GRMFBS CH99

The multiple layers of protection at the top of the research institute were neatly pierced, creating an opening wide enough for a person to embrace.

Thunder descended with unstoppable might, splitting the night with an incredibly bright flash.

No one could see clearly what happened in that instant the thunder struck. The majestic power of the heavens could not be looked upon directly.

After that earth-shattering roar, the night grew dark again.

The research institute’s structure hadn’t collapsed, but under the lightning, it had momentarily turned semi-transparent. Vaguely visible within the sea of lightning was a figure floating before the “Apocalyptic Fragment.”

The person in charge stared with his mouth agape. “Whatever the thunder strikes is broken; whatever the immense weight crushes is annihilated…”

Inside the research institute, the enormous, terrifying, and sinister “Apocalyptic Fragment” was enveloped in a ball of crackling lightning. Countless dark shadows surged out from its frame-like surfaces, only to be drowned by the tide of the lightning sea.

As the lightning gradually dimmed, all that remained in the depths, over two hundred meters underground, was a single, glass-like shard.

A river of stars fell through the opening in the ceiling. The clear moonlight streamed in, illuminating the silent darkness.

Ji Yueming bent down and picked up the shard.

This was its true essence, revealed after the thunder had burned away all external additions—a world fragment shimmering with magnificent, iridescent light.

The “Apocalyptic Fragment” had originally been just a corner of an innocent, small world.

The sea of lightning gradually receded back into Ji Yueming’s body. Sparks of electricity still occasionally leaped from her Tianshi robes. Thunder surged beneath her skin, and she exhaled bolts of lightning with every breath.

Ji Yueming extended a hand glowing with lightning patterns. A thin bolt of lightning emerged from her fingertip and found the mask in the corner.

The mask flew into her hand along with the lightning. Ji Yueming put on the mask, and the abnormal phenomena around her gradually subsided.

“Hoo…” She slowly exhaled, the air crackling in response.

After repeating this several times, her breathing no longer stirred up thunder.

Ji Yueming raised her head, and the night light from the distant sky fell into her pupils.

She was now standing more than three hundred meters underground from that opening.

Oops, I went a little overboard with that big move just now. I can’t use that much lightning energy to fly up now, it’s easy to lose control. Better to take the normal exit.

Ji Yueming climbed to the exit. Her control was still strong; apart from the large hole in the roof, the outermost layer of the research institute was intact, including the combination lock.

The password… what was the password again? She knew it when she came to the institute before, but she couldn’t remember it now…

Ji Yueming tried three times, all with the wrong password.

The red light alarm began to blare. The institute’s automated defense system activated, quickly deploying a bewildering array that combined high technology and sorcery, trapping her inside.

Ji Yueming: …

Time to brute-force it!

She was in a hurry to get home for the New Year!

…

Watching through the Gossip System, Zhan Yan was completely captivated.

Ahhh, the great Tianshi is so badass!!!

He knew it! He knew the Tianshi wouldn’t just warn him not to look for the infinity fragment and then leave it at that! The great one had a plan all along!

Just as Zhan Yan was getting excited, the Gossip System suddenly refreshed with a new entry:

[While leaving the Administration’s secret location, the Tianshi was trapped in a bewildering array because she forgot the password. She is currently in a rage, forcibly dismantling it in a hurry to get home.]

Zhan Yan: Pfft!

Oh right, it’s New Year’s today, and the great one isn’t home yet.

Sigh, it’s only a little over an hour until midnight, but Mom isn’t back either, and her phone is unreachable. She’s probably on the plane.

The gossip feed didn’t show his mom encountering any problems, but he couldn’t help but worry. His dad kept checking the time.

The programs of the Spring Festival Gala rotated one after another, but no one was really in the mood to watch.

It was now a magic show. Zhan Suiru and Zhan Jinli were half-heartedly guessing the principles behind the magic tricks and arguing over whether a certain item was a prop.

Zhan Yan’s curiosity was piqued by the two of them. He opened the item description, ready to take a closer look, just as the doorbell rang.

Zhan Yan leaped up and dashed to the door. “Mom’s back!”

Zhan Yunkai couldn’t even beat him to it.

That rascal!

The moment the door opened, a rush of warm air from inside met Ji Yueming, who was enveloped in a full hug by her younger son.

“Mom… Ow!”

“What’s wrong? What happened?”

“Mom, your clothes have static!” Zhan Yan’s eyes were watery.

That jolt of static was so strong! It hurt so much!

Ji Yueming subconsciously raised her hand to pat his head, but stopped it mid-air.

She gave her family, who had gathered around, a warm smile. “I’m going to change my clothes first.”

Without hugging anyone else, Ji Yueming went to her room first.

Taking off her coat, which was soaked with the winter night’s chill, Ji Yueming pulled down the collar of her turtleneck sweater and took out a silver-white pendant. It was a stabilizer disguised as a necklace.

She looked at her reflection in the full-length mirror. One second, two seconds, and a bolt of lightning suddenly flashed in the depths of her pupils.

Thunder still flowed beneath her skin, constantly displaying the majestic and indifferent power of the heavens. The will of a human seemed so fragile under the power of heaven and earth, as if it could dissolve into the vast thunder at any moment.

Ji Yueming sighed.

It really was hard to contain. She had just zapped Yan Yan.

She adjusted the stabilizer again, and the active thunder within her body was forcibly suppressed a little more. Ji Yueming frowned, then smiled at the mirror a couple of times before changing her clothes and going downstairs.

Zhan Yunkai started cooking in the kitchen, with Zhan Jinli helping out.

Zhan Suiru cheerfully cleared the fruit platter from the table.

Finally, it was time to eat! Mom wasn’t back, so Dad was afraid the dishes would get cold and didn’t cook any hot food!

Zhan Yan was in a daze, holding the small silver locket on his chest with one hand.

Just now, he had been zapped by the static electricity from his mom, and this time, the static felt different. Usually, a static shock just hurts at the point of contact. But this time, after being zapped, it felt like a small electric current shot from his chin and disappeared somewhere around the center of his collarbone.

Zhan Yan’s item description was still open; he had subconsciously glanced down at that moment, and the description of the small silver locket had changed for an instant.

Previously, the item description for the small silver locket was:

[This is a silver locket full of blessings, with a silver content of 95.5%.]

In that instant just now, he hadn’t seen the full item description, but he vaguely noticed that the prefix adjective for the silver locket seemed to contain the word “Thunder.”

But looking at it again now, the item description for the small silver locket was the same as before, as if he had just imagined it.

“Yan Yan, what are you doing?” Zhan Suiru was holding three plates with one hand, as steady as a master acrobat. “Hurry up and take Xingxing away!”

The little guy, seeing everyone suddenly start moving, thought they were playing with it and was gleefully getting underfoot. It was currently clinging to Zhan Suiru’s pant leg.

“Oh my, this little kitten! When did you get her?” Ji Yueming had just come downstairs.

Zhan Yan had just pried Xingxing off his sister’s pant leg when the little thing scurried onto his shoulder, nestling against his ear and looking at Ji Yueming curiously. “Meow!”

Ji Yueming: “Meow!”

Zhan Yan: …Pfft.

He’d worry about his vision problems later. Right now, it was time for New Year’s Eve dinner!

The table was cleared. In the very center was a “Blooming Flower of Wealth” fondant cake made by Zhan Jinli, surrounded by various dishes.

Zhan Yunkai’s cooking skills were impeccable. Even Xingxing got a bowl of special crispy fish and beef-and-egg paste.

At their family’s New Year’s Eve dinner table, the main event was praise.

Ji Yueming started by praising the eldest: “Jinli, this fondant cake is so well-made. Your cake shop will definitely be a hit.”

The great Tianshi was too busy to have noticed her eldest son’s miserable situation of being cornered in his cake shop a while ago.

Zhan Jinli: …Mom, really, you don’t have to, Mom!

Zhan Suiru and Zhan Yan pretended to eat while giggling.

Next, she praised down the line: “Suiru’s studio is also doing better and better. Mom checked, that director, Ji Lele, is a very impressive director! Your sculpture was used in his movie, it will definitely be appreciated by more people in the future!”

Zhan Yan: “Exactly! I told you, sister’s sculptures are really great.”

Ji Yueming: …You, stop joining in on the fun!

“Yan Yan, Mom saw that you’re very good at square dancing. This is a great hobby! At your age, you should cultivate more lively hobbies.”

Her daughter’s aesthetic sense was already beyond correction, but her younger son still needed saving!

Zhan Yan was quite happy to do square dancing. The uncles and aunties in the group were super good at dishing out gossip!

“I’ll go whenever I have time! Square dancing is more fun with more people. Mom, do you want to join?”

Ji Yueming: “…I’ll pass. It’s nice that you kids go together.”

Zhan Yunkai: “Ahem… I’ll pass too. It’s nice to go grocery shopping with them.”

Zhan Jinli, Zhan Suiru: …

Zhan Suiru forcefully interrupted this dangerous topic, pointing her chopsticks at the Spring Festival Gala on TV: “Hey, isn’t that… isn’t that…”

The Spring Festival Gala had moved on to a musical performance. Zhan Suiru was trying to change the subject, but couldn’t remember who was singing at the moment.

Zhan Yan looked up: “Is that Lan Xiqiao? The one who sings Meihu Opera!”

“Oh! The one our company sponsored before,” Zhan Suiru remembered.

Their company had sponsored a Meihu Opera tour before, and later, one of the performers entered the entertainment industry. That was this Lan Xiqiao.

Zhan Suiru had a strong impression of this because she had been dragged to be a figurehead for the ribbon-cutting ceremony during the Meihu Opera tour.

Zhan Jinli, who remembered nothing, was also nodding vigorously.

The square dancing becoming a hit was more terrifying than the cake shop! Those people asked about everything!

Ji Yueming watched them having a silent argument with their eyes as Zhan Yunkai placed a “reunion shrimp ball” into her bowl.

Fireworks exploded in the distance, half the sky in full bloom.

Ji Yueming smiled silently. The chill of deep winter had melted away, and the majestic thunder had subsided. A warm current surged back into her heart. The stabilizer no longer exerted any pressure; everything had returned to a safe level.

“This is so nice!” She took a bite of the shrimp ball and said with a grin, “Old Zhan, your cooking skills are getting better and better.”

Zhan Yan held up his phone to the window.

The “Big Heart” in the city center was having a fireworks show. The new type of fireworks, which had cost a fortune, were high and large, with changing colors and shapes that could be seen from half the city.

Zhan Suiru leaned over to look at the photos he took and burst out laughing: “What are you taking a picture of? The ‘Big Heart’ exploding?”

“Then you take it for me,” Zhan Yan unceremoniously shoved the phone at his sister.

Zhan Suiru adjusted a few camera settings and handed the phone back to him: “Try it.”

The photos came out normal this time. Zhan Yan gave his sister a thumbs-up as he took pictures: “Sis, you’re amazing!”

Zhan Yan secretly sent the firework photos to Gu Jiancheng.

Zhan Suiru leaned over: “How did they turn out? Post it on your social media, you’ll definitely have the best pictures!”

Zhan Yan’s hand trembled, and he quickly exited the chat interface.

[Zhan Suiru did not discover that you were secretly sending photos to your boyfriend just now.]

Zhan Yan breathed a sigh of relief in his heart and praised with a straight face: “Of course! The parameters my sister set are amazing!”

After midnight, back in his own bedroom, Zhan Yan finally dared to continue calling his boyfriend.

“I saw the fireworks you photographed,” Gu Jiancheng said with a gentle laugh over the phone. “Where was that?”

“At the ‘Big Heart.’ There was a fireworks show, but I didn’t go over,” Zhan Yan puffed up with pride. “Good shot, right?”

“Especially good,” Gu Jiancheng said sincerely. “It would be great if we could watch them together next time.”

Zhan Yan started getting sleepy not long after they started talking. It was already several hours past his usual biological clock.

After they hung up, Zhan Yan felt a little more awake, and his fingers couldn’t help but tap into their chat interface.

The latest message was Gu Jiancheng’s reply, praising his beautiful firework photos with genuine sincerity.

But Zhan Yan felt something was wrong with the thumbnail.

He clicked on the picture he had sent earlier to take a look.

He had sent the wrong one! He hadn’t sent the picture his sister had adjusted the parameters for, but the one he had taken before!

The fireworks in the photo were a blurry, explosive-looking ball of light, with smoke around it, looking like it was on fire!

And you could still praise this!