Chapter 66
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Chapter 66: The Thirty-Third Day
That night, everyone enjoyed lively discussions on Ao Ci’s cliff dwelling terrace, later shifting to speculations about the ascension of time and space. Ti Ran shared her insights on the topic, which aligned perfectly with the conversation Luo Yu, Zhu Huai, and Mo Chuan had privately discussed a couple of days ago.
The youngest among them, Wanhua, added her perspective, saying, "Have you ever felt like you don’t belong to this world? I can’t quite describe it, but sometimes it feels like I’m trapped in my own body. My mom told me she felt that way when she was little, but it went away as she grew up. So, is it just that we get used to it as we grow older?"
After she finished speaking, everyone fell into deep thought, replying, “I felt that way too when I was young. Occasionally, the world seemed unreal, but that feeling gradually faded as I grew.”
After a moment, Wanhua concluded, "I guess when we are younger, our souls have just been reset and are a bit new, making us feel a little out of place. So, this whole world is just temporary; only the world after ascension is where we truly belong."
Ao Ci smiled and wrapped her arm around Wanhua’s shoulder, saying, “I believe you are right. Your insights during our research on the cycle of civilization have helped us immensely, our little expert.”
Wanhua beamed with pride, lifting her chin, "I’ve gained so much too!"
Everyone laughed together, chatting idly until the moon rose higher in the sky. Considering that Luo Yu and her friends would return home the next day, they decided to end the banquet early. Before departing, the group sang a song for them, concluding the farewell banquet with laughter.
After returning to the cave villa, Luo Yu, Zhu Huai, and Mo Chuan did not linger in the lounge but instead retreated to their rooms early, wanting to cherish their last night in the cliff dwelling suite they had lived in for over a month.
Emerging from the bathroom after her shower, Luo Yu stood in front of the full-length mirror, admiring her reflection. Her body looked noticeably stronger than before as her body fat percentage had increased. The muscle lines in her limbs were less pronounced, but her strength felt just as robust, if not more so. Satisfied, she turned in front of the mirror twice before putting on her bathrobe and walking to the bedroom window to gaze at the moon.
A breeze stirred outside, causing loose clouds to swiftly pass in front of the moon, which tonight had a bright halo around it, making its light seem even more sacred.
She quietly stood by the window for a while until the in-house housekeeping system gently prompted her to sleep. Only then did she turn, climb into her cozy nest, lean against the pillow, and think for a moment before drifting into a deep slumber.
The next morning, the sunlight streamed in, waking her up. As she opened her eyes, she calculated that today was the thirty-third day since their emergency landing here, and it was also their last day.
Lying in bed for a while, she finally sat up and looked out the window; the lush green forest outside remained unchanged.
After washing up, she changed into the Shan Hai Jing’s Execution Team uniform, noting it felt tighter than before. Thankfully, the uniform had decent elasticity, but not having worn it for a long time made her a bit uncomfortable.
Luo Yu stepped out of her room to find Ying Zhao sitting on the soft cushions eating breakfast as usual, also wearing her team uniform. Upon seeing Luo Yu, she turned and greeted her with a smile.
Luo Yu sat down beside her, ordered breakfast from the panel, and they both enjoyed a quiet moment, watching the waterfall outside.
After a while, Luo Yu’s breakfast arrived just as Zhu Huai dragged herself out of her room, tugging at the buckle of her uniform, saying, “This team uniform isn’t comfortable at all.”
She plopped down on the soft cushions beside them, eyeing their plates. Then she swiped the system panel, exclaiming, “I wish I could order everything on the menu and take it with me.”
Luo Yu chuckled and replied, “Better to enjoy it while you can!”
The three finished breakfast in the lounge, sipping tea while enjoying the view until the in-house housekeeping system reminded them it was time to pack. They gathered their clothes and belongings and stowed everything away, with Luo Yu safely storing the medicine Ji Shu had given her for the sea anemone and taking one tube of radiation-resistant agents for herself, while she gave the other tube to Zhu Huai to keep.
Zhu Huai carefully packed the zither that Wanhua had gifted her, placing the shell bag with it. Meanwhile, Ying Zhao meticulously took down the shell wind chime hanging by the lounge window, which they had brought back from the Ji Nu River during the Grand Council, packing it alongside the micro light particle universe model Ti Ran had given her.
The butler robot arrived early to collect their packed luggage, ready to escort them out.
Once everything was in order, the three walked to the entrance of the cave villa, taking one last look at the cozy lounge before turning to follow the butler robot, making their way to the cliff dwelling’s front hall.
“We’re leaving today,” Zhu Huai said, glancing at the butler robot, which had become accustomed to their greetings over these past days. She teased it, “Aren’t you going to give us a farewell message?”
The butler robot stopped, and a simple smile appeared on the screen, “I will always be here, regularly maintaining the villa for your return.”
The three stood momentarily stunned by this response, then Zhu Huai chuckled and patted its head, “Alright.”
The butler robot escorted them to the helipad on the nearby mountaintop, handing their luggage over to the hangar robot before turning to leave. The trio walked towards the hangar, listening to the hangar robot announcing the status of the simulator.
Luo Yu and Ying Zhao climbed up the navigation platform to load their luggage into the tail section of the Shan Hai Jing, while Zhu Huai entered the control room, switching the space soft cushions on the navigation platform to support mode. Then she returned to the navigation platform and conducted a detailed pre-departure inspection of the time and space module. Just as she finished, Mo Chuan and Lei Ming arrived.
The runway at this helipad was too short for the Shan Hai Jing, so they would need a transport aircraft to move it to a suitable takeoff spot.
Using a low hover technology, the Shan Hai Jing could slide on flat terrain or water for takeoff. After considering their options, Luo Yu decided to use the same river where they had emergency landed as their departure point. It seemed fitting to return from where they came.
As they chatted about the simulator, Mo Chuan assessed their readiness and called for a large transport aircraft and a medium-sized one. Just like when they had brought the Shan Hai Jing to this hangar, the transport aircraft lifted it securely and covered it with space fabric. The five of them then boarded the medium-sized aircraft, flying towards the riverbank together.
Many people were already waiting by the riverbank. Almost everyone who attended the banquet at Ao Ci’s cliff dwelling the previous night was present. They watched as the Shan Hai Jing was gently placed onto the river’s surface and saw the medium-sized aircraft land on the bank shortly after, from which five people quickly emerged.
The weather that day was clear and fine, with the river calm and flat. Thick white clouds reflected in the crystal-clear water, causing the Shan Hai Jing to look as if it were floating in the air.
Luo Yu and her companions walked from the riverbank helipad toward the crowd, greeting everyone. They had exchanged most of their farewells the night before, so now, everyone simply wished them a safe journey.
A mobile platform had been parked by the river, ready to take them to the center of the river to board the ship. After bidding farewell, the three walked toward the mobile platform, with the crowd following to see them off.
“Alright, there’s no need for all of you to send us off. We’ll be back in the future, so don’t miss us too much!” Zhu Huai said, waving cheerfully at everyone.
Wanhua raised her hand high, gesturing, “When you return in ten years, I’ll be much taller than you!”
Zhu Huai laughed, “Sure, I’ll come back and see just how much taller you’ve gotten!”
As the time for their scheduled departure approached, the full orbital monitoring station sent them a reminder, and all their wristbands buzzed with notifications. Ji Shu stepped forward, saying to the three, “It’s time to set out; I wish you success.” She added with a smile, “Of course, if you don’t succeed, it’s alright. We will always welcome you back, no matter the outcome.”
Luo Yu smiled and nodded in agreement as they said their goodbyes to Mo Chuan, Ao Ci, Ti Ran, and Lei Ming. They waved to everyone before boarding the mobile platform, finally arriving next to the Shan Hai Jing, where they opened the hatch and stepped inside.
Luo Yu settled into the driver’s seat, fastening her safety harness. Seeing that Zhu Huai and Ying Zhao were also ready, she activated the communication device to send their return launch report to the space station and pressed the start button.
Soon, the power compartment of the Shan Hai Jing roared to life, and the time and space module gently lifted off from the river’s surface, beginning to move forward as speed increased. After gliding about a thousand meters along the river, they took off into the air.
The Shan Hai Jing’s launch method was different from the chassis propulsion system used by the Ponsuo Tribe’s time and space module. Thus, they needed to circle inside the atmosphere to gradually break free from the Earth’s gravity before entering outer orbit.
Through the windows of the time and space module, the three looked down at the world beneath them. The thirty-three days seemed to pass in the blink of an eye, and time was moving too quickly. There were many sights they hadn’t seen and seasons they hadn’t experienced.
However, Luo Yu thought, in ten years, they would have another chance to return. Just as this crossed her mind, her gaze fell on the logo of the Space Administration on the control panel, and a shadow enclosed her heart. Would they really get that chance?
After circling above the surface, Luo Yu checked the altimeter, which indicated they had reached the threshold for entering outer orbit. She noted that the other indicators were normal, and extended her hand to activate the anti-gravity device. The time and space module began to ascend again, successfully breaking through the atmosphere an hour later. Half an hour after that, they entered the designated orbit, following the guidance from the full orbital monitoring station towards the time and space passage entrance.
Once the Shan Hai Jing entered the time and space passage, they found themselves outside of the navigational reach of the Ponsuo time and space. Before reaching the edge coordinates of the space station’s communications, they would have to navigate through the darkness independently.
Fortunately, thanks to the intensive simulation training over the past ten days, Luo Yu had become familiar with potential gravitational field conditions during this journey. However, all prior simulations had involved acceleration, and this actual trip to the designated coordinates was expected to take another eight hours, which would be a considerable drain on the driver’s energy.
They planned to make a stop along the way, aiming to arrive at the coordinates by tomorrow evening.
The early part of the journey went smoothly, with only minor gravitational fluctuations that Luo Yu skillfully avoided. The Shan Hai Jing was originally designed for time and space travel within a span of five thousand years, and its performance during this first long-distance journey was already quite impressive.
Zhu Huai rested her hand on the edge of the window beside her seat, supporting her head with a hint of disdain as she said, “After riding in other people’s time and space modules, ours feels like it falls short. They could go back and forth in two thousand years while we’ve only covered a fraction of that.”
As the road turned relatively smooth, Luo Yu relaxed slightly at her words. She gently ran her hand over the top of the control panel, saying, “Don’t listen to her harsh criticism; you’ve done very well. After all, the engineer’s skill is what it is, so we can acknowledge the differences.”
With a "tch," Zhu Huai shot a glare at Luo Yu, about to say something when Ying Zhao’s laughter echoed from behind, “What’s with you two bickering at a time like this?”
Zhu Huai considered this, suppressing her usual careless demeanor. “Right, this time is different; we really need to unite if we want to accomplish something significant.”
Luo Yu looked out the window, her gaze becoming fierce as she stared into the profound emptiness before them. “You’re right; it’s time to return and overturn that trash world.”
