Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 1110: An Absurd Story

"I want... to see the truth."

It wasn’t a firm tone, but it carried courage.

Like someone lost in a maze, cautiously exploring the pitch-black path ahead.

Luo Qiu looked at him and was silent for a moment… That gaze gave Mo Mo the feeling of standing before the ocean—like that time in Lyu Village, watching the sea, the rising and falling tides, the sunrise and moonset. It felt the same.

“So… it’s not possible?” Mo Mo said, somewhat disappointed.

Luo Qiu shook his head. “Mr. Mo Mo, do you believe what you’ve seen so far isn't real?”

Mo Mo froze. For most people, nothing is more real than what they see with their own eyes… but even sight can be deceived. And often, you can’t tell.

Because you are always within what’s “real,” or you don’t know whether it’s real or fake.

“No need to rush your decision,” Luo Qiu said with a faint smile, as light as the mist veiling a full moon. “How about listening to a story first?”

Mo Mo nodded. “Please go ahead, senior.”“It’s actually the plot of an interesting short story,” Luo Qiu said, shifting in his seat, placing his hands on the table, fingers interlocked, leaning forward slightly, and beginning the tale. “One day, a scientist invented a miraculous cream. The story begins at a press conference. On stage was a woman with facial scars. After applying the cream, her face returned to normal in just minutes.”

Mo Mo blinked but stayed quiet, listening intently.

“But that wasn’t all. The cream could regrow lost limbs. It could be consumed orally to revive the dying. It could be injected to instantly make intellectually disabled children smart.”

“Senior… are you joking? It’s just a cream?” Mo Mo frowned.

Luo Qiu ignored him and continued. “The cream’s development continued, revealing more functions. It could turn deserts into fertile fields, wastelands into forests. It could reverse aging. It could create wealth. It could even repair broken machines and upgrade them. With this cream, environmental problems were solved, wars ended, diseases and hunger became history. Eventually, the scientist solved the production issue—the cream could now be infinitely reproduced, never running out.”

Mo Mo opened his mouth, thinking, This isn’t cream anymore—why not call it a wish-granting machine?

Luo Qiu took a sip of water and continued, “People's lives became inseparable from the cream. But then governments and corporations began to panic. War was no longer profitable. Production lines halted. Stocks plummeted. The economy was about to collapse.”

Mo Mo frowned deeply.

“Then, one day, a news report claimed the cream’s ingredients included dead infants and immoral substances. Similar reports began flooding every news channel. People claimed it caused incurable diseases. Others said it was a virus. Wars broke out over it. Governments banned the cream, arrested merchants, dismantled factories. Any possession became illegal. People went from worshipping the cream to fearing it.”

“Senior, this…” Mo Mo was stunned by the absurd story.

But the story wasn’t over.

Luo Qiu’s tone was eerily calm—like a dried-up well waiting to disappear. “The scientist was arrested and sentenced, never to set foot in a lab again. The world returned to what it once was. Wars and famine reemerged. Deserts and wastelands returned. The rich remained rich, the smart stayed smart. Amputees had to use prosthetics again.”

“At the story’s end, we return to a different press conference. This time, a new cream is introduced—not magical, no bizarre effects. It can’t revive the dead, can’t make people smarter. It only treats facial scars—with continued use, over one month, two months. Slowly. But it works. The launch is a success. People embrace it.”

“The story… ends.”

The impact of this story shook Mo Mo. Countless thoughts raced through his mind. His expression turned pale. His once-polished Daoist heart felt like it was about to shatter.

He trembled, “Senior… that cream… is that the truth?”

Luo Qiu calmly replied, “It’s just a story.”

“Senior, I…”

“No need to rush your decision.” Luo Qiu waved his hand, dispersing the surrounding darkness.

Everything returned to normal. Miss Maid and Nero were still nearby. Nero, mimicking Miss Maid’s reserved posture, occasionally scratched her back or yawned.

Amid Mo Mo’s complex gaze, Luo Qiu stood up. “If you want to return, you always can. No one will stop you. But next time, I hope you already know what you want to buy.”

Mo Mo just sat there, but it felt like everything was drifting away—as if the chair was carrying him far, far from Luo Qiu, from Miss Maid, from Nero.

He could no longer see them. He was pulled far away, into endless darkness.

Mo Mo’s eyes snapped open. Everything around was white. He had returned to the dense mist outside Croaching Dragon Estate.

…

…

That morning, Ren Ziling was jolted awake by frantic knocking.

She’d drunk heavily the night before, and meeting Leng Feng again had led to more celebration. Now she had a pounding headache and a stomach in knots. Her mouth was dry.

I want to die…

Grabbing her messy hair, she opened the door to see Li Zi. She yawned, leaning on the frame, “If you don’t give me a good reason, I’m stewing you with rock sugar.”

“Wow, still our editorial department’s goddess! So pretty without makeup!!” Li Zi sparkled with survival instinct.

“Lotus seeds and rock sugar go better, you know?” Ren Ziling pinched Li Zi’s cheeks.

“No, Sister Ren—look outside!!”

“Outside?” Ren Ziling blinked.

She frowned, walked to the window, and pulled the curtain aside. Outside was a sea of white—the entire town was now engulfed in thick fog.

Li Zi flipped the room light switch repeatedly, but the lights stayed off. “See? Power’s out. No phone signal either. We’re living the true disaster experience now.”

Ren Ziling quickly brushed her hair back and gasped, “What’s going on? I thought we still had two or three days before the fog reached here! How did it spread overnight?”

Li Zi shook her head, then muttered, “Maybe the fog’s on drugs—it just blew up overnight.”

Ren Ziling rolled her eyes, then asked, “Where’s Akiko?”

“She’s packing,” Li Zi replied quickly. “Didn’t that Major Leng Feng say someone would come take us away this morning? She started early. But now, with all this… do we have to walk? Can his people even make it back? Things might be too chaotic out there to care.”

Ren Ziling shook her head and said, “No. Leng Feng is not the kind to break a promise… You stop slacking too. Pack up properly—we’re meeting downstairs in ten minutes!”

...

She was the type of woman who could be out the door five minutes after waking up—so ten minutes was more than enough.

By the time Li Zi and Akiko came downstairs to the hotel lobby with their luggage, Ren Ziling had already arrived and even smoked a cigarette. She was now staring out the glass window at the street outside.

The lobby was eerily quiet, not even a receptionist in sight. The surroundings were dim, and Ren Ziling had lit several scented candles on the front desk.

Day or night—it was hard to tell anymore.

Just then, the hotel’s main doors burst open, and a group of soldiers jogged inside. They formed two neat rows, creating a clear path down the middle.

Leng Feng, dressed in full military uniform, walked in quickly, his face serious.

Seeing the soldiers, Akiko instinctively tensed up… Leng Feng quickly approached Ren Ziling.

“Well, well, Er Lengzi, you trying to intimidate me with a whole formation now?” Ren Ziling frowned. “I already said I’d leave. You didn’t need to go this far to scare me.”

Leng Feng seemed to breathe a sigh of relief seeing that she was still safe. He motioned for her to sit, then turned to the soldiers behind him and said in a low voice, “Search!”

The soldiers immediately scattered into the rooms of the hotel.

After a while, they returned.

“Reporting, sir! Nothing found!”

Leng Feng nodded. “Understood. Wait outside and keep guard.”

Once the soldiers left, Ren Ziling realized something was off. She frowned. “Leng Feng… did something happen?”

“I can’t say for sure, but this town has become very dangerous,” Leng Feng replied gravely. “I can’t reveal much, but the plan to evacuate you all has been temporarily postponed. I’m taking you to our current base for protection.”

“We can’t leave anymore?” Akiko blurted out in shock… but quickly bit her lip, sensing her question may have been inappropriate.

Seeing she was with Ren Ziling, Leng Feng didn’t get upset. “It depends. If there's a chance, I’ll evacuate you immediately. But honestly, leaving now may be even more dangerous.”

Ren Ziling pulled Leng Feng aside and asked in a low voice, “Er Lengzi, what’s really going on? I know what can and can’t be written—I’m not clueless. But I don’t like being kept in the dark.”

Leng Feng hesitated, then pulled her even farther away and said, “There’s something in this town… something that’s started attacking people. This morning, we found a large number of corpses. All of them were completely drained of blood. Their bodies were ice-cold—like frozen blocks.”

“What?!”

Leng Feng nodded. “The fog thickened dramatically around dawn. The first team we sent to escort evacuees got trapped. When we reached them, almost everyone was dead. Only one barely survived… but he’d lost his mind and kept rambling about man-eating monsters.”

“There really are monsters?” Ren Ziling bit her thumbnail in shock—Leng Feng wasn’t the joking type. But the story was too hard to believe.

“We can’t confirm that. All we know is… something is out there,” Leng Feng said grimly. “Actually, we noticed signs last night. I rushed out because we received a report. Behind the bar you were drinking at—several corpses were found in the alley. The condition of their bodies was almost identical to the soldiers and civilians who died during the failed evacuation.”

“From this morning until now… you’re still finding bodies?” Ren Ziling asked uncertainly.

Leng Feng took a deep breath and nodded. “Yes, more and more… Even we don’t dare move carelessly anymore. Leaving the town now would be even riskier.”

Ren Ziling frowned. “And you just brought a team here like that… you’re ignoring everything else?”

“My troops are scattered across the town helping people. Before coming here, I’d already rescued dozens. What do you think I’m doing?”

“Fair enough.” Ren Ziling nodded. “Whatever needs to be done, let’s do it. I’ll come with you to your base now.”

...

Akiko didn’t look at them directly but was straining hard to eavesdrop… Li Zi glanced at her but didn’t expose her.

Instead, she kept munching on snacks she'd swiped from the hotel counter like nothing was wrong—but she caught every word of the conversation between Ren Ziling and Leng Feng.

What the hell is going on... wasn’t that drugged-up freak killed by Wang Hu with a single slap?

(End of Chapter)