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nTranslator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

nHan Li cautiously pushed open the glass door and walked in, trembling.

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nMeow!

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nAs soon as she’d entered, a black kitten stuck its head out from a corner near the counter.

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nIts amber-colored eyes looked at her maliciously.

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nHan Li could feel all her hair starting to stand straight up.

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n“Bastet,” the weirdo called out gently to the kitten.

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nAnd the kitten obediently hopped up onto the weirdo’s shoulders.

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nIn the mist that was everywhere, the streams of fire coming out of his eye sockets seemed to gradually brighten.

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nHan Li raised her head slowly and confronted the kitten head-on.

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nFeeling as if she was in a trance, Han Li thought she saw a reflection of a pyramid behind the kitten.

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nFlecks of starlight hovered around the pyramid. Amid the starlight, there seemed to be many mortals praying, beseeching, and pleading. Their various invocations intertwined around the pyramid, weaving themselves into a sacred epic.

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nIt was an extremely ancient hymn.

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nThat seemed to have been gathered over countless years.

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nHan Li lowered her head quickly. She didn’t dare to look again.

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n…

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nLing PingAn looked at the young girl who was standing before him.

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nShe seemed a little bashful.

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nThe moment that she’d entered the door, she’d become demure. Her eyes seemed to be exuding timidity, or maybe it was fear.

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n“Is this because of the book she bought the last time?” Ling PingAn was thinking to himself.

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nHe was thinking that during these last few days when he hadn’t seen her, this young girl must’ve been trying her best to digest the knowledge from that book and earnestly trying to learn the techniques within it.

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nHe could tell that from this young girl’s attire.

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nShe was still wearing those strange black tights and a thin black veil.

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nBut her temperament and image were very different than last time.

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nNot only was she less scattered, but she’d also gained some maturity. She was even wearing a charming scent.

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nThis indicated to him that she had read the book.

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nAnd had acquired the essence of cosplay.

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nThis made Ling PingAn feel somewhat relieved.

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nHowever, perhaps it was precisely because of this that the young girl had gotten into some kind of conflict with her family and thus she was compelled to visit the store again this late at night.

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nLing PingAn could imagine that her family might have brought up someone like her in a typical Old Empire style.

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nThe Old Empire people were the most conservative group in the Federal Empire.

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nThey still followed the ancient morals and values. If they could have, they would have written loyalty, filial piety, benevolence, justice, politeness, honesty, and shame into the Federal Magna Carta.

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nThey never would have allowed their children to engage in cosplay.

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nThey would give their children a hard time if the children were ever bold enough to not follow the exact path they had prepared for them.

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nDidn’t this kind of parent often appear on television?

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nDomineering, arrogant, conservative, and unreasonable.

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nFortunately, the emperor who had founded this empire had fought against this kind of conservatism for decades.

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nHe had continued the traditions of Taizong and Gojong.

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nAnd, finally, after incessant attempts at education, people had been convinced and had accepted the ethical values of the modern industrial society.

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nThey had been compelled to recognize and obey the Federal Magna Carta and the liberation of women.

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nOtherwise, these conservative people would still not regard women as human beings just as they hadn’t hundreds of years ago and would perhaps still see their sons as mere tools for them to use.

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nOf course, the Old Empire wasn’t entirely useless.

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nThey believed in collective power and were the staunchest supporters of the unified system of the Federal Empire.

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nThey were also the group of people who had sacrificed themselves and shed the most blood in the Federal Empire’s wars, domestic development, and infrastructure construction.

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nMoreover, due to their exceptional unity and power of action that was off the charts, both the Datong Party and the Republicans had to cater to the preferences of these people, lest they vote for the opposite party.

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nThinking of this, Ling PingAn felt a little sympathetic.

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nHe was aware of how painful it was to be a child of people of the Old Empire.

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nWhen he was in school, several of his classmates came from Old Empire families.

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nLing PingAn’s impressions of almost all of them were that they were maniacal fully automated humanoid learning machines, terrible bookworms, and workaholics.

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nTheir lives were so boring and dry that they could literally have been burned as firewood.

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nAlmost all their lives were spent in studying, studying, studying, and studying.

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nThe most terrifying thing about them was that after these people grew up, they would impose the lifestyle that they had gone through on their children and start the cycle all over again.

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nFrightening indeed!

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nAnyhow, Ling PingAn had always felt that if he had been living in that kind of family, he would have suffocated in a second.

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nWhat was the point of living a life in which he couldn’t slack off, play games, and write novels?

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nTherefore, Ling PingAn thought highly of this young girl’s rebellious spirit.

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nCertainly, he understood that even an official would find it hard to settle a family quarrel.

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nWhat’s more, he wasn’t even an official.

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nAfter weighing and considering his use of words, Ling PingAn said, “Did the book you took last time help you at all?”

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n…

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nAs she stood there shaking, Han Li heard the weirdo’s question.

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n“Did the book you took last time help you at all?”

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nThe Lower Abyss Research Report that she was holding had been quiet since she’d entered the fog. But now it became agitated after hearing his question.

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nHan Li could feel the pages of the book moving as worm-like objects squirmed wildly.

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nAnd now she knew how she should answer.

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nShe made a deep bow and thanked him. “Thank you for your generosity. I am fortunate to have been able to read such a profound and mysterious scripture.”

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nThe book she was holding seemed very satisfied with her answer.

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nIt immediately quietened.

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nEven its temperature cooled down.

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nHan Li breathed a sigh of relief, and she became a little less restless.

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nShe raised her head cautiously and said, “I took the liberty to come again because I wish to buy another book from you…

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n“I hope you can grant my wish.”

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nAs Ling PingAn listened to her speak, he frowned a bit. He really felt that this young lady’s childishness was going a little too far. It was just a book. What had she called it? A scripture!

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nHowever, he could understand what she was doing.

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nOn the forums, there were always a bunch of grown men addressing 2D characters as their waifus all day every day!

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nIt was just that…cosplaying was something new.

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nIn all honesty, there weren’t many books about it in his bookstore.

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nAside from the introductory book, Secrets of Cosplay, the only other references were in a few relatively serious multi-volume works.

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nThese multi-volume books not only cost a lot more, but, for amateurs, he was afraid that they might not be what she wanted.

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nAfter some thought, he reminded her, with all good intentions, “Miss, in my opinion, I don’t think that you will need to go into those books with more advanced content for the time being…

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nHe cautiously reminded her, “For some things, it would be unbeneficial if you came into contact with them too early…

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n“What do you think?”

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n…

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n“Miss, in my opinion, I don’t think that you will need to go into those books with more advanced content for the time being…

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n“For some things, it would be unbeneficial if you came into contact with them too early…

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n“What do you think?”

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nThe weirdo’s voice was gentle and soft.

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nBut to Han Li, it seemed as if he had seen through her with a single glance.

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nHan Li does know that she can’t even control the book in her arms.

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nIf she were to acquire those more advanced books…

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nFor instance…

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nThe Upper Abyss Research Report…

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nThe moment she acquired it, she would probably be instantly driven into insanity by its wild knowledge and taboo contents.

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nAfter all, even listening to the Elixir of Ascension had brought her to the brink of collapse.

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nSo she immediately bowed and conceded, “You are right.

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n“This knowledge is truly too profound for me…

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n“Coming into contact with it rashly would have too great of an impact on me…”

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nLing PingAn listened to the girl’s words and looked at her sincere expression.

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nOnce again, he thought to himself, “Perhaps the only thing I can say about her is that she is truly a child who was educated by the Old Empire.

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n“She’s so obedient and polite, even when she’s rebellious…”

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nAfter thinking for a little while longer, he asked her, “Then why are you here this time?”

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