Chapter 92: MX

“Mask?” Lin Xian asked, his brows furrowing in confusion.

“Why do we need masks if we’re on the same team?” he questioned further. “Is it really necessary, Brother Face?”

“Yes and no,” Big Cat Face replied with a shrug. “Masks aren’t really for safety. They’re more about tradition.”

Big Cat Face flicked his cigarette to the ground and stamped it out. “Around here, everyone wears cartoon masks. It’s like an unwritten rule. You see someone with a cartoon mask, you know they’re here for business, not trouble. It helps avoid any panic or confusion.”

“When we see someone else wearing a cartoon mask, we just nod and keep moving. No one bothers anyone else. We respect each other’s space, whether we know them or not.”

“When in Rome...” Lin Xian murmured, following Big Cat Face into another warehouse.

As night enveloped the sky, the lights of New Donghai City twinkled in the distance.

Click.

Big Cat Face flipped the warehouse light switch, illuminating piles of children’s toys.

“There are plenty of masks here—Ultraman and others. Pick any. It doesn’t really matter.”

“What mask do you wear?” Lin Xian asked curiously.

In his first dream, Big Cat Face had worn a Rhine Cat mask. But what about now, 600 years later? Was the Rhine Cat still popular?

“I wear this one.” Big Cat Face lifted a robot mask off the ground. It looked similar to a Gundam, though it was a different series.

“My son loves this robot-fighting show.”

“I see,” Lin Xian noted, appreciating the personal connection in Big Cat Face’s choice.

As Lin Xian sifted through the toy pile, his eyes caught on a cat mask.

“Rhine Cat.”

Seeing his own design, the Rhine Cat, in this strange new dream, filled him with a sense of deep nostalgia.

He cleaned the dust off the mask and polished it until the playful face of the Rhine Cat stared back at him.

A smile lit up his face, thrilled to find his creation so far from home. “Are Rhine Cat toys still popular now?”

“They sure are!” Big Cat Face chuckled, scratching his armpit. “The Rhine Cat is one of the few toys that has remained popular in both new and old Donghai. It’s famous worldwide. My daughter was crazy about it when she was little. I used to pick these toys out of the junkyard and clean them up for her.”

Lin Xian couldn’t put the Rhine Cat mask down, each detail reminding him of his craftsmanship. He made up his mind. “I’ll wear this one tonight.”

“Hey, aren’t you a bit old for that?” Big Cat Face scoffed. “A grown man in a Rhine Cat mask? It’s almost laughable! People will think I’ve taken in a foolish child. No serious man would wear such a childish mask!”

“No, it’s perfect,” Lin Xian countered firmly. “If this cat has been popular for 600 years and is still a hit in New Donghai, then it’s a powerful brand. Never underestimate the impact of a globally recognized icon.”

“It is well-designed and cute, I’ll give you that,” Big Cat Face conceded.

Lin Xian donned the mask, followed Big Cat Face out of the warehouse, and eyed his large silhouette.

“Face, you wouldn’t guess who designed this cat.”

“How could I not know?” Big Cat Face turned around, his expression confident. “Everyone on Earth knows it’s the mascot of MX Company.”

Dignified.

The twin towers seemed like a giant anchor, stabilizing the massive city.

In 600 years...

What changes could have transformed a modest domestic cosmetics company into a global supergiant capable of building a futuristic city?

What was the history?

How did it get to this point?

Who now controlled Zhao Ying Jun’s once sole proprietorship, the company she built from scratch?

Suddenly, Lin Xian’s eyes widened.

He thought of a terrifying possibility...

The world now, in 2023, was vastly different.

With the advent of hibernation technology in 2023, humanity had entered an era of rapid technological advancement. No one could predict the future of technology or how the world would change.

Professor Xu Yun had optimistically estimated that within a few years, they could develop a hibernation pod reducing life activity efficiency by 90%.

But human potential is limitless.

Who could say for sure?

If the hibernation pod was developed soon, as per the most optimistic estimates...

The more Lin Xian thought about it, the more terrified he became, feeling increasingly cold.

He looked up...

At the moon split by a giant black hand’s shadow,

At the black right hand pointing skyward,

At Big Cat Face’s father, who died under a truck in the first dream,

At Xu Yun’s corpse split in the snow at 00:42 on New Year’s Day,

At Zhao Ying Jun’s Genius Club invitation,

At the mouse that successfully hibernated for 40 hours and woke up in Xu Yun’s lab...

“Face.”

Lin Xian’s voice was low, staring at Big Cat Face.

“Who is the current president of MX Company?”

This novel is translated and hosted on bcatranslation