In the final battle, Lian Qiguang had never imagined that he would be able to survive. After all, he had been reduced to ashes at the time, without even a scrap left behind.
When he felt pain emerging from the endless darkness, his first feeling was not joy or excitement, but despair. Repeated nightmares made Lian Qiguang feel as though he had returned to the hell of three thousand years ago. He opened his eyes, which were covered in blood, and through his hazy vision, he saw several arrogant figures walking away.
He was Fang Ziyu, an ordinary abandoned child from the Fifth District, four years old. Lian Qiguang learned this from an eight- or nine-year-old boy who had rescued him.
He had returned.
He was still in this world.
This realization filled Lian Qiguang with joy. For the first time, he thanked the heavens. For the first time, he shed tears because of fate.
This body was terribly weak. Now that it was carrying the powerful soul of Lian Qiguang from two lifetimes, it was undoubtedly an even greater burden on this fragile body.
Lian Qiguang understood that, in his current state, forget about leaving the Fifth District—even simply surviving would be more difficult than ascending to heaven.
He had to live, no matter how difficult it was.
He had to become stronger, strong enough that he could enter and leave every corner of Blue Star as he pleased.
Only then could he go find Xiahou Shaoxuan.
The darkness of the Fifth District was nothing worth mentioning to Lian Qiguang, who had truly experienced hell. But now he had neither powerful strength nor a healthy body. If he wanted to survive, it was practically harder than reaching the heavens.
Like an injured beast, he hid in a dark corner, struggling to survive in the cracks of that darkness.
He worked hard to cultivate.
He worked hard to become stronger.
After ten years of bitter endurance, looking at his dirty yet still immature little hands, Lian Qiguang felt as though he were in a dream.
With his current abilities, leaving the Fifth District was no longer a problem.
Yet Lian Qiguang felt a little timid.
He did not know whether this was what he had once read about in books—
The closer one gets to home, the more timid one becomes.
“Daddy!!”
A young girl with neatly cropped hair, dressed in black camouflage, came running toward Lian Qiguang with a cold, expressionless young boy.
The cheerful cry interrupted Lian Qiguang’s deep thoughts.
Lian Qiguang raised his head and glanced at the smiling girl. His cold black eyes softened slightly.
“What is it?”
“Daddy, a batch of new recruits is arriving at Fallen Star today. Let’s go take a look together, okay?”
Looking at Jinghe’s expectant little face, Lian Qiguang remained silent for a moment. He calmly closed the computer in his hands, put it back into his spatial storage, then stood up and picked up the coat beside him, draping it over his shoulders.
“Lead the way.”
“Mm!!”
Jinghe nodded vigorously and happily hugged Lian Qiguang’s arm.
Jingchen silently followed behind Lian Qiguang.
Several times, he raised his head and looked at Lian Qiguang’s expressionless profile. He moved his lips, wanting to say something but hesitating.
Noticing Jingchen’s little movements, Lian Qiguang turned his eyes slightly.
“What do you want to say?”
Lian Qiguang’s question made Jingchen freeze slightly. He quickly turned his face away, hiding the trace of embarrassment in his eyes.
“I…”
After struggling awkwardly for a while, Jingchen cleared his throat uncomfortably and said,
“My ability has broken through again. I’m now at the first level of the Profound Rank.”
“Oh.”
Lian Qiguang nodded woodenly and then said nothing more.
After waiting for praise that never came, Jingchen looked up at Lian Qiguang, only to discover that Lian Qiguang’s gaze was not on him at all.
Jingchen immediately felt miserable and disappointedly lowered his head.
“You did well.”
The wooden, indifferent voice made Jingchen stare blankly.
He abruptly raised his head and looked at Lian Qiguang in astonishment.
Lian Qiguang calmly returned his gaze. In the depths of his dark, cold, lonely eyes, there was a faint trace of tenderness.
Jingchen coughed dryly and withdrew his gaze. He once again returned to his usual cold and resolute iceberg-like expression.
However, the slight upward curve of his lips could not conceal his excellent mood.
Lian Qiguang followed the two of them to the training grounds.
When the soldiers gathered there saw Lian Qiguang, they all saluted him.
Lian Qiguang walked onto the elevated platform and stood beside Xiahou Shaoxuan.
Looking at the neatly arranged soldiers in the distance, his eyes suddenly fixed on two people.
Several traces of surprise appeared on his previously expressionless face.
“You’re here?”
Upon seeing Lian Qiguang, Xiahou Shaoxuan’s normally icy face softened considerably. He reached out and wrapped an arm around Lian Qiguang’s thin shoulders, a smile flashing through his eyes.
“They…”
Lian Qiguang pointed toward two people among the ranks of soldiers.
They were none other than Feng Qingyang and Lan Qi, whom Lian Qiguang had thought were already dead.
“The two of them are graduates this year. Their grades are excellent, and their performance is good. They also volunteered to come here, so I approved their applications.”
Satisfied by Lian Qiguang’s surprise, Xiahou Shaoxuan reached out and pinched Lian Qiguang’s tense little cheek.
“There is also one named Qing Yi. He’s your friend too, right? He didn’t want to join the military, so he left with Little Aunt and went to a mercenary group.”
Recalling all the moments he had shared with that group of people in the past, Lian Qiguang lowered his head, unable to conceal the curve at the corners of his lips.
“They’re still alive.”
“Not just them.”
Xiahou Shaoxuan gently pulled Lian Qiguang into his arms, looking together with him at the group of young, inexperienced soldiers in the distance.
“There are many, many others who survived as well. The historical records call it a miracle, but I don’t think so. Wherever there is life, humanity will never be exterminated.”
“Daddy, I want a hug too!!”
A completely mood-killing voice interrupted the warmth between the two.
Xiahou Shaoxuan’s face darkened.
His entire body radiated coldness as he glared unhappily at the two irritating little brats behind him.
Sensing Xiahou Shaoxuan’s obvious hostility, Jingchen immediately grabbed Jinghe, who was about to pounce forward, and warily watched Xiahou Shaoxuan.
“Jingchen! Jinghe!”
A sharp shout made the two little brats instantly straighten their bodies.
“Present!!”
“Training grounds, ten laps!”
Before Xiahou Shaoxuan could say anything, Lian Qiguang calmly added the punishment.
“Yes!!”
The two little brats immediately ran off and disappeared.
Xiahou Shaoxuan withdrew the coldness from his face and looked somewhat dissatisfiedly at the expressionless Lian Qiguang beside him.
“You feel sorry for them.”
“No.”
Lian Qiguang lightly pushed Xiahou Shaoxuan’s hand away and turned to leave.
“I’m jealous!”
Jealous?
Jealous of whom?
For a moment, Xiahou Shaoxuan could not react.
Ever since Lian Qiguang had come to Fallen Star several years ago, he had never left.
His existence could not be hidden from Xiahou Zhong, and Lian Qiguang had no intention of wasting effort trying to hide it.
Once Xiahou Zhong found out, Xiahou Jue, Guan Ze, Xiahou Yuchi, and Xiahou Luoyu also learned the truth one after another.
Apart from one video call not long after he returned several years ago, Lian Qiguang rarely contacted them.
Lian Qiguang greatly liked this peaceful life he had now.
He also treasured the time he could spend together with Xiahou Shaoxuan.
He did not want to become entangled in all sorts of complicated disputes anymore.
This semi-reclusive life now made him feel at ease.
Lian Qiguang’s fingers rapidly tapped across the keyboard.
As he watched one name after another appear beneath his fingers, perhaps even he himself had not noticed the trace of nostalgia curling at the corners of his lips.
At some point, Xiahou Shaoxuan appeared behind Lian Qiguang.
Looking at the words on the computer screen, Xiahou Shaoxuan gently embraced Lian Qiguang from behind.
“Wife, it’s time to rest.”
“I’ve been back for about five years now, haven’t I?”
Lian Qiguang stopped what he was doing and gazed blankly into the darkness outside the window.
“Mm. Five years, two months, and nineteen days.”
“It’s been that long…”
Lian Qiguang lowered his head and murmured softly.
“Wife, next month is Grandpa’s birthday. Let’s go back and see him together.”
It was the same topic they repeated every year.
Xiahou Shaoxuan was not surprised by Lian Qiguang’s silence.
He had already prepared himself to be rejected, just as he had been in the previous few years.
Unexpectedly, after remaining silent for a long time, Lian Qiguang suddenly nodded and gave a barely audible response.
“Okay.”
Xiahou Shaoxuan froze slightly, looking at Lian Qiguang in his arms in surprise.
Lian Qiguang stood up and returned Xiahou Shaoxuan’s embrace.
Feeling Xiahou Shaoxuan’s warmth and familiar scent, he said softly,
“It’s been five years. It’s time to go back and take a look.”
“If you feel uncomfortable about it, you don’t have to…”
“I don’t feel uncomfortable.”
Lian Qiguang tilted his head and absentmindedly scratched it.
“Let’s go back. Bring Jingchen and Jinghe. Let’s all go home together.”
Gazing at Lian Qiguang’s dazed little face and confirming that he truly felt no reluctance, Xiahou Shaoxuan finally relaxed.
A gentle kiss landed on Lian Qiguang’s soft lips, lingering tenderly.
“Okay. Let’s go home.”
Lian Qiguang raised both arms and wrapped them around Xiahou Shaoxuan’s neck, responding to him with youthful awkwardness.
Feeling the passion of the person in his arms, Xiahou Shaoxuan’s eyes darkened. His powerful arms held Lian Qiguang tightly, as though he wanted to press him into his very flesh and blood.
The gentleness in Xiahou Shaoxuan gradually disappeared, and his movements became increasingly fierce and domineering, aggressively claiming what was his.
One hand roughly tore open Lian Qiguang’s clothes while the other wandered across his thin body.
Lian Qiguang’s eyes were half-closed, his mind completely blank as he helplessly endured Xiahou Shaoxuan’s advances, soft moans escaping his lips.
“Wife…”
“Shaoxuan, this time, can we stay together for the rest of our lives?”
Lian Qiguang wrapped his arms around Xiahou Shaoxuan’s back. His face was flushed, and his beautiful catlike eyes were filled with a thin layer of moisture as he gazed blankly at Xiahou Shaoxuan.
Xiahou Shaoxuan felt a rush of heat in his abdomen, and a fierce fire instantly spread throughout his body.
The corners of Xiahou Shaoxuan’s lips curled upward.
Holding Lian Qiguang tightly, the two fell together onto the bed.
“Of course.”
Xiahou Shaoxuan’s kisses fell repeatedly over Lian Qiguang’s features and neck.
“Wife, I love you. I love you so, so much.”
“I love you too.”
Lian Qiguang curved his lips into a smile and hugged Xiahou Shaoxuan tightly in return.
“Wife, you’re twenty now, right?”
Xiahou Shaoxuan gently bit Lian Qiguang’s earlobe and laughed softly.
“The first time I did it in my previous life, I was eighteen.”
There was a hidden meaning in Lian Qiguang’s words.
“Back then, eighteen was already considered adulthood.”
The flames in Xiahou Shaoxuan’s eyes burned increasingly fiercely.
Noticing the barely perceptible mischievousness in Lian Qiguang’s eyes, Xiahou Shaoxuan narrowed his eyes.
One hand suddenly tightened, fiercely tearing away the last obstruction on Lian Qiguang’s body.
“Wife, you brought this upon yourself!”
“Shaoxuan, this time, I want to stay with you for a very, very long time…”
Inside the dark room, the computer that had been left on continued to flicker with a dim light.
The unfinished words recorded a very, very long story.
An Guang, Lian Qiguang, and Fang Ziyu, who still had a very long future ahead of him.