NOVPUBChapter 93: Chapter 92: The Awakened
Chapter 93 -92: The Awakened
“Shall we not talk here?” Cui Zhen’en rubbed his hands, “Can we leave the graveyard now?”
“This is not a graveyard, but the basement of Yeni Temple,” the host corrected, “If you feel fine, you can leave through the climb ladder ahead. As for you…” he turned to Zhang Zhiyuan, “the scores from the last game have been settled and the results are now being recorded.”
A big “+2200” then appeared in the latter’s vision. This time, the settlement screen not only added a zoom-out effect but even issued a few fireworks.
However, since Anthony’s score was too low last time, the others had to chip in a bit to help him gather equipment, resulting in his total score being only 2500 points.
“What about this time’s mission?” Zhang Zhiyuan pressed on.
“You will understand once you’ve met up with the others,” Chaoyang replied, his form fading away, “By the way, this place has become a new base for Paradise.”
Given the mysterious warnings received on the way, he also temporarily abandoned the concealment residence on Emerald Street and moved the player gathering spot to the Yeni Temple. As a building as ancient as Magnificent Castle, the temple’s interior holds many hidden compartments and a somewhat intricate underground storage area. When there were more deceased, the nuns sometimes also used it as a morgue, which conveniently served Chaoyang’s purposes—this time, when he called Zhang Zhiyuan and the others over, he didn’t even have to wait for Jenny to transport the bodies, as he could directly repair the ready-made ones in the basement and put them to use immediately.
Of course, if outsiders were to witness it, it would indubitably be seen as a wicked act, so Chaoyang was quite cautious. First, he considerably modified the facial appearances of the bodies, then he used thick perfume powder to mask the corpses’ inherent odor. Lastly, he partitioned off a section of the underground space, claiming he would conduct a series of medical experiments and requested the nuns not enter at will, a request which was also promised by Miss Jenny.
In short, the underground area of the temple had temporarily become a “restricted area” only players would venture into.
“Then… shall we go?” Zhang Zhiyuan looked toward his two companions.
“Yeah.”
The three of them moved towards a light-filled area and climbed a wooden ladder to the upper level, finding themselves in an even larger space, but it seemed to still be underground. The light originated from the four corners of the room—they were slightly above the ground level, like deliberately designed light wells, and with a few copper mirrors placed around the room, it didn’t seem too dark.
“This place must have been built quite some time ago.” Xue Quan walked over to a wall and touched it, “The stone surface has been eroded by moss, similar to some underground mausoleums from the last century that I’ve seen.”
“Look, there’s a sign over there,” Cui Zhen’en, with sharp eyes, noticed.
Following where she pointed, Zhang Zhiyuan indeed saw a wooden stand on the ground with the words “Command Post” written on it, and below there was an arrow indicating a turn.
“Wait, does this world also use Chinese?” Xue Quan said in shock.
“Uh… not necessarily, I guess it’s for security reasons.” Zhang Zhiyuan suddenly slapped his forehead, “Right, how many points do you have now?”
“Where do I look?”
“Top left corner, just keep staring, and you should see a string of numbers appear.”
Xue Quan stared intently for a while before nodding, “There’s a ‘1000’ figure. Is this an image projected onto the retina?”
“Don’t delve too deep into the principles; it’s unfathomable,” Zhang Zhiyuan immediately summoned the host, “They should be able to exchange for items now, right?”
“That’s correct,” Chaoyang replied telepathically.
“You both get yourselves a translation tofu,” he said to the two, “It’s just 200 points.”
“Could it really enable us to instantly understand a foreign language? Hahaha… stop joking, this isn’t Doraemon,” Cui Zhen’en waved his hands dismissively.
Xue Quan, however, went with the flow and directly exchanged for a piece of tofu.
He then watched as a piece of tofu seemed to materialize out of thin air in his hand.
Although they had heard that Paradise had the power to create objects, the sight was still tremendously shocking to them.
“Then I’ll eat it.”
Xue Quan took a deep breath and swallowed the tofu.
For a moment, he felt a new set of memories suddenly emerge in his mind, fitting in seamlessly as if they had always belonged to him.
“Mr. Zhang, hello, have you had lunch?” He attempted to organize the new language, but found it unnecessary; as soon as the thoughts surfaced, the corresponding words effortlessly spilled out.
Zhang Zhiyuan smiled and responded in the local language, “Not yet, let’s eat together later.”
This time, it was Cui Zhen’en’s turn to be taken aback, “Hey… are you telling me this is reality?”
“Sometimes, I indeed find it hard to distinguish between the two,” Zhang Zhiyuan admitted, “but I also believe that one day it will all be made clear.”
“Host… I’ll also exchange for a ‘translation tofu’,” she shrugged in resignation.
Following the signs, Zhang Zhiyuan turned into another underground room and finally saw a familiar comrade: Zhou Zhi.
Not because the name Zhou Zhi was displayed above his head, but because the young man was male, and according to the pairing rules of Paradise, it was almost certainly Zhou Zhi.
“Brother Zhang! You’ve finally arrived!” The other party recognized him instantly since he had noticed his appearance hadn’t changed much since the last time, probably specially adjusted by Paradise.
What followed was a round of introductions.
Upon hearing that the other two were also from China, Zhou Zhi visibly relaxed, “Everyone else is busy outside, I’m the only one without much to do, so I’m in charge of staying back to meet you all, and to introduce the progress of our current mission.”
“Why did Paradise separate the pull this time?”
“I don’t know, but when I came in, Miss Asahara was already here. Probably Paradise had communicated with them individually.”
“Why do you say that?” Zhang Zhiyuan asked keenly.
“Because everyone’s actions are quite clear… We all know we’re supposed to help Ms. Jenny rebuild the temple. Miss Asahara focused on the matter as soon as she arrived, delegating intermediaries to start looking for partners in Magnificent Castle, targeting some metallurgical manufacturing companies. And the Russian is in charge of the business negotiations, I heard he’s very good at driving down prices. Mr. Tyler too, the equipment assembled in the factories has all been quality-checked and supervised by him,” Zhou Zhi mused as he spoke, “In short, it seems like everyone had clear objectives upon entering, probably having prepared in advance. The two people you brought… they must have some special skills, right?”
Zhang Zhiyuan couldn’t help but recall his recent close encounter with Paradise.
Could it be that even these thoughts of his had been anticipated in advance?
“Not special, but they should be able to help,” Xue Quan said modestly, “Could you tell us about your current situation in detail, please?”
Zhou Zhi pointed at the desk behind him, piled with scrolls of paper, “Of course, that’s the only thing I can do now.”
…
Chaoyang didn’t continue listening because he realized someone was approaching him.
He withdrew his attention and saw that it was Judy.
The fire on Oak Street had been extinguished quickly, without causing much loss — apart from the source at No. 375. The incident even made it into the major newspapers, but it was basically indifferent news, barely attracting any attention. And Judy had successfully blended into the city, eventually meeting up with everyone at the temple; overall, it was a close call but without danger.
The only pity was that they were unclear who had issued the warning and which side was tracking Judy.
For safety’s sake, Judy was not only temporarily staying at Yeni Temple, but she had also donned a nun’s habit. With a black veil covering her head, she looked nearly identical to the hundreds of sisters in the temple, making it hard to differentiate her from the rest by appearance.
However, Chaoyang was able to recognize her instantly.
“Miss Judy,” he nodded in greeting.
“Excuse me, Mr. Zhao,” Judy said, “Ms. Jenny asked me to tell you, the man brought back from the fog zone… has awakened.”
