Origin Chapter Eight: Yulan’s Lasting Yearning

Looking ahead, there stood a metallic structure without a spire. Unlike the other pointed buildings, its top was designed as a dome. Judging from the exterior, it appeared to have five floors, each about a hundred meters high. Compared to some of the planet’s other edifices, it was neither tall nor ostentatious; rather, it emanated a quiet simplicity. The surface of the building was etched with intricate patterns, quite unlike the totemic curves they had seen on the teleportation device. Viewed from afar, these lines resembled star charts, each section utterly unique and encircling the entire façade. Unlike the totemic curves, these patterns pulsed with a faint red glow, while only the dome’s top bore the totemic curves they had seen before, flickering with the same blue light.

Each floor of the building receded inward, leaving space where many transparent flying capsules, identical in shape to the one they now rode, docked—though differing in size.

The transparent flying capsule soared straight toward the dome’s summit. As it neared, the center of the dome gradually became translucent, revealing vague glimpses of its interior. The capsule slowly approached and descended, passing through the transparent layer of the dome without resistance, landing squarely on the central platform inside.

Once the capsule settled, Deputy Qin and the others issued a few commands via communicator and stood aside. The general gestured politely to Los and Zagu, then strode out first. Los and Zagu hurried to follow.

The capsule that had carried them seemed to lose its solidity in an instant. The general walked straight through its exterior without encountering any obstacle. Los, observing, remained composed—he had begun to accept such marvels, and nothing unfolding before him now could astonish him as before. Age and experience had tempered him; only his identity still mattered. Zagu, however, could not resist swiping a hand where the capsule’s shell had been, finding only empty air.

Following Zagu, the usually silent base administrator whispered, “This is the application of energy materialization.”

“Oh, I see now,” Zagu murmured, enlightened. Though no longer startled, his eyes betrayed admiration.

Just as legends told of extraordinary abilities—moving objects at a distance, cleaving stone, soaring without aid—these, too, seemed manifestations of energy materialization, though what struck Zagu most was how these feats were driven by flesh and blood.

He finally calmed, falling silent and following quietly behind Los.

Outside the capsule, the space was immense; from floor to dome, the height exceeded one hundred meters. Though vast, this level contained no furnishings, only emptiness.

They walked for some hundred meters before encountering a descending staircase. Each step was far wider and taller than usual, nearly two meters high. Had smaller steps not been constructed atop them, traversing would have been as difficult as scaling a wall.

The staircase descended about a hundred meters, and rooms appeared. Each doorway was ten meters tall.

Los, seeing this, finally abandoned his former reserve. He consoled himself quietly, “Before these unknown civilizations, I am but a schoolboy. Let curiosity reign—there’s nothing to be ashamed of.”

The thought brought a chuckle from Los.

The group heard his laughter and looked at him in surprise—this dignified elder was hardly given to mirth. Were it not for propriety, Chen Pi might have checked his temperature.

“It’s nothing, nothing,” Los insisted, grinning sheepishly to mask his embarrassment, and stepped up to walk closely behind the general, who smiled and continued onward.

Los’s back was cold with sweat. In his lifetime, he rarely smiled, and such awkwardness was unprecedented. As the general approached the massive door, Los wondered, “Could this door be energy materialized as well?”

Indeed, as expected, the general did not stop at the entrance, but walked straight through it. Los instinctively blinked, fearing a collision, but the general’s body melted into the door and vanished.

Without hesitation, Los followed, passing through. For a brief instant, a white haze flashed before his eyes, then a new scene unfolded—a dense array of floating rooms suspended in midair, separated by short distances. Some were stationary, others moved among the cluster, docking with one another.

Once everyone had entered, a room descended gently ahead. The general stepped forward, and the door opened automatically. Again, he gestured for Los and Zagu to enter.

Los did not stand on ceremony, leading Zagu inside. The general and Deputy Qin followed, while Chen Pi and the two base administrators remained outside to arrange subsequent matters.

The door closed, barely perceptible.

“No need to ask—energy materialization,” Los muttered inwardly.

The furnishings inside were those of a typical military office and meeting room—nothing luxurious. In a corner stood a compact, fully armed mech, ready to be activated as a killing machine, though this did not mean the general was bloodthirsty; it was simply a manifestation of a soldier’s spirit.

“Minister Los, friend Zagu, please sit,” the general invited. Deputy Qin fetched several cups and a bottle containing a luminous blue liquid, pouring for each before standing behind the general’s seat.

The general raised his cup, saying, “Minister Los, you’ve had a long journey. Let’s have a drink to quench our thirst.”

He drank first. Los and Zagu, not rushing, studied their cups for nearly ten seconds before drinking in one gulp. As the liquid flowed down their throats, both felt a refreshing coolness and a faint tingling, which spread from mouth to stomach. Soon, a strange agitation arose within, as if something was coursing through their bodies, channeling every nerve and vein. The sensation surged to their brains, and in an instant, Los’s mind cleared, as if he had returned to youth—his brain more lucid than ever. Memories, once lost, came flooding back, and for a moment, it seemed everything missing in his life had been restored.

He touched his face, astonished to find tears had fallen. The realization struck—every detail of his late wife had returned, and in the joy of those memories, he had wept unconsciously.

Los quickly wiped his tears and glanced at Zagu, who also wore a puzzled expression and a trail of tears. Zagu nodded to him; Los understood—they had shared the same experience and response.

“Minister Los, don’t be nervous. My first time drinking it was just like yours.”

“General, what is this liquid? How can it be so miraculous? My body feels as if it’s in peak condition—no, better than any peak I’ve ever had,” Los asked, now composed.

Zagu gazed at the general, his eyes full of urgency.

“I’m sorry—the name of this liquid is difficult to translate into our language. Even Lin Ping named it Yulan Hengsi. After drinking it, it rapidly transforms and enhances the human body, awakens the mind, and with continued use, expands cerebral capacity. Most astonishingly, after a period of drinking, the developed brain can gradually interact with energy, enabling its manipulation.”

Los was speechless.

“All along the way, it’s been Chen Pi using the teleportation device to amplify interactions with the energy realm to complete the transport. I believe, before long, Chen Pi will be able to dispense with the equipment and directly manipulate energy with his mind.”

Los remained silent.