–Do you even know what you’re talking about?-
Huan Bao’er let out an exasperated laugh.
–The design of the Demon Hero Hall—scenes are essential, but the true essence lies in its structure and the paths designed within. Those paths are like torrents of fate, steering different people, bringing them together across time and space, and driving them toward conflict and battle until victors emerge.-
Huan Bao’er turned his head, looking down at the three young faces—still green, still clinging to a trace of innocence.
–Do you have any idea how much wisdom it takes to set those intersection points? How much experience is required to control the rhythm of battle?-
–I… we…-
–One minute earlier or later, some of them might miss that fleeting chance. And if a team, because of the designer’s oversight, gains undue rest time, or is pushed beyond their limit, a potentially brilliant talent could be wasted. This is a true test of a designer’s skill.-
Huan Bao’er pointed at the scenes. –Battles with twenty thousand, thirty thousand, even forty or fifty thousand people! You’re just three people—how could you possibly manage that? You greatly underestimate the Demon Hero Hall!-
The three fell silent, dejected.
Huan Bao’er sighed softly. The kids were merely being wishful—why was he bothering to lecture them now? Seeing the three young ones with tightly sealed lips, he instead broke into a genuine smile.
–However, it was still quite a good attempt.-
–I…- Boboli hesitated, as if to say something.
The woman looked at Jiaoma and Yang Zicang:
–You have considered the Starry Illusion and thought about the people of both cities. This spirit is truly admirable. It is also an excellent practice of our Starry Illusion’s ideals.-
She clapped her hands encouragingly:
–Keep working hard, perfect it. Maybe one day it really can become a competitive city.-
–Yes.- The three answered in unison.
After saying these formal words, Huan Bao’er hummed a tune, sat down on the ground, and watched Yang Zicang continue his awkward busywork.
Yang Zicang had thought she would leave.
–Huanhuan godmother,- Jiaoma said with embarrassment, –are you making fun of us?-
–Do you have to ask? I don’t want to lie.-
–Oh dear.- She came over, took Huan Bao’er’s hand and swung it. –You didn’t even tell us about remodeling the Green Lotus Crown. If I had known, we wouldn’t have gone to so much trouble.-
Boboli, standing beside them, had completely lost his earlier momentum; now even speaking to Yang Zicang was in a very low voice, and he even stuttered.
Jiaoma said, –Since you, godmother, have a backup plan, why did you also submit Minister Croft’s Demon Hall together?-
–After all, ours is a modification, not an original. If it can pass the review, fine,- Huan Bao’er sighed. –If it can’t, then we’ll have to use Croft’s plan.-
–Mm, I guessed as much.-
Jiaoma leaned her head on Huan Bao’er’s shoulder, hugged her arm, and said in a coquettish tone:
–Then, generally, how long does the review take?-
–If it’s fast, we’ll know tomorrow. If it’s slow, it might take two or three months. But if there’s no result within three days, we’ll basically have to wait two or three months to find out. If that’s the case, we’ll have no choice but to use Croft’s Mo Ying Hall.-
Huan Bao’er’s brows furrowed slightly.
If they were to fight using Croft’s Mo Ying Hall, which is completely devoid of fairness, the people who entered this world might never again be able to believe in the Holy Ring Council that –rules- their fate. With no trust in this world, how could they speak of salvation?
–So that’s how it is…-
Jiao Ma looked at the busy Yang Zicang, feeling quite disappointed in her heart.
Boboli looked at the goddess-like figure sitting on the ground as if resting, gathered his courage, and walked over.
–G-great one, could you listen to my design concept?-
Huan Bao’er turned her head to look at him.
–A stutterer has a design concept, huh.-
–Godmother~- Jiao Ma shook Huan Bao’er’s arm.
The woman said helplessly, –Before introducing your design concept, at least you should have a framework. Don’t forget, there’s only half a month left until the end of the month, and you also need to set aside at least five days for review.-
With that, the woman stood up and walked toward the edge of the grassy slope.
–Director,- Boboli called out from behind, –In my design, the framework is very simple and doesn’t require too much design.-
Huan Bao’er let out an irritated sigh.
–Then take it out and show it.-
With that, the woman’s slender silhouette completely disappeared into the grass.
Yang Zicang was stunned to see the woman vanish—she could become invisible in her psychic form. This was even more formidable than the invisibility abilities of Wuying and Mingying back then.
The next day in real time, Huan Bao’er waited all day. No word came.
Croft also waited in his room.
On the morning of the third day, urgent footsteps echoed down the corridor.
–What do we do?-
Gong Huanwu muttered as he rushed into Huan Bao’er’s office.
The Red Director-General was in the middle of a telepathic conversation. Seeing Gong Huanwu’s arrival, she sighed and shook her head gently.
–Croft’s proposal passed,- Gong Huanwu said anxiously. –Ours still has no news.-
–I know. And ours was rejected.-
–What!-
A wail seemed to sound in Gong Huanwu’s heart. When he’d set off, he hadn’t known the proposal was rejected—he only knew Croft’s had succeeded. In that short walk, the Green Lotus Crown’s proposal had been killed off.
–Is it because it was a revision?-
–Revision is only one factor. It wouldn’t have been directly shot down—after all, this is our end-of-year evaluation venue. Another reason is…-
Huan Bao’er clenched her fist, pressing it against the desk, and said through gritted teeth:
–The revised design itself didn’t meet the standards!-
–How could that be! We, we clearly…-
Gong Huanwu’s mind raced through the Mental Hero Hall’s internal structure—images practically branded into his memory. Where was the problem?
A broken line flickered into existence in the air.
–I think it’s because Director Croft didn’t add the hidden content only at the very end.-
The voice of the Shining Book Order echoed in the minds of Gong Huanwu and Huan Bao’er, watching the figure of the speaker, his chest rising and falling slowly.
The documents Huan Bao’er was clutching exploded under her delicate claws.
–So, we’ve all been played by him,- Gong Huanwu said.
–Yeah, that piece of shit. The content he made such a big secret about adding at the end was actually utterly insignificant! The real core design was already in there from the start. He fooled all of us.-
–And he wasn’t even afraid we’d catch him lying!-
Gong Huanwu clenched his fists in fury, itching to punch that guy.
But he knew he couldn’t win in a fight.
Forget strength—just with the coins manifested by Virtual Zero Chronos, the other could crush him.
–The Five Elements scene wasn’t the key, that bastard.- Director Gong rarely swore.
Huan Bao’er shot him a cold look.
–So what can we do? If he could get away with the lie, he did; if he couldn’t, he’d just laugh it off. Now… the thing we have to do is figure out how to fix the Green Lotus Crown in the last ten days!-
–But Chief Director, you know there are only ten days left.-
Huan Bao’er tightened her fist and slammed it onto the desk, producing a dull thud.
[I offset 0.03R]
Knock, knock, knock.
Yu Wen Haowen, looking utterly devastated, tapped his knuckles on the open door and stepped into Huan Bao’er’s office.
–Director Huan Bao’er, give it up. The Grandmaster is impossible to surpass.-
–Shut your mouth!-
Yuwen Haowen’s shoulders twitched, and he fell silent.
Yaoshuling’s voice appeared in the minds of all three.
{Mr. Yuwen Haowen, I apologize. My Sister Huan is a Red Moxel, and due to the influence of her symbiotic Enightmare, her mental state can sometimes be unstable.}
–No, it’s nothing. I was the one being too defeatist,- he glanced at the two people in the room, –I’m sorry, I’ve been out too long. I think I should head back to the Blackfish Phantom Realm.-
–Don’t go, Team Leader Yuwen Haowen. Without you, it’ll be even harder for us to continue the revisions.-
Gong Huanwu quickly stepped forward to support Yuwen Haowen by the arm and shoulder, guiding him to sit down.
–It’s useless. There are only ten days left before the final deadline. Well, sorry. Anyway, I have no face left to continue. You’d better forget everything I’ve taught you over these past days.-
He thought for a moment, then continued:
–Or you could treat it as a negative example, that way I’d still have some value. Just note that ‘Negative Example of Mo Ying Hall Design’ was my own suggestion.-
Yuwen Haowen stood up, shoulders slumped, and walked toward the door.
–Get back here! Take one more step, and I’ll go complain to your direct supervisor!- Huan Bao’er said angrily.
Yuwen Haowen turned back with a bitter smile. –I’m afraid I really can’t do anything.-
{Bao’er, don’t make a scene. Haowen is right. Ten days won’t change anything. Today is already December 17th. We… we really can’t succeed this time.}
–Really can’t succeed?!-
A sudden surge of anger rose in Huan Bao’er’s chest.
–Shu Lingjie, I never thought you’d say something like this! Fine, fine, so you’re giving me an ‘impossible task,’ aren’t you!-
{I’m just being rational about this.}
–Are those three words even something we can say out loud! What happened to your conviction!-
{Calm down.}
Yao Shuling, on the other side of the company, ignored Huan Bao’er’s tantrum and instead said:
{Actually, the changes Croft made have indeed improved some people’s strength and boosted everyone’s enthusiasm. After all, the ones who cleared the Demon Hero Hall were already selected from the elites; those who lacked strength were merely supporting players. So let’s leave it at that for now.}
–I don’t agree!-
Thump!
Huan Bao’er slammed her hand on the desk, shattering the surface into pieces.
–If you hadn’t said that, fine—do you even know who I am, Huan Bao’er? You think you can brush me off with one word, ‘impossible’?-
Yao Shuling ignored the raging Huan Bao’er.
He turned to the terrified Yuwen Haowen and the attendant Gong Gan Shi, who was comforting him, and said:
{Huanwu, take Haowen around for a few days. You don’t need to worry about things here—I’ll handle the follow-up coordination.}
This was a clear dismissal. Gong Huanwu glanced at the furious Huan Bao’er, grabbed Yuwen Haowen’s arm, and quickly pulled him out, closing the door behind them.
As soon as they stepped out, the sound of things being thrown came from the room.
……
That afternoon, Gong Huanwu entered Huan Bao’er’s office again.
Inside, there was only a female assistant tidying up the chaotic room.
–Where’s the Director-General?-
–She’s on leave.-
–On leave? Well, um… fine.-
Gong Huanwu sighed.
Indeed, there were only ten days left. There was no way they could revise the Magic Hero Hall to a satisfactory state. It was better to let Huan Bao’er, the Director-General who was on the verge of a breakdown, take some time off.
The stunningly beautiful long-haired assistant in the room, who seemed to radiate a soft glow, smiled and said,
–Director-General Yao Shuling said that if you came by, I should tell you she would apply to the Council on behalf of the Starry Illusion Realm to approve the issuance of the Magic Hero Hall signed by Chief Designer Lord Croft.-
–I’m aware of that.-
–So she’s asking you to start preparing the venue for the signing ceremony, tentatively set for five days from now. Also, the Chronos expansion state, which was delayed until tonight, needs to be terminated.-
–Alright, I’ll get on it right away.-
So now he had truly gone from being the leader of the Magic Hero Hall Special Action Group to a mere errand runner.
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