On National Boulevard, an off-road vehicle drove in the direction of Center City.
On both sides of the boulevard lay barren wilderness and guardrails that seemed to stretch on forever, the unobscured sunlight gleaming brilliantly against the vehicle's metallic surfaces.
Running east of Yangzhi City, National Boulevard branched in two directions: one led east toward Yuanwang Port, and the other was the route they were currently on, which went straight to Center City.
Few vehicles traveled this road. People from Center City rarely ventured outside, and those from the outside who wished to enter would never choose this route unless they possessed official status.
Cheng Zitong drove steadily at an even pace. Having set out in the morning, five hours later they were approaching the area around Center City and pulled up before an inspection station along its outer perimeter.
Cheng Zitong brought the vehicle to a slow stop. "Little Chuan, once you cross the checkpoint, you'll be in Center City territory. I can only take you this far. Someone from the Main Academy will come to pick you up. Just wait for him over there."
Chen Chuan said, "Understood, Teacher."
He got out of the vehicle, retrieved the Xuejun Saber from the back seat, and pulled his suitcase from the trunk. Cheng Zitong stepped out as well, looked up, and said, "Ah, this sun is as blinding as ever." With that, he put on a pair of sunglasses.
He walked over and patted Chen Chuan on the shoulder. "Little Chuan, once you settle in there, don't forget to send word to me."
Chen Chuan nodded and said, "Teacher, I'm heading off."
Cheng Zitong waved to him. "Go on."
Chen Chuan bowed to him, straightened up, and walked toward the inspection checkpoint.
Reaching the mobile security barriers, two checkpoint patrolmen came over to inspect his transit documents. Finding everything in order, they had the barriers moved aside and let him pass. Only after he emerged on the other side did he hear the sound of the vehicle behind him driving back.
Looking up, he saw the road running straight ahead. Now he could faintly make out Center City at the far end.
Urban buildings in varying shades of gray stood along the horizon, countless towering structures of uneven heights rising straight into the air. Elevated bridges leading out to sea traced arcs like flying rainbows, gradually submerging into ocean mist. Compared to Yangzhi, which had been left far behind, it seemed like an entirely different world.
Under the vast azure sky, carrying the Xuejun Saber and his suitcase, he now faced this world, the road beneath his feet the sole thread connecting the two.
After watching for a while, he set down his suitcase and checked his watch. It was two in the afternoon. According to what Cheng Zitong had told him, the person sent to pick him up would arrive around past two.
However, entry and exit procedures for Center City were complicated and could be quite cumbersome for anyone without official standing, so delays were likely. He had been told to wait patiently; regardless, there were telephones, telegrams, and simple lodgings beside the checkpoint that could be used for a fee.
He stood there quietly by himself, silently guiding his Furnace Breathing Technique. As three o'clock drew near, the sound of an engine came from down the road.
Hearing it, he looked up and saw a semi-worn armored off-road vehicle driving toward him. When it was five or six meters away, it slowed to a stop, and a head poked out from the window. "Student Chen Chuan?"
Chen Chuan looked him over. The man was in his forties, wearing polarized sunglasses, with slightly disheveled hair, deep nasolabial folds flanking his nose and mouth, a beard that had clearly been trimmed not long ago, and slightly chapped lips.
Yet contrary to expectations, there was not the slightest trace of a fighter on him. He did not seem like an academy instructor—perhaps an administrative staff member?
Upon reflection, that seemed normal. It was currently the New Year holiday, and the instructors had no personal ties to him, so there was no reason for them to make a special trip out to meet him. Those dispatched for such tasks were usually of lower standing.
He said, "I am Chen Chuan."
"Good enough." The man did not ask Chen Chuan to verify his identity or anything of the sort, merely gesturing backward with his head. "Get in. Take the back."
Chen Chuan walked over, opened the rear door, and climbed in. Once the door was shut and he was settled, he noticed an incised line running from behind the man's ear down his neck—the mark of an implant. After a brief glance, he asked, "How should I address you, Teacher?"
"Ah, don't call me Teacher." The man waved his hand hastily. "I'm no instructor at your Wuyi. It's the New Year, you see, so your Wuyi Academy posted a commission for someone to pick up a student. My past credit rating was decent, and I'd made a few runs to Yangzhi, so they gave the job to me... Hold on tight."
Waiting until Chen Chuan fastened his seatbelt, the man started the engine, executed a remarkably nimble U-turn, and drove toward Center City.
After driving for a while, he said, "I'm Qi Gao. Just call me Old Qi. Say, student, do you have all your identification documents? Checkpoints in the city are strict; without everything, getting in is tough."
Chen Chuan said, "I have them all." Then he asked, "Does that mean one can enter the city without documents?"
"You can, but you'd have to take a detour and take risks—risks for me and risks for you. Better to avoid trouble if we can."
Old Qi glanced in the rearview mirror. "Brother Chen..."
There was nothing to hide about it. Chen Chuan said, "Yes..."
Old Qi smiled, a touch of mystery on his face. "Up ahead is the checkpoint for entering the city. You'll need your documents there, and when we arrive, you'll understand."
They drove along the road for less than half an hour, drawing closer and closer to the city ahead. In the nearer areas, high-rise buildings gleaming silver-gray beneath the blue sky were already visible.
The roadside guardrails had long since vanished, replaced ahead by basin-shaped pedestals resembling column bases without pillars. It seemed people could walk on them, though their purpose was unclear.
Old Qi said, "Here we are. Out of the car." With that, he grabbed a box, pushed his door open, and got out first.
Chen Chuan looked outside. The area remained utterly desolate, without another soul in sight. It did not look much like an inspection station. He pushed open the door and stepped out as well.
Old Qi set the box on the ground, crouched down, and popped it open. With a click, chilled air immediately drifted out; it was filled with ice cubes. He reached in, tossed several chunks aside, and revealed a sealed pouch buried in the middle. Lifting it out, he tore open the seal, took out the object inside, and tossed it to Chen Chuan.
Chen Chuan caught it in one hand and found that it was a mask covering the upper half of the face. It seemed to be made of bone, yet felt remarkably light. Over the eye openings was a transparent, lens-like film, and along both outer edges of the mask were two tiny white worms wriggling faintly, appearing as if they had grown right out of it.
"Put on the mask," Old Qi said from where he stood.
Chen Chuan pressed the mask to his face and felt it adhere effortlessly. The sides curved over the tops of his ears, resting securely in place.
Once it was on, the glaring light outside was blocked out. Although it covered only the area around his eyes and upper face, at this moment it gave him a sensation of being cut off from the outside world.
Right then, the two small worms slowly extended downward and burrowed toward his ear canals. Yet only their tips entered, and as if adjusting themselves, they shrank slightly, quickly fitting much more snugly.
At that very moment, he saw—
Right after he chose to do so, his vision first went dark, then flickered erratically, while a hissing sound arose by his ears.
When he looked up ahead once more, the entire city suddenly presented itself before his eyes in an entirely different form. Over those originally pale, gray buildings, layers of kaleidoscopic neon and swirling ribbons of light suddenly drifted into being. They pulsed and stretched, following curtains of light that extended into the clouds, soaring straight into the firmament!
Floating amidst the dazzling radiance were colossal projections of various figures and shimmering, trembling scenes—from old eras, from the new era, realistic, grotesque—as if torn from the scale of time and stirred together in disordered space.
And by his ears, the noise grew intensely clamorous, flooded with languages from various nations and endless, disjointed chatter.
Be it light, shadow, or sound, all of it converged upon him at once, enveloping and encircling him. Each fragment seemed to vie desperately for his attention, yet every time one tried to linger, it was washed away by the ensuing deluge of information, gone in the blink of an eye.
"Hey, hey, Brother Chen, can you still hear me?"
The voice seemed to come from far away, yet it was the only coherent, distinguishable sound. Chen Chuan turned his head to see Old Qi shouting at him at the top of his lungs, one hand waving persistently before him while the other rested beside his own ear, repeatedly mimicking a gentle patting motion.
With his neck hunched, his palm pressed against his ear, and his eyes closed, the man looked as if he were lulling a child to sleep—a somewhat comical sight, yet the meaning conveyed was unmistakable.
Chen Chuan raised his hand and lightly patted his ears twice. The worms beside his ears suddenly curled inward, and at that very moment, the view inside the mask dimmed once more. Everything he had seen retreated without a trace, and the chaotic din vanished in an instant. The world was restored to its original state.
He reached up and slowly took off the mask. A breeze blew in from afar, carrying a trace of dust and rustling the tips of his hair. The surroundings were silent and vast; the cluster of buildings across the distance still stood quietly, as if everything from moments ago had merely been an illusion.
Old Qi stared at him, looking him up and down, unable to keep a hint of astonishment from his eyes. "Brother Chen, you all right? Normally, people..."
Chen Chuan raised the bone mask in his hand and asked, "Old Qi, what is this?"
Old Qi shrugged. "The Great Shun authorities call this a 'boundary credential,' but we're used to calling it the 'Yin-Yang Apparatus.' And what was the technical term again...?"
A glint seemed to flicker in his eyes. "Oh, right, 'biological field interactive link technology.' Other companies have their own names for it too—plenty of them anyway. You must have seen Center City just now, right?"
Chen Chuan nodded.
"Well then... welcome to the real world."
Old Qi spread his hands wide. His expression held both excitement and manic fervor, his voice seemingly tinged with a mix of hatred and adoration. Looking toward Center City, he sighed. "What you saw on your way here was only the concealed, incomplete side. But what you just..."
Chapter 230