Deviant: No Longer Human

\'China?\'

The very notion sparked a connection.

The ship that had abducted him had also been snatching other children from China.

Could it be that Naomi had finally freed herself only to be captured by these individuals?

He pondered whether, devoid of her strength, she could still possess enough power to tear those who dared to apprehend her.

Wang Xiao was correct in his speculation, yet he hadn\'t considered the impact millions of years of confinement could have on one\'s psyche.

Naomi, overwhelmed by fear and determined never to return to her prison, refrained from taking lives.

It wasn\'t until she reunited with the sea, regaining some semblance of confidence by rekindling her bond with Tiamat through wave frequencies, that she found her resolve.

She chose to remain an observer, selecting his body as her vessel.

However, when she sensed his impending death, she commanded Tiamat, which had been shadowing the ship, to sink it.

Then, she had the Orcas carry him to the safety of an island\'s shore.

The mention of "China" steered Wang Xiao\'s thoughts down an unexpected path.

He began to recall certain faces, fragments of memories that suddenly popped up...

Time was indeed a magical force, its passage leaving him in awe as he pondered how much of it had slipped away, carrying with it memories of a past life, one marked by weaknesses and failures.

For Wang Xiao, it seemed to have crafted an entire epoch, rendering his past life—a life he deemed weaker and more pathetic—into distant echoes he scarcely remembered.

A spark of curiosity ignited within him, a rare moment of reflection on those who shared slices of his past.

He found himself thinking about the whereabouts of his family.

What were Xueying, Mei, and Jiarong up to?

Names flickered dimly in his mind: Lin Xue, Chen Meili, Chen Li, and even the less significant figures like the irritating Zhang Sisi and Dong Kai.

Faces and personalities surfaced in his memory: the despicable Fu Chao, the dual faceted Tan Weimin who played both side, and the naive Mo Xiang.

Images and scenes played out in his mind\'s eye: Xia Bao spinning tracks at the Shangxue bar, Chen Yongzheng presiding over homeroom, Liang Chen coaxing him onto a bike for the first time.

Emotions stirred as he recalled moments of bitterness and regret, like the encounter with his cousin Qian Ruixin.

Shouldn\'t it be better if that day he hadn\'t restrained himself?

The current Wang Xiao might have taken a different approach with her!

The mention of certain names tightened his jaw: Zhao Yang, Lei Xie, Hao Zemin, and Zhao Chen.

A wry smile tugged at his lips as he reminisced about Seth, Emma, Chris, Ray, and Shin from Xianthera, dismissing them as a bunch of fools.

Yet amidst the haze of memories, thoughts of Bing Xueli, Mei Leiyan, and Victoria sparked his curiosity.

Suddenly, he was struck by the sheer volume of people he had encountered, yet why did none of them occupy his thoughts actively?

"What are you thinking about...?"

It was a fleeting realization, interrupted only by Aurora\'s inquiry, her voice breaking the silence that had enveloped him.

Wang Xiao brushed off the depth of his musings with a light shake of his head, "It\'s nothing, just... It\'s amusing how people are so forgettable."

Aurora gave him a peculiar look, her eyebrow raised in mild bewilderment,as if questioning his sudden transformation to an old man sage.

"It\'s not that people are forgettable," she corrected gently, "it\'s the significance of their impact on us. You prioritize your path above all, continually moving forward. You\'re one of the rarest beings I\'ve encountered—those who march ahead without dwelling on their losses."

Wang Xiao, caught in a moment of reflection, couldn\'t help but ask, "Were there more like me?"

!?

Aurora paused, her gaze distant, "More?...Once in a few thousand years, you might find individuals like yourself..."

"...Some perish prematurely, others are tormented by self-condemnation, and a few ascend to greatness. They despair if they aren\'t at the pinnacle, die in their quest for it, and those who reach it..."

"They die as well... Huh..." Wang Xiao mused, a trace of melancholy in his tone.

"Maybe not you," Aurora countered, her tone shifting to one of encouragement.

Wang Xiao looked at her, puzzled.

"Having access to Tiamat\'s blood might keep you alive for eternity, even if you don\'t discover how to achieve immortality through PK," Aurora hinted with a glint in her eyes.

Wang Xiao\'s eyes narrowed in realisation!

Aurora was correct, and more so, she could guide him in harnessing PK for cellular regeneration, provided he lived long enough to master it.

\'... As long as there are no unforeseen mishaps, who knows how long he might live...\' she pondered, a soft chuckle escaping her lips.

Snapping back to the matter at hand, Wang Xiao focused on a lingering question, "You mentioned Naomi was imprisoned, but weren\'t you all the strongest? Couldn\'t you defend her?"

Aurora\'s lips pressed into a smile tinged with bitterness, "We weren\'t always the strongest, especially not during the Pangean era. Some of us did try to defend her, but they met similar fates. I, who always relied on biodiversity in battle, was exiled to the frigid desolation of the South Pole, devoid of flora and fauna.

It was there, in that bleakness, I encountered Aura for the first time," she said, a touch of melancholy in her voice as she gently stroked Aura\'s scales, white as snow.

Roaarr...

Aura\'s resonant roar filled the air, bringing a smile to Aurora\'s face despite the somber recollections.

Wang Xiao, now deeply interested in the history, urged, "Then what happened after that?"

"The Atlanteans, whose descendants later became the Aerians, didn\'t last. They eventually faded into mist, lost to history," Aurora explained. "Yet, rumors of their survival continued. Long ago, I encountered beings who referred to themselves as Chronomasters. Even today, we have evidence of their existence—beings capable of manipulating space-time, that once roamed the planet of earth!"

"The Aerians had a profound understanding of gravity, mastering its secrets, and their descendants harnessed this knowledge to explore the realms of space and time."

"The last of the Chronomasters," she continued, "met their end in a catastrophic experiment. Their attempt enveloped the area in a space-time anomaly, where time flows differently..."

Wang Xiao, connecting dots, quickly asked, "Could that place be known as Xianthera or Fairy Island, by any chance?"

Aurora\'s eyebrows lifted in surprise at Wang Xiao\'s familiarity with such a secluded and mysterious place.

"You\'re aware of it?" she murmured, her curiosity piqued. It had been ages since she herself had ventured inside those lands.

Continuing, she added, "Yes, Xianthera is indeed its name, but it\'s far from the idyllic \'Fairy Island\' many might imagine."

"Throughout history, it has served as a prison—a place where prisoners were cast to age and perish."

"In certain eras, it also functioned as a ground for observation, where the choices of those within were scrutinized, potentially offering them a path to redemption."

"Tartarus is merely one name it has been known by through the ages," she added, revealing the depth of its dark legacy.

Wang Xiao absorbed this information with a heavy heart.

\'Then, are Bing Xueli and the others descendants of prisoners from the Greek era?\' he wondered, piecing together the fragments of history.

\'Could it be that those who once caused havoc—potentially powerful deities—were imprisoned there, left to decay and vanish? And as their descendants came into existence, alongside the gradual fading of the gods, did the memory of Xianthera itself begin to fade into history?\'

\'Perhaps, as a result of its unique circumstances, it evolved into an exclusive society of individuals with supernatural abilities. Their descendants continued to inherit these powers, safeguarded by a unique security committee, leaving the residents blissfully unaware of the world beyond their isolated haven and the nature of the crimes of their forefathers!\'

!!!

All at once, a wave of clarity washed over everything!

Why on earth would the head of the Security Council, ages ago and even long before Bing Xueli, impose these restrictions?

It was all about isolation!

They must still be gripped by fear of the outside world, fearing exposure of their existence!

They must have meticulously erased any trace of their ancestors\' vile past, then genetically altered everyone, cranking up empathy to unbearable levels, almost like a curse of guilt!

They must have rewritten history with their own hands!

Crafting an elitist society of Xianthera!

It was probably meant to be temporary, the council\'s original intention lost with its leader\'s demise. Successive heads merely treated his last words as gospel, enforcing them rigorously. And so, even with Bing Xueli, these laws persisted!

It was the most compelling explanation for the curse of guilt he could muster!

During his time in Xianthera, Little did Wang Xiao knew, he was living amongst descendants of a bygone era.

"Have you ever been to that place?" Aurora inquired, her interest evidently piqued.