Chapter 3

Chapter 3: The State of Emergency Lifted

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Xia Ping’an’s nap turned into a deep sleep. Even though the shelter couldn’t provide any comfortable beddings, he still slept soundly. All of them stayed a whole night in the shelter. They stayed there for more than 14 hours.

Throughout the night, everyone in the shelter waited anxiously. The same message repeated itself over and over on the electronic display of the shelter.

[The situation outside is under control. The creatures responsible for the dimensional invasion are gradually being eliminated. Please wait patiently.]

The next morning, at 7 a.m., a different message was finally displayed on the screen.

[Order is being restored in Xianghe City. The state of emergency is lifted.]

Green lights lit up on the safety door of the shelter as the door opened. Everyone dragged their feet and left the place. They could finally heave sighs of relief.

[The dimensional invasion this time was Level F+. The invaders were demonic rats and giant peanut worms. There were a total of 137 demonic rats and five giant peanut worms. The National Order Council has killed 133 demonic rats and five giant peanut worms. Four demonic rats have escaped via the river. We have sent out a team to chase after the invaders. The public is welcome to provide any information regarding the escaped invaders.]

[The state of emergency in Xianghe City is lifted. The water and electric supply are restored, and other public services are gradually being restored too. Some regions are still sealed off, and aftermath anti-epidemic and sanitary disinfecting treatments are being carried out. Thank you for your cooperation.]

[Regarding the casualties and injuries sustained during this dimensional invasion, it is still being calculated. Please await the details in the follow-up press release.]

[National Order Council of the Great Flame Republic]

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The instant he left the shelter, Xia Ping’an’s smartphone vibrated once again. He took out his phone and saw this message sent through the dimensional invasion security app.

Then, just as Xia Ping’an finished reading the message and stepped out of the security passageway onto the street, his phone received another message. It was from his boss.

[Yesterday, demonic rats broke into our shop. The company has received a notice from the management that it will be sealed off for today and tomorrow for disinfection and epidemic prevention operations. Work will resume on Sunday. Everyone, get some good rest. If there are any matters, please contact the management.]

When he finished reading the notification, Xia Ping’an’s phone rang again. It was a call from Xia Ning.

“Elder Brother, are you alright?” Xia Ning asked worriedly.

“I am fine. Don’t worry. How about you?”

A sigh of relief could be heard from the other end of the line. “I am fine. Yesterday, once we received the notification, the school immediately arranged for everyone to enter the shelter.”

“That’s good. I will be resting at home today. I will whip up something nice at home. You can come back home for dinner.”

“Alright. You’re the best!” Xia Ning said gleefully over the phone. She seemed completely unaffected by the dimensional invasion this time around.

After the call ended, Xia Ping’an put his phone away and took a long breath.

There were certainly casualties and injuries during yesterday’s dimensional invasion. However, that was life. Most of the time, one had no time to mourn over others and could not foresee when accidents would happen.

Every country hoped to minimize the effects of the dimensional invasion on cities and regions. Hence, all the announcements were made calmly. They did not hide anything nor exaggerate the pain and loss.

Each dimensional invasion was reported on the news as though it was an avalanche or traffic accident.

After eating, Xia Ping’an felt that he had finally regained his vigor.

From the window of the living room, he could see the picturesque mountain range. The peaks of the mountains were covered in snow. Xia Ping’an would never get bored of looking at this seemingly normal view for others. He even felt somewhat surreal.

This surreality could only be appreaciated by Xia Ping’an.

Xia Ping’an ate his normal bowl of noodles while enjoying the spectacular mountain view. The meal became especially scrumptious.

The mountain range outside was the Thousand Dragons Mountains of the Great Flame Republic. The reason it was called as such was it was formed from many smaller mountain ranges. The Thousand Dragons Mountains spanned more than 4,800 kilometers and ran through most of the Northern Light Continent. The best ski resort in the Great Flame Republic was located within the Thousand Dragons Mountains.

For Xia Ping’an, these Thousand Dragons Mountains had another name: the Rocky Mountains.

In 1421 A.D., the fleet of the Divine Continent led by Eunuch Ma discovered this new continent and named it the Light Continent. For hundreds of years, each time the Divine Continent encountered natural or man-made disasters, had turbulent political situations, or when dynasties changed, a large number of Huaxia citizens would migrate over to this continent to seek a new life and thrive.

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The earliest group of people who arrived on this continent was the gold miners. The legend of striking the jackpot by finding gold in the Light Continent had influenced countless people.

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There were numerous cases of people who came over to the continent, dreaming of mining gold.

After hundreds of years of vicissitudes, the Great Flame Republic currently had territory spanning 2.278 million square kilometers of land, almost covering the entire Northern Light Continent. It was a powerful nation with a population of 680 million people. The Great Flame Republic was also one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council.

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The Divine Continent was still the Divine Continent. Huaxia was still Huaxia. However, the world beyond Huaxia had already changed drastically.

In the past, Eunuch Ma encountered a deep abyss where the river cut through the land and he suspected that the sun rose from there. He named the canyon in the Light Continent the ‘Glorious Canyon’. [1] That place was actually the Grand Canyon.

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To this day, the Glorious Canyon still had the carvings left behind when Eunuch Ma first discovered it.

While gazing at the Rocky Mountains, Xia Ping’an finished eating his noodles. As he was washing the dishes in the kitchen, the doorbell rang.

Ding dong!

“It was too early for the landlord to come and collect the rent,” Xia Ping’an muttered and wiped his hands in the kitchen. He walked towards the door. He didn’t peep through the hole. Instead, his vision directly passed through the door, and he had a look outside.

Xia Ping’an’s heart quivered the moment he saw the person outside the door.

Standing behind the door was the man who wore sunglasses and a black leather windbreaker. He seemed very cool.

When Xia Ping’an saw this man, he recalled the man’s image when he hunted and killed the demonic rat and the peanut worm. This man was a summoner under the National Order Council.

The man removed his sunglasses, revealing his chiseled facial features. He was in his 30s and had deep, dark eyes. Across the thick door, his gaze calmly met Xia Ping’an’s.

Author’s note: [1] Paraphrased from the Pale Ink, written by American patent attorney, Henriette Mertz.

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