Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
The smooth gun barrel emitted a pleasant sound under the gentle massage of Eckton's pale yellow fingertips. The giant single eye of Eckton even seemed to exude a hint of affection.
Years ago, he had distinguished himself from the Internal Troops with his terrifying marksmanship and the formidable defense of his exoskeleton. He quickly rose through the ranks, ultimately becoming the commander of the Heavy Infantry, one of the few second-tier leading generals.
However, his superior, Xiu Sha, valued him more for his powerful exoskeleton defense. Eckton's family had long lived in the Inner Layer, an area with the highest radiation levels and shrouded in mystery. This region bore a striking resemblance to 31 degrees north latitude on Earth, filled with many enigmas of the Lunar Civilization, most of which were related to the ferocious beasts and various strange mountains and stones that thrived there. His family had endured in this perilous land for generations. To combat nature, their kin underwent prolonged evolution and genetic mutations, developing natural exoskeletons. Eckton was the most outstanding young warrior in his family.
Not only that, but he had also been selected by Emperor Ban Sa to participate in the first round of the Vamulel operation. Being chosen as part of the Vanguard expedition was a responsibility not every general could bear, and it was also an unparalleled honor.
With this thought in mind, Eckton gently grasped the gunstock.
This was the "Mapos" supersonic Neutron kinetic magnetic gun personally gifted to him by Emperor Ban Sa when they received their orders for deployment. Only three units of this model had been produced in Kumul, as it was packed with cutting-edge technology—sonic blast suppressors, magnetohydrodynamic accumulators... Moreover, its ammunition supply method completely overturned tradition: the gun used the immense energy generated from neutron collisions as bullets.
But that wasn't all; another highlight of the "Mapos" sniper rifle was its barrel—overloaded energy suppression and recovery occurred while cutting energy beams with sonic blast suppressors. The light arc deceleration slingshot would activate every 0.05 centimeters along the barrel, allowing countless slingshots to drastically slow down an energy beam that could originally reach three Mach to just about 1.3 Mach.
Eckton truly admired those who could develop such weapons—harnessing enough energy to collapse an entire planet into a brown heavy sniper rifle was indeed impressive. The power of this energy beam might even make the Emperor's Tear Star battle axe seem modest by comparison.
"Such a pity..." Eckton recalled how King Nars' corpse had been dragged to the castle's peak by a stalker and then thrown down.
"A hero like that just left lying on the ground." Unconsciously, Eckton began to tap on the gun body, his proud expression marred by nightmares.
Suddenly, a soldier barged through the door and nearly tripped over himself.
"Don't you know how to report?" Eckton glared at him in discontent.
The soldier took a few steps back in fright. "Re...report, sir! We found Nars' contractor."
Upon hearing this news, Eckton's already large single eye widened into an oval shape as he immediately stood up. "Really?"
He stepped forward and took the data panel from the soldier's hands. The image displayed on the panel showed Liu Xuan and Ma Yihan walking hand in hand into a building.
"This male, due to his close relationship with our designated observation target An Xiaotian, has been noted by Subject 0061 from the very beginning, and we successfully captured footage of his eyes. Component analysis reveals that this person's eyes are continuously radiating Cosmic Energy," the soldier reported.
Eckton flipped through a few pages and said, "There's no mistake! If the intelligence is accurate, this planet has only one dual-spirit individual; there can't be another."
"Uh, well..." The soldier looked anxiously at Eckton's large eye. He didn't understand why this one-eyed leader was staring so intently at him.
"Come out, stalker."
The soldier suddenly turned around—stalker had already slipped into his shadow without him noticing. A mass of black gel-like substance rose from the shadow, transforming into a humanoid figure, and then the black gel slowly peeled away. A woman clad in black leather stood behind the soldier, causing him to tremble uncontrollably, as if she might draw a knife and stab him in the back at any moment.
No one knew stalker's real name; they only knew she was the most renowned assassin among the internal Human clan. Having practiced "Illusion" Spell Arts since childhood, she unlocked her innate talent, allowing her to merge her form into any shadow and silently carry out assassinations. During the lunar civil war, her greatest achievement was infiltrating the Inner Beings Forbidden Zone, where she assassinated Nars's father, which led to her promotion to a third-tier commanding general. She currently serves under Xiu Sha, operating on Earth alongside Thunder Eye Eckton.
"I believe in your abilities; bring that person back."
stalker nodded in acknowledgment. Just as she was about to turn and leave, Eckton spoke again: "Of course, if it doesn't work out, it's no big deal because I have my own plans."
Half a year ago, at the outskirts of City S, in Shengfeng Village.
The bond between Liu Xuan and Nars began after that night when Liu Xuan saw a shooting star.
April 5, 2057
Birdsong shattered the last silence around Liu Xuan. In the season transitioning from spring to summer, warm sunlight filtered through the rusty iron window onto the boy's drowsy face, gently resting between his brows. The prolonged exposure to sunlight made Liu Xuan feel his cheeks burning. He rolled over, wanting to continue sleeping, but his mother's voice echoed in his head: "Xuan'er, are you awake yet?"
Liu Xuan remained silent and motionless.
"Get up, son! It's already eleven o'clock! Have you forgotten what today is?"
His mother's words jolted Liu Xuan upright. Today was Tomb-Sweeping Day; he had almost forgotten because he had slept too deeply. He had originally planned to go up the mountain with his mother to pay respects at their ancestors' graves this morning. Shouting "I'm up!" towards the window, he quickly changed clothes and jumped out of bed. Running to the courtyard entrance, he saw that his mother had already put on her helmet and was pushing an electric bike down the gravel path toward the village exit.
"Mom!" Liu Xuan waved his hand and shouted, "Where are you going? Aren't you supposed to go up the mountain?"
"There’s an urgent matter at work in town, and I need to stay late. This year, you can go up and take care of things for me. I'm sorry to trouble you, my child!" Mom replied as she turned back, "Just tell them that we are doing well this year, and that he should enjoy himself in heaven without worrying, okay?"
In Liu Xuan's memory, his parents were very much in love; he had never witnessed them having a big fight during his childhood. He could hear a hint of tears in his mother's voice, but after she turned back, she didn't say anything more and rode off on her electric bike towards the village entrance. The family's separation due to his poor exam performance left Liu Xuan feeling more guilty than anything else. He was extremely filial to his mother, but no matter what, it couldn't fill the emotional void left by his father's passing.
He hoped there really was something urgent. Liu Xuan's shoulders slumped slightly; he wished his mother wasn't trying to escape from the reality of his father's death. These past few years had aged her significantly.
As Liu Xuan watched his mother gradually disappear down the small path on her electric bike, his head quietly drooped. The village roosters continued to crow, not prompting him to move until a friendly golden retriever from a neighbor's house ran over wagging its tail. Only then did Liu Xuan smile and walk home with it—since he was the only one going up the mountain this year, he needed to prepare everything himself.
Sparrows perched on the utility pole flew away and returned repeatedly. By the time Liu Xuan returned from the market, it was already five in the evening. The setting sun hung where the moon had been last night, casting its glow on the mountaintop in front of Shengfeng Village. If he went up now and wanted to return home before dark, time would be very tight. Even so, Liu Xuan chose to continue up the mountain; he wanted to ensure that he fulfilled his promise to his mother.
Shengfeng Village was located on the southern side of the mountain, while the cemetery was on the northern side—on the opposite side of the mountain. Liu Xuan used a sickle to clear a path through the weeds blocking the trail. When he reached a cave, he curiously peered inside but saw nothing unusual. However, he noticed some blue dye-like marks on the stone wall.
Perhaps they were left by someone who came to pay their respects; maybe there were others in the cemetery too. Thinking this way made Liu Xuan feel somewhat more relaxed about staying in the cemetery at night.
After spending more than half an hour climbing, Liu Xuan finally reached the cemetery on the mountain. To his surprise, it was completely empty.
It was past seven o'clock; the last rays of sunlight gradually faded from his father's gravestone, revealing its weathered surface and signs of time's passage.
Liu Xuan slowly brushed off the dust from the gravestone and gently blew on it before placing a wreath, a whole cooked duck, candles, and other offerings in front of it: "Dad, how are you living over there? I've come to see you."
As he cleaned up, Liu Xuan noticed a leaf-shaped white light spot—different from sunlight—slowly moving across the gravestone. Confused, he reached out to touch it, but it darted away and seemed to intentionally stop over the plate of cooked duck he had set down.
Liu Xuan froze and quickly turned around—there was nothing there.
The entire cemetery was silent except for Liu Xuan's voice and occasional calls from wild chickens. He slowly knelt down and continued speaking: "Mom can't come for now because of work; you won't blame her for that, will you?"
The candle lit by Liu Xuan released wisps of white smoke into the air. His father's portrait on the gravestone still showed him as young as Liu Xuan remembered him; if he were still alive, Liu Xuan imagined how he would look with gray hair: "Dad, it's just you and me here now. It's been three years since you left; every year I come here to say I'm sorry. Yes, Dad, I can never let go of this guilt—I owe you and Mom so much. Sometimes I feel so inferior that I want to leave this place to find you, but I know I must take care of Mom in your stead."
"During those two years of the college entrance examination, you scolded me every day for being useless, and my clumsiness hurt your strong will. Although I believe that one day I will bring you glory, I ultimately failed.
"Fate is a mysterious thing; it brought me to your side but also separated us. Perhaps it is precisely because of my clumsiness that God took away my dependence on you. Dad, I will try my best to become a useful person, okay? Just watch me; maybe one day, I truly hope to make you proud."
Liu Xuan blinked his eyes, and the tears that had just arrived were licked away by him. He stood up, and the tears finally washed away his weariness.
Suddenly! A crackling sound alerted him. Realizing he was in a cemetery made Liu Xuan feel uneasy. He gripped his sickle and looked around.
A sparrow tilted its head on a branch, chirping.
Liu Xuan sighed and turned to his father's portrait, saying, "Father, I have to go now. I will definitely get better; I am not trash. I will rise like An Xiaotian."
Liu Xuan felt an inexplicable sensation behind him. This time he hesitated not at all; gripping the sickle, he immediately turned around! In the left side of the thicket behind him was a dark figure that seemed surprised by Liu Xuan's sudden turn and quickly vanished.
"Who’s there!" Liu Xuan shouted in the direction of the figure. He suspected that this person might be waiting for him to leave so they could steal the food he had painstakingly placed here. Such incidents had happened in Shengfeng Village before, so Liu Xuan had every reason to be suspicious.
Gathering his courage, Liu Xuan prepared to walk into the thicket. Beneath the thicket was a rocky cliff; if someone stepped wrong, they would fall directly down. The person seemed to realize this too; seeing Liu Xuan pursue closely, they actually turned back and raised their hands, shouting something in a language Liu Xuan couldn't understand. Seeing that this person wasn’t running away but instead seemed fearful, Liu Xuan wanted to retreat again. The person slowly stepped out from the thicket with their hands raised, indicating they meant no harm.
Liu Xuan tightly gripped the sickle and took steps back until his heel hit the wreath he had placed down. The person finally revealed their entire appearance: their eyes were bright white like gentle moonlight, with a high nose bridge, but there were stains of blood on their face. Their exposed skin appeared a faint blue color and was covered with pentagonal fish scale-like patterns. They seemed to be wearing a gray jumpsuit with many bullet holes and even some areas that had been stitched up artificially.
A strong smell of nylon and gunpowder hit Liu Xuan's face; he instinctively guessed that this person had been through something.
The person stood about six feet tall, making Liu Xuan look up to see them clearly. Seeing how tall this person was made Liu Xuan nervous as he raised the sickle, trembling as he pointed it at their nose: "Don't come any closer! I have a weapon!" After saying this, Liu Xuan swung the sickle wildly, but the person easily dodged it as if by instinct, moving their arms while speaking in what sounded like calming words to soothe Liu Xuan's emotions.
After two minutes of standoff, seeing that this person had no intention of harming him, Liu Xuan cautiously lowered his hand and gestured with his fingers towards the person's mouth while shaking his head: I don't understand what you're saying. Surprisingly, the person understood Liu Xuan's meaning and took out a small ball about three centimeters in diameter from their equipment at their waist, placing it on their auditory organ. Liu Xuan noticed that what they referred to as "ears" were quite small—just a protrusion from their cheekbone resembling a mushroom—and the ball expanded to fit over their "ear." Then suddenly, everything this person said became Chinese; however, it sounded different from how they spoke earlier—it must have been translated by some device:
"I'm sorry for startling you, Vamulel Boy. I didn't mean to harm you; I'm just an Interstellar vagabond who crash-landed here yesterday and haven't had food for a long time. Seeing you brought something edible up the mountain made me think of hiding here; I'm truly sorry."
Hearing familiar Chinese calmed Liu Xuan down somewhat, though he remained cautious and asked, "What are you, an Interstellar vagabond?"
"Yes, my hometown was destroyed by war, and I might be the only surviving warrior."
"Warrior?"
Liu Xuan cautiously approached, examining the strong smell of gunpowder emanating from his clothes. Then he looked up at his pale eyes and mushroom-like ears, exclaiming in shock, "Are you an alien?!"
"Yes, I am not from this planet. I come from your neighbor Kumul. According to what I have learned, you call my planet the Moon."
Liu Xuan's eyes widened; curiosity ultimately overcame his fear—this person really showed no signs of hostility. He invited the stranger to step forward and come to his father's grave, then said, "Oh my God, if I say I met an alien, everyone will think I'm crazy!"
"Your planet has not yet entered Interstellar society; it is normal not to have encountered aliens," the stranger explained. After observing Liu Xuan for a while, he finally fixed his gaze on the cooked duck behind him. "Nice to meet you. May I befriend you? My name is Nars. What about you?"
"My name is Liu Xuan... Are you hungry? Let me get you something to eat... Dad, we have a guest; I'll take care of him first."
Seeing Liu Xuan talking to the tombstone and tearing off a duck leg to offer him, Nars guessed the situation: "I’m sorry your loved one has left you. I can relate to that feeling. I have also lost my dearest family members, even... my entire country."
"Country?" Liu Xuan's curiosity grew stronger. "What exactly have you been through? I'm sorry to hear such terrible news."
Nars felt as if lightning had struck his heart. He had always thought that the inhabitants of such a backward planet would be extremely aggressive. He did not want to think about conflict and could only hold onto a faint hope of seeking help from the residents of Vamulel. However, Liu Xuan's actions made him feel as if he had unexpectedly gained something.
"If you trust me, may I invite you to my temporary shelter? It's on your way up the mountain. There, I will tell you everything about myself."
Liu Xuan was startled and recalled the cave with blue dye marks.
Comment 0 Comment Count