Searching For Xi Juan

Back in My Cultist Simulator world, Sasha scheduled the Divine Envoy appointment ceremony for a week later to maximize publicity.

During this time, Luo Shu's projected consciousness entered a "low-power mode," slumbering atop the divine throne.

This freed his primary consciousness from distraction, allowing him to focus fully on the anomalous world.

Meanwhile, inside the hydrochloric acid tank, Anomalous Item-682 was in a pitiful state—its skin and muscles dissolved, its skeleton and organs fully exposed.

Unable to regenerate, it was on the brink of death.

Only then did Luo Shu notice that 682 had been added to his "Anomalous Nemesis" milestone, meaning the creature no longer harbored hostility toward him.

He quickly deactivated Anomalous Item-241's Food Allergen ability, sparing 682 further torment.

With the threat gone, the Hard-to-Destroy Reptile's vitality surged back. Flesh regrew rapidly, and soon, it was whole again.

Now thoroughly cowed, 682 lay docilely in the acid bath, recovering.

Though he had uncovered one truth and gained the Higher-Dimensional Projection ability, Luo Shu wasn't ready to leave yet.

He decided to probe further:

"Little lizard, where's your owner, Xi Juan?"

"Master... lost."

682's voice echoed directly in Luo Shu's mind via telepathic communication.

Even a pet from a higher dimension was leagues beyond ordinary beings.

Luo Shu noted the phrasing—"master lost", not "I got lost."

This was like losing track of your dog during a walk—from the dog's perspective, you were the one who wandered off, not it.

Only if the dog ran away from home would it count as the dog getting lost.

Luo Shu pressed further:

"Your master came to this world too, didn't he? And now you can't find him?"

682 nodded in the acid bath. "Yes. Master... lost."

So Xi Juan had indeed entered this world!

"Where did you last see him?"

"White... house... near."

Buddy, do you know how many white houses exist in the world?

If you weren't a higher-dimensional being, I'd smack you right now.

But then Luo Shu remembered where he was—the New World.

And the most famous white house here was undoubtedly the Capitol Building!

In fact, globally, most people would think of the Capitol (often mistakenly called the White House) when hearing "white house."

"Was it a white house with a domed roof?" he confirmed.

After a moment, 682 nodded again. "Yes."

Site-19 it is, then.

Luo Shu had already planned to visit Site-19 ever since his Containment Expert milestone reached Level 2—he wanted to test how much of Anomalous Item-055's censored speech he could now decipher.

Now he had another reason: to track down Xi Juan, the higher-dimensional visitor.

Before leaving, Luo Shu asked one final question:

"What's your master's relationship to this world? Did he create it?"

This time, 682 shook its head. "No. Master... visit... here."

(Author's Note: Refer to Chapter 161—"I'm just a transporter of inspiration and words.")

So Xi Juan was an observer from a higher dimension, just like Luo Shu's projected consciousness had been when gazing at other lower narratives.

But regardless, as a higher-dimensional observer, Xi Juan must know who created this world.

He had to be found!

Luo Shu exited Anomalous Item-682's Unit.

The tank battalion outside tensed up, only relaxing after confirming the acid tank was intact.

Ignoring them, Luo Shu boarded his Transformer pickup and left.

His mind was now solely fixated on reaching Site-19 to trace Xi Juan's trail.

After uncovering this world's truth, figures like "Him," Barbie, and Abel had lost their imposing stature in Luo Shu's eyes.

No matter how powerful they were, they paled in comparison to a higher-dimensional entity.

Wait—

Realizing that 682 was a higher-dimensional projection, Luo Shu suddenly suspected Abel's identity might not be simple either.

The Anomalous Item Catalog's entry for 682 stated:

"This world has no true immortality! If something cannot die, it means only one thing—its true form isn't in this world."

This applied to Abel as well!

A stone coffin that allowed infinite resurrections?

Was it some kind of clone vat?

If not, explaining Abel as a higher-dimensional projection made far more sense.

If Abel was a projection, then Cain likely was too.

This would also explain why Cain kept killing Abel—if they were just projections, sibling rivalry wasn't a big deal.

And if Abel and Cain were projections, what about "Him"?

Was he one too?

This world was crawling with higher-dimensional projections!

Then Luo Shu thought of himself.

His memories had clearly been altered.

If he was just a story character, why would the creator tamper with his memories?

Was it fun to torment their own creation?

But what if Luo Shu was also a higher-dimensional projection?

For some reason, someone or something had modified his memories, making him forget his true origin.

Was that possible?

Theoretically, yes!

The vast Foundation knowledge in his mind and the Anomalous Item Catalog were the best evidence!

But all of this was just speculation—he lacked concrete proof.

Cain's ability was "Enemy of Life." The Catalog never called him a higher-dimensional projection.

Abel's abilities were "Spatial Rifts" and "Infinite Resurrection." He'd never claimed to be from a higher dimension.

As for "Him", he was dedicated to maintaining this world's stability.

If "Him" truly came from a higher dimension, unless he was the creator/author of this world, there'd be no need for him to protect it so fiercely.

And if he was the creator, he'd be omnipotent—so why couldn't he deal with Luo Shu?

Of course, another possibility was that Luo Shu was also a higher-dimensional projection, with his true self existing on the same level as "Him."

His projection might have slipped in unauthorized, leaving "Him" powerless to stop him.

But that didn't fit either—"Him" had said he didn't remember the "Revealer of Truth's" secret.

Unless he could resist IR1705's truth-compelling food, he was telling the truth.

The more Luo Shu thought, the more tangled his reasoning became.

In the end, he reached no definitive conclusion.

For now, his only option was to head to Site-19 and get answers from either Anomalous Item-055 or Xi Juan himself!