They Will Come Looking for You

"The story is over. Did the Young Master find it somewhat interesting?" Ne asked, letting out a gentle chuckle. Liu Shiheng was lowered from midair and slowly set back down into his seat, completely unharmed. He sat there, neither fleeing nor making a scene, looking somewhat dazed. At the very beginning of the story, he had indeed been trapped in immense panic and struggle, not wanting to hear a single word. But as the tale unfolded, he had involuntarily become engrossed. Not only had he listened, he had unconsciously begun to ponder and imagine it all. Though Ne's narrative seemingly revolved around a single figure, just a little thought revealed a vast, magnificent canvas unfurling behind it. Put plainly: It concerned at least the historical course and series of radical upheavals across the Azure planet over the past two to three centuries. Not only had it forged and shaped the current behind-the-scenes world of source energy, but it had also affected the world of ordinary mortals. And if one traced the threads further back, this was the boundless epic Liu Shiheng envisioned: [In a certain epoch of this universe, in one or several places, there once existed an era of source energy—or rather, an era of the Yanxiu. Those alien beings collectively known as "Yanxiu" ruled over several source energy planets, incomparably formidable. Later, for reasons currently beyond tracing, that era itself passed into history. Naturally, the timing and progression of that era's end varied across different star sectors and planets. For instance, the planet where the Great Spikes resided certainly saw its end far later than Azure—much, much later. Thus, to this day, they still lingered in the twilight of their source energy era, their entire civilization founded upon source energy. (If it had been a genuine technological superiority that could simply be adapted, Nikola would not have had to study the Azure planet's knowledge systems from scratch.) Meanwhile, because that era had ended and vanished far earlier on the Azure planet, new civilizations had long since emerged: primitive human civilizations, agricultural, and industrial civilizations... That piece of history was thoroughly buried in dust. There were no Yanxiu in human history, nor was there source energy in reality. Yet relics still endured. They seemed to be divided into two parts: will and skeletal remains (carapaces...) Here, the story presented a point that cost Liu Shiheng some effort to think through and organize: In subsequent eras, humans... no, living beings. Due to environmental changes, living beings no longer possessed the capacity to evolve into Yanxiu on their own. They could only inherit. Going by many indicators, the Great Spikes' civilization had likely entered this phase as well. Nikola said that because of the source energy fluctuations it brought, portions of the dormant wills left behind on Azure were successively awakened, but an individual could not repeatedly inherit. Hence, it could not take away the wills... so it took the remains, awaiting the arrival of its kin. A will awakens; someone inherits that will—this person comes into contact with source energy, accumulates strength, and gradually awakens—retrieves the remains and gradually matures—matures, advances, and then, after vast expanses of time, still marches toward decay and death. Was that how it went? Come to think of it, Nikola's twilight years had lasted at least two centuries... *Buzz!* Just as his thoughts began to wander, a sudden buzz rang in his head. Liu Shiheng abruptly thought of Qingzi. Because their time together had ended nearly two years ago, he did not know about Wu Xu's uniqueness, but he knew many things about Han Qingyu, including his journey of joining Azure and the existence of the bone. "So, an infant Yanxiu?!" "Wait... the bones! Weren't they all taken away?!" His pupils constricted violently. Fortunately, his head was lowered. Liu Shiheng fought to compose himself and looked up. "Mr. Ne, how did you know this story?" he asked. "At first, I thought you were Nikola. It wasn't until near the end that I realized you weren't." "Oh, I imagined it," Ne said with a laugh, then continued, "The foundation for my imagination is that I found that spaceship." "..." Liu Shiheng didn't have time to press for more details before he was struck by sudden realization, followed by utter bewilderment. Could it be that this guy inherited something? That's why he considers himself Nikola's successor! Welcoming the arrival of the Great Spike civilization—what in the world does he want? Destruction?! Or another era?! There were no answers to these questions. Yet certain preexisting questions were answered instead. *No wonder Ne was the one who innovated the external connection for the source energy apparatus, achieving an epoch-making leap. No wonder Snow Lotus has managed to stay ahead of Azure in source energy technology for so long.* *No wonder source energy technology developed so rapidly later on, while source energy propulsion and spacecraft technology remained so backward—because that ship's propulsion system was definitely damaged beyond repair; otherwise, it wouldn't have been impossible to fix. Its transmission system must have broken down later as well.* *And no wonder Snow Lotus's source energy supply seems so abundant... If that was a colossal starship containing cabins full of metal blocks belonging to Nikola.* *Right! Ne said he created the surgery that allowed Rusty Sister to survive, as well as the internal source energy circulation system... That must have come from the spaceship too. So that's how Great Spikes are made?* *Rusty Sister is a Great Spike?! No, she isn't! Otherwise, she wouldn't be the sole successful case. It must have been Ne's own experimental direction based on that foundation...* Liu Shiheng's thoughts flashed to the monstrous pythons beneath the old site of the Huaxia Second Research Institute, and the living dead sealed inside dead iron. *Ne has been constantly running experiments, trying to create some special existence... Could he be trying to create a Yanxiu?* For a moment, he could not make heads or tails of it. Liu Shiheng had remained silent for quite a while. "Finished thinking, Young Master?" Ne's voice drifted over, tinged with playfulness. "I thought you would have plenty of questions, and I was fully prepared to answer them." Liu Shiheng looked up toward the empty little chapel and asked, "Are you a Yanxiu?" "Of course," Ne said. "Inherited from Nikola?" Liu Shiheng asked again. Ne smiled and said, "Apologies, I can't tell you that. It pertains to a very grave matter." The way he treated it like a game felt somewhat chilling. "All right. Then, since you said you found that spaceship, did you find those remains as well?" Liu Shiheng switched to another question. He figured he was definitely going to die anyway. "No. The remains are somewhere else, a place even I cannot find." Ne's voice sounded somewhat dejected. "Oh." Liu Shiheng nodded. Wait, that spaceship landed on the frozen continent! Antarctica?! In Antarctica, aren't humans locked in fierce battle against the Great Spikes? It had been going on for over a year now. So there were only two possibilities: First, Snow Lotus had long since relocated the spaceship; Second, the spaceship was still beneath the Antarctic glaciers, and it was even possible that they were aboard the spaceship right now. Liu Shiheng fell silent. If even he could think of this, how could Ne not have anticipated it? So... Ne waited for a moment before asking in confusion, "What is the Young Master thinking about?" "Thinking about when you're going to kill me," Liu Shiheng replied with a faint smile. "Ah? Hahaha! No, why would I kill you? You are such an interesting person, Young Master." Ne let out a hearty laugh. "You... stay here." Liu Shiheng understood. He couldn't leave. Ne had never intended to let him leave from the start; that was why he had told him all this. Since that was the case, Ne naturally had ways to prevent him from telling Ye Jian, or perhaps telling him wouldn't matter anyway. He felt briefly depressed, but then his thoughts shifted: *Then I'll have to get the entertainment going around here. And those lacking areas of education—am I supposed to teach them? That's going to be exhausting...* Ne's voice cut off his train of thought. "Perhaps one day, Young Master Shiheng's friends will come looking for you? For instance, Major Qing and my masterpiece. I believe they will certainly come once they finally find out where you are one day," he said. For some particular reason, he seemed unable to leave this place, or perhaps he was in no hurry. Liu Shiheng didn't dwell on that. He looked straight up and barked, "Fuck your mother!" Ne was momentarily taken aback... Yet he did not react violently to being cursed at. Instead, he spoke calmly with a chuckle, "I imagine that in that instant just now, the Young Master must have gritted his teeth deep down, denying yourself any chance to hesitate, hoping to provoke me into killing you in anger." Liu Shiheng: "..." "Now, that courage has vanished. I don't believe Young Master Shiheng is someone who would willingly choose death, so I don't have to worry about you committing suicide." Ne paused, then added, "Besides, I believe you will adapt to this situation very quickly... You possess extraordinary adaptability, Young Master Shiheng. "It was a pleasure meeting you. I will come chat with you often," he said.