Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 1022 - 1015: Remembering the Past by the Roadside

Chapter 1022: Chapter 1015: Remembering the Past by the Roadside

Arms, as an invisible political influence, show significant fluctuations that cannot be ignored. Although the civilian market is most affected, it is also necessary to be vigilant and prepared.

Right now, the CIA still has absolute control over Odelanqi, and if they gain control of Oudallo as well, it would undoubtedly cause trouble for the headquarters’ southern push.

However, these issues are not Luo’er’s concern at the moment; his main focus is the mission to Xia Yue Island.

After resting at the inn for a day, the group set off officially. Because they had a lot of goods to bring, they hired two horse-drawn carts, one for the goods and one for transport. The two carts made their way towards Meila Village, one after the other.

It would take roughly two days to get from Blue Bay to Meila Village, covering a distance of about one to two hundred kilometers, mostly over plains and hills. Considering the slow pace of animal-drawn vehicles, if replaced with earth’s buses, the journey could probably be completed within a few hours.

Traveling along the road, the group moved towards Meila Village in the horse-drawn carts. The road was scarcely maintained, just a simple path without even gravel. In dry weather, clouds of dust would rise from the road, while in rainy conditions it would become extremely muddied.

Unluckily, the group’s arrival in Blue Bay coincided with the rainy season. Soaked by the rain, the road was a muddy quagmire, severely hindering their pace. Although it was said to be a two-day journey, it actually took nearly three days for them to reach a lakeside where they had once camped.

When the caravan stopped for a break at this spot, Luo’er gazed upon the shimmering lake amidst the forest and thought of the past events that had occurred here, filled with deep emotion.

"It’s already been three years..." Luo’er sighed.

"Yeah, three years without returning to Earth, and yet we’ve pretty much traversed this continent," Cheng Ziang joined him and shrugged as he spoke.

"Do you want to go back?" Luo’er asked, looking at him.

"Is it you who wants to go back?" Cheng Ziang looked at him, smiling as he asked.

Hearing his words, Luo’er pursed his lips in silence for a moment, then nodded his head and said somewhat sorrowfully, "To tell you the truth, I really do want to go back and have a look..."

"You, my friend..." Cheng Ziang chuckled and shook his head, then gazed out over the lake and said, "But you didn’t say that at the beginning. You said that whether or not you find your mother, you didn’t want to return."

"Must you really rip off the bandage?" Luo’er said helplessly, with a bitter smile.

"Everyone has to be responsible for their own words, don’t they?" Cheng Ziang replied before heaving a deep sigh and continuing, "Honestly, you’ve moved on, but I’m torn. Where truly is my home? Is it Earth, where I lived for decades, or the Otherworld where my parents fell in love? Can I truly consider myself an Earthling, or am I a person of the Otherworld..."

"Don’t think like that, where we are, that’s home," Luo’er said consolingly.

Cheng Ziang was visibly stunned by Luo’er’s comforting words, then turned to look at him, couldn’t help but laugh, and shaking his head said, "If only you used such consoling words to woo girls, perhaps Moumou wouldn’t be jealous all the time."

"Why do you always bring that up..." Luo’er said with a flushed face.

"Eat what?" At that moment, Tangmo’s voice came from behind them. She stepped forward to Luo’er’s side and naturally looped her arm through his, then turned to look at Cheng Ziang and asked, "What am I supposed to eat?"

Cheng Ziang looked at her, and then at Luo’er, before saying, "I’m saying, you’ve been with Luo’er for so long, how come you haven’t found a chance to devour him yet?"

"Ah, so you think that way too. I’ve long wanted to find a chance to devour Luo’er," Tangmo said with a smile that crinkled her eyes.

"No fooling around!" Luo’er’s face turned red to the tips of his ears, and then he lightly tapped her forehead with the edge of his hand.

"Ow," Tangmo cried out dramatically, then snuggled against Luo’er’s arm and, looking at the lake in front of them, said, "Luo’er, do you remember this lake?"

"Of course, I remember," Luo’er nodded and replied, "You and Yue’er once bathed here."

Luo’er’s response made Tangmo blush instantly, and then she looked up at him with a beaming smile and asked, "Is it because we bathed here that you have such an impressionable memory of this place?"

Caught with his mouth open, Luo’er eventually found himself at a loss for words and simply chose to close his mouth. He felt that no matter how the conversation went, it would end up circling back to him, so he preferred to keep silent.

"It was here that we encountered that little brat, it looks like we’re already close to Meila Village," Cheng Ziang interjected.

"Yeah," Luo’er nodded, then looked up at the sky covered with dark clouds and said, "We should be able to get there before sunset."

"By the way," Cheng Ziang seemed to have thought of something, so he turned to Luo’er and asked, "What was that little brat’s name again?"

"Hmm, it should be..." Luo’er thought for a long time, but just couldn’t remember the name of the Sub-beastman kid they had met.

"Taran!" At that moment, Baiyue’s voice came from behind them, and she walked towards Luo’er, then directly joined him.

"Yue’er has a good memory," Cheng Ziang nodded, then squinted at her somewhat hesitantly and said, "Speaking of which, Taran seems to be the village chief’s grandson, which makes him also Yue’er’s..."

"Cousin!" Luo’er answered.

"Yep, and your little brother-in-law," Cheng Ziang suddenly said with a mischievous smile.

"What little brother-in-law." Luo’er looked down at Baiyue, who had already shyly lowered her head, and then frowned as he glared at Cheng Ziang to scold him.

"Just joking, just a joke," Cheng Ziang waved his hand and then seriously asked, "But now that we know of Yue’er’s relationship with the village chief, should we..."

"This, let’s listen to Yue’er’s own wishes," Luo’er hesitated for a moment, then looked down at Baiyue.

"I, I, I don’t know..." Baiyue, under everyone’s gaze, got flustered, and said timidly with her head down.

"How to handle such matters should be decided by the person involved," Cheng Ziang shook his head, then took a step towards the lake, and without turning back, said, "Luo’er, as a guardian in practical terms, you should give her some advice, or we can all think of a solution together."

"This..." Luo’er looked down at Baiyue, looked up at Cheng Ziang, and after a moment of hesitation, he asked, "Then what do you think, Ziang?"

"I do have an idea, just not sure if you’ll agree," Cheng Ziang said as he gazed at the glittering surface of the lake.

"Let’s hear it," Luo’er nodded.

"My personal opinion is that we might as well acknowledge this kinship. Lipei is currently being rebuilt, and once the Otherworld Gate is opened, headquarters will take full control of Lipei. With this in mind, we could have the Sub-beastmen from Meila Village collectively relocate to Lipei to settle down. During the rebuilding of Lipei, we’ll need additional manpower, won’t we?" Cheng Ziang turned to face them as he spoke.

"This..." Hearing his suggestion, Luo’er first looked surprised, then glanced at Baiyue and with some difficulty said, "Otherworlders settling in Lipei would need to pass through the headquarters’ selection process. Simply moving Meila Village to Lipei out of personal sentiment might be too... controversial..."

"I knew you’d say that, don’t worry. To headquarters, Meila Village definitely has a value to move," Cheng Ziang replied with a confident smile.

Luo’er looked down at Baiyue, who wasn’t staring at Cheng Ziang, but her face had noticeably taken on an uneasy expression. Knowing Baiyue’s worries, he asserted, "If it’s for the purpose of human experimentation, then it’s better not to move."

"What nonsense are you talking about," Cheng Ziang shook his head, "The Origin Project has already ended, where did you get the idea of human experimentation?"

"Then, where does their value lie?" Luo’er asked, puzzled.

With a confident smile, Cheng Ziang pointed to the ground and said with a beam, "On the other side of this world!"