A Visitor from Afar

"*Whew—bang!*" A crimson cape fluttered briskly in the sea breeze. On the aft deck of the cargo ship, a "rocket firecracker" flew from Shen Yixiu's fingers and burst in midair. Looking up through her iron visor, she let out a merry laugh. For years and years, she had not played with firecrackers or fireworks with anyone; she had only watched them alone from her window. Or on rare occasions, she would wait late into the night with her grandfather to set off a few on the balcony. "Qingzi, quick, light another one for me!" Shen Yixiu urged, still clutching a large handful as she swiftly pinched another between her forefinger and thumb. "All right. I told you before to hold a cigarette yourself. You wouldn't have to smoke it, just hold it," Han Qingyu said, turning around. He took the cigarette from his mouth, blew the ember bright, and touched it to her fuse. "If I don't puff, it'll go out," Rusty Sister said, tapping the armor over her mouth, as if implying that if she could, she really would take up smoking. "*Whew—bang!*" This time, head down, the rocket darted straight into the seawater. After it exploded, Shen Yixiu leaned hard against the ship's railing and peered down, eager to see if any fish had been blasted to the surface. Double-bang firecrackers tossed into ponds could blast fish out of the water; she had done that as a child. The rocket firecrackers had been smuggled aboard by Wen Jifei and Han Qingyu. Since nobody checked their access corridor anyway, they had brought fireworks along too. "*Hiss—crack—boom!*" Zhe Qiuhong held a lit twenty-four-shot Roman candle, standing aloof as she gazed upward with cool detachment. If not for the high probability that Han Qingyu and Wu Xu might end up dead in the City of Iniquity, she never would have stepped outside. She would have gladly spent her entire life inside a laboratory. At the same time, the crewmen on the night watch at the forward deck heard the commotion and turned their heads toward the sky. "Who's messing around on the aft deck?" "Probably those guests from before, out watching the ocean at this hour. The captain went out of his way earlier just to clear the deck for them." "Ah, people of status, as expected. They looked pretty intimidating earlier—who knew they'd be so playful?" "Yeah, probably never seen the open sea like this before. Give them two days and they'll get sick of it." After watching the magnificent sunrise over the ocean, Han Qingyu and Wen Jifei made a point of checking on Master Longchi as they headed back to the cabins. Fortunately, the old man was still there, sound asleep. And so one day passed. Then the second day, the third, the fourth... As the cargo ship detoured north, the temperature along the route grew colder and colder. The group ate, watched the sea, slept, ate, watched the sea, slept... ate, and slept, using source energy to nourish their bodies. Han Qingyu and Wu Xu had not yet fully recovered from their injuries, but by Zhe Qiuhong's estimate, by the time this voyage reached its end, they should be just about healed. *** *Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud!* Rapid, heavy footsteps echoed through the corridor. "Qingzi! Qingzi!" On the morning of the sixth day, He Tangtang dashed frantically to the door of Han Qingyu's cabin, shoved it open, and shouted, "Wake up! Master Longchi is gone!" The old man had vanished. Monk Longchi, Azure's General Jiang Longchi, who had been completely quiet and well-behaved for the past several days, had suddenly vanished on the high seas on the sixth morning out of port. Han Qingyu and the others searched the entire freighter back and forth multiple times, but found no trace of him. *Knock, knock!* A knock sounded at the cabin door. "Come in," Han Qingyu said immediately. "Reporting, sir." The captain entered and saluted with an Azure military salute. Though he had not been explicitly informed of the group's identities, he knew they were people of great importance. "I just asked around the entire ship. No one has seen General Jiang... However, one of our lifeboats is missing." "..." The people in the cabin turned their heads slowly, exchanging glances. "You mean General Jiang took a lifeboat and drove off?!" "Yes. Though he might not have driven it," the captain said, his eyes wavering in slight fluster. "Because besides the lifeboat, an iron plate was also torn off the ship." "..." On the morning sea, the rising sun cast ripples of light across the water. A lifeboat shot across the surface like an arrow, yet there was no sound of a motor. Jiang Longchi merely stroked with the iron plate once in a while, and the small boat skimmed forward as if flying. "I feel like I've forgotten something very important." Aware of his own forgetfulness, the old man racked his brain for a moment, but sadly could not recall a thing. None of that mattered anymore, however, because when he woke in the middle of the night, he had suddenly remembered something else—something very important: He seemed to have a grandson of his own flesh and blood, forgotten in a place called Fenglong'ao for many, many years. Fenglong'ao—Jiang Longchi remembered it. It was one of the few places for which he could still recall a general direction. Raising his wrist, he checked the compass on his watch, confirmed his heading, and accelerated the boat. Whether his memory was playing tricks on him or not, he had to go back and see. Three hours later, aboard the cargo ship. All the search lifeboats sent out had returned, and the freighter had circled a wide sweep across the sea... but all had yielded nothing. "We shouldn't need to worry about the master's safety. After all, he loses himself all year round, and besides, he's a super combat power," Wen Jifei said. Han Qingyu nodded. "Then what do we do now, Qingzi?" He Tangtang asked, his voice drenched in guilt. It had been his turn to sleep by General Jiang's door last night, but he had slept like a rock. They had lost a super combat power in the middle of the ocean. This was dreadful. It had originally been akin to shouldering a rocket launcher to rob an underground bank, where they could have strutted about with impunity and pillaged at will... Now, their rocket launcher had suddenly vanished. The question that followed was a matter of life and death: were they still going to that bloody place where life hung by a thread? "Why don't we turn back too?! We can go back and search for Super Jiang again, or just stay at the base," Zhu Jiaming suggested eagerly from the side. The others fixed their eyes on Han Qingyu's face. Han Qingyu stayed silent for a few seconds before speaking. "In truth, even without General Jiang accompanying us, I intended to go." "Yeah," Wu Xu said on behalf of the rest. The decision was settled. Zhu Jiaming, the only one vehemently objecting in his heart, did not dare speak against it. "Then let's proceed as planned and continue along our course, Captain Ling. Also, please report General Jiang's disappearance to the corps. We'll head back to our cabins to rest." *** Ships sailed the sea, and travelers set foot ashore. Twenty-one days later, in the crisp morning of Fenglong'ao, frost coated the roof tiles beneath a hazy mist. At a small roadside shop, Han Qingyu's father, Han Youshan, got out of bed and opened the front door, only to be startled by a figure standing outside—someone who looked vaguely familiar, yet thoroughly strange at a second glance. "Good morning, Benefactor." The elderly man with graying hair bowed slightly in a Buddhist salute. Because of that greeting of "Benefactor" and that Buddhist salute, something seemed to click in Han Youshan's mind, though it remained hazy. "Ah, good morning, Master. Master, have you eaten breakfast?" "Not hungry yet," Jiang Longchi replied. "I wanted to ask: further down the road, is there a place called Fenglong'ao? It seems there used to be a ruined temple there. I..." "Master Longchi? Master Longchi, is that you?!" In his mind, Han Youshan shaved the old man's hair away and matched the features, finally remembering and recognizing him. "Master, have you eaten breakfast?" "...Not hungry." Jiang Longchi looked at Han Youshan. "So you know me?" Han Youshan nodded blankly. "Who is it?" Han Qingyu's mother, Zhang Jiexia, asked as she walked out, drying her hands with a warm towel. Han Youshan said, "Master Longchi." "Ah? You... Oh goodness, it really is!" Zhang Jiexia said excitedly. "It's been so many years, Master! You're finally back! Master, have you eaten breakfast?"