Joshua, along with the three individuals remaining within the rural town manor building, made their way to a study.
He sat down on the wooden chair by the window. “The other side also has a pathfinding staff. By now, they’ve probably already taken in over that fragment of world destiny spanning the past ten minutes. “
“Ambassador Kai is truly finished this time. “
“What absolute damnation… where exactly is that pathfinding staff? ” Yoya poked his head forward. “Can we now read the latest experiences of any of them and find the location of that wooden staff? “
Yoya shook his head. “Too many participants were out at sea for this incident. Over at the distributor, the life stories of that crowd like Yang Zicang and Zhao Anlong have all been redacted under pseudonyms. “
He gazed at Joshua, whose skin color was completely different from his own well-maintained complexion—darker, more wheat-hued, and textured, more like a hiking traveler.
“In most people’s current memoirs on the Science Demon train, they don’t know who the guest with the wooden staff is. We can only wait a little longer to see if this group will discuss that Mysterious Person, and then we’ll go read. “
Yoya added, “And those story-like descriptions are not like content from real memoirs that possess detailed specifics. “
That said, Yoya also understood that doing this might ultimately only reveal that ‘a person suddenly appeared from the path of light, roughly saying something’.
But as for where this Mysterious Person ultimately went, unless someone on the train at the time immediately located him, it would be very difficult to know where that probing staff currently lies.
Moreover, both Joshua and Yoya felt that they probably couldn’t even confirm the other’s name with certainty. At least, not through the stories provided by the distributor.
A man wearing a summer farmer’s undershirt walked in from the door and brought them tea.
After setting it down, Joshua said, “Mr. Long Maimi, could you trouble us again by reading Yang Buchen’s memoir? “
“We just read it a while ago; do we need to read it again so soon? ” the farmer-looking man said, somewhat surprised.
Yoya said, “Things are urgent now. I want to know if he went looking for the probing staff, or if he already found it. “
The man thought for a moment. “Mm, alright. But if I increase the frequency, the publisher will charge me more ‘silver coins’. “
Having said that, Long · Mamet walked over and sat down on a chair at the other end of the long hall. He began to trace the three-dimensional magic patterns in his mind.
Black mist emerged from the walls of the room, and not long after, the entire space was shrouded in a dense, gloomy haze of fog.
{It was them again, those two who pry into others’ experiences for their own benefit. }
“I, Mr. Publisher, I’ll just be reading for myself, ” the farmer-looking man said. “I want to read the new story from Brigade Commander Bu. “
{Five silver coins, and regardless of whose stories you want to read, it’s only valid until yesterday. }
“Why? “
{Because someone has bought out the entire month’s worth of stories about him and those closely related to him. }
“Wh-what?! ” The three people present were so shocked they sprang to their feet.
……
Out on the sea.
After not waiting long, the quick-gliding demon train abruptly halted right beside Yang Zicang.
The carriage door slid open with a whooshing sound.
“Chairman Yang! ” A delighted voice rang out from the train car, accompanied by a figure dashing out in high spirits.
Li Aimin rushed out first, bundled up in a thick coat, followed closely by Ruan Wenxiong, who looked somewhat surprised at the damp deck. Behind them came Motafu, his hand wrapped in bandages.
“Why are you here? ” Yang Zicang, surprised to see him, let his gaze fall on Motafu’s wrapped amputated arm. “How’s the injury? “
“Haha, Dereiano’s friend is truly formidable. I’ve occasionally begun to feel a tingling numbness in my new arm. “
Li Aimin wrapped his arm around Yang Zicang’s shoulder, hugging him. Ruan Wenxiong stood by the side, stomping on the deck in surprise before turning back with a grin:
“Old Mr. Motaer boasts about you, Chairman Yang, every single day. As soon as he heard you were looking for someone, he was the first to rush up and offer his help. “
Yang Zicheng let out a chuckle.
“Chairman Yang, your skin is so nice—what do you eat? I feel like I consume plenty of fish and shrimp every day, but not nearly as efficiently replenished with protein as you seem to be. “
“That’s linked to your mental energy. ” Yang Zicang rubbed his temples. His complexion indeed had been looking far too good lately. But from what Zorro and Dereiano had mentioned, once the fourth ‘Ring of Bloodline’ was awakened, one could easily control their skin tone and spiritual aura.
After exchanging a few words with the two, Cheng Yunze came down.
He merely glanced at the deck of the ancient ship shrouded in thick fog, then peered into the misty veil where the other half of the vessel seemed to hide—even though, in reality, part of it resonated with the clear sound of seawater crashing—and suddenly understood something.
“This is the other half of Ai Min’s ship, isn’t it? “
Yang Zicang nodded. “Exactly. Please keep this secret for us. Don’t tell anyone outside for now. “
“Not even Captain Anlong and his team? “
“Whoa, ” Yang Zicang let out a helpless, light chuckle. “I think it’s better to keep it quiet for now. “
Cheng Yunze also chuckled, turning to pat the train and saying, “Did you hear what your train captain said? “
{I have always been known to keep my mouth shut. }
Yang Zicang glanced at the distant sea and said to Li Aimin and the other two, who were pacing excitedly on the deck, “You two, please sail this half-ship back over there. “
“This half doesn’t seem to be the Karl anymore, Chairman, ” Li Aimin ran over.
“The name of this half is ‘Luca.’ They’ve already jumped into the sea on their own. If you happen to spot Luca on the way, remember not to let them board. I don’t trust these people. “
Li Aimin excitedly slapped Yang Zicang on the shoulder and leaned in, saying, “Chairman Yang, you actually managed to get this half-ship. I feel like I’m standing a little straighter, my backbone stronger, just being on board. “
“Uh… yeah… “
Yang Zicang rubbed his nose.
“I’ll go steer the ship now, ” Li Aimin ran off, waving his arms to Ruan Wenxiong, excited as a crab, dragging the young man toward the helm.
“Do you want to come along? ” Cheng Yunze walked over and asked.
“If there were more time, I’d really love to witness the moment this ship is repaired, ” Yang Zicang let out a wry chuckle, then hesitated and said:
“I may need you to escort this half-ship back to their side later. Well, if you want Ning Jiajia to get involved… “
“Thanks, but she’s already involved. “
Cheng Yunze smiled with a subtle hint.
Yang Zicang thought about it for a moment and roughly guessed something, then nodded understandingly.
Then, he leaned in close and lowered his voice. “There’s one more thing.“
“What is it?” Cheng Yunze asked, somewhat surprised.
Then, to his even greater surprise, he saw a ring of light appear on Yang Zicang’s chest, flickering as a thin thread of light emerged and wavered.
{I need a lot of Sequence Strands, but I’m still far from having enough. }
“A lot… how much exactly is that?” Cheng Yunze asked, staring at the nexus of mind and spirit right before his eyes.
{Mm, I need six million. I’m afraid at least that much. }
Cheng Yunze’s lips parted slightly, and he creased his brow just a little.
“I don’t know what you’re up to. But when it comes to this, even when you combine all the Sequence Strands from the few of us, it wouldn’t even scratch the surface of what you need.“
Then, he glanced around and lowered his voice.
“What do you need me to do?“
{I’d like you to help me sell a portion of Radiant Light at sea tonight. I’m hoping for at least five hundred thousand Sequence Strands’ worth. But my real target is over a million. }
“So that’s your plan.” Cheng Yunze thought it over briefly. “Alright, I understand. I’ll do my best. But how should the transaction be carried out?“
“I already have a long-term contract voucher finalized with the distributors. I can exchange it with them for the rights to transfer some Luminance and Radiant Light—I’ve personally seen one of my friends pull it off.“
The portion of Radiant Light that Yang Zicang intended to sell was the very same one that Mr. Lai had exchanged for him on the Seventh Moon Layer.
The vessel beneath them began to move. Although only two had arrived, having spent their days piloting the other half of the ship, it didn’t take long for them to easily gain control of this masterless ancient craft.
The Unsinkable Sinking Ship, the Luca, began once more to cleave the waves and glide forward.
{Are you short on Sequence? }
The train’s voice suddenly came through.
Yang Zicang turned. “Yes, what’s up?“
{I’ve got some stashed away, but they’re all stored with those two Deputy Gatekeepers. They said they’d look after them for me. }
Yang Zicang was now slightly taken aback. “What does that mean?“
The train replied with its honest tone.
{They always make me go back and forth between that somewhat uncomfortable town. Brother Luo Bin and Uncle Zuo told them I couldn’t just keep working for nothing, so for every trip to the surface, I get a cut of the Sequence. }
A hint of a smile tugged at the corner of Cheng Yunze’s mouth. “I think I’ve heard of that. But they’re all Void-Zero Sequences.“
“Void-Zero Sequences are still good. How much?“
The train paused to think silently. {About… seven or eight thousand, I think. }
“…” Yang Zicang sighed to himself. No wonder Luo Bin wasn’t the one holding onto it.
Cheng Yunze crossed his arms in thought. “If I head back and scrape together some funds, ask the people in the city to invest some Module Equipment into Sequence, then bring it all in one haul… even so, we’d need someone to facilitate a turnover before it’s invested in you. I just don’t have that kind of contact here.“
There probably wouldn’t be much, either.
“Well,” Yang Zicang furrowed his brow several times, _”I wonder if Boppoli’s been paid his wages yet.
On the deck, two men and a train head stood together, deep in thought.
Suddenly, a faint sound rang out.
“I know whose timestream has more. “
“Huh? ” Yang Zicang turned around; Cheng Yunze and the train both spotted a small, dark enamel-feeling cuckoo bird hanging upside down from the collar behind Yang Zicang’s shoulder, rocking its body.
The Cuckoo hopped onto Yang Zicang’s head, looked down from its height, and said:
“Under this sea, there are several caves hiding a Great Demon King, all legacies left by very famous figures. I’ve studied the data on those treasure sites for a long time; those files are only found in the most tightly secured vaults and secret bookcases of major families. “
The three people here all looked surprised.
“Want the Demon King intel on those places? ” Little Bird asked.
“What do you want? ” Yang Zicang countered directly.
“Teach me how to transform that hat of yours. “
“Deal, ” Yang Zicang nodded. “How powerful are those Demon Kings, really? “
“You’ll find out, ” the Cuckoo said darkly.
The ancient vessel slowly sailed into the misty sea area not far ahead, then vanished into the fog and disappeared into the distance.
Once they had left, Yang Zicang sprinted back, stepping on several fish that leaped out of the sea, racing toward the earlier stretch of water.
Within the positional realm of a million-level timestream, he felt he could breach the sound barrier at any moment by burning his timestream principal into a burst of acceleration.
For anything higher, it would require the aid of the “Trajectory Master ” name card’s Trait.
But after sensing it, Yang Zicang concluded that even so, he would not be able to reach the speed he had earlier used to catch up to the golden path—maybe four to six times the speed of sound. It still had something to do with those images attached to him, he guessed.
Little Bird, having been gone for a while, stood steadily on his shoulder.
“Can you teach me now, Cuckoo? ” came Little Bird’s indistinct voice.
Yang Zicang slowed down and looked, startled to see a large black samurai hat dangling from its beak, apparently salvaged from some boat.
“Why so impatient? “
“Cuckoo is very busy. Do you think I like blowing in the wind out on the sea? It’s awful here. ” Little Bird seemed quite disdainful.
Yang Zicang had no choice but to stop. He made a grabbing motion in the air, and a fish leapt from beneath the surface into his palm.
“Don’t use a fish—too fishy. Don’t you have anything you carry with you? “
Yang Zicang glanced askance at the simple, pure-eyed Little Bird, dropped the fish, and then reached into his pocket for a Silver Coin.
His short Holy Sword slid out, carving a very precise and delicate magic pattern onto the Silver Coin.
“It’s done. ” Yang Zicang handed the Silver Coin to Cuckoo. It spread a wing like pulling out a name card and gave a flick; in an instant, the Silver Coin vanished from Yang Zicang’s hand.
Little Bird gave him a meaningful glance. “I’ll be off now. “
It flew up while hanging the hat, gradually drifted away, and suddenly fell into the water. By the time Yang Zicang rushed over, it had already disappeared beneath the sea surface.
……
Huang Xu floated dismally on the water, lying under the wooden staff that had brought him joy for nearly two days.
Someone as pathetic as himself could still acquire such a fine treasure in this world.
This was something he had never imagined.
And now, he knew a greater function of this treasure.
“So this is resurrection? But I can’t get that matter done. “
From sensing the information contained in the vision before him, Huang Xu grasped the meaning of those two overlapping images.
“It can only resurrect people who have died within hours, at most a month and a half. ” he murmured.
In that future scene he saw, where many lives had been lost, the figures falling into the sea water all came back to life.
But this also came with a condition. The condition being the length of time.
“There’s no way around it. “
After exhaling a heavy, sorrow-filled breath, he fixed his eyes on the sea surface. He was already used to these things. It was fine, he thought.
Suddenly, a figure appeared beside Huang Xu.
“Huh?! “
Startled, he looked over sideways only to see a huge warrior hat being turned upside down and plunging into the water.
“What is this supposed to be! “
Little Bird jumped out from within it.
“Consider this your future luggage chest. I’ll bring you supp ementing food. This isn’t free. I told you, I would turn you into a top-notch product! “
Huang Xu stared at the thing in astonishment. “Th-thank you. “
“Don’t give me that half-hearted thanks. ” Little Bird stood on the brim of the hat, shook off the water stains from its feathers, then reached under a feather with its beak and pulled out a Silver Coin. With a flick of its small head, the coin clinked as it landed in front of Huang Xu.
“First training task: memorize the patterns on it. “
Leave a Reply