Dark Moon Era

It was still evening in Safety Sector No. 17 when Tang Ling left the Mysterious Store.

Everything including the fading daylight in the alleyway and the breeze that blew in the air remained the same as when he arrived.

Looking back, that incongruous wooden house had disappeared. In other people’s eyes, Tang Ling was just a teen who seemed a little lost while standing in the alleyway.

“In a real dream, life and death are only a line apart. I hope you can visit again.”

It was the last thing that Kun said to Tang Ling, and before he could even resist, he was sent out of the Mysterious Store by a tender force.

Then, what would a real dream look like? How cruel would it be?

Tang Ling walked forward towards his temporary room, his eyes hollow with thoughts.

Neither could he digest the tsunami of information in such a short time, nor could he care about the cruelty of the next dream or when he would enter it.

In his mind, there was only a single word swirling endlessly—era.

That’s right, what kind of era is this?

The roughest and simplest living arrangement in the settlement was just a notch better than living like an animal.

The explosive that Quark owned and the Desert Eagle all pointed at the old civilization.

Inside the Mysterious Store, the absurdity of everything seemed to have far exceeded the power of the old civilization that Quark once grasped.

Was it not just a small wooden house back there? How big was it again? Those 15 seconds of moving in the air, and the endless rows of wooden counters… Every single detail in that space felt like an illusion that could topple one’s view.

How did it appear again? Why did no one else notice it?

There were many unanswered questions lingering, and every time he pondered upon them, Tang Ling felt like he was being torn apart forcefully by none other than this era itself. It was as if the distance between the lowest and the highest points was no longer a measurable unit but light-years apart, which was impossible to break through.

What kind of era was this?

Feeling numb when he went into the house, the evening sky gradually darkened and the Purple Moon hung in the sky outside the window. Faint moonlight shone down and enveloped Tang Ling who was sitting in front of the window, producing a gloomy silhouette as if it was a giant question mark.

Loneliness tended to make him feel more helpless and lost, so the thoughts started to seep into his mind.

When he thought of his grandmother and his sister, Tang Ling finally came back from the heavy thoughts that almost ripped him apart. Suppressing the pain, he stood up.

In fact, starting from that tragic night, Tang Ling’s views had been overthrown many times. Just when he thought he could accept the absurdity and would never feel surprised anymore, he was shocked by his discovery.

“So, I need to learn more?” Tang Ling stood up. The more he realized how tiny he was, the more he felt helpless against this era.

As for revenge, would it be as easy as he thought?

After washing his face, Tang Ling’s gaze finally landed on the Level 3 vicious beast meat that he put at the front of his bed.

It was his reward for withstanding the tremendous mental pressure in his dream and suffering many scars on his body.

The meat was undoubtedly precious, but he could only grow when it was converted into actual strength.

Tang Ling could never forget the feeling after he drank the pot of soup from Su Yao! It replenished his weak body and streams of energy flowed into his body, heating every inch of his muscle.

The rapid recovery even pushed him past his prime. Otherwise, he would not have gotten through the dream so smoothly.

If the dream that he experienced was reflected in reality, then reality would also be reflected back in his dream.

Tang Ling was strangely certain about this. Only those who had been into the dream could grasp how delicate the feeling was.

With that thought in mind, Tang Ling calmly picked up the meat and strenuously tore a very small strip from it.

However, further fueled by the thought of the pain when he drank the soup, Tang Ling carefully tore a thin shred of the strip before he put it into his mouth. He swallowed it without even savouring the taste.

The portion was almost near to none, yet the moment it entered his stomach, Tang Ling felt a ball of heat forming rapidly in his stomach before exploding like a globe of fire that burned rapidly inside him. The heat filled his body instantly and spread towards his limbs and bones.

“Ugh!” Tremendous pain that carried a burning sensation and tearing presence enveloped Tang Ling.

Despite being mentally prepared for it, Tang Ling could not hold back his grunts as he curled up on the floor. His skin was as red as a cooked shrimp.

One thing worth noting was that even after drinking a big pot of Su Yao’s soup, the pain back then was not even a tenth of the current level of pain he was going through.

All Tang Ling could do was clench his teeth and endure it.

Am I being a little too reckless?

The temperature was climbing while the energy streams in his body were flowing quicker. The feeling was like a burning hot knife slicing his muscles bit by bit before plunging into his bones. The pain almost knocked Tang Ling out cold, but his Precise Instinct clearly felt that amidst the inhuman pain, his strength was indeed rising.

His bones became stronger, and his muscles became tighter and more tensile. Even his blood became thicker as the noise of it pumping through his veins was like liquid metal.

“I’ll endure it!” Tang Ling punched the floor.

“Aaaaargh!” He clenched his fists and punched the ground a second time. “Endure it!!”

Tang Ling growled. His hair was stuck to his sweaty forehead while his eyes were ferocious like a wolf.

He yearned for power, and he longed for revenge!

In this strenuous moment, time slipped away quickly. A while later, the high temperature started to cool down and the rapid energy streams started to stabilize.

Tang Ling heaved a breath of relief and lay on the floor. The resistance exhausted him so much so that he did not even want to move a finger anymore.

Deep in his heart, there was not the slightest bit of delight. “Why can I only absorb a very small portion of the energy?”

His Precise Instinct allowed him to accurately feel that most of the energy was ejected from his body and dissipated into the air.

“There must be a way to not waste all of the energy. What could it be?” While Tang Ling absent-mindedly thought it, his exhausted stamina started to recover.

While he was deep in thought, brazen footsteps sounded outside his room followed by the creak of the door opening.

The door was pushed open, and Su Yao walked in with a cigarette in his mouth.

He glanced over at Tang Ling lying on the floor but did not care. Tang Ling climbed up rather strenuously. He had many questions for Su Yao despite the man being a stranger.

Nevertheless, because of the bit of gratitude in his heart, Tang Ling had a bit of trust for Su Yao. Moreover, Tang Ling had no one left to vent his mind to, and Su Yao looked like he knew a lot.

Su Yao did not care about Tang Ling. Instead, he picked the Level 3 vicious beast meat on the table up, and weighed it in his hand before he put it back down.

“Level 3 vicious beast meat. Not bad, kid. That’s quite a harvest you have there. Even I can get only a few pieces throughout the year,” said Su Yao very casually. He did not even turn around to Tang Ling as he sat on the sofa and smoked his cigarette quietly.

The night was dark. Not a single lamp was lit in the room, and in the silence, the figures of the two men were slowly devoured by the dark, purplish night.