Plague Doctor

Fishing was a veritable form of exercise, Wu Siyu stressed over and over. “A whole day of sitting will fulfill a 24 hours exercising quota and by the end, you’ll be rewarded with fresh catches for meals. Tell me, can you think of a better exercise?” She challenged.

Honestly, Gu Jun did not have much interest in this ‘exercise’ but now, his mind changed. He could see Dirty-minded Yu’s perspective. The birds sang beautifully among the trees accompanied by the bubbling brooks. Gu Jun, Wu Siyu, Peacock, Uncle Dan and his friends enjoyed an outing in the wilds, they fished and cooked fish stew. The small river was hidden worlds away from the hubbub of the city and it took them away from the business at Phecda. They wanted to enjoy these two days of break as much as they could. Inside the electric cooker propped by the river side, a fresh pot of fish stew was cooking. The smell was heavenly.

“This is one good stew.” Cai Zixuan stirred the ladle and started another one of his poems, “An egret flies over Xisai mountain. The peach blossom is bursting, water is flowing and trout are getting fat and delicious.”

“That is one familiar poem…” Wu Siyu started, “I think I’ve studied it in school before, what’s the rest of it?”

“A green bamboo-splint hat, a straw rain cap, why should I return while showering in this spring wind and drizzle,” Gu Jun volunteered before Zixuan got the chance to show off.

“I’ve already told you guys this kind of activity is not suitable for me.” Uncle Dan shook his head and sighed, “I’m in the mind to see some other kinds of blossoms bursting if you catch my drift.”

“You’re one salacious old man!” Lou Xiaoning scolded. Wu Siyu shrugged and Cai Zixuan chuckled, “Uncle Dan, truly a man of culture.” Gu Jun joined in the laughter. His mood brightened, he had not had a proper rest since his return from Dreamlands and these two days were a great balm to his soul.

‘Hmm?’ Peacock thought to herself, and asked Kathlyn, ‘What are they talking about?’

‘Sounds like a food discussion.’ Kathlyn was equally confused, ‘But it’s probably some kind of wordplay joke.’ From the way the rest were laughing, they could tell Uncle Dan had made a joke but their Chinese language level was not good enough to catch the double entendre.

It should be noted that Kathlyn, Tom and the rest had officially joined Phecda. They contacted their families to assure them of their safety but lied that they were currently backpacking through China. Sharing a body was uncomfortable but there was nothing to be done before they could find a solution. If they went under multiple-personality treatment to mould the two personalities into one, the main persona would not be them because the land’s travellers had much stronger mental power than they did.

Gu Jun had no solution to proffer either. Perhaps the race that came up with the many designs in the Pnakotic Manuscripts would, but there was no mention of the designers or inventors in the book. For the past few days, he copied out the blueprint for the cleansing stone and the assessment stone. He added his own comments and observations. He tried to think back to the lines that he saw on the illusory library wall. Essentially he had created a copy of the copy of the Pnakotic Manuscripts.

The formation of the Ancient Seal Department came smoothly with Yao Sinian as the temporary leader. This was an independent department, it was responsible not only to manufacture Ancient Seal devices but also to train tactical members who were familiar with the usage of such devices on the battlefield. These members would not learn spells, instead they would be supporting members for the spell-casters. Gu Jun provided them with the technique with regards to how to draw out and cast the Ancient Seal mental projection. Due to his knowledge, Gu Jun was also made the technical advisor for the Ancient Seal Department.

In terms of result, the department had already manufactured the first batch of stones 2 days ago. There were 5 assessment stones and 1 cleansing stone in inventory. They proved effective in tests but their quality was worse than the ones crafted by Gu Jun. The opaline would crack after about 10 uses. The other adjustment the department had attempted was in terms of the material. They tried using opaline outside from Australia and they were equally effective. Even though the product quality was less than satisfactory and the manufacturing speed was slow, those would be optimized in the future. As the department continued to grow, the quantity and quality would improve.

For the Spell Department, they still relied on the devices created by Gu Jun. Gu Jun was not corralled to be made into a carver because that would be a waste of his talent. Instead every week, he was only tasked with carving one assessment stone. Since the cleansing stone that Gu Jun brought back could still support the Spell Department’s requirement, Elder Tong did not request him to carve another one. Furthermore, compared to the assessment stone, it was much harder to manufacture the cleansing stone. For now, Gu Jun only managed to make one and it was only the size of a laptop. It was far smaller than the one that he brought back from Dreamlands and it would probably break after multiple uses. However, this compact size was perfect for Special Mobile Forces on their missions, after all just imagine how inconvenient it would be to lug around a large boulder when stealth was required.

Gu Jun’s life was a buzz of activity before this small holiday. After the ceremony, he was invited to go on some promotional activities. He was required to greet some higher-ups. This was his first time meeting them, and they all smiled at him, encouraging him to work harder. Other than that, Gu Jun had his own tasks to complete, for one, he needed to study the Pnakotic Manuscripts further. Be it to rescue Monitor and the rest or to separate Kathlyn and Peacock, he needed more knowledge. He prayed that the peace would last longer so that everyone would have time to recuperate to their best condition.

Suddenly, Gu Jun felt a tug on his fishing line!

“Wow!” Wu Siyu pointed at the river and cheered, “We have a winner!”

“Siyu, don’t cheer so soon!” Gu Jun carefully held the fishing pole. After he was sure the fish had taken the bait, he yanked the pole back with one smooth motion and a fat fish flipped its tail as it flew through the air.

Seeing that, the others whooped and cheered. Lou Xiaoning said excitedly, “This size is perfect for grilling.” Cai Zixuan added, “Leave that to me.”

Soon, the stew was ready. Cai Zixuan ladled a bowl for everyone and the portion was perfect.

“Ah…” Gu Jun took a sip of the fresh soup and was thankful that he was still alive, “Zixuan, your cooking skill has improved again.”

Wu Siyu silently finished her soup and then picked at the fish inside the cooker. “Zixuan, our restaurant’s kitchen will always reserve a spot for you.”

Cai Zixuan was happy seeing the satisfied expression on his friends’ faces. He clapped. “Good food, good view, good company, what else can you ask for.”

After the scrumptious soup, the group prepared to grill Gu Jun’s fish but then Gu Jun’s phone started to ring. Gu Jun took it out and his brows pleated. “It’s Elder Tong.”

Everyone quieted immediately. Elder Tong knew how important this holiday was to them so he wouldn’t call unless there was an emergency.

“Hello?” Gu Jun spoke into the phone. He stared at the flowing water, the reflection of the clouds on the surface kept shifting, Gu Jun had a temporary illusion that they took on the shape of wicked smiles.

“Ah Jun.” Elder Tong said heavily and it made Gu Jun’s heart sunk. “Something happened, I’m sorry but your holiday will have to be cut short.”

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