Embers Ad Infinitum

Although it can be imagined from the content of the flyer that the name of the religion may be absurd and may contain typos, Jiang Baimian never expected that they would use the "anti-intellectual" banner so nakedly, giving people a sense of They claim to be retarded and feel complacent.

"Why this name?" Jiang Baimian suppressed his laughter and asked quite seriously.

Shang Jianyao answered before Odik:

"By lowering everyone's IQ, they become smarter."

Odik glanced at this nonsense guy and couldn't figure out whether he was joking or whether he was more suitable to join the "anti-intellectual religion".

Slowly exhaling, Odik explained simply:

“Just like many people believe, anti-intellectualism also believes that the destruction of the old world was because people at that time were doing research in various taboo fields, which brought about catastrophe.

"However, they further feel that this is because humans are too smart and have mastered too many things. If people in the old world didn't think much, didn't grow in wisdom, didn't read books, and didn't learn knowledge, there would be no taboo on exploration. Matters in the field will not cause the apocalypse.

"They also believe that the emergence of 'unintentional disease' and the existence of 'unintentional people' is not only a disaster, but also a revelation given by the elders: as long as mankind regresses to the level of wisdom of 'unintentional people', a new world will come. Open its doors.

“So, anti-intellectualism preaches that thinking is a trap and knowledge is poison. They hope to burn all books and eradicate all places that provide education, so that people can only rely on instinct and experience taught by their parents to live.

“As for exploring the future, just follow the guidance of Zhi Sui and listen to the instructions of a small number of God’s Chosen Ones.

"For them, thinking is a sin."

Hearing this, Shang Jianyao nodded, eager to make a judgment:

"Then they must be easy to trick."

"On the dusty earth, everyone has too much to worry about. Maybe it is a happy thing to give up thinking." Jiang Baimian said in an ironic and sighing tone.

Finally, she asked again:

"Who is the one who is against the intellectual religion?"

Odik pondered for a moment and said:

"'The Last Man', the 'Last Man' who is in charge of March."

"The last man... I remember that there is this term in the philosophical works of the old world, which refers to people who are humble, ignorant, mediocre, and full of servility." Jiang Baimian said thoughtfully. (Note 1)

Odik was a little surprised. He glanced at Jiang Baimian and said nothing.

He didn't know that "the last man" had such a meaning. Before today, he thought it was full of mystery and worthy of the title of a senior official.

After a few seconds of silence, Odik looked around and said:

"That's almost it. I hope there will be opportunities to exchange information in the future."

Jiang Baimian came back to his senses and asked with a smile:

"Why do you allow us to ask so many questions?

"We only gave one clue."

"The value of your clue is greater than the information I provided." Odik said calmly.

Jiang Baimian nodded lightly and didn't ask any more questions.

At this time, Shang Jianyao suddenly said:

"Which of your parents is from the Gray Earth race?"

This question made Odik a little confused, and he didn't understand how it came to this direction.

However, this is not something that needs to be kept secret. He replied casually:

"My father."

"What's his last name?" Shang Jianyao was excited.

Odik became more and more confused about what the other party wanted to do, so he took a step back and said in a deep voice:

"Europe."

He has always been wary of this abnormal situation because he has encountered many awakened people and understands that sometimes danger is hidden in ordinary words.

"Pfft..." Jiang Baimian laughed, "So your name..."

Their surname is Ou and their given name is Dick, and when combined, they sound like Honghe dialect.

"It's true." Shang Jianyao clenched his right fist and struck his left palm with an expression that said he was right.

"..." Odik glanced back and forth between Jiang Baimian and Shang Jianyao several times with a psychotic look. In the end, without saying anything, he turned and walked back to the hunter's guild hall.

Jiang Baimian watched him leave and asked without turning his head:

"You didn't even ask to 'make friends' with him."

"He answered too many questions." Shang Jianyao sighed.

"Yes." Jiang Baimian nodded and said, "There is still a certain bottom line when it comes to using abilities. When you 'make friends' with Captain Feilin, you will not pry into his privacy. It is mainly to make cooperation more convenient. And ensure his own safety, so there is no problem, and Odik has said everything he can. 'Making friends' will only mean finding out whether he is an awakened person, what the three abilities are, and what the price is. If you don’t show any hostility, forget it and try not to hurt innocent people.”

She took this opportunity to teach Shang Jianyao and help him establish correct views.

This is the responsibility of the team leader.

Shang Jianyao replied with three words:

"Wang Beicheng."

"..." Jiang Baimian became angry at first, and then realized, "I just made verbal assumptions, and I never really beat him!"

Shang Jianyao glanced at Jiang Baimian's raised left hand and turned his attention to Wild Wolf Alley:

"I wonder when those bars will open?"

"You want to go door to door to confirm Lin Feifei's whereabouts? And dance at every house by the way?" Jiang Baimian asked sharply.

Shang Jianyao looked shocked:

"Can you dance in the bar?"

"Stop pretending, it's not like you didn't hear the music last night." Jiang Baimian ruthlessly exposed Shang Jianyao's disguise.

Although the company's basic education does not mention what else to do in the bar besides drinking, at night, the music on West Street will not completely subside until two or three in the morning, and anyone with a brain will make certain associations.

Before Shang Jianyao could say anything else, Jiang Baimian said "hmm":

"You have to let Xiaobai do this. She is familiar with the underground trading market here and knows who to ask."

"Yeah." Shang Jianyao was very sorry, but he also recognized that the most suitable candidate for this matter was Bai Chen.

"Let's go, there's no need to wait at the guild. Will there be any new clues in a while?" Jiang Baimian took the lead in walking to the central square, preparing to do the "Weed City Folklore Survey."

This is the extracurricular homework she assigned to herself.

While walking, Jiang Baimian suddenly smiled and said:

"Everyone in our group, except you, has colors in their names, Dabai, Xiaobai and Xiaohong. You are the only one who doesn't fit in with the group."

"I am the color of sunshine." Shang Jianyao answered immediately.

Jiang Baimian said "hmm":

"Yes, Yao means sunshine..."

…………

In the evening, Bai Chen, wearing a gray scarf, led Long Yuehong into Wild Wolf Alley.

Compared with the morning, it was already very lively here, with music coming from everywhere, interwoven into dynamic melodies.

Many relic hunters who lack care will go through life and death. There is no tomorrow but today. Once they have some extra money and supplies, they will inevitably want to come over and indulge.

Whether it's alcohol or the warm embrace of women and men, they can temporarily forget the cruelty of life. They don't have to think about what tasks they will take on tomorrow, where they will take risks, and whether they can still survive.

In Weed City, where the hunter's guild is extremely powerful, this has also brought abnormal prosperity to the local bar and nightclub industry.

When many homeless settlements on the gray earth don't have enough food, some grain and fruits can be squeezed out to make wine.

At the same time, the municipal department of Weecao City cooperated very cooperatively and gave the green light, marking this street outside the living area. Even in winter, there is no need to cut off the power.

With the flashing lights, Bai Chen and Long Yuehong entered a nightclub called "Today", bypassed the dance floor where many people were twisting wildly, and came to the front of the bar.

Bai Chen bent his fingers, tapped on the bar table seven times, and said in a normal tone:

"Two glasses of Golden O'Reilly."

This is a distilled wine called Golden Olay because it was very popular in the First City and was as popular as the paper money "Olay".

The bartender who was wiping the glass raised his head and looked at Bai Chen:

"I have better recommendations."

"What is it?" Bai Chen asked cooperatively.

The bartender laughed:

“Wheat ears.

"You can go directly to the back to taste it."

He pointed to the wooden door on the other side of the bar that seemed to lead to the kitchen.

"Okay." Bai Chen turned around.

At this time, the bartender also knocked on the surface of the bar, eight times in total, with four long and three short intervals, appearing alternately.

Bai Chen didn't look back, knowing that this was the bartender telling her: the agreed code had changed, and she would use this one next time.

After pushing open the door that seemed to be the kitchen, Bai Chen and Long Yuehong passed through a room full of debris and a narrow corridor, and saw two strong men in black holding submachine guns.

After checking the code again, they were let in and walked underground along the stairs.

There is a large hall here with tables, chairs, benches and other things. Dozens of people are sitting in different places, chatting and laughing with friends around them under the illumination of fluorescent lamps.

This looked like a place for a private party, not a so-called underground trading market, which was completely different from what Long Yuehong expected.

Bai Chen cast his gaze over, looking for someone suitable to ask if he had seen Lin Feifei in the bar area.

Suddenly, her eyes froze.

On a dark red couch, a man stood up.

He is of average height, about 1.7 meters, but his arms are thick and his body is strong. He looks very powerful at first glance.

In the cold winter, this man only wore a short-sleeved black cotton T-shirt and brightly colored loose shorts, lacking enough respect for the temperature.

He has a shaved head with a green and black wolf-shaped symbol representing the First City tattooed on it, and his face is full of flesh. He is a person who can scare a child into tears by doing nothing.

Behind him were two bodyguard-like men in black. Their waists were bulging, and it was obvious that they were hiding weapons.

The man whose exact age was unclear walked towards Bai Chen step by step and showed a teasing smile:

"You really escaped?

"Do you really dare to come back here?"

His eyes were cold and there was no smile at all.

Bai Chen's body trembled slightly, and he lost his usual calmness and composure.

When Long Yuehong witnessed such a scene, although she was a little scared, she felt that she couldn't just watch like this.

The team leader said that we must protect each other... Long Yuehong gritted her teeth, took a few steps forward, and stood in front of Bai Chen.

His body was also slightly trembling, but he still looked at the bald evil man without flinching.

Uh... Actually, I'm not too short... Looking at the height of the opposite person, he suddenly had this realization.

Note 1: From Nietzsche, a concept opposite to "Superman".