Dark Moon Era

“Your luggage.” Valencia leaped down from her horse and passed the huge luggage to Tang Ling strenuously.

“Thanks.” Tang Ling single-handedly took it and carried it over his back.

“There’s a pond 7 kilometers ahead where you can wash up,” she voiced a kind reminder. He could not be traveling with a body enveloped in glowing blood, could he?

“Mmm. Remember what I told you, We will meet again.” Tang Ling smiled and patted her shoulder. Then, he turned around and prepared to leave.

After the wolf attack, Tang Ling had no more business at Barbarto Village while the faint sense of danger in his heart remained. The longer he stayed, the heavier it got. He was ready to leave in silence. The battle with the wolf king had exposed himself too much.

Therefore, he promised Valencia to meet 2.5 km south of the village as a farewell. She had also brought his heavy luggage along.

The wind somehow slowed down in the midst of the farewell. Perhaps it calmed down following the end of the wolf attack, granting the tired villagers a beautiful night to rest.

Valencia looked at Tang Ling’s back, moving away from her sight. She could not help but call out in the tender breeze, “Hey, Tang Nee.”

“Huh?” Tang Ling turned around.

“As a friend, are you really okay with not letting me know who you really are?” Her hands were behind her back while she looked a little anxious standing under the breeze. She did not know whether her request was too much to Tang Ling.

“Hoho!” Smiling, he stopped to remove his backpack and fished out a bottle.

He carefully poured some green liquid out from the bottle and smeared it all over his head. His brown hair instantly turned black, and the same thing happened to his brows. When he smeared it over his face, his dark skin slowly turned fairer, so he looked like a standard boy who was slightly fair with a tinge of beige.

Lastly, Tang Ling spat out two pieces of wood that were shaped like crescent moons which had been fitted to his teeth. After he spat the wood out, his cute puffy face slimmed down and looked a lot more delicate. Even his eyes that looked narrow and curved due to his puffy cheeks returned to normal.

“My real name is Tang Ling. I’m from Safety Sector No. 17, and I’m going someplace far away.” Tang Ling smiled at Valencia.

She was in awe when she saw the rather unfamiliar young boy before her eyes. Is this his real face? 

With clean, delicate features and slightly bashful expression, he had black hair and black eyes that added a shade of mystery to his temperament. He was a typical good-looking young boy, but who would have thought he would be so ferocious in the battle with the wolf king? He fought like the devil.

As for the name Tang Ling, it was very unfamiliar to Valencia but was instantly imprinted in her heart.

“I don’t mean to keep my identity from you, but I have to warn you to keep my name to yourself. Don’t tell anyone or trouble will come knocking at your door, something even more terrifying than the wolves,” Tang Ling said seriously.

“Huh? What did you do?” Valencia was slightly surprised.

“I didn’t do anything bad.” Tang Ling was calm when he said that.

“I believe you.” As a matter of fact, emotions rumbled in Valencia’s heart. Even if his identity spelled trouble, he had chosen to reveal it to her. It was a sign of trust, thus it was worth it for a grasslander to return the favor with the same amount of trust and sincerity.

“I’ll be making my move. You’d better grow stronger. And remember, no matter what happens, tell yourself, ‘At least, I’m better than a guy named Tang Ling!’” Tang Ling grinned wholeheartedly.

Valencia responded with a chuckle, “I’m older than you! You too. Grow stronger and remember, there’s a girl named Valencia in Barbarto Village that will grow a lot stronger, and she’s waiting to fight you one day!”

“I’ll be going then.” Tang Ling stuffed the two pieces of wood back into his mouth and kept the bottle in his backpack. He turned around and waved with the back of his hand as he walked away in the night breeze.

Valencia did not say goodbye because she knew she would meet him again one day.

She believed that from the moment she met Tang Ling, it was the arrangement of the God of the Grassland as the turning point of her life.

…

Splash!

Tang Ling bobbed up from the little pond after washing the blood off his body. He tossed the bloody clothes into a fire and stuck a fish beside it for grilling after he clambered out.

The grassland was a fine place. Even a little pond like this had water the quality of level 5 drinking water. Though not exactly clear, it was drinkable and odorless. Unlike the settlement, if it was not drinking water, all the water had a faint smell of contamination. Drinking contaminated water would result in a terrifying outcome, but as for how terrifying, Tang Ling never knew because he heard it from the others when he was young.

He grilled the fish and took out some vicious beast meat to make soup. The battle with the wolf king had starved him, so he had to replenish his energy.

Traveling late at night was not suitable. Even though all six areas where the wolves attacked were quite far away from his current location, who knew what kind of danger lurked in the grasslands at night?

Gazing at the dancing fire, the loneliness and sorrow rose in his heart again.

It was a common affair on a solo journey. A minute ago, he might have been surrounded by people in a prospering environment, but a second later, he might find himself alone on his journey. He had to get used to it because he could not afford to be sentimental with every parting since it would only pry his memories open.

Tang Ling did not want to explore the sentimental thoughts, so he took another bottle out and started to smear the liquid on his hair, eyebrows, and face.

The recipe for the two bottles of liquid was something written in Su Siao’s black notebook. It was a very practical recipe that could slightly alter his skin color and change his outlook to a certain degree.

The dyeing agent from the recipe was water-resistant and could only be washed away with a special liquid crafted by someone who had knowledge about dyeing agents, like what Tang Ling used when he removed his makeup in front of Valencia.

More importantly, the ingredients for the recipe were all common plants. The Herrockey Mountain Ridge was rich with resources, so Tang Ling gathered all the required ingredients without any hassle.

‘In fact, don’t overthink about concealing yourself. Though it’s easy, it’s a hassle to master. Changing a person’s appearance, skin color, height, and weight can easily alter the initial impression, and with a little more skill, even your bones can be altered. It is not as complicated as you think. For example, you can stuff something in your mouth…

‘The hassle is all in the details and habits. That’s what you should take notice of. In short, your temperament…’

After applying the dyeing agent, Tang Ling went through Su Siao’s little black notebook again.

Truth be told, as a last will of sorts, he expected the notebook to tell him something serious such as the Dragon Army, or his true background, or even some huge secret. Unfortunately, none of those were found in the notebook.

Su Siao’s notebook was more like a diary that he wrote in wherever he went. It went on about all the trivial stuff in his life. Maybe he had foreseen that Tang Ling would eventually have to be on the run, so the life knowledge in the notebook was mostly about practical ways of escaping.

Yeah, he knew I’d be on the run.

Tang Ling lay down on the grass and covered his face with the notebook. In the end, Su Siao had prepared the notebook because he trusted Tang Feng, so he made it into a habit. The stuff in the notebook was practical like this particular set of skills that could conceal and alter his appearance. According to Su Siao’s notes, the skills were developed by a master of disguise in the Dragon Army known as Mr. Thousand Face. In conclusion, the set of skills was not revealed to anyone else other than Su Siao because the man was close to Mr. Thousand Face.

As time went by, where were all the incredible people? Where were they hiding?

Because Tang Ling had experienced firsthand how useful the disguise was, he valued the usefulness of it.

Tang Ling was pondering upon the question, but little did he know that even though Su Siao did not write anything about the Dragon Army in his notebook, all the minor details and knowledge from the Dragon Army had slowly seeped into Tang Ling’s heart and rooted themselves within him deeply.

…

If a dual flyer had been developed in the old civilization, it could have satisfied the desires of people to fly in the air.

It was not big since it was just two boxes connected together. The driver controlled the transportation device in front while the passenger would just have to follow. The concept was a little similar to the tandem bicycle.

In flight, two extremely futuristic wings would extend from the boxes which were half a man’s height on both sides and a circular invisible shield would shroud the driver and passengers. The shield would automatically provide oxygen regulation and maintain a stable temperature to protect the travelers during a high altitude flight.

As for the wings, it could actually be flapped to increase in altitude, but it was not practical. Firstly, it could only rise to around 150 meters above sea level. Secondly, it would fly a lot slower.

It was probably a little Easter egg that the designer of the flyer had inserted during the production or was merely lousy taste in design. Anyhow, it was just for aesthetics.

Nevertheless, to underestimate the flyer for that one particular function would be a huge joke. When it soared in the sky normally, the speed of it rising into the sky and the cruise control were no lesser than the large airbuses in the old civilization.

Compared to the most advanced jets of the old civilization, it was a little lackluster.

As a matter of fact, even with the technology level of the old civilization, they could have produced the flyer, but the problem with the energy source remained an unsolved equation. The flyer was a lot smaller than a plane, so what energy was suitable for it to maintain its flying speed and extend the flight time?

It would be impossible unless they could control nuclear fusion properly. It was one of the important steps for the old civilization to step out of the boundaries of this planet, escape the solar system, and venture into the vast universe.

Unfortunately, the research into the most important step in scientific history was put on indefinite hold right after it started because the Purple Moon era arrived.

The other unfortunate thing was that the Purple Moon era acquired a stable source of energy for the flyer in the form of the Universal Source Rock and the battery made from its energy, but the technology from the old civilization was barely passed down.

Just when the people least expected it, some mysterious super-advanced technology appeared out of nowhere, and due to the gap between eras and the broken lineage of technology on top of some other external reasons, the super-advanced technology could not be mass-produced to benefit the whole of mankind, hence the strange Purple Moon era.

The primitive and the advanced coexisted. They had fallen behind though they were moving towards coexistence. The uninformed primitives were living under the same sky with the people who achieved super technological advancement and viewed the world from space.

For example, the grassland was a typical example of the most primitive and closed community.

Tang Ling got off the flyer and started to cultivate on the spot. The dual flyer might look cool, but when used for long-distance travel, it was not exactly a pleasant experience. After all, it was not the airbus from the old civilization which provided its passengers with a comfortable flight experience.

The boundless view of the sky and the ceaseless buzzing in the ears persisted throughout the whole journey.

“Young Master Long, someone will be here to pick us up in five minutes.” Li Wu got down from the flyer and was tidying up.

Tang Ling did not respond with any expression. He had a strange feeling in his heart since they arrived in the grasslands. What was it exactly? For the time being, he had no idea.

“Young Master Long, tonight is when the wolves attack the villages, so it might not be that peaceful.” Li Wu decided to update Tang Long about the wolves after thinking about it for a while.

“Are the wolves powerful?” Tang Long opened his eyes slightly.

“Not at all. Even I can easily wipe them all out. The strange thing is that these wolves retreat at first light.” Li Wu tightened his lips.

“I don’t care and have no interest in that.” Tang Long shut his eyes again.

Li Wu felt like he had just embarrassed himself in front of Tang Long. Trivial thoughts sped through his mind. Why is it even necessary to inform Young Master Long about the wolves? Damn it! But if he sees the wolves and asks me about it, he might look at me the wrong way too.

Further away, a wide wagon was sprinting towards them.

Tang Long opened his eyes and asked Li Wu all of a sudden, “Li Wu, what’s the connection between the two programs, the Ark Searcher Program and Beginning Searcher Program?”

“Er…” Sweat started to appear on Li Wu’s forehead. How would he know anything about the similarities between the two programs?

With his identity as a general, he might have heard a thing or two about the Ark Searcher Program but the Beginning Searcher Program? Knowing the name of the program alone was overwhelming enough for him.

How should I answer? Even with Young Master Long’s identity, he only knows so much. Why would I know anything more than him?

Thankfully, Tang Long was not expecting an answer from Li Wu. He replied to himself, “Maybe when we learn the truth about the Beginning Searcher Program, every secret will solve itself.”

“Why is Godfather so anxious about involving me in the Ark Searcher Program?” Tang Long muttered so softly that even Li Wu could not hear him.

Then, the large wagon arrived before them. Compared to Tang Long’s floating carriage, the wagon was considered crude, but every horse that pulled the wagon was a red mane scaled horse that was the best transportation method in the grassland. After all, the Stardust Council tended to keep a low profile in such a rural area.

Tang Long did not express any dissatisfaction with the means of transport. He suppressed the strange feeling in his heart and boarded the wagon. Then, he told the wagoner, “Let’s move.”

The breeze in the grassland was extra gentle and was a lot more comfortable than the frigid wind in the sky during flight. However, right after Tang Long boarded the wagon, he somehow got agitated and even the breeze around him got riled up into a gale.