"What's the result of the divination?"
"My guest, your fate is really strange."
The elder said sadly: "The revelation says that you will encounter what you are destined to encounter."
“…”
Ye Qingxuan was silent for a while, his expression twitching: Will he encounter something he is destined to encounter? To say this is to say nothing! My friend, I don’t study well, so don’t fool me! Is your divination really of any use
The elder laughed, "Don't be angry, this is one of the best results."
Ye Qingxuan was speechless. He really didn't see anything good about this result!
"When the Romulus Empire still existed, fortune tellers were prophets who served the emperor personally and were responsible for interpreting revelations from heaven for him. In this case, there are disasters and good news, but nothing is There is no more reassuring result than such a prediction. The future will only lead to the future, and your destiny will be chosen by you and will not be controlled by others. If you were the emperor, you would be overjoyed by this revelation. . You will continue to move forward according to your destiny. It can be seen that your future leads to darkness, and among the twists and turns, you may be able to have light."
Ye Qingxuan was silent for a long time and nodded:
"I accept your good words."
"Then, let's talk about business."
The elder was sitting opposite Ye Qingxuan, opened his clothes, and said calmly: "If I guess correctly, you are also here for the underground palace, right? Let's talk about the underground palace."
Ye Qingxuan sat up straight and listened attentively.
…
…
Hundreds of years ago, after the Romulus Empire officially fell apart, the remaining city-states still lingered in various places for tens to hundreds of years. Until fifty years ago.
Like the previous empire, the last home of the Romulans, the City of Wolves, was destroyed by natural disasters.
The unconscious phenomenon-like natural disaster "Mercury Tide" swept through that place, and everything in its path was crushed into a flat bottom. Traces of mirror-like smoothness still remain on the thousands-mile plain.
Viewed from the air, the silvery and smooth land looks like a tragic wound on the earth.
Since then, the Romulans have had no homeland to speak of.
Romulus people wandering around various countries are engaged in lower-class industries, such as coolies, porters, thieves, robbers or prostitutes... The animalistic characteristics remaining on their bodies make them forever excluded from mainstream society.
Until twenty-six years ago, "Gaius", a remnant of the Wolf City, ascended to a high position in the Holy City Council as a remnant with demon blood due to his outstanding contributions and achievements in the dark world development plan. , was recognized by kings and blessed by the Pope.
With his efforts, many Romulans were recognized, gradually accepted, and returned to society.
At that time, the image of the Romulus people improved for a time, and they received people's sympathy and help. Thanks to Gaius's efforts, the lives of Romulus wanderers are no longer miserable, and they can even make a slight profit through OEM industries such as handicraft workshops.
Then, six years later, twenty years ago.
Gaius rebels.
The troops under his command occupied the New World colonies on the other side of the ocean, using the long sea as a barrier to openly resist the rule of the countries and the Holy City.
For a time, all countries were in an uproar, setting off a wave of rejection and expulsion of the Romulans. Overnight, the people of Romulus, who had been gradually improving, were reduced to the point where everyone was shouting for beatings.
The entire process lasted fifteen years.
The Romulans, who no longer had any place to stay, lost everything and became wanderers, embarking on endless long roads with stones thrown and curses thrown at them.
Finally, under the call of the six elders, they followed the inspiration in ancient records and headed to the wasteland in the south, where they found the land God had promised them.
It's just that years have passed and there are no fig trees and fragrant grass there. Milk and honey no longer flow in the river, only the vast yellow sand remains.
This is Auschwitz, a paradise that has long lost everything.
The last gathering place of the Romulans.
“If you want to make a living here, you always have to look for some industry.”
The elder asked calmly: "If it were you, Mr. Ye, what would you do if it were you?"
Ye Qingxuan was asked.
He really couldn't figure out how to make a living in this damn place.
Drought and lack of water make it impossible to plant. Vegetation is scarce and farming is not possible. There is only vast yellow sand and wasteland within a thousand miles, and hunting is nonsense.
Business? To put it more viciously, there is nothing special about Auschwitz other than the Romulans. Except for human traffickers looking for slaves, it is difficult for others to find business opportunities here.
After much deliberation, there was only one way left, which was the choice the Romulans had made.
"So, have you opened a mine?"
He sighed, understanding the cause and effect.
After arriving here, the Romulus people opened mountains and mined in order to survive. They signed an agreement with the Chainsaw Monks and obtained a large loan, but the mineral veins they found were not very rich.
There are a few thin pieces of copper ore, a few pieces of rare iron ore, and some associated lapis lazuli, but they have no value worthy of special mining.
They could support a small town.
But it couldn’t feed Auschwitz.
To make matters worse, during the excavation, remnants of the Romulus Empire were unearthed.
"Worse than the ruins."
The elder corrected him: "It's a cemetery. The dead elder looked through ancient books and found that it was a place built by the emperor's order when the Romulus Empire was still there. It was the resting place of the great men of the past. Then? Then The excavation stopped. No Romulus dared to continue exploring and blaspheming the souls of their ancestors, which would bring shame to everyone's family. We can only seal the underground palace, and even the excavation of copper mines It stopped, and to be honest, we still owe the Chainsaw Monks a huge loan to this day.”
The elder skillfully rolled a psychedelic cigarette and said lightly: "When the loan expires in ten years, I'm afraid we old men who can't afford it will have to sell ourselves to work as mechanical slaves for them."
“…”
Ye Qingxuan was silent.
"Don't be sad, kid, this has nothing to do with you."
The elder was lying on the carpet, rolling a cigarette in one hand and stroking a bright red stone with the other. He narrowed his eyes and seemed to be talking in his sleep: "Where did we just talk?"
"cemetery."
"Yes, the cemetery."
The elder swallowed a mouthful of smoke and exhaled slowly: "You will know what happened next. One of your three kings, King Huang, ran to the cemetery of our ancestors for some reason. Then inexplicably The world has evaporated. If bad luck is a curse, then we are just like being cursed by God, encountering such damn things one after another. Now, you little musicians are here again, stirring up trouble at our doorstep They stirred up the rain, and then went to our ancestral graves to mess around... But we couldn't do anything about it. Tell me, what did we do wrong to deserve such punishment?"
Ye Qingxuan was speechless.
"When I came here, I actually didn't know anything about the Yellow King at the beginning, nor did I know anything about the cemetery and the underground palace."
He said: "I originally came here as an ancient scholar. I just wanted to cure diseases and save people. I didn't think about any rewards from the Holy City. I hope you can believe this, elder."
The elder stroked the shriveled belly and laughed: "This is the truth, I can hear it, continue. If I can help, I will fully cooperate with you."
"There's nothing to go on."
Ye Qingxuan smiled bitterly: "Now the matter is out of my ability. I originally wanted to find a guide to help me lead the way in the underground palace. At least let me figure out whether the flu is related to the underground palace. Elder, where are you? Do you have any recommendations? I can provide a reasonable remuneration."
“…”
The elder fell silent and stopped talking. He just smoked cigarettes in a trance, staring at the curling smoke in front of him, immersed in the relaxation and comfort brought by the banned drugs.
After a long time, he was awakened by the cigarette burning on his fingertips.
He raised his eyes, got up, and put out his cigarette.
"Then I'm sorry, Mr. Ye."
He said, "This is the only one I can't help."
"For the Romulus, there are three possibilities that will make him and you die. You insulted his ancestors, you extinguished his family fire. And, you dug his ancestral grave. Regardless of this Whether the request is from you or the Holy City, we will not agree to it. Although your purpose is noble, please don't talk about it again in the future."
"Sorry..." Ye Qingxuan was a little embarrassed: "I will pay attention to this in the future."
"You can go find the church. The old man should have kept the records and some clues of the excavation."
The elder stood up and said: "I can only help you up to this point. The rest of the matter has nothing to do with us. I hope the Holy City will not involve us in your affairs."
He paused and looked at the tiny scales on his toes: "After all, we have paid enough for the sin of this birth."
…
…
After lunch, Ye Qingxuan left the elder's house.
Lunch was very simple, but it was rare to eat in recent days. It was obvious that it was a very generous treat in Auschwitz.
After the meal, he once again invited Ye Qingxuan to come and have fun. After being rejected, the elder enthusiastically sent Ye Qingxuan to the door. But when they were saying goodbye at the door, she reached out and pulled his shoulder.
Just when Ye Qingxuan was stunned, the elder came up and gave him a close hug.
"A piece of advice, Mr. Ye, you are a good person, so this is the only advice I can give you."
He whispered hoarsely in the boy's ear:
"-No matter why you came here, for your own sake, please leave this hellish place as soon as possible."