Players, Please Board the Train

The Paper Artisan stood with his feet submerged in the water, as ”corpses” of mycelium continuously drifted past him. Though his eyes were unseen, one could still sense his gaze briefly lingering on these ”corpses.”

”Are you mourning this woman because you had feelings for her?” he asked.

”No, I only knew her for a day. She was a woman worthy of respect,” Xu Huo replied.

The Paper Artisan offered no comment, then shifted topics. ”The item you used resembles one belonging to a member of the Phantom Sound Knights. His item is called Life Core. I wonder if your item shares the same name.”

The effect of the ”Life Core” item was too unique. If its previous holder had any notoriety, then this item would be remembered by many. Out of caution, Xu Huo had changed his face before using this item. He never expected such a coincidence—encountering a super player in an E-rank dungeon location.

”You are the Paper Artisan?” he said. ”Do you have some connection with the Phantom Sound Knights?”

The Paper Artisan denied it. ”I don’t even consider the likes of the Phantom Sound Knights worth my attention. They’re merely a bunch of desperadoes.”

Xu Huo’s eyes flickered slightly. He then saw the man turn sideways to look at the stream of mycelium ”corpses” continuously surging from the ground ahead. ”In less than a day, these fungi will pollute the entire city. However, the fungi within the Underground Nest are mixed; they can disrupt the balance, but they can also maintain it.”

”This is a symbol of death walking hand-in-hand with opportunity. I call it fate.”

”Fate is not a hollow platitude within the game. It is the imperceptible mutual attraction between objects.””Does that apply to people as well?” Xu Huo asked.

”It applies to people as well,” the Paper Artisan said. ”Before coming here, I visited the Fairy Tale City.”

”Although that place was flattened by the Suitcase Man, a new city has been rebuilt. Granny Bai is still alive.”

The Paper Artisan turned to face Xu Huo again. Several sheets of white paper fluttered out from behind him, slowly circling him in flight.

With only a dozen or so meters between them, Xu Huo’s mind was stretched taut. He had already understood the Paper Artisan’s implication. He was talking about that ”Angel’s Teeth” that Granny Bai had given him!

”Did you kill her?”

Granny Bai had said there were sixteen ”Angel’s Teeth” in total, each an independent space. However, their exact distribution was unknown, and even the item holder might not know all their locations. Combining this with the previous rumors about the Paper Artisan obtaining the ”Fielder’s Battle Angel,” and as he said, it was fate’s mutual attraction—the only connection between them could only be that ”Angel’s Teeth.” His prior visit to the Fairy Tale City was strong proof!

There was no need to play dumb. The Paper Artisan had followed him here, surely based on his own judgment.

The Paper Artisan seemed to smile faintly. ”Do you know of the Fielder’s Battle Angel?”

”I’ve heard of it.”

”The Fielder’s Battle Angel is not the invincible Super Item of legend. Its true value lies in its ability to perceive fate.” The Paper Artisan casually plucked a flying sheet of paper and began folding it. ”Its disappearance in the past was due to fate. Its reappearance now is also due to fate.”

The white paper transformed into a paper airplane that flew from his hand, gliding toward Xu Huo. ”A meeting gift for you.”

Xu Huo glanced at it but didn’t reach out to take it, allowing the paper airplane to circle him instead.

”Are you saying you found me because of the Super Item, the Fielder’s Battle Angel? Why?”

”Unclear. But my coming here must have a reason.” The Paper Artisan paused, then added, ”Take it. It’s not an attack item, nor will it track you.”

What Xu Huo truly wanted to know was how the man had found him amidst the vast expanse of wormholes. But the Paper Artisan didn’t seem to be lying.

Just as he took hold of the paper airplane, two more words popped out from the other side: ”For now.”

Xu Huo’s hand immediately stilled, because he had also received a game prompt:

[Letter Across Districts: A B-grade item produced by the Paper Artisan. It can release location information from within a single wormhole point, suitable for sending distress signals when in danger. However, the Paper Artisan also uses it for tracking when he dislikes someone.]

Xu Huo expressionlessly put the paper airplane away, then asked, ”Is the Fielder’s Battle Angel you obtained incomplete?”

”Of course it’s incomplete,” the Paper Artisan said. ”The Fielder’s Battle Angel has long been scattered. What the Fielder family publicly disclosed is merely one relatively concentrated site of remnants.”

His tone carried a hint of delight as he continued, ”But I obtained the most core part—the part that can perceive fate.”

Xu Huo pondered for a moment. ”So, that means no matter which wormhole point you are at, you can follow ’fate’ to find the remnants of the Fielder’s Battle Angel?”

The implication was clear now. The ”Angel’s Teeth” belonged to a part of the ”Fielder’s Battle Angel.” However, the former was also an independent item. Could it be that the ”Fielder’s Battle Angel” was composed of different items?

”Can items be combined for use?” Having taken a significant risk by engaging in this dialogue with the Paper Artisan, Xu Huo asked his questions directly.

”Your mind works quickly,” the Paper Artisan said. ”But not any items can be combined. The Fielder’s Battle Angel is special.”

Xu Huo began to worry about another matter. ”Will other players who obtain remnant items also be drawn by this kind of ’fate’ attraction?”

If so, from now on, he would be forced to constantly move between different game districts.

”Unclear.” The Paper Artisan stroked his chin, then added, ”But even if they are, they should be drawn toward me.”

”Although I don’t yet know the specifics, I believe this guidance must have a very important reason.” He emphasized, ”If someone holding a Fielder’s Battle Angel item does find you, you can seek my help. But only when I am at E27.”

”However, don’t look for me recently. I have some matters to attend to.”

Xu Huo couldn’t fully discern his motives for now, but it was at least partly related to the ”Fielder’s Battle Angel.” Since this Super Item was scattered, it was normal for super players vying for it to want to restore it to completeness.

”I have a question,” he said, looking at the Paper Artisan. ”Is this so-called guidance of fate really that important?”

The Paper Artisan could have simply killed him. But from the tone, it seemed he hadn’t even harmed Granny Bai.

The Paper Artisan seemed to see through his thoughts. ”Killing people gets boring after a while. Besides, fate is not a single line; it’s a tree. Even if you prune its branches, it will grow new ones.”

”This is a fascinating endeavor, comparable to the art of paper folding.”

Xu Huo could tell the man’s delight was genuine. Recalling the few super players he had encountered, only Laurence Li seemed relatively normal—at least he was striving toward a goal a normal person could empathize with.

”Additionally,” a breeze lifted some of the Paper Artisan’s bangs, revealing that gray eye in the gap, cold as unfeeling stone. ”Only by submitting to fate can one possibly gain foresight before reaching the end.”