by Feng Yue
“No, it’s exactly noon.” Adams breathed a sigh of relief when he finally heard his reply. “How is it like out there? All my aether ball could see were random spots of light. I can’t see anything clearly.”
“I… don’t know what I saw. Damned it… this isn’t right… you know that? Something’s wrong…” Edwin was stuttering, “Where exactly are we? Where exactly did the Silence Governance send us? Damned it! What is… what is this!”
“Calm down! B1, calm down!”
After a prolonged period of confusion, Edwin became silent once again as he slumped down on the ground weakly, “Where exactly did you guys hide the cigarettes? Honestly, I really want to smoke now…”
“Don’t remove your helmet! The atmosphere is definitely above Dark Zone. Even breathing alone will ensure that the aether will cause your lungs to explode!” Adams raised his voice. “Damn it, what exactly did you see?”
“I don’t know, friend. I don’t know.” Edwin raised his head and knocked hard against his own helmet. It was as if he was fixing an old machine and was trying to wake his brain up.
After a long time, Adams heard his pitiful voice. “This… is no longer a place for mankind.”
…
In the silence that seemed to last for eternity, Edwin looked up and stared at the pitch-black vault of heaven. The eternally azure-blue sky had been shredded like a piece of waste paper, revealing the original darkness of the universe. There was no longer any blue skies and white clouds. Only darkness.
Countless stars shone at a distance above the vault of heaven, and right in the center, the distant and massive sun was emitting bright sunlight without a hint of warmth. It seemed to be incapable of chasing away even a hint of darkness. After the atmosphere had been lost, the entire world had become an inhabitable and horrible place.
On this abandoned world, there was only greyish-white dust. The twigs were hidden amongst the trees and grasses but would break apart at any slight touch. Then, a chain reaction would be triggered and there would be a collapse in all directions until no living creatures could be seen. The land was cold and the sky was dark. And… there was a stream of light that penetrated through the sky and the ground. It was like a pillar that was responsible for establishing this new world. The light, that penetrated through the heaven and the earth, rose from a distance away and extended up into the sky before sprinkling down the gift of light.
After the barrier between the Physical World and the realm of aether had been completely destroyed, torrents from the sea of aether had drowned this entire world. They took away all the air and atmosphere and brought about unpredictable changes.
There was no sound here because the moment any sound was made, it would be devoured by aether, that was thick and sticky and had already taken over the entire world. There was only light. Light was like a pillar that continued to stand tall over this land.
Countless thorn-like bands of light extended out from dry lands in all directions. They crept along the earth like a living thing and engulfed it completely.
In the end, these bands of light would gather together into tens of broad beams of light before tangling with each other on the pillar of light in the center. It was as if they were trying to push up the God’s throne.
Everything of value in this world had been exhausted in order to uphold the light of God and create this cold and cruel kingdom of heaven. How majestic it was, that even the absolute dark zone would not be able to hide it.
Every ten minutes on the outside world, there would be tidal waves of destruction and purification that would splash across all directions with burning sea of light. It was like the beating of a heart. Each beat would result in the reaches of doom expanding a little. Within half a month, it had already expanded by more than ten times and it was getting faster… Before too long, the entire world would be completely engulfed by it.
“Command tower, this is B1.” Edwin reported with a trembling voice, “I have already entered Caucasian and have reached the periphery of Eden. This place is… completely hopeless.”
“Calm down, B1. According to the course of our mission, all you have to do is collect information on the periphery of Eden. Remember, do not provoke Eden or do anything provocative to it. Don’t get too close either. All you have to do is to observe from the outside.”
“I already knew all this.” Edwin shook his head. He crawled to the edge of the cliff and looked down at the ground that was a long distance away. There was a thick band of thorn-like light that was not too far away from him.
Compared to that thorn, he and the gigantic landing ship behind him, that was the size of a house, were like specks of insignificant dust next to it. He did not dare to get closer. With this thing around, it was not hard to deduce what happened to all the survivors of Caucasian.
But when he raised his head to look into the distance once again, there was an instant when he was stunned. In this quiet and peaceful world, something seemed to have moved in the distance. Just when he thought it was his own hallucination, that tiny speck of dust seemed to have inched forward slightly yet again…
“Wait! There’s something there!” Edwin stared at the abandoned plains in the distance as he watched the figure that was slowly moving across the land.
In this world, where aether had gone out of control and observation movements had already been scrapped, it seemed that mechanical engineering was the only thing left that had yet to betray mankind. But when their telescope zoomed in to the figure, Edwin could not help but shout, “There are still survivors! My goodness, there are still survivors! Command tower, we have found survivors!”
Edwin ignored command tower’s order for him to wait. Instead, he went against the rule and leaped down the cliff. He sprinted as quickly as he could towards the plains, with a mixture of crawling and rolling, falling and crashing. After a very long time, he finally managed to cover the long distance and saw that haggard old man. The old man seemed to have lost his soul.
He was crawling on the ground as if he was in a daze. His limbs had already been torn by the sharp edges and corners. His hair was mottled and he was so thin that he looked like he would die anytime. But he was still alive. His body was still so healthy that it was as if he had received the gift of eternal life. Death had been taken away from him.
“Wrong, wrong… this is not right… this is completely wrong… what exactly went wrong? Tell me, what is the problem… what exactly went wrong…” He was muttering frantically, as if his nightmare had come to life. He kept talking to himself, completely oblivious to anyone around him, including Edwin.
“B1, this is B2. Do not go close to that thing. I repeat, do not go close… Anything that can survive this damned place is no longer human!” Adams raised his voice sharply in the communication line. “Leave now! Get away from him!”
“This… this is…” Edwin continued to stare at the crazy man in front of him. He took a good look at his face and searched the records for his identity. After some time, he could no longer contain his fear.
“Command tower, this is B1. I have confirmed the survivor’s identity.
“He is… Gaius…”
804 Future I
The sea breeze propelled the waves that smashed onto the stone piles on the reefs and piers.
The residual foam fluttered into a bucket. The fish in the bucket thrashed and jumped, trying to return to the freedom of the sea, but they could not quite jump out.
In the end, they grew weary and sank down, lazily lying still as if to welcome their coming death.
The straight long road stretched from where it had broken out of the sea several days ago to a place 100 meters offshore where it turned into a downward stone staircase that led step by step into the sea.
Salt crystals still remained on this road that had been reshaped by sea rocks. It exuded a slight heat, so one would not feel cold when walking on it barefoot.
There was even a trace of warmth in the cold late winter wind.
An almost completely natural alchemy had occurred here.
Just in order to… let his creators fish.
Ye Qingxuan sat on the steps, rolled up his pant legs and soaked his feet in the warm water. He put the bait from the box next to him on his fishing pole then cast his hook into the sea.
He stared at the buoy as it rose and fell. He was silent.
Sometimes he would sit there all day.
In this time of chaos, in this world that seemed to be marching towards its demise, he seemed to be the only one on vacation. He was as calm as if nothing was happening.
And really, nothing had happened.
Nothing.
He put out his cigarette and emptied the ashtray into the sea. He turned to look behind him.
A slender figure had come up the long road leading to the shore at some point. She bent down and put her shoes on the shore, mimicking Ye Qingxuan. She walked over barefoot, long dress fluttering in the wind.
She was like a blooming jasmine.
Finally, she stood next to Ye Qingxuan. She gathered up her dress in her hand. “Can you get me a stool?”
“Why not try sitting down on the ground, Your Highness? It’s not cold.” Although he said this, Ye Qingxuan still reached out and lifted a bench from the sea. After interfering with its nature, the seawater condensed into a crystal-like texture, magnificent and gorgeous, and worthy of a Queen.
“I’d like to, but unfortunately the clerk came over as well with some tiresome chatter.” Mary sat on the chair and tied up her hair that was blowing in the wind. “I heard that the Silence Governance is sending someone over?”
“Well, quite a lot of people have come in the last couple of days.” Ye Qingxuan grabbed his fishing hook. His tone was calm. “Fortunately there are a lot of houses, more than enough to put them in.”
“They told me there’s urgent news, haven’t you heard?”
“There’s a lot of urgent news in the world, but I often receive it too late.” Ye Qingxuan was unmoved, just as if he did not understand why they had come. “State affairs are very urgent, private affairs are very urgent, and fishing is also pretty urgent. So, I’m not worried. It’s good that you came today, Your Majesty. I caught a big grouper this morning, I can’t eat it all by myself.”
Mary did not reply.
She just silent watched his profile.
“Mr. Ye…”
“What’s wrong?”
“Do you really, I mean, do you really like fishing?”
“I like a lot of things. Unfortunately, I don’t have any of them now.” Ye Qingxuan could not help but smile as he said this. He bowed his head and lit another cigarette. He shook his head and looked self-deprecating. “I’m just trying to find something to do, something I can do. Something that won’t disappoint others…”
Mary looked at his face and said nothing.
She just bowed her head like she had done something wrong.
A lot had happened since the destruction of the Sacred City.
But for Ye Qingxuan, those things were no longer important. He had returned to Avalon and sat in his fief for several days. After he awoke he would eat a big meal, then drink some wine and smoke. In his boredom, he had taken up fishing.
He’d learned very well.
He’d caught quite a lot.
“Actually, if it wasn’t for Charles, I’d be married now,” Ye Qingxuan said suddenly as he raised that topic without warning. “I wanted to invite him to my wedding, and bring his teacher. Unfortunately, that’s no longer possible.”
Mary’s shoulders trembled slightly.
After a while she looked up, wanting to see Ye Qingxuan’s expression. But he was staring out at the sea. She could not see his eyes or his face.
But his voice was calm, like he was tired and numb.
“Before leaving the Empire of Aurora, Bai Xi cried so much. She asked me to bring Charles back. I wasn’t successful. I didn’t know how to face her. And I don’t know how to face you.”
He finally looked back with a shameful smile. “I’ve let you down, Your Majesty. I’m such an indecisive man. I have no room left in me for benevolence, all that is left is weakness. I’m not worth waiting for, and I’m not worth your favor.”
But Mary did not put on a sad and hurt expression, nor did she turn away crying and leave.
She just looked at him solemnly and seriously, without a trace of wanting to run away.
She watched him with a dignified manner.
“You were the one who saved me, were you not?”
Ye Qingxuan was stunned.
But Mary rose from her seat, walked down the steps and stood upon the sea. She stood between him and the ocean, catching his eye as he tried to avoid her gaze.
Her dress was dampened by the sea.
“I know you were not saving me because I am Mary, but I am nevertheless grateful to you. Whenever someone asks for your help, you respond like a glorious hero. You will not let suffering happen in front of you. If there is still anyone in this world who is worthy to bear the title ‘Hand of God,’ it is you. I have always thought so.”
Mary looked at him and sighed, then said something she had hidden in her heart, “That is what I love about you!”
In the silence, Ye Qingxuan’s jaw dropped open and his eyes went wide.
As she said that, the serious and solemn Queen seemed to disappear, and she became like her former self, maybe even a little bit uneasy. She looked down and gathered up her dress.
“That took all of my courage to say. Thank you for not interrupting me. If I have to say it again, I won’t hesitate. Mr. Ye is different. Mr. Ye can do it. I have firmly believed this from the very beginning.”
Mary avoided his gaze and returned to her seat.
After a while, Ye Qingxuan lowered his head in shame and smiled softly.
“Are the people from the Silence Governance waiting outside?”
“Mhm.” Mary nodded. “It is said they’ve brought a new report about Charles.”
Ye Qingxuan looked down and put out his unfinished cigarette. “Mary, do you also wish me to go kill him?” he whispered.
“If you have to kill him to save the world, then even if you don’t go, it won’t matter to me,” Mary answered. She smiled. “Because you’ve already saved my world.”
“I understand.” Ye Qingxuan got up and stretched his waist that had remained motionless after sitting for so long.
“Thank you, Mary.”
“Mhm.” Mary blushed and lowered her head.
…
After Mary left, Ye Qingxuan picked up his fishing gear and headed back to the shore.
The sheltered harbor where Ye Qingxuan had spent so many idle days collapsed back into the sea with a roar.
“This is for the kitchen.” Ye Qingxuan threw the fish he had caught to his subordinates, put on his robe and turned towards the guesthouse. “Where are they? Bring them to me so I can have a look. After I see them, they can get the h*ll out.”
Ten minutes later, the people from the Silence Governance finally saw Ye Qingxuan.
The primary musician was a new face. The highest people in charge maintained an unusually low attitude when facing Ye Qingxuan these days. Facing this youth who was less than half his age, he maintained a humble attitude.
Soon, Ye Qingxuan saw the news they had brought.
It was… a sleeping old man.
“Gaius?” Ye Qingxuan frowned. “What? You went through all this trouble to see me just to bring me this old man to vent my anger on?”
“This…” the person in charge of the Silence Governance wiped away the sweat on his forehead. “In fact, it doesn’t matter if you kill him. No, I don’t doubt you, but before that, I hope you can take a look at the news we brought. He is one of the last survivors of the Kingdom of God in the Commonwealth of Caucasian. He has a certain value. Before you kill him I’d like you to consider it a little.”
The news that the Silence Governance had brought was n
ot on paper.
It was in Gaius’s brain.
After injecting a large dose of tranquilizer, the alchemy arrays in Gaius’s skull had been dismantled and then transformed into a state that would make it easy for anyone to read his memory.
Ye Qingxuan glanced at the person in charge, then finally pressed his palm against Gaius’s forehead.
Ye Qingxuan was already the leading Heart Musician in the world, and was rumored to not be inferior even to Ye Lanzhou.
It didn’t matter that Gaius’s defenses were down. Even if they had been there, breaking through that kind of lock would be a simple process.
In a flash, his vision went dark.
Numerous memories crashed against him like a tide, but it was hard to get to the main ones as they were chaotic and fragmented. It was like the brain of a madman, only a few incomplete fragments of memories were still decent.
Ye Qingxuan even went all the way back to the early years of the Revolutionary Army and the dirty trade with the nations that had not seen the light of day.
Soon, those unimportant things were swept aside as he headed straight for the main subject.
He went straight for… the memories of Charles after he left the Sacred City.
He came to the Commonwealth of Caucasian, rode the Terminal Dragon, broke through a vast army easily, and in the end, he pushed open the door and came before Gaius.
Ye Qingxuan was not infected by the memory, but stood outside Gaius, overlooking everything.
He saw the young man sitting across the table, just like he was sitting upon a throne, and staring at the old man in front of him.
“Long time no see, sir.”
There seemed to be no fluctuations. Ye Qingxuan did not feel any fear or anxiety. All he could feel from the memory were the compression pain from internal organs and the skull.
Even so, Gaius was calm, warming himself by the stove next to him and lifting the boiling kettle. “Didn’t we just see each other, Charles? Don’t imitate old people by using this kind of unlucky phrase.”
