Lian Qiguang did not stop for a moment along the way. His ability recklessly spread in all directions, searching for traces of Xiahou Shao Xuan. The massive output of his ability caused his physical strength to begin failing, while the heaviness in his chest made his mind somewhat hazy.
He had once seen a word in a book: bond.
At that time, he did not understand what it meant. Later, the Little Crown Prince told him that the fates of the two of them had already become entangled together, impossible to cut apart, impossible to sort out. This was their destiny, and that was why it was called being fated to meet—this was a bond.
At that time, he did not refute the Little Crown Prince’s words, but he knew it wasn’t so.
The Little Crown Prince was not his bond.
He obeyed his orders. He had gone through life and death for him. He could even throw away his life for the Little Crown Prince, but he would never develop the same feelings toward the Little Crown Prince as he did toward Xiahou Shao Xuan.
This was not a bond.
It was more like, in the apocalypse, he had found a reason for himself to keep living—a kind of responsibility.
Xiahou Shao Xuan was important to him.
He liked him.
Very much. Very, very much.
He was willing to die for the Little Crown Prince, but he was willing to live for Xiahou Shao Xuan, even if he was in the midst of despair.
He had died and come back to life, crossed three thousand years of time, and met Xiahou Shao Xuan.
To call all of this a coincidence would instead make it seem more like fate.
Xiahou Shao Xuan was his bond.
A bond he could not let go of.
A familiar aura merged into the ability spreading out from Lian Qiguang. His body suddenly stopped, and his eyes turned cold.
Although it was extremely faint, there was no way he could mistake such a familiar aura.
There!!
Lian Qiguang abruptly turned around. His body shot forward like an arrow released from a bow, rapidly rushing away.
Xiahou Shao Xuan was half-kneeling on the ground, a horrifying bloody hole pierced through his abdomen. His writhing internal organs could faintly be seen inside.
Xiahou Shao Xuan raised his head and looked toward the black-clothed man opposite him. It was impossible to say that he was not shocked.
Just now, during their battle, he had clearly struck the man countless times. Even if none of the attacks had been fatal, there was absolutely no way the man should still have been able to stand there unharmed.
Yet the mysterious man before him, aside from his clothes being somewhat tattered, did not even have a single drop of blood flowing from his body.
Was this man even human?
The mysterious man extended his hand.
The black mist in his hand gradually condensed, growing larger and larger until it almost enveloped the man completely.
“Go die.”
The hoarse voice sounded like a vengeful ghost crawling out of hell, filled with a thick scent of blood.
Black mist surged out from the man’s hand and rushed toward Xiahou Shao Xuan.
The ability within Xiahou Shao Xuan’s body was already completely depleted, leaving him unable to condense any more of it.
As he watched the approaching black mist, the image that flashed through Xiahou Shao Xuan’s mind was Lian Qiguang’s expressionless little face.
He was clearly such a foolish person, yet he always said he was a genius.
Without his care in the future, he wondered whether someone would bully him.
“Shao Xuan!!”
A cry of alarm, mixed with terror, suddenly rang out.
The familiar voice made Xiahou Shao Xuan think it was an illusion.
When he raised his head, a Tang saber with faintly dark-red carved patterns flew straight toward him.
Xiahou Shao Xuan’s eyes sharpened. He reached out and caught it, then drew it from its sheath with his other hand.
The black aura dispersed.
The cries of a thousand birds pierced through heaven and earth.
Xiahou Shao Xuan swung toward the incoming black mist.
The two collided.
The black mist dissipated, while the mysterious black-clothed man staggered backward and was thrown several meters away, crashing heavily into a tree trunk.
A muffled groan of pain came from beneath the cloak.
“Shao Xuan!!”
Lian Qiguang rushed to Xiahou Shao Xuan’s side and embraced him.
“Why did you come?”
Xiahou Shao Xuan frowned.
His hand gripping Qianming was trembling slightly.
Qianming was Lian Qiguang’s saber and had always obeyed only Lian Qiguang’s commands.
The reason Xiahou Shao Xuan could draw the saber from its sheath was, first, because of his intimacy with Lian Qiguang, causing Lian Qiguang’s aura to remain on him.
Second, Xiahou Shao Xuan himself was a powerful person, sufficiently qualified to wield Qianming.
If this had happened before, wielding Qianming would not have been difficult.
But now, Xiahou Shao Xuan was injured and his ability was depleted. Qianming was too domineering, with an extremely heavy bloody killing aura.
For a moment, Xiahou Shao Xuan felt as though one of his arms had even lost sensation.
“If I hadn’t come, there wouldn’t even have been a body left for me to collect.”
There was rarely any emotion in Lian Qiguang’s words, but now there was a trace of it.
Lian Qiguang raised his head and looked toward the mysterious man, his brows slightly furrowing, his eyes filled with scrutiny.
“Was it you?”
His cold voice carried faint anger.
Facing Lian Qiguang’s question, the mysterious man remained silent.
But his head lowered slightly, and he subtly pressed down the brim of his cloak.
If the man had remained unmoved, that would have been one thing.
But his obvious attempt to avoid Lian Qiguang caused Lian Qiguang’s heart to slowly sink.
“Get lost!!”
An angry voice mixed with overwhelming fury.
A sea of flames condensed in Lian Qiguang’s hands and crashed toward the man.
“……”
The man dodged and silently watched Lian Qiguang, seeming to carry a trace of nostalgia and sorrow.
“I warn you, if anything happens to him, I will personally butcher you! Get lost!!”
Lian Qiguang was furious.
No one had ever seen him like this.
Not even the Little Crown Prince.
The mysterious man deeply looked at Lian Qiguang before turning and disappearing into the forest.
Lian Qiguang withdrew his gaze and looked toward the horrifying wounds covering Xiahou Shao Xuan’s body.
His lips were tightly pressed together, and his face was somewhat pale.
“Don’t be afraid. I’m fine.”
Xiahou Shao Xuan reached out and rubbed Lian Qiguang’s hair, the corners of his lips gently curving upward.
Lian Qiguang remained silent.
He released his arms around Xiahou Shao Xuan.
Bright emerald-green light swirled around his hands and slowly covered Xiahou Shao Xuan’s body.
Xiahou Shao Xuan only felt his originally agonizing body enveloped by a warm sensation. The pain began to slowly disappear along with the warm current.
Lian Qiguang poured out his ability without the slightest concern for himself, his eyes not blinking once as he watched the wounds on Xiahou Shao Xuan’s body gradually close.
Only when they had completely disappeared did Lian Qiguang release his hands.
His body swayed slightly.
Xiahou Shao Xuan hurriedly reached out and supported him in his arms.
“Saozi.”
“I’m fine.”
Lian Qiguang shook his head.
He took some lake water from the space, handing one cup to Xiahou Shao Xuan and drinking one himself.
Xiahou Shao Xuan naturally knew what this lake water was used for and drank it without hesitation.
In no time, the complexions of both men improved somewhat.
“Are you very tired?”
Seeing that Lian Qiguang’s face was still somewhat pale, Xiahou Shao Xuan felt distressed, while also blaming himself even more for his own incompetence.
“No. I just broke through recently and haven’t had time to stabilize it.”
“Let’s go home.”
“Mm.”
The disappearance of the mysterious man seemed to cause the violent, crazed mutants to suddenly lose their leader.
For a moment, they became chaotic.
Some ran, some fled, and those that could not escape were all slaughtered by the soldiers.
Very quickly, the army gained the upper hand.
The mutants along the boundary of the quarantine zone were completely cleared.
Xiahou Shao Xuan handed command over to Xuan Lang and then took Lian Qiguang back to the base.
Xiahou Shao Xuan brought Lian Qiguang back to the room and arranged for him to rest before going to the command room himself.
After all, the great battle had only just ended, and there were many matters that required him, the highest commander, to arrange.
Furthermore, because of the massive attack by the mutants this time, the protective barrier had also been damaged extensively. It had to be repaired as quickly as possible; otherwise, the barrier would no longer be able to withstand another attack like this.
Therefore, An Yi, who had been on leave, was summoned back by an emergency order from Xiahou Shao Xuan.
Perhaps because he had accumulated too much exhaustion, Lian Qiguang quickly fell asleep after returning to the room.
When he woke again, it was already evening the next day.
“Awake?”
Xiahou Shao Xuan walked in through the door carrying a food container.
Lian Qiguang sat on the bed wrapped in a blanket, staring blankly at Xiahou Shao Xuan. His mind was completely blank, clearly not yet fully awake.
“Hungry?”
Xiahou Shao Xuan walked to the bedside and sat down, reaching out to pinch Lian Qiguang’s little cheek.
Lian Qiguang raised his head and stared blankly at Xiahou Shao Xuan.
Several days of sleeplessness had added several traces of exhaustion to Xiahou Shao Xuan’s face.
“Finished with your work?”
After finally regaining some clarity, Lian Qiguang took the food container.
The rumbling in his stomach made him unable even to bother washing up, and he mechanically shoveled the food into his mouth.
“An Yi is back. I can leave the rest to him.”
Xiahou Shao Xuan reached out and removed a bit of food from the corner of Lian Qiguang’s mouth, unable to hide the smile in his voice.
“Why didn’t you ask me?”
Lian Qiguang shoveled another bite of rice into his mouth. His cheeks were puffed up, like a little hamster stealing food.
Yet he did not raise his head to look at Xiahou Shao Xuan, as if he had merely asked an insignificant question.
“……”
Xiahou Shao Xuan.
“I know that black-clothed man, and I’m very familiar with him. Why didn’t you ask?”
“Do you want to tell me?”
“If you want to hear it, I’ll tell you.”
Lian Qiguang raised his head and calmly looked at Xiahou Shao Xuan.
Xiahou Shao Xuan quietly looked back at him.
After remaining silent for a long time, he reached out and pressed Lian Qiguang’s head down.
“Eat first.”
This meal was unusually silent.
Lian Qiguang silently shoveled food into his mouth, while Xiahou Shao Xuan simply watched him quietly.
Neither spoke.
Neither wanted to speak.
No one knew how much time passed before Lian Qiguang raised his head and handed the clean food container to Xiahou Shao Xuan.
Xiahou Shao Xuan took it and placed it to the side.
Lian Qiguang looked at Xiahou Shao Xuan.
When Xiahou Shao Xuan turned around, Lian Qiguang reached out and embraced him.
“If I don’t tell you, will we no longer be able to be like we were before?”
“……”
Xiahou Shao Xuan.
Lian Qiguang released Xiahou Shao Xuan and seriously looked into his eyes.
“If you really want to hear it, I’ll tell you. Completely. This is my last secret, and also my trump card.”
“If you really don’t want to tell me, then…”
“This story is very long.”
Lian Qiguang interrupted Xiahou Shao Xuan’s words.
He turned and leaned against the headboard, calmly looking out at the blood-red moon outside the window.
“It has to be traced back three thousand years ago. The apocalypse had already begun for twenty years. Only then had humanity learned how to survive, but this wasn’t the end. Rather, the battle between humans and zombies had only just begun.”
“Countless bases were established during the apocalypse. In a medium-sized base, inside a mud hut in the refugee district, a woman became pregnant.
“Who the child’s father was, perhaps even she didn’t know.
“While she was waiting to give birth, the base was attacked by a zombie tide.
“For several days in a row, just as the base was about to run out of ammunition and supplies, this child was born…”
Over the following several hours, Lian Qiguang was like an outsider, calmly recounting his past.
The rise of Lord Darklight.
The sky had already become completely dark.
Because the lights in the room were not turned on, Xiahou Shao Xuan could only rely on the moonlight to see Lian Qiguang’s vague profile, as well as his moving lips as he spoke.
“The final battle.
“Actually, it wasn’t that the Zombie King and I couldn’t survive.
“But he was tired.
“The darkness pressing down upon him made it impossible for him to breathe.
“When the Zombie King died, the apocalypse truly ended.
“He had become accustomed to living in darkness and despair, but if the apocalypse really ended, and this world welcomed light once more, what could he do?
“What reason would he have to continue living?
“The promise he had made to the Little Crown Prince’s grandfather had already been fulfilled.
“This world had never given him anything to be attached to.
“He wanted to escape.
“To escape from this suffocating world.
“So, during the final battle, he chose to die together with the Zombie King.
“Everyone said Lord Darklight was brave and invincible, a hero who had created the world anew, sacrificing his life for humanity.
“Actually, to put it harshly, he simply chose suicide because he wanted to escape.
“He thought everything had finally ended.
“But fate was always so ridiculous.
“When he opened his eyes again, three thousand years had already passed.
“And he was no longer himself.”
The story was finished.
Lian Qiguang looked out the window for a long time, never turning around to look at Xiahou Shao Xuan.
The room was filled with an oppressive silence.
Xiahou Shao Xuan looked at Lian Qiguang’s profile, shock impossible to conceal on his face.
“You…”
Xiahou Shao Xuan’s voice was somewhat hoarse, as if he was unable to accept it for a moment.
His mind, rarely, had gone blank.
“You are…”
Lian Qiguang turned his head and calmly looked at Xiahou Shao Xuan.
“My name in the past was Darklight.
“Code name: Withered Wood.”
“!!!”
Xiahou Shao Xuan.
Darklight!
The savior hero his grandfather, Xiahou Jue, had told him about ever since he was born.
The person he had taken as his example when entering Darklight Military Academy.
The faith in the hearts of countless soldiers.
Darklight…
My Lord…
Looking at the indescribable shock on Xiahou Shao Xuan’s face, Lian Qiguang’s heart slowly began to sink.
Silently, Lian Qiguang got out of bed.
Missing Xiahou Shao Xuan, he walked toward the door.
Such a dark and filthy past—
How could he not be disgusted?
How could he still accept him without being moved?
How could he still treat him well?
For a lifetime, on this road, there was no one left to accompany him anymore.
He was alone again…