Seeing Shashali Again

Lin Shan did not leave immediately.

Instead, he searched the great hall, which resembled an office.

Heart Light turned into a fertilizer sack-yes, a pale gold fertilizer sack. Lin Shan stuffed everything that looked valuable inside, especially the books on the shelves. They might contain knowledge about the ash fog.

Once the office had been emptied, Lin Shan shifted his attention to the street, planning to dismantle a few streetlights and take them back.

"You can go back now. The Cat Clan probably won't attack you again for a while." A voice suddenly reached Lin Shan's ears, speaking in the Huaxia Language. His heart jolted, and he turned to see a bright-eyed deer.

In the blink of an eye, the deer turned into a girl who looked only seventeen or eighteen.

Lin Shan found her vaguely familiar. Since she made no move to attack, he was in no hurry to strike either.

"What, you've forgotten me after just over two years? Is the Human Race really that forgetful?" the girl asked mildly.

"You're that... Sha..." Lin Shan remembered. Wasn't she the first member of the Cat Clan he had met? Their encounter had been the first meeting between their two races.

"Shashali!" The girl raised her voice.

"Oh, right. Shashali." Lin Shan felt a little awkward, but then his voice turned cold. "What, are you here to capture me?"

Shashali did not answer his question, merely continuing on her own. "This place isn't like the Cat Clan's homeland, where our Pioneers keep things under control. Political power in Proud Meow City isn't unified. Those who gain power always want more."

"I'm very sorry about what happened to the Human Race, but my original intention was to cooperate with you. Disagreements arose during the many discussions that followed."

Lin Shan said coldly, "What good does saying that do now? A hundred thousand humans have already died resisting the Cat Clan. You think a few words can wash away a blood debt of a hundred thousand lives? Is everyone in the Cat Clan as naive as you?"

Shashali shook her head. "I'm not trying to resolve it, and I couldn't even if I wanted to. They won't leave the Human Race alone."

Lin Shan watched her, waiting for her to continue.

She went on, "The Cat Clan's political power is split in two. One half is in my hands, and the other belongs to a clan elder. I've always advocated cooperation and have never slaughtered humans. I was also the one who provided your initial supplies."

Lin Shan laughed in anger. "Am I supposed to thank you, then?"

Shashali shook her head again. "Since the mistake has already been made, I only hope that if the Human Race fights its way back one day, you'll spare half the Cat Clan. Our branch can become a subordinate clan of the Human Race. All we need is a patch of land where we can survive."

"You're that certain the Human Race can fight its way back?"

Shashali merely smiled and looked up at the night sky, her eyes filled with stars.

After a moment of silence, Lin Shan said, "I'll pass your words on to the others."

With that, his Blood Wing beat once, and he appeared a thousand meters in the air before turning into a red meteor that streaked across the night sky.

Shashali gazed in the direction Lin Shan had vanished, starlight flickering in her eyes.

"Sister Sha, are you just going to let him leave? He dared to storm into Cat Clan territory alone. If it weren't for you, Sister Sha..." A blue butterfly hovered over Shashali's shoulder, an ethereal voice coming from within it.

"Stop right there." Shashali smiled. "This is a good opportunity for us to clear out our rivals. That race called the Human Race possesses the actual Clan Artifact, not a projection. They certainly won't be wiped out easily. If they truly rise, what harm is there in cooperating with them?"

"And even if they both end up battered and broken..."

"Then did you mean what you said about the Cat Clan becoming subordinate to them, or were you lying to him?"

"That depends on whether they have the strength," Shashali said.

Shashali left, her figure gradually disappearing down the deserted street.

Only their voices drifted back faintly.

"Are you really going deep into the ash fog to search for the Sequence 8 stone tablet?"

"I'll leave in a few days. I've arranged everything that comes afterward. I'll leave it to you."

"Can't you stay? You've been managing everything for the past hundred years. I'm afraid I won't do a good job."

"The Cat Clan's development has been stagnant for over a decade. All these years, we've done nothing but fight among ourselves. Rot hides beneath the surface of prosperity. Without a Supreme Sequence to keep everyone in check, the Cat Clan cannot unite. This isn't the Cat Star of old. Only those with strength have a voice! For the Cat Clan, and for myself, I must go."

At the border of the Human Race's homeland, in the military camp.

A red meteor streaked through the sky and came to a stop right inside the camp.

"What was that?" someone cried out.

"Did you just see a red light fall?"

"I saw it."

"So did I."

"Look! There's a red lantern floating up there in the sky!"

"Quick, notify the minister. Don't go over there yet. This isn't something we can handle."

The camp was enormous. Lin Shan sat in a corner, waiting for familiar faces to arrive.

Before long.

"Lin Shan, it really is you!" All seven had come, their faces full of delighted surprise at the sight of him.

Lin Shan looked at those faces, familiar yet unfamiliar. They had changed. Every one of them had changed-not in appearance, but in bearing.

Lin Shan smiled. "Let's find somewhere to talk. It's been a long time. We should catch up properly."

By then, a ring of people had gathered around them.

"So this is Lin Shan?"

"He looks pretty ordinary. His smile is scary, though. There's something sinister about it..."

"Is this the Lin Shan General Zhao keeps going on about? The one from 'If Lin Shan were here, he'd have beaten the Cat Clan flat already'?"

"Is this Lin Shan, the strongest person in the Human Race?"

"Ahem." Zhao Xiao An cleared her throat, then roared, "Haven't you had enough training? Are you all so idle that you won't go to sleep at night? I'll count to three. Anyone with nothing to do can stay. One... two..."

When she reached "two," the crowd scattered at once, everyone returning to their own tents.

Lin Shan stared at Zhao Xiao An for a while. Every time they met, everyone seemed to have changed a great deal, and Zhao Xiao An always seemed to have changed the most.

Once everyone had left, Zhao Xiao An flashed Lin Shan a toothy grin. "Let's go."

All right, that was an illusion. She hadn't changed at all.

They walked into a larger tent in the middle of the camp.

They talked until dawn. Lin Shan briefly recounted what he had seen and heard, and even that small fraction left everyone marveling.

For most of the night, the others took turns recounting what had happened over the past year or so: how an eighteen-year-old boy had killed enemies on the battlefield, how a girl in the flower of her youth had joined the army behind her family's back...

They spoke of witnessing the deaths of a hundred thousand humans, and of witnessing the awakening of the Human Race's fighting spirit. They spoke of how, every night, someone would weep silently in a tent, only to charge into battle again the next day...

Finally, Zhang Zhonghua said sorrowfully:

"The only reason we've scraped by until now is that we bear the title of Pioneers. Killing us would damage their long-term returns..."

Seeing that dawn had arrived.

Lin Shan stood and said evenly, "The Cat Clan won't attack again for the next few days. I killed one of their higher-ups, and he seemed to hold a very high position. They won't send troops until they've finished discussing what to do."

After a brief pause, Lin Shan continued:

"So spread the word. Prepare to relocate. The Human Race needs time to develop in peace."