In the early hours of Tarko, people in many barracks and refuge areas received peculiar orders.
“Do you know why this is?” Milena asked, yawning with bleary eyes.
At the moment, over a dozen people from the camp were hauling out odd bits of broken furniture—low stools, old door panels, and such.
“Who knows,” said a young man nearby, pulling some coal chunks from the stove with a pair of fire tongs. Coal was the most valuable ration in the camp. Without connections to the World Ark, a refugee zone of average size wouldn’t even dream of getting enough of it, let alone cooking over an open fire.
A puppy dashed over, wagging its tail and rising up to hop on its hind legs.
He pressed his thumb against the rough side of the matchbox, pinched a thin matchstick firmly between his index and middle fingers, then pulled his wrist downward.
“Scratch.“
A tuft of orange-red flame suddenly leapt to life.
Milena and the others watched as the small flame ignited the dry grass and twigs before them, followed by small pieces of coal and wood.
In the night sky, several searchlights flickered and swept towards the distance, accompanied by the sound of an airplane passing.
“An airplane. ” A finger pointed to the sky.
Milena and the other young fellows, mouths agape in soft wonder, turned their heads to follow the lights.
“It’s quite lively tonight. “
“Something’s strange. ” A boy in blue overalls took off his cloth cap, a symbol of his fashionable identity, and scratched his sweaty head.
……
The steel-framed airship, draped in canvas, navigated through the clouds; an occasional gust of turbulence caused hardly any significant sway.
The crackling of electrical currents echoed within the gondola.
The engineers gathered here were attempting to modulate the received signal. The hum of machinery reverberated softly through the pipes, and low murmurs of conversation spread through the cabin.
Hua Mi sped down the corridor in her soft-soled boots, her footsteps muffled by the thick carpet. She pushed open a wooden cabin door and said with a slightly hurried breath, “Xiao Qi, did you receive the notice from the Guild Leader telling us to return to the inn? “
Xue Qi was leaning by the porthole, touching up her makeup while looking into a mirror.
“Yes, I got it. Strange, he didn’t say why we should go back. ” She turned her head to glance at the mechanical barometer on the cabin wall, then said, “Let’s go. Let’s head back first. “
“Mm-hmm. Let’s just do it here, then. “
Hua Mi walked into Xue Qi’s room carrying a small handbag. Just as she was about to close the door, she suddenly noticed the door to Haili Koni’s adjoining restroom being twisted open.
Dressed in a simple white nightgown, her curly hair cascading like a waterfall, Haili Koni stood with her hands folded in front of her skirt, looking at Hua Mi quietly and calmly as their eyes met.
“Are you two heading out to take care of some business? ” Haili Koni articulated every word very clearly.
Xue Qi popped her head out. “Hehe, nope, we’re going to sleep together. ” She waved her hand, palm folded like a kitten. “Goodnight, Koni. “
The other girl gave a slight smile, nodded in return, and went back into her room, closing the door behind her.
Xue Qi pulled the door shut with a click and let out a slight yawn. “Hurry it up. I still want to get a good night’s sleep. Oh, by the way, do you want to sleep in my room? “
“I have a feeling something might come up. I’m afraid we’ll probably be pulling another all-nighter tonight. “
With that, the two girls both brought out their keys. As the investment began, ripples of energy emerged around them, one after the other, enveloping their closing eyes.
Hua Mi slowly opened her eyes. Before she could even clearly make out the bedroom, lit only by a bedside lamp, a chilling terror swiftly spiraled and twisted around her like creeping weeds.
It felt like being suddenly reminded of a grave matter long forgotten, only to realize that time had already run out.
But the next second, her gaze trembled as she looked at the brass key in her hand.
No, it wasn’t too late, because none of it had happened yet!
“Xiao Qi! ” Hua Mi exclaimed, jogging to the door. She pulled it open and immediately covered her ears.
“Ahhh—! ” Xue Qi screamed as she burst out of room 206. “Ah! Ah!! “
“Stop yelling! ” Xue Qi shouted with effort. But the young girl’s voice was nowhere near as powerful as Xue Qi’s full-throated cry.
Xue Qi ran toward the entrance of room 203 and looked over.
“You know what, I, I actually… ” Then she realized the person before her also possessed a key.
By now, Xue Qi’s thoughts had recovered a little, and she naturally recalled that Li Qian, the girl who had originally stayed in room 203, caused everyone to be forgotten due to some special circumstances.
In the end, it was Hua Mi standing before her who, as if by memory, “came to occupy ” room 203.
Of course, Hua Mi had quickly moved to room 209 after that, and when Little Machao arrived, she shifted to this room near the stairs, room 205—the one Yang Zicang had given his key to her.
Room 203 had essentially become a public room for coming and going, only used when someone needed a key and would be put there for a while to stay.
“What do we do now? “
“You’re the smart one; I was about to ask you. “
“… ” Hua Mi’s pure gaze lingered blankly on the corridor’s skirt wall. “I… “
Xue Qi crossed her arms, tapping one foot lightly. “Damn Yang Buchen, there’s no way to call back that number he used. And he didn’t even tell us what to do next when we get back to the inn. “
Hua Mi’s delicate brows furrowed slightly. “We… we have to do something. “
Suddenly feeling a bit wronged, Hua Mi looked puzzled for a moment. “Since President Buchen knows about this, but he hasn’t said anything to us… he must have thought of it too and is trying something… ” Hua Mi exerted her mind. “Is he expecting us to act on our own ideas? “
“What are you talking about? ” Xue Qi asked, then gritting her teeth as she recalled that sharp-faced guy. “But it could be possible. Still, what can I do? I don’t have anything like the World Ark… “
Xue Qi frowned deeply.
Suddenly, footsteps hurriedly descended from upstairs.
She saw Bai Zilong appear at the stairway with a slightly strange expression. Giving a polite nod as if out of courtesy, he said to her:
“Ladies, uh, our president asks, which one of you has better connections? “
“Huh? ” Faced with Bai Zilong’s question, Hua Mi and Xue Qi, who had turned around, both showed surprised expressions.
……
In the dim room where a corner was lit by a desk lamp.
A body, delineated with a touch of sharp competence by the form-fitting uniform, sat quietly beside the bed.
Even in the early hours of the morning, she had not turned off the light, nor had she gone to sleep. Instead, she was reading.
She was reading a book about her own family’s past.
Suddenly, this somewhat handsome yet beautiful face heard the sound of chains coming from beyond the door, and her brow furrowed slightly in response.
The latch within the door sheath was released with a clatter.
The black iron door panel was pushed open by an arm draped in an azure fleece robe.
Her eyes gazed levelly at the figure of the clan’s elder standing in the doorway.
“Koni, ” the older man spoke, his tone carrying a mix of disappointment and relief.
“Grandpa Lanni. ” The woman in the room put down the book she was holding, stood up straight, and placed her hands gently clasped in front of her.
“May I ask why you are visiting me so late? “
Haili Lanni gestured to a woman beside him, and the wife, trailing her skirt, carried a stone box on a wooden tray and walked inside. She came to stand by Haili Koni’s side.
“That lady contacted us. She informed us. Regarding your matter, Chairman Yang Buchen may have already learned of it through channels unknown to us. “
“Yang… ” Hearing that name, the woman’s starlike, tranquil expression abruptly stirred with slight movement.
She looked at the forty-something woman beside her, whose brows and eyes bore a striking resemblance to her own and who still exuded an aura of enchanting beauty. “Mom, ” the woman let out a long, soft sigh from her nose, expressing some helplessness. Then Haili Koni’s gaze fell upon the stone box in her hands.
“This is? “
“This is the obsidian secret box that our family has safeguarded for thousands of years. “
“Secret Box?! ” Haili Koni’s aura suddenly became slightly disordered. She looked at the casket crafted from this piece of black obsidian with light reddish natural veins.
“Your sister’s mission should have already failed, ” Haili Lanni sighed.
Hearing the word “mission, ” Haili Koni felt a brief pang in her heart.
“But according to what that lady implied, Chairman Yang Buchen might have only just found out about it, and he was confirming it with her, even turning this matter into an attempt for some of his future actions. “
A somewhat hard-to-accept expression appeared on Haili Koni’s face.
But this time, she did not express her opinion with the same anger she had shown the last time she was told her sister would take her place to Kuruen.
She had learned her lesson and merely tried to suppress those emotions, showing respect for the elders of the clan.
Haili Lanni, noticing Haili Koni’s expression, felt a slight sense of satisfaction inside.
“As of now, the only one confirmed capable of advancing to the next era should be you. As long as you are willing to approach Chairman Yang Buchen again, let go of the pride in your heart, and properly prioritize this Secret Box, then you will remain the most outstanding child of our family. “
Haili Koni tried hard to tear her gaze away from this box, but it was as if it were a magnet, making her eyes unable to move.
“We must under no circumstances let our thousand-year-long guarding of this secret be disrupted because of some personal feelings. “
Haili Lanni said earnestly, “Remember, child, above all else, we must guard the stone casket. Just as your sister once pledged to do. “
Haili Koni thought of Fenny, the delicate little girl who used to cry and always stick by her side. EvenIdidn’t know about the secret casket. And she actually had such… resolve.
“You must keep it secret. Let the stone casket be passed down to a safe future, ” the old man’s voice continued. “The Fog Men are not of our clan. You may use him to travel to another continent. But they cannot be trusted. Do you understand? “
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