Xyrin Empire-Chapter 1399: Troubled Times

Qianqian stared in disbelief at the little black cat in front of her, hesitating to ask another question: "What’s ten thousand plus ten thousand?"

"Twenty thousand," the black cat replied, glaring at her in displeasure and speaking in the voice of a young girl. Then it ignored us and focused intently on licking its paws, rubbing its face clean.

Qianqian continued to gape for a few seconds before finally reacting, pointing at the black cat and exclaiming, "You can do math! And you got it right!"

Immediately, the way we looked at Qianqian was even more horrified than seeing the talking cat, Lin Xue almost bit her tongue: "Hey, why is your focus always so strange! Shouldn’t you be curious about the cat speaking first?"

"Oh right," Qianqian suddenly realized, and looked at the black cat exclaiming once more, "You can speak too!"

Even the cat seemed a bit dumbfounded—don’t ask me how I saw a "dumbfounded" expression on a cat’s face, but it seemed quite surprised by Qianqian’s train of thought. The black cat licked its lips: "Is it necessary to be so surprised? Talking Mozambique cats are rare, but they’re more common than Juniper cats, right? People from the Imperial Capital shouldn’t be so shocked, especially since there’s a scholar among you..."

We quickly adjusted our expressions, trying hard to act unimpressed. I thought to myself, oh no, trouble indeed arises: unconsciously bringing over Earthly common sense without understanding the Otherworld leads to this. Apparently, in this world, a cat speaking is no big deal! We should really be more composed, because the people here have seen talking animals before: in Shadow City, if a rat suddenly came up to you on the street and said, "Excuse me, how do I get to the Cat Mansion?" you have to stay calm, because it might just be one of Dingdang’s creations. And since even fleas on a household fox can become sentient, I really should learn to be more composed.

Our initial shock was mainly due to the fact that we didn’t expect to see such bizarre things outside the Imperial Capital!

Lin Xue thought for a moment and started explaining to the black cat: "Oh, we’ve encountered talking cats before, but didn’t expect to see one here. This place is quite remote, so if you appeared in some rich household in a big city, we wouldn’t be surprised..."

The clever Miss’s explanation seemed plausible, and the black cat responded with an understanding "oh," and then slightly dissatisfied: "I didn’t expect a scholar’s view to be so biased. Why can’t poor rural families have a talking Mozambique cat? Good luck should fall fairly on everyone’s head—that’s what the Goddess Sect teachings say."

We all nodded: at this moment, whatever the cat says, we nod, we can’t appear out of place in this world. Especially since Sandora isn’t around, we can’t enjoy leisurely tasks like in the past, playing games on a laptop in front of the natives while discussing issues like slavery, wearing strange clothes without suspicion.

After a bit of sighing, the black cat yawned humanely, stretched, wagged its tail, and walked away muttering: "You all are interesting. I’m just a cat, why explain all this to me? Cats don’t care about this stuff..."

Aside from Pandora, the rest of us were all looking at each other: "..." This cat has more attitude than people!

Stimulated by this talking cat, I recalled another oversight of mine: I shouldn’t have introduced myself as a "scholar," because being a scholar means knowledgeable and well-informed, the kind of person who can be thrown into any environment and still stroke their chin and say, "I know a little." A true scholar wouldn’t be like a con artist pretending to know everything, but that’s probably how Foolish Big Guy and the villagers see it. They might expect a scholar to solve issues like the Zhang Family’s sow not giving birth. What if they ask me about the Goddess Sect’s teachings? Or how many public toilets the Hasad Duchy has? What about a magic theory overview? Even if those aren’t issues, what if someone asks about customs in the Imperial City? You’ve got to be prepared for that—after all, we claim to be traveling scholars from the Imperial City, right?

And you can’t keep saying you don’t know this or that. Since you’ve declared yourself a scholar, you must be prepared to be surrounded by laborers seeking knowledge or observation: think of city folks visiting a mountain village being watched by the locals. But how could I know anything about the knowledge of this world? Surely people would say: How come as a scholar, you know nothing? At least you should have some expertise, right? If that’s the case, I could probably just perform feats like breaking stones on my chest or demonstrating simultaneously feeding four or five Naughty Kids—if that’s considered knowledge. Besides those, what I’m most skilled at is probably just swinging my arms and fighting, although this world might not have a Martial Arts Champion...

Ultimately, it’s because I relied too much on Sandora’s convenient abilities, got used to casually making up identities, since I always had Her Majesty the Queen for cleanup with Spiritual Interference. And now I’ve unknowingly dug myself into holes like this. I finally understand why intelligence work is tough; some tasks require special talent, brute force won’t help: no matter how powerful Pandora’s firepower is, she hasn’t grown any taller, right?

But there was a reason I claimed to be a scholar: it’s the most effective cover to explain odd behavior, strange attire, and ignorance of local customs. We all know, in many cases, a seasoned scholar in a crowd of ordinary people looks almost like someone who’s traveled from another time...

At this point, Foolish Big Guy finished his tasks temporarily. He had food cooking in the kitchen, wiped his hands, and lumbered over like a bear, casually grabbing a large stone as a seat to sit in front of us, face full of humility: "Elder Scholar, could you tell me what the Imperial City is like?"

Me: "..."

See, see, what did I just say! There it is!

I thought for a moment, realizing I couldn’t actually perform the stone-breaking feat, so I rambled a bit: "Well, actually, nothing much to see in the Imperial City, just very big, lots of people, lots of buildings..."

Foolish Big Guy appeared very enthusiastic: "Hmm, I know the Imperial City is huge! The priest went for a baptism and said someone like me could get lost just wandering into any alley and never find my way out, lost!"

I racked my brains trying to describe an Imperial City that matches this place’s worldview and is believable enough for me to make up seamlessly. Finally, I came up with: "Yeah, the Imperial City is like this, lots of big houses and old streets and alleys everywhere, it’s easy to get lost for outsiders. Rich people’s houses are all in the city center, so houses in the center are expensive, the further out, the cheaper it gets, but it’s inconvenient for shopping and schooling. The environment isn’t as good as here, there are places that even need to transport water from other areas in the city. And groceries are particularly expensive, and it isn’t easy for outsiders to register... I mean, get household registration." 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

Foolish Big Guy cheerfully slapped his thigh: "Exactly! The priest said the same, but not as clearly as you. So that’s what the Imperial City is like?"

I chuckled and turned to Lin Xue and Qianqian for a high-five celebration: nonsense, the set of things I just described could apply to any old city with a few decades of history unless this country recently moved its capital from the Imperial City to a remote village in the mountains or something, that’s how I summarize the "Capital Universal Traits Overview" of this entire Macro World...

Seeing that Foolish Big Guy seemed eager to keep asking questions, I quickly diverted his attention: "Actually, we’ve been away from the Imperial City for quite some time, so I’m really not sure what it’s like over there anymore. I research... wild ecology, usually running around remote mountains and wilderness. If you’re interested in big cities, I’m probably not much more knowledgeable than you."

"Oh," the big guy trusted us entirely, gazing at us with admiration, "You’re really amazing, daring to travel all over the continent and even bringing kids, you must have some true skills, Elder Scholar, you probably know magic or something, right? Or maybe you’re a Samurai."

Now, whenever I hear anything said by the other side, I analyze how much of this world’s secrets the sentence can reveal, and what Foolish Big Guy just said was evidently quite substantial. Firstly, we can completely ascertain: this is a world that follows the route of magic.

Of course, what we can determine is only the word "magic," whether the thing represented by this word is the same as we imagined still needs verification. Every civilization’s understanding of magic and technology, as well as its power system, has some differences. It’s very likely that the magic Foolish Big Guy refers to doesn’t differ much from the technology on Earth, or people from some world might treat alchemy as natural science, all of which depends on different worldviews. In the end, we have to translate it according to the Empire’s universal worldview to define a civilization’s power system. So for now, let’s temporarily classify this planet within the realm of magical power civilization: after all, that’s how the locals see it.

Another piece of information revealed by the other side is: travelers who dare to roam the continent aren’t common folk—they require "true skill," and it’s true skill in magic and martial arts that can protect their lives and property.

This second point... is intriguing.

Bingdisi smiled: "One must have two skills when out and about, but... isn’t the world peaceful now? Why don’t we feel it?"

"What you’re saying," Foolish Big Guy chuckled heartily, "might be peaceful for capable people like you, but it’s different for ordinary folks like us. Not to mention encountering bandits or magical beasts, even demons and monsters from Dark Moon have been appearing on the surface sporadically over the past couple of years. Who dares wander around? I heard from the priest in the village, this is called the Great Disaster Reincarnation—Dark Moon and Surface People will have to go to war sooner or later, otherwise peaceful days won’t come. The Goddess said this to Surface People a long time ago."

Bandits, magical beasts, Dark Moon, demons, monsters, and the impending "Disaster"—a series of unfamiliar terms popped up. I suddenly realized my initial impression here was wrong: having first encountered Foolish Big Guy, a sincere and honest villager, and coming to Pine Forest Village, such a peaceful and tranquil place, I formed the impression of a "harmonious and stable" world without having fully explored it. Now, with Big Guy’s recitation, I’ve awakened: this is not a peaceful world at all!

We’ve just happened to land in a peaceful corner...

I wanted to find a chance to ask about the so-called Dark Moon and "Disaster," since they sound clearly like parts of local mythology, but as a "well-traveled scholar," these questions obviously couldn’t be asked directly, so I began pondering. At that moment, Foolish Big Guy seemed to remember the dinner cooking on the stove and waved to the black cat dozing not far away on the wall: "Little Black! Go check if the meat soup is done! If it’s almost ready, sprinkle two handfuls of salt, and wash those berries as well..."

Under our wide-eyed gaze, the Spiritual God Cat Little Black gracefully jumped to the ground, elegantly walking towards the kitchen...

Then the black cat sprinted back, nibbling Foolish Big Guy’s ankle with a grumble, then looked up and glared fiercely at its owner: "I’m just a cat! It’s fine to help watch the fire and add salt, but how can I wash things?"

Foolish Big Guy laughed heartily, slapping the back of his head hard: "Ahaha, I forgot! You cook then, I’ll wash the berries—guests can wait here for dinner. We eat early in the countryside, and you should be hungry after traveling all day."

Man and cat went toward the main house: the kitchen was on the ground floor of the main house. The black cat walked along while muttering: "Can you believe a cat like me has to help cook, clean, and do household chores? I can’t hold my head high meeting Huang Mao in the village—I’m a cat, after all..."

Finally, the black cat emphasized repeatedly in a lyrical tone: "I’m a cat~~~"

We looked at each other blankly at the back, and then collectively leaned our heads together. I was the first to ask: "What’s your take on this world? Seems like there’s divine control, and it’s not that peaceful here."

"What divine control, leaving behind a single USB stick doesn’t give great divine power," Bingdisi snorted, "Moreover, the conflicts among the mortal races are their private business—what I want to say is, the Dark Moon Demon that Foolish Big Guy mentioned... Dingdang hasn’t detected it."

With Bingdisi’s reminder, I instantly realized, and gently patted my chest pocket, Dingdang quietly poked out a little head: because there’s nothing of her size in this world, we’re not sure if terms like "Artificial Elf" apply here, so we simply let the little thing hide. Even if she flies around briefly, it’s best to do so with invisibility. Dingdang, with her glowing green eyes, looked around smartly for a bit, then reported in the spiritual connection: "When scanning the planet’s life earlier, I didn’t find demon-like creatures, nor any species akin to demons. But there are magical beasts, quite a number of them too."

"What Foolish Big Guy calls demons might not be according to the Divine Race’s species naming dictionary," Bingdisi mused, "they might have seen some unsightly magical beasts and called them demons... However, I feel that a simple, rash explanation like that doesn’t seem right. According to general rules, the gods in mortal faith usually have opposing ’Reverse Gods’, or what Earthlings commonly refer to as ’Anti-Christ’; they’re either specific evil gods or groups seen as floods and beasts. I suspect ordinary bandits and magical beasts don’t qualify as ’Reverse Gods’, only those considered as ’Disasters’, demons and monsters from ’Dark Moon’, might be related to Reverse Gods: didn’t Big Guy say toward the end, Dark Moon is going to wage war with Surface People, as the Goddess said. Did you notice Big Guy’s expression just now?"

The crowd indicated they were too focused on watching the cat to notice Big Guy’s expression, whereas Pandora, who didn’t look at the cat, remained a blank slate herself with a perennial zombie face, lacking insight into "expressions"...

"Oh, just a mix of anxious solemnity and sorrow," Bingdisi tugged her hair, "For such a straightforward Big Guy to show up with such a complex expression means the matter is serious—perhaps clues to Divine Artifact can be found amidst negative imagery in local mythology... Anyway, figuring out what Dark Moon is should be correct, it sounds like a place, right?

We didn’t come to any conclusions, as Foolish Big Guy called everyone in for dinner at the front of the main house; Bingdisi waved her hand: "Let’s deal with it tomorrow, another goal: figure out the connection between Dark Moon and the Goddess. All right, let’s eat."

The dining area on the main house’s ground floor was quite a large hall room, and by this time the sky outside had already turned dark, so Foolish Big Guy lit up several metal fire boxes nailed to the walls, brightening up the hall room. These fire boxes probably burned some kind of plant oil, which was not only bright but had almost no strange odor. Dinner included meat soup, vegetable soup, large chunks of local dark bread, and the pastries and snacks we brought out: the latter were evidently considered gourmet food. Foolish Big Guy picked up a small piece of cake and tasted it, nodding repeatedly as he stuffed it vigorously into his mouth: what a straightforward chap.

We encountered a small problem during dinner: no stools.

Foolish Big Guy was a bachelor, seemingly without parents or family, typically living in this house with only a black cat. Even if guests came, they probably wouldn’t be many, so he scrounged up a total of three rough wooden chairs. After pressing the Pandora Sisters into the chairs, the rest of us basically had nowhere to sit. But this problem was quickly resolved: Foolish Big Guy brought in the heavy stone blocks from the courtyard (the "stools" we just sat on).

I had no feelings left for his strength anyway, as long as it was still within human level; I just marveled at how sturdy the flooring of this house was: the stone blocks, conservatively estimated, each weighed half a ton... wouldn’t there be steel plates beneath this house?

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(The second issue of Xyrin Comics is out, serialized in the "Man King" magazine, and will gradually arrive in various places in the coming days, welcome to have a look. And: character setting is continuing to be fine-tuned, adjustments will gradually be in place as worries arise that a one-time adjustment might not connect well with the first issue—actually, you could just cover Holy Dad’s face and then look.) (To be continued. If you like this work, you’re welcome to visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommended tickets and monthly tickets, your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)