Chapter 72
“Nothing is above life. I didn’t approve of coming to this place in the first place. I can’t condone this kind of primitive, wild, thrill-seeking behavior. If you really want to go, I can’t stop you.”
Looking at the blood and flesh mixed into a muddy mess on the ground, Cheng Yang recalled the "rustling" sound of walking on the stairs. A sense of depression spread through his chest. Countless fragments and pieces of flesh were crushed and dried day after day, forming the special texture that adhered to the footboard.
Although living in an era where we coexist with mutations and biochemical viruses, seeing these bloody things doesn't necessarily make us feel psychologically uncomfortable or nauseous, anyone in any era, or anyone with a conscience, would feel uncontrollably heavy-hearted upon seeing these things.
Cheng Yang turned off the wristband's light, stood up, and pulled Cheng Mo along. "Cheng Mo and I won't go into Weiming City. We'll wait for you at the hotel Anna booked."
In a situation where blood is drawn right away, no one would question the carefully made decision. Anna smiled to ease the atmosphere, "Then you guys go to the hotel first, I'll send you the verification code."
"drop!"
After sending the message, Anna and Lin Xiang held hands and continued walking up the stairs as if nothing had happened.
Feng Xiao looked at Cheng Mo, who was being stopped by his guardian, and wanted to say something to get Cheng Mo to join them, but Ye Feng interrupted in time, "Then Deputy Captain Wang will be in a group with me and Feng Xiao. Uncle, Cheng Mo, see you in a bit."
Cheng Yang nodded. "Be careful."
Lin Keli, Xin Ran, and Xun Jiang's group followed closely behind, and the crowd continued to ascend the creaking stairs in silence.
Chi Xia didn't catch up with the group quickly. She stopped and looked at Cheng Yang and Cheng Mo. Feng Xu and Tong Yue naturally stopped as well.
Cheng Mo remained truly silent for a while, watching the others gradually walk away. He looked down at the mess on the ground, and his voice was tinged with desolation, "Uncle, I want to go in and take a look. This is the closest I've ever been to death. What if..."
What if this place can awaken my talent?
The roller coaster in the air was still buzzing as if colliding and falling was its final fate.
Cheng Mo's eyes flickered, appearing remarkably calm and composed amidst the chaotic and disorderly environment. In the past, he was always cheerful and indifferent, maintaining an observer's perspective on everything.
But now his expression was very serious. It wasn't that he didn't care. He wanted talent, especially when everyone around him had awakened their talents. Ye Feng, Feng Xiao, and even He Ying and Li Yao were all silently training their talents, while he was the only one stuck in the quagmire of mediocrity.
This feeling is truly unbearable, like a drowning person struggling frantically and hopelessly in a whirlpool.
Cheng Yang had never seen Cheng Mo like this before. He knew what Cheng Mo was thinking. Cheng Yang glanced at the things at his feet again, then suddenly looked up at the steps two steps above him and called out softly, "Feng Xu?"
Feng Xu was looking at Chi Xia, wanting to ask her what she was waiting for, but when he heard Cheng Yang call him, he turned to face Cheng Yang and said, "I'm here."
"Now that there are no outsiders here, there's something that has been bothering me for many years. Can you give me an answer? How exactly did Wang Yijia die back then?"
After hearing this, Cheng Mo turned to Cheng Yang. Others might not know, but he knew that his uncle had a very good friend, Feng Xu. The two were classmates, but Wang Yijia's death became a knot in their hearts, and their relationship gradually drifted apart.
Cheng Yang: "I know she likes you. She even secretly watches you during class. She's an open and honest girl. She must have pursued you openly when I couldn't see her, right?"
Feng Xu glanced at Chi Xia subconsciously. Chi Xia had heard Feng Xu mention this before and also glanced at him. Feng Xu took a few steps closer and stood in front of Cheng Yang, responding to the matter very calmly, "Wang Yijia died from infection by mutated biochemical insects, but these insects were initially on me, and she saved my life."
A smile, both relieved and helpless, bloomed on Cheng Yang's lips. He sighed deeply, "She really likes you; she'd give her life for you."
Feng Xu: "She also admires you. Competing with you for first place was the only motivation that kept her going in those last days."
“I always thought her death was related to me, and I felt guilty about it for many years. I really want to tell her that firstly, I would be very happy if it were her.”
Cheng Yang lowered his head and clenched his fists. There were some words that the boy stubbornly refused to say at the time, and those unspoken words would be crushed into regrets by time.
Feng Xu: "Her death has nothing to do with you. I'm the one who owes her. First of all, she's happy because of you."
Cheng Yang looked up and saw that Feng Xu seemed to have let go of the matter. His heart, which had been clenched, sank into a soft nest. "I understand. Let's go in together."
Cheng Mo looked at Cheng Yang in surprise, "Uncle?"
Cheng Yang patted his shoulder, "Since we're already here, and you care so much about talent, I'll have to give it a try with you. But you have to promise me you'll go in safely and come out unscathed."
Cheng Mo nodded emphatically. Of course he knew that his uncle's refusal to go in wasn't out of fear of death, but because he was afraid that someone he cared about would die in front of him because he hadn't made the right decision in time.
Just like Wang Yijia, who competed fiercely with him in various mock exams, but jumped off a building before the college entrance examination.
He couldn't figure out what kind of complicated feelings his uncle had for that girl, but he knew it was a heartache his uncle didn't want to talk about.
Now, Feng Xu has given him a reassuring answer, and the thorn that had been anchoring him in his heart has begun to soften.
Chi Xia: "There are only a few of us left, so let's form groups of five. Feng Xu, if you're scared, you can hold hands with Cheng Yang."
Feng Xu: "..."
What is karma in this life? Here it comes.
"Pfft!" Tong Yue and Cheng Mo were both amused.
Having learned from their experience of the roller coaster crash, they didn't walk sideways like they were crossing the road. Instead, they moved to one side of the handrail and split into two groups, one in front of the other.
Chi Xia and the two boys walked in front, while Feng Xu and Cheng Yang walked behind.
After they started chatting, the two seemed to have a lot to say to each other.
Cheng Yang: "Didn't you say no to Wang Yijia? You seem quite cold towards her."
Feng Xu: "I don't like her, you should know that. At that time, my home was a mess, and I was in no mood to deal with her."
Cheng Yang: "Do you regret it?"
Feng Xu: "I feel guilty, but I don't regret it. Even if the other person gives their life, I shouldn't deceive someone I don't like."
Cheng Yang: "You haven't changed much."
Feng Xu seemed to look at Cheng Yang seriously for a moment, "You have changed a lot. You used to be very indifferent to people, even to me, your good friend. Now I see that you care about Cheng Mo a lot."
Cheng Yang looked up at Cheng Mo's back and said, "This kid has always liked to stick to me since he was little. I've watched him grow up from a soft and cuddly little thing to this big one. Even the hardest shell has been worn down by him."
Feng Xu thought of Tong Yue, who also loved to act spoiled, and realized that he himself was powerless to resist and had also surrendered. This was probably the unbreakable bond between blood relatives.
Tong Yue happily climbed up the group ahead with light steps. The various noisy and lively sounds were like a magnet, attracting him closer. Even though he could see through things, he couldn't just watch the excitement inside; he wanted to participate.
Those towering buildings are a hodgepodge of various creative ideas, and the crowds inside, dressed in specially made night-time suits and flashing like points of light, are excitedly exploring, their lights flashing incessantly as they move.
Chi Xia walked in the middle and said, "Cheng Mo, I have a question."
Cheng Mo was still angry that Chi Xia said his talent was eating wasabi, and he replied listlessly, "What?"
Chi Xia: "You and Tong Yue are of the same generation. Tong Yue calls Feng Xu 'brother,' but Feng Xu is your uncle's classmate. So what do you call Feng Xu?"
Cheng Mo frowned and glanced at Chi Xia. "I realized today that you are really boring. Why are you putting so much effort into teasing me? I'm not going to pay you for it."
Chi Xia operates the wristband.
"drop!"
Cheng Mo's bracelet vibrated, and a message showed that 88 cents had been deposited into his account. The sender was the woman next to him, his homeroom teacher.
Cheng Mo: "..."
Chi Xia: "I'll pay you to satisfy my curiosity."
Cheng Mo: "..."
"Wow!"
"That's so cool!"
"This trip was well worth it!"
Lin Keli and the others had already climbed the stairs and were shouting happily in front of them, their voices faintly carrying from the noise behind them.
Tong Yue smiled and looked at the two people beside him, "They've arrived!"
"As expected of a defensive building, the towering staircase is so high that you can't even see the moon when you look up. Aliens with poor physical fitness would probably surrender halfway up."
Cheng Mo's legs ached from walking. He could see the prosperity of Weiming City in the distance, but once inside, he climbed almost vertical stairs and couldn't see the scenery in front of him at all, giving him the illusion of only boundless darkness.
Chi Xia: "Your physical abilities haven't declined, so why should the aliens'?"
Cheng Mo: "Teacher, are you deliberately trying to annoy me tonight?"
When the group finally reached the top of the stairs, they truly understood why the Nameless City could protect the lives of the most people in all districts during the interstellar war.
Mountains beyond mountains are embodied in this place.
The last step of the stairs is just the first step into this nameless city. It is so low that it looks like a flat piece of land. Behind it is a magnificent and towering city that you can't see even if you try to look up. It is like a mountain or a giant beast.
Tong Yue, with his X-ray vision, stood there utterly bewildered. "They've vanished. Should we look for them?"
Cheng Mo: "Find a ghost, we'll be lucky if the five of us don't get separated."
Cheng Yang and Feng Xu also looked at the unique new world before them. Cheng Yang said, "If you don't come here, you really won't know that there are worlds beyond worlds."
Feng Xu: "Personal life and death are indeed very small here, and will be ignored."
After Feng Xu finished speaking, he took Tong Yue and Chi Xia's hands and said, "Hold on, or you'll really get separated."
Tong Yue pulled Cheng Mo up again, but Cheng Mo grabbed his uncle and said, "Let's go!"
The five of them quickly disappeared into the vast, boundless space, like grains of dust.
Hand in hand, they began another round of climbing. This time, the stairs wound along the massive exterior wall of the building, and at each corner of the stairs, there was a door leading to the unknown.
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