Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 1351: Chapter 78: Life’s Sorrows Flow East Like Water

All around, a dense gray mist began to surge up… this mist wasn’t loose at all, instead it was like thick walls; just putting your hand into it a little, you could feel a kind of viscosity—this was the place that the regeneration consciousness had named as [Enoch].

This was the last thing Boss Luo had gifted—once this mist existed, [Enoch], wrapped in this heavy fog, became like a Peach Blossom Spring, or some similar kind of place.

Of course—the Corpse Pit was still enormous. [Enoch], enveloped by the thick fog, only occupied about a quarter of the area—the parts of the Corpse Pit outside the fog were exactly what they used to be, and still looked exactly like that now.

And the [Lost Rift] that linked together the territories of all the Thirteen Clans, whatever it had looked like before, seemed to still look like that now—only the [Lost Canine] had now become an item entrusted to the Shop.

The regeneration consciousness still had the right to take out the [Lost Canine] or the [Pseudo Eternal Immortal Body] from the Shop at any time… but the chance that this regeneration consciousness would actually use them probably wasn’t very high, was it?

…

Outside the dense fog, at a pile of remains… all of a sudden, something groped its way out of the heap of bones in a daze—it seemed to have violently shattered the bones that were pressing down on it.

A loud bang was heard, followed by an enraged roar… a Golden Dragon in red attire was now standing atop the white bones—it had recovered a sliver of stamina while unconscious, and at the same time remembered how it had fallen into danger because it had run out of strength.

The Golden Dragon, feeling that its dignity had been greatly insulted, now had some golden scales revealed on its cheeks, neck, and even arms—its hands opened slightly, palms facing upward, and two massive flames, red to the extreme, erupted from its palms.

Absolutely going to burn this place into a Purgatory… after Fafnir roared this in anger in her heart, she suddenly blinked.

“Eh?”

She was surprised to find something—for example, those vines seemed to have vanished, the surroundings had returned to calm—and aside from herself, all around her was nothing but gray-white bones covering the ground.

The huge, exaggerated flames slowly dissipated. Fafnir raised a hand as a visor over her brow, peering around. “Beauty! Beauty! Beauty, where are you?”

Just then, there seemed to be some movement from within the nearby pile of bones. The Golden Dragon’s face instantly lit up with joy and she rushed over; at the same time, two figures burst out of the heap of bones.

“Beau—” The Golden Dragon opened her mouth, but when she saw clearly who had appeared, she found it was actually that bloodsucker who called himself [Norman], and the Ancients girl Mina. “…So it’s you, huh.”

She turned her head and ran. The Golden Dragon’s figure slowly began to glide above the mounds of bones, shouting as she flew, scanning all around.

[Norman]… Bazby exchanged a glance with Mina at this moment, and couldn’t help but frown slightly.

“Brother, what exactly happened just now?” Mina, still shaken, grabbed Bazby’s arm, her body trembling slightly with fear.

“It should be over now…” Bazby comforted her softly, then flipped up the cloak on his back, pulling the girl straight into his arms and wrapping her with the cloak. “I’ll protect you… that’s the reason I became what I am now.”

“Brother…”

…

“This is about as far as I need to send you.”

At the edge of the thick fog, there was a passageway—the passage led directly into [Enoch]. At the entrance of the passage at this time, Boss Luo had the regeneration consciousness stop.

The regeneration consciousness did not insist; seeing them off was only a matter of courtesy, it really couldn’t be called protection—in front of these two, talking about “escorting” them was basically just a waste of time.

“After you leave the Pit, walk in that direction for about five kilometers, and you’ll come to a cave… once you pass through the cave, there’ll be a small path that leads all the way up to the surface. The exit is roughly at the edge of the [Farm] of the Torrido Clan.” The regeneration consciousness thought for a moment, then pointed out the direction—though in this sort of situation, that might be more or less optional for the other party.

It was simply for the sake of courtesy.

“I see.” Boss Luo nodded. “Looks like those Ancients who escaped into here back then must also have come this way… was this path opened up by someone?”

The regeneration consciousness shook its head. “No, it wasn’t. It formed naturally. On one hand it was the [Lost Canine]’s instinctive hunting, breaking through the soil layers; on the other hand, it was due to some unstable shifts in the Unhuman Domain, which caused the terrain to become chaotic.”

“Right, there’s one more thing.” Luo Qiu thought for a moment, then suddenly asked, “You mentioned that before we came, you once saw a pair of lovers… do you still remember their names?”

The regeneration consciousness was a bit curious why this Club Owner would be interested in such a thing, but still answered without thinking much. “Mm, they didn’t die from the vines’ attacks, but by a lovers’ suicide, on the way out of here, in the cave in front of that exit… if I remember correctly, their names seemed to be [Norman] and [Beaches]. After they died, their Souls drifted to me, but not long after that, they disappeared… after they saw the resentful spirit of the child they had killed with their own hands.”

“That child?” Luo Qiu thought for a bit and asked.

“The very same child who brought you to me.” The regeneration consciousness smiled, then beckoned. From inside the passage, a small figure slowly floated out and sat down on its shoulder.

It was indeed the Little Wraith that had guided Boss Luo and the Maid to find the regeneration consciousness in that [Past] cave.

The regeneration consciousness sighed softly now and said, “In front of this child, they finally repented, then faded away little by little. After that, this child became somewhat unstable, so I sealed its memories from that time… I did not create ‘past’ parents for it either, and instead raised it myself… as for their story, that’s all I know.”

Luo Qiu smiled and said, “Don’t worry about it. I just happened to read the diary [Norman] left behind before he was banished, so I was a bit curious about what became of them afterwards, that’s all.”

“I see…” The regeneration consciousness nodded, then as if remembering something, went on, “Besides this child, after they left the Pit and settled down near the cave, they seemed to have had another child.”

“Oh?” Boss Luo seemed to be pondering something.

The regeneration consciousness said, “But I have never seen that child… it seemed that child was born with some kind of special ability, able to block out my perception.”

“Thank you for telling me.” Boss Luo nodded gently. “Well then, if there’s a chance, let’s talk again. The companions on this trip seem to have already come back to their senses.”

“Take care.” The regeneration consciousness nodded, but just as Boss Luo and the Maid turned to leave, it suddenly called out, “Please wait.”

“Please speak.”

The regeneration consciousness hesitated for a moment, but in the end still said, “This isn’t really a request… do you remember I once mentioned that the former [Cain] encountered a [Void Asura] in the rift between dimensions, and that’s why it ultimately fell into this mainland?”

Boss Luo nodded.

The regeneration consciousness said, “At that time, [Cain] had another companion at its side, who also became lost and fell into this mainland along with it. I think perhaps you will encounter it someday… when that happens, I ask that you give it a bit of help. Of course, only if it has need of it.”

If you successfully introduce a buyer, you can get one year of the community management fee waived… Why do I have such a déjà vu feeling about this?

Boss Luo slightly opened his mouth, then nodded. “Of course, we don’t refuse any customer.”

The Rebirth Consciousness said, “That’s good… His name is [Yang Jian], and he has a powerful body comparable to a [Pseudo Eternal Immortal Body]. But it seems his method of obtaining it is different from [Cain]’s. It seems to be a special training method called [Flesh Becoming Holy]… I speculate that his Soul might not have dispersed like [Cain]’s did, perhaps it merely fell asleep… Also, he should have fallen into the present world of this mainland, not the [Unhuman Domain]. As for the approximate location, I also don’t know… It’s even possible that he has already recovered and left this mainland.”

Boss Luo’s expression turned a bit odd at this moment. “The one you’re talking about… he wouldn’t happen to have a third eye on his forehead, would he?”

“Exactly, how did you…” The Rebirth Consciousness was stunned, then reacted and spoke self-mockingly: “I actually forgot your information network… Anyway, if you happen to encounter him, I’d appreciate it if you could look after him a bit. [Cain] and [Yang Jian] walked together for quite a while on the path of exploration, so there is some sentiment between them…”

Boss Luo smiled. “Don’t worry, we’ll keep an eye out in the future… After all, if he is really the one I know, I’d say I’m quite looking forward to meeting him.”

“Life’s long regret flows eastward like water…” In those years, when he wasn’t yet a boss and was just a child, Boss Luo had also been one of the people tormented by that stuff.

“Well then, goodbye… guest.” After Boss Luo and the Maid bowed to him, they turned around and left together.

The Rebirth Consciousness slowly let out a breath, glanced at the tiny Little Wraith on his shoulder, and suddenly asked softly, “Do you still look forward to meeting them again?”

The Little Wraith only blinked, looking utterly confused.

The Rebirth Consciousness merely smiled… The same question didn’t seem to have an answer for itself either.

Only, at this moment, by its side, the [Them] who lived in [Enoch], appeared… In twos and threes, they appeared behind the Rebirth Consciousness.

Some held children, some walked with their lovers, some carried farm tools on their backs… A group, a crowd, everyone.

Those tiny Little Wraiths.

Whether they were the parents it had created in the [past] it fabricated, or those real Little Wraiths.

The Rebirth Consciousness stared in surprise at this scene—this wasn’t a calculation within its own awareness, it hadn’t even actively summoned them, their appearance was their own.

Outside the passage, they simply stood there quietly, watching Boss Luo and the Maid gradually leave, and finally bowing together.

“You all…”

The Rebirth Consciousness gazed blankly at this scene.

True Object, Pseudo-Object… it seemed, wasn’t all that important.

“Let’s go back.” In the end it took a deep breath. “I think today, we ought to have a celebration.”

The passage gradually closed, the thick mist began to gather, and in the end this place, where no one could tell truth from falsehood, was isolated from the mainland.

…

…

“…And just like that, Erlang split Peach Mountain open with an axe and rescued his mother.”

On the way back, Boss Luo briefly recounted some of the story he knew… The Maid certainly wasn’t entranced by it; she simply felt that since it was her master speaking, it was naturally pleasant to listen to.

But the Maid did know about the [Heavenly Palace] mentioned in this story.

“Back then, It did meet the Lord of the [Heavenly Palace] once. I also saw this Lord of the [Heavenly Palace] from afar… but I never thought he would actually have a nephew.”

It… and its meeting with the Lord of the [Heavenly Palace]…

Boss Luo immediately filled in the scene in his head.

And then…

The tone of that picture felt a bit subtle, didn’t it?

“In your eyes, what is the Lord of the [Heavenly Palace] like?” Boss Luo asked curiously.

“How should I put it…” The Maid blinked. “Roughly, a guy with a very long name.”

Pft—!

Boss Luo burst out laughing. “True enough, the names of gods in Taoist culture are indeed quite long, and full of obscure characters… Oh, we’ll talk about that later.”

About ten meters ahead, something seemed to be pushing out from a pile of dry bones—as if a prairie dog, a head popped out just like that.

The head was tightly wrapped in a kraft paper bag, and on it a simple human face was drawn with eyeliner—yes, the one poking her head out was none other than Miss Witch.

Boss Luo and the Maid exchanged a glance… There was certainly no such thing as “almost forgetting Maria”—the reason they’d walked this way in the first place was precisely because they knew Maria had been buried somewhere around here.

When Boss Luo and the Maid walked right up to Miss Witch, they found her struggling in sheer terror to pull her body out of the bone pile… Her body was visibly trembling, as if she could barely keep it together.

At this moment, realizing someone was approaching her, Miss Witch flinched first, then hurriedly curled herself up tight… She looked up at the two women in front of her (one being the crossdressing boss), and her gaze finally landed on the Maid as she subconsciously said, “You… you seem to be the one who came looking for my sister this morning…”

The Maid frowned slightly. “You’re… the younger sister? I remember your name seemed to be…”

“Teresa.”

This Miss Witch blurted out her own name at once.