The wind was calm and the waves were still.
Before long, a small dot appeared in Herta's line of sight, gradually growing larger and revealing its true form.
It was an island.
Seeing the island, both Herta and Qi Zhimu's gazes flickered for a moment.
By the time they snapped out of it, the distant island had vanished, replaced by a bustling port that looked completely different from the one in Grizzly City.
A wave of noise washed over them.
The two looked around; many ships were coming and going.
The sea breeze was mixed with a salty tang and the fishy scent of the catch.
The sky was no longer gloomy and was cloudless for miles; the sun hung overhead, its light somewhat harsh.
Qi Zhimu took out a wizard hat and plopped it onto Herta's small head, blocking out the sunlight.
"Hmm?" Herta tilted her head.
"What's with the 'hmm'? I'm doing this for the sake of my future food; getting a tan would ruin my appetite."
"Oh."
Herta had no intention of arguing; her purple eyes, filled with vigilance and scrutiny, scanned everything in sight.
It felt somewhat familiar...
The architectural style was completely different from Grizzly City's, resembling the style in her memories instead.
Looking at the people, their features were similar to hers but starkly different from Qi Zhimu's.
Whether in appearance or name, Qi Zhimu was a quintessential Xia Nation man of the Azure Star.
The person who created him probably wanted to break stereotypes, which is why his setting was so unconventional.
To sum it up in one sentence: he was a character shaped by an Eastern creator seeking to be original.
Or perhaps, the creator gained inspiration from someone resembling Qi Zhimu, drawing from their appearance or personality and blending it with their own ideas to write him.
Later, the disaster on Azure Star broke out, memory substance voids linked to reality, and reality and illusion partially merged.
The Man-eating Magician, Mr. Qi Zhimu, was born into his respective world and became a part of the Labyrinth Zone.
At some point, Qi Zhimu left the Labyrinth Zone to wander through the territories of different Virtual Substance Lifeforms.
Relying on his extraordinary strength, he thrived.
Compared to Original Humans who wanted to gain special abilities, Virtual Substance Lifeforms had a much greater advantage.
Thinking of this, Herta found herself being lifted up again, her feet landing on the shore.
"Why do you always daze off at such a young age? We're here."
After sensing a bit of the mundane atmosphere, a hint of regret appeared on Qi Zhimu's face.
"Sigh, what a pity..."
"Pity what?"
"It's a pity the humans here are all Virtual Substance Lifeforms. This is probably another world born from some work of fiction; I can't hunt here."
Herta understood what he meant, but there was one thing she didn't get.
"You don't seem to eat Virtual Substance Lifeform humans. Why?"
"Do you even need to ask? Naturally, it's because they don't taste good and offer no benefits."
"But from a biological perspective, there's no difference between the two, and there isn't even... reproductive isolation."
On Azure Star, there were plenty of people who married Virtual Substance Lifeform humans.
Although if it were exposed, it would inevitably invite criticism.
Original Humans needed special means to distinguish Virtual Substance Lifeform humans, but the reverse was not true; the difference could be recognized at a glance.
Regarding this point, Virtual Substance Lifeforms close to Original Humans had given an explanation:
It was just like how Original Humans could recognize that lifeforms in an animal atlas were different from themselves.
Virtual Substance Lifeforms felt the same when seeing Original Humans; they could directly distinguish the species difference.
"Nutrient-poor junk food with a bad taste—not even worth a snack."
"If you say it's bad-tasting junk food, then I understand," Herta said, enlightened.
She knew Qi Zhimu was a very picky eater.
Even though he had feasted heartily before, his face always wore a look of disdain, as if he were reluctant.
To explain away that look of disdain while eating as being 'tsundere' would be like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole; it was too forced.
It couldn't be that the food born in the Yi Zhi World tasted bad, as she, an Original Human, had no problem eating it.
Forget it, thinking about this wasn't important.
Anyway, the final say belonged to the Virtual Substance Lifeforms.
"Yo, what a cute little witch! Which character are you cosplaying?"
A sturdy woman with a tough appearance, carrying two large fish on her shoulders, immediately brightened up when she saw Herta.
Her eyes shone even brighter when she saw Qi Zhimu.
"And this young man is even more handsome. Are you visiting Fog City from abroad?"
"Something like that. I'm also bringing back a relative's child."
Qi Zhimu patted Herta's shoulder with a warm expression and said with a smile:
"Time to go, Little Sister. Say goodbye to this big sister."
"...Goodbye, sister." Herta waved, her tone normal, appearing well-behaved and adorable.
"What'sister'? I'm already an old auntie. Goodbye, polite children."
The sturdy woman was overjoyed and watched as the tall and short pair walked away hand in hand.
After leaving the pier, Qi Zhimu keenly noticed that Herta's expression was a bit off, starting from the moment she heard a certain sentence from the sturdy woman.
"Mr. Creditor, she didn't seem to recognize me?"
"You mean your identity as an Original Human?"
"Yes."
"Stupid. Who am I? Currently an invincible magician. Just adding a little magic to the Black hairband I gave you makes hiding your identity a breeze."
Qi Zhimu raised his chin proudly.
"As long as you don't take it off in front of others, even if the King of Heaven himself comes, your status panel will show you as a Virtual Substance Lifeform."
"I see."
Herta changed the subject and immediately asked another question.
"In the world where you were born, were there people who could rival you, or rather, how many used to be there?"
Qi Zhimu originally wanted to mock her for talking nonsense, but hearing the word 'used to' added at the end, his mood immediately brightened.
"There used to be many, but they're all dead now. It's because it was too boring that I ran out and happened to meet you."
"How did they die?"
"I killed them."
"Why?"
"Because everything those guys did was dancing all over my pet peeves."
"So you actually need a reason to kill people..."
"Hey, hey, hey?"
Qi Zhimu was immediately displeased; he picked Herta up and tucked her under his arm before continuing forward.
"You brat with no emotional intelligence. Do the wild beasts in your Original Human nature hunt when they're already full? Only those with a playful streak will toy with their prey without eating it, like cats."
"If they don't offend me, why would I bother killing them for no reason?"
"The defined range of 'offending'—the right of final interpretation is in your hands, isn't it..."
"Of course. For example, if some idiot comes to annoy me when I'm in a bad mood, I don't mind sending them to restart their life."
At this point, Qi Zhimu sensed that Herta was about to speak again, so he suddenly lifted her up to look him in the eye.
"You don't usually talk this much, let alone have the interest to learn about my past, but now you're going on and on."
"I say... which keyword in that woman's sentence just now turned you into this?"
Herta fell silent, her gaze dropping, avoiding Qi Zhimu's eyes.
But Qi Zhimu could read bewilderment and... fear in her eyes?
This kind of emotion was rare to see.
"Tell me, Reserve Food, what exactly are you afraid of?"
"Fog City... is the city where I was born."