Embers Ad Infinitum

Translator: CKtalon

Jiang Baimian could naturally figure out anything Long Yuehong thought of.

She laughed. “You have to ensure that the next attacker you encounter is a Superior Heartless before you can use this method. If we encounter a wolf that’s out during the winter to hunt because of its hunger, should we perform a dance for it and pray that it will be confused and not take the opportunity to pounce over and bite us?”

As for how to change one’s actions and instinctive reactions under stimulus, it was not within the scope of discussion. This was because it could be achieved with the augmentation of Inference Clowning.

Shang Jianyao wasn’t stumped by this question and smoothly replied, “We can split the work. Two of us can be cued as preparation for the Superior Heartless. The other two can stay the same and resolve any accidents that might crop up. To put it simply, once we encounter a starving wolf during winter, two people will dance for it while the other two will feed it some bullets.”

Jiang Baimian thought about it carefully and realized that apart from the strange scene and relatively strange train of thought, it seemed effective.

This was a typical Shang Jianyao solution. It made the entire team appear like they were mentally ill.

Suddenly realizing something, Jiang Baimian spat. “I was almost confused by you! Let me ask you: How can you guarantee that two wrongs make a right?”

“This is a mathematical question,” Shang Jianyao replied confidently.

Jiang Baimian took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. “What if my warped instinct doesn’t change from dancing to drawing out a gun and firing? What if it develops into singing instead?”

Shang Jianyao opened his mouth and let out a sound.

“Bang!”

“…” Jiang Baimian was speechless. Of course, she knew that Shang Jianyao’s true intention was to simulate a gunshot and scare the other party, making them dodge and reduce the effects of their abilities.

After calming down, she seriously said, “There’s a certain level of feasibility with this plan, but there are too many uncertainties. It can only be used for emergencies. I have a relatively simple solution—slow down my reaction speed. As the proverb goes, ‘think before you act.'”

Bai Chen imagined the application of this plan. “Control your instincts and think clearly before slowly doing the right thing?”

“Yes.” Jiang Baimian nodded slightly. “There’s also a considerable problem with this. It will make us miss the opportunity and not be timely in dealing with any problems. In short, there should be people with conventional trains of thought to work in concert with Shang Jianyao’s method.”

At this point, she suddenly sighed. “Compared to this, illusory abilities are more difficult to crack. The fact that we don’t know the third ability implies a huge latent danger.”

The ability to distort environmental information to create illusions wasn’t something that could be avoided by injuring oneself and stimulating one’s mind with pain.

“Sigh, we still have to cover a large area with firepower and nip the enemy in the bud.” Shang Jianyao was the one who helped with the voice-over.

This sentence happened to be what Jiang Baimian was thinking, so she didn’t roll her eyes.

“I’ll have to consult Abbess Zhou later.” Jiang Baimian concluded.

After discussing this question, she looked around and said, “Before the Superior Heartless roared and exposed its location, did you have any strange reactions before the illusion failed?”

“Yes.” Shang Jianyao had always been proactive in answering questions. “I originally wanted to wait for that song to finish and go out after the next one, but I couldn’t control myself.”

“Yes,” Long Yuehong echoed. “Back then, I knew that the Heartless I saw were ordinary people and that it was all an illusion. I shouldn’t have attacked them; it was only because of their performance and the environment that I inevitably felt a little impulsive. I could clearly control my thoughts in this regard very well, but I actually stood up in a moment of heat and repeatedly fired at the spot where there was the most number of ‘Heartless.'”

Bai Chen tersely acknowledged his words. “Me too. I put the thoughts that I had buried in my heart into practice at that moment. I just wanted to hide and wait for the hallucinations to pass.”

“That’s more or less what happened.” Jiang Baimian nodded. “This reaction that directly releases the suppressed urges isn’t only directed at us. Could it be that the Superior Heartless will roar for no reason and remove the illusion he created for no reason?”

“This…” Long Yuehong gradually understood what had happened.

Shang Jianyao replied in all seriousness, “Tarnan is full of hidden talents!”

“Don’t steal my lines.” Jiang Baimian scolded jokingly before saying, “This matter isn’t something we can avoid just because we want to. From tomorrow onward, we have to take the initiative and hope to resolve the latent problems as soon as possible.”

She paused and added, “Don’t close the three bedroom doors tonight. Everyone will take turns doing night duty.”

After arranging the night shifts, Shang Jianyao and the others washed up and entered the room one after another.

…

In the glimmering Sea of Origins, an island with mountains, water bodies, and green grass—

Shang Jianyao sat on a recliner, basking in the warm sun and taking in the fresh breeze. He experienced what it meant by a vacation as described in some radio stories. However, an environment that remained unchanging made him a little bored.

After an unknown period of time, Shang Jianyao suddenly sat up.

His body instantly split apart as one Shang Jianyao walked out after another.

These Shang Jianyaos wore the same clothes and dressing. They looked no different from each other.

Three of the Shang Jianyaos got a bench and sat beside the recliner. They then played cards with the original Shang Jianyao.

The other two Shang Jianyaos fiddled with a small speaker and loudspeaker. Amidst the melody’s accompaniment, they sang songs one after another.

With their help, the remaining three Shang Jianyaos danced in a rhythmic manner.

The island became lively.

No matter how lively it was, there was always an end. Shang Jianyao still didn’t see any monsters, disasters, or accidents.

Finally, the nine Shang Jianyaos combined. He then threw himself back into the Sea of Origins and swam into the distance.

After swimming for an unknown period of time, another island appeared in front of him.

This island had mountains, rivers, verdant green grass, sun, and a gentle breeze. It was identical to the previous one.

Shang Jianyao stood at the edge of the island and fell into deep thought.

…

Early the next morning, Shang Jianyao recounted his experience to Jiang Baimian and the others.

Jiang Baimian thoughtfully said, “Could the monster be the island itself? The form it shows you is a way to trap you?”

“I have to have a good chat with it then.” Shang Jianyao—who had a new direction—was immediately excited.

Jiang Baimian exhorted him, “This is only a guess. The probability of it being wrong is very high. In any case, give it a try first.”

Just as she said that, the phone in the room rang.

Long Yuehong eagerly picked up the receiver and said with great aplomb, “Hello, who is it?”

“The act’s quite obvious,” Shang Jianyao commented. “You have to say, ‘Hey, who is it?'”

His voice suddenly became loud, reverberating in Long Yuehong’s ears.

“Indeed, it’s too dramatic.” Jiang Baimian stood on Shang Jianyao’s side this time.

Bai Chen didn’t say a word because she only knew walkie-talkies. She had no experience using phones and had never listened to many radio programs.

At this moment, Aynor’s voice sounded from the other end of the line. “Who’s shouting? Hey, the robot guards are looking for you.”

“Alright.” Long Yuehong—who had recovered from the blow—quickly replied.

“Robot guards…” Jiang Baimian muttered to herself and smiled. “Pack up and bring the necessary items along when heading down.”

Waiting in the hotel lobby was not a smart bot but an auxiliary robot. It conveyed Genava’s words: “Officer Genava has extended an invitation to you to meet him at the town hall.”

As expected… Jiang Baimian, Shang Jianyao, and the others looked at each other and smiled.

“Alright.”

…

On the town hall’s top floor, in the mayor’s office.

Jiang Baimian and the others met Genava again. It was still wearing its usual military uniform and riding boots. It was sitting in a specially reinforced metal chair.

“There’s something I need your help with,” Genava said frankly.

The four Old Task Force members—who had taken their seats—weren’t surprised at all. Jiang Baimian maintained a polite smile and asked, “What is it?”

Genava leaned forward and clasped its two metal palms together. “I communicated with President Gu of the Hunter’s Guild and the various religions’ natives about the Superior Heartless last night. Everyone agreed to resolve this problem as soon as possible.

“According to Abbess Zhou, it’s best to take turns searching and hunting. Unrelated people shouldn’t mix together as they will be used by the other party. The final plan is to form teams and be in charge of guarding a portion of the area outside the town. Then, we will take turns searching for the Superior Heartless.”

After briefly explaining what was needed, Genava raised its request. “Tarnan doesn’t lack manpower, but it lacks experts with sufficient strength. I want to invite you to join this endeavor in case that dangerous creature brings chaos again and injures the innocent townsfolk.”

Shang Jianyao stood up and said righteously, “It’s only right.”

As he spoke, he clenched his fists and bent his arm. “To save all of humanity!”

Genava’s blue-emitting eyes stared at him, and it didn’t react for a moment.

At this moment, Shang Jianyao added seriously, “It would be even better if you also provided rice, flour, fresh meat, frozen meat, and vegetables as payment.”

Genava still looked at Shang Jianyao as if it had hung.

After a few seconds, it said, “Your requests are very low…”

“Not at all.” Jiang Baimian revealed a smile that inexplicably terrified Long Yuehong.

After Genava looked over, she maintained her smile and continued, “I’ve thought about it carefully over the past two days. The Source Brain said that it wouldn’t see anyone, right?”

“Yes.” Genava gave an affirmative answer.

Jiang Baimian’s smile became even more obvious. “But it didn’t say that it can’t talk to humans. We can directly communicate with it over the phone and ask some questions. There’s no need to meet!”

Genava fell silent again. After a while, it slowly said, “I can help you put up this request.”