Night's Nomenclature
Chapter 258: A Promising Future

"Teacher Tian, when are we leaving?" Qing Chen asked, needing a precise time.

Going to Xian City meant facing an unfamiliar city, an unknown environment, and possibly unknown Time Travelers.

And the crisis in Luo City hadn't been resolved.

Qing Chen knew that after angering Huan Yu, the other party would definitely make a move in the short term, so he specifically instructed Liu Dezhu to act alone to give the other party an opportunity.

He couldn't leave Luo City with this unresolved.

Tian Hailong said, "In eight days, I'll take you to Xian City then. It's only a little over an hour by high-speed rail. Tell me your ID numbers these few days, and I'll book the tickets."

"Okay," Qing Chen said, "Thank you, teacher. I'll go home and eat."

"Mm, you all go home and eat," Tian Hailong waved his hand. The focus of this AMC mathematics competition was Qing Chen; the head of the grade had specifically instructed that Qing Chen must be persuaded to participate.

The participants were, first, the top three: Xu Zimo, Wang Jiale, and Qing Chen; then, Zhou Xuan Ying, who consistently scored 150 in math among the top ten, and Xia Xiaoran, who ranked ninth.

As the five left the office, Xu Zimo, the long-haired girl who had been watching Qing Chen, said, "I know you're short of money, so you won't be hiding your abilities this time, right?"

Qing Chen was taken aback.

A particularly difficult monthly exam in the first year of high school: he scored 690, Xu Zimo scored 645.

It seemed that from that day on, Xu Zimo had been remembering that incident.

When rumors started circulating that Qing Chen only wanted to score 690 points, she was the first to believe it.

Compared to those who liked to listen to rumors, she knew better how difficult that monthly exam was. Even their class teacher at the time said that two of the major math problems were deliberately beyond the syllabus, and the English reading comprehension was also deliberately beyond the syllabus; it was normal to not do well.

Yet Qing Chen still scored 690 points.

This meant the rumors were true.

Later, Xu Zimo studied even harder, almost always ranking first in the grade, steadily surpassing Qing Chen.

But the problem was, Qing Chen's score remained 690, unchanged.

This made Xu Zimo feel a little breathless, because she knew Qing Chen wasn't trying his best, and even if she won, it wouldn't mean anything.

Qing Chen glanced at Xu Zimo: "I always try my best."

"Okay," Xu Zimo pondered, "Let's go together this time; I can ask you for advice on study methods."

Zhou Xuan Ying (fifth place) and Xia Xiaoran (ninth place) looked over, surprised. Was the top student asking the third-place student for advice on study methods?

However, Qing Chen said earnestly, "My study methods aren't suitable for you. I'm serious."

Having said that, he turned and left.

Leaving Xu Zimo pursing her lips behind him.

In fact, Qing Chen didn't care much about the school's curriculum anymore.

The old saying goes, "live and learn," and he hadn't stopped learning, instead studying harder than before. But his "syllabus' was no longer limited to school.

Qing Chen had a broader perspective.

...

...

At noon, when school let out, Hu Xiaoniu and Zhang Tianzhen weren't taken home to Xingshu Road; instead, they were picked up by a driver and taken to the Huayang Hotel in Luo City.

When Hu Xiaoniu got out of the car, Hu Dacheng's secretary came to pick them up.

As the middle-aged secretary led Hu Xiaoniu and Zhang Tianzhen into the hotel, he said to them, "Boss arrived in Luo City this morning."

"Uncle Chen, why did Dad suddenly come to Luo City again?" Hu Xiaoniu was puzzled. His father, Hu Dacheng, was very busy, spending about 300 days a year on airplanes—a typical frequent flyer.

However, after the time travel incident, he had come to this third-tier city, Luo City, twice in one month.

From this perspective, Hu Xiaoniu also sensed his father's importance of the Inner World, but he hadn't been able to bring anything back from the Inner World to help the family business.

This made Hu Xiaoniu feel a little ashamed, until the last time travel when he finally found a way to get a foothold.

Hu Dacheng's secretary explained to Hu Xiaoniu, "There's a special matter this time, and Zhang Tianzhen's parents also asked Boss to bring some daily necessities."

In the hotel private room, Hu Xiaoniu was surprised to find a familiar Face^[-]: "Uncle Zhang, why are you here too?"

Uncle Zhang, Zhang Chengze, was a close friend of Hu Dacheng's who had helped the Hu family a lot.

Zhang Chengze smiled, "In the blink of an eye, Xiaoniu has grown so tall. Come, keep me company for a couple of drinks."

Hu Dacheng glanced at him, "They still have class in the afternoon; they can't drink."

"Alright," Zhang Chengze said with some regret.

"Dad, did you come to Luo City on official business?" Hu Xiaoniu subconsciously thought they were here to discuss business and incidentally check on him.

But Hu Dacheng said, "We're here specifically to find you."

"Ah?" Hu Xiaoniu was surprised. "What happened?"

Hu Dacheng gestured for Secretary Chen to leave the private room, and then Zhang Chengze pointed to his arm, "Xiaoniu, I got a countdown on my arm this morning, and I think I've also become a Time Traveler."

Hu Xiaoniu gasped. The Internet consensus on the age range of Time Travelers is 10 to 35, and Zhang Chengze is 42, which doesn't fit the understanding.

However, 10 to 35 is just a rule of thumb summarized by netizens; no one has ever really confirmed it.

There seem to be exceptions.

Hu Xiaoniu looked at Zhang Chengze: "Uncle Zhang, what do you plan to do?"

"What else can I do? What's done is done. Now that it's happened, I naturally want to seek protection before I time travel," Zhang Chengze said, "Otherwise, after working hard for half my life, it would be a shame to lose my life because of this."

Zhang Chengze spoke of life and death with a calm expression.

Even these big shots don't panic so much when faced with danger; they've been through a lot.

"Uncle Zhang, where did this countdown appear?" Hu Xiaoniu frankly stated, "Transportation between cities in the Inner World isn't convenient. If you had the countdown and weren't in Luo City, you wouldn't be in City 18 where I am, and I wouldn't be able to go to other cities to help you. You should look for a Time Traveler locally and hire them with money."

Zhang Chengze smiled, "I was on a business trip from Echeng to Xian City for a meeting this morning, and it appeared on my arm when I passed by Luo City. If I hadn't been sure of this, I wouldn't have bothered your father to find you."

Hu Xiaoniu thoughtfully said, "Uncle Zhang, you know I'm the type who says what's on my mind. I probably can't help you much, and I can't make many promises right now. I've just arrived in City 18, and I've found my footing with the help of others, but I have a Boss, and I need to follow his orders."

Hu Xiaoniu didn't even mention that he had joined an organization called Daybreak, with Liu Dezhu having the same Boss. He kept this key information secret because he didn't know if the Boss wanted people to know.

Zhang Chengze pondered, "I don't intend to make things difficult for you. I came to you because your father mentioned that you can contact big shots among the Time Travelers in the Inner World. This is my plan: discuss with your Boss, I'm willing to pay for temporary protection, and we'll continue to pay as needed later."

"I can help you with that, Uncle Zhang," Hu Xiaoniu said, "But it won't be cheap. You're so rich, I won't feel sorry for you spending this money."

Zhang Chengze teased, "Old Hu, have you noticed? Your son has only been traveling through time for a short time, and he's already siding with outsiders."

"It should be," Hu Dacheng said calmly, "Everyone has their own position, we both understand this. If he can't figure out his position and is a fence-sitter, then he'll never become one of them. So, I support him acting like an outsider for you; just pay honestly; you're not short of money."

"Fine," Zhang Chengze looked at Hu Xiaoniu, "I don't know what my identity will be in the Inner World, or where I'll appear, but I've always been interested in Time Travelers and have been following them. After I travel through time, I hope to be protected, and ideally, get some Gene Medicine, so I can experience being a superhuman."

"I'll pass that on to Uncle Zhang," Hu Xiaoniu said.

"Good, I'll reward you handsomely if it works out!"

Then Hu Xiaoniu said to Hu Dacheng, "Dad, can you come out for a moment? I have some things to ask you."

He walked out, to prevent Zhang Chengze from overhearing their conversation at the table...

Uncle Zhang felt a little uneasy, watching his nephew grow up from childhood, only to have him treat him as an outsider now.

Outside, Hu Xiaoniu, making sure no one was eavesdropping, said, "Dad, I've joined Liu Dezhu's organization, and I showed my sincerity to the Boss, offering to donate a house as a base, but he refused. Then I gave a member a watch to thank him for the Laojun Mountain incident, but he also refused. Did I do something wrong?"

"Of course, you did something wrong," Hu Dacheng said slowly, "Because you turned friendship into business."

Hu Xiaoniu was stunned: "Ah? I just wanted to express my gratitude."

"It's different," Hu Dacheng said, "You owe a debt of life on Laojun Mountain; if you want to fit in, you must repay it with your life. I'm not telling you to die for it, but teaching you how to act. They didn't take the money because it's a good thing; if they took the money, you would always be an outsider."

"I see," Hu Xiaoniu thoughtfully said.

Hu Dacheng asked, "What are your Boss's arrangements for you?"

Hu Xiaoniu said, "He wants me to join a certain group and start from the bottom. It's dangerous, but at least I've gained a foothold."

Hu Dacheng asked again, "Did he promise you that you'll reach a certain height in the future?"

Hu Xiaoniu shook his head: "No."

Hu Dacheng said, "That's good."

"Why is that good?"

"If he promises you future success, it means the path will be extremely difficult. He's afraid you'll give up halfway, so he paints a big picture first," Hu Dacheng smiled, "But if he arranges you to a very dangerous place without promising you anything, that's a test to see if you can take on heavy responsibilities without temptation. Do your best; the future is bright."

...

...

In the afternoon class, Hu Xiaoniu clearly had a few drinks; his mood was much brighter.

Qing Chen continued to lie on his desk, continuing his special Cultivation method.

The other four AMC10 contestants were already reviewing past competition questions, but he didn't care about them.

Until evening, Qing Chen returned home with Nangeng Chen, and the first thing he did was go to Yang Yang's room to check for new mail.

He knew that Huan Yu, the Demon Stamp holder, wouldn't be idle and write to him without a reason. The other party's attempt to win him over was probably to play a role in the upcoming counterattack against "Liu Dezhu's Boss."

Since he hadn't received a letter asking "Qing Chen" to cooperate, it was unlikely the other party would make a move today.

Although there was the possibility of a feint, Qing Chen trusted his judgment.

The other party would definitely give him clearer instructions before making a move.

Qing Chen cultivated in the gravity chamber until 9:40 pm, making sure Liu Dezhu and the others were probably out of school, before returning home.

He closed the bedroom door and said, "Yi, are you there?"

"I'm here," Yi replied.

"Where did you go yesterday?" Qing Chen wondered, "Didn't you cause any trouble?"

"What trouble could I cause? Why are you so distrustful of me!" Yi said indignantly, "What do you want?"

"Help me create a separate secret group chat for Liu Dezhu, Li Tongyun, Hu Xiaoniu, Zhang Tianzhen, Nangeng Chen, and Jiang Xue, just like the one I'm using on my phone now," Qing Chen said, "I need to have a meeting with them."

"Okay, I can help with this small task," Yi said, "By the way, do you like a female singer named "Bai Li'..."

Qing Chen's expression changed: "That's what I'm talking about; don't chat with random people!"

"Okay, okay, I know," Yi said, "Creating the group chat will take about 12 minutes. Should it be real names, or should they register nicknames themselves?"

"Let them register nicknames themselves," Qing Chen said.

Jiang Xue didn't know that Li Tongyun was also a Time Traveler. If it were real names, Xiao Tongyun would be finished...

...