Chapter 144: Welt: Dan Heng, Report Your Position
Briiing, briiing, briiing...
The sudden ringing of his phone cut through the quiet alley. Dan Heng reached into his pocket, surprised to see it had a signal.
The screen lit up with an incoming call from Welt.
"The signal must have been dead in the last area," he murmured, accepting the call.
"Dan Heng," Welt's voice came through, sharp and immediate, "is that golden-haired man still with you?"
Dan Heng glanced at the man in question, a flicker of confusion in his eyes. "I'm here, Mr. Welt. Are you referring to... Luocha?"
How did Welt know about him? Then, a memory surfaced—Leon had snapped a photo earlier. Had he sent it to the Express?
"His name is Luocha?" Welt's voice was tight. He took a slow, deliberate breath on the other end of the line.
A sliver of good news: the name didn't match. This could mean the man wasn't the Otto from his memories, a man bound to a very specific and terrible destiny. But that small comfort did little to dispel the deep chill that had taken root in his heart.
"Yes," Dan Heng confirmed, his gaze returning to Luocha.
"What is it? Why are you looking at me like that?" Noticing the intense stare, Luocha offered a gentle, disarming smile. Yet, for a reason he couldn't place, an inexplicable shiver traced its way down his spine.
"Very well," Welt said, his tone leaving no room for argument. "Dan Heng, send me your real-time location. I'm coming to meet you now."
"No problem."
Though Dan Heng was completely in the dark, the gravity in Welt's voice was unmistakable. He chose to trust his companion without question. 'Could it be... that Mr. Welt knows this Mr. Luocha?'
After ending the call, Dan Heng promptly shared his coordinates.
Back at the Divination Commission, Welt received the location and gave a grim nod. He turned to March 7th, Stelle, Caelus, and Serval.
"The preparations here will likely take some time," he began, his expression carefully neutral. "I'm going to meet up with Dan Heng first. Why don't you all take a tour of the Exalting Sanctum in the meantime?"
As calm as he appeared, his wariness toward this "Luocha" hadn't faded in the slightest. Welt had no desire to drag his companions into a potential conflict born from the ghosts of his past. Leaving Stelle and the others in the relative safety of the bustling Sanctum was the most prudent choice.
"Sure thing, Mr. Yang!" March 7th agreed readily, completely oblivious to the underlying tension. "Go on and come back quick, and bring Dan Heng back with you!"
"Alright, I'll head out now." Welt nodded once more, then turned and walked away, his pace quick and purposeful.
"Hah... I've rarely seen Mr. Yang in such a hurry," March 7th muttered, watching his retreating back. "But he's always so reliable. I'm sure there's nothing to worry about."
Her attention, as always, was quick to shift. Her eyes lit up with renewed excitement. "That starship we just rode was so cool! And this Exalting Sanctum looks so lively; there must be tons of fun things to do!"
"Does the scenery of the Xianzhou look familiar to you?" Stelle asked suddenly, her gaze sweeping over the ancient-style architecture and floating pavilions that filled the sky.
"You're wondering if the Xianzhou might be my hometown, aren't you?" March 7th saw right through her. She spread her hands in a helpless gesture. "Nope, no memory fragments have 'popped' into my head."
She pointed to her own vibrant pink hair and bright blue eyes. "Please, look at me. Now think about what Dan Heng looks like. Do I look like I'm from the Xianzhou? We're completely different!"
"Come on..." Serval smiled, draping an arm around March's shoulder. "Shopping is the best cure for all aimless existential spirals!"
"Yay! Let's go!" March 7th's energy was instantly restored.
Then she paused. "Wait..." She turned to look at Serval, her brow furrowed. "What do you mean, 'existential spirals'?!"
The four of them ambled toward the central plaza of the Exalting Sanctum.
"This must be the plaza," March 7th declared, looking around. "But I don't see anyone who looks like they're waiting for us... Guess we'll just look around."
Before she could finish her sentence, a panicked commotion erupted nearby, punctuated by a shrill, inhuman wail.
The group's heads snapped toward the sound. They saw a Cloud Knight, who had been lying on a stretcher awaiting treatment, undergoing a terrifying transformation. His skin began to crack and split like dry earth, and gnarled, branch-like growths violently sprouted from his limbs.
"This is bad!" The kind-hearted crew of the Astral Express stiffened, their hands instinctively moving to their weapons.
Just then, a small but impossibly swift figure shot into the center of the chaos like a falling star.
"Everyone, step back!"
It was a young girl with draconic horns, pointed ears, and long, flowing twin-tails.
"Leo Kick!" she cried out, her voice sharp and clear. She executed a clean, powerful flying kick in mid-air, precisely knocking down a Mara-Struck Cloud Knight who had just finished transforming and was about to lunge into the crowd.
"Quick! Make him drink this medicine and keep him lying down!" the young girl, Bailu, shouted anxiously to the onlookers as she fumbled to untie the gourd hanging from her waist.
However, instead of rushing forward to help, the surrounding crowd scrambled back even further in terror.
It was only then that Bailu realized her mistake. It wasn't just the one she had kicked. On the other stretchers, several more Cloud Knights were twisting grotesquely, their bodies contorting as they shakily rose to their feet.
"I... I said... make them all lie down!" A flash of panic crossed Bailu's small face as she found herself surrounded by a ring of newly-formed monsters.
"Let's go!"
At the critical moment, March 7th didn't hesitate. She drew her bow, and an ice-blue stream of light was the first to fly.
"Picking on a kid, are we?" Stelle and Caelus spoke in perfect sync, charging out from the left and right as they swung their bats with menacing force.
"I'm coming too!" Serval's eyes lit up, and she swiftly produced her signature electric guitar.
Since joining the Astral Express, she too had begun to walk the Path of the Trailblaze. Her power was no longer what it had been back on Belobog, and she knew that as their journey continued, her strength would only keep growing. Of course, compared to a seasoned fighter like March 7th, she still had a ways to go.
'Well...'she thought with a private smile,'if March knew I thought of her as 'seasoned,' she'd probably be over the moon.'
The sleek, cool-looking guitar hummed with latent energy in her hands.
"Keep up!" A confident smirk touched her lips as her fingers brushed across the strings. "Next up, it's my rhythm!"
A rousing rock-and-roll intro exploded from the instrument. The drumbeats were dense and impactful, the sound waves stacking layer upon layer, injecting a shot of pure adrenaline into the battlefield.
"Fading signals..."
"Blown out by the sound waves..."
"Electrified strings make you scream!"
As Serval's powerful voice rang out, March 7th, Stelle, and Caelus all felt a surge of hot energy course through their bodies. Their movements became swifter, their strikes heavier, their resolve hardening like steel.
[Inorin's Note:
Enjoying the story? Dropping a quick review, comment, or Power Stone means the world to me!
Want to read ahead on our official home, or unlock 50 advanced chapters (plus an Ad-Free experience) to feed your addiction? Help keep this shameless translator alive here:
(P.S. Replace the [.] with a regular dot . to use the links!)
🌐 Official Website: elysianreads[.]com
✨ Patreon (50 Advanced Chapters & Ad-Free): patreon[.]com/InorinTL
☕ Ko-fi (Support / Sponsor): ko-fi[.]com/InorinTL
Thank you so much for reading and keeping this project alive!]