Intro to “Against Heaven”
Hi guys,
This is to announce the new addition to the family and also to formally introduce myself.
You can call me as Skynode (erm… which is a no brainer). Apart from translating Chinese novels, I have a full time job as a practising medical doctor somewhere on Planet Earth. If you need to scratch the urge to know exactly where, a good hint would be that I am fluent in English, Mandarin and surprisingly Bahasa Melayu.
Enough about myself. Let’s talk about this baby – “Against Heaven”, who was one of Er Gun’s first brainchild.
This is a rough idea of what lies ahead :
In the post-apocalyptic age, men were damned.
On a fateful day, one ordinary man found a black mystical crystal in a mine.
One event led to another, things happened and he was given the opportunity to change his life forever.
But, could he escape from his predetermined fate and create a destiny for himself?
Are all these worth doing? You tell me.
The best way to show that you appreciate my work is to click on the donate button.
No matter how big or small, every penny counts towards motivation for future releases.
I wish you all good health and do get a life & some rest from the screen once in a while. Thank you.
Yours,
Skynode.
Against Heaven - A great chines novel in English
Re: Against Heaven - A great chines novel in English
2213 (Serial Number 2213)[/size]
Heng Yue calendar, Year 50XX
On the Heng Yue Mainland, humans are still the ones in charge, but most of the prominent places that existed long ago, are now nothing but ruins.
It all began one night 3000 years ago, when three black, pointed altars descended from the sky.
That night was a catastrophic night. 50% of all organisms were wiped out and buildings were turned to dust……
Fast forwarding 3000 years, the Heng Yue Mainland is now known as Empress Mainland.
At the South end of Empress Mainland lies an island. It used to have a well-known harbour which has been reduced to ruins. If observant enough, one might still be able to see some traces of an ancient civilisation amongst the ruins.
From the waist-high grass thickets on the ground, an extremely ordinary looking man who was clothed in black suddenly appeared out of nowhere. He lifted his head to gaze at the sky, a trace of calmness in his eyes.
“They’ve finally caught up! This is the final chance, I am 60% certain that as long as I succeed, I will be free!”
The dazzling sunlight reflected off the man’s eyes as a voice sounded out in the air: “No. 0014, you’ve run rather far this time. To think you’ve actually attempted this number of escapes. This will be the last time because this has caused your sentence to lengthen by 3000 years. Your total sentence now exceeds 10 000 years and you’ve been dealt ——— the death penalty.”
Chapter 1, Serial Number 2213
Serial Number 2213 was an experiment subject at the Jian Yu island of Empress Mainland. Since birth, he had been living in a fluid-filled cylindrical glass vessel. He had no memory.
The only thing he knew was that there were many like him all around the area. Each day, people would come and open numerous vessels. None of those who were taken out of the vessels ever returned.
Finally one day, his container was opened. A group of people in white attire brought him into a room.
All the things in the room were foreign to him. He did not know what the people were talking about but from their expressions, he could guess that they were dissatisfied with him.
A feeling of uneasiness set in. Many years later, Serial Number 2213 would recall back and realise that it was called anxiety.
“Subject 2213’s quality is below average. Apart from the brain, the musculoskeletal system, cardiovascular system and nerves do not meet the standard requirement. No one would buy this kind of subject. Withdraw his nourishing fluid eligibility. Send him to the Department of Mining Development after installing the necessary language packages,” a cold, emotionless voice echoed the room.
On that day, Serial Number 2213 would forever leave the glass vessel which had been the only home that he knew. When he was brought away, a strange feeling set in. He did not know what it was, but his heart felt heavier the further away he was from the vessel.
The Department of Mining Development was the place where failed subjects would be sent to. Once the language packages had been installed, they would be dispatched to the underground mine.
When Serial Number 2213 was sent here, he saw many other subjects. They were naked like him, but every one of them looked to be in poor health. When they looked towards him, the gaze was ice cold and expressionless.
Since then, he was one of them. Every day in the darkly-lit quarry, they would dig and search for five-coloured crystals, in exchange for the much needed nourishing fluids.
As time went by, he found out the meaning of pain from the whips of the people in white attire whenever he failed to find any crystals. At the same time, he learned what hunger was.
More often than not, he would think about his vessel. He wanted so much to return to the comfort of being submerged in nourishing fluid in the glass container.
One day, during mining, all of this changed forever. He found a black crystal unlike one that he had seen before. The moment when he held the crystal in his hand, he felt a gush of warmth entering his body
After 7 days and nights of being unconscious with a high fever, he finally woke up.
When he opened his eyes, he found that he was back inside his vessel. Through the glass, he could see many of the people in white attire looking at him with curiosity.
He was surprised. Curiosity? How could he have known to use such a word? What did “curiosity” mean? Suddenly, he felt a jolt in his head and an image appeared in front of his eyes.
A man clothed in black was looking at the sky. In mid air, an old man in grey clothes said sternly,” Wang Lin, you won’t be able to escape.”
The image then disappeared. Serial Number 2213 was confused. He felt different. His mind was filled with things which he did not understand.
For instance, right now he was back to the much longed-for vessel, but he did not feel happy at all. In fact, there was a deep sense of hatred to the extent that he felt the compulsion to kill all the people who were watching him.
However, he concealed his emotions carefully.
The previous him wouldn’t have known how to do all of this, but now it seemed like an instinct to him. In a way which he could not understand, this instinct had been etched deeply in his soul.
He could not hear the conversation among the people outside the vessel, but from his sharp observation, he realised that their curiosity had slowly worn out.
On the tenth day, they brought him out from the vessel. They clothed him before bringing him to face a lady. Even though that was the first time of him seeing a lady, he was no longer surprised about how he was able to recognise one. Just by looking, his brain knew that she was a female.
For the past ten days, he could clearly feel that he was different from before. At least now, he was able to think and analyse.
However, he was still unable to comprehend what females were for.
The lady looked dissatisfied. After contemplating for a while, she reluctantly nodded her head and brought him away. He followed the lady into a huge oval shaped object. Over there, he met more than ten others like him.
Next, the ground trembled and he felt that the oval object was ascending. Suddenly, a gush of blood rushed to his head. He could not help but vomit a mouthful of fresh blood. He looked around and realised that the others looked pale with blood staining the corner of their mouths. Each one of them appeared to be terrified.
From the corner of his eyes, he looked through the window. The ground below seemed to be getting smaller and smaller. He suddenly realised that he was forever separated from his vessel.
At this time, the lady opened the door and entered. Seeing the pallor on everyone’s face, she gave a cynical smile. She looked around. Her glance stopped at a rather muscular and good-looking subject. She went in front of him and with one just pull, dropped his pants. After giving it a good look, she laughed mischievously. With one quick movement, she let the clothes slide down from her body, revealing a sexy female body which was very desirable.
Serial Number 2213 was dumbstruck with what happened next. The lady bent forward, showing her big, bouncy buttocks. She eagerly wrapped her mouth over an object at the subject’s groin and started sucking and licking. After that, she straddled herself over the subject. With her right hand, she tried adjusting the object and pushed herself down towards it. Immediately, she gave out a loud moan.
When the oval object once again gave a tremble and descended from the sky, Serial Number 2213’s brain was still playing back the scenes. More than ten of the subjects had been engaged in the same act with the lady throughout the day and night.
Sometimes, there would be multiple subjects who would be doing the same thing with the lady. Unfortunately, he did not join in because he somehow felt disgusted that the subjects were all fighting each other to do it.
After the oval object had landed, all of them slowly walked out from it.
The one who was receiving them was another lady. She was clothed in pink with bright clear eyes.
The lady who sent them there did not follow. After unloading all the subjects, she left with the oval object. Before leaving, she naughtily laughed and told the lady in pink,
“Chun Lan, you tell my elder sister that this batch of products taste good. Along the way, I enjoyed myself. Tell my sister to slowly savour it!”
Serial Number 2213 walked among the subjects. With the light from the setting sun, what appeared in front of him was a lavish looking building. Even though the building was refined, it felt strange to him.
Everyone including himself was sent into a massive room with more than ten beds. After the lady in pink helped them set up the beds, there was a complicated look on her face. After giving out a faint sigh, she turned and left the place.
It was a silent night. Early morning the next day, an old woman who was dressed in black came to their room. She coughed lightly, but the sound was as loud as thunder in Serial Number 2213’s ears. Subsequently, there was blood coming out from his mouth and nose. He looked around and noticed that everyone was also experiencing the same thing.
“You all need to bear in mind that this is the Heavenly Water City of the Spring Water Empire. You are owned by San Xiao Jie, who is one of the empire’s three most powerful Phoenix rulers. From now onwards, all of you are the Phoenix servants. If there is anyone who dares to go against orders or break the rules, I will not go easy on them!”
The old woman’s words were as loud as thunder, deeply engraved in everyone’s heart. 2213 dropped his head, flashes of images once again flooded his mind when he saw the old woman.
The man clothed in black was surrounded by a deadly aura. Under his feet were dead bodies.
Once the old woman had stopped talking, she scanned the room and pointed to a subject. With a deep voice, she said,” You. Follow me. You will be the first one to serve.”
2213 cautiously observed as the old woman was leaving with the subject. The gaze the old woman gave the subject was not unlike looking at a dead person.
The subject never returned. Three days later, the old woman reappeared and took away another subject. It was the same gaze again.
As time passed by, one by one, subjects were asked to served, but none of them ever returned. 2213 felt deeply concerned. In a period of one month, he could clearly feel that he was different from before. It was as though he knew a lot of things, yet knew nothing at all. But, there was something that he was certain of. He would not let his fate be determined like the others. He needed to be strong!
“I must be strong!” 2213 would tell himself every night. For the past one month, the lady in pink, who received them, would come by frequently. Every time, there would be a tense and complicated look on her face.
Through contact, 2213 got to know that the lady was called Chun Lan. She was the San Xiao Jie’s maid. From Chun Lan, he discovered important news.
San Xiao Jie contracted a rare and strange disease known as Mandara. She needed to continuously have sex with different men in order to alleviate her symptoms.
Soon, it was time for 2213 to serve.
With the old woman leading the way, he was brought to a secluded courtyard. In the yard, there were many pink flowers with overwhelming fragrance.
The old woman suddenly stopped and asked,” Do you have a name?”
2213 was stunned. He replied,”Wang Lin.”
“Wang Lin, watch my steps carefully. If you make even a single mistake, the court guards would kill you.” The old woman gave Wang Lin a look with her dusky eyes, then continued walking.
Looking at the old woman’s back, Wang Lin remained silent. He followed her into the court hall. Once Wang Lin was in the hall, the old woman left.
The hall was not big. Putting aside the decorations, what’s obvious to one would be a huge bed. In the bed was a lady who was lying on her side. A black silky veil was covering part of her face. Her icy cold eyes were staring at Wang Lin.
Heng Yue calendar, Year 50XX
On the Heng Yue Mainland, humans are still the ones in charge, but most of the prominent places that existed long ago, are now nothing but ruins.
It all began one night 3000 years ago, when three black, pointed altars descended from the sky.
That night was a catastrophic night. 50% of all organisms were wiped out and buildings were turned to dust……
Fast forwarding 3000 years, the Heng Yue Mainland is now known as Empress Mainland.
At the South end of Empress Mainland lies an island. It used to have a well-known harbour which has been reduced to ruins. If observant enough, one might still be able to see some traces of an ancient civilisation amongst the ruins.
From the waist-high grass thickets on the ground, an extremely ordinary looking man who was clothed in black suddenly appeared out of nowhere. He lifted his head to gaze at the sky, a trace of calmness in his eyes.
“They’ve finally caught up! This is the final chance, I am 60% certain that as long as I succeed, I will be free!”
The dazzling sunlight reflected off the man’s eyes as a voice sounded out in the air: “No. 0014, you’ve run rather far this time. To think you’ve actually attempted this number of escapes. This will be the last time because this has caused your sentence to lengthen by 3000 years. Your total sentence now exceeds 10 000 years and you’ve been dealt ——— the death penalty.”
Chapter 1, Serial Number 2213
Serial Number 2213 was an experiment subject at the Jian Yu island of Empress Mainland. Since birth, he had been living in a fluid-filled cylindrical glass vessel. He had no memory.
The only thing he knew was that there were many like him all around the area. Each day, people would come and open numerous vessels. None of those who were taken out of the vessels ever returned.
Finally one day, his container was opened. A group of people in white attire brought him into a room.
All the things in the room were foreign to him. He did not know what the people were talking about but from their expressions, he could guess that they were dissatisfied with him.
A feeling of uneasiness set in. Many years later, Serial Number 2213 would recall back and realise that it was called anxiety.
“Subject 2213’s quality is below average. Apart from the brain, the musculoskeletal system, cardiovascular system and nerves do not meet the standard requirement. No one would buy this kind of subject. Withdraw his nourishing fluid eligibility. Send him to the Department of Mining Development after installing the necessary language packages,” a cold, emotionless voice echoed the room.
On that day, Serial Number 2213 would forever leave the glass vessel which had been the only home that he knew. When he was brought away, a strange feeling set in. He did not know what it was, but his heart felt heavier the further away he was from the vessel.
The Department of Mining Development was the place where failed subjects would be sent to. Once the language packages had been installed, they would be dispatched to the underground mine.
When Serial Number 2213 was sent here, he saw many other subjects. They were naked like him, but every one of them looked to be in poor health. When they looked towards him, the gaze was ice cold and expressionless.
Since then, he was one of them. Every day in the darkly-lit quarry, they would dig and search for five-coloured crystals, in exchange for the much needed nourishing fluids.
As time went by, he found out the meaning of pain from the whips of the people in white attire whenever he failed to find any crystals. At the same time, he learned what hunger was.
More often than not, he would think about his vessel. He wanted so much to return to the comfort of being submerged in nourishing fluid in the glass container.
One day, during mining, all of this changed forever. He found a black crystal unlike one that he had seen before. The moment when he held the crystal in his hand, he felt a gush of warmth entering his body
After 7 days and nights of being unconscious with a high fever, he finally woke up.
When he opened his eyes, he found that he was back inside his vessel. Through the glass, he could see many of the people in white attire looking at him with curiosity.
He was surprised. Curiosity? How could he have known to use such a word? What did “curiosity” mean? Suddenly, he felt a jolt in his head and an image appeared in front of his eyes.
A man clothed in black was looking at the sky. In mid air, an old man in grey clothes said sternly,” Wang Lin, you won’t be able to escape.”
The image then disappeared. Serial Number 2213 was confused. He felt different. His mind was filled with things which he did not understand.
For instance, right now he was back to the much longed-for vessel, but he did not feel happy at all. In fact, there was a deep sense of hatred to the extent that he felt the compulsion to kill all the people who were watching him.
However, he concealed his emotions carefully.
The previous him wouldn’t have known how to do all of this, but now it seemed like an instinct to him. In a way which he could not understand, this instinct had been etched deeply in his soul.
He could not hear the conversation among the people outside the vessel, but from his sharp observation, he realised that their curiosity had slowly worn out.
On the tenth day, they brought him out from the vessel. They clothed him before bringing him to face a lady. Even though that was the first time of him seeing a lady, he was no longer surprised about how he was able to recognise one. Just by looking, his brain knew that she was a female.
For the past ten days, he could clearly feel that he was different from before. At least now, he was able to think and analyse.
However, he was still unable to comprehend what females were for.
The lady looked dissatisfied. After contemplating for a while, she reluctantly nodded her head and brought him away. He followed the lady into a huge oval shaped object. Over there, he met more than ten others like him.
Next, the ground trembled and he felt that the oval object was ascending. Suddenly, a gush of blood rushed to his head. He could not help but vomit a mouthful of fresh blood. He looked around and realised that the others looked pale with blood staining the corner of their mouths. Each one of them appeared to be terrified.
From the corner of his eyes, he looked through the window. The ground below seemed to be getting smaller and smaller. He suddenly realised that he was forever separated from his vessel.
At this time, the lady opened the door and entered. Seeing the pallor on everyone’s face, she gave a cynical smile. She looked around. Her glance stopped at a rather muscular and good-looking subject. She went in front of him and with one just pull, dropped his pants. After giving it a good look, she laughed mischievously. With one quick movement, she let the clothes slide down from her body, revealing a sexy female body which was very desirable.
Serial Number 2213 was dumbstruck with what happened next. The lady bent forward, showing her big, bouncy buttocks. She eagerly wrapped her mouth over an object at the subject’s groin and started sucking and licking. After that, she straddled herself over the subject. With her right hand, she tried adjusting the object and pushed herself down towards it. Immediately, she gave out a loud moan.
When the oval object once again gave a tremble and descended from the sky, Serial Number 2213’s brain was still playing back the scenes. More than ten of the subjects had been engaged in the same act with the lady throughout the day and night.
Sometimes, there would be multiple subjects who would be doing the same thing with the lady. Unfortunately, he did not join in because he somehow felt disgusted that the subjects were all fighting each other to do it.
After the oval object had landed, all of them slowly walked out from it.
The one who was receiving them was another lady. She was clothed in pink with bright clear eyes.
The lady who sent them there did not follow. After unloading all the subjects, she left with the oval object. Before leaving, she naughtily laughed and told the lady in pink,
“Chun Lan, you tell my elder sister that this batch of products taste good. Along the way, I enjoyed myself. Tell my sister to slowly savour it!”
Serial Number 2213 walked among the subjects. With the light from the setting sun, what appeared in front of him was a lavish looking building. Even though the building was refined, it felt strange to him.
Everyone including himself was sent into a massive room with more than ten beds. After the lady in pink helped them set up the beds, there was a complicated look on her face. After giving out a faint sigh, she turned and left the place.
It was a silent night. Early morning the next day, an old woman who was dressed in black came to their room. She coughed lightly, but the sound was as loud as thunder in Serial Number 2213’s ears. Subsequently, there was blood coming out from his mouth and nose. He looked around and noticed that everyone was also experiencing the same thing.
“You all need to bear in mind that this is the Heavenly Water City of the Spring Water Empire. You are owned by San Xiao Jie, who is one of the empire’s three most powerful Phoenix rulers. From now onwards, all of you are the Phoenix servants. If there is anyone who dares to go against orders or break the rules, I will not go easy on them!”
The old woman’s words were as loud as thunder, deeply engraved in everyone’s heart. 2213 dropped his head, flashes of images once again flooded his mind when he saw the old woman.
The man clothed in black was surrounded by a deadly aura. Under his feet were dead bodies.
Once the old woman had stopped talking, she scanned the room and pointed to a subject. With a deep voice, she said,” You. Follow me. You will be the first one to serve.”
2213 cautiously observed as the old woman was leaving with the subject. The gaze the old woman gave the subject was not unlike looking at a dead person.
The subject never returned. Three days later, the old woman reappeared and took away another subject. It was the same gaze again.
As time passed by, one by one, subjects were asked to served, but none of them ever returned. 2213 felt deeply concerned. In a period of one month, he could clearly feel that he was different from before. It was as though he knew a lot of things, yet knew nothing at all. But, there was something that he was certain of. He would not let his fate be determined like the others. He needed to be strong!
“I must be strong!” 2213 would tell himself every night. For the past one month, the lady in pink, who received them, would come by frequently. Every time, there would be a tense and complicated look on her face.
Through contact, 2213 got to know that the lady was called Chun Lan. She was the San Xiao Jie’s maid. From Chun Lan, he discovered important news.
San Xiao Jie contracted a rare and strange disease known as Mandara. She needed to continuously have sex with different men in order to alleviate her symptoms.
Soon, it was time for 2213 to serve.
With the old woman leading the way, he was brought to a secluded courtyard. In the yard, there were many pink flowers with overwhelming fragrance.
The old woman suddenly stopped and asked,” Do you have a name?”
2213 was stunned. He replied,”Wang Lin.”
“Wang Lin, watch my steps carefully. If you make even a single mistake, the court guards would kill you.” The old woman gave Wang Lin a look with her dusky eyes, then continued walking.
Looking at the old woman’s back, Wang Lin remained silent. He followed her into the court hall. Once Wang Lin was in the hall, the old woman left.
The hall was not big. Putting aside the decorations, what’s obvious to one would be a huge bed. In the bed was a lady who was lying on her side. A black silky veil was covering part of her face. Her icy cold eyes were staring at Wang Lin.
Re: Against Heaven - A great chines novel in English
The 2-Year Delay
Once in the hall, Wang Lin was greeted by a foul smell; similar to decomposing corpses. This smell was very familiar to him. He immediately took a few steps back. He looked at the lady on the bed, carefully inspecting her neck, arms and legs.
Round, violet petals were seen on the skin of her body.
Looking at these round, violet petals, an image unexpectedly appeared in Wang Lin’s mind; a place filled with corpses. Each of them had the petals on their body. A black clothed man was squatting on the ground, examining the bodies. At times, he seemed to be deep in his thoughts, and at other times, he would mix and match some herbs!
After the image disappeared, Wang Lin felt a throbbing headache. The colour on his face changed. He couldn’t help but feel goosebumps. Some important messages surfaced in his mind.
Corpse Flower Poison! This must be Corpse Flower Poison. And it seemed that it had progressed to the second stage.
The lady noticed Wang Lin’s expression. She cynically said, “You must be afraid.”
With the information about Corpse Flower Poison, Wang Lin knew that the second stage was when the poison would be most contagious. He looked at the lady, muttered to himself softly and smiled.
The lady’s eyes became even colder. She said, “You have some guts. The other slaves were scared to death when they saw my real appearance. You are the first one who managed to smile. But that’s alright, your fate will still be the same as others.”
Wang Lin laughed, pulled up a chair for himself and sat on it.
The lady was stunned. She had never expected Wang Lin to sit in front of her. She coldly said, “It seems that you are not only gutsy, but also……”
“You desperately look for men to sleep with you with the very intention of spreading your disease to others. Are you hoping that by doing so, you would be cured?” Wang Lin interrupted her. His eyes were shining brightly.
The lady immediately sat up. With fiery eyes, she asked, “Who told you that?”
Wang Lin remained calm and collected. He continued, “The way you are doing, it won’t cure your disease, but instead, make it even worse.”
The lady stared at Wang Lin eerily and said, “I don’t know who told you that. It doesn’t matter. I shall let you experience this Mandara illness.”
Wang Lin kept quiet and stared at her calmly. He noticed the subtle scowl on her face.
As the memory regarding the Corpse Flower Poison became clearer, he said, “Based on the round red petals on both your arms and legs, I am guessing that your whole body is already stiff and numb. Every movement brings unbearable pain. Your hair has begun to fall out. Mouth full of ulcers. Aches and pain all over your bones and joints, and your vision has become blurrier. Am I right?”
Her expression turned from eerie to shocked. Her breathing became laboured. Most of the things that Wang Lin had just said were true. She had never told anyone about her symptoms. Thus, none of the servants would have known about these.
Because Mandara disease was so rare on the Empress Mainland, only a handful of people would know about the illness in detail.
“How….. How do you know?” Her voice was already shaking.
“Mandara disease can be divided into three stages. Once it progresses to stage three, the only outcome is death.” Wang Lin looked at her and coolly said, “You are very lucky to meet me during the second stage of the disease. I know how to treat this Mandara disease.”
The lady took a deep breath, sat up straight and said, “Mandara disease is fatal. What makes you think that you can cure me?”
“If you are not being treated, death within one year is inevitable!” Wang Lin looked at the lady expressionlessly.
After a moment of silence, she pursed her lips and said, “Okay, I will let you treat me. But if you are lying to me, I definitely…”
“Treatment would require that you pay a price,” Wang Lin smiled while interrupting the lady again.
“What do you want? Wealth? An ID as a free man? High level spells? Say it.” The lady said in disdain.
“An ID as a free man. A quiet place to stay where I would not be bothered. Spells…. that would do too. Give me a set of high level spells. You need to also ensure my safety after your recovery.” Wang Lin knew that in the near future, he would not be able to leave the place. The most important thing now was to survive and grow stronger.
“Not a problem. But, how do I know that you are not lying to me. If you are really confident of treating my disease, you will take this pill now. On the day of my recovery, I will give you the cure. Wang Popo, restrain him.” the lady smiled coldly while retrieving a wooden small box.
Wang Lin heard a sigh from his back, followed by an icy cold energy going into his body. In the blink of an eye, his whole body was immobilised. Other than the mouth, all other parts of his body became stiff.
“Young man, it’s in your best interest to take this pill. I am already old. I do not wish to use the Soul Chain technique on you. You must have heard about the Soul Chain technique. There is a one third chance of failure where the soul would be scattered. However, if successful, you would be a living zombie whose job is only to obey commands.” A hoarse voice came from Wang Lin’s back. The old woman was actually Wang Popo.
Wang Lin smiled and said, “Alright, I shall swallow the pill.” Once he said that, his entire body returned to normal. After stretching and moving his still slightly numb arms and legs, he took the wooden box without saying anything.
Using two fingers, he slowly removed the pill from the box and immediately inserted it into his mouth and swallowed. He said, “Mandara disease needs a long period of treatment. I need two years. Every month I will give you a prescription of herbs. You will recover after two years.”
In actuality, the treatment for Corpse Flower Poison was not as slow as what Wang Lin claimed. With the information he had in his memory, he was confident that he would be able to cure this disease within three months. Stating two years was only to buy time for himself.
He did not believe that the lady would hold the end of her bargain regarding his safety. After spending some time thinking for the past month, he had learnt that it’s in his best interest to put his fate in his very own hands.
At the southmost part of the mansion, there was a quiet and secluded court where Wang Lin was sitting. All the servants nearby had been transferred out. So now, apart from him, there wasn’t anyone else.
At the time, the day had grown dark. Apart from a strange looking rectangular lamp, there were two other objects in front of Wang Lin. One was his ID as a free man, another was a book made up by yellow silk cloths.
Looking at them, Wang Lin gave a deep sigh.
Whatever he had now was closely related to the crystal he discovered at Jian Yu Island. Besides giving him fragments of weird memories and recollections, the crystal had slowly changed his personality and attitude.
It wasn’t wrong to say that the crystal gave him a new life. Currently, his survival was the only thing which mattered most. In order to survive, he needed to become strong! Wang Lin gave a resolute look and picked up the yellow book. However, once he flicked through the book, he frowned. There wasn’t a single word that he recognized.
Lucky for Wang Lin, besides words, there were illustrations of human bodies. However, focusing on the red and green curvy lines on the illustrations gave him a headache.
Putting down the book, Wang Lin laughed bitterly. Apparently, there was something he had to do first; learn how to read.
Back in his room, Wang Lin pushed the tea cup from the table onto the floor. He picked up one of the bigger broken fragments, then laid on his bed. However, he had difficulties falling asleep. Although he was no longer worried that he would disappear like other subjects, he couldn’t help but feel that he was still in great danger.
Any wrong move in San Xiao Jie’s room would have resulted in death.
He was trapped in a hopeless situation. However, Wang Lin believed that if he were like the other subjects, his fate would be different. The other subjects had been forced to sleep with San Xiao Jie and died after contracting the Mandara disease.
The fate of his fellow subjects were clear examples of what could have happened.
Therefore, when he recognized that Mandara disease was actually Corpse Flower Poison and that it was curable, he smiled because he knew he had the key to get out of this deadly situation.
Actually, when San Xiao Jie wanted him to consume the poison, she would not have needed Wang Popo’s service to force him. Wang Lin understood his situation and would unhesitantly take the pill in exchange for two years of preparation time. It was his belief that all of these would change completely in two-years time.
Finally, Wang Lin fell asleep. He had not changed his clothes. The broken fragment of clay was still in his tight grasp. To him, this was a weapon to defend himself.
After a restful night’s sleep, Wang Lin woke up very early the next morning. After briefly washing his face, he looked into the mirror. The man in the mirror looked ordinary; with a rather dark skin tone and coarse skin. There was a confused look on his face.
How could he continue surviving? By making himself strong, that’s the only option. He needed to be strong!
However, the most important thing now was to find the herbs required to treat the Corpse Flower Poison. He was prepared to go outside and get a better understanding of this strange world. When he stepped out of the courtyard, Wang Lin noticed two armored female guards standing at his door.
One of them looked at Wang Lin and raised her hand to stop him. She said, “Without San Xiao Jie’s permission, you cannot leave this place.”
Wang Lin smirked, laughing in his heart. He loudly said, “You let San Xiao Jie know that I need to go out to buy the herbs. Also, call Chun Lan to come here with enough money for the purchases.” After saying this, Wang Lin returned to the courtyard, sat on the stone chair and continued reading the spells book.
The guard looked shocked. After hesitating for a bit, she gave an eye signal to her partner and left quickly.
Not long after, the guard returned with Chun Lan following behind. Chun Lan was surprised to see Wang Lin. She felt curious as to why he was not killed like the other men on the second day. But she understood that she should not ask about things which she was not supposed to know. “San Xiao Jie gave me a thousand crystal coins, what medicine do you wish to buy?” After saying that, she suddenly noticed that there was a black piece of paper on the stone table. She gave an astonished look. She recognized that. It was the ID of a free man!
Wang Ling closed his book and stood up. He gently smiled, then said, “Bring me to the place that sells herbs so that I can have a look first.”
Once in the hall, Wang Lin was greeted by a foul smell; similar to decomposing corpses. This smell was very familiar to him. He immediately took a few steps back. He looked at the lady on the bed, carefully inspecting her neck, arms and legs.
Round, violet petals were seen on the skin of her body.
Looking at these round, violet petals, an image unexpectedly appeared in Wang Lin’s mind; a place filled with corpses. Each of them had the petals on their body. A black clothed man was squatting on the ground, examining the bodies. At times, he seemed to be deep in his thoughts, and at other times, he would mix and match some herbs!
After the image disappeared, Wang Lin felt a throbbing headache. The colour on his face changed. He couldn’t help but feel goosebumps. Some important messages surfaced in his mind.
Corpse Flower Poison! This must be Corpse Flower Poison. And it seemed that it had progressed to the second stage.
The lady noticed Wang Lin’s expression. She cynically said, “You must be afraid.”
With the information about Corpse Flower Poison, Wang Lin knew that the second stage was when the poison would be most contagious. He looked at the lady, muttered to himself softly and smiled.
The lady’s eyes became even colder. She said, “You have some guts. The other slaves were scared to death when they saw my real appearance. You are the first one who managed to smile. But that’s alright, your fate will still be the same as others.”
Wang Lin laughed, pulled up a chair for himself and sat on it.
The lady was stunned. She had never expected Wang Lin to sit in front of her. She coldly said, “It seems that you are not only gutsy, but also……”
“You desperately look for men to sleep with you with the very intention of spreading your disease to others. Are you hoping that by doing so, you would be cured?” Wang Lin interrupted her. His eyes were shining brightly.
The lady immediately sat up. With fiery eyes, she asked, “Who told you that?”
Wang Lin remained calm and collected. He continued, “The way you are doing, it won’t cure your disease, but instead, make it even worse.”
The lady stared at Wang Lin eerily and said, “I don’t know who told you that. It doesn’t matter. I shall let you experience this Mandara illness.”
Wang Lin kept quiet and stared at her calmly. He noticed the subtle scowl on her face.
As the memory regarding the Corpse Flower Poison became clearer, he said, “Based on the round red petals on both your arms and legs, I am guessing that your whole body is already stiff and numb. Every movement brings unbearable pain. Your hair has begun to fall out. Mouth full of ulcers. Aches and pain all over your bones and joints, and your vision has become blurrier. Am I right?”
Her expression turned from eerie to shocked. Her breathing became laboured. Most of the things that Wang Lin had just said were true. She had never told anyone about her symptoms. Thus, none of the servants would have known about these.
Because Mandara disease was so rare on the Empress Mainland, only a handful of people would know about the illness in detail.
“How….. How do you know?” Her voice was already shaking.
“Mandara disease can be divided into three stages. Once it progresses to stage three, the only outcome is death.” Wang Lin looked at her and coolly said, “You are very lucky to meet me during the second stage of the disease. I know how to treat this Mandara disease.”
The lady took a deep breath, sat up straight and said, “Mandara disease is fatal. What makes you think that you can cure me?”
“If you are not being treated, death within one year is inevitable!” Wang Lin looked at the lady expressionlessly.
After a moment of silence, she pursed her lips and said, “Okay, I will let you treat me. But if you are lying to me, I definitely…”
“Treatment would require that you pay a price,” Wang Lin smiled while interrupting the lady again.
“What do you want? Wealth? An ID as a free man? High level spells? Say it.” The lady said in disdain.
“An ID as a free man. A quiet place to stay where I would not be bothered. Spells…. that would do too. Give me a set of high level spells. You need to also ensure my safety after your recovery.” Wang Lin knew that in the near future, he would not be able to leave the place. The most important thing now was to survive and grow stronger.
“Not a problem. But, how do I know that you are not lying to me. If you are really confident of treating my disease, you will take this pill now. On the day of my recovery, I will give you the cure. Wang Popo, restrain him.” the lady smiled coldly while retrieving a wooden small box.
Wang Lin heard a sigh from his back, followed by an icy cold energy going into his body. In the blink of an eye, his whole body was immobilised. Other than the mouth, all other parts of his body became stiff.
“Young man, it’s in your best interest to take this pill. I am already old. I do not wish to use the Soul Chain technique on you. You must have heard about the Soul Chain technique. There is a one third chance of failure where the soul would be scattered. However, if successful, you would be a living zombie whose job is only to obey commands.” A hoarse voice came from Wang Lin’s back. The old woman was actually Wang Popo.
Wang Lin smiled and said, “Alright, I shall swallow the pill.” Once he said that, his entire body returned to normal. After stretching and moving his still slightly numb arms and legs, he took the wooden box without saying anything.
Using two fingers, he slowly removed the pill from the box and immediately inserted it into his mouth and swallowed. He said, “Mandara disease needs a long period of treatment. I need two years. Every month I will give you a prescription of herbs. You will recover after two years.”
In actuality, the treatment for Corpse Flower Poison was not as slow as what Wang Lin claimed. With the information he had in his memory, he was confident that he would be able to cure this disease within three months. Stating two years was only to buy time for himself.
He did not believe that the lady would hold the end of her bargain regarding his safety. After spending some time thinking for the past month, he had learnt that it’s in his best interest to put his fate in his very own hands.
At the southmost part of the mansion, there was a quiet and secluded court where Wang Lin was sitting. All the servants nearby had been transferred out. So now, apart from him, there wasn’t anyone else.
At the time, the day had grown dark. Apart from a strange looking rectangular lamp, there were two other objects in front of Wang Lin. One was his ID as a free man, another was a book made up by yellow silk cloths.
Looking at them, Wang Lin gave a deep sigh.
Whatever he had now was closely related to the crystal he discovered at Jian Yu Island. Besides giving him fragments of weird memories and recollections, the crystal had slowly changed his personality and attitude.
It wasn’t wrong to say that the crystal gave him a new life. Currently, his survival was the only thing which mattered most. In order to survive, he needed to become strong! Wang Lin gave a resolute look and picked up the yellow book. However, once he flicked through the book, he frowned. There wasn’t a single word that he recognized.
Lucky for Wang Lin, besides words, there were illustrations of human bodies. However, focusing on the red and green curvy lines on the illustrations gave him a headache.
Putting down the book, Wang Lin laughed bitterly. Apparently, there was something he had to do first; learn how to read.
Back in his room, Wang Lin pushed the tea cup from the table onto the floor. He picked up one of the bigger broken fragments, then laid on his bed. However, he had difficulties falling asleep. Although he was no longer worried that he would disappear like other subjects, he couldn’t help but feel that he was still in great danger.
Any wrong move in San Xiao Jie’s room would have resulted in death.
He was trapped in a hopeless situation. However, Wang Lin believed that if he were like the other subjects, his fate would be different. The other subjects had been forced to sleep with San Xiao Jie and died after contracting the Mandara disease.
The fate of his fellow subjects were clear examples of what could have happened.
Therefore, when he recognized that Mandara disease was actually Corpse Flower Poison and that it was curable, he smiled because he knew he had the key to get out of this deadly situation.
Actually, when San Xiao Jie wanted him to consume the poison, she would not have needed Wang Popo’s service to force him. Wang Lin understood his situation and would unhesitantly take the pill in exchange for two years of preparation time. It was his belief that all of these would change completely in two-years time.
Finally, Wang Lin fell asleep. He had not changed his clothes. The broken fragment of clay was still in his tight grasp. To him, this was a weapon to defend himself.
After a restful night’s sleep, Wang Lin woke up very early the next morning. After briefly washing his face, he looked into the mirror. The man in the mirror looked ordinary; with a rather dark skin tone and coarse skin. There was a confused look on his face.
How could he continue surviving? By making himself strong, that’s the only option. He needed to be strong!
However, the most important thing now was to find the herbs required to treat the Corpse Flower Poison. He was prepared to go outside and get a better understanding of this strange world. When he stepped out of the courtyard, Wang Lin noticed two armored female guards standing at his door.
One of them looked at Wang Lin and raised her hand to stop him. She said, “Without San Xiao Jie’s permission, you cannot leave this place.”
Wang Lin smirked, laughing in his heart. He loudly said, “You let San Xiao Jie know that I need to go out to buy the herbs. Also, call Chun Lan to come here with enough money for the purchases.” After saying this, Wang Lin returned to the courtyard, sat on the stone chair and continued reading the spells book.
The guard looked shocked. After hesitating for a bit, she gave an eye signal to her partner and left quickly.
Not long after, the guard returned with Chun Lan following behind. Chun Lan was surprised to see Wang Lin. She felt curious as to why he was not killed like the other men on the second day. But she understood that she should not ask about things which she was not supposed to know. “San Xiao Jie gave me a thousand crystal coins, what medicine do you wish to buy?” After saying that, she suddenly noticed that there was a black piece of paper on the stone table. She gave an astonished look. She recognized that. It was the ID of a free man!
Wang Ling closed his book and stood up. He gently smiled, then said, “Bring me to the place that sells herbs so that I can have a look first.”