. That bulge is just an illusion created by the back of my hand.’

‘There’s only one last step to go before Cheng Mengxue believes, truly believes, and subconsciously accepts that there’s a Rhine Cat Pendant in my pocket.’

“That’s right.”

Jiang Ran said decisively.

“I still remember what you wanted back then, so when I came to see you this time, I specially bought a [Gothic Rhine Cat Pendant] to give to you.”

“Well, give it to me then!”

Cheng Mengxue flailed her arms, looking like she was about to snatch it from him.

Suddenly, he felt a furry texture in his pocket as something materialized out of nowhere, filling his palm!

‘Bingo.’

Jiang Ran smiled smugly.

He slowly pulled his right hand from his pocket, pinching the silver chain between his thumb and index finger, and dangled it in front of Cheng Mengxue.

It wore a black and blue lace dress, black and blue striped candy socks, had a spade and a diamond painted on its face, and a small top hat perched on its head.

It was none other than the Gothic Rhine Cat Pendant!

“Wow!! You really bought it!!”

Cheng Mengxue snatched it, unable to put it down. She examined it closely and couldn’t help but rub it against her cheek, as happy as if she’d won the lottery.

At this point, Jiang Ran finally understood completely.

Cheng Mengxue truly did possess the Highest Authority in the Virtual World, and she really did have the ability of Words Become Law.

Just like the Rhine Cat Pendant that had just appeared in his pocket—it was originally just a lie he’d made up, but the moment Cheng Mengxue truly believed there was a pendant in his pocket, the pendant really appeared.

However, this power wasn’t stable. The reason was that Cheng Mengxue couldn’t deceive her own subconscious or overturn her existing understanding of reality.

‘However, if I plan ahead and feed her a false reality the moment she wakes up, couldn’t I turn the world upside down and make lies become truth?’

‘It’ll work.’

‘Cheng Mengxue’s understanding of the Virtual World came entirely from what I tell her. Whatever I say, she believes. And whatever she believes, her subconscious will activate her Highest Authority and manifest it.’

‘In that case…’

‘We could accomplish so much in the Virtual World! We could even uncover Pompey’s secrets! And find Pompey’s real treasure!’

“Thank you so much, Jiang Ran!”

Cheng Mengxue was about to give him a big hug, but when she saw him standing there with a sly grin, she quickly backed away and looked at him warily.

“What are you doing! Why do you have such a wicked smile on your face!”

“Because I’ve found a bug in this world, and I’ve thought of a whole new way to play.”

Jiang Ran smiled faintly, looking at Cheng Mengxue.

“I’ve already decided what lie I’m going to tell you next time we meet… to change your perception of reality.”

“W-W-Why would you deceive me!”

Cheng Mengxue was furious.

“What good does it do you to lie to me!”

“Because you are this world itself.”

Jiang Ran raised his head and looked at the clear, cloudless sky.

“[Deceiving you is the same as… deceiving the entire world!]”