Invasion - Chapter 76

Chapter 76

Ni Ji walked back to his dorm.

The streetlights were dim at night, the ground cold and damp. From time to time, pedestrians in ragged clothes, their bodies hunched, their hands tucked in their sleeves, hurried past.

Even though this was the imperial capital, other than that special area around the White Tower, most places were dilapidated like this.

In this world, life was hard for most sentinels and Guides, even harder for ordinary people.

Downstairs in his dorm building, a flatbed cart delivering coal briquettes was parked. A white-haired elderly man and his thin granddaughter were struggling to carry a box of heavy honeycomb briquettes upstairs.

The old man coughed as he walked, bending over, and the seven or eight-year-old little girl tried her best to raise her arms, helping her elderly grandfather share the weight.

Ni Ji passed by on the narrow stairs, lifted the black coal box with one hand, and carried it upstairs in a few strides.

The old man followed him upstairs, reaching out his black hands, wanting to thank Ni Ji, but seeing the coal dust on his hands, he retracted them shyly.

Ni Ji didn’t mind, and reached out to shake his hand.

The old man's knuckles were swollen, covered in curled plasters, his palms very rough.

"Thank you, thank you, I’m troubling you again, young man," the old man smiled and thanked Ni Ji.

Ni Ji looked down at his palm, the feeling of the handshake lingering there, the black coal dust and the warmth of human skin on his fingers.

"She’s held the hands of many people, except for mine," the young, handsome sentinel looked down at his hand for a long time, suddenly saying something inexplicable.

Making the elderly man and the child, unloading coal briquettes in the stairwell, look up at him, puzzled.

Ni Ji entered his single dorm room. It was still the same one Cao Junmin had arranged for him when he first returned to the capital.

He hadn't moved after his promotion. It was the same to him no matter where he lived, he’d rather live somewhere old and secluded, than crammed together with those Royal Guards in the White Tower.

The room wasn’t big, a single room with a separate bathroom and a balcony where he could cook.

Other than a bed, a wardrobe, and some training equipment, the room was clean and simple, not a single item out of place.

He had been through several tough battles today and was exhausted, but Ni Ji, following his usual habit, still did half an hour of high-intensity strength training, then took a shower.

He came out of the bathroom, sat on the edge of the bed, drying his dripping hair. At this moment, his body was exhausted to its limit, but it still wasn't enough. A song seemed to be faintly echoing in his ear.

At that time, standing outside the courtyard gate, saying goodbye, a song had come from the courtyard, a girl's voice, gentle and sweet.

It hadn't been a forceful mental attack, no flames or abyss, no sharp blades. Just a simple, soft song from a girl.

But for some reason, under the moonlight, under the lamplight, under that person's clear gaze, that song had burrowed into his heart, tugging at his heartstrings.

Many things that had been suppressed in his heart suddenly surfaced, his mind became unsteady, and chaotic thoughts churned in his mind, uncontrollable.

Even after he walked all the way home, doing everything he usually did, sitting on the edge of his bed, those chaotic thoughts still disturbed him.

Ni Ji stood up again, put on an apron, took a bucket of water, and started cleaning.

The room was already very clean, without a single item out of place, it almost didn’t look like a place where a living person resided.

But he still carefully wiped every corner, kneeling on the floor, his head lowered, cleaning the ground with a wet rag.

She had shaken hands with many people, except for him.

She gave that unicorn mental guidance.

She seemed to like fluffy things.

…

Ni Ji knew he was being ridiculous, he felt like a child throwing a tantrum, too embarrassing, it was all because of that song from who knew where.

All the training equipment had been wiped twice, the floor so shiny it could reflect a person, and he was still trapped in his chaotic thoughts.

Ni Ji threw the rag away, sat on the edge of the bed in silence for a while, took off his apron, put on his coat, opened the door, and walked back out into the night.

…

Lin Yuan sat in the dining room, having dinner with Xiao Suo and Xun Hua at the table.

Xun Hua never ate, during meals every day, he would just hold a glass of water, sitting at the table as company.

Xiao Suo had a large appetite, most of the time, she only ate raw seafood and fruit, she sat at the other end of the table, with a large crystal bowl piled high with food in front of her, her movements refined, yet the food disappeared at an incredible speed, he didn’t know how she did it.

Lin Yuan, for some reason, felt a little listless, even her favorite food tasted bland.

She told Xiao Suo and Xun Hua about what she had seen and heard in the White Tower, briefly mentioning Her Majesty the Queen, the commander of the Royal Guard, and the match.

"In our time, the ruler was a king, it was very rare to have a queen ruling," Xun Hua, holding his golden water cup, recalled the world hundreds of years ago. "It seems like towards the end of my time, I vaguely heard that a Queen was about to ascend the throne."

Lin Yuan made a sound of affirmation, then talked about the panda and the unicorn mental bodies she had seen.

"So, both sentinels fought desperately and were injured. But you only gave one of them mental guidance?" Xun Hua gently put down his glass and glanced at Lin Yuan.

Lin Yuan made a sound of surprise, she hadn't thought about that.

She had many reasons of course, such as that unicorn’s mental state being very serious, such as him having endured long-term torture and abuse and being very pitiful, such as Ni Ji… being one of her own.

But she couldn’t explain such complex emotions, so she stuffed her mouth with a piece of tender beef.

"Perhaps you don't know, but Ni Ji, in the contaminated zone, when he was trapped in the crimson egg's illusion, also suffered quite serious mental injuries," Xun Hua, his white-gloved finger tapping his chest, "After coming back, he doesn’t seem to have received any guidance from a Guide, I feel that his world is also very tired."

Lin Yuan’s tentacles twisted and turned behind her, her main body speechless.

Xun Hua stood up, pushed his chair back into place, nodded slightly, left the dining table, and returned to his courtyard.

He stood by the evening primrose patch, sighed, and watered the newly planted flowers and plants.

This gardener’s job wasn't easy, so many things to worry about.

But having so many things to keep him busy, so many people to worry about, made the days after he came back to life not as unbearable as he had imagined.

His body had regrown, he was busy every day, in his free time, he listened to Windsor's songs and played with the groundhogs in the tree hole.

Although he wasn't human, it seemed like he could still live under the sun.

Xiao Xun, I hope you can live a good life, a life in the sunlight.

A long time after dinner, Lin Yuan, who was reading in the living room, heard the doorbell ring outside.

Xun Hua was nowhere to be seen, and Xiao Suo seemed to be asleep. The courtyard was quiet, no one answered the door.

Lin Yuan had to go and open it herself. As she walked through the courtyard, the tentacles followed her, wriggling like they had found some treasure, excitedly happy.

She opened the door and saw Ni Ji, slightly out of breath from running.

"I…" Ni Ji panted, steadying his breathing, "I was wondering, could you also give me a mental guidance session?”

He had been very embarrassed at first, but seeing Lin Yuan’s small face peeking out from the door, after blurting out his request in one breath, the anxiety in his heart eased.

"If it's not too much trouble," he smiled, feeling a little ridiculous, but his mood was good, a rare comfort.

Lin Yuan froze for a moment, and felt happy. She had been a Guide for so many years, and almost no sentinel had actively asked her for a second mental guidance session, other than her former fiancé, whose image was already very blurry in her memory.

This was the first time someone had knocked on her door at night, asking for her help.

She should, of course, be happy, it was a good thing.

Only, this happy feeling in her heart, seemed a bit excessive.

She took Ni Ji home, and almost hummed a tune as they walked through the courtyard.

What song was that?

She seemed to have vaguely heard it in the courtyard just now, a song that Windsor had once sung.

It was a song a gentle girl, under the moonlight, sang to the moon in her heart.

Lin Yuan, wearing her white Guide dress, led the way through the grass, her steps light, occasionally even skipping happily.

The tentacles happily followed behind her, one boldly holding the sentinel’s hand as they walked into the lit house.

Ni Ji sat on the sofa in Lin Yuan’s home.

This was his second time here.

He didn’t know where everyone else in the house was, he only heard the soft chirping of insects in the courtyard.

Shoes and an umbrella were placed by the entrance, snacks on the coffee table, a few books that had been read in a corner, a vase with a few roses cut from the garden.

A faint floral fragrance filled the room.

Traces of life were everywhere, like a real home. Sitting here, one could briefly forget everything outside, forget the cold world, and not think about the difficult journey ahead.

At least for now, he could relax.

Although he knew that nothing in his life had changed. They were about to leave for the Land of No Eyes.

It was a dangerous and strange world, they weren’t just going to the outskirts of the contaminated zone, but to the center of that dark world.

Going to such a place, no matter how strong one was, death could come at any time. No one could guarantee their safe return.

And because of this, this moment of peace and warmth felt especially precious.

Now, Ni Ji wouldn't try to dissuade Lin Yuan, he knew that this Guide, like him, had things she wanted to do, things she had to do.

He was very happy that it was he who would be accompanying Lin Yuan to the contaminated zone.

They could face everything that came in the darkness together.

That was enough, better than anything.

Lin Yuan sat beside him, her hand slowly covering his eyes.

Before his vision was completely blocked, he was certain that he saw the corners of the girl's lips curve slightly, a rare smile.

As if all danger and hardship had briefly disappeared, as fatigue and drowsiness washed over him, this place made him feel relaxed and at peace.

He seemed to no longer be a qualified warrior. The perseverance and self-control he had once been so proud of melted away in this warm living room, in the Guide's palm.

His body became very light, floating in the sea, his heart without any anxiety, he knew he would eventually land in a soft place.

The sound of bubbles echoed in his ear.

A familiar aura invaded this ocean, entering his world.

Ni Ji wanted to stay awake during this process, not to, like last time, embarrassingly fall asleep in front of Lin Yuan.

But he heard a voice saying to him, 【Rest, it's okay.】

So his consciousness couldn’t be gathered anymore.

As if something had filled the void in his broken heart, making him exceptionally at peace.

Yes, he remembered now.

When she was beside him, he could sleep soundly.

…

Ni Ji woke up and found himself lying on that long sofa. It was very late, he didn't know what time it was, and it was very quiet.

The lights in the house were very dim. He was covered with a thick blanket.

He rarely slept this deeply.

A sentinel’s sharp senses made him smell a familiar scent, a familiar person.

He realized who was beside him.

Lin Yuan hadn’t left, she was sitting on a single-seat sofa nearby, reading a paper book under a reading lamp.

Her posture was very relaxed and casual, her legs crossed on the sofa, her body leaning against the wide armrest, one hand supporting her chin, her dark eyes intently focused on the pages.

The tentacles turned a page for her, and the soft sound of rustling paper echoed in the air.

This wasn’t the main thing, what made Ni Ji’s heart clench was that her other hand rested on the back of a small killer whale.

Her fair fingers gently stroked the black back.

Ni Ji, his eyes closed, kept his breathing even, not daring to let Lin Yuan know he had awakened.

While he was receiving guidance and had fallen asleep, his mental body — the orca — had, at some point, come out.

That shameless thing, shrinking itself into a chubby pillow, had nestled onto the same single-seat sofa as Lin Yuan.

Lin Yuan's fingers were gently stroking its back.

Lin Yuan probably didn't realize it, for other sentinels and guides, everything their mental body experienced would be completely transmitted to their main body.

Her mental body was huge, and had many tentacles, such a subtle touch was too dispersed for her to detect. Too many tentacles were exploring the world every day, she would often overlook many things.

So she probably didn't know that the sensations transmitted through that mental connection weren't just the intense pain of a broken limb on the battlefield, but also all those subtle strokes, touches, and stimulations.

Lin Yuan looked at her book, occasionally letting the tentacles turn a page for her, her fingertips lightly moving along the orca's back, Ni Ji held his breath.

The movement of her fingertips, the touch of her nails, all so incredibly clear, wherever they went, triggering a tremor.

That hand, moving along the orca's back, touched its head, gently rubbing and kneading. The sentinel on the sofa felt the warmth of her palm, her fingers sliding into his hair, gently stroking his head, like comforting a wounded, lost child.

Ni Ji closed his eyes tightly, he should let Lin Yuan know he was awake.

But that touch traveled down the big fish’s black back, downwards, the sentinel on the sofa tensing the muscles in his back.

When it reached the tip of the tail fin, she held it in her palm, playing with it repeatedly, not letting go for a long time.

Ni Ji gritted his teeth. The little orca let out a comfortable whimper, turning over its soft, white belly.

Lin Yuan, looking at her book, moved her fingers from the tail, upwards again, towards where the black and white met.

The sentinel, no longer able to endure it, jumped up from the sofa, his face flushed, snatching his mental body back.

Lin Yuan’s book fell to the ground. She looked up at the awakened sentinel, her expression innocent.

What was wrong?

Ni Ji had fallen asleep mid-channeling. She had waited, boredly reading for a while, the little orca had come to her on its own accord, she had only casually stroked it.

What emotion was Ni Ji expressing right now?

But thinking back - Lin Yuan quietly rubbed her fingers - the orca's skin really was nice, smooth and elastic, and its calls were very pleasant.

It made one happy, no wonder the tentacles all liked to rub the orca to recharge.

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