“What!!”
A cry of shock came from the conference room. Xiahou Luoyu and Xiahou Jue knocked over their chairs as they abruptly stood up, both hands braced against the table, staring wide-eyed at Xiahou Zhong in utter disbelief. Even Gui Ling, who always wore the same expression, now had astonishment on his face.
“Old man, you said… L-Little Guang is Lord Dark Light? Lord Dark Light from three thousand years ago?” Xiahou Luoyu pointed at Xiahou Zhong with trembling fingers. His heart, liver, spleen, and lungs all seemed to be trembling, and his entire being felt completely out of sorts.
“H-How is this possible?” Xiahou Jue sank heavily into his chair and muttered to himself. “Wasn’t Lord Dark Light already dead three thousand years ago? How could he…”
“Old man!” Xiahou Luoyu swallowed, grabbed Gui Ling’s hand, and barely managed to steady himself as he sat down. “Then Little Guang… is he a human or a ghost now?”
“Nonsense! Of course he’s human!” Xiahou Zhong glared at Xiahou Luoyu with a fierce expression.
“But no matter how you think about it, this is impossible.”
“Could it be that he turned into a monster?” Xiahou Luoyu rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Books seem to say that’s what happens. Some people turn into monsters after they die.”
“What kind of nonsense books do you read all day?!” Xiahou Zhong roared.
“Father.” Xiahou Jue interrupted Xiahou Zhong’s scolding and frowned. “If what you just said is true, then Little Guang is now…”
“Probably in that person’s hands.”
“I just don’t understand. If that’s really the case, and the disaster we’re facing now was brought about by him, then why did he help humanity survive back then and establish the new world?” Xiahou Luoyu asked in confusion.
Xiahou Zhong and Xiahou Jue exchanged a glance and lowered their heads. They were just as full of confusion about this.
Gui Ling looked at the three silent men, ran a finger across his temple, and spoke indifferently.
“Obsessive possession.”
Gui Ling’s words caused Xiahou Zhong and the other two to freeze. They raised their heads and looked at him, exchanging glances.
“What do you mean?”
“Liking someone but being unable to obtain them. If that is the case, then destroy them with your own hands.”
Gui Ling’s voice was cold and husky. His blue eyes shifted toward Xiahou Luoyu. The gloomy, icy gaze sent a chill down Xiahou Luoyu’s back, making him feel extremely uncomfortable. He quickly looked away.
“Marshal!!”
Urgent knocking came from outside the conference room. Xiahou Jue rose and opened the door, frowning slightly as he looked at the soldier outside.
“What is it?”
“General! Marshal!” The soldier saluted. “The Young General has awakened. He is currently heading outside the base. No one can stop him.”
Xiahou Zhong’s heart sank. Knowing that something was wrong, he rose and hurried outside.
By the time Xiahou Zhong and the others arrived, the surroundings were already a complete mess. Soldiers lay scattered across the ground, crying out in pain. Violent lightning-type supernatural power enveloped Xiahou Shaoxuan, while an aura of brutality swept through the area, making all the soldiers afraid to approach him.
“Xiahou Shaoxuan! Stop!”
Xiahou Zhong pushed the soldiers aside and shouted at the rampaging Xiahou Shaoxuan. The overwhelming pressure of the Imperial Rank forcefully bore down on Xiahou Shaoxuan.
The two powers collided.
Xiahou Shaoxuan’s footsteps halted, and he turned to look at Xiahou Zhong.
Seeing Xiahou Shaoxuan’s blood-red eyes, Xiahou Zhong was astonished. He had just used his full strength, yet it had had no effect on Xiahou Shaoxuan whatsoever.
Could it be that this brat’s supernatural ability had advanced again?
Xiahou Shaoxuan looked coldly at Xiahou Zhong, his voice icy enough to pierce bone.
“Give me a spaceship.”
Xiahou Jue stepped forward and said solemnly, “Shaoxuan, I know you’re anxious, but you don’t even know where Little Guang is right now. Even if we give you a spaceship, where can you go?”
“Prepare a spaceship for me right now!”
The lightning-type supernatural power in Xiahou Shaoxuan’s hand slammed into the ground before him. A deep trench appeared between the two, stopping Xiahou Jue from approaching any further.
“You brat!” Xiahou Luoyu’s hot temper flared again. He pointed at Xiahou Shaoxuan’s nose and cursed angrily. “Everyone is extremely worried because Little Guang has disappeared. What good will it do for you to run around blindly? What we need to do now is find a way to locate Little Guang and figure out where he went.”
At this moment, Xiahou Shaoxuan had already fallen into madness. How could he hear what anyone else was saying?
His memories remained fixed on entering the space with Lian Qiguang.
Then he opened his eyes again.
The silence and icy air surrounding him caused his heart to sink, and his entire being fell into panic.
Xiahou Shaoxuan frantically searched for Lian Qiguang, but the people around him only stammered and concealed the truth.
When he accidentally heard news that the zombies had retreated, Xiahou Shaoxuan’s vision instantly went black, and his entire body turned cold.
He had deceived himself.
He was gone…
That realization plunged Xiahou Shaoxuan into despair. The supernatural power within his body began to roar, erupting uncontrollably.
The surging brutality and madness had already destroyed his reason, staining his eyes red.
He had deceived himself.
He had deceived himself…
“Shaoxuan!”
Xiahou Zhong gave a low shout. The pressure of the Imperial Rank once again pressed down mercilessly upon Xiahou Shaoxuan, attempting to forcibly suppress his rampaging supernatural power.
Xiahou Shaoxuan clenched both fists tightly. The veins throughout his body bulged. His blood-red eyes and gloomy, violent supernatural power caused fear to rise in the hearts of the surrounding soldiers, who involuntarily retreated again and again.
The supernatural power within Xiahou Shaoxuan grew increasingly turbulent. Purple lightning spun rapidly around his body, while everything in the surrounding area began to tremble along with his anger.
Xiahou Zhong’s pupils contracted.
“Not good.”
He quickly withdrew his supernatural power and shielded the soldiers around him.
At that moment, Xiahou Shaoxuan suddenly let out an enraged roar.
Accompanied by a thunderous boom, the surrounding buildings collapsed one after another. A domineering force erupted from Xiahou Shaoxuan’s body and swept across the entire area.
The hand with which Xiahou Zhong held up the shield trembled. His face instantly went pale.
Xiahou Jue and Xiahou Luoyu exchanged a glance and immediately gathered their supernatural power to reinforce the shield.
“What are you looking at?! Help!” Xiahou Luoyu glared at Gui Ling and shouted angrily.
Gui Ling calmly withdrew his gaze. His supernatural power swirled in his hand, filling the gap in the shield.
“This is…” Xiahou Luoyu stared at the rampaging Xiahou Shaoxuan, his eyes slowly widening. “An advancement??”
The detection numbers on the light brain continued to jump, increasing in a straight line.
Imperial Rank.
Void Rank…
Breakthrough…
Crack!
A crisp sound rang out.
The light brain in his hand split apart.
Everyone widened their eyes in shock and disbelief. Their heads buzzed, and some even felt dizzy.
Had they just witnessed something without realizing it?
The power surrounding Xiahou Shaoxuan grew stronger and stronger. The shield could no longer withstand such overwhelming force, and dense cracks slowly spread across it.
If this continued, no one would survive.
Xiahou Luoyu swept his gaze across the surrounding soldiers. He gritted his teeth, steeled his heart, and let out a roar that resounded throughout the entire base.
“XIAHOU SHAOXUAN!! If you don’t stop right now, I’ll kill your daughter and son! I’ll make Lian Qiguang hate you to death!!!”
The spaceship had already stopped.
Qiu Limao rose and walked over to Lian Qiguang’s side, saying indifferently, “We’re here. Get off.”
Lian Qiguang, who had been lying against the back of the chair, slowly opened his eyes without saying a word.
“Having come this far, you have no way back.”
Lian Qiguang closed his eyes.
When he opened them again, they were filled with dead, wooden emptiness.
Lian Qiguang stood up and followed Qiu Limao off the aircraft.
Although he had already been mentally prepared, when he truly stepped into District Seven, he still could not help but tremble slightly inside.
Clean streets.
Lush flowerbeds and trees.
Neatly arranged buildings.
Everything—everything—was just like society had been three thousand years ago.
Looking at the crowds moving back and forth along the streets, Lian Qiguang was momentarily dazed.
Everything here reminded him of the world he had once seen in books—the peaceful world before the apocalypse.
“Ouch!”
A cry of pain sounded as a five- or six-year-old girl ran into Lian Qiguang.
Lian Qiguang stiffly caught the child who had crashed into him.
The girl stood upright, raised her adorable little face, and her red eyes curved into crescent moons.
“Thank you, big brother!”
“Sweetie! Sweetie!!”
A woman poked her head out from a window upstairs, anxiously searching through the crowd.
The girl stuck out her tongue at Lian Qiguang and happily ran away.
“Mommy, I’m here!”
Lian Qiguang watched the girl’s retreating figure, the bone-chilling cold still lingering in his hand.
“They are no longer human.”
Qiu Limao spoke indifferently.
Lian Qiguang lowered his eyelids, concealing the emotions in his eyes. His fists, hidden inside his sleeves, clenched tightly. The pain of his fingernails digging into his palms helped him regain his reason.
“Let’s go.”
Qiu Limao gestured and walked ahead.
Lian Qiguang followed behind Qiu Limao, walking along the lively, warm street. Looking at the scenes that had once existed only in books, he felt as though he were trapped in a dream.
Qiu Limao brought Lian Qiguang to an antique-style residence separated from the crowds.
Blue stone flooring, exotic flowers and plants, glazed red tiles—even Lian Qiguang could not help staring.
The residence was enormous, yet there was not a single person in sight.
Perhaps noticing Lian Qiguang’s confusion, Qiu Limao explained, “He doesn’t like noise. Other than him, I’m the only one who can enter this house.”
Qiu Limao brought Lian Qiguang to an exquisite and luxurious room and said indifferently, “Go inside.”
Lian Qiguang looked calmly at Qiu Limao.
“Where is he?”
“I’ll take you to see him tomorrow.”
After saying that, Qiu Limao did not linger. He turned and left.
Watching Qiu Limao’s back, Lian Qiguang remained silent for a moment before entering the room.
The interior was lavishly decorated. Even though Lian Qiguang knew nothing about such things, he could tell at a glance that every item inside was a masterpiece. It was clear how much thought the person who furnished the room had put into it.
But Lian Qiguang had no mood to evaluate any of it.
He missed Xiahou Shaoxuan.
Lian Qiguang walked to a red-rattan rocking chair and sat down. He took a military insignia from his pocket and slowly rubbed it between his fingers.
He did not know what Xiahou Shaoxuan would be like after waking up.
Perhaps he would be sad.
Perhaps he would suffer.
Perhaps he would hate him.
But this was already the final path left to him.
The Little Crown Prince had taken things to the absolute extreme, leaving him no way out.
He had to leave and bring this matter to a complete end.
Lian Qiguang lay down in the rocking chair, curling himself into a ball. He closed his eyes, suppressing the moisture gathering beneath them.
‘Shaoxuan, I want to stay with you for the rest of our lives. I want to wander through the stars with you, free from all restraints. But perhaps that really is nothing more than a dream.’
“He’s here?”
The man dressed in a traditional Chinese tunic stood up and hurried over to Qiu Limao.
His pair of crimson eyes glittered brightly, and his face was filled with childlike delight.
“Yes.”
Qiu Limao nodded indifferently.
“He has already been settled in.”
“Does he like it?”
The man anxiously grabbed Qiu Limao by the shoulders.
“The room I prepared myself—does he like it?”
Looking at the man’s foolish appearance, Qiu Limao silently lowered his eyes and gave a soft hum.
“He… likes it very much.”
“Good. Good. As long as he likes it.”
The man paced around the room helplessly, nervously twisting his hands together.
“It’s been three thousand years. I wonder if Teacher is still as strict as before. I’ve always been afraid of making Teacher angry. Whenever he gets angry, he ignores me. Oh, right! Teacher doesn’t like bright colors. Help me find a set of dark-colored clothes later, or Teacher will scold me.”
“Yes.”
“And comb my hair up too. Teacher doesn’t like…”
“Yes.”
“Oh, right, right! And the shoes. The shoes need to be new too.”
“…Mm.”
………………
Watching the man anxiously pacing back and forth around the room, restless and unable to sit still, Qiu Limao quietly answered every one of the man’s willful requests.
His lowered black eyes concealed his deep sorrow and pain.