Chapter 892: Tuberose

"This is really too difficult."

I shook my head, ultimately unable to come up with any solution.

"Yang Ge... these stages you've described have always been quite abstract to me, and now you're trying to record those abstract things using something imaginary... I just can't think of a suitable 'jiaodian' on the spot."

"Is that so..." Bai Yang slowly showed a disappointed expression. "Even someone like you thinks there's no way?"

"Even someone like me?"

I felt like I had let Bai Yang down. He had expected me to have a solution, but I disappointed him.

Could it be that in Bai Yang's eyes, I'm not a clever dog?

Still, although I couldn't provide 'jiaodian' for the various stages and states he mentioned, I did know a perfect 'jiaodian' for the "pure white symbol" he just talked about.

Perhaps I could just tell him that one 'jiaodian', and leave the rest of those abstract matters for him to figure out himself. Smart people do smart things, and I believe he can manage it.

"Just use Tu Mi Hua," I said softly.

"A flower...?" Bai Yang looked at me, but he clearly hadn't heard of this plant before. "A flower can be a 'jiaodian'? Does something like that have any association with memory?"

"I've never tried it, but I think the principle is similar," I replied after thinking for a moment. "How to put it... Whether it's the sales strategy of fresh flower suppliers or the poetic meanings people assign to flowers, every flower has its own 'huayǔ'. Essentially, it's just a form of memory association."

"Huayǔ..." Bai Yang murmured the two words softly.

"For example, red roses represent love, so whenever you see a red rose, you think of it as a symbol of love. This simple 'huayǔ' has made red roses the best-selling flower in the world. Another example is Baby's Breath, whose 'huayǔ' is 'willing to be a supporting role'—once you remember that meaning, you'd choose to give Baby's Breath when you want to quietly protect someone."

"Interesting." Bai Yang nodded and said, "It's like 'love'—something that originally seemed meaningless to me, but now it might actually be useful. It turns out there's no such thing as useless knowledge in this world."

"Well... I hope it helps you," I said. "Yang Ge, maybe you can use a 'layer upon layer encryption' state to lock your memories. I'm not sure if I'm explaining this clearly—it's like an onion, where you have to peel away the layers one by one. You could share the meaning of this 'huayǔ' separately with a few people you trust, or who you might only encounter under certain conditions. That way, they won't appear too early, and your state can progress step by step."

"Yes. That's always been my approach; I just hadn't figured out the 'jiaodian' yet," Bai Yang said. "Now, after your explanation, things are basically clear. If I ever really lose my memories, I can start by using the subconscious I've left behind to awaken myself at the most superficial level and act on instinct. Then, through my actions, I'll trigger various 'jiaodian' to unlock different states one by one. Finally, I'll have those important people tell me the 'huayǔ' you mentioned... and let them activate my deepest memories."

The more Bai Yang spoke, the more excited he became, to the point where I could barely follow.

"That's it... This way, I'll absolutely never lose my memories..." Bai Yang's eyes flickered for a moment. "I'll use these tricky 'jiaodian' to pull back every memory they've taken from me... Then, using his hand, I'll destroy my own psychological defenses and become a being above humanity..."

I started to think Yang Ge might be a little unhinged.

I couldn't understand a word he was saying.

"In dreams, there are 'jiaodian'; in reality, there are 'jiaodian'; people are 'jiaodian'; events are 'jiaodian'; the brain is a 'jiaodian'; even flowers are 'jiaodian'..." Bai Yang continued to murmur to himself. "This way, you all will have to give my memories back to me..."

I'd always thought Bai Yang's talk of "losing memories" was just a hypothetical, rare scenario, but here he was, racking his brain for a solution as if it were real.

Why was he so certain he would lose his memories?

It was as if he had chosen this path himself.

Knowing he would lose his memories, he still insisted on planting countless 'jiaodian' in the "zhongyan zhidi" and continuing down this road.

This left me completely baffled...

"What was the flower you mentioned earlier called?"

Hearing Bai Yang's voice, I snapped back and looked at him.

"Uh... Tu Mi Hua," I repeated. "I don't know if it's 'ye li' or 'yin guo' at play, but your description just now actually matches perfectly with the appearance and 'huayǔ' of a flower I saw yesterday."

"Tell me about it."

"Tu Mi Hua is purely white, but it only blooms in one season—summer," I recalled from the book I read yesterday and said to Bai Yang. "This flower appears with 'summer' and disappears with 'summer'. When Tu Mi Hua falls, it signifies the end of its blooming period, and that means other flowers will fall too, so it symbolizes 'ending' and 'termination'."

"What's its 'huayǔ'?"

"The beauty of the final path," I said.

"The beauty of the final path..." Bai Yang nodded. "When everything has vanished completely... is there anything left that's beautiful?"

"Maybe the act of vanishing completely is a kind of beauty itself," I said.

After hearing that, Bai Yang fell silent, just staring blankly with his water cup in hand. I knew it was about time.

I had finally helped him solve another problem, and now it was time for me to embark on my own journey.

"If there's nothing else... I'll head out first."

"Oh, right." Bai Yang turned to look at me and said, "Do you still remember Mian Yang?"

"Mian Yang...?" I nodded. "Of course I do... He was one of the 'shengxiao' who interviewed me..."

"He's dead."

"Huh?" I processed what he said carefully. "He... died from gambling?"

"I don't know." Bai Yang shook his head. "I only know that he's dead. It's such a shame; he didn't wait for me. He died before I became 'diji'."

"How could that be...?" I said. "Didn't you warn him? To choose secluded game venues as much as possible, and besides, I haven't seen him around for a while."

"They say he ran into a tough opponent," Bai Yang said. "There was an organization that specializes in conquering various games. They studied Mian Yang's games in detail and then went after him. But it doesn't seem to have been a 'gambling for life' situation—probably some scheme that made Mian Yang break the rules himself."

Honestly, after hearing that Mian Yang had died, I felt both saddened and worried.

I was saddened because Mian Yang was an old comrade from years ago, one of the few who knew the truth, even if we weren't close. His death left a hollow feeling in my heart.

I was worried because... like me, Mian Yang was one of Bai Yang's pawns... and yet he died.

Bai Yang hadn't protected him.

Was it because Bai Yang never promised him "absolute safety"?

"Yan Zhi Chun, I remember you said Jiang Ruo Xue is at the other end of the city, and that organization is active there," Bai Yang said. "While you're at it, please help me investigate them."