The Record of Unusual Creatures - Chapter 218

Chapter 218: The Wall is Falling

 

Looking at Raven 12345’s gloomy expression, Hao Ren thought he had to be gloomier than the psychotic goddess: because he narrowly escaped her flying noodle soup and she also made it clear that even if there was half a pot of noodles, she would not share it with him…

Of course, these were minor problems. He moved himself to a safe place, looked curiously at Raven 12345 and asked, “Is this a serious situation?”

Hao Ren still did not have a clear understanding of the change in The Plane of Dreams. Although he knew it was a troublesome crisis, as a rookie with limited experience and knowledge, he did not know how big of a trouble it was. And now seeing such a response from Raven 12345, he realized that the situation was probably worse than he had expected.

“Serious? I’m not sure but, if there’s more evidence, then we have a lot of work to do.” Raven 12345 pointed to Hilda and continued explaining, “Do you know how low the odds are for a world to safely connect to another world without the assistance of professional equipment? That’s the equivalent of you being able to recognize the faces of 10,000 Korean celebrities. And this is a general case. I’m referring to the probability of you entering the main physical plane of another world from the main physical plane of one world. The Plane of Dreams is a subordinate part of this universe. It is like a shadow, where its priority is lower than the Surface World. That is, under normal circumstances, it should be hidden under the Surface World, difficult to be exposed and identified to the outside world. The creatures of this universe will only be able to perceive The Plane of Dreams in very rare circumstances what’s more a time-traveler from a different world, who has a weak connection with this world.”

“This means, even if Hilda time-travelled from her world, she should have entered the Surface World not The Plane of Dreams?”

“Pretty much.” Raven 12345 nodded. “Now, tell me everything you saw over there and I will make the next arrangements accordingly.”

Hao Ren told Raven 12345 about his experience in The Plane of Dreams. He mentioned the disappearance of the Orb of the Holy Synod two months ago, the various unusual changes near the blood lake, the rock giants that split from the cliff, the meeting with Hilda and most importantly, the alien spacecraft that appeared at the bottom of the blood lake.

He did not know which details were more useful so, he simply told Raven everything.

Of course, there was another major issue: Becky was sent to Earth by mistake.

After listening to Hao Ren, Raven 12345 sank into long silence, noodles hanging from her mouth as she entered into a mode of pondering for half a minute. Finally, just as Hao Ren was getting impatient, she suddenly came back, slurped the noodle and asked, “Did you say a ship landed in The Plane of Dreams?”

“Yes, this is the crew’s carry-on device from the spaceship, which recorded what happened when the spaceship crashed.” Hao Ren took the oval Torblec Data Terminal out from his Dimensional Pocket and said, “I got it from the technical advisor of the Torblec Hivekin.”

Raven merely touched the elliptical device and handed it back to Hao Ren. She said, “Well, I’ve scanned it but, I don’t know the owner of the spaceship mentioned on the data terminal. It should be an ordinary private company. According to the description of the accident, the spaceship was still working moments before the crash. Surroundings were also very normal so, this must have been the result of distortions from The Plane of Dreams…”

Hao Ren reminded her, “And Becky, she…”

“That’s just a subsidiary incident,” Raven 12345 said, waving her hand. “The situation has really started to deteriorate. Whether it’s Becky or Hilda or the ship, they are the result of this deterioration. If I’m not mistaken, I’m afraid there will be more of such incidents in the future.”

Raven 12345 frowned and looked serious. Although there was still half a noodle hanging from her mouth, Hao Ren was getting used to her behavioral patterns, which consisted of being serious and funny at the same time. After a few seconds of silence, Hao Ren could not help but ask, “You already know that The Plane of Dreams will deteriorate?”

There were indications that the goddess was not ignorant of the situation in The Plane of Dreams. At least she expected something before it happened but, for some reason, she did not take action. Hao Ren was quite curious about this.

“How do I say this, the deterioration of The Plane of Dreams is destined. It will deteriorate sooner or later but, I can’t determine when. And before it changes, I’m not sure what to do. The problem is too complicated. I have been keeping minimum attention on The Plane of Dreams all along. I even deliberately reduced the frequency of observation on The Plane of Dreams by agents and other departments in order to slow things down as much as possible, hoping to find a more secure solution before that. Until recently, I found that unease had begun and reducing the frequency of observation was no longer helpful…”

“What do you mean by ‘deterioration’? Is the balance between The Plane of Dreams and the Surface World being destroyed? Or is some kind of barrier becoming fragile? Why has the balance weakened?” Hao Ren asked curiously.

“Oh, it looks like you’ve been thinking about it too but, the exact meaning of the deterioration is much more complicated and the barrier becoming fragile is just the beginning.” Raven 12345 straightened her posture and continued to explain, “The Plane of Dreams is the shadow of this world, which is a subordinate unit. There is a solid ‘wall’ between The Plane of Dreams and the Surface World. The wall is a hindrance but, at the same time, it also protects everything in The Plane of Dreams and the Surface World so that the two worlds can be separated and not be annihilated by collisions. But now, I have to tell you that this wall could be melting. The Plane of Dreams is a shadow submerged in the depths of the sea, and now it has begun to emerge. Sooner or later it will collide with the Surface World, which will lead to a big annihilation. Therefore, the barrier becoming fragile is only the first step. First of all, The Plane of Dreams and the Surface World will permeate each other frequently, which is just a little bit of a trickle when the dam cracks. And after the collapse of the dam, the problem is not going to be just smooth contact between the two worlds. The whole dream plane will smash into the Surface World or vice versa. Boom,everything will be gone.”

It gave Hao Ren goosebumps. He quickly understood how the ‘dissolving of two worlds’ mentioned by Raven 12345 differed greatly from the ‘open teleportation of The Plane of Dreams’ that the MDT had guessed. Before that, the data terminal and Hao Ren had apparently been too conservative in their speculations about the situation. Hao Ren simply took The Plane of Dreams and the Surface World as two stationary containers, with a valve called ‘reality’ between the two containers. He thought the worst consequence of balance being broken was the opening of the valve, causing the products of the Surface World and The Plane of Dreams to circulate with each other on a large scale. Something like having a massive amount of monsters step on the streets of Washington or a group of humans discovering that Holetta had oil, which in his view were already great disasters.

However, it was clear that the real situation was much more serious than that. A wall separating The Plane of Dreams and the Surface World; the two worlds had always attracted each other like magnets. After the disappearance of the wall, the two worlds would not become complementary but directly merge into one.

No matter how the world would be after the integration, there would be no civilization like this anyway.

“The Plane of Dreams and the Surface World are consistent in general rules but, there is a difference in nuance,” Raven 12345 explained what would happen after the great fusion. “The speed of light in The Plane of Dreams is slightly higher than that of the Surface World. This alone will lead to disaster. Either the Surface World’s light speed barrier gets shaken and the hyper-celestial body at the tipping point explodes or The Plane of Dreams’ light speed is reset and the edge of the universe, which has been operating normally experiences an unexpected disintegration due to the sudden change in the barrier or, the two situations occurs simultaneously. There are still many problems that will seriously shake the foundation of the world. More than 90% of space and material will be eliminated, and the rest will be trapped in the chaos of the barrier. All science and technology as well as magic based on the laws of the universe will fail. There is no mortal civilization in this universe that can transcend this level. In this case, even if this civilization survives, it would be difficult to save it.”

Hao Ren was speechless.

Raven 12345 got up and gave Hao Ren a bowl of noodle soup. She then said, “I think you should be very stressed so, I’ll give you some special privileges. Drink this soup, then go and save the world…”

Hao Ren looked at the noodle soup that was no longer hot and said, “You told me that The Plane of Dreams and the Surface World will soon be merged and then annihilated after which, you gave me a bowl of noodle soup. You’re asking me to save the world with noodle soup as encouragement?”

Raven 12345 crossed her hands, placed it under her chin and said, “I made it myself.”

“The heck!” Hao Ren jumped half a meter high and said, “This is not funny at all! Do I have the chance to resign now?”

“Come on, how can such an unreasonable person like me allow you to resign?” Raven 12345 smiled and waved at Hao Ren to sit down. “Be optimistic. I just told you the whole situation to let you understand it. I didn’t say that I’ll let you solve everything alone. This is a serious event of the universe so, I’m responsible for the overall situation. I’ll let you do what you can do. Now, you just need to know what all this is for. That’s why I’m telling you the truth. Of course, another reason was because I couldn’t stop myself and accidentally said too much…”

Hao Ren was once again speechless.

Anyway, he sat at the back, frowned and looked at Raven 12345, then proceeded to ask, “Why has the ‘wall’ between The Plane of Dreams and the real world suddenly weakened?”

“Because this is how it’s supposed to be.” Raven spread her hands and said, “Just take this as the law of the universe. The specific reasons involved is a historical issue. It’ll take a few days and nights for me to explain. I’ll explain it to you when I have the time.”

Hao Ren was puzzled over its purpose and what it meant. Finally, he remembered a little detail that he had almost forgotten. “The rumors about The Day of Return that have been spreading like crazy among the unusual creatures on Earth, could that be the case?” he asked.

Chapter 219: You’re In-Charge

 

“The Day of Return?” Raven 12345’s eyebrow twitched upon hearing the strange term. “What does that mean? I’ve lost touch with the situation in this universe. Something’s going on with the earth’s unusual creatures?”

“In fact, yes. They’ve been active since a hundred years ago but, it only came to light recently.” Hao Ren had made a connection between The Day of Return with The Plane of Dreams. “…That’s the situation, the unusual creatures think their powers are being revived and the relic of their ancestors will resurface. That reminds me about The Plane of Dreams and Surface World where the connection between them will soon be established. Is this what they’re referring to? All the unusual creatures on Earth were originally from The Plane of Dreams. Besides us, no one would know the consequences of The Plane of Dreams’ disappearing barrier. They think it’s an opportunity they can exploit to reconnect with their home and revive their race.”

Tapping lightly on the table with her fingers, Raven 12345 said, “Perhaps. Their memories of The Plane of Dreams were erased after the disaster. But somehow, they might’ve still managed to pass down some secrets like the obscure, religious legend of ‘ancestral power from the lost world, which has been sealed’”.

Hao Ren looked at Raven 12345 inquisitively. “The merging of The Plane of Dreams and Surface World, are the unusual creatures the one—”

Without waiting for Hao Ren to finish, Raven 12345 waved her hands in dismissal. “No, they don’t have what it takes. Most of them don’t possess the kind of power to do so. They can’t even understand the mapping formula between The Plane of Dreams and Surface World, which calls for a special thinking organ to do the Math. What caused the ‘wall’ to disappear is of something higher, relating to the law of the universe. I’m not ruling out the possibility of a conspiracy; some very ancient fellows could be behind this but, investigation is needed before any conclusion can be drawn. All in all, the earth’s unusual creatures couldn’t have done that. They probably learned about the failing ‘wall’ from somewhere and misconstrued it as the dawn when actually it’s just a glint before the end.”

A shiver ran down his spine when Raven 12345 mentioned ‘some really ancient fellows’ as though this obscure image possessed a shocking power. Judging from Raven 12345’s solemn expression, Hao Ren suspected that a powerful evil force, which was lower than God but far above humans, capable of shaking the foundation of the world existed in the universe. Raven 12345 had just scratched the surface and did not intend to elaborate.

It appeared that Raven 12345 did not believe the earth’s unusual creatures were the masterminds but instead, they were being deceived. Anyway, she thought the intel Hao Ren provided was vital. “Though unusual creatures don’t play a hand in the mega merger of the worlds, The Day of Return surely has something to do with the extirpation of the ‘wall’. Keep an eye on this. Use force if necessary. I’ll send reinforcements if necessary. Hmm, if necessary.”

“Intel on The Day of Return was first obtained from the sirens—the first batch of sirens who came to the surface a hundred years ago,” said Hao Ren.

“Sirens?” Raven 12345 was surprised. “I barely knew about their surfacing. They were the ones giving the intel?”

“They may have obtained news of the falling ‘wall’ between The Plane of Dreams and Surface World somewhere.” Hao Ren concluded, based on the intel in hand. “Do you think it’s necessary to go to the deep sea to have a look? It’s said that there’s some kind of forbiddance…”

“It’s your call. From now on, it’s based on your own discretion. You’re in charge.” Raven 12345 looked at Hao Ren, her expression having some deeper meaning to it. “I’ll focus more on complex works. From now on, I won’t restrict your actions. There’ll be no more instructions from me unless it being absolutely necessary. I’ll be providing support in case you fail. You decide what course of action to take based on the intel you’ve collected. If you think you’ve secured key intel about the deep sea, then go. If not, do nothing.”

For a moment, Hao Ren did not give it a thought. But a few seconds later, Hao Ren sensed there was more to Raven’s attitude than met the eye. “Am I being conned again?”

Raven 12345 laughed but her face still looked solemn. “Hell, yes.”

She admitted it! The psychotic woman had admitted to it!

Yet, unlike in the past, Hao Ren did not jump to his feet and argue with her because he vaguely sensed her seriousness behind the cynicism. Something had to be going on—a test, perhaps. Hao Ren did not bother to ask because he knew the psychotic woman too well—she would not have divulged more than what she intended to, no matter what.

“Last question.” Recollecting in his thought, Hao Ren realized he had missed out a key thing. “Where did the sirens come from?”

“Where?” Giving Hao Ren a perplexed glance, Raven 12345 replied, “Of course, from the water.”

“That’s not what I mean.” Hao Ren coughed. “When I mentioned about sirens to the people in The Plane of Dreams, they seemed to know nothing about them—there was even no mention of the siren race in their ancient legends. Didn’t you say that all unusual creatures on Warth were originally from The Plane of Dreams? So, where did the sirens originally come from?”

Raven 12345 was silent, staring in his eyes with a creepy expression. Then, she said slyly, “Looks like you need more time to adapt to your wok.”

“…What?”

“Don’t let your old mind restrict your eyes.” Raven 12345 reached her hand out suddenly, patting his shoulder. “Look up at the sky sometimes. That’s all I have to say. Go figure it out yourself.”

Hao Ren rubbed his nose. He now had more questions than answers.

Hilda looked on. She had no idea what they were talking about the entire time but, she did feel that it had to be something cool. Cautiously, she chimed in as they finished their discussion. “May I…talk about my problem now?”

“Oops, traverser!” It seemed like Raven 12345 had forgotten about her. She may have indeed forgotten. Smacking her forehead, she said, “Deporting and settling traversers are jobs of the agent.”

Hao Ren pointed his finger at himself. “Me? How am I going to send her back?”

“Employee Handbook Chapter 6 Clause 3: Guide to Traversal Problems. Let me tell ya, if I find you asking this newbie question again, there won’t even be noodle soup for you.”

Quickly yanking the MDT out, Hao Ren found the clause Raven 12345 had mentioned. It explained everything about traversers, complete with case studies. He found that, in the eyes of Xi Ling Celestials, traversers were a dime in a dozen. The protocol to deal with them was simple and easy. He had a choice of three: one, let Hilda lie in the dormant cabin, any basic scan functions in the dormant cabin would be able to identify the traverser’s identity; two, send the scanned results to Traversal Affairs of Space Administration, marked ‘Ready-Processing’ and ‘Self-Processing’, then let technicians from the other department trace the traverser’s world of origin and run through the wanted list as well as traversal blacklist; three, fly his own spacecraft and navigate it to a giant space installation called World’s Gate in the local universe, upload the code to the space port, floor the spacecraft and the traverser would be home in no time.

It was up to the agent; he could either deport the traverser or place the traverser in a shelter after sampling the information or he could yank out an automatic lead and press it in front of the traverser. As long as it did not affect the equilibrium of the universe and the diversity of civilization, it was deemed a local issue. Those Xi Ling Celestial bigwigs could not have cared less.

Having read the entire clause, Hao Ren found that it was a matter of low priority and low-level authorization. Any agent could have handled it—of course, reporting back to the higher authority about the outcome was necessary. At the same time, he also found other seemingly irrelevant information such as non-motorized vehicular accidents, conventional war in the planet, public fights and etc. in the same folder…

He thought for a while, realizing that the MDT had probably messed up the information.

“For this matter, you’re in charge too.” Raven 12345 stared into his eyes. “You make your own decisions as long as they don’t violate the World’s Balance Security and Civilization Development Act. However, there’s a limit to how much special support you can get from me. Try to solve problems on your own and most importantly, by using your brain.”

It was the second time Raven 12345 had emphasized “You’re in charge”.

Hao Ren nodded in acknowledgement.

Chapter 220: Hilda’s Marvel

 

Raven 12345 had emphasized “You’re in charge” twice. It probably meant something or implied some sort of test or the adorably psychotic goddess was assigning him some heavy responsibility; no matter what, he had to accept it.

Despite the stress, Hao Ren was looking forward to it. Knowing that Raven 12345 was his fallback, he felt this time, it was a relatively safe opportunity to broaden his horizons.

Waiting for Hao Ren to finish studying the MDT, Hilda spoke quietly to him, “Can you send me back?”

“No problem.” Patting his chest with confidence. After reading the idiot’s Guide To Traversal Problems, he felt things were not as complicated as he had thought. “We’ll perform a check once we’re back. As mentioned in the guide, we’ll be able to determine your place of origin in two or at most three days. Then I’ll send you back to your planet myself.”

Hilda wanted to say something when Hao Ren mentioned the word ‘planet’ but, she choked and just nodded her head. Hao Ren looked up at Raven 12345 and said, “That’s all for today, I’m leaving.”

Raven 12345 held her bowl up, gulping down the noodle soup. “Please go…”

Hao Ren stared at her gross demeanor, reminding her before leaving, “The noodle’s too salty…”

It was the first Holy Communion Hao Ren ever had—in all senses, a true holy communion, prepared by the goddess herself in the heaven’s communication room. To say it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that every king and pope had been craving for, was no overstatement but, Hao Ren would rather go home and drink dough drop soup with Vivian: the holy communion just consisted of plain noodle soup with some vegetables in it plus, it had way too much salt. Raven 12345’s cooking skills could not even compare to that of Lily’s.

Hao Ren came out from the broken ‘heaven’ with Hilda. Instead of going home, he wanted to go to the town to buy Hilda some cloths and Lily, some snacks. Hilda blushed. “I’m fine with my dress. Don’t spend unnecessarily—”

“You’re welcome. After all, it’s claimable,” said Hao Ren as he looked at her: the queen was still draped in her white clothing—which was kind of a hybrid between a windcoat and a dress, a fine piece of clothing. However, it was reduced to shreds after days of action in The Plane of Dreams. The dress was not suitable for trekking so, Hilda had to cut off the bottom part of the dress, which had a lot of lace. It was stained and tattered. It was not appropriate for such a beautiful elf to run around in ragged clothing. While Becky was about Nangong Wuyue’s size, Hilda was even taller than Hao Ren—she had no choice but to get new clothes.

Before they reached the town, Hao Ren reminded Hilda to pull her hood up; her elf ears would attract too much attention. But then again, her looks and height were good enough to make heads turn. Pulling her dress tighter inadvertently, she said, “Do I look weird here?”

Hao Ren did not expect the streets to be so packed. He hoped Hilda’s ears would remain hidden while he was looked for a quiet place. “You should be fine as long as you act normal. After all, people are wearing all kinds of weird attires nowadays.”

“Okay,” Hilda replied as she observed everything that went on in a world so strange to her. She followed Hao Ren closely behind as they navigated past several junctions filled with people. Soon, they found that there were less and less curious stares like people were no longer interested in Hilda’s weird appearance. Hao Ren was perplexed. As he looked up, he found himself standing in a cultural square; a group of youths draped in leather armour, wooden armour and mail were wielding swords, blades, staffs and meteorhammers; two men clad in black hoodies were distributing flyers and a girl was in the same attire as Hilda not far away—however, the girl looked tidier.

Hilda was astounded, observing the chaos. She could think of nothing as she said, “Are we back to The Plane of Dreams again?”

Smacking his forehead, Hao Ren realized what was going on. “Ahh… it’s a cartoon and animation festival. There’s a cosplay exhibition here!”

“C….what?” Hilda was tongue-tied.

She had a special linguistic skill where she learned foreign languages by utilizing magic to read the superficial thoughts of intelligent creatures around her. The more crowded the place, the faster she learned. But, this magic was not as powerful as the translation system Hao Ren was using. She would be tongue-tied when she pronounced rare and special foreign words.

“COS is a subculture on Earth. We’re at the right place at the right time but, you don’t have to understand it,” said Hao Ren happily. His unusual tenants could now roam around freely—undisguised thanks to the cosplay festival that was going on. Vivian and Lily could let out their wings and tail respectively for some fresh air while Nangong Wuyue could find water facilities such as indoor swimming pools like fish to water. The only one who found it hard to blend in was Y’zaks. He was a six-meter lava monster. It was something you could not make up with props or special effects. Anyway, Y’zaks was already a real-life cosplayer in his human form. His face was too postmodern. So much so that you could not just explain it away with hereditary and genetic development reasons except with make-up.

 

His thought spun for a moment before he dragged Hilda towards a nearby mall. He kept reminding her as they walked, “If someone asks, just say you’re into cosplay… but, it’d be better if no one asks.”

Hilda nodded cluelessly. After all, she was just tagging along. The queen suddenly let out a silent scream when they walked past a fountain.

Hao Ren was shocked. “What’s wrong?”

“The water…the energy that’s making the water spray out…” Hilda pointed at the fountain in disbelief. “What is it for?”

“For…for show.” A little stunned by her strange question, Hao Ren said, “It’s a fountain. Don’t you have fountains in your place?”

“I know this thing.” Hilda frowned as she found it hard to swallow what she had seen. “But, only in the eco-dome, much smaller but just as powerful, used to sustain the ecosystem in the botanical garden. You guys put the fountain in the open just for show?”

Hao Ren could only respond by nodding. Soon, Hilda discovered something more which she found hard to believe. “What’s that giant display on the building? Isn’t it a notice board or something? Why do I feel like it just keeps repeating the same meaningless thing?”

“Err…that’s also for show. An advertisement.”

“What about that balloon in the air? The fabrics beneath it, couldn’t they be used to make clothes or something?” Why are they painted in different colours and hung in the air?”

“For show too.”

As Hilda’s marvel slowly died down, she began to be engrossed in the finer details of the world. She continued to find more and more incredible things. While The Plane of Dreams was a land of plenty, she found the earth to be so much more abundant that people were living an excessive lifestyle. As they finally crossed the square to the mall, she no longer held back her emotions. “You people are simply… wasteful.”

Hao Ren looked at her cluelessly.

“So many resources… water, energy and all kinds of materials; they are so precious and yet, you people are using them in a wasteful way.” Hilda looked down at the thing in her hand. It was a snack Hao Ren bought for her from a stall in the square. “The packaging is meaningless. It seems like this flexible material is just for a one-off use. In our world, all of this is unimaginable. We haven’t had a surplus in a long time.”

Hao Ren suddenly became interested in the world Hilda came from such as how it looked like for instance. It seemed like her world was experiencing a much more severe case of resource depletion than he had thought.

Chapter 221: Autodidactic Becky

 

Hilda was silent on the way home. She was wearing the new clothing Hao Ren had bought her while her torn dress was in the shopping bag, which she considered incredible as well as wasteful. She gazed at the shopping bag and fell into deep thought.

They were walking on the empty streets in the Southern Suburbs. Hao Ren did not use teleportation; he needed to let Hilda experience the public transportation system on Earth for herself. It was to divert her attention so that the anxious elf queen could ease herself. After all, Hilda was only going to stay on Earth for three days. She was just a tourist. But, things did not work out the way he expected to. Hilda was not in the mood to explore. All the while, she frowned. She questioned the way humans lived on Earth. Then she spent the rest of the day getting lost in her own thoughts, worrying about her homeland.

She was not like that during the past few days in The Plane of Dreams. Most of the time, she was traversing the wilderness, sleeping in a simple and cramped watch-house, having little time to observe and judge people’s lifestyle. Nevertheless, she did once express her envy for the blue sky and natural forest in The Plane of Dreams—though Hao Ren did not give it any thought at that time. Noticing Hilda’s strange behaviour, Hao Ren could not help asking, “What is it like in your homeland?”

He once heard Hilda mention that she left due to scarcity of resources back home. Out of desperation, she left home searching for new life in a new world but, the portal she was travelling in malfunctioned and she was flung into The Plane of Dreams accidentally. Hao Ren did not pay attention to what she said back then.

Lack of resources. How severe was it?

Hilda remained silent for a moment. Then she pointed to an old, metal shelf abandoned at a street corner. The metal shelf was a typical advertisement light box in the Southern Suburbs during its booming years. “Can you see the metal that’s being wasted there?”

“I see.”

“We recycle all materials over and over again. The energy and chemicals needed for recycling are stored at Coronal Station near the star. It’s an installation to harness energy and trace elements from the sun’s radiation. Every year, thousands of elves die from the solar radiation and light disaster.”

Hao Ren was stunned.

Hilda noticed the expression on the man’s face. She smiled as though she expected it. “Hard to imagine, isn’t it? I was born there and I received better material rations than other elves. I couldn’t imagine what it’d be like in a world of plenty until I was teleported to the land of blue sky and fresh air in The Plane of Dreams.”

Hao Ren did not want to admit his ignorance but, he could not hide the fact that he was completely clueless about things in Hilda’s homeland. He bowed his head, wondering, as an agent, what he could do for her.

In silence, the two of them finally reached home. He decided to set aside, for now, all their problems—The Plane of Dreams, The Day of Return, unusual creatures, the falling ‘wall’, the spacecraft wreckage and its owner. There were too many things he had to think about. It was better to deal with them one at a time, he thought.

“I’m back!” Hao Ren stood at the door, greeting everyone. Then, a voice was heard coming out from the kitchen. “Welcome back! Take a rest. Lunch will be ready soon!” It was Vivian.

Hao Ren loved this life: the noisy tenants were not just any other tenants. They shared with him a special identity and secrets. They were like a family giving warmth to one another. It did not matter who, when one got home, there would always be someone there. This was home.

Just a few months back when Hao Ren was all alone, there was just the silly cat rolling on the floor greeting him when he got home everyday. But now he always had a tableful of home-cooked food waiting for him to come home.

And not to forget there was also the silly husky who spun its tail like it was going to broke off.

As Hao Ren entered the living room, Lily immediately buried her head into a pile of snacks Hao Ren had brought back. Her tail wagged while she looked for her favourite snacks. “Where are my spicy sticks?”

“Don’t take too many spicy sticks.” Hao Ren sighed. “It could trigger an involuntary formshifting.”

Like we’ve said before, Lily was the only werewolf in history affected not by moonlight but, by spicy sticks.

Lily mumbled a few words as she darted to the fridge. At that moment, Hao Ren noticed a girl whom he had never seen before, sitting on the couch: she was clad in casual wear and her maroon hair casually draped over her shoulders. She had wheat-colored skin, which gave the impression that she was mixed race. She watched the TV as she cumbersomely played with the remote controller. She turned her head around and waved at Hao Ren when she realized that Hao Ren was staring at her.

Hao Ren was a little stunned. “Becky?”

“It’s me!” Becky waved excitedly with the remote controller still in her hand. “This is an interesting place. Look at this thing—TV and this remote controller! The alchemy of this world is awesome!”

“How’re you doing? I almost didn’t recognize you.” Hao Ren stared in amazement at Becky, who was completely clad in Earth attire. She used to look like a fantasy ranger but now, she was dressed in casual wear, which she had probably borrowed from Nangong Wuyue. No more ponytail as she let her hair loose and a little make-up on her face, probably with help from Nangong Wuyue too. She looked more like a human. “You look good in this dress.”

“I feel the same,” said Becky as she adjusted her dress slightly. “Nangong Wuyue said there’s something else I need. She’ll bring me to the shop…”

Nangong Wuyue came up. “Undergarments. I’ll buy her some tomorrow…”

Now, that was awkward.

Meanwhile, Becky was fascinated by the operating principle of the remote controller and the TV. She was tempted to test them out with her magic. However, considering how she was now penniless, if something went wrong, she would have probably had to sell her body. So, she killed the idea. She asked Hao Ren curiously, “You must be somebody.”

Perplexed, Hao Ren asked, “Why do you say so?”

Becky pointed at the TV then the lamps and the air-conditioner. “The big LCD, the oilless lamps, the the weather-control installation! I never saw things like these even at the countess’ home when I was there getting my assignment. So you must be somebody! Like you said, you’re in charge of managing the world’s traffic hence, I feel like riding your coattail…”

Hao Ren coughed. “No, it’s not what you think. Mine’s a covert job. Besides, these are just normal electrical appliances, which almost everyone has.”

Becky was wide-eyed with astonishment. “Are you kidding? These luxurious items, everyone has them?”

Hao Ren spread out his hands. “Science is productivity and demand is the godfather of productivity. Had the alchemical factories in your homeland understood the importance of market economy and industrial transformation, they would’ve achieved the same standard of living. They have similar basic techniques but they have been limited to a small area of applications”

Becky froze for like half a day. Then in a moment of clarity, she pulled out the music box Hao Ren had given to her earlier. “How much is this thing worth here?”

Nangong Wuyue, who was nearby, could not hold back her laughter: from day one, the naughty siren had already known that sooner or later, Hao Ren would have to face reality.

Hao Ren’s face instantly turned pale. A thought hung in his mind: the otherworldly human is not stupid at all!

“You don’t have to say it.” Becky already knew the answer, judging from Hao Ren’s expression. But she did not seem to mind. She was instead fascinated with something else. She could not care less if she was cheated. Looking down at the music box, she mumbled, “It’s probably just a toy but, it’s worth several horses in my homeland…”

As he listened, Hao Ren said, “What are you trying to say?”

Holding the music box and looking up expectantly, Becky said, “I could buy music boxes from the earth and sell them in my homeland while I bring in our alchemical wastes and sell it here like gemstones. I’d be rich in half a year. I’d then set up my trading companies in both worlds, monopolize all trades and hire my own bodyguards. People who discover my secret may try to challenge me so, I’ll use money to turn myself into a peerless fighter and use the money to smash those troublemakers. Of course, with my unparalleled wealth and beauty, I could get myself surrounded by countless of handsome lads, canonized as countess or even a duchess… Hmm, I could probably even acquire a piece of land in the east, build a castle and then declare myself as king. I’d fight the evil forces—if there’s none, I’ll build one—I’m going to make a name for myself in history no matter what… Hahahaha…I wouldn’t be a mercenary any longer, I’d live like a king…”

Hao Ren was at a lost for words.

It appeared that this maiden was the real the protagonist. She was an autodidactic inter-world trader!

Chapter 222: Super Baby Fish

 

Staring at the hopeful Becky, Hao Ren thought it would be cruel to burst her bubble. Although it was true that there were many corporations such as the wealthy Fairy Void Consortium and the cunning Gnomish Union of Commerce doing trans-boundary trade in the macroworld, Becky’s smuggling idea was not going to work. He looked quietly at the mercenary and chimed in when she began to envision how she would finish off other mercenaries in nearby villages with her money after crowning herself king. “Becky, do you know who I am?”

Becky finally came back down to Earth. Then, she looked up at Hao Ren. “Err… like some sort of agent…”

“Do you know what an agent does?”

“Captain of transportation…?”

Slamming the tea table, Hao Ren said, “Anti-smuggling.”

Much to Hao Ren’s surprise, Becky was elated. “Oh, great! Considering our relationship, you could become my inside man. Whoa, I can’t believe that I’ll really ride on your coattail…”

Hao Ren was speechless.

He felt like they were at cross purposes.

“Don’t even think about that.” Hao Ren rejected her idea, almost in tears. “Firstly, the law of the universe prohibits any kind of material exchange between The Plane of Dreams and Surface World; secondly, it’s technically impossible—it’s not easy to traverse between both worlds, especially during this turbulent time. Some sort of collapse could happen if you’re not careful and we’ll all become the biggest sinners.”

Becky’s enthusiasm died down instantly. “Then, I’ve come here in vain.”

A mercenary through and through, she came solely for money.

“Just stay in peace.” Hao Ren waved his hand. “Treat it as your holiday here. This world is a fun place. Also, I’ll get you some souvenirs you can really brag about for a long time when you go back home.”

Noticing the seriousness on Hao Ren’s face, Becky knew he was not going to compromise. She reset her mind, thinking the trip was not that bad after all and she was happy again. She turned her attention back to the TV remote. Hao Ren looked at Becky; he was not able to ease his mind so easily like Becky did. In his mind, he discussed about something else with the MDT. “How do we send Becky back in one piece?”

“Impossible.” The MDT’s reply was expected. “As I’ve said earlier, the rule of teleportation between The Plane of Dreams and Surface World is unique; you can bring Hilda out of The Plane of Dreams but, if she were to go back to The Plane of Dreams, she’ll have to do the same as all of you did—lie in the dormant cabin and project her spiritual body inside it. The same applies to Becky. She had a real physical body in the Surface World when she passed through the barrier of reality. As a result, her existence in The Plane of Dreams was wiped out at the same time.”

“Which means if she wants to go home, she’ll have to lie in that casket and dream, leaving her body behind in the Surface World. And it doesn’t matter how long she stays there, she’ll have to wake up eventually in the Surface World?” Hao Ren began to feel a headache because of this. “She now belongs to the Surface World. She’s not going to make it back home. How am I going to tell her that?”

The MDT was silent for a few seconds, as if thinking about the problem on Hao Ren’s behalf. Then it suggested, “You should write a will first and send me to the nearest welfare department before telling her that—”

Without hesitation, Hao Ren took the MDT out from his pocket and threw it into a bin at the corner of the room. The MDT in very agile fashion, did a mid-air flip and flew back. “I was just giving you a pragmatic suggestion!”

Becky overheard it and was surprised. “Whoa, that’s the first music box I saw—it can talk?”

Now, Hao Ren did not need to mince his words. “Since you’re already here, I’ll be honest with you: this is not a music box, it’s my personal assistant. But, if it goes too far, I’m going to gift it to you.”

“…You son of a…” The MDT counted.

However, Becky’s voice totally overwhelmed it. “How far before you gift it to me?”

Then the MDT turned as quiet as a church mouse.

Lunch was already served on the table. While in The Plane of Dreams, they survived only on conveniently found food and local food. To quench their yearning for food back home, the first thing Vivian did when she got home was prepare a warm, home-cooked meal. Just a side note though, Vivian did not find the food in The Plane of Dreams bad. To her, a square meal a day was the biggest happiness.

While Vivian called for lunch, Hao Ren herded Hilda, who was still in deep thoughts and Becky, who was still holding the remote controller in her hand to the table. Becky pointed at the TV as she walked. “The Lord of the Rings’ really interesting. It looks familiar to me… I know the sword skill Gandalf performed! But my magic’s much more powerful than his. He only knows flare. Ahh, wait, there’s another thing; the advertisement—after shampooing, people’s hair would stand up? Can any of you demonstrate that to me? What’s 7-Up? Drinking 7-Up can summon a huge group of water elements and sea waves? So, is it actually a strong hallucinogen or a magic supplement? Your world is interesting…”

Being bombarded with questions from Becky, Hao Ren was already worn down half way to the table. He raised his eyes, looking around. “Can anyone teach Becky some common knowledge?”

Nangong Wuyue quickly lowered her head. “Let’s eat…”

She had been teaching Becky for a while. She was more tired than Hao Ren at that point.

Luckily, Vivian’s cooking skills were a game-changer—at least, Becky was now more fascinated by the food and stopped asking questions, for the time being. Nonetheless, the impression that Hao Ren was a parvenu was further reinforced and she would probably begin to ask questions about the food.

It was not that The Plane of Dreams lacked good food; after all, they had at least a 10,000 year history of civilization after the end of the world. Holletta was rich in resources. Gourmandism was surely part of their culture. But Becky was a mercenary who was constantly on the go with no place to lay her head. She was good at making barbecue and the most eaten food was hardtack. When she occasionally settled down at a place, she would go to a wine bar to order a few bowls of nigori and two katis of cooked beef—we do not know if she would go hunt tigers after that but, one thing for sure was the food she had certainly did not match those at home. So, the moment Vivian brought out the gourmet food, Becky was wide-eyed. She used a pair of chopsticks to shakily pick up a piece of tofu and managed to do it after sweating like a pig. “Having a meal here is so troublesome. You guys must’ve been using these sticks to train your mental strength and concentration…”

Hao Ren had no choice but to let Becky use a spoon and fork for fear that she might die from starvation on the table. As for the pair of chopsticks, he decided to feed them to Lil Pea.

Speaking of which, where the hell was Lil Pea?

Hao Ren now realized that Lil Pea was nowhere to be found. As he was about to get on his feet and call out for her, the table rattled and slanted to a side suddenly. As the plates were about to fall off, Vivian immediately summoned a swarm of bats to stabilize the table. Everyone ducked down, looking beneath and they saw her—Lil Pea was under the table without anyone’s knowledge, lifting and gnawing on one of the table legs.

Everyone’s jaw dropped to the ground. Nangong Wuyue screamed in surprise. “Where the hell did she get the strength?”

Lil Pea discovered that everyone was staring at her. She put the table down and turned to Hao Ren, wagging her tail in greeting with chaffs of wood still on her mouth.

Hao Ren could not believe what he had seen: the little mermaid, who was just half a foot had lifted the table up just a moment ago.

He gently cuddled the baby fish in his arms and carefully examined her for any injury. Lil Pea was as energetic as Lily and it looked like her table-lifting feat was just a casual move. Vivian pinched Lil Pea’s arm—it was thin, no thicker than a chopstick, as if boneless but…

Hao Ren shoved the pair of chopsticks to Lil Pea. She mumbled happily before breaking them in half with a snap. She started to gnaw at them.

That chopsticks were made of metal and wood though.