Morris looked at the young man:
–Constitutional monarchy, you mean that period in our country’s history that lasted only about ten years…–
Hong Haocheng chuckled:
_-**It’s exactly what you’re thinking. If we’re not careful, everything that once was could flare up again. Though the metaphor isn’t quite right, the essence is the same. Same goes for the catastrophe facing this world.
–By the same token, if our failed plan were to leak out, after being recorded worldwide, evolving into an inevitably doomed outcome would be truly tragic. So don’t ask, and I won’t tell. Please, don’t ask—I’m afraid I might not be able to help myself.–
–Alright…–
Morris felt a sense of deflation and headache.
He had thought he was finally catching up to the frontrunners in strength, but now, facing the suddenly appeared figure, everything he had once possessed seemed insignificant, hardly worth mentioning.
Hong Haocheng continued writing with his head down, murmuring as he wrote:
–Ah, heh heh. In some possibilities, Old Yang actually came here already and obtained the Bloodline Sculpture. But this time, because of our confidential meeting between brothers, his entry has been delayed—a good thing for me, of course.–
–Parallel universe?–
–No.–
Morris looked up: –Could it be that, other than Shi Qian, there is someone even more formidable targeting him?–
–NO…–
Hong Haocheng exclaimed with a start: –Almost forgot, they can also monitor these resonance fields. Hmm, let’s not discuss this any further. Anyway, as long as you head toward the new trajectory of fate, it will be fine.–
–Trajectory of fate? What exactly is that?–
Hong Haocheng raised the paper in his hand:
–In the ending of this story, a fellow named Lin Feng exchanged with that entity controlling the Void Zero Temple for a new world possibility, thus the world destined for destruction opened a new chapter.–
Morris glanced at the paper.
–Didn’t you say the story’s ending was a cop-out?–
–Oh, come on, man. Do you really think this crappy place can hold information like that? Just leaving a few fragmented words nearly killed me. If I actually stuffed all the info in here, this guy’s resonance field would explode. Besides, if I really crammed it all in, you’d be the first one reduced to dust.–
–Well… fine.–
Morris fell silent. He muttered that couldn’t even contain the complete deeds of a single person, yet this guy in front of him still planned to write the stories of two.
–So whose is the other story?–
Hong Haocheng clearly had no intention of discussing the other protagonist’s tale further. He just let out a long, weary sigh.
The young man was writing furiously, feeling as if the tip of his pen was about to spark flames:
–If I were you, I would seize this opportunity to cultivate—you know, here, a thousand or two thousand years pass, while outside it’s merely a day or so. Go on, get out of here. Oh, and tell them to do a good job on that statue; once that guy ascends, it’ll save a lot of trouble in the early stages. Though the place is littered with statues, not a single one of their owners is to be trifled with.–
Morris was speechless; the information surfacing in his mind told him he could leave at will.
Anyway, who knew how long this thing would have to write here, and Morris had no desire to engage in further exchange with the tattoo-like manifestation in his mind, so he got up and prepared to leave.
–Oh, and one more thing.–
The young man called out to Morris, –To avoid altering too much of the future at the same point in time, don’t tell him anything about this place. Otherwise, you know what the backlash from spacetime will be.–
Morris nodded silently, then directly left this sub-etheric field, reappearing in the bedroom from before.
–I’ve been asleep for this long… To the people of this world, I’d be… the Sleeping King?–
Morris rubbed his chin.
In the sub-etheric space. With Morris’s departure, Hong Haocheng fell silent; the only sound was the rustling of pen on paper. Who knows how many days later, he lifted his head.
These two books weren’t writing as fast as he had imagined. The more critical the information, the more energy they consumed.
–Hao Cheng.– He murmured, –You should be here soon.–
The young man raised his hand, and countless map-like trajectories emerged around this space. Yet, they were not flat, but instead formed the shapes of human figures.
Traces of light ceaselessly wandered on the lines composing these human silhouettes, some fast and some slow, some intricate and some simple.
One of the line-formed silhouettes was very similar to Morris.
Hong Haocheng waved his hand, and the trajectory resembling Morris unfurled in his grip, transforming into a monoline map.
This map contained regions similar to Earth’s Americas and Asia, but held more terrain areas that did not belong to the human world.
After a moment of thought, the young man pressed this map onto the last page of the book, on which he wrote:
— Lin Feng had given that one chance to ask a question to the father of Chiyan Jiufu, thinking that this man, bereaved of his beloved, needed an answer to some question more than he did.
— As the omniscient being, He must know the secrets to resurrecting the dead. As for the method to return to Earth, clues will always emerge in subsequent journeys.
— After all, opportunities to beseech Mr. Mombaru Zumbrand will come again, but perhaps never in a lifetime again will another chance to ask the Lord of the Void appear.
–Yang Zicang, the answer to Morris’ resurrection is here.–
He gently patted the pages of the book.
……
Zuo Feixian was meditating in the tent, practicing the Chime Night.
The image of that stone appeared in his mind.
{Come to me.}
He suddenly opened his eyes, pondering with suspicion for a moment.
–Here it comes again. Forget it, I can’t fully trust a monster.–
With that, he blissfully closed his eyes again, circulating the secret technique through the energy pathways in his body. Suddenly, he snapped his eyes open and looked at the tin alarm clock beside him.
–Damn, it’s already time to relieve Wang Chong.–
Zuo Feixian got up, stretched lazily, and went out to take over for Wang Chong, who was patrolling the market, and let him rest.
At night, Yang ZiCang continued carving magic runes on the wall.
Ever since he had exhausted himself defeating the vine monster in the mountains, the peak that had fallen into the Shibiin Wastes was finally rid of the threat posed by that powerful creature. Rather than losing popularity, the market had instead attracted many ordinary people—now that the phantom was gone. This reignited the spirits of Yuan Long and the others, who had been somewhat disheartened.
Thus, for the past two days, Yang ZiCang had been enduring pain, working overtime to carve the automatic barrier runes.
Suddenly, a folded line shot his way. After sensing the initiator, Yang ZiCang connected, a hint of doubt coloring his expression.
–Futown, why aren’t you resting at this late hour?–
{Someone has been recruited into the Lost Mirage Company.}
Yang Zicang’s heart immediately tightened.
–Who?–
{Zorro.}
Hearing that name, Yang Zicang couldn’t help but let out a breath.
They were silent for a few moments, then Yang Zicang smiled and said, –Looks like my assistant is quite popular.–
{Perhaps it’s because those plagued by bad luck are inherently destined for good fortune.}
The connection was severed, and Yang Zicang stood up, relaxed as he shook his hands and feet—this time, he was truly at ease.
Just as he picked up the carving knife again, a silhouette of a figure appeared beside him.
–Wuying,– Yang Zicang’s eyes sharpened. –You’re still here. What, do you want to dangle that treasure in front of me again? I thought you weren’t selling it anymore.–
–Heh heh, business is one thing, but loyalty is another. Don’t make me sound so distasteful.–
The young man who appeared picked up a piece of emerald green magic crystal from the basket at Yang Zicang’s feet, tossing it casually in his hand.
He turned his head and said, –It’s great that from now on, there won’t be anyone halting our team’s troubles.–
Yang Zicang stared into his smiling eyes and asked:
–So you’ve heard as well?–
–After all, they’re our team’s old rivals. That masked man and his damned motorcycle have screwed up many things for us. That guy never showing up in the Shibin Wastes again is a damn good thing in our book.–
In the Shibin Wastes, tales of the rivalry between Zoro and Shi Qian had been told since times immemorial.
Yang ZiCang thought for a moment, then a flash of insight struck him, his heart skipping a beat.
–You all…–
A faint smile curled at the corners of Shi Qian’s lips.
He put down the magic crystal and shook the cloth pouch containing the square object, saying:
–After some thought, I figured—though this thing is useful, hoarding treasures you can’t chew is a recipe for indigestion. It just doesn’t suit my style. So, still at that price—if you want it, remember to hit me up. We should grab a drink together sometime. Ciao.–
With that said, he vanished without a trace on the spot.
Yang ZiCang let out a soft chuckle too. Was this what they meant by unspoken understanding among comrades?
Everyone Zoro had chosen as an assistant was making their own contributions to bring him to his goal… to reach that place.
……
After leading the main force back to camp from the Shibin Wastes, Yang ZiCang prepared to have Zuo Feixian and Fan Xiuyun start working on the Shin Engine. Though Zoro had successfully infiltrated Cyber Sphere Inc., it didn’t mean matters in the Shibin Wastes were settled for him.
The boisterous bunch quickly built a large wooden cabin, where they held a small celebration.
At the banquet, although Yang Zicang appeared delighted, he harbored an underlying sense of crisis. Dunpin Inn had been confirmed destroyed, and as for information about the perpetrator, aside from a set of tire tracks vanishing a few hundred meters away, nothing else could be found.
–At the Autumn Appreciation Gathering, we must make ourselves known too,– Zuo Feixian said with high spirits.
–If only we could have another chance to sell those fragrance pills like that again. Who knows how many years it will take. Thanks to Brother Yang, we all got a good haul of Chronos this time.–
–It’s a shame the time was so short. But with that kind of monster lurking, it’s good to have it dealt with early.–
Everyone beamed with joy, and Yang Zicang responded with a dry, lighthearted laugh.
Zuo Feixian stood up, stretched, and twisted his body left and right, but suddenly his gaze froze.
He stared at the small woods beyond the door and whispered to the person beside him,
–Xiuyun, who placed that rock over there?–
Fan Xiuyun, seated at the table, turned her head to glance at the small woods. Under a tree lay a stone with faint human-like bas-relief carvings.
–Oh, that one? It was brought over three days ago by someone called Lee Shangxiang. He also bought a few trees. Hmm, he said he’s a friend of Brother Yang, and he looked vaguely familiar to me, so I let him make the purchase.–
Zuo Feixian walked over to take a look, then breathed a sigh of relief—it wasn’t his stone.
Still, everywhere a stone appeared had eventually turned into a medium-to-large Peng Zone, which was a good omen, though he had no idea if this thing was that kind of stone.
After settling accounts, Song Penglord and Ning Yang hung out there for half a day before leaving. On their end, Yang Zicang had already assigned each of their teams thirty to forty thousand Chronos apiece, and listed them as long-term partners of the major client.
As for himself… Yang Zicang let out a weary sigh. After all this hustle, what he earned was far less than others imagined—just around forty to fifty thousand left over.
–Looks like I still have to keep relying on Mori and Popoli’s little stash for support…–
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