Chapter 8: 8

+++will add a note on the first chapter, because I thought I already mentioned it! The ‘Neptune’ in this story is most likely different from the Neptune we know of! 海皇星 hǎi huáng xīng is the one mentioned in the story, and 海王星 hǎi wáng xīng is the actual Neptune. 皇 huáng and 王 wáng both have a similar meaning, with the first being translated as ‘sovereign/emperor’ and the other as ‘king/monarch’. If you guys want, I can keep its pinyin equivalent instead of translating the word as ‘Neptune’, just let me know!

A glimmer of hope loomed in the crevices of Yan Junyu’s heart, but he managed to subdue it using his reason. As the saying goes, the greater the hope, the greater the disappointment1; thus, he dared not allow himself to trust Qi Ze’s claims, for fear that he’d suffer another despairing blow when his soul would, eventually, dissipate. At any rate, however, his current newfound strength of his spiritual body was, beyond the shadow of a doubt, Qi Ze’s making.

“I really don’t know what to say,” he spoke, sounding baffled. “Nevertheless, thank you, thank you for letting me live in this world for a bit longer.” His words were carried through the security door, reaching just past the first floor. With his enhanced spiritual body, he could travel further afield and was not required to always follow the individual bearing his cadaver.

The living room on the first floor was empty. It looked as though Ouyang Ye and Qi Ze went to their respective rooms to repose. Their bedrooms were set up on either side of the hallway, and attached to their doors were name tags. Yan Junyu took a closer look at the personal information on those plates. He was caught off guard by the fact that Qi Ze was from the art department; Ouyang Ye was from the logistics department.

“There’s an art department at Neptune Military Academy?” Yan Junyu knew nothing about this, and while pondering inwardly, he went right through the wall and inside Qi Ze’s room. Despite Ouyang Ye holding onto his remains, he was more intrigued by Qi Ze and, to quench his thirst for knowledge, he had to find out everything about him. He must play-act when interacting with others—however, it’s a completely different story2 when you’re alone, is it not?

The room was lit solely by a standing lamp. Qi Ze was enveloped in a soft, dim glow, swirling a glass of red wine he had in his hand. His milky white feet, stripped of his socks and shoes, were casually propped against the back of the armchair. His loose-fitting black sweater hung down one of his shoulders, causing his weak and thin body to appear even thinner. Shadows caressed half of his face, revealing for those greedy to admire a delicate chin and a pair of lustrous, cherry lips, stained with wine.

There was something of a languor that he was displaying, which was unlike the eccentric, daring youth he had been before.

Yan Junyu’s eyes flashed; he unconsciously lightened his footsteps and slowly made his way over, only to belatedly recall: he had long been dead, and his movements would not alarm the other no matter the ruckus he’d raise.

Within the tranquility of the room, one living being and one soul sat facing each other silently. About a few minutes later, Qi Ze put his glass down, retrieved a mirror from inside his Interspatial Button and lazily held it with his hand. Its surface gave the impression of being a lake, rippling as if a cool wind blew. Once the waves receded, a familiar face was reflected in the mirror—more precisely, Ouyang Ye. He dropped his head and used3 his intelligent brain, as if preparing to converse with someone.

Yan Junyu promptly made his way next door to peek and discovered that the mirror, indeed, acted as a monitor. But how could that be? Each and every military academy had anti-monitoring equipment installed in the students’ dorms, for the purpose of protecting military secrets and their students’ privacy, which would notify the military when suspicious signals were detected; afterwards, it would automatically contact the Academic Affairs Office and the military headquarters. The consequences of being caught were awfully severe, with sentences ranging from at least 50 years to 100 years at most, and a lifetime ban on one’s re-entry in the military.

The Yan family, as powerful as it was, only dispatched a few dozen secret agents in the search for the missing young master and did not dare come into contact with this minefield. Yet, Qi Ze dared to do so, while also having a casual attitude about it.

Yan Junyu briskly returned and sat down, facing Qi Ze, gazing into his inky, yet sparkling eyes, sighing, “it’s absolutely right for me to say you’re very bold. How are you so daring?”

Qi Ze, feeling uncomfortable, laid his legs flat on the chair opposite of him. Being unable to perceive the spiritual body nearby, he thought nothing of the awkward position he was currently in.

Yan Junyu peered down at the dainty, white feet that seemed to be touching his crotch, causing his ears to inevitably go crimson. He hurriedly rose to his feet and stepped to the lamp, no longer having the courage to approach the youth as he pleased. Just then, Ouyang Ye’s phone rang and a striking, yet brooding middle-aged man could be seen on the holographic screen; that was Li Yu, his uncle, who was in charge of the biggest black market exchange on Neptune.

“Why did you borrow so much money from me and used the funds left by your sister?” Li Yu questioned as soon as he opened his mouth.

In private, Ouyang Ye wasn’t as simple-minded as he appeared before. He efficiently explained to his uncle what took place today and requested to have Qi Ze’s background checked. It turned out that he was not unwary of him, nor was he a fool who could be easily cajoled; rather, he was merely misleading the foe with his cynical attitude towards life.

Time and again, Yan Junyu demanded that he keep Qi Ze in check, something which he consistently failed to understand, when, in actuality, he had done well and managed to obtain some of Qi Ze’s secrets.

These children proved to be more powerful than one another, he fretted for nothing. Yan Junyu shook his head and grinned wryly, then darted his sight to Qi Ze, and found that his lips had also curled, seemingly rapt at what he was seeing.

Ouyang Ye, who had lost his previous facade which masked his actual intentions, appeared both composed and adroit. He voiced his various concerns and asked his uncle to keep an eye on Qi Ze so as not to be eaten by black4. They conversed for a long time, before deciding to keep a low profile and analyze the situation some more. If Qi Ze was a man of his word, they would continue to maintain a good, mutually beneficial relationship with each other, even to the point of providing whatever was needed for him. However, if Qi Ze wished to deceive them, then they’d just get rid of him.

“The corpse of the Yan family’s eldest young master will be left in your possession, so that Qi Ze won’t be able to take a look at it and you can’t explain that to him. The deal hasn’t been struck yet, so it’s best you don’t end this friendship5 with him. Once Xu Qi leaves, I will find a way to throw the body somewhere into the wild. Don’t worry, there’ll be no evidence that’d point to you as a suspect,” Li Yu laughed grimly as he flipped through the information. “I just dispatched someone to check, and there’s no so-called ‘superconductive’ weapon that’s been created in the Black Eye Galaxy whatsoever. I trust your judgment nevertheless, and since you think it’s worth it, let’s give it a shot. The Li family has never shied away from high-stakes situations. As long as we don’t lose our lives, we still have a chance to turn the tables.”

“I see, uncle,” Ouyang Ye nodded his head calmly.

“If it eventually proves to be true, you must suspend all investigations against Qi Ze.” Li Yu paused for a moment before cautiously admonishing, “get along well with him. Don’t offend him if it’s not necessary.”

“I understand,” Ouyang Ye cut off the signal of the call.

Right in that moment, Qi Ze also reached out his hand towards the mirror and wiped it, causing the images to immediately vanish. It was as if it was nothing more than a run-of-the-mill mirror. “As expected, it’s a great idea to use this,” he stood up muttering to himself and stretched languidly, his pale, rounded shoulders bursting out of the wide collar, glistening in the dim light of the lamp.

Yan Junyu retracted his sight from his figure awkwardly and figured out at once the reason Qi Ze chose the art department. Just as Yan Bo once mentioned, he’d have a bright future were he to pursue a career in the entertainment industry.

Once Qi Ze set the mirror aside, he took out four more items and arranged them neatly and orderly on the table. If a common person stood here, they’d deem them as unfamiliar. However, the Yan family had authority over the military and government for generations, and was considered as one of the top imperial families, with its deep heritage giving the Yan family’s descendants a tremendously broad perspective. Almost immediately, Yan Junyu came to the conclusion that the things Qi Ze brought out were the “scholar’s four jewels”6, which were ancient writing instruments.

Thousands of years ago, an apocalyptic crisis erupted, and as the number one populous country at the time, Huaxia7 had far more survivors than any other country. As a result of the destruction of Earth, human beings migrated and settled in the Black Eye Galaxy. Due to differences in polity and ideology, they were divided into two camps, the Federation and the Empire. The Federation was under the control of Americans and Europeans, whilst eighty percent of the Empire was ethnically people of Huaxia.

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Therefore, many of Huaxia’s customs and its culture stood the test of time, yet it existed only in archives and museums, since it had been so long. Nowadays, the Huaxia people were accustomed to using the improved interstellar universal writing, leaving only the genuinely old and aristocratic families to let their children study the Chinese characters.

Yan Junyu gazed at the youth grinding ink in astonishment, this scene greatly affecting the uncertainties sojourning in his heart. If Qi Ze had learnt the Chinese characters, two things were requisite to be stated: first and foremost, he was, indubitably, a pure-blooded individual from Huaxia; second but no less crucial, his family’s social standing must be extraordinary!

None of the Empire’s major top gentry had the surname Qi, but during the Empire’s early years of its founding, there were many families who had decided to leave the Black Eye Galaxy, because they were against uniting by marriage with an alien race and changing their genes. It was highly likely that Qi Ze was a descendant of one of those hermit families.

This would explain his baffling and unpredictable means. It should be known that when those families migrated, they took away almost the entire heritage of Huaxia, and since then, the ancient martial arts, the Daoist and Buddhist practitioners of various schools and sects had disappeared, never to be seen again.

As pieces of the puzzle fell into place, Yan Junyu felt suddenly enlightened, however those were only his speculations, lacking tangible evidence. Whether Qi Ze was their ally or enemy, only time could tell. Having this in his mind, he went closer to take a look; what he saw was Qi Ze picking up his brush and jotting down a line of big characters, written in exquisite calligraphy8: casting good fortune, from both the left and the right sides putting forth the dual fire. The mighty spirit vigorously fills the universe, the bitter smoke curled up the upper ring building, but the artifact was not guarded①.

Yan Junyu could only recognize the Chinese characters and not write them well, let alone comprehend their meaning. Yet, that didn’t stop him from appreciating Qi Ze’s calligraphy.

“Very well written. I can easily tell you’ve worked hard,” he finished reading word by word; somehow, a desolate feeling rose from his heart.

Qi Ze gazed fixedly at the scroll of calligraphy for a long time, before murmuring sadly, “superconductive weapon, what even is that? It’s comparable to my tantamount spiritual weapon made by the dignified Tai Xuan God!9 The artifact is not guarded at all, it’s true the artifact is not guarded at all!10”

The tone and pronunciation of the words, although close to the common language of the Empire, had a light and ancient rhythm lingering in it, causing Yan Junyu to glance sideways at him. It was an authentic Jingdu11 accent that only a family with thousands of years of heritage could use with ease. The language of the commoners had long since assimilated with the language of the native races of the Black Eye Galaxy, turning into something entirely different. Instead of Chinese, it was more like a pidgin language.

It was a well known secret that if you wished to impersonate an upper class individual, one was supposed to first grasp the Jingdu accent. Yan Junyu did not enjoy boasting his noble status, but he had to admit that the accent attested one’s social status.

Qi Ze’s accent, possessing an ancient rhyme and a rounded style, was a testimony to his extraordinary origins. Yet, he usually concealed himself so well and allowed others to belittle him. And for what reason?

The more he seemed to understand the youth, the more mysteries Yan Junyu would discover. He had never been so intrigued by someone before and absolutely loathed the fact he couldn’t slither inside his mind and examine his thoughts thoroughly, one by one.

The author has something to say: A remark: ①The poem is called “Practicing Austerities of Dan Road. Analysis on Classifications and Techniques” by Hu Fuchen (《丹道实修真传：三家四派丹法解读》)

I found a few tutorials for cultivation, ready to pursue my heavenly path! The day I finish my work, I may have already ascended, so you don’t have to worry about it.

1希望越大失望越大 xī wàng yuè dà shī wàng yuè dà — the bigger the expectation, the bigger the disappointment; added the Chinese version in case anyone was curious!

2滴水不漏 dī shuǐ bú lòu — literally means watertight; contextually, it’s described as speaking and acting very cautiously and carefully, without any flaws. Its provenance comes from the “Chronicles of the Eastern Zhou Kingdoms” by Feng Menglong (明·冯梦龙《东周列国志》) . Here is a pdf with some excerpts from the novel for anyone interested!

3拨弄 bō nòng literally no idea; basically he ‘manipulated/fiddled with’ his brain, but it just sounds so bad in English??

4comes from 黑吃黑 hēi chī hēi — the expression in question (black eats black) is also a derogatory term, which is a metaphor for when one party, which engages in illegal activities, uses coercive means such as threats and force to oppress the other party, which also engages in illegal activities; contextually, it’s really similar to this explanation, though it stresses more that the other party (Qi Ze) is the actual ‘bad’ one.

5撕破脸 sī pò liǎn — basically ‘rip open the face’, meaning ‘the veneer of mutual respect being torn off’; it can also mean ‘come to an open break in friendship with each other’, though I gravitate more towards the first meaning I mentioned, as it fits the context better.

6文房四宝 wén fáng sì bǎo — “the four precious articles of the writing table”, which are the writing brush, ink stick, ink slab and the paper.

7华夏 huá xià is the ancient name for China; it implies the apocalypse happened during ancient times basically, more specifically somewhere starting from the Zhou Dynasty (1050–221 BCE).

8龙飞凤舞 lóng fēi fèng wǔ — like dragons flying and phoenixes dancing — lively and vigorous flourishes in calligraphy; beautiful penmanship.

9as Chinese google put it: ‘since the early years of the Western Han Dynasty the construction of a philosophical system that meets the needs of the Great Unification has become the primary task of the philosophers. Therefore, since the Warring States period, there has been an obvious trend in academic development, that is, philosophers are striving to build a philosophical system that connects heaven and man and includes all kinds.’ Basically.

10Qi Ze is reciting the last verse of the poem actually; as for its meaning, pls don’t ask… I’m sorry, Hu Fuchen, author, I have failed you…

11京都 jīng dū — lit. capital city (of a country); could mean this, or it refers to the former official name of Beijing (1918-1928), very confused!

*Note: I’m not sure if I explained this in any previous chapters, but to my understanding, an ‘intelligent brain’ is most likely either fully artificial, or mostly artificial. Future me will come and correct this if necessary!

+ ‘Shao‘ actually means ‘young master’… Wiktionary betrayed me…

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