“You want to see my father?”

Big Face Cat was surprised. He didn’t expect his new little brother to make such a request.

“Forget about him… He’s been acting weird lately, turning into a nutcase with his research. My mom says he locks himself in his room all day, not letting us in, totally obsessed.”

“And…”

Big Face Cat looked at his watch.

“And I promised my son I’d buy him roast chicken today. How about this, come home with me for dinner, you don’t have anywhere to stay anyway. Crash at my place for the night, and tomorrow I’ll take you to see my dad on my motorcycle.”

“Come on, Face-Ge! Just today!”

Lin Xian shook his thick arm.

“It won’t take you too long. You can drop me off at your dad’s, then head straight back to buy roast chicken for your son. You don’t have to stay with me.”

“I’m really interested in mathematics and want to ask your father some questions. How about we make it a quick trip?”

Face-Ge pondered for a moment…

“Alright.”

He scratched his armpit.

“Since I said I’d make it up to you and fulfill your wish, I can’t go back on my word as an older brother.”

“A-Zhuang, you guys hand the thief over to the police. I’m not going. I’m taking Lin Xian to find my dad on my motorcycle.”

A-Zhuang leaned in, glanced at Lin Xian, and whispered,

“Brother, what about tonight…”

Big Face Cat made a gesture.

“Everything as usual. We’ll be back soon.”

…

Big Face Cat took Lin Xian home and wheeled out his motorcycle.

It was old, but clean. This must be Big Face Cat’s prized possession.

In this poor, technologically backward village, the value of this motorcycle was probably equivalent to a Rolls-Royce.

“Put on a helmet.”

Big Face Cat tossed Lin Xian a helmet.

“So considerate?”

Lin Xian fastened the helmet strap, a little surprised by Big Face Cat’s change.

A hardened criminal who once robbed a bank with a bomb… now cared about something as trivial as wearing a helmet.

“Gotta set an example for my kids!”

Big Face Cat put on an extra-large helmet, leaving the straps dangling. He knew he couldn’t fasten it with his big face.

He pointed to his son and daughter watching from the second floor.

“I’m always telling them to be careful, so I have to lead by example, right?”

Lin Xian smiled, saying nothing.

In the previous dream, the last time he robbed a bank with Big Face Cat, Big Face Cat had said that if his daughter were still alive, he wouldn’t have become the way he was.

Because he still wanted to attend his daughter’s parent-teacher conferences and give speeches, he would have to pay attention to his words, actions, and identity.

Now, it seemed that was true.

For Big Face Cat, the key to his life was whether his daughter was dead or alive.

If his daughter was alive, he would be a kind father who led by example.

If his daughter was dead, he would be a fierce gangster blinded by revenge.

Perhaps everyone’s life was like this.

…

The motorcycle sped along the bumpy dirt road.

They were now out of the village and in the boundless fields.

Without the crowded self-built buildings, the air was fresh, and the view was wide.

Lin Xian looked into the distance and easily saw the [New East Sea City] standing between the earth and sky.

It really looked like a huge and terrifying alien object.

New East Sea City covered a vast area, with endless steel walls and countless skyscrapers rising straight into the clouds.

Lin Xian couldn’t judge how tall these buildings were… it was beyond his comprehension.

Even with such good weather, a clear sky, and high clouds, countless skyscrapers in New East Sea City still disappeared into the clouds. It was hard to imagine how many hundreds or even thousands of floors they had.

Because it was daytime, Lin Xian could see the details of New East Sea City’s outer walls more clearly.

The outer walls seemed to be made of steel, as rust marks were still visible from a distance. This was in stark contrast to the city’s bright and beautiful interior, making it look very discordant.

But the residents living in New East Sea City were like people in Mount Lu, unable to see the true face; they would never see the mottled, rusty outer walls, so there was no need for cleaning or maintenance.

Lin Xian estimated that the height of these steel walls was at least two hundred meters.

Because there were many buildings several hundred meters high in East Sea City, Lin Xian was able to judge the scale.

The Oriental Pearl Tower, a landmark building in East Sea City, was about 460 meters high, and the steel walls surrounding the entire New East Sea City were roughly half the height of the Oriental Pearl Tower.

It was hard to imagine…

How much steel and what a powerful production capacity would be needed to build such a vast and magnificent miracle project?

Lin Xian didn’t know.

Big Face Cat and the others didn’t know either.

As Big Face Cat said…

The separation between the inside and outside of the steel walls was like the Milky Way; they looked at each other like aliens.

…

“We’re here, brother!”

Screech————

Big Face Cat used his slipper-clad foot as a brake, kicking up a cloud of dust.

It was quite a distance… Big Face Cat’s motorcycle was so fast, but it still took half an hour to get here, and Lin Xian’s butt was almost shaken into four pieces.

The motorcycle stopped outside a two-story house. Big Face Cat pointed to a room on the second floor with the curtains drawn.

“See, that’s my dad’s room. He’s probably still holed up in there studying that useless book.”

After parking the motorcycle, Big Face Cat knocked loudly on the door.

“Mom!!”

Big Face Cat shouted.

…

No response.

Knock knock knock knock knock!!!!

“Dad!!!”

…

Inside the house, there was still no movement.

“Something’s wrong!”

Big Face Cat looked at Lin Xian in disbelief.

“It’s one thing if my mom went out… but there’s no way my dad would go out! Ever since he calculated that cosmic constant or whatever, he hasn’t left his room except to go to the bathroom and eat, let alone go out!”

He scratched his head, unable to believe that his father would go out. He took a deep breath, puffing out his chest—

“Dad—”

“Stop shouting, Big Face!”

An old man came out from the neighboring house.

“Uncle Wang?”

Big Face Cat looked at the old man.

“Where are my parents?”

“Silly boy… your parents were taken away early this morning. Your family is going to be rich, hahaha!”

Rich?

Big Face Cat and Lin Xian looked at each other, confused.

“Uncle Wang, who took my parents away? And why didn’t they tell me?”

“They left in a hurry. Someone invited him to attend an academic forum. Your dad is really going to bring honor to his ancestors this time!”

“Tch…”

Big Face Cat scoffed.

“Uncle Wang, you keep saying rich this and honor the ancestors that. I thought my dad had won the lottery! Turns out he’s just attending an academic forum! Seriously… you got me all excited for nothing.”

“Hehe, what a silly boy!”

The old man fanned himself, his face full of excitement.

“Your dad is more amazing than winning the lottery, more amazing than winning ten thousand lotteries!”

“In all these years, for hundreds of years… your dad is the first person to be invited into [New East Sea City]!”

“Huh?!” "New East Sea City?"

Hearing the old man’s words, Big Face Cat and Lin Xian were stunned.

New East Sea City.

Lin Xian frowned.

Wasn’t it said that no one here had any way to enter that giant sci-fi city? The two-hundred-meter-high walls separated the inside and outside of the city into two worlds, an insurmountable heavenly chasm.

But…

“Uncle Wang! Are you telling the truth! Don’t joke around!” Big Face Cat couldn’t believe it.

“You rascal! Why would your uncle lie to you!”

The old man’s face instantly turned serious. He pointed with his fan at the towering steel city in the distance, like a black dragon coiled in the clouds.

“At seven or eight o’clock this morning, several cars flew down from the sky! They respectfully took your parents away!”

“Right now… they’re probably eating delicacies!”