Han Dong had truly been exhausted during his time in Destiny Space.
After completing the Cellular Essence injection, he lay on Nicholas's former wooden bed, feeling as though his eyes could close at any moment.
However... before they did, Han Dong called his younger sister Nina in.
He gave her an assignment.
Patting her chest, Nina vowed confidently, "Don't worry! Leave it to me. When I was an apprentice, I often went to the scrap processing station to hunt for books... You just want anything related to mysticism, right?"
"Mm. The older, the better."
Han Dong had asked Nina to find books not only for himself to read, but for another purpose as well.
Once he had given his instructions, Han Dong collapsed into bed and fell asleep.
By the time he woke up, it was already dark.
The wind-up clock by his bedside pointed to exactly eight o'clock. Its second hand moved at precisely the same speed as in the Previous World, and a day here likewise lasted twenty-four hours.
Feeling somewhat hungry, he was just about to head out to find something to eat.
To his surprise, Nina, now dressed in a floral dress, was waiting at the door with a lavish dinner. The dishes even included an entire, rather small roast chicken.
For a family of their means, producing a roast chicken like this would likely cost a considerable portion of their savings.
At the same time, large piles of old books had been stacked against both walls outside Han Dong's bedroom. Nina's efficiency was genuinely impressive.
"Mom made it especially for you... She guessed you'd be hungry as soon as you woke up. Brother, in such a dangerous place as Destiny Space, you probably hardly got anything to eat, right?
Take it inside and eat. I'm not hungry!"
Nina deliberately emphasized the words "not hungry," even as she drooled with craving.
Han Dong dearly wanted to keep the entire chicken for himself, but considering that Nina could help him understand this world, as well as her status as his "younger sister," he still gave her a drumstick and reminded her:
"Come to my room later."
"Okay!" Nina was overjoyed as she accepted the drumstick.
Han Dong immediately realized his wording sounded ambiguous and hastily corrected himself. "Come to my room just so I can ask you about Holy City and this world."
"Mm-hmm!"
Han Dong carried the dinner inside and locked the door.
He temporarily placed the roast chicken, vegetable salad, and carrot stew on a fairly tidy wooden table.
As a wave of sinister energy seeped out.
Possessed Chen Li, dressed in red with black hair covering her face, was released.
When Chen Li appeared, even the flame inside the kerosene lamp flickered faintly.
"Miss Chen Li, there's no need to deliberately 'scare people' all the time. Just act normally."
"Oh! Okay."
Chen Li somehow produced a rubber band and quickly tied the black hair hanging before her face behind her head. The sinister energy withdrew into her body... and her entire vibe changed, turning her into an ordinary young lady in red.
"Have something to eat."
"Mm..."
Chen Li was human as well. To help Han Dong, she had gone more than a day without eating... Faced with the fragrant roast chicken, she could no longer restrain herself and began eating in large mouthfuls.
Before long, the two of them had thoroughly cleaned out the lavish dinner.
"Are you full?"
"I'm full." Chen Li nodded slightly.
"Give it some time. Our living conditions should improve. At the very least, I won't let you go hungry."
"I'm fine."
After pacing around the cramped room twice, Chen Li said, "I want to go back... Call me again if there's danger or if you need help."
"Fine."
Aside from the prison she considered home, she still had not adapted to the environment in Holy City and preferred spending her time in the prison.
This was their first time meeting in the Outside World, and the conversation felt awkward... They were both the quiet sort. Perhaps things would improve once they became more familiar with each other.
Han Dong muttered softly, "Miss Chen Li seems to have tremendous growth potential. If I continue nurturing her, she'll keep growing... I should get her some books for the prison later. Otherwise, she'll seem too lonely by herself."
Next came the important questioning.
Han Dong called Nina into his bedroom and got straight to the point.
He found a barely usable fountain pen in the room and prepared to record the important information that followed.
When Nina entered in her floral dress, she showed no sense of unfamiliarity around Han Dong. With her sea-blue eyes wide open, she took the initiative to sit beside him.
"Brother, what do you want to know first?"
"Is your world like this?"
Han Dong roughly drew a world map in his notebook, detailing Europe especially carefully.
"What is this?" Nina asked in confusion.
"A world map."
Nina looked aggrieved, seemingly unable to answer Han Dong's first question.
"World... map.
I really don't know about that. I was born in Holy City and have never left.
I only heard Master say that the world outside was vast beyond measure, but we have neither the opportunity nor the ability to see it."
"Then tell me what you know about the world. What exactly is outside? Why do humans have to huddle together in a giant metal city?"
"I only heard this from Master. About two hundred years ago... a species more advanced than humans was born. In just a few days, the total human population around the world dropped by more than eighty percent. It was terrifying!
All the remaining humans huddled together. That's roughly what happened."
"Hmm!? Two hundred years ago, a species more advanced than humans appeared? What era were humans in back then? They should have had firearms, right?"
"That... I don't know, hehe." Nina gave an awkward, foolish laugh.
Han Dong guessed, "They should at least have had basic artillery, yet eighty percent of humanity died out within days. It seems only some advanced nations survived.
By the way, are the Higher Lifeforms outside afraid of copper?"
"That's right! It was precisely because someone discovered this that Holy City was built in this form, allowing people to live safely inside."
"Copper... No wonder humanity's technological level remained stuck at brass, steam, and gears for so long. So copper had such a function.
Then if I'm not mistaken, the most basic currency for transactions in Holy City is Copper Coins, right? Copper has replaced the status of gold and silver?"
"Mm, that's how it is."
Han Dong continued, "Where does the copper come from? There should be massive copper mines beneath Holy City, right?"
"Hehe, I know this one! Master mentioned it before. Holy City was indeed built atop a huge natural mine, but after years of extensive extraction, the copper mines were basically depleted fifty years ago.
Now, the only source is Destiny Space.
The cost of going outside the city to mine is too high. It's basically impossible..."
"Mm..."
After recording this important piece of information.
Han Dong began formally asking about Destiny Space.
He already had certain guesses and hoped to find answers here.
"Tell me in detail about Destiny Space."
"Okay! Hehe, I knew you'd ask about this, Brother.
So I made a special trip to Master's house. This is a book from his home about Destiny Space, written by a noble contemporary author. It explains in detail how Destiny Space came about.
Um... Brother, remember to give it back to me after you finish reading it.
I have to return it tomorrow morning before Master notices."
"No problem."
Han Dong smiled as he stared at the book titled "The Origin of Destiny—A Ray of Hope for Humanity's Survival."
Nina was even more capable than he had imagined, and her master was likely a Mechanical Artisan of fairly high status.
The very first sentence of the book's introduction completely immersed Han Dong in its contents.
"When I came to understand destiny, the despair lingering in my mind vanished completely, for I realized that humanity had not yet been abandoned."
When Han Dong saw the date Destiny Space had appeared on the first page, he nodded slightly.
"As expected, Destiny Space appeared at almost the same time as the Higher Lifeforms..."
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