Business at the restaurant is still booming. Rachel Lan and I are busy, and for now, everything seems to be stuck in a dead loop—there’s no breakthrough in sight.
Over the past few days, I’ve tried, however slightly, to help Vincent Swallow remember his past, but nothing has worked. Still, one question keeps nagging at me: why did I end up at Vincent’s residence?
I’d been to that area before, but with so many courtyards clustered together, I somehow chose Vincent’s and walked right in. It was as if an invisible thread was guiding me, pulling me deeper inside. This feeling has only grown stronger these past few days.
Old Joe the Locksmith is still missing. We’ve investigated thoroughly, but no one has seen where he was taken.
The only lead we have now is the fake Earthly Soul, but John Chou said everything should remain as it is for now—no action. First, we can’t beat him; second, we still don’t know which faction he belongs to.
Duskfall, East Cemetery, and Nightfall are the three core factions of the Dark Banquet. The only thing we know for sure is that Wraithshade belongs to Nightfall—the rest is a mystery.
Now these three factions are locked in open and covert struggle, but for what? The answer lies only in this diary.
“Qingyuan, Qingyuan…”
I snapped back to reality and hurriedly flipped the food I was grilling—it was already starting to burn. Rachel Lan came over and patted my back. I apologized; now wasn’t the time to get lost in thought. I needed to stay calm.
John Chou and Xu Fu agree: we must stay calm. All three factions likely have something decisive in hand, which is why things are so tense. If any side falters, the moment the balance breaks, that’s our chance.
Gradually, the customers left the restaurant and I started cleaning up. These chores are meaningful to me now—they let me live an ordinary life with Rachel Lan. Besides, in this darkness, if I had nothing to do, I’d go mad.
"Let me do it, Rachel. You just wait over there."
I busied myself. I don’t need sleep, I don’t feel tired—not since I regained my memories. But my body is still human, and the sensation is strange.
"Qingyuan, do you think this isn’t good?"
I shook my head.
"Not really. But after remembering the past, all I want is to take you back—to that world filled with light."
Rachel Lan nodded. She seemed to understand—without a past or a future, a person can’t go on.
After returning home, we soon went to sleep. I held Rachel Lan in my arms, and she quickly drifted off. I kept my eyes open, missing the feeling of sleep. Even though there are no dreams in this Dark Place, I can sleep soundly.
Why did I go to Vincent’s place? Once I calmed down, I had more time to think about everything. I anxiously searched for someone who could read those words, and finding Vincent—him knowing about this—was no accident. It was inevitable.
I closed my eyes and tried to recall everything. After entering the courtyard, I walked down the alley, but when I try to remember what I was thinking at the time—I can’t. What was I thinking then?
It wasn’t until Rachel Lan woke up—six or seven hours had passed—that I realized my memory was still fragmented. I couldn’t recall anything from that time, except being surprised when I saw Vincent.
"Qingyuan, are you alright?"
Rachel Lan sat up, looking worried. I shook my head, placing a hand on her cheek and shaking my head again.
"Let me make you some breakfast."
After breakfast, I accompanied Rachel Lan for a walk down the street. We bought some clothes and returned to the restaurant, ready to start business again. But as soon as I entered, my eyes widened—it was the Earthly Soul. His face was covered, but I was sure it was him.
"What are you doing here?"
I immediately asked. The Earthly Soul smiled and replied.
"Just came to check things out. So, has that thing been opened yet?"
The restaurant wasn’t open yet, and I wasn’t planning to do business today. My instincts were finally clear—this guy wasn’t the Earthly Soul. Something about his eyes and demeanor was off.
I decided to play along and not confront him. I started grilling food.
"Let me show you what I can do."
"By the way, where are John Chou and Xu Fu? Get them to come over."
I responded with an 'okay.'
"They probably sensed you came down and will be here soon."
Rachel Lan sat behind the register, looking at the Earthly Soul with suspicion. The Earthly Soul took a sip of wine and said:
"She still can’t remember?"
I grunted in response.
"So what are you planning to do today?"
The Earthly Soul chuckled and said:
"Just wanted to take a look inside."
I took out a sheet of paper and placed it on the table. The Earthly Soul’s eyes lit up with excitement as he grabbed it and started reading. After a while, he shook his head.
"I can’t make sense of this at all. Do you guys know what it says?"
I shook my head.
"No idea."
For a moment, neither the Earthly Soul nor I spoke. All we could do was wait for Xu Fu and John Chou to arrive. The atmosphere was tense.
"Zhang Qingyuan, what do you think is the biggest drawback of surviving in this darkness?"
"No past or future, I suppose."
I replied instantly. The Earthly Soul nodded, chuckling.
"Exactly. No one here has a past or a future. That’s the nature of this darkness—time is completely frozen. So, Zhang Qingyuan, if you could leave this darkness, what would you do?"
I looked at the Earthly Soul, puzzled, and asked:
"What’s up with you today? Normally you wouldn’t talk so much to me."
(This chapter isn’t finished yet~.~ Please click next page to continue reading the rest!)
Just then, the door sounded. I got up and opened it—John Chou and Xu Fu were outside. Adam wasn’t there.
"Why did you come down?"
As soon as they entered, John Chou asked.
"Something’s up—I couldn’t sit still. So, do you have any way to decipher those words? With your brilliance…"
"Sorry, Earthly Soul. Brilliant is a stretch, but this is beyond me—and John Chou too. Only the one who created those words could possibly know. Otherwise, there’s no way to decode them. Those words are important, right?"
For a split second, the Earthly Soul’s eyes flickered. He chuckled. Xu Fu and John Chou sat down, and I brought out some wine and grilled dishes.
The mood grew heavier. John Chou and Xu Fu ate and drank silently, and the fake Earthly Soul said nothing more. I couldn’t stand the silence and spoke up.
"Earthly Soul, what are you really here for? If you’re just here to drink, you’d better head back. Isn’t that base over there important to you?"
At that moment, the Earthly Soul pulled down his veil, revealing a face none of us recognized—a middle-aged man, clean-shaven, smiling.
"Replicator—that’s my name. I once inhabited the Earthly Soul’s shadow, or you could say, I am his shadow."
I clenched my fists, glaring angrily at the Replicator. He shook his head.
"The Earthly Soul is just fine, Zhang Qingyuan. Let go of your anger. I’m here on behalf of East Cemetery to talk with you."
John Chou took a sip of wine and started laughing.
"So you’re not allied with Wraithshade, then."
The Replicator nodded immediately. Xu Fu gave a cold laugh.
"First, explain—where did our original hearts go?"
Xu Fu immediately asked harshly. The Replicator shook his head and waved his hand.
"Let’s leave that aside for now. Your Immortality Society business can wait until after our talk."
John Chou’s smile faded. He put his hands together, resting his chin, and asked seriously:
"Alright, so what do you want to discuss? Someone like you could easily defeat us and lock us up for interrogation. Why go to all this trouble? Seems things are out of your control."
The Replicator nodded right away.
"You’re smart, John Chou. Things have indeed gone beyond our expectations. The fact that you managed to open that box shocked all of us. The old locksmith has already been taken away by Duskfall."
"So what are you planning to do?"
John Chou cut straight to the point, but the Replicator just shook his head. I suddenly noticed Rachel Lan staring blankly in our direction, and realized what this guy had done.
"You—"
"There’s no problem. She’s just temporarily lost in darkness—no thought, no awareness, and it won’t affect her body. For this meeting, I don’t want any leaks."
Suddenly, waves of black light surged around us. In a flash, we were sitting in a dark space, still in our chairs.
"Now it’s safe."
"You guys are pretty meticulous in your approach."
John Chou seemed to realize something, and the Replicator nodded.
"Better safe than sorry. Right now, the three sides—just as you expected—have fallen into complete mistrust because that damn Immortality Society tricked us. It’s gotten to the point where..."
Suddenly, a burst of loud laughter rang out. Xu Fu laughed wildly, glaring angrily at the Replicator, and said coldly:
"We’re all adults here. Stop saying things that only kids would believe. Don’t you feel ashamed?"
The Replicator glared at Xu Fu, then snorted coldly.
"It really is because of you all that things turned out this way, so..."
With a bang, Xu Fu slammed the table and stood up.
"If you don’t want to talk, we can end this. Don’t blame your own incompetence on us."