He searched his memories for anything that matched this point in time. After turning it over in his mind, the only thing he could think of was the Guyinduo Black Tide.
It was the day that came once every three months, when Oddities erupted and assaulted humanity's safe havens.
Whenever that day arrived, whether it was Lighthouse, Zion, Tianrui Lifeng, or the Red Moon Holy Temple,
all of them would face an onslaught of Oddities. It was a calamity that struck once every quarter.
This cycle had persisted for several eras, for thousands of years.
During the Fourth Era, humanity had once struggled greatly against the Black Tide, but after Zion's Steam Revolution, that situation had changed completely.
Humanity had entered the age of steam and gained firearms and cannons.
Even without the help of warlocks, ordinary humans now had the means to fight Oddities.
So in recent years, as long as people stayed home on the night of the Black Tide instead of running around outside, they were generally fine.
The Oddities attacking the city-states were almost always dealt with by the guards in the high-wall districts and the Night Watchers.
They could not even make it into the cities.
But humanity had always called this event the Guyinduo Dark Tide in full, or the Black Tide for short.
The warning he had received, however, called it the Red Moon Calamity. That did not match!
"Normally, the Black Tide shouldn't be a problem. The Night Watchers can handle it. But these repeated warnings, and this overwhelming feeling..."
Xu Le kept feeling that this so-called Red Moon Calamity might not be as simple as the usual Black Tide.
Whatever happened, he had to prepare.
Putting those thoughts aside, Xu Le returned to his room.
Watching the dim lamplight, he slowly drifted off to sleep.
The next day, Xu Le woke early.
After a quick wash, he put on a crisp suit. Aside from the books, it was the only thing of any value his body's original owner had possessed.
Other than looking a little scrawny, Xu Le was quite satisfied with his appearance.
He took out Old Zhou's medal and looked at it, then put it away again.
"I hope everything goes smoothly."
As soon as Xu Le stepped outside, he saw crowds of people buying defensive supplies. Vendors' cries filled his ears from every direction.
The street-stall culture here had truly been taken to its limits.
"Nine cents for one sandbag? Are you robbing me?"
"Buy it or get lost!"
"Decommissioned standard-issue blades! Seventy percent of their original condition, only one fifty!"
Lighthouse's currency had considerable purchasing power, which made prices seem very low.
Aside from blades and weapons, the vendors mostly sold planks, nails, and sandbags.
The lower city was nowhere near as safe as the upper city. Although the Night Watchers would stop most of the Black Tide's Oddities,
a few slipped through from time to time, so taking defensive precautions was only natural.
Even without the threat of Oddities, the lower city's wretched surroundings had no shortage of gangs, vagrants, and the like.
Putting up some defenses around the home was a sensible precaution.
Following the route in his memories, Xu Le arrived near Drinking Water District No. 62 in the lower city.
Old Zhou's home was here.
The original owner and Old Zhou had met at school.
Old Zhou was a retired soldier working as a school security guard, while Xu Le was an eccentric student from abroad.
The two should have had little to do with each other, but one day, Old Zhou had accidentally caught Xu Le secretly researching things forbidden to warlocks.
After some back-and-forth, they had gotten to know each other.
Both were short of money, so they had thought about heading outside to make a little extra.
Lighthouse's rules required anyone venturing outside to travel in groups of at least two. If both returned safely,
they only needed a routine inspection. If just one returned... that person became a Night Dweller.
Your companion was dead. No one knew what you had experienced in the darkness, and no one could prove whether you had been contaminated by Guyinduo.
So whenever one of them died, the survivor had to undergo a Night Dweller inspection.
With the occult knowledge Xu Le had studied and Old Zhou's passable skills as a veteran,
the two had hit it off and begun venturing outside together, searching for relics of the old age, Guyinduo remnants, and other things to sell.
Before this latest expedition, they had already made three successful trips.
Their earnings had not been particularly impressive, but compared with their meager wages and scholarship money, they had been a fortune.
If they had not encountered the Guyinduo Fruit, their partnership might have continued indefinitely.
But that was how people were. Profit could bring them together.
It could also make them betray each other.
"Ah..."
With a soft sigh, Xu Le composed himself.
His previously gentle expression became much more serious and businesslike.
He knocked on the door.
"Excuse me, is Mrs. Zhou home?"
Xu Le did not know Zhou Ke's wife's name. Zhou Ke always just called her his wife, and with the original owner's personality, he would never have asked about such details.
The only thing he knew was that their daughter was named Zhou Tingting.
"Who is it?" A voice soon came from inside, gentle but somewhat hesitant.
"Hello, my name is Xu Le. I'm here about Mr. Zhou Ke."
Xu Le could sense that she had already come to the door. She was probably still looking him over.
Glancing around, he knew that a widow and her daughter living in the lower city would face sharply increased risks without Zhou Ke, their mainstay.
After a while, as though she had confirmed that Xu Le was neither a gang member nor a vagrant, the door finally opened. A woman of about fifty appeared before him.
This had to be Old Zhou's wife. She was an ordinary woman, so ordinary that if you saw her in passing, you would hardly notice her.
"Hello, my name is Xu Le. I came today to..."
Zhou Ke's wife suddenly raised a hand to stop him. Her eyes began to dart away, as though she was afraid to meet his gaze.
She lowered her head and said nervously,
"Come inside and talk."
"All right."
As he entered the house, Xu Le heard a young girl's voice.
"Mom, who is it?"
A girl two or three years younger than Xu Le emerged, wearing a rather thin shirt and a pair of oversized slippers that did not fit properly.
Xu Le soon got a clear look at her.
She was painfully thin. Never mind her chest; even her arms and thighs barely had any flesh on them.
Her hair, dyed yellow, was somewhat dry and brittle. Aside from her small eyes, the most memorable thing about her face was the scattering of freckles.
Xu Le had never expected that the daughter Zhou Ke constantly praised
would turn out to be...
It makes sense, really. Old Zhou was just a retired veteran working as a security guard, living almost on the outermost edge of the lower city. Someone like him having a daughter as beautiful as an angel, considerate and charming... that probably only happens in novels and TV dramas.
"Who are you?"
"Hello, my name is Xu Le. You must be Zhou Tingting?"
"Yeah. What do you want? Don't tell me that old bastard owes someone money?"
Zhou Tingting's attitude and tone made Xu Le frown slightly.
Was she genuinely unpleasant, or was it a mask born of wariness?
Never mind. Whatever the case, Zhou Tingting and her mother were the family Zhou Ke had cared about.
"Zhou Ke, he..."
"You two talk. I'll get you a glass of water."
Old Zhou's wife rose in a fluster, constantly rubbing her fingers together. Watching her expression, Xu Le understood.
This ordinary woman was perceptive enough. She probably knew about Old Zhou's recent trips outside.
She probably already had an inkling of why he had come.
"There's no need to go to the trouble, Mrs. Zhou. I think you already know why I'm here."
By the time Xu Le said this, Zhou Ke's wife had covered her mouth.
"Mom, what's wrong? Hey, you! Why are you bullying my mom?"
Zhou Tingting wrapped her arms around her mother. Once her daughter held her, the woman began to sob loudly.
Then, as though she had belatedly realized something, Zhou Tingting looked up at Xu Le.
"No, that can't be... My dad... he?"
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