Doomsday Wonderland Vol. 13: Sleepwalking in Dreamland

1564: Reduced to Ashes

'No, that's wrong... this is too reckless. How could it be possible?'

Qiao Yuansi knew that she must look foolish, just staring blankly at Jin Yan. Her office door was wide open, with Changelings passing to and fro in the corridor outside, their laughter ringing in the air. None of them suspected that, just a few feet away, a game of guessing and probing was taking place.

Hadn't Jin Yan already seen her picture on the wall? Why would she draw such a conclusion? Unless she was intentionally trying to lure the snake out of the hole, right?

But if Jin Yan had transformed, she should never have noticed anything unusual about the bird food box. To conclude that Changelings don't feed birds," there must first be a premise that "Changelings lack compassion." However, Changelings would never have such a premise. After all, in their eyes, they are all very normal humans.

To discover from the bird food box that Qiao Yuansi was not a Changeling, two things are required: a clear understanding of the nature of Changelings, and a simple but complete logic. Changelings have neither of these – at least for now. She had observed many Changelings and had not found any exceptions yet.

According to this reasoning, the possibility of Jin Yan being a Changeling was slim.

Qiao Yuansi swallowed her dry throat, still unable to speak. The girl across the table was staring at her, her face turning paler and paler, like cement was slowly being poured over it, stiffening and freezing, yet still showing her increasing terror. Jin Yan lowered her head and quickly pulled back her hand, which had been trembling slightly.

Qiao Yuansi suddenly understood.

Wasn't she feeling the same way?

Countless times, she felt that she could not endure even a second more of suffocation. She wished she could grab the normal people who hadn't transformed yet, shake them by the collar, point at the transformed faces, and tell them to open their eyes and look.

She'd be satisfied to wake even one comrade. Even if she were discovered and overwhelmed by the crowd, she would have at least shouted out once before disappearing. If she failed, everything would end, and she wouldn't have to endure silently anymore. The new world had only begun two months ago, she was only 33, and she didn't know how she would survive the rest of her life.

Surely Jin Yan felt the same way?

She tried to steady her voice, breaking the silence that seemed to have lasted too long.

Even though Qiao Yuansi could empathize with Jin Yan, she dared not admit it outright, so she asked the safest question. "You didn't see my picture?"

Jin Yan lowered her eyes. "Miss Qiao... is this a test you've set up? Are you using the bird food box to attract non-Changelings to come to you?"

Qiao Yuansi was taken aback.

"My father is a photographer... I know that by cropping and splicing negatives, photos can be altered. The photography professors must know as well. Aren't you afraid they'll become suspicious?" Jin Yan's voice grew softer, almost too soft for Qiao Yuansi to hear. She couldn't help but glance at the door, probably fearful of being overheard.

"I audited one of your classes before... I've been suspicious since then... And who would need to hang a picture of their transformed face? I think it would only be normal people."

"If you're so sure, what are you afraid of?" Qiao Yuansi's heart was pounding, but she still didn't admit it.

Jin Yan closed her eyes, taking a deep breath.