Volume One: Dragon Totem

Chapter One: Prophecy

Besides the useless options of physical suicide and mental escape, the third attitude toward suicide is to persist in struggle and resist the absurdity of life.

This was said by Camus, a master of existentialism, and Henry Clark deeply agrees with this statement.

People in pain each have their own reasons for suffering, and it’s easy to find resonance within the existing field of philosophy.

But heroes are not like this; their very existence is about resistance or salvation.

Taking the road less traveled is the hallmark of a hero.

Rebellion and suppression have always been the most brilliant chapters in human history. In these chapters, the beauty and darkness of human nature are laid bare on the table, like a feast for a glutton—stunning in appearance and lingering in taste.

Those who rule the world are always the bad guys; good people are only fit to resist. And once good people succeed in their resistance, they soon become bad guys themselves. It has always been this way for thousands of years.

Nations are like this, groups are like this, and naturally, families are the same. They are so similar... and irreversible.

It is said that humanity suffers from a disease called herd mentality, meaning that the actions or thoughts of some people will influence another group.

This may indeed exist. The rebels who rise up at a single call are the result of being controlled by this disease.

Oppression and resistance have always been opposites and have existed since ancient times, but both behaviors only concern a small portion of people.

Those with great or evil passions are always the minority. Most of us, like you and me, live ordinary lives—born, growing up, mating, reproducing, and then aging—rarely having the chance to participate in such grand processes.

This is a process of transformation, and also a process of self-perfection.

The more intense the social environment, the more likely it is to produce great demagogues, such as Liu Bang.

They use their own thinking to influence a group of people, and then use that group to influence even more people.

This is a viral mode of transmission; there is no difference between the spread of great ideas and evil ones.

The above is Henry Clark's view of the essence of the world—very thorough and profound. However, these thoughts have little to do with him personally.

It’s just a way to show, when bored, that he still has thoughts and opinions, that he’s not a rotting piece of wood.

Body and mind are two completely different things. The path pointed out by thought is often not the one the body takes, limited by reality. This is a very helpless thing.

All rebels underestimate the consequences they will bear before they rebel.

When the consequences appear, there is no way back. They can only keep moving forward, and the more they pay, the stronger their will to resist becomes.

At this point, the original reason for resistance has disappeared; now, resistance is just about making sure their effort matches their reward.

Seeking a balance between effort and gain is the most normal thing for humans.

However, a firm will greatly amplifies a person’s abilities. Persistently doing one thing will always yield some results; this is determined by the nature of how things develop.

The door opened, and the distinctive click-clack of high heels was laced with anger.

Henry Clark sighed softly, reluctantly put down the "Records of the Grand Historian," snapped out of his historical reverie, and put on a bright smile to greet the queen returning home.

Henry Clark's current life is going well; there’s nothing he wants to rebel against.

Because he is an orphan, ever since Granny Yun passed away, his only family has been his girlfriend of two years.

However, his girlfriend is becoming less and less satisfied with him.

She thinks that besides running around everywhere, he spends the rest of his time reading books and fixing broken airplanes.

This was a plus when they first fell in love, but now, as they prepare to settle down and start a family, it has become a flaw—after all, everything comes down to money.

Just yesterday, because Henry Clark would rather read than attend a promotion banquet hosted by his boss’s boss, the two had an unhappy falling out.

Henry Clark can’t make her understand that, as an aircraft mechanic, he makes a living with his skills, not through networking. Besides, he hates that damned weirdo.

If it weren’t for the fact that Henry Clark’s cooking is truly hard to give up, his girlfriend would have left long ago.

Being able to see through the fog to the essence of things is one of Henry Clark’s few strengths.

When he was very young in the orphanage, Henry Clark was the most well-behaved child there—obedient, smart, clean, self-disciplined, and motivated. In short, all the virtues that other people’s children might have could be found in him.

However, as the children in the orphanage were gradually adopted by kind people...