When Bay Crocodile was dragged up again, half of his life was already gone.
He was covered in blood, thrown on the ground like a bug, and immediately spat out a mouthful of blood.
He struggled to lift his weak eyelids and looked at the dazed White Shark lying on the ground.
White Shark’s lips were cracked and dry, no longer struggling. Bay Crocodile crawled over and grabbed his collar: “Have you confessed? Have you damn well admitted to rebellion?”
The blood on Bay Crocodile’s hands stained White Shark’s collar, but White Shark was indifferent.
Bay Crocodile spat blood foam at him and cursed: “Are you crazy? That is our only chance! The king won’t kill us without a confession! The presumption of innocence is the law he made. Don’t you understand?”
White Shark’s body swayed as Bay Crocodile pulled him. After a long time, he lifted his eyelids and looked at Bay Crocodile with a heart as dead as ashes: “Forget it.”
Bay Crocodile shouted: “Forget it?”
He stared at White Shark’s lifeless face and suddenly laughed madly: “You, you are bad but not thoroughly bad, good but not thoroughly good. Are you twisted or not? Are you awkward or not? Who are you showing this to now? You deserve to suffer for a lifetime! Hahaha!”
Sandro did not want to see him hysterical, so he waved his hand: “Take them away.”
Bay Crocodile knew his death was near. Before being dragged away, he resentfully said to Sandro: “Selarl said the gods are coming, and you will all die!”
Lance immediately raised his eyes, and Sandro also involuntarily stood up from behind the desk.
Sandro looked at Lance, but Lance looked at Bay Crocodile until he disappeared into the corridor.
The gods Selarl mentioned could never be Lance’s Outer God.
Sandro’s heart suddenly sank. Could there be another?
Babuti snorted coldly: “Your Majesty, don’t believe his superstitious nonsense. He’s just struggling to survive.”
Sandro was not comforted. He knew clearly that having Lance, a Divine system Awakened one, was already a miracle. If Selarl had another behind him, it meant there was more to that rebellion battle than met the eye.
But he would not explain this to Tasman’s officials. He wearily ordered: “Bring back the exiled officials. They have also suffered during this time.”
The officials took their leave one by one. The attendants quickly rushed in to wash away the bloodstains on the floor.
Soon, only Sandro, Lance, and Zhan Pingchuan remained in the room.
Sandro said: “I will solemnly thank the High Tower and Ghost Eye Guilds. You saved Tasman and timely destroyed Selarl’s conspiracy. Also, thank you for not turning a cold eye just because Ryan is a mutant beast.”
Zhan Pingchuan quickly waved his hand: “Oh, don’t mention it. When my mom first met my dad, my dad was stuck in animal form and couldn’t change back. My mom took him in. Later, my mom thought he was going to break ethics and have an interspecies relationship.”
So his quick acceptance of Sandro and Ryan’s relationship was partly hereditary. He had a mother who was brave enough to be ahead of her time.
Lance unexpectedly looked at Zhan Pingchuan. Could this be the reason for the combination of a righteous mother and a bike thief father?
Sandro: “Ryan is different from other mutant beasts. He has feelings and can think. We lived together in the underground city for a year. During my amnesia, he took care of me. I don’t treat him as a mutant beast. He is my lover.”
Zhan Pingchuan sighed: “Actually, Your Majesty is quite lucky to have met this buddy.”
After all, not all S+ mutant beasts are as handsome as this buddy. If it were the one in the Virtual Realm… that would be a disaster.
They are all S+ mutant beasts, but that one is the most abstract.
Lance still weakly nestled in Zhan Pingchuan’s arms, but his words were unusually rational: “This kind of relationship is still too advanced for Tasman people. Once it spreads, you will inevitably be questioned.”
Sandro: “I’ve thought about it. I plan to give Ryan human identity.”
Lance looked at Sandro, breathing unevenly: “You might as well claim to the outside world that he is a creation of the gods, named Canglong, sent by the gods to the sea to help Tasman solve crises.”
Sandro raised his eyebrows slightly. He knew Lance was taking this opportunity to tell him Ryan’s origin and name.
Canglong really sounds nice.
“Unfortunately, Tasman does not advocate religion,” Sandro said.
Lance laughed: “Do you think they need the truth? They only need an answer that satisfies their vanity and great power sentiment. They need to always proudly hold their heads high in front of other races.”
The king being with a mutant beast is shameful and cannot be exposed, but the king being with a divine messenger is the supreme glory of Tasman.
Sandro found Lance increasingly interesting. Such a young age, yet he saw human nature so accurately.
“You say this in front of me, insulting my people.”
Lance knew Sandro was not angry, so he spoke frankly: “I thought when they insisted you marry Selarl, you had already seen clearly.”
“Alright, you’re right,” Sandro smiled and shook his head.
Zhan Pingchuan: “One more thing, the iron door of the underground city was smashed by my baby, but the buddy said we don’t need to compensate. You decide who will repair it.”
“I’ll find someone to repair it. You just rest and recover during this time. Tasman will definitely take good care of you,” since it was Ryan’s promise, Sandro naturally would not refuse.
“Then—” Zhan Pingchuan wanted to carry Lance back to rest, but he saw Lance’s expression.
Lance pressed his wrist, suddenly said: “For saving Ryan, can the king answer my question?”
Sandro: “Hmm?”
Lance continued: “What is your relationship with Lan Wendao and Zhan Qinghe, and the two guild leaders? Why will they definitely lend a hand?”
He finally asked.
Lan Wendao always dodged and played dumb. Lance no longer expected to get the truth from him. Sandro, who owed a life debt, was the only breakthrough.
Sandro narrowed his double pupils and looked at Lance again: “Why do you want to know?”
He hadn’t talked in detail with the two guilds yet, so he couldn’t tell which one Lance was with.
But whoever it was, having a Divine system Awakened one was extraordinary.
It meant that during that fierce war, someone had compassion.
Lance: “Curious.”
Zhan Pingchuan raised his eyebrows: “I’m curious too. Could it be that you already knew them?”
Sandro sat down again. When he mentioned those two people, his memory inevitably went back a hundred years.
Although he said Lance and Zhan Pingchuan were young, many of them were about that age during the chaotic period around Dawn Day.
He hadn’t talked about that buried history for a long time, and of course, no one was interested. After a long time, even he wondered if those things really happened.
Perhaps he shouldn’t tell these two people about past connections, but it didn’t seem to matter much. Most importantly, he was indeed grateful that they had saved Ryan.
“It’s really nothing, just returning a favor.”
“This matter involves a distant history. The world’s structure was very different then—no one had abilities, and I was still a Federation citizen.”
Sandro raised his left hand and lightly curved his finger toward a nearby attendant. The attendant quickly understood and brought over three glasses of sea salt sparkling water, then withdrew at Sandro’s eye signal.
“Don’t be restrained, come sit. Let’s finish early so I can go accompany Ryan.”
Lance and Zhan Pingchuan weren’t polite either. Zhan Pingchuan pulled over a chair and sat across from Sandro, while Lance sat between his legs, still leaning against him.
Sandro ignored their unrestrained intimacy and continued: “The Hong Suo Ability Research Institute and Blue Pivot Ability Inspection Team in Capital City were, back then, two unofficial organizations called Hong Suo Research Institute and Blue Pivot Commercial Alliance. Blue Pivot had nine districts, with District Nine being the most special—it could monitor both Blue Pivot and Hong Suo. The most feared functional department in District Nine was called Ghost Eye Group, and the last generation leader was named Cen Xiao.”
Zhan Pingchuan’s eyes widened instantly, because he was all too familiar with the words “Ghost Eye.”
Sandro said: “Don’t think they were just unofficial organizations—their power was enormous, controlling almost all of the Federation’s top talent and economic lifelines. This trend reached its peak before Dawn Day.”
“At that time, the director of Hong Suo Research Institute was named Li Rong. He was also the source of Dawn Day, but he had another niche identity—he was the leader of the High Tower Group, composed of genius scholars within Hong Suo Research Institute.”
Hearing this, Lance frowned slightly. This seemed to be the origin of High Tower Guild.
Sandro nodded: “You’re not wrong. Ghost Eye Group and High Tower Group are the predecessors of today’s Ghost Eye Guild and High Tower Guild. They were split off because of Dawn Day.”
“Perhaps you’ve heard that a hundred years ago, a massive earthquake occurred in the Sahara Desert, the first underground city appeared, with strange characters written on the iron door.”
“People thought it was a little-known, brief civilization buried in the desert—another treasure of world history. So research institutes worldwide sent expedition personnel, and Hong Suo Research Institute was no exception. About a hundred people went in together.”
Lance raised a question: “Don’t underground cities only open when they sense crystal ore?”
Sandro chuckled: “This is probably a chicken-and-egg problem. If we must follow this rule, how was the world’s first crystal ore extracted?”
Lance couldn’t refute this. In other words, crystal ore wasn’t the only condition for opening doors. The expedition personnel back then figured out how to open the doors, but later, as people mastered more convenient methods, the original method was replaced and forgotten.
“I don’t know what happened after they went in, but when they came out with samples collected from the underground city, awakening began.”
“Some died because their bodies couldn’t handle awakening, while others had persistent high fevers, developed glands, and produced ability pheromones. But we didn’t call them ability pheromones then—we called it an infectious disease.”
“I was a Doctors Without Borders1Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières). An international humanitarian medical organization that provides emergency healthcare to people in crisis zones, conflict areas, and regions lacking medical access. Doctors work across borders regardless of politics, religion, or nationality to treat those in need.
In the story: Sandro was a physician with this organization, treating indigenous tribes when the first awakening outbreak occurred, making him one of the earliest people to witness and experience the transformation from ordinary human to awakened being. physician, affiliated with an international independent medical organization. I was providing aid to a nearby indigenous tribe when batches of expedition personnel were sent over.”
“They said there was a strange voice in their heads—incomprehensible but terrifying, tormenting their nerves daily. Some broke down, others began believing in theology. Later we learned these first expedition members to enter underground cities were actually Divine system Awakened ones.”
“They seemed chosen by some eerie force, becoming carriers. They brought that power out of the underground city into the human world. Their bodies continuously emitted colorless, transparent spores that could catalyze ordinary humans to awaken or die from failed awakening.”
“As their treating physician, I happened to become one of the first catalyzed, but some of my colleagues also died from it.”
Lance unconsciously looked at his own palm.
Could it be that he was also constantly emitting those spores, enough to catalyze ordinary people’s awakening?
Sandro said: “At that time, all of us, including the local indigenous tribes, were infected without exception. The 100% infection rate instantly caused worldwide panic. They classified this virus brought from the mysterious underground palace as a Class A infectious disease. Soon, everyone we had contact with was quarantined.”
“Initially, some Doctors Without Borders still came with righteous hearts to treat us, but disappointingly, they were all infected too. So fewer and fewer people came. Gradually, no one came anymore, and no supplies were delivered.”
“Everyone quickly sensed something was wrong. Moreover, some people had already vaguely figured out first-tier abilities, so those who awakened well chose to go out foraging, actively seeking survival.”
“To get food, we naturally had to leave the quarantine zone, but they couldn’t let us out to threaten global security, so many died under gunfire.”
“We Doctors Without Borders and those expedition personnel were all intelligent and well-read. We knew that throughout history, whenever similar events occurred, the infected always met ugly ends.”
“Actually, we doctors had already vaguely discovered this wasn’t a virus that caused death—instead, it gave us special abilities from fantasy stories. Everyone was thrilled. This was like stepping from hell into heaven. We couldn’t wait to tell society about this, but found we had no channels.”
“From the tribe’s only old television, we saw the Federation and other countries’ authoritative scientists holding multiple joint meetings. Though they spoke diplomatically, the conclusion was always for us to die—they had prepared for bombing.”
“Only one scientist in the world was willing to save us—Li Rong.”
Speaking of this person, Sandro was somewhat moved, as if even a hundred years later, he could still draw endless strength from this person.
Li Rong developed the drug Lüyinxu at age twenty-three, which saved tens of millions of children with bacterial progeria. He shared this drug with the world for free, becoming the most renowned scientist of those years.
It was Li Rong’s opposition that prevented the bombing.
He would forever be grateful for this person’s decision to risk everything and stake his reputation against the world’s disapproval.
Lance inevitably became interested in Li Rong. If he had stopped that bombing, then he was the turning point of the world’s sudden change. No wonder the day marking the boundary between old and new worlds was named Dawn Day.
Sandro continued: “He publicly stated his extreme disgust with Bentham’s utilitarianism2Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) developed utilitarianism as a moral philosophy based on the principle of “the greatest happiness for the greatest number.” When Sandro mentions Li Rong’s “extreme disgust with Bentham’s utilitarianism,” he’s referring to how this philosophy could justify sacrificing a few infected people (the awakened ones) for the supposed “greater good” of protecting the majority of humanity—exactly the kind of cold calculation that would abandon the expedition members and medical workers to die for the perceived benefit of everyone else.. If these fearless expedition personnel and selfless medical staff’s ultimate fate was abandonment, then people would no longer trust any praised qualities. The chain reaction this caused might result in immeasurable deaths.”
“As I mentioned before, though not official organizations, Hong Suo and Blue Pivot had enormous power. Blue Pivot District Nine Ghost Eye Group leader Cen Xiao had a close relationship with Li Rong and unconditionally supported any of Li Rong’s decisions, which suppressed some opposing voices.”
“Because of him, our situation could be communicated to the outside. We transformed from infected people everyone avoided into targets recruited by various forces.”
“But unlike us pure awakened ones, Divine system Awakened ones as infection sources inevitably threatened the Federation government’s rule. If they recklessly created awakened ones, these awakened ones would soon form organizations and challenge their status.”
“So after the rulers accepted spores and gained abilities, they directed the media to stigmatize Divine system Awakened ones, saying these people were possessed by demons. They brought up so-called Mayan prophecies3When the story mentions authorities using “Mayan prophecies” to justify persecuting Divine system Awakened ones, they’re likely twisting these transformation prophecies to claim that awakened individuals would “overthrow the world and bring disaster”—misrepresenting spiritual evolution as apocalyptic threat to maintain political control. The prophecies actually align more with the awakening phenomenon in the story than with the fear-mongering used against it., claiming these people would one day overthrow the entire world and bring disaster to all humanity. The general public was kept in the dark and believed it.”
“Divine system Awakened ones were forced to flee. They were displaced, homeless, feared, scorned, and shunned. In the end, it was Li Rong who stepped forward to protect them, giving them a place to settle, but with the condition that they must not make deals with the voices in their minds and must always stand on the side of humanity.”
“They were grateful for Li Rong’s salvation and agreed to this condition. Besides, they couldn’t understand what the voices in their minds were saying anyway.”
Lance understood.
If he hadn’t heard the Outer God’s voice since childhood, he probably wouldn’t have been able to master this language later.
Zhan Pingchuan clicked his tongue in admiration: “So Li Rong really was a good man. He never gave up on anyone from beginning to end.”
Lance: “But what does this have to do with your connection with the two guild leaders?”
Sandro: “Listen to me. Just when everyone thought this matter was settled, a child born to a Divine system Awakened one and an ordinary person also heard that voice in his mind.”
Lance’s pupils suddenly contracted.
Sandro nodded: “Yes, this is the only awakening attribute that spreads through bloodline. Their children can inherit their strange powers and become new channels for the gods. The more descendants, the more channels available for the gods to use. But who can guarantee that among the many channels over generations, no one will break the original promise? Even Li Rong couldn’t do anything about this.”
Lance suddenly said with certainty: “But I guess he would still save them.”
Sandro looked at him meaningfully: “You’re right. Li Rong wasn’t a utilitarian. He wouldn’t turn the train around just because fewer people were tied to one side of the track. Unlike us who only write papers on trolley problems, he was the one truly holding the steering wheel at the time.”
“He said these people have done nothing wrong now, so they shouldn’t die. As for the future, that’s the future’s business. People can’t punish real lives that exist now with unknown, possible disasters.”
Zhan Pingchuan: “So how many strange powers are there exactly?”
Sandro: “Excluding those who failed awakening, were shot dead, or have no descendants, there are still forty types left. But I believe there are more in unknown spaces. It’s just that the number of expedition personnel was limited, so They couldn’t occupy channels.”
“By then, the Federation government had already begun to fear Li Rong’s influence. They made Hong Suo and Blue Pivot official organizations, planning to slowly sideline Li Rong and Cen Xiao like boiling a frog in warm water. So Li Rong and Cen Xiao separated the High Tower Group and Ghost Eye Group, establishing the High Tower Guild and Ghost Eye Guild.”
“When Li Rong and Cen Xiao died of natural causes, the Federation government began to change face. They didn’t want to bear the guilt of breaking promises, so they expelled the Divine system Awakened ones to barren, extreme, and remote areas to fend for themselves. That place is now Phobos Bay Passion County.”
“The local natives were the red-haired, fair-skinned Bovnians. Gradually, the Divine system Awakened ones intermarried with the Bovnians, and many descendants had red hair.”
Zhan Pingchuan glanced sideways and secretly looked at Lance. He probably already guessed where Lance’s power to smash the iron door came from.
Lance opened his amber eyes wide, listening attentively to Sandro like a gentle and harmless little fox.
Zhan Pingchuan held Lance tighter, withdrew his gaze, and asked again: “But this still has nothing to do with me… our two guild leaders.”
Sandro sipped his sparkling water: “Don’t rush. Li Rong didn’t do nothing. After all, he protected the Divine system Awakened ones and brought hidden dangers for the future. He and Cen Xiao secretly prepared sufficient resources for the High Tower Guild and Ghost Eye Guild, hoping they could maintain the balance between the Divine system Awakened ones and the Federation government for generations.”
“To ensure successors would remember this mission, they each selected three trustworthy Awakened ones to inherit the two guilds at different times in the future. My second-tier ability is called 【Solidification】. You should have experienced it. In the crystal, your bodies remain constant, and cells don’t age.”
“Because he saved me, I returned the favor by using my ability on these six Awakened ones, solidifying their lives. When a successor dies or chooses to retire, I unfreeze the next successor. Lan Wendao and Zhan Qinghe are the current generation’s successors.”
Lance’s gaze trembled, clearly extremely shocked.
Zhan Pingchuan’s shock wasn’t just on his face. He said in disbelief: “You mean I… our two guild leaders are actually ancient people?!”
Can you imagine? He might very well find his father’s cold face in photos from a hundred years ago!
Sandro: “……”
Lance: “……”
Sandro’s lips twitched: “It’s only been a hundred years, not really ancient.”
Zhan Pingchuan’s emotions surged. No wonder his dad liked such retro songs and movies. No wonder his dad always confidently said that fearing one’s wife was a fine tradition from their hometown, but he had never heard of such a tradition anywhere in Desert City.
No wonder his mom said her first impression of his dad was that he spoke in a rustic way.
Sandro suddenly sighed: “But to be honest, when I planned to unfreeze Guild Leader Zhan, I happened to be seriously injured and regressed to juvenile form, so the unfreezing was incomplete, leaving him stuck in White Tiger form.”
Zhan Pingchuan: “.” So it was you.
Sandro: “When I recovered my memory and hurried to the storage site to find him, he had disappeared.”
Zhan Pingchuan: “……” My mom picked him up. She’s great at everything except eyesight—she thought he escaped from a zoo.
Sandro: “Fortunately, he didn’t blame me later.”
Zhan Pingchuan: “……” Because my dad was also silly, discovering that being a White Tiger meant he could be held and slept with by my naive mom.
Sandro pinched his brow: “Actually, Guild Leader Zhan and Guild Leader Lan shouldn’t be of the same generation, but Guild Leader Zhan’s predecessor suddenly died of heart disease, so he had to be unfrozen early.”
“Originally, High Tower and Ghost Eye were closely connected and complementary, but because their relationship was bad before Dawn Day, they gradually became rivals.”
Lance: “Not surprising, since you said Li Rong and Cen Xiao were close.”
So in this sense, Ghost Eye Guild isn’t really a rival but a companion inheriting their predecessors’ will.
Zhan Pingchuan was curious: “Did they have conflicts back then?”
Sandro shook his head: “I don’t know about that. I was an outsider to begin with. I just remember that back then, Guild Leader Zhan called Guild Leader Lan a traitor, Guild Leader Lan called Guild Leader Zhan a bandit, and Li Rong told them to eat some preserved plums when they had nothing to do.”
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(advanced chapters available on kofi)

Wah Li Rong!!! Huhu I hope you’re proud of yourself because we all are.
This is somehow too bittersweet for me… Just a while ago, Li Rong and Cen Xiao had their happy ending and now suddenly a 100 yrs has passed.. ꒦ິ^꒦ິ Forever will be happy for them