Act.3 · [Stairway to Heaven]

Foreword:

Nobody can survive on a salary alone!

[--Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev]

[Part 1: The Invisible Lover]

Jason reacted very strongly to Jiang Xueming's teasing.

He told Diamond and Meteor to check in, then dragged Xue Ming into the room and started yelling.

"What do you mean? What were you just saying?"

Jiang Xueming silently put down his luggage, then recounted the story Diamond had told him earlier, finally repeating the concluding remarks.

"Our contact says he's an old acquaintance of yours, and the Wendy Mills in your mind doesn't exist at all. Our secondary objective is the hallucination in your head."

Jason gritted his teeth, his eyes bloodshot, almost furious to the point of having his hair stand on end.

"How could this be? You don't believe me either? Even you're trying to lie to me? This is impossible! Diamond is lying! He doesn't want me to go to RSH to die again! He's so selfish, he just wants me to live."

Jiang Xueming: "Then I believe you."

Jason's eyes were filled with doubt. "Really?"

Jiang Xueming: "You know what kind of person I am. I rarely talk nonsense. If you believe Wendy is still alive and that she really exists, then I will believe what you say."

Jason hesitated, his expression shifting repeatedly, as if he too was beginning to doubt himself.

"So, besides my investigation tasks..."

Jiang Xueming immediately interrupted, "We'll continue searching for her. We need to see her alive or dead. If the body is gone, we'll try to hold a spirit communication ceremony. If she becomes Spirit Calamity, at least you can see her once."

Jason frowned, then chuckled in exasperation, "You're really good with words."

Jiang Xueming: "Thank you for the compliment."

The wind and snow outside the window gradually subsided, and the only sounds in the simple room were the underfloor heating and the air purifier.

After booking the room, Liuxing knocked on the door and told Xue Ming to go and rest.

Before leaving, Xue Ming asked Jason about the upcoming itinerary.

"Leader, how much free time do I have?"

We'll depart in twelve hours.

Where to?

"Pavlov Engineering Station, the first station on the way to RSH, is a high-voltage substation. There are people stationed there. We need to exchange information with them and find out the concentration of Spirit Calamity and the Madness Index in the area."

How do I get there?

"I spent a lot of money to have two Hummers transported over. Can you drive?"

"No problem."

Jason wanted to say more, to have a heart-to-heart talk with Jiang Xueming, but he couldn't bring himself to speak.

--There was so much time, so much silence just now.

His memory was so vivid; he could recall every smile and gesture of Wendy Mills.

He really wanted to learn from Jiang Xueming, but for a moment he also had doubts about himself.

Since his return to Albert Research Station, these strange yet familiar people and things have pulled him back to three years ago. One thing that hasn't changed is—

Whether it was the owner of the Red Nail Inn, or Diamond, or others who feared him, respected him, or knew of his deeds.

Without exception, they all believed that Jason Megan had entered RSH's outpost alone three years ago.

If not for this experience, where did these Slavic strongmen's awe of Jason come from?

Xue Ming didn't give Jason any more chances and left immediately.

He's not good at dealing with difficult people; if someone doesn't want to speak, they can leave it for the next life to clarify things.

He told Meteor to go back to her room to sleep, while he himself knocked on the door of the little waitress Katusha's room.

Then they saw a timid young woman open a crack in the door, as if she was frightened by the unruly people in this poor and remote place. When she saw Jiang Xueming's face clearly, she finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Jiang Xueming stood in front of the door but did not go in.

"I have a question for you."

Katusha nodded. "Go ahead and ask. Is it about my husband?"

Jiang Xueming: "What's the story with his ex-girlfriend? Have you looked into it?"

Katusha hesitated for a moment, then finally spoke slowly.

"I'm not entirely sure, but the boss said that when Mr. Jason joined the Abyssal Railway system, the Polarized Sextant didn't assign him a servant."

Jiang Xueming: "Does this mean Wendy Mills is really a fake? That she never existed?"

"No, that's not it." Katusha shook her head, fear in her eyes. "According to the station's passenger log, there is indeed such a waiter in our system, and he is always linked to Mr. Jason's mission records; everything matches up."

Jiang Xueming: "Oh, Jason brought his childhood sweetheart along for a ride?"

"That's not quite what I meant. In short, it's very mysterious." Katusha squinted, momentarily at a loss for words to describe it. She searched her mind for a long, long time, trying to find a fitting metaphor.

"Jiang Xueming, the person Mr. Jason thinks about day and night, does exist, yet he doesn't—as for the travel log, all their records from three years ago consist of two different writing styles, two completely different recordings, and well-documented videotapes and photos."

"There's a video recording?" Xue Ming asked in surprise. "Then does she exist or not?"

Katusha pulled a photograph from her pocket; it was a group photo of Jason Megan and his colleagues in the Arcane Library.

Xue Ming at the people in the photo. Jason was very young at the time, with no nasolabial folds on his face and no such sinister Dior Homme look in his eyes. He was an easy-going and handsome young man. Beside him leaned a cheerful and outgoing young woman who was about the same height as him.

"This is."

Katusha recounted Jason's past.

"Mr. Jason, due to his special psychic abilities, can control twenty-four Lapis Lazuli. He possesses Inspiration and keen observation skills, making him perfectly capable of serving as a stoker on the train. However, he is unwilling to join the crew. These companions are Mr. Jason's classmates from the Galahad Magic Academy. And the one beside him is Wendy Mills, who came to the station with him and directly entered the waiter system. She has concrete identification, and her identity can still be found in the station's electronic personnel database."

Xue Ming: "Was he that handsome when he was young?"

Katusha pursed her lips, emphasizing the key point. "Who hasn't been young? But let's get back to the point. Wendy Mills is definitely not a figment of his imagination; this waiter truly exists within the Nine Realms Station's railway system, and there are even records of her responding to emergency Summoning Bell more than once."

"I know that." Jiang Xueming organized her thoughts. "This lady went missing during the emergency Summoning Bell mission."

Katusha: "Yes, think about it. Mr. Jason is just a passenger. He can't possibly be working two jobs at once, nor can he dress up as a woman and have a split personality, becoming two different people."

Jiang Xueming: "How much do you know about RSH three years ago? What happened back then?"

"It's a β-level classified secret. I know a little about it—when the BOSS talked about this, he only had one request for Mr. Jason. This was his inevitable path, an inescapable inner demon. Only he could complete this task; even if another VIP came, it wouldn't work. But Mr. Jason was unwilling to help the Soviets. It wasn't until Ms. Wendy received an emergency Summoning Bell that Mr. Jason reluctantly came to this place of sorrow." Katusha spoke for her employer, her stance clear. "Think about it from Mr. Jason's perspective—his homeland, his family, his loved ones—these tragedies are all related to the Soviets..." It's unrelated; no one can fall in the same place so many times. If he can't handle it, can't he at least avoid it? But Ms. Wendy didn't refuse the summons, so Mr. Jason went mad for three years until he met you as a hunter. I really felt sorry for him. After I entered the station, the first employer the boss assigned to me was him. We came from the same place, but we didn't share the same blood. I could speak his native dialect, but he treated me like a stranger. He only recently asked my name, which shows how deep his prejudice against Cossacks and Slavs was."

"Understood. Get some rest." Having clarified these matters, Jiang Xueming felt even more uncertain. "See you in twelve hours."

[Part ② - The Uninvited Guest]

As the snowstorm gradually subsided, the condensate from the underground cavities flowed along the winding spiral tunnels into the artificial waterways of the Soviet Palace. There, it was purified and disinfected by the water circulation system, awaiting the transformation of the water into scalding steam by the underfloor heating and production activities, before rising back into the air and turning back into snow.

At the end of East Street, the two teams stood, and the nameless man's companions, fully armed, boarded the armored vehicle.

Returning to familiar places felt terrible. For Jason, this trip was like having undergone major heart surgery three years ago, and now the stitches were being removed. He didn't want to lose anything more, yet he was also insatiable.

The people from the Red Fingernail Hotel came to see them off. The fat, big-eared guests and workers wore fake smiles, hoping that these distinguished guests would visit again.

Jason complained to Xue Ming in a low voice.

"Look at this bunch of good-for-nothings, they're all fakes."

Xue Ming: "I'm unfamiliar with this place, can you explain it to me in detail?"

Jason pulled Diamond into the car, deciding to bring his little friend along.

"They bully Diamond every day because Diamond won't fight back, won't show his teeth to these cowards harmed by the gas. But when they hear my name, they think I'm a warrior who has returned from hell. Just one glance from me is enough to terrify them so much that they can't even hold their toy guns."

Xue Ming: "These people seem to be calling themselves Soviets?"

Jason: "So it's a fake—the BOSS doesn't need them for production now, they just loaf around all day. But if anyone tries to escape the city, they immediately become socialist vanguards, spouting all sorts of mysterious terms."

Diamond watched the crowd receding into the distance outside the window with lingering fear, and finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"They called me a traitor!"

Jason: "Yes, traitor."

Diamond added, "They wanted me to parade through the streets with a banner, saying I was a remnant of corruption, a thief who couldn't even support himself on a salary."

Jason: "Yes, a thief."

Diamond pouted, feeling wronged. "But, but they don't do any work themselves. All they have to do every day is help the people at the Research Station resist spiritual pressure. Why are they attacking me? Why are they hurting me? I just want to do more work and earn more money."

Jason rolled his eyes. "Maybe you're not a Soviet child. You're a Russian child."

"Are they Soviets? Are my coworkers Soviets?" Diamond didn't understand. "But there was no Soviet Union before they were born."

Jason started the car, ending the conversation.

"Shut up—if you used half the power of your mouth on your body, it wouldn't be Wendy and me rescuing you."

Diamond obediently pressed himself against the seat, fastened his seatbelt, and Xue Ming handed him a bulletproof helmet.

Two Hummers flashed their lights ahead of the road to signal Jason, who then gave Thumb to A Ling, the driver of the other car, before leading the way.

The atmosphere was much more relaxed in the other car.

Specifically, it's a celebration for two VIPs.

This was their first time in this damned, desolate, and wretched place.

Along the dark and treacherous mountain road, without any means of communication, terrain reconnaissance equipment, specific mission instructions, or detailed enemy intelligence, our teammates were almost all burdens, little brats who had come to their deaths despite being above their level.

All of this made Su Ling feel incredibly excited.

The colossal statue of the Soviet Palace behind us recedes into the distance, its arm, like a pillar reaching for the sky, a symbol of scientific prowess.

The road ahead was shrouded in thick black fog. The ancient fossil jungle left only flat, round tree stumps buried deep in the rocks, from which seeped petroleum gas and poisonous fumes that could kill.

It is more than 160 kilometers away from the Pavlov substation.

Having crossed two Dashan, they had arrived at the deepest point ever explored by humankind.

From Albert Research Station to here, the complex mountain range stretching for sixteen kilometers is far ahead.

All that remained was a patch of damp soil mixed with highly toxic chiral molecules.

Rubber tires left several tracks on this plain, and in the far distance, a waterfall cascaded down Elephant Trunk Hill, crashing into the extremely dense Dead Sea, the thunderous sound of the water like the breathing of some giant creature.

The unusual electric field environment caused numerous abnormalities along this road.

From time to time, blurry figures could be seen in the fog outside the car window.

What exactly are those things?

Jiang Xueming couldn't explain it, nor could he figure it out.

It's like being able to see unseen phantoms even in a hazy, dark fog, as if he possessed Inspiration and could see ghosts in the human world.

However, these anomalies caused by abnormal electric fields are like the afterimages left by lightning as creatures move about here, recorded in this wilderness.

Fortunately, there is still an official road here, which was created by the natural subsidence of tens of thousands of tons of sand and gravel over decades.

It could only accommodate one vehicle at a time. Xue Ming knew that these gravel and sand were ballast laid in advance for the construction of the railway. However, there was no time to lay the sleepers and rails before it was abandoned.

The mud on both sides of the road looked increasingly soft and dangerous.

Occasionally, one or two human faces can be seen emerging from the mud under the headlights. Their features immediately open, close, twist, and deform when exposed to light, turning into a pair of hands before quickly disappearing, showing a strong aversion to light.

Jason honked the horn repeatedly, warning the cars behind not to get stuck in the mud. The rubber tires couldn't withstand such harsh conditions, and it would be virtually impossible to walk back to the research station on foot with only the supplies in the vehicle.

At that very moment, a flexible white light curtain appeared on Jason's car.

It came from Su Ling's spirit, from the Phoenix.

The voice of A Ling, the driver of the car behind, came through the radio.

"I heard you! I heard you! Stop pressing the button! It's so noisy!"

Jason was both surprised and delighted. "You have this skill? Why didn't you use it sooner?"

"So you're from Beijing? With this linguistic talent, why didn't you speak normal language sooner?" A Ling teased Jason's accent first, then explained, "Maintaining communication between the two vehicles consumes a lot of power, and my stones don't cost anything!"

With this light curtain serving as a guiding landmark, Jason confidently continued leading the way.

However, he was a little confused by the attitude of the two VIPs in the other car, who were nodding their heads, singing, and dancing like they were at a disco.

Right now, at this very moment--

--Behind Elephant Trunk Hill Waterfall, in a low and dirty pit-like cave.

A man crouched behind the dark mudflow, raised his binoculars, and peered outwards following the light source of the plains.

He was wearing a pressure-resistant diving suit with a black hydrophobic nanomaterial coating, along with a gold and red carriage and the sun.

He picked up the sniper rifle.

It is an M24 bolt-action rifle.

Then he put it down again.

Because he finally saw clearly the people inside the vehicle, who all seemed to be wearing Russian-style heavy armor, even the passenger in the front vehicle was wearing a helmet.

These intruders of unknown origin may interfere with the Lord of Cinder's hunt for the Death Giant and his attempt to seize the Immortal Lune.

He glanced at it a few more times, then immediately hooked himself onto the rope and headed back to his companions to deliver the message.

At the same time, Xue Ming, Teacher A Ling, and Teacher Xia Xia all looked in the direction of Elephant Trunk Hill.

Just now, a chilling, vicious, and foul-smelling spiritual pressure surged over.

Although very faint, it is almost negligible compared to the concentration of Spirit Calamity in the wilderness.

Xue Ming, "I sense someone is watching us."

A Ling said, "It was a man, and he ran from a distance of 1,400 meters."

Xia Xia said nervously, "He wanted to shoot. A kind of evil thought surged up, like a thorn in my shoe, pricking my foot and hurting."

Xue Ming asked, "Is it the King of Cinder?"

A Ling replied, "Definitely not. Judging by spiritual pressure, they should only be considered firewood. At this stage, this organization calls itself 'Heaven's Ladder.' Only individuals who begin to burn and release light and heat to the outside world can be called 'Lords of Cinder.' That's a completely different kind of spiritual pressure, worlds apart from these cowardly cowards."

Xia Xia translates. "They are minions under the Lord of Cinder, his followers, keeping watch here."

Mr. Jason was so surprised when he heard the conversation between the three people on the radio that he couldn't close his mouth.

He knew Jiang Xueming had an Inspiration intuition.

But for two VIPs to be able to sense whether someone is male or female, how far away they are, and what they want to do to the vehicle is just too outrageous.

Jason, skeptical, wanted to try it out and was just about to put on the Lapis Lazuli bracelet.

Xue Ming and Katusha immediately covered Jason's right hand, which was on the gearshift.

Diamond offered well-intentioned advice from the sidelines.

"No, no, no! No! Brother! Brother! It's not that bad!"