After Fu Zhu settled everything with Dan Heng, he hurriedly returned to the room.
In the guest room, March 7th had long since finished breakfast and was standing spiritedly in front of a mirror, applying makeup.
Catching sight of Fu Zhu appearing in the mirror, March 7th turned around with a beaming smile and asked excitedly: "Where are we going to play today?"
Fu Zhu walked to the edge of the bed where she was sitting, reached out to hold March 7th's waist, and rested his chin on her shoulder.
"Let's go to the Divination Commission first. How about we ask for a divination on our marriage compatibility?"
"Marriage compatibility?" March 7th looked at Fu Zhu strangely. "Aren't we already together? Why do we still need to calculate compatibility?"
Fu Zhu explained with a chuckle: "Of course, it's to let those diviners calculate when the best time for our wedding would be. Why, do you not want to?"
Hearing it was about the wedding, March 7th's small face instantly flushed red.
"Isn't that a bit too early?"
"Good things shouldn't be delayed. If you're ready, let's set off."
"Mhm."
March 7th simply applied some light makeup, then went out the door with Fu Zhu.
Downstairs, they happened to run into Dan Heng and Xing, who were planning to go out for breakfast together. Xing was yawning, scratching her belly without any concern for her image. She glanced at Fu Zhu and March 7th holding hands and curled her lips somewhat sourly.
"So fiery early in the morning? You two didn't eat dinner last night; don't tell me you didn't eat breakfast either?"
March 7th waved her hand with a grin: "We're going out to eat. You guys eat by yourselves. Bye-bye."
With that, March 7th pulled Fu Zhu's hand and left impatiently.
Xing watched the retreating figures of the two and couldn't help but click her tongue.
"They've been together for so long, how is it still like a honeymoon period? Dan Heng, when do you think they'll hit the period of fatigue? Hmm? Dan Heng?"
Xing shouted twice, only to find Dan Heng had been spacing out. She reached out and pushed him.
"What's wrong?"
Dan Heng hurriedly snapped back to reality, looking at Xing beside him with confusion.
Xing rolled her eyes at him helplessly: "What are you spacing out for in broad daylight? Did you not sleep well last night either?"
"It's nothing..."
Dan Heng didn't dare tell Xing about the Changye Yue matter. Just as Fu Zhu worried, if Xing knew, she would definitely worry excessively.
At least until there was a thorough solution, he couldn't say anything.
......
On the way to the Divination Commission, Fu Zhu and March 7th bought some snacks, then arrived non-stop in front of the commission.
Before the two even walked into the Divination Commission, they encountered an old acquaintance at the entrance—Qingque.
"Eh? You two are here so early?"
Qingque was chewing on half a steamed bun. Seeing March 7th and Fu Zhu walking over with smiles, she greeted them, then without turning her head, she rushed straight for the main entrance of the Divination Commission and swiped her jade tile on a machine.
Beep.
Having done this, she breathed a sigh of relief.
"Close call, close call. Almost didn't clock in on time."
March 7th walked over holding Fu Zhu's arm. Seeing Qingque's anxious appearance, she couldn't help but laugh: "Qingque, if you're so worried about being late, wouldn't it be better to come a bit earlier next time?"
"How can you say such things!"
Qingque looked at March 7th with a face full of disbelief, speaking with heartache: "Eight o'clock is work time. Before this, it's my own time. If I give the Divination Commission an extra minute, the commission won't give me a raise, so why should I come early?"
"That makes sense, I guess..."
After correcting March 7th's incorrect ideology, Qingque stepped up the stairs first and waved to the two behind her.
"Let's go, let's go in together. Since you came to the Divination Commission, you must have business, right?"
Fu Zhu and March 7th nodded and followed her inside.
As soon as they entered the Divination Commission, a diviner immediately walked over aggressively. Seeing her, Qingque instantly stood frozen on the spot.
The diviner walked up to Qingque, put her hands on her hips, and stared at her with slight anger.
"Qingque! You're stepping on the dot to arrive again today? The Master Diviner told me to keep a good eye on you! What if you're late stepping on the dot like this?"
Seeing she was being questioned, Qingque hurriedly pulled March 7th and Fu Zhu to her side.
"Today is different. Today I was specially waiting outside for these two distinguished guests. This is official business!"
"Is that so?"
The diviner looked suspiciously at Fu Zhu and March 7th, then nodded.
"Fine, then pay attention next time."
With that, she left.
Qingque watched her leave and let out a long sigh of relief, looking at Fu Zhu and March gratefully: "It's a good thing you guys came! Otherwise, I would have been nagged at all morning today!"
March 7th laughed aloud. So Qingque shouting for them to come in together at the door was because of this!
"Alright, don't look at me with those eyes. To repay the 'grace of saving my life' from you two, I'll lead the way for you today. Whatever you want to do, I'll help!"
Qingque patted her chest and guaranteed immediately. For her, leading the way and handling affairs for Fu Zhu and the others was much more interesting than sitting in the Divination Commission doing boring work.
"Okay, okay."
March 7th happily agreed. It was naturally best to have an acquaintance help.
"So Qingque, we want to calculate marriage compatibility!"
"Marriage compatibility?"
Qingque looked strangely at the hands held between March 7th and Fu Zhu. She had naturally seen the official announcement from March 7th's circle of friends before. They were already together, so did they still need to calculate marriage?
Is this some unique hobby of young couples? Wanting to show others how compatible they are?
"Alright... follow me."
"Wait a moment."
Fu Zhu called out to Qingque, who was planning to leave. He took out his phone and glanced at the news communicated with Jing Yuan above, then turned back to Qingque and said.
"I have to wait for someone. She'll be here right away."
"Wait for someone?" x2
March 7th glanced at Fu Zhu suspiciously and asked in a whisper: "Is it Bronya?"
Fu Zhu shook his head. March 7th was startled, puffing up her cheeks to glare at him.
"Could it be there's someone else?"
Seeing March 7th misunderstand, Fu Zhu reached out with a mix of laughter and tears to tap her little melon head.
"Where is your mind wandering? It's not that kind of thing you're thinking of. I just asked someone to come help, and it has to do with you too."
"Me?"
March 7th couldn't imagine what matter related to her required help, but seeing Fu Zhu's appearance, he didn't seem willing to elaborate. She could only obediently stand aside and wait for the person.
Qingque was also happy to stand aside and slack off, simply taking out her phone to start doom-scrolling videos, accompanying them in the wait.
In a short while, a beautiful red figure came walking gracefully. Lingsha stopped in front of the trio and bowed slightly.
"Concubine Lingsha greets Mr. Fu Zhu, Miss March, and... Miss Qingque."
Qingque saw that the person Fu Zhu was waiting for was actually the newly appointed Cauldron Master. Her mouth opened wide in exaggeration as she scratched her head and looked at Fu Zhu.
"Huh? The person you were waiting for is the Master Cauldron?"
"Mhm."
Fu Zhu nodded slightly, then cupped his hands toward Lingsha: "Then, for what follows, I'll have to trouble Miss Lingsha."
Lingsha covered her mouth and chuckled, waving her hand: "Mr. Fu Zhu, you have been kind to the Vidyadhara. This small favor is naturally no problem. Shall we go in first?"
"Good."
With Lingsha in place, the group of three didn't continue waiting at the entrance and walked into the Divination Commission together.
Inside the Divination Commission, Fu Zhu didn't let Lingsha immediately help treat March 7th. Instead, he let Qingque help calculate the marriage compatibility between him and March 7th, considering it as fulfilling the promise he made to March earlier that morning.
Furthermore, he didn't really want to tell March 7th about Changye Yue.
After all, anyone would be nervous knowing there might be another soul existing inside their body. He didn't want that. He planned to eliminate Changye Yue silently without March 7th knowing, putting everything back on the right track.
Qingque's divination process was very simple. She even wanted to skip the process entirely and give the answer directly. Anyway, men and women coming to calculate marriage always wanted to hear something good.
Qingque glanced roughly at the divination result, then smilingly interpreted the hexagram for Fu Zhu and March 7th.
"Mhm, the result is out. You two are simply a match made in heaven. Your feelings will definitely last for a long, long time!"
March 7th scratched the back of her head. She felt Qingque's divination was somewhat perfunctory, but she didn't delve deeper. Right now, compared to the marriage divination, she was more curious why Fu Zhu went to such great lengths to invite Lingsha to the Divination Commission.
Fu Zhu noticed the look March 7th cast over and didn't plan to keep hiding it. He confessed directly to March 7th and Qingque.
"Miss Lingsha is also proficient in medicine. It's just that unlike Bailu, she is more skilled in using various incenses to treat patients' mental illnesses. This time, I plan to borrow the Divination Commission's [Matrix of Prescience] and Miss Lingsha's incense medical arts to help March recover her previous memories."
"Eh?"
March 7th was somewhat surprised. She hadn't expected Fu Zhu to have this kind of idea.
"But, wouldn't this be too big of a commotion?"
"Don't worry, I've already spoken to Jing Yuan. Besides, this isn't some troublesome matter. It's just a pity Fu Xuan isn't here, otherwise, if she operated the [Matrix of Prescience], the effect would be better."
Fu Zhu felt it was somewhat regrettable. Although other diviners in the commission could also operate the Matrix, that was all. Fu Xuan not only had higher proficiency, but she also possessed the Eye bestowed by Nous. The effect would only be better than a simple activation of the Matrix.
As soon as Qingque heard Fu Zhu wanted to use the Matrix of Prescience, she immediately raised her hand to volunteer.
"Then I'll lead the way! I happen to know a little bit about operating the Matrix, so I can help March a little!"
Although she preferred to slack off, when it came to helping this friend retrieve her memories, she could occasionally stop slacking.
"Then I'll trouble you."
Fu Zhu nodded to Qingque. The four of them immediately walked toward the location of the Matrix of Prescience. Fu Zhu and March 7th were not strangers to the Matrix; previously, Kafka had been captured and interrogated here, accepting the Matrix's judgment.
Only this time, the person standing inside the Matrix changed from Kafka to March 7th.
March 7th stood somewhat nervously on the platform of the Matrix, clutching her fists tightly in front of her chest. She watched Lingsha place an incense table outside the array and light various incenses on it. She waved a fan gently, and the colored smoke slowly drifted into the array, wrapping around March 7th.
"This array shouldn't hurt, right? I'm very afraid of pain..."
March 7th felt somewhat nervous remembering the process of Kafka's interrogation. She hadn't expected that she would actually have the chance to cosplay as a prisoner once.
Qingque stood outside the Matrix, making preliminary preparations with the other diviners, while not forgetting to comfort March 7th inside.
"Don't worry, March. The Matrix isn't some instrument of torture. Just treat it as sleeping. It'll be fine, nothing will happen."
"Alright then..."
In a short while, the preparations for the Matrix of Prescience were complete. Lingsha also prepared everything and nodded to Fu Zhu.
"Everything is ready, Mr. Fu Zhu. We can begin anytime."
"Start."
"Yes."
As the [Matrix of Prescience] began to activate, Lingsha also controlled the layered smoke to coil around March 7th.
In less than a moment, March 7th couldn't stop a yawn from escaping, and then slowly stood there falling asleep.
Seeing the array take effect, Qingque raised her head and shouted to Fu Zhu: "Fu Zhu, it's ready! March's consciousness has sunk into the consciousness space."
Fu Zhu nodded, then took a step forward, stepping directly into the Matrix. This was also agreed upon with Jing Yuan beforehand—to have the people of the Divination Commission assist him in capturing Changye Yue in the consciousness space. He wanted to make it impossible for her to flee, while he used his ability to enter any space with his main body to personally kill Changye Yue.
As Fu Zhu stepped into the Matrix, in the next second, he arrived in another space. He looked around; the surrounding scenery was similar to certain streets on the Luofu.
However, he didn't care about the environment. What he cared about was that neither of the two people who should have appeared had appeared.
Fu Zhu glanced at the [Minimap]. On the map, not only did March 7th's marker not exist, but Changye Yue's marker also did not appear. Is the place he entered really March 7th's consciousness space?
Thinking this, Fu Zhu spoke directly to the air: "Qingque, Lingsha, where is March 7th's consciousness?"
With the help of the Matrix, Fu Zhu could communicate directly with the two people outside. But unexpectedly, neither of them gave any reply.
"Someone tampered with it..."
Fu Zhu immediately activated [Observer Mode]. On the macro level, he saw March 7th, who was recalling the past under Qingque's guidance in another layer of consciousness space. He did not reveal himself to find March 7th, but instead observed continuously from the surroundings.
But no matter how he observed under Observer Mode, he still didn't find any traces regarding Changye Yue.
This situation could only be because the opponent's strength was far beyond his own, so simple that even in Observer Mode, he couldn't see them.
Even if it was an Aeon, few Aeons could do this.
But if it is an Aeon, why stoop to dealing with March?
Fu Zhu couldn't figure it out. Until this detection ended, and the external Qingque and Lingsha stopped the Matrix, he hadn't discovered a single trace of abnormality.
Fu Zhu had no choice but to return to reality first. As soon as he returned, he immediately looked at Lingsha and Qingque beside him.
When Fu Zhu and March 7th entered the consciousness space, Lingsha had already explained the general situation to Qingque. At this moment, noticing the look in Fu Zhu's eyes, both of them shook their heads with heavy expressions.
Lingsha looked at March 7th, who was gradually coming to her senses inside the Matrix, and suppressed her voice as she spoke to Fu Zhu.
"Mr. Fu Zhu, no abnormality was found. If it weren't for you saying that another 'March 7th' definitely appeared, I'm afraid we would have to suspect the authenticity of the matter."
Qingque also leaned in to supplement a sentence.
"However, it wasn't completely without harvest. At least we just understood that there is a ban existing within March's body that we cannot explore. Even the Matrix of Prescience cannot analyze it in the slightest. This is very likely a restriction placed by an Emanator or even an Aeon. It is to prevent March 7th from recalling the past, but we don't know if this is good or bad..."
Fu Zhu nodded silently. Qingque's statement coincided with his guess.
Lingsha looked at March 7th with some worry, then asked Fu Zhu:
"Mr. Fu Zhu, do we want to wait for the Master Diviner to come back and try again?"
Fu Zhu shook his head. Although Fu Xuan had the Eye bestowed by Nous, given the existence of the restriction, it was very likely from a certain Aeon. Relying solely on Fu Xuan might not be enough. Furthermore, Fu Xuan was still on another Xianzhou ship, and rushing back would take time. He didn't want to let Changye Yue, this unstable element, stay in March 7th's body for so long.
"No need. I'll take March to go to [The Family] to try. I also possess the power of an Envoy of Harmony. If I ask The Family to help operate it, I should be able to summon Xipe. Since it's likely a restriction placed by an Aeon, then..."
"Just use an Aeon to defeat an Aeon."
......
Author PS: Thanks to the readers for the reminder. However, the author himself didn't plan to write too much about the Changye Yue plot at this time. Writing Changye Yue now is just to bridge the upcoming Penacony plot. The formal Changye Yue arc will be placed during the Amphoreus period.
The upcoming plot is tentatively scheduled as: Prime Dr. Primitive Plot -> Wardance Plot -> Penacony -> Amphoreus. Roughly this direction.
PS2: Starting tomorrow, I might speed up as much as possible. Mainly, the emotional drama I tried to temper myself with turned out to be a mess, and writing it makes me stuck very often, so I'll update slower. Apologies.