They visited many more sites after that. Occasionally, the train would stop, and they would have a picnic by the side of a star. It wasn't only at the edge of the universe that "He" existed; while passing through a nebula that resembled an ocean, Zhao Meiyou noticed several giants standing around its perimeter.
They stood with lowered brows and bowed heads, deaf to everything else in the cosmos, their gaze fixed solely on the nebula before them as if watching sea life in a petri dish.
In human language, "giant" was the only word left to describe such creatures. Perhaps mythology held more appropriate terms—Pangu, Centaurs, the Swarm—but unfortunately, Zhao Meiyou was an illiterate man, incapable of reciting the proper scriptures for the moment.
Zhao Meiyou watched the distant giants. If there were cosmic beings of this scale, they truly could split the heavens and earth between stars with a single axe blow. "What are they doing?"
"Making soup," Qian Duoduo replied.
"Making soup?" Zhao Meiyou was baffled. "What kind of soup?"
"Primordial soup."
Primordial soup—in terrestrial terms, this was a biological hypothesis regarding the origin of life. At the dawn of history, Earth's environment was akin to a vast primitive ocean where inorganic molecules underwent chemical reactions, eventually forming the earliest life.
This liquid environment, teeming with organic matter, was known as the "primordial soup."
"I see." Zhao Meiyou looked thoughtful. "And once the soup is ready, what do they do with it?"
"They drink it, of course."
The light of scattered stars drifted through the carriage, and the air felt like a viscous liquid. Qian Duoduo suddenly asked, "Have you read the *Shanhai Records*?"
"The what now?"
"A famous work within the archaeological community, said to be the records left by the very first generation of scholars," Qian Duoduo explained. "Most of the authoritative figures among that first batch were of ancient Eastern descent. They made a fascinating attempt to interpret the sites using chapters from the ancient text *Shanhaijing*, leaving behind many profound sentences."
He recited a line: "In the wilderness of the great desolation, by the edge of the abyss, Di Jun has sons, waiting to eat the sun and moon."
As if expecting Zhao Meiyou not to understand, Qian Duoduo immediately followed up: "One of the second-generation archaeologists was of ancient English descent. He spent decades studying the *Shanhai Records*. In ancient Eastern legends, Di Jun was a celestial god and a giant; therefore, he believed the phrase 'Di Jun has sons' referred to these giants."
"There is a sentence in that Englishman's will that is very famous in the industry. Many believe it to be the key to the 'Wilderness of Great Desolation' chapter."
Qian Duoduo watched the giants shrinking in the starlight and said slowly:
"At the edge of the abyss, the giants wait for their meal."
*So that’s it,* Zhao Meiyou thought, recalling the way those giants stood with their heads bowed over the nebula. *No wonder.*
*When I’m starving and waiting for dinner, I hover over the stove looking exactly like that.*
The train continued forward. According to Qian Duoduo, the Rum Tunnel connected the majority of the sites.
"I don't have a fixed home site," Qian Duoduo said. "Because I can adapt to any of them. There have been similar archaeologists before who wandered through various sites; they were called 'Troubadours.'"
Zhao Meiyou considered Qian Duoduo's status. He was a government man, likely performing duties related to inspection and rescue, so it wasn't strange that he lacked a primary site of his own.
They passed many more sites. Sometimes the train would stop, and Qian Duoduo would take him through a quick tour, like a speedrunner with a strategy guide. The forms of the sites were bizarre and varied: a library the size of a planet, abandoned space stations, civilizations in the midst of war, and a gallery that never ended. They even passed a site that looked like a bathhouse, where several archaeological colleagues were soaking in the hot springs, wearing fishbowl-like oxygen masks. Someone was getting a scrub; the attendant threw a wooden bucket of hot water onto a plastic bed with a splash, then wrapped the person in plastic wrap. The customers waiting for scrubs included humans and unknown creatures alike. Zhao Meiyou watched a mermaid lying on a mattress, her scrubbed-off scales shimmering translucently. In the sauna sat a blind squid, playing the erhu and singing to itself.
In the end, Zhao Meiyou had to be dragged away by Qian Duoduo while he was still drooling.
Back on the train, Qian Duoduo said, "Your psychological fortitude is quite excellent for a novice."
"Oh, please," Zhao Meiyou waved it off. "It’s just that 'food is the people's heaven.'"
The most primitive human desires are sometimes obstacles on the ladder of logic, but in the face of the unknown, they often allow one to conquer fear.
*I don't care what you are; let's see if you're edible first.*
Time flow within the Rum Tunnel was a mystery. They had seen dozens of sites, yet Zhao Meiyou felt no fatigue. Qian Duoduo, however, seemed a bit tired. He rubbed his temples. "Let's visit one more site, and then we'll call it a day..."
Before he could finish, a telephone rang inside the carriage.
Qian Duoduo snapped his fingers, and a floating panel appeared between them. The image was blurry, showing only the silhouette of a person.
The shadow spoke: "Citizens Qian Duoduo and Zhao Meiyou, the government is issuing you an emergency rescue mission."
"Denied," Qian Duoduo said flatly. "I'm tired. I don't do overtime."
Zhao Meiyou was a bit surprised. Wasn't Qian Duoduo an archaeologist directly under the government? In this day and age, were there actually corporate slaves within the system who dared to refuse overtime?
The shadow lagged for a moment. "...This rescue is very urgent. The government can offer double pay."
Qian Duoduo: "Triple."
The shadow: "...Application approved. Please proceed to Site S86 immediately."
"Sites starting with 'S' never have a low danger rating." Qian Duoduo looked at Zhao Meiyou. "Do you want to go? It's not as high-ranked as S45, but quite a few people have died in 86."
Zhao Meiyou: "Quadruple."
The shadow: "...Three and a half. Take it or leave it."
Zhao Meiyou leaned back in his seat and nodded. "Then let's get going."
Like Site S45, Site S86 was not within the Rum Tunnel's coordinate system for various reasons. Thus, Qian Duoduo and Zhao Meiyou needed to return to reality first and enter from a coordinate point in the Metropolis. During the journey, Qian Duoduo briefly introduced the situation: "The situation in S86 is quite special. It has a fixed 'Manager'—not an archaeologist, but a lifeform born from within the site itself."
"Aren't there many such lifeforms in other sites?" Zhao Meiyou asked.
"Lifeforms in other sites are usually unfixed, like products of 'Creation,'" Qian Duoduo explained after a moment of thought. "Let me put it this way: if an archaeologist selects a primary site for exploration, their psyche will gradually couple with the site during deep exploration. Over time, even without the power of 'Creation,' the archaeologist can subtly transform the site... like Diao Chan." He paused. "He and Site S45 are an example."
Zhao Meiyou indicated he understood.
"However, Site S86 has no fixed archaeologist—and not because its danger level is too high," Qian Duoduo said. "But because the site has its own native 'Manager.'"
Zhao Meiyou: "So the site is its own master? It birthed a lifeform and then let that lifeform remodel it?"
He had a sudden realization. "This site has its own brain? It's alive?"
"You're a quick study." Qian Duoduo seemed relieved he didn't have to explain further. "The manifest form of Site S86 is a grand mansion. A mistress lives in that mansion; she is the Manager of S86."
"A mistress? What do we call her?" Zhao Meiyou seemed to think of something and gave a low chuckle. "Madam?"
"Before that, I should warn you about one thing." Qian Duoduo looked at him. "Regarding the Manager of S86, it is rumored that she is not a lifeform natively birthed by the site, but an archaeologist who was swallowed by it. However, the truth has been sealed by the government. After so many years, it's hard to investigate; only fragmented legends remain in the industry."
Zhao Meiyou met Qian Duoduo's gaze and smiled. "Brother Qian, even you don't know the truth?"
Qian Duoduo remained silent for a long time before saying softly, "I am not entirely free to do as I please, either."
"Understood." Zhao Meiyou nodded, still wearing that smiling expression. "So, what do we call this lady?"
By now, they had returned to reality and were taking a suspended elevator car to the Upper District. The method of entering Site S86 seemed quite atmospheric; Qian Duoduo led him into an Eastern-style tavern and took a seat in a private room. Water flowed outside the corridor, and the sound of a bamboo tube striking stone echoed from the bamboo grove—a *shishi-odoshi*.
Screens were pulled back layer by layer. Across the room sat a woman, her face painted stark white. She bowed slightly to the two of them, then plucked the strings of a lute with a plectrum.
When the first line of the song began, Zhao Meiyou heard Qian Duoduo's answer. "The ancient Italian composer Puccini once heard a music box at a friend's house that contained many Eastern folk melodies. Using them as inspiration, he incorporated those melodies into his operatic works. This song is one of them."
"Uh... I'm uncultured, you know." Zhao Meiyou pointed at the woman across the room. "Brother, you do know she's singing 'The Eighteen Touches,' right?"
"I know," Qian Duoduo said expressionlessly. "When Puccini wrote 'Un Bel Dì, Vedremo,' he probably knew exactly what he was writing, too."
"'Un Bel Dì, Vedremo'?"
"An aria from one of Puccini's three great operas." Qian Duoduo answered the question about the name.
"Madama Butterfly."
As the song ended, the sensation of detachment arrived. They entered the mansion Qian Duoduo had described.
The layout of the mansion was somewhat similar to the tavern they had just entered—heavy Eastern style, with sliding paper doors painted with magnificent, brilliant late-blooming cherries. Qian Duoduo surveyed the surroundings. "The layout has changed."
Hearing this, Zhao Meiyou looked at him. "Brother Qian?"
"The smell of the wind is wrong." Qian Duoduo closed his eyes, then opened them again, suddenly saying, "Zhao Meiyou, transform."
"Into what?"
"Anything. Use your 'Shapeshifting.' Quick."
Zhao Meiyou swore he put in enough effort to cause a hernia, but it was as if his blood vessels were blocked. He closed his eyes and opened them again, still in his original form.
Qian Duoduo seemed to have expected this. He frowned and grabbed Zhao Meiyou's hand. "There might be danger outside. Don't get separated."
With that, he pushed open the door.
Outside was an endless corridor.
They seemed to be inside a giant atrium. In the vertical space, countless stairs stretched and spiraled, branching out in all directions. Some stairs were covered in blooming cherry blossoms; some had water flowing over them; others were broken in the middle, with long moss hanging from mid-air like the rusted tongues of women.
Zhao Meiyou felt dizzy just looking at it. The structure here was like a vertical kaleidoscope. He even thought he saw Penrose stairs and Möbius strips. "Brother Qian, was it like this the last time you came?"
"No. This is the typical chaotic state of a site. An outsider has broken this place." Qian Duoduo suddenly hoisted Zhao Meiyou onto his shoulder. "Hold on tight. There are too many stairs; we don't have time to walk them one by one."
He took a running leap and jumped directly from the stairs toward the bottom floor.
Amidst the whistling wind, Zhao Meiyou asked, "What's a chaotic state?"
"When I came last time, the mansion wasn't like this at all. The layout was very orderly, with nowhere near this many stairs. It was just a normal Eastern manor," Qian Duoduo said. "Last time at Site S45, when you exposed Diao Chan's identity, every lifeform in the site started attacking us instantly. That is a chaotic state."
Zhao Meiyou made the connection. "So, someone did something to the mistress here—that Butterfly Madam—and triggered her?"
"Very likely." Qian Duoduo snapped his fingers and uttered a single word: "Wind."
Clouds and wind gathered beneath their feet. Whether it was an illusion or not, the strength of the wind seemed much weaker, though it was enough to let them land steadily.
"...Wait, Brother Qian, why can you still use your abilities?"
"I can still use mine because I am very strong," Qian Duoduo said. "But the wind has been significantly weakened as well—someone's there."
"I see." Zhao Meiyou, being carried upside down, patted Qian Duoduo's leg. "Hey, Brother Qian, let's negotiate. Carrying me like this is poking me; it hurts. Can we switch to a different pose, like a bridal carry?"
Qian Duoduo paused for a second, then actually shifted him into his arms.
In the thick darkness around them, a goldfish lantern suddenly flickered to life.
Qian Duoduo kicked out, and the other party let out a howl. "Don't, don't, don't! One of us! Friendly!"
Qian Duoduo didn't stop, stepping directly onto the person. "Codename?"
"Koi! Codename Koi!" The person sounded like a man. "You're here to save me, right? I've been trapped here nearly to death!"
*Koi.* Zhao Meiyou had seen that name; it matched the mission brief.
Qian Duoduo withdrew his foot. "When you arrived, what was the environment like?"
"It was normal when I got here! Just a very lavish mansion, and then a noble lady invited me to dinner..."
Zhao Meiyou was familiar with Koi's tone. Half-mad people who had been locked in an asylum for too long were always like this—rambling, incoherent, leaving the listener to piece things together. Koi seemed to recount a bunch of his exploration process before finally saying: "Just as I was preparing to leave, I suddenly realized the door was gone! And that lady had vanished too!"
Qian Duoduo: "And then you were trapped here?"
"Yes! And then that lady, that woman, she suddenly went mad!"
Koi seemed shaken. "I've been trapped here for I don't know how long. I couldn't find an exit or see anyone. I was so tired I found a hidden loft to sleep in, but then that woman suddenly appeared. At first, I thought she was there to save me, but she actually set the bed curtains on fire! She laughed while she burned them. She wanted to kill me!"
Qian Duoduo asked again, "And then? Have you seen the Madam since?"
"The last time I saw her... I don't know how long ago it was. I've been here too long," Koi muttered. "She had changed again, becoming very eerie. And then she said... she said she was going to kill our child."
"Child? What child?" Zhao Meiyou was stunned. "Your child?"
"Zhao Meiyou." Qian Duoduo interrupted him. "Get down. My arms are numb."
Zhao Meiyou had a high level of acceptance for being carried and had even adjusted himself into a comfortable position. He jumped down reluctantly and saw Qian Duoduo pull out one of his "cigarettes," handing it to Koi. "Good work. Have one to calm your nerves."
"Thank you, thank you." Koi took the cigarette and put it in his mouth. A second later, Qian Duoduo snatched it back, lit it, and took a puff.
Zhao Meiyou guessed what Qian Duoduo was doing—"borrowing a smoke." He could obtain the other person's ability this way.
Qian Duoduo truly didn't know how to smoke; he took only one puff before putting it down. Then he patted the man's shoulder. "It's fine now. We're here to save you."
"Really? Truly?" Koi thanked them profusely. "Thank you, thank you so much. I feel like I've been trapped for a long, long time..."
"Walk straight ahead." Qian Duoduo pointed into the depths of the darkness. "The exit is that way. You'll reach it in ten thousand seconds."
"You... you can't come with me?"
"We still have to deal with the Madam," Qian Duoduo said. "Or you can stay and wait for us to complete the mission before leaving together."
Koi was startled. He seemed terrified of the Madam and said quickly, "No, no need! I'll go first then. I'll leave the rest to you!"
Zhao Meiyou watched the goldfish lantern disappear into the dark. "Brother Qian, I didn't realize you were so good at coaxing people."
*What exit? That's definitely fake.*
"Mission necessity." Qian Duoduo's tone shifted from gentle back to flat. "That archaeologist is beyond saving. Better he finds peace sooner."
"How can you tell?"
"The child he mentioned," Qian Duoduo said. "It should be his and Madama Butterfly's child."
"Holy crap?"
"Do you know what the opera *Madama Butterfly* is about?" Qian Duoduo turned and walked in the opposite direction, with Zhao Meiyou following close behind. "An American naval officer marries a wife in Japan, known as Madama Butterfly. When she becomes pregnant, he decides to return to his home country, promising her he will return as soon as possible. But in the end, Madama Butterfly gives birth to a son, only to be met with abandonment."
"Oh." Zhao Meiyou let out an exclamation. "And then? Did she take a katana and chop the guy's head off?"
"The ending is just abandonment. Don't have too many fantasies about ancient operas," Qian Duoduo said. "The officer married a new wife in America but returned to Japan wanting to take his son away. Madama Butterfly refused to accept the truth, blindfolded the child, and committed suicide."
"...What a waste." Zhao Meiyou was speechless.
"The mistress of Site S86 is Madama Butterfly. The first time I came here, everything followed the opera's script. She was waiting for her husband's return. Whenever a guest entered the site, she would ask: 'Are you my husband?'"
Zhao Meiyou: "What happens if you say 'yes'?"
"She becomes very happy, treats you with her finest porcelain, and even serves you as you sleep," Qian Duoduo said. "But then you can't leave."
"So, the archaeologist has to play her husband forever?" Zhao Meiyou asked. "Is this some kind of house-playing game?"
"Of course not. Becoming her husband is only the first step. Then she becomes pregnant. While pregnant, she'll eat her husband like a praying mantis. But even then, the archaeologist won't die, because when she gives birth, she'll birth you out again."
Zhao Meiyou: "..."
*Man, that's intense.*
"That archaeologist codenamed Koi probably went through the whole process," Qian Duoduo's voice came from ahead. "The cigarette I borrowed from him... I didn't feel any ability on it. He has already been dissolved and swallowed by this site."
"Then why did Madama Butterfly want to kill him?"
"Because his current role is no longer 'husband,' but 'son.'"
"A mother who, to get revenge on her unfaithful husband, decides to kill their son?"
"Yes. The Manager of Site S86 changes identities according to the site's state. When hosting guests, she is Madama Butterfly; when pregnant, she is the madwoman in the attic; and after giving birth, having failed to wait for her unfaithful husband, she becomes Medea."
Medea—the wife of the hero Jason who obtained the Golden Fleece. Because of her husband's betrayal, she killed her own two sons with her own hands.
"So why did Koi let himself be seduced?" Zhao Meiyou couldn't wrap his head around it. "Was he looking for death?"
"That's one of the reasons S86 is so dangerous. Few can resist Madama Butterfly's temptation. It requires extremely rigorous mental strength from an archaeologist."
Zhao Meiyou grew interested. "Then how did you resist the temptation, Brother Qian?"
"I told Madama Butterfly I like men," Qian Duoduo said. "Ancient Japan seemed to have a very high moral obsession regarding that. She kicked me out before she even served dinner."
Zhao Meiyou: *Damn, brilliant.*
They walked for an unknown amount of time. From far behind them, a faint, muffled scream suddenly echoed, followed by the sound of teeth chewing.
One of Qian Duoduo's abilities was "Scanning." The direction he had pointed Koi toward was exactly where Madama Butterfly was.
"The meat quality isn't great; sounds a bit tough." Zhao Meiyou listened for a moment, then asked, "So, Brother Qian, that guy's a goner. How do we get out?"
"There's something fishy here." Qian Duoduo turned at a staircase and hurried up, his pace extremely fast. "Normally, an archaeologist entering S86 would have done their homework. Even if they really fell for it, the government wouldn't wait this long to issue a rescue call..."
"Could it be that the archaeologists who came to save him before also died?" Zhao Meiyou suggested. "After all, you can't even use abilities here. How many people are as strong as you, Brother Qian?"
"If someone had been sacrificed before, I should have heard rumors..." Qian Duoduo's footsteps faltered.
"Brother Qian?"
Qian Duoduo was silent for a moment, seemingly deep in thought.
They stood on the steep, long staircase. Zhao Meiyou suddenly heard a sentence from ahead: "I'm sorry."
Zhao Meiyou was stunned by the sudden apology. "What's wrong?"
"I've been preparing to explore a very special site recently. I might have alerted the Metropolis government." Qian Duoduo didn't hide it, speaking directly. "There are only a few cases where an archaeologist cannot use their abilities in a site—for example, if the government seals the site from the outside."
Though much was left unsaid, Zhao Meiyou understood. Like the relationship between a dog and its master, once a subordinate becomes an uncontrollable factor, the fastest method is to eliminate them.
However, there was one thing Zhao Meiyou didn't dare say: maybe the government wasn't after Qian Duoduo, but after him and Diao Chan.
Wait, if Diao Chan was sealed in a site and couldn't use his abilities, what would happen?
"Site S86 is a natural slaughterhouse. This isn't any archaeologist's primary site. Without Madama Butterfly's permission, we can't get out."
"What if we kill her?"
"That would be even more of a dead end. S86's structure is very special. Once it loses its native Manager, the site will completely seal itself from the inside out."
"Can we reason with her?"
"A Madama Butterfly in the Medea state has no reason to speak of... Perhaps Koi was just bait. The government sacrificed an archaeologist specifically to set this trap." Qian Duoduo was silent for a moment, then commented, "A good strategy."
"Brother Qian, don't overthink it." Zhao Meiyou stepped forward and patted his shoulder. "Maybe this is killing two birds with one stone. It's not surprising for someone who can't control their lower half to offend the government at some point."
Zhao Meiyou wasn't panicking, watching Qian Duoduo reach all these conclusions on his own. On one hand, Qian Duoduo was powerful, and might makes right. On the other hand, he always felt his own experiences were a bit fishy.
Perhaps because he was from the Lower District, he was wary of any overly hospitable treatment. Qian Duoduo was good to him—perhaps too good. Could what happened in Site S45 really make a person this guilt-ridden?
Qian Duoduo didn't even know what exactly happened between him and Diao Chan in the site, yet he directly volunteered to be his guide. Granted, there was the bonus of his own "immortality bug," but... but he had a gut feeling.
Everything Qian Duoduo did felt like a performance for him, saying: *I am trustworthy; hurry up and give me your trust, too.*
Even though Zhao Meiyou also had ulterior motives, even though he and Diao Chan had their own schemes, and even though his cooperation with Qian Duoduo could be called mutual exploitation, he still felt Qian Duoduo's behavior was strange. Even for a guide, the style he was used to was like the Pillar—throwing him into a site and letting him fend for himself. Well, maybe he was just a mountain pig who couldn't appreciate fine chaff.
Regardless, Zhao Meiyou decided to remain cautious. A person who appears at all the right times, a person who fits almost all your aesthetic preferences—what's the reason for that? Look in the mirror; who in this day and age deserves such a stroke of luck?
The greater possibility was that the other party also had ulterior motives.
Zhao Meiyou waited composedly, thinking silently: *Come on, let's see how you plan to act next.*
Qian Duoduo's actions had already revealed a flaw. Since he knew all the evolutionary stages of Madama Butterfly, there must have been an archaeologist who experienced those stages and lived to tell the tale. So, how did the first survivor escape?
They could just copy the homework. If Qian Duoduo didn't say, there was definitely a problem.
Just as Zhao Meiyou was mentally playing out his drama, Qian Duoduo suddenly spoke: "...There is one way out."
*Ah? You're actually going to tell me?*
"But this method is very... special."
*That's more like it. Go on, tell me how you plan to use me, and I'll consider it.*
"There were archaeologists who successfully escaped Site S86 before. It was a couple; the husband was seduced by Madama Butterfly, and in the end, only the wife escaped." Qian Duoduo paused. "That wife... was pregnant."
*Pregnant?*
"The underlying logic of Site S86 is the opera *Madama Butterfly*. The site defaults to the idea that only the Manager, 'Madama Butterfly,' can give birth to a son. You could say that 'gestation' is the root of her power as the Manager. When that female archaeologist was in labor, the site briefly mistook her for the Manager, thereby giving her the power to open the exit."
*So...?*
"So." Qian Duoduo took a deep breath. "Zhao Meiyou, can you really not use your shapeshifting ability?"
Zhao Meiyou felt like he tried about a hundred times in a few seconds, then said with difficulty: "...No."
"We probably can't find a woman here." Qian Duoduo snapped his fingers. He used "Creation" to make a person, a woman—now she was a monstrosity—she dissolved, eventually turning into a puddle of slime.
Zhao Meiyou thought he heard Qian Duoduo mutter "Damn it."
It wasn't surprising; he'd be cursing too. Honestly, if this was an act, the sacrifice was a bit too much. *God, please don't let it be what I think it is. Brother Qian, say something—*
Then he saw Qian Duoduo snap his fingers.
Qian Duoduo turned into a woman.
"With my current ability, this is probably the limit." Zhao Meiyou could practically see a sense of martyrdom in Qian Duoduo's eyes. "Zhao Meiyou, you should have understood everything I just said. Our only way out now is to get a woman pregnant, steal the Manager's power from Madama Butterfly, and then open the door."
"Do you understand what I mean?"
It was like a volcanic eruption, a goldfish bowl full of green algae crowded with blooming flower snails eating poisonous mushrooms, a comet had just exploded a second ago—amidst the dizziness, everything Zhao Meiyou had previously deduced collapsed.
He was silent for a long time before a single sentence popped out.
"Uh... I don't know how to deliver a baby."
Qian Duoduo: "And?"
"...But I have studied postpartum care for sows."
***
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