Embers Ad Infinitum

In the photo, the young man in his twenties had dark-brown hair. He had a few freckles on his face, and his eyes were dark blue. His facial features weren't outstanding; he was just an ordinary person of Red River ethnicity.

The middle-aged man beside the young guy looked similar to him. It was obvious that they were related by blood.

The middle-aged man's hair was messy, and he didn't have a clean shave. He had an honest-looking smile, but there was a sharp twinkle in his eyes.

Judging from their clothes, the two men weren't considered well-off. They just weren't poor and weren't middle-class.

Shang Jianyao extended his right palm that was covered in metal bones and pointed at the young man in the photo. "That's the Kalendaria's Son?"

"Probably." Genava moved his metal neck up and down. "Normal people wouldn't place someone else's photo in their room out in the open. One of them must be him, and I'm guessing he's the younger one."

"Why?" Shang Jianyao had a habit of getting to the bottom of things.

Genava extended a silver-black finger and tapped the young man in the photo. "The Kalendaria's Son was about twenty-four when the old world was destroyed. This can't be a photo he took at the end of the Chaotic Era or the beginning of the New Calendar, right?"

"Why not?" The honest Shang Jianyao raised the question. "Can't the one to the side be the Kalendaria's Son, while he's the Kalendaria's Grandson?"

"From the background of the photo, the style of the clothes, and the degree of wear and tear…" Genava explained in detail.

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Shang Jianyao patted his chest with his right hand that was holding the photo frame as though he had come to a realization. "I see."

Genava kindly reminded him, "If you slap it a few more times, the Blessings from all Kalendarium will be destroyed."

It didn't matter if the photo frame was damaged.

"Don't jinx it like Little Red," Shang Jianyao grumbled. He anxiously tore off the scotch tape and carefully folded the Blessings from all Kalendarium before putting it back into his pocket.

He looked at the photo again and nodded. "This was likely taken a few years before the Old World was destroyed. Then, the person beside him is April's Kalendaria, Shadow of Distortion?"

"Probably," Genava replied in a measured tone.

"That's not right." Shang Jianyao retorted himself. "The exact term is Shadow of Distortion's body of descent."

As he spoke, he laughed. "He looks very ordinary. How does he look like the Kalendaria's body of descent?"

"Master Zhuang's body of descent, Du Shaochong, was also relatively ordinary," Genava reminded him.

"He was good at his studies!" Shang Jianyao replied loudly. He then returned to his normal volume. "Xiaochong's aesthetics are also very unique. Not everyone can pull off the colors of tomato omelet well. Besides, he likes games!"

The red light in Genava's eyes flickered. He thought for ten seconds before choosing a target to imitate. "That's right, that's right."

Shang Jianyao looked at the middle-aged man in the photo again. "Maybe you can't judge a book by its cover."

He opened the frame and seriously examined the photo, but he didn't find any other clues.

"Can we take this photo away?" Shang Jianyao turned to look at Genava.

"Are you asking me?" Genava had long discovered that Hey always acted independently without Big White around.

Shang Jianyao shook his head. "No, I'm asking April's Kalendaria, Shadow of Distortion."

With that said, he bent his arm and assumed a posture of flexing his biceps. At the same time, he shouted, "Muscle above all!"

This was the prayer action and slogan of the Holy Body Church that believed in the Shadow of Distortion.

After shouting, Shang Jianyao quickly looked around.

Upon seeing that the sun was still shining brightly, he handed the photo to Genava and got him to put it away. As for himself, he checked the things on the desk.

These were mainly pens, stationery, and a few books. The latter included Superpower Analysis, Consciousness Switch, and Mystery of the Human Body…

"I can tell that the Kalendaria's Son is seeking an explanation for an Awakened's abilities. Be it scientific or unscientific, he reads them all." Genava picked up the books and quickly flipped through them, recorded, and analyzed them as though he were a banknote counter.

Shang Jianyao was 'shocked.' "Wasn't it bestowed by his Kalendaria father?"

"This means that he doesn't agree with this explanation," Genava made a judgment.

Shang Jianyao was excited and immediately used the military exoskeleton's communications system to inform Jiang Baimian of the discovery.

Jiang Baimian muttered to herself thoughtfully, "He believes that the essence of Awakening has nothing to do with the Kalendaria and that the Kalendarium are only able to use such powers? His Kalendaria father told him?"

"That's possible," Shang Jianyao replied in relief.

Jiang Baimian immediately ordered, "Bring these books back. Old Ge, remember to scan all of them and do a backup and analysis."

"No problem." Genava found paper and rope on the spot, bundled the books up, and hung them over his body.

His and Shang Jianyao's backpacks were already filled to the brim.

Shang Jianyao then eagerly asked Jiang Baimian, "Shall we take away the pack of bear biscuits on the table?"

"Bear biscuits?" Jiang Baimian was a little surprised.

Shang Jianyao nodded hard. "Yes, there's also a bag of teddy bear biscuits on the table. The production date is early in the New Calendar's 37th year, produced locally."

This bag of biscuits was placed beside the ink bottle. Its outer shell was brownish-yellow kraft paper.

Jiang Baimian muttered to herself in confusion, "Ceningmis had maintained a production line for bear biscuits? Isn't that too extravagant?"

Although Ceningmis didn't suffer any damage when the Old World was destroyed—having both factories and farmlands relatively well-preserved—its surroundings had been swallowed by Icefield, preventing it from providing them with food.

In other words, their food production could only sustain their lives. Factory production also mainly satisfied their basic survival needs and energy imports.

Shang Jianyao expressed his understanding. "Maybe the Kalendaria's Son likes the bear biscuits very much. As a savior, it's acceptable to provide him some privileges and waste some resources."

"He was already 81 years old in the 37th year of the New Calendar," Jiang Baimian muttered.

"Maybe it's a part of his childhood memories," Shang Jianyao argued.

Upon recalling the Awakened's strange 'habits,' Jiang Baimian didn't say anything else and directly said, "Check the biscuits. Don't take them away if there's nothing wrong."

"Alright." Shang Jianyao was a little disappointed.

After Genava's appraisal, it was an ordinary bag of bear biscuits.

At this moment, Shang Jianyao found a document under a few books.

The document's content was a plan to build a power station. One was to buy coal from Gesterbourg and build a new thermal power plant. The other was to think of a way to obtain the corresponding Old World technology and supplies to build a nuclear power plant.

Beside the latter plan, someone had written the word 'approved' and signed his name: Brooklyn Garland.

"The name of the Kalendaria's Son?" Shang Jianyao handed the document to Genava.

Genava moved his metal neck. "It's basically confirmed."

Shang Jianyao immediately imagined excitedly, "Will you be protected if you shout this name at the critical moment?"

"He's already dead," Genava reminded.

Shang Jianyao sighed. "From the looks of it, it will only backfire and make us die faster. Might as well shout Du Shaochong."

After a round of searching, they didn't find any more clues in the penthouse.

"He actually didn't write a diary or record his insights!" Shang Jianyao said in exasperation.

The words left behind by the Kalendaria's Son they found here were either signatures or corrections to certain documents. There was nothing that involved the Awakened or the New World of the Kalendarium.

Genava replied, "This actually explains many things. Even the Kalendaria's Son doesn't dare or is unwilling to write down matters regarding the New World."

"That's right, that's right." Shang Jianyao agreed with this. "The New World's waters run very deep!"

They didn't stay any longer. They carried their items and retreated to the suburbs of Ceningmis.

Before this, Shang Jianyao gathered the Old Task Force corpses apart from his father and found a place to bury them.

He took away one item from every corpse that had personal items.

From the corpse of the Old Task Force's leader, Genava and Shang Jianyao learned that they had indeed come all the way to Ceningmis because there had been no large-scale Heartless outbreaks during the Old World's destruction. This was very rare in the Ashlands.

…

Ceningmis, western mountains.

The Old Task Force ate dinner and discussed their discovery in Ceningmis.

As they conversed, Long Yuehong suddenly said, "We've completed the two missions this time. Are we returning to the company next?"

Jiang Baimian and the others fell silent.

After a few seconds, Jiang Baimian deliberated and said, "There's something else we have to confirm: The Kalendarium's goal for rearing humans."

"But how can we confirm it?" Long Yuehong had previously thought of this, but he had no clue.

Jiang Baimian looked around and slowly said, "Go to End Year City, which believes in Big Boss and the bizarre existence, Truth."

Clap! Clap! Clap! Shang Jianyao clapped—