VAP - Chapter 112
Chapter 112: The Marshal's Journey is the Sea of Stars (8)
To be honest, Yue Du was a little surprised.
She had imagined many times what species her quantum beast would be, hoping it would be a fluffy creature that could satisfy her need to idly pet its fur.
But Yue Du had never once thought it would actually be a deer.
The white deer before her was clearly a fawn, small and only a little taller than Yue Du's calf.
Its entire body was as white as fresh snow, its fur shimmering like smooth silk. Its long legs were slender, yet it stood steadily, a pair of pointed ears perked out to the sides of its head.
Yue Du met its round, glistening eyes—the same deep amber as her own.
Strangely, the deer's eyes were as clear as water, yet they held a gentle, peaceful charm that a fawn should not possess.
Yue Du crouched down to observe it more closely, but even then, she was still considerably taller than it.
“In all the data I could find on deer species, none of them perfectly match its characteristics,” Yue Du said. “Look, it even has antlers on its head.”
To be precise, they were just small bumps. It was too young for its antlers to have grown in yet.
Sheng Xuejiu said, “It’s an ancient species.”
She suddenly took Yue Du’s right hand and placed it on the fawn’s furry back.
The sensation was marvelous. Unlike the fluffy, long fur of Sheng Xuejiu’s cat, the hair on the deer’s warm body was fine, soft, and dense. Stroking with the grain was perfectly smooth, while stroking against it felt a little prickly, but it was still very pleasant.
“Ancient species of quantum beasts are animals that once coexisted with humans on the mother planet but went extinct before interstellar travel began.”
Humanity had undergone a long interstellar journey before finally settling in the Spiral Star System. Before that journey began, the mother planet’s ecosystem had been all but destroyed in what could be called a mass extinction.
Even more tragically, the cryogenically preserved animal genes were lost during the journey, so people once believed these lost species would only ever exist in archival footage—
Until later, when people began to awaken as Sentinels and Guides.
The first ancient creature to reappear was the Scottish Highland cattle. Although there were slight differences in its appearance, it was unmistakably a Highland cow.
No one could explain the principle behind it. The most widely accepted theory is that humanity’s memories of the creatures they once coexisted with were passed down through their bloodlines and eventually materialized.
…It was a kind of inherited memory, I suppose.
Since they are memories, discrepancies are understandable.
Ancient species quantum beasts account for only about ten percent of the total. Most quantum beasts take the form of creatures that are still alive today, including animals that accompanied humans from the mother planet to the Spiral Star System and species native to the Spiral Star System itself.
“If I remember correctly, the only deer species that isn’t extinct is the moose, and yours is clearly not a moose.”
Sheng Xuejiu concluded, “Then it’s an ancient species. It’s normal for its appearance not to perfectly match the records.”
Yue Du already knew about this, but she didn’t interrupt the Marshal’s explanation. After listening with a smile until she finished, she then asked, “Your cat is an ancient species too, right? It looks like a Norwegian Forest Cat from the mother planet era, just a bit small.”
Norwegian Forest Cats can grow to over a meter long, yet this cat, which was already past its infancy, was only as long as an arm.
Sheng Xuejiu said, “It? Its situation is a little different.”
Curiosity was written all over Yue Du’s face, but Sheng Xuejiu refused to elaborate, saying cryptically, “You’ll find out in the future.”
At this moment, the long-haired cat, the subject of their conversation, slowly approached, its silver-gray eyes fixed on the little white deer.
Its posture was like that of a hunter, always ready to pursue its prey, ready to pounce and lock onto its throat the moment it showed any sign of wanting to escape.
But the white deer was completely at ease, gazing back with tranquil gentleness.
After a moment, the cat’s ears suddenly softened, and its entire body relaxed. It seemed to want to leap onto the deer’s back, but the newly born quantum beast wasn’t much bigger than it, so the attempt failed.
The cat let out an aggrieved meow.
The young white deer didn’t mind at all and graciously lay down. This position made it convenient for the long-haired cat to lean against it and affectionately lick the fine, soft fur on its neck.
Yue Du: “…”
This pattern of interaction was strangely familiar.
The quantum beasts were busy bonding with each other, having no time to come and seek affection from Yue Du.
Sheng Xuejiu’s goal was finally achieved. She smiled with satisfaction. “Alright, let the two of them play by themselves.”
Yue Du: “Mm.”
When Sentinels and Guides first awaken, their quantum beasts are in their juvenile stage. However, the growth cycle of these animals is clearly different from that of natural creatures; it is determined by their master’s spiritual power.
If the master is not very adept in this area, their quantum beast will grow slowly. For example, some of the freshmen in the Sentinel specialization still have sub-adult quantum beasts.
If the master is skilled at using their abilities, the quantum beast will mature into its adult form in a short period and remain at that stage until the master’s death.
Without a doubt, Yue Du was skilled at this.
Thus, the little white deer began to develop at an extremely fast pace.
It grew larger almost every day, its posture evolving from merely cute to one of grace and spiritual beauty. The antlers between its ears also grew steadily, resembling jade coral or frost-covered branches.
Pure white animals, as long as they are beautiful, possess a natural celestial air, and this white deer was no exception.
Speaking of which, in ancient times, the country Yue Du came from revered white deer as divine, immortal beasts that symbolized good fortune.
As Yue Du stroked her quantum beast’s soft ears, she was inexplicably reminded of a video she had once seen of a snow-white moose crossing a river. The footage had a dreamlike sanctity to it, and the bullet comments were almost all prayers and wishes.
Yue Du privately thought her own quantum beast was a better fit for the legendary image of an auspicious omen. If she took some photos and videos of the white deer to show Yue Hao, she wondered if her sister would pray to the screen.
Yue Du thought, her mind wandering.
On the seventh day after she awakened as a Guide, Sheng Xuejiu’s cat could already leap onto the white deer’s back, sit there steadily, and wrap its large tail around the deer’s neck.
Just as the data said, a quantum beast symbolizes its master’s subconscious, their inner self.
The intimacy of the two quantum beasts signified the closeness between Yue Du and Sheng Xuejiu.
However, to avoid trouble, Yue Du had not yet let the white deer out in front of others.
There was no helping it.
No matter how you looked at it, the white deer currently looked immature. It was soft and gentle, not at all like a Sentinel’s quantum beast.
Right, even though she had awakened as a Guide, she still had to pretend to be a Sentinel.
Yue Du saw that the white deer’s antlers were growing promisingly. She estimated that in another ten days or so, they would become a very threatening weapon.
…So, it was best to wait until its antlers were fully grown before letting it appear before others.
This routine military academy life lasted for less than half a month before Yue Du received a mission from the Main System.
It happened to be lunch break. Yue Du was in Sheng Xuejiu’s faculty apartment. The two were chatting idly while their quantum beasts groomed themselves nearby.
Suddenly, they both froze at the same time.
“Ding! Main quest initiated. First, System 0996, please receive the system mission. Content: Confirm identity as a Sentinel. This cannot be changed.”
As soon as that mechanical voice faded, the next one followed:
“Ding! System mission completion detected.”
Yue Du: “…”
Great. It seemed she had already completed the mission before it was even issued.
Apparently, Sheng Xuejiu could also hear the same voice. The Marshal closed her eyes impatiently and pressed her temples.
“I find that voice so annoying,” she said.
Yue Du deeply agreed. “Because it is indeed very annoying.”
The annoyance was one thing; the missions with unclear objectives were another. And this particular mission left Yue Du baffled.
According to the Main System’s usual pattern, it should either be to weaken the protagonist or to let the host shine on her own… no, stir up trouble on her own.
For example, destroying a world or ascending to a higher realm, something like that.
But this time, what purpose could there be in having Yue Du disguise herself as a Sentinel? To weaken Ying Wei? No matter how she thought about it, it was too far-fetched.
If she couldn’t figure it out, she would just stop thinking about it for now.
Yue Du shook her head. At least she had once again confirmed her previous suspicion—the Main System had no idea about the specific situation within the small worlds.
If it knew, it wouldn’t have issued such a ridiculous mission.
Just then, Sheng Xuejiu’s words interrupted her thoughts.
“Class starts in fifteen minutes.”
Yue Du: “Ah, this class is a theory class.”
A mandatory Sentinel-Guide cooperation theory class. But the instructor for this course had said at the beginning of the semester that he also emphasized practical application, hinting that there might be hands-on requirements.
Today was supposed to be a joint class for Sentinels and Guides.
Sheng Xuejiu casually grabbed the cat. “Take it with you.”
The long-haired cat, which had been happily licking the white deer’s ear: “Meow?”
Yue Du didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Why would I take it? I can’t let the white deer out, and it won’t behave.”
Ever since the white deer appeared, the long-haired cat that could previously sit quietly by Yue Du’s leg for over an hour was no more. It always wanted to jump on the white deer’s back, or else it would meow restlessly.
A similar state was very common for a Sentinel’s quantum beast.
Perhaps because their spiritual bodies were attracted to each other, Yue Du had been relegated to second place in the cat’s eyes. The white deer indisputably held the top spot.
Sheng Xuejiu, however, was delighted to see this.
She thought for a moment and said, “Then you should go… I’m heading back to the military district.”
The two parted ways at the door of the faculty apartment.
Meanwhile, in another small world.
Yue Hao rushed out the door.
She had an elective class today. It wasn’t very important, but skipping it was impossible because the professor had a very good memory and would call roll for everyone.
Once, a student tried to have someone answer roll call for them, but the professor recognized the voice as soon as it spoke and saw through the ruse. The student almost lost all their attendance points because of it.
Just thinking about it was terrifying!
Finally seated just before the bell rang, Yue Hao breathed a sigh of relief and took out her phone with a clear conscience.
The professor on the podium took out the attendance book as usual.
“Ona.”
“Here!”
“Pang Weisheng.”
“Here!”
“Qi Jiu—Qi Jiu?”
“…”
When he read this name, the professor paused inexplicably, as if even he didn’t know why.
And the owner of the name never answered.
The professor raised his voice, “Who is Qi Jiu?”
His gaze swept across the students below the podium. Yue Hao immediately put down her phone, pretending she hadn’t been doing anything.
Just as the professor, full of doubt, looked down to make a mark in the attendance book, a lazy female voice sounded out: “Here.”
The professor looked blank for a moment, adjusted his glasses, and called the next student’s name.
Yue Hao had originally intended to go back to her phone, but for some reason, she glanced in the direction the voice had come from.
That was the last row of the classroom, a prime spot that university students usually fought over in elective classes. But today, only one person was sitting there—a girl.
She was a very beautiful girl.
Uh, was there someone this beautiful in this class before?
Yue Hao thought in confusion.
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