At the Crimson Research Institute.
After completing the memory implantation surgery, Wei Wei didn't wait for Feng Qi and Xiao You to catch up; instead, she immediately grabbed the squirming Xiao You and began rubbing her chubby cheeks while sending her for a physical exam.
This was a mandatory procedure after memory surgery.
Everything was for safety's sake.
Wei Wei would compare the pre-surgery physical data with the post-surgery data to ensure that Xiao You's body had not suffered any issues due to the memory implantation.
During this process, Xiao You's expression was a blatant display of disdain.
Xiao You had memories of interacting with Wei Wei in the Sacrifice Line. Her first impression of Wei Wei had been terrible. She had been "tortured" in Wei Wei's arms for a long time before she finally managed to escape.
Since then, Wei Wei had been branded as the "bad guy" in Xiao You's mind.
Sitting in the examination room, Feng Qi watched Xiao You struggle in front of the examination equipment, occasionally hearing her desperate cries for help:
"(Ｔ▽Ｔ) Boss, help, I'm going to faint!"
"o(TωT)o Boss, I can't breathe!"
"(〒︿〒) Boss, my face is going to be ruined! This woman is terrifying!"
…
Faced with Xiao You's ongoing pleas for help, Feng Qi decisively chose to ignore them.
After all, the physical exam was absolutely necessary.
Half an hour later, Xiao You, having completed her physical, dashed toward Feng Qi like a rabbit, peeking at Wei Wei holding the medical report, her expression a mix of fear and disdain.
Wei Wei arrived in front of Feng Qi, opened the medical report, and smiled, nodding:
"The examination data is all normal. You can relax."
"Thank you, Wei Jie," Feng Qi said, sincerely grateful.
"I'm tired. I'm going to take a nap. If you need anything, come find me when I wake up."
Saying this, Wei Wei handed the medical report to Feng Qi and turned to leave the examination room.
Once Wei Wei was gone, Xiao You sighed in relief, straightened up, and casually leaned against Feng Qi's leg. In a tone full of mock maturity, she shook her head and said:
"That old hag was so scary. Fortunately, Xiao You is clever and escaped from the jaws of danger."
Feng Qi: ...
After speaking, Xiao You tugged at Feng Qi's pants leg and pouted:
"Boss, I'm starving. I'm so hungry that I've shrunk!"
"Let's go, I'll take you to the restaurant."
Upon hearing Xiao You mention being hungry, Feng Qi didn't refuse. He immediately squatted down, picked her up, and headed toward the Crimson Research Institute's cafeteria.
The cafeteria was open 24 hours, so there was no worry about a lack of food.
When they arrived at the cafeteria, only a few people were eating. Feng Qi grabbed a tray and started selecting food with Xiao You.
The Xiao You who had returned was still the same as he remembered—she wanted to taste everything she saw.
Even though she knew she couldn't possibly eat all of it.
It wasn't until both trays were piled high with food that Xiao You, under Feng Qi's insistence not to waste, reluctantly followed him to the dining area, still carrying the trays.
At the table, Xiao You wasted no time climbing up and immediately started eating with large mouthfuls, stuffing her cheeks so full that they bulged. During this, she mumbled:
"Boss, I don't know why, but it feels like I haven't eaten in a long time. I'm so hungry I've shrunk! There's still the taste of grass in my mouth, and I even dreamed of eating petals. I'm so pathetic."
Feng Qi, sitting across from Xiao You, felt a little embarrassed hearing this.
Before he brought Xiao You back, she had spent several years eating grass and petals in the Netherworld domain. Of course, her mouth tasted of grass.
It was clear that Xiao You had not yet shaken off the confusion from the overlap of her memories, and she was quite perplexed about her changes, even humorously thinking that her body had shrunk just from sleeping.
[Silly Xiao You is indeed very silly, her IQ seems to follow suit, not very sharp.]
Feng Qi: ...
At this point, Xiao You grabbed a large chicken leg, took a big bite, and looked around, curiously asking:
"Boss, where did Xiao Jia and the others go? I haven't seen them for so long."
"They're not here. I haven't brought them over yet."
Upon hearing this, Xiao You furrowed her brows, deep in thought, then raised her eyebrows:
"Did Boss send them to school? That place can help improve their skills. It's a good idea to send them there for some proper learning. I wonder if they cried though."
Xiao You nodded in a tone of experience.
Hearing this, Feng Qi almost laughed out loud.
His mind immediately recalled the first time Xiao You went to school. She had clung to him at the school gate, refusing to let go, with her stormy cries drowning out the sounds of other children's tears.
But Xiao You didn't feel embarrassed at all. In the end, she even bit onto Feng Qi's pants leg, refusing to let go no matter how hard he tried to pull it away.
It's easy to point fingers at others, but when the situation is reversed, it's a whole different story.
Strict with others, lenient with oneself, this was something Xiao You demonstrated perfectly.
"Boss, Xiao You doesn't want to go!"
At that moment, it seemed like Xiao You had thought of something. She looked up at Feng Qi with a determined expression and said firmly.
Knowing that lazy Xiao You didn't like to study, and that forcing her to change would be futile, Feng Qi nodded and agreed:
"Okay, we won't go."
Hearing this, Xiao You visibly relaxed. A bright smile appeared on her face as she continued to eat.
But after a short while, Xiao You's brows slowly furrowed, and her expression turned to one of discomfort.
"What's wrong?"
"Boss, I ate too much, help me!"
Watching Xiao You curl up and start gasping for air, a familiar feeling surged within Feng Qi.
Xiao You was still the same as she was in his memories, eating without any self-control.
He immediately placed his hand on Xiao You's shoulder, channeling his energy into her body to help her digest the food in her stomach.
After a few minutes, Xiao You raised an eyebrow and reached toward the food on the table again.
"No more eating, you'll overeat again."
Upon hearing this, Xiao You pouted in displeasure but didn't try to eat anymore.
She stared longingly at the food on the table for a while before looking up at Feng Qi:
"Boss, have you seen my Demon Sword robe? And the space bracelet? Oh, and the flying mask... and, your Demon Sword... where did they all go?"
Facing the question, Feng Qi decided to tell her the truth:
"Xiao You, I'm going to tell you something now, and I'm not joking. These words I'm about to say are the truth."
"Okay."
Noticing that Feng Qi's expression had become serious, Xiao You followed suit, becoming serious herself, and nodded in agreement.
"Actually, we've gone back more than a hundred years. I just recently brought you back from the place where we first met. Maybe because the implanted memories were too vast, the process of bringing you back made the memory more diluted and unclear. Right now, you're in a state of overlapping memories and need some time to digest it. So, there are no Demon Sword robes, no Xiao Jia and the others…"
Feng Qi spent half an hour explaining the situation to Xiao You in brief.
The main point was to let Xiao You understand that they had returned to a time over a hundred years ago, before many things they had experienced had even happened.
Once he was finished, Feng Qi looked at Xiao You's serious face and continued:
"Xiao You, do you understand now?"
"I think I understand."
After answering Feng Qi's question, Xiao You's brows relaxed, and she rubbed her little belly, her expression calm as she said:
"So, we've gone back over a hundred years. I thought something big had happened. Wherever you are, that's where Xiao You's home is. A hundred years ago doesn't matter."
With that, Xiao You quietly extended her right hand, slowly reaching for a peeled lobster on the table.
Looking at Xiao You, who was carefree and had no awareness of the gravity of the situation, Feng Qi's heart tightened.
[As expected of Lazy Xiao You, going back over a hundred years is a serious matter for you, but for Xiao You, as long as you're not lost, it doesn't matter where we are. As long as she can eat something hot occasionally, she'll keep going even in the apocalypse. She'll continue to be carefree, getting by, hahaha.]
The narrator's words were undoubtedly the best explanation of Xiao You's thoughts.
Feng Qi reached out and swatted Xiao You's right hand away from the food she was trying to "steal," his expression one of helplessness as he said:
"Xiao You, now you understand why Xiao Jia and the others aren't with us, right?"
"I know. Xiao You is lazy, not stupid. What you mean is we've returned to the original starting point, so Xiao Jia is still in the mine, Lei Ting is still enjoying being his big king, Taihang is still in the ancient city missing his people, or is busy betraying outsiders…"
"You're not entirely correct. Time changes many things. Lei Ting has most likely already been promoted to clan king, and Taihang is probably still in the ancient city waiting for his people to return. As for Xiao Jia, he probably hasn't started mining yet."
Xiao You nodded indifferently, grabbed a piece of roasted meat, and stuffed it into her mouth, afraid that Feng Qi might take it away. Then, she mumbled:
"Boss, when are we setting out again to bring them all back?"
"Not now. It's better to wait until the Sacrifice Line starts... Anyway, just understand that the timing isn't right yet."
Feng Qi didn't explain the Sacrifice Line issue in detail to Xiao You.
It wasn't that he feared Xiao You would spill the secret.
It was because Xiao You's brain, not being particularly thoughtful, might get overloaded with the complex time logic.
For Xiao You, she didn't really care about the timeline.
In Lazy Xiao You's life, the most important things were only three: Boss, eating, and sleeping.
Other things, such as cultivation, growth, or the future of her race, which even ordinary people would care about, were all boring topics to Xiao You.
Even if someone stood in front of Xiao You and offered to exchange information about miracles for the roasted meat in her hands, Xiao You would immediately and firmly refuse, thinking that the person was just trying to trick her into giving up her food.
Food > Miracle, this was the logic Xiao You's brain would always follow.
This is also one of the reasons why Xiao You became the "pet" of the team during the divine journey of the Sacrifice Line.
Faced with the looming crisis of the great calamity, the whole world felt like a brutal battlefield, filled with deceit and endless wars. Xiao You, who had no ill intentions and was blissfully carefree, was like a refreshing breeze, constantly bringing laughter and joy whenever she was around.
When with Xiao You, Feng Qi often felt helpless, but he also felt his emotions being constantly lifted by Xiao You's innocence.
Her pure-heartedness was precious and worth protecting.
Looking at Xiao You who started eating again, Feng Qi could already imagine what would happen next.
Xiao You, being someone who hadn't started cultivating yet, had a low physical fitness. Her digestion rate was nowhere near what it was during the Sacrifice Line, so she would easily overeat.
Just as Feng Qi was about to stop Xiao You from gorging herself, the narrator's voice suddenly echoed in his mind:
[Let her eat. Try helping her digest the food. Getting sufficient nutrition might be the key to activating the inherited knowledge in Xiao You's mind... Don't think I'm talking nonsense. Think carefully, why was Xiao You's inherited knowledge activated?]
Upon hearing the narrator's reminder, Feng Qi was stunned.
How to activate Xiao You's inherited knowledge was something he had thought about before.
From the experience in the Sacrifice Line, Xiao You activated her inherited knowledge suddenly during their divine challenge journey. However, the conditions for unlocking this knowledge were unknown.
At first, Feng Qi thought there might be a prerequisite for activating the inherited knowledge.
That prerequisite, he thought, could be age.
Only when Xiao You grew to a certain age would the inherited knowledge, sealed in her mind, be unlocked, allowing her to start absorbing and digesting it.
The time when Xiao You activated her inherited knowledge in the Sacrifice Line happened exactly when she reached the right age.
After hearing the narrator's reminder, Feng Qi thought that sufficient nutrition might indeed be the right way to unlock the inherited knowledge.
This speculation wasn't without basis.
Xiao You's quality of life had drastically improved after meeting him.
During their divine journey in the Sacrifice Line, though Xiao You still went hungry at times, compared to her old life of eating grass and flower petals, the energy supply to her body was much more complete.
Especially when they practiced under the waterfall, with abundant fish and meat every day, her nutritional intake was optimal.
The inherited knowledge might have been triggered because Xiao You's body had been in a state of full nutrition for a prolonged period.
It was like how many animals hibernate in nature to conserve their body's energy.
The inherited knowledge's design might have been similar.
After all, after the inherited knowledge was activated, Xiao You had been using her body and energy in cultivation and learning, which gradually increased her physical energy consumption. She often felt exhausted and would fall asleep unintentionally.
This setup was probably meant as protection for Xiao You.
Only when the external environment was sufficiently favorable would Xiao You's inherited knowledge be unlocked; otherwise, this knowledge would become a burden to her.
So the narrator's reminder made a lot of sense.
Eat well and drink well, and the activation of the inherited knowledge could be triggered, allowing Xiao You to acquire the ability to weave energy earlier.
Thinking of this, Feng Qi turned his gaze to Xiao You, who was greedily eating again. What he had planned to say as a reprimand turned into:
"Xiao You, slow down, no one's competing with you."
"Without Big Brother feeding me the roasted meat, I'm not used to eating on my own. Ugh, it's really troublesome."
Xiao You shook her head as if she was complaining, but she kept casting glances at Feng Qi, the meaning behind her eyes obvious.
Feng Qi: ...
Compared to Xiao You from just a few hours ago, the Xiao You now seemed to have been switched on by some kind of switch.
While the muscles on his forehead twitched, Feng Qi still grabbed a piece of roasted meat and shoved it into Xiao You's open mouth.
"Indeed, the roasted meat enchanted by Big Brother is especially delicious. The only downside is that the meat wasn't roasted by Big Brother himself, so it lacks a bit of flavor."
Saying this, Xiao You started eating again, quickly stuffing her mouth full.
Looking at Xiao You, who was enjoying her meal so happily, Feng Qi couldn't help but remind her:
"Stop fooling around, eat properly."
"Okay."
She responded quickly with her mouth, but her actions didn't change in the slightest.
Just as Feng Qi had predicted, Xiao You soon frowned, holding the food in the air with both hands, her face showing signs of extreme discomfort:
"Big Brother, help me, my stomach's going to explode..."