Chapter 60: Kinomoto Sakura is so hypocritical, you decide to expose her!

Right at this moment.

The child violently broke free from the security guards and charged toward the painting once again.

"Don't run!"

Turning his head, Ye Hui saw the little boy rushing toward the painting, shouting at the top of his lungs, "Damn it! Leave right now!"

Just then, Ye Hui abruptly noticed something amiss.

The painting was actually moving!

The blue-clad woman in the painting lowered her right arm, which had been crossed over her chest, and slowly raised her index finger to her lips.

She made a "shh" gesture for silence...

In a split second, the world seemed to have the pause button pressed on it.

Only then did Ye Hui realize that the sound had vanished!

"This bizarre power—it's definitely a Clow Card! I think I remember which card this is..."

The feeling was somewhat akin to wearing noise-canceling earplugs, or watching a movie with headphones on when someone suddenly yanked the cord out.

It was very strange.

Clearly, the visuals were still in motion.

Yet human perception of sound and the passage of time vanished in an instant.

At that very moment, it even gave Ye Hui the illusion that he was standing outside the world entirely...

Time is formless and intangible.

Humans can only perceive time through external phenomena.

The distant whistle of a steam train, falling red leaves, rusted railway tracks...

All sounds, sights, and various other external changes happen every single day.

It is through these changes that humans can indirectly experience the relentless flow of time,

witnessing the immense power of time itself!

Now, with the sudden pausing of the visual scene, the disappearance of sound at his ears, and the freezing of the distant flowing water...

The instantaneous standstill of these external objects created the overwhelming sensation that time had stopped!

Noticing the anomaly, Ye Hui quickly recovered his composure.

He had already realized this was a "mystic treasure."

With a bit of psychological preparation, he was not frightened.

The others, however, were not so calm.

Staring at the scene before her, Sakura's eyes widened as she blankly gazed at this world where the mute button had been pressed...

Ye Hui prepared to see how the ability of this Clow Card would manifest itself.

At that moment, the system log began to refresh rapidly.

[Following the Heaven-Spiritual-Root disciple Sakura Kinomoto, you discover that she has arrived at an advanced mystic realm. You find that precious treasures are scattered everywhere here, any single one of which could be exchanged for countless spiritual stones...]

[Bitterness fills your heart. You originally thought Sakura Kinomoto possessed defying talent, yet she still needed to work hard just like you to earn spiritual stones. To your surprise, her fortune is astonishing, and she has no need to hustle for a living at all!]

[Clearly possessing the wealth of the entire mystic realm, she still acts like an impoverished outer-sect disciple, constantly taking on sect missions to earn spiritual stones. This... is simply too hypocritical! How can she put on such a facade? Filled with grievance, you decide to expose her!]

[You prepare to bring Sakura Kinomoto's protector, Tomoyo Daidoji, to this mystic realm so she can witness Sakura Kinomoto's true face and teach her a lesson!]

[Ding! You have triggered a bond character side quest—"Secretly Tailor"! Follow Sakura Kinomoto alongside protector Tomoyo Daidoji and seize her destiny and opportunities!]

"Expose her? Expose what? Expose the fact that she's too rich?"

The calm Ye Hui was no longer calm as he read the pop-up prompts flashing across the system.

"Come on, System, where has your recognition module gone haywire this time? Leaving aside whether to expose her or not, Sakura—sitting on the wealth of an art museum? Are you joking?"

Ye Hui muttered internally.

Although he knew full well that the dim-witted system must have mistaken the art museum for a mystic realm of the cultivation world,

even so, this log was utterly exaggerated!

Clearly, among the trio of companions,

Tomoyo and he were the truly wealthy ones!

In contrast, Sakura—the character who was always dubbed the Heavenly Dao protagonist in the system logs—

in reality, belonged to a family of three that frequently rotated household chores.

Her father, Fujitaka, was a professor busy with teaching.

Her older brother, Toya, had been working part-time jobs since high school.

As the younger sister, Sakura had to cook, wash dishes, and mop the floors herself every single week.

Yet now, the system claimed that Sakura possessed the wealth of an entire mystic realm?

[Identification complete. The quest target is indeed immensely wealthy. If you have any suggestions regarding game settings, please leave a message in the player backend...]

Fine!

As expected, the system had brushed him off once again~

Still, thinking of the Sakura described in the quest versus the Sakura of the real world,

Ye Hui found this stark contrast rather amusing.

Tomoyo and Ye Hui, the wealthy individuals of the real world, were portrayed in the system logs as having ordinary aptitudes, relying daily on completing sect missions to earn meager spiritual stones.

Meanwhile, Sakura, who belonged to an ordinary family in the real world, possessed the wealth of an entire mystic realm within the game...

Shaking his head, Ye Hui stopped dwelling on it.

This time, the quest was still set to easy mode.

Moreover, it was actually a character bonding quest!

This gave him a pleasant surprise.

"Now that I have truly begun cultivation in the Qi Condensation realm, at the game's pace, I also need to make some preparations for the cultivation technique of the next realm..."

Ye Hui had previously suspected that the system had repurposed the standard-issue sect manuals into rewards for the Dao-bond gift packs.

Once the second Dao-bond gift pack was opened, his hypothesis might finally be verified.

At that time, he would see whether the system was truly this shameless,

actually imitating politicians from Sakura Country!

A moment later, the phenomenon of vanishing sound ceased.

Everything returned to normal.

During the silence, the little boy had stopped struggling, simply allowing the guards to approach him as if he had completely given up.

The security guards also seemed oblivious to the recent disappearance of sound; they grabbed the little boy and escorted him away.

"Did you notice, Sakura..." Ye Hui returned to Sakura's side.

"Eh?" Sakura blinked, stunned. "Was it... a Clow Card?"

"What else could it be?" Ye Hui picked up a tag from the ground.

This was something left behind by the little boy who had just been dragged away by the guards, originally attached to the case the boy had brought with him.

Sakura stepped closer: "What is this?"

"Based on my deduction, this is a clue dropped by that kid just now! It's likely criminal evidence!"

Pushing up a pair of non-existent glasses, Ye Hui answered in a preachy, low whisper.

[Sakura Kinomoto's emotional value +3]

"What criminal evidence?"

Just as Sakura wanted to retort, another voice suddenly rang out beside her.

"Tomoyo?"

Tomoyo smiled and said, "The gathering time has arrived, so I came to remind you two..."

Ye Hui nodded: "It must be a Clow Card. Let's head back first and discuss it then."

While waiting for the vehicle,

Sakura held the tag Ye Hui had picked up and examined it.

Ye Hui stated, "Under my divine gaze, nothing can remain hidden."

"Though not entirely accurate, we can be certain that treasure light is indeed shimmering upon that painting. It should definitely be a Clow Card!"

Ye Hui believed that magical energies would naturally attract one another, and Clow Cards possessed magical energy.

"Therefore, Clow Cards are bound to attract each other as well! Since Sakura has already mastered Clow Cards, naturally it's much easier for her to encounter others!"

"Ah? Would that be a bit far-fetched~" Tomoyo covered her mouth and chuckled softly.

Ye Hui shrugged and gave a light laugh.

"Well, actually, it's just because whenever we stick with Sakura, all sorts of bizarre events always happen, and they're usually tied to Clow Cards..."

Sakura: (눈_눈)?