Volume 4: Twilight Galaxy
After traveling through the dense mountain range for nearly ten days, Ye Jian and Shu Xun finally approached Zhu Si City. Between the city and the mountain range lay a vast plain. At the edge of the mountain line, Lie Yang, Xing Kong, and Gray were already waiting there.
Upon seeing the unexpected arrival of Ye Jian, Xing Kong paused in his steps toward Shu Xun, a hint of confusion in his clear eyes. The fluffy Shu Xun sat steadily on Ye Jian’s shoulder and pointed a paw at him. “Xing Kong, this is Ye Jian, my lover.”
After Shu Xun’s introduction, the two stoic-faced individuals engaged in a silent stare-off. Ye Jian remained his usual cold self, while Xing Kong’s gaze was equally emotionless. Just when Shu Xun thought the atmosphere was getting a bit chilly, Xing Kong nonchalantly uttered, “Oh,” and shifted his gaze, with Ye Jian responding in kind.
Shu Xun: “…” This was probably a unique form of communication between the expressionless; others just couldn’t understand it.
Since it was noon, they decided to have lunch before heading to Zhu Si City. Speaking of eating, Lie Yang’s eyes lit up instantly. “I’ll go hunt.” As soon as the words left his mouth, he was gone.
Xing Kong glanced at the others, who had already sprung into action and stood somewhat bewildered in place. Shu Xun, who was carrying firewood to make a fire, noticed this and waved at Xing Kong. “There might be some cultural differences in our food. I have some fruit here, want to try it?”
Xing Kong accepted a few fruits that Shu Xun handed him. The vibrant red fruit looked quite appetizing, but Xing Kong hesitated. “I’ve eaten fruit before. No taste.”
Shu Xun, arranging the firewood, turned back in confusion. “It has taste, though. It’s sweet.”
Xing Kong looked at Shu Xun, then at the fruit, and finally bit into the most vivid one. His eyes brightened, but quickly followed with confusion. “Strange, why does it have taste now?” he murmured to himself. He quickly finished the fruit and devoured the others as well. Shu Xun, stroking his beard, looked at Xing Kong thoughtfully.
When the campfire was lit, Lie Yang returned with a boar-like creature on his back. Under Xing Kong’s surprised gaze, Big Bliss lifted a cleaver and immediately began a dazzling display of knife skills.
About an hour later, everyone sat around, enjoying a hearty lunch. Xing Kong held a bowl of soup, staring at the food inside. Though there was a trace of doubt in his eyes, this time, he took the initiative to try it. As expected, with each bite, his eyes lit up a bit more.
By the end, everyone watched in astonishment as Xing Kong elegantly but swiftly devoured at least three people’s worth of food. After Xing Kong finally set down his plate, wiped his mouth, and returned to his usual expressionless state, Lie Yang, still in a daze, instinctively asked, “Don’t you guys only eat raw meat? Is it okay to eat this much cooked food?”
Xing Kong was about to reply when he accidentally let out a burp. The usually emotionless young man slowly blushed. Puzzled, he raised a hand to touch his face and spoke in a rather strange tone, “Why is my face suddenly so hot? Is it a side effect of cooked meat?”
Everyone almost fainted. Did the Twilight clan not have the concepts of embarrassment or shyness? Yet, despite not knowing the word for embarrassment, why did he blush? Now, the Twilight clan seemed even more mysterious to Shu Xun and the others. They didn’t mind adding another layer of intrigue.
Xing Kong put his hand down and calmly said, “We only eat raw meat because once food is cooked, it loses all taste. Apart from blood, I’ve never tasted anything flavorful, including fruit. But what’s strange is that today, I realized that other foods, besides blood, actually have flavor, and it’s not bad.” After speaking, Xing Kong glanced longingly at the remaining roast meat on the campfire and burped again. The Twilight clan youth’s face quickly reddened, and once again, he raised his hand, still puzzled as to why his face suddenly felt so hot.
Shu Xun: “…” He suddenly felt that the world’s life forms, including its world consciousness, were sometimes inexplicably cute. As he thought of that purple electric light, the fluffy Shu Xun instinctively stroked his whiskers.
Out of the corner of his eye, Lie Yang noticed Shu Xun’s movement and immediately leaned in, curious. “I’ve been meaning to ask, Shu Xun, what’s up with your whisker? Did you change your style?”
Shu Xun pushed Lie Yang’s big face away with one paw, then held his whisker with both paws and proudly straightened his small body to stroke it. “Yes, I did. If you’re interested, I can recommend a hairstylist. The styling holds up pretty well.”
Lie Yang sat back straight. “No thanks, it looks awful.”
Shu Xun: “…” That’s it. If that purple lightning comes back, I’ll make Yang block it.
Far away, lost somewhere in the dense mountains, the purple lightning had no idea it had gained a new job…
After resting, Shu Xun and his companions finally left the mountain range and crossed the plain toward Zhu Si City. The flat terrain allowed them to reach the city gates in just two hours. The roads leading to Zhu Si City were wide and interconnected and the group approached the city’s grand gate along the broadest main road.
Zhu Si City, as the most prominent city on the continent, was immense in both size and grandeur—by far the most impressive city any of them had seen. Its four gates, located to the east, west, south, and north, were wide and massive. The city walls, nearly a hundred meters tall, stood like cliffs adorned with intricate patterns that occasionally shimmered under the afternoon sun. After their experience at Qing Kong’s residence, Shu Xun knew these patterns were far more than mere decoration.
At this moment, the gates of Zhu Si City were open. Two enormous doors, glowing with an ancient metallic sheen, stood at each side, featuring distinctive carvings. Atop the gates, two massive beasts sat, howling skyward, exuding a sense of majesty and weight. Their fierce eyes and fangs seemed to intimidate any would-be invaders while also guarding the city behind them. The dark-gold gates contrasted with the predominantly white backdrop of the city, adding a sense of solemnity and sanctity.
Before even reaching the gates, they could feel the oppressive weight of the towering walls, as if the cliffs were about to collapse onto them. The pedestrians below seemed insignificant, giving the impression of being instantly shrunk by the massive architecture. Such a grand city was rare, even in the highly advanced technological interstellar era, and here it stood, firmly settled on the green plain like a divine miracle casually dropped by a celestial being.
From a distance, they could already clearly observe the scene near the city gates with their heightened senses. Armored adjudicators stood on either side of the gate, though it appeared to be a routine patrol, with no checks on the residents entering and exiting.
After ten days, the shockwave from the incident in Qi Yu City had undoubtedly spread, but it seemed the native inhabitants weren’t actively pursuing anyone. This was likely due to the effects of the maze and their deep faith in the divine punishment, believing Shu Xun’s group could not have escaped. As a result, there was no follow-up investigation, which greatly facilitated their movement. To be cautious, they used one of Shu Xun’s talismans to slightly alter their appearance and weaken their auras, making it less likely they’d attract attention.
They casually walked under the city gates, blending in with the crowd, and entered Zhu Si City without issue.
Zhu Si City was bustling with people. The wide, well-organized streets crisscrossed each other, and the crowds were so dense that the streets were packed with people. Wandering bards were everywhere. As the main city for training priests, it wasn’t hard to spot priests in white robes holding staffs.
Despite this, the city didn’t feel particularly lively. The Twilight clan seemed not to have a habit of speaking loudly. Other than the bards’ melodious singing, there were hardly any loud sounds to be heard. In such a crowded scene, there was an unexpected sense of silence.
In addition to the native inhabitants, Shu Xun was certain that Zhu Si City must also be hiding a large number of game players, invaders, and transformed lying in wait. Beneath the holy and grand appearance of this city lay a web of complex relationships. Fearing the power of divine punishment, each faction had perfected their disguises, leaving no trace of vulnerability.
After walking through the city for a while and getting a general sense of its layout—although it was impossible to explore the entire city in such a short time—they managed to find a place to stay. As usual, they chose an inn in a busy area where information spread quickly.
They selected an inn that seemed well-established. As soon as they stepped in, they were hit with the familiar scent of blood, but they kept their composure and approached the bar. They paused briefly by the bulletin board to check the notices, unsurprised to find information about the Qi Yu City incident. Luckily, apart from Xing Kong’s personal details, there was no information about Lie Yang, Shu Xun, or Gray. The board recounted the events as they happened and the aftermath, which was just as Shu Xun had predicted—the Twilight clan believed they had died in the divine punishment and did not pursue them further.
The group exchanged glances and continued scanning the rest of the board. In addition to some adjudication notices, there was a message about an upcoming priest selection. When Lie Yang saw the information about the new priest, his jaw nearly dropped. The person listed at the top was all too familiar—it was none other than Meng Muyu.
Lie Yang grimaced as if he’d seen a ghost, poking the fluffy dumpling sitting on Ye Jian’s shoulder. Shu Xun was also a bit surprised, but much calmer than Lie Yang. Stroking his whiskers, he continued reading the information. He discovered that Zhu Si City had held three rounds of priest selections recently as if they were in urgent need of priestly talent.
In this world, where civilization’s worship had reached its peak, being a priest was the highest symbol of status. Becoming a priest required extremely strict qualifications and trials. Such an abrupt mass selection was quite rare. Though the situation was puzzling, the bulletin did not provide any reasons for this action. Shu Xun couldn’t find any clues to reason further.
The group didn’t linger long at the bulletin board and quickly headed upstairs.
As soon as they entered the room, Lie Yang couldn’t hold back any longer. “I mean, how is Meng Muyu being restricted so much? He’s a game player, but he’s actually become a priest among the native inhabitants! How did that happen? The natives aren’t fools—they rely on the power of faith and he doesn’t even have any of that. How did he manage it?”
Clearly, Lie Yang wasn’t the only one puzzled. The others fell silent as well. In this world, all power seemed to stem from faith in the so-called living gods. Meng Muyu couldn’t possibly believe in this world’s consciousness, so he had no access to the power of faith, nor could he perform rituals like baptisms. So how had he become a priest? And it seemed like he had even attained a fairly high rank?
Author’s note:
Purple Electric Light: “Come one, come all! Don’t miss out! Not for 998! Not for 998! For just one bottle of nutritional liquid, you can bring home a permanent curl with guaranteed results! It’s the kind of curl that’ll stay forever, even if you want to straighten it! Now, let’s hear from Mr. Shu Xun about his experience~”
Shu Xun: “…mmp!”
