Book 8: Chapter 72: The Other Xing Chuan
“This is a tractor beam!” Raffles said anxiously. He immediately returned to his seat and fiddled with his console. He said, “The technology of Silver Moon City has advanced tremendously. When I left, tractor beams were only in the research stage and there were many obstacles that had yet to be overcome. Hagrid Jones is such a genius!”
Xing Chuan looked away from me, saying, “Stop it, Raffles. This is useless. I’ll figure out a way to bring everyone out when we arrive in Silver Moon City.”
“But Lil’ Bing!”
“Can’t you tell that she did this on purpose?!” Xing Chuan roared at Raffles. Raffles was stunned and turned to look at me. Xing Chuan closed his eyes and took deep breaths. He then said, “She didn’t find the second mole on purpose. She let the mole expose our plan to Silver Moon City on purpose. She let the mole into Ice Dragon on purpose. She accepted the mole’s gift on purpose. Now, here she is, getting caught on purpose too. This is… her plan C…”
Raffles looked at me, dumbfounded. I looked ahead calmly, saying, “Sit tight. We’re going to Silver Moon City.” Raffles lowered his head in silence, removing his hands from the console.
Ice Dragon gradually ascended, pulled by the tractor beam into the dark night sky. The dazzling light blocked our view of the stars. Soon, we could barely see the end of the light before a black gate opened, dragging us in.
The white light vanished from around us. I closed my eyes slightly, adapting to the new space. When I opened my eyes again, I saw a bright and spacious area where a lone figure stood in front of an observation windshield. He stared at us with a grim look. His long black hair reached his waist. It was a familiar face with a familiar expression…
I looked at the Xing Chuan next to me. He didn’t even bother looking at his other self, as if the cloned Xing Chuan were nothing to him.
“Long time no see, Luo Bing.” A melodious male voice resounded. Xing Chuan’s hair looked even more beautiful than before. He bore the elegance of an old-fashioned man. He said, “Aren’t you coming out? I haven’t seen you for a while. I heard you built your own nation.”
I looked at him for a while and turned, but Raffles suddenly held my hand, shaking his head at me. I broke into a reassuring smile, unpinning the bag that contained Xiao Ying. He looked at me with confusion and I smiled, saying, “Xiao Ying is ready.” Raffles looked surprised.
“I’ll go with her,” Xing Chuan said, turning his wheelchair. He added, “Raffles, you pose no threat to Silver Moon City. So, they won’t be on guard against you. You should know what to do next.” Raffles lowered his chin, letting go of my hand.
I pushed Xing Chuan’s wheelchair. Xing Chuan looked at Raffles, continuing, “We’re going to Silver Moon City. When we enter Silver Moon City, let Xiao Ying into the system. The firewall will be lowered. If Silver Moon City’s server resists her, tell her to say, ‘The stars in the sky are blinking, the baby in the bed should go to sleep’…”
I was stunned. What kind of secret order was that? Plus, it was strange that Xing Chuan had suddenly said such a thing at this crucial moment.
Raffles was stunned too. Xing Chuan turned and explained, “Silver Moon City uses a human brain as a CPU. So, the server I’m referring to is actually… Elena’s brain…”
Raffles and I were astonished and we simultaneously exclaimed, “A human brain server!?” I simply couldn’t believe what Xing Chuan had said.
Raffles’s grayish-blue eyes flickered and he said, “No wonder Silver Moon City’s server can process information so quickly and intelligently!”
“Elena has a different way of staying by my side. When she hears this song… she knows I’m back…”
Raffles and I felt silent. There was an indescribable sense of sorrow in the air. And yet, I felt as if a flame had been lit in me, the same way it had been when I’d dealt with the Ghost Eclipsers’ flesh storages. I’d wanted nothing more than to burn them to ash!
I pushed Xing Chuan out of the cockpit while Raffles held the badge containing Xiao Ying. When the door closed behind us, Raffles suddenly rushed out, grabbing my arm.
I turned to look at him and saw overflowing emotions in his eyes, even though he found it hard to express himself. He held my arm tightly, clenching hiis grip again and again. Anxiety and worry boiled in his eyes. I could feel his concern for me.
“Bing, be careful.” In the end, all the reminders and blessings in his eyes were condensed into a single sentence. He seemed helpless when he let go of my arm, because he knew that he couldn’t stop me. And yet, he was worried that I would find myself in danger and be unable to return.
“Raffles.”
“Bing.”
When he looked at me, I kissed his lips. The kiss made the anxiety and insecurity in his eyes freeze for a moment. I cupped his cheeks, placing my forehead against his. I said, “I won’t let anything happen to myself. I promise.”
“Mm!” He finally looked confident. He knew what he had to do after I left. It was his mission, and it allowed no room for mistakes.
I turned and continued to push Xing Chuan forward. I didn’t turn back again. The way out suddenly felt so long.
“The old monster definitely has something to control your superpower. You’d better be careful. Cough, cough…” Xing Chuan coughed into his fist.
I chuckled, “Don’t worry. I hardly used my superpower during the war.”
“Hmph… That’s true. I suddenly feel at ease,” he said, smiling.
I lowered my head to look at him, asking, “As for your clone, what do you want to do with him?”
“Kill him.” It was a straightforward answer, without hesitation. That was him, His Highness Xing Chuan from Silver Moon City.
I was reluctant. “Kill him? He hasn’t done anything.”
“Do you want to keep him?” His voice suddenly had an edge of brutality.
I sighed, briefly speechless. “Sigh… Be jealous after you take care of the old monster.”
“Hmph…” He smirked.
When the hatch opened, the other Xing Chuan was already standing in front of us. He wore a grim expression at first, but he seemed astonished when he saw me. He should have been surprised at my appearance and my bearing, but nothing else. I couldn’t see Xing Chuan’s stubborn fixation on me, nor was there the desire of a predator toward its prey. It was as though his feelings for me were nowhere to be seen.
Silver Moon City was a place that had never treated humans as people, so I wasn’t surprised that Xing Chuan’s clone had been transformed this way. The old monster only saw them as puppets, allowing him to reshape and remold them as he pleased.
“The ways you’ve changed in the last few years surprised me.” After he expressed his astonishment, his focus fell onto the person in the wheelchair before me. His gaze remained cold as he asked, “Who is this?”
Xing Chuan looked up at his other self coldly. Their identical gazes collided in the air.