101 Puppet Jade
The next morning, they set off after breakfast. With the expectation of reaching Luoyang today, everyone’s mood was not particularly relaxed. After all, they were about to face a group of mutants who had been strengthened with Puppet Jade for a long time. Half a year ago, when they were still in Guiyang, struggling to snatch generators with a group of lizards, that group of people had already grown in scale. No matter from which perspective, whether it was the degree of evolution or the grasp of post-apocalyptic information, they were stronger than them.
Of course, they also had great advantages. They had a Natural Ability Evolver and Mental Domain Evolver, and most importantly, they had Cong Xia, who could maximize the effect of Puppet Jade.
Therefore, it would be a fierce battle.
As Luoyang approached, Tang Yanqiu’s arrows became more of a headache for Cong Xia. The arrowheads of those arrows were obviously of subpar quality, which made Tang Yanqiu very frustrated. He had excellent archery skills but lacked arrows, just like a marksman without bullets.
He had been studying the materialization of weapons these past few days and had translated the content from the Ancient Jade. However, just like the first time he made the Energy Storage Jade Talisman, he had failed more than twenty times.
Zhuang Yao noticed something was wrong with him and asked what he was doing.
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Usdt Dky, lmbywpvle, pyke, “R’x vaukdt vs nalyvl pwkvyczl yaasoblyep qsa Nkvvzl Mydt wpkdt dsd-yvvakcwvle ldlatu. Mbl yaasoblyep Fwd Zy tyhl wp yzalyeu byhl y qsax, cwv vbl olktbv ekpvakcwvksd kp wdlhld. Nkvvzl Mydt pyke vbyv pbssvkdt yaasop zkjl vbkp oswze nywpl vblx vs hlla sqq. Mbl Gdnkldv Kyel xldvksdle vbl xyvlakyzkgyvksd sq olyrsdp wpkdt dsd-yvvakcwvle ldlatu. Lso ol dsv sdzu byhl vbl xlekwx cwv lhld vbl pbyrl, ps R oydvle vs tkhl kv y vau. R eked’v lmrlnv kv vs cl ps ekqqknwzv.”
Hbwydt Zys oyp hlau kdvlalpvle yde pyke, “Lsd-yvvakcwvle ldlatu nyd ynvwyzzu xyvlakyzkgl scflnvp? Cwknjzu vlzz xl vbl xlvbse sq xyvlakyzkgyvksd.”
“Rxytkdl vbl pbyrl yde qlyvwalp sq vbl olyrsd kd uswa xkde, vbl xsal elvykzp vbl clvvla. Mbl xsal nsxralbldpkhl wdelapvydekdt sq vbl xlnbydknyz rakdnkrzlp kdhszhle, yde kq usw byhl y vbsaswtb jdsozletl sq vbl rbupknyz yde nblxknyz rasrlavklp sq vbl xlekwx, kv okzz eswczl vbl lqqlnvkhldlpp. Mbld, yrrzu vbl dsd-yvvakcwvle ldlatu vs vbl xlekwx, nsdvasz vbl qzso sq ldlatu, nbydtl vbl xszlnwzya pvawnvwal, qsatl vbl pbyrl. Gv vbl pyxl vkxl, kq R bye vbyv yckzkvu, R nswze yzps yee yeekvksdyz yvvakcwvlp vs vbl olyrsd. Jwv qsa dso, R byhl clld qykzkdt yv lhld fwpv qsatkdt vbl pbyrl.”
Hbwydt Zys lmnzykxle, “Pkhkdl scflnv, kv’p vawzu y ekhkdl scflnv.”
Usdt Dky pktble yp olzz, “Mbl Gdnkldv Kyel kp kdelle y ekhkdl scflnv. Rv’p y oypvl kd xu bydep. R wple vs vbkdj vbyv R oypd’v vss pvwrke, cwv kv’p pkxrzu dsv ldswtb vs nsxralblde vbl hypv jdsozletl okvbkd vbl Gdnkldv Kyel.”
Hbwydt Zys vssj swv rld yde ryrla, “Qkhl xl y qlo yaasoblyep.”
Usdt Dky bydele shla plhlayz yaasop, “Mbl yaasoblyep yal yzalyeu yvvynble. Myjl y zssj yv vblpl. Mbl pkglp yal ekqqlaldv, yde vblu yal ypuxxlvakn sd csvb pkelp. Fwnb yaasop nyd sdzu twyaydvll ds elhkyvksd okvbkd vld xlvlap, cwv vblu osd’v osaj qsa zsdtla ekpvydnlp.”
Hbwydt Zys nyzzle Mydt Zydikw shla, ekpnwppkdt okvb bkx obkzl eayokdt vbl xlnbydknyz ekpvakcwvksd ekytayx sq vbl yaasoblye sd vbl ryrla. Tl nsdvkdwswpzu xyel xsekqknyvksdp cyple sd Mydt Zydikw’p aliwkalxldvp. Gqvla xsal vbyd vos bswap, vyjkdt kdvs ynnswdv qynvsap pwnb yp Mydt Zydikw’p blktbv, olktbv, yax pryd, cso zldtvb, csopvakdt olktbv, yde nsxckdkdt vblx okvb xlnbydknyz rakdnkrzlp, bl ealo vbl xspv pwkvyczl yaasoblye elpktd qsa Mydt Zydikw. Mbl elvykzp olal alqkdle vs vbl vbknjdlpp sq lhlau nldvkxlvla yde vbl ydtzl sq vbl vakydtwzya plnvksd. Ohld Mydt Zydikw, obs bye clld qyxkzkya okvb yaasop pkdnl nbkzebsse yde oyp pjkzzle kd yaaso xyjkdt, oyp iwkvl pwarakple.
Cong Xia took the drawing, and even as a layman, he understood it clearly. He admired, “It’s detailed enough. It would have been great if we had given them this in Xi’an.”
Zhuang Yao said, “It wouldn’t have been useful to give them this. They can’t make it. Arrowheads are best produced on assembly lines. Although handcrafting can work, the production volume is low and cannot meet the needs of archers. Besides, we didn’t encounter any professionals in Xi’an. Giving them the blueprints would have been useless, otherwise, there wouldn’t have been so many defective products. Unfortunately, it’s difficult to have assembly line production conditions anywhere now. I hope Cong Xia can create such conditions for us.”
Cong Xia said, “This drawing has cleared my mind a lot. Previously, when I tried to materialize the arrowhead based on my imagination, there was always deviation.”
“You can give it a try.”
Cong Xia carefully studied the drawing for more than ten minutes, firmly memorizing every structure and mechanical distribution. Then, he took an arrow, constructed a complete multidimensional image of the arrowhead in his mind, incorporating all the details from the paper, and began releasing energy into the arrowhead.
The arrowhead emitted an extremely faint white light and changed its molecular structure at a speed imperceptible to the naked eye. It gradually adjusted its shape according to the multidimensional image in Cong Xia’s mind. Cong Xia didn’t dare to be careless, continuously delivering energy into the arrowhead without hesitation. He could “see” the changes in the arrowhead. If he succeeded once, he could succeed countless times. So, this attempt was crucial!
After about five or six minutes, Cong Xia opened his eyes, sweating profusely. “It seems… it worked! Tang Yanqiu, give it a try!”
Tang Yanqiu quickly picked up his sword, bent the bow, and shot an arrow. The arrow hit a piece of dark-colored tree bark on a tree, about the size of a fingertip. Tang Yanqiu exclaimed excitedly, “Great shot!”
Cong Xia clapped his hands vigorously, almost falling off Abu in excitement. “Fantastic! I finally succeeded! Quickly, bring me the ones that I messed up. While we haven’t reached Luoyang yet, I must materialize those arrows. Zhuang Yao, Zhuang Yao, you’re amazing! Your diagram cleared my mind instantly. If it weren’t for you, I would never have succeeded on the first try!” Cong Xia grabbed Zhuang Yao’s slender shoulders, his words incoherent with excitement. This was the first time he successfully used non-attributed energy to change the shape of an object. His grasp of the knowledge within the Ancient Jade had reached a new level!
Zhuang Yao made a soft sound, “Then why didn’t you do it earlier?”
Cong Xia was taken aback.
Zhuang Yao brushed off his hand, “Knowing that your mind wasn’t enough, you would rather waste energy and time repeatedly than ask for my help. It’s because you were worried that I coveted your piece of jade, right?”
Cong Xia lowered his head, his face slightly flushed.
Zhuang Yao was right. He had never lowered his guard against Zhuang Yao and always found him untrustworthy. Therefore, he tried to keep Zhuang Yao in the dark about the Ancient Jade as much as possible. But he also understood that with Zhuang Yao’s help, he could better and more quickly utilize the Ancient Jade’s power. It was a contradiction. Because of his wariness towards Zhuang Yao, he only wanted to focus on his own research, inadvertently slowing down his progress and dragging down the overall strength improvement of the team. Perhaps he should reconsider his attitude towards this child.
Cong Xia said solemnly, “Zhuang Yao, I did indeed have doubts about you before. The things you did didn’t inspire much confidence. But after spending such a long time together, I can feel that the bond between us has strengthened. Although I can’t say that I trust you completely, I know that everything you do now is at least for the purpose of making us stronger. From this perspective, our goals are the same. I was wrong today. I should have sought your help earlier, which could have saved us three days and allowed us to make more arrowheads for Tang Yanqiu. From now on, whenever there is something related to the team’s interests, I will discuss it with you and seek your help.”
Zhuang Yao looked at him and said, “It’s enough that you understand we have a common goal. As long as this goal remains, we will always stand on the same side. So, share the information from the Ancient Jade. I will turn us into the strongest team.”
Cong Xia hesitated, glanced at Cheng Tianbi, and Cheng Tianbi returned his gaze and nodded.
Cong Xia then said, “Alright, I will involve you in the research whenever I can translate the knowledge.”
Cheng Tianbi said expressionlessly, “But no one is allowed to disclose this information. If I find out, I will handle it personally.” Cheng Tianbi’s temperament was always cold and dominant, and his words were not to be taken lightly.
However, Zhuang Yao was not intimidated by Cheng Tianbi. On the contrary, he was even more excited about accessing more knowledge.
It took Cong Xia the entire day to create arrowheads for Tang Yanqiu. They had a total of over sixty arrows in the car. Although the quantity didn’t seem large, each successful arrowhead consumed a significant amount of Cong Xia’s energy. Sometimes, if he couldn’t control it properly, he would fail. Generally, he could only succeed six or seven times out of ten attempts. Cong Xia could only slowly absorb some energy from the Puppet Jade while manufacturing the arrowheads. It wasn’t until nightfall that he successfully transformed all sixty-plus arrowheads.
At this point, they were only about sixty or seventy kilometers away from Luoyang. Due to encountering snow on the road, their journey was delayed by several hours, so they had to rest here overnight and continue to Luoyang the next day.
After a day’s exhaustion, Cong Xia was worn out. Cheng Tianbi didn’t let him cook and asked him to rest earlier.
During dinner, Cheng Tianbi brought the bowls in front of him, and the two of them leaned against each other. Although neither of them spoke, the quiet and sweet atmosphere connected their hearts.
After dinner, Cheng Tianbi took the night watch, and Cong Xia crawled into his sleeping bag to sleep. In the middle of the night, he woke up and intended to get out and switch with Cheng Tianbi. However, Cheng Tianbi was right beside him and, upon hearing the movement, immediately held him down. “No need to come out. Sleep.”
“It’s my turn to keep watch. You should rest.”
“No need, I’m not tired.”
“Even if you’re not tired, you should sleep. We don’t know what will happen tomorrow. Come in quickly, it’s warm inside.” Cong Xia insisted on climbing out of the sleeping bag.
Cheng Tianbi pressed his shoulder, emphasizing his words, “No need to come out. Sleep.”
Cong Xia chuckled softly, “If this sleeping bag could fit two people, it would be great. Actually, it might be possible. Why don’t you try coming in?”
Cheng Tianbi shook his head, “It’s too cramped.”
“Give it a try. I sleep comfortably in here by myself. Worst case, I won’t zip it up.” He opened the sleeping bag’s zipper, turning it into a half-opened blanket. After considering it for a moment, Cheng Tianbi eventually crawled in.
The space inside the sleeping bag was limited, and the two of them snuggled closely together. Cong Xia held him, using his hand to warm Cheng Tianbi’s face that felt like ice, whispering, “Look at you, you’re so cold, and you don’t even realize it.”
Cheng Tianbi blinked, and there was a layer of frost on his long eyelashes. He said, “I’m not cold.”
“You’re definitely cold.” Cong Xia rubbed his ears with the palm of his hand, channeling energy into his body.
“No need, don’t waste it.”
“I’ve already said that using it for you is not a waste.”
Cheng Tianbi held him tightly and muffled his voice, “Tomorrow, no matter what happens, stay by my side.”
“Okay.”
“Protecting yourself is the most important, followed by others, understood?”
“I understand.” Cong Xia also smiled and said, “You also understand, protect yourself.”
Cheng Tianbi softly hummed in agreement, but he knew that, for him, protecting the person in his arms was the most important.
Cong Xia simply couldn’t find the words to express his overflowing feelings for Cheng Tianbi. He could only hold him tightly.
***************
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