｛I thought to myself; I have probably birthed the prelude to a new brilliance.｝
Yang Zicang paused briefly in his mind, listening to the voice of his inner model.
“I’ll find a way to handle this matter. Hmm, you two gentlemen, as you can see. ” He pointed to his own face, addressing both Sas and Otto.
“Indeed, such an injury is nearly irreversible for us ordinary people. But you’re one of the Fogfolk, so this should be a fairly simple matter, right? “
“Yes, ” Yang Zicang said, pillowing his hands behind his head and leaning back into the sofa. “This gentleman next to me is here to deliver me the formula for making the medicine. “
“Oh… Ah? ” Otto lifted his head abruptly, staring in disbelief at the Leonardo beside him. “Wait, you mean… for an injury of this severity, you’re not using one of those magical fruits? Instead, you have… a potion recipe that can be made? “
“Yes. Oh, absolutely! ” Leonardo snapped back in less than a second, realizing what the “hero ” beside him had just done!
A brain befitting a hero, indeed!
Good thing it wasn’t damaged—that was absolutely fantastic!
In an instant, Leonardo leaned half his body across the wide desk, his eyes blazing with intensity. “Does anyone here need this? “
Otto, mouth agape, turned to look at Sars.
He was dying to ask: were all Fogfolk this enthusiastic?
In the end, Otto left a contact number, saying that if the timing was right, he would bring two patients burned by the abilities of the blood puppet custodians for treatment in about two weeks.
Yang Zicang breathed a quiet sigh of relief inwardly; basically, this meant he’d secured a Radiance. He just hoped they’d move quickly, before the world ended.
After they left, Yang Zicang, in good spirits, knocked on the girl’s door. When it opened, even as the girl forced a small smile, Yang Zicang could still sense the oppressive, suffocating gloom pervading the room.
“Actually… ” Feeling a bit softened, Yang Zicang wanted to comfort her, to say that he too had lost someone very important.
But Lena spoke more swiftly, her voice light: “It’s okay, Hero brother. Ever since Mom left, I’ve already prepared myself. “
“I… me too. ” Yang Zicang nodded, then glanced at the thin cotton quilt on the untouched iron bed against the wall. By the headboard was a portrait of a famous female singer in this country. “You should get some rest. I’m going to check on Mr. Thorne’s recovery. “
“Mm-hmm, okay. “
Yang Zicang turned and left. Lina quickly walked to the door, her gaze fixed on his receding figure until he was out of sight. Then she lowered her eyes, weakly shut the door, and leaned heavily against it.
Yang Zicang glanced back over his shoulder before heading towards Leonardo, who was in the yard turning the carriage around.
……
With a Healing Ability Sphere, Thorne’s arm, which had almost been completely severed, had already stopped hurting in less than half a day, and the bone barely even wobbled anymore.
Sitting on the chair beside the morgue, Thorne was filled with regret—regret both for the loss of this employer from ‘Tomorrow,’ who had become like a half-family member he’d lived and shared meals with daily, and for no longer being able to rely on him to reach the New World Next Era.
The footsteps of Yang Zicang and the others echoed from the hallway.
Thorne stood up to greet them. “You’re not getting some rest? Ah, Mr. Yang, your condition has recovered to… “
…almost unrecognizable.
Yang Zicang smiled dismissively. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll get better. After all, last night’s treatment was just first aid. “
Even first aid alone was already astonishing. Thorne offered a few words of praise, then sighed heavily and said:
“If Master Ebiser could have held on just a little longer, perhaps… “
Leonardo, who had been following closely and watching by his side, went in with him to take a look at the corpse, offering comfort:
“My condolences, Mr. Thorn. It’s just a pity that the dead cannot return to life. “
He already knew that this middle-aged gentleman, who could have used the Secret Box to leave Mutao Continent and head to Huan’gui Continent, had lost this fortunate and almost one-of-a-kind opportunity. Leonardo felt only a touch of sorrow in his heart—seeing too much of this numbed him to it.
Yang Zicang stared at the corpse for a moment, sighed, and lifted the cloth to cover it.
……
After they returned, Yang Zicang, who had finished breakfast, pulled He Yishu aside into a corner.
“What’s on your mind? “
If Lianna said… they could go to the Feilü (Fret) Inn. Yang Zicang hesitated to get the message across.
He Yishu pondered for a while, then let out a sigh as he replied, “The real question is, with so many people, can you actually save them all? I know you mean well, but… if everyone you meet makes that same choice, you’ll end up only dragging yourself down. “
Yang Zicang was stuck speechless by these words.
“Even though the Radiance matters, if you stick your nose in everything, what will you eventually amount to? Do you have that much energy? Unless you truly want to be with her. But is that love… or merely pity? “
“I… “
“Perhaps their deaths are just part of the evolution into the next era. “
At those words, a certain sentiment inside Yang Zicang’s heart was instantly snuffed out.
…..
When Yang Zicang went to get his medicine in the afternoon, Bai Yuxian encountered someone who wouldn’t normally come looking for him—the distributor, Odyssey.
“Which portion of your experience do you plan to sell to me? ” The visitor cut straight to the chase.
“Didn’t you say it was the life you lived after receiving the cards? “
“Oh, did I say something like that? ” Odyssey thought for a moment, then looked up with a smile. “Wait a moment for me. “
With that, he pinched his fingers and snapped them, and in an instant, the walls of the room were engulfed by surging darkness.
Bai Yuxian saw the room turn dark and hazy, as if it had expanded into a vast, dark mist. The man who had stood only steps away was no longer clear, appearing like a phantom.
He vaguely heard Odyssey ask: “I take it you have a new story for me, sir? I would like to read it now. “
{Of course you can. One silver coin, please. }
Bai Yuxian vaguely saw a coin shimmering with a faint glow being tossed into the mist.
Before long, several sheets of paper drifted out from the mist, flying into Odyssey’s hands.
After reading them, his eyes widened in shock.
{You would choose to revise the course of events from this point based on this reason? }
“No, ” Odyssey smiled, “the cost of something like that is far too high. But if it’s a ‘rediscovery’ through the normal channels, there shouldn’t be a problem, right? “
{I hope you can weave a natural and harmonious experience. Otherwise, I won’t be able to proceed with the release. }
“Hmm… I’m just a distributor. ” Odysseus shrugged.
……
In the afternoon, Yang Zicang, under Leonardo’s lead, went to soak in a medicinal bath.
His body was covered in injuries. If he applied the powdered extracts sparingly, using too much might even poison him with Corrupt Spirit-level Nightmare venom.
Leaning against the edge of the bathtub filled with medicinal water, Yang Zicang had a steaming hot towel draped over his head.
“It’s a pity that the dead cannot be revived. “
Yang Zicang’s mind was filled with scenes from the Postmark World, where countless skeletons had been conjured and all of them had come back to life.
In the illusionary world, Wu Zheng even had a chance to go to the true Moon Realm, thanks… to the protection of the Holy Will’s afterlife karma field over the spirits of those beings.
“Is this the other world that could destroy another at any moment? And this new world of evolving destiny, what is it supposed to be? “
He thought of Ebiser’s corpse. That man had fought desperately until the very end to protect the ‘Knowledge’ his family had guarded for centuries.
“If it were you, you could likely reach ‘B’ rank, maybe even… ‘A.’ But in this evolved real world, will there be someone to give scores? “
Yang Zicang’s gaze fixed on the ceiling.
“If it’s real, then why can people be resurrected? But if it’s fake, then Monique’s courage to sacrifice herself to change the fates of others would warrant… at least a B rank, probably. Sigh… living on… “
His gaze suddenly caught a sound, and he looked up, then flinched in surprise.
“Hey hey, you bastard, how did you just barge in like that?“
Tatamingchi poked his head in through the doorway and, spotting Yang Zicang’s body curled up in the entire bathtub, revealing only his head and two knees, he let out a snicker.
“Look at you, all pathetic like a bear. Don’t flatter yourself into thinking I’m so interested in your sorry skin—want me to show you mine instead?“
With that, Tatamingchi lifted his clothes, revealing his navel, and placed a hand on his skin.
“Ah, yeah, yeah, no need for a demonstration. I’ve already seen it for ‘decades.’“
“Hehehe.” Tatamingchi set down the clothes only a kid would wear. He walked over and plopped down on the floor beside her, tossing what he was carrying onto the ground with a thud. “Aiya, my dad gave you that much Moonlight—I get the feeling I’m not gonna earn any Moonlight off you recently.“
Audible sigh fill not mention them—the moment Yang Zicang heard those words, he rolled his eyes so hard he saw white.
Of all people to get snarled with the living from this , he sure had unwittingly nodded up a book of ‘long-term guarantee’ and now soon that darn clown father handed him about four or fivefold payments worth a month’s lunar allowance. Hence: balloon loan balloon monthly-to monthly term schedule for each ‘Glory Oath Tag,’ bought head debt sheet string cover spacial slot known yoke-payments.
“So what the hell are you here for?” asked Yang Zicang, turning his head listlessly, a picture of drowsy dog-demouthed pittance bound.
“How else thought come while alternate steal redd bet say jump our way?” Rethel page-point TabathaTanka she turns,“unless swing past next era continent hand-me well at long run there batch three contracts reach settlement old trot? Just get here swap bond node from unit, short quick cut lode thrice original deed tight payoff yes already.“
Yang Zi clan member non-inching had only wish to deep draw sough trudy thought gone bitter in need been: “Yet bond long term said seems fill forced duty dead weight now stuck upon our soul-given store,” he whimpered.
“Hmm, a contact magic pattern from a certain publisher. “
Yang Zicang quickly turned his head with a “swish. “
It was that sword in the Postmark Force Field had mentioned—some mysterious existence that trades in rewriting heroic experiences!
“What are they? “
“Heh heh, you know how I’ll answer. Think about what Odyssey said last night. “
Yang Zicang’s gaze narrowed slightly.
“Are they people from the Lunar Realm? “
“Are there people in the Lunar Realm? “
Yang Zicang was silent. Only the faint bubbles of the potion slowly surfaced.
After a few seconds, he turned his head again and asked, “What can I do with the magic pattern? “
“Mm-hmm… You can read your past experiences at the publisher’s, of course. “
“Haha… “
“You don’t think I’m just joking with you, do you, huh? ” Tata Mingqi tilted his head, smiling.
“I know, I know. You’re trying to say, some things we might forget or… ” Yang Zicang abruptly sat up, the cotton cloth on his head dropping into the water as he looked at Tata Mingqi.
“Hmm… Although the function overlaps a bit, I’ll consider it anyway. Thanks for the reminder. “
Saying this, Yang Zicang glanced at the clothes beside him, then turned his head to take in Tata Mingqi’s slightly changed expression.
“Thanks for the reminder, friend. I’ll sell you a Glow sooner or later. “
“Reminder? ” Tata Mingqi’s face changed dramatically. He shouted at Yang Zicang, who was leaning over to grab his shirt, baring his upper body. “You really think I’m joking with you! Hey hey, I wholeheartedly wanted to sell you this magic pattern! “
Grabbing a piece of clothing, the bald youth leaped out of the bathtub within that brief interval, crouched down to the floor, swiftly slipped into his shorts right there on the ground with a single smooth motion, and stood up while fastening his belt.
“Alright, alright, you’re right about everything. I’ll think it over. Thanks all the same. “
With that, he crouched down on the spot, and by the time Tattaminey ran over to look, all that remained were just some water stains.
“Ah! This idiot! ” Tattaminey angrily threw the small box he was holding onto the ground with a loud crash, startling the little dove inside into a fluster of “coo-roo-roo ” coos twice.
“Alright, alright. Ah well, I guess half is still… um, something, right? ” Muttering to himself, Tattaminey turned his gaze toward the bathtub still brimming with elemental-infused water. After a brief frown puckering his brows, he pressed his lips together.
A few minutes later, a lady wearing a white physician’s coat walked along with Leonardo and stopped at the doorway, Leonardo grinning cheerfully as he flashed the nurse an “OK ” hand sign before coming over to knock twice on the door.
“Mr. Bu Chen, the nurse has brought the medications you’ll need next. “
As he spoke, Leonardo pushed the door open a crack only to freeze in his tracks right then and there.
There in the bathtub, contentedly enjoying a warm bath, a skeleton as dark and dense as forged steel—seeming to have its heart set entirely on other matters—lifted its head slightly and gazed back with hollow eye sockets.
Leonardo’s mouth instantly turned into a stammer, trembling as he turned to look at the nurse beside him, his fingers shaking like sieves as he pointed at the crack in the door and said to the woman:
“The, the potion has dissolved the hero into his childhood skeleton form. “
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