After a long silence, doing his best to suppress the turbulent waves surging in his chest, Lian Qiguang turned his head and looked expressionlessly at Mi Xiaobao’s chubby face. “You said… Dark Light?”
“Yeah! Don’t tell me you don’t admire him, Ku Mu?” Hugging a meat bun, Mi Xiaobao stared worshipfully and enviously at the person on the virtual screen and said excitedly, “Lord Dark Light! He’s the hero who ended the apocalypse and brought humanity a new beginning. By ancient standards, he’s basically the god in my heart!!!”
“……”
Lian Qiguang fell silent.
“If there hadn’t been Lord Dark Light, humanity would’ve gone extinct. He used his own life to end the darkness and gave humanity a chance to survive.” Mi Xiaobao pursed his lips, his eyes dimming a little. “The apocalypse ended, humanity survived, but Lord Dark Light…”
“Lord Dark Light worked so hard. He gave so much for humanity, but he never got the chance to see the light again. The light he brought with his own life… he couldn’t see it himself…”
Looking at Mi Xiaobao, who had instantly lost all spirit, Lian Qiguang pressed his lips together. After a long silence, he reached out and placed a hand on Mi Xiaobao’s head.
“You still remember him. He… would be glad.”
“Of course I remember him!” Mi Xiaobao instantly lifted his head and looked at Lian Qiguang excitedly. “Not just me—everyone remembers Lord Dark Light. He’s our faith.”
Faith!?
Those two words weren’t something people said lightly.
A shadow flashed through Lian Qiguang’s eyes as he slowly raised his head and expressionlessly looked at the entire class.
Qingyi tilted her head and shrugged.
Lan Qi nodded.
Even Feng Qingyang, as hot-tempered as he was, became a little more serious and gave a solemn military salute.
“Ku Mu! Ku Mu!” Mi Xiaobao suddenly grabbed Lian Qiguang’s hand and said excitedly, “Ku Mu, in a few days, let’s go visit Lord Dark Light’s Historical Memorial Museum together, okay?”
‘Historical Memorial Museum?’
No matter how calm Lian Qiguang usually was, even he couldn’t help feeling startled.
“Yeah! Back when humanity fled Earth, they brought out a lot of Lord Dark Light’s belongings. Even though they went through countless disasters afterward, humanity never gave them up. Some things were damaged over time, but the museum restored them! Look—this painting was restored based on a photo preserved from three thousand years ago. They say this captured the moment Lord Dark Light single-handedly held back tens of millions of zombies and saved humanity. Let’s go see it together, okay!?”
‘Single-handedly held back tens of millions of zombies and saved humanity?’
Lian Qiguang’s usually expressionless face nearly cracked.
Wasn’t that a little exaggerated?
He remembered that battle clearly. It had indeed been a zombie tide, and the numbers had been enormous. The base had nearly fallen.
But the people who saved the base weren’t him alone—it was every ability user in the base.
All the ability users gathered atop the city walls and used their powers to build a wall of abilities. When one person couldn’t hold on any longer, another immediately took over. When that one exhausted themselves, the person who had rested would step back in.
Back and forth.
Again and again.
They held that battle line for half a month until the zombies finally retreated.
That zombie tide had been especially massive. In the end, seven nearby bases fell, and every ability user in Wolong Base exhausted their powers.
Humanity suffered another devastating blow.
His memorial museum?
Lian Qiguang’s eyes flickered.
That actually sounded… interesting.
“Okay.”
Just when Mi Xiaobao was about to give up hope, Lian Qiguang nodded expressionlessly.
“Y-you agreed?” Mi Xiaobao’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“Mm.”
“That’s great!!”
Mi Xiaobao excitedly threw himself at Lian Qiguang.
Looking at the little fatty hanging entirely off him like a lump of meat, Lian Qiguang expressionlessly pinched the back of Mi Xiaobao’s collar with two fingers and pulled him away.
“S-sorry. I got too excited.” Mi Xiaobao blushed red and looked at Lian Qiguang awkwardly.
“You have something to say.”
Closing the computer, Lian Qiguang leaned lazily against his chair and looked at Mi Xiaobao expressionlessly.
“Ah! Right! I almost forgot.” Mi Xiaobao slapped his forehead and said in frustration. “Tomorrow night is the freshman welcome ceremony. Don’t forget.”
Freshman welcome ceremony?
What was that?
Lian Qiguang stared expressionlessly at the empty air above him, his thoughts spinning in circles.
“It’s a school rule. Every class has to perform one program. We know you don’t like noisy stuff, so you can just watch from below when the time comes. We’ll go on stage.” Mi Xiaobao grinned at Lian Qiguang. “That’s everyone’s decision.”
“Don’t misunderstand.” Qingyi snorted lightly while sipping her drink. “I’m thinking about the class. I don’t want someone standing stiff on stage and performing a ‘who laughs first loses’ act.”
“Pffft!”
Feng Qingyang failed to hold it in and burst out laughing. He quickly covered his mouth and collapsed onto the desk, shoulders shaking violently.
“Qingyi!” Mi Xiaobao protested.
…
Night had already fallen.
Only a few people remained on the huge sports field.
Wearing only a shirt, Lian Qiguang ran slowly around the track with an expressionless face.
His physical condition still wasn’t good enough.
Too weak.
Without the automatic breathing adjustment from the Longevity Art, he wouldn’t even be able to endure ten laps.
As for abilities, with the crystal cores in his space and the experience accumulated from his previous life, he wasn’t worried.
But physical fitness?
That had to come from his own persistence and effort.
“Xiao Guang.”
A gentle voice filled with cloying affection rang out.
Ji Renlin stepped in front of Lian Qiguang, smiling warmly at him.
As if he hadn’t seen him at all, Lian Qiguang expressionlessly walked around Ji Renlin and kept running forward.
Ji Renlin’s face stiffened.
But he quickly hid it and turned to grab Lian Qiguang, only for Lian Qiguang to sidestep and avoid him.
“Xiao Guang.”
Ji Renlin quickly moved ahead again and blocked Lian Qiguang’s path. His gentle face now carried sadness and grief.
“Xiao Guang, you still refuse to forgive me?”
“……”
Was this guy asking to get beaten up?
“Xiao Guang, before, I didn’t understand my own heart. But actually, I fell for you a long time ago. After you disappeared, I finally realized just how important you were to me. I know I was wrong, Xiao Guang. I shouldn’t have hurt you so much back then. During the time you were gone, I suffered too. I kept looking for you, but I couldn’t find you…”
Ji Renlin looked at Lian Qiguang painfully. Tears gradually welled in his gentle eyes.
Anyone who didn’t know the truth would really think he was a devoted lover.
“……”
Lian Qiguang stared at Ji Renlin expressionlessly.
His silent eyes held no emotion whatsoever.
Was this man sick?
He had already warned him so clearly before, and yet he still came looking to be abused.
“Xiao Guang…”
Seeing that Lian Qiguang remained silent, Ji Renlin assumed he had softened.
Joy flashed through his heart.
Triumph also appeared in his eyes.
He reached out to grab Lian Qiguang’s hand.
A sharp gleam flashed through Lian Qiguang’s eyes.
Just as he was about to draw Qianming and chop off that claw—
A ripple suddenly sliced through the air.
Ji Renlin cried out in pain and staggered back several steps, clutching the back of his hand.
Bright red blood streamed down through his fingers.
Lian Qiguang’s eyes darkened.
He released Qianming inside his spatial storage and looked up.
A young man in black stood on the spectator platform with arms crossed, cold eyes fixed icily on Ji Renlin.
“Qiu Limò.”
Seeing the suddenly appearing young man, Ji Renlin ground his teeth. His eyes filled with venom and hatred.
The young man coldly withdrew his gaze.
His figure flashed—
Then disappeared into the darkness.
From beginning to end, he never once looked at Lian Qiguang.
Lian Qiguang also withdrew his gaze.
He glanced expressionlessly at Ji Renlin, then turned and left.
“Xiao Guang…”
Ji Renlin watched Lian Qiguang leave and wanted to chase after him, but the pain in his hand stopped him.
After thinking for a moment, he left unwillingly as well.
Qiu Limò.
That name sounded familiar.
If he remembered correctly…
That should be the roommate he had never met.