Chapter 142: Puzzle Solving: [10W Nutrient Solution Bonus Chapter]

Chapter 142 Puzzle Solving: "100K Nutrient Solution Bonus"

Staring at the abstract poem on the paper, Everly was completely dumbfounded.

"That's all there is? No continuation?"

"That's all."

"That's weird, isn't it?"

"That's why I told you to be mentally prepared—the clue might not make sense." Orff scratched his head, looking a bit sheepish.

Everly stared at the poem for a long while, then cast a sharp glance at Orff, studying him for quite some time to make sure the guy didn't have the guts to pull one over on her. Only then did she nod, fold the note, and carefully slip it into her pocket.

"I've got the clue. I'll take it back and study it carefully. If I run into anything I don't understand along the way, I'll come to you, alright?"

Orff wouldn't dare object! Others might not know, but he knew all too well what it felt like to get pummeled by Everly. So he nodded meekly and obediently, quickly adding a caveat that if she asked him something and he couldn't answer, she couldn't hit him.

"As long as you don't play games with me and tell me the truth, why would I hit you?"

Everly gave him a strange look and motioned him into the driver's seat.

"Alright, it's late. Drive us back. The flesh monsters have been taken care of, but we still have a lot of loose ends to tie up..."

...

Horror Movie Survival Rule #18: Make sure to properly destroy any shed items like hair, skin flakes, and blood.

The three drove through the night back to Darami City, each returning to their respective places—the ranger's cabin and Mark's house—to clean up all the evidence left at the crime scenes.

Everly rechecked Mark's basement, packing up every last research document crammed into every nook and cranny to take with her, so they wouldn't fall into the hands of someone with ill intentions and get misused again.

Before leaving, she also inspected the cameras Mark had used. America was a country where power outages happened every now and then, and she didn't think Mark was careless enough to rely solely on plug-in cameras—otherwise, the monster would have gone berserk the instant the power cut out.

Sure enough, tucked among the plug-in cameras were two hybrid cameras that could run on either plug-in power or batteries, serving as backups. However, one had an old, worn-out battery that couldn't hold a charge anymore, and the other didn't respond when plugged in, probably because the socket was broken.

Anyway, thanks to a string of coincidences, Mark's backup plans didn't do him any good when the blackout hit. With nothing but a phone, he couldn't even reach the backup power source before the monster caught up and killed him.

Everly dug a grave in the cemetery next to Mark's house and buried the stitched-together corpse pieces. Afterward, the three of them pretended nothing had happened, returned the rental car (Orff had to shell out a hefty repair fee), and went back to school to continue their studies.

With finals right around the corner, Everly, though bursting with curiosity, held back her urge to dive in and put the poem and the research materials from Mark's house on the back burner for now.

Once she finished her last exam, with only one day left until break, she finally had time to tackle these things.

First were the materials from Mark's house. Most of them documented the inhumane experiments Mark had conducted in his quest for immortality, except for the diary, which had some research value. Everly took the time to read the entire diary and basically confirmed that the research institute he used to work for was tied to the Megan Medical Group.

Unfortunately, Mark seemed to have his reasons, and the info about the institute was mostly vague and unclear, leaving her just as confused after reading it.

Everly jotted down all the useful bits from his diary, then burned the diary and the research materials in one go. Keeping these around would only hurt people—no way was she keeping them!

Next, she studied the poem.

According to Orff, the poem had been handed down from generation to generation in his family.

"This poem has the same standing in our family as 'Ten Little Indian Boys'—it's a must-learn nursery rhyme for little kids. I've known it since I can remember, and I also knew that the 'Fountain of Youth' it describes refers to the 'Fountain of Youth.' But I always figured it was just something some bored ancestor cooked up to trick people, until a few years ago, when my grandmother passed away..."

"Ten Little Indian Boys" is a traditional American nursery rhyme often used to teach children to count.

"My parents were busy, so I was raised by my grandmother, and we were very close. When my grandmother was on her deathbed, gravely ill, she suddenly opened her eyes wide, as if she were seeing something horrifying, reached out a gnarled, bony hand, and tightly gripped my wrist. Then she opened her mouth and, in a raspy, bellows-like voice, told me that if it ever became necessary, use this poem—it could save your life."

After saying that, Orff's grandmother died.

He didn't take her words to heart at the time. After she got older, she developed Alzheimer's and often talked nonsense. Orff figured she must have been rambling before she died as well—how could a poem possibly save his life...

"It wasn't until I met you and Misha across countless loops, Everly, that it hit me—my grandmother was actually telling the truth! That poem—it really saved my life..."

"But have you ever wondered why you keep getting stuck in time loop after time loop?" Everly asked.

Orff looked utterly bewildered: "Maybe my grandmother's been watching over me from heaven?"

"...Do you think that makes sense? When it comes to deceased relatives, everyone has a few, and there are definitely those with stronger bonds than yours and your grandmother's. Why is it that you're the only one who gets to loop on the day you're supposed to die, while others don't have that luck?"

After hearing Everly's words, Orff was even more confused.

"I suspect your family might have some special bloodline. How about investigating that? Since the poem has been passed down through generations in your family, if you trace back through your family tree, you might find clues to interpret the poem."

Orff nodded: "Alright. But my family situation is a bit special—we don't have a complete family tree... The holiday is coming up soon. I'll go back home and ask the elders, trying to get the information you need as thoroughly as possible."

Everly nodded: "That would be great, thanks."

After agreeing with Orff to stay in touch if he found anything, Everly began her own investigation into the parts of the poem that seemed like proper nouns.

It was now 2X14, a time of rapid internet development. Many terms could already be searched online, but some obscure ones couldn't be found no matter how hard you searched, requiring consultation with experts in relevant fields.

Everly searched the browser for terms like "right of the sunrise land," "transit of Venus," "Pawka Oris Ananio," and "mountains surrounding the world," all of which seemed to have specific references.

Among them, most terms yielded no corresponding results, and some had hits but were clearly unrelated to the information Everly needed. Only two terms bore fruit.

The first came from the second line of the poem, "the transit of Venus." Everly found that "transit of Venus" is a special astronomical phenomenon—the "transit of Venus." This phenomenon typically occurs in pairs: first with an interval of over a hundred years, then eight years later, then another hundred-plus years, and so on.

Simply put, a "transit of Venus" refers to the phenomenon where Venus passes between the Earth and the Sun, with the three nearly aligned in a straight line. From Earth, Venus appears as a small black dot crossing the Sun's surface. Venus is named after Venus in astronomy, so this line of the poem doesn't refer to the day the goddess of beauty crossed over, but rather "the day of the transit of Venus."

Everly checked and found that the last transit of Venus was in 2X09, and the next one would be three years later, on December 11, 2X17.

With that line understood, the content of the first stanza could be roughly guessed—

"To the right of the sunrise land" likely refers to a specific direction.

"The transit of Venus" gives the time—the day of the transit.

"Pawka Oris Ananio" was unclear; it sounded like a place name or some kind of object, but Everly couldn't find it.

"Rising slowly from Poseidon's domain"—Poseidon's domain is naturally the sea, so this line refers to something rising from the ocean.

Combined, the first stanza likely gives the location and appearance time of the Fountain of Youth. This meant Everly had just under three years to investigate the poem's specific meaning, which was good news for someone still in the dark.

Next was the second term with a definite source—the eighth line, "Olelbis has set His trial." Everly found online that Olelbis is the chief deity in the legends of a Native American tribe called the "Wendon Tribe" in the southwestern United States, and His name means "He is above." However, because the name was quite obscure, aside from His identity, Everly couldn't find any other information.

That was also why she was flipping through books about Native Americans on the plane—Everly wanted to see what kind of deity Olelbis was and how He connected to the Fountain of Youth.

Unfortunately, the book she had was hastily grabbed from the library and wasn't quite on point. Everly couldn't sleep and stayed up on the plane reading most of it, only finding that the Wendon Tribe settled in the southwestern United States. As for the legends of Olelbis, the book she had didn't cover them.

She would have to find other books later or consult someone who studied Wendon Tribe mythology for further guidance.

The plane landed safely after some turbulence. Everly put away her book, stood up with the crowd, grabbed her backpack, and walked off the plane.

Other matters could wait. For now, her winter break had begun.

Old John had arrived in Senk City ahead of time after receiving Everly's message. Everly and Misha pushed their luggage out of the arrivals hall and immediately ran into Old John and Misha's parents, who were standing around chatting.

After a semester apart, Old John had aged a bit more. Though he still stood tall and his build remained robust, the white hair at his temples seemed to have been dusted with frost overnight, turning a grizzled white.

When you see someone every day, this change isn't so noticeable, but after a semester apart, suddenly seeing him again brings a pressing urgency, as if aging had taken physical form and was constantly chasing from behind.

Everly couldn't hold it in at that moment, a sharp sting welling up in her nose.

Three years, less than three years... she had to crack that poem as soon as possible!

Returning with her grandfather to the gas station she'd missed so much, seeing it grow even more weathered under the wind and sand of the wild, and the grave of Buddy in the yard, the ache in Everly's heart only intensified.

Carefully hiding her feelings, Everly stayed at the gas station with Old John, and together the two spent the first Christmas and New Year's Day after she started college.

Once the holidays were over and the library in Mikan City opened, Everly planned to borrow some books on Native American culture there, so she drove into the city with Old John.