Chapter 46: Relics

On the ochre earth, the group wove through old buildings and ruins under a fathomless scarlet sky.

It was their second hour since leaving the Investigation Team.

The wind roared, hurling sand at Xueqiu, only to be stopped a meter away by an invisible wall.

Since Ou Ziyun silenced Xia Yin, the team moved in near silence, only footsteps and breathing audible. Xueqiu stayed close behind Xia Yin, afraid of falling behind.

This was Youdu, a realm cut off from reality. She was just a freshman, barely in class, early-admission but D-rank, her Contract now the healing-focused ‘Hakutaku.’

If only her ‘Mirror Demon’ had copied Xia Yin’s ‘Yinglong’ instead.

Xueqiu shook her head. Maybe Xia Yin’s forced silence made the atmosphere oppressive, stirring her overthinking.

Ten minutes later, the endless old buildings, ruins, and sand gave way.

At the end of the dirt path they’d walked, a well-preserved building marked with a scarlet eye appeared.

Xueqiu recognized the emblem.

It was likely the Academy’s crest, identical to the one on her student handbook and card.

“Mmm… mmmph…”

A muffled grunt came from ahead.

Xia Yin turned, gesturing wildly while making “mmm” sounds, substituting for his usual endless chatter.

“Ahem, no need for silence. No Shadow Ghosts around—we’re safe for now,” Old Gu called from the front, waving.

His loud voice, amplified in the desolate quiet, was like a megaphone ensuring everyone heard.

“Phew, that was suffocating, Snowball,” Xia Yin exhaled. “You probably don’t know what those broken bricks and houses were. In the real world, this place would be a tourist trap by now.”

“Get to the point, not your nonsense,” Ou Ziyun said.

They’d entered the building.

The silence around Xueqiu vanished.

She heard researchers’ murmurs, mechanical hums, and faint wind chimes from somewhere.

Clearly, Xia Yin and Ou Ziyun never got along.

Xueqiu didn’t know their history.

For now, Xia Yin would likely follow the student council president’s orders.

Of course, he’d do it halfheartedly, as always.

“The point? Everything I say is critical, Madam President. If you can’t stand it, why not enlighten our pure, jade-like Xueqiu about Youdu and the Investigation Team yourself?”

“First, jade isn’t just white—it’s green, red, black, yellow too. And your ramblings are useless. Those buildings were built post-disruption, less than fifty years old, destroyed by Shadow Ghosts,” Ou Ziyun said sharply.

Xueqiu wasn’t unfamiliar with “disruption.” That morning, Old Gu had mentioned Youdu’s history to Ou Ziyun.

Or maybe it was history—more likely.

Accepting it as fact was still hard for Xueqiu.

Ou Ziyun glanced at her, ensuring she was listening, then continued, “We’re at the Spiritual Academy’s Youdu Investigation Team Two’s current research site—a ruin.”

Xueqiu stood by the wall, realizing the building was constructed around something central.

Not fossils, but a dilapidated, low-roofed hut.

The structure was built outward from this hut.

“Right, found in 2012. This house survived the disruption… You know what that is, right, Xueqiu?” Ou Ziyun asked.

“Of course she doesn’t. Maybe she caught a bit from Old Gu’s morning ramblings,” Xia Yin answered for her.

Xueqiu knew the literal meaning of “disruption” and vaguely grasped Ou Ziyun’s words.

Hearing more couldn’t hurt.

“Objectively, the disruption spanned the mid-19th to early 20th century. Only in the 1950s did the Investigation Team recover, no longer operating separately from the Academy,” Ou Ziyun said.

To Xueqiu, she sounded less like a student council president and more like an elementary history teacher explaining World War I or II to kids.

Too bad Xueqiu’s elementary school didn’t have history, and Ou Ziyun wasn’t a teacher.

“Madam President’s too academic. Basically, the current Investigation Team doesn’t know what the old one was like, just digging through ruins,” Xia Yin said.

“Stop interrupting me,” Ou Ziyun snapped.

“Fine, fine, I’ll shut up and leave. Snowball, soak it all in and report back to your senior, okay?”

Xia Yin stepped aside, as if planning to explore the building.

Xueqiu was a bit distracted. Sometimes she heard faint wind chimes, sometimes not.

Ou Ziyun went on about scholars’ analyses of the century-long disruption and the building’s temporary living quarters, but Xueqiu only half-listened.

Her life felt like it had shifted from Dragon Raja to Attack on Titan.

Xia Yin had reread the former a few times these months, and as his roommate, she’d picked up some of it.

This was just a week-long internship. Ou Ziyun hadn’t assigned her tasks, even ensuring Xia Yin came along, as if only to help raise her rank.

Evening arrived—or maybe late afternoon. In Youdu, it made no difference.

If the Investigation Team base had few windows, this building had almost none, with lighting and ventilation systems but no climate control.

Xueqiu sat alone on her bed. Unlike the base’s single rooms, this was a double dorm, her roommate now Su Xi instead of Xia Yin.

She’d preferred staying with Xia Yin—she knew him better than Ou Ziyun or Su Xi.

But the president worried Xia Yin might get handsy, insisting he room with Old Gu and suggesting Xueqiu switch dorms back at the Academy…

So here she was.

Xueqiu slipped off her shoes and socks. Though not the main base, this was still part of it, with a bathroom and shower.

She planned to bathe.

Since arriving, something felt off.

An indescribable unease, like her thoughts were veiled, but she couldn’t pinpoint the veil.

Finally, it lifted when she entered the bathroom.

Soft wind chimes grew louder.

Her vision blurred, covered by a thin red veil.

ps: Seeing peers’ books get recommended is draining, but I’ll adjust. Double updates continue.