Celestial Human Diagram

"Captain Chen," Chen Bitong said, "regarding this stage play, which ending are you hoping to see?"

Chen Chuan responded without hesitation, "The Kingslaying Ending."

"But many people don’t want to see this ending," Chen Bitong said. "They want to see the other one."

"What’s the difference?"

Chen Bitong said, "When you were watching the play, you must have heard the introduction. The songs of the Desolate Domain Divine Song contain information about the fighting techniques of ancient heroes.

"Ever since the songs spread across the world, despite long-term research and listening, very few of the ancient heroes’ techniques have been rediscovered.

"However, the upper echelons of countries around the world gradually discovered something. They found that by following a certain rhythm, using exquisite props and a stage, selecting suitable actors, and undergoing strict rehearsals, the music itself could bring about various ’positive’ effects."

"That sounds like a ritual," Chen Chuan said.

"The music itself is indeed very much like a ritual."

Chen Bitong gave him a firm reply. "And a different ending will benefit the different parties represented by that ending.

"If you knew more about this play, you’d know that many monarchs of the past were passionate about it. But back then, the ending they staged was usually the opposite of this one.

"Just like those Monarchs, Chairman Quan and some of the people in the private boxes all want to see the other ending. It benefits them more.

"And this effect only occurs when the piece is performed for the first time in a place where it has never been played before.

"The ending appears to be one of two choices, but the actual outcome doesn’t always go according to plan. Sometimes, the real ending contradicts the arranged one, and that’s when uncertain factors can emerge."

He looked at Chen Chuan. "And I am here to eliminate that uncertain factor."

Chen Chuan now understood. ’Since the upper class could benefit from the musical, of course they preferred the ending where the King judged all, not the Kingslaying Ending.’

’Of course, if the Kingslaying Ending were beneficial to them, I’m sure they’d have no problem killing the King over and over.’

He mulled it over. ’To use an anomaly, one must naturally fight an anomaly. It’s unavoidable. Perhaps the true ending of this story is the Kingslaying Ending after all.’

’The appearance of the anomaly in the old armor was likely meant to ’correct’ the ending—to kill the King.’

’And the King isn’t just the one on stage. It must be the person in the audience whose status represents the ’King’—the one who stands to gain the most.’

’Similar problems must have occurred in the past, so they already have experience. That’s why Chairman Quan brought Chen Bitong along.’

He then asked, "So what are these so-called ’positive’ benefits?"

Chen Bitong shook his head. "I don’t know, but it’s the usual sort of thing."

"Isn’t there a price?" Chen Chuan asked.

"It might have negative effects on the actors," Chen Bitong said. "But they were chosen by the Porlon Company, so it has nothing to do with us. They’ve already signed solid agreements beforehand."

’It’s a trade-off,’ Chen Chuan realized. Chairman Quan had a chance to gain something, and the Porlon Company would probably get something out of the arrangement as well.

Having learned all this, he saw the audience members below getting ready to leave and decided he didn’t want to stay any longer either.

"Teacher Chen, since this act is over, I’ll be heading out."

"Captain Chen," Chen Bitong said slowly, "you’re all still young. There’s no need to rush things. Just listen and watch patiently. There will be opportunities to make corrections and changes."

Chen Chuan glanced at him, nodded, and left, returning to his original box.

There was supposed to be one more act and a final curtain call, but with both lead actors rushed off for medical attention, the show ended abruptly.

After meeting up with Tan Zhi and the other two who were waiting for him, they all walked out together. Pan Xiaode finally couldn’t hold back his question. "Chen, that... thing just now... was that part of the plan?"

Chen Chuan shook his head. "It was just an accident."

Tan Zhi glanced around, then clapped Pan Xiaode on the shoulder. "See how incredible Chen is now?"

Hearing that, Pan Xiaode immediately perked up. "Yeah! I couldn’t even see Chen’s moves clearly. If he used that kind of strength when we spar, we wouldn’t stand a chance."

He muttered to himself, "Strength really is everything..."

"The fight on stage was so intense," Tan Zhi said. "I thought those two leads were amazing. I never expected Chen to go up there and take care of it just like that."

Pan Xiaode then asked curiously, "Speaking of the two endings... what’s the real ending to the Divine Song? Did the Shepherdess defeat the noblewoman, or did the noblewoman defeat the Shepherdess?"

Tan Zhi shrugged. "Who knows? There are ruins at the original site. Someone went to check it out and said the Old Royal Palace collapsed and there’s nothing left. No one knows the true ending."

"What about the Down-and-out Knight?"

"There are too many conflicting accounts to be sure. The only thing that supposedly survived was the armor."

By then, they had left the corridor for the private boxes. Chen Chuan stopped and said, "You guys head back first. I might have some other things to take care of."

The three of them knew about his position with the Processing Bureau and guessed that he probably had follow-up work related to the incident. So they agreed, said their goodbyes, and headed back.

Chen Chuan, meanwhile, returned alone to the scene of the fight. After a brief look around, he walked onto the stage and went through a passage to the backstage area. Crew members were busy packing things up. When they saw him enter, one of them approached to ask his business.

He showed his Name Card and said, "I’m very interested in the props from the show. I’d like to purchase a few."

The crew member replied, "Sir, we’ll be holding a public auction after the show’s run. We can’t sell props privately right now. I apologize for the inconvenience."

"Hold on."

Just then, a heavyset man with blond hair walked out. He was clearly one of the Noelanders, but his Dashun Language was remarkably fluent. "I’m the business manager here, Gao Hong." He pushed the crew member aside and enthusiastically extended his hand for a shake. "Captain Chen, a pleasure. I was wondering, which prop has caught your eye?"

"The suit of Knight Armor from before," Chen Chuan said directly.

"Ah, the lead actor’s armor. It certainly has great sentimental value..." Gao Hong said with a fawning smile. "We have more shows to do, but we have a spare. Of course we can sell this set to you, Captain Chen. It’s just that it was damaged earlier and we haven’t had a chance to repair it..."

"That’s fine," Chen Chuan said.

"Excellent, excellent! It would be our honor."

Gao Hong called two people over. They carried out the set of armor, which had just been gathered up, along with the Rusted Sword that Chen Chuan had broken.

The Shepherdess may have worn it with ease, but the set was actually incredibly heavy. The full suit of armor and the sword together weighed well over a hundred pounds.

Chen Chuan took a look. ’Normally, items involved in an anomaly transform into something else after the incident is resolved. But this one doesn’t seem to have changed.’

’Either there’s something special about the armor itself, or the core of the anomaly isn’t in the armor but has another source.’ He suspected it was most likely the song itself.

For now, it just looked like an ordinary prop.

He asked for the price. Gao Hong charged him only a token amount and even provided a sturdy bag to pack it in.

Chen Chuan thanked him, took the bag, and walked out of the theater.

Meanwhile, in the parking garage, Tan Zhi’s supervising instructor, Teacher Wei, was walking with a councilor she was friendly with. They got into a car together.

The councilor asked, "Is that Captain Chen the one you mentioned last time, Xiaoying?"

"Yes."

"He’s very close with that student of mine," Teacher Wei said.

"If you get the chance, you should try to build a good relationship with him."

"I know. I’ve been trying."

"That’s not what I meant."

The councilor said, "It seems he’s caught Chairman Quan’s eye. His future is boundless." He waved his hand, signaling the driver to pull away.

The armored limousine began to move. Teacher Wei watched the neon light screens outside recede and blur, feeling a wave of emotion.

’A mere Fighter might have social status and considerable wealth, but only power makes one truly strong.’

She felt a pang of regret. She had given those tickets to Tan Zhi. While they weren’t for an upper-level box, they were still good seats, partitioned off from the surrounding area.

Her original plan was to use the intermission, while talking to Tan Zhi, as a chance to get closer to Chen Chuan and clear the air about that past incident. She never expected him to not sit there at all, instead going to a different box.

’Oh well,’ she thought. ’There will be other opportunities.’

After leaving the theater, Chen Chuan drove back to his dorm. He washed up, then placed the bag with the armor in his training room. He planned to ask the Processing Bureau’s logistics team to repair it later.

Remnants from anomalies like this should be stored separately from his weapons collection to prevent any strange interactions. After all, there was no guarantee the item was completely inert.

He then went to the window and used his Realm Token to contact Counselor Pei. Once the connection was established, he gave a rough summary of the day’s events, including his conversation with Chen Bitong.

After listening, Counselor Pei said, "It’s not surprising that Chen Bitong wants to give you an opportunity. He has a history of giving chances to juniors he favors. That’s why so many people admire him.

"This means you’ve caught his eye, Captain Chen. Remember to attend that training class. That way, if Chen Bitong gets transferred back to the Merging Land, we’ll try to get you assigned to his side."

"What are the chances of him going back?" Chen Chuan asked.

"The chances are high," Counselor Pei said. He hesitated for a moment. "It still depends on the decision from the higher-ups. There’s one situation that could affect things, but nothing’s certain yet. We should know more soon. I’ll tell you when I have concrete news."

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