Embers Ad Infinitum
chapter-547

As the autumn temperatures dropped, the Old Task Force and the three intelligence agents—who had returned to report their duties—arrived at Pangu Biology underground building's entrance. Like before, they had to undergo strict security checks.

Although his right hand was iron-black machinery, Long Yuehong—who was now ambulant—took out the items on him and placed them in the wooden basket as he turned his head to glance at Shang Jianyao.

He almost cried out from what he saw.

Shang Jianyao had actually taken out the Six Senses Beads and the Life Angel Necklace. Furthermore, he had clearly not diverted the aura left behind by the Awakened who had explored the Mind Corridor's depths.

The two items' surfaces appeared moist and lustrous as if a lump of plasma had been rolled out, reflecting a certain amount of light.

Didn't we agree to hide it somewhere outside and not let the company know? Long Yuehong had questions, but he didn't dare to speak at this moment.

Shang Jianyao seemed to hear his thoughts and smiled at him. "The me today is no longer the me from yesterday. The me from yesterday is also no longer the me from the day before yesterday. I'm the honest Shang Jianyao now."

"…" Long Yuehong's mouth fell open, and he almost forgot to close it. After a while, a word flashed across his mind: Idiot!

Jiang Baimian resisted the urge to cover her face.

She was tired and didn't think it mattered. In any case, it wasn't a big deal for the current Old Task Force. After all, they had completed many missions on this trip, some of which were very difficult. Their contributions were definitely very high, so they weren't afraid of having the items confiscated. Furthermore, Kanna knew that they had captured the Eighth Research Institute's commissioner. Who knew if she had reported to the company what items Khal was suspected of having.

Bai Chen quickly calculated how many contribution points she might have left after the deductions. This concerned her future choices.

After passing through the security check and parking the car, the Old Task Force, 'Garibaldi' Giuseppe, and the three entered the elevator.

Jiang Baimian thought for a moment and said, "You should be going to the 649th floor."

"Yes." Giuseppe nodded. "They just said so."

Jiang Baimian helped them press the button for the 649th floor before choosing the 647th floor where her team was allocated.

After the elevator descended for a while, the three intelligence agents waved goodbye and disappeared from their sight.

After the door closed, Long Yuehong suddenly sighed.

"What's wrong?" Bai Chen asked.

Long Yuehong replied emotively, "We encountered many people along the way and traveled with many people, but only the four of us are left now."

Before Bai Chen could respond, Shang Jianyao looked at Long Yuehong suspiciously. "I don't remember using the ability 'Literary Hipster' on you."

At this moment, the elevator stopped on the 647th floor.

Jiang Baimian didn't give Shang Jianyao a chance to divert the topic and took the lead to step forward. "Let's go."

They walked all the way back to Room 14. The decorations here were slightly different from before they set off, but they were mostly the same because people came to wipe the dust at regular intervals.

"Phew…" Jiang Baimian threw her body into the chair that represented her role as team leader and leaned back comfortably. She then sighed with satisfaction. "Home's the best!"

If it weren't for the fact that her team members were watching and that the bed she had slept on since she was young wasn't here, she would've wanted to roll around to fully express her feelings.

"That's right." Long Yuehong also sat in his seat.

Shang Jianyao threw down his tactical backpack and touched his stomach.

Rumble! Rumble!

The sound came as expected.

Upon seeing this, Jiang Baimian laughed. "Let's first get disinfected, shower, and get a change of clothes before heading to the canteen for a meal. My treat!"

"Long live Team Leader!" Shang Jianyao shouted without any shame.

Long Yuehong and Bai Chen looked at each other in anticipation.

Shang Jianyao then made a request. "I want braised pork."

"I want potato roasted beef brisket." Long Yuehong couldn't help but gulp.

Bai Chen hesitated for a moment and said, "I want tripe."

Jiang Baimian cursed in exasperation and amusement. "What we eat doesn't depend on what we want—it depends on what's available at the canteen!"

With that said, she waved her hand in disdain. "How can I give you special treatment before I reach management level? Even if there's special treatment, it depends on what ingredients are available that day. Alright—quickly disinfect, shower, and change!"

In fact, they had undergone a round of disinfection and dust removal when they entered the underground building. They were just doing it to give themselves additional insurance.

…

After dinner, the four Old Task Force members held their bulging stomachs and were paralyzed in their spots.

After a while, Jiang Baimian straightened her body and said, "You can go back now. I'll make the best use of my time to get a draft report out. We'll edit it tomorrow."

"Alright." Long Yuehong was the first to stand up, something he rarely did. After having a brush with death on this trip out, he missed his family dearly.

Jiang Baimian watched him, Shang Jianyao, and Bai Chen walk out of the room. She picked up the phone and hesitated for a long time before finally dialing a number.

"Dad, I'm back." She gave a relaxed smile at the receiver.

Jiang Wenfeng was pleasantly surprised. "You're finally back! I heard that you guys did a great job in First City?"

"We're just nobodies…" Jiang Baimian wheedled and complained. "I'll tell you the details when the confidentiality level is confirmed."

She moved her gaze away from the telephone and looked at the wall opposite her. After a moment of silence, she said, "Dad, I want to go through with the cochlear implant surgery."

"Huh?" Jiang Wenfeng felt that the sun had definitely risen from the west today.

Jiang Baimian muttered, "There are too many dangers outside; I don't think I can let this weakness continue. I can't let my fear affect the entire team's safety. Come on—I'm going to beat a retreat if you don't agree. Quick, stop this idea of mine!"

"Alright, I'll make the arrangements now." Jiang Wenfeng felt a sense of urgency.

Jiang Baimian gritted her teeth and unconsciously softened her voice. "Also, I want to participate in the Awakening experiments."

Jiang Wenfeng fell silent for a few seconds before saying, "Are you sure? There's a considerable risk."

Jiang Baimian looked at the wall opposite her and exhaled. "Yes."

Without giving Jiang Wenfeng a chance to speak, she smiled and said, "Dad, do you still remember my childhood dream?"

Jiang Wenfeng recalled and smiled bitterly. "I remember… Back then, you were only a little over ten years old. You listened to me talk about the Old World's destruction, the Heartless disease's horror, the Ashlands' tragic past, and the current state. You clamored to investigate the cause of the Old World's destruction and the source of the Heartless disease's outbreak. You kept this up until you graduated and entered the laboratory. I felt relieved back then. Who knew that you would still embark on this path after all the twists and turns?"

The smile on Jiang Baimian's face became increasingly obvious. "You said you would support my dreams."

Jiang Wenfeng fell silent for a moment before saying, "Alright."

Jiang Baimian hung up. She then launched a music player on the computer and found a song that matched her current mood—one of the songs she had copied from Shang Jianyao.

A beautiful song quickly sounded. "Do you remember the dreams of your youth?

"Like a flower in eternal bloom;

"Accompanying me through the wind and rain;

"Watching the impermanence of the world;

"Watching the vicissitudes of life.

"The price you paid for love…"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Baimian frowned. After some back and forth, she made the song only play the first five lines and made them play on loop.

"Do you remember the dreams of your youth?

"Like a flower in eternal bloom;

"Accompanying me through the wind and rain;

"Watching the impermanence of the world;

"Watching the vicissitudes of life…"

…

Somewhere on the 647th-floor corridor, Shang Jianyao, Long Yuehong, and Bai Chen walked side by side.

At the corner, Bai Chen pointed to the other side and said, "I'm going home."

She lived on the 622nd floor, and it was in a different area from the elevator Shang Jianyao and Long Yuehong used.

Without waiting for Shang Jianyao and Long Yuehong's response, Bai Chen pursed her lips and said, "When the rewards are distributed, I plan on applying for a biological prosthetic limb transplant and genetic modification."

"That's very dangerous." Long Yuehong frowned. He was mainly referring to genetic modification.

Bai Chen calmly said, "I've already decided."

I don't want to give up on my companions and leave by myself… she added inwardly.

"Alright." Long Yuehong never felt that he could persuade Bai Chen. He only hoped that his team leader could succeed.

After their petite companion walked out of their line of sight, Long Yuehong and Shang Jianyao headed to another area and entered the correct elevator.

He looked at his reflection in the metal wall and asked uneasily, "Do I look okay?"

Such a serious injury naturally couldn't be completely healed in a few days or weeks. Long Yuehong had only recently been alleviated from all kinds of repercussions and had completely recovered. However, his body was still relatively weak, so he needed some physiotherapy.

He was mainly worried that his family would discover that he had been seriously injured and be sad for no reason. As for the unconcealable mechanical arm, he had already thought of an excuse. Shang Jianyao had helped him think of one: "This is too cool and too strong. Men can't resist its temptation!"

Shang Jianyao sized up Long Yuehong. "As long as you don't fight, nobody can tell."

"I'm not stupid," Long Yuehong muttered. With my current physical condition, how can I fight? Besides, I've always abided by all kinds of rules over the years and never violated them!

Shang Jianyao added seriously, "I mean that people will be able to tell how strong this mechanical arm is."

"…" Long Yuehong slowly exhaled.

The elevator soon arrived at the 495th floor. Shang Jianyao and Long Yuehong waved their hands at each other in disdain and walked back to their respective homes.

Shang Jianyao swung the brass key and slowly walked down the 'street.' From time to time, he would greet the neighbors passing by.

They were all very interested in the young man who had returned from field duty. However, they could tell that he had just returned and didn't think it was right to disturb him.

Before long, Shang Jianyao returned to Room 196, where he lived. He pushed open the door and entered, his eyes reflecting the cramped room.

The bed in the deepest part, the red-painted wooden table on the left, the recliner, and the stove and sink on the right were squeezed into a space of only six square meters.

Shang Jianyao didn't pack immediately. He entered the room and closed the door; then, he walked to the bed and lay down.

The room was abnormally quiet, and he was alone again.

Shang Jianyao then raised his right hand and massaged his temples.

He came to the empty Mind Room and sat cross-legged on the ground. He then split into three and began to modify the area with his mind.

He separated two rooms—one large and one small. He also made a very cramped bathroom. After that, he conjured the red-painted wooden table and the furniture in his memories one by one, including the clothes he could no longer wear.

At the end of the modification, Shang Jianyao fixed the cluster of dense fog representing the Sea of Origins on one of the walls in the small room, turning it into an LCD television.

After finishing all of this, he sat down and silently looked at the room.

(End of Volume 4)

1. Price of Love, Lee Tsung-Sheng.