MLiS – Chapter 13.5

From Heaven to Hell

In a blink of an eye; A short moment of a split second, when the consul halted his movement, Qian Xu’s fangs had punctured Luo Lan’s arm and snapped it off.

The consul was one step too late. When Luo Lan was protected in his arms, her blood had splashed out. Not only did the blood splash all over Luo Lan’s face, but it also splashed on the consul’s cold mask.

“You…”

“Your arm…” 

The consul stared at Luo Lan’s bitten arm. His icy blue eyes were full of disbelief.

Luo Lan’s countenance paled because of the pain, but her mind was full of Qian Xu. With her only hand left, she grasped the consul’s arm despairingly, “Don’t kill him! I beg you! Please…!”

The consul held the crumbling Luo Lan tightly with one of his hands. Using his other hand, with speed invisible to ordinary humans, he shot at Qian Xu without hesitation. 

A shrilling cry sounded in the boundless night.

Qian Xu swayed and slowly slumped to the ground.

“No, no…”

Luo Lan shouted and broke free from the consul’s grasp. She knelt on the ground and hastily cradled Qian Xu.

She resembled a madman. Her face was full of blood and tears. Her eyes were full of grief and despair. She used her only hand to perform various first aid actions, trying to save Qian Xu.

The consul stopped her futile move, “It’s dead! ”

Luo Lan turned a deaf ear and kept muttering, “Impossible! It is absolutely impossible…”

An hour ago, Qian Xu was still carrying her on his back. He was smiling because of her words and blushing at her kiss. He wouldn’t just abandon her like this!

She was on the ground, kneeling. She lowered her head and kissed Qian Xu’s bloody mouth. Her face was close to his face and her hand was clutching his hand. But, he was dead. Whether it was his heartbeat or his breath, there was nothing. She couldn’t hear nor feel it anymore.

“Qian Xu! Qian Xu……”

Luo Lan hugged Qian Xu’s neck tightly and bawled. Her cry was heart-wrenching. 

“Your bleeding must be stopped immediately!” The consul held her and tried to lift her up. 

With her only arm, she kept clinging to Qian Xu’s body, reluctant to let go. Sadly, the consul was stronger than her, she was powerless to resist him from lifting her up. She inclined her head and bit the consul’s arm fiercely.

The consul’s countenance didn’t change. There were no emotions in his whole person. He was still holding Luo Lan with one of his arms. With the other, he pressed the wounds on her broken arms with cloth, attempting to stop the bleeding. He forcibly lifted her up from Qian Xu’s body and supported her body to stand, wanting to take her away from there.

Luo Lan burst into tears. She didn’t look away. She stared straight at Qian Xu. Her hand was stretched out, seeking to catch him.

This time, she didn’t shrink her hand shyly like before, however, the other person wouldn’t be able to hold her hand nor smile at her anymore!

Swiftly, Luo Lan took out the Gun of Death that the consul had given her and created little distance between them. She pointed the gun at the consul’s head.

The two of them were so close to each other. 

Luo Lan was wearing a very sad expression, with blood and tears on her face. Her eyes were frighteningly blazing, as if all her emotions were transformed into raging anger, like a fire that would burn everything on its path.

The consul was very calm. His icy-blue eyes watched at Luo Lan quietly, as if he didn’t know nor care about the gun aimed at his head.

Zi Yan was so terrified that he exclaimed, “Luo Lan!”

All the soldiers lifted their guns in unison and pointed at Luo Lan.

Nevertheless, in front of the infamous Gun of Death, Zi Yan, who was crafty and resourceful, did not dare to act rashly. For the first time in his life, he begged another in a shaky voice, “Luo Lan, lower your gun! Qian Xu wasn’t killed by the Consul, he was killed by the beast! It was for your sake! In order to save you, the Consul killed that beast! If you kill the Consul, you will only be left with the roads that lead to nowhere but death! Not only that, but you will also harm Aerdes一…”

He spouted reasoning one after another. But no matter how hard he implored and urged her, Luo Lan turned a deaf ear. She remained unmoved. 

She tugged at the corners of her mouth. Her smile was ugly, as if there were endless grievances in her heart and she could cry at any moment. “When I first saw you at the banquet, I knew that you were suffering from the living dead disease. Once, I wondered, what kind of pain is the “hell on earth”? How painful is it? Today, I finally know it. You let me know it.”

The consul still watched at Luo Lan in silence. His cold mask, like usual, was without a trace of temperature.

Luo Lan set her finger on the trigger. She just needed to press it down. If she pressed it down, after a soft sound, the person who killed Qian Xu would disappear. She would be free. Everything wouldn’t matter anymore. She didn’t need to care about other things anymore. 

While Luo Lan and the consul were locked in a stalemate, Lack Luck continued to favor Zi Yan and an idea passed by his mind^[1]. He yelled, “Luo Xun!”

Luo Lan froze. The movement of her finger halted within a second.

Zi Yan quickly said, “If Qian Xu was here, without a doubt, he would agree with our method! He wouldn’t let anyone hurt you! No matter who did this to you, Qian Xu would definitely kill that person! Even if that person was himself!”

The anger in Luo Lan’s eyes twisted into grief, and her tears fell.

She slowly lowered her gun, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Zi Yan marched toward her, aching to snatch the gun from Luo Lan’s hand. Luo Lan promptly pointed the muzzle at him and asked coldly, “Where will you send Qian Xu?” ”

Zi Yan answered cautiously, “Qian Xu has no relatives. According to the usual practice, the Research Institute will have him, he will be dissected to study the一”

There was a deathly stillness in Luo Lan’s eyes. She abruptly raised her hand and fired a shot at Qian Xu’s body even before Zi Yan’s finished his answer.

Hyacinthine^[2] light hit Qian Xu’s body.

The next second, countless magnificent lights rise from Qian Xu’s body, scattering into the sky like meteors.

One trail of light after another, across the pitch-black sky without light, was like a grand and magnificent meteor shower.

The sky in the rock forest was always dark and gloomy all year round. For the first time, the sky was bright, filled with brilliant rays of light. The strange-shaped boulders were no longer ferocious and terrifying, but magnificent and attractive.

Qian Xu’s body gradually vanished into the thin air, like ice and snow. The fragments scattered into the sky and blended with the dazzling light.

Everyone was holding their breath. They watched the grand and magnificent meteor shower blankly. At this moment, they really understood why this gun was called the Meteor Shower of Death; why they could not escape and could only face Death when it was shot.

The meteor shower ended. The sky returned to the dark and gloomy sky.

There was nothing left on the ground. It was empty except for Luo Lan who was covered in blood, serving as the evidence of the former tragedy that had just happened.

Zi Yan stretched out his hand to hold her. His voice was gentle, the gentlest voice he could attempt. He begged, “Luo Lan, your wound must be treated as soon as possible. The storm is starting, Come back with me, okay?”

Luo Lan avoided his hand and trudged forward without saying a word.

Without the threat of the Gun of Death on his neck, Zi Yan undoubtedly could stop her, but the expression in her eyes made him not have the slightest amount of courage to hold her. He helplessly could only watch her brush past him.

Luo Lan trekked alone in the dark night. She was seriously injured and had only one arm left. Every step she took was rickety. She staggered and seemed like could fall at any moment. Yet, she did not fall down; she never fell down.

She had worked so hard. To escape from Death; To become a respected gene researcher; To have an independent medical license; To become someone with level A physical ability; To catch Zi Yan’s tarot card, and even to force back the consul.

However, even after so many years, it still turns out the same as before. As before, she was still all alone trekking the wasteland; As before, she was still unreconciled to bend^[3] to the whim of fate; As before, she was still left with helplessness when facing countless hardships in the dark, and just as before,  in the end, she still had nothing. 

She had no one to depend on; She had no one to protect her; She was all alone.

Zi Yan watched her, dripping with blood and struggling to stand straight, disappear into the end of the night all by herself. He recalled the scene where she tested her physical ability in the gravity chamber. Zi Yan’s heart ached. Obviously, he was the one that planned this, but right now, he utterly detested himself because of it.

————·————·————

Luo Lan staggered into the cave. She couldn’t support herself anymore and fell straight down to the cold ground.

She lost too much blood. Everything in front of her was shrouded in a heavy fog, hazy and unreal. She couldn’t see clearly past it.

From the moment she opened her eyes on the thousands of miles of barren wilderness, she had walked and stumbled along the way. It was a painful time for her, but she never thought about giving up. Even if she fell down, she would just get up again.

But now… she didn’t want to get up again.

The fierce wind blew, howling with grief and anger.

Luo Lan’s smile was empty. In the vast sea of stars of Interstellar, she was indeed just a piece of duckweed. Rather than continuing to struggle beyond hope in this living hell called Earth, it would be better to let the wind blow the sand away and bury everything!

This was their cave. Six hours ago, when they left, they promised to come back here. 

Qian Xu promised to give her another heart-shaped dinner…

If Life could not preserve the happiness of that moment, then let Death be the one to preserve the happiness of that moment forever.

That moment, where a man repeated “I like you” over and over again like a fool in her ears.

That moment, where a man deliberately brought her favorite drink and indulged her to get drunk.

That moment, where a man was silently guarding her who was sleeping.

That moment, where a man carefully prepared breakfast for her and recounted the strange story of Cupid being a heterogeneous human.

That moment, where he blushed and promised to marry her……

In her trance, she seemed to see Qian Xu. He came to pick her up. He hugged her as if she was precious.  He warmed her gradually cold body.

Darkness started to envelop her mind. Before the darkness fully embraced her, Luo Lan exhausted all her strength to shout. 

“Qian Xu, I love you!”

She shouted out her final confession to the boundless night.

A confession packed with hope. 

Hope for Qian Xu, who liked the way she liked him too much, to be happy.

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Footnotes

1. 福至心灵 – fú zhì xīn líng. When a person is favored by Fortune, he can see, know and understand things unseen before; When fortune comes, one’s mind is alert — luck brings wisdom↵

2. 紫蓝色 –zǐ lán sè. A purplish-bluish color like the violet of an orchid (紫罗兰 – zǐ luó lán) or a hyacinth.↵

3. 依旧固执倔强 – yī jiù gùzhí juéqiáng; lit. still stubborn and stubborn. 固执 and 倔强 both mean “stubbornness” but 固执 is for reluctant to admit defeat and 倔强 is sticking to one’s own point of view↵

Amoeba’s Special Corner: Flashes of Qian Xu
Longgg. Click here to go to Amoeba’s Corner.

She didn’t think she’d meet someone in a similar boat as her. She excitedly asked, “What’s your name?”

“Qian Xu.”

————·————·————

Luo Lan laughed and bent to pluck a small blue flower. She offered it to Qian Xu, “The flowers that bloom today could wither tomorrow, yet do the flowers stop blooming because of tomorrow’s withering? I won’t distance myself from you because of something that may not even ever happen.”

Qian Xu accepted the flower, “What happens if one day it does suddenly happen? If that day comes, it will truly be too late to regret it.”

————·————·————

“Can you bring me to places you like the most? I’d like to understand Alikarta better.”

Qian Xu mulled this over carefully before he said, “All right!”

Luo Lan was both surprised and delighted. “You really agree? Then, let’s make a pinky promise!”

Qian Xu couldn’t hold in his laugh. He hooked his pinky finger with Luo Lan’s, “I promise.”

“A pinky promise remains for one hundred years!” They pressed down on each other’s thumbs. “It’s an oath!”

————·————·————

Qian Xu slowly reached out his hand to Luo Lan, as if he was afraid of scaring her, and said with a very gentle voice, “Luo Xun, it’s okay. You are already safe. “

————·————·————

Qian Xu stood calmly behind her, looking at her with a smile.

————·————·————

Qian Xu stared at her, “Even if I can regain my sanity this time, it doesn’t mean I can regain it next time!”

“I’m not afraid!” Luo Lan raised her chin. “If you aren’t convinced yet, we can go out alone together tomorrow.”

“But, I’m afraid!” Qian Xu diverted his line of sight, his words were bitter and astringent, “I don’t want to kill you, nor do I want to be killed by you. The best choice for both of us is to have less contact.”.

————·————·————

Qian Xu was an orphan. He had no family. No matter how much he suffered or was in pain, no one would be concerned for him; no one would be there for him.

————·————·————

Qian Xu’s emotions fluctuated once again. In the end, his myriad of thoughts couldn’t be hidden anymore and turned into helpless sorrow, “I’m just a useless person without a future. I’m not worthy of you!”

————·————·————

Qian Xu didn’t end the call either. He sat on his bedside, listening quietly to Luo Lan’s breathing, gently rising and falling like a tide under the moonlight.

————·————·————

Knowing the question she wanted to ask, Qian Xu squeezed her hand. He gazed at her eyes and said, “I like you.”

————·————·————

Luo Lan was drunk and obsessed with his “I like you,” but Qian Xu was not impatient. He obediently complied with Luo Lan’s request and repeated “I like you” over and over again like a fool until Luo Lan fell asleep with satisfaction

Qian Xu flicked her forehead with a smile, “Where is the mischief you said you can’t control?”

.————·————·————

She kept hesitating until Qian Xu grabbed her hand and held it tightly within his palm.

.

Qian Xu complained with a straight face, “It was also like this yesterday. Reaching out just to retract it again. Ultimately it’s me who needs to take the initiative!”

.

“I can’t help it. I just like the way you like me too much.” Qian Xu slowed down to explain, for fear of Luo Lan’s misunderstanding.

————·————·————

Qian Xu hugged her. His earnest voice greeted her ears, “For someone like me, to be liked by you, I must have to be an especially lucky person! Thank you!”

————·————·————

Qian Xu gently rubbed Luo Lan’s hair with his chin, “Luo Xun. What do you even like about Qian Xu? He’s just an insignificant little man. He has no power, no money, and not even good health.”

————·————·————

As if his heart eased, Qian Xu sighed, “No one can predict when it will happen. No one can predict for what reason it will happen. Just because it can happen, it will happen. There is no if, only result”

————·————·————

“I love you! Love you more than anything. Love you more than you can ever feel. Otherwise, I won’t be here. That’s why, you must promise me this. No matter what happens in the future, you must take good care of yourself. If, one day, I mutated and can no longer regain my sanity, you absolutely must not let that beast hurt you, the person that I love the most!”

————·————·————

Qian Xu sighed with fondness, “I never think there’ll come a day where a woman proposed to me. You are the first, and definitely the last.”

“So, do you accept it or not?” Luo Lan twisted Qian Xu’s ear, with a look of “Dare you to reject me, see how I will deal with you!”

Qian Xu curled his lips up, “I accept it!”

————·————·————

He had always been alone; He was used to being alone.

He thought that this life of his was already destined to be doomed. To be born in loneliness, and die in loneliness; To be born in darkness, and die in darkness. 

Though, at this moment, he knew and really felt the feeling of home for the first time. His home was right here, right on his back.

————·————·————

Qian Xu knew Luo Lan agreed to his plan logically, but not emotionally. 

He gathered her into his arms.

He hugged her, tightly. 

This hug of his was suffocating. Luo Lan felt her breath was stolen from her and her eyes blurring. 

Then, he let her go.

————·————·————

Hyacinthine light hit Qian Xu’s body.

The next second, countless magnificent lights rise from Qian Xu’s body, scattering into the sky like meteors.

One trail of light after another, across the pitch-black sky without light, was like a grand and magnificent meteor shower.

The sky in the rock forest was always dark and gloomy all year round. For the first time, the sky was bright, filled with the brilliant rays of the lights. The strange-shaped boulders were no longer ferocious and terrifying, but magnificent and interesting.

Qian Xu’s body gradually vanished into the thin air, like ice and snow. The fragments scattered into the sky and blended with the dazzling light.

Amoeba’s Corner

Where does the wind come from?

What power of love ah. This is Tong Hua’s novel. What power of love?

Oof, this chapter is so painful. I always need to gather my courage before starting this chapter.

How many hints did you find in this chapter? Must be painful to search for it.

asdawda. Today’s Amoeba Corner is definitely longer than the chapter itself. Am I sorry because of it? No. Absolutely no.

————·————·————

Important thing! In this house, we don’t hate Yin Nanzhao, please don’t say anything hurtful about him because I am a simp for him. My heart is fragile. Tyty.

The first time I read this chapter… Safe to say, I nearly threw my phone to the nearest trash can. I went ??? What??? Did I read it wrong??? April fools chapter??? My brain shut down. I read it back and forth just to make sure I didn’t read it wrong. I mean, it’s just 13 Chapters in and Qian Xu was killed? Just like that? Tong Hua must be joking, right? Even if she really loves Luo Lan, she won’t kill another character just for her character development, right???

————·————·————

‘It’s alright, don’t worry. I have been trekking over numerous hills and streams. I have been through countless hardships. It’s alright. I’m alright. Because at the end of the journey, you are willing to hold my hand tight.’

Even after so many years, it still turns out the same as before. As before, she was still all alone trekking the wasteland; As before, she was still unreconciled to bend to the whim of fate; As before, she was still left with helplessness when facing countless hardships in the dark, and just as before,  in the end, she still had nothing. 

————·————·————

She kept hesitating until Qian Xu grabbed her hand and held it tightly within his palm.

Qian Xu, she isn’t hesitating to hold your hand anymore. Why aren’t you holding her hand back?

————·————·————

Luo Lan’s Lan (兰 – orchid) is the same Lan from 紫罗兰. The color of orchid. The color of Luo Lan. The light from the Gun of Death is Luo Lan’s.

————·————·————

The word “body” in this chapter used the same word as “corpse”, but I can’t bear to use it :(

————·————·————

Lady Luck is really on Zi Yan’s side. The Wheel of Fortune is reserved. But… Zi Yan’s heart ached. Obviously, he was the one that planned this, but right now, he utterly detested himself because of it.

There is no way for a person to plan life, Zi Yan.

If you wonder when Zi Yan made the plan. It’s in Chapter 11.2

Zi Yan gave out a smile, “A traitor that I can’t even track. It shouldn’t be an ordinary traitor.  I’m sure that person is among the seven of us.”

The consul finally raised his head with interest and motioned Zi Yan to continue.

Zi Yan cleared his throat and said solemnly, “I have a plan.”

————·————·————

Character Death Count: …1! First Blood!

……I’m sorry. I’ll be good.

Sneak-a-Peek

She was the most cooperative patient. Whatever she was told, she would do. She was told to eat, then she would eat; She was told to rest, then she would rest; She was told to let herself get examined, then she would let them examine her. However, she was as quiet as a doll. She never spoke nor cared about her body.

Obligatory Closing
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This chapter words count (excluding title, footnotes, and TL’s corner): 2051

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