Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
“Yu, I’ll leave this to you. Help me settle it appropriately.” Tang Ling was a little intoxicated by alcohol but was not drunk. Under the chilly night breeze, he tossed a small pouch to Yu, sounding very casual.
Yu opened the pouch and bitterly chuckled. “How many secrets are you hiding? Do you think I can settle this appropriately?”
Under the Purple Moon light, the crystals in the widely opened pouch reflected the purple glow, presenting a bevy of misty beauties before his eyes.
The pouch of crystals was a lot more than what the Fierce Dragon Squad had gathered as a team, yet Tang Ling was able to simply toss it out to him and wanted him to settle it?
Tang Ling chuckled but did not answer. He tightened his training suit, lit a cigarette, and took a deep puff. Then, he passed it to Yu and offered, “Want a puff?”
Yu was a little hesitant, but he reluctantly accepted it and took a light puff. Although he choked on it, it somehow felt strangely relaxing. It was a different kind of relaxation compared to when he consumed alcohol.
It was difficult not to fall into Tang Ling’s influence after spending so much time with him.
“I actually don’t have a lot of big secrets. Even if I have secrets, it’s just that I’m slightly stronger than you expect, but those are just my own thoughts.” It sounded very profound because he did not want to lie to Yu. He was only slightly stronger than everyone’s expectations, and his transformation should not be considered his real strength.
Tang Ling lit another cigarette after saying that, it was the last one for the month. He gave the second last cigarette to Yu to corrupt him.
Yu felt a little helpless at Tang Ling’s reaction. There were obvious ulterior motives within this little rascal. Nevertheless, Yu leaned back on a wooden box and let the cigarette dangle freely from his mouth.
“I can’t convert these crystals into Hope credits for you myself, so I’ll try to contact my family and bring it to them as quickly as possible. They will be able to digest it and then barter items with you. As for the source, I’ll tell everyone that it’s my private stash that I got from tonight’s mission.”
“Are you going to be fine?” Tang Ling had no problem with Yu’s methods to convert the crystals into Hope credits, but he was just afraid that Yu might get into trouble.
“Stop pretending. Even if you are afraid of any problems, you won’t tell me about them.” Yu rolled his eyes at Tang Ling. He was obviously smarter than Orston. He then continued, “Hope credits can’t be spent in Safety Sector No. 17. They can also be exchanged for a great sum of cultivation resources, and most people prioritize their lives more than anything. If we convert Hope credits to normal credits through official channels, the conversion rate isn’t worth it, so using credits as a side currency in the Hope Barrier is not uncommon.”
“Hmm, okay then.” Tang Ling nodded.
“You’d better think about what are you going to trade it for. Don’t try to be smart. You are surely going to lose something in this kind of trade.” Yu had nothing to hide about the trades.
“Vicious beast meat. The higher the level, the better.” Tang Ling already had his prize in mind.
“Then, I can’t get you a lot.” It seemed like the Yufeng family was capable of getting their hands on vicious beast meat, so Yu was not extra surprised by Tang Ling’s request.
After a simple conversation, the two of them went silent again. The faint blue smoke veiled the air and soon dissipated into nothing.
Back in the Fierce Dragon Squad cave, most of them were drunk, including the seniors. Only Tang Ling held back from drinking, and Yu also drank a lot less with Tang Ling hinting to him.
After everyone went to bed, Tang Ling and Yu went to the edge of the Patrol Ground. They leaned on the rail and gazed upon the battlefield ruins. It somehow became a relaxing activity.
After some silence, Tang Ling said softly with a muffled voice, “After this, we are going to get some peaceful days. I think after I go into the Tower, the whole squad can officially apply to start the cultivation class.”
“Hmm, I think everyone is fine with it, but after we start our cultivation, you aren’t going to fall behind on your progress, are you?” Genetic Chain Talents were not that useful and obvious during basic training, but it was very important during the official cultivation class.
The level of Genetic Chain Talents would quickly divide New Moon Warriors into two groups: good and bad. Yu knew Tang Ling was outstanding and had his own secrets, but having witnessed his Genetic Chain Talents back then, he could not have faked it.
“It’s fine. Who am I? I’m Tang Ling.”
“Yeah, Tang Ling with a lot of secrets.”
“I don’t have a lot of secrets, just a lot of burden.”
******
After the whole incident with the garage, the Hope Barrier returned to its usual daily routine. Battles, work, missions, learning, and cultivation were always the main activities in the Hope Barrier.
The second day after the hectic night, Safety Sector No. 17 transferred several groups of common warriors over and started cleaning up the ruins in the garage and the leftover zombies as though they were preparing to develop the place.
Was the mission a success? It might not have been as successful as expected since many lives were lost and even the Purple Moon Warriors almost lost their stand there.
Everything was made possible because of Castellan Worf.
Was it a failure then? It was not exactly a total failure either since the humans successfully occupied the garage and development was starting.
It was also made possible because of Castellan Worf.
So, in conclusion, should the garage mission be considered a success or failure? No one knew how to comment on the topic. Or rather, no one wanted to admit that in this ever-changing era, a single individual had become so much stronger than a whole group of people.
Would normal people lose the right to live in the future?
“What kind of trick question is that? In many other eras, there is always a small group of people that are ahead of everyone else, pushing the line. After the path is clear, the others will follow.” Su Yao put down the glass of alcohol in his hand and stared at Tang Ling as if he was looking at an idiot.
His expression was saying that he was much smarter than Tang Ling and that he was proud of it.
“Where’s the evidence?” Tang Ling took sips of his fruit juice in objection.
Once a month, everyone was given one precious day to return to Safety Sector No. 17 for a day off. Facing the battlefield all day, every day would make one realize that a normal life coupled with a relaxing place was better than heaven.
Su Yao and Tang Ling decided to meet at a bar that seemed rather devoid of customers. Aside from the owner being unfriendly and fierce, service was poor.
Su Yao ordered a glass of quality alcohol. It was something left behind by the old civilization called vodka. He told Tang Ling that he was not buying, so Tang Ling only ordered a corn wine. However, even though Su Yao did not stop him, the owner refused to serve him the wine. Instead, he gave Tang Ling a glass of fruit juice.
“We don’t serve kids alcohol here, only fruit juice. You can leave if you don’t like it.”
Tang Ling could not do anything about it. While everyone else was enjoying themselves in the sector, even Vian and Christina having decided to go shopping, Tang Ling served a glass of fruit juice in a lousy bar.
Even the alcohol beverages the Hope Barrier distributed or some fruit juices in other places were better than this broken bar and its owner, but Tang Ling was not calculative since he still had to meet Su Yao.
“Evidence? In the ancient Huaxia of the Dongsheng Continent, there was a time where hundreds of schools of thought thrived. Philosophers from that time suggested ideas and theories that illuminated the entire Huaxia, hence leading people from the dark ages into civilization from being savages to having manners and culture. At that time, philosophers were ahead of the people in terms of thoughts, and they were astonishing.
“In the Light Continent during the Renaissance era, there were many genius scientists as though heaven had blessed the Light Continent exclusively with its unique light of knowledge. Didn’t you hear about the movements that the group of geniuses led by Einstein brought to the old civilization?
“Back then, they were the ones who made the commoners feel helpless. Am I right? You might even start to doubt their brain structure and what made them stand firm on the technological frontier.” Su Yao then gulped his vodka down and patted Tang Ling on the shoulder. He seemed to be very interested in the topic.
However, Tang Ling got a little carried away. He was thinking about an excuse to ask Su Yao about ‘it’ since Su Yao did promise to reveal the secret to him after he entered the First Reserved Camp.
Annoyed that Tang Ling was not paying attention, Su Yao slapped Tang Ling on the back of the head.
“Did you hear me, kid? The real important figures leads the era forward, no matter how big of a resistance they face, no matter is it rewarding or not. Otherwise, no matter how powerful someone is, he’s just a person embedded in the era and can never transcend the era itself to beat time to become the hero of eternity.” Su Yao was quite agitated as he lectured.
“But what does that have to do with me?” Tang Ling scratched his head in confusion. He was just a vengeful kid with burdens from the settlement. He could neither be embedded in the era as someone important nor transcend the era itself.
Su Yao went silent. He did not look at Tang Ling anymore. Instead, he lowered his head and then drained his drink to the last drop. “Owner, another glass of vodka, please.”
The owner quietly poured Su Yao another glass and slammed it on the table. Somehow, the vodka did not spill on Su Yao but on Tang Ling instead. The owner even looked askance at Tang Ling before he walked away.
“Did I step on his tail or something?” Tang Ling was sour as he took another sip from his glass. He was drinking apple juice. Fortunately, the sour and sweet tastes were appropriately easy on the palate and tasted refreshing.
“Uncle Su Yao, I…”
“Tang Ling, in the past month, did you feel like you were about to have a dream?”
Tang Ling and Su Yao spoke at the same time.
The difference was that Tang Ling had prepared his words for a long time as he was going to ask about the secret of ‘it’. On the other hand, Su Yao was talking about the dream that Tang Ling had.
Although the words that he prepared for a long time were interrupted, Tang Ling was not disappointed because the dream was also something he wanted to find out about.
However, Su Yao obviously had limited knowledge about this, and Tang Ling did not want to overly discuss the topic with him either. Nevertheless, since Su Yao took the initiative to speak about it, he certainly did not mean to just ask Tang Ling whether he entered the dream or not.
Tang Ling shook his head and said, “No, if you didn’t mention anything, I would’ve almost forgotten that I can enter the dream.”
“I’ve been to a very far place in the past month and spent a lot.” Su Yao did not answer Tang Ling directly. He took another mouthful of vodka and spoke of something that seemed unrelated to the dream.
Tang Ling looked at Su Yao. The buff hunk somehow looked a little skinnier compared to a month ago. Maybe it was the fact that his skin had become darker or his face looked a lot more exhausted, or perhaps it was his age that made him look this way.
Tang Ling remained quiet and waited for Su Yao to elaborate.
Su Yao casually lit a cigarette. If the rest of the Fierce Dragon Squad had been around, they would have found an uncanny resemblance in the smoking posture between Su Yao and Tang Ling.
However, no one was around to notice the details. Amidst the rising smoke, Su Yao’s rich and powerful voice came, “But I came back with good results. I used many ways and finally found a Dream Seed. A Dream Seed…Is that what you call it?”
Holding his glass, Tang Ling’s hand trembled slightly and his heart was moved, but he did not know how to express it and so could not express it.
He looked up and requested, “Uncle Su Yao, give me a cigarette.”
Pak!
Su Yao kicked Tang Ling off the chair. “Hey, kid, what level are your smoking skills now? Did the First Reserved Camp teach you how to smoke?”
Even though Su Yao was scolding Tang Ling, he tossed a cigarette into his hand. To top it off, it was much better than the ones that Tang Ling smoked in the First Reserved Camp.
Tang Ling sat back up and nodded with squinted eyes. As he pinched the cigarette between his thumb and index finger, he bent his body and started smoking as if he was a very experienced smoker. He pretended like nothing had happened and said, “Yes, it’s called a Dream Seed.”
He never revealed the details to Su Yao before because the latter never asked about the dream.
When Su Yao spoke of the Dream Seed, it meant that he had gone through mountains and seas for him and his dream. The strong bond between men was never as simple as words.
“Hmph.” The owner looked at Su Yao and Tang Ling and chuckled. The only two customers in the bar soaked themselves in clouds of smoke in the same posture. It was like a big and mini version of a single person sitting together.
Interesting. The owner looked away.
“According to what I’ve gotten, every Dream Seed will appear in the same place after they enter the dream.” Su Yao was not surprised at all. As a matter of fact, when he first heard of this dream, he was shocked beyond his mind.
“What do you mean?” Tang Ling was choked by the smoke. Everyone shared a dream?
It was difficult for him to imagine that. Was it one of the Mysterious Store’s handiwork? Or was it the doings of another mysterious force? How? And why?
There were so many questions that Tang Ling did not know where to start. Appearing in the same place in the dream was abstract enough for him already.
“It means its literal meaning. In short, after your Dream Seeds enter the dream, the surroundings are always the same. The same surroundings don’t mean…” Su Yao was not good at explaining. He was trying his best to piece together reasonable words to form a sentence to describe this abstract concept.
Tang Ling was very patient. He did not interrupt Su Yao or ask any questions, and just waited.
“Okay, let’s put it this way. For example, the standard location is set in Safety Sector No. 17, so after going into the dream, all the Dream Seeds will appear in Safety Sector No. 17. All the Dream Seeds might do different things because the path and distance that in the dream vary depending on individual Dream Seeds, but you guys will work towards a single goal. You guys might or might not meet at all, not even until the dream is over. Get it now?” Su Yao tried his best to explain the concept, but even a person as smart as Tang Ling had to digest the information and ponder it for half a minute to somewhat understand what he said.
Did it mean that all the Dream Seeds in the world would enter the dream together at a specific time and end up in the same dream?
It felt like some ancient black magic called voodoo. Voodoo magic usually required poisonous insects as an ingredient to control people. The insects were usually put into a single urn and raised into shape.
Tang Ling gripped the cigarette tightly. While he was not afraid, he felt an indescribable hint of excitement.
After a few seconds of silence, Tang Ling answered, “I get it.”
“You do? Do you notice the details in between the lines? The dream world will one day collapse.” Su Yao looked at Tang Ling seriously.
“I understand. It will end when a single champion is elected, won’t it?” How could Tang Ling let such an important detail slip? As for the so-called champion, it was purely because he viewed the dream as a single insect urn with different kinds of insects inside.
Otherwise, why would the dream exist in such a pattern? What was the reason and logic behind it?
