The Last 299 Days of Humanity

Chapter 85 The World of the Winged People

Yu Qing's car followed the car that was inexplicably moving on its own until it reached the top of the mountain before stopping.

It was nearly dawn. Yu Qing sent Yao Dan to investigate, wanting to know what or who was pulling the cart.

A moment later, Yao Dan ran back and said, "Husband, our carriage moved by itself. We didn't see anyone or anything."

"That's strange. This doesn't make sense in physics at all. But it's actually a big help to us. The downhill road ahead not only doesn't require energy, it can even absorb energy. Yao Dan, you and Yan'er ride in that car and lead the way."

"My lord, I won't ride in it. That's a ghost carriage."

Yu Qing chuckled and said, "The ghost carriage is even better. It's quite an achievement to have ghosts serve us."

"Anyway, I think it's pretty shabby."

Chang'e said, "Then I'll go. I want to see what's going on."

Yu Qing joked, "That's even better; the immortals in the bright light are also clearing the way for us."

As they drove down the mountain, Yu Qing and his team sped along. Occasionally, they would skim over damaged or collapsed sections of the road.

By noon, they had reached the foot of the mountain. From here, the path to Jinchengzi was flat and easy, whether by land or air.

After a short rest and lunch, Yu Qing and his group continued their journey. As they got closer to Jinchengzi, Yu Qing repeatedly emphasized to everyone that from this moment on, at least one person in the vehicle must not leave.

Furthermore, regardless of the reason for parking, do not park for more than one minute. If necessary, stop for twenty or thirty seconds and then leave for twenty or three seconds to prevent the car from being shared by someone else.

After walking for about another hour, they finally saw the true face of the winged people. Every now and then, several winged people would rush past overhead in the direction of Jinchengzi.

Unable to contain his curiosity, Yu Qing took out his glasses and looked up at the sky. The winged beings looked much like humans, except their heads were slightly more pointed. The most obvious difference, of course, was their wings, which could spread out to about three meters.

These people are said to be descendants of gliding enthusiasts from over a hundred years ago. Through gene editing technology, they grew a pair of wings and realized their dream of flying freely.

However, their joy was short-lived, as problems soon arose.

The ability to fly is not just a matter of wings; it requires correspondingly stronger muscles, a more powerful heart, and a relatively light weight. Without these, their flight is unsustainable and sometimes even fatal.

So they tried many methods that had a near-certain death rate.

This was one of the most famous and challenging bioengineering projects at the time. In retrospect, they achieved a degree of success.

For primitive people like Yu Qing, the success of the winged people objectively led them into a more isolated state and gradually marginalized on Earth.

But this also fueled Yu Qing's desire to gain a deeper understanding of the current situation of the Winged People.

No one can be sure whether they will have some kind of interaction with them in the future. Whether they are friends or enemies, it's never a bad thing to know your enemy and yourself.

The rest of the journey went smoothly. Relying on the momentum of the descent and the constant replenishment of electricity by solar power while walking, their car arrived at Jinchengzi in just a few tens of minutes.

The houses here are almost all identical three-story structures with a large flat roof. The streets are arranged in a spider web pattern.

To outsiders like Yu Qing, all the houses looked the same, and he couldn't tell which one was which.

There weren't many vehicles on the street, just some bicycles transporting goods.

People hurried about, flying around on the rooftops. Winged people walked sporadically along the wide streets; if you didn't look closely, you might mistake their folded wings for long dresses.

Perhaps it was because Yu Qing's way of strolling around in a car was a rare sight here, that when his car passed the winged people, they all stopped to watch and nodded very politely. Yu Qing felt that this place wasn't like what Mo Liang had described, where clothes were simply taken off and shared.

But Yu Qing didn't dare to take the risk, so he didn't dare to stop the car and just walked slowly on the street, looking at the street scene from the window.

What he saw next made him even more hesitant to get out of the car and explore.

He saw a winged person pushing a stroller, leaving it outside to go inside to run errands. A little while later, another winged person walked by, saw the baby crying inside the stroller, went up to it, and simply pushed the stroller away.

What?! Can you even share other people's babies here? This greatly shocked him.

Yao Dan said softly, "Husband, if I get off the train and stand on the street, will they ask me to go with them?"

Yu Qing laughed and said, "You'll know once you go down and try it."

Yao Dan said, "No way. I belong to my husband alone."

To Yu Qing's even greater surprise, an eight- or nine-year-old child walked by, and the winged people on the street all stopped, smiling and standing there waiting for him to pass before they left.

The child, like a general, waved to the people with a nonchalant air.

Daji said, "I'm sure this child is the boss here!"

Yao Dan argued, "I don't think so. Maybe it's the eldest son."

Yu Qing laughed and said, "Whether I am your leader or not, do you treat me the same way those winged people treat me? I'd be grateful if you didn't rebel against me."

Yao Dan said mischievously, "I'm declaring my rebellion against you right now! I'll order you to stop the car and take us for a walk. It's just a car, let someone else use it. You miser!"

Yu Qing said, "That makes sense. I'm worried about the inconvenience if my luggage gets stolen on the train."

"How about we go for a walk and let the car circle around the streets, then pick us up later?"

"Let Danggui and Daji go down and broaden their horizons, leaving Furong alone in the carriage."

Yu Qing had the car driven to the front of a restaurant, and he and Yao Dan and the other three quickly got out.

Just then, a winged person suddenly ran over and said happily, "It's been so long since I've ridden in a vehicle! Have you finished using it? Let me try it too."

Seeing this, Furong was so frightened that she quickly drove away. Yu Qing hurriedly explained, "I'm sorry, there are still people in the car..."

The winged man glanced at Yu Qing and the others, and said in surprise, "Ah... friends from afar... It's alright, I just had a sudden urge."

After saying that, he left in a hurry.

Yao Dan whispered in Yu Qing's ear, "That was close."

"This person is very polite. It seems to be just a local custom. It's not like it's a robbery, so what's the danger?"

After Yu Qing and his group entered the restaurant, they saw that someone was already sitting at the table in front of them, so they went to sit at another table.

Unexpectedly, the winged man stood up angrily, turned around, and asked, "Do we have a grudge from the past? Or am I really that annoying? You're just openly refusing to sit at the same table with me..."

(End of this chapter)