Cyber Era Witch
Chapter 1014 - 802 Xu Yang and Lu Sizhou

Chapter 1014: Chapter 802 Xu Yang and Lu Sizhou

Outside, nothing could be seen within.

Xu Yang took his time to savor the strange expression on Lu Sizhou’s face. The self-assured Miss Lu—even her eyebrows could arch this peculiarly?

He deliberately instructed the Star Weaving Lady to temporarily shut off the Divine Radiance’s engine, letting it sink to the ground, unmoving.

Lu Sizhou circled the Divine Radiance a few times, even knocking on it, as if it were an unfamiliar sea urchin.

The Star Weaving Lady remarked that Lu Sizhou’s hands were soft and delightful.

"She’s taken good care of them," the Star Weaving Lady declared, "Unlike the rest of you."

"Always ready for battle!" 102 leaned against her seat, brimming with excitement, like a spring-loaded toy ready to bounce at any moment.

"Shall we just take Lu Sizhou back?" the Storm Princess suggested.

"Let me scan the area first," Xu Yang said, inspecting the surroundings.

Heat sources, terrain reflections, and barrier detection—all clear. Xu Yang found only a cross-legged Taoist near Lu Sizhou.

That Taoist, Xu Yang recognized—it was none other than Liu Tianshi, the one who had taught Lu Jing the art of flying swords back in the day.

This place felt like a hidden paradise tucked behind a waterfall. Weak Water cascaded down from a distance, like heaven’s collapse. The water itself was a pure white hue but turned ink-black when gathered, plunging into a dark abyss that resembled an endless black river, flowing along the trajectory of the Big Dipper Seven Stars.

This, ultimately, wasn’t the Dragon Gate Mansion itself but rather the entrance to Weak Water that lay above it.

Could it be that the Elder Dragon couldn’t transport us directly into the Dragon Gate Mansion? Xu Yang pondered.

"What’s the plan?" 101 asked.

"I’ll go down and talk to her. If anything happens, you all can come help." Xu Yang ruffled his hair, intent on leaving a good impression on Lu Sizhou.

"Get Lu Sizhou on our side, and we win..." The Storm Princess crossed her arms over her chest.

"Stop daydreaming," Xu Yang shot back, donning the helmet of his custom-made armor.

The entire suit had been modified, bearing little resemblance to its original Cloud Beast design.

He leapt off the side of the Divine Radiance, landing in front of Lu Sizhou.

Lu Sizhou was standing alone, her hand stroking her smooth, flawless chin as she pondered why the Divine Radiance had appeared here.

She looked up, noticing Xu Yang’s arrival.

"..." Lu Sizhou tilted her head upward.

"The name’s Xu," Xu Yang introduced himself.

"I’ll play dumb and pretend I don’t know who you are, Xu-whoever," Lu Sizhou said softly, her tone dripping with mockery.

Xu Yang cast a glance at Lu Sizhou. She was, without a doubt, stunning—more breathtaking than in news reports, photos, or virtual conferences. Like a celestial maiden come to life, her almond-shaped phoenix eyes, porcelain-white skin, and glossy, jet-black hair left little room for comparison.

If the eyes are windows to the soul, then in Lu Sizhou’s fire-lit gaze, Xu Yang felt he saw a flame—wild and unquenchable.

"Alright then." Xu Yang’s eyes flickered toward the cross-legged Liu Tianshi in the distance before turning to Weak Water’s towering waterfall. "So, is the Dragon Gate Mansion beneath that waterfall?"

"See for yourself. Follow me. Don’t worry, I can’t hurt you. I’m just a mortal," Lu Sizhou said, heading toward the edge of the waterfall.

"I’m a mortal too," Xu Yang replied, walking alongside her.

They stood shoulder to shoulder at the edge of the cliff. Weak Water roared as it plunged before them, like the heavens tearing open and disgorging an apocalyptic flood.

Xu Yang gazed left and right, unable to see either end.

He attempted to measure the waterfall’s breadth, but it exceeded the device’s reading capacity.

"The system shows Weak Water’s width as 65,535 kilometers. Does that mean it could wrap around our entire planet, maybe more? How is that even possible?" Xu Yang exclaimed.

"If only we were still on our original planet," Lu Sizhou murmured.

Xu Yang checked his communicator—just as he suspected, there was no signal.

Whenever they ventured into the Elder Dragon’s Moonlight Garden or stayed on Nangong Island, similar phenomena would occur. That was a sign they had entered the "Gap World," a realm unbound by their familiar planet. Here, there were no networks, no satellites, and no signals.

The only thing still functioning was the particle channel Mond had promised, enabling messages to be transmitted back to Nestor Headquarters via the quantum communication device aboard the Divine Radiance. As a network relay station, the Divine Radiance could amplify signals as necessary.

Xu Yang leaned forward slightly.

Lu Sizhou eyed Xu Yang’s back, wondering what would happen if she kicked him off the cliff.

"I see the outline of the Dragon Gate Mansion beneath the water—crimson walls, green tiles, pavilions, walkways, gardens. It’s built exactly like an ancient Xia palace," Xu Yang observed intently.

"No, it’s Xia’s ancient palaces that are patterned after the Dragon Gate Mansion," Lu Sizhou corrected.

"You’ve been here before, right? Sent a lot of research teams, haven’t you?" Xu Yang asked.

Lu Sizhou stepped closer, leaning forward like Xu Yang.

"There are things better left undiscovered. All you need to know is this: the treasures within the Dragon Gate Mansion can reshape reality and reverse time," Lu Sizhou said, her words measured and deliberate.

"How can you be so sure?" Xu Yang pressed.

Lu Sizhou began to tell Xu Yang a story.

"...During the Great Jing Dynasty, in the Yong Zhao Era under Emperor Jinglie—about two thousand years ago—a stranger arrived in Daliang, claiming to be an alchemist from beyond the mortal coil. He brought with him a series of extraordinary inventions: a wooden carriage with a giant teapot on its back, capable of moving forward once water was boiled within, needing no additional fodder to travel a thousand miles a day; a massive kite larger than Daliang’s city gates, which could let a person glide upon the wind when leaping from a cliff; a medicine that could stave off wounds and decay; and a powder that could breach gates and fell armies. The imperial soldiers initially wanted to apprehend him, but he repelled them with blasts of fire from his hands. None dared approach him, and the emperor welcomed him as an honored guest.

"However, this man aged prematurely. He stayed in Daliang for only a year before passing away. In the first few months, he was passionate about his inventions, but later on he grew increasingly agitated. One stormy day, he climbed a mountain carrying a massive iron spike, hoping to draw heavenly lightning into his body, but failed. People said he spent his final days in misery, shouting ’No electricity! No electricity!’ repeatedly, lamenting bitterly. He even begged doctors to cut him open, saying he wanted them to remove ’a spark in the brain, a thread in the spine.’ No one dared to comply, and he eventually passed away, his body rigid in death. Though most of his inventions were lost, the alchemists preserved his powder, refining its formula to achieve its door-breaking and army-decimating effects. It was passed down through the ages as gunpowder. Thanks to his guidance, Xia developed countless firearms—long guns and cannons alike—which allowed them to conquer the Eastern Hemisphere and establish today’s unprecedented legacy. If not for him, our ancestors might have used gunpowder only for fireworks. According to the records, his name was Zhang Fang. He was one of the researchers we sent into the Dragon Gate Mansion just 40 years ago."

Xu Yang stood at the cliff’s edge. It seemed the Elder Dragon hadn’t transported them directly into the Dragon Gate Mansion as a kind of test.

"So that’s the origin story of gunpowder," Xu Yang remarked.

"It’s all written in history books. How can you claim to be a Xia person when you don’t even know this?" Lu Sizhou mocked.

"I went to a corporate school. Real history wasn’t part of the curriculum," Xu Yang explained.

"That’s your own fault for not trying harder!"

"And you? Have you been using the Dragon Gate Mansion to send people into the past all this time?" Xu Yang probed further.

"Yes," Lu Sizhou said, her gaze fixating on the Dragon Gate Mansion beneath the water. "Just as my father did. Did you know? Lu Shibo—he was just a middle manager initially. But after learning all of this, he spared no effort. He sent his confidants into the Dragon Gate Mansion, telling his younger self what to do—corporate strategies, anticipating changes, riding the tides of opportunity. He rose through the ranks and rewrote history. Now, he’s the chairman of Heavenly Cardinal Manufacturing."

"You people have guts," Xu Yang said, shaking his head. "This is incredibly reckless."

Lu Sizhou smirked coldly.

"Don’t you want to go back and change something? To truly return to the past, wielding the Dragon Gate Mansion’s power?" she asked.

Madam Medusa. Xu Yang shuddered.

Seeing his reaction, Lu Sizhou nodded knowingly.

"You have your ambitions, and I have mine. But I won’t be telling you what they are," Lu Sizhou said.

"Then..."

"Come on, let’s rescue Lu Jing, isn’t that why you’re here?" Lu Sizhou said, leaving the waterfall and heading deeper into the hidden paradise.

Liu Tianshi rose and bowed toward Xu Yang and Lu Sizhou.

"This is Mr. Xu, he’s here to help," Lu Sizhou introduced Xu Yang to Liu Tianshi. "He knows Lu Jing as well. Together, we need to figure out how to get out of here."

"An honor to meet you, Mr. Xu," Liu Tianshi greeted with a cupped-fist salute.

"The honor is mine, Liu Tianshi, I’ve long admired your reputation," Xu Yang returned the salute, matching the gesture. In truth, the two had crossed paths before, but neither had realized it at the time.

Xu Yang noticed the debris of drones and mechanical wreckage scattered behind Liu Tianshi. Among them, he could identify the shattered forms of several Jade Automatons.

"Your Jade Automatons have been..." Xu Yang frowned.

"I hope you’ve brought some strong Witches with you. My mechanoids were all destroyed by the Immortals. They’re truly despicable," Lu Sizhou said, uncharacteristically revealing a trace of frustration.

"They used the Art of Divine Prediction to foresee that you’d become the next chairperson," Xu Yang remarked. "Your fortune appears well-secured."

"Of course I’m blessed. I don’t need them to tell me that," Lu Sizhou replied coolly.

Xu Yang, Lu Sizhou, and Liu Tianshi traversed a narrow pathway, arriving at a shimmering palace.

At its heart, hundreds of practitioners clad in carbon fiber Taoist robes sat in meditative poses atop a high platform.

They looked as though they were seated on a massive circuit board, each individual serving as a single electronic component. Together, the entire platform transformed into a colossal machine.

But Xu Yang’s gaze didn’t linger on the Immortals. What drew his attention was the abhorrent figure below the platform.

Nearby, a hunched old crone with white hair crawled on the ground, clutching a broken flute.

The old woman’s back was grotesquely arched, her arms covered in hard scales. Draped in a crimson robe, her twisted body bore rough, misshapen limbs. Her fingers were thin as withered branches, trembling ceaselessly. Her nails and hair had grown unnaturally long and tangled, resembling those of a specter. Her eyes were obscured by a mass of disorderly gray hair, and Xu Yang found himself unwilling to see what lay beneath.

"What is that?" Xu Yang asked, stunned. He had never seen such a horrifying creature.

"That is Lu Jing," Lu Sizhou answered.