Embers Ad Infinitum

495th floor, Zone B, Room 196.

After hearing the news, Shang Jianyao leaned back on the pillow and massaged his temples.

His consciousness quickly entered the shimmering Sea of Origins and randomly chose a direction to swim in.

As he swam, a faint, yellowish-green fog spread out from the intersection of the sea and sky. Amidst the fog, a magnificent Old World city was vaguely visible.

Shang Jianyao immediately adjusted his direction and swam toward his target with all his might. But no matter how hard he tried, he only shortened the distance between him and the yellowish-green fog by a little. Furthermore, it kept changing positions, making it seem as though he would never reach it.

Shang Jianyao stopped and split his body into nine according to the plan.

The nine Shang Jianyaos set off in different directions as if they wanted to weave an inescapable net that prevented the thin, yellowish-green fog from escaping.

In the vast Sea of Origins, the Shang Jianyaos could occasionally see the target appear in front of them, but this would quickly change.

After an unknown period of time, the nine Shang Jianyaos had no choice but to stop when they reached the maximum distance that could be maintained among them.

The yellowish-green fog remained at the intersection of the sea and sky as if it had never left.

The nine Shang Jianyaos took a deep breath at the same time as their figures fused together.

He sat cross-legged in the shimmering Sea of Origins and fell into deep thought.

In just a minute or two, Shang Jianyao created a black cloth and completely covered his eyes. He then took out two cotton balls and stuffed them into his ears.

Therefore, Shang Jianyao entered a state where he couldn’t see or hear anything. After that, he casually swam forward without knowing what was ahead or where it led.

When he was almost exhausted from swimming, Shang Jianyao stopped, took out the cotton balls in his ears, and removed the black cloth from his eyes.

The first thing he saw was the faint and thin yellowish-green fog.

It was already within reach!

Shang Jianyao smiled. He hugged his right fist with his left hand and bowed at the yellowish-green fog. “The Perfected Man has no self; the New World is before us.”

After completing this ritual, Shang Jianyao cast his gaze at the Old World city that resembled a mirage in the yellowish-green fog.

Over there, buildings—dozens to a hundred meters tall—stood, forming a magnificent concrete jungle. Their surfaces were bathed in red sunlight, and it was utterly silent.

Shang Jianyao was in no rush to pass through the fog and enter. Instead, he circled the periphery and swam quickly.

The illusory city revealed itself from different angles.

After a while, Shang Jianyao suddenly saw an arched tunnel exit. He saw thousands of glass walls that reflected the sunlight and a dilapidated street with signs on both sides.

Shang Jianyao stopped and let his gaze penetrate the thin yellowish-green fog and land on the street ahead. The words ‘clothing,’ ‘barbeque,’ ‘police,’ ‘hotpot,’ ‘foot bath,’ and ‘supermarket’ entered his vision.

The shops corresponding to these signs were either dilapidated or covered in dust. The thing they had in common was that they were devoid of humans.

Shang Jianyao sized them up a few times before a smile gradually appeared on his face. He then shouted, “Xiaochong! Xiaochong!”

He was all too familiar with the scene in the fog; it was Swamp Ruin 1, the place Qiao Chu had brought them to back then. It was the mysterious city where they had encountered Nightmare Horse and Xiaochong!

The only difference was that it wasn’t as rundown as what Shang Jianyao remembered.

The illusory city echoed with his voice, but there was no additional response.

Shang Jianyao swam forward a few meters and passed through the faint, yellowish-green fog. During this process, he didn’t find anything abnormal.

The city ahead no longer felt like a mirage; it was as real as the mind islands.

Shang Jianyao casually found an unlocked bicycle by the street, mounted it, and headed deep into the city.

Under the setting sun, it didn’t take him long to reach a high-rise building that had its own courtyard. He didn’t encounter anyone on the way, nor did he encounter any Heartless. There was nothing but silence in the entire city.

Shang Jianyao got off the bicycle and cast his gaze at the black marble signboard in front of the courtyard.

On the signboard, golden words formed a name: “City Intelligence Network Control Center.”

This was identical to what Shang Jianyao and the others had seen in Swamp Ruin 1.

Shang Jianyao ran, passing through the courtyard as if he were racing someone until he entered the building where the City Intelligence Network Control Center was located.

He walked down the emergency access one level at a time as though it was the back of his hand and arrived at the underground engine room. He then ran down the dark corridor with the flashlight and found the room where he had met Xiaochong.

As he pushed open the door, Shang Jianyao shone the flashlight beam in and shouted, “Xiaochong! Xiaochong!”

The tables and chairs in the room were still the same. There was nobody there, and it was extremely quiet.

Shang Jianyao revealed a disappointed expression.

At this moment, everything around him slowly faded and gradually became transparent. In less than ten seconds, the city vanished like a dream. The faint, yellowish-green fog around it also disappeared, similar to the last time it ended.

Shang Jianyao returned to the Sea of Origins again. He then felt intense fatigue and had no choice but to leave the mind world.

…

The next day, Room 14 on the 647th floor.

When Shang Jianyao arrived, Jiang Baimian was alone.

Jiang Baimian looked up and asked with a smile, “Little Red didn’t come with you?”

Shang Jianyao sighed and said sincerely, “The Old World entertainment is harmful.”

“Was he obsessed with it last night?” Jiang Baimian found it funny. Although she also felt that Long Yuehong didn’t have much self-control, she also believed that he wouldn’t be like this on the first day.

Shang Jianyao shook his head. “His parents, siblings, and neighbors are obsessed.”

Upon hearing this, Jiang Baimian couldn’t help but raise her hand, press it to her mouth, and laugh.

Shang Jianyao continued, “I don’t think it will happen again in the future.”

“Why?” Jiang Baimian asked curiously.

Shang Jianyao explained, “When I passed by their house this morning, I heard his father wailing: ‘Why does it use so much electricity? Our energy quota for this month is almost gone!’ His mother also lost her composure. She seemed to be saying to Little Red, ‘Son, what exactly did you bring back? It’s a scourge!’

“Little Red then appeased them. ‘I’m a D5. My energy quota is about the same as the two of you combined. It won’t be a problem for us to last until the end of the month.’

Shang Jianyao vividly imitated the Long family trio’s tones, amusing Jiang Baimian greatly.

Jiang Baimian calmed down and asked in a guessing tone, “So, you didn’t wait for him?”

Shang Jianyao nodded. “I don’t think they can finish their conversation in a short period of time. I also have something to tell you.”

“What is it?” Jiang Baimian sat up straight. “Is it about the yellowish-green fog?”

At this moment, Bai Chen also entered the office and happened to hear the latter half of the sentence.

She looked at Shang Jianyao in surprise. “You resolved it so quickly?”

Shang Jianyao shook his head. “I found it, but it wasn’t resolved.”

“Tell me the details.” Jiang Baimian broke away from the gossip and jokes and became very focused.

Shang Jianyao described how he found the yellowish-green fog, how he entered, and what he discovered.

The more Jiang Baimian listened, the bigger her eyes became. “Are you sure it’s the city ruin where we encountered Xiaochong?”

“Unless there’s an identical layout elsewhere,” Shang Jianyao replied calmly.

Jiang Baimian frowned. “This terrifies me, but it’s also very complex and mysterious…” She gradually sounded a little excited.

“What are you guys discussing?” Long Yuehong walked into the office and looked around in confusion.

After Jiang Baimian simply repeated the matter, Long Yuehong blurted out, “How can that be?”

The tiny bit of influence left behind by Coward is actually connected to Swamp Ruin 1, which we’ve been to?

He then voiced out a possible explanation as he looked at Shang Jianyao. “Could it be that some of your memories have combined with the yellowish-green fog?”

“Why not other memories?” Shang Jianyao asked in response.

A coincidence, I guess… Long Yuehong was too embarrassed to say that.

Shang Jianyao continued, “I have Destiny Connection, so I can be sure that it’s not my memories.”

Why didn’t you say so earlier… Long Yuehong muttered inwardly.

Jiang Baimian sat in her seat as thoughts raced through her mind. She thoughtfully said, “The yellowish-green fog comes from an Awakened who has explored the depths of the Mind Corridor. It’s an aura left behind by him…

“It’s highly probable that it was obtained when Yama Tiger explored a room in the Mind Corridor…

“Harbinger Song said that every room corresponds to a mind world. Only Awakened at the Mind Corridor level can open them normally…

“What appears in those rooms might be the original owner’s dream, or it might be part of the islands of fear they cleared. Yes, according to this logic, it’s also possible that the scenes that appear are interwoven with some of his memories…”

At this point, Jiang Baimian naturally gave a guess. “The image of the city ruin came from a certain memory or dream contained in the yellowish-green fog?”

Bai Chen’s eyes narrowed. “The original owner of Coward has been to Swamp Ruin 1?”

“It’s also possible that he embarked on his journey from there.” Jiang Baimian gave another possibility.

It was a possibility that gave Long Yuehong the creeps.

Shang Jianyao stroked his chin and said, “If that’s the case, I should be able to completely eliminate the remnant effects by finding ‘him’ in the dream city…”

“That’s right. Dream owners are the most special in such situations.” Long Yuehong thought for a few seconds and agreed. He then raised a question. “But where can you find him? Where will he be in that dream city?”

Just as he said that, Shang Jianyao and Jiang Baimian replied in unison, “That laboratory!”

The mysterious laboratory that Qiao Chu destroyed!

Jiang Baimian then smiled at Shang Jianyao, indicating that everyone had a tacit understanding.

The next second, she saw Shang Jianyao extend his right hand to her.

Jiang Baimian’s smile froze for a second. She puffed up her cheeks slightly and also stretched out her right palm to slap Shang Jianyao’s palm.

After retracting her hand, she quickly asked another question. “Why did you think of covering your eyes to find the yellowish-green fog?”

Shang Jianyao explained seriously, “Since I’m an Awakened in the Master Zhuang domain, I should adopt an approach of adapting myself to the circumstances.”