NCCnovel #590 - All the same
#590 - All the same
Freud said, "Dreams are the product of the subconscious disguised expression of instinctive desires that cannot be satisfied."
Thinking in this way, the current situation does not seem so difficult to understand.
Simply put, this bizarrely shaped "mountain" depicts the unfulfilled desires and the pressure one is carrying.
"The wedding night, the day of passing the imperial examination, a downpour after a long drought, meeting an old friend in a foreign land" have always been people's common wishes from ancient times to the present.
The pressure from life and work, and the lack of money and care have become common pressures.
When these subconscious thoughts are integrated, what is before our eyes is presented.
Lose yourself to things, lose your nature to customs...
Iron-gray ripples appeared on the surface of the river, and the keel of the Silver Moon squeezed the undercurrent and made a low groan.
The icebreaker device still retained on the bow cuts the water surface into fine silver foil.
The controller of the Silver Moon seemed to try to turn, but it was obviously too late.
The inevitable collision still happened.
At the moment of impact, the river water solidified into a gel-like state. The crisp sound of the keel breaking spread out ripples along the water surface, and the entire river channel seemed to be grasped and suddenly released by an invisible giant hand.
The iron anchor of the wooden treasure ship broke through the water and soared into the sky, dragging half of the rusted chain in the air, drawing an arc of light, and smashing the flying eaves and brackets of several small shops along the river into flying wood chips.
Where the two boats were embedded, the wooden board belonging to the newcomer curled up and peeled off like rice paper encountering fire, revealing the hollowed-out honeycomb-like structure inside. The river water immediately turned into thousands of silver snakes and drilled into the holes.
The remaining red lanterns spun wildly on the edge of the vortex, and in the light and shadows they cast, the laughter of everyone in the celebration became even louder.
Those weird people who were laughing and reveling on the wooden treasure ship were releasing themselves to the fullest, carrying different desires and pressures.
Although the collision destroyed the wooden boat, it did not affect the celebration at all.
In fact, as the two large ships collided, the "mountain" began to collapse, and strange creatures of different appearances began to "board".
Those entities of desire and pressure marched from the junction of the two ships and lined up on the Silver Moon.
All the creatures participating in the parade were singing at the top of their lungs.
"Man-made faith is like a drug
“Enjoyment is cheap
"Don't think anymore
“Everything is already determined
"Come on, let the stench
"Eating away your pupils
"The Parade of Chaos is Coming
"In the name of the times
"Come on, drown all the awake
"Your desire is born from this
"The Parade of Chaos is Coming
"In the Name of the Times"
As the first float turned the corner, people saw a rusty tin frog beating a gong, its spring-driven hind legs sending up a cloud of sawdust with every push.
The Barbie doll wearing red dancing shoes is suspended, floating in the center of the rainbow spiral, waving to the non-existent audience around her.
The engine of the four-wheel drive vehicle in the front row made a harsh friction sound, and a heavy rain of bamboo dragonflies suddenly fell from the sky.
The glass walls of the buildings along the street suddenly twisted into Nintendo red and white game cartridges, with countless Pac-Men swallowing neon dots reflected in every window.
Upon closer inspection, the reflection of the moon condensed on the river surface turned out to be a fake wrapped in candy wrappers, with the surface covered with Water Margin cards from the Little Raccoon instant noodles.
Everything is so absurd, like a Halloween parade held in a mental hospital, or like the fantasy of an author after taking drugs.
"Crazy, really crazy..."
Similar thoughts occurred to the guests at the "Ripple Masquerade Ball."
Only the waiters belonging to the "Silver Moon" were not disturbed at all.
The host began to dance, and the band members followed suit, changing the music selection and starting to accompany the parade.
As the parade continued forward, it finally passed the deck of the Silver Moon and entered the ballroom of the Ripple Masquerade.
In the middle, the guests who were almost turned into Mahjong heads by the influence of the followers of the "Outer Gods" maintained their crazy state and ran into the parade with laughter.
And when their bodies touch those spring frogs, Famicoms or Transformers, their bodies will also mutate.
Those who pursue money will have their bodies transformed into various golden Buddha statues, which will begin to move unsteadily.
Those who miss their youthful looks and pursue beauty have turned into Barbie dolls with perfect skin and magical girls in animation works of the last century.
The lustful man turned into a slippery rope and pornographic CDs...
Those guests who had been affected before, in a very short time, all turned into entities of their deepest desires and joined the carnival.
How ridiculous...
The first one to react was the "foreign god" believer from the "mahjong faction".
As the person most affected by Gao Yi's actions, he couldn't really say that he was in a good mood at the moment.
A few minutes ago, his plan had been basically realized, killing dozens of wealthy people around Nankang, not to mention leaving room for the organization's future development.
The preparation of a large amount of mahjong also gave him the confidence to kill the heretic in front of him - the head of the "Investigation Bureau", Magana.
Everything was going so smoothly until... Gao Yi took action.
Starting from the magic cube that could turn back time, to this huge dream parade.
Time and again, the plans of this "Outer God" believer were shattered.
It is not difficult to imagine the resentment that they feel.
Gao Yi, naturally, also noticed that this was one of the few guests in the dance group who did not change his form due to the parade.
Perhaps it is some kind of protection provided by the "Outer Gods", which seems to be able to maintain clarity in this world where dreams and reality merge.
They were the same people we had seen before, those who were bewitched and influenced by the "foreign gods".
Although he is not a player and has never struggled to survive in a dungeon, he still possesses strong physical fitness and various unique abilities.
In a sense, it's quite enviable...
Putting all this aside, the "Outer God" believer who came to assassinate Magana did not delay any further and immediately began further action.
Obviously, he has not given up the great mission entrusted to him by the gods.
The middle-aged man waved his left hand, and the heads of the remaining dozen or so guests who had not yet been infected by the parade exploded, and the mahjong tiles reappeared.
One, two, three, two fours, three fives, three sevens, three eights...
Before Gao Yi finished counting, a man's voice suddenly rang out, and he crossed his hands and made a strange prayer gesture:
"All the same color, three hidden knights, a clear door and a self-draw, 9 points doubled!"
In any case, in this world where reality and dreams are intertwined, the man finally completed his ritual.
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PS: The song in the middle is adapted from "Parade". Any similarities are not coincidental.
Paprika is a really, really great movie and I highly recommend it.
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