Ling Qingxue and Ye Meier stood frozen in place, like two beautiful sculptures struck by lightning, digesting the terrifying information that was enough to overturn their worldviews: "Times have changed," "Spiritual energy is gone," and "Iron birds are flying in the sky."
The air was so quiet that only the rustling of leaves in the wind and the faint, continuous hum of car engines coming from the distant mountain road could be heard.
The buzzing sound once again stirred the fragile nerves of the two ancient sages.
Ling Qingxue abruptly turned her head towards the direction from which the sound came, her eyes sharp as knives, and whispered to Ye Meier:
"Witch, have you ever heard of any kind of demonic beast that can emit such a continuous, lifeless, low roar? And their numbers seem to be... extremely large?"
She used a tone with an ancient feel, and her words were elegant yet full of caution.
Ye Meier also tensed up, her alluring eyes narrowing:
"Hmph, what a hypocrite! I've seen more demons than you've eaten spirit rice, and I've never heard of such a strange noise!"
It looked like some kind of massive mechanical contraption in operation... but what kind of mechanism could operate for so long without spiritual power? This place is truly eerie!
Her word choice is more bold and direct, but equally full of ancient charm.
Zhang Shaozhong, listening from the side, was completely bewildered and quickly interjected, trying to explain in the simplest language he could think of:
“Um… you two big shots, that’s not a monster, nor is it a machine… that’s called a car! It’s a kind of… um… gasoline-powered… metal box? People sit inside, and it runs on four wheels, replacing walking and horse-drawn carriages…”
"Car? Gasoline? Metal box? Wheels?"
Ling Qingxue repeated these completely unfamiliar words, her brows furrowed into a knot.
"What is gasoline? What kind of iron can run on its own? How can mortals control it? Isn't that just a pipe dream!"
She clearly couldn't understand the concept of an internal combustion engine.
Night Enchantress was even more direct, sneering:
"Kid, at least make your lies believable! The metal box can run by itself? Then let it run for me right now and see."
Could it be the sound of some unknown earth-type monster burrowing underground?
Zhang Shaozhong:
"..." Oh no, the communication barrier is too big.
He took a deep breath and gestured as he went:
"It doesn't burrow underground! It runs on the road! The road is paved with cement, very smooth! Gasoline is just... a colorless, flammable water?"
Once lit, it generates power, which propels the machine and makes the wheels turn... Hey, it's just like how you use magic to make magical artifacts fly!
The only difference is that we're using science! Physics!
"Science? Physics?"
Ling Qingxue and Ye Meier looked bewildered again; these two words sounded even more absurd than "car gasoline."
"It's...it's the principle of how all things in the universe operate! It's the knowledge of making things fly and run without using magic!"
Zhang Shaozhong felt he was running out of words.
Just then, a crisp "ring ring~" cell phone rang out from the bushes next to us!
(It probably fell there when he dropped it, and it's still not broken!)
"alert!"
Ling Qingxue's expression changed instantly. She flipped her jade-like hand (though she didn't have a sword) and pointed warily at the source of the sound!
Night Enchantress's eyes sharpened, and a faint demonic aura subconsciously rose around her:
"What kind of demonic creature is this?! How can it emit such a rhythmic and clear demonic sound!"
Zhang Shaozhong was practically kneeling before them in awe. He quickly ran over and pulled his phone out of the bushes. The screen was cracked, but it was still ringing stubbornly. The caller ID read "Mom."
"Don't be nervous! Don't be nervous! This is my... uh... communicator! It's called a cell phone! It's not a monster!"
He quickly raised his phone to signal.
"See? Just like that, you can talk to people who are very, very far away with a single press!"
As he spoke, he subconsciously swiped to answer the call.
"Hey? Chongchong! Where did you go?!"
It rained heavily yesterday, and your classmates all said they didn't see you come down the mountain, and they couldn't get through to you on the phone! I was so scared! Where are you now?! Are you okay?!
A middle-aged woman's anxious, loud voice immediately came from the phone, sounding exceptionally clear and loud in the quiet mountain forest.
"!!!"
Ling Qingxue and Ye Meier were frozen in place, taking a step back in shock as they stared at the "little iron block" in Zhang Shaozhong's hand that could glow and make human voices!
"Telepathic transmission?! No, there's no spiritual energy fluctuation at all!"
Ling Qingxue's beautiful eyes widened in disbelief.
"What kind of magical artifact is this?! It can transmit the voices of mortals so clearly?!"
Ye Meier was completely speechless:
"Soul-searching and spirit-stealing?! No... there's no evil aura... what... what the hell is this?!"
She had clearly thought of something even more sinister.
Zhang Shaozhong didn't have time to explain to the two of them, and quickly said into the phone:
"Mom! Mom, I'm okay! I... I accidentally tripped and fell yesterday, and I'm lost. I'm still in the mountains... The signal is bad... Yes, yes, it's okay, really okay... I'll go back as soon as I find my way... Bye!"
He was afraid that if he continued talking, the two big shots next to him would chop his phone up as if it were an evil object, so he quickly hung up the phone.
After hanging up the phone, the world fell silent again.
Ling Qingxue and Ye Meier stared intently at the phone in his hand, their eyes filled with an extremely complex mix of wariness, curiosity, and a sense of bewilderment at being left behind by the times.
Looking at their expressions, Zhang Shaozhong sighed and resignedly began his clumsy job as a "science popularizer in another world" and a "translator of ancient Chinese."
He pointed to the phone:
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