第一百五十五章 夺石 -3
Black Dragon Mountain Settlement.
黑龙山聚集地。
Beside the divine stone, shaped like a withered brown-yellow tree trunk, piles of bonfires blazed fiercely, illuminating the surroundings as bright as day. A vast crowd stood wielding torches and blades, awaiting the arrival of the one who would take the divine stones.
如褐黄枯木般的圆柱形神石旁，一堆堆篝火熊熊燃烧，将四周照得如同白昼。泱泱一片人举着火把与刀剑，等待着某个收集神石之人的到来。
“Big Party A, huh? Collecting so many Divine Stones—I say it’s better if they all stay with us here.”
“大甲方，呵，收集那么多神石，我看一起留在我们这里就好了。”
Riding atop a ferocious beast, this person stood with a vigorous posture, a long whip gripped tightly in hand, their gaze revealing an unyielding dominance.
这人骑在头凶兽上，身姿矫健，手中紧握着长鞭，眼神中透露出一种不容置疑的霸气。
Suddenly, a sharp sound of wind-breaking shattered the stillness, rushing in from afar, swirling in like a raging storm.
突然，一阵急促的破风声打破了这份宁静，由远及近，如同狂风骤雨般席卷而来。
Following that, a few small clumps of light appeared on the horizon.
随之出现的是天际的几道小光团。
“The legendary reporters?”
“传说中的记者？”
“Where they show up, there’s bound to be a celebrity. It must be Big Party A arriving!”
“他们出现必有名人到来，肯定是大甲方来了！”
Everyone tightened their grips on their weapons.
众人紧了紧手上的武器。
{Give us the Divine Stones—they’re needed for a great cause.}
{给我们神石，有大用。}
Though the person hadn’t appeared yet, the model’s glow was already visible; everyone in the Black Dragon Mountain area’s silver-white models received this message.
人未显，模型的光芒已经出现，黑龙山棚区银白模型之人都接受到了这份信息。
[Black Dragon King invested 1R in me.]
[黑龙王为我投资了1R.]
“Jiazi Association, get the hell out here and hand over your Divine Stones. Otherwise, any of your folks we spot from now on, we’ll wipe them all out.”
“甲子间，滚出来，交出手上神石，否则以后见到你们的人，尽数灭之。”
Having accepted the day’s investment from the Shed Leader, Zuo Feifan cursed within the model:
接受了这棚主一天投资的左非闲在模型中叫骂道：
{You’re pretty cocky, huh.}
{让你丫的长脸了。}
“So the Jiazi Association are full of scoundrels like that? Heh, I’m right here. Come, let’s see who the Divine Stones really belong to.”
“甲子间居然是这样的浑人，呵，我就在这里，来，看看神石到底属于谁。”
With a thunderous crash, a violent gale burst forth near that stone.
轰隆一声，这块石头附近爆发出强劲风浪。
Everyone fell into chaos instantly, as if abandoned by the world, feeling utterly ill at ease all over.
所有人顿时陷入慌乱之中，仿佛被世界遗弃，浑身感觉都不自在。
“Mere parlor tricks.”
“雕虫小技。”
The bear-like, mighty Black Dragon King spread out his triangular model inward, shouting within his mind:
身材魁梧如熊的黑龙王身上扩散出三角形模型，他在心中喊道：
[Brothers, invest in me for the first echelon. Be careful to give me time orders slowly—don’t let it exceed.]
[兄弟们，第一梯队为我投资，注意每次缓慢给我时序，不要超了。]
[Li Xiang invests 300N in me.]
[李骧为我投资300N.]
[Wang Hemeng invests 175N in me.]
[王鹤孟为我投资175N.]
[Zhao Song invests 200N in me.]
[赵松为我投资200N.]
[Shanliheng invests 200N in me.]
[山里横为我投资200N.]
[Wang Hemeng makes an additional investment of 200N in me.]
[王鹤孟为我追加投资200N.]
Dense specks of light converged from the threads into the ring on his chest.
密密麻麻的小光点自丝线汇聚至其胸膛前的圆环内。
With more than twenty people each investing a couple hundred into the stall owner, this round of financing was concluded in less than two seconds.
二十来人每次两三百的给棚主投资，没两秒这轮融资就结束了。
Buzz! Behind him, a riot of colorful rays fanned out like a peacock’s tail; the light flickered, and over twenty feathered patterns shot into everyone’s bodies, causing ethereal monsters to sprout from them, each monster’s head resembling a peacock feather.
嗡！他背后如孔雀开屏般展现出纷彩光线，光芒一抖，二十多条羽毛纹路般的东西射入众人身体，他们身上都长出虚无的怪物，每个怪物头颅都如同一尾孔雀羽毛。
The White Shadow Thought-Dragon burst forth with a roar.
白影念龙轰地冲出。
dozens of feathered monsters also swept in, their bizarrely elongated arms stirring the air, all bathed in a golden radiance.
数十个羽毛怪物也张开诡异的修长双臂搅动而来，全都带着金色辉光。
The small orb of light spun downward.
小光团旋转着往下。
[I cancelled out 900N.]
[我抵消了900N.]
[Lots of opponents; their temporal rates are all at five or six hundred. I cancelled out 6700N.]
[好多对手，它们的时序都有五六百以上。我抵消了6700N.]
[I cancelled out 11,000N!]
[我抵消了11000N！]
No sooner had the White Shadow Thought-Dragon charged into the crowd than countless hands ground its red glow down to gold, forcing it to retreat immediately.
白影念龙刚冲入人群不远就被密密麻麻的手掌将身上的红光抵消至金光，它赶紧消失。
In Hinge Town, the onlookers carefully scrutinized the Black Dragon King’s ability as they watched this scene.
枢纽镇中，看着这一幕的众人仔细审视着黑龙王的能力。
This man was a deep well; now was the perfect time to gauge his true power.
这人隐藏得极深，此时正是一窥其实力的好时候。
Mi Tianlu remarked, “So it turns out this guy can split into twenty over telekinetic doppelgangers. I wonder if that’s his limit.”
米天禄道：“原来这家伙能分化出二十多个念力分身，不知道是不是极限。”
“Envy… If only he’d join our team.”
“羡慕，要是进我们团队就好了。”
The onlookers in the room silently admired.
房间中人暗赞。
Within the greenhouse district.
大棚区内。
“Hmph, what do you think? Don’t think you’re the only one in the world with psychokinetic abilities.”
“哼，怎么样，别以为天底下就你一个人有念能力。”
“Seems you built this entire shed area on your own. Though it doesn’t have the best reputation around here, it still provides a place for a thousand people to survive. I don’t want to take your life—hand over the godstone. We’re busy.”
“看来，这座棚区是你一个人建设起来的，这里风评虽然不是很好，但至少供给千人以生存之所，我不想取你性命，把神石交出来，我们很忙。”
“How utterly nonsensical. You can’t even get close to me, so what are you yapping about over there?”
“真是不知所谓，你连靠近我都做不到，在那边哔哔什么。”
The Black Dragon King had barely finished speaking.
黑龙王刚说完。
A longspear with dark, subtle patterns descended from the sky, grazing the tip of his nose.
一杆拥有暗沉细纹的长枪贴着他的鼻头从天际坠落。
(I neutralized 5000N.)
[我抵消了5000N.]
The next second, a crimson illusory flame ignited on the spear.
下一秒，这杆枪上燃起了红色虚焰。
Thud! The beast beneath him collapsed dead without even letting out a moan of agony.
咚！胯下野兽哀嚎声都没发出就到地死亡。
The crowd gasped in astonishment, staring at the fallen Black Dragon King.
众人哗地惊呼出声，看向倒在地上的黑龙王。
“Shed Master!”
“棚主！”
“Boss, are you okay?”
“大哥，你怎么样。”
“Cough… I’m fine.”
“咳，我没事。”
Several people rushed over to help him up; everyone had been terrified moments ago.
几人跑来将他扶起，大伙刚才都吓死了。
The Black Dragon King tried to snatch the spear in front of him, but it whistled as it rapidly retracted toward the ground beneath them all…
黑龙王刚想拽住前方的长枪，它嗖地快速缩向地面。
“Don’t say I didn’t warn you. Look above.” Yang Zicang called out.
“别怪我没提醒你，看上方。”杨子藏叫到。
“What?!”
“什么！”
Amid the glow of firelight, the Black Dragon King looked up. A small black hole hovered overhead, from which the spear, shimmering with a crimson luminance was slowly emerging—like a deadly gaze, firmly aimed at him.
火光中，黑龙王抬头望去，头顶上方悬浮出道小黑洞，携带红芒的长枪缓缓从其中冒头，如同死亡的凝视，稳稳对准了自己。
It had been underground just a moment ago!
它刚才明明还在地下！
“You should know how many chronocycles we earned back at the Crimson-Level Confluence by selling incense pellets. Hand over the godstone. Or else, I wouldn’t mind another battle, one worth several hundred thousand chronocycles,” declared Yang Shino.
“你应该知道我们刚从绯月级交错地那边，靠卖香丸赚到了多少时序，把神石交出来。否则，我不介意再来一场几十万时序的战斗。”
“You—!”
“你们！”
King Black Dragon was enraged, yet the weight of death pressed down on him tangibly.
黑龙王震怒，但死亡的压迫如有实质。
He had long heard that this unprecedented cargo team—never before mentioned by anyone—had made a staggering haul of 200,000 to 300,000 temporal sequences this time by exploiting the A-class Chaotic Frequency Zone.
他早就听说了，之前听都未听过的大甲方货队，这次靠着A级失频之地一举赚得了二三十万的时序，相当骇人。
This had already become a legendary case study discussed by the heads of various shed districts who had received word.
这已经在获知消息的各大棚区负责人处，传为了神操案例。
Most had even turned its operational methods into a “benchmark analysis post,” studying it internally; he himself had discussed it with a few sub-chiefs just two days ago.
大家几乎将其运作方法制成了“批品贴”，在内部讨论学习，自己前两天也才刚跟几位副棚主研究过。
If it weren’t for the treasures being stolen by Time Shifter inside, someone would have been tempted to try getting a share of the spoils—contacts had already been made with him.
若不是里面的宝物被时迁盗走，再赚下去就有人忍不住要去试着分杯羹了，因为已经有人与自己联系过。
“A battle costing hundreds of thousands of sequences… forget it. Step aside. Let them take it.”
“几十万时序的战斗…罢了，让开，让他们拿走。”
“Boss!”
“棚主！”
“Without it, how many blueprints will we waste?”
“没有它我们得浪费多少模型。”
Boom! The spear instantly pierced through the side of a figure trying to dissuade him, blood spraying from blown gushes that mangled the ear. The man wet himself in fear.
轰！长枪瞬间从一道劝说的身影旁穿透，将他的耳朵炸出鲜血。那人吓得失禁。
The crowd shuffled back several paces, forming a gap.
人群哗地退后几步，让出了条通道。
“Thanks.”
“谢谢。”
The ghostlike train glided forward, stopping beside the cylindrical stone.
幻影般的列车往前而去，停在圆柱石头边上。
“Heh! Everyone’s having a little bonfire, huh?”
“呵呵！各位，烤火呢。”
Luo Bin jumped off with a grin, earning glares from all.
洛宾跳下来嬉笑了句，众人怒目而视。
“Get serious. Enemies could be here any minute.”
“正经点，敌人说不定都要到了。”
“Oh.” Luo Bin quickly spat on his hand, rubbed them together, and hefted his pickaxe to swing.
“喔。”洛宾赶紧吐了口唾沫在手上搓了搓，扬起锄头挥动了起来。
“Enemies?”
“敌人？”
Black Dragon King stepped closer, his face darkening as he looked at the few people. Using this as an excuse, he shifted his focus, also giving himself an out, “What enemy?”
黑龙王靠近两步，脸色难看的望向几人，借着这由头，他转移着注意力，也是给自己找了个台阶，“什么敌人？”
“Mm, it should be a very strong enemy.”
“嗯，应该是很强的敌人。”
“Then why did you come looking for the Divine Stone?”
“那你们来找神石，是为了什么。”
“Perhaps you’ll find out later.”
“或许后面你会知道。”
As the train disappeared, the resentment within Black Dragon King’s chest surged up again. Thinking for a moment, a silver-white model of light shot out from his chest.
随着列车消失，黑龙王胸膛内的怨气才再次升腾而起，想了想，他胸前射出银白色的模型光芒。
“Lao Zhao, the Divine Stone has been stolen.”
“老赵，神石被抢走了。”
{What, even you failed? Is his Nen ability really that bizarre?}
{什么，连你都失败了？他的念能力真的那么邪乎？}
“That giant centipede is pretty formidable, but Yang Zicang also has a spear that can appear at will. I almost got ambushed and killed by it.”
“那条大蜈蚣是挺厉害，不过杨子藏还有杆能随意出现的长枪，我差点被他一枪偷袭死掉。”
A pity that his Nen ability couldn’t change his body, otherwise why would he fear such a threat. He sighed:
可惜自己的念能力不能让身体变化，否则怎么会怕那种威胁。他叹息道：
“Be careful. At this pace, before two more tent districts have passed, he’ll reach you. And it seems this Divine Stone has a major use; it’s like that Sixtieth Interval is trying to borrow its power to take on someone.”
“小心点，按这方向，要不了两个棚区，他就会到你那边了。而且，这神石似乎有大用，那甲子间像是要借用其力量对付谁。”
On the other side, the person was silent for a moment.
另一边的人沉默了下。
{Now I understand. So the Divine Stone has such a secret. The legend says there are divine bones inside—maybe it’s true.}
{我知道了，原来神石还有这样的秘密。传说里面有神骨，或许是真的。}
“It’s a pity we don’t know how to use it.”
“可惜我们不知道如何使用它。”
……
……
In the darkness, as all the great tent districts connected through models were discussing the night, a bit of gossip began to spread.
黑夜中，互相靠模型链接谈论着黑夜的各大棚区间，流传出一则小道消息。
Starting somewhere around a hundred li near Silver Hub Town, tent districts containing Divine Stones were being robbed one after another; this had been going on for hours.
似自银白枢纽镇附近百里开始，陆续有拥有神石的棚区遭到抢劫，已经持续了好几个小时。
“Ask that tent district over there, someone’s stealing something?”
“你问问那边的棚区，有人在偷什么？”
Inside Greenland Gorge Tent District.
翠岩谷棚区内。
A few of them were worried and asked everyone to inquire around, because their shed area had such a divine stone.
几人有点担忧的让大伙儿互相打听打听，因为他们棚区就有个这样的神石。
“You don’t mean they’re actually robbing the divine stone?”
“不会真在抢神石？”
Although the divine stone was small, it occasionally communicated with the deputy shed master, helping them craft quite a few Lost Mind Engines and barter for many supplies.
虽然神石很小，但偶尔也会与副棚主进行沟通，帮助他制作出了好些失念引擎，换回许多物资。
“Without the divine stone, how many Lost Mind models and materials would we have to waste?”
“若没有神石，我们得浪费多少失念模型和材料。”
“Yeah, these people are truly despicable, taking advantage of the chaos to fish in troubled waters.”
“是啊，这些人真是可恶，趁着变天来搞浑水摸鱼的事情。”
More and more people gathered around the campfire, and one man shouted, “I found out—it’s the big client’s cargo team. They’re running around stealing divine stones.”
篝火旁人越聚越多，一人叫到：“打探到了，是大甲方货队，他们在到处抢夺神石。”
“Where are they now?”
“他们现在去哪里了。”
“It’s said they just left a small shed area, and there are rumors that the divine stone has mysterious powers, curing all ailments, so that’s why the big clients are stealing them.”
“据说，刚从一个小棚区离去，而且有人传言，神石拥有神秘力量，包治百病，所以甲子间他们才抢。”
Inside Granny He’s shed area.
何奶奶棚区内。
“What, the divine stone can even enhance virility!”
“什么，神石还可以壮阳！”
A burly man with thick eyebrows suddenly stood up from the table, making the candle on the wooden table wobble.
一个浓眉大汉腾地从桌子旁站起来，木桌上的蜡烛都晃了晃。
The people around him nodded suspiciously.
他左右人狐疑点头。
“I heard soaking it in water makes wounds heal quickly. How about we try asking the Bright Shed master about it?”
“听说泡水喝就能让伤口快速愈合，要不我们找光明棚主那边试试？”
“Could there be some mysterious treasure inside?”
“难道里面有什么神秘宝物。”
“By the way, is it really safe to drink the water with it soaked in? I’ll go scrape some powder to test it out—if someone steals it, there won’t be any left to scrape.”
“话说那东西泡水喝真的没问题吗，我这就去刮点粉来试试，万一被人抢走了就没得刮了。”
In the medium-sized shed area next to them, there was a divine stone. Previously, it was just known to help people craft Lost Mind Engines better. Although some speculated it might have other uses, no one knew how to explore them.
在他们旁边的中型棚区内就有块神石，此前只是听说能帮助人更好的制作失念引擎，虽然有人猜测可能还有其它作用，却不知如何发掘。
But now, it seemed someone had discovered its effects and was snatching them up.
而现在，似有人知晓了它的作用，正在抢夺。
Just as they were about to head out, a sudden curved line shot toward them.
正当他们准备出门，忽地一道折线射来。
{I’m Light Canopy Master, our Divine Stone has been snatched! Please invest in me, everyone.}
{我是光明棚主，我们的神石被人抢了！大家请为我投资。}
{What, A-Jiazi’s here so fast? Wasn’t he miles away just ten minutes ago?}
{什么，甲子间这么快就过来这边了，他十分钟前不是还在百里开外吗？}
{Light Canopy Master, say something, are there other people going for it too?}
{光明棚主，你说句话啊，还有其它人在抢吗。}
Even that burly, thick-browed man couldn’t hold back, and he invested time into asking:
这浓眉大汉也没忍住，他付出了时序问道：
“Is the Big A-team goods convoy actually made up of multiple units moving together?”
“大甲方货队是不是有好几只队伍共同行动啊。”
Through mental sensing, Canopy Master Light and his group were locked in a scuffle with a dozen or so people. The enemies weren’t as strong as legend made them out to be, just a bit tougher than ordinary folks.
心灵感应中，光明棚主一群人正在跟十来人拼杀，对方并非传说中那样强，似乎只是比普通人厉害点而已。
“Doesn’t seem like Big A-team?”
“不像是大甲方啊？”
“Looks like folks from the neighboring canopy area—damn, they’re taking advantage of the chaos to grab the rocks too?”
“像是旁边棚区的人，靠，他们也趁乱抢石头？”
{Get the Divine Stone back now!}
{快把神石抢回来。}
{You don’t deserve a treasure like this! Don’t you know the Divine Stone can be used to build weapons for a war against another realm!}
{这样的宝物你们不配拥有，神石可以制造异界战争兵器，难道你们不知道吗！}
The raiders shouted as they fought and yanked.
抢夺者边扯边叫道。
CLANG CLANG CLANCK, the sounds of battle rang out.
乒乒乓乓，战斗声传来。
In Grandma He’s canopy area, that big man’s heart blazed with rage: “We’re going to help out Old Li—no one’s taking that Divine Stone!”
何奶奶棚区中，这大汉一看心头火起：“俺们走，去帮老李，神石谁也甭想夺走！”
“Let’s move!”
“走！”
“Grab your gear!”
“抄家伙！”
{Charge! Canopy Master Li, we’re coming to back you up!}
{杀啊！李棚主，我们来帮忙了！}
Yang Zicang and his crew were once again dragged into a brawl in the canopy area. This time, he didn’t even dare to let Luo Bin or the others out of the vehicle. As time grew tighter and tighter, the people in front became impossible to reason with, so he had no choice but to strike ruthlessly. His White Shadow Thought-Dragon put two opponents out of commission, and under the blazing hatred of everyone in the canopy area, he ripped that massive boulder right out of the ground.
杨子藏一行再次与棚区爆发了战斗，这次他都不敢让洛宾几人下车，眼见时间越来越紧，而身前之人根本难以交流，他只得痛下杀手，白影念龙废了两人后，在棚区众人怒火中将这块岩石给拔除。
“The eleventh one.”
“第十一块了。”
The little reporters in the sky had thinned out somewhat, but there were still two or three left.
天上的小记者们此刻已经少了些，但还是有两三个。
The small glowing orbs spiraled down gently, their pretty little skirts twirling in circles.
小光团旋转着飘下来，漂漂亮亮的小裙子转着小圈圈。
{Naughty Yang, the fame is erupting everywhere.}
{坏坏杨，到处都在爆发名气。}
“Everywhere?”
“到处？”
Yang Zicang was taken aback. “What happened?”
杨子藏怔了下，“发生什么了？”