
There were no other customers in the restaurant. Sighing in despair, Uncle Li and his wife were sitting opposite each other and discussing the restaurant's revenues. They were very confident when buying the diner, but they never expected that the business wouldn't improve much since then, because it was difficult to attract customers from the other restaurants around them.
Seeing Zhang Zian and another customer walk in, Uncle Li and his wife quickly greeted them.
Since it wasn't meal time yet, Zhang Zian only ordered two cups of orange juice.
After the orange juice was served, Uncle Li and his wife left them alone.
If Zhang Zian had never ran into Meng Li at the library and received help from him that day, it would have been impossible for Zhang Zian to ever locate the untitled book. Meng Li had left the library before Zhang Zian, who had been wondering about this question ever since that time. Today, he'd ran into Meng Li again. He wouldn't miss another opportunity to find out the answer.
Meng Li didn't have a deep impression of that day. When Zhang Zian reminded him, he remembered and said, "Oh, that was the subject you were referring to. Manager Zhang, are you really studying mathematics?"
"I'm slightly interested in it," Zhang Zian said vaguely. "How did you know that the book was hidden in the reference book section?"
"Hidden in the reference book section?" Stunned, Meng Li corrected him. "No, no, you're misunderstood. I mean, assuming that there was such a book about life, the universe, and everything, it should be placed in the reference book section. It was merely my assumption. A book like that doesn't truly exist, right? Or have you really found such a book?"
"No, I haven't. It was just the slip of the tongue." Zhang Zian tried to cover up his previous question. "Is there anything special about the origin of the book? How did you decide that it would be in the reference section?"
Meng Li smiled confidently. "Assuming there is such a book, not only could I conclude that it would be in the reference book section, but I could also determine that it would be placed on a bookshelf with various dictionaries."
Holy crap! Zhang Zian was shocked.
That was f**king amazing!
Meng Li obviously had left the library before Zhang Zian that day, but it seemed like he had witnessed Zhang Zian finding the untitled book next to a pile of English dictionaries.
Zhang Zian became increasingly curious. Knowing that Meng Li was holding him in suspense, Zhang Zian said calmly, "Mr. Meng, are you able to know things without fortune telling?"
"No, I don't have that kind of ability." Meng Li stopped smiling and said seriously, "Have you heard of Hyperwebster?"
"What?" Startled, Zhang Zian racked his brain to search for the term in his memory, but nothing came up. 
Meng Li explained, "Hyperwebster is a thought experiment proposed by the famous mathematician and science fiction novelist Dr. Ian Stewart. This thought experiment means that, assuming that such a dictionary exists, and that the dictionary consists of 26 English letters, starting with A, ending with an infinite number of Z, like this—"
To demonstrate, Meng Li pulled out a napkin, laid it out on the table, and wrote on it with a pen he had:
A, AA, AAA, AAAA...
AB, ABA, ABAA, ABAAA...
AC, ACA, ACAA, ACAAA...
...
Z, ZA, ZAA, ZAAA...
ZB, ZBA, ZBAA, ZBAAA...
...
ZZ, ZZZ, ZZZZ, ZZZZZ...
Zhang Zian was perplexed, but he saw that the sequence of these letters seemed to be similar to what he'd seen previously in that untitled book.
Meng Li pushed the napkin to Zhang Zian and put the pen down. He asked, "You know what this means? This means that the Hyperwebster contains all the possible combinations of English letters. Whether they're English words that exist now, or new words that will be coined in the next hundred or thousand years later, they're already included in the Hyperwebster. For example, 'zidecuz'. This isn't a word, and it isn't currently included in any dictionary. If someone were to write this word, it would definitely be thought of as a misspelling. But maybe a year in the future, the word will be given some sort of meaning from people. At that time, people would be surprised to find that this word has already been included in the Hyperwebster, assuming that such a dictionary does exist."
Meng Li drank a few mouthfuls of orange juice to wet his throat, giving Zhang Zian time to process what he'd said.
Zhang Zian stared at the strange letter combinations on the napkin and tried to keep up with Meng Li's explanation.
Meng Li added, "Not only that, but because this dictionary includes all possible English words, these words may also constitute all possible entries. Theoretically, the answers to all the unsolved mysteries in history, and everyone and everything in this world, can be found in this dictionary. These entries may further form all possible passages, from the first poorly-written composition by an English writer from just a corner of the world, to The Declaration of Independence, the English version of Dream of the Red Chamber, the complete works of Shakespeare, the Encyclopedia Britannica, all the English books collected in the US Library of Congress, and all of the great articles written by an unborn writer. All of this is inside of this dictionary."
At this, Meng Li changed his tone and smiled relaxingly. "Well, at this point, you should be able to understand that the content of this dictionary is infinite. It has a beginning, but no end. The number of the letters inside the dictionary is more than all the atoms in the universe, because the total number of atoms in the universe is limited, while the letters in the dictionary are infinite. This book can only stay in people's imagination, it can never appear in the real world. Even if you exhausted all the time and atoms in the universe, you wouldn't be able to finish writing this dictionary."
"My life is finite, but the book is infinite." Zhang Zian whispered to himself.
"What?"
Zhang Zian's voice was so low that Meng Li didn't hear him clearly.
"No, nothing." Zhang Zian waved his hand. "I'm just a bit shocked."
Meng Li nodded and picked up his cup of orange juice, "It's normal. The Hyperwebster is a thought experiment that few people know about except for those in the mathematics community. It is not as well-known as the Schrodinger's cat, which the public takes great pleasure in talking about. So, when you told me then that you were looking for a book about life, the universe, and everything, I immediately thought of the Hyperwebster. In fact, I was joking with you back then. Afterwards, I worried that I had committed a huge sin by misleading you to find the wrong book. By the way, what on earth was the book you wanted to find that day?"
Zhang Zian smiled. "It was actually a science fiction novel—the third installment of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy written by Douglas Adams, and the title of the book was called Life, the Universe, and Everything."
"I see," Meng Li realized. "I rarely read science fiction. No wonder I hadn't heard about it. What a shame!"


1. Download a suspicious game
2. Catch a few magical pets as partners
3. Go through interesting daily routines and lead the pet shop to a whole new level

Why Royan?
How could it be Royan?
Lucan and Pangnard looked at the person that walked out from the dark and made the minotaur and horseman submit to him in disbelief.
They never thought it would be Royan.
Their brains went blank when they saw Kieran.
Until Kieran left with the two monsters, both of them finally came back to their senses.
"W-Wait!" Lucan called out loud.
Kieran didn't stop.
To Kieran, neither Lucan and Pangnard were worthy to make him stop.
Kieran continued forward. Lucan was scratching his head anxiously but he didn't know what to say.
Pangnard then spoke on behalf of him, "Do you want to get more treasures? Bring us along! We can help you!"
The coastal area representative spoke with respect and humbleness. He knew what attitude he should put on when begging, let alone he was begging a powerful human… Inhuman like Kieran!
That's right! An Inhuman!
A person as powerful as Kieran must be an Inhuman!
Why would he be assigned to the human campsite anyway?
Doubts appeared, one after another, in his heart, but Pangnard didn't show anything on his face.
Everyone had their own secrets and prying too much would kill them.
"Help me?" Kieran turned around at Pangnard.
"Em. Help, this is my talent! I can sense the presence of treasure and he can become the last line of defense. We can not only help you in pathfinding, we can also save your precious time!" Pangnard said seriously.
He didn't mind revealing his talent to Kieran.
He might be protective of his talent during normal times, against other competitors, he would never reveal it, but now? It wasn't necessary.
He could sense the treasure's presence but at the same time, he also knew they were guarded by monsters and there were some other dangerous presence that he couldn't pick up.
Especially the last point, every single one of them would be some fearsome existence.
Being in the middle of this battlefield, the danger level was unimaginable.
"Oh," Kieran nodded without any comments.
Pangnard immediately understood what Kieran meant, he said "There's a wooden treasure box around 500 meters ahead, there's another at the right side 700 meters in front…"
Based on what he had gathered, Pangnard had categorized the boxes.
Kieran didn't say anything.
He looked at the minotaur and horseman.
He spent a great amount of effort to tame these two monsters, who obviously had extremely high intellect and it wasn't just for fun or to make him look good. He took the two monsters in because he wanted to have a clear picture of the underground.
When he made up his mind to venture underground, he already knew what to expect and what he would run into but when Kieran finally arrived, he realized he took it too lightly.
The underground of the city wasn't a simple sewer system anymore, but a true underground city.
It wasn't just huge, its terrain was extremely complicated too.
The 'paths' opened up by the monsters were all random, they simply dug holes and excavated paths wherever they preferred. The end of a passage might be a dead end but making a turn at a rocky path might end up in a broad street.
Kieran did try to explore the underground himself but the randomness of the passage and tunnels were too much for him. After running into multiple dead ends, Kieran gave up on trying his luck, hence he got himself a 'guide'.
Among the monsters, the horseman that had a strong presence eventually became Kieran's target.
After he left Paladia behind, Kieran had been chasing the horseman.
As for the minotaur? It was just something extra.
Two guides were better than one, that's what Kieran thought.
However, after he saw the minotaur and horseman nod to acknowledge Pangnard's words, it seemed like the extra gain was the Herder representing the coastal area.
What would be better than a map in an unfamiliar and complicated place?
Two maps and a treasure finder!
Of course, a sturdy pathfinder was also quite okay.
Kieran commented on Lucan after a quick glance over him.
"Lead the way," Kieran said.
"My pleasure," Pangnard smiled and grabbed Lucan to the front of the group.
Lucan didn't say anything or disagree, the Northerners were stubborn but they weren't stupid and took things for granted.
He knew why Pangnard did what he did: to keep his own hidden talent under wraps!
This was a huge favour and a Northerner would return the favour whenever possible!
Therefore, after the group continued onwards, Lucan gradually recovered with the help of the potions, he then charged further ahead to open up the path.
Soon enough, Kieran had acquired some wooden boxes, all of which were potions.
Up until know, Kieran already got a general understanding about the pattern of the contents in the boxes.
The lowest rank would be the wooden box that held potions, followed by metal, copper and silver boxes. Lastly, the golden boxes.
As the rarity of the boxes increased, the contents would also be different. From the simplest potion, to Advanced Rank items, all things were possible.
It seemed like some parties had invested a lot in this Battle of Winter Night.
Were there any boxes above the gold rank?
Kieran had no idea yet, but based on his deduction, there should be.
His deduction came from the scarlet red skull.
Kieran frowned when he thought of the monster.
The red skull was without a question a powerful foe for Kieran ever since he stepped into this dungeon world, and until now, Kieran still didn't have absolute confidence in defeating that red skull.
"Pangnard, how far is your detection range?" Kieran asked.
"Around a kilometer. If the numbers are less enough, my detection range can go further but most of them were already in my range," Pangnard didn't hide any details about his talent.
Since the deal was struck, Pangard tended to lower the pride in his heart. He would not go back on his words and would not use some lousy tricks that couldn't even prove useful.
"Only a kilometer?" Kieran thought for a while before he looked at the two monsters.
The two, minotaur and horseman, understood Kieran based on a single gaze.
Without further ado, both of them started to draw a map on the ground for Kieran.
5 minutes later, a messy looking map was drawn.
The map was just an overall map with a square holding a circle inside. The square was irregularly shaped, so it was just a rough idea.
The inner circle was almost perfect though, ring after ring, starting from the outer circle, there were 6 connected rings to the center.
A dot representing their current whereabouts was drawn on the outer circle.
"Lord Yan Luo, we are currently here. If we want to go ahead to the Mou Sector, we have to go through a hang bridge guarded by the White Guard. That guy is a troublesome one."
The minotaur and horseman spoke one after another and quickly explained the situation clearly.
"How long until sunrise?" Kieran nodded before asking.
He didn't want to face endless waves of monsters all of a sudden while he was doing other things.
After hearing what Kieran asked, Pangnard and Lucan looked at the two monsters. Both of them remembered what they'd been through earlier.
"After the wooden clappers clap 12 times, the sun will rise."
The minotaur answered in a muffled voice and right after its words subsided…
Bang!
The clappers clapped.
The faint roars that came above ground paused for a moment.
"So coincidental?" Pangnard was surprised.
"I don't know. It's not me who claps the clappers, it's that weird guy and no one knows what that guy is thinking but that guy is very powerful. That guy must have formed some agreement with those bastards in the Jia Inner Rings, right?"
"Those bastards forming an agreement with that weird guy? Are you kidding me?"
"Who's kidding right now? You dumb horse-face!"
"What did you say? You bullhead?!"
The minotaur was explaining before the horseman joined the conversation, and soon, both of them were arguing with one another.
Right before the pitchfork was going to hit the greatsword, Kieran gave a strict face and the two monsters went quiet right away.
This wasn't the simple Oath of Allegiance anymore, both monsters knew what was under the surface: contracts!
The worst thing was the one holding to the Oath of Allegiance was a scary person.
Everytime these two monsters looked at Kieran, their hearts would throb and their body would quiver because after forming the Oath of Allegiance, they could see what this person did before in the past.
Colossal crocodile.
Bloody sorcerer.
Assassins from the dark.
Giant serpents that covered the sky.
Although what they saw from the vision was blurry, that lingering image of that giant serpent made their soul shiver, let alone this person who chopped the serpent's head in a single blow.
Both monsters were terrified to their core!
So the minotaur and horseman dare not oppose Kieran, it was their natural instinct to follow the law of the jungle. Even though they weren't exactly from jungles, the law worked all the same.
"Let's leave for the meantime," Kieran said, which represented the group's decision.
The group returned the way they came from swiftly. 
Paladia was on guard at the entrance and when he saw Kieran come out with Lucan and Pangnard, he wasn't at all surprised, but when he saw the minotaur and horseman, his eyes twitched.
The former were still useful and as Herders, it was plausible for Kieran to spare them, but for the latter?
There was only one explanation: [Seodi Stone]!
Even though Paladia knew Kieran would somehow use [Seodi Stone] after acquiring it, he never thought Kieran would use it on the monsters.
Did he even consider the consequences?
It would surely attract voices of disagreement from the old-fashioned Herders.
Some family that was much more extreme would view him as hostile too.
Then, it would be reasonable for them to reject help whenever Kieran ran into trouble, he would even be purposely picked on!
The worst thing was because of [Seodi Stone], Paladia was strapped onto Kieran's chariot, like a grasshopper on a string, no longer able to run away.
Once he thought about the despair in the rest of his life, Paladia saw nothing but darkness ahead.
So, his gaze on the minotaur and horseman was less friendly and it was very direct.
The two monsters noticed the sharp gaze at first glance.
"Is he looking down at us?"
"Hmm, I don't like this gaze."
"Let's skewer him and roast him."
"Agreed."
The monsters understood nothing about tolerance and their dictionary had the word 'tolerate' opted out, so they too retaliated with a less than friendly gaze and words.
However, all three of them were under [Seodi Stone]'s control, so the monsters knew this human was one of their 'allies', it was just that this ally was less than likable.
"Beef and horse bezoar are quite good. Braise the beef and cook the bezoar in gravy," Paladia fired out his sneers without stepping down.
"You want some?"
The minotaur and horseman brought out their pitchfork and greatsword; Paladia started to swing his hook rope.
Lucan scratched his head, trying to hold them back but Pangnard held him back by pulling his bear rug.
Pangnard knew this was someone else's affair, they had no reason to meddle with it as mere collaborators.
However, to Pangnard surprise, Kieran didn't even care about the tense situation between his subordinates, instead looking around at the surroundings.
What happened? 
Pangnard was confused.
With one encounter under his belt, Paladia stopped his useless argument with the monsters and looked around nervously. The encounter with that red skull was still fresh in his mind.
After losing their opponent, the minotaur and horseman lost interest in fighting.
Both of them looked at Kieran subconsciously.
"Lord Yan Luo, what happened?" the minotaur asked.
"Newcomers," Kieran said.
Newcomers?
The minotaur and horseman were confused, but the 3 Herders knew what Kieran was referring to and because they knew, they furrowed their brows hard.
"It shouldn't be! We should at least have 2 days of head start! How did it shorten to 1 day?" Lucan asked in confusion.
"Maybe something happened," Pangnard explained.
Bang!
The clapper sounded again.
The sound of the clapper was obviously enchanted by some power, whether on the surface or underground, the clap clearly entering everyone's ears, including the monsters.
The first clap and second clap had a very long interval but after the second clap, the third clap sounded faster.
Bang Bang Bang!
A series of claps sounded.
The monsters who were swiftly leaving the surface fell into panic.
When the last clap sounded, the crescent moon hanging in the dark sky vanished, the sun skipping the rising process and straightaway hanging up in the east.
Sunlight bathed the city again.
Blood, bones, and splattered bodies were everywhere.
Some belonged to humans, some to monsters, some were the wounds on the bodies.
The dead humans had wounds caused by humans and the dead monsters had wounds caused by monsters.
A messy and fierce fight happened last night.
Under the sunlight, the human bodies got more eye-catching, the bodies of the monsters started to melt and burst.
Bang Bang Bang!
Amid a series of bursting, a 7thick mist of blood shone brilliantly under the sun and it was an unusual scene to look at. 
While the city was covered in thick bloody mist, figure after figure appeared out of thin air.
The Inhumans had arrived in the city! As were the Monsters!


Welcome to a virtual underground game with no protection, full of lurking players who seek survival, power, and fortune. Kieran chose to enter this VRMMORPG game without hesitation, because he knew this was the only way for him to escape death’s grasp. Can he escape death in real life though, or will he end up dying inside the game? 

The sun shone brightly as the sea breeze caressed the surface of the sea gently, splish-splashing white foam on the coast.
Ling Yun was more than ten meters away from the shore, clad only in a pair of shorts. He crossed his legs, sitting leisurely on the stone chair he carved out for himself, reading the Oxford English Dictionary madly.
Ling Yun had gone through more than half of the Oxford English Dictionary before Bai Xianer underwent her tribulation. He was continuing it now.
However, the current Ling Yun wasn't the same as he was before. He now possessed the almighty divine sense and an upgraded Yin-Yang Eye!
Ling Yun's Yin-Yang Eye would get more powerful with his Yin-Yang harmony balance!
Previously, he could read ten sentences with one glance and not forget any of it. Now, he could read a hundred sentences with one glance and remember the contents even more clearly!
That was because the Yin-Yang Eye was now compatible with the divine sense. He could burn an image of the pages directly into his brain, reducing the need to read word for word!
It was a simple concept. A person, after looking at the cover of a textbook, would be able to remember what the textbook looked like as it floated in front of their eyes as an image.
However, upon opening the textbook to read the contents, there would be too many things which their eyes couldn't take in. Therefore, it would be impossible to remember all of it even if one were to finish the whole book.
Ling Yun was different. He had the Yin-Yang Eye, divine sense, a powerful soul, and incredibly strong memory. His focus area was broader, and it became as easy as seeing the word "language" on a language book.
How could he be slow with such an ability? He was just flipping through the whole dictionary in the end.
In another ten minutes, Ling Yun came to the last page. His mouth curled into a smug smile as he gently closed the Oxford English Dictionary.
Remembering something is so easy with the divine sense and the Yin-Yang Eye!
Ling Yun swayed his hand, wanting to throw the Oxford English Dictionary that he would never use again into the deep sea. He stopped himself at the last minute, however, since it belonged to Cao Shanshan. He put it into the spatial ring instead.
I'll return the dictionary to Shanshan personally…
Ling Yun missed her a little since they hadn't met for such a long time.
Time to prepare lunch again…
Ling Yun lifted his head. It was near noon, so the sun was nearly above his head. With a simple tap, his body left the stone chair and shot out like a cannon. He flew more than a dozen meters out to sea and dove in.
"Pong…" A huge ripple was left on the sea.
In less than a minute, Ling Yun's sexy body emerged from the surface of the sea. He had two violently struggling groupers half a meter long in each hand.
"Don't struggle, you will be food for today…" Ling Yun politely "communicated" their fates to the two fish. He then walked out from the sea and back on land.
Ling Yun could even use a blade of grass to propel himself forward.
Three days had passed since the day of tribulation, and Ling Yun's realm had firmly solidified at the middle of Physique Tempering Stage Seven.
He was now focusing on the cultivation of the Stellar Condensation Technique and was hoping to break through to the third major realm soon.
Ling Yun had reached the advanced stages of Physique Tempering. The Physique Tempering Stage Eight and Stage Nine required only time and the accumulation of True Qi. There weren't any difficult barriers remaining before reaching the Qi Cultivation Stage. 
Ling Yun reached the cave abode in a few leaps. Coincidentally, Bai Xianer had just finished her cultivation. Ling Yun called out to Xian Er. "Xian Er, come, lunch is here. I need to borrow some fire from you…" 
Bai Xianer was wearing a red dress. She couldn't help but smile at the still wet Ling Yun, radiating with beauty.
"Big Brother Yun, why are you borrowing my flames when you have the Fire Talisman…" Bai Xianer said shyly.
Ling Yun smiled and cut open the fish with a swish of his finger. He was very skilled at gutting fish now.
Bai Xianer wasn't going to let the opportunity to cook with Ling Yun slip by. She materialized a ball of flames with her Fire Fox Flame technique to dispose of the waste from the fish. It worked much better than a Fire Talisman. 
After Ling Yun was done gutting the fish, he threw them into the stone pot and activated a Clear Water Talisman. A ball of water appeared out of thin air and fell into the pot.
Ling Yun took out ginseng and Chinese Knotweed from the spatial ring and sliced a few pieces into the soup with his fingers. He then covered it with a lid.
Ling Yun then took out a Level Two Fire Talisman and pasted it on the bottom of the stone pot. A ball of fire sprung to life!
He would definitely not let Xian Er use her powers on cooking since he had a lot of Fire Talismans left.
They might be alone on a deserted island in the middle of the sea with no water nor grain, but their days were extremely fulfilling and extravagant!
Of course, that was also because of Ling Yun's capabilities. With the Fire Talismans and Water Talismans, they didn't have any fear of running out of food or water.
Steam had started to form before the fire from the Fire Talisman burnt out. Ling Yun simply took another out.
Very soon, the water boiled. Ling Yun sprinkled some salt and dripped a few drops of dragon saliva from the mysterious gourd into the soup. He then covered it with the lid again.
An intoxicating fragrance filled the cave abode.
That was the extent of Ling Yun's involvement in the preparation. He sat comfortably in the stone chair like the 'Master' Xian Er addressed him as and watched as she busied herself with the rest of the work.
Bai Xianer giggled as she brought out the stone bowls and chopsticks.
In less than ten minutes, the two lively groupers became delicious food in front of Ling Yun and Xian Er!
Bai Xianer cleaned the tableware and the table after they were done with dinner. She then went over to Ling Yun and gave him a massage like a servant girl. 
She was the most beautiful servant on Earth, and the massage was so comfortable…
"Xian Er…"
"Yes…"
"How is your progress with the Fire Fox Flame and Red Flame Heavenly Palm?"
Ling Yun looked up slightly, wanting to see Bai Xianer's beautiful face but was blocked by her huge tits. He, therefore, used the Yin-Yang Eye unceremoniously. 
Wow, so big, and round, and white… that cleavage is so deep…
That gentle kneading motion made Xian Er's snow-white tits move up and down. The two raisins trembled slightly. The whole scene made him hungry for a different scene.
Ling Yun's lower body responded immediately, but he could only hold back. He had to wait until all nine of her tails appeared before taking her virginity.
Ling Yun had never suppressed his body's reactions when he was with Bai Xianer. She blushed, seeing everything clearly.
"Master is thinking about dirty things again…" Bai Xianer fidgeted around in embarrassment. 
Ling Yun smiled. He had never told anyone about the Yin-Yang Eye. It was his own secret.
Bai Xianer continued in a low voice, "Master, I need a few more days. The Fire Fox Flame technique is very difficult to master, but I'm almost there…"
Actually, Bai Xianer had made good progress with the Fire Fox Flame and the Red Flame Heavenly Palm, so there wouldn't be much progress for the time being.
However, Bai Xianer knew that Ling Yun had a lot of women around him. Every one of them wanted a piece of him. Once they were back, she would have to share Ling Yun with them! 
Bai Xianer was very satisfied to be able to stay alone with her master on this deserted island, even though it was simple and had almost no urban atmosphere. Even one more second was fine.
Ling Yun grinned. He understood Bai Xianer's feelings. 
"Alright, let's stay for a few more days until you are almost done with your cultivation…" Ling Yun said generously. He wanted to grant Bai Xianer's desire.
That made Bai Xianer very happy.
Ling Yun actually couldn't bear to go back either. This place was where he was most carefree. He also couldn't resist Bai Xianer's gentleness.
Moreover, there were many things that he needed time to think through.
The days passed.
Bai Xianer stopped cultivating during the last few days and enjoyed them to the fullest with Ling Yun.
Bai Xianer then brought up the matter of returning home during dinner.
Bai Xianer was smart, and she had a good sense of judgment. She knew that, while Ling Yun doted on her, he would be unhappy if she didn't let him return.
Ling Yun smiled slightly. The dimple on his left cheek trembled as he rubbed Xian Er's little nose.
"Had enough fun? Let's go back tonight then."


Lingyun's tribulation has failed and he has descended onto Earth in the degenerate age. Step by step, he will rise up against the natural order!

Cats like boxes because they are cryptic animals; they like to hide, and a box gives them a place of safety and security. 
- Stephen Zawistowski
We were led down several corridors, the captain in the lead and a guard carrying Darwin in the rear. Leena and I each had a gun at our backs, though far enough back that simply spinning around wouldn't bring them into reach. They were good, as I said.
We entered a large loading bay, probably the biggest on the station. There was a pair of massive doors on each side of the bay, letting out into space. They were big enough to admit entire shuttles if necessary. There were also smaller doors built into these, as well as an airlock on each side. 
There were also a few dozen people moving about, busily moving crates, cutting metal or rushing to various stations with what looked like reports. I only remember these details in retrospect. What drew, and kept, my attention was the large ship in the center of the bay. 
It did not look like anything I had ever seen before. Our shuttles are sleek in design, meant for mostly atmospheric transport. This thing was alien. It was comprised of spheres of varying sizes, all reflective and overlaid with an intricate network of patterns etched into their surfaces.
About half the spheres were dismantled and lying on the bay floor. The rest were still together in a cluster, propped up by struts. Gantries and cranes surrounded it, though not much activity was apparent at the moment.
What was left of the ship though, with its sweeping curves and delicate filigree, was majestic. It gave off a sense of purpose, of deliberate design. I tried imagining it before it had been dismantled, and was awed by its size and simplicity. 
"That is beautiful." I said quietly.
"Thank you," Leena said. "I assisted in her design."
The guards ignored our conversation as they continued to lead us through the maze of boxes and stations. We were still walking through the huge bay, heading towards a series of desks and terminals. We passed a segment of the ship that had been dismantled and emptied of its components. It was being cut into smaller pieces by a masked workman. As I walked by it, I saw the etching up close. It was filled with gold and swirled and looped to form a dizzying pattern.
"What do the patterns on the skin mean?" I asked Leena as we walked by.
"Mean? They are an expression of beauty. That is enough meaning for them to have. Their function, when intact, is to serve as a charged electromagnetic field to protect the occupants and systems from harmful radiation."
"A charge net? We have those, but nothing so... so beautiful." I felt like I was overusing that word, but nothing else came close.
"Can a thing not be beautiful as well as functional?"
I immediately thought of Sam. Not of Joanie, but of Sam. She had been helpful, of course, supporting my Finding, caring for Darwin, keeping me company during my convalescence. And there was no doubt that she was beautiful. I realized that I wanted to see her again for none of those reasons.
"I think it should," I replied.
"There is hope for you yet, father."
I credit the captain for not reacting to this, though I was sure he was listening. Mendoza, who was still carrying Darwin, however, spoke her surprise.
"Father?"
"Secure the chatter, soldier." The captain said.
"Yes, sir."
We walked the last few hundred feet in silence.
Mr. Jones was seated at a large desk, talking to one of the technicians. Several others were standing around anxiously. The technician was pointing to a plan in front of Mr. Jones, but she wasn't even looking at it. She just looked at him and said, "I don't care. Get it done. If anyone else dies, it is on you. You have 6 hours."
He scurried away with his plans, fear and hatred mixed on his face. 
"Excellent!" Mr. Jones said, looking over to us. "Well done Captain. You will be amply rewarded for your exemplary service." She glared at the rest of the technicians until they backed away and went back to the bay floor in a cluster of concerned voices.
"Just doing my job, sir," The captain responded flatly. 
"And you do it so well," she purred. She was clearly on the prowl again, and I feared for our stalwart captain's health. 
"Thank you, sir." he said calmly.
Mr. Jones opened a drawer and pulled out a pistol. With a quad of armed guards here, what would she need a personal weapon for? She rose from her desk and came around to inspect us. 
She looked over Leena as if she was a piece of furniture, roughly grabbing and spinning her to check for damage. The contrast could not have been greater. The tall, silent figure in black, the picture of confidence and the small, pale ball of fury and indignation, trying to assert her dominance, restlessly beating herself against the immovable cliff.
"Time to get you back to my labs. I am very upset with you," Mr. Jones said in mock petulance. "I don't like it when my property runs away. You have cost me a great deal of money, time and frustration. "
Leena just kept staring forward, saying nothing. "Oh, that's right. You can't understand our language, can you? I wonder that your masters trusted a monkey like you with such an important ship."
This finally drew a look from the captain, who had clearly heard us speaking together. I would have given much to have known his thoughts at that moment.
"You, my little ape, have caused me no end of trouble. I promised a shuttle to my company, and a shuttle they shall have. But at a cost. A very dear cost. And it will make me very rich, and very powerful. So it is time I put you back to work."
The she slinked over to me, her eyes passing up and down my clothes. I heard the guard behind me ready his weapon, in case I tried anything.
Mr. Jones slowly reached out and touched the tattered and bloodied holes in my shirt, then the skin beneath. 
"How was this done?" she said in awe, passing her fingers back and forth over the spot where my shoulder had been blown away.
Her hand went from caressing my shoulder to grasping my shirt in a flash. "I asked you a question! How did you do this?"
I hesitated, trying to decide how to phrase it. "It was a gift from my daughter," I finally said.
Once again a gasp from Mendoza. She wasn't very good at hiding her emotions, and would probably be disciplined for it. Then I heard a click, though I couldn't place it.
Mr. Jones, typically, ignored everything that didn't directly relate to her. "Your...? More cryptic Finder talk? I saw you less than twelve hours ago. How is this possible? You will tell me, or you will show me." I found it amazing that she was able to distance herself from the carnage of that scene. She took a step back and raised her pistol, pointing directly at my shoulder.
A light dawned in her eyes. Turning back to Leena, she said, "You did this, monkey, didn't you? You and your monkey friends were able to heal all too quickly. And now you can pass it on? Well, I will figure it out. I will carve you up, and the Finder, and anyone else I need to in order to uncover your secret! This is worth a thousand shuttles!"
She was starting to rant. Her eyes were just a touch too wild. She was still staring at Leena when she said, "What's in the box?" She didn't take her eyes off Leena.
"Ma'am... uh Sir?" Mendoza sounded surprised to be the focus of this maelstrom's attention. "It is Darwin, sir."
Mr. Jones' face broke into a huge beaming smile as she spun in place to face the young guard. "You brought me a present! How thoughtful of you!"
Mr. Jones, her gun still raised, headed towards the box. Mendoza stood stock still. I will credit her for not trembling. Mr. Jones approached the box and tapped the lid with the barrel of her gun. 
"Knock, knock. Wake up you little monster. Time to pay for my chair."
"Would you like me to open it ma'am... sir?"
"What? No! Don't be an idiot. Have you seen that thing? Just put it down on the ground, I can take payment just as easily from there."
The box started to rattle in Mendoza's arms, and she struggled to hold it steady as she put it down. Then the lid burst open and Darwin leapt out, heading for the shelter of the bins and parts stored in piles around the bay at full speed.
"IDIOT!" Mr. Jones screamed. "He was mine!" She turned to face Mendoza and raised her gun.
Mendoza raised her hands, unable to go for the weapon slung across her back. "I... I am sorry ma'am."
Then Mr. Jones shot her in the chest. "Don't call me ma'am." She said quietly, then stalked onto the floor hunting for Darwin as Mendoza crumpled to the floor.
Everyone sprang into action at once, except for Leena, who was watching Mr. Jones wander into the maze of boxes and bins, scanning around each of them for a sign of Darwin. 
The captain knelt beside the Mendoza and took a look at the wound, "Punctured lung, extensive internal bleeding. No time. We need a gel-bath. NOW!"
The other guards abandoned their posts, one running for the door into the main corridors, the other grabbing a passing technician. I looked at the soldier's wound. It was serious, and within minutes it would be fatal. 
"Captain..." I started.
"I know," he cut me off. I knelt beside the bleeding girl and lifted her helmet off her head. She couldn't have been more than twenty-five. Her face was pale and there was blood on her lips.
"Synthia," the Captain said, pulling off his own helmet. He was an older man, short cropped grey hair and a few concerned wrinkles.
"Sorry, Dad..." she coughed, "I mean, sir. Guess I screwed up. I couldn't let her just kill him."
"No, soldier, you did fine." Tears were streaming down his cheeks.
"Am I dying, Daddy?"
He choked a little. "Yes, sweetheart, I think you are."
"Ok." was all she said, and then lapsed into unconsciousness, her breath coming in ragged gasps
"Is there anything you can do, Finder? Anything?" The heartbreak was clear in his eyes, though his face remained stone.
I looked over to Leena, who had been watching us. She just nodded.
"Give me your knife," I said to the Captain. "You must say nothing of this, ever."
Without hesitation, he passed over his knife. I placed the blade against my palm and sliced it open. The pain was not as great as I was expecting, though I suspect that it was a matter of degrees to me by now. 
I let the blood from my hand pour into the Synthia's open wound. Within a minute, her breathing had steadied. I could feel my hand tightening as I sat there and the blood flow stopped. I opened it to see wet blood in my palm, but little else. I wiped it off on my already ruined shirt, then turned the fully healed palm back to the captain.
"Not a word." 
His eyes widened, "Not a word, sir."
"Give her a few days, feed her well. And play this down. She was only grazed. A flesh wound. You were wrong."
"Aye, sir." he said. He then leaned into his com, "Fall back. Situation is secured."
The two remaining guards jogged back into sight.
And so did Mr. Jones. Slowly walking backwards, her gun raised. Walking towards her was Markham, bloodied and steady, her left hand purple from the tourniquet still wrapped around the wrist. She said nothing as she advanced. 
Mr. Jones fired at her, catching her in the shoulder. Markham just twitched, but didn't slow down. Mr. Jones fired again, but the gun just clicked uselessly. I have already said my piece about buying good quality weapons, so this can serve as an object lesson.
Mr. Jones glanced back, and seeing the guards yelled out, "Shoot her! That is an order"
The two guards who had just returned hesitated a moment, looking from Mr. Jones to the still kneeling Captain.
"That's an order, soldier!"
They raised their weapons.
"HOLD!" I yelled. "This is Personal Vendetta!"
They hesitated again, looking to their Captain. "Hold a moment." He checked his daughter's breathing once more, then reassured, he rose to his feet.
"Explain, Finder."
"She murdered Markham's wife. I stand as witness to the act."
"That's good enough for me. Finder's can't lie," he said, then turning to the two guards. "Stand down boys, this is Personal Vendetta, nothing to do with us."
"You still work for me!" Mr. Jones cried, still backing away from the steadily approaching Markham.
"Actually sir, we work for 3p. We always have. My team was sent to clean up your mess here, sir. And it seems that you have made more of a mess than you can handle. This is personal, not company business… Ma'am."
Mr. Jones was stunned, all of the power she had accumulated over years evaporating in a moment. In that moment of hesitation, Markham reached with her good hand and grasped Mr. Jones by the collar and drew her in. Markham standing almost two feet taller than her wife's killer, engulfed Mr. Jones in a bear hug against her chest.
Mr. Jones struggled to free herself, but the crushing vice would not release her. Markham kept walking, turning towards the wall of the bay. "They weren't even talking!" Mr. Jones, "They weren't talking to each other anymore! They had broken up!" And with those words Mr. Jones proved her guilt and sealed her fate.
The floor had come to a standstill. Every technician within sight was riveted to the scene unfolding in silence. Except for Mr. Jones, of course. She was yelling and pleading and ordering, all to no avail. Markham continued her inexorable walk to the waiting door, trailing her own blood as she went.
When one of the technicians realized where Markham was heading, she gasped in shock. The realization rippled through the small crowd. 
"It is Personal Vendetta," I reminded everyone. "This must play out."
I knew as well as anyone what Markham intended, and I knew how she felt. I knew the loss of the only person I had ever loved. 
"Barbara," I said, pitching my voice over Mr. Jones continued protestations. "Barbara, you don't have to do this. She… Susan forgave you, and you have forgiven her. Let the company take care of her killer. She already has much to answer for. Come back to us. We can heal together."
Mr. Jones had continued her ravings, struggling futilely against Markham's iron grip. In the silence that followed my request, Mr. Jones said clearly, "I'll kill you, both of you, ALL OF YOU!"
Markham pause a moment to look down at her prisoner. "I died years ago. You killed my only reason to come back." Then she started walking again.
Still holding Mr. Jones in her damaged arm, Markham reached out and pressed the panel to open the first door to the airlock. When she stepped in herself, still holding Mr. Jones's screaming body, a shudder of horror passed through the onlookers. Once inside, she closed the bayside door. The light above the door went from green to a blinking red.
The small window didn't show much, but for a brief moment Mr. Jones' terrified face was framed by the opening. She was mouthing something that no one could hear. The light above the door stopped blinking and glowed a steady red. Mr. Jones' face receded into the darkness as the airlock opened and Markham pulled them both into space.
There was silence as the final act of the drama sunk in. Someone was weeping quietly.
"Very tragic," a voice said dramatically, "but now that we are done with that nonsense, let us get back to the matter at hand."
I turned to see Gregson standing behind a kneeling Leena, a gun pressed against her temple. "Shall we?"

Joshua Freidman is probably the greatest Finder of his age. This time, though, he may have bitten off more than he can chew.  With his partner, a very big, very black, very opinionated cat named Darwin, he's got just a few days to save the girl and solve the mystery... or die trying.

"Qing Qing, if you don't want the dictionary, I'll give it to Nan Nan then."
Shi Qing simply snorted. "Elder Lin, you're appeasing me as if I'm a three-year-old child. Most probably, you bought that dictionary for Qiao Nan. Give it to her then. I don't yearn for it. If I want, I'll ask my dad to get it for me. Easy."
"Yes, Shi Peng's daughter is so great. Alright, the two young ladies, it's already so late. Quickly go back and rest." The more Lin Yuankang interacted with Qiao Nan, this disciple, the more pleased he was with her.
He did not have many opportunities to teach Qiao Nan. Nevertheless, Qiao Nan had never disappointed him.
He was most surprised that his little disciple had already gotten an Oxford Dictionary to memorize on her own when he had just bought her an Oxford Dictionary. He intended to get her to memorize it as well.
With this attitude, no matter what, Nan Nan would never be a disgrace to Lin Yuankang in the future.
"That's right. Qiao Nan, let's go back. I'm so tired that I'm dying." Shi Qing pulled Qiao Nan to make their way back to the dormitory.
When Qiao Nan came back after bathing, only Shi Qing was in the dormitory while the female counselor was not. Sitting on her own bed and wiping her hair dry, Qiao Nan sat down without a word. "Qiao Nan, you have not replied to me. Why do you know the situation of the secondhand stores so well?"
"Why do you want to know?" Qiao Nan stopped wiping her hair for a while before continuing again.
"Hmm… I don't feel good. I just wish to know." Otherwise, she would keep having an odd feeling about it. She could only confirm that she had been overthinking after clarifying with Qiao Nan.
Qiao Nan put down her towel and looked at Shi Qing. "It's what you have been thinking."
"How do you know what I'm thinking of?" Shi Qing refused to admit.
"Fine, then why are you asking me?" If Shi Qing did not have this bit of intelligence, how did she always clinch the top place in the exams in the past?
"Then, you have really encountered such a situation? It didn't seem so. I heard that your dad is very good to you." Shi Qing sullenly expressed that she could not understand.
"You heard about my dad, but have you heard about my mom?" She did not blame Shi Qing for not knowing. Shi Qing had only been here for a little more than a month. At that time, everyone was busy preparing for the examinations. Who would be interested in gossiping then? "Alright. If you treat me as a friend, don't add salt to my injury. What happened in the past is the past. Anyway, I truly cherish the learning opportunity that I have now. It's hard to come by."
Shi Qing leaned backward, looking dejected. She lay on Qiao Nan's bed directly. "No wonder you told me that every family has its hardships. At that time, I only thought that you were referring to the situation in my family." 
"Get up. My hair is almost dry. I'm going to sleep soon. Besides, you have not bathed and you dare to lie on my bed. Don't tell me that since this is not your bed, so you don't care?" Qiao Nan smiled as she gave Shi Qing a kick. "Don't pull such a long face. I don't even feel sad. What are you unhappy about? My life now is so good. Your sadness came too late."
"…" Shi Qing rolled her eyes. She could not bring herself to feel sad now. "I will go and bathe then. Do you think I like to lie on your bed?"
"This is not the first time you're lying on it and you still said you don't like to? If you're willing, is this bed going to become yours?" Qiao Nan pulled Shi Qing up at one go. "Quickly go and bathe. It's almost time for lights-off. When the female counselor is back, it'll be too late if you want to bathe." In their dormitory, the female counselor was the one who switched off the lights most of the time.
"That's true. I need to hurry." Shi Qing jumped up from the bed. She took her clothes and ran toward the shower room and did a combat bath at her fastest speed. She then hurried back to the bed before the female counselor came back. "Qiao Nan, where do you think the female counselor went? She's not back yet at this time."
Qiao Nan yawned and covered her face with a towel. "I'm not sure. Most probably, she has something to tell the political commissar."
"Oh, then goodnight."
"Goodnight."
When the female counselor was back, both Qiao Nian and Shi Qing had fallen asleep. 
At the sight of this, the female counselor switched off the lights immediately. She then turned on the torchlight and flipped to the page of the Oxford Dictionary that Qiao Nan placed her bookmark at. Finally, she switched off the torchlight and returned to her bed to sleep.
The next day, news about Teacher Xiao Qiao memorizing the dictionary was widespread in the army.
When Comrade Song, who sought advice from Qiao Nan, heard this, he felt even more emotional. "So, Teacher Xiao Qiao also learned it this way. Memorizing the dictionary, memorizing the dictionary!"
Anyone knew that a dictionary was not an ordinary book. It was an extremely thick and boring book. Memorizing the dictionary was something that only a typical person would do.
This serious learning attitude of Qiao Nan was worth the emulation and praise of everyone.
"Nan Nan, this child, she's really… She's too conscientious." Miao Jing was proud of Qiao Nan but her heart ached for her as well. "Look at that Qiu Chenxi. Zhai Yaohui, why is your sense of judgment in character so poor? Qiu Chenxi can't even be compared to a strand of Nan Nan's hair. If she is not from the Qiu family, ability-wise, Nan Nan will definitely surpass her in the future. It's a pity that such a good child like Nan Nan has bad luck in reincarnation."
Miao Jing's words were referring to the poor family situation of the Qiao family, and most importantly, Ding Jiayi, this 'excellent' mother. 
"It's not a pity," Zhai Yaohui said indifferently. If Miao Jing was observant, she would, in fact, discover the sullenness in Zhai Yaohui's tone.
Qiao Nan's ability after reincarnation was a little poor but her ability to pick a man was not bad. Her future choice perfectly complemented the inadequacy in the past. 
Most importantly, Qiao Nan was certainly very diligent. Given her relationship with Elder Lin alone, Qiao Nan's future would not be too bad even without the Zhai family.
Of course, only then was she qualified to be his daughter-in-law.
"Not a pity? Are you still thinking of Qiu Chenxi? Let me tell you. Given Zhai Sheng's attitude, that's impossible. Don't make Zhai Sheng so unhappy such that he's not willing to see you as his father." Miao Jing assumed that Zhai Yaohui said that because he looked down on Qiao Nan's family background and did not feel for her.
Seemingly in deep thoughts, Zhai Yaohui looked up at Miao Jing until Miao Jing felt uneasy all over. "I've already said. I'll not interfere in Zhai Sheng and Qiu Chenxi's matter anymore. You don't need to test my attitude with such words. Miao Miao, we're husband and wife. We should be frank and sincere to each other. You can speak your mind if you have something to say. I will let you know." 
They had quarreled for so long. Miao Miao's anger should have subsided, right?
After all, the marriage between Zhai Sheng and Qiu Chenxi was already canceled. He also had an agreement with Qiu Qin. This should no longer be an issue.
"It's very late. I'm going to sleep. You go to Zhai Sheng's place to sleep." Miao Jing hid her face and was unwilling to look at Zhai Yaohui. As long as Qiu Chenxi was alive, the prick in her heart would remain. Most critically, she could not forget the 'hug' between Zhai Yaohui and Qi Minlan that she saw with her own eyes during her previous trip to the army camp.


Qiao Nan: Crap! I am your biological daughter, yet I am treated as if I was picked up from the streets. In fact, you treat me worse than that!

Mother Qiao: Qiao Nan, you are not as pretty or smart as your elder sister. You are not as blessed as her. You have no right to study, marry, or to have your happiness!

Qiao Nan: Why am I not allowed to study, marry, or to seek my happiness? I will find a man right now and marry him!

Qiao Nan is dumbstruck upon discovering that the man right beside her is a powerful figure in the quad—the person who has the most promising prospects to be the future Chief.

Qiao Nan stares at the well-built man in front of her. He has firm abs and cold, chilling eyes. She swallows the lump in her throat as she says her greetings, "Good Morning, Chief!"

Hot, crowded, and noisy is how I would describe the halls to E.L.A. I push through the crowd and come across the school bullies. I rush passed them and hoped, since they were teasing another kid they wouldn't see me. I walked into the classroom only finding seven people to be seated.
    I look up at the white board and to see what it says surprised me. "Have a seat and get yourself comfy because this class is one of your classes without a teacher, you earned this by getting 100's all year last year in E.L.A. You will have to be responsible to teach yourself these subjects:
~Writing a good essay (Hook, Transitions, ect.)
~Vocabulary 
~Fluent reading
~Ability to speak and listen proficiently
   You will take a test that a different teacher will make for you every month. For today you decide what you would like to start on. Good Luck!~" -Mrs. Willford
   That's odd. Since when does this school have classes with no teachers. I guess I'll grab my dictionary, piece of paper, and a pencil to start my vocabulary. Getting straight into it I copy down every word, definition of the word, and I use it in a sentence.
   *Yawn* Ugh I should've gotten more sleep last night. Having no teacher buging me about being awake makes you really want to sleep. I mean I did go to sleep in science, but come on that wasn't that long before the stupid bell rang. What ever I'm going to sleep. 
   ZzZzZzzZ
                                                               <20 minutes later>
*Tap, tap* 
           
      "Hmm..What was that..." I open up my eyes slowly to find the girl from the back of the room next to me.
      "Um...you fell asleep and I just wanted you to know that we're going to doing a group project so I just thought maybe you wanted to join." She said in a cowardly voice. "...Sure?" I replied. So we walked over to this big , round, brown conference table. Turns out they were all doing vocabulary too so I grab my paper and sat down. All we really worked on was the same thing I was doing just we would end up sharing our words and sentences. 
     "Misinformation means false information that is spread, regardless of whether there is intent to mislead. I came up with the sentence, 'I believe there is a lot of misinformation about most of award winning schools.'" Maya, the girl who came to get me, told everyone.
     "Well I came up with the sentence for Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis, one of the longest words in the English dictionary. Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis is a lung disease, and my sentence is, 'My grandfather got Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis." I babbled. "Its also almost time to go so I'm going to get my stuff ready."
    As I was packing up my things I realized that after this class was lunch. Which was amazing since I'm starving.
                                                                   >RING<

Jaxson is just your typical 6th grader wanting to have a normal life, but the school his mother signed him up for is way more than he could ever want. The band is students professional songs, E.L.A has no teacher, and there is a class for murder it self. Will Jaxson make it out out of this school alive?

"In the future, you'll be Sword Two," Chu Xian said to Sword Two, not really caring if he understood or not.
After that short session, Chu Xian turned to the basin with the pufferfish. After a quick transformation, he devoured the fish.
"Ding. Devoured Pufferfish, gained Poisonous Body."
The gift was slightly lackluster - Poisonous Body only made some of his inner organs and a couple other body parts poisonous and he could apparently ingest poison with no problems, but he couldn't release any poison himself.
It was a defensive gift, and Chu Xian wasn't thrilled by its potential. If he was ever in a situation where he was getting eaten, poisoning the enemy through his own meat wouldn't be high up on the priority list.
It wasn't much, but it was something. It hadn't taken much effort to gain, and it was unlikely that having too many gifts would ever be a bad thing.
Chu Xian transformed back into human form and took a moment to let his surroundings sink in. He was surrounded by three naked men. He took a moment and smacked his own face; this really would be a moment he'd never be able to explain.
After making a quick recovery, Chu Xian barked out some orders before running over to the compound market. "Alright, don't go anywhere. I'll go get some clothes!"
After purchasing three sets of clothes and shoes, Chu Xian made two more stops - one at the library beside the elementary school to buy some books and a Xinhua dictionary and one to pick up some food.
When he returned home, the mermen were all standing in the same position, still naked. Chu Xian shook his head speechlessly. "Put these on. Ah, never mind. Old Huang, let me show you how to put these on. Remember this!"
Chu Xian taught him how to put on the clothes then he suggested tentatively, "You help the others wear theirs!"
To his astonishment, Old Huang worked quickly and helped Sword One and Sword Two into their clothes. Although this picture was really quite beautiful to look at, the most remarkable thing was Old Huang's learning abilities.
"Okay, here. Come over, I'll teach you Chinese characters and how to speak. Look at this…" Chu Xian said, swiftly putting on his elementary school teacher hat, beginning with the basics.
"F*cking genius!"
Two minutes later, Chu Xian slapped his thigh and forgot that elementary school teachers didn't yell curse words at their students. The twenty-six letters he spent a couple months learning were all absorbed and memorized by Old Huang in one go, and he could even repeat them back to him flawlessly.
"If he had more time, Old Huang might become an impressive professor among mermen!" Chu Xian looked Old Huang over with shining and not at all perverted eyes before he continued teaching.
Pinyin, Chinese characters, basic arithmetic … Chu Xian only taught Old Huang for an hour, yet he already understood everything. At this point, Chu Xian could just simply give Old Huang the books and let him study by himself.
"Amazing! Brilliant! Haha!" Chu Xian laughed excitedly and tossed the Xinhua dictionary to Old Huang. He basked in the brilliance of his creation.
When dinner time came, Chu Xian twitched as the three mermen dug voraciously into the food, conveniently forgetting how he himself leveled up in the first place. Each of the mermen ate a twentieth of their weight, and the lightest of the three was Sword One who weighed around a hundred and fifty catties.
If you took a twentieth of a hundred and fifty, you got 7.5 catties. Chu Xian rejoiced in the shameless word count fluff and that the mermen only needed one meal a day. Otherwise, it would take a huge amount of money to feed them.
"Although they've been created and are stable, their lack of identities is still a problem. I also need to find a place for them to stay. No doubt the suburbs will be safer."
"I can easily solve the problem of their identifies with money, and as for a place...!"
Chu Xian thought to himself and decided to buy a villa the next day. Considering the amount of fish he could still rule absolutely, he still had space for eleven more mermen.
Putting them up in one of the compounds wasn't too safe, at least while the mermen were still bumbling twats, so he needed a place with fewer surrounding people.
Conveniently, there were many villas outside Hai Qing located around mountains or close to the sea, and he had the influence and money to buy one as a mermen home base. If the Avengers ever came knocking, they could just slip into the sea.
Although they had been formed into humans, because of the system, their ability to live in the sea didn't change at all.
After thinking so much, Chu Xian was satisfied, so he told the three mermen they could sleep on the sofa when they felt tired before he retired to his chambers.
Old Huang, Sword One, and Sword Two were mermen, but some of their more fishy characteristics hadn't changed. While it wasn't true that fish never slept, they only slept for very short periods of time, except of course for the fish that hibernated, but they didn't matter.
While Chu Xian was sleeping, his evil creation mastermind robot, Old Huang, flipped through the Xinhua dictionary, spending less than a minute on each page while still memorizing every word.
Sword One and Sword Two were beginning to grow out of their stupefied states and were looking around and touching things in a perfectly normal and not at all suspicious manner.
Sometime later, Old Huang called out to the completely normal and not at all suspicious pair. "Sword One, Sword Two, come over. I'll teach you how to study the Xinhua dictionary!"
Chu Xian told Sword One and Sword Two to listen to Old Huang, so they obediently walked over to him.
"Come, repeat after me!'
If Chu Xian had a full bladder, got up to use the restroom in the middle of the night, and just so happened to glance over at the scene, he would've been quite startled. His evil genius robot creation Old Huang had only been alive for less than a day, but he could already speak so fluently!
But if he looked more closely and saw that Old Huang was teaching Sword One and Sword Two words from a dictionary, he might've cried instead.
As it was, Chu Xian had no problem restraining his bladder that night and instead, woke up the next morning feeling refreshed. After he washed his face and brushed his teeth, he walked out onto the scene of the three mermen.
"You two, read with me. Sword One, you first. Your name is Sword One."
"Your name is Sword One!'
"When you say it yourself, you should say: 'My name is Sword One.' Try again."
"My name is Sword One."
"That's right, and what is my name?"
"My name is Old Huang!"
"That's you, not me!"
"Oh, you are Old Huang."
"Pa!" Chu Xian slapped his head audibly and rubbed his face, as he was accustomed to doing in a perfectly normal manner and…. He was a little surprised and a little pleased but also somewhat speechless.
"Old Huang is four or five times smarter than Sword One and Sword Two." Chu Xian noted, quoting a statistic from his mermen handbook. "He has a genius's mind but lacks knowledge and experience, and Sword One and Sword Two are like eighteen-year-old young men. They can already learn quite fast." It had only taken them a night to say their names. They were already turning out to be strapping young men, far above ordinary.
"With this speed," Chu Xian monologued, "They'll be able to join society in a couple weeks then they can follow me into the world and definitely not do anything suspicious like trying to conquer it."
Chu Xian smiled. "It's too bad there are too few large fish. I'll need to go to the harbor to buy some more. If I'd known I needed more earlier, I would've just spent the fifty thousand to buy the tuna!"
"Come, Old Huang. Come, I'll teach you how to cook!"
Chu Xian already decided to cultivate his crazy genius robot mermen into a superman as any fine evil mastermind would've done. He was planning on making Old Huang study everything.
En, this way, he would have someone to make breakfast for him in the future!


A chance to change, challenge destiny, make dreams a reality, and live a legend! A regular man gains a system that allows him to turn into a fish! 
In the modern world, a young man gains an unconventional system that gives him the power to transform into a fish! With this strange power, he shoots for the stars!

The child repeated his question several times, attempting to rephrase it as though he had not understood, while he considered how to answer. It had been difficult enough to explain ordinary sight to one who hadn't realized that he was partially blind. 
"The wise are individuals of various species who can see as dragons see with their true eyes. They can see the strings of the world, even if they cannot discern the finer patterns," he explained. "But even though we are all looking at the same things, we interpret what we see according to our own structure and experience. What a dragon sees as a string of light, one of the wise among the seafolk sees as a dark current, and the few wise among the mankind seem to see the strings as rivers."
"Then other species can also have true eyes?" the child asked doubtfully. "I have never seen anyone except you. Anne's eyes seem completely ordinary to me."
"I don't know for certain, but I have never seen another species with true eyes, although cats seem to have something similar. The wise among other species are usually blind to physical sight, because they do not have two kinds of vision." He couldn't tell if the child understood, but he nodded after a moment.
--
Anne tried to work up enough courage to leave the dubious safety of the bathroom. Passing out and letting herself be carried back to bed sounded easier. Now that she was aware of it, she could see the ripples that shivered the air even here, with a wall between her and whatever was out there.
Dragon. The word meant flying fire breathing lizard to her. Whatever was in the living room was nothing like her image of a dragon. But she did remember hearing somewhere that to other cultures dragons were revered like gods, and she thought they represented wisdom, or maybe thunderstorms.
The frightening voices… she still doesn't know how to describe the sound, but for some reason she couldn't help imagining that a fifty foot parakeet might sound similar. The image almost made her laugh, but really, it would be pretty frightening. Parakeets were vicious little birds in her limited experience. Somehow the sounds grew less frightening with the occasional english word thrown in. Language lessons. Seriously? 
When Chris knocked on the door, she jumped, but he only asked, "Are you doing okay?" When she didn't answer right away, he called out, "Excuse me, I'm coming in to check on you."
She didn't know why she jumped forward to push against the door as it started to open, but it made her head spin. "I'm okay," she insisted, even though she wasn't entirely certain that she was. She was going to add something like, 'I just need a few more minutes', but what came out of her mouth was, "Shouldn't a dragon at least have a scaly tail?"
The door thumped shut as she wavered, now that there was no resistance. She stared at it blankly. The low voices of house sized parakeets conferred for a moment on the other side of that small barrier. A moment later it sounded like someone was dragging the furniture around.
She opened the door to see Chris shoving the couch up against the wall, seemingly oblivious to the golden waves that rippled over and through him, making his whole form waver like a mirage. He turned and looked at her and then… he unfolded somehow and a sort of oriental looking dragon tottered on his hind feet in Chris's place.
Anne closed her eyes, but it didn't help, because it just made the waves coming from the golden sea that she didn't dare turn her focus toward more vibrant. She opened her eyes again to find the dragon holding itself steady with one paw on the couch beside it, and watching her with concern. The mirage-like waver hadn't lessened, but something big filled the rest of the room, blocking the view of the other walls.
She wasn't able to prevent her eyes from turning toward the source of the waves. Claws, scales, serpentine coils, and the glowing gold sea filled her vision. And then she met its open eyes, and they opened again.
--
Chris shifted back into his current human form and carried Anne back to her bed, while Amaru announced, "I will stay in this form. Keeping my own shape compressed takes much less 'energy' than holding the shape of 'a human'. What is the word for holding?"
She opened her eyes as he covered her up, and told him rather firmly, "I'm going to sleep for a while."
He could only smile as she shut her eyes and pulled the blankets up. And then opened them again and pushed the blankets down to sit up and empty the glass of water. He handed her the next doses of her medicines, and she took them silently.
"Don't laugh," she grumbled at him as she scooted back down and pulled the covers back up.
"I won't," he promised.
--
A few hours later, Chris began to wonder again whether or not he and Amaru were really the same species. The older dragon didn't seem to need the repetition that most humans needed. He'd thought that his own memory was quite good, and it was, compared to the average human, but he still forgot things that he didn't use, and he couldn't imagine simply memorizing a dictionary.
They were currently working their way through an old Webster's Dictionary, pulled from Mac's shelves, because Chris had run out of words off the top of his head. He knew a great many more words than he could simply list. Probably everyone knew the word imbued for example, but who would think to mention it before it was needed?
Chris read the next entry and the older dragon pointed out, "You spoke about the meaning of 'immediate' previously."
When they reached the word mediate, Amaru complained that the meaning of immediate did not match the addition of the im prefix to the word mediate.
"It sort of does," Chris tried to argue. "Mediate means in between, and immediate is without anything between? Kind of. I did already mention that English regularly breaks its own rules."
"You did," Amaru conceded.
--
Anne woke up to the sound of Chris reading a dictionary aloud in the other room. At least, that's the only reason she could think of for the string of words beginning with V and their definitions. She felt sorry for the dragon he was teaching. He could at least be using one of the learning apps that presented things in a somewhat reasonable order.
She considered the DRAGON for a moment. Okay, both of them were dragons, if she could believe her unreliable eyes. And her ears, she guessed, although when the other voice responded it didn't sound like a fifty foot parakeet.
"Venerable age, I shall use this term for myself when people ask," a man's voice announced.
The way he spoke sounded slightly old fashioned… like the way Chris spoke, she realized abruptly.
Suddenly she sat up with a jolt of fright, and wondered how long she'd really been asleep. Her head spun, and the sensation combined with the soft waves that rippled everything in her vision made her nauseous.
She threw up.
It was horrible.
The recitation of V words halted abruptly and Chris was beside her with an arm full of towels less than a full minute later. Or at least that's how quickly it felt.
"I need a shower," she said plaintively.
"You can have another bath after your stomach settles enough to keep a bit of fluid down," he assured her.
A bath. She was not going to sit in a tub with vomit floating it in. "A shower," she protested much more weakly than she meant to.
"We'll see," he prevaricated as he pushed a glass of water into her hands. "Spit into this towel," he instructed calmly. 
When she finished, he carried away the bundle of bedding and towels. Somehow he had already cleaned up the worst of the mess. She hadn't even managed to apologize. It was like he was used to taking care of sick people.
"Are you really a dragon?" she called out doubtfully.
A flood of golden waves spilled across everything as a head as wide as a man's body moved into the doorway. She couldn't focus on the face enough to make out any details except the eyes. Her back was pressed against the headboard with no more room to retreat.
"He is, I assure you," the dragon told her in the same voice that had declared that he was going to use venerable age to describe himself. His eyes regarded her curiously, but didn't do the horrible thing where they opened up to show the stars within the golden sea shining out of them directly. "As am I," it added the obvious calmly.
"Y'yeah," she agreed weakly. "I'm not wise," she blurted a moment later. The dragon blinked at her. "Before, I heard… I heard Chris ask you what you meant by 'one of the wise'."
"You can see the rivers of life, can you not?" the dragon asked curiously.
Her mouth opened, but she couldn't answer him. The rivers of life. The streams that danced behind her eyelids whenever she closed her eyes, with the unseen branches and sky reflecting in them. The waves that spilled off of the dragon, out of the bright golden sea that made him impossible to look at. Life? Yes.
She looked into the eyes of a dragon while her entire world spun. Chris pushed the large head out of his way and walked through the door. He looked completely human except for the way the ripples and waves prevented her from focusing on his features.
Anne croaked, "I'm not crazy." It wasn't a question.

Dragons Waking has been removed and being resubmitted to the Spring 2020 Competition. Sorry for the inconvenience.

The English language usually contains 26 letters from A to Z, but sometimes & is included for a grand total of 27. There are over 750,000 words in the English language.

The shortest complete sentence is: "I am". 

The longest English word is Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis. It is the name of a lung disease caused by inhaling ash and dust. This is main reason why I would never try to be a doctor. It just seems impossible to remember all these important terms. 

A ghost-word is a word that just exists. They have no real meaning and are just there. One example of this would be dord. 

The by far most unique word in the English language is I. It is the shortest, oldest, and most commonly used word.

Almost 4,000 new words are added to the dictionary each year.

There are some words that can be flipped upside-down and still be read as the original word. An example of this would be swims.

All pilots need to speak English. 

Girl was also used to describe a child. This could have been either a boy or girl.

11% of the English language is just the letter "E".

English sounds alot nicer/friendlier than other languages.

Feel free to leave any kind of comment you want from questions to facts/spam.

A mishmash of random things. 
Daily chapter guaranteed.
Currently every new chapter will be focusing on a random topic. I will try my best to keep them interesting and short. 

(Pretty certain there's no duplicate content)

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word finder dictionary

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Pet King

The Devil's Cage

Dragon Emperor, Martial God

I Should Have Listened to My Cat

Rebirth to a Military Marriage: Good Morning Chief

Murder School

I Can Turn into a Fish

Removed to enter Contest - Dragons Waking

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