Pass through the Hung Hom Harbor Crossing and cross the Ring Road.
Volga was racing along the bottomless Roller Avenue, and the bright road safety lights on both sides were like comets flying by.
The terrain gradually becomes gentle and the corridor gradually becomes brighter.
The scenery outside the car window became both strange and familiar.
After crossing three levels, five cards and two streets, Jiang Xueming returned to the intersection of Moon Lane again.
The street was still so deserted, with only a few passers-by standing in front of a simple convenience store smoking, talking about unfamiliar situations in unfamiliar languages.
There are also many passengers who came here for the first time. They stood in front of the alley of destiny and hesitated. The anxiety in their hearts was written on their faces. They held tickets in their hands and held their own missions.
The car drove all the way to the bridge approach of the plastic steel suspension bridge.
This time Jiang Xueming did not have to take a long detour, and the three of them returned directly to the observatory on the 26th floor of the main hall of the Five Kings Council.
None of them spoke during this stretch of road——
——At first, Jiang Xueming was curious. Brother Qi and A Xing were noisy and lively people.
When they stepped onto the plastic steel suspension bridge, both of them seemed to have zipped their mouths shut and stopped talking.
Looking down from this more than 70-meter-high bridge, you can see many people walking on the road in the fountain square of the vast abyss.
The heavy fog far away on the left and right sides was the same color as the starry sky above.
The scenery along the way made Xueming feel quiet and peaceful inside.
When entering the elevator, he finally broke the silence and asked the seventh brother beside him curiously.
"Why didn't you speak just now?"
Xiao Qi swallowed nervously: "I'm afraid of heights."
"..." This answer surprised Xueming, and she turned to ask Ah Xing: "What about you?"
Ah Xing's face turned pale and he covered his mouth. Seventh Brother's violent driving almost made him vomit: "I have the baggage of an idol. I don't speak and pretend to be an expert."
"Great." Jiang Xueming was ecstatic in her heart. It was a good thing that the two good friends around her were quiet. At least they looked more reliable: "You have all grown up. I hope this state can be maintained."
...
...
When the elevator reached the first floor, all three of them had to do a mental examination and waited in line for twenty minutes at the Lingweng Church in the side hall.
Bu Meteor's condition was very good, all the values had returned to the state half a month ago, and the spiritual disaster concentration had also dropped back to 31%.
Jiang Xueming's verification results were still the same, but this time, the polarizing sextant seemed to have been completely destroyed. Not only the mental strength, will to survive and inspiration - even the data of combat skills were not displayed, and were directly drawn. to the level of [out of specification].
9527 said goodbye to the two passengers at Lingweng Church. She needed to go to the staff backstage for a physical examination. The process was much more cumbersome and she probably wouldn't be able to come back for a while.
Before Brother Qi left, Jiang Xueming took out his notebook and wrote a series of things, asking Brother Qi to help prepare.
"A close-fitting thermal vest, not too flashy, scratch-resistant and puncture-resistant hiking boots. I have size 42 feet. Cowhide pants with crotch pockets and tool pockets, one size fits all will be fine."
"A set of laboratory measuring tools, five 10-ml cylindrical cylindrical needle syringes, short and easy to carry."
"These are the things. Brother Qi, you will bring them over for me later."
After Jiang Xueming finished writing, he tore off the note and handed it to Xiao Qi.
After doing this, Xueming and Meteor, the two newcomers who returned to the station, still had two procedures to go through according to the station's regulations.
...
...
Under the guidance of the lobby manager, they arrived at another shining courtyard.
Its name is written on the gate of the villa.
[Shining Path]
In front of the porch of the villa, there were many passengers with strange and enthusiastic expressions.
These passengers were like vendors waiting to make sales. When they saw Xueming and Meteor, they seemed to be seeing new customers and wanted to talk to them.
The lobby manager made sarcastic remarks and scolded these passengers: "When these two newcomers get the stones, you can come and rob them again."
Bu Liuxing felt like his stomach was churning, and he resisted the nausea of motion sickness, making the passengers on both sides of the porch stare at him.
Jiang Xueming was curious and just asked: "What stone?"
"Don't you know? Haven't you asked other passengers?" The lobby manager looked like a reliable middle-aged uncle, and changed his expression to a serious hospitality one, "It says in the passenger handbook..."
"The new passenger successfully completes his first trip. If all the body data are normal, after handling the private matters in the mortal world -" Jiang Xueming knew this procedure, so he answered quickly: "-if this new passenger decides to leave the leisurely mortal world. The world returns to the station and continues its journey. The station side is obliged to prepare three safety procedures for them. The passenger instructions only stop here. Is the stone you mentioned one of the safety procedures?"
The manager scratched his head: “I thought the other old passengers in the car would talk to you about these things.”
Jiang Xueming: "They were all scared away by me."
"Ah?" Before the manager could react, he led the two newcomers who had returned to the station onto the Path of Glory, explaining as they walked: "You have to get a very important talisman from Lingweng. In the underground world, Stone is a very important thing, and the jewelry made from it can help you go further and make more friends, so please keep it properly."
Jiang Xueming then asked: "Is it pyroxene?"
The lobby manager nodded: "Yes."
At this moment, Bu Liuxing couldn't stand it anymore, and the fat beef in sour soup had already rushed to his throat. He whimpered anxiously and asked the lobby manager to take him to the toilet.
The manager politely helped Ah Xing to walk towards the bathroom, and turned around and said: "Mr. Jiang Xueming, you can first go to the Zhongting Yayuan on Guanghui Road to meet the deceased. The stone ceremony may take a lot of time. Please Don't worry, the whole process is private - let me say a few words, this is actually not an important matter, but the rules and regulations tell you that if you get a pyroxene, don't show it off immediately. The type of stone is just like a Braille card, it is your personal information."
"I understand..." Jiang Xueming wanted to ask a few more questions.
The manager's smile was mysterious, like a friendly blessing, "I wish you all the best, I'm leaving first."
After saying this, the manager took Bu Liexing and left in a hurry.
There are many strange-shaped ornamental stones in the courtyard of the atrium. They are divided into various colors and shine brightly.
A cobblestone path extends forward, leading to the stone monument in the atrium.
Jiang Xueming walked forward, thinking carefully about what he saw and heard along the way.
On the ride log, pyroxene is an energy source.
According to the lobby manager, it is also a safety procedure that seems to be used to protect new passengers.
Pure newcomers who take the bus for the first time can at best be counted as pilgrims who come to the temple to pray for a panacea and more tickets.
After their wishes come true, BOSS will not force them to stay at the station - it's just that after this equal deal ends, and there is no reliable after-sales service, the waiters will leave these people and look for new passengers.
In the end, some armed employees are left to protect these newcomers. Maybe for a few months or a few years, these innocent newcomers need to face the threat of armadillo hunters alone.
Pyroxene is a very precious resource in the underground world. The station will only distribute these items to repeat customers who are willing to return to the station to continue their adventure.
Jiang Xueming became more and more curious and walked all the way to the monument.
Among the six stone arches stands an exquisite stone sculpture depicting an old man in luxurious clothes.
In addition, there are countless gold, silver, copper, iron, jewelry and jade items piled under the statue. These old jewelry have different scars and gaps.
—— Among the old jewelry, there are bracelets, rings, pendants, earrings, arm guards, wrist guards, anklets, handcuffs, nose rings, finger thimbles, and neck rings.
——These jewelry seem to have suffered all kinds of injuries, including smoke and fire, cracks caused by cold embrittlement, severe hammering that deformed them, and horrific injuries caused by knife and axe.
Jiang Xueming is not sure——
——There are also a few "new goods" that look freshly unearthed, and have a metallic color among the shabby copper and iron from Iraq. They seem to have some blood that has not yet been wiped clean.
As he approached the pile of jewelry, his body began to tremble unconsciously, and the long-sleeping inspiration once again manifested into actual nerve pain - asking him to put away his offensive thoughts and stay away from this weird pile of gold and silver.
Just when he was ready to give up——
——A warm wind blew in the other courtyard.
This warm wind gathered into a vortex visible to the naked eye, like thick fog that gathered into a human form, turning into an old man with a long beard and white eyebrows wearing a cloth robe, exactly like the statue on the monument.
The starlight from the dome of the square can be directly projected onto the arch of the other courtyard, and the various light sources revealed from the strange rocks are like rays, penetrating the old man's body.
But in the blink of an eye, the gold objects on the ground began to bounce, as if being affected by inexplicable gravity, and suddenly converged on the old man's illusory spirit body.
After a jingling noise, a complete human form was condensed from gold and silver jewelry.
Two dark stones turned into the old man's eyes, and various variegated gold ornaments formed the facial features and limbs. They extended all the way and turned into an arm, grabbing Jiang Xueming's arm - pulling him to his body. The first four eyes face each other.
At such a close distance——
——Jiang Xueming also saw clearly what Ling Weng looked like.
The pair of dark eyes revealed the deep blue light of the spirit body, which reminded Jiang Xueming of the huge beast eyes in the polarizing sextant, which were composed of various surveying and mapping instruments.
Once again, he seemed to be observed by some kind of superior being. His inspiration seemed to be summoned by some kind, and he became quiet and well-behaved.
Only a loud call was heard, the sound was like the wind blowing from an iron urn and a silver pot.
"Don't move around, let me take a good look at your appearance! Little one!"
Jiang Xueming's words were confused for a moment and he didn't know what to say: "Are you...are you a spiritual man?"
"Who else could it be? The questions you new guests ask are getting more and more outrageous." The old man rambled, as if he had been stabbed in a sore spot, "Did you go to the toilet to serve dinner? You came to participate. If you don’t see me at the stone ceremony, who else could you see?”
"I just... I have only seen your name in the passenger instructions, but I have never seen your true face." Jiang Xueming explained: "The name of the thinking examination room is Lingweng Church. Is it you who created it?"
"That was my former religious office. As for whether it was built by me - why don't you and the big black cat have an opinion? Change the name to a public toilet? Build a canteen?" The gold on the old man's face was twisted. Transformed, expressing disgust, still holding Jiang Xueming's hand tightly, "Next time you do a thinking review, can you go to the toilet to have a meal?"
"Does the name of the Five Kings Council have anything to do with you?" Jiang Xueming wanted to ask more questions. He was very interested in the history of the station.
"I am not a person who will become a king." The old man lowered his head, widened his eyes, and looked at Jiang Xueming's arm carefully, "I am just a living soul who stayed in this station, a person who made things for you to protect your lives. He's just a jeweler."
Jiang Xueming was thoughtful——
——This wonderful spirit in front of me seems to have accompanied the station for countless days and months, forging jewelry for passengers as life-protecting talismans.
So what is BOSS?
Why is this little black cat the owner of the station?
...
...
"Do you know anything about BOSS?" Jiang Xueming just said——
——The old man let go of Xueming's hand, then turned around and crouched in front of the old gold and silver, rummaging through it.
Listen to the old man's casual answer.
"Are you interested in that black cat?"
"I'm just curious."
"Then all I can say is that I'm curious too."
"Old sir, don't you know the origin of BOSS?"
"When I had a human form and there were a few sexy girls wearing grass skirts playing in the mud with me, eating, drinking and having fun with me, BOSS was using rolling stones and logs to make tools to explore the underground world."
"how long ago?"
"It's been so long that I can't even remember the years. When Cangbeard was old and about to emerge, I thought it had died a long, long time ago." After saying this, the old man sighed, "If it really died It would be great, I don’t have to sit in an iron prison here and make jewelry for you.”
Jiang Xueming thanked you in a good voice: "Then...it's really troublesome for you. Thank you for your hard work."
"The color of your little guy is really weird... It's really weird... What kind of jewelry should I get for you? What kind of stones should I add to your jewelry?" The old man ignored Jiang Xueming and was still breaking the copper. Searching in the rotten metal: "Oh! Please take this thing!"
Suddenly a square stone flew towards me.
Jiang Xueming had a firm grasp——
——He saw clearly that it was a Rubik's Cube.
A three-level Rubik's Cube with six sides and six colors.
"I can't tell what you are like. You are like a hard ancient fossil." The old man frowned, as if he had encountered a problem. He puffed his beard and glared and continued: "Now I don't have professional tools at hand, and I don't have any stone cutting tools." Knife, I have to rely on this thing to identify your color, just listen and do as I say."
Jiang Xueming held the Rubik's Cube: "Okay..."
The old man's golden and iron body was twisted into a ball, as if he was sitting in a cross-legged posture, with a leisurely and contented expression.
"Close your eyes, think about the thing that makes you most angry, and let out all your bravery."
"The most angry thing?" Jiang Xueming closed his eyes and recalled carefully. More than ten seconds had passed, and he was still trying to mobilize his emotions.
"Okay! That's enough, you're not qualified!~" Old Lingweng explained: "Enstatite doesn't like you at all, and Rhodonite is barely doing it. They dislike you, and it's hard for you to get angry. Climb to the sky, no, no, no!"
Jiang Xueming was a little disappointed. It seemed that several kinds of pyroxene had given up on him.
On the six-sided Rubik's Cube, the bright red side is still glowing faintly, as if it will respond differently to his emotions.
"Use your brain, you have to start thinking, little guy." Ling Weng then prompted: "Think about the time when you were the smartest, darkest and most ruthless in your life, when you used up your brain to do something wonderful and evil. Ideas, time to play pranks and joke with your friends!”
Jiang Xueming then recalled——
——The blue blocks on the six-sided Rubik's Cube begin to glow.
Another ten seconds passed.
"No, no, no! It's not possible at all... Silicate and ferrite are not willing to talk to you, and Lapis Lazuli will directly cure your autism... These little babies think you are so boring!" Old Man Ling Weng listened carefully to the answers of the stones: "Think again, change your mood, and think about the happiest and happiest things in your life, the most exciting and lively memories. Let me look at the golden and orange stones. Would you be interested?"
Jiang Xueming did as he was told——
——But it still doesn’t work.
"Are you a hollow person?" The old man looked at the six-color Rubik's Cube in disbelief: "Think about it carefully, and then think about the most desperate and fearful time."
The Rubik's Cube in Jiang Xueming's hand responded.
The dark side lit up with a little bit of colorful starlight, and then it went out immediately.
"Well..." the old man thought deeply, "there is one last way left, you choose between them."
Jiang Xueming: "What should I do?"
The old man pointed at the Rubik's Cube: "Twist the Rubik's Cube and communicate directly with it. It may not listen to you, it will become very jerky, and it will be very difficult for you to twist it - but you can use any method, and you can curse." You can say nice things to it, make it happy like a girl, fall in love with it, or simply use violence to solve problems. The side that finally faces you is the color of your heart."
Jiang Xueming felt uneasy. He remembered that stones are very important to passengers.
The stone in the old man's mouth is a life-protecting talisman for the passengers.
At this time, he put away all distracting thoughts.
He sorted out his emotions and his eyes became cold again.
Hold the Rubik's Cube with both hands and start turning.
At that moment, something incredible happened.
The Rubik's Cube in his hand suddenly exploded and split into nine smaller square stones.
They were broken up, and the small square stones were like houses, inhabited by elves, floating in the air, beating rapidly and irregularly, mixing and reorganizing, arranging different colors, and constantly changing the combination of color blocks.
Jiang Xueming looked at this scene and was confused, and asked the old man again: "Old sir, what's going on? Did Shitou respond to me?"
"Well... that's a response." The old man showed a strange expression: "It's just that your situation is a little different, little guy."
Jiang Xueming: "What do you mean?"
"There used to be passengers like you. The Stones didn't like them very much. They were all people with weird tempers." Old Lingweng explained: "They had to twist the Rubik's Cube slowly and with great effort until they could no longer twist it. In a state of motion, the stones can only push out a few unlucky people to deal with it."
"What's going on?" Jiang Xueming looked at the Rubik's Cube fragments that were jumping and dancing in the air.
"The good news is, they didn't reject you." The old man stretched out his hand and murmured, as if comforting the frightened children: "The bad news is, they are scared... Okay... Okay, don't Cried my babies.”
Jiang Xueming was at a loss: "Can I still get my stone? Get that personal thing you mentioned? You were going to give me a piece of jewelry. How can I get on the bus without jewelry?"
"Don't worry...little one."
The old man stretched out his hand and picked out the most stable core from the nine cubes. The other fragments surrounded the transparent and colorless stone.
"Few people can see this stone - there were once arrogant and arrogant daredevils who cracked the Rubik's Cube when they came up, and there was also a grumpy girl who broke open the Rubik's Cube when the babies didn't listen to her and got the result. This piece of transparent steel jade.”
A click——
——The six-color Rubik's Cube is back in place.
The old man threw it back into the pile of jewelry, picked through the body made of gold and iron, and took out two broken old objects. They were a pair of ring fingers, each with a colorless and transparent steel jade, one of which had cracked. , the other one is scarred.
"Who did they originally belong to? I can't remember clearly. It seems to be a famous warrior and an unyielding retinue who was their ringleader."
The old man held up the pair of wrenches and blew out blazing fire from his mouth. Thousands of degrees of heat dyed the wrenches golden. They were constantly deforming, twisting and changing size, as if they were being struck and recast by dozens of invisible hammers.
The old man murmured and started the stone-giving ceremony.
"Gold for concubines!"
Under the illumination of the moon, it was like the solid moonlight gathered on the ring, and the cooled ring revealed a cool silver luster.
"The money will be given to the jester!"
He also saw Ling Weng's ten fingers transforming into sharp and exquisite knives, pestles and pliers to take out two old steel jade pieces.
The glow of the stone clusters converged into one place, turning into the color of rose bronze. Where they were condensed, the originally scarred steel jade became as smooth and clean as new again.
"Coppers are just a trick to fool businessmen!"
While the finger is still warm——
——Ling Weng put the two stones back in place.
The last prayer of the ceremony was recited.
"Only steel, cold steel, is the king of metals."
Everything is calm.
The old man held this pair of thick and heavy rings in his hands.
"Little guy, this is your personal belongings, the talisman to protect your life."
Xueming stepped forward, respectfully received the gift, and took the ring.
Complete the stone giving ceremony——
——The old man's body collapsed with a crash, revealing the soul inside.
"One thousand seven hundred and seventy-seven grains of steel, that is your cold and hard soul.
Three hundred and twenty-nine grains of silver, that is your noble and unsullied spirit.
One hundred and seventy-seven grains of transparent steel jade, that is your will as clear as water.
Three hundred and seventeen grains of soil are burned into pure carbon. That is the spirit and body that you will eventually return to the earth. "
The old man's body was torn into pieces, as if his soul had drifted back to its original place.
"With a total gravity of 2,600 grains and a fate of 173 grams, don't think it's heavy - because it requires two people to bear its life - give one of the rings to Your attendant, share these two stones with her.”
Under the statue of the monument, only Jiang Xueming's lone figure remained.
Due to the manifestation activities of the spirit, the old jewelry has been moved into a space, and the memorial's speech is revealed in that space, which is given to all passengers.
[I am the messenger of iron and flame, a craftsman who shares the joys and sorrows with you. I hope you can become a new legend. ]
[——Ἥφαίστος]
