Black Mist 02
Mom did not answer Tian Xiao’s question.
It seemed she only had a few phrases she would say over and over again.
Tian Xiao didn't mind. Instead, he stared at Mom intently for a while.
He watched as the Black Mist Embers drifting around Mom were all absorbed into her body, confirming she had indeed eaten them.
The Black Mist that had followed them was Mom’s "food."
His survival experience after the Apocalypse made Tian Xiao simply believe that being "able to eat" was a good thing.
Since coming to this world, Mom had been taking care of him, so Tian Xiao naturally hoped Mom could have a full stomach.
He finished the rest of his noodle soup in a few bites and let Mom take the bowl and chopsticks away.
Tian Xiao glanced toward the kitchen and then went to the small courtyard in front of the house.
The courtyard was already cluttered, but after the struggle between Mom and the Black Mist, it looked even messier.
Since the Black Mist had fled in a hurry, wisps of Shadows left behind by it could be seen everywhere.
Glancing at the darkening sky, Tian Xiao didn't care and walked straight out of the courtyard gate.
The moment Tian Xiao stepped out of the yard, Mom, who should have been in the kitchen, silently appeared behind him.
This remote location and late hour were clearly not the time for a good child to be out.
However, Mom didn't do anything to stop Tian Xiao; she simply followed him.
Tian Xiao was not like an ordinary child either. Taking advantage of the deepening twilight, he began to run through the outside world at a speed an ordinary child shouldn't possess.
As the sky grew dark, the streetlights lit up one after another.
There were fewer streetlights in remote areas, providing limited illumination, yet the running Tian Xiao wasn't restricted at all.
He chased the afterimages left by the Black Mist to several places, but couldn't find its figure anywhere.
He did, however, become familiar with the sparsely populated streets nearby.
Seeing that the Black Mist couldn't be found, Tian Xiao turned his attention to other Shadows.
If Mom could eat the Black Mist, he wondered if she would eat these easily dissipated Shadows.
Shadows were easier to find than the Black Mist.
Most of them liked to follow living people, while a few would stay quietly in a certain spot without moving.
Tian Xiao took Mom to several places where Shadows were present, but Mom showed no interest in them.
The Shadows, which usually seemed slow to react, showed a slight fluctuation upon Mom’s appearance, as if expressing fear.
They were afraid of Mom.
One particularly weak Shadow even dissipated directly after Mom appeared.
Seeing this, Tian Xiao: "…"
Having gained nothing, Tian Xiao had no choice but to take Mom home first.
It was almost bedtime.
If one were to ask what Tian Xiao liked most after coming to the new world, many people who had seen him eat would think he liked eating the most.
Tian Xiao did indeed like eating very much.
But compared to eating, he liked sleeping even more.
After the Apocalypse, it wasn't easy to get a full meal, and it was even harder to get a good night's sleep.
But after coming to the new world, Tian Xiao could finally sleep well.
At the thought of being able to sleep soon, Tian Xiao’s pace toward home became even lighter.
Mom, following behind Tian Xiao, seemed to sense his mood as well, and her whole being almost "walked" toward home by floating.
Among the sparsely situated, dark houses, the two-story building with its lights on was particularly conspicuous.
Tian Xiao quickened his pace and returned home. As soon as he pushed the door open, he saw Mom, who had been following behind him earlier, now standing inside the house.
"Xiao Xiao is back," Mom said, using the familiar phrase.
"I'm back," Tian Xiao said.
…
Tian Xiao and Mom spent a busy weekend together.
They searched all the places around where the Black Mist might appear.
They could still find traces of the Black Mist on the first day, but on the second day, they couldn't find it at all, having no idea where it had gone.
The Black Mist was quite skilled at escaping; it hadn't died even after encountering Tian Xiao’s Mom twice.
Tian Xiao wasn't in a hurry; as long as the Black Mist wasn't dead, it could always be found.
His current problem was that he had to go to school.
If he could, Tian Xiao naturally didn't want to go.
"Mom, I don't want to go to school."
Like any rebellious child who didn't want to attend school, Tian Xiao looked up and voiced his inner thoughts while wearing his small backpack.
In the next second, the stiff smile originally on Mom's face vanished instantly, and her eyes stared straight at Tian Xiao.
Though she didn't say a word, Tian Xiao felt a sense of sadness transmitted from Mom's gaze.
Immediately after, Mom, standing before him, began to transform.
"Transform" in the literal sense.
Having lived through the Apocalypse, Tian Xiao had seen many hideous and dangerous monsters, and countless ones had died by his hand.
If it were just a matter of a terrifying appearance, Tian Xiao wouldn't be afraid.
But Tian Xiao didn't want Mom to be sad.
So, before Mom could completely transform from her sadness, Tian Xiao spoke up: "I'm going to school, Mom."
Tian Xiao hurried out of the house, and the transformed Mom reverted to her original appearance.
"Sigh—" Standing in the sunlight, Tian Xiao let out a sigh and started walking, singing a modified song he had recently learned from his classmates.
"The sun shines in the sky, the flowers smile at me, the little bird says 'morning, morning, morning,' why are you carrying a dynamite pack…"
School was always a very lively place.
The children gathered here seemed to have endless things to talk about.
Tian Xiao could fully foresee all the scenes he would witness once he arrived.
But today was different.
Today was… a bit too quiet.
It was fine when he first entered the school gate, but the closer he got to his classroom, the stronger that strange sense of silence became.
By the time he reached the classroom door, all the noise had completely vanished.
It wasn't just his own classroom that was silent; the surrounding classrooms were silent too.
It was as if everyone in the entire building had disappeared.
It was also after all the noisy sounds had vanished that Tian Xiao sensed a somewhat familiar presence.
With a hint of doubt, Tian Xiao pushed open the door in front of him.
"Tian Xiao, you're here."
Cen Shishi, who was standing in the middle of the first row facing the blackboard, turned her head to look at him after Tian Xiao pushed the door open.
Cen Shishi was a clean and pretty child who came to school every day with exquisitely braided hair and a beautiful dress.
Even though Cen Shishi liked to speak with her chin tilted up and seemed a bit short-tempered, many children still liked her.
But today's Cen Shishi was very different.
Today, Cen Shishi's hair was loose, there were tears in her dress, and her whole demeanor seemed a bit gloomy.
Not only that…
Tian Xiao’s gaze landed on the massive mass of Black Mist behind Cen Shishi.
He had wondered where the Black Mist had gone since he couldn't find it at all. It turned out… the Black Mist had gone to find Cen Shishi.
But why?
Why would the Black Mist look for Cen Shishi?
And also…
"Where are the other students and teachers in the class?" Tian Xiao asked.