Chapter 56 - The Dispute on Food Street (1/2)

Zhang Heng helped the old man load the carcasses into the trunk.

After slamming the door shut, the latter clapped, “Typically, I should be bringing you somewhere and buy you a drink to thank you, but unfortunately, we won’t be able to find any bar that is still open at this time, so let’s part here… You can just leave the rest to me. ”

The old man offered his hand, and Zhang Heng shook it.

“Something’s up in the north. I better go return the weapon and see a few of my old friends. I will be out of the country, so we won’t be seeing each other for a while – we were not supposed to meet so soon anyway. Thank goodness this is during still time, so it’s not that big of a problem. Finally, I wish you success in the upcoming CET-6 exam!”

The old man climbed into the driver’s seat and cut away the deflated airbag with a small knife. Just as he was about to start the car, Zhang Heng called out and asked the question that concerned him the most, “Wait! Are there many types of these… monsters here on earth?”

The old man chuckled. “A very long long long time ago, there were actually quite a few of them. But now…” He pointed at the lucky rabbit’s foot hanging from Zhang Heng’s keys, and then the bloody bone wrapped in tissue. “I’m very sure that most of them are very safe.”

“You mean that all of those game items that we found are their remains?”

The old man clammed up. “I’ve already said too many things I shouldn’t have. This meeting never happened! You should get back to school and continue to the next game. You’re already one step closer to the truth!”

Zhang Heng watched the black Audi disappear from the tunnel’s exit. Discounting the hole in the wall, the road of the tunnel, and also the small missing parts on the car, it was as if nothing had happened.

…

That night left a deep impression on Zhang Heng. After that incident, he looked up Moresby and Alkiz, and he found several records. Clicking onto one of the research articles on Alkiz culture, he was immediately drawn to a picture of a recently exhumed stone relic with a carving of a creature. It looked exactly like the Moresby creature from the tunnel!

Other than that, there was also a picture of the spear the old man in the Tang suit had used. The more Zhang Heng thought about the fight that night, the more he realized that the spear was very similar to one he heard in a story when he was still a child.

Zhang Heng suddenly discovered that he was not as unfamiliar with this world as he thought he was.

Alas, no matter how much he searched, he could not find any other evidence to support his theory and had to leave that night on the back burner as time passed.

After a week, his work ‘Late night fried pancake stall and night bus’ had won second place in the urban impression themed photography competition. The comment the judges gave was, ‘Although its technical skills were a little crude, the details were outstanding! The picture is full of emotion!’

Owing to this, Zhang Heng went to the society to collect his 3,000 yuan prize money. A tripod and a camera bag were also included. After taking a picture of him with the other winners and their prizes, it was posted in an article on the school website that afternoon.

“That’s not real! You’ve only just started learning!” Wei Jiangyang said when he saw the names on the list of winners, popping a hard-boiled egg whole into his gaping mouth.

On the other side of the room, Chen Huadong had grown rather numb to all these surprises. Last time, his friend had only started practicing archery and could already ‘accidentally’ scare the trespasser away. This time, he had only just bought the camera for two months and was already winning prizes.

On the other hand, Chen Huadong had been working double shifts trying to promote the development of his Anime, Comic, and Games (ACG) career, looking up resources for everyone for free. Despite that, he had yet to receive a single consolation prize.

“Sigh, life is getting more stressful thanks to those Europeans who are everywhere.”

“Let me treat all of you to dinner!” Zhang Heng volunteered as he placed the tripod and the camera bag on his table. He had missed his three dorm mates ever so often during the one year he spent in Japan. This was the perfect opportunity for a gathering.

“Sure. Sure!” The expression on Chen Huadong’s face changed instantly as he broke into a smile. “Europeans may be hateful but they are not all that bad…”

Wei Jiangyang informed Ma Wei, who was still studying in the library, and when it was time to eat, the four of them gathered in front of the campus gate and headed straight for the food street nearby that they usually frequented.

Lined with popular stalls and restaurants, it was always packed with students from universities and schools nearby enjoying their meals or having supper – not only because the food there was particularly good or affordable, but it was a great spot to gaze at pretty girls from other schools as you ate.

Zhang Heng ordered 50 skewers of lamb, 1 grilled fish, 8 oysters, some goat liver, vegetables, and baked bread slices.

When the food was served, Chen Huadong picked up the beer bottle from the table and said, “May Africans never be servants 1!”