Chapter 11 Chapter Eleven

Handel's nerves were tense, and his body and mind were about to collapse.He ran into a new problem that he had never encountered in his life. It's the height of summer, when Princeton's secret wolf colony comes alive and alive.Crops are growing wildly in nearby fields; warehouses are being drained and repairs are underway; planes that were painstakingly built to take part in the Sakya-Mata attack are parked on the tarmac, waiting Manned liftoff. However, none of the affairs in the wolf residence went smoothly. The expedition to Safeng is about to come to naught.Handel had organized the expedition force four times, but every time everything was ready, a key person disappeared.

Wolves never disappeared before! Now dozens of wolves are missing.First Troppel, then Innesson, and twenty more after that, one or two at a time.No one is likely to be spared.Let's say Innesson, who was a wolf through and through, a man of action rather than a dreamer, who knew all he could do but the work of a craftsman, a tinker, and a shabby mechanic, and how could such a man suffer from paleness and dullness? What about the allure of zazen?However, it is undeniable that he was saved while contemplating deeply. Now it was Handel's own turn to panic.He put himself on high alert and had others watch him for the danger of being overthrown.Every night when he goes to sleep, an adjutant must be by his side to closely monitor him, so as to prevent him from being in a daze before falling asleep, and accidentally falling into meditation and being rescued.During the day, he would not allow himself a moment of alone time, and he would order his companions or guards to shake him, no matter how violently, to wake him up when he noticed a trace of distraction or similar signs in his eyes.Over time, the regime of constant sobriety that Handel had instituted for himself cost him dearly. He sacrificed too much rest and sleep, and the result was a vicious circle: the less rest and sleep, the more distracted ;the more distracted, the more the guards shook him; the more they shook him, the less time for rest and sleep.

Handel was really on the verge of physical and mental breakdown. Just a few days after he went to Wheeling to meet with Germin and returned in vain, one morning, the weather was humid and hot, Handel was dizzy due to excessive fatigue, and his food was tasteless.After breakfast, he set out to inspect various districts of Princeton.The sky is low and the rain is light.For Handel, this light rain was just an extra bit of trouble, and he didn't care at all. This wolf community has a total population of more than 1,000, and everyone has anxiety and anxiety on their faces. Handel was not the only one who was constantly tense because of the unprecedented number of disappearances, and he was not the only one who suffered from lack of rest and sleep.This community of more than 1,000 people is a well-organized collective, and now one in every 40 people is missing, which has dealt a heavy blow to the spirit of the entire community.From the faces of his compatriots, Handel could see clearly that this year, not to mention that the plan to expedition to the Sa’feng Pyramid was hopeless, even maintaining the existence of the community would be difficult.

The whole pack of wolves is facing a terrible panic. Suddenly, there was a clamor of shouts behind Handel, and he turned around unsteadily, only to see several people pointing at something in the hot and humid air and shouting loudly. A gas eye hangs silently and unremarkably above the middle of the street. Handel took a deep breath and calmed down. "Frampton!" he ordered his adjutant loudly, "bring over the helicopter equipped with detection instruments, we need to collect some more data." Frampton looked at Handel, who was close at hand, opened his mouth to say something, stopped suddenly, and spoke into the pocket radio.Handel knew what Frampton was trying to say - why didn't he think so: What's the use of getting more data?Since Troppel's transcendence, they've acquired enough data on the various electromagnetic waves around the gas eye—and the transcendence itself.Before Troppel, there had never been any air holes in the Princeton area, let alone overshoots.But now everything has changed, everything has changed.Gaseyes roam the region like ghosts, day and night.

At this time, the few people closest to the air eye were picking up stones and soil clods and throwing them towards the erratic air vortex.At first Handel yelled at them to stop, but then he didn't stop, and let them go, because he found that the puffy eye didn't seem to be affected by anything.He saw a person throw a stone at the air hole and hit it squarely, but the stone flew straight through the air hole and flew out without making a sound and leaving no impact.So why not let people vent their fears in this confrontational way?There was a clatter of propellers, and the instrumented helicopter came and landed in the middle of the street, between Handel and the Air Eye.

From calling to flying, the speed is really fast. Suddenly, Qiyan swooped down towards Handel.Handel couldn't dodge in time, but suddenly bent down like a duck.There was no doubt that this was futile, and he soon found out that it was unnecessary.It turned out that the air eye was not rushing towards him, but at something else, only a part of the air eye swept towards him.Because of the closeness, it suddenly appeared bigger in front of it.And the gas eye is indeed expanding. If you look closer, you can see that the gas eye is about the size of a football field.It is still expanding, like a round egg of a divine bird, like the head of a giant whale, it hovers on the helicopter and does not leave.In the cabin, the driver is nervously adjusting the instruments and lenses...

"Crack!" A muffled thunder sounded. This time, it was no longer just people who were saved, even the entire helicopter disappeared. People, instruments, rotating propellers, everything, everything was gone. Handel straightened up, sweating profusely, frightened half to death. The young man named Frampton asked in shock: "Handel, what should we do?" "What should I do?" Handel stared at him blankly, "Oh, the only way is suicide." He nodded calmly, as if he had finally found a solution to the problem, then he sighed again, "Okay , one last thing before committing suicide," he said, "I'm off to Wheeling right away. The wolves are gone, maybe the sheep can help us."

Wheeling.Germin was notified in his office that a visitor was waiting for him at home. Germin remains a well-bred gentleman who doesn't abruptly interrupt an endlessly pleasant conversation with a customer.One of his customers intends to do business with him, and they are negotiating the terms.He has repeatedly apologized to the customer for the messenger's interruption.Once again, the customer explained the investment plan to be submitted from the beginning to the end. Jermyn listened patiently, and finally raised a pair of hands with curled fingers and waved to the customer, indicating that he refused completely.For him, the gesture was almost equivalent to saying "no" outright.

On the opposite side of the negotiating table, the customer who originally planned to submit an investment plan suddenly changed his mind and invited the Germins to enjoy Sirius together.The invitation is written in rhyming couplets. Although he desperately wanted to negotiate that deal, he couldn't just insist on it. Jermyn had no choice but to give the customer a formal restricted acceptance to get rid of the entanglement of the invitation letter.The customer left, and he had to perform some parting etiquette when he left, and there was a delay for a while.Turning around, Jermyn immediately sent the secretary away, walked into his office, tied a red rope across the open door, and tied a complicated triple knot.

When he got home, he saw that, as expected, it was Handel. How could a gentleman overlook how suspicious Germin was of Handel, a man who almost confessed to being a wolf?Last time, due to fear of Gala's being saved, the matter of catching wolves was not as urgent as usual, so Jermin didn't ask anyone to arrest him, but let him escape. What should we do today?Germin decided to wait for a while before drawing conclusions.He saw Handel sipping tea in the living room, having a few reserved conversations with Mrs. Germin from time to time, all in all he seemed restless and embarrassed, and he was liberated only when the master came back.Germin led him aside, closed the door, and waited silently for him to speak.

Germin was astonished by the change in the man in front of him. The former Handel was always lively, agile and aggressive. In short, this man has all the characteristics of a wolf's son and the behavior that a gentleman should not be ashamed of.But now all of this is gone, no matter how you look at him, he looks more like a gentleman, haggard and gloomy, he is simply the last survivor of a difficult time. Handel didn't talk about any etiquette, and said bluntly: "Jermin, when I came to see you last time, there was a supernatural incident. Gala Troppel was supernatural, remember?" "Yes." Jermyn replied briefly.of course I remember!That scene popped up in his mind almost all the time. "At that time, you said that there were other transcendence incidents. Do they still happen now?" "It happened," Germin replied, trying to be as direct as possible to keep up with the speed and intensity of Handel's tone.In Germin's opinion, this is not very polite, but he knows that sometimes, there are more important things in this world than politeness. "Twice happened the other day. One was a woman, Mrs. Baird, who was saved. Her husband was a schoolteacher, and she was looking at the glass with four or five other women when she just-- disappeared. I think She was looking at a green prism - that might work for you." "Who knows if it will work. Who is the other one?" Jermyn shrugged. "The man's name is Harmein. No one saw him when he was saved, but someone heard a muffled thunder, or something similar, and then he disappeared." After a pause, he continued, "I think this situation is a bit unusual. A week Two, in such a small city..." Handel interrupted roughly, "Listen, Germin, it's not just two. Over the past 30 days, just here and another place, at least 50 people have been saved. Just two places, you see?" Here and Princeton. How many people are left in this world? Very few. It is not normal for one person to be saved, let alone 50 people in just two communities, is this normal?" Jermyn replied thoughtfully, "No—" "Then let me tell you something else. Three of the victims were children under the age of five, and one of them couldn't walk. Recently, not only people have been saved, but helicopters as well. Do you know what a helicopter is? The flying machine, the size of this house, went 'boom' and the whole thing disappeared. Got it, Germin? What do you think of that?" Jermyn was speechless. "Er—when you think about 'everything is related', once you grasp the mystery of how everything is related, you become one with the whole universe. But I don't know how a baby, or a machine—" "It's about Troppel," Handel said sullenly. "When he was rescued, we thought it would help to solve the mystery of his salvation, because he was honored to ascend to heaven under our noses. We obtained relevant information on the spot." The complete data of Chao Du. These data provide us with clues to understand Chao Du, and they are first-hand information. We always thought that he did us a big favor...now we are not sure." He leaned forward and continued Said, "As far as I know, everyone who was saved was acquainted with Troppel. The three children were students in his kindergarten class - when he first came to us, he was assigned to look after the kindergarten for a period of time." The two people who used to sleep with him were saved, the waiter who served him was saved, his wife was saved. Sitting meditation? No, Germin. I know most of these people. None of them was saved for what. And sitting in meditation for more than half a minute. What do you think about this?" Jermyn gasped and said, "I remember, the one named Harmein—" "His what?" "It's the one who was saved last week. He also knew Tropel. When Tropel was detained in Wujie Prison, he was the jailer there." "See what's going on? And I bet the woman knows him." Handel stood up, pacing restlessly in a circle. "There's something else to tell, Germin." He Say, "I lost the fight. You know what I am, don't you?" Jermyn said calmly, "I believe you are a wolf." "Your guess is right." Jermyn's facial muscles twitched involuntarily, but he tried to calm himself down, and sat quietly to listen to Handel's words. "I want to tell you that it doesn't matter what I am anymore. You don't like wolves, and I don't like sheep, each other. Now it's big, and there's nothing I can do. Troppel started the chain of events I can't decide what the outcome will be. But I know one thing: none of us—whether wolves or sheep—is safe. Maybe you still think that salvation is the highest achievement of consummation of merit and virtue, but I don't, it It just scares me. But it's coming to me - including you, and it's coming to everyone connected to Troppel unless we stop it. But I don't know how Do, would you like to help me?" Jermyn's deep-seated fear rose, and he growled secretly, "Wolf!" But he forced himself to calm down, and said sincerely, "I don't know if I can. I'll always keep that in mind. " Handel looked him over and over again, then shrugged his shoulders and said almost to himself: "Maybe it doesn't matter much to help, maybe we can't do anything about it at all. Well, I've Going back, if you have made up your mind to help me, then please make a plan. If you decide to use other means, well, I will have to kill him and kill a few sheep. It's nothing to worry about." Germin stood up, bowed, and saluted.Handel did not return the courtesy. "Forget it," he said angrily. "One more thing, Germin. If I were you, I wouldn't make a long-term plan. You won't exist until the plan is implemented." Jermyn asked thoughtfully, "What about yourself?" "I will act immediately and will not make any long-term plans." Handel said coldly. Jermyn lay on the bed with his eyes wide open, staring at the ceiling, thinking of the wolf spirit in his home, tossing and turning, without any sleepiness.Her wife's snoring came from the end of the bed, the snoring was light, even and rhythmic.The snoring could have been sleep-inducing, but not tonight. Not tonight.No sleepiness tonight. Among the sheep, Germin was a man of great courage, that is to say, he was never afraid, except in rare cases.But now he is afraid, and he does not want to be saved. Handel had already pointed it out to him: "Perhaps you still think that salvation is the highest achievement of consummation of merit." Of course, he no longer thinks this way now, on the contrary, he thinks it is ridiculous.Transcendence, the gift regarded as the highest reward of zazen was once thought to have come only to a few outstanding figures.But that is a thing of the past, and now transcendence has nothing to do with zazen, it has come to the child, it has come to Gala Troppel, it has come to the head of the machine. But it has something to do with Troppel. Germin was still tossing and turning in bed. In ancient times, there was a panacea prescription for removing sarcoma. The method is: take a piece of grass leaf, put it in a pot and add water to boil. After the soup cools down, soak the tumor in the soup. It only takes nine seconds for the tumor to disappear.Method: Do not think of the word "rhinoceros" within these nine seconds. The way to stay sober is not to think of the word "rhinoceros".For Germin, it's just not wanting "everything related."He thought of the following questions: 1.Whether anyone who knows Glenn Troppel may be saved; 2.Whether anyone who contemplates "all things are related" may be transcended; 3.Anyone who knows Glenn Troppel and doesn't want to be saved had better not think about "all things are related". But it is really difficult to ask him not to think about "everything is related". Then he added numbers endlessly, memorized the five precepts, wrote congratulatory poems, and chanted scenery songs, but soon his thoughts returned endlessly to Tropile, back to supersession, and back to "all things are related".He doesn't want to be transcended, but transcendence is still somewhat tempting after all.What does transcendence look like?Will it hurt?he wondered. Maybe it doesn't hurt, he thought.According to Handel's report, the super speed was extremely fast-if one was willing to believe the report of the son of the wolf that he confessed to, then it could only be so.Germin had to believe so.If it is really that fast, if it reaches that speed, people may die in an instant.Troppel may be dead.is it possible?impossible.It appears that this is not the case.After all, it is a fact that Troppel is related to the person who was recently saved.What is this connection?Or, what relationships are involved?It's really cutting constantly, and the reasoning is still messy.At last, the image of a figure emerged in his mind, which freed him from those tangled thoughts. This person was Tropel's wife, Gala Tropel.It was in this room that she disappeared. Gala Troppel.Jermyn thought of her suddenly, and felt close and sweet.This is the trick to forgetting that "everything is related" - to fill your mind with something else, so that there is no extra room in the brain for unwanted thoughts.He thought for a long time about Gala's length and every part of her body, every curve of her face, every ripple of her silky curls... He imagined freely and was intoxicated.