Omega Manual chapter 74

Tombstone

While climbing to the top of Mount Yinbu, Shelley felt countless times that perhaps the next second, death would descend upon him.

He was both thirsty and hungry, having had almost no rest, and his physical strength was completely exhausted. Every step forward was taken purely by the inertia of his body and mechanical willpower.

In the midst of the snowstorm, there was only one thought in his blank mind: keep up with Irey in front of him, fix his gaze on his back, and not let this image disappear from his sight.

He had to keep moving forward, had to reach the end, had to survive and return with Irey.

This was the longest night of Shelley Manta’s life.

Every minute felt as long as a century. He couldn’t tell how far he had walked or how many steps he had taken until he gripped the rope and climbed over yet another peak, preparing to mechanically continue forward when Irey grabbed his arm.

“No need to walk anymore, Shelley,” Irey said. “We’ve arrived.”

Shelley didn’t grasp the meaning of Irey’s words for a moment, until he raised his voice and repeated them.

“Look up! We! Made it to the top!”

Shelley slowly raised his head.

The snowstorm had stopped at some point, and the air around them was peaceful and quiet, with an unobstructed view.

The sunrise was climbing up from the distant horizon, casting golden-red light on the sea and land, quickly dispelling the darkness and illuminating half the mountain.

The sky spread before them, clouds beneath their feet, and nothing in the world stood taller than the peak they were on.

Shelley’s ears buzzed, and his legs could no longer support his body. He collapsed onto the snow-covered ground.

Then he heard a thud beside him as Irey also lay down, gasping for breath.

It turned out he had been just as exhausted, but had been pushing himself to keep talking to encourage Shelley.

The sunlight warmed the top of Mount Yinbu, and the temperature began to rise. Shelley could feel life slowly returning to his body.

He turned to look at the tired Irey, wanting to say something but too weak. Irey looked back at him, saying nothing, just smiling.

No words were needed; one thing was certain.

This time, they had survived.

They lay there quietly until the sun was fully risen and the top completely bathed in light.

Irey was the first to grab his ice axe and stand up, then whistled loudly, “Shelley, look behind you.”

Shelley felt like he could sleep in the snow forever, and only lazily half-opened his eyes at Irey’s words, mumbling a vague response without moving.

“Get up, quickly, look behind you, you’ll regret it for the rest of your life if you don’t.” Irey said, grabbing Shelley’s wrist and dragging him up.

Shelley had no choice but to follow his lead. Even with the help of the ice axe, he almost fell several times, taking at least two minutes to barely stand.

He followed Irey’s gaze and was stunned.

Not far behind them stood a tall wisteria tree.

It was clear at a glance that the tree was very old, with intertwined branches and a canopy large enough to resemble a giant umbrella.

The most surprising thing was that the entire tree was in bloom. Pale purple flowers hung from the branches like silent wind chimes, swaying gently in the wind.

In the soft rustling, the wind brought a floral fragrance, a delicate and fresh scent that quickly plunged Shelley into memories from long ago, like a dream.

He couldn’t help but walk forward, leaving a long trail of footprints in the snow.

The wisteria tree stood there, neither a dream nor an illusion. He could feel the rough texture of the bark and the delicate petals in his palm.

When he came to his senses, he found his cheeks wet with tears.

That day, they stayed under the wisteria tree until noon.

Sunlight filtered through the flowers, casting dappled light. Shelley leaned against the trunk, nibbling on the rations they had brought. Besides the compressed biscuits, there were some canned fish that Anna had insisted they take, saying they were “delicious.”

As soon as they opened the can, a indescribably fishy smell wafted out. Fortunately, they were on the open snow-capped mountain and not in an enclosed space, or Shelley feared he might have vomited right there.

Irey, bold and daring, insisted on tasting it, only to have his face twist in disgust before running behind the tree to vomit. He then drank half a bottle of water and stuffed down a whole pack of compressed biscuits to suppress the fishy taste.

“Did she just stuff an entire raw fish into the can?” he exclaimed incredulously, “The people of Fuba Port must have a taste that even Satan would bow to!”

Shelley laughed until tears almost came out, “This has nothing to do with the people of Fuba Port, it’s just Anna’s devilish taste.”

After eating, Shelley took some time to photograph the wisteria tree, trying to analyze from the terrain and environment how such a tree could grow on the top of a snow-capped mountain, and how it could bloom in such a cold, low-oxygen environment.

In the end, the conclusion was clear: within the current rational and scientific framework of human understanding, this was impossible.

A large vine plant could not grow on the top of a snow-capped mountain, and it was even more impossible for it to bloom in such a cold, low-oxygen environment. No matter how many sources he checked or hypotheses he made, he couldn’t explain the miraculous sight before him.

The only word for such an occurrence in human society is—miracle.

Shelley gazed up at the blossoms, carefully observing each one.

If miracles could happen, could his mother’s soul be among these petals, quietly watching him? Or had she already ridden the wind to the sky, becoming a shining star in the vast galaxy?

One day in the future, when he dies, would he too become a small petal on this tree, drifting with the wind into the boundless sea of stars?

One day, perhaps.

But not today, not now.

He had once longed to come here, to end all his suffering in the resting place of his soul and find eternal peace.

He had imagined many times that at the brink of death, he could see his mother’s face, return to a time before the pain, curling up in a warm, soft bed, listening to his mother tell stories of Mount Yinbu in her gentle, clear voice.

Maybe one day, his soul would come here to reunite with his mother in another world.

But now, as he reached the end of his journey, he chose a harder, more painful, and braver path.

Because this time, he was no longer alone.

On the twisted and malevolent path of fate paved by the world, someone had taken his hand and vowed never to let go.

Putting down his phone after taking a photo, Shelley suddenly realized that the person holding his hand had disappeared.

When he turned back to look for him, he saw that the person had found a dried-up tree branch from somewhere and taken one of Shelley’s shirts. He planted the stick under a wisteria tree and tied the shirt to it with a tight knot, letting the fabric flutter in the wind.

“What are you doing?” Shelley found it a bit amusing.

“Setting up a monument for you,” Irey said, pointing to the words written on the shirt with a thick permanent marker.

The densely packed, bold letters fluttered in the wind. It took Shelley a while to read them. They said:

“Here lies the past Shelley Manta, a great researcher, Omega, and a lovely rabbit. There is no body here because his soul found hope for rebirth in struggle and reconciliation.”

He couldn’t help but laugh, but at the same time, his eyes felt sore and swollen, filling with tears that slid down his cheeks the next moment.

But Shelley knew this would probably be the last time he cried on this journey.

Irey pressed the stick into the ground again and tightened the knot to ensure it would stay firm for a while, then stepped back to admire his work.

White mist from his breath scattered into the air, and then he turned to Shelley. “Shall we go back?”

His tone was as casual as if they were at a park near home.

Shelley wiped away his tears and smiled. “Okay, let’s go back.”