Peach-Orange! – Chapter 420 – The World’s Will is strong? Then I’ll Become It Too

Her danger sense hadn’t triggered.

This usually meant only two possibilities:

The plainclothes man was bluffing.

Or the sniper wasn’t aiming at her and had no intention of killing her. Instead, they were targeting either Tao-Tao or Si Chen!

Just as the man had said, his mission was to take her away.

The other two held relatively minor roles in the grand scheme. If the will of the world no longer intended to protect them, abandoning them in that critical moment, the chances of them being shot dead were frighteningly high.

Considering the worst-case scenario:

If Si Chen died, so be it.

Chi Xiaocheng would mourn him, grieve for him, and avenge him.

But if Su Tao died… she could never, ever, ever accept that!

Which was precisely why she didn’t dare gamble.

Unconsciously, Chi Xiaocheng pressed her thumb to her lips, lightly biting the smooth, clean edge of her small fingernail. Her conflicted expression was plain to see.

“Xiao Hei, can you locate that sniper?”

Xiao Hei’s voice sounded in her ear. “Sorry, too far. My range is limited to your immediate surroundings. I can’t stray too far from you.

“Don’t worry about the bullet. No matter what, just pull Su Tao behind Si Chen. He’s tough, so a sniper round might not penetrate him enough to reach you.”

Of course. Xiao Hei remained as coldly pragmatic as ever. In his eyes, Si Chen was nothing more than human body armor.

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[Host, I actually have another solution.]

The system’s sudden interjection made Chi Xiaocheng’s eyes light up. “System! You’re the only reliable one here!”

[This method is a last resort, but it can only protect you. It guarantees you a 100% survival rate in this situation.]

“Can’t it protect Tao-Tao?”

[Su Tao doesn’t need protection. She’s the sole female lead. Even if a wealthy rival character appears, with the will of the world backing her, it still won’t abandon Su Tao.]

[The early plot hinges on Su Tao as the heroine. Even if a rich rival enters later and bullies her, the story still revolves around her.]

[The only scenario where the will of the world might discard her is if you both die simultaneously, forcing a reset to avoid any uncontrollable developments.]

On the surface, their mission was to take Chi Xiaocheng away.

But what if the will of the world planned a sneak attack?

A sniper shot here would send them straight into a reset.

Thanks to the system and Xiao Hei’s warnings, Chi Xiaocheng realized she’d fallen into a trap.

She hurriedly pressed further in her mind, “Then, System, what’s your plan?”

[Simple logic: To the will of the world, you’re an enemy. No matter your narrative weight, its influence on you is negative.]

[But to me, Host, you’re the protagonist.]

[Across countless resets, I’ve stolen fragments of the world’s authority. If we go all-in, I can stake all of it—]

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[To make you, in a sense, another protagonist.]

[Existing within this world, yet separate from its rules.]

[Put more plainly:]

The system paused.

[If it can be the will of the world, so can I!]

However, the system still couldn’t confront the world’s will head-on. Even with Si Chen, Dongfang Yang, and others on their side, gathering all their luck to protect Chi Xiaocheng alone was already pushing it.

It could shield her from certain dangers but only if the will of the world didn’t flip the table.

And there was another critical issue:

[If we do this, we’ll be openly declaring war. If we fail this time, the reset will inevitably expose us and we’ll be purged.]

No second chances. No desperate survival.

All or nothing.

Did she dare bet everything?

The question flashed through Chi Xiaocheng’s mind.

She chuckled softly. “System, we’ve been marked for a long time. Do we really have a choice anymore?”

The moment the will of the world decided to kill both her and Tao-Tao, it proved that even in another reset, it wouldn’t give them another opportunity.

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In that case—

They might as well go all-in!

Who said only the world could play that card?

Chi Xiaocheng took a deep breath. “System, trust me.”

[Understood.]

As the system’s voice faded, Chi Xiaocheng felt something strange.

The creeping, hair-raising sense of imminent danger began to fade.

The dissonant feeling of being subtly rejected by the world vanished completely.

In its place was an even stronger sensation of being watched.

The system quickly explained:

[Host, don’t worry. What we just did was essentially slapping the will of the world in the face. It’ll glare and snarl, but as long as it doesn’t flip the table, I can protect you to some extent.]

“Got it!”

Suppressing her unease, Chi Xiaocheng asked one more thing. “What about Xiao Hei?”

Xiao Hei didn’t materialize. His cool, detached voice remained unchanged. “In this cycle, at least until I die and vanish completely, you won’t.”

Such an expected answer~

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With these two by her side and their assurances, Chi Xiaocheng finally made her decision.

She looked up at Si Chen and Su Tao. “Maybe… I should go with him.”

“No!” Su Tao immediately grabbed Chi Xiaocheng’s hand, her expression deadly serious. “Xiaocheng, you absolutely cannot go. What if it’s like I said earlier? That’s no different from walking to your death!”

Su Tao’s reaction was within Chi Xiaocheng’s expectations. She gently reassured her, “Tao-Tao, trust me. I think Si Chen’s earlier idea makes sense.”

Lowering her voice to avoid the plainclothes man hearing, she added, “I’ll pretend to go with him. Once you two are safe inside the villa, even if I can’t beat him, I can run. And if he’s not a martial artist, I’ll definitely be fine.”

Si Chen knew about her Darkening ability. Her words were mainly for Su Tao’s sake.

“Tao-Tao, believe in me, okay? You know I once crippled Liu Guijia. I’m much stronger than I look.”

Su Tao had witnessed Chi Xiaocheng’s bizarre strength before.

She knew the girl wasn’t as fragile as she appeared.

But….

She’d failed to protect her so many times already. Was she really going to let her take the risk again?

Su Tao tightened her grip on Chi Xiaocheng’s hand. Her eyes burned with determination. “Even so, I won’t let you take this risk!”

She had made up her mind.

This time, she would protect Xiaocheng!

Su Tao took a deep breath, still shielding Chi Xiaocheng, and glared at the plainclothes man. “Hey, you! Let Xiaocheng go. Take me instead!”