Dark Moon Era

A wooden house stood out among all the black stone houses.

Maybe because of its age, the wooden wall made from the original logs was filled with mottled moss.

The roof was a greenish-gray color with stone tiles arranged layer after layer like fish scales. Maybe because of the rain earlier, drops of water fell off the edge of the roof.

The evening breeze came, making the blue curtain hanging at the door flutter gracefully as if it was a hand waving at Tang Ling, calling straight for his heart.

Is there something wrong with my memories?

Tang Ling’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he stared at the wooden house that stood out from the rest of the black stone houses. An indescribable and unusual feeling rose from his heart.

He had an impulse to go there for a closer look.

He did not know whether it was to prove that he had neglected the wooden house during his eight hours staring outside the window or if the hustling people strangely turned a blind eye to it.

A while later, Tang Ling stood in the middle of the alleyway. He really could not hold back the native impulse from his heart—he had to go to the wooden house.

With both hands in his pockets, Tang Ling walked towards the wooden house aimlessly. His feet stepped on the water puddles as he walked closer. The sloshing of his steps was heard, but as he walked closer to the wooden house, the splashes and the steps grew softer and eventually silent as if he had slowly walked into another dimension.

No one in the area particularly noticed the slim, short-haired and decent-looking young man. They would casually glimpse into the alleyway but would only see him walk to the end of the alleyway and turn around the corner, moving away from their sight.

******

In front of the wooden house, Tang Ling stopped. His breaths sounded a little hurried.

He was not tired though. It was just that he realized there was no one else in the area when he got closer to the wooden house.

Even the familiar street behind him looked surreal as if an invisible veil isolated him from the outside world. It was difficult to tell whether it was real or if it was just an illusion.

Nevertheless, the wooden house still stood before him as if it was the only real thing in the area.

“Maybe this is another dream.” Slightly calmed down, Tang Ling looked up at the wooden sign hanging at the front door.

It was not purposely carved out as it retained its natural form and was still sharp, but on top of the surface, there were four square icons carved on it.

The carving was done powerfully, presenting an unusual sense of beauty at first glimpse.

“The Mysterious Store…” Tang Ling muttered softly as he was able to read and recognize the meaning of the four square icons.

The squares might be a kind of language. With that single thought, Tang Ling’s mind had prepared the meaning for him, but the strange thing was that he was not surprised at all.

Ever since that night, nothing else in this world would sound or seem unreasonable to him anymore. Moreover, it was just a dream.

Should everything in a dream have an explanation?

With the thought in mind, Tang Ling lifted the fluttering curtain and stepped into the wooden house.

Darkness covered his eyes, yet there was an unusual aroma in that space.

Tang Ling had never smelled anything like this before. There was the freshness of wood with a tint of fruity fragrance. When the aroma entered the nostrils, it smelled like a hundred blooming flowers combining their fragrance together, and it was very unusual.

It soothed the heart and cleared the mind.

Unconsciously, Tang Ling wanted to cover his mouth and nose. In this era, all the little harmless details might very well be the reason that he lost his life.

Moreover, the previous dream told him that everything that he experienced would be reflected back in reality.

“Am I too late?” Tang Ling felt a little anxious.

However, right at that moment, a weak light suddenly appeared, lighting the dark interior slowly. Both sides of the wooden house started to light up dimly as well.

“Ambergris. A quality one.” As the dim lights lit up, a lazy voice followed. The calm voice sounded rather nonchalant as if it was whispering into Tang Ling’s ears.

Cold sweat instantly filled Tang Ling’s forehead. The Precise Instinct that he had always relied on was useless. Could he not even notice there was a person hiding in the dark?

Stepping back cautiously, Tang Ling finally got a clear look at the interior before his eyes.

There was a mahogany counter in front of him and on top of the heavy counter was a copper totem carving. An ember was burning in the center of the totem, emanating a yellowish light.

Beside the totem carving was a metallic incense burner that looked extremely intricate. Jade green smoke rose from the cover. It was graceful and delicate, concentrated yet hardly dissipated, and very aromatic.

A long, fair hand slowly lifted the cover, putting it aside.

Then, from the crystal clear marble saucer, a white shard was put into the burner. The cover was put back and the aroma in the air was thicker than before.

Tang Ling quietly clenched his fists.

The owner of the long fair hand looked up.

Following his motion, his body behind the counter slowly became clear in the dark.

He was sitting, yet it was obvious that he was tall. Although he was not exactly buff, a sense of unbeatable danger emanated from him.

It was purely a feeling as Tang Ling’s Precise Instinct had completely failed, and he could not feel anything about the man behind the wooden counter.

“A quality, natural ambergris is hard to come by. It has to be soaked in the sea for a hundred years, and anything that is related to time tends to be unusually more precious than others. But the Purple Moon exists, doesn’t it? That’s why ambergris became something normal.”

Compared to the nervous Tang Ling, the man was very relaxed. He was talking about the aroma in the room, but Tang Ling could barely understood what he said.

The only thing he understood was the term Purple Moon and it made his heart skip a beat. He instinctively voiced his question, “Why?”

As though the man did not expect Tang Ling to ask a question, he showed an interesting gaze but still answered the question, “It’s simple. Everything is changing. Would the sperm whales stay the same? Ambergris comes from sperm whales.”

The explanation was simple, but Tang Ling could not connect it with the Purple Moon. He felt weird as he finally got a clearer look at the man, but why only now and not before?

The man had black hair like him which was neatly combed backwards and tucked behind his ears.

The man had black eyes like him as well, yet his eyes looked abysmal. Gazing into his eyes, it felt like there was a little glimmer in his pupils like his eyes were reflecting the starry sky.

The man’s facial features were so beautiful to the point that it almost blurred his gender.

He emanated a lethargic aura, but the laziness was actually his nonchalant attitude towards everything as if everything bored him and was not worthy of his attention.

He was a man that would leave a strong impression, and he had been sitting there from the start, yet how did Tang Ling miss him?

Tang Ling stood on the spot quietly, but his mind was flooded with many questions.

The man intended to cut the chatter as well. He gazed upon Tang Ling with narrowed eyes and showed a solemn smile. “Welcome to the Mysterious Store, Dream Seed No. 0233.”

Dream Seed No. 0233? Tang Ling’s heart tightened when he heard the term. He felt like he had latched on to something.

However, before he could ask anything, the man had already stood up. The black robe he wore reflected the dim light, waving and flowing as if it were black water.

“Oh right, I forgot to introduce myself. I am the owner of the Mysterious Store. You can call me Kun.”