Living in the Doomsday and Becoming an Immortal Alone
Chapter 50 - 40 T.E.R

Chapter 50: Chapter 40 T.E.R

The next day dawned in the fortress.

Wang Jixuan heard some movement from the bed and stopped meditating. He resumed a normal sitting position, turned on the bedside lamp, and picked up a thick book that lay beside him.

Mechanics: Beginner’s Guide.

On the spacious bed, Zhou Zhengde opened his eyes blankly, feeling the cool sensation of his skin in direct contact with the sheets. His trembling left hand reached for the lump in the bedding beside him.

Ah, skin...

He leapt up, wearing only boxer shorts, and stared at the figure on the other half of the bed.

Zhou Zhengde first let out a sigh of relief.

It was Lin Bo lying next to him, fast asleep on his stomach, also shirtless.

Ah, this!

Two crossed lightning bolts appeared on Zhou Zhengde’s back as his legs went weak and he almost knelt down, managing to steady himself by holding onto the bed.

He knew that he was easily drunk after drinking, and that once drunk, all sorts of things tended to happen, but this, this... Could this be considered workplace bullying? Lin Bo was a conservative as well, could it be because of his demands as a captain...

Fortunately, Daoist Wang’s voice chimed in at just the right moment:

"Don’t worry, I’ve been watching the whole time, nothing uncontrollable happened between you two. I washed your clothes because they got dirty."

Zhou Zhengde let out a long sigh of relief and slumped onto the edge of the bed.

He looked at Wang Jixuan, smiling gratefully:

"Thank you. What exactly did I do after I got drunk last night?"

Wang Jixuan’s expression was indescribable, as images, some too embarrassing to look at directly, surfaced in his mind. Out of consideration for their friendship, he silently tore these images to shreds.

Wang Jixuan closed the thick book in his hand, cleared his throat, and said solemnly:

"Last night, after you got drunk, you took Wei Na’s hand and said a lot of things."

"I held Wei Na’s hand, for real? Don’t joke about that; we were lovers before, but we’ve clearly set our boundaries now."

Zhou Zhengde frowned at Wang Jixuan.

Wang Jixuan pursed his lips, shrugged, and nodded slightly.

Zhou Zhengde hissed, "Did I really say it?"

"You did."

"What did I say?"

"Are you sure you want to know?"

"Sure," Zhou Zhengde’s expression became more earnest and apprehensive.

Fighting back a laugh, Wang Jixuan said, "You said you liked her and asked if she would marry you, the kind of marriage with mutual chastity clauses. You proposed that you could apply for IVF, and that you’d keep fit for her up until her menopause, doing fifty squats a day... I only learned what menopause meant yesterday."

"And, her reaction?"

Two flames flickered in the depths of Zhou Zhengde’s eyes.

"She was touched," Wang Jixuan said with a look of sympathy, "then she shook her head and refused without a moment’s hesitation, saying she enjoys her freedom and doesn’t wish to reproduce."

Zhou Zhengde cleared his throat, "Hahaha! I knew it would be like this, haha, ha... Sigh."

He had wanted to keep a stiff upper lip.

But Wang Jixuan had already thrown him a box of tissues.

Zhou Zhengde sniffled and tilted his head at a forty-five-degree angle, trying to appear nonchalant:

"It’s all in the past. I know that. It was long past, really. I shouldn’t hold her back... Right, I’ll be going... I need to perk up, focus on work. When I’m free in a few days, I’ll arrange a meeting with some conservative girls for you; that’s settled then. You need some emotional healing..."

Wang Jixuan was about to refuse when he suddenly thought of something and slowly nodded his head.

Daoist Wang said softly, "I can try to make contact with them, but I have no immediate plans to start a family."

Zhou Zhengde sighed, looking somewhat at a loss: "Alrighty, I’ll get dressed. Sorry for the intrusion... wait, shouldn’t this be my place?"

Wang Jixuan closed the book and stood up, smiling, "Then I’ll go back and wait for news from the investigation team."

"Go on, get some good rest. I’ll oversee the warzone investigation team’s work... You didn’t sleep last night?"

"Slept a bit, in the chair," Wang Jixuan replied seriously, "I had to make sure that nothing actually happened between you and Lin Bo."

Zhou Zhengde gave a firm thumbs-up: "I’ll try my best to find a pure soul for you."

Wang Jixuan straightened the edge of his uniform, tucked the book under his arm, and with hands in his pockets, left the Security Captain’s quarters.

...

Inside his new quarters.

Wang Jixuan leisurely organized various items.

The work clothes originally belonging to Mu Liang had been put in the farthest corner; using his recently accumulated credit, he had bought a few loose linen shirts and cropped pants.

He quite liked this casual attire.

’If I weren’t engaged in cultivation, how would I be living in the mundane world?’

This was something Daoist Wang had been reflecting upon lately.

Previously in the Wanli Gold Greenhouse District wooden hut, his cultivation progress had been quite rapid. Although it was still slow compared to his previous life, it was much faster than in the Middle City.

Why was the Spiritual Energy denser on Wanli Gold’s territory?

Wang Jixuan naturally had investigated this before.

It wasn’t because the Greenhouse Area had more plants but due to their formulated soil.

Wang Jixuan had studied this before; the formulated soil contained some Spiritual Power, but he didn’t know the specific source of this Spiritual Power. So, he had Lin Bo help him get some, and then asked Dr. Wei Na to analyze the components.

He suspected that this formulated soil was related to Blade Beasts.

One of the ingredients in the formulated soil might possibly be...

The flesh and blood of Blade Beasts.

Apart from cultivation, the most pressing concern for Wang Jixuan was actually just one issue.

Kong Nu wanted to dissect him.

Wang Jixuan was also waiting for the investigative team sent by the war zone to see what kind of strength these ’experts’ had.

This investigation team was purely a sharp blade that Zhou Zhengde, relying on his solid background, had summoned to deal with Kong Nu.

Master Wang had also figured it out.

He would use whatever resources he could, as he momentarily lacked the real power to ignore the rules of the mundane world.

Since Zhou Zhengde had a grandfather who was a Great General and could keep various petty criminals in check, he would temporarily hide in this place, focus on his cultivation, bolster his power, and look for more ways out.

The only fear now was that the tree wishes to be still, but the wind keeps blowing.

’The poor Daoist previously had much contempt for this mundane world.’

’I should now accumulate knowledge in a modest manner and prioritize cultivation, advancing my knowledge, and temporarily commit to a power, as long as I don’t fall too deep or do evil on their behalf, and that will be enough.’

’One should have a reverent heart towards heaven and earth.’

Master Wang stretched and felt a sense of achievement when he looked at his full wardrobe.

Then he turned his gaze to those organized odds and ends.

T.E.R.

He saw those three letters again.

Wang Jixuan had roughly understood the meaning of the letters— the name of a virtual singer from some underground fortress in Sector 76.

Because the fortress prohibited excessive entertainment, T.E.R could only be active in some old-fashioned radios. Having debuted just two or three years ago, she had already amassed a large fan base in Lower City and Middle City.

Wang Jixuan fiddled with the holographic music player for a bit and plugged it in.

A thin projection screen appeared on the trapezoidal player box, with a string of selection lists; he tried clicking on a song called "Radio LIVE·Little River," and an ’album cover’ appeared in the center of the projection screen.

The cover featured a cartoon girl wearing a sundress, hands clasped behind her back, grinning.

The player emitted a woman’s gentle chant, and the melody of the solo guitar unfolded smoothly.

Wang Jixuan’s mind inexplicably relaxed.

’Oh, a different style of playing guitar.’

The clear and tender female voice began to hum softly, and the notes flowed like water in a small river, circulating through the moderately-sized room.

Wang Jixuan sat on the bed, holding a book and reading intently, his left hand slightly open, releasing a wisp of Qi that circled a cup, bringing the stainless steel cup to his lips for a gentle sip.

The thick basic science book didn’t seem so tough to tackle anymore.

[I always thought you would accompany me to see that little river/Didn’t expect we only took two steps/Then you said it would lead nowhere/Only afraid my heart for loving you would just fade away/Yet I don’t know how to put it to you...]

[After leaving you/I began to like showing off my sincerity/Guessing your elusive heart/Wanting to confirm again/If we could walk to that river again/Perhaps I’m just afraid of burying my sincerity/And not really wanting you to accompany me all the way...]

Wang Jixuan smiled with his eyes narrowed, letting time flow over the characters in his sight.

The Qi within him became languid and steady, no longer rushing forward; instead, it began to slowly permeate places in his Dao Body that it couldn’t before.

As the song ended, the singer spoke up, that clear voice:

"That’s today’s song, I hope you can relax your body and mind amidst your hard work and study. Keep fighting and living! We’ve made a deal to meet at the concert in the surface city!"

Wang Jixuan looked towards the holographic player, just in time to see the album cover that had turned to the front, that cartoon girl grinning and making a scissors gesture with her hand.

He set down his cup of water and looked at his palm, then raised his sword finger, gently splitting it.

He chuckled at himself, shaking his head, and continued to read his book, pondering whether the mechanics of this world could be combined with the art of Artifact Refining.

The music player automatically moved on to the next song—all recordings from the virtual singer’s radio station.

Soon, Wang Jixuan found that simply relaxing and enjoying the music was remarkably helpful for his Dao Heart cultivation.

’Incredible.’

The clear female voice sang a soothing ballad again, as if she knew her tender voice could comfort hearts and was trying hard to use this gift.

Amidst the singing;

Wang Jixuan put down the book, sat cross-legged, and pictures began to cross his mind: high mountains and flowing waters, birds singing and flowers fragrant. Added to them were a wooden house and a dark area, with faint lights slowly converging towards him.

In the Security Captain’s office, Zhou Zhengde squeezed a communicator between his shoulder and cheek, continuously affirming something, and with a ballpoint pen swiftly wrote down some newly received information on the paper in front of him.

Next to the central medical room in the makeshift gym, Wei Na, dressed in yoga pants and a sports tank top, was making use of her break from the clinic to do some body sculpting exercises.

A few young men and women passed by the door, laughing and walking towards their respective workplaces.

Inside the Spiritual Ability Users’ outpost office on the third level of the Upper City Fortress, Kong Nu was cursing at the white-coated researchers standing in front of him, while a girl in a white dress sat in the corner, hugging a teddy bear tightly, her big eyes filled with a mix of confusion and emptiness...

The fortress’s machines continued to run, and the lights of the Middle Lower City flickered now and then.

"Team leader! Group Leader Mu Liang!"

The shouting of Lin Bo snapped Wang Jixuan out of his trance, prompting him to remove the earbuds of the new headphones he had bought.

He was slacking off at his workstation at the Security Office.

Wang Jixuan asked, "What’s up? Has that investigative team arrived?"

"Leader, you didn’t forget about meeting that cute girl today, did you?"

Lin Bo muttered under his breath:

"The girl has already arrived, sitting on the park bench behind the central elevator shaft, opposite the Security Office.

"Just give our captain some face and chat with her for a bit! She saw your photo and wanted to meet you. Her name is Wen Tongtong, a classic conservative type, and Dr. Wei Na gives her a five-star recommendation.

"Heh heh, as long as you go there in our uniform, the deal’s half done! In terms of temperament and looks, it’s a sure kill!"

Wang Jixuan smiled and nodded, closing the book "Mechanics: Advanced", then asked:

"That investigative team hasn’t arrived yet?"

"Reportedly they’ll arrive at the Fortress tonight, all real front-line combatants on rotation for rest! There’s said to be a formidable front-line Spiritual Ability User among them!"

"Alright," Wang Jixuan answered, raising his hand to straighten his collar, his light blue Security uniform neat and tidy.

Truth be told, he didn’t have much expectation for a sweet romance; at this stage his Primordial Yang couldn’t afford any loss.

Firstly, it was a kind gesture from a friend, and secondly, it was an opportunity for him to experience interacting with people, which could help with his Red Dust Heart Refining.

Following the customs here, a polite ’you are nice, but we are not suitable’ later on would suffice.

He adjusted his uniform collar, casually picked up his gun holster and fastened it, then stepped out of the Security Office.