STB Chapter 29: Grim

This is machine translated and all copyrights belong to the author. Please note that the translator might take creative liberties for better readability. Thank you for reading.

---

Prophet, are you kidding me?

---

Logically, filling their stomachs should be the priority, but before entering the restaurant, Jian Hua emotionlessly drove the car to the supermarket entrance.

“Why are you buying things now? Couldn’t we eat first and then shop?” Li Fei asked, puzzled, from the passenger seat.

“Although I don’t plan to take back the clothes you’re wearing, but—-” Jian Hua took a deep breath, uncertain whether to confront Li Fei or to pretend ignorance. Finally, Li Fei’s nonchalant demeanor provoked him, and Jian Hua blurted out, “You haven’t changed for three days, aren’t you uncomfortable?”

“…”

Li Fei put on a mask and silently opened the car door to enter the supermarket.

He thought Jian Hua would ignore this issue, not expecting that the other had gone through his discarded clothes while he was asleep.

Yes, the new underwear Jian Hua gave him, Li Fei hadn’t worn it because it was too small…

Even for people with similar height and build, there are always differences. The underwear was tight and uncomfortable, so Li Fei continued wearing his original pair, otherwise, he wouldn’t have slept soundly.

Watching Li Fei’s retreating figure disappear into the supermarket, Jian Hua felt his urge for a cigarette returning, needing nicotine to calm his nerves. In his dealings with Li Fei, Jian Hua felt he was behaving abnormally.

—-with anyone else, he wouldn’t care how long they wore their dirty clothes, or if they were uncomfortable.

No, the real focus was what happened to the new underwear he originally gave to Li Fei.

Ten minutes later, Li Fei returned from the supermarket and candidly answered Jian Hua’s question: “Oh, it’s in my pocket.”

Jian Hua’s gaze dropped, staring blankly at Li Fei’s trouser pocket.

“That’s the thing, although it didn’t fit, I did wear it. Should I wash and return it to you or quietly throw it in with the dirty laundry? I thought neither option was appropriate,” Li Fei explained slowly.

Jian Hua imagined both scenarios being discovered by him; perhaps the former would be slightly better, but he wouldn’t want underwear worn by someone else and was likely to throw it away.

“I thought you would buy a new set of clothes at the supermarket, especially since these have been worn for three days.”

“New clothes feel uncomfortable on the skin; old ones are better. I’m not that picky. During the filming of ‘The Crow’, we went to the Gobi Desert for location shooting. There was a water shortage, and it was normal to go ten days without washing clothes. Weren’t you there too?”

Stars shine under the spotlight, but they suffer behind the scenes.

“Don’t worry, I’ve thrown them away, along with my pair,” Li Fei patted his empty pocket.

It’s normal to carry clean clothes, but who keeps dirty laundry on them?

With Ginkgo Avenue closed, traffic was rerouted, causing severe congestion. Jian Hua’s car couldn’t move quickly.

Li Fei browsed the news on his phone, and they could hear the distant sirens of ambulances and police cars.

Jian Hua’s face darkened, not remembering the street situation being so dire. After careful thought, he realized a grim possibility: “If the abandoned world ends while someone is under an overturned vehicle…”

“They could be trapped underneath,” Li Fei’s finger slipped on his phone screen.

The atmosphere in the car turned tense, and no one spoke.

—Be more careful next time? How do you do that in a life-or-death situation?

—Not my responsibility? Indirectly, unintentionally causing someone else’s death is still manslaughter.

Jian Hua’s already grim face turned ashen with loathing for the situation he couldn’t change.

The state would surely tighten its control over ability users.

“The situation is grim,” was all Li Fei said, signaling the grim prospects awaiting them.

They arrived at a renowned Huaiyang cuisine restaurant in Huai City.

Given the lack of substantial meals over the past few days, the light and slightly sweet flavor of Huaiyang cuisine was preferable to heavier or raw Western dishes.

Half an hour after they were seated, someone knocked on the door of their private dining room.

The knocks were firm but not hurried.

“Come in,” Li Fei said, setting down his chopsticks.

The visitor was Zhang Yaojin, pale-faced and bloodless-lipped. The normally robust Red Dragon Major sat in a wheelchair, appearing weak, likely due to his near-death experience in the abandoned world.

Two young men, in civilian clothes but with an unmistakable military demeanor, followed him, eyeing Li Fei and Jian Hua warily.

“You arrived quickly,” Jian Hua noted meaningfully.

“We lost track of you at the hospital entrance; your location was revealed by your cell phones!” Zhang Yaojin’s voice was low but clear. “Unless you remove the battery, don’t use a phone.”

Jian Hua resisted the urge to check his phone.

“So, they said Geng Tian was taken away because of an unknown bacterial infection causing inflammation, and it’s not yet confirmed if it’s contagious, right?” Li Fei began slowly.

“That’s the story for the public,” Zhang Yaojin admitted readily.

Facing Jian Hua and Li Fei’s gaze, the Major felt an indescribable pressure, like sitting across from two predators.

“What happened on Ginkgo Avenue?” Zhang Yaojin’s tone was almost accusatory. Before Jian Hua could respond, the Major added, “The site investigation isn’t complete, but I’ve seen the photos. I believe you can shed more light on this disaster.”

One of the young men behind Zhang Yaojin moved empty dishes aside and laid out several photos.

Jian Hua glanced at them, while Li Fei didn’t even look.

“A giant squid, right?” Zhang Yaojin asserted confidently.

Jian Hua studied the photos. The evidence of the glass hole and shallow crater on the road was too flimsy to immediately link to the rainforest squid unless—

“Another informed party?”

“Did you see it?”

Jian Hua and Li Fei asked simultaneously, then exchanged a glance.

“How many survive an encounter with a rainforest squid?”

Jian Hua didn’t want to mention his ability, but he had to be objective. Li Fei believed Zhang Yaojin had seen the squid in the abandoned world, but Jian Hua disagreed.

An informed party was the only explanation he could think of.

Zhang Yaojin, not wanting to see a confrontation, quickly explained, “In fact, the man-eating squid… or the creature you’re referring to, prefers to eat ability users. Those without awakened abilities might escape its notice. I was lucky this time, but next time might be different.”

Only those with potential for abilities can enter the abandoned world. Jian Hua recalled Major Zhang Yaojin inviting him to join the Red Dragon, mentioning the name “Ability Holder Group.” With just the rank of Major, even within Red Dragon, Zhang didn’t hold the highest authority. His firm promise to ensure Jian Hua’s rights and freedom, if not empty words, indicated a strong backing.

Would this Ability Holder Group, potentially led by Zhang Yaojin in the future, hold significant decision-making power and be highly valued by the state?

Jian Hua’s response to Major Zhang was that he needed to consider, but what he pondered was not joining Red Dragon, but the secrets behind Zhang Yaojin’s attitude.

Hence, discovering Zhang Yaojin as a potential ability user didn’t surprise Jian Hua.

Major Zhang becoming an ability user was a good thing.

With someone trusted by the state experiencing the abandoned world firsthand, many explanations wouldn’t be necessary for other ability users. Protecting public facilities and national security should ideally be Red Dragon’s responsibility.

“Have you awakened an ability?” Li Fei asked directly.

The major lifted his hand, answering with facts.

The photos on the table flew back neatly, stacking themselves.

“Telekinesis is the foundation for every ability user,” Zhang Yaojin said seriously, more like warning about a dangerous chemical than showing off an ability. “What comes next depends on each user’s physique, potential, and luck. Simply put, the first thing you use your ability on in the real world will influence your future power.”

No wonder it’s fire, thought Li Fei.

No wonder Doctor Cheng has hearing abilities, probably related to a stethoscope. Wait a minute, Jian Hua’s eye twitched, what did he touch?

Pulling a cooler over because he was thirsty? No, that was his first clumsy use of the ability.

Instead of grabbing the cooler, he first touched a box of oyster mushrooms on the kitchen counter. Then his ability evolved into an absorptive nature, happily consuming the mushrooms, and then using them to define his attack method and form? Jian Hua felt a headache coming on.

Li Fei smiled gracefully, his voice soft but meaningful: “Major Zhang, I’ve realized— the state’s research on ability users is quite thorough.”

The ability patterns were deduced so quickly; a testament to the national’s efficiency.

—How many ability users have Red Dragon observed and controlled? From how many samples did they draw these conclusions?

Zhang Yaojin sighed, explaining reluctantly, “The truth isn’t what you think.”

Li Fei leaned casually against his chair, his unquestioning trust making Zhang’s next words stuck in his throat. Li Fei’s whimsical attitude of “whatever you say, you’re just trying to make me believe, so I might as well believe you first” seriously made the Major question the accuracy of Li Fei’s personality profile in his file.

“…This information comes from a special source, which I mentioned to Jian Hua.”

“Informed parties?” Jian Hua repeated the term. “I guessed this was what you were going to say. What does it mean?”

“Literally what it sounds like. There’s a group of people who know what will happen in the future,” Major Zhang tried to make the absurd truth sound more plausible.

“Are you talking about precognition?” Li Fei asked lightly.

Zhang Yaojin hesitated, not replying immediately.

The aroma of the dishes still lingered in the private room. Jian Hua, looking down at the cooling silverfish soup, helped himself to a bowl without waiting for an answer.

“Precognition as an ability, I can somewhat believe it exists. But for a so-called prophet to see a clear vision of the future, know what will happen, name the monsters, and even understand their habits and diet? Is this prophet a biologist who often does fieldwork?”

Jian Hua choked a bit on his soup at the thought.

Li Fei raised an eyebrow: “Oh, maybe they’re also sci-fi enthusiasts. Major Zhang, the information you provided to Jian Hua (seen at someone’s house) discussed parallel universes. Let me speculate further—- maybe there’s a prophet who loves entertainment gossip, a tabloid journalist who fabricates stories, convinced that I have an improper relationship with the CEO of Starlight Entertainment.”

A muffled laugh came from the two young men accompanying Zhang Yaojin, while the Major himself looked somewhat embarrassed.

Jian Hua paused, seriously recalling if there was such a rumor in their circle.

“I’m sorry to say, it seems we’re not privileged enough to know state secrets,” Li Fei added sarcastically to his gentle tone, spreading his hands in a gesture of understanding. “So, the truth for us is to accept that our country’s prophets have some unusual hobbies?”

Zhang Yaojin gave a wry smile and signaled to his subordinates.

One of the young men stepped outside to guard the door, while the other took out various devices and quickly scanned the entire room to ensure no listening devices were present.

“Since we’re at this point, I don’t want to hide anything anymore. I’m here to reveal a secret of this world on behalf of the state,” Zhang Yaojin straightened his back, speaking deliberately.

Li Fei remained unimpressed by Major Zhang’s serious demeanor, maintaining a faintly mocking expression.

Jian Hua was about to scoop a second bowl of the silverfish soup.

“In fact, our world is just a book.”

Jian Hua’s spoon dropped from his hand.

---

Last Update: December 20,2023 at 7:33 AM

This is machine translated and all copyrights belong to the author. Please note that the translator might take creative liberties for better readability. Thank you for reading.