Chapter 8: Chapter 6 Vistas
The dim room took shape in the light of the algae oil lamp, as the white-haired boy breathed wearily.
On the oilcloth-wrapped table, there wasnât much blood flow, which was due to the fact that the fatal wound on the corpse wasnât large, and before death, there was sleep powder serving as a sedative, dilating the blood vessels.
Luckily, thanks to the calming effect of the sleep powder, or else, if Ossenna had struggled and howled desperately before dying, he might have broken free from his restraints and alerted the neighbors... That would have been bad.
But now, Ossenna was dead. No one can live after having their throat cut and suffocating for over ten minutes.
At least Ossenna couldnât.
"The body cannot stay in the house... but that can wait."
Staring at the corpse, Ian shook his head, deciding he couldnât be bothered to note how ferocious the otherâs expression was before death.
Scum deserved an end befitting scum.
Instead of caring about a child-abusing, shroom-addicted pervert who should have died long ago, he thought it better to consider the nature of his own abilities.
At this moment, Ian had some understanding of the effect of the "Clairvoyant Vision," the name he had given his Spirit Energy ability.
â When he activated Clairvoyant Vision, it consumed a portion of his strength, and blood rushed to his head.
â At the same time, everything in his field of vision would be shrouded in mists of various colors.
Ordinary things like wooden desks, chairs, and ropes were enveloped in white, gray, or even semi-transparent mists that didnât hinder vision and could be easily ignored.
However, if blue appeared in his sight, it indicated the presence of an area with objects of extraordinary, unusual effectiveness.
Blue denoted the âextraordinary.â
Simply put, it was [Extraordinary Rare] in terms of rarity.
Suboer Flower Sleep Powder was one such instance, and as of now, the only one.
The effectiveness of the sleep powder was clear; it could quickly put someone without any resistance to sleep for a while, and even for someone like Ossenna who took it often, causing resistance, would only wake up a bit soonerâsleep was still inevitable.
This was the effect of Clairvoyant Vision in identifying âextraordinaryâ objects.
As for the future, whether there would be [Very Extraordinary Rare], [Extraordinary Rare], [Peerless Rare], or even [Ha! Legendary!] levels...
That would depend on his luck in the future, and whether he could come across such rare treasures.
"Thatâs not too hard."
Ian expanded his thinking, pondering: "Many areas around Harrison Port have not been developed and still hold many rare herbs and materials in the jungle and mountains. That is also why there are still quite a few herbalists in the port."
Suboer flowers, as well as the black mushrooms his uncle was addicted to, are among these special herbs and materials; just gathering a small amount could be sold to the city hall and trading houses for a good sum of money.
But he didnât need to rely on experience and luck to gather herbs like those old herbalists.
Ian only needed to occasionally open his eyes and use âClairvoyant Visionâ to uncover plenty of riches!
And that wasnât all.
This was only a part of the capability of âClairvoyant Visionâ!
If there had to be an analogy, Ian felt that his Spiritual Power was related to âseeing Qi.â
After all, apart from detecting the rarity of objects themselves, this Spirit Energy could also observe the future.
Predicting the future was the real core of this Spirit Energy.
With a thought, Ian went to the room where his little brother wasâElan had eaten porridge laced with sleep powder and was still sleeping soundly, and it would probably be a while before he woke up.
Activating Clairvoyant Vision, Ian tolerated the palpitations and took a glance, thinking, "As expected."
"The black and red aura of death has vanished, leaving only a faint swirling of blood color... Does this mean there is still danger, but itâs no longer a death sentence?"
The death of Uncle Ossenna had removed the crisis for Ian and Elan, but things were far from over.
First of all, Ossennaâs death, or disappearance, would sooner or later be discovered by the people of Harrison and the White Folks tribesmen.
Although an eight-year-old child was unlikely to be suspected, Ian could easily attribute his uncleâs disappearance to him venturing into the Redwood Forest to trade black mushrooms with the Natives on his own.
With hunters disappearing in the forest being not uncommon, whatâs more for a cripple?
Knowing this, his kindred would not press the matter.
But that wasnât safe enough.
After all, both Ian and Elan were children, and Ossenna was their last blood relative. Without family protection, in this rural place, they could only become other peopleâs adopted children or apprentices. The best outcome would be to be sent to the Huai Guang Church to assist the priests, but it was uncertain if theyâd be accepted.
Keep in mind, even in Harrison at the southernmost tip of the Terra Continent, the Huai Guang Churchâs fathers occasionally had to work in the fields or go out to sea to fish.
No one wanted to take care of kids.
This was a long-term crisis, whereas the short-term danger came from the Natives.
Ossennaâs death didnât mean that the trade he was planning was over. Natives in urgent need of pure sacrifice had infiltrated the port before, and they were well aware of Ossennaâs addressâit would be no big deal for them to forcibly abduct the two brothers.
"I canât see my own fortune, and I understand that in most legendary tales, prophecy and divination cannot predict oneâs own future."
Ian reached out, pinched his little brotherâs chubby cheek, and murmured thoughtfully, "But I can see Elanâs fortune."
"Elan is just a little child over one year old. Iâm his brother; our fates are interlinked. If I were to die, he wouldnât survive either... Conversely, any crisis that could harm my brother, even if itâs not as terrifying for me, certainly requires caution."
With this in mind, Ianâs eyes gradually brightened as he came to a realization, "So."
"All I need to do is observe Elanâs future fortune. By seeing if itâs good or bad, I can indirectly understand my own future fortune!"
Excitedly, Ian rubbed Elanâs cheeks, which felt great to the touch. "I canât see my own, but I can see my brotherâs!"
"After all, who else do we have but each other? Itâs either you or me!"
The white-haired child tucked in the blankets was still sucking his tongue in his sleep, making adorable murmurs, blissfully unaware that heâd been made into a tool for predicting the future, a human comparator by his own brother.
Of course, it wasnât just that.
The reason Ian was determined to protect Elan wasnât solely because of his abilities.
Ultimately, Elan was his only remaining blood relative in this world. Their mother, already weak from illness, had passed away shortly after giving birth to Elan due to the excessive strain of caring for two children alone after their stepfather left.
All along, it was Ian who told stories to Elan, sang lullabies, and Elan was closest to him as a brother.
Elan had one-quarter elf blood, and combined with being mixed with the White Folks, the potential for his Spirit Energy awakening was great in theory, but in reality, it wasnât, which was also why their half-elf stepfather from Canaan Moore, had left directly.
The white-haired toddler had pointed ears, indeed quite cute.
Watching Elanâs sleeping face, the boy exhaled, calming himself down slightly.
Ian reached out, leaning over to pinch the tips of the otherâs ears, the trace of fierceness in his eyes from killing Ossenna dissipating. He looked tenderly at his younger brother, "Even if you really were foolish, I would still take care of you as you grow up... After all, youâre the only family I have in this world."
"But to better deal with the crises of this unknown world, I must make the most of every detail of my abilities to find a sliver of chance in this dire start."
Murmuring to himself, Ian stood up, leaving his brotherâs room.
As he passed the table, he casually cleaned the dried blood from his hands with his uncleâs clothes.
Approaching the window, Ian carefully surveyed the outside.
For a moment, he thought he saw a golden mist, but in the next instant, it vanished.
"What was that?"
He rubbed his eyes with some confusion before confirming that it must have been an illusion caused by the flickering light of the street lamps at the corner.
The streets of this coastal city were quiet and silent in the deep of night, with only a few dim street lights around the city center. Those fueled by oil extracted from fluorescent algae, touted as long-burning lamps, could only glow for just over a month at most.
Forcing them to light up only results in a flickering and unstable glow like now.
Once sure that no one was around, Ian secured the curtains once more.
His heart was filled with emotion.
Harrison Port, Terra Continent.
Although it seemed ancient and feudal.
But Ian knew, this otherworld that only appears to be on the verge of the industrial age was nothing like Earth from his previous life.
There wasnât just Spirit Energy, but also Sublimators, Sober Sleep Powder, and other quite extraordinary things.
"Is it Swords and Magic? Spirit Energy and miracles?"
Gazing out at the world, Ian felt a thrill of excitement at the unknown, "Terra is truly wonderful."
With a sigh of appreciation, this had always been his nature.
Ianâs pursuit was this feeling, this future.
Thatâs why he had longed to travel to the Star Sea, to venture into that dark, unknown distance.
Ordinary people might fear that silence and darkness, but for Ian, turning the dark unknown into known territory, satisfying his curiosity, that was the meaning of life.
Otherworld? With Spirit Energy, Sleep Powder, and all sorts of unheard and unseen things?
Couldnât be better!
Quickly bundling the corpse in oilcloth, Ian was a hundred percent sure that his brutal uncle was thoroughly dead. Even if this world had necromancy, a zombie with half a neck missing was nothing to fear.
"I need to dispose of my uncleâs body tonight."
In the flickering light of the living room, Ian let out a long sigh, now feeling an almost painful hunger in his stomach as the tension gave way to fatigue in his limbs, "But first."
The boy who had just properly dealt with the body came to the right conclusion.
"I need to eat."