The Beauty System thought for a moment. "So you’re saying the one who was dating Lu Mofeng back then was that task-doer? It was her the whole time?"
"Mhm, that was her." Tan You turned a page in her book. "These so-called knockoff systems... do the hosts they contract with have no bottom line? A person’s luck is such a precious thing. How can they just plunder it from others?"
The Beauty System said, "So they’re bad systems, and this system is a good system."
Tan You smiled. "Yes, you’re a good system."
The Beauty System thought about it and perked up again. "Host, now that Shen Mo is dead, how do you think Lu Mofeng feels?"
Tan You was indifferent. "Why would I care how he feels? He has nothing to do with me now anyway. Speaking of which, now that the luck that was plundered from him has returned, his career should get even better, right?"
"As for that little brat, this is what I mean when I say task-doers have no bottom line. She didn’t even spare her own son’s luck. If she hadn’t taken Lu Chenling’s luck, that little ingrate wouldn’t have had all those problems."
The Beauty System was a little surprised. "Host, you said that little ingr... I mean, Lu Chenling. Will he recover?"
"Oh, he’ll definitely recover," Tan You said, unconcerned. "But that’s his own business. We’ve already gone our separate ways, so it’s best if we never see each other again."
Just as Tan You had predicted, Shen Mo’s death was indeed a huge blow to Lu Mofeng. But his grief only lasted for a short time, as the success in his career was enough to soothe his pain.
On top of that, his son, Lu Chenling, also made a sudden and significant recovery. With these two positive developments, Lu Mofeng no longer had the heart to dwell on his memories of Shen Mo.
After all, she was gone, and the living had to go on.
From then on, Tan You never saw Lu Mofeng or his son, Lu Chenling, again. She took over the livestreaming career of the original host, Zhu Sha, and made it a great success. In her spare time, she didn’t forget to give back to society, which could be considered accumulating good karma for the original host.
Two years passed in the blink of an eye. The Zhu Sha account had already become one of the platform’s top streamers, and after two years of slumber, the real Zhu Sha finally woke up.
The moment she awoke, Tan You swiftly relinquished control of the body. She had been busy lately. Shen Mo’s plundering system had given her an idea, leading her to suspect that Shen Mo and her system couldn’t possibly be the only outsiders in this world.
’Why go to all the trouble of invading a minor world just to send a single underling?’ With this suspicion in mind, Tan You took the Beauty System out hunting.
It was just that their prey were those knockoff systems.
"Host, we found another knockoff system! You’re so amazing!" The Beauty System hugged a data cluster bigger than its own head, took a couple of bites, then tilted its head to look at Tan You, showering her with endless praise.
’Is this what it feels like to be carried by a pro?’ It was just a Beauty System, but now, by following this powerhouse, it got to absorb other systems from time to time. This system felt it was now *the* system—or at least, among Beauty Systems... the strongest!
Tan You shrugged. "Happy now? I’ve already given you three knockoff systems. How come you haven’t developed any new abilities? I’m always the one going through all the trouble to find these little weaklings."
"The more capable one does, the more work they get," the Beauty System said fawningly. "This system will just follow you, Host, and coast to victory."
The person and system bantered, but it didn’t stop the Beauty System from absorbing its meal. With a few big GULPS, it devoured the newly acquired knockoff system. Tan You clapped her hands. "We’ve been out for over a year. We should make some time to check on Zhu Sha."
"But before we go back, I need to observe Yun Lan a bit more. I just feel like there’s something weird about her."
Right now, she and the system were sitting cross-legged in mid-air, watching Yun Lan in her living room. She rested and ate as usual, then went to her bedroom to rest. Still, Tan You couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off about this Yun Lan.
The Beauty System said, "Really? This system doesn’t see it."
Tan You replied, "Of course you don’t see it. Haven’t you noticed that the targets I look for are all these irresistible charmer types? Anyone who can successfully juggle multiple relationships must have something special about them."
"But Yun Lan... you can’t really call her an irresistible charmer, can you?" The Beauty System glanced at Yun Lan’s face. "She’s not as pretty or as outstanding as you, Host. And there are no men in her life who are particularly close to her."
"I can’t put my finger on it, she just feels... strange." Tan You shook her head. ’I’m not a real goddess, I can’t read everyone’s minds.’ But Yun Lan definitely gave her a discordant feeling.
The Beauty System said, "This system doesn’t get it. Anyway, wherever you go, Host, this system will go too."
Tan You smiled. "Sys, just for the emotional support you provide, I’d keep you with me forever."
’It can chat and relieve my boredom, and when needed, it’s the best Scout. Where else could I find such a good system?’
"Forget it, let’s just observe for a while longer. I trust my intuition, and I feel like this Yun Lan is strange, all shrouded in mystery." Tan You wasn’t in a hurry to get an answer, deciding instead to keep a closer eye on Yun Lan.
This surveillance went on for a whole week, but Yun Lan showed no abnormalities compared to before. Tan You couldn’t help but start to doubt herself. ’Did I really misjudge her?’
The Beauty System, perched on her shoulder, asked, "Host, could it be that you’re watching her too closely?"
Tan You paused. "That’s possible. After all, I rarely do this kind of surveillance work. How about we pull back for a couple of days?"
The Beauty System offered, "This system can keep watch for you?"
"No," Tan You refused flatly. "I wouldn’t dare let you watch alone when we don’t know what we’re dealing with. We’ll leave together and check back on this later."
As she spoke, a strand of silver thread shot out from Tan You’s fingertip, landing on Yun Lan’s shoulder like an anchor. Then, Tan You and the Beauty System vanished from mid-air.
The Beauty System asked, "Host, was that spiritual power? You can already materialize your spiritual power?"
Tan You raised an eyebrow. "Well, my spiritual power is over 100, after all. I had to develop some uses for it, right? I didn’t expect it to be so handy..."
The words had barely left her mouth when Tan You’s brow furrowed slightly. "The strand of spiritual power I left behind was just severed."
"Huh?" The Beauty System grew agitated. "Host, are you okay?"
"I’m fine," Tan You smiled. "Perfect. Time to circle back for a surprise attack. I knew there was something off about this Yun Lan. It wasn’t my imagination after all."
As soon as she finished speaking, she and the Beauty System reappeared in Yun Lan’s living room. But the current scene was even more surprising. Tan You saw a silver orb of light floating above Yun Lan’s head. As the silver orb seemed to inhale and exhale, a dark gray orb of light suddenly flew out of Yun Lan’s head.
The Beauty System hiccuped, purely out of fear. "Host, what is that?"