Memory

Translator: Cinder Translations

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"Fatty," Jiang Cheng suddenly said as he looked at him, "How about you climb back up the tree?"

Following the direction where Chen Ran and Su Xiaoxiao were heading, Fatty also followed Jiang Cheng. The deeper they went into the forest, the more they could sense something strange about the place.

At first glance, every tree here seemed the same, but the longer they looked, the more a strange feeling would suddenly surge up, as if the trees were changing.

This feeling immediately caught Jiang Cheng's attention, and even Fatty noticed it.

They casually picked a tree and circled around it. The longer they looked, the stronger the eerie sensation became, as if the tree was constantly changing.

"Doctor," Fatty swallowed nervously, "Do you feel it?"

"Mhm," Jiang Cheng rubbed his chin and said, "In my subconscious perception, this tree is constantly changing, but my eyes tell me it hasn't changed."

"Yes, yes," Fatty nodded repeatedly. He didn't have as big a vocabulary as Jiang Cheng, but he could clearly feel the sensation Jiang Cheng described.

This tree... was constantly changing, and this change was irreversible, non-repetitive.

At least, that's how it felt to the two of them.

"Stop looking," Jiang Cheng interrupted Fatty, then started walking in the designated direction. "Let's catch up with them first and go see that stone platform."

Along the way, Fatty closely followed Jiang Cheng's side. Even though Jiang Cheng complained a few times that Fatty was blocking the way, Fatty shamelessly brushed it off.

"Doctor," Fatty said proudly as he leaned in, "Don't you feel like we're one and the same?"

Jiang Cheng squinted his eyes, carefully scanning his surroundings while speaking softly, "If you had said that before you complimented me on being an orphan, I might have believed it."

Grumbling, Fatty closed his mouth shut.

Ever since accompanying Jiang Cheng, Fatty felt like his nerves had become much stronger. In the past, if he encountered something like this, he would've been too scared to think, his mind going blank. But now, although he was still scared, it was just a bit of fear.

Other than fear, everything else was pretty normal. Even though he was being watched by several pairs of eyes last night, especially the old woman's gaze, he actually fell asleep quite soundly.

If this was before he met the Doctor, he wouldn't even dare to imagine it.

He had evolved!

Or rather, progressed!

He could even bicker with Jiang Cheng in the midst of danger. These were actions he performed unconsciously, but after having warm conversations with Jiang Cheng, his nerves would relax and he wouldn't feel so tense.

"Doctor," Fatty lowered his voice, "Should we hurry up? With Su Xiaoxiao leading them, they'll probably be much faster than us."

Jiang Cheng shook his head, "No, it's too quiet here. If we walk too fast, we'll be noticed."

"Then Doctor, they should've arrived at the giant stone platform before us. But if they get there first and don't find us, won't that expose us?" Fatty tilted his head and asked.

"Not necessarily," Jiang Cheng said. "After all, no one knows how strange the giant stone platform really is, or what kind of effects it will produce."

"Su Xiaoxiao's description is probably just about the surface. I have always felt that the stone platform is not so simple," Jiang Cheng continued.

"Can something that can revive corpses just be as it shows on the surface?" Fatty thought Jiang Cheng might have gone crazy.

"Fatty," Jiang Cheng suddenly asked, "What do you think of the people in Blackstone Town?"

Fatty froze for a moment, then stammered, "Aren't they... the things that were, uh, assimilated?" He blinked, seemingly not understanding the purpose of Jiang Cheng's question, "What else could they be?"

"Do you think they know they are the products of assimilation?" Jiang Cheng asked again.

"They... should know, right?" Fatty's tone shifted slightly. From his expression, he tried to sound assured, but his voice betrayed him.

He hesitated.

This question was fundamental, a matter of either-or, there was no room for doubt.

Fatty became more serious.

Soon, he figured out the reason why Jiang Cheng had asked this.

It concerned the intentions of the things in Blackstone Town.

Not giving Fatty more time to think, Jiang Cheng continued, "Fatty, I think they probably know. Even if they didn't know before, over time, they would feel that this body is different from their old one."

"And most importantly, they still have the memory of that stone platform."

"I think if they've forgotten the memory of being killed and resurrected, then their memory about the strange stone platform should also have been stripped away." Jiang Cheng said. "They have no reason to remember it."

Fatty thought for a while and then nodded. "That's right, if their previous memories were erased, then they shouldn't have any memory of the stone platform."

"Right," Jiang Cheng said, "Now, let's assume the people in Blackstone Town know that they're not truly human. They're just monsters with human bodies and emotions. Then..." Jiang Cheng suddenly looked at Fatty, "Why do you think they would want to destroy the curse?"

"Put it another way, they're able to survive only because of this so-called curse. If the curse is broken, what will they become?"

Hearing this, Fatty slowly widened his eyes and looked at Jiang Cheng in horror. "They... they'll turn back into corpses!"

"Maybe," Jiang Cheng gave an ambiguous answer, "But I don't think it'll be anything good. To be blunt, it's probably worse than now. At least they can survive, but if the curse is broken, they..."

Jiang Cheng didn't finish his sentence, but Fatty already understood what he meant.

"So, their goal isn't to destroy the curse at all?" Fatty said. "What they told us about keeping the flame in the lighthouse burning is all a lie!"

"It's a lie, but I guess keeping the flame burning in the lighthouse must benefit them in some way," Jiang Cheng glanced strangely at Fatty. "Otherwise, they wouldn't go to such lengths."

"What benefit?" Fatty swallowed nervously.

"Think about it from their perspective," Jiang Cheng pushed aside an obstructing branch, and his pace slowed down. "If you were them, what would you want most?"

"I want to escape from Blackstone Town! I don't want to stay in that dark place for the rest of my life!" Fatty suddenly realized something and excitedly said, "So Doctor! They just want to escape from the prison-like Blackstone Town, not break the curse!"

"Breaking the curse... and escaping from Blackstone Town on the sea are two different things!"

Jiang Cheng nodded, and his next sentence stunned Fatty. "Fatty," he raised his eyelids and slowly said, "Do you really think that stone platform was something they discovered by accident?"

(End of the Chapter)

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Translated 4 Series, 1.65K+ Chapters and 2.01M+ Words.