Author: 易修罗 / Yi Xiu Luo

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 45

Ying Feng had a habit of waking up on the hour, but just as he sat up, he remembered that there was another person beside him who relied on him to maintain sleep during a critical period of bonding. As expected, when he turned his head, the person on the bed was already rubbing his eyes awake, with a look on his face that clearly said he hadn’t had enough sleep.

He recalled reading that a Qizi, during special periods, needed 1.5 times their usual amount of sleep. Lack of sleep was the leading cause of mental strain. However, the fact that a Qizi couldn’t sleep without their Qizhu nearby conflicted with Ying Feng’s regular routine. Using saliva-induced hypnosis was indeed effective, but its duration was too short.

While Ying Feng was seriously considering how to resolve this contradiction, Ling Xiao seemed unbothered. He jumped out of bed and quickly occupied the bathroom. By the time he came out again, he was refreshed and looked entirely different from when he had just woken up.

Seeing him so energetic, Ying Feng felt he might be overthinking things. By the time Ying Feng was ready to leave, Ling Xiao was already nowhere to be found in the dormitory.

Ying Feng’s instinctive reaction was to use his mental connection to search for him. However, the terms of their exchange from the previous day timely intervened, preventing him from doing so. As a result, he quietly retracted his mental probe without a fuss.

Ying Feng didn’t see Ling Xiao in the cafeteria, so he headed straight to the playground for his second stop. Sure enough, as he had suspected, the person who had gone out for a run early in the morning was jogging on the empty track, completely unaware of his vulnerable state. Without thinking, Ying Feng approached and stopped him.

“What are you doing?”

Unsure of what he had done to upset Ying Feng again, Ling Xiao replied, “Morning run.”

“Doctor Yao said you’re on mandatory leave.”

“Doesn’t leave allow for physical exercise? I’m preparing for military school admission. I have to start now. My competitors are strong Qizhus. How could I possibly compete without putting in effort?”

“Weren’t you the one who fainted a few days ago?”

“I was tired and hungry at the time, drained of energy. Now that I’ve eaten and rested, why can’t I run?” Ling Xiao didn’t understand why Ying Feng was making such a fuss. It seemed as if Ying Feng, who had previously been indifferent, was now overly concerned.

“One doesn’t train without breaks. The books say you need ample rest during this period; otherwise, your mental state will suffer. Finish your meal and head back,” Ying Feng said curtly.

“I had enough rest last night,” Ling Xiao retorted, displeased. “I’m not a pig that just eats and sleeps.”

“Are you going back or not?”

“No.”

After Ling Xiao spoke, his fingertips tingled. Over the past few days, he had come to recognize this as a sign of an incoming command from the Qizhu. He tried to speak, but his tongue wouldn’t cooperate. He could only glare angrily at Ying Feng, who was being contradictory.

Ying Feng’s power merely made a brief appearance before halting. The air between the two solidified, and time ticked away. The newly built trenches of mutual understanding between them were on the verge of collapsing at any moment. The fragile agreement would shatter with just a single step forward.

Just when Ling Xiao thought he would be forced back to his dormitory, the mental control that had swelled within him receded like a tide. At the crucial moment, Ying Feng refrained from taking action, allowing the tense atmosphere to finally dissipate.

Ying Feng stepped aside. “Run then.”

To Ling Xiao’s surprise, Ying Feng was the one making the concession. He resumed jogging suspiciously. Ying Feng maintained a steady pace behind him, neither speeding up nor slowing down.

During this morning run, Ling Xiao felt completely uneasy. Ying Feng was not far behind him, with a watchful gaze fixed on him. It felt like a thorn in his back, and after being observed for such a long time, even his steps became erratic.

Eventually, Ling Xiao couldn’t continue, not even achieving half of his intended goal. Without using the power of the Qizhu, Ying Feng’s mere gaze and following tactic had forced Ling Xiao to concede, filling him with a sense of defeat.

“Okay, I’m done. You don’t have to follow me anymore,” Ling Xiao said impatiently.

“Where will you go next?” Ying Feng asked calmly.

“Train…” Before Ling Xiao could finish, he saw Ying Feng’s reaction and realized that his plan to visit the training hall would probably be thwarted. Even if Ying Feng didn’t stop him, all Ying Feng would have to do is sit down expressionlessly, and soon enough, Ling Xiao would admit defeat.

Forget it. Ling Xiao felt as if he was cursed. He regretted ever discussing joint plans with Ying Feng, who, once he set a goal, would resolutely see it through. So, Ling Xiao bit back his words and instead asked, “Where are you going?”

“The library.”

Ling Xiao was taken aback. If not for their accidental pact, he would never have known Ying Feng was such a studious person. But remembering how Ying Feng self-taught system operations to retrieve data from an outdated computer, this didn’t seem so surprising.

“I’ll go too,” he said, regretting it immediately, recalling the library’s boring ambiance. Yet, Ying Feng seemed pleased with this response. This way, he could do his own thing and also keep an eye on Ling Xiao.

With a gloomy face, Ling Xiao followed Ying Feng to the library. Ying Feng hadn’t finished the book he borrowed before, but during his reading, new questions arose, leading him back to the social sciences shelf. Bored, Ling Xiao amused himself with the touchscreen in the academy’s archive display area.

Every batch of students from Bikong had a record stored in the database. Ling Xiao clicked on their batch, and familiar photos appeared before his eyes. Since they enrolled on the same day, his photo was next to Ying Feng’s. After a few more photos, there was Lan Sheng’s. Ping Zong enrolled the latest, and his picture was different from the others. It was a black and white photo encased in a black frame, standing out remarkably among rows of colored photos.

A weight settled uncontrollably in Ling Xiao’s heart. After closing that page, he randomly selected a previous batch and, sure enough, saw two more photos framed in black. It seemed the principal was right; no matter how they tried to avoid it, tragedy would occur.

Suddenly, he remembered something and rushed to find Ying Feng in the humanities section. “Do you remember the Ash Event we studied in history class?”

“Yes.”

“When did it happen?”

Without hesitation, Ying Feng replied, “3926. Why do you ask?”

Getting his answer, Ling Xiao disappeared in a flash. Ying Feng, curious about his actions, followed.

If the incident happened in 3926, it meant the enrollment time of this batch of students would have been pushed back at least ten years. Ling Xiao tried clicking on the student archives of 3916. Displayed on the screen were dozens of black and white photos framed in black, a sight so haunting it was hard to believe.

“What is this…?” Ying Feng probably guessed the meaning of the black frames but didn’t understand the context.

“These are the student photos from the year of the Ash Event,” Ling Xiao said. Although the number of casualties was mentioned in their history classes, seeing the photos stirred a different emotion than just hearing a number.

“So only a little over half survived, which means…” Ling Xiao’s eyes sparkled, while his hands continuously scrolled down. “All the Qizis who were defeated in the coming-of-age ceremony died…”

Realizing this horrifying conclusion, he felt a chill in his heart.

“Wait.” Ying Feng suddenly held his hand.

Ling Xiao stopped too because among the survivors, he saw a familiar photo. Upon first glance, he felt a strange sensation.

“Ling…Xing?” Ling Xiao whispered the name. “The one who woke up in the same energy chamber as me, was from that batch too.”

Ying Feng’s hand remained motionless. Even Ling Xiao found it strange. Turning to look, he saw Ying Feng staring at the person in the photo with an indescribable sadness.

Ling Xiao was stunned. The mighty Ying Feng, whom he thought was unshakeable, was displaying such profound sorrow. Without any tears or frowns, the deep pain was hidden beneath a calm facade. More than seeing it, Ling Xiao felt it, perhaps due to the bond between a Qizhu and a Qizi. The emotions flowed into Ling Xiao, disrupting his tranquility.

After what felt like an eternity, Ying Feng snapped out of his trance, realizing he was still holding Ling Xiao’s hand. Though they had shared a bed, kissed, and made love, this unintentional touch made them more embarrassed than any of those intimate moments. They both awkwardly pulled away, each looking in opposite directions, searching for an excuse.

“I was shocked by the number of deaths.” Ying Feng spoke first.

“Me too,” Ling Xiao immediately replied.

“No wonder the academy mourns with bells every year.”

“Yeah.”

Their dialogue was superficial, merely covering up their true feelings.

“I’m heading back to the dorm.” Ling Xiao felt that the library wasn’t a suitable place for him anymore.

This time, Ying Feng didn’t stop him. “Alright.”

Ling Xiao practically fled from the library, mulling over the distressing information he’d uncovered, feeling the library had cast a shadow cast over his heart.

Once his emotions stabilized, the exhaustion from the morning exercise began demanding its toll. Ling Xiao randomly picked up one of Ying Feng’s books, and after reading a few lines, he felt sleepy.

When Ying Feng returned from the library, he saw Ling Xiao leaning against the bedhead, holding a hefty theoretical book. He had already fallen asleep, without even having turned the first page. His head wobbled, suddenly dropping down, startling him awake before drooping again, swaying side to side.

Ying Feng sat down next to him, placing the borrowed book on his left side. The noise seemed to have startled Ling Xiao, who struggled to barely open his eyes. Ying Feng’s silhouette vaguely appeared in his field of vision.

Then Ying Feng, without saying a word, slapped the bed next to him with his right hand. As if he had received a command, Ling Xiao, with sleepy eyes, immediately leaned over. The moment his body touched Ying Feng, he fell asleep in the next second. The speed at which he fell asleep was so astonishing that even Ying Feng found it eerie, considering it was just noon. Just how exhausted had he been before?

Ling Xiao slept for two hours, and when he woke up, Ying Feng was still reading beside him. Knowing that Ying Feng stayed because of him made Ling Xiao feel a bit awkward.

“Still doing your morning exercises?” Ying Feng teased him upon seeing him awake.

Ling Xiao played dumb and stayed silent.

“There are only three days left; just stay put.”

“I’ll get bored to death,” Ling Xiao protested.

“If you’re bored, watch TV.”

Ying Feng turned on the TV, and there was a breaking news segment.

“…Recently, a national archaeological team discovered two gigantic stone statues near the Great Rift in the southern hemisphere. The statues, one male and one female, have severely damaged faces due to their age. Archaeologists used computers for virtual restoration. Experts believe these two figures might be the ancestors of the Tianxiu People described in historical texts…”

At first, Ling Xiao watched listlessly, but as the restored image appeared on the screen, he couldn’t take his eyes off of it. Eventually, he moved closer to get a better look.

“What are you doing?” Ying Feng was puzzled at Ling Xiao’s unusual behavior while watching TV.

“This person; I recognize this person,” Ling Xiao said, pointing to the male figure. A name was on the tip of his tongue, but he couldn’t recall it.

“That’s an ancient person, and you recognize him?” Ying Feng was skeptical.

“Xing, Xing,” Ling Xiao remembered. “Xing Lou!”

Yes, it was him. Even though the image was of a grown man, the facial features matched the youthful appearance of someone he had seen before. It was clearly the same person at different ages.

“Xing Lou?” Ying Feng furrowed his brow at this unfamiliar name.

“Xing Lou!”

Xing Lou sat up, panting heavily.

“Are you alright?” Yue Ying’s voice was filled with concern. “You stopped breathing for a long time.”

Xing Lou waved his hand, taking a while before he could speak. “Even though we technically can travel through time, the further we go from this time point, the more it feels like the soul is being torn apart. It’s too painful to continue.”

“Don’t be hard on yourself. It sounds too absurd to try to change network time to reach another dimension of that time,” Yue Ying remarked.

Xing Lou shook his head. “When I first developed this function, I could only send myself back one minute. After several lifetimes of effort, I can now go back several years. I believe that if I keep going, I can change history and revive your people.”

Yue Ying chuckled bitterly. “I’m the only one left of my kind. What’s the point of revival?”

“No, it’s possible,” Xing Lou began, but then a connection request interrupted him.

He accepted, and Tai Yin’s projection appeared in the center of the room.

“I have good news.” Tai Yin got straight to the point. “We’ve successfully matched the blood type you need.”

Xing Lou’s eyes sparkled with hope. “Really?”

Tai Yin activated the device beside him, and a transparent half-figure appeared in the air.

“He’s the one you’re looking for. On this planet, he’s the only one with a genetic match to Yue Ying and the only one who can awaken him.”

Xing Lou stood up, walking step by step towards the figure, his eyes shining brighter with each step. It seemed like the person in front of him was already within his grasp.

“Is it him?”

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