Chapter 249: That's Not Funny at All
Chapter 249: That's Not Funny at All
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
After the explosion, the propulsion system that lost control finally ended its madness. The main part of its engine was blown up, causing big hole in it. Propulsion vents as well as a long piece of component even fell off the engine, after which they were pushed into the endless space by the force of the explosion. It did not matter if the rest of the engine was still working, it was unlikely to produce any more propulsive force.
As the main engine shut down and the rest of the surrounding devices quieted down, Hao Ren saw flares in the other parts of the floating isle. The remaining normal thrusters were trying to adjust the island's stance and recover it from the frantic tumbling. The crisis was finally over.
Y'zaks dissipated his demonic power and finally relaxed. "I haven't been so nervous for a long time. This reminds me of the time I fought in my hometown."
They flew towards the floating propulsion system. The engine had burst and left behind a deep crack. The place had become unrecognizable. Hao Ren took a long time to find his way back from the twisted metal remnants and the scorching haze. Only half of the maintenance area was left, but fortunately, the power of the explosion stopped there. The maintenance passages and gates were not damaged. Additionally, the remains of the elf, which was placed near the second gate, was not affected. Hao Ren then brought the body back to the surface.
The artificial gravity in the area seemed to have recovered a little. Although things still felt uncomfortable, at least, they could walk normally.
A large group of elves had gathered outside the exits. Except for the sorcerers who were still repairing the deep crack, almost all the elves who were involved in the rescue gathered forward. Hao Ren was startled by the crowd, but he put the body on his shoulder down on the ground first and said, "I found a victim..."
The elves calmed down, and a wounded man with bandages on his arm squeezed through the crowd and sighed. "It's Ackerton. He was trapped at the bottom of the room when the explosion happened... But luckily, his body has returned intact, thank you."
Hao Ren did not know how to accept this gratitude. At this time, two elves were rushed through the crowd. They were two female elves who looked slightly different in terms of age. Their wrists as well as their arms were in bandages, and there were blood stains on their faces. Apparently, they were victims of the explosion. The two elves pounced on Ackerton's body, weeping sadly. Someone explained that they were Ackerton's wife and daughter. The three of them worked in the same unit, and had just moved into town recently. Their new life had not even begun when it was ended abruptly by the accident.
The older elf recovered faster. She wiped away the tears on her face and looked at Hao Ren gratefully. She then patted her daughter's back lightly and said, "Mana, later, tell the ration officer that we will take two servings of rationing from now on."
Hao Ren remembered that there was some kind of joke like this on Earth, but now he thought the joke was not funny at all!
Perhaps the elves had been living such a life for too long, making them used to certain things. They were sad for the passing of their family members, but at the same time, they were still able to think about reducing their rationing quota. It was a habit that formed under thousands of years of high-pressure. It was hard for the human beings who were born on Earth with abundant resources to imagine. Lily and Vivian, who had been outside helping the wounded and cleaning up the collapsed buildings as a result of the explosion, also ran to Hao Ren. They had seen a lot of death, but they still felt sad when they saw the scene before them. The MDT's voice appeared in Hao Ren's mind. "If only the priest of the goddess of life was here, or if we had a universal resurrection device, people who have died within hours could still be resurrected."
Hao Ren was about to say something, but Vivian suddenly said hesitantly, "Maybe I can try?"
"How?" Hao Ren looked at her questioningly.
"The body looks intact," Vivian said, not quite confidently, "I don't know if my blood works... I used to save people with my blood but the success rate is only one out of five. I'm different from the other Blood Clan members in my area..."
"Let's try it first." Hao Ren quickly pushed Vivian forward while encouraging the not-so-confident vampire. "Anyway, things can't be worse."
Vivian politely requested the mother and daughter, who were immersed in grief to step aside. In their puzzled eyes, the vampire girl drew a complex rune on the dead elf's chest with her Blood Mist. The rune then slowly penetrated into his body. At the same time, Vivian's nails grew rapidly until they became as sharp as a bayonet. She whispered something after the Blood Mist completely penetrated his body. After that, without hesitation, she stabbed her nails into the heart of the dead elf!
Hao Ren heard her whisper, "Tathagata, Guanyin, Jesus, Virgin Mary, 12345 please bless me. Don't let me stab the wrong place..."
Immediately, he understood what the one out of five success rate meant: Just a simple act of praying for help from gods took her half an hour to decide which god she needed. This time, she even included the unreliable Raven 12345. It might have been better if she did not include Raven 12345.
However, this time the name of Raven 12345 seemed to have really worked. Shortly after the spell, the elf's body suddenly trembled and he opened his eyes with an odd sense of stiffness.
The elves were in an uproar while the mother and daughter were totally stunned. Hao Ren quickly dragged Vivian and Lily out of the crowd before the situation became chaotic. He looked back at the chaotic scene with worry and asked, "Did you turn him into a vampire? Why was the process different from what I imagined? I thought you were going to bite—"
"That is the way to transform low-level blood servants." Vivian waved her hand and explained, "From the viewpoint of the Blood Clan, it's like food processing, like dipping your food in some sauce when eating. Although simple, the consciousness of the blood servant is fragmentary, and it can only obey the instructions of those from the Blood Clan. I used a more advanced transformation method."
Lily frowned and asked, "Since he is already a vampire, does he need to suck blood in order to survive from now on? There should be no other vampires who can live like normal people except for you..."
"No, I have tried this before. I don't know if my blood is special or if there's something wrong with it. The people I have revived were somewhat afraid of light, but they could live on like ordinary people. Although they would occasionally have blood-sucking impulses, it can easily be controlled. They can survive by eating normal food." Vivian frowned and said, "I just don't know why, the success rate of my conversion is always only one out of five, whether it be the living or the dead. However, the success rate of transforming superior descendants of the Blood Clan is 100%. The people I usually transform are simply humans without any special ability."
Then Hao Ren said, "You should let 12345 examine you. There must be something wrong with your body..."
At that moment, a speeding car suddenly came from the center of the city and stopped in front of them. A familiar elf jumped off the car. It was Hilda's only son, Vimm. He bowed before Hao Ren and the rest of them, and said, "My mother sent me to pick all of you up. She is waiting for you at the tower in the Royal District."
Hao Ren then remembered he had to go and meet Hilda. He quickly nodded and said, "Oh, right, I still have to discuss something with Hilda. But, the Mobile Data Terminal over there..."
He looked at the scene where the deep crack was and saw that the MDT was still lying in the middle of the temporary, energy charging equipment pile. The dome above was emitting even, soft rays of light with the help of the MDT. Obviously, it was unable to leave the spot at the moment.
"You go ahead with your work," the MDT's voice came from afar. "I'll go and meet you once these elves don't need my help anymore... Oh my, just don't let me die of exhaustion..."
Hao Ren quickly got on the levitating car and left the MDT on the scene.
The levitating car passed over the city. Hao Ren could see the aftermath of the disaster through the windows on both sides of the car.
Although the tumbling floating island was stopped in time, the concussion had caused great damage to the fragile city, where buildings and bridges collapsed. One could also see a huge, deep crack in the ground. Hao Ren could even see the mechanical structure beneath the city and the complex pipes shimmering in some parts of the deep crack: The floating island built by the elves of Aerym was like a living giant. Its interior was covered with an energy transmission network akin to blood vessels. The solid ground was carrying the city, but now the shell of the island was cracked, and the complex structures beneath it were exposed viscerally. It was horrifying.
A lot of levitating cars were leaving the Royal District. There were also lots of people on the ground. They were the civilians in emergency shelters. Now that the biggest crisis was over, they had to immediately return to work, rebuild their homes, restore production, and repair the ground as well as the equipment beneath it. They did not have time to rest. This fragile country had to remain in uninterrupted maintenance and repair mode in order to survive.
The tower in the Royal District finally appeared in front of them.