Chapter 1414: Blue s.h.i.+eld and Golden Featherflight
Translator: Exodus Tales Editor: Exodus Tales
Truancy?
The unremarkable old man pouted and muttered, “Others are desperately studying, afraid of getting kicked out, yet how could you be just like that person, skipping lessons to go play for no apparent reason. I’ve never seen anyone as reluctant to make progress as you two.”
Though the old man was grumbling, he did not say a word more. He trotted over to the flat lawn at the top of the mountain and spread out a blanket he had carried under his arm, took off his shoes, and began training the Startip Mantra with his bare feet on the blanket.
The Startip Mantra was the most foundational homework for any special ability user. It was used to consolidate and improve the width of the seventh brain region, while keeping the body healthy and recovering lost energy at the same time. Xia Fan also practiced the Startip Mantra every day, but he had already completed today’s set before climbing up the mountain today.
The Startip Mantra was a set of exercises, the movements slow, which included stretching, breathing, control, with balance at its heart. The old man practiced it pretty well, his techniques executed perfectly. Though there was still some disparity between him and his Blind Grandpa from the Holy Tomb, it was obvious to anyone watching that he was better than anyone else Xia Fan had ever seen. His body moved as if it had been mechanically manipulated, and every action he made was accurate to a fault.
!!
Before long, Xia Fan learned who the other person whom the old man was referring to. It was none other than Traveling Buddha and his lackadaisical att.i.tude toward everything.
The teenager was also skipping cla.s.s, and while Xia Fan had brought his squirrel and snack, Traveling Buddha had instead brought a very exquisite white porcelain tea set.
Traveling Buddha was slightly surprised when he saw that Xia Fan was also here. After exchanging greetings, he began setting up a small foldable table beside Xia Fan, boiled some water, and cleaned the tea set once. Thereafter, he pulled out a small metal flask and very carefully retrieved three dried white flower petals with a pair of tweezers and soaked them in the water, replacing the teapot’s cap.
Xia Fan had his Scent special ability. The instant Traveling Buddha uncapped the flask, the faint scent of the flower filled his nostrils. It was a very mild and refres.h.i.+ng aroma that lifted Xia Fan’s spirits when he smelled it.
—
Several minutes later, the tea was brewed, and Xia Fan sat together with Traveling Buddha at the small table.
“What tea is this? It has a very unique smell,” Xia Fan asked curiously.
“Just some wild chrysanthemum I found along the roadside that I casually picked,” Traveling Buddha replied as he raised his teacup.
Xia Fan did not believe him. His sense of smell told him that was definitely no ordinary wild chrysanthemum.
Traveling Buddha wrinkled his brow and asked, “You’re an annoying one.Why must you ask so many questions to get to the bottom of things with everything? Why lead such an exhausting life when you can just happily live your life easily, without any trouble?”
Xia Fan chuckled helplessly. He had heard about Traveling Buddha from Soul Flying Bird, and how he was a huge mystery in Blue Boiling Point. He had been at the Training Camp for close to seven years, yet he still remained as an intermediate cadet. The reason was simply one word: laziness!
Unless personally brought in by teachers, Traveling Buddha would never partic.i.p.ate in any lessons or a.s.sessments. Even more amazing was how he had not been eliminated despite having such an att.i.tude. Furthermore, he had been only twelve when he first joined, ranking third in the history of Blue Boiling Point!
“I don’t want to graduate. That is because the moment I do, I’ll have to work for the Special Bureau, and it’s much better staying here, living my life free and easy.” Traveling Buddha acted like he had no intention of improving himself as he said to Xia Fan, “What about you? Why are you playing truant?”
Xia Fan took in the view around him and sighed, “To organize my thoughts.”
“Organize your thoughts?”
“Yeah. My grandparents once said that techniques are ultimately just techniques, no matter how profound they are. There’s only one thing that matters in order to ensure survival in this huge universe,” Xia Fan said as he tapped his head with one finger.
“Oh…” Traveling Buddha was extraordinarily clever, and immediately understood what Xia Fan meant. He nodded in agreement, “What your grandparents said makes a lot of sense. Life and thought need to be steadily acc.u.mulated. If someone were to work hectically all day, they would never have the time to observe everything around them. Sometimes, it’s better to take a break and calm your thoughts, so as to grant greater clarity to your mind.
“Some people say being lazy is a sort of cancer, but I don’t think so. Laziness is not only not cancerous, it is actually the light of progress. It is precisely because of laziness that humans invented transportation devices, and because of laziness that humans discovered lying on the sofa to watch movies, as well as mechanical farming. In any case, when considering all our technological advances, they stem entirely from everyone wanting to live an even more lackadaisical life, which is what drives people to invent more and more things.”
Xia Fan nodded his head repeatedly, “This laziness theory of yours makes a lot of sense as well. I feel like I’ve learned a lot!”
“You’re too kind,” Traveling Buddha replied humbly.
“Degenerates! Look at you two rascals, speaking of skipping cla.s.ses so righteously!”
It was already close to noon, and the old man had been practicing his Startip Mantra very conscientiously, actually practicing it for three hours all in one go. Xia Fan was considered to be one of the more hardworking cadets in the Training Camp, but he would spend no more than forty-five minutes on Startip Mantra every day.
Perhaps it was because the old man was feeling his whole body heat up, but he took off his coat and sat down by the table, wearing a loose white singlet.
Xia Fan saw a patch of light gray ripple on the old man’s arm and was startled. Chef Grandpa had once told Xia Fan that it was a symptom of a chronic poison!
There were only two tea cups, but the old man did not seem to care that Xia Fan and Traveling Buddha had been using them, as he picked one up and drained it in one go.
After drinking three or four cups of the tea one after another, the old man set down the cup and asked, “Seeing as the two of you degenerates have been wasting your entire morning, let me ask you two if you’ve managed to think anything through?”
Traveling Buddha laughed. “I’ve already thought things through. A life doing nothing is the best way to live, and seeing as how humans can never escape death, whether I lead a glorious life or how hard I work, I will still find myself buried under soil at the end of the day, becoming no different from a fallen leaf in the middle of a forest. Since that is how it’ll be, why should I work hard, when freedom is way better?”
“A good-for-nothing uninterested in making any progress whatsoever,” the old man rolled his eyes at Traveling Buddha. This was probably not the first time he had heard this answer, which was why he did not think too much of it. “What about you?”
Xia Fan chuckled, “I think I’ve managed to sort out my thoughts. I might join the Logistics Division.”
Logistics!
Both Traveling Buddha and the unremarkable old man were startled. Both knew very well what sort of existence the Logistics Division was. After all these years, the Logistics Division had not once managed to recruit anyone, all because it was a division that had no standing whatsoever, since providing logistical support to investigators did not sound nice at all.
Furthermore, the Logistics Division lacked any distinguis.h.i.+ng features at all. Normally, it was a place where cadets who knew a little bit of everything, but specialized in nothing would end up going to. If they had any specialty to begin with, they would have long been s.n.a.t.c.hed up by other divisions. Considering how Xia Fan could be considered an elite in the camp, was there a need for him to end up mixing up with the Logistics Division?
The old man frowned. “What’s your reasoning?”
Xia Fan simply replied, “The other three division heads have been pressuring me greatly, trying to have a chat with me at every opportunity they can find. Meanwhile, the head of the Logistics Division has not once tried to initiate a conversation with me at all, perhaps thinking that he could not compete with the others.
“Under such circ.u.mstances, if I were to join the Logistics Division, Division Head Lu Xiangyang would surely be elated, and his expectations toward me would not be higher than what the other divisions have. I could also lead a freer life. Besides, even in terms of the work I’ll be expected to do in the future, the Logistics Division is also more lax than other divisions, and I would be able to find more time to do the things I want to do this way.”
Xia Fan actually did not tell them everything he was thinking that had led him to this conclusion. Aside from settling down, Xia Fan also hoped to find the murderer who had slain the scoundrels of the Holy Tomb planet, find out more about Blind Grandpa’s true ident.i.ty, and investigate just where the Skywing Token that his own clansmen had left behind had ended up.
Doing all those things took time and needed freedom. Though Xia Fan needed the ident.i.ty of being a part of the Special Bureau to begin his personal investigations, he did not wish to lose his freedom, either!
Traveling Buddha stroked his chin. “Hearing you say all that, even I felt tempted. Indeed, the Logistics Division is definitely more free-wheeling than the other divisions.”
Xia Fan smiled. “You’ve been in this camp for seven years. There’s no way you can stay here forever. It’s only a matter of time before you’ll have to leave Blue Boiling Point one day.”
Traveling Buddha burst into laughter. “You’re right! I’ve not dared to return home during the past seven years, all out of the fear of hearing my family nag me. Since the Logistics Division would give me so much freedom in the future, why don’t I do the same thing you intend to and transfer to the Logistics Division, as well?”
Xia Fan replied, “Then you better think things through. The Logistics Division has a weak foundation, and you’ll surely be given special attention once you’re there. It might be easier for you to negotiate with the head for more, but the one drawback would be the poor reputation they have.”
“I don’t care about the reputation. So, it’s settled! I’ll make my report later tonight, and hand it in tomorrow!” Traveling Buddha waved his hand dismissively.
The unremarkable old man was dumbfounded. He poured himself another cup of tea and muttered under his breath, “Looks like the Logistics Division has struck gold!”
Xia Fan reached out his hand to stop the old man, “Elder, you shouldn’t drink any more of this tea. It’s not doing your Golden Featherflight Poison any good.”
The old man was startled, his thoughts in turmoil. He looked at his left arm and then back at Xia Fan before asking in a grave voice, “How did you know this was Golden Featherflight Poison?”
“‘As the gray cloud rises, the ghost faces sorrow. Golden feathers fly, as a strange poison penetrates the bones. Lurking for ten years, death in twenty years’,” Xia Fan recited the mnemonic rhyme that Chef Grandpa had taught him and addressed the old man seriously, “The Golden Featherflight has been in your body for fifteen years, and has already gone past the ideal time for you to get it treated. Continued interaction with this wild chrysanthemum that carries with it the bitterchill trait would only hasten the poison’s propagation.”
The old man and Traveling Buddha were both bewildered.
“You are correct, this is indeed the Golden Featherflight poison, and it has already been fifteen and a half years since I first contracted it. When you mentioned there was an ideal time to get treatment, are you saying that this sort of chronic poison has a chance of being cured?” the old man asked Xia Fan, curious.
Xia Fan nodded, “It was originally untreatable, but by some coincidence brought on by fate, Chef Grandpa and Hunter Grandpa happened to be cooped up together, and because they had nothing else to do, their idle chatter turned into a discussion over a way to treat Golden Featherflight.”
The Chef Grandpa that Xia Fan mentioned was a master of poisons, and Hunter Grandpa was a beast tamer. The two of them had their own areas of mastery, but after being trapped in the Holy Tomb, the two discovered that their techniques were actually very complementary with one another during their casual conversations.
Hunter Grandpa never learned medical toxicology, but he had plenty of ancestors who had taught him unorthodox methods, like the treatments they needed when an animal bit them and so forth. Meanwhile, Chef Grandpa was a proper toxicologist. When the unorthodox and orthodox met, they actually managed to find some commonality. In any case, it was after the two began exchanging their thoughts on the topic that Chef Grandpa found his poison techniques becoming even more sophisticated.
There were plenty of such cases under the sky dome in the Holy Tomb. After all, these scoundrels had been trapped for a very long time, and life was boring. Before Xia Fan arrived, the only entertainment they had was to come together and ruminate as a group. The scoundrels were all professionals in their respective fields, and such meetings were akin to a gathering of experts coming together from all walks of life.
The expression on the old man’s face changed and changed again. He looked up to the sky, and realized it was exactly midday, frowning, “It’s about time, Come, both of you can join me and have lunch at my place.”
Traveling Buddha scratched his head and sheepishly chuckled, “Then we’ll be imposing on you, Camp Commander. I’ve long been tired of the food offered in the mess hall, and was hoping to have a change of pace.”
Getting up, Xia Fan and Traveling Buddha followed the seemingly unremarkable old man down the mountain, with the former asking the latter, “What did you just call him?”
Traveling Buddha replied nonchalantly, “Oh, did you not know? This old man’s our Camp Commander, Blue s.h.i.+eld!”
…
The Deep Blue Clan was a n.o.ble family of Ashen Moon. Their ancestors were famous for the establishment of the Blue Boiling Point Training Camp, and generations of Camp Commanders were all someone from the Deep Blue Clan.
This old man who looked like nothing remarkable was actually someone from the Deep Blue Clan, and he had succeeded to the post as Camp Commander for fifteen years already. It just so happened to be not long after taking up his post that he found himself stricken with Golden Featherflight poison.
Blue s.h.i.+eld’s home was a fairly mundane-looking farmhouse, a wooden bungalow with a garden filled with fruits and vegetables. In addition to Blue s.h.i.+eld, there was also a fairly old couple taking care of his daily needs living there.
The dishes were served under a large tree in the courtyard. Blue s.h.i.+eld walked toward the chair carefreely as the old servant came up to ask with a smile on his face, “Old Buddha, what would you like to eat today?”
“Anything goes, just make sure it’s tasty. On top of that, please serve a bottle of your old man’s treasured red wine.”
“As you wish.”
When the old servant heard Traveling Buddha’s instructions, he happily left for the kitchen to get everything ready.
Xia Fan found it mystifying. He had always thought Master Buddha had been a nickname that his fellow cadets had given him, so why did this elderly servant from Blue s.h.i.+eld’s home, who was already in his seventies, also call him Old Buddha? In terms of age, that lad was no more than one or two years older than himself!
—
After they were done with their meal, Traveling Buddha folded one leg over his other and very vulgarly picked at his teeth with a toothpick. Xia Fan and the Blue Boiling Point Camp Commander chatted about the Golden Featherflight poison in his body.
Xia Fan smiled, “Golden feathers fly, as thousands of birds die. The poison of the Golden Featherflight bird is a very overbearing poison. Any place that bird flies over, the other fowl will all meet their demise. Because humans have a different genetic make-up, we fare slightly better; when the poison enters our body, it will lie dormant for ten years and spread over ten more before becoming fatal. It is considerably longer than what the pitiful birds experience.
“Two of my grandpas researched a method they call the adsorption technique, by using blood leeches to suck out the poison in the cells, little by little. It makes sense theoretically speaking, but whether it would actually treat the condition is not something I can guarantee in practice.”
Blood leeches were a highly toxic leech. The moment they bit into someone, they would not only suck the blood from them, they would also release a lethally toxic venom. People who died to them would find their bodies still preserved even after ten thousand years! Because of just how great the toxicity was, even bacteria who would rot a corpse could not survive it, showing just how toxic those blood leeches were.
Of course, that only applied to normal human beings. A famed master like Blue s.h.i.+eld with superhuman resistance would not immediately die from them, but it was still very risky!
Seeing Blue s.h.i.+eld hesitate, Traveling Buddha carelessly commented, “The way I see it, I don’t think you really have a choice. Just treat this as your last resort and even if it fails, at most you lose only a few good years early.”
“Hahahaha!” Hearing his words, Blue s.h.i.+eld instead let out a laugh. “That’s true. To think I would be afraid of dying now that I have grown so old. Xia Fan, tell me what things you need, and I’ll send people to get them.”
Xia Fan nodded.