Otherworldly Desert Dust

"Clang~ clang~ clang~~"

The train gradually left the city, and the orange-red sunset bathed the earth, draping the entire desolate Coastal Wasteland in a vibrant gown.

With the skyscrapers scattered and streets intersecting, the city sprawled like a giant painting on the ground, slowly sinking below the horizon.

Wu Hen stood at the back of the train, staring at the city gradually fading from view...

Dusk began to deepen, the night approached quickly.

Amidst the twilight, Wu Hen's expression became slightly dazed as the city on the horizon came to life once more.

Something Wu Hen couldn't believe even happened.

The streets and buildings at the city's edge, like the roots of plants, actually began to grow and expand across the land.

The previously desolate outskirts the train had traveled through sprouted low buildings and bizarre streets...

"A city that can grow!!"

"This city is alive!"

Wu Hen was certain that he wasn't seeing things; his thoughts were a mess!

What kind of rules did this otherworldly place operate under!

No wonder Su Li said that if they didn't leave the city soon, they'd lose their chance forever.

Can you imagine a city that's a living being, growing "luxuriantly" every day!

And the previous eerie eclipse.

This eclipse was definitely not like any celestial phenomenon he knew of.

Wu Hen peeked out, looking in the direction where the train tracks stretched onward, even as they moved away from the living city, the way ahead was still shrouded in a mist he couldn't see through.

The mountain didn't look like a mountain.

The forest wasn't like a forest.

Even the sky and earth changed sporadically, with mirages appearing intermittently, ethereal and marvelous...

"Wu, it's getting dark." Su Li walked up slowly, draping a warm coat over Wu Hen.

Wu Hen nodded, following Su Li into the carriage.

The carriage door closed tightly; it was pitch-dark inside, with only a few fireflies providing faint light.

Everyone huddled in their positions, due to the scarcity of food and water, trying to minimize unnecessary communication.

It was clear that they were all trying their best to survive, but were nonetheless terrified of the unknown future.

"Su Li, we don't have much pure food left," said the athletic Aunt Huang.

"Can we hold on a bit? The food and water from this Evil Soil will accelerate our loss." Su Li responded.

"I'm afraid not," Aunt Huang replied.

"Alright then, at dawn tomorrow, I'll go with Wu to find pure food." said Su Li.

"Wu?" Aunt Huang was taken aback and glanced at Wu Hen.

"Don't ask too much, just do your thing." Su Li dismissed Aunt Huang.

Though surprised, Aunt Huang seemed used to such things...

Wu Hen, however, was always observing these people.

It seemed that apart from himself and Yang Qin, none of them were from Earth.

"Are you curious about our identity?" Su Li clearly noticed Wu Hen's confusion and smiled.

After their life-and-death battle earlier, Su Li fully acknowledged Wu Hen, her smile growing even more gentle and kind.

"There's still too much I can't understand about this Otherworldly Dust." Wu Hen said.

"We all belong to humanity, but we are people from different Divine Realms. The fact that you awakened in the body of a Lost One indicates that you are citizens of the Divine Mother Nuwa." Su Li explained.

"Is your world also virtual?" Wu Hen asked.

"Virtual? Your understanding of the world is still too shallow. A place where souls can find peaceful rest, shouldn't that be called a paradise?" Su Li shook her head bitterly.

Paradise?

Could it be that, in the eyes of other human beings from this otherworldly realm, people like himself and Yang Qin were already in paradise!

Upon deeper consideration, Wu Hen found it reasonable.

Compared to this terrifying otherworld, the place where he lived indeed seemed like paradise!!

Recent natural disasters were perhaps because the Divine Mother Nuwa in the otherworld was already in critical condition and could no longer protect such a paradise for humanity!

...

Dawn arrived.

The train slowly stopped at a lush meadow with streams and blooming flowers.

It could not be denied; this was the first time Wu Hen had seen such a sunny, vibrant place since entering the otherworld, instantly clearing the gloom from his heart.

This was how a place fit for human habitation should be.

Birds chirped, flowers bloomed, and water flowed gently.

"Be careful, listen closely." Su Li reminded Wu Hen as she got off the train.

"Is this place not safe either?" Wu Hen asked.

"Don't fully trust your eyes," Su Li said.

Wu Hen scratched his head.

Alright, you're the boss, you're always right.

Without letting his guard down, Wu Hen focused on his hearing, scanning the surrounding few kilometers for any unusual sounds. After confirming there were no spectral apparitions, he gave Su Li a nod of reassurance.

With Wu Hen's confirmation, Su Li then turned to the others, "You can get off now."

"I'll fetch water."

"I'll catch fireflies."

"Let's clean the dirt too. This water source should be pure."

They began to divide tasks.

"You come with us, we need you to carry some things." Su Li pointed to Yang Qin.

"Alright, okay," Yang Qin immediately followed.

After some time spent training, Yang Qin had begun to integrate into the group. Whatever dirty or tiring work needed to be done, she had to do it without complaint.

Wu Hen was somewhat surprised at the awareness shown by the female classmate.

You can mock someone as timid but don't mock them as weak!

With large and small backpacks and various bottles, Yang Qin followed behind the two of them like a little laborer.

Wu Hen and Su Li wouldn't lend a hand; they were the combat strength of the team. If danger arose, they needed to be fully prepared for combat.

After learning that Su Li and Wu Hen were the true core of the team, Yang Qin became especially diligent. She followed orders without asking questions, no matter how tiring it was...

Finally, Yang Qin found a chance to speak, and she asked in a small voice, "When we get Yuan You, can we return to our own world?"

Wu Hen had also been asking Su Li about various matters along the way, especially about Yuan You.

Su Li had told Wu Hen that in the Otherworldly Dust, everything could deceive you except for Yuan You. Everything needed the pure source of Yuan You.

"You are citizens of the Divine Mother Nuwa, your souls are under protection. In the past during peak times, if your bodies died, the Divine Mother Nuwa could recall your souls but required you to establish a mental connection with her. Yuan You could both cleanse your souls and help you connect with the Divine Mother." Su Li explained.

These words were naturally meant for Wu Hen's understanding of this world and his situation.

"It sounds a bit complicated." Yang Qin mumbled.

In fact, she still didn't understand everything; she just wanted to go home.

"In simpler terms, Yuan You is like mobile Wi-Fi. Once connected to the network, we can upload our spiritual entities to the Nuwa Cloud. In the cloud, living means we are alive... but if we don't upload in time, we will be permanently deleted!" Wu Hen explained.

Using this modern metaphor, Wu Hen managed to make Yang Qin grasp some of the concept.

"So, we woke up in people who were disconnected?" Yang Qin asked.

"More or less," Su Li smiled bitterly and nodded.

They used their understandable way to comprehend it, which wasn't incorrect.

However, their view was still too limited; the mysteries and vastness of the Otherworldly Dust were still beyond their current Perception Realm.

"Yuan You is life."

"Yuan You is money."

"Yuan You is power!"

Wu Hen now firmly believed in these three eternal principles.

To be honest, Wu Hen was very worried about his family; he had been in the otherworld for so long, who knew what kind of chaos the outside world was in...

There must be many people like Yang Qin, dragged into this strange reality unprepared. How should they face this fear and strangeness?

"Don't worry, we are not far from the Divine Mother Nuwa." Su Li said.

"That's good, that's good, I really want to go back. My family must be very worried about me." Yang Qin said.

Wu Hen felt the same.

All along the way, Su Li patiently told Wu Hen which foods were untainted, which water sources were drinkable.

Yuan You could even purify those contaminated items.

"Including your souls; the longer you walk in the otherworld, the more you will be infected. When you start acting strangely, like wanting to embrace death when seeing it or wanting to harm close people when facing them, you've likely been tainted... In such cases, you cannot return to the Divine Mother's womb, and will need Yuan You to cleanse yourself to return to her peace." Su Li explained.

Wu Hen nodded, thinking to himself, "No wonder spending time with my auntie made my bad thoughts grow; this otherworld was affecting me. I knew I wasn't that kind of person..."

Beside him, Yang Qin's heart grew even more anxious as she listened. Carrying some heavy food, she recalled something and hesitantly said, "Sister Su, you mentioned the infection; is it just a thought, or could it lead to action?"

"Both; you could act uncontrollably, and once the act is done, you would regain clarity," Su Li said.

"Isn't that like intermittent madness in our world?" Wu Hen said.

Su Li nodded.

"Well... I want to say something. Last night, when we were checking if there were any Midnight Masses on the train, the uncle said he checked under the train cars, but it seemed he only stayed at the front of the train," Yang Qin finally voiced her concern.

Yang Qin felt conflicted.

Scar-faced Uncle had saved her life.

She had noticed this last night but didn't mention it out of gratitude towards him.

But hearing Su Li's words, she felt it necessary to warn the team's core members, Su Li and Wu Hen, about Scar-faced Uncle possibly acting under infection.

Wu Hen looked at Su Li, noticing her expression had turned serious, and called out, "Auntie?"

Su Li didn't respond but instead quickened her pace back.

"Is something wrong?" Wu Hen sensed something off and hurried after her.