Forty Millenniums of Cultivation

“What?”

Li Yao almost spat out the scallion pancake in his mouth. He could not wait to grab Zhang Daniu’s neck and interrogate him. “What’s going on? Do you know this ‘Ark’? Tell me the details!”

“It’s—”

Zhang Daniu glanced at Li Yao’s phone again. At this moment, Dream Traveler’s sister sent him a new message. It was a link to a website. He clicked on it and his face turned even paler. “Yes, that’s right. It’s this ‘Ark’. A-a few days ago, didn’t we have a group chat where some authors often chatted and discussed ideas? Then, a stranger in the group came looking for me. He claimed to be a staff member of the ‘Ark Psychological Research Center’. He was doing a questionnaire on the lives and mental states of the self-employed in our country as well as free counselling. I filled in some of the basic information, including my contact information and address. Right, there’s also my neurotic and sleepwalking status. Of course, I didn’t say that I could write when I was sleepwalking. I’m not too sure about that myself.”

“How—how could you reveal such important information?”

Li Yao almost slapped the desk. “You don’t know who the guy is at all, whether he is a liar or not. How could you tell him such an important thing as your contact information and address?”

“At that time, I didn’t know, either. Even if he was a liar, how could he lie to me?”

Zhang Daniu explained, “The staff member was a girl who had just graduated from college. It was not easy for her to find a job. The questionnaire was included in her job evaluation. If she didn’t meet the requirements, she would be fired. I felt sorry for her and thought that there was no need for her to be so unreasonable. After all, she had to support the young woman’s legitimate job. Besides, she promised to send me small gifts and keep in touch!”

Taking a deep breath, Li Yao was rendered speechless.

“Is—is there really something wrong?”

Zhang Daniu said, “At that time, she also told me that their organization was not researching a very serious mental illness. They were only intervening in the psychological problems and sub-health states that are commonly seen in modern times. Freelancers like us are often under a lot of pressure or even criticized by society. Therefore, if there are any psychological deviations, we must not abstain from treatment and contact her as soon as possible. I think that it makes a lot of sense!”

“Alright, stop it. Let me think carefully.”

Li Yao closed his eyes and rubbed his nose.

“Yes. Have you figured it out?”

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Half a minute later, Zhang Daniu asked cautiously.

“Yes.”

Li Yao suddenly opened his eyes. There was a sharp gleam in his eyes as he said solemnly, “Master Niu, I’m still a little hungry. Can we get another twenty buns and dumplings? No. Thirty. No. Why don’t we just take all of them?”

“…” Zhang Daniu.

“You see, I do have superpowers. How can I eat so much without superpowers?”

Zhang Daniu: “I believe you. I believe you have superpowers, alright? But Teacher Niu really doesn’t have any money. I’m not lying to you. I’m a dog if I lie to you!”

“That can’t be right. Last night, you promised that you would treat the ‘rabbit in the sea of stars’ to ‘hidden crane cuisine’. I’ve looked it up on the net. The most basic package there costs 400 to 500 credits per person. If the two of us were to order wine and add a few other dishes, we wouldn’t be able to finish it without 1,300 credits! The bone casserole we ate yesterday was 280 credits, which means that you still have at least 1,000 credits in your pocket. I’ve calculated that it’s enough for me to eat my fill and recover to my strongest state. At that time, I will really tear off the dumbbells for you to see!”

“…” Zhang Daniu.

Li Yao said, “Hey, Master Niu, don’t go yet. What do you mean by walking away? Running away is not going to solve the problem. We can be sure that the ‘Ark’ has its eyes on you! You can ask me to get lost, but can you really ask the staff of the ‘Ark’ to get lost? Are you even sure that the girl who did the questionnaire was really a girl and not a brawny man with a beard and hair?

“If you really don’t want to see me, I will leave right now. Really. But what if ten or so muscular men from the ‘Ark’ sneak into your house in the middle of the night? I won’t hear anything even if you shout for help.”

Zhang Daniu suddenly stopped. There were tears in his eyes when he turned around.

“Who the f*ck did I piss off?”

The author shouted in grief and indignation.

In the end, they didn’t buy fried buns and fried dumplings. Instead, they went to a nearby bun shop and bought a few hundred pieces of high-rise bread. There was no filling. It was pure flour. The hard bread was like lumps of stone.

Seeing the surprise in the lady boss’s eyes, Li Yao explained that they were from the construction site next door.

Energy-rich sports drinks were expensive, too. Zhang Daniu was reluctant to buy them, but with a gloomy face, he bought five bags of sugar and two bottles of mineral water from the supermarket and handed them over to Li Yao.

When he returned home, he watched Li Yao mix five bags of white sugar into the water and eat 30-50 high-rise bread with the water. Li Yao didn’t even burp once. Zhang Daniu sighed and realized that he was in big trouble.

“Now, do you believe me?”

Holding his half-full stomach, Li Yao said, “Dream Traveler predicted the tragic death of the creator of the fantasy and was sent to the ‘Ark’ for treatment. The ‘Ark’ was still active in your group of authors a while ago. If you think that it was a coincidence, your IQ will be too low for the series of schemes in ‘Forty Thousand Years of Cultivation’.

“Therefore, you are the one who should face reality. The reality is that you have been targeted. The enemy is very clear about your identity and address. It seems that they have unimaginable resources in their hands. Of course, you can run away, but where can you run to? How long can you run away? Will there be a series of accidents on your way to escape, like the creators of ‘Blood and Sand’, ‘Strong Colonization Hunters’, and ‘Star Ring World’?

“Do you see? Your only way out is to cooperate with me. We will take the initiative and find the truth together!”

Faced with Li Yao’s invitation, Zhang Daniu was silent for a long time. Then he said, “I’m wondering what the people of the ‘Ark’ will do to me if they find me.

“You have written similar organizations in your novels, right? What do you think they will do?”

Li Yao opened his hands and said, “The bottom line is three to five sessions of electric treatment, right?”

Zhang Daniu shuddered and stopped talking.

“It seems that you have understood your situation. Of course, my situation is no better than yours. Right now, we are in the same boat. If we don’t work together, we will really be screwed.”

Li Yao said, “I need your help. First of all, tell me more about the ‘Ark’ and the questionnaire at that time. Do you have a backup draft?”

Zhang Daniu turned on the computer and found the electronic version of the questionnaire.

Li Yao quickly glanced through them. They were all very common and irrelevant questions. It seemed that the purpose of the other party was to trick the author into giving him his contact information and address in order to pave the way for the next contact.

There was also a link at the end of the questionnaire. It was the other party’s official website, just like the link sent by ‘Dream Traveler’s’ sister.

Entering the official website, the first thing he saw was the abstract icon of a large ship with wings. It seemed to be the emblem of the organization.

Of course, Li Yao had heard the word ‘Ark’, which meant the last shelter before the world was destroyed. The appearance of an ark meant that an apocalypse was coming.

It was not until he observed more carefully that he realized that the ‘Ark’ was not just a center for psychological research and the treatment of mental illnesses. In fact, it was a foundation whose influence spread all over the world. The ‘Ark Foundation’ was supported by countless mysterious funds and financial groups and specialized in the study of life sciences, brain mysteries, genetics, neurology, and so on. Its purpose was to explore the mysteries of life and even the soul and to surpass the limits of human beings. At least, that was what the official website said.

“I’ve asked a few friends who are writing books. They’ve received similar questionnaires. Some of them have even investigated the ‘Ark Foundation’. There’s nothing wrong with it.”

Zhang Daniu said, “This is truly an international charity organization. They have a good cooperative relationship with many psychology associations, brain surgery hospitals, and neurological research organizations in many countries. They have branches in many developing countries and even war-torn countries. They pay attention to the mental and mental health of the local people. They have even unearthed many ‘genius children’ with extremely high IQ from war-torn countries. If it weren’t for the Ark Foundation, these genius children would definitely have been buried.”

“Is that so?”

Li Yao didn’t believe a single word.

There was no telling what was going on on the official website. He thought for a long time and had to summon his courage to call the sister of ‘Dream Traveler’.

He had a vague feeling that the attitude of the Dream Traveler’s sister was not that firm. If she really believed that her brother was a lunatic and Li Yao was a lunatic, she would not have taken the initiative to send a message and simply ignored it.

Since she had sent two messages and sent the official website of the ‘Ark Foundation’, was it possible that she was not sure, either?

This time, the call was picked up very quickly.

The fire of hope in Li Yao’s heart was burning brighter and brighter. He said in a hurry, “Hello, miss. I’ve read the link that you sent me just now. I’ve read it carefully, but I still believe that your brother is not crazy but has encountered something that cannot be explained by common sense. Can you give me a chance and your brother a chance so that we can have a good talk? Really, schizophrenia is a very serious mental disease. Once it is diagnosed, it is almost impossible to recover in a lifetime. Do you want your brother to be locked in a mental hospital for the rest of his life?”

There was silence on the other end of the line for a moment. Then, somebody took a deep breath and said, “What do you want to know exactly?”