Simultaneous travel: I am a talented person in all the worlds

Chapter 538 Ling Cage: Mo Yu and Mark

Linglong Moyu walked to the control panel on the wall and tapped away.

The faint red dots in the room went out one by one.

He then walked over to Mark, sat down, and said calmly, "I've turned off all the listening and monitoring equipment. No one can listen into this room."

There were only two people in the meeting room.

Mark stopped keeping a tense expression and relaxed a bit, leaning back in his chair.

Linglong Moyu took out an unlabeled glass bottle from under the table, which contained a clear, water-like liquid.

He took two more cups, poured Mark a full cup, and filled his own cup with cooled boiled water.

He casually pushed the cup in front of Mark.

Mark took it without hesitation, tilted his head back and gulped down a large mouthful. The spicy liquid burned down his throat and into his stomach, and his cheeks quickly turned slightly red.

"Hiss... That feels so good!"

He exhaled a breath of alcohol, looked at the clear water in Mo Yu's glass, and laughed, "Aren't you going to have some yourself? It's quite potent."

"Spicy" is a type of pain.

Linglong Moyu picked up his cup and explained indifferently, "For me, apart from burning my esophagus, this stuff tastes exactly the same as this cup of plain water."

"Honestly, sometimes I really feel sorry for you."

Mark took another sip, a hint of sympathy in his eyes. "How much joy in this world has been wasted."

"And there was much less pain."

Linglong Moyu didn't seem to care, calmly gazing at the water in the glass, his eyes behind his glasses indifferent and unwavering.

He was quite satisfied with his physical condition.

If he weren't devoid of pain and lacking in emotional capacity, there are many things he simply couldn't do.

Mark finished his drink, poured himself another full glass, and then got down to business:

"What do you want to say by calling me here in such a grand manner? It's not just to drag me around in front of Vatican and the Hunters to boost your own prestige, is it?"

From his familiar tone, it was clear that this "ice-faced" man who gave all the hunters a headache actually had a very good personal relationship with his hunter captain.

Linglong Moyu did not answer, but simply opened her data terminal, pulled up a file, and pushed it in front of Mark.

"Take a look at this. Your instructor, Elon, is going on a 'long journey'."

"……What?!"

The slight intoxication that had just started to set in vanished instantly.

Mark sat up straight, staring intently at the list of travelers on the terminal screen, his pupils shrinking.

Elon, deemed worthless, is to embark on a long journey!

The wine that was about to be drunk suddenly lost its flavor.

The so-called "long journey" is a cold and cruel tradition at the lighthouse.

All elderly people deemed to have lost their labor value and only consume resources will be expelled from the lighthouse and left to fend for themselves, in order to reduce the consumption of precious resources.

Today, the manna ecosystem has completely destroyed the surface environment for survival.

A long journey is no different from a death sentence.

Mark's finger traced across the screen repeatedly, as if hoping he was seeing things.

After repeatedly confirming, he frowned deeply: "Is there no way to salvage this situation?"

"The list was already prepared before you returned from this mission and was announced through the internal system."

Linglong Moyu tapped the announcement time in the lower right corner of the terminal, took a sip of water, and said calmly, "I have no veto power over the matter of 'going on a long journey.' This is the city lord's will, and I cannot interfere too much."

“…I understand. Thank you, Mo Yu, thank you for letting me know in advance.” Mark lowered his head dejectedly.

He picked up the half-empty bottle of liquor on the table, silently tightened the cap, and put it in his pocket.

Instructor Elon, that old man, liked this thing even more than I did.

"I will submit a proposal in the name of the 'Long-term Earth Ecology Observation Project' to secure more supplies for this expedition team."

Linglong Moyu paused for a moment, seemingly waiting for Mark to absorb the information, before dropping an even more bombshell:
"Furthermore, according to the flight records, the final drop location of this voyage is exactly the same as that of more than ten years ago. If you're lucky, you... might be able to get some information about them."

Mark's hand holding the glass suddenly trembled!
His eyes instantly became deep and intense.

Twelve years ago... his sister, the legendary captain of the previous Wilderness Hunters, Red Hair.

Because she fell in love with her adjutant, Dawn, she violated the Lighthouse's ironclad rule that forbade all romantic relationships.

It was Mo Yu who, on the eve of realizing that the Light and Shadow Society was going to "purify" the two of them, took a huge risk and informed them in advance.

So, in that seemingly ordinary ground mission, both Red Hair and Dawn were "killed"...

They remained in that perilous wilderness.

Although the ground is now fraught with danger and no longer suitable for human habitation.

But the place where they "died" that time was a relatively safe Old World military supply point with a large stockpile of supplies.

With the strength of Red Hair and Dawn, plus the extra weapons and supplies left for them, they... might not be without a chance of survival.

Rather than returning to the lighthouse, he was sentenced to be burned at the stake by the Light and Shadow Society and burned alive.

To be able to share a life with your loved one on dangerous ground is perhaps already a very good ending.

Mark was one of the few people who knew about this matter.

It was because of this incident that he and the seemingly cold and ruthless "Adam" became close friends who could entrust their lives to each other.

And Mo Yu had done many similar things over the past ten years. "Alright, I won't say any more. You should know what to do."

Linglong Moyu opened a physical booklet and a pen, steer the conversation back on track: "Let's talk about the specific process of this mission."

Mark composed himself, forcibly suppressing his longing for his sister and his worry for his instructor.

After organizing his thoughts briefly, he solemnly recounted the entire process of the operation in detail.

It's not much different from previous actions.

This time, the target supply point has a richer reserve, but it also presents greater dangers.

Not only did they discover a large number of spinal worms, but they also encountered a massive number of pan-evolving Devouring Beasts.

Furthermore, due to the team's decreased vigilance during the long trek, they failed to detect and counterattack in time, ultimately resulting in extremely heavy casualties.

After listening to his account, Linglong Moyu shook his head: "Your combat training is still insufficient. Or rather, that outdated training method is completely unable to adapt to the increasingly rapid evolution of the Mana ecosystem on the ground."

"Unfortunately, the training of new recruits has always been the responsibility of the city defense forces and the hunters, and I have never been able to get involved. Otherwise, your casualties should have been reduced considerably."

Mark's lips twitched.

This isn't the first time the other party has made such outrageous remarks.

But he did not refute it.

Instead, with a grave expression, he spoke of something even more important: "This time, besides supplies, we've also made a major discovery on the ground!"

"Mo Yu, I saw it... a human! A living human! Standing on a gigantic Devouring Beast!"

Mark stared intently at Mo Yu, hoping to see even the slightest hint of shock on the other's perpetually icy face.

However, he was disappointed.

Linglong Moyu simply took a sip of water and jotted down a few notes in her notebook, showing absolutely no surprise.

"You... how come you're not surprised at all?" Mark finally couldn't help but ask.

"Is there anything surprising?" Linglong Moyu looked at him strangely.

Mark frowned, then said excitedly, "We've always believed that there are no other human survivors left on the ground! The Lighthouse is the only remaining spark of human civilization on this planet!"

"The findings of this mission have completely overturned a view we've held for decades! If other survivors are still living on the ground, it means that humans do have a way to survive on the ground!"

"Perhaps, we can also leave this flying iron coffin and return to live on the ground! Isn't this discovery astonishing?!"

Linglong Moyu slowly took a sip of water, and waited for Mark's emotions to calm down before speaking slowly: "To correct you, I have never agreed with the foolish idea that 'the lighthouse is humanity's only hope.' So, it's not 'we.'"

"Humans have lived on this planet for countless millennia, and this is not the first time in history that we have encountered a global ecological disaster."

"The Devouring Beasts may be terrifying, but compared to the barbaric era when our ancestors faced those huge and ferocious prehistoric beasts in the primeval jungle with their bare hands, they were not much different."

“The surface mana ecosystem may be harsh, but compared to the Ice Age, in terms of the difficulty of survival, it may even be worse.”

"But we humans still exist today!"

Linglong Moyu put down her water glass, looked calmly at Mark, and her eyes behind her glasses gleamed with rationality:

"And what makes you think that a mere mana ecological disaster can lead to the complete extinction of the human species?"

“Listen, Mark. Humanity abandoned the surface not because the Mana ecosystem was invincible, but simply because, in the eyes of those in power who truly possessed cutting-edge technology, the ‘overall cost-effectiveness’ of continuing to fight on this planet was not high.”

"So they chose to abandon this planet and go to other more habitable planets. And we are just 'dregs' abandoned by them and by that era."

It must be said that his rise to his current position is by no means accidental.

At least, these words are indeed... inspiring enough.

Mark remained silent.

This was not the first time Mo Yu had mentioned this point to him.

Back when Hongkou accepted Moyu's advice and chose to stay on the ground, he had preached a similar idea.

However, at the time, Mark only took this as a comfort, an excuse to accept his sister's "death," and never truly believed it.

It wasn't until this mission that he personally witnessed traces of human survival on the ground.

He then truly realized that what Mo Yu had said back then was not a vague deception, but a visionary foresight!

Linglong Moyu didn't dwell on the topic any further; he closed his notebook.

"Let's get down to business. Later today, the city lord will be holding a high-level meeting of the Lighthouse, and your name is on the list of attendees."

He paused, then added, "I've already spoken to you about the hunters' casualties. So, Charles shouldn't bring that up again and attack you in the meeting."

"However, given his personality, he'll probably find other ways to annoy you."

"It doesn't matter."

Mark shrugged, already used to it.

He was more concerned about another question: "But why was I invited to attend this high-level meeting as well?"

Linglong Moyu shook his head, feigning ignorance: "I haven't received any related information either. It was the city lord who personally forced your name into the system."

He casually guessed, "Perhaps it's because Instructor Elon is about to leave, and the city lord intends to hand over his vacant position to you."

Upon hearing this, Mark showed no sign of joy; instead, his brows furrowed even more tightly.

Although he didn't actively seek this position, taking over at this critical juncture still gave him the feeling of climbing up by stepping on the corpses of his mentor.

Linglong Moyu watched Mark's departing figure silently until the heavy metal door closed again.

He casually tossed the notebook onto the table, a playful smile playing on his lips.

"Don't care? Ha, I hope... you really can not care."

(End of this chapter)