The scent of desserts filled the room, the wisteria swayed, and time seemed to stand still at this moment.

Sique's fingers tapped the tabletop, and the magpie-feather-decorated teapot floated automatically, slowly pouring black tea into the porcelain cup.

His gaze remained on the book in his hand, but Su Ming'an sensed that Sique's attention was no longer on the pages. He was waiting for Su Ming'an to ask questions.

"The first question." Su Ming'an pondered for a while.

He had many questions, such as what Sique had done in the past, why Sique disappeared, the essence of the Disciple Game... But he understood that, while he might seem to learn everything at this tea party, Sique was actually the master of this Q&A game. If he encountered a question he didn't want to answer, Sique could end the conversation at any time.

To keep Sique's interest, the first question had to be intriguing enough.

Su Ming'an cleared his throat and began:

"—You are the most popular person in Luowasha, almost everyone misses you."

Sique's expression froze for a moment; he didn't expect Su Ming'an to ask such a question. It seems a bit off, yet somehow appropriate.

He closed the book, clasping his hands together under his chin:

"[Yes.]"

Lowering his head slightly, Sique's lips curved slightly, seeming intrigued: "Then I will reciprocate by asking you a question that everyone knows."

He was courteous, showing no intention to intentionally trouble Su Ming'an.

Su Ming'an took a sip of the black tea poured by Sique, the tea in the dream had a special refreshing fragrance, mixed with a dense and dreamy soft texture, combined with the intoxicating floral aroma of the wisteria. It's more of a floral drink than black tea—one sip leaves an unforgettable impression.

"My question is." Sique took a sip of tea:

"—You are the most popular person in the World Game, and everyone knows you like white-haired characters."

Su Ming'an: "..."

He showed a complex expression similar to Sique's earlier, a "face of difficulty."

Su Ming'an: "I..."

Sique held out a finger, shaking it as he smiled, "You can only answer 'yes', 'no', or 'I don't know'. If you answer otherwise, the host will end this tea party, ending this wonderful dream. I suppose... you don't want to wake up, do you?"

"[Yes.]"

After saying this, Su Ming'an tactfully drank his tea, warily watching Sique. Anyway, Sique was asking about everyone's opinion, not Su Ming'an's personal view.

Sique took a sip of black tea, comfortably leaning on the exquisite floral carved chair. Purple hair cascaded down, almost covering the protruding carvings of the chair back, leaving only a pair of magpie motifs standing at his shoulders.

"Second question." Su Ming'an tentatively asked:

"—Sique, those who now pursue you, did they ever hurt you before?"

"[Yes.]" Sique's response was quick and shallow, his brows and eyes filled with sunlight:

"—Mr. Lighthouse, those who now support you, did most of them ever ridicule, distrust, attack, or insult you?"

Su Ming'an understood; Sique always asked questions in a mirror-like manner; the deeper Su Ming'an's question, the deeper Sique's query.

"[Yes.]" Su Ming'an followed up with a question:

"—Sique, the things you did before, was it you who constructed scripts for the Dragon Emperor and others, causing them suffering, so now they want to take you back to rewrite the tragedy?"

Sique helplessly relaxed his brows, seeming quite vexed: "...You asked so many in one breath, dragging sentences this long with only one question mark, making it opportunistic, should I let you off or refuse to answer?"

Su Ming'an replied, "You yourself said, only answer 'yes', 'no', 'I don't know', now you're the one breaking the rule."

"Ah yes, I spoke off-topic." Sique still looked leisurely, leaning on the floral carved chair: "Well then... should I leave the dream?"

Su Ming'an said: "Of course, I can't let you go."

This was the most easygoing Original Su Ming'an had seen, to the extent that it was hard to call them Original; he saw no resemblance between himself and Sique.

The steam from the black tea dispersed the thick mist in Sique's eyes: "Then I will continue to answer—yes. Your speculation is very excellent, the whole sentence is correct, with limited information now, you've deduced to this point... very good."

Su Ming'an said: "After all, the information is consistent."

Luowasha's information is very transparent, few people hide anything, and reasoning usually continues positively.

Sique, as the strongest Creator, who could anger several Royals, most likely used his Genesis Power to write some tragedies. This is a very clear logic.

"Then, my third question." Sique squinted his eyes:

"—Do you feel a strong sense of déjà vu, or reincarnation, and maybe everything you do is to rewrite a tragedy."

Su Ming'an's pupils contracted slightly.

He glanced at Sique, whose face remained calm, as if merely stating a very insignificant phrase.

"[Yes]." Su Ming'an responded.

He did occasionally feel something similar, especially déjà vu, but normal people also experience déjà vu occasionally, which can't definitively conclude anything.

"Fourth question." Su Ming'an maintained his tone, keeping the tea party as harmonious as possible:

"—Your disappearance, was the reason 'killed' or 'eaten'."

People said, after Supreme Lord Toso Lius summoned Sique, Sique disappeared. So people believed Toso Lius held resentment for Sique's talent, and killed him.

However, the answer Su Ming'an received was [No].

He looked at Sique in surprise; turns out there was another reason for Sique's disappearance.

"My patience is running thin." Sique yawned: "It'd be better if you find more interesting questions."

His finger tapped the tabletop: "Alright, it's my turn—if you are truly taken by the Organizers, to avoid becoming an executioner's knife, would you choose to end yourself?"

The air seemed to freeze at this moment.

Su Ming'an held the porcelain cup, unsure if Sique was speaking casually or if there was a premeditated plan behind it. This dream-like tea party was bearing the gaze of millions of viewers and the watch of the Organizers.

"..."

The wisteria flowers floated with fragrance.

"...No." Su Ming'an replied.

He wasn't sure if Sique had lie detection ability, but he actually hoped Sique did. Because he wasn't sure of his own thoughts, he felt like he could die, but also maybe not.

But Sique said nothing.

Then, their questions gradually became deeper.

"—I possessed Su Liujin, was it led by you?" Su Ming'an asked.

"Yes."

…

"—Do you think your Originals are all stronger than you?" Sique asked.

"Yes."

…

"—The reason Hui Bai can't be written into a story is because he once did something defiant against the World Tree, and the World Tree doesn't favor him?" Su Ming'an asked.

"Yes."

…

"—Do you like drinking chocolate lattes?" Sique asked.

"No."

…

"—Pudding has never lied to me." Su Ming'an asked.

"Yes."

...

"—Do you think Boss Rabbit looks cute now?" Sique asked.

"... No."

...

"—Is the path I'm currently on the right one, to win the Disciple Game and write the most perfect story?"

Su Ming'an's question made Sique lower his eyes and think for a moment, as if the question was controversial.

"... I don't know." A moment later, Sique spoke the first answer he didn't know.

...

"—Compared to Noel and Lv Shu, is your friendship with Yuanyuan deeper?" Sique asked.

From just now, Su Ming'an noticed that Sique began to ask some inexplicable questions, none of which were of high importance. Could it be that... the questions Su Ming'an asked just now were also not of high importance?

After holding back for a while, Su Ming'an said, "I don't know."

This kind of thing can't be compared, a person's heart is not a scale.

Sique looked at him inscrutably for a moment, said "Oh," and opened the book on his knee with one hand.

He seemed to start feeling bored.

Watching Sique's bored demeanor, Su Ming'an gradually began to understand why Sique didn't directly give clues, but insisted on playing this Turtle Soup game—maybe because Sique found it fun.

Just for fun.

Sique was so at ease, perhaps just to gather inspiration, perhaps just to experience life. As long as during the game, a flash of genius in Sique's mind could come up with a good idea, that was enough for Sique. For that brief second of inspiration... he could go to any lengths to do anything, say anything.

In some sense, Sique might be even more terrifying than Xiao Ying.

Xiao Ying engaged in extreme sports, jumped from high altitudes, shot himself, to experience death, while Sique didn't even need to focus on death—he focused on anything interesting. An artist's inspiration is priceless, what's a single death.

He takes all his own joys and sorrows as inspiration.

Even if he experienced the pain of his heart being pierced, in his mind it would be just a fleeting thought to "remember this pain well, it can be used for more realistic character death descriptions." Even if he felt intense love, his first reaction would just be "it can be written into a story," analyzing the logic of the sensation extremely rationally, disassembling it into usable words, instead of developing emotions of being loved.

But on the surface, he is more calm and rational than most people, "madness" only manifests in his internal behavior logic, his most fundamental thought patterns, his inner drive.

Su Ming'an recalled the scene of Sique laughing with his head in his hands... Maybe, when Sique truly becomes a yandere, showing his madness without restraint, that's when he completely breaks down.

"I'm a little tired, you can ask two more questions, one interesting, one not." Sique propped up his chin: "Ask the interesting one first, if it's not interesting enough, then our tea party ends here."

Su Ming'an thought for a moment.

... What kind of question could make Sique find interesting?

After deliberation, Su Ming'an spoke:

"—Do you really like the scene of yourself being divided and devoured?"

This kind of question, anyone would know the answer—who would like being eaten. Unless Sique really is an M.

But Sique squinted and smiled.

"Yes."

His answer made Su Ming'an doubt what he heard.

... No way, you really are...

Su Ming'an just recalled that scene of division and felt his scalp go numb, yet Sique actually liked it... Could it be a strange psychological disorder?

"—You admire Su Liujin more than you admire me." Sique spoke.

Su Ming'an answered, "No."

He only knows Su Liujin is a Lighthouse Jellyfish right now, he can't admire at all.

... Alright.

Last question.

Su Ming'an didn't ask very intricately, since he and Sique were on the same front. Whether or not to give information, the initiative was entirely in Sique's hands. Su Ming'an didn't need to plot schemes to extract information from Sique, he just needed to make Sique have a good impression of him.

"I would like to ask..." Su Ming'an asked:

"—Are you and Toso Lius, the World Tree, and Outer Realm civilization in a four-way opposition?"

Faction is the biggest key point.

The players' eyes have been blinded by inertia, thinking that the Outer Realm civilization invading Valrosa must be bad, but is that really the case?

"Wow." Sique showed a smile: "You've asked a very crucial question."

He set down the porcelain cup in his hand, the red tea inside had reached the bottom, with only four sugar cubes left unmelted, and he actually liked adding sugar cubes to his tea.

"Unfortunately, the answer is no." Sique smiled.

... Is that wrong.

Su Ming'an looked down and thought. Anyway, today's information was already a lot.

"Alright, tonight's tea party is over."

Sique raised his hand and pulled the green vines hanging from the ceiling, seemingly like pulling a lamp, the sunlight outside dimmed, replaced by moonlight.

The wisteria swayed, and the host of the tea party smiled and waved, the banana crepe, rainbow macarons, and chocolate mousse on the table disappeared one by one...

Green leaves rustled, the purple-gold porcelain plate was like a departing dancer, dragging the curtains of her gauze skirt slowly away.

Finally, the red tea in front of Su Ming'an disappeared too, replaced by a pack of sugar cubes.

He had not yet spoken, when he felt everything in front of him turn into colorful mist, hazily drifting away...

Then came Sique's voice:

"Do not tell anyone about dreaming of me."

"Otherwise, like shattered colorful bubbles... beautiful dreams will vanish."

"Daybreak's here, goodbye, Mr. Lighthouse."

...

The morning light scattered, golden and shimmering.

Su Ming'an opened his eyes, sat up in bed, pulled the curtains open with a swoosh, and the sunrise was just right outside, the system time was eight in the morning.

The golden sunlight spilled down the window frame, reflected in his hazy eyes. He rubbed his eyes, the dream wasn't too long, feeling very relaxed, as if still lingering with the aftertaste of wisteria tea.

But a dream is still a dream. Once it ends, nothing remains.

At this moment, he suddenly felt something by his hand, looking down—

A pack of colorful sugar cubes, engraved with an emblem of a magpie holding a feather pen, lying quietly next to his fingers. On the back was a line of slanted small script:

...

[Looking forward to the story you write in Luowasha, I've read your first chapter, it's good, please update soon ^^]

[—Que]

...

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