Dark Moon Era

Surrounded by hot chicken stew, a rabbit drumstick with glistening oil on the surface, and kind smiles from his friends, it was the first time that Tang Ling felt content even if he was woken up from his dream.

“Seniors, come have some.” Squatting beside the fire, Tang Ling took a sip of the stew gently. He looked nothing like that hungry monster that would ravage all the food within his sight.

He even remembered to invite his seniors after he noticed them looking at them in jealousy.

After all, the Fierce Dragon Squad did not want to be known as a notorious selfish group.

“Tsk tsk, how generous of you. Tang Ling, did you knock your head on something today?” Orston said in a muddle voiced as he was chewing on a piece of chicken.

“Aye, I ate something before I came back.” Tang Ling gave the rabbit drumstick to Andy. As long as he was not hungry, he was quite a generous person.

Everyone shot a despicable gaze at Tang Ling’s reply, but he was not bothered. He generously treated everyone with his hospitality and told them stories about how difficult his hunt was.

His stories were replied with teasing and laughter, but he did not care.

The meal ended with humor. Although it was not that fulfilling, everyone was grateful for Tang Ling’s generosity regardless of other matters. Given his title as the gluttonous king, it must be difficult for him to squeeze this amount of food out for the group.

******

After supper, Vian and the others stayed behind and cleaned up the cave.

The light was still warm as it expelled the coldness of the night. The Level 2 drinking water was boiling, and Yu even added in a tube of medium nutrition liquid to it, which was considered luxurious.

“Drink it. It’s warm for the body, so it’s easier to sleep,” said Yu, but he was actually trying to share his allocation with the others. He was the strongest among them, so he earned relatively more Hope credits.

“What a luxury! Level 2 drinking water and medium nutrition liquid! A few months ago, I never would have imagined that a bowl of water that I’d drink would be worth a week of food,” said Andy gratefully with the bowl of water in his hands. He carefully drank it and his body was instantly warmed. At least, he would not have to roll around for 20 minutes before he could sleep due to the cold.

To the New Moon Warriors, their lives were always tense, so 20 minutes of rest was considered precious. A casual night like today was considered the rarest of occasions.

“There are many things that you couldn’t have imagined. For example, the people of the old civilization never would have thought that one day, even a night in summer can freeze someone to death.” Orston was not bothered by the heat and gulped almost half of the bowl of warm water. He leaned on the wall lazily and slowly dozed off.

In fact, such weather in which people would die of heatstroke during the day and freeze to death during the night did indeed exist during the old civilization, but it was only limited to vast deserts.

After they started the topic, Amir who was not much of a talker, piped up, “I always remember something. Back when I was young, I once met a Drifter. He told me that if I keep on heading east, I’d eventually reach a small magical place where the weather of the old civilization remained, and I’d find some species of living beings from the old civilization there. I always wanted to go have a look.” As he spoke, Amir showed a trace of admiration on his face but quickly lowered his head in silence.

“Really?” Christina looked at Amir, her eyes gleaming with admiration as she said softly, “If it’s possible, I also want to see the outside world. I’ve always wondered if the outside world looks exactly like what the books of the old civilization described. Did everything remain as it is like in the books? Are Antarctica and Arctic continents located on two opposite poles of the planet? Does the great desert of Hala still exist? What does the oasis look like? Will there be a woman like the legendary author, Sanmao [1], living the nomadic life with her lover?” Christina’s voice gradually softened.

Everyone’s eyes were filled with complicated admiration with a trace of dreamy colors.

The outside world? It was indeed interesting and distant. It sounded like they could simply hug it anytime.

However, this era shackled their footsteps. They would not know how far they could travel outside the safety sector, or they would even be able to survive.

Tang Ling squinted his eyes, seeming to doze off. When Christina spoke of the name Sanmao, he asked out of curiosity, “Sanmao? Who’s that? A woman? Is it your friend, Christina? Why would she name herself that way? Was it because she has very little hair?”

Christina had the urge of blasting vulgarities at Tang Ling. She might have even punched Tang Ling if she could.

It’s such a beautiful night and we have such a happy atmosphere. Ugh, how is this guy ruining it so easily?

On second thought, even if she beat him up he would still never understand the literature works of the old civilization. Compared to the current draught of literature or mental food, how many of them would know how bright and glorious the literature works of the old civilization used to be?

Those words, the music, and there was even something called films...

Vian sat beside Tang Ling, her arms hugged around her knees as she smiled sweetly at him. He seemed practical but acted like a rascal at the same time. In fact, the depressing vibe and the abysmal gaze that was revealed in his eyes at times piqued her curiosity.

How could Tang Ling be a person who cares about nothing except for eating and survival? There might be a volcano in his heart, but he’s so good at covering it up.

Vian got a little carried away by her thoughts. Due to the unique sensitive instinct of a woman, Christina also sensed her little thoughts, and she could not help but rolled her eyes at her friend.

A girl would always beautify the person that she was fond of. Tang Ling was obviously a rough and vulgar person. Compared to him, Amir seemed to have a lot more melancholic stories behind his gaze, so one could not help but feel sympathy for him.

Amid the sparkling fire, everyone was tired and sleepy, but no one returned to their own little cave to sleep. Instead, they sat in a circle and watched the fire, feeling like a family protecting something they cherished.

“Tang, are you guys joining the operation on Friday?” Maybe because of the food and the warm water, their gratitude made one of the seniors speak after some hesitation.

His words were obviously a surprise to the other two seniors, but unknowingly, the two of them did not stop his impulsive action.

“What’s wrong with the mission?” Maybe because of the struggle on the senior’s face, he seemed to be hiding something, but Tang Ling was perceptive enough to notice that and he woke up.

The three seniors were within the last 10 places in the power rankings. Tang Ling might not be close to the three of them, but since they were dorm mates, they were on friendly terms.

Tang Ling always shared things with the seniors on normal days, especially food.

Since the senior was speaking so officially, he must know something. Was he trying to repay Tang Ling’s kindness?