Chapter 9: Young Master Duan, Not of This World

Upon returning home, Duan Wenxuan closed the door and retreated to his bedroom, only then realizing how fiercely his heart was pounding. In his entire life spanning over two decades, he had never experienced such exhilaration. It was at this moment that Duan Wenxuan finally took a careful look at the black paper figurine in his hand.

The paper figurine had ceased struggling and now simply drooped limp in Duan Wenxuan’s grasp, resembling nothing more than an ordinary crumpled piece of paper. An unknowing observer might mistake it for just another cut-out figure.

“Don’t play dead,” Duan Wenxuan glared at the paper figurine.

The figurine remained motionless.

At present, it didn’t care; no one could stop its impending killing spree unless someone held onto it tightly, preventing any escape.

Duan Wenxuan felt somewhat troubled, unsure what to do with this entity. He dared not release it, having barely managed to capture the thing after much effort. If it escaped again, capturing it next time would be even harder. After some thought, Duan Wenxuan kept a firm grip with one hand while using the other to find a lighter. Slowly, he brought the flame close to the paper figurine.

Fuck! These damn humans! The paper figurine swiftly lifted its previously slumped head and began struggling once more.

This might work.

Duan Wenxuan’s eyes lit up, but despite trying for a while, the paper figurine showed no signs of catching fire, leaving him disappointed. He then proceeded with further experiments, such as drenching it with water and attempting to cut it with scissors, all without any effect.

“Bastard… damn thing…”

Finally, after much frustration, the paper figurine spoke up. Its voice sounded somewhat like a young boy’s soft tone, yet mixed within were chilling undertones.

“You’re worse than me,” Duan Wenxuan retorted sarcastically.

Running out of options, Duan Wenxuan decided to conduct one last experiment: holding onto the paper figurine while passing through the ‘door’ back to Liyang City. He wondered how the paper figurine would react.

If worst came to worst, he could simply leave the paper figurine in Liyang City. Perhaps later, he’d find a deserted world specifically designated for discarding problems he couldn’t resolve. It would be convenient to gather all enemies in one place, dealing with them collectively at some point in the future.

A brief moment of dizziness ensued.

Duan Wenxuan abruptly sat up from his bed, having detached his consciousness from Tang Tianlu’s body!

Moments ago, he had entered the door using Tang Tianlu’s guise, curious to see what might happen. Now it seemed that at the instant of crossing through, Tang Tianlu returned to his own form, while Duan Wenxuan’s consciousness was stripped away and reverted back to his own body.

His consciousness didn’t transfer over, but Tang Tianlu had taken the paper figurine with him!

Before Duan Wenxuan could stand up and attempt to pass through the door to check on Tang Tianlu’s situation, the symbols on his hand flared with another intense burning pain. This sensation was quite sharp, akin to being suddenly hit by steam or the sting of a sudden bee bite.

Fortunately, the pain came swiftly and disappeared just as quickly.

After two or three seconds, a look of surprise emerged on Duan Wenxuan’s face.

He received another message; it seemed that his ‘door’ symbol had extracted something from the paper figurine, thereby gaining an additional functionality—a second gateway was now available.

Currently, one side of his door was fixed at his wardrobe, while the other in Liyang City corresponded to the location he returned to An City from. With this second gateway, Duan Wenxuan could now control where to place its entrance.

Between Liyang City and An City, he could set up an additional door, allowing for seamless travel between them.

This was undoubtedly advantageous. Using Tang Tianlu’s identity, Duan Wenxuan aimed to avoid exposure. Now with the second gateway, he could directly open a passage without needing to rely on others. Whether for concealing himself or escaping danger, it provided much greater reliability.

Duan Wenxuan quickly decided to place the An City gate in a corner of the train station. As a major first-tier city, the train station sees constant foot traffic. If he suddenly opened the door from his wardrobe at home to the train station, who would notice someone emerging unexpectedly from a secluded corner?

As for Liyang City, Duan Wenxuan planned to set the gate in a remote and uninhabited area. After all, Liyang City is prone to frequent conflicts, so if war broke out there, he could directly bypass any danger on his next visit.

However, this also had its drawbacks. With more gates, during the moments when Duan Wenxuan cannot control their opening or closing at the onset of a new world, additional pathways would be available for entities to escape from those realms.

Every gain comes with a loss, but Duan Wenxuan didn’t hesitate much over this aspect. Regardless of how formidable the entities emerging from his gates might be, they would still enter in a state of Silence, posing no harm to him.

Feeling elated, Duan Wenxuan promptly opened a gate and traveled to Liyang City.

Upon arriving at his bedroom in Liyang City, Duan Wenxuan heard what seemed like Tang Tianlu’s loud shouts outside, hinting a note of fear in his voice.

Duan Wenxuan immediately stepped out of the room.

”…Landlord?” Tang Tianlu cast a puzzled glance at Duan Wenxuan, having just emerged groggily from his bedroom moments ago without spotting him.

Duan Wenxuan noticed that Tang Tianlu’s hands were covered with blood.

Tang Tianlu practiced Eight Trigrams Palm, but he hadn’t yet reached a level where blades could pass over his hands without causing harm. Earlier, when grabbing the paper figurine, its invulnerability buff was active in the real world. However, upon returning here, similar to the white cat, the accumulated injuries instantly manifested as feedback.

”…Hm?”

Not far away, the paper figurine had paused, hands on hips, atop a decorative rock as if ready to flee. It tilted its head curiously, staring at Duan Wenxuan.

“Landlord, be careful! What… what kind of monster is this?!” Despite his own disheveled state, Tang Tianlu couldn’t dwell on it; feeling alarmed, he stepped forward to shield Duan Wenxuan.

The paper figurine effortlessly dodged Tang Tianlu, continuing to tilt its head while observing Duan Wenxuan.

Frowning, Duan Wenxuan noted that the paper figurine lacked facial features. Logically, one couldn’t discern any expressions, but somehow, he sensed its confusion, curiosity, and even a vague sense of inexplicable fondness towards himself.

Unconsciously glancing at the symbol on the back of his hand, Duan Wenxuan could only surmise this possibility.

“I’m not entirely sure, but… let me try.” Duan Wenxuan asked Tang Tianlu to step aside and cautiously approached the paper figurine himself.

The creature continued tilting its head, even swaying slightly like seaweed, yet it didn’t flee.

As he drew closer, Duan Wenxuan slowly extended his hand.

With a swift motion, the paper figurine collapsed against the mountain stone like a thin sheet of paper. It then seemed to flutter upwards as if caught by the wind, wavering gently before gradually drifting onto Duan Wenxuan’s palm.

Duan Wenxuan lifted his right hand, carefully touching the paper figurine with his fingers.

“Uh-huh,” the paper figurine cooed contentedly, its voice carrying a hint of childishness.

Duan Wenxuan smiled warmly.

The paper figurine floated up again with a whoosh, swiftly landing on Duan Wenxuan’s shoulder and hopping excitedly. “Sir, Sir… Sir…” Its tone conveyed sheer delight.

Duan Wenxuan extended his hand towards his shoulder, and the paper figurine promptly jumped into his palm. Occasionally swaying like seaweed, it would then be ‘blown up’ by an unseen breeze, transforming back into a flat piece of paper before gently floating down to rest in Duan Wenxuan’s hand, only to be lifted again moments later.

This repeated playfully, bringing immense enjoyment to both.

“Landlord, this-this…” Tang Tianlu, who had practiced martial arts all his life, never believed in supernatural phenomena. Yet now, how could he explain this paper figurine-like entity?

“Don’t overthink it.” After a moment, Duan Wenxuan turned to glance at Tang Tianlu. “Do you remember how your hand got injured?”

Tang Tianlu shook his head. “No, I don’t recall clearly. I only remember that the Landlord asked me to handle something. In the blink of an eye, I found myself still in your room, holding this struggling paper figurine.

My hands were in pain, covered with blood, so instinctively, I released my grip. That’s when I discovered this…this…uncanny thing. As it immediately tried to dart out the door, I chased after it.”

“When we leave here, find a doctor to examine your hand.”

Tang Tianlu, filled with questions, ultimately kept silent and slightly bowed to Duan Wenxuan before walking out.

”…I am not from this world, and who can truly comprehend its vastness? Should my aspirations ever come to fruition one day, Master Tang, you may have heard of tales where when a person ascends, even their pets ascend alongside them.”

Tang Tianlu paused, his heart suddenly racing with excitement.

He had always sensed something unusual about Duan Wenxuan, and these words suggested that this realm indeed harbored immortals and supernatural beings. However, such entities rarely mingled with humans; perhaps Duan Wenxuan himself could be among the divine.

Immortal beings…

Everyone dreams of becoming immortal!

With firearms rendering martial skills obsolete, what about the magical powers of immortals?! At his advanced age, Tang Tianlu didn’t dare to aspire for distant immortality, but even slight progress in martial arts would be considered fortunate. After hearing Duan Wenxuan’s spiritual discourse and witnessing its truth firsthand, Tang Tianlu left with a noticeably straighter posture.

Once he departed, the paper figurine approached Duan Wenxuan, emitting subtle, somewhat melancholic sounds. Strangely enough, Duan Wenxuan understood them perfectly.

The paper figurine was revealing Tang Tianlu’s deepest secrets, from peeping on his wet nurse bathing at around seven or eight years old, urinating into his grandfather’s teapot, to secretly pinching his newborn son’s private parts when no one was watching, and even more intimate revelations that would embarrass him to death if spoken aloud.

“Alright, alright, from now on, only look at someone’s secrets when I specifically tell you to, understand?” Secrets can be addictive once too many are revealed, Duan Wenxuan felt he needed to exercise some control.

The paper figurine continued happily dancing its seaweed dance.

Soon, Duan Wenxuan returned to An City.

After all the commotion, it was already late night in An City. Yawning, Duan Wenxuan brushed his teeth, washed up, and quickly fell asleep. Better get some rest; there’s plenty to do tomorrow.

Overall, today had been quite eventful yet successful.

He acquired the second door, resolved the crisis with the paper figurine, and most importantly, discovered that neither Hanming Country nor the entire Xuanlan Star truly understood much about the world’s transformations.

Li Dong, succumbing to the trap, had spilled all his secrets without reservation. Moreover, if the nations of Xuanlan Star were genuinely well-prepared for these changes, they wouldn’t have relied on Mao Qisheng, who was considered mediocre among mediocrities.

In his hazy state, Duan Wenxuan began dreaming of grand visions.

In his dream, he was surrounded by an array of exceptional characters from other worlds, hailed as the savior of the new era. He sat upon the highest throne, feeling the adoration of all around him.

A belated bout of chuunibyou fantasy.

Duan Wenxuan chuckled audibly in his sleep.

The paper figurine on the desk moved slightly and suddenly jumped with a “biubiu” onto Duan Wenxuan’s bed. It circled around, seemingly searching for a comfortable spot to rest, before finally drifting onto Duan Wenxuan’s forehead.

This adult exuded a familiar presence that drew it close; it truly liked this grown-up. Although the paper figurine could find its own amusement, it still felt so lonely and bored. Now, it seemed to have found someone akin to itself.

Like a fever strip, the paper figurine firmly adhered to Duan Wenxuan’s forehead. As it settled there, Duan Wenxuan’s dreams became more stable and realistic.

It was indeed a pleasant dream.

Author’s Note: The no-CP tag will remain until the 21st, which is normal. I might need to adjust the word count, please bear with me.

Otherwise, without even reaching any charts yet, the story would approach the required length for going VIP, but the engagement and favorites haven’t kept pace, making it challenging moving forward.