Chapter 21 17

After this incident, everything was a blur.Mom told them to go get ready, she was going to be in Badri for the rest of the day, and I really had to make some progress. Dako and Blake were obedient and went upstairs with heavy steps. Blake studied the image in the mirror in the bathroom, frowning.Endymion.What can Spring see in him?He's not the type of hero.He was just a scrawny child, so thin that his ribs on both sides looked like a row of xylophones, his eyes were asymmetrical, and he never looked directly at others.His eyes restlessly change color according to his mood: pale blue when he's worried or upset, then darken when he's angry.Dad likened them to wet pebbles.How Blake wished his dad could be around to describe his eyes now: They cast a mysterious shadow.

He wiped his face vigorously, smoothed his hair gently, tried to wash away his doubts and incompetence, and then went to his room and changed into clean clothes. He was examining the origami dragon, turning it over in his hand, comparing it to Samanazar's book (the two were a perfect match), when he heard his mother's approaching footsteps.In a hurry, he hid the dragon behind his pillow and grabbed his backpack, pretending to be busy. Well, let's go, said Mother, and I'm going to take you to the college library, where Ms Richards can watch over you.Without my permission, you are not allowed to leave and run to explore on your own.Am I clear enough?

Blake nodded obediently and stood up.His mother chased him out of the room, and he barely had time to stuff the little folded samanazar into his pocket.In the hallway he almost collides with Dako.Dako gave him a quick look, and Blake ignored her and hurried downstairs, still hurt by what had happened in the morning. He ran out the door, not waiting for his mother and sister to catch up. Mom took them straight to the library and picked out seats for them, right next to the office.I saw Paula.Richards was scurrying up and down the aisles, preparing for an invasion by the exlibris group, who demanded a chance to browse the collection.

She glanced at the two children every time she walked by, but she didn't stop to talk or smile, and it was clear she had other things on her mind.Blake wondered if Ms. Richards suspected that he had been wandering in the library that night and that he had damaged the books on the floor.Her expression was not very kind. He opened his back backpack and took out the exercises that the teacher told him to do during his absence.He tried his best to ignore it, but now his mother had warned him and checked his homework every night to make sure he wasn't falling further and further behind.I also want to know that Da Ke had done all her homework as early as eight hundred years ago.

Blake put his elbows on the table, trying to concentrate.Really difficult.Da Ke stood behind him and watched, tapping his finger on the back of his chair lightly.Blake felt waves of vibration, like a spider crawling up and down his body. go away.He said, brushing Da Ke's hand away. I can help you. I don't need your help.Blake stares at the words, but doesn't see them, don't you think you've caused enough trouble? Da Ke lingered for a while, with an arrogant attitude, well, if you don't need me, I'll see if I can find Endymion.Additional material from Springer.

Her words stung Blake, and it took all his willpower not to snap back.He buried his head in his hands, staring hard at the words in front of him.Finding grammatical errors in the following paragraphs He groaned and began to circle the errors he could find. After five minutes, he looked up.There is a whole library around you, and every book hides knowledge to seduce you. Who cares about separating infinitives and disjoint modifiers?He scanned the rows of bookshelves.Who knows what information is in these books?He really couldn't resist the temptation, so he got up and took a closer look.

Mom left them in the very center of the history book area, and traced back ten to twenty years of history every step of the way.The books on the shelves are thick and thin, old and new.The past seems like an unsolvable mystery, constantly being rewritten. A book caught his attention.It is different from other books, with a red ribbon tied on the milky yellow book cover, like a belt on the body.There was no title on the cover, but upon opening the title page it said Bestiary, in a fancy font that reminded him of seahorses.He carried the book back to his desk. There are many illustrations in the book.Grotesque beasts stared at him, blue and silver scales, golden fur, delicate tongues sticking out of their mouths like banners, like a medieval freak show.Some are strangely familiar, hyenas, lions, pelicans and elephants are, but more are strange amalgams, with the body of a horse, amazingly large wings and razor-sharp feet.Blake had never seen anything like it before.Even if these beasts are lucky, they are all extinct by now.

Blake turned the pages slowly.Next to those animals are short descriptions describing their characteristics and attributes.The descriptions were also in the same sharp print that Blake found difficult to decipher, but he came to understand that some of the animals were dangerous, and that animals like the unicorns were good for humans: they Possesses the power to restore health and magical properties. He turned to a separate unit, the theme of which was dragons, and stopped to look. The page in front of me shows four trees, each of which has a well-camouflaged dragon.The four dragons are painted in bright green, bright gold, deep red and silver to match the transition of the seasons.The fourth dragon is barely visible, barely discernible against the winter background.Blake couldn't believe his eyes: the dragons looked just like he'd imagined them last night, and the dragon in the tree looked like the animals in the book that Samanazar had shown him this morning.His heart was pounding.

Blake studied the text above more closely: Yelong, a unique creature said to possess both immortality and wisdom, has been unknown since Eve ate the fruit of the sacred forbidden tree.Ye Long obtains an invisible cloak, which changes color with the seasons of the year after wearing it, so that humans cannot see it.If humans find this animal, they will have God-given powers and the knowledge of both good and evil A rush of excitement ran through his body.Ye Long is almost exactly the same as the ultimate book that Professor Zhuo Leon told them about the power obtained by Faust selling his soul.Could the two be related?What does this dragon have to do with the strange book he found?

He looked up and down the aisle, wondering if Dako would know the answer, but she was nowhere to be seen.Da Ke is gone. Blake grabbed his backpack and walked to find Dako. He passed the philosophy book area and stepped into the Mandeville library, which was full of old maps and ancient atlases, but there was no sign of his sister. He was about to sneak upstairs to see if Da Ke had gone to the exhibition hall upstairs, when a hand clasped his shoulder tightly.When he turned around, it turned out to be Paula.Richards. Where do you want to go?she asked decisively. Blake pointed towards the exhibition hall.

No, I said no, Blake, she said, not today.Entry and exit are prohibited upstairs.At this moment the members of the Exlibris Society are studying the St. Jerome's manuscript, and you must not trouble me.She pointed to the glass case on the landing half way up the stairs, and waved her fingers. Blake blushed with guilt, and turned his face away.Inadvertently, he found Da Ke sneaking across the lawn outside and heading for the corridor.what is she doing Fortunately, Mephisto intervened, and the cat slipped into the library again, trying to get out of the way of the librarian's legs.Ah, no, no!Paula.Li Chazi roared, and quickly started chasing him, you are not allowed to come in here! The cat, taunting her ferocity, sprang up the stairs, with Miss Richards following behind. Taking advantage of the moment when no one was watching, Blake rushed to the door.The curly-haired assistant behind the desk is busy filing library slips, her fingers darting through the card catalog like wriggling caterpillars.She was so absorbed in herself that she was too busy to care about anything else.Trying not to make a sound, Blake opened the door and slipped out. Finding Dako is easy.She was sitting cross-legged in the middle of the walled courtyard next to the old library. A huge tree stretched out its bronze-colored branches, covering her head like a pair of big wings. Dako under the tree looked particularly dwarf.She looked so small and vulnerable in her bright yellow raincoat, and Blake felt an urge to protect her.He walked through the arch, stepped on the lawn surrounded by corridors, and walked towards Da Ke. He stopped.In front of Da Ke, a small book was spread out, and a big white butterfly perched on the grass basking in the sun.Da Ke watched very intently, lost in thought.Blake's chest was pounding.Da Ke found the Wordless Book! What?How did you find it?Blake stood above Dako, unable to speak well.An unexpected fire of anger and jealousy rose in his throat. I was going to tell you, she said, but didn't know how to put it. His cheeks flushed with anger. I was going to tell you, Dako said again, wiping her nose with her sleeve, but the longer I had the book in my hand, the more I wanted to solve the mystery myself. She looked up, and Blake saw himself reflected in Dako's large eyes: a black shadow blocking the sun. He didn't know what to say.Shocked and angry, but also relieved.What he wanted most was to pick up that book again and feel the pages turning under his fingers.He tried to compose himself. He sat down beside Da Ke, and finally asked: How long have you had the book in your hands? When you find the book I'll go and bring it out.She sniffed and you ran to the reception room, remember?So all I need is a moment.It's right where you put it back.I wonder why you won't let me see it. She turned the pages so quickly that Blake could see that they were all blank. I can't find any riddles.I've seen it hundreds of times, she said.I held it up to the light, and I considered pouring lemon juice on it to reveal a secret message, and even dripping ink on it, but nothing worked.Ink does not stick to paper.Just can't see the words.How can I see it? Dako looked up at him, and for the first time in his life, Blake realized that Dako needed to learn from him. The problem is that he doesn't know how to explain it. I don't know, he admitted honestly, he wants to find you by word.That's all I can describe. He didn't know if Da Ke would laugh at him, but he didn't.Da Ke laughed very sadly and gave him the book.The book is yours now.she says. As soon as he touched the book, Blake felt the blood run through his fingers.All the anger and jealousy in the body disappeared.He immediately and Endymion.Spring, the printer's apprentice who had taken the book long ago, made a connection.His skin felt prickly. The book rearranged itself in his hands, as before, and the pages began to turn, as if to tell the story to Blake. Blake's heart was beating wildly with excitement. Da Ke looked at her brother and then at the book, full of anticipation.It just doesn't do that to me.she said enviously. Blake didn't listen.There is a page in front of me, in the middle of the book.He held his breath, expecting a reappearance of the first riddle he had ever seen.But nothing.That page is blank. Da Ke sensed his disappointment and asked: Can't you see anything? Blake shook his head, unable to answer. Are you sure this page is correct?maybe if you Of course this page is right!He yelled impatiently, to no avail!We are one step too late!I shouldn't have let it out of my sight in the first place!His voice echoed between the passages of the gallery. He snapped the book shut angrily, but it reopened as if by reflex.Show him the blank page again. look!Da Ke said suddenly. In the center of the book, where the paper is bound, there is a gray coil loosened like a dragonfly's wings. Don't!don't pull!Blake yelped as he saw Dako's fingers stretched toward it.He tugged at the thread, very gently. It was more like tendon or gut than a string. Under his light touch, the thread came loose, and he was surprised to see it. What's wrong?Dako gasped and blew into Blake's ear. do not know. Do you think the book fell apart? No, I don't think so.The situation is different. The two of them silently watched the second knot on the spine, and then the third knot loosen from bottom to top, like flowers blooming. Dako's inspiration flashed. hurry up.Do you have the piece of paper that Samannazar gave you with you? what? Because the puzzle says, the two books must be joined together to find the third book.Maybe that's the way it is now and maybe you should put the puzzle pieces together. maybe.Blake replied skeptically.His heart was beating so fast, his hands were shaking, he reached into his pocket, and took out the neatly folded paper.The paper clung to his palm like a pamphlet and began to shake as he approached the book.Blake put the paper in carefully.It fits well. The unwinding coils immediately began to weave through the origami and weave into the leather-bound book.Thus, as if by magic, the coil disappeared into the central spout, and the book closed, with a great movement, as if spring-loaded and restored. Like an oyster guarding its pearl, the book remains closed. That's it.Blake said suddenly. I guess it will show us the ultimate book next.Da Ke said excitedly, wriggling around Blake. Blake's attitude is much more cautious, he doesn't know.I imagine the Ultimate Book will be a little different.Maybe a little bigger or more amazing. He looked at the book with a frayed brown cover, half-believing.Just when he was about to give up hope at the end, the book suddenly became alive, and the pages turned quickly like a spinning top.A slight gust of wind caressed his cheeks. Finally, the fluttering of papers calmed down, and suddenly the book in front of him was quietly opened on a certain page again, without a sound.Blake looked down expectantly, not knowing what to expect. His blood dropped to freezing point. The page in front of me was so dark that it was almost impenetrable, as if the night had come over the book and everything in it.Only a small patch of light, like the last quarter moon, shines from the upper right corner of the page. Blake took a deep breath. Underneath the pitch black are three words, written in white: I am watching