Chapter 119: Swear It Upon My Life

“What a pity. This Bronze Armor Statue is too massive to take away, and the consumption of spiritual power is simply brutal...”

To speak of it, Han Su's curiosity toward this Bronze Armor Statue was no less than that for the Mechanical Fragments.

Yet just this moment of contact revealed that the amount of spiritual power needed to activate this Bronze Armor Statue was terrifying.

Influencing its movements was easy enough, but controlling it to follow or perform more complex actions was truly impossible. Besides, although he had indeed influenced it using the Cross-shaped Bronze Scar, who knew what kind of authority its true owner possessed?

“Forget it, priorities first. I’ll come steal it next time...”

As for the command code—if it worked, it worked; if it didn’t, there was nothing to lose.

Next to the secret room was a wine cellar, and reaching the surface still required a considerable distance.

Thankfully, Han Su had a strong sense of spatial orientation. When he entered the secret room, he had already deduced the layout of the entire Lilac Courtyard. With Fisherman’s Chant lowering his and Wei Lan’s presence, they managed to evade several Security Department personnel who had rushed past them.

Walking and stopping, dodging and hiding, he finally brought Wei Lan to her previous dressing room.

“Ah, you—”

“Out!”

Wei Lan’s assistant, startled upon seeing Wei Lan being carried in by Han Su, nearly screamed in shock. But regaining a bit of her senses, Wei Lan snapped sternly, “Don’t ask. Don’t shout. Turn on the speaker, and bring me my gown!”

The assistant fled in a panic, leaving the dressing room empty except for Han Su and Wei Lan.

Han Su placed her on the sofa and then stepped back two paces, sitting down on a chair and taking several deep breaths.

That run had truly exhausted him.

Wei Lan didn’t look heavy, but standing at 1.7 meters tall, she certainly weighed more than when she was a child.

Wei Lan lay sideways on the sofa. In the background, a voice reminiscent of ancient opera flowed gently. She gave Han Su a long look, confirmed that he wasn’t leaving, and then slightly closed her eyes, trying her best to regain her composure.

Quietly, several minutes passed before Wei Lan opened her eyes again.

Her pallor hadn’t improved, and the wound on her cheek had begun to bleed once more.

Yet she ignored it. As soon as she regained her mobility, she wobbled to her feet.

She crouched beside Han Su and placed a trembling hand on his knee.

She looked up at his face, eyes filled with fear, gratitude, hope, and even a trace of reverence, and said slowly and clearly:

“It’s... it’s true, isn’t it?”

“...”

Han Su met her gaze and asked softly, “What is true?”

“I...”

Wei Lan struggled to speak. “I was kidnapped once too. But you were the one who rescued me, weren’t you?”

Back in the secret room, Han Su had noticed her odd reaction but hadn’t had the chance to discuss it. Now, hearing her ask again stirred emotions within him.

Still, he suppressed them and asked quietly, “Aren’t you worried that you’ve been contaminated by the mysterious machinery?”

The shock and transformation caused by touching the Mechanical Fragments were terrifying.

Both of them had worn protection when touching the fragments, yet still got pierced by them.

Something of that level could have any number of effects.

Han Su wasn’t sure whether Wei Lan believed the experience was a distortion from the Mechanical Fragments, or if she truly believed it had all happened.

This was the key to whether they could continue talking.

“Contamination?”

Wei Lan lowered her head slightly, as if in self-mockery, but when she raised it again, her eyes were filled with resolute certainty. “I was selected from countless individuals by the Queen Organization as a gifted one with mysterious talent. Since I was eleven, I’ve been undergoing specialized training in mysterious power.”

“I know what contamination and distortion look like, and I know how to judge whether my self-will remains intact...”

“...So all of this—it really happened!”

“You...”

She stared unwaveringly into Han Su’s eyes, though her voice trembled uncontrollably. “Who are you, really? Why did you save me? And how... how could I have forgotten all of it?”

‘Confirmed...’

Only at that moment did Han Su finally confirm that contact with the Mechanical Fragments would cause previously kidnapped individuals to remember their abductions.

However, from her words, it seemed she only remembered one instance?

Facing Wei Lan’s fearful yet expectant gaze, Han Su finally nodded slowly. “Yes.”

“You were indeed kidnapped. And I was the one who saved you.”

“But...”

He paused and showed a questioning look. “I’m more curious—just how much do you remember about the kidnapping?”

Wei Lan’s voice trembled with excitement. “I... I only remember we were on a school bus, on the way to the Science Museum to see the newly unearthed Mechanical Fragments—the very same one we just seized. I remember it clearly; it was featured in the promotional materials.”

“I remember being taken to a gloomy, oppressive Ancient Castle where we saw many monsters. Some children cried out in fear, but were killed by the monsters.”

“Then everyone faced the fate of being selected. Some were taken upstairs by the monsters. As for me, I was led upstairs by the Withered Butler. He locked me in a floor filled with bronze-colored creations.”

“I saw a monster lying inside a coffin, but he didn’t seem satisfied with me. He just extended a hand from the coffin and had the Withered Butler toss me into a small room next door—no windows, no light.”

“I could only feel the surrounding chill, like countless snakes crawling around me, hissing in my ears...”

“That terror...”

As she spoke, her tongue began to twist, and she could no longer continue. Only when she met Han Su’s eyes could she go on: “Until I heard noise outside, saw a crack of light piercing the darkness.”

“Some kind of impact from outside forced the door ajar.”

“I—I gathered all my courage to look outside, and I saw...”

Her body trembled almost uncontrollably. She clutched Han Su’s hand and finally managed to continue:

“I saw you.”

“You—you kicked open the door and saved me.”

It was indescribable to see such a stunningly beautiful face show such genuine emotion—she nearly had snot bubbles emerging.

“You pulled me out of that room, carried me, and escaped through a door.”

“I still remember the feeling of falling through the air with you holding me...”

“...”

Wei Lan’s voice was choked with tears—but joyful ones. Having just remembered everything, it felt as if she had just re-experienced the entire terror and joy.

“You saved me...”

She choked back sobs. “But I don’t know why... I forgot it all...”

“It’s like that event never happened in my life. I knew something had happened, and I’d seen news reports about that kidnapping case, but I never thought it had anything to do with me.”

“...”

So, she really only remembered that one time?

Han Su sighed softly after hearing her tale. All the details aligned.

Everything she recalled matched the experience from his last escape.

She even remembered falling through a “door” with him.

But there had been many other times when she hadn’t been rescued. What she went through afterward—she clearly had no memory of.

Slowly, he looked down at Wei Lan and said, “Don’t panic. It’s all in the past now.”

“What happened after that?”

“...”

“No wonder, no wonder...”

Wei Lan looked at his expression and understood that everything she had described had been experienced by the man in front of her as well.

All her remaining doubts vanished. She wiped away her tears and said softly, “Actually, I’ve been looking for you all this time.”

Han Su was startled. “What?”

“It’s true.”

Wei Lan looked up seriously and met Han Su’s eyes. “My life has always been complete. I lived in Qinggang until I was ten, then moved to Ti City. There I encountered the Queen Organization, who began training me in mysterious power.”

“I progressed quickly, completing the stages of mental activation, penetration, and transformation. I even discovered the life command code and earned the qualification to participate in the Beauty Pageant and compete for the Queen’s title.”

“But I always felt like I’d forgotten something. I constantly had recurring dreams—of the moment I escaped. Yet every time I woke up, I’d forget everything. I only knew I had an important dream, but couldn’t recall the details.”

“Even my mentor tried to help me retain the dream using mysterious power, but failed.”

“In fact...”

She smiled somewhat awkwardly. “My confidence in winning the Queen title in Ti City isn’t as absolute as the media claims. In reality, I don’t even have a fifty percent chance. That’s why I returned to Qinggang to seek opportunities.”

“And the reason...”

She paused briefly, recognizing it was a deeply personal secret. But after a moment’s hesitation, she spoke without reservation: “The reason is that I feel my destiny has been distorted.”

“I can’t muster wholehearted devotion to the Queen. Maybe I perform better than others onstage, but it’s only on the surface.”

“I vaguely sensed it might be tied to a shadow in my life. So I came back to Qinggang.”

“And now, I’m certain—I’ve found the reason...”

“...”

She gripped Han Su’s hand tightly. Though soft and boneless, her hand clutched as if she’d never let go again. “Now I just want to know...”

“This whole thing—that kidnapping case, you, and me—what exactly happened?”

“Are there still many things I don’t know?”

“...”

Facing her questions, Han Su looked into her eyes seriously and said slowly, “Can I trust you?”

Wei Lan slowly raised her other hand, her expression resolute beyond description, and said, word by word: “I swear it upon my life.”

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