Chapter 12: The Path of Ascension

Page 1/3

Compared to the “One-Eyed Jellyfish” on Hugo’s body, the phantom of the hippocampus demon was clearer and much larger. The bone-white hippocampus in the air was nearly child-sized, silently extending and retracting its mouthparts as if sipping an invisible fine wine.

This time, Chu Hengkong was experienced; the moment the demon phantom appeared, he swung his tentacle and struck out. But the tentacle passed straight through the hippocampus demon’s body, as if it had merely flickered past an illusion. The hippocampus demon leisurely rose and vanished without a trace in an instant.

“Don’t waste your effort; you can’t dispel a phantom,” Ji Huaisu said.

Chu Hengkong retracted his tentacle with regret and mentioned another anomaly: “There are phantoms on the grunts too. Can the demon possess so many people?”

“Strictly speaking, it only possessed Sansen Wangxiang. The rest of the bandits are victims infected by the demon; otherwise, how could they be so organized and yet so impulsive?” Ji Huaisu’s fingers moved slightly, mimicking the gestures of controlling puppets. “In truth, only Sansen Wangxiang is obsessed to madness; the others are deeply trapped in the demon’s power, believing they share his longing for home.”

“But they also miss home,” Chu Hengkong said.

He saw some of the bandits wandering out of the Grey Tower in a daze, discarding their firearms on the ground. They silently looked up, their gaze seeming to pierce beyond the water curtain, reaching somewhere very far away.

The flow of weapons remained steady as usual, sunlight filtering through the water curtain with a faint white glow. The water curtain was clearly nearby, yet it seemed as distant as another world. Just as the people on the ground strained their eyes toward the sunlight but could not see the sun on the other side.

“What’s the use of leaving the water curtain?” Ji Huaisu said softly. “It’s just moving from darkness into a deeper night.”

“You’re quite poetic,” Chu Hengkong replied casually. He was busy rummaging through a pile of scrap, searching for usable spoils.

Worried he might hoard dangerous items, Ji Huaisu quickly squatted down to help sort: “Poetic my foot! I’m saying, you’re an outsider. Don’t you want to go home?”

She found his personality strange. Usually, no matter how calm and steady someone is, they would ask about going home. She was ready with words to help them accept reality and offer comfort, but Chu Hengkong never showed a trace of such feelings, as if he didn’t care at all.

“I have no attachments over there, so it doesn’t matter.”

His composure left Ji Huaisu at a loss for words, and she could only respond gloomily: “…Oh.”

Most of Sansen Wangxiang’s modified machine guns had been cut to pieces by his own water blade. After much effort, the two of them salvaged only a few intact circular magazines and two blue stickers that seemed to be relics. Ji Huaisu, adopting the mentor’s attitude of nurturing a newcomer, offered to share half the bounty, but Chu Hengkong declined.

He knew well that throughout this raid, Ji Huaisu had been the main force. If he acted alone, breaking through the tower’s defenses would never be so easy. He did want more relics but never took what wasn’t his.

Chu Hengkong finally settled for the two stickers as consolation prizes, casually tucking them into his large book as bookmarks. He and Ji Huaisu descended the tower side by side. The salvagers who had been driven away by the bandits earlier mostly returned at this time. Their eyes were full of awe but showed no gratitude.

Chu Hengkong scanned the surroundings, seeing no members of the revival squad, but a few people in black long coats watched from afar. They noticed Chu Hengkong’s gaze but neither spoke nor acted, silent like crows eyeing a corpse.

“Don’t mind them,” Ji Huaisu waved. “Go explain the situation to Mrs. Ansa, then we’ll escort Sansen Wangxiang back to the courtyard. After that, you need to memorize the patrol routes and some key locations. There’s still a lot of work to do.”

Chu Hengkong nodded, thinking that patrols and daily duties would probably take up the entire day, so he naturally asked, “Captain, do you have time tonight?”

Ji Huaisu took a step back, her eyes filled with horror: “What are you trying to do, kid?!”

Page 2/3

“I want to fight you.”

·

7:30 PM, Revival Squad mess hall.

Shortly after the shift change, the tired members took off their helmets and devoured squid rice and complimentary seaweed sugar water in the lively mess hall. Captain Huaisu stood on one leg on a stool, holding a bowl of rock sugar water, speaking with unusual cheerfulness.

“Everyone, meet the new recruit who officially joined last night, Chu Hengkong. His skills are impressive—he took down two demon-possessed enemies in a single day! From now on, if you face tough opponents, have him handle it.”

“Welcome! Those tentacles weren’t grown for nothing.” “Brother Chu’s got mad skills!”

Everyone applauded enthusiastically, and the more lively personalities teased and joked under the guise of praise. Their hostility had lessened considerably. First, anyone this dangerous being allowed into the squad meant the city lord had vetted him, so he was surely not possessed by a demon. Second, his achievements were genuinely fierce—he single-handedly defeated wanted criminals that usually took several squads to barely overcome. Everyone wanted to befriend such a master.

“…”

Yet the new recruit didn’t respond to their warm welcome. Sitting alone at a corner table, he stared blankly at a plate of stewed crucian carp, genuinely an outcast at the event.

The atmosphere grew awkward. Ji An, tending herbs by the window, noticed and hurriedly put down his small shovel to approach: “What’s wrong? Did the assassin find a major problem?”

Huaisu sipped her sugar water, her eyes lively and expressive. The veteran squad members perked up instantly, ears alert.

Chu Hengkong paid no attention to the commotion; he stared at his right hand, deep in thought.

“I just arm-wrestled with Huaisu,” he said slowly.

Ji An’s mouth stretched into a grin from ear to ear; feigning concern, he asked, “And the result?”

“...I lost,” Chu Hengkong said, baffled.

The squad burst into laughter, the mess hall filled with cheerful energy. The more he thought about it, the more conflicted he felt. Earlier, Huaisu said if they fought for real, she’d bully him, so just arm-wrestling would suffice. He wanted to show off a bit, but within three seconds he was utterly defeated; it was he who was truly amazed.

This made no sense! She was slim, not a muscle-bound woman pumped full of drugs, nor possessed by a demon. How could he, after years of hard training, not beat a woman in arm wrestling?

“No, hey, man,” Ji An laughed so hard he almost couldn’t breathe, “if you have no clue, you challenge an Ascender in physical strength? How many drinks did you have?”

“You gave it your best, recruit Hengkong.” “What a warrior~” “Daring to challenge Captain Huaisu proves courage. With time, you’ll become a top-tier tough guy!”

The squad whistled and cheered. Chu Hengkong came to his senses, exhaled deeply, and asked, “The Ascender is the ‘Point One’ quality, right?”

Huaisu, coming over for fun, was surprised: “Seriously? You haven’t encountered the Ascension path?”

Page 3/3

“Be kind to newcomers. Some Dust Isles block Ascension information to keep it a privilege of the few; it’s not uncommon,” a man said with a smile.

Huaisu’s father strolled into the mess hall, waving a paper fan with the leisure of a tourist. The chatting squad members stood up and saluted immediately, then politely made way on both sides of the room, leaving ample space. Only Huaisu and Ji An remained seated, expression unchanged.

Huaisu’s father sat opposite Chu Hengkong and raised his eyebrows: “Curious why, despite your lifelong hard training, you can’t match Huaisu’s strength?”

“Very curious,” Chu Hengkong said solemnly.

He picked up chopsticks and took a piece of crucian carp: “Imagine a strong crucian carp. It trains daily in the art of Crucian Fist and wins every fight with its kin, a genius among crucians. One day, this carp challenges a human who hasn’t studied martial arts and isn’t particularly strong. Who do you think wins?”

“How suspenseful~” Huaisu teased in a strange voice.

Chu Hengkong twitched his mouth: “That can’t be right?”

No matter how much a fish trains, it’s still just a fish. To a human, it’s not strong but fat. Yet he refused to believe he was as weak as a crucian carp.

“Reality is cruel. Most crucians stand no chance against humans. This gap isn’t about talent or effort—it’s about ‘rank,’ a difference in ‘quality’,” Huaisu’s father closed his fan. “However! The world of motion is vast and life is wondrous. Among the countless Dust Isles, there exist paths to raise one’s ‘quality.’”

“We call life’s quality ‘Points.’ The path that elevates these points is called the ‘Ascension Road.’”

Chu Hengkong’s eyes met Huaisu’s father’s, and his spirit tightened. The sharp sensation of being seen through returned. This time, the man’s eyes carried genuine ‘power.’ From those still waters rose a fierce flame, black fire bursting forth, engulfing him!

Chu Hengkong’s head ached terribly, almost forcing a scream. In a single gaze, a vast flood of information poured into his mind, exploding like wildfire. The sheer volume nearly paralyzed his processing ability; he could only struggle to see, unable to think clearly. He saw a small child training under a waterfall, a youth hammering steel in fire, generals commanding battlefields, cutting demon throats; he saw wondrous jungle city-states, ancient divine kingdoms beneath cherry trees, machines and demons clashing in oceans, scarlet dragons soaring through the sky… All condensed into a colossal form, magnificent and grand, countless islands embraced within its arms…

Chu Hengkong could bear no more. The torrent of thought threatened to consume his self. Then the burning sensation receded, and his vision cleared instantly.

Opposite him sat the same leisurely man, his black pupils calm as a deep well. Chu Hengkong gasped for breath, his fingers digging into the wooden table, unaware of himself.

“What… was that?” he stammered. “Is that… a being beyond ‘Points’?”

“Who knows?” Huaisu’s father said carelessly. “It’s said that high-quality beings can influence the world with a single thought. To us on the Dust Isles, they are gods.”

He stood, circled the table, and patted Chu Hengkong’s shoulder: “To see so much means your talent is greater than I imagined… Work hard to improve, recruit Hengkong.”