Beyond the Timescape

Chapter 8: Three Sets of Bowls and Chopsticks

Inside the Scavenger Camp, Captain Lei led the way with Xu Qing trailing close behind. The intense midday sun beat down on the earth, washing over them.

From a distance—one tall, one short; one old, one young—they painted a rare picture of harmony in this brutal world.

Or perhaps it was simply the massive python corpse slung over Captain Lei’s shoulder that kept the peace. The scavengers who hadn’t gone to the beast arena took one look at the carcass and wisely gave them a wide berth.

Xu Qing relished the feeling. Between the promise of a snake meat feast and the sunlight warming his face, a rare sense of comfort settled over him. Anticipation gnawed at his stomach.

Every time his cold gaze flicked to the dead python, his mouth watered.

He liked eating snake.

Captain Lei lived in the middle ring of the camp.

Unlike the sturdy brick-and-tile manors of the inner ring or the squalid, makeshift tents of the outer ring, the middle ring consisted mostly of stone-and-wood structures. Captain Lei’s home was a set of three small, interconnected huts.

Though modest in size, they were a paradise compared to Xu Qing’s hovel in the slums. The property even boasted a small enclosed courtyard—a true luxury in this wasteland.

Captain Lei pushed open the bamboo gate. As Xu Qing’s hyper-vigilant eyes scanned the perimeter, the old man hauled the python toward the furthest hut, casually pointing a weathered finger at the middle one.

“Kid, you’ll sleep there from now on. Get settled. I’ll call you when the food is ready.”

With that, Captain Lei disappeared into the side room. Moments later, the heavy thud of a meat cleaver echoed through the yard.

Xu Qing swallowed hard. He completed a meticulous sweep of the courtyard before stepping into the middle hut. It was spartan: a bed, a set of bedding, a table, and a chair. Nothing else.

The floor was spotless. The table and chair were free of dust, clearly wiped down on a regular basis. The bedding had been scrubbed clean and carried the crisp scent of sun-dried fabric.

Xu Qing was deeply satisfied.

He hated large spaces. He preferred small, confined rooms where he could take in every detail at a single glance, mapping the entire layout in his mind. It made him feel secure.

After thoroughly inspecting every corner, Xu Qing eyed the pristine bed. He hesitated, then opted to sit directly on the hard floor instead.

Crossing his legs and closing his eyes, he began his daily cultivation.

As spiritual energy flowed into his body, the sharp sizzle of hot oil drifted over from the adjacent hut. Soon, a rich, mouth-watering aroma seeped through the cracks in the stone and wood walls, filling the small room and drawing a low, hollow growl from Xu Qing’s stomach.

It smelled incredible.

Xu Qing swallowed involuntarily, his eyes snapping open to stare at the wall separating him from the kitchen.

After years of starving in the slums, he couldn’t even remember the last time he had smelled real food.

Ruthlessly suppressing the desperate hunger pangs, he forced his eyes shut, calmed his breathing, and resumed his cultivation.

Time slipped away, and dusk soon fell over the camp.

“Dinner’s ready!”

Captain Lei’s voice broke the silence. Xu Qing, having just completed his circulation cycle, snapped his eyes open.

He rose and stepped out of the hut. Captain Lei stood at the entrance of the side room, waving him over.

Peering past the old man, Xu Qing spotted the dining table. It was laden with seven or eight different snake dishes: deep-fried, braised, steamed, and a thick snake stew.

Captain Lei was clearly a master chef; the spread was a masterpiece of color, aroma, and flavor.

Xu Qing stared, his gaze locked onto the feast. Captain Lei chuckled, turned around, and went inside to set the table.

Xu Qing followed him in. The aroma was intoxicating up close, but he didn’t sit down. He watched Captain Lei arrange the tableware, his pupils suddenly contracting.

Three bowls. Three pairs of chopsticks.

“Is someone else joining us?” No matter how ravenous he was, the sight of the third set instantly triggered his survival instincts, overriding his hunger. He looked at Captain Lei, his voice low and guarded.

“Relax. It’s just a habit.” Captain Lei’s tone was flat, though a fleeting shadow of reminiscence crossed his eyes before vanishing. “It’s for someone who… will never come.”

He took a seat.

Xu Qing nodded. The moment he sat down, his self-control snapped. He grabbed a chunk of deep-fried snake meat with his bare hands and tore into it.

It was scalding hot, but he didn’t care, grease coating his lips and chin as he devoured it. After finishing the piece, he licked the grease from his lips and reached for the braised snake meat. Captain Lei cleared his throat.

“Use chopsticks.”

“Oh.” Xu Qing clumsily picked up the chopsticks, adjusted his grip, then stabbed a piece of braised meat and wolfed it down.

The entire meal passed in silence, though their eating styles were a stark contrast. Captain Lei chewed slowly and deliberately, unlike a typical scavenger, taking only two or three bites from each dish. Xu Qing, on the other hand, ate ravenously, his appetite far exceeding Captain Lei’s.

Watching Xu Qing eat, Captain Lei couldn’t help but ask, “Why aren’t you eating in small bites like you did with the mantou I gave you earlier?”

Xu Qing swallowed the snake meat in his mouth forcefully, looked up at Captain Lei, and answered seriously, “The mantou was yours. This snake meat is mine.”

One was food given by another, the other was his own food shared with another. In the boy’s simple logic, what belonged to him was naturally eaten with more justification.

Captain Lei was both amused and exasperated. He watched Xu Qing continuously poke at the snake meat with his chopsticks and drink the stew, but he also noticed the boy didn’t touch the portions of each dish closest to him and drank the stew with restraint. He only ate his own share with a clear conscience.

“That python of yours was quite large. It should last about half a month. And the skin and bones have some value too, so…” Captain Lei said casually.

“I’ll pay the rent. Don’t use that to offset it,” Xu Qing interjected.

The snake meat was repayment for the mantou and sleeping bag along the way. The value of the skin and bones was repayment for covering up the incident with the broken ox tent. As for Captain Lei taking him out of the ruins and into the camp, that was a favor, a debt of gratitude. Xu Qing felt it was improper to settle it with material things, so he kept it in mind.

Captain Lei looked deeply at Xu Qing, seeing the seriousness in his eyes and his clear distinction between gratitude and obligation. He nodded, thought for a moment, and spoke again.

“Kid, you must have had many guesses about me along the way.”

Xu Qing didn’t speak, but his eating slowed slightly.

“Everyone calls me Captain Lei. As for my real name, it doesn’t matter. No one in the Scavenger Camp uses their real name.”

Captain Lei picked up a piece of steamed snake meat with his chopsticks and chewed it slowly.

“I have this title because I have a few friends in the Scavenger Camp I can trust with my life. We formed our own squad. The name is a bit cliché—it’s called Thunder. Usually, we take jobs separately. If we encounter something more difficult, the whole team gathers to complete it. Including me, there are four of us. The other three are out on a mission and haven’t returned yet. When they come back, I’ll introduce them to you one by one. From now on, you’ll follow us as a new member of the squad, taking jobs to earn resources for survival and cultivation.”

Captain Lei seemed somewhat full and put down his chopsticks, looking at Xu Qing.

Xu Qing wasn’t surprised by the last five words. He figured if he could sense Captain Lei was a Rogue Cultivator, then after this much contact, even if he was in the Body Refinement stage, Captain Lei could naturally discern his background through observation.

“Okay,” Xu Qing replied without hesitation, nodding.

This also made him secretly relieved. Having grown up in the slums, he knew deeply that in this world, there was no such thing as unconditional giving or help. Everything had a reason.

“Keep eating. I’m old; eating too much is hard to digest.”

Captain Lei coughed a few times, his face flushing slightly but quickly returning to normal. He stood up and walked out, saying, “The spiritual energy in this world is like poison. The way you cultivate so diligently on the road, you might not get far before being mutated by the Mutagen. Cultivation should be steady and solid, not rushed.”

Xu Qing remained silent.

The old man, now at the door, turned to look at Xu Qing and shook his head. “But cultivating like you do is also right. The Scavenger Camp and the adjacent Forbidden Zone are different from where you were before. Because of the resources in the Forbidden Zone, this place is more of a gathering spot for low-level Rogue Cultivators and desperadoes. Since you live here, you’ll inevitably have to venture into the Forbidden Zone. More cultivation is good.”

Captain Lei left.

Xu Qing sat alone until he had eaten all the snake meat. He didn’t leave immediately. Instead, he cleared the bowls and chopsticks, washed them, put them away, and then returned to his hut.

Sitting cross-legged, he resumed his cultivation.

Xu Qing understood clearly: if he didn’t want to barely survive, bending over to let others control his life and death, then his own strength was the foundation of everything. Especially in this Scavenger Camp, there were many Rogue Cultivators—more than he had seen in his six years combined—and each one was no pushover. If the slums were a dog’s den, this place was a wolf’s lair. If he didn’t work hard, he might die without a burial ground from a conflict or dispute before even being mutated.

As for the Mutagen, Xu Qing knew from the Sea Mountain Technique bamboo slip that there were Pills to counteract it. Though they only treated the symptoms and not the root cause, they could still help. He had already learned the name of this Pill from the scavengers’ conversations on the road: White Pill. The nearby Forbidden Zone was rich in the important herbs needed to make White Pills, so this camp must have White Pills for sale.

Thinking of this, Xu Qing touched the spot on his chest where the Purple Crystal was embedded. Over this period, he had clearly felt that besides his recovery ability, both his speed and strength had increased greatly. This was related to reaching the first layer of the Sea Mountain Technique, but Xu Qing felt that his first layer seemed different from the one-tiger strength described in the technique. “I could kill many tigers,” Xu Qing murmured, sensing the spiritual energy within him. Through his diligent cultivation on the road, he seemed close to reaching the second layer.

“Tonight, I’ll break through to the second layer,” Xu Qing said with determination in his eyes, closing them and beginning to meditate.

Soon, spiritual energy surged from all directions. The spiritual energy outside the Forbidden Zone had much less Mutagen compared to inside, which made the cultivation speed relatively faster. Xu Qing had noticed this yesterday in the beast arena’s barracks. Now, opening his body fully to absorb and meditate, the faint purple light under his leather coat flashed intermittently.

Time passed, and gradually, light thumping sounds came from within Xu Qing’s body. Black impurities were once again expelled from his sweat pores. His entire body’s flesh and blood, nourished, seemed to become more resilient, with a stronger power gradually bursting forth.

At the same time, in the night outside, the little girl whose bamboo token Xu Qing had exchanged during the day approached the courtyard of his residence. She stood there hesitantly, as if wanting to knock but feeling anxious. After a long while, she seemed to gather her courage and gently knocked on the bamboo gate, but the sound was too faint to be heard inside.

Just as the little girl knocked, the thumping sounds within Xu Qing’s body reached their peak. With a roar in his mind, Xu Qing opened his eyes. Purple light flashed in his gaze again, and joy appeared in his expression. He looked down at his arm, where a second Mutation Point had appeared.

Qi Condensation, second layer.