05 The Panic Fades

Qi Xi narrowed his eyes, examining the foreign scenery outside the bus window. If one were to speak of differences, the greatest distinction between here and China was a certain cleanliness and tidiness; otherwise, there was nothing particularly remarkable. The bus soon arrived at Kinkaku-ji, and the students disembarked in an orderly fashion. The boys’ bus arrived first, while the girls’ bus would come later, so Qi Xi did not move, instead standing there to await the girls’ arrival. He planned to discuss matters with Watermelon, analyze information about their golden finger, and other such details.

Upon entering this world, the identity guidance had likely already been expended. For tonight’s school trip, they would be staying at the ‘Dark Cloud Tower’ hotel—the very place indicated by the information. The strange events that occurred there were closely tied to the world’s origin.

On one hand, he needed to investigate the matter of this world's origin; on the other, he had to be wary of competition from other transmigrators. And, a world of ordinary difficulty was far more challenging than a novice one. Thinking on this, Qi Xi smiled, feeling no tension at all.

This was the effect of [Panic Disappearance].

All negative emotions—fear, nervousness, anxiety—had vanished, leaving only the question of how to maximize his use of the golden finger, and seize the world’s origin.

According to the information, the world’s origin was closely related to the dead—likely a ‘malignant’ world origin.

World origins were of two kinds: malignant and benign. Malignant origins were difficult for ordinary people to utilize, causing great harm. Benign origins, on the other hand, were like the gene origin from the previous world, or the martial arts true source from the world before that—when obtained by an ordinary person, they underwent a transformation, leaping to greatness in an instant.

Once a world’s origin was seized, its ‘anomalies’ would disappear, reverting it to an ordinary world. If a professional transmigrator took a benign world’s origin, it spelled disaster for that world. But if a malignant origin was taken, it was a blessing.

“Baize! Why are you standing here?” Mizukami Jiro patted Qi Xi’s shoulder and asked, “Come on, let’s go inside Kinkaku-ji.”

“No, I’m waiting for someone,” Qi Xi shook his head.

“Let’s go, who are you waiting for?” Mizukami insisted, tugging at Qi Xi’s hand.

“I really don’t want to go,” Qi Xi said helplessly, waving his hand.

“Hurry up, let’s go together! Muramasa is waiting for you, you know,” Mizukami continued to drag Qi Xi along.

Qi Xi realized Mizukami was likely afraid he’d be left alone and targeted by the more unruly students, so he was forcibly dragging him along as a form of protection.

Such behavior would have been desperately desired by the former Kentada Baize; but now, having become Qi Xi, he found it troublesome. Still, it wouldn’t do to rebuff this well-meaning gesture, so he allowed himself to be dragged into the temple.

“If only we’d come at a better time—April would have been perfect,” Mizukami had already brought Qi Xi to where Kojima Muramasa was waiting, and he complained to Kojima.

“Yes, yes, if we came in April the cherry blossoms would be in bloom, surely beautiful,” Kojima Muramasa nodded, frowning. “Coming now for the school trip, I wonder what the chairman was thinking.”

“Ha! Probably just a whim!”

“Yes, yes!”

“Hahaha!”

The two quickly fell into conversation, paying no mind to Qi Xi, who stood quietly to the side. In their eyes, their childhood friend was silent and rarely spoke, so not talking to him was actually for his benefit. Letting him stand nearby was the greatest support they could offer.

Across the lake, the golden temple gleamed, sunlight shining on its gilded exterior and reflecting dazzling colors. It was a magnificent sight, and even Qi Xi couldn’t help but be impressed by its beauty.

After a while, Qi Xi glanced at the crowd of girl students nearby. You Xi—nicknamed Watermelon—was surrounded by girls, pulled and jostled as they chattered away.

Watermelon seemed to notice Qi Xi’s gaze and met his eyes. Qi Xi gestured for him to come over, then turned to Kojima Muramasa and Mizukami Jiro, who were still chatting, and said, “I’m going to the restroom.”

“Oh, be careful.”

“Hurry back, we’ll wait here for you.”

At the same time, Watermelon said to the girls around him, “I’m going to the restroom…”

“Oh! You Xi, I’ll go too!”

“Ha, after that long bus ride, I’ve been wanting to go myself.”

“Let’s all go together.”

“Agreed!”

Seeing this, Watermelon felt exasperated—his plan had backfired.

Dragged into the girls’ restroom, Watermelon very much wanted to linger, but his masculine sense of propriety told him it was wrong. Watching the girls laughing, undressing, and not even closing the stall doors, he meekly said, “I… I’m stepping out for a bit.”

“Huh? You Xi, done already? That was fast! Wait for us.”

“Yes, wait so we can go back together.”

Watermelon continued, “I’ll meet up with you all later, I want to go somewhere.”

“You Xi, where do you want to go?”

“Oh? Don’t tell me you’re meeting your boyfriend?”

“What? You Xi has a boyfriend? Ling, are you serious?”

The girl named Ling nodded solemnly, “When have I ever lied?”

Though everyone knew she was joking, they all said seriously, “Come on, confess—who’s your boyfriend, You Xi?”

“Hurry up, let us meet him!”

“Agreed! Absolutely agreed!”

“Let’s go together!”

“Boohoo, You Xi, are you abandoning me? How heartbreaking,” said one girl, pretending to wipe away tears.

Watermelon felt his head spinning and fled the scene, calling out, “I’m not dating anyone!”

“Huh?! You Xi, wait for us!”

From a distance, Watermelon spotted Qi Xi waiting by a column. He hurried over—fortunately, the owner of this body was accustomed to morning runs and was in better shape than Qi Xi’s, so he wasn’t exhausted by the sprint.

“I’m here.”

“What took you so long?”

“A lot happened…”

Qi Xi gave Watermelon an odd look, saying nothing more. With a few quick steps, he entered a tea house, chose a corner seat, and called out, “Boss, two teas and two sweets.”

“Alright, please wait a moment.”

“I’m Qi Xi. Who are you?” Qi Xi stared at Watermelon, his expression serious.

Watermelon was caught off guard, pausing for a moment. “What do you mean by that?”