Chapter 32
Su Ran continued to be shocked by this incident.
—Just like that, you spent the whole night with the colonel, wearing nothing at all?
Well, it’s not impossible though.
After all, when he was Little Rose, he had nothing and was exposed all day long.
But it seems that humans have to wear clothes when they sleep.
He saw that the Colonel was also in his pajamas.
And now, he is the only one who still maintains the tradition of the rose, and every time he transforms into a human form, he is in the most original state.
Su Ran entered a completely new and unknown territory.
How do humans sleep?
Si Chengyan didn't know that Su Ran had gone through so many ideological struggles. He looked at the young man in his arms, his snow-white skin turned slightly red, and tears appeared in his eyes.
Fragile, bewildered, and pitiful, it makes one want to hold her in the palm of their hands.
So he hugged Su Ran, lowered his head and looked at him quietly.
Finally, when the sunlight from outside the window came in, Su Ran moved, stood up and wrapped himself in the blanket.
"I..." He said softly, "I don't know why this happened."
Si Chengyan also stood up: "Maybe his condition is unstable."
Su Ran raised his eyes in confusion.
"It takes time for the nutrient beads to be absorbed. During this time, their form may become unstable." Si Chengyan said, "So they may change from a rose to a human form."
Su Ran: "Huh?"
He didn't even know about this.
Moreover, Colonel Si had said before that he didn't understand. When did he become as knowledgeable about nutrient beads as Elder Rose?
With a puzzled look on his face, his eyes fell on the intercom to the side. He saw that the desk had suddenly become filled with documents and materials. These were the research institute's belongings. They had only moved in two days, and the colonel was already looking up information on nutrient beads.
After looking away, Su Ran grabbed the blanket tightly.
"Thanks……"
Even if the colonel didn't let him say thank you, he wouldn't let him feel embarrassed at all, but he was a little rose who knew how to be polite.
Even if they have a very close relationship, sleeping and bathing together, he still has to thank this human.
"It's okay." Si Chengyan took out a white shirt from the wardrobe and gave it to Su Ran, "Change into this first."
Su Ran responded, took it and put it on.
His skin was originally fair, and the moment he put on the shirt, he looked even more elegant and gentle.
"Where are we going next?" Su Ran asked, "When will the shelter program begin?"
"Expected in the afternoon."
Si Chengyan said, "Wait for notification from the support institute."
Su Ran nodded: "Then we..."
Before he finished speaking, Si Chengyan said, "Let's go buy some things first. We need to stay here before the new city reclaims it."
*
So Su Ran and Si Chengyan set off.
He wanted to turn back into Little Rose, but was stopped because his current form was unstable and forcibly using the healing power might bring negative effects.
When he arrived at the bustling town, Su Ran opened his eyes wide.
This was his first time coming to a human market.
In this era of distortion of everything, land resources are limited. Starting from one end of the street, two long street stalls are built along a distance of about two kilometers.
Merchants were selling all sorts of items. Su Ran looked around and saw many tables filled with small stone statues covered in compound eyes, silver cups with ancient carvings, and snake-eye necklaces and bracelets...
Apart from this, there are some stone houses. The outer rock walls have fallen off and seem to be covered with green moss. Between the houses, there are many faded ribbons and banners hanging, providing some tea and food services.
Su Ran was extremely curious.
These things are different from new cities. There are no absolute regulations and they have different shapes.
"This is fun." Su Ran chose a small pillow, "It's cute too."
Unlike ordinary linen pillows, this one has intricate patterns on it.
If you look closely, the pattern should be in the shape of a snake's head.
Si Chengyan: "Buy it if you like it."
"Really?"
"Yeah." Si Chengyan said as he tilted his head to signal the shopkeeper to settle the bill.
So Su Ran had a "cute" little pillow, and then they walked all the way forward. Although Su Ran said that he didn't need too much furniture, Si Chengyan paid for it one by one. Whenever Su Ran stopped in front of a store and picked up something, the colonel would pay for it very quickly.
Before long, Su Ran had a small cape, three small octopus dolls, two small blankets, a pillow and a rocking chair.
From now on, if you need a nap, you can hug the doll, cover yourself with a blanket and sleep on a chair.
The appearance of Si Chengyan and Su Ran here naturally caused some discussion - some people who were concerned about the military, or those who were previously in the Qualitative Change Research Institute, all began to whisper.
However, their attention was more on Su Ran.
As the strongest colonel in the human race, it has long been known that Si Chengyan has a little rose.
Many street poets are taking advantage of the topic. They no longer talk about those ancient behemoths. Compared with this subject, The Colonel and Little Rose are obviously more popular.
But no matter how the news spread, when Su Ran was taken to the street by Si Chengyan, it still caused a burst of exclamations.
"This boy... is so beautiful!!"
"You know what, she's a perfect match for the Colonel..."
"What's wrong with those poets? They look nothing like the descriptions. They're obviously better looking."
Su Ran followed behind Si Chengyan and grabbed the corner of his clothes.
After a while, he whispered, "There are so many strange young ladies and gentlemen..."
Why do you all look at him like that?
He is just a little rose.
Oh no, we have to add a few more attributes, such as the Colonel's lovely rose, the rose that loves to drink dog ball juice, or...
Su Ran was distracted again.
When I came back to my senses, I saw Si Chengyan signing the last order.
"It can be delivered tomorrow." Si Chengyan handed the order to the clerk with two tentacles. "Then wait at home obediently."
Su Ran: "Yeah!"
There's nothing to do tomorrow, so just stay at home.
If possible, he could be a snail rose and clean the house inside and out.
Just as they were about to leave, they heard a deep voice: "Another plant that has been treated with nutrient beads..."
Su Ran paused.
He turned his head and looked towards the source of the sound in the corner.
It was an elderly man, his face covered in spots, and he was completely wrapped up, even his trouser legs were tied up, bulging out. He leaned on a stone cane, half-opened his eyes, and looked at Su Ran and Si Chengyan.
As soon as this voice came out, Si Chengyan stood in front of Su Ran.
"Heh..." The old man limped out from the corner, "Don't be afraid of me, Colonel. I'm not a bad guy, just an ordinary retired man."
Seeing Si Chengyan looking at him, he pulled the corners of his mouth and moved it like dry tree bark.
"You don't need to know my name. I worked in the shelter all my life. I was just a handyman at the base." The old man spoke slowly.
"I suppose you already know Enli."
Si Chengyan: "What's the matter?"
The old man touched his fingertips and said, "Nothing much. I just saw this little rose and wanted to remind you."
Su Ran poked her head out from behind Si Chengyan: "What's wrong?"
"I've seen too many mutants in the shelter before, but they all died halfway through their growth," the old man said. "Transforming into other forms is certainly good, but more nutrient beads are needed."
Now, Su Ran understood.
The reason he can't control his form is because he hasn't fully developed.
Maybe he is still a little malnourished, after all, he didn't drink enough dog ball juice before.
Su Ran silently recorded all of this in a small notebook.
"Then what should I do next?" Su Ran asked.
"It's actually quite simple," the old man said. "Although there are fewer nutrient beads in the old city, the area is small. Compared to the wild and the new city, the nutrient beads here should be easier to obtain."
The old man said this and paused for a few seconds.
He seemed to be thinking about something, and finally, he slowly said: "Now there is a nutrient bead."
Su Ran suddenly perked up.
He looked at Si Chengyan and saw him shaking his head, reminding him not to believe it easily.
That’s right.
Be a vigilant little rose.
The old man seemed to understand their concerns, so he smiled and said, "It's okay. It doesn't matter if you don't believe me. After all, we just met."
"But Colonel, the situation here is far worse than the information provided by the base," the old man said. "I know of your significant contributions to humanity, but now, after that level-six distortion, we have also experienced many unexplained changes."
"unknown?"
"This is also what Enli wants the military... oh no, the entire Haicheng population wants the military to investigate," the old man said. "Before the afternoon's detention begins, you can learn about it first."
Listening to the old man's words, Su Ran took a small step back.
This subtle movement was noticed by Si Chengyan. He first called Qiao Ran and Anna, then asked, "Do you want me to take you home?"
Su Ran shook her head when she heard it: "It's okay."
He is a brave little rose!
*
Following the old man's guidance, they came to the edge of Haicheng.
After years of abandonment, the fishing boats docked on the shore have become rusty and are also covered with unknown parasites, a combination of white, fluorescent green, and dark purple. They follow the sea water, creep along the side of the boat, and keep wriggling.
"This is where the distortion first started," the old man said. "...Follow me."
As he spoke, he tapped the ground with his stone staff and walked forward.
For some reason, Su Ran felt that he was limping a little more, especially on his right leg. Although it was just a normal walk, it became very difficult and he had to put all his strength into the crutch.
"After the distortion, many unknown creatures have appeared here." The old man pushed aside some seaweed that was nibbling at the rocks. "There are also many, and they have become strangely aggressive."
"Have you reported this to the base?"
"No, these aberrations aren't worth it."
He walked slowly and finally came to a piece of sand.
Behind him was a large area of stone houses, but there was no one living there. Except for two armored vehicles in the distance, the whole area exuded an unusual and eerie atmosphere.
Anna and Qiao Ran came over from not far away.
They looked around and immediately frowned - compared to other areas, this place was indeed much more desolate.
Almost every building was empty, and not only that, but also missing a lot of unidentified things. For example, the buildings had gates but no peepholes, leaving only a small hole. And the streetlights, while clearly intact, were all missing the right side of the glass.
"It seems... everything here has disappeared." Su Ran said, "It seems there's a pattern."
The old man said: "You are right."
He paused for a few seconds and then added, "A lot of things disappeared here."
Si Chengyan's gaze fell on the old man.
"At first, it was just a small object, like a coin in a wallet," the old man said. "Many people here at the time thought it was their fault."
"But after that major aberration event, more and more things disappeared. It might be a table, or a chair, they all vanished simultaneously and never reappeared... And this kept happening over and over, until finally... we have the situation we have now."
Si Chengyan: "Does the branch base know about this situation?"
"When we reported it back then, we weren't taken seriously because of the huge abyss in the new city," the old man said. "But now, it's too late..."
Su Ran frowned subconsciously when she heard this.
Were these disappeared things eaten by some giant monster?
But if we infer this way, the monster really does have obsessive-compulsive disorder and can find a pattern in eating everything.
Su Ran secretly denied this conclusion again.
He held a branch and drew several stick figures and big monsters on the sand while listening to the colonel and others talking.
At this moment, he found a dying octopus.
Many tentacles were stuck in the sand, and they seemed to be anxious and in pain.
The little octopus kept calling out, tears welling up in his eyes: "Gugu, gugugu!"
So Su Ran reached out and kindly pulled him out of the sand.
But the moment it was pulled out, the tentacles raised a cloud of dust.
Su Ran blocked it with his hand.
——When I looked at the little octopus again, I saw that its tail, that is, the octopus's arm, was lifted up a bit, and the suction cup on the top was gone.
What was even more bizarre was that Su Ran was only stunned for a few seconds, and the suction cup seemed to have disappeared again.
This made Su Ran confused.
He stretched out his slender fingertips and gently touched the tentacles of the small octopus, but after just a moment, the soft tissue stuck to his hand.
Like an eraser.
Su Ran stared at the mass of tissue and thought for a few seconds. Suddenly, he thought of something, opened his eyes wide, and his gaze fell on the sand not far away.
The stickman was washed away by the waves, its limbs melted into the sand, and disappeared continuously in the waves... In the end, only a bald head was left.
Just then.
The old man not far away didn't say anything to them anymore and just lifted up his rolled-up trouser legs.
He sat on the rock, moving very slowly, rolling up little by little, mixed with the waves that lowered the sky in the distance and the sounds of unknown deep-sea monsters.
As soon as it was opened, the flesh and blood inside could not wait to gush out. They were sparse, like a melting glacier, gushing out and landing on the ground in a large area.
It seemed as if there was an invisible knife, scraping constantly - near the ankle, only a white bone was left.
"This is what's going on here." He looked at Si Chengyan, a hint of hope in his cloudy eyes. "It's not a fusion of humans and objects, nor is it a dead object suddenly gaining life, nor is it a monster..."
After a while, his throat moved and he said slowly, "It's just a random melting that happened to us for no reason."
The author has something to say:
Su Ran: It won’t become a pool of rose mud, right?
The cub was terrified.
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(Source of this book: Longfeng Internet)
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